#I’m a dorm hobbit though

[soliusss]

art school was the best decision I made I think. I have class 3 days a week. 4 days off. Never overwhelmed. Homework is ramping up but I can manage it perfectly well and I still have chill and hobby time. Never felt better. Loving my classes. 3D stuff is really fun for me I feel like I did the right thing I’d be miserable doing anything but art

[oceans-goddess]

Tyler Galpin x Reader Series Pt. 2-- Pizza Shop

Summary: You cross paths with Tyler Galpin again, and he is just as smitten with you as last time-- not that you notice, of course. Enjoy!

Link to Pt. 1

Link to Pt. 3

_______________________________________________________________________

“Y/n, what in the world is that smell?” Your roommate, Lydia, asked as she walked into your shared dorm room. You looked up at her with an apologetic smile and said, “Sorry, I had to spray my plants with neem oil today, and it can smell kind of funny.” Lydia giggled, her watery blue eyes flashing.

“No worries, just open the window, I guess,” she replied, and you started toward the large bay window across from the door. From your bedroom, you could see most of the lake. It rippled in the wind, a glossy blue mirror that invited you to sit down on its banks and stare into it for hours.

“How was your day?” Lydia asked, dropping down onto her bed and looking up at you.

“It was fine,” you answered honestly. It had been about a week since your embarrassing trip to the Weathervane, and you’d desperately hoped that you-- and Tyler-- would both be able to forget about the small garden you’d managed to cultivate at your feet while you were there. “Same old, same old,” you finished, walking back to sit on your bed facing her.

You often smiled inwardly at the shocking difference between your sides of the room. While Lydia’s walls were covered in band posters and framed concert tickets, and her floor was littered with broken drum sticks, scraps of paper, and dirty laundry, your side was covered in plants. Succulents, palms, lilies, marigolds, vines-- you name it. You kept as many plants in your room as possible. Books, loose pieces of paper, and pens were also scattered across your floor and furniture. The room was cluttered, but it was a comforting kind of chaos. Lots to look at, lots to surround yourself with. The room you shared with Lydia felt like a big hug each time you walked in; it was a room full of both of your favorite things.

“Well, if you wanna change it up a bit, a bunch of us are headed to Jericho in a few minutes. You should come!”

You squinted your eyes in suspicion.

“Did one of the dorm parents put you up to this?” you asked, assuming this to be another one of Nevermore’s plans to get you out of your room. Lydia laughed once more.

“Ha! No, I just thought you’d wanna come hang. I know it’s not exactly your thing, but people enjoy hanging out with you, y/n.”

You hesitated for a moment. What if they wanted to go to the Weathervane? You weren’t sure you could face Tyler again after the trouble you’d caused him. What if he kicked you out for making such a mess and leaving him to clean it up? He’d think of you as a classic Nevermore kid: always the problem, never the solution.

“What would we do in Jericho?” you asked quietly. Lydia clapped her hands as though you’d already agreed to join.

“A few of us wanted to hang out at the park, and then we thought we could all meet back up for pizza before coming back to the dorms,” she explained with a proud smile on her face. You pondered the plan, then, going against your gut, said yes, you would come. Lydia hopped off her bed and jumped around excitedly, wooping loudly.

“C’mon, let’s get ready. Ugh, I’m so excited! You’re gonna have a great time, I promise, y/n.”

You could only hope.

_______________________________________________________________________

The group of Nevermore students in front of you chattered the entire walk into town, and you felt like you couldn’t keep up with the conversation. At times, you envied Lydia for her ability to mingle so easily. But you didn’t want to impose, and just shoving yourself into the conversation would be incredibly awkward, you were sure.

That was until Lydia pulled you into the conversation.

“Yeah, y/n just finished that book! Right, y/n? What did you think of The Hobbit?” Your stomach jumped into your throat at the sound of your name being called, but you smiled wide at Lydia.

“Uh, yeah, it was okay. Kinda slow, but a sort of comfortable read. It was cute,” you reported, and Lydia’s siren friend Mina fell into step next to you, telling you about the page she was currently reading.

The rest of the walk was nerve-wracking, but it was a nice change; you weren’t used to talking to anyone other than Lydia and a few others. Once you all reached the park, you, Lydia, and a few others waved goodbye to a group that wanted to check out some of the shops.

“You did great!” Lydia whispered into your ear. “See? You’re a natural. Nothing to worry about with any of them.”

You smiled back at her. “I know, I just-- thank you. For inviting me out. This is great,” you said quietly, hoping she knew you meant it.

The small group of you laid out a large blanket and watched the sun set over the trees just outside of Jericho, laughing and chatting the evening away.

_______________________________________________________________________

“Ugh, I’m starving!” One boy said. He had telekinetic abilities and had run out of gold fish to plop into his mouth without touching, or even looking, at them. You wished you had such mastery over your own power. With every laugh, the wildflowers around you grew a little taller, bloomed a little brighter. And though they were beautiful, it was embarrassing to know that your feelings betrayed you so easily all the time.

“Let’s go find the others and get dinner,” Mina suggested from next to you. The group agreed and gathered their things.

After about twenty minutes, everyone was grouped in front of a busy pizza shop. Inside smelled of garlic and oregano. You couldn’t wait to order.

Once everyone was seated and eating, it was easy to get lost in the commotion. Listening to everyone tell hilarious stories and whine about homework put you at ease-- why hadn’t you tried this before?

Then, as you got up to grab some napkins from the counter, you were suddenly reminded why:

“Uh, hey, y/n,”

You jumped and turned at the sound of your name, only to meet eyes with Tyler. Red-orange marigolds immediately began to spring up from inside your socks.

“Hi, Tyler,” you breathed, and then you quickly put your hands up, as if to surrender.

“Listen, I am so so so sorry I left such a mess at your shop. It was a mis--”

“Hey, don’t worry about it. It was actually very impressive,” the brunet said gently with a smile on his face. He was looking at you calmly, but you felt pressured by his gaze and swept your eyes across the room. Moss spread over the stack of napkins you held, and though you hardly noticed, Tyler watched it grow in amusement.

“Those are your friends?” he asked, looking up at the other Nevermore students. You nodded.

“Well, sort of. They are my roommate’s friends. They invited me out for dinner,” you explained, your eyes still not meeting his.

“That’s cool of them. I’m here with my friends too,” Tyler said, motioning behind him to a few boys sitting quietly in a red booth. All you could do was smile, unsure of what to say.

“Y’know,” he began, shoving his hands into his pockets and shifting his weight a bit. You raised your eyebrows and tried to look at him how he was looking at you, but with the way he was looking at you, all you could manage was to train your eyes on his collar.

“I was sorta hoping you’d come back to the Weathervane, but it’s been a while. I hope my hot chocolate didn’t suck too bad,” he finished with a laugh, but your ears were practically ringing; he had been hoping you would come back to the Weathervane? You were in such shock that you didn’t even have the sense to stomp at the lobelias sprouting at your heels.

“Oh, I’m-- I’m so sorry, the hot chocolate was great, really great,” you spluttered. He grinned, and finally you plucked up the courage to look him in the eyes. They were soft, his dark brown irises captivating. 

“Great,” he said softly, “then maybe I can make it for you again soon.”

Soon?! The purply-blue lobelias shot up and wrapped around your shins tightly. He wanted you to come back soon! Tyler wanted yo--

“Hey, y/n, can you grab me a few of those napkins while you’re over there?” one redheaded girl called from your table across the room. The sudden distraction from your excitement-- and the stunted growth of the plants at your feet-- was a relief.

“Uh, sure thing,” you called back, and grabbed a few more napkins from the stack.

“I shouldn’t keep you. Have a good night, y/n,” Tyler said, the moment over. You hated yourself for getting so caught up in conversation with the boy, but the emotion ebbed when he smiled at you one more time.

“Um, yeah, thanks, Tyler,” you said slowly, shooting back an awkward smile before shuffling back over to your table. Setting down the napkins for everyone, you shifted your gaze to Lydia, who wiggled her eyebrows at you as if to say, Who was that???

You smiled sheepishly, knowing that you were in for quite the interrogation when you got back to the dorm.

[thesolarangel]

A touch of cinnamon and spice

Chapter 4

summary: Our boys awkwardly talk about their feelings.

3.569 words · Rated: EXPLICIT · Please read the updated tags on AO3!

Notes: Sorry, I totally forgot to mention this before: Robin and Steve are roommates! Also, Steve doesn’t know what D&D is! For the sake of this fic I will ignore the fact that they normally wouldn’t have their own bathroom at their dorm room. In case you didn’t know: putting a sock on the outer doorknob of a room means “Don’t come in, we’re doing spicy stuff!”

Read on AO3 here

Chapter 4 · November 6th 1987 

“Hey, I’m back!”

Jonathan shut the door and threw his backpack onto his bed.

“Hmm.” Eddie made a noise of acknowledgment but didn’t look up from his book. Not even his favorite story had managed to cheer him up, even though he had loved reading “The Hobbit” since he was a kid. Instead, he was staring at the sketch he had made of Steve, which he had kept between the pages… 

“Listen, you should come to the game with me.” Jonathan sounded determined. 

“Huh?” Eddie turned his head to see if Jonathan was joking. Football? Really? He wasn’t a fan of sports and Jonathan knew that.

“I just think some fresh air would be good for you… And to focus your mind on something else for a change…” Jonathan shrugged. 

Eddie frowned. It hadn’t even been a whole week since the halloween party. He had a hard time shaking off the memory of the kiss. Steve’s soft lips against his own and the fireworks in his chest… And the dreadful scene that unfolded in front of him afterward.

Since then, Eddie had run into Steve a few times in the halls or the cafeteria. He had tried to talk to him, but Eddie had bolted every single time. He had taken notice of Steve’s worried face, but he wasn’t interested in what he had to say. Eddie was still hurting and it was embarrassing. He shouldn’t care so much about a guy he kissed once. So he chose to mope about it in his dorm room and avoid leaving whenever he could.

“I gotta take some pictures for the school paper”, Jonathan went on as he prepared his camera with a new film, cleaned the lens, and stuck it into his camera bag. “You could tag along?”

“Ugh, alright.” Eddie sighed as he got up from his bed and stretched his back. “I guess I don’t have anything better to do anyway.”

…

The moment he stepped outside, Eddie regretted it. He had only thrown his leather jacket over his hoodie when he had left the dorm.

It had been an especially uncomfortable November day. The weather was grim and cold, large dark gray clouds were covering the sky. He pulled the hood over his unruly hair which helped a bit to keep the wind from his neck and face.

Unsure about how this could change his already miserable mood, Eddie grumpily accompanied Jonathan to the football field.

Jonathan took his place at the side of the field, all the way down the bleachers whereas Eddie was walking up a few steps, looking for a free seat. Despite the weather, it was very crowded since it was the last game of the season. 

“Hey, Eddie!” A familiar voice called his name.

Oh no.

Equipped with a dark blue coat and a burgundy scarf, Steve was sitting a few rows ahead. He was giving Eddie a small reluctant smile and offered the free seat beside him. His usually neatly styled hair was a little messy, due to the relentless fall wind. 

Eddie felt his shoulders tense up.

Just be casual, Munson. Like he didn’t consume your thoughts for the last few weeks.

“Hey,” Eddie said as his cheeks blushed slightly with embarrassment. He sat down, hands in his pockets, pretending to follow the game to avoid Steve’s view. Their college’s team had just scored a touchdown and everyone was cheering around them. Colorful banners and big foam fingers flew through the air as they shouted their team’s anthem.

After a while, Steve spoke up carefully: “Um, so I wanted to ask you… why did you leave the party so suddenly?”

Here we go.

“You seemed busy flirting with someone else, so I thought it was better if I left,” Eddie answered dryly. His shoulders felt tight as he waited for the impending rejection. 

“I wasn’t flirting though.” 

“Huh?” Eddie raised his eyebrows at him.

“I was catching up with some friends I hadn’t seen in a while. And when you were gone, I was so confused.” Steve said softly. “I was genuinely looking forward to meeting up with you again…” 

“Oh…” Something inside Eddie began to stir with hope. This was not what he had expected. 

Steve awkwardly scratched the back of his head. “I, um… I thought we had a moment that night.” And now it was him blushing and not looking at Eddie. “Sparks, fireworks, whatever you wanna call it…”

Eddie stared at his feet, letting his long curls fall into his face, hopefully concealing his flushed cheeks. He had to wrap his head around what he had just heard, but Steve sounded honest. After all, he could have just ignored Eddie and moved on, but here he was, talking to him, clarifying what had happened. It had all been a big misunderstanding.

“We did have a moment…” He glanced over at Steve, lips curling into a soft smile.

“So… are we good?” Steve asked, playfully bumping his shoulder into Eddie’s.

“We’re good, Stevie.” Eddie let out a huffed laugh. He sat upright again, relief flooding his body and he felt his shoulders relaxing. “Damn, now I wish I had stayed.”

“There’s always next time if you want.” Steve gave him a charming smile and their eyes locked.

One day Eddie’s heart was gonna jump out of his chest at how beautiful Steve was. He looked at him with kind eyes and this stupid grin on his face. 

What did I get myself into… he’s so pretty…

…

They watched together as Steve made a few comments about the course of the game. Eddie nodded along, pretending to understand the football lingo, but it gave him an excuse to look at Steve’s handsome face.

“So, how come Robin isn’t with you? The two of you seemed pretty inseparable.” Eddie asked, eager to find out more about Steve’s life.

“She’s currently at our dorm with her girlfriend, Nancy, the girl that you saw at the party,” Steve explained. “Also full disclosure, Nancy and I used to date in high school, but that didn’t work out, and now we’re friends.”

Their team scored another goal and the audience around them roared. 

“Honestly I have no idea what’s going on down there!” Eddie chuckled and gestured towards the field.

“Then why are you still here?” Steve laughed.

“It’s the excellent company for me, Stevie” Eddie smirked.

…

Eddie felt a few raindrops fall onto his nose and cheeks and he looked up at the sky. It had started to drizzle, but the dark clouds in the distance looked very ominous.

Those who were thoughtful enough to bring umbrellas and raincoats were fine, but Eddie groaned as his jeans and hood slowly got drenched.

What started as a light shower that was easy to handle, quickly developed into massive rainfall with heavy gusts of wind. Down on the field, the players kept slipping and losing their balance on the soaked lawn due to poor visibility from the rain and wind. 

At first, the announcer reported that they were keeping the game going, hoping the rain would subside soon. But with time, the injuries kept piling up and several players of each team had to be taken off the field to be treated by the paramedics. The breaking point was when one of the quarterbacks had hurt his ankle so badly, they believed it to be broken.

Once again, the announcer’s voice roared from the speakers: “That’s it, folks, we’re gonna have to pick this up another time! Please get inside safely and don’t rush!”

Steve nudged Eddie in the side: “Let’s go!”

…

Back inside, Eddie took off his hood and rubbed his hands together. He was completely drenched and freezing and Steve didn’t seem to have gotten away any better despite his winter coat.

Steve looked like a sad, wet puppy: Big eyes, hair deflated, wet strands hanging in his face, rain dripping from the tip of his nose.

“Are you okay?” Eddie chuckled, the sight that Steve presented was just too cute.

“I can’t go back to my dorm…” Steve let out a groan of frustration.

“Why not?”

“Robin has invited Nancy over to our room.” He glanced over at Eddie. “We have a deal: I watch the game, they can have some alone time…” 

“Ooh.” 

Steve looked at his watch. “I have like 2 more hours to kill at least”, he said with a frown.

“You can come to my dorm”, Eddie offered. “I can help you warm up”, he added with a cheeky smirk.

“You’re ridiculous”, Steve laughed but followed Eddie to his dorm room.

…

Eddie lent Steve some sweatpants, a faded Metallica shirt and showed him to the bathroom where he could get changed.

Meanwhile, he threw his own wet clothes on the radiator, slipped into comfy pajama pants, a Black Sabbath shirt, and then frantically tried to clean up the place. Once he was done, it was still a mess, but he hoped Steve wouldn’t pay much attention to it.

“Thanks for the change of clothes, I already feel so much better”, Steve said, stepping out of the bathroom. He was rubbing his hair dry with a towel which made the already very small shirt ride up at his waist and expose a gorgeous dark trail of hair from his bellybutton to the rim of the sweatpants. 

“No problem…” Eddie’s voice trailed off as he glanced at Steve’s exposed skin and the way his shirt stretched over his pecs and biceps. 

Steve put both hands on his hips and let his gaze wander around Eddie’s side of the room. Posters of his favorite bands, like Metallica, Judas Priest and DIO, magazine cutouts and a few concert tickets were plastered all over the wall. A large banner that said CORRODED COFFIN in black and red distorted letters had been hung in the middle. An acoustic guitar was placed next to the TV at the foot of his bed.

“Corroded Coffin is your band, right?” Steve asked and pointed to the banner.

“Yeah“, Eddie answered, delighted that he remembered the name. 

“I’d love to hear you guys play someday.”

“I’m gonna convert you to a true metal fan, just so you know.”

“We’ll see about that”, Steve laughed.

Next, he wandered over to Eddie’s cluttered desk in the corner. It was covered with drawings, weirdly shaped dice, pencils and books. He picked up one of his books and raised an eyebrow.

“Dungeons and Dragons, huh? Sounds kinky…”

Eddie snorted. “Right…” 

Steve sat down on Eddie’s bed, stretched out his legs and put the towel around his neck.

“Do you wanna watch a movie?” Eddie asked. He was happy to see that Steve had already made himself comfortable on his bed. “Here”, he took his blanket and threw it over Steve’s legs.

“Thanks. Do you have Star Wars?”

Eddie’s face lit up, excited that Steve was a fan, too. He went over to his stack of VHS tapes next to the TV. “Sure, which one do you wanna watch?”

“The one with the teddy bears,” Steve replied with a confident grin.

“Really, Steve?” Eddie rolled his eyes at him.

“What?” Steve shrugged. 

“You’re lucky, you’re cute”, Eddie commented while looking for the right tape.

The characteristic Star Wars intro blared from the speakers. The bright yellow writing on the starry sky slowly floated over the screen, introducing the premise of the story. Eddie sat down on the bed next to Steve, who, without saying a word, lifted the blanket and Eddie snuck under it with him.

Smiling to himself, Eddie felt himself buzzing with excitement on the inside. He was ready to take it slow, but he also really wanted to kiss Steve again… 

Throughout the movie, Steve kept asking random questions like “Who’s that old guy again?” and commented “I have no idea what’s going on…” when the rebels around Han, Leia and Luke met up to discuss their plan to bring down the empire.

“I thought you’ve seen this before?” Eddie laughed, but Steve just shrugged.

Eddie shifted in his seat and sneakily scooted a little closer to Steve, snuggling against his side. They were practically cuddling by now and Eddie felt the energy shifting slightly as Steve leaned into the touch. 

“Han Solo is so hot”, Steve remarked about thirty minutes into the movie. 

“Dark cheeky rebels do it for you then, huh, Stevie?” Eddie teased.

“Maybe”, Steve whispered and suddenly there was a broad hand on Eddie’s thigh, giving it a little squeeze. His heart started beating faster. They were so close… Breathing in Steve’s wonderful sweet scent and gazing deep into his longing eyes made Eddie feel warm all over. 

Steve’s gaze dropped to his lips. “Can I kiss you?”

“Next time sure is here faster than I thought”, Eddie gave him a cocky grin.

“Shut up”, Steve laughed and pulled him into a soft kiss. 

The way Steve kissed him was exhilarating, Eddie felt like fireworks were bursting in his chest. He tilted his head and kissed him back impatiently while tugging on his waist to get him to come closer. Steve climbed into Eddie’s lap, both of his legs on either side of Eddie’s. He was met with Eddie’s arms wrapping around him immediately. 

“For the record, it’s called Return of the Jedi...”, he mumbled between kisses.

“Hmm?” 

“The movie. Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi”

Steve looked at him confused and with kiss swollen lips and flushed cheeks. “Is this your idea of making me swoon?” He asked with a huffed laugh.

Eddie grinned and sealed their mouths again. Steve’s fingers wandered into his hair and started drawing patterns into the nape of his neck, sending shivers over Eddie’s sensitive skin. 

They made out with the movie still playing behind them, neither of them paying attention. When Eddie playfully bit into Steve’s bottom lip, then licked over it apologetically, Steve suddenly let out a small moan. 

Eager to find out what other sweet sounds Steve would make, Eddie did it again, this time biting a little rougher. Steve let out another soft noise of pleasure.

“Eddie…”, he whispered and then his lips were on Eddie’s again, kissing him hungrily. “Eds… I really like you…” Steve said in a low voice, rolling his hips slowly in Eddie’s lap.

“Would be strange if you hated me since you’re in my lap and…” he teasingly grinded his hips upwards and Steve let out a choked whimper “...hard.”

“You don’t seem unaffected by this yourself…” Steve licked his lips and gazed at Eddie from under his long lashes. Experimentally, he drove his hips down harder.

“Stevie…” Eddie groaned and his hands moved to grip Steve’s hips, guiding his motions. 

“God, you’re so hot, why are you so hot…” Steve was almost slurring his words between kisses and driving his hips down into Eddie’s crotch.

Eddie answered by pulling Steve into a filthy kiss, greedily sliding his tongue inside his mouth, earning him another moan. His hand found its way under Steve’s, well, his t-shirt and brushed over his nipple. The lewd noise that Steve made went right to Eddie’s dick. Something hungry was building up in his belly, yearning for more.

“You’re driving me insane, you know that?” Eddie growled against Steve’s hot skin while kissing down his neck, licking and biting gently. “Lie down for me, okay?”

“Okay…” Steve let Eddie maneuver him until he was lying on his back, splayed out, letting his legs fall open for Eddie to fit snugly between them. But instead, Eddie got up.

“Hang on a second…” he said, grabbed one of his socks from the floor and put it on the outer doorknob of the room.

“Woah, you have high hopes”, Steve chuckled and raised an eyebrow at him. 

“Well, Stevie, I’d say that’s entirely your fault, laid out like this on my bed, looking like a snack!” Eddie just shrugged and laid on top of Steve and kissed him again before he could say anything else about the sock on the door.

“I still wanted to tell you… at the party, hmm” Steve broke off mid-sentence as Eddie was attacking his neck with wet kisses. “You looked so hot… the eyeliner and no shirt, just the jacket… I couldn’t stop staring at you.” 

“You’re one to talk, I wanted to rip that tiny white shirt right off… that chest hair, lemme see, please?” Eddie was tugging at his shirt and Steve sat up so Eddie could take it off.

Eddie immediately buried his face in Steve’s beautiful chest hair. Steve was all broad and hairy, whereas Eddie was more on the lean side and just sported a few hairs on his own chest. Steve’s tanned skin was peppered with moles all over his torso like little kisses and Eddie was determined to find every single one and kiss it himself.

He let out a pleased sigh and began to trace the shape of Steve’s pecs and gently took his nipple into his mouth. He flicked his tongue over it, then the other one, making Steve squirm under his touch.

“Ahh oooh, Eds!” Steve bucked up his hips. 

Eddie came up again to kiss him and rubbed his crotch back against Steve’s whose hands flew to Eddie’s butt, squeezing, spurring him on to give him that delicious friction.

“Steve…” Eddie purred over him and propped himself up on his elbows, stroking with one hand through Steve’s hair that stood up messily from his forehead. “Stevie, baby” he whispered again to get his attention.

“Yeah?” Steve looked utterly ravaged, blinking up at Eddie, trying so hard to concentrate. Eddie knew he was close, he felt it and saw it in his gaze.

“As much as I’d love to mindlessly hump you, Stevie, these are my last clean pants. The ones you’re wearing and mine.”

Steve let out a small frustrated groan. “So what do you propose?”

“Good old-fashioned handjob?” Eddie suggested with a grin.

“I’m up for that” Steve smiled. “But first, take this off please, I wanna see you, too” he pulled on Eddie’s shirt and slid it over his head.

“You have more tattoos!” Steve’s eyes went wide as he traced the tattoo on Eddie’s chest with his fingers.

“I do,” Eddie chuckled. “Planning on getting more, too.”

“Hot…” Steve said in a low voice as he admired Eddie. He reached up to cup his jaw and dragged him down into another kiss.

Eddie helped Steve tug down his sweatpants and underwear as well as his own. He felt his excitement grow upon seeing Steve’s heavy cock again, this time hard and up close. 

His mouth began to water. Another time maybe…

“Here, let me”, Steve offered as he wrapped his broad hand over both of their shafts. Eddie moaned loudly when Steve began to slowly pump his hand, using their precum to ease the glide. 

“Steve… oh god”, Eddie rocked into his hand.

“Feels good?” Steve’s voice sounded rough and filthy. Eddie felt the blood rush through his veins.

“Yeah… you’re amazing” Eddie whimpered shakily. “I’m close, Stevie.”

Steve gently rubbed his thumb over the sensitive underside of his swollen cockhead, taking Eddie by surprise and with a sudden cry, he spilled across Steve’s stomach. Encouraged by this and Eddie’s wrecked noises, Steve moved his hand faster and soon he was shooting his own big load onto his tummy and watched it mix with Eddie’s.

Both of them were breathing heavily. Eddie bent down to give Steve a tender kiss. “I like you, too, you know… In case you didn’t know already.” Steve gave him a stunning smile, eyes gleaming, cheeks pink. Eddie peppered a few more kisses to the corner of his mouth and his cheeks. 

After cleaning themselves up, they cuddled up under the blanket again. They watched the rest of the movie while laughing, kissing, enjoying each other’s company and eventually Eddie asked: “Do you wanna stay here tonight?” 

Steve was sitting in his lap again, with his back to Eddie’s chest, Eddie’s arms around him. “Don’t you think Jonathan will be back at some point?” 

“I’m pretty sure he’ll just go over to Argyle’s and sleep there”, Eddie replied and gave him a suggestive look. “With the sock still on the door…”

“I guess I can stay then.” Steve smiled.

“Awesome! Let’s order some food and then… How about The Lost Boys next?” Eddie grinned.

…

Jonathan had been at the photo lab after the football game had been canceled and was now making his way back to the dorm. It was already dark out and he wanted nothing more than to lie down with a good book. As he approached his dorm, he noticed a white tennis sock hanging on the doorknob and he stopped in his tracks.

He did see Eddie and Steve sitting next to each other on the bleachers and he had hoped they’d talked things through. So hopefully it was them in there… talking.

He grinned to himself and turned around.

Jonathan knocked on the door, heart racing in his chest as he clutched his bag and waited.

The door swung open and Argyle, long dark hair flowing over his shoulders, stood in the doorframe. His face lit up once he saw it was Jonathan.

“Hey!”

“Hi,” Jonathan smiled shyly. “My dorm is occupied tonight, can I stay with you?”

“Absolutely, come on in!”

tag list: @starlady66 @fenharel-enaste @queenmeriadoc @elronds-pointy-ears @hbyrde36 @hammity-hammer @corrodedbisexual @spoookysix @rozzieroos @cranberrymoons

devider by @firefly-graphics

[phanfictioncatalogue]

Cuddles (8) Masterlist

part one, part two, part three, part four, part five, part six

a new state of mind (ao3) - sunflowerwitches

Summary: the morning of dan's thirtieth birthday

A Sleepless Night With Phil (ao3) - Not_Dans_Secret_Account

Summary: A jet-lagged Sleepless Night With Phil

and they were (not) roommates (ao3) - dakogutin

Summary: dan wakes up in the hufflepuff dorms

Come home (ao3) - minev

Summary: Domestic, so beautifully domestic. It's the simple things in life. The dancing on the balcony, the kissing in front of the Christmas tree, the cuddles from behind and doing the washing together. These things make life so enjoyable. Sometimes the simple things in life make you realise why you’re still living.

comforts of home (ao3) - possumdnp

Summary: Dan and Phil always feel cozy and content when they visit the north. Especially after it’s been almost two years.

(Or, them snuggling in Phil’s parents’ guest room bed and reflecting on life.)

do you feel it too? (ao3) - heartsopenminds

Summary: A bad break-up has left Phil scared of getting his heart broken again. He’s not ready to date, but he’s missing the easy affection of a long-term relationship.

Cuddle therapy might be the perfect way to get what he needs, with no strings attached. But what happens when that’s no longer enough?

go your own way (I'd give you my world) (ao3) - itsmyusualphannie (itsmyusualweeb)

Summary: “I’m Dan,” said Dan.

Phil could not look away from him. He thought that Dan was probably the prettiest boy he had ever seen. “I’m Phil,” he said back, because it was polite to introduce oneself to people, otherwise they would remain a stranger. “Phil Lester.”

And so they became friends.

or: a Forrest Gump AU where Phil slowly falls for his best friend as the years go by, but Dan loses himself to the world and his past.

good things (ao3) - lyricallyharley

Summary: Dan can't sleep, so he indulges Phil in some late night cuddles and a little game.

Hold me in the darkness (ao3) - Archive (Curlylinguist)

Summary: Even after the move, Dan still gets anxiety dreams about Norman. Fortunately, as always, Phil is there to comfort him.

It's home (ao3) - Tarredion

Summary: A day in the life of Dan and his smitten ice-cream vendor boyfriend Phil, living on the coast of Connemara, Ireland

Lazy Cuddles (ao3) - intoapuddle

Summary: a fic based on the lazy days comic by usagi!

Of Racing Hearts and Weighted Blankets (ao3) - hygge

Summary: Phil wakes up with anxiety coursing through his body and finds that Dan is a pretty good weighted blanket.

Other (ao3) - philsmeatylegss

Summary: Phil’s journey of being gay except it’s completely made up by me

soft (ao3) - sierraadeux

Summary: Phil still can't really believe how soft the material of his Tarot shirt is. He can't really believe how good it looks on Dan.

Together Again (ao3) - LivingVicarioslyThroughDaydreams

Summary: This is Dan’s moment, and Phil is more than happy to let him have this time. So when Dan calls every night, gushing with energy and excitement, Phil doesn’t tell him how he wants to be with him, how he misses him so much. He only smiles and laughs along and tells Dan how proud of him he is.

But now Dan is coming home, back to him. He almost feels selfish with how excited he is. Today though, he’ll allow it. Dan has had his time to find himself, but today: today will be just for them. Together again.

(Phil's perspective on missing Dan and being reunited with him)

We balance each other out on the seesaw of life (ao3) - natigail

Summary: Phil had dragged Dan to Isle of Man after his return home from tour. The sea air would do him good (even if it gave him hobbit hair) and he could be surrounded by Phil's family (who were his family too). He hadn’t actively planned to drag him onto a seesaw on a playground but it turned out to be a precious moment all the same.

Welcome home! (never leave that long again) (ao3) - natigail

Summary: Dan comes home from tour and stumbles right into Phil’s arms. He is more touch starved than he’d realised.

When Jokes Go Too Far (ao3) - blissedoutphil

Summary: "i hate men but i want them to touch me"

- actual Dan on twitter

so this fic is based on that lmao

When You Leave Me (I'm Not Going Anywhere) (ao3) - fisshhhh

Summary: Sometimes the thoughts are just too much. Sometimes Dan breaks. Sometimes he finds himself drowning on the kitchen floor, unwilling to ask for help and too insecure to think that anyone would want to help him anyway. Luckily, Phil loves him.

Set in 2009 or early 2010, shortly after they met.

Basically, Dan has a panic attack and Phil is there for him. A little dark but with a fluffy ending.

[gilmoremovies]

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

Date Watched: 11th February 2023

Referenced in: 3x19, 4x03, 4x15, 5x19 and Fall

Rating:  ★★★★☆ 

This review will be a little more disjointed as I’m writing it while I watch...

They’re taking the Hobbits to Isengard!! Just like in the first film, I love Gimli’s one liners.

Did you know... the actor playing Aragon actually broke his toe in that scene...bet ya didn’t know, bet ya. Also love Smeagol vs Gollum - Stupid Fat Hobbit! All these lines are getting the Song (youtube link here) stuck in my head again!

I remember being more invested in Aragorn and Arwen but maybe that’s because I first watched this when I was younger and more gooey. I bought a new set of DVD’s to watch this too and I can finally actually watch the Wolves of Isengard Orc battle when Eowyn takes the villagers away, my old DVD used to glitch here and the only way to fix it would be skip the entire scene!

I love the Ent scenes with Merry and Pippin, though sometimes the green screen is glaringly obvious. Generally the CGI is pretty good for it’s time though!

I enjoyed all the battle scenes, they never go on for toooo long.

Nice lil meta bit at the end too.

(Other GG Movies I’ve watched so far)

(Full references under the cut)

3x19, Keg! Max! Kyle describes scenes from the film MARSHALL: Hey, Lane. There's some guy looking for you. LANE: Good, where? KYLE: Oh, oh, and the part where Gimli the Dwarf is riding his horse, then Legolas grabs the front straps and swings himself up on top of it. RICK: Dude, dude, that was awesome!

4x03, The Hobbit, the Sofa, and Digger Stiles (2003) Title reference and Lorelai and Sookie cater a Lord of the Rings themed party. A poster for the film can be seen. LORELAI: [answers phone] They burnt my fries, forgot to give me an extra side of barbecue sauce, the jeep is making that crunchy sound again, and I have to spend my evening making elf ears for Aaron Thompson’s Lord of the Rings party. RORY: Grandma broke into my dorm and redid the entire common room in $25,000 worth of furniture and stereo equipment. LORELAI: You win.

LORELAI: Okay, we’ve got costumes, we’re got cutouts, we’ve got rings, ladies and gentlemen. We’ve got fairy necklaces, we’ve got tree heads. I’m picking up table decorations tomorrow. Oh, do you need me to order a Lord of the Rings cake? SOOKIE: The cake is under control.

LANE: Hey. Okay, so I’ve scoured the entire store and here’s what we got. LORELAI: Hit me. LANE: Horn of Gondor, Legolas’ bow, and a cape. LORELAI: Cape for who? LANE: There’s 4,000 people in that movie who wear capes - you can’t pick one? LORELAI: Wow, you’re crabby. […] LORELAI: Leave the horn, the bow, and the bill.

LORELAI: No, seriously, give me the ring. ROGER: No way. LORELAI: Five bucks. ROGER: No. LORELAI: Just let me hold it. ROGER: Forget it. LORELAI: Come on, I promise I’ll give it right back, my precious. I mean, Roger. ROGER: You’re crazy. LORELAI: What? You’re the one with the pointy ears, my friend.

REDMOND: I want to be Legolas. RILEY: I want to be Gimli. REDMOND: I want to be Gimli, too. LORELAI: Okay, two Gimlis coming up. BOY: Lorelai, my hood is loose!

LORELAI: Hey, love, guys. Love, okay? Lord of the Rings is all about the love. BOY: Nuh uh, it’s about the destruction of all mankind. LORELAI: And who doesn’t love that?

GIRL: Riley said only boy hobbits can travel to Mount Doom. Is that true? LORELAI: In the movie, only boy hobbits travel to Mount Doom, but that’s only because the girls went to do something even more dangerous. GIRL: What? LORELAI: Have you ever heard of a Brazilian bikini wax?

SOOKIE: Well, I better get in the kitchen. LORELAI: All right, because it’s coming up on elevenses and the hobbits are hungry, right?

SOOKIE: They’re paper. LORELAI: Yes, they are. SOOKIE: And there’s monsters on them. LORELAI: No, they’re Lord of the Rings characters, which is rather appropriate since this is a Lord of the Rings party.

4x15, Scene in a Mall Lorelai imitates Gollum and quotes the film, using a pair of Manolo Blahnik shoes as her "precious." ‘My Precious’ is what Gollum calls the Ring. EMILY: These Manolo Blahniks would look great on you. LORELAI: [imitating Gollum] Oh, me wants them, my precious. RORY: You told me to resist. LORELAI: Yeah, but that's before I saw these. These are works of art. They should be in the Louvre.

5x19, But I’m a Gilmore! (2005) Lorelai complains about “that Frodo being on every channel” while flipping through TV channels. [Luke and Lorelai relax on the couch. Luke is nearly asleep. Lorelai flips through channels on the T.V.] LORELAI: Does it seem like Frodo is on every fricking channel to you, or is it just me? LUKE: God, I have never been this tired. LORELAI: Aw. You were one hell of a white knight today, baby. LUKE: Yes, I’m a regular Lancelot.

A Year in the Life" Fall (2016)  Rory says that Dean "had a disturbing obsession" with the trilogy. RORY: You had a disturbing obsession with Lord of the Rings...you did a terrible Smeagol impression. DEAN: It was not terrible. It was pretty damn good. There were hand gestures.

[rosepetalsinwinter]

Meant to Be — Bucky Barnes (2)

Chapter 2 — Nathan Acosta

Pairing: mafia!bucky x innocent!reader

Word count: 8,273

Summary: Our stalker is getting bolder. Will he finally get what he wants?

Warning: slight substance abuse

Note: Not my best work. I apologize in advance.

Ao3│Wattpad│Ko-fi

Main Masterlist│Series Masterlist│Series Playlist

Chapter 1 — Chapter 2 — Chapter 3

“Yet each man kills the thing he loves, By each let this be heard, Some do it with a bitter look, Some with a flattering word, The coward does it with a kiss, The brave man with a sword!”

— Oscar Wilde

April 23, 2018

“You’re smiling like a dork.” A masculine voice interrupted the girl’s fantasy, making her stand straighter. Her smile, however, did not waver. “Did you finally find that limited edition of The Hobbit you were looking for?”

Dove and Peter were lounging on the tiny loveseat in the corner of the room, watching what sounded like a horror movie—if the blood-curdling screams were any indication—on Dove’s laptop. Even sitting, Peter appeared tall, with his long legs perched on the coffee table, taking up most of the space. His light brown hair skimmed the top of his ears, and his lips stretched into a lazy grin.

Peter often spent his days at their dorm, wanting to be as close to Dove as possible. The two were still in their honeymoon phase—had been since they got together, and were constantly attached to each other. It was something the girl could never have but always wanted… until now. Now, her ideal life seemed a bit closer than before. Close enough to see and maybe skim teasingly with the tip of her fingers.

It was laughable to think that when the girl and Peter first met, he inexplicitly asked her out, then Dove strutted in through the door of the café, loudly cursing one of her professors out.

Peter liked to think it was love at first sight. Dove did as well, though she pretended not to.

What first felt awkward and uncomfortable was now as normal as the colour of the sky. The girl considered Peter a brother and Dove a sister.

Dove pushed Peter’s arm away from her shoulders and sat up to properly look at her friend. “No,” she smirked mischievously, “she’s smiling because her date went well.”

The girl bit her lips harder to stop from giggling like a schoolgirl. She wrapped her arms around her waist and plopped down on the rocking chair across from her friends.

“Tell me I’m right!” Dove demanded excitedly, shouting in earnest when she received a shy nod.

“Date? Who went on a date?” Peter questioned.

Both girls burst into giggles, unable to hold back their excitement. “I did! Can you believe it?”

“What?” Peter’s eyes widened almost comically. “When?”

“Would you like to know the where and why too?” Dove snarked.

“Yeah, and don’t forget the who!” Peter hissed, making Dove roll her eyes.

“When?” the girl replied. “Just now. And where? The Lounge on Discovery Street. Why?... because he asked me.” She burst into another round of giggles.

“Who asked you?” Peter demanded impatiently, tapping his foot on the ground, his chest puffed unnaturally in a display of robust manliness. “I wanna see meet him.”

Dove snorted at his reaction. “Alright, you can drop the big brother act. It doesn’t suit you.”

Peter ignored her, averting all his attention to the girl. “Who?” he repeated.

She took a deep breath, trying and failing miserably to keep the excitement from her voice. “Nathan.”

“Choi?” Peter’s face seemed to relax. “He’s a cool guy. I cheated off of him for my International Relations midterm.”

The girl made a face. “But he took Abnormal Psychology with me. I remember because he did a presentation about Project Monarch, and a guy started crying during it.”

Dove snapped her fingers. “You didn’t sleep at all that week. We built a fort in my room and binge-watched Harry Potter!”

“He used visuals! It was scary!” She shook her head. It didn’t matter. “He couldn’t have taken International Relations with you if he was busy traumatizing Abnormal Psychology.”

Peter scratched the back of his head. “I failed it last semester. So I had to retake it.”

The girls stared at him in shock. Peter had never failed a class before.

“The course never made sense to me!” Peter defended. “Choi did me a solid by turning his paper toward me when he noticed me peeking. He’ll take good care of you. I promise.”

Dove broke out of her shock first by snorting in disbelief. “She didn’t go out with Nathan Choi.”

“Then?”

“I went with Nathan Acosta,” the girl answered.

Peter went deathly still the second she finished speaking. “What?” he gritted out, though the girls seemed oblivious to the tension festering inside him.

“You know him,” chimed Dove. “He’s on the Hockey team.”

“You went out with Nathan Acosta?” Peter clarified.

“Yes,” she told him.

“Acosta? Not Choi?”

Gradually, the girl noticed the tenseness in her friend's jaw, and the anger in his eyes. She swallowed hard. “I’m going out with him again. Tomorrow.”

Dove screeched with happiness, bouncing on the couch like a little kid, but Peter only became bolder and more assertive. “No, you’re not,” he told her.

“What?” the girl asked in confusion.

“You’re not going out with him.”

Even Dove was confused and had no words for once.

“What do you mean?” The girl asked with a nervous laugh.

“He’s bad news, Kitty. Acosta’s not a good guy,” Peter explained.

“Bullshit,” Dove finally spoke up. “He’s my friend. He doesn’t have a single bad bone in his body.”

Peter grit his teeth together. “That’s what he wants you to think. He’s an asshole.”

“Right, because you two are such good friends,” Dove said sarcastically. “You would know his character.”

“You think I’m lying?” Peter snapped, patience running thin. “Why the fuck would I do that?”

“The fuck am I supposed to know? You got in a stupid fight with him last year. Maybe you’re still pissed.”

“What fight?” the girl asked. “What are you talking about?”

“Nothing,” Dove replied, “it was just a misunderstanding.”

Peter scoffed. “It wasn’t a fucking misunderstanding. That fucker knew exactly what he was doing.”

Voices got loud, the language offensive, and the girl couldn’t help but feel that her friends were keeping something important from her. Dove and Peter bickered back and forth, exchanging harsh opinions and degrading each other.

“What did he do!?” the girl exploded. She was the quiet one, always composed and level-headed, so to witness her screaming in frustration caused both of her friends to trail off in silence.

“Acosta made a pass at Dove,” Peter said evenly. “He implied she would spread her legs for anything that moved.”

Dove scoffed with indignation. She was not shy about her endeavours and found pleasure with a string of various lovers before meeting Peter. “Nathan’s a harmless flirt,” she insisted. “And he jokes about everything. He used to sleep around, but he’s changed. He had a serious girlfriend, but she moved, and he couldn’t do the long-distance.” Dove turned to the girl. “I wouldn’t have encouraged you to go out with him if I thought he would hurt you,” she swore.

That couldn’t be right. Could it?

“Marilyn?” The girl demanded desperately.

“What?”

“The girlfriend,” she explained. “Was her name Marilyn?” The girl swallowed nervously.

“Yeah.”

Oh.

“Why are you asking?” Peter inquired suspiciously.

“No reason,” she lied, speaking calmly while her heart broke in half.

Still, her friends insisted on an explanation. She denied them with a shake of her head, unable to voice what was bothering her.

“She’s the one who broke it off,” Dove explained, thinking her friend was put off by a clingy ex. “Nathan wasn’t too upset and got over it quickly.”

Peter scoffed from beside Dove, but she ignored him. “He doesn’t have any baggage you need to worry about.”

“It’s not that,” the girl insisted.

“Then?” Peter questioned softly.

The answer was right at the tip of her tongue, but saying it aloud would make it real. “Nathan lied to me,” she admitted quietly, then recounted to them her earlier conversation. “Why would he do that?” Her voice wobbled, on the edge of tears.

“Because he’s a son of a bitch,” Peter grumbled.

“That asshole.” Dove readily admitted her mistake, consoling her friend, and the three decided that Nathan was indeed bad news and that the girl would stay away from him. “He doesn’t fucking deserve a kind soul like you.”

She wiped away hot tears as she went to bed, feeling completely and utterly alone. Perhaps that was how it was meant to be, and that was how she would die, with no one to call her own.

April 24, 2018

Her brother introduced her to Jim Hawkins when she was six years old. Granted, many could say she was too young to be exposed to such violent storytelling, she immediately fell in love with Treasure Island. It was terrifying, scary, and the vivid imagery kept her up at night, but the allure was too strong.

She begged her brother to read it to her whenever he visited. He would laugh, warn her that he wouldn’t comfort her after (though he always ended up doing so) and read to her in an embarrassing English accent.

He always teased that she would become a pirate when she was older, but it was he who was obsessed. Perhaps he was jealous of young Jim Hawkins and the freedom he had. Eventually, his obsession transferred from Jim to Jim’s creator. Robert Louis Stevenson this, and Robert Louis Stevenson that.

Her brother became a sort of walking encyclopedia on the matter. He walked around spewing information left and right. There was not much she remembered. As a child, she was uninterested in anything that didn’t involve stories of impossible feats and adventures. She did not care why Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Treasure Island, only that he did.

One thing, however, became ingrained in her mind. Her brother chanted it like a mantra. “Sooner or later, everyone sits down to a banquet of consequences.” She did not understand it then, yet she still opted to recite it with him in her squeaky little voice, over and over again, until she had it memorized. It wasn’t until she was much older when she realized that, no, Robert Louis Stevenson did not quote it, and no, it was not about flower arrangements.

It was about actions and their consequences; every action has one. Most times, the consequences of our actions are inconsequential; they rarely affect anything else, but other times, one choice leads to another, and another, and so on, until one can’t recognize where anything begins or ends.

Nathan Acosta was a choice—a bad one—and the girl couldn’t have known that by saying yes to a date with him, she was setting off a series of events that would affect the course of her life. After all, no one thinks twice before crossing the street; arriving a few minutes late to class isn’t life or death, and one date doesn’t set your fate in stone.

Not usually, anyway.

“We should go to the party,” Dove proclaimed. She was furious, having introduced Nathan to her friend, only to have it conclude with the girl in tears. “Take his ego down a peg or two.”

The answer was obvious, was it not? A simple, no, thank you. It was better to keep her distance from him; better to ignore Nathan outright rather than to tease him with her presence and risk further embarrassment. But she was furious. God, was she furious!

It wasn’t an emotion well known to her. Even as a little girl, she was never prone to outbursts of temper—but then again, she was never targeted in such a way before.

The girl had a choice to make. No, was the obvious answer. It was what she meant to say. Dove would encourage her to rethink her decision, “You’ll feel better once you give him a piece of your mind. Show him you're not one to mess with,” but would ultimately leave her be. Never again would the topic be brought up.

No, was the only answer. Instead, the girl said, “yes,” and they spent the next couple of hours getting ready.

She shone in the mirror. Looking at her reflection, the girl didn’t recognize the person staring back at her. This person was strong and confident. She stood tall and smiled prettily, turning her head this way, and that, to admire herself better.

This person was not her. She, who stumbled over words and cried herself to sleep. Who believed the kind words of a lying man only because she felt cold at night and wished for a warm body to lay against.

The girl was not the person who stared back at her in her reflection. But she wanted to be.

Her hair was styled daintily, and her features had been enhanced with makeup. Her lashes were longer, her lips were fuller, and her eyes were brighter. The fabric of her dress was silky against her skin and fit perfectly. It showed a bit more chest than she was comfortable with but was longer than she had been expecting. She took a deep breath and tucked some loose hair behind her ears. Here goes nothing.

The girl wobbled out of the washroom on shaky legs, still adjusting to the uncomfortable heels Dove lent her. Dove shrieked when the girl finally revealed herself. “Oh! You look hot!” She was wearing something similar, shorter, with a different material and style, but the same colour.

“You look beautiful, Dove.”

Dove posed dramatically, one arm in the air and over her head, bent at the elbow, the other placed under her chest, emphasizing the size of her breasts. “Hot enough to get some?” she asked, laughing when the girl stuttered. “Come here.” Dove gave her friend a pair of earrings and a small purse to keep her phone in. “Wait, let me take a selfie. Ready?” she asked.

“No,” the girl murmured after the flash went off. She wasn’t talking about the picture. “No, I’m not.” She fixed the straps of her dress and licked her dry lips. “Let’s go.”

The Delta Kappa Epsilon house, located on the edge of campus, was precisely how she imagined a fraternity to look. Loud and congested, it felt as if the entire student population had forced itself into the two-story landmark. Music blared from speakers placed varyingly across the space, making it hard for her to hear her friend.

Dove shouted unintelligible words in her ear.

“What?” the girl screamed back.

“I said! Do you see Nathan anywhere?”

“No, I don’t need to use the washroom!” the girl shook her head. “But we should keep an eye out for Nathan!”

“I thought so too!” Dove misunderstood. “I’m thirsty. Let’s go!”

Dove walked the two of them to the back of the house, near the kitchen. “Drink?” she asked loudly, wincing at her volume. “Shit, were we screaming out there?”

The girl nodded sympathetically. “I think so. The music’s very loud.”

“Right, well…” Dove moved into the kitchen, and the girl followed. “Pick your poison.”

“You think they have champagne?” she asked incredulously.

“Somehow, I doubt that,” Dove pouted.

The girl barely drank and was picky on the few occasions she did. Not like she had many options. She had an extremely low tolerance and hated the taste of beer. So, champagne it was.

“Frats don’t really fuck with bubbles. There’s tequila, though.”

The girl shrugged. A little liquid courage would have helped, but she wasn’t planning on drinking anyway. “No thanks.”

“Suit yourself,” Dove winked, throwing a shot of tequila back, wincing as the liquid burned going down her throat. “Ah, fuck!” she suddenly exclaimed, staring at something behind her friend’s head. “What is he doing here?”

“Who?” the girl clamoured, twisting her neck to look. Upon realizing who had just entered the kitchen of Delta Kappa Epsilon house, the girl let out a meek little screech and fell to her hands and knees behind the kitchen island.

“Why are you hiding?” Dove asked in a panic, dropping down next to her friend.

“Why am I—Why are you hiding?!” the girl stage whispered.

“Because I promised I wouldn’t do anything stupid, and I’m doing something stupid,” Dove whispered back.

“You promised Nathan you wouldn’t do anything stupid?” the girl questioned incredulously.

“Nathan? No, I’m talking about Peter. Wait!—”

“Peter’s here?—” “Nathan’s here?—” the girls spoke over each other.

“Dove,” the girl said in a hushed tone, “I think we should leave. This was a bad idea.”

What was she thinking? She was going to show up to Nathan’s party and do what? She didn’t have the guts to confront him about his deception and was sure he wouldn't come clean by himself.

”What? No!” Dove exclaimed. “First of all, all three of us promised we wouldn’t go to the party, so if Peter’s here, he broke his promise and can’t be mad at us for breaking ours. Secondly, Nathan is a little bitch for lying to you about his ex, and he deserves the embarrassment I’m going to cause him soon.” Dove extended her hand toward the girl. “So, what do you say? We either do this together or not at all!”

“I don't…” she trailed off when she heard footsteps next to their hiding place, and she peeked her head past the island to get a quick look.

“Okay,” the girl squeaked hastily and shook Dove’s hand when she saw Peter enter the kitchen to grab a drink.

Ignoring her friend’s warning, Dove stood up from behind the island, pulling her friend with her. “Great! All we need now is a…” Dove stood startled for only a few seconds before launching herself into her boyfriend's arms. “Peter! I w-was just looking for you.”

Peter voiced his surprise with a stutter and was just about to confront the two girls when Dove grabbed him by his face and pulled him in for a searing kiss, effectively shutting him up.

Peter was fiercely protective of those he cared about and would not listen to reason if he thought he was in the right. As it was, Dove and she had lied to Peter about their plans for the night, and she could not face him with a guilty conscience.

Peter broke free from Dove’s lips, sucking in heaps of much-needed air. “What are—”

And that was all he managed to say before Dove muttered a breathy, “shut up,” and pulled him back in.

Her right arm left his body to wave wildly behind her, signalling her friend to run. The girl listened obediently and retreated quietly to the main room, where music was blasting and bodies were grinding suggestively on what looked to be a makeshift dance floor.

Like a deer in headlights, she froze, wondering what to do next. This was new territory for her—a house party. From what she knew, it involved a lot of drinking and making out, neither of which the girl was interested in. Should she dance? No, she decided, she would stick out like a sore thumb.

Slowly, she created a plan in her mind. Step one: Find Nathan (it was what she was here for in the first place). Step two… What was step two? Approach him? Talk to him? What was she supposed to do?

Dove had planned everything already; the girl was just tagging along. She prepared some great scheme last night to make Nathan cry in front of all his buddies. Something that involved one of the girls from the debate club, two pies—one apple, one blueberry—swimming goggles, and some other wildly random object the girl couldn’t quite remember.

Someone bumped into her, pushing her onto the dance floor, making her stumble over her feet. Stupid heels. She held onto a random girl to regain her balance, some preppy cheerleader type with blue lashes and bleached brows.

“Watch it!”

The girl was pushed this way and that, unable to keep up with the fast tempo of whatever new hit was currently playing.

Hands grabbed her from all sides, which she tried to evade, though, eventually, one of them landed. They began to drag her away from the dance floor and toward the front door. She dug her heels into the tiled floor and whipped her head around, trying to catch a glimpse of the person holding her captive.

“Hey!” a voice shouted, garnering the attention of everyone in her immediate vicinity. The hand around her waist dropped, making her think she had imagined it. “Kitty!”

Nathan Acosta pushed through the now small crowd—small, because they all parted for him like the Red Sea—and stopped in front of the girl.

“You came!” he exclaimed with relief. “Let’s go somewhere quiet?”

She would’ve denied him if it weren’t for their surroundings. People were staring, whispering, wondering what the captain of the hockey team was doing talking to a girl like her. She, too, had wondered the same but chose to ignore the answer, that, no, he would not be talking to a girl like her. Now, look where that got her.

The girl nodded reluctantly, not wanting to be alone with Nathan but not wanting to be surrounded by a crowd either. Nathan guided her toward the stairs and took her to a large room. Hockey memorabilia decorated the white walls and the dresser, but the space was otherwise empty, save for a double bed pushed to one corner. She paused at the door, but Nathan encouraged her inside. “I just wanna talk.”

The girl kept her eyes trained on the ground as she sat down on the soft comforter. “What did you wanna talk about?” she was going to ask, but Nathan beat her to it.

“I have a confession to make,” he blurted, interrupting the girl’s intense staring match with the black carpet.

“What?”

He looked nervous. He was biting his lip and tapping his foot on the ground, almost to the point of annoyance. “I lied to you about something. Something I shouldn’t have lied about, and now I regret it.”

Her heart thrummed in her ears. “What did you lie about?”

Nathan shook his head and breathed out in exasperation. “Before I tell you, you have to know that it was because you scared me.”

The girl blinked slowly. She scared Nathan? That couldn’t be right.

“You scared me to death, Kitty. I mean, you’re so different from any of the girls I’ve been with before that nothing I normally do seemed to work with you. I brag about a game I won or a scout I impressed? They eat it all up. I shower them with compliments? They melt right at the spot. But you?…”

Nathan ran a hand through his hair and sighed in frustration. “Nothing I did impressed you. So I panicked.”

“But you never panic!” the girl exclaimed, overcome by the admission.

“I know. You made me panic, Kitty.” And he gazed at her with such intensity that she had to avert her eyes. “I wasn’t cheated on. And it was shitty of me to say that I was. Marilyn was—well, she wasn’t perfect, but she was good to me and didn’t deserve to have her name slandered.”

The girl listened in awe. Just earlier, she figured Nathan would never admit to his deception, but here he was, proving her wrong. It was an incredibly selfless and brave thing to do.

“I, uh, talked to her after our date. She’s in California on a volleyball scholarship and dating some hotshot lawyer.” He chuckled, and the girl couldn’t help but match him.

Nathan smiled. “Made you laugh.”

She burned under his stare. It was concerning, the effect he had on her. He wasn’t anywhere close! Perched on a small chair across the room, but still able to leave her breathless.

“Thank you,” she said quietly. “For telling me the truth.”

“No. Thank you,” Nathan insisted, “for giving an asshole like me a few minutes of your precious time.”

A pang of sudden guilt wracked the girl’s frame. Nathan was so sincerely apologizing and being grateful for her presence… yet she had arrived with ill intentions. She came to Delta Kappa Epsilon house with the objective of revenge, only to find out revenge wasn’t needed.

“Can I grab you a drink?”

She said yes because it was the least she could do. “You wouldn’t have champagne by any chance, would you?” she tried again.

Nathan grinned. “Champagne? Nah, but I’ll keep that in mind for next time.”

Her heart fluttered at the promise of a next time.

“How about a beer?”

She wrinkled her nose. “I don’t care for it. It makes me sick. How about a water instead? I have a low tolerance anyways.”

Nathan seemed to contemplate her words for a moment, nodding. “Do you trust me?”

Trust. It didn’t come easily to her, but something about Nathan put her at ease. “I trust you.”

He left with a smile and the promise of only taking a couple of minutes, leaving the girl in comfortable silence. The heavy bass from the music playing downstairs could still be heard faintly, though not enough to disturb her peace. She decided to use the opportunity to familiarize herself with her surroundings.

Posters of famous hockey players were displayed across the wall—no one that she was familiar with—labelled in big, dark, block letters.

WAYNE GRETZKY — CENTERMAN

BOBBY ORR — DEFENSEMAN

JOHNNY GAUDREAU — LEFT WING

SIDNEY CROSBY — CENTERMAN

Smaller posters took up space along the far wall, helping add a splash of colour to the otherwise bland room. The girl walked along the dresser, trailing a finger over the various awards and medals. One thing was for sure, Nathan was determined to gain success in his field, and that was something she greatly admired.

A slight commotion out in the hall caused her to suspend her exploration. The door opened, and Nathan walked in with two drinks in his hands, clearly upset over something.

“Is everything all right?” The girl self-consciously wrapped her arms around her chest—unknowingly putting her cleavage on display.

Nathan made a show of looking her over. Starting from her heel-clad feet to her prettily made hair—stopping for longer than was appropriate on her chest, though she did not notice. His frown seemed to fade as he took her in.

She felt herself burning under his gaze. Felt her heart beating out of her chest. Her palms were sweaty, and her mouth was dry. It was everything she had read about and nothing she had ever experienced. What was she feeling?

“Nathan?” she croaked, effectively breaking him out of his stupor.

Nathan shook his head but kept a short smile on his face. “Yeah, it was just the guys being assholes.”

“What were they saying?”

Nathan’s smile turned into a full grin, and he closed the distance between them. “They wanted a look at the pretty girl in my room.”

Oh. Oh.

Nathan Acosta thought she was pretty. The girl was sure he had paid her a similar compliment before, but it hadn’t meant anything then. Now? Now it meant everything.

Nathan saved the girl from the trouble of having to reply by handing over her drink. Her eyes widened in surprise after her first sip. “It’s—”

“Really good?” Nathan supplied with a wink.

The girl nodded enthusiastically. “What is it?”

“My version of a Piña Colada.”

She frowned, taking another sip. “I thought Piña Coladas were white. Why is it blue?”

Nathan scratched the back of his neck. “I had some Kool-Aid lying around.”

“Really?” she exclaimed. “I can’t even taste it.”

“I didn’t put in enough, I guess,” Nathan shrugged, frowning slightly.

The girl immediately felt guilty. “It’s still really good. I can’t remember the last time I had Kool-Aid, so I probably forgot what it tastes like.” Then, to show Nathan how much she liked it, she finished the rest of the drink in a single breath.

“Woah,” Nathan chuckled nervously, helping her sit on his bed. “I put a lot of booze in it. You gotta slow down.”

“Sorry,” she muttered sheepishly, “I’m just really thirsty.”

He sat beside her. “Right, yeah. It’s all good.” 

Nathan’s hand settled against the girl’s thigh, scorching the exposed skin. He was so close she could see each individual lash of his. He leaned in.

“Are you religious?” she blurted, leaning away to look at him.

“Huh?”

“It’s just,” she started, rivalling Dove in terms of speed, “everyone automatically assumes I’m religious or something when they find out I’m still… And it’s not that I’m religious, and it’s not that I'm not religious—because I think I’m somewhere in the middle of the faith spectrum—but it’s actually sort of a personal choice combined with a lack of opportunity? Now, I feel like I have an opportunity, so I can’t use that excuse anymore, but there’s still this nagging—”

“Kitty!” cried Nathan, after several failed attempts at a more civilized interruption, “What are you trying to say?”

“I’m waiting for the right person,” she breathed out, “at the right time.” A pause. “And not for a while.”

Nathan stared at her. Said nothing.

“Not for any crazy religious reason,” she rushed to add. “Just as a personal… preference.”

God, her mouth was dry, and she was sweating everywhere. That was why she didn’t speak, why she stayed at home and left the social interactions to the experienced.

“That’s alright.”

It’s… alright? That couldn’t possibly be what he meant.

The girl blinked. “I—I don’t understand.”

Nathan grabbed her hand and squeezed. “Hey! You’re a beautiful girl, but there’s no hurry. We have all the time in the world.”

There was so much she wanted to say to him at the moment, so much she wanted to ask. She opened her mouth to speak, but the words died on her tongue.

“Are you going to drink that?” the girl pointed to Nathan’s forgotten Piña Colada, snatching it from the night table as soon as he shook his head disapprovingly.

“Hey, hey, easy there,” Nathan soothed the girl as she attempted to down the entire glass. He ran a hand over her hair, and she felt too drained to stop him.

“S-sorry. I’m just nervous.”

“That’s okay. Let me help you relax.” Nathan moved his comforter back, motioning for the girl to lie down.

“Can I?” she questioned, already lowering herself against his soft sheets. Her head was pounding, and the room was starting to swim. Maybe she should have listened to Nathan and sipped her drink slowly.

The girl closed her eyes, sinking deeper into the mattress until she felt stuck. “I’ve been getting tired a lot lately,” she sleepily mumbled.

“Must be the stress.” Nathan’s voice seemed far away. Had he moved back to the chair? “You seem like the type.”

The sound of the door opening and closing vaguely permeated past her drowsiness, but she paid no attention. “N—no it’s… it’s…” Something was wrong. She didn’t know why or how, but her spine tingled, warning her of immediate danger.

She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She tried opening her eyes, but they were glued shut. She found herself stuck in limbo, unable to do anything but think, and even that was becoming a challenge.

Something cold landed on her neck, travelling down her collarbone, up her jaw. The sensation stung her skin, but she could do nothing except groan in response.

“Easy. Just like that.”

The cold trailed down her torso and along her leg.

“You’re a lightweight. I think I gave you a little too much.”

Who gave her what? What was happening?

“God! Baby! You’re a gorgeous little thing! All the stories are true, aren’t they? I can’t believe you’ll be mine soon.”

A scuffle interrupted the gruff voice, and suddenly the cold was gone, replaced, instead, with a familiar warmth. It enveloped the girl’s face and encouraged her to open her eyes.

“Just like that, Kitty. Wake up, sweetheart.”

Slowly but surely, the heaviness left her eyes, and she fluttered awake, only to be met by Dove. Her blonde hair fanned across her head as she bent over, fussing over the girl.

“Hey! Hi! You had us all really worried,” she said. “Peter wanted to call the cops, but I knew you were safe. Best friend’s intuition, right?” Dove pulled at something around the girl’s thighs, fixing her dress with shaky hands.

Still sleepy and not fully awake, the girl did not notice the tears lining her friend’s eyes.

“What happened?” she croaked.

“We looked everywhere for you! Peter was convinced you got kidnapped or something. We didn’t think you’d be here of all places!”

The girl slowly took in her surroundings and realized she had fallen asleep on Nathan’s bed.

“Where’s Nathan?” she asked.

A shadow fell over Dove’s face, one vastly unfamiliar. “In hell!” she growled.

The girl shook her head. “I talked to him. It was all a huge misunderstanding.”

“No! That bastard, he—”

A commotion started in the hall, one that made both girls pause.

“Shit!” Dove suddenly exclaimed, running toward the noise. She threw open the door and launched herself into the middle of a fight.

Still woozy, the girl took her time to leave the comfort of the bed, leaning against the wall for support waddling across the space on shaky legs, much like a baby deer walking for the first time.

Most of her fatigue left her when she took in the scene in the hall. Nathan and Peter were engaged in a rumble, rolling around the floor in a mess of fists. Blood dripped from various cuts around Nathan’s face and soaked through Peter’s white shirt.

“Stop it!” Dove screamed. “Leave him alone, Peter!”

“He fucking deserves it!” Peter bellowed, landing a harsh punch against Nathan’s jaw. “You son of a bitch! I’ll fucking kill you!”

The girl stood there dumbfounded, unable to do much except stare at the scene as a sickening wave of nausea took over her shaking body. She had never seen Peter like this. He was prone to his hysterics now and then, but they usually ended with vulgar profanities and an ostentatious show of muscles—harmless, really. This… this was scary. This was unknown.

People cheered around her, encouraging the mindless violence. No one stepped forward to help, save for Dove, who was failing to get through to Peter. Phones were out, recording the fight in HD, making the girl feel even sicker.

Peter grabbed Nathan by the collar and shoved him against the wall, placing an arm over his throat.

“You’ll kill him!” Dove shrieked. “Peter, stop!”

The room started to spin again, so the girl leaned her entire weight against the wall. The smell of blood invaded her senses, and she had to fight the urge to empty the contents of her stomach right in the hall.

Dove finally found an opening and launched herself between the two boys, stopping Peter from landing what would have been a deadly punch.

He hesitated, arm pulled back. “Move outta the way, Dove.” His voice was eerily calm despite the rage pulsing through his body. “This fucker deserves to die at my hands.”

With tears brimming her eyes, Dove shook her head. “No, I’m not gonna let you—”

The girl ran to Nathan’s bathroom, slamming the door open and hunching over the toilet seat. She sobbed between gags, overwhelmed by the events of the day.

“Kitty?” Present worry forgotten, Dove rushed after her friend, with Peter following close behind.

Amongst the chaos in the hall, a figure watched the scene in front of him, hands clenched in frustration. He had been so close.

If anyone had told the girl earlier how her night would’ve gone, she wouldn’t have believed them. She might’ve even laughed. The girl had prepared for situations like these by ensuring she would never land in them in the first place. She kept her circle small, never hanging out with the wrong crowd. She didn’t do recreational drugs and even stayed away from potent drinks. It wouldn’t do her good to get loose-lipped and share her secrets with strangers.

Where did it all go wrong, she wondered? When did she lose control? Was it when she went out with Nathan? When she let herself harbour a crush on him? Or perhaps the mistake lay far deeper, buried amongst her past when she ran away from home.

Stop, she chastised herself. Nonsense is what she was thinking. No one knew where she was or what had become of her. And a good thing too, because what would her family say if they saw her now? What would her brother?

The girl threw her head back and finished the last of her drink. By running away all those years ago, did she somehow trigger a series of events that led to her current predicament?

She was sitting on the stairs with tears streaming down her face and an empty wine bottle dangling from her hand. She knew it was a bad idea to drink, but the girl felt floaty and sad, reliving the night between soft sniffles and silent sobs.

She finished emptying the contents of her stomach in the toilet when Dove pushed her sweaty hair back and led her to the bed.

“What’s happening to me?” she whimpered.

“What do you remember?” Peter retorted.

She didn’t remember much, but her friends filled in the blanks.

“The hockey team had a stupid bet going.” Tears gathered in Dove’s eyes. “I’m so sorry, Kitty.”

She had been confused, not understanding the implication.

“Someone bet Nathan two hundred dollars he couldn’t get you in bed,” said Peter. “Did he touch you?”

Her head spun.

“What do you remember?”

“No! No, I don’t think so. Maybe? I’m not sure.” Her thoughts were a jumbled mess, her brain fuzzy.

“I’m so sorry, Kitty.”

She whimpered, wiping the tears from her eyes. “Nathan wanted to apologize to me. Just apologize.”

“Oh, Kitty.”

“And I forgave him.”

The room flashed red and blue. Peter cursed, and Dove began to panic.

“It’s going to be okay,” Peter told the girls as two men in uniform escorted him out of the house. “Everything will be okay.”

Suddenly everything became too much, and she needed to be alone. “Go, Dove. He needs you.”

“So do you.”

“I’ll be fine.”

The girl collapsed to her knees when her friend finally left. She pulled at her hair, wracking her brain for something, anything. But she couldn’t remember.

It all made sense now, why Nathan had noticed her, why he was pursuing her. And why he put in the effort to apologize to her. The taste of his attempt was still bitter on her tongue, unable to be washed down by the wine.

Her eyes drifted over the crowd below and promptly landed on one of the last people she wanted to see… only to find him looking right at her, a glare etched on his face.

She couldn’t believe she ever thought him handsome, that she almost kissed him. Her Papa was right. And she now understood why he never let her date when she was younger. Boys were only trouble.

“He told his buddies you were easy. That, he might as well take the money now because you were a done deal.”

The girl stood as fast as a whip.

“They wanted a look at the pretty girl in my room.”

The empty wine bottle dropped from her hands with a clatter.

“He said you would be his first virgin. And he couldn’t wait.”

Her legs felt like jelly, and she leaned against the railing for support. Shame burned deep in her gut, rising in temperature, turning into fear and disgust.

She somehow managed to make her way down the stairs without falling. Out, she needed out. Out of that stuffy house, her stuffy clothes and her stuffy makeup.

The girl pushed past the packed crowd, forcing her way through, ignoring the grunts of protest and curses thrown her way. She apologized instinctively after stepping on someone’s foot with her sharp heel, but did not linger.

When the first gust of fresh air reached her lungs, the girl fell to her knees, fingers weaving through the cool, dewy grass. And when the world finally stopped spinning, she surveyed her surroundings, blinking slowly. A few stragglers lingered underneath an old pine, smoking, ignoring her for the time being. 

She got up on shaky feet, standing still for a moment to let the dizziness pass. She turned the corner, walking around the house and towards the backyard, where she hoped to make an inconspicuous escape. With her vision still blurry due to her tears and inebriated state, the girl did not see the overgrown root sticking out from under the house.

The fall happened so suddenly that she didn’t even scream, only flinched as she waited to meet the cold ground. She was thoroughly surprised, however, when she found herself wrapped in warm arms instead.

“Where you goin’ in such a hurry?”

“Sorry,” she gasped, “I'm so sorry.”

The warm arms in question belonged to a man with beautiful eyes and a dazzling smile. His dark hair was cut short on the sides, and day-old stubble decorated his sharp jawline. He was beautiful. The girl was, at least, able to make out that much despite her intoxication.

The man’s hold on her did not loosen. In fact, he tightened it almost painfully, trying to keep her upright and off the ground.

“Hey,” he asked softly, dipping his head to look her in the eyes, “you okay, baby?”

He said her name with a tilt of his head, and if she were in the right state of mind and not burning under his gaze, she might have realized that he used her name, her full name that very few people knew. Yet she couldn’t remember seeing him before.

The girl managed a shaky nod. “Fine. I didn’t see the—”

Once again, the use of her full name, this time from somewhere behind her, startled her out of the stranger’s grasp. He let her go, though he was reluctant to.

Voices emerged from the corner, voices that were talking about her.

“That fucking prude! Did you hear what she did?”

The girl stumbled over her feet, and the man reached out to steady her. “Easy.”

“Poor Nathan. How could she wrongfully accuse him of something so horrible?”

She hadn’t. She didn’t even talk to anyone other than Dove and Peter about what happened because she herself was unsure of the details.

“I have to go,” she whispered, “I need to go,” and freed herself from the stranger’s hold. He called out for her, but she ignored him. She ignored the small group gossiping about her, ignored the ache in her feet, and the pit of dread in her stomach.

There were many other ways the night could have ended, none all too pleasant. If Dove hadn’t encouraged her to come to the party. If Peter had found her earlier. If the girl had not gone through the back; if she had not tripped over the overgrown root and fallen into the arms of a handsome stranger.

Yes, there were many other ways the night could have ended, none all too pleasant, indeed. But what’s done was done, and the consequences of her actions were slowly catching up with her, though she did not know it at the moment.

If things were different, Peter would have offered to walk her home. His perceptive gaze might have found something familiar about the stranger. “I know you. Where do I know you from? I know you.”

The girl’s paranoia might have made her realize he was the man she had stepped on earlier. “Weren’t you just inside? I could swear I just saw you inside.” 

And the night could have ended pleasantly.

But alas, the girl was drunk, and Peter was in jail, and out of all the ways the night could have ended, it chose to end none all too pleasant. None all too pleasant, indeed.

April 25, 2018

It was now confirmed. The girl was a lightweight. She never particularly drank alcohol—not the strong kind anyway—choosing lighter champagnes and fruity cocktails that washed away the bitterness with sticky syrup. Just one glass was enough to make her tipsy and eventually drunk.

Three to four wrong turns later, the girl was nowhere near her dorm. As it happened, trying to find the residential building at one in the morning while drunk was more challenging than expected. She was sensitive. A few sips of coffee kept her up all night; no wonder she couldn’t see three feet in front of her. An entire bottle of wine on an empty stomach would do that to a person.

What was she thinking? It seemed like such a good idea at the time. She was confused and hurting, willing to do anything to numb the pain. In hindsight, a good night’s sleep could have given her a similar effect.

Two officers had escorted Peter out of the house, which meant he was at the station on the far side of campus. The girl sent Dove a text of jumbled-up words that barely made sense, telling her she was going home.

Hopefully.

Eventually… If she could figure out where she was.

It started slowly, a tingle in her spine, crawling up her shoulders and towards her neck. The feeling of someone watching her. Eyes, on her back, causing goosebumps to form along her arms. She turned around and did something she told herself she would never do.

It was the start of every horror movie. The kind she was forced to watch through the tiny space between clasped fingers, exclaiming, “stupid. So stupid. Why would—Oh my God! Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god! I can’t watch this! Why isn't she running?! That’s so stupid! I would never do that, I would run.”

“Hello,” she called out. “Is anyone there?”

No response, so she tried again but was met with silence. You’re drunk, she chastised herself, imagining things. Still, the pit in her stomach wouldn’t leave. She kept her gaze on the trees lining the pathway, scared that something would jump out at her if she looked away.

Suddenly, her heel stumbled on the uneven ground, causing her to twist awkwardly and fall backwards on soft sand. Somehow she had ended up on the beach. Huh.

“Well,” she mumbled, shrugging her shoulders, “I could use a shower.”

The girl discarded her phone and heels near her feet, and staggered towards the water, fingers inching her short dress up with every step. The soft material also found a home in the sand, leaving her in her undergarments. A basic, light grey cotton piece.

The moon was out, the tide was high, and the girl didn’t hesitate to throw herself at an incoming wave, giggling the entire way down. Bad ideas seemed to be a theme for the night.

The icy water hit her like a slap to the face, sobering her up momentarily. She broke the surface with a gasp and crawled towards the shore, trying to outrun the wave pulling her back in.

What was she thinking?

There was no time to ponder the question as she lay there on the damp sand.; breathing unevenly, coughing up slight remnants of salty, alkaline water, and recovering from her near death. Only she could be so foolish.

The starry sky looked down at her, mocking her and laughing at her pathetic display. Her breathing slowly evened. Nerves slowly dissipated. The haze of alcohol began to return to her, and unfortunate timing as well because rough hands suddenly grabbed her, hoisting her up in the air.

The girl screamed only once, a short and pathetic yelp, before a piece of cloth was placed over her mouth, forcing her to inhale sweet-tasting citrus. She kicked her feet and thrashed her arms, but the person holding her was too strong. She dug her nails into calloused hands, and to no avail, for minutes later, the last of her fight left her body, rendering her limp and at her attacker’s mercy.

The world spun, and she saw black.

Yes… if only the night had ended differently indeed.

The shadowed figure watched from a distance, clenching his fist in frustration. He had been so close to the girl. Close enough to smell the trace of flowers on her skin, the wine on her breath. She was so soft under him, so pliant. He couldn’t help but want another taste.

He huffed and puffed, trying his best to not reveal himself in his anger. It was too late now, and all he could do was stare as her limp body was covered with a towel and slung over the shoulder of a hooded man. The man said something to his friend, who nodded and picked up the girl’s discarded clothes.

The shadow could do nothing but watch as his inamorata was taken for him. “Just for now,” he consoled himself. After all, the girl was promised to him, wasn’t she?

He took a step back, preparing to leave, when his eye caught on a shiny object partially hidden under the sand. He picked up the device with nimble fingers and inspected it. Notifications popped up on the screen, messages from the roommate, various reminders and emails.

He smiled as a plan formed in his mind, and retreated back to where he came from, becoming one with the darkness. That day she would become his seemed a lot closer than before.

“Soon.”

Ao3│Wattpad│Ko-fi

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[henqtic]

Hi, I love your writing so much! :) Could I request a dracoxreader where the reader is having a really bad day and he ends up comforting & cuddling her until she stops crying and eventually falls asleep in his arms. He just admires her while she's sleeping and is really sweet to her when she wakes up

𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘺

pairing: draco malfoy x fem!reader

word count: 1.0k (1064)

authors note: thank you so much,, I’m glad you like my writing !! also sorry for this thing so long, i actually started it around when you sent it but then my brain just shut down and i couldn’t really figure out how exactly i wanted to write everything but here it is— with the end sort of changed up :)

masterlist. // taglist form. // request works. // picture creds.

—————————

you were having a horrible day and there was no other way to describe it. really, you searched, high and low for a way to see it in a brighter light but you just couldn’t. from start to middle and to now, what you would call the end, there was no positive connotation for how you felt.

first, you’d woken up late from none of your dorm mates taking the time to get you up. they left some note on the dresser saying that they tried but every time you’d raise your head, you’d just bury yourself amongst the blankets again. and that shouldn’t have been a big deal nor should it have made a huge dent in your day, but once you checked the clock which the paper was stuck to, you cringed at the fact that you had missed the entirety of breakfast.

so then you were late to transfigurations for the fourth time that week, earning a very passive aggressive lecture from professor mcgonagall on why it was imperative to be on time and not to be off ‘dilly dallying’ when you were supposed to be learning.

and that would've also been okay because you completely understood where her frustration was coming from, even though the idea of why you’d been late in the first place was totally off and completely wrong—

you were just a heavy sleeper who needed to set more alarms that would wake you up rather than everyone else except you.

but no, it wasn’t that simple, she had to do it in front of the whole class, one filled with some of the most obnoxious gryffindors who you’d ever met. some threw disgusted looks while others went as far as whistling and howling because malfoy’s girlfriend showed up looking like she’d just rolled out of his bed.

—

everything had gone well— until your third lesson when you accidentally knocked over a jar of a very hard to obtain ingredient on your way out to lunch. and snape was quick to blame it on you, not the fact that if it was so hard to harvest, maybe the best place to store it wasn’t in glass on the edge of a table.

nevertheless, he made you stay back to clean the mess by hand when the same job with magic with less time wasted— by the time you did get there, nearly all of the good foods were gone and so was your boyfriend who you were ready to vent to about the whole thing.

“he had to go to the library to tutor that first year, he made me save you this piece of cake though,” daphne explained, handing you a piece of lemon cake wrapped up in a brown napkin, your favorite.

“thanks daph,” you smiled, feeling that your day was improving and that you could save your little rant for the end of the day.

“no problem.”

—

but it didn’t. no, your day didn’t improve in the slightest. because now your stomach was tightening, glancing down at the big red T staining the charms exam that you'd spent a bunch of time studying for.

it was staring right back at you, like a taunt that all of your hard work had gone to waste, and professor flitwick's look of disappointment didn’t help at all.

so you knew by the time you’d got out of the illuminated room and to the gloomy dungeons you were crying, taking advantage of the dark lighting as your shoes pattered against the stone floor.

and once you made it to the entrance of the slytherin common room, muttering the three syllable password that draco had given you earlier that week and walking up the long staircase, you made sure you looked presentable. not a tear in sight like you’d had the best day in the world. but still, for safe measure, your eyes were wiped once more before knocking on the door.

“come in!” you heard a comforting voice call out from the other side of the wooden door.

you slowly turned the knob and walked in, putting your bag down and untying the fabric around your neck without making a single piece of eye contact with him in hope that he wouldn’t notice your current state.

“oh love it’s just you, you know you don’t have to knock,” he said before not fully relaxing into the bed, concerned at how long it was taking you to undo a tie.

“are you alright?”

“course i am,” you lied, turning around and mustering up the best smile you could still causing him to look at you skeptically.

“that’s good, how was your day then?” he asked, trying to go at the situation in the best way, not expecting your face to fall at the question.

he was being genuine and it was something you should've expected since he asked it every time you’d go through this routine but no, no, no, he should've asked something different because it’s just what pushed you over the edge. 

your lip quivered as that gut wrenching feeling that you hadn't felt in a long time came, a pit forming in your stomach until it traveled up to your throat and there was no way to swallow it back down. your eyes started to water as you shook your head, trying to tell him no without talking because you knew if you did, it wouldn't end up well for you. and he already knew that because immediately after he saw the signs, he enveloped you in his arms.

you weren’t a person who cried often, not even that time you fell off your quidditch broom, you refused to do it because it ‘hadn't hurt that bad’ and it would seriously concern him sometimes, on why you were so intent on not doing it. but he hadn’t asked any questions knowing how you’d like to be treated in these times, you didn't want to be bombarded with solutions or asks or told that you would get and feel better, but just to be held until it passed.

so that’s what he did, let you cry it out until his shirt was wet with salty tears, knowing that when you did wake up, he'd figure out the mess on his own and make you feel better over whatever happened throughout the oh so terrible day.

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[chalkrevelations]

OK, moving along with Bad Buddy Ep 2, Part 2/4, and first of all, due diligence: I’ve watched through the end, and there are definitely spoilers for things that happen all the way through the show in here, so if you haven’t watched yet and you want to see it unspoiled, drive by now and circle back when you’ve finished watching it.

SO. We open on Wai – the human-to-Pran translator, apparently, and I need so much pre-show fic exploring the Pran & Wai relationship, y’all - inspecting the box of dumplings that someone hung on Pran’s doorknob that left him buffering in the dorm hallway at the end of Part 1. A little bit, there’s this feeling like Wai had to inspect the box for explosives, given how dubiously Pran’s been eying it, maybe because it wasn’t shrink-wrapped, and who knows who’s had their fingers all over it? Seriously though, this has the potential to be the emotional equivalent of a bomb for Pran, given the reaction we see him have to it, and the reaction we’ll continue to see him have to similar gifts in this ep, and that’s really got nothing to do with Pat and everything to do with Pran. For now, the box of dumplings receives the Wai Seal of Approval, Wai informs Pran that someone is hitting on him, and Pran insists it’s just a thank you. It’s a good thing you have a human-to-Pran translator, my friend, because there’s a guy living across the hall from you who’s daydreaming of your fantastic rack and great ass, and he’s at least half-correct, so you should listen to Wai on this one. It appears that our core group of Architecture secondary backup hobbits is at lunch at the curry restaurant again, although they don’t seem very concerned about any hot chicks, being distracted by the topic of Pran’s new stalker secret admirer, who’s clearly calling him “dumpling.” Sadly, everyone will miss the opportunity to call Pran “dumpling” for the entire rest of the show, so there’s some running joke potential lost.  : (  Pran continues to insist it’s nothing, because it’s clearly a guy, because look at that male particle he’s using in his note. This leads the Arch hobbits - and I want to emphasize this, because these guys get accused of being trash friends later on when Pran’s Big Gay Romance is exposed - to scoff at the idea that there’s any problem with this, I mean, what, Pran, do you have a problem being hit on by a guy? Wai, practically giggling, asks, “You like him, don’t you?” which is a little fast, my dude, those best be some really fantastic dumplings. There’s more random teasing, but meanwhile, Pran spots Pat and the Engineering secondary backup hobbits at a table outside, and I’m going to assume Pat is the one who hasn’t checked in like he’s supposed to, since Arch is finishing up lunch and Eng is just looking at menus. Cut to outside, where Pat is going on about how very tiring it is to be as hot as he is, while his friends laugh at him, as they should. Back inside, Pran is all, well, fuck me, now I have to maneuver us all out of this, because once again, I’m the only responsible person involved in Ridiculous Plan No. 2. Pran hustles them out, briefly catching Pat’s eye. Pat, still being ranked on by Mo, freezes, looks vaguely horrified – that’s what you GET for not checking in, dumbass – and grabs the menu, loudly insisting that all his friends pay attention to him and not their mortal enemies walking out of the restaurant behind them because he has an idea for a song, presumably for them to play at the Freshy Day band competition: Chicken Curry, Pork Curry, Shrimp Curry, Sausage Curry – can they make a song out of that? Somebody at the table thinks it sounds too dirty, which WHAT, and why do I have any emotional stake in these dumbasses? Korn, the paragon of dumbassery, thinks that it’s possible, mentions some horrible metaphor about being your mom’s best recipe and proceeds to faux weep on Mo’s shoulder. Frankly, he’s almost suspiciously performative – this is an act I would expect in an Ep 12 flashback, when he’s in on the game, because this is awfully extra and makes him look like he’s intentionally pulling focus, just like Pat was trying to do. At any rate, he certainly does distract from Pran, Wai, and the rest of Architecture, so thanks, Korn, I guess?

We later see Pran walking down the dorm hallway back to his room, talking on his phone, and we don’t get any actual indication of who he’s talking to, but my brain defaulted to Wai, because he’s clearly closer to Wai than anyone else in Architecture, I never once considered that he’d be this open to his parents, and I don’t know that he has any other close friends at this point. He good-naturedly tells whoever is on the other end of the line to stop teasing, they wouldn’t like it if it was them being hit on �� well, that’s one assumption to have, my guy – and then hastily wraps up the convo when he notices another package hanging on his doorknob, presumably some kind of sweet, because it comes with a note telling him not to forget to have some dessert after his meal. Once again, it really seems like he doesn’t know how to deal with this, which is interesting given he has enough social acumen and is popular enough to have been elected Architecture class president right out of the gate as a freshman. Is he silently freaking out like this behind an impenetrable mental barrier every time he has to interact with someone, or is it specifically focused on romantic/emotional stuff? I would tend to think this is romantic/emotionally focused, because he’s not at all subtle about his reaction, here - he just stands there for a minute, blinking at the package, and I know I keep describing his reaction to these overtures as buffering, but it really is like the little computer display wheel is just spinning, spinning, spinning right behind his eyes. Nanon is doing an impressive amount of work with his face in these bits even as he’s ostensibly doing nothing with it. (I guess you could say he’s doing nothing with it, rather than not doing anything with it.) I find it hard to believe Pran could get away with this in social interactions, although he’s probably had to develop a charming and engaging mask to keep up his super-achiever successful image, one that he doesn’t need to use in these particular instances because he’s by himself and doesn’t have anyone there he has to perform for (read: ANYONE AT ALL. I suppose it’s some relief that he isn’t so far gone he has to perform for himself, even when no one else is there – that he can allow himself this space and freedom at least when he’s alone). I think it’d be easy to extrapolate Pran closing himself off romantically/emotionally after the trauma of having his entire life upended and everything familiar taken away from him essentially for falling in love with the wrong person, in a way that makes what’s happening now unfamiliar and unpracticed, even if it’s not actively threatening - which, given his experiences, it also could be. OTOH, he does go a bit deer in the headlights in a later ep during the presentation to get funding to rebuild the bus stop, and Pat has to rescue him, although I don’t remember offhand how similar that particular reaction is to this – I guess I’ll see when I get there again. It may be unfamiliar situations in general, instances where he feels like he doesn’t have everything under control, which could include romantic/emotional situations, but also could have unfamiliar social contexts under the same umbrella. (I … huh. I wonder if it’s been Wai’s job to rescue Pran in overwhelming social situations for the past few years, particularly given the way Pran does look to him for help interpreting some of these social/romantic cues in this episode. I need SO MUCH pre-show fic looking at the Pran & Wai relationship.)

Also, I’ll note that Pran doesn’t really look happy about what’s happening even once he finishes processing.

Anyway, on the other side of the sticky note, there’s also an invitation to join his stalker secret admirer on the roof to look at the beautiful moon at 9pm the next night, which Safe reads out loud over lunch the next day, and the Arch hobbits ooh and ahh. There’s some more good-natured teasing, but they’re clearly excited for Pran – I think more excited than he is for himself. Wai is a tiny bit serious and asks whether Pran wants to meet this guy. Pran asks his human-to-Pran interpreter if the guy is going to think Pran likes him if Pran shows up. Wai tells him that, of course, the guy’s going to think that, but Pran still ought to go meet him, because that way, if Pran doesn’t like him, he can tell him in person and end it right there. Unless he actually turns out to be interested … Which is, honestly, the most shockingly mature way of approaching any kind of interpersonal interaction that I’ve heard from anyone on the show, so far. Anyway, Wai opens up the possibility that Pran’s falling for his stalker’s secret admirer’s sweet words, eliciting cries of “Sweetie” from everyone, along with even more teasing, and I have to admit, if I was Pran, I would want to KILL THEM ALL for being SO ANNOYING, but you can’t accuse them of being unsupportive. (I mean, you could, and people do, but those people are objectively Wrong On The Internet.)

Cut to Pran at five past nine – I cannot believe this boy is late for anything, his nerves must be a wreck – standing at the door that leads out to the roof and checking the time on The Watch of Significance. Yes. He is still wearing the childhood watch that Pat returned to him all those years ago and that he kept safe in his Box of Precious Memories until after Pat pressed him up against a wall with a hand over his mouth and then programmed him into his contacts list, whereupon Pran decided it was time to put the watch back on. That is the watch he’s wearing to go meet a guy who’s been wooing him with dumplings and sweet treats and love notes.  I’m not sayin’. I’m just sayin’. ANYWAY, Pran steels himself, steps through the door and sees … Pat. Holding a bag. Both of them are all, ‘YOU!” in much the same tone as when the killer is revealed in the library with the candlestick. We clearly weren’t going to get a meet-cute on this show, so instead they’ve decided to go with a meet-irritated. (:snorfle:) They figure out they both live there, and Pat wants to know what Pran’s doing up on the roof. Pran wants to know if Pat thinks he owns the place. OMG, y’all, they are going to paint a line down the hallway. …. WAIT. OMG, y’all. They essentially did paint a (metaphorical) line between territories, it’s just that it’s a shifting line, as circumstances dictate. They’ve been trying to deal with maintaining separate territories for their factions as they guide Arch and Eng around each other this whole time (THIS is MY dance space, THAT is YOUR dance space …), not unlike their fathers painting that literal line. :facepalm: I’m an idiot. I only just saw this parallel.

Anyway anyway, Pat accuses Pran of ruining his good mood, but Pran’s got other fish to fry and wants to know if anyone else was up there earlier. (The answer, as we know it will be, is no.) Some girl wanders out onto the rooftop and is accosted by Pat talking about how beautiful the moon is tonight in a Significant Tone, at which Pran’s face definitely begins doing A Thing that indicates some mental math going on before he looks down at the sticky note in his hand inviting him up to the roof to see the beautiful moon that night. Pat asks the girl if she’s the girl who lives in Room No. 439. Pran’s face says WHAT. The girl says, uh, NO, and sidesteps the weirdo to go to the other side of the roof and talk to her honey on her phone. Pat’s face says he’s crushed. Pran makes a break for the door, but Pat turns back around to him and we get a voiceover of Wai telling Pran that if he doesn’t like the guy to tell him in person and end it right there. Oh boy. Pran braces himself, turns back around and calls out to Pat, holds up the note and says, the one you’re waiting for is me.

Pat’s face says WHAT.

And scene.

Up next: Pat’s friends are on the way over. Pran’s friends are already over. Someone really should have painted that line.

[i-did-not-mean-to]

Boys and sticks - Chapter 47 🚷

Fandom: Hobbit (College AU)

Characters: @linasofia x Thorin, @laurfilijames x Fíli, me x Ori

Words: 1,7 k

Warnings: Reference to assault, little bit of drama

Previous chapters

I found myself in front of a washing machine that was not plugged in, my arms full of soiled linen, with two other women similarly laden.

“Oi, we are like old-timey women washing their linens in the river and gossiping,” Tova exclaimed merrily, even though there was no river – only a useless machine – and no gossip as of yet.

“We are women who will now drop their suspiciously stained bedsheets onto the floor and walk away with as much dignity as they can muster,” I corrected, but Lo – very rightly – suggested we all stuff the sheets into the machine already.

“So we don’t have to buy plastic gloves,” she grinned unapologetically.

“To smooth the waves, we should maybe all return to our own dorms tonight?” I said, throwing the idea into the room and earning punitive stares from the other two.

“How fares the young squire trying to woo you?” Tova cocked her hip as if she was carrying a heavy laundry basket on it.

“Nobody is wooing anyone…my sheets are in the machine with yours, that’s all you need to know, Tova,” I snapped.

“So, do you intend to tell him ‘Well done for today, back to your box you go until I next have need of your services or something similarly dismissive?” she asked sharply.

“No, I’ll just say I’ll see him tomorrow in English Lit. We made quite a fuss yesterday and I think it would be good to spend one night in the rooms we are supposed to be in,” I groaned, “and don’t go thinking that I like the idea any more than you!”

I actually hated the mere thought of going back to the way it had been before; I knew I’d feel the absence of what I refused to even acknowledge as being there in the first place, and it made me slightly moody.

“Fuck this shit, I’ll go on a shopping spree tomorrow. I cannot go back!” I cried out and – now – both Tova and Lo nodded.

“Same, girl, just thinking of sitting on my bed and doing something as stupid as texting Fí sounds like torture,” Lo rolled her eyes and blew her cheeks up in frustration.

“We’ll be living like hobos for the first days, but…” I shrugged.

“We can make it work, Jia,” Tova promised, and I had to wonder if she had said those same exact words to her skittish boyfriend. In many ways, Thorin was almost as bad as me when it came to seizing the things we wanted.

“Thorin and I will go grocery shopping, can you cover the furniture store? Linens, towels…” Tova – ever the pragmatic one of us – had already started on a list.

“I’m starting late tomorrow morning, so I can go to the electronics store and get a TV and stuff,” Lo nodded.

We put our hands in a circle like in a bad girlie-movie and shook on it, promising that we’d make this place a home for ourselves and for the men who were standing around idly in the foyer like video game characters when the player was on the loo.

“You can take my car to go grocery shopping? I’ll give you the keys at lunch?” Lo kissed both of us on the cheek as we all arrived back on campus and turned to Tova.

“Yeah, better idea than the bike,” Tova nodded, “I’ll bring it back and we can drive to the flat together after your last class?”

My God, I thought, this was at the same time so complicated and so damn easy; all of a sudden, it was understood that we’d all have lunch together even though our studies had nothing to do with one another and we were not even in the same year.

I was not a community person by nature, and it was frightening and exciting in equal measures to understand that I was part of a collective now, that resources would be pooled, and that there were people who counted on my showing up.

“I don’t like this,” Fíli groaned and Lo didn’t look any happier either.

“I’ll text you,” she grinned, melting against him as his lips brushed hers tenderly again and again. Ah, if only time could stop!

“I love you,” he replied. Kí would never have let him live this down if he had witnessed how unwilling he was to part with that girl, but Fí had slept so well in her arms last night that he knew that he’d miss her sorely tonight.

“Call me if you need anything,” Thorin said and Tova knew that he really meant it. He was the kind of man who was the first in and the last out of a dangerous situation; he was also an overthinker by nature and by habit.

“You don’t really irk me,” I sighed, “I’ll explain tomorrow. I…I’ll see you in English Lit?”

Why was I so much worse at this than my friends?

“I meant what I said,” Ori whispered, “I feel like you didn’t believe me because it was not the right moment, but I stand by it.”

I had no idea what he was referring to, so many things had been said, but I had that awful suspicion that he was talking about the fact that he had told me – several times – rather candidly that he was in love with me. A statement I had – thus far – ignored because I did not really believe he knew what he was talking about.

“Good night, girls, please don’t change your mind,” Thorin said, sounding like something between the big brother I had never had and a sad schoolboy.

“I trust you,” I murmured and then, repeated myself a little louder.

“I trust you and I want to live with you, how I want that,” I nodded and turned on my heels before anyone could say anything more.

“Jia, wait,” Tova ran after me, “this is not the way to our dorm.”

“I’m going to the auditorium. My practice this morning was cut short by someone shitting on Thorin and I want to get some things out of my system before going to bed,” I replied softly.

“Thorin? What?” Tova’s hand was like a vice around my upper arm.

“Never mind, it was dumb shit I didn’t listen to,” I tried to dispel her worry, but her eyes held mine with as much force as was in her hand, clamped around my arm.

“People are aware that you’re…stepping out with him,” I explained cautiously.

“We are not stepping out, we are dating. I am in love with him; we’re going to move in together,” Tova declared in a clear and intransigent voice.

“Yes, suit yourself, Tova,” I groaned impatiently, squirming under her insistent stare. Tova was digging for words and confessions I was not ready or willing to surrender just yet.

“Jia, neither one of us wants for you to suffer because of it though,” Tova’s tone mellowed as the light dimmed in her eyes.

“I am not. I will not stand there and listen to someone badmouth you or your decisions, not my father, not Toby, not God himself,” I murmured, taking her hand and holding it the way she had held mine a thousand times before, “I am on your side!”

“I’ll be back soon,” I promised then and hastened away before she could interrogate me about Ori and the things that had transpired in the meantime.

When Tova arrived at her dorm though, she was met by – a very upset – Ceri who pulled her through the door instantly.

“Listen, where were you?” she barked and Tova shrugged, explaining that they had been visiting a potential flat.

“A girl has been attacked on campus and we’re in lockdown tonight. Go to your room!”

Tova whirled around – aghast – and asked: “What do you mean ‘attacked’?”

Ceri made a face that told Tova all she needed to know before confessing that the perpetrator was not apprehended yet.

“She’s in hospital now, but we don’t know who attacked her and where he is now; hence why we are barring and locking the doors,” Ceri explained and tried to usher Tova up to her room.

“Jia, she’s…she’s in the auditorium,” Tova cried out, distressed, and turned back to the door.

“We can send someone else, it’s not safe for you to go,” Ceri contradicted, grabbing Tova by the arm to keep her from running out again to retrieve her friend.

“She won’t go with anyone else, I…I’ll call Thorin,” Tova now ran up the stairs, dialling her boyfriend’s number frantically and dropping her phone twice before she made it into the room.

“Hey, what’s…” Tova interrupted his friendly greeting by panting: “Thorin, we’re in lockdown, a girl has been attacked…” “Slow down,” Thorin asked gently, “and tell me what’s the matter!”

Dwalin just entered the room and caught his friend’s wide-eyed shock as Tova reported what she had just learned.

“Thorin? Jia is in the auditorium, and they won’t let me out again,” Tova’s voice crackled like an old record being scratched by a needle and she cleared her throat to keep it from flickering out completely.

Thorin felt chilled to the bone; he remembered what Tova had told him about Jia’s past and the mere idea of this happening again to her made his stomach churn. She was a menace to herself in the best of times, he did not want to know what disasters she might instigate when alone and in an advanced state of panic.

Dwalin’s hand waved in front of his face frantically and he filled his friend and roommate in, surprised to see him so agitated.

“I’m going back to work, Zana is alone at closing time,” Dwalin declared.

“I don’t have Ori’s number and…Thorin, can you get Jia? Please?” Tova pleaded.

“Yes, listen, I’m closest to the auditorium, I’m sending Ori over to you and I’ll be calling Fí as well,” Thorin went into a numb state of utter focus right away which did wonders when it came to calming Tova down. His matter-of-fact, calm, collected voice inspired confidence and Tova felt like she could finally breathe in deeply and think.

“I’ve overheard Dwalin saying he goes back to work; I can give him Jia’s car keys?” Tova offered and Thorin transmitted the message immediately.

“What? Yes, I’d love to, but…can she do that?” Dwalin blinked in surprise.

A deep sense of calm took over Thorin’s mind as he barked: “Doesn’t matter, go get Ori, go to Tova’s, make sure she’s safe, take the keys, make sure your lady is safe…I’ll be getting Jia!”

Please, Thorin thought as he sprinted down the stairs, already ringing Fíli, please, let nothing happen to them.

[imnotevenhere9]

If you're still doing Matchups, could I please get one for Lotr and The Hobbit please? Thanks so much!

🌱 She/They Nonbinary // Bisexual // Autistic and Chronically Ill with a bonus Anxiety Disorder // 18 years old at the moment

🌱 I know a lot of Home Remedies and Superstitions for like no reason. For instance, did you know that Raspberry Tea helps with Menstrual Pain, or that knocking on wood invokes the protection of the tree spirit and that’s why it’s said to give you luck? I don’t know why I know that, but I do.

🌱 Winning a fight is on my bucket list, but it has to be for a good reason. I’m not one to just pick fights for the sake of fighting, and I’m actually pretty conflict-averse, so I need to actually have a solid reason for throwing hands. But I’ve always wanted to do it for some reason.

🌱 I often get the inexplicable urge to bake something, so my loved ones just kinda end up with surprise brownies and zucchini bread at random. This habit has only worsened over Quarantine, of course.

🌱 I really like studying Witchcraft for some reason. The first spell I ever performed was a Healing Spell to help my friend who was sick with Crohn's Disease. Thirty minutes after performing the ritual, I got a text saying he felt a lot better and he was released from the hospital a couple days later, so I guess it must’ve worked. 😁

🌱 My love language is definitely gift giving. I’m pretty cheap, but I’m also an artist, so when push comes to shove I’ll just make something for someone when I like them. I pay very close attention to what people like because it gives me more ideas on how to interact with them. I’m essentially a large, flightless Crow. You were nice, so you get something shiny. But though I like giving gifts to others, I’m not very materialistic at all. I prefer to be practical when it comes to things, and I get very nervous when spending money.

🌱 I LOVE going outside and getting messy. Playing in the mud, getting soaked in the rain, I’m the type to go outside and come back home covered in dirt and twigs. It’s just really fun to me.

🌱My Dad’s a really good cook and I seem to have inherited that gene. He actually has me make dinner whenever we’re having eggs because I always cook them better than he does.

🌱 I’ve always wanted to be a really good gardener. My dream house is just covered in flowers and plants and such. I want to live in a Greenhouse, basically.

🌱 I have a habit of giggling to myself just by remembering something funny that happened, even if it was a couple years ago. I also laugh when I do something stupid, because I find my flaws and shortcomings funny for the most part. I love to laugh with people, but never at them.

🌱 You know the sort of “Girl Next Door” trope? That’s my type. Like the guy in the dorm just down the hall, or the girl in my neighborhood who I casually flirt with. I’m a sucker for cute little interactions like that, so it’s not too much of a surprise that I always fall for people like that. I never forget people I meet on the road, and often find myself hoping to meet up with them again someday.

🌱 I know way too much about Spirits and Fae. My favorite book is called ‘The Encyclopedia of Spirits’ and it shows you how to contact and interact with a ton of different deities and spirits, and I’m addicted to reading it. It’s the best.

🌱 I’m basically like a tiny, less-impressive Aragorn. I love travelling on foot, getting messy outside, I was kind of a Horse Girl as a kid ngl, I’ve always wanted to be a knight or king of some sort, chances are that I haven’t bathed in awhile, and I too would pine for a hot elf girl for literal years on end.

🌱 I always have to have some sort of weight on me to feel comfortable, because of my Autism. That usually takes the form of a large backpack stuffed with books and snacks, or a big jacket. However, my muscles are always pretty stiff and achy, so that does kinda backfire too.

🌱My closest friends say I give off “Dwobbit” vibes. That’s a ½ Dwarf and ½ Hobbit btw. I’m around 4’ 10” tall, I don’t shave, I love crafting and art, I live in the Mountains, I’m tomboyish but I also love gardening and can be a bit of a homebody, I love going barefoot, etc.

🌱 I really love History, Folklore, Mythology and Fairy Tales. My favorite is the Irish myth of Oisín in Tir Na Nog. Look it up if you don’t know it, it’s a fantastic story. But I also appreciate myths from all sorts of different cultures, like the myth of Annapurna in India or the tale of Princess Kaguya in Japan. Did you know that in Mesopotamian Mythology, Nonbinary People were said to be given the gift of prophecy and magic by the goddess Ishtar? And that a recurring figure in Slavic Folklore is the Snake King, who’s just a big ol’ snake with a doofy looking crown? I love it.

🌱 I’m an Aquarius, INFP and 4w5 if that means anything. For reference, characters who are also 4w5 INFPs include Lydia Deetz (Beetlejuice), Wirt (Otgw), Frankenstein’s Monster, Luna Lovegood (HP), Napstablook (Undertale), The Phantom of the Opera, and Celeste from Animal Crossing. That kinda tells you a lot about me, doesn’t it?

🌱 I’ve been growing my hair out, so it’s getting pretty long too. It’s always messy, and I both use a lot of conditioner and it naturally curls when wet, so I basically end up having a very fluffy mane with a lot of stray hairs and weird curls. Also, fun fact, I never learned how to braid because I’ve only really made friends with boys and I have very poor hand-eye coordination when it comes to such things. And my hair is so thin and fluffy that it’s impossible to tame anyways, so the best I can do is put it in a ponytail, since I’m basically incapable of doing anything fancier than that. When worst comes to worse, I have plenty of hats though.

🌱 I have really pale skin that’s always covered in moles, freckles (especially on my arms) and lots of scabs. It’s also getting warmer out, so chances are that I have a farmer’s tan. I have blue eyes and glasses.

🌱 I have a habit of seeing shadows move out of the corners of my eyes, frequently mistaking them for people or animals, but when I turn to look there’s nothing there. I’ve gotten my eyesight checked multiple times, but there’s nothing out of the ordinary, so it’s either a lack of sleep, or the Fae are getting antsy with me. Probably the former of course, but part of me would like to believe the

Oof, sorry that description was so long! I really hope you don't mind. Thanks so much in advance!!

A/n: I made it really wholesome (at least in my eyes), so I hope you like it! ^_^

Masterlist • Prompts • S/o match ups • Taglist

S/o from The Hobbit: Kili! 

will take your hands and kiss all the moles and freckles when you two are alone

listens to you talking about Fairy Tales while hugging you from behind and plays with your hair

likes to fall asleep with you on his chest, so he can plent small kisses on your head

loves everything you bake, it doesn’t matter if he heard of it or not, he always gets so excited to try what you baked

gives the best massages. He will prepare a bubble bath, help you stretch, whatever makes your achy muscles hurt less

small peaks behind your shoulder when you're

S/o from LOTR: Arwen!

adores your hair. Like literally. She loves to braid them, brush them, run her fingers through them, basically everything you can think of

please share everything you know and learnes about Home Remedies and Superstitions. She loves listening to you talk, it doesn't matter if she already knows all of it, she just wants to listen to you talk about it

your random giggles? In her eyes the cutest thing ever. Just hearing you giggling brightens her day so much

will probably go outside and get messy with you, because she loves to see you happy

gets shy when you give her gifts, she loves them all so much tho

will get you different books about Witchcraft, so you can learn and practice more!

[akindofmagictoo]

20 first lines tag game

this comes from @zmlorenz and also I think @amillionwips — thank you both!

rules: list the first lines of your last 20 stories (if you have less than 20 stories just list them all). see if there are any patterns. choose your favourite opening line. then tag others. 

(I will tag @writingbyjillian @pamsdrabbles @sleepyowlwrites and anyone who wants to play!) 

Hurricane 

Tempest stilled her bouncing leg, eyeing her sleeping husband. Had she woken him? She took a careful breath and didn’t let it go until he snored and rolled over, pulling the covers tighter around himself. Still she waited. One breath. Two breaths. When he still didn’t move, she stood up and grabbed her coat and sword belt, not even bothering to put them on. Because she had to leave, and she had to leave today. 

Theo x Aella Little Mermaid AU

Water closed over his head, tugged at his clothes. Tugged him down… down… 

He wanted to cry out for help, but the water filled up his mouth before he could make a sound. Cold stole into his limbs, heavy and dark, weighing him down. 

His chest ached, searching for air. Deep, cold darkness wrapped around him. Dragging, pressing, pulling down.

Down… down… down… 

When he’d hit the water, he’d panicked. That was gone now. All he felt was the cold, the deep dark cold.

a random post-canon Theo x Aella oneshot 

Thunder rumbled overhead, blending into the drumming of the rain on the roof. Aella tucked her blanket more tightly around herself, but it did no good. She couldn’t sleep. She couldn’t keep her mind off the locked front door, Alanna’s instruction to stay inside. It felt too much like other locked doors. Every time she closed her eyes, she was back there again and—

No. Sitting in this bed alone with her thoughts would do no good.

a post-canon Theo x Aella oneshot (sort of the former version of the one above)

“Read the mermaid one again.” Aella snuggled against Theo, pressed up between him and the arm of the big old armchair. 

a Theo x Aella modern AU 

Even with a map on his phone, Theo was impressed he’d made it to the small cafe on the main street. True, it was the main street, but his new house wasn’t, and directions weren’t his forte. Given how recently he’d moved, it was at least understandable. 

The cafe was small, but its list of drink options was larger than he’d expected. But it included several types of tea, so he ordered a familiar English Breakfast and sat down at the nearest table.

post-canon oneshot of the Hurricane women play ‘theatre’ 

“So, who’s up next?” Aria stretched out in her hammock. “As much as I enjoyed being the defence lawyer, I think it’s someone else’s turn.” 

“I’ll play the accused. I want to try my daring escape again,” Aella volunteered, sitting up. 

Theo grinned. “Because you got caught last time?” 

a crossover royalty AU with another project (Labyrinth) 

(this isn’t the first line, but it’s the first lines where Theo appears. also, you would be correct if you assume that the Spanish princess is not Aella. that is the complication.) 

“Spain confirmed the marriage alliance,” said Jared. “We still have to confirm it one last time, though.” 

Theo glanced up at his dad. “Hardly surprising, really. They offered it, after all.” 

Jared nodded. “Are you still alright with this? We can turn them down now, if you want.” 

“My calendar is free,” said Theo, straight-faced. “I mean, it’s not like I’ve got my eye on someone else or whatever. Just as long as I’m not expected to actually have a romantic relationship with the Spanish princess.” 

the below are all fanfictions. [ps my AO3 is @/ sidebysidewithafriend go check it out if any of these fics interest you] 

Shadow and Cottontail (Harry Potter: Marauders (OC insert)) 

(this is co-written, I’m posting the first part that I wrote) 

“Is there mail today?” Kai Lupin jumped the last step down to the dining room. This was the same question she’d been asking for five days, but she asked anyway. 

Her mother Hope was about to answer when an owl swooped through the open window, a parchment envelope clutched in its beak. 

“I think the answer is yes,” said Remus, descending the stairs behind her with a little more care than she’d taken. Kai rolled her eyes and crossed the room to see what the envelope contained.

Hope was already taking it from the owl. “It’s from Hogwarts,” Hope said, and Kai’s heart leapt, only to be dashed by her mother’s next words. “But there’s only one envelope. It’s addressed to you, Kai.” 

Told You You’d Kill It (Harry Potter: Romione) 

“Ugh.” Ron shoved his books to one side and ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up in all different directions. Hermione hid a smile as Ron drew his hands inside his jumper sleeves.

Through a yawn, he continued, “I’m done. I’m so tired.” Probably from his basketball training, but schoolwork was also a struggle for him, she knew. And they’d been studying in the library for several hours now. No wonder he was exhausted.

Thank You For Saving My Cat (Harry Potter: Jily) 

Lily pushed herself up to a sitting position and breathed a small sigh of relief. At least she was out. She turned back to the house, watching the orange flames that danced over the structure with her heart in her throat. Was it her imagination, or were they growing smaller?

Most of her stuff could be replaced. But she hoped nonetheless that she wouldn’t have to.

Then she remembered the one thing she’d left behind and couldn’t replace. Crookshanks. She stumbled to her feet. Legs shaking under her, she ran to the nearest firefighter and grabbed their sleeve. The firefighter gear covered its occupant’s face, but the voice sounded male. “Are you alright?” He took her arm gently, steadying her.

3AM (Harry Potter: Wolfstar) 

The beeping of the fire alarm filtered into Sirius’s sleeping brain, burrowing in until he couldn’t help but wake up. At which point he groaned and wrapped his pillow around his head, trying to block out the noise.

But this was a fire alarm, so really he had to get up. Grudgingly, he removed the pillow from his head and fumbled for his phone to check the time. The light from the screen was blinding in the darkness of his dorm room, but after a moment his eyes adjusted to see that it was 3:07 AM.

Give Him Back to Me (The Great Library: Wolfe x Santi) 

Day 1

“Nic?” Wolfe half-rose from the bed at the sound of knocking, leaving his Codex open beside him. Something was off, though. Nic wouldn’t knock. He had a key. Besides, Nic was away in Belgium, training a new company. He wasn’t due back for another day or two, and that was assuming everything went to plan.

Nevertheless, when the knock came again he got to his feet and headed for the door.

Death Is Not Fair (Shadowhunters: (very angsty) Malec) 

It wasn’t fair. Then again, life wasn’t fair.

And neither was death.

It shouldn’t have happened. It should have been a simple mission. The scans and all the reports had said there was just one demon in the area. It was a larger, stronger demon, and would’ve put up a good fight, but it was still practically nothing to a Shadowhunter like Alec.

Untitled (Shadowhunters: Sizzy) (unfinished and un-posted) 

Izzy was swearing off dating. She’d kind of thought about it before, but hearing about the amount of drama in Jace’s love life right now cemented the idea firmly in her mind. No more dating. Between that and the mess Alec had gone through a couple of months ago, she wasn’t sure she wanted any part of that. Not to mention that of all the boys she’d dated, none of the relationships had really been right. Did she believe in The One? She wasn’t sure. But none of her boyfriends had been it, that was for sure. So no more dating for her. She was here to study forensic chemistry, after all, and surely it was better to concentrate on that.

Moving Day (Riordanverse: Blitzstone) 

Last? signed Hearth. 

Blitz brushed a speck of dust from the shoulder of his shirt, studying Hearth’s face. He knew exactly how many boxes were left to move, and it was more than zero, but the elf was looking paler than usual. If that was possible. As he watched, Hearth swayed a little and put a hand on the wall for support. “No. But I’ll get the rest. You need a break.”

Untitled quarantine AU (Riordanverse: Percabeth) (unfinished and un-posted)

“Thanks for letting me stay over to finish this project,” said Annabeth, setting the last piece on the model Coliseum she’d made. They’d done most of it last night, and she was just adding the finishing touches now. Although that had been before school had been shut down; they’d been notified the night before, but since she was here she’d been determined to finish it.  

Untitled (The Hobbit) (I have a “better version of Tauriel’s arc” thing in the works, and this is an accompanying oneshot of how the Durins died in this version) (un-posted) 

“Where is he? It looks empty. I think Azog has fled.” Fili glanced around nervously, his breath steaming in the icy air. 

“I don’t think so,” said Thorin. 

Footsteps sounded on the ice, echoing in all directions. It was impossible to know their source. 

“We’ve got company,” Thorin growled. 

Kili readied his sword. 

This was practically everyday for them at this point. Every motion of his sword, every footstep, every bit of it was familiar. Fili hardly had to think. His sword flashed in the faint light. Droplets of blood and crystals of ice spattered his exposed skin, hot and cold. He was at home here; he might not have been on the ice before, but with a sword in his hand and Kili and Thorin at his back, he was content.

this is VERY long. if you read to here, thank you! and maybe consider reading some of them in full on my AO3? 

[akp-1327]

🎉  NEW HSS:CA SERIES!  🎉

Yes, you read that right! There is a new HSS:CA series on the horizon!

Now. For some details! I bolded the key info if you’re in a rush! :)

This is a College AU that I’ve been experimenting with for almost a year (?!) and it’s about the HSS:CA gang in a new setting. I suck at writing synopses...so here is just a “teeeeeny” sneak peek at the first chapter: 

[Contains Charlotte (MC) and Henry (MC’s twin)]

July 16th, 2020

Dear Diary,

Nothing would make me happier than to visit the city. The bright lights, the busy streets, the shops, the smell of car exhaust. For all the wonders I’d discover, for all the opportunities I’d face. For the experience, for the fun.

Living in a small town is boring. It’s the same, day after day. Then as soon as you bat an eye, you’ve turned eighteen and have barely left the state. Some would call me a hobbit, some would call me lazy. But it’s hard to get out of town when your family can’t really leave because of their job and you’re too scared to learn how to drive.

The diner that my parents own is great; awesome pancakes, delicious milkshakes, and every single pie flavor you could ever imagine. It’s called the Golden Griddle and it’s located right in the heart of Cedar Cove. You’d have to be blind to miss the sunny yellow paint (that’s ever so slowly chipping away, but don’t tell my dad) smeared on the bricks.

Anyway. I’m Charlotte, but you knew that already, didn’t you? Of course you did. Well, if you needed a reminder of my sob-worthy life story...my brother and I are are adopted. But you probably remembered that, right? Wow, I need to stop ranting about how you probably remember me. You’re a literal book for God’s sake.

Wait; back on topic. I want to go to see the city. So badly. Oh, and have I mentioned that I got accepted into my dream school? New York University, here I come. How have I not written about that yet? Holy crap. NYU preparations have been coming along nicely. I already have half my room packed and almost all my dorm stuff that my mom insists on buying. My brother Henry, too. He’s going to Ohio State on a football scholarship and a desire to pursue athletic training. Big dreams!

Me, you ask? Good gracious, Diary, stop interrupting! (Oh boy, I’m talking to myself. Leila would laugh...). I’m pursuing acting and theater, of course. A major in drama and a minor in production. I’m chasing the sun here, okay? I am a future Broadway star and actress with dreams as far as the eye can see!

I am ecstatic to make the big move at the beginning of August. More updates to come. Sorry if this ending was abrupt. My dad made his famous chili tonight and I gotta go get it while it’s hot and before Henry inhales it all like the vacuum he is.

Yours, Charlotte :)

And here are some more details!

There will be some mature topics discussed in this AU (just like in the original series). There will be both a tag and an indicator as to where these are in the writing in case they make you uncomfortable, so no worries!

This AU will contain a few original characters! They’ll most definitely be tagged (#oc ___ ___) so there’s no confusion with Pixelberry’s original (and amazing) characters we know and love!

The point of view will change from chapter to chapter! Though, it will only be a rotation between two characters...👀

Alright! That’s honestly...it. The date in the entry above is the date that you’ll see the first chapter, so keep your eyes peeled!

I am beyond excited to share this with you all in the coming days!!! 🥳

[obsessedwithbbandsuju]

Han Yuna Masterlist

*This is my default information on Yuna; however, most of it can change based on the scenario (AUs)

*Faceclaim is Kim Hyuna (quite obviously for anyone who’s into kpop)

*Last Updated: 5/27/20

Stage Name: Yuna (유나)

Birth Name: Han Yuna (한유나 )

English Name: Krista

Group: Pandora // Solo

Other Members: Son Taeyeon, Park Soojin, Lee Sunbin, Park Minhee

Position: Lead Dancer, Vocalist, Sub-rapper, Maknae

Agency: YG Entertainment

Birthdate: May 15th, 1994

Debut Date: October 17th, 2006

Zodiac Sign: Taurus

Height: 163 cm (5’4″)

Weight: 45 kg (99 lbs)

Blood Type: 

Nationality: South Korean

Father: Han Kyungsoon

Mother: Lee Eunbi (deceased)

Brother: Han Jaehee [older by three years]

Stepmother: Jang Miyeon

Facts:

She was born in Mokpo and moved to Ilsan when she was three

Her mother, who was a freelance writer, passed away when she was seven years old from cardiac arrest

Since she’s the only girl in the family, her father, a university professor, was very fond of her, sometimes to the point of favoritism, which caused a rift between her older brother and herself

Since age ten she took part in a children’s performance team in her neighborhood, which is where she came to love dance

Soojin wanted to be an idol since she was young

When Yuna was twelve, her father remarried to her stepmother, Jang Miyeon

Because she was young then, Yuna didn’t like Miyeon and rebuffed her stepmother every time she tried to be friendly, but Miyeon was continuously kind to her

Due to her aloofness toward Miyeon, Yuna and her father grew apart, resulting in them arguing more and more frequently

Her older brother, Jaehee, didn’t like their stepmother either and also argued with their father over the matter, which resulted in them becoming closer to each other until they were almost inseparable

Yuna says that once she and Jaehee began to get along, he looked after her very well - walking her to school, making sure she slept and ate enough, helping her with her homework, etc.

In 2005, Yuna auditioned at YGE by dancing to S.E.S’s I’m Your Girl and singing to Uhm Jung Hwa’s Poison, and passed

Her father, whom she still had a strained relationship with, was lukewarm towards her career, wanting her to study instead, but her stepmother and her older brother supported her

Yuna met the other members – Minhee, Taeyeon, Soojin, and Sunbin – in early 2006

After Pandora’s debut on October 17th, 2006, Yuna began to realize that she had been unfair to her stepmother, but never brought it up for pride’s sake; she did, however, become less cold to Miyeon, although still maintaining a large distance

Due to the awkwardness between her and her father and stepmother, she spent the majority of her years as a trainee and many years after debuting in the dorms with the other members

When she did visit her family at home, there was considerable tension between herself and her family, with the exception of with Jaehee, who always welcomed her warmly

For years, she continued to debate on apologizing to Miyeon for being so unaccepting of her at first, but she could never quite make herself do it

When Yuna was eighteen, the university that her father worked at closed; Jaehee had already moved out, too, and her father and her stepmother were going bankrupt, but they kept it from both her and Jaehee

Yuna found out, though, and used her money to open them a barbecue restaurant in Ilsan; the restaurant was successful

After the restaurant’s success, Yuna finally managed to tell Miyeon that she was sorry for the way she treated her at first; Miyeon accepted her apology and helped her mend her relationship with her father, too

The other members of Pandora are like sisters to her, because she’s known and worked with them for so long

The Bigbang members are all like older brother to her, though she’s especially close with Daesung

She’s the acknowledged best at aegyo in Pandora, having some naturally cute mannerisms

Yuna is close with Sojin and Yura of Girl’s Day, Sohee (formerly) of Wonder Girls, and Choa (formerly) of AOA

She’s acquainted with all of Super Junior and friends with Heechul, Kangin, Yesung, and Siwon

Yuna is also friends with all of SHINee

She’s close to 2NE1 and Blackpink, especially with Minzy in the former and Jisoo in the latter

In college, Yuna majored in political science

Yuna is the type of person who has very focused parameters; she doesn’t really pay attention to anything that doesn’t affect her or those close to her

The things that Yuna is interested in usually have to do with astronomy, biology, economics, or philosophy

Yuna is a good driver

Some of Yuna’s favorite books are The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien,  For the Most Beautiful by Emily Hauser, 1984 by George Orwell, Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan, The Moon Over the Mountain by Nakajima Atsushi, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, and Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

Yuna has an IQ of 171

Since childhood, Yuna has played the piano

Yuna is bad at putting on makeup, being the second worst at it in Pandora after Taeyeon

Yuna is introverted and likes spending time alone, she finds a good balance between time to herself and time with other people; Taeyeon once said that she envies Yuna for being able to walk on that thin line

Yuna’s favorite variety shows are Knowing Bros, Happy Together, Running Man, and I Can See Your Voice

By her own admittance, Yuna can be rather impatient and she doesn’t have the self-control of people like Soojin or Taeyeon; according to her, it can make her annoying to deal with sometimes

She thinks it’s a little scary how Taeyeon and Soojin can keep their composure so well

Yuna is someone who often wears her feelings on her sleeve; she doesn’t like hiding things, so she lets people know when she’s upset, sad, or anything of the like 

She often lets her feelings get a rise out of her and regrets it later

Yuna is agonistic

She believes in aliens but she doesn’t think that human beings on Earth will ever be able to have contact with them because of the sheer vastness of the universe

Her MBTI type is

Yuna is bisexual and an LGBTQ+ supporter

She’s popular in variety shows because of how laid-back she is; almost nothing that the hosts say to get a rise out of her succeed in fazing her

Generally she talks enthusiastically on variety shows, but she’s hard to fluster

She also likes to fire teasing and smart comments on a rare blue moon, but they’re very well-done and hilarious, which is exacerbated because she doesn’t do so often

Yuna’s favorite foods are tteokbokki, jjajangmyeon, and tteokguk

She’s not very good at holding her alcohol; in fact, a cup is usually enough to get her tipsy

Yuna is a morning person; she usually likes to go to bed early and wake up early, which sometimes leads to her struggling during irregular schedules

Her favorite animal is the dolphin

She’s not very competitive and especially hates putting physical exertion into anything

According to the other members, Yuna is the type to get really emotionally involved while dating, and can get somewhat fixated on her partner; because of that, she sometimes gets her feelings hurt

Yuna has a bad tendency to just push away things that are stressing her out, which leads to bad procrastination habits

Still, she strikes a fairly good balance between her work and her leisure time, which is why she often worries about Taeyeon, the resident workaholic and perfectionist of the group

She loves to read, and she’s fairly sure it’s because her mother read to her very often when she was a child

Because of Taeyeon’s tendency to be experimental and change the concepts and genres of their discography frequently, Yuna and the rest of Pandora have been noted for being “concept chameleons” by some

Yuna can speak Korean (from growing up in Korea) and and Mandarin (from school and working abroad) fluently, and she’s good at English, Japanese, and Indonesian

Yuna is a somewhat controversial figure in South Korea because she (and the rest of the Pandora members) is more outspoken about her concerns regarding the double standards against women in the industry as opposed to men, as well as South Korea’s sexism in general; she has also delved into topics such as LGBTQ rights and the stigma against idols dating

Yuna’s ideal type: “I think anyone who’s there for me would satisfy me in a relationship. If I had to pick a quality I would say that I prefer people who are dedicated. I really find it admirable when someone commits wholeheartedly to something.”

Cho Kyuhyun/Han Yuna

Love Disease, part i // Angst

[medievalraven]

Ship History Meme!

Embrace your past and get to know your friends’ fandom origins!

Rules: Post gifs of your fandoms/ships starting with your most current hyperfixation and work backwards. (Bonus points if you share any stories about how or when you got into that ship! But not necessary!!) Then tag anyone whose fandom history you’d like to learn about!

Tagged by my favorite beanie-obsessed @riosnecktattoo​ and the lovely @jazillia007​ !!

1: Beth Boland/Rio aka Brio from Good Girls

What a surprise right??  These two have taken over so much of my life and I love them more than I love myself tbh.  I actually didn’t start shipping them until 1x05 when Rio dropped this iconic line: “So tell him I was hittin’ it” and I was like ‘you know what, I would like to see that’.  It was all downhill from there and continues to get worse thanks to Manny and Christina’s off-the-charts chemistry and acting skills.  Also special shout out since this was the ship that forced me out of my history of fandom lurking and got me to start writing fanfic!

2: Clarke Griffin/Bellamy Blake aka Bellarke from The 100

It’s going to become apparent very quickly that I have a thing for Enemies to Lovers haha.  I’m pretty sure I saw a gifset of these two at some point (I think of the infamous season two hug) and then I fell down the rabbit hole.  Forever bitter that these two will probably never be canon despite the writers spending seasons giving us ridiculously not-platonic dialogue and moments (The Radio Calls!  The Hugs!  A TRAITOR YOU LOVE!  Fuck J Roth seriously).  Thank god for all the amazing fanfic in this fandom though.

3. Emma Swan/Captain Hook aka Captain Swan from Once Upon a Time

Another enemies to lovers ship haha!  These two had absolutely amazing chemistry and I just love the overall progression of their relationship throughout seasons three and four - plus their first kiss is just outstanding.  Ugh.  Also this ship has some of the best fanfics I’ve ever read.

4. Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield aka Bagginshield from The Hobbit

Look I’m sure J.R.R. Tolkien would be rolling in his grave over this ship - but I love them so much.  I remember seeing Battle of the Five Armies for the first time and the stupid acorn scene happened and let me tell you as soon as I got home I was googling Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield fanfiction.  We’re just gonna ignore that fact that Thorin died (especially because he didn’t need to ugh).

5. Bella Swan/Edward Cullen from Twilight

Look anyone who doesn’t have Twilight on this list is a lying liar.  Yes they are both trash, yes this is an abusive relationship, yes the acting is horrible - but that didn’t stop 18 year old me from having an Edward Cullen poster up in her college dorm room.

6. Rory Gilmore/Jess Mariano aka Literati from Gilmore Girls

My very first ship!  I was obsessed with this show when I was in middle/high school and wanted to be just like Rory when I got older (the revival changed that completely haha).  Jess is clearly the best of Rory’s boyfriends and they were meant to be.

Tagging: @lilliloves​, @mego42​, @nickmillerscaulk​, and @fairhairedkings​ !!

[chisie12]

Gency Week Day 7: Camellia/My Destiny Is In Your Hands

Day 7: My Destiny Was Always In Your Hands AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19071907/chapters/46102117

This chapter is for Obamacare4u and for @glazzrain, for loving this series when I was insecure about it myself. Special thanks and love to a certain hobbit @historicfailure writer for helping me with this <3 It’s also for all the others who had silently loved this. The final chapter!

Closing the book in her hands, there was a moment where she simply stared off into space. Her mind wasn’t whirling with thoughts nor was she terribly troubled by it, rather... she felt at a loss. Was this what he had intended? To blindside her with this book? Filled with his feelings and memories? Staring blankly at the book, she traced the golden calligraphy of the title, feeling the slight friction and raised bumps of the dried ink under her fingernail.  

‘Was he afraid I'd forget him?’ 

‘You already did.’ 

‘I’m remembering him now though?’ 

‘He’s already reduced to a mere memory to you in his mind. It’s never the same.’ 

She gave a rueful grin, bringing the book closer to her chest and held it close. How much pain had he been suffering? Because of her. He never once complained about it, not even when he initially found her coincidentally in the café. It was like he had accepted her and was willing to start anew.  

A drop of water plopped as her head ached with a dull thump. Like a crack in the sky, rain began to pitter-patter on the cold pavement. Looking up with a wince and fingers on her temple, she watched the rain fall from inside the kitchen, staring at the reflection of light dancing in the water curtain.  

‘It was raining when I found him too. Just like it was raining after dinner in the office.’ 

Hugging the book with an arm, she reached out the open backdoor to touch the cold falling droplets, letting it trickle down the slender fingers. They move slowly around her digits, the droplets transparent yet opaque, falling as if beckoned to the ground with the crook of a siren’s finger. With the breeze, her fingers grew cold, but would it be crazy if she said that she felt warm at the touch, as though she felt close to it, a bond that couldn’t be broken. 

‘Because it’s a connection between him and I?’  She bitterly chuckled before retracting it back into the warmth of the kitchen.  

Seeing that the time for her break was almost up, she hurriedly returned to her job, settling the book back into the bag and dumping it under the counter. Yet, drama already started to roll before she even stepped out of the kitchen. 

“Moira? What are you doing here.” Mei’s tone was flat with an edge around it, though the smile remained. It lacked any warmth, having simply been forced there as the shorter woman looked at the newest incomer. 

Brushing the ginger hair out of her mismatched eyes, she grinned lazily at Mei. “It’s been a while, Doctor Zhou, but I wonder if I could still read your colleagues' research into the long-term effects of cryogenic freezing.” 

Mei tried to stay firm against the woman, but she couldn’t deny the tremble in her knees, the tight grip on her pen as she inwardly cried softly: Why is this woman even here! Moira’s smile may have seemed friendly to those oblivious, but Mei knew first-hand of the mad woman’s persistence in science and its discoveries, and her experiments can be lethal. Look at Widowmaker, damn it!  

Moira went up to the counter, the lethal grin still on her sharp face. “Could I place my order?”  

“Yes... Well... S-Sure... maybe?” Mei’s smile twitched as she dug her heel onto the floor, stopping her from taking a step back and ignoring Moira’s knowing smile at the same time. There’s nothing Moira could do to her now, don’t panic, don’t worry, she kept telling herself. With a deep breath, she recollected herself and asked in a friendly manner, “What would you like to order?”  

Before the ginger woman could even get a word in, Angela appeared from the kitchen with a paper bag in hand. “Moira? What are you doing here?” 

Pleasant surprise shone in those pair of mismatched eyes. “You’ve remembered, huh? Took you long enough.” Confusion flitted across both Mei and Angela’s faces. Moira laughed in dark glee at the sight before gesturing for Angela to talk to her in a corner. The two women shared a glance when the café owner ultimately agreed. Looked like she was extending her break time.  

“How’s your head doing?” Moira asked when the pair reached a quiet spot in the corner of the café. Buds of camellias decorated the café this week, dotting the place with various tones of red, pink and white, where even a row blocked them from view of curious onlookers.  

Angela was apprehensive and Moira rolled her eyes at the blonde doctor’s silence. “I’m the one that helped you recover your memories, Doctor Ziegler.” A groan escaped her lips when Angela stared incredulously at her. “It wasn’t hard. Those quack doctors don’t even know what they’re doing. Your body’s been altered with your applied nanobiology, so it has always been functioning different than normal humans.”  

“Oh.”  

“I’ve already stimulated your cells to begin their proper, actual recovery. So, how are you feeling?”  

Angela nodded her head slowly, digesting the new information that she was told. “It’s not hurting as when I first remembered a memory. But I feel like I haven’t remembered everything.”  

Moira drummed her fingers on the table, resting her chin in the propped-up palm thoughtfully. “It seems like quite a slow process. But it should be the majority of your memories because by now only two weeks had passed. Do you feel any different?” 

Angela shook her head. She felt nothing different apart from feeling a lot lighter than she used to be.  

Moira nodded slowly. “Alright. After today, you should probably remember it all.” 

“What do you mean –”  

A clawed hand reached out towards her face, the limb enlarged and glowing orange before her eyes. A chill ran down her spine as fear quickly consumed her. Subconsciously, Angela moved back from the unknown but Moira was quicker. She shot to her feet and leaned forward; the sound of the chair scrapping back echoing exceptionally loud in Angela’s ears. A cold sensation washed over her body, but unlike the odd warmth that she felt before, this was a cold that chilled her bones to their very core. She forced herself to keep breathing, to stop the panic from rising in her chest, and the palm descended upon her head. Fingernails dug into her scalp, sight shrouded in a flickering orange and she felt a force enter her cells. It stimulated the blood in her veins, causing them to pulsate and thump with a life force unlike the norm. A tinge of gold surfaced from the red cells, detaching and floating in the stream of blood as though they belonged before hopping and allowing the current to bring them away. They travelled through every vein, every stream, bringing about a chilly comfort in her body as she felt lighter and lighter, and the dull ache in her head fully disperse, dissolving into the shadows with no traces of its existence.  

But images danced in her mind, filled with voices and emotions, rushing and flashing like a movie on play. She saw a young blonde girl chasing after her father and mother, a loving couple who kissed her and called her their little angel; she saw death and chaos as the world fell into ruins with the war on omnics; found light in saving and healing people with her own two hands, that there was where she belonged. And then there was a shroud of darkness before her sight was filled with still colours and light, and Moira’s smug grin was clear in front of her eyes.  

“That should be all but it should come back to you over time. Maybe in the next month or so.” 

 Angela blinked to steady the blurring of her vision, slumping into her seat, not recognising the farewell Moira gave or the sound of her departure, for she was too focused on the memories playing in her mind.  

 ~*~*~ 

 I thanked the elderly man for the keys and walked into my new apartment. It was slightly on the older age, but still sturdy and comfortable despite the weather on the walls. It was a little out of the city, nearer to the outskirts, with flowering trees lining the pavements. My room was a lot smaller than the dorm room I had in the bureau, but it gave me a sense of control and freedom as I looked at the white walls, the wooden frame of the hard bed, and the similar hard wood furnishings around the place. It was perfect, at least it was for the next month before I leave.  

Dropping my bag on the round table, I tugged the scarf away from my neck as I slowly made my way to the large window. I felt no pain except for the malfunctioning of my cyborg self. I was limping, the left leg heavier than my right and it would creak as it bent at the knee. I pulled it up and straightened it on to the wide ledge by the windowsill, leaving my other leg dangling down as I rested my chin on the crook of my elbow, watching the people go about in their daily lives. They were laughing and smiling leisurely, unlike the lowered heads of those busy bustling in the city. Pink flower petals rustled and drifted down, painting the grey pavements a bright colour. It reminded me of the time when Sakura blossoms would bloom in Hanamura and I’d watch people pass just like this. Simple and carefree. And that’s when I caught sight of my own reflection against the glass, the dark black hair hanging limply against my forehead, locks having grown longer. My eyes traced the scars on my face like they’ve done so many times before, yet I felt at peace. At peace with the scars, at peace with my choices. It wouldn’t be long now.  

All there’s left was dinner. 

I sat there, remembering the memories that she and I shared in the past weeks, a tender smile floating on my lips. Even when there was the pitter and patter of rain against my window, my eyes closed for favour of basking itself in Nature’s orchestra. Soft and rhythmic, battering against the glass, and I descended into darkness at the gentle lull of sleep, one where I was free from the jeering and murmured insults behind my back, one where I felt safe.  

 ~*~*~ 

 But his rest wasn’t long at all, because on the fourth day after settling in, his left leg was acting up; It refused to bend and move according to his wishes, lying straight as a rod, as dead as any metal could be. Heavy pants heaved his chest to rise and fall, fingers tightly gripping the metal thigh as desperation silently screamed in his scarred countenance. Move, just move, damn it! There was a panic in his eyes when the mere feeling of his leg faded, as though the leg became simply what it was before: A dead metal. Fuck, fuck, fuck. No! His fingers clawed into the dead thigh, unwilling to accept the sheer hopelessness of the situation, and in a fit of despair, I started beating at my leg, pounding at it with my fists in hope that it’ll move. Just fucking move! I should have known that my light was frail, that my hope was nothing but a fleeting moment, a wistful thinking. The deep darkness swallowed me whole, diminishing all the happiness and bliss of all that I looked forward to. I cried in anguish while wrapping my hands around the thigh from where flesh met metal, the vision blurring in my eyes as a layer of wetness appeared on the surface.  

Why? Why now! 

Another howl was ripped from my throat and I laid down in defeat on my thigh, my sweaty forehead coming into contact with it.  

Please. Why?  

Couldn’t you have lasted another month? 

Fuuuck!  

Roaring out in unwilling rage, I harshly brought my fist back down onto the thigh, slamming it with every ounce of power that I could muster. The moment my fist pounded onto the limb, there was an instant jerk and a painful shock electrifying my senses that made me wince and cry out in pain. A relieved, wet smile broke out on my face when I felt the tingling sensation running along the limb.  

Oh, God. Fucking hell. Fuck. 

I grunted, willing my leg to move. It twitched, sending sparks of joy off in me. Any movement was better than none, right? I kneaded at my thigh, urging for the blood to flow in the flesh, hoping that it would stimulate it to function. A deep breath in and I tried again, but the more I pushed, the more it felt like I was trying to move a hundred-year old tree trunk. It inched bit by bit towards the edge of the bed, toes wiggling in between – A desperate grasp onto hope if you will.  

A dull thump echoed in the silent room when the foot dropped onto the floor, leaving only the sounds of my heavy breathing. Sweat oozed out from my every pore, jet black hair clinging onto my face, feeling like the battlefield was already half won. Pushing off the bed, I grimaced as my arm creaked under the pressure and got to my feet. The room tilted and swayed, and I quickly steadied my staggering feet. A foot lifted, toes tapping on the floorboards, and I was elated at the sensation of touch. Breathing out the stress bubbling in my stomach, I combed my hair back with a hand, preparing myself for a very long day.  

 ~*~*~ 

 When the night came, I had somehow gotten my leg to manage walking around like a normal human, and not lug around like a headless zombie. Dropping onto the chair, I stared proud yet pained at my leg, and then my hands. How nice would it have been if I was human? Then I could go see a doctor for any pain that I would have and I could cure with just the simplest medicine or physiotherapy, but no. I had to suffer at the hands of my older brother, turned into a machine for the use of others, and when I thought fate had been kind enough with giving me her presence in my life, allowing me to see the light in the dark, it equally ripped it away and now I’m left with a broken body that no one could possibly fix.  

“Haha... That’s just how it is. My life’s not mine to live for.”  

My soul had been battered and bruised, scarred and cut, leaving behind just a graveyard of buried hopes.  

But at least I’ll spend the last of it with her, and then I’ll gladly dissolve away into just being her memories.  

A deep rumble echoed from the depths of my empty stomach as a laughter burst from my chest. Before that, food! As I stood up, proud that I didn’t stumble or fall, I dove for my phone on the bed, only to jump in fright when the device suddenly vibrated and rang.  

‘Some agent I am,’ I chuckled lowly, bringing the phone up to my ear after accepting the call. “Hello? Genji speaking.” 

“Genji, it’s Gabriel.” 

Subconsciously, I straightened my back and levelled my tone as I gave him my greetings. 

“There’s no time for that right now. I know you’re no longer an agent, but I have a request to make. Is there a way for us to meet?”  

I frowned at the severity in his voice. “Alright, I’ll meet you at the office.” 

“No. Not there. It’s not safe here. We need to meet somewhere else.”  

My frown deepened while I sat up properly atop the bed. There was of course another option to meet up at, plenty actually, but for those that were actually safe?  Those were far few and between. Eyes glanced around the quaint little room, teeth gritting in uncertainty. Should I offer up the one place of a sanctuary that I’ve managed to find? One where my frantic heart could calm at, where I wouldn’t be judged endlessly?  

I really wanted to say no, that I’ve changed my mind. Besides, it wouldn’t be unreasonable of me, right? I did, after all, decide to leave behind the battlefield of shattered dreams and dark hopes. But this was Gabriel that we were talking about, the one man that, grumpily and secretly happy (I’m sure), took me in despite the war machine I was created into, gave me a place like home that – Sigh. 

“Genji?” 

“Meet me at my place. I’ll send you the address.” 

I couldn’t regret it even if I wanted to now. 

 ~*~*~ 

 A series of raps sounded on the door and my head whipped up to stare at it unhappily with the noodles in my mouth. Slurping the rest of it down, I stood up while a resigned sigh escaped.  

I came face to face with Gabriel’s haggard appearance upon unlocking the door, which brought forth a wave of confusion as it was a sight rarely seen on the man. He stepped into the room while the scent of food assaulted his nose, waking him just ever so slightly. Tired eyes scanned the minimal possessions that littered the place, before falling upon the unfinished cup of instant noodles by the table. 

Apologetically, he turned towards me when I walked past him and back to my dinner. “I’m sorry for disturbing you, Genji.”  

“It’s alright. What happened?” I fought the urge to squirm under his watchful gaze. Had he noticed? Of slowing steps and ragged movements?  

“It’s Jack.”  

I paused mid-action, the slightly warm noodles caressing my open lips that curved into a frown. Jack. It’s Jack again. Exhaling the rising anger with a deep breath, I reluctantly put my food down when the atmosphere grew tense and breathing was a little hard. 

Gabriel took my stare and silence as a sign to continue. “On the day you resigned, Jack took it upon himself to complete a mission that was initially put aside for you.” 

“What kind of mission?” 

“An infiltration mission. Recent intel reports gathered that the real Slade is the real owner behind the Lumiere corporation that owns majority of the high-end hotels.” 

I nodded, indicating that I was following along in understanding the situation. With that much power and money, he could easily build up another underground drug ring, and with that kind of potential customer base, he could easily gain more profits. The only thing I couldn’t fathom was: “Why make the corpse poison then?”  

Gabriel bitterly laughed. “That... is probably related to us. We have reasons to believe that that poison was concocted to be used on us, the “scum of the earth” as Slade put not-so-subtly.”  

“Us? What did we do?”  

“Remember Blackwatch?” Gabriel sighed as he dropped onto the chair. “With the stories of assassination, coercion, kidnapping, torture, and others that went around, he was one of those extremists that believed Overwatch was a façade put up for our real identity: Blackwatch.” 

My lips tugged downwards at the distant memory. Blackwatch had been created and it was present at some point, but it was not exactly those rumours made it out to be. It was, to put it simply, the ones that did the dirty work for Overwatch, as the latter was made to maintain peace and fight against terrorism. It had to show up a ‘good’ front to the public, but there were scuffles that couldn’t be done in a ‘nice guy’ way, if you knew what I mean.  

“So, the mission was to infiltrate the company and take him out, and if possible, to destroy all sources of the corpse poison,” Gabriel finished with a dejected sigh.  

And I could see why it was originally left aside for me until I recovered. No one was stealthier than I was. This was easy for a ninja after all. I looked at Gabriel’s slumped form. Sure, I now understood the bigger picture, but something still nagged at me. Infiltration missions were fairly normal and we got them sometimes while at the bureau, but why the extreme secrecy? There shouldn’t be a reason that we couldn’t have met at the bureau, unless...  

Gabriel watched grimly as the realisation dawned upon my face. I returned it with a wide-eyed stare full of shock. Mouth slightly agape, fingers trembling.  

Unless, there was a mole. 

There must be something or someone that he was trying to avoid, a factor that could potentially jeopardise the entire mission that Jack was on, one that could endanger his life. Which could then explain how every Overwatch member was sent an envelope with the dinner party at Lumiere Hotel because I was pretty damn certain that our information was confidential (the invitation was a dead giveaway that it was a trap anyway).  

Gabriel nodded in agreement, as though he could hear my thoughts just from my changing expression alone. The man probably could. “We’ve already suspected that there was a mole in the bureau from the moment we received the envelope, but didn’t think they’d make another move so fast. Jack’s mission has already been compromised.”  

“What?” 

“We’ve already lost contact with him for,” he glanced at his watched with pursed lips, “by now, 13 hours. He was supposed to check in with us over an hour ago.”  

My expression was scrunched up as logic was playing in my mind. The lack of communication itself shouldn’t indicate a compromised mission, especially not if it’s only been less than 24 hours. The situation might have changed where Jack could not check in with the team, an occurrence that happened fairly often.  

The rustling of clothes caught my attention and I watched curiously as Gabriel slipped a hand into his trench coat, revealing a wrinkled white envelope that was lined with plastic from the sound of crinkles. He pushed it across the table and I took it into my hands, breath turning sharp and expression going grim at the chopped off phalanges. It seemed freshly cut as the blood still looked red and bright, with a little block of white from the bone sticking out at the end, and from the looks of it, it seemed to be Jack’s little finger.  

“This was sent an hour ago.”  

They’ve already got him, was what Gabriel didn’t say. Closing the envelope, I looked up to face him in the eye. “And you want me to go and save him?”  

Gabriel closed his eyes, face tight and lips straight. When I saw the dark gaze hidden beneath the eyelids, the light in them had dimmed. “Please? Could you?” 

“And at the same time, finish the mission,” I finished flatly. Holding my hand out, he dropped the USB flash drive fished out of his pocket, but before he dropped it into my palm, he turned to me seriously. 

“Are you sure that you’ll do this? You need to understand that you’ll be doing this as a hired assassin, rather than someone from within the bureau.” 

“And if I get into trouble, you and the bureau will pretend to not know me at all. My files will be wiped. I understand.” 

“Then why do this? You don’t have to.”  

I could only give him a wry smile. “I don’t. But I want to.” 

Gabriel sighed, feeling the heavy guilt weighing hard on his mind, and finally dropped the USB flash drive into my hand. “Have access to a computer?” 

“My phone should work.”  

The chair scrapped along the floor when Gabriel got to his feet. I followed suit.  

“Thank you, for doing this, Genji.” His voice sounded weary, vulnerable even.  

“It’s not a worry, Gabriel. The least I could do for you.” I’m sure he caught onto the specific words in my sentence but he smiled it off.  

“Good luck.” 

With the door now locked, I went back to my bed, pulling open the drawer by its side as I searched for a certain device. It was a small and black little connector that would connect his phone to the USB flash drive Gabriel left, and it wasn’t until he was about to insert the flash drive that his phone lit up with a new short message.  

Angela: Hey, are you asleep?  

I vaguely sensed the outlines of the phone in my fingers from gripping it tighter and tighter. I wanted to so badly reply that no, I’m not. And hopefully hear her voice, a sweet melodious tune dancing, with lips curved and soul at peace, but no. I couldn’t. It was enchanting, so much so that once I was drawn in, I fear I wouldn’t leave and if I didn’t, then the mission wouldn’t be completed and Jack. Jack would die.  

He’d die.  

Not like he was ever my problem.  

My thumb tapped and held against the glass screen, forcing it to stay lit as I stared at the words. Not daring to unlock it, afraid I’d be shown online for that brief passing in the messaging app, I dropped my tense shoulders and my hands onto the bed. 

Yes, I hadn’t wanted to leave. Staying and visiting her would be my priority for my remaining days here, tasting her food and drinking her coffee, and when the day was right, I’d bring her out for dinner. Not a day too late, but not a day too early either. A dangerous balance to tease, for the former would be risking it against my injuries and already failing limbs, but the latter would make me wish for more, want more, and that was dangerous. Having any desires was a hindrance to my already decided plans; I wouldn’t dare leave when I had to, I wouldn’t want to leave her.  

A heavy feeling had settled in my gut when I chose swipe her message aside and to plug in the USB flash drive, choosing to accept and allow the device permission in my phone, and also choosing to ignore her.  

Because it was one thing to live in blissful ignorance. Being with her would most definitely be the wasabi to my soy sauce and I know I would find joy in her presence, but choosing so would forsake Jack, and in turn, forsake knowing why Jack did what he did.  

I’m not out to seek comfort for his actions, not out to satisfy my humanly urges at wanting to know why. Seeking the truth was seeking liberation.  

It only took a couple of seconds for the phone to load everything that was in the USB flash drive and the icon of one folder appeared, so lonesome yet so frighteningly dreadful. And one tap on that folder sealed away any other wistful thoughts that I so endearingly held in this fleeting four days of freedom.  

 ~*~*~ 

 She blew at the long bangs before her eyes away exasperatedly with a huff. Her blonde locks were getting a little long now, the front bangs already reaching below her chin even with a slight wave. Groaning, she combed her hair with her fingers, bringing all of them up into a high ponytail and tying it tight with the hair tie she held between her lips.  

Fishing out her phone from her pocket, she stared at the time and grunted unhappily. With a small scowl and her phone stuffed back into the pocket, she turned around and left the kitchen to smile at any customers by the counter.  

It’s been four weeks since she last heard from Genji. Not a peep. Not a word.  

Her messages had been sending through at first, measured by the double ticks that appeared, but they’ve never been replied to, and his last seen was also a month ago. At first, it was worry and concern on her part when she didn’t hear a word from him, that something was wrong and something might have happened, but yesterday, on her day off, with her recovering memories, she took it upon herself to visit the one building she hadn’t been to in nearly six months: The Intelligence Bureau.  

The building was still grand, tall and wide in cream coloured walls and a dusty red roof. Tall evergreen trees on either side of the entrance and its steps lined up its perimeter. She remembered the nervousness she felt, staring up at such a place. Cladded in her long coat, standing in the late summer wind, she stood there by the entrance as waves and waves of memories flashed by, though some sweet, mostly were bitter.  

 “Hi, welcome! What can I do for you today?” Angela asked a new customer as they approached the counter.  

“Could I have the caramel slice cake, please? Takeaway.” 

“Sure thing.”  

Angela brought out the caramel slice cake and wished her goodbye, and reminisced.  

 It wasn’t until she saw the first person to exit the building, a familiar face indeed, that she snapped out of her thoughts. Tall and dark skinned, a chiselled jaw even more charming with the short stubble that he was sporting, and hands stuffed in the large pockets of his coat. Equally dark eyes widened in surprise upon catching sight of the blonde café owner. 

“Angela?” 

She managed a small smile at the old acquaintance. “Hi, Gabriel.” 

They had a small talk over lunch, catching up and sorting out any confusion that had bloomed. It was only when she touched upon the topic of Genji that the older man stiffened. 

“Genji... he’s on a mission.” Gabriel managed to utter as he set his drink down.  

With tight brows and a frown, she asked, “Didn’t he retire from the job?”  

And with a resigned sigh, he began to fill her in on the gaps, of how he requested Genji’s assistance, of Jack’s predicament and of the mole in the bureau. He watched her displeasure darken, only to crumble into shock.  

“Do you have the details on the missions?” she had asked. 

Gabriel’s lips had parted before he closed them again and took a gulp of his drink. “You know I can’t hand out the information. It’s confidential. And you’re no longer a member of the bureau.” 

Angela scoffed, averting her eyes from his when she opted to gulp down her annoyance with her tea. “And neither was Genji.” 

Gabriel refused her again, but she was persistent, stubborn once her mind was set to it. Following him back to the bureau, he was helpless against her and they tacitly agreed to ignore the weird looks colleagues and ex-colleagues alike gave. Murmured whispers floated into their ears, like incessant chatter of rats in a corn field.  

And like before, back to a little under six months ago, Angela ignored them all. She never paid any of them a single heed then, and she still wouldn’t now. 

Gabriel’s hand hovered above the doorknob to his office in mid-action of unlocking it just as her voice sounded behind him. “Is Jack’s office open?”  

“No,” his eyebrows were tightly knitted. What had she wanted now?  

“Do you have the keys?” 

Lifting his own set of keys, he turned to look at her with a serious expression. “I do, but why?” No matter what, she was still someone he trusted his life with, a bond forged through the blood, gore and guts of their enemies.  

“Are my things in his room?” It was a mere guess, but she had a gut feeling that the things they moved out from her office would naturally be in his. 

“It... is. Come.” 

And she obediently, wordlessly followed Gabriel to the office a few doors down from his, unlocking it with a resounding click. Stepping into the room, she noted the small layer of dust that covered the place. Neatly stacked papers sat at the side of his table with the desktop computer switched off. A couch and a coffee table in a corner of the room, a bookshelf with some books and files, and there, on the spot behind his table, were boxes arranged nicely. Boxes filled with her things. Her steps were resolute and Gabriel didn’t have the heart to stop her as he watched from the door. Beside those boxes filled with her research and papers, was a fairly large briefcase made of black leather. It was twice the size of the boxes, spanning a little over half a meter long, but she picked it up with ease.  

When he saw her pick it up, he sighed sadly in his heart. There was no turning back now. Angela wouldn’t take no for an answer.  

As she heaved herself up, an odd little object caught her attention from the corner of her eyes. Bending down, she rubbed away at the collected dust using her thumb, exposing the red velvet surface of the box smaller than her palm. She fiddled with it, wiggling her thumb by the crack and forcing it open with a nail, only to abruptly clasp it shut when a heavy memory speared through her mind without warning.  

“Agh!”  

Grimacing at the mere pain, her hand holding the box flew up to her head while Gabriel shot forward to steady her staggering steps. A short memory she recognised, now complete, when the remaining cracks pieced themselves together like a puzzle. She saw flowers – snapdragons – and smelled a fruity smell – orange juice – and somehow, she saw familiar silhouettes.  

A dark haired man and a blond one. 

The last memory. 

When the pain receded, she reassured Gabriel that everything was alright.  

He didn’t voice his concerns but something in her eyes shook his very core. Bright, vivid blue eyes stared dead into his, the spark dim. 

When he entered his office with a heavy heart, he gave her what she wanted: access to the mission details. No hardcopy, no softcopy. Just read it off the computer.  

Because she was going in as a rogue, someone unaffiliated with the bureau. It was a little different from Genji’s situation as he was still technically hired, but Angela? She was going in herself. For herself.  

And he couldn’t stop her no matter what or how he tried.  

 “That’s the last for today. Finally,” Mei cried out as she stretched her back, feeling a few pops along her spine. “Such a long day today.”  

“Yeah, it was,” Angela absentmindedly nodded.  

Mei turned towards her with a frown, dropping her arms to the side and flipped the open sign to close. “What’s wrong? You’ve been out of it today.” 

“It’s... nothing.” Memories were a funny thing, having both good and bad. Without them, she was lost and confused, yet she had to endure silently the humiliation and pain as though nothing was wrong. “When do you leave for your trip to the Arctic?” 

“I was planning to go in a month, so I’m thinking to quit after two weeks.” Mei didn’t comment on Angela’s sudden change in topics, believing that her friend would tell her when she wanted.  

A thoughtful hum from said friend. “I will be gone in the next two weeks. An emergency came up. I was hoping you’d watch over the café for me.”  

A series of impatient knocks cut off Mei’s words as a both ladies turned to the glass door. Scowling behind the glass was Junkrat with two ice creams in his hands, foot tapping on the ground and back slouched. Mei gave Angela an apologetic look and she repeated ‘sorry’ three times as she picked up her bag and rushed towards the door.  

“I’ll take care of the café for the time you’re going! Good night, Angela!” 

“Good -” the café owner smiled helplessly when the Asian woman had already dashed out of the doors, grabbing the strawberry and cream ice cream just as the door swung shut, “...night.” 

When the last of her employees had left for the night and she locked the door behind her, she went home. The summer sunset was warm, but underneath its glow were clouds tinged with dangerous foreboding. People on the sidewalk subconsciously avoided the expressionless blonde, chattering while they walked away. Shadows casted over her face while a deep rumble growled among the clouds. Voices grew louder, higher pitched at the first drop of rain and the women shrieked when the following downpour fell, but not Angela. Soaked to the bone with clothes getting heavier, she padded across the sidewalk silently without complaints, unbothered to remove even her convenient carry-on umbrella.  

Dark coloured patches discoloured the tiled flooring, leading up to her apartment door. The sounds of water sloshing echoed in the empty hallway.  

Click.  

Click. 

And the door shut behind her.  

A blinding white light flashed, lighting up her shadowed features. Like yesterday, the radiance in her eyes had dimmed, but what Gabriel couldn’t catch from the glimpse was the burning desire, one to save the men.  

Men needed to be saved sometimes too, just sometimes by a woman.  

 ~*~*~ 

 Just prior...  

In the dead of the night, a soft caress of the wind mercilessly plucked a few flowers off the trees, bringing them for a dance before selfishly dropping them onto the grassy grounds of the garden and drifting off again. I relished in the cool air upon my face and exposed skin. Stripped from my usual full body suit, I reverted back to something more minimal, but only because the outer shell of my suit had begun crumbling. I flexed my left arm, gripping at nothing but the dancing breeze skating across my bare arm and I couldn’t help the smile that flitted across my lips. My mask was swapped in favour of the old one as well, one that covered my head but retained a gap for my eyes, unlike the green visor that my latest suit had.  

A couple of voices wafted in the air and I immediately slunk back into the shadows of the leafy tree I was lying in, careful to mask any rustling alongside the wind’s path. With thick stems and lush green leaves, it served as the perfect cover for the night.  

I had been staking out the building for over the past three weeks, observing and watching the patterns of those going in and out, and those already inside. Not once in these three weeks that I’ve been here did I see hide nor hair of either Slade or Jack, though I was suspicious (and pretty confident) that the latter might be kept in a place more inconspicuous. The Lumiere Corporation’s headquarters kept a tight security of those that went in and out, requiring a key card and a body scan through the doors. The body scan I’m not too worried about, but the key card...  

The couple walked into the garden, giggling and chuckling. I went on alert when I clearly saw who walked in. Katy Campbell and Shawn Duncan, two of the more senior personnel in the company.  

Katy looked up at the darkening clouds with a frown. “It looks like it’s about to rain.” She let out a surprised shriek when Shawn snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her close. 

“But we just only got on our break,” he grinned at her flushing cheeks.  

“Hey! We’re outside,” she chided him when his palm went a lot lower than her waist. “And it’s going to rain soon.” 

“No one can see us. Everyone’s too busy with the Chairman’s meeting. And it won’t rain yet.” Shawn pulled her closer to his chest and dipped his head to capture her lips in his, when a black silhouette crashed into the two of them.  

“What the fuck!” Shawn swore at the shadow as he pushed himself to a stand, pissed at being disturbed just as he was getting to the good part.  

“H-How did that thing get in here?” 

A growl rumbled from the dog’s throat and the couple jumped in fright. They paled at the bare fangs and hurriedly scrambled to their feet. In their distress, they failed to notice the black shadow that had been standing behind them, equally failing to note that the dog’s attention wasn’t on them all along.  

I tucked the key card away in my pocket and snarled at the dog, giving it only a silent apology for mistreating it. The poor canine yelped at the pair of crimson eyes gleaming in the dark and backpedalled in fear, crying inwardly at how victimised it was before running away. 

Dog: I’m innocent! I was thrown here by that man!  

I leapt away from my spot as lights flooded the garden and the couple from earlier returned with security. Grabbing onto the drain pipes, I swiftly scaled up the wall just as Katy cried out: “There was a dog in here!”  

The frantic shrieking and confusion gradually died down as I scaled higher and higher. Under the cover of the stormy clouds, I easily made my way to the rooftop undetected. Mentally, I brought up the blueprint designs of the building once I reached the top and quickly traced the path I had long prepared. With a quick swipe of the key card, I broke open the door leading to the roof and was immediately greeted with the long staircase spiralling down.  

After three long weeks of scouting and a hell lot more waiting, it was finally time to make my move. Even though it was partially thanks to Shawn for the extra information.  

Without batting an eyelid, I grabbed onto the railing and effortlessly swung myself over, allowing myself to begin the freefall down the sixty-storey building. Wind rushed past my face, bringing a stinging chill upon it. My expression remained unfazed at the possible death. The Chairman’s room was on the twentieth floor and with the meeting that they were having, most, if not all, of the board members were conveniently all in the same room.  

55... 

50... 

I counted down the floors as I free-fell, but upon gaining too much speed, I bent my knees and braced myself. Lightly tapping on the railings with my toes, I winced at the slight forceful change in the inertia shocking my nerves, but nevertheless bearable as the impact spread across my limbs and minimised the internal damage it could have done. I flexed my muscles, testing for any irreversible damages, but found none. For now, my body seemed to want to hold up. Once back on my toes, I tipped myself over the edge and fell once more.  

Time was clicking on the clock as I was sure by now that the surveillance team had noticed an anomaly, an intruder, in their midst.  

45... 

40... 

I slowed my descent again. 

When I approached the thirty first floor, the corresponding door was slammed open as a team of men rushed into the already narrow emergency escape stairway. Seeing the firearms in their possession, I pulled out my wakizashi, skilfully deflecting a few bullets back at them and tilted my body so that I landed on the railing.  

Clink! Clink! 

Easily hopping over the bullets, I dashed across the railing and brought my blade down towards the men, scoring first blood. Landing in a crouch, I sidestepped and palmed the knife-wielding arm away from inside, the blade spearing past my face. I brought my other hand up, the wakizashi firmly gripped within and pushed at the arm in the opposite direction. And I twisted.  

“Ahhh!”  

I smirked at the resounding, satisfying crack.  

The man dropped to his knees and cried out in pain at the breaking of his bones, while I ducked simultaneously, causing the punch to fly overhead.  

With muscles tensed, the strength in my calves exploded as I leapt up and spun around, landing a solid turning kick at my attacker and sending him barrelling towards the men behind him.  

And you’d think they’d know not to crowd a small space. 

With the small bubble that I created, I flipped my wakizashi around and darted forward, slicing at every man in the immediate vicinity. Crimson drops sprayed out of their necks like a broken fountain, splattering around the greyed white walls, painting an abstract art on the plain canvas.  

And everything only took roughly four minutes.  

When the last man was disposed, I pulled my arm back and held onto the railing before backflipping, and fell. Unlike before, I jumped off the edges, accelerating down the floors with ease and control now that there were only eleven floors left. On the way down, any enemy that appeared from the doors were met with my blade and shuriken instead, silently dropping dead by the same doors they opened.  

And it didn’t take long for me to reach the meeting room where all the higher ups were gathered. Disregarding the fact that it was too quiet, I charged right through the thick wooden doors with my katana as splinters bounded off my mask. I raised my blade in preparation to strike, yet all I saw was Slade’s smug smirk from the other end of the long room.  

They couldn’t have evacuated in less than ten minutes, could they?  

Irrespective of that, three shurikens flew with a flick of my wrist and I rushed forth with my blade back in its sheath, hand at ready on the hilt. A green halation began to pulse around the sword as I stirred the power lying dormant in my blood. Slade easily dodged the flying projectiles, but I was already near.  

“Ryūjin –” 

“No! Stop!” 

My body reflexively halted at the voice, so sweet and bewitching, yet so confusing. Distracted at the familiar voice, I failed to see the gun that Slade pulled out from behind, failed to catch the signs before I could move. All because I was wondering why, of all places, would I hear her voice here? Why would she be here? Until the grim realisation dawned that she wasn’t. That all I heard was a recording that sounded awfully close to her voice. 

That I should have protected myself against this tactic was a slight mistake on my part. Because why would Angela even be here at all?  

“Argh!” 

My body jerked when the bullet landed at close range, deeply lodging itself into my left shoulder. Growling at the infuriating smirk, I lunged forward with great difficulty while calling upon the dragon once more. The halation of my blade coloured the room with a green shine as it was unsheathed from its abode.  

“Ryūjin no ken wo kurae!” 

I couldn’t think. I didn’t want to think. And I sure as hell didn’t want to know why my blade felt the slightest of resistance as it sliced through Slade.  

I just wanted this done and over with.  

His maniacal cackles echoed in my ears even after my blade tore through his body in half. Wide amused eyes stared blankly up at me and I was further infuriated at the crescent shaped grin that split his face that I stabbed mercilessly at the skull with all the rage I could muster and flicked it aside. How dare he use her like that? How dare he get under my skin with the one reverse scale that I had?  

Steadying my emotions, I exhaled all my irritation. Now’s not the time for this.  

I scanned the room, a nagging feeling gnawing at my senses.  

Slade wouldn’t be here alone unless there was a damn good reason for it. And the missing board members were highly suspicious as well. Running through the blueprints in my head, I stared at the meeting room and roughly estimated its diameter.  

The dimensions did not match up.  

While the power was still channelling itself through my sword, I took a gamble and swung. The walls crumbled like tofu under my strength and instantaneously, I was assaulted with the smell of blood.  

 ~*~*~ 

 You have to understand that damaged women are the most dangerous kind.  

Not for any other reason but of already knowing they can survive.  

 She followed the smell of blood, a scent she couldn’t be more familiar with. Crimson liquid painted the walls and floors in the metallic tang of blood. Dead bodies littered atop each other like piles of thrown out rubbish.  

She continued making her way down.  

Judging from the rigor mortis and paleness of the bodies, they were dead only recently, which to her, meant that Genji had begun his mission not long before she arrived.  

Cladded in armor of blue and white, she hurriedly followed the trail, unperturbed by the sight of gore surrounding her. She came upon a pair of broken large doors. 

 Women are resilient. You may abuse them, break them, destroy them, but the strong ones will survive.  

And when they do, you will wish your mother gave you another pair of legs. 

 Rushing into the meeting room, the place was oddly clean except for the two halves of a man that was left on the carpeted floor, a hole pierced through his skull. Even she shuddered at the sight. Further down was a large gaping hole, a secret room. Cold air blasted at her face when she neared, and bringing with it the scent of warm fresh blood. Underneath the tips of her toes was a vibration she couldn’t pinpoint. Like the early signs of an earthquake.  

In a panic, she rushed headlong into danger.  

 ~*~*~ 

 “Damnit, Jack. Can’t you fucking move!” I snarled at the blond man in my arms, desperation clinging onto him and my words. A fog of mist temporarily hindered my vision as the hot breath chilled in the room. Jack had been beaten black and blue, bruised and battered like a punching bag, but even sandbags looked better than he did at the moment.  

“Urgh...” my ex-commander groaned as he tried to stand, but the broken limbs anchored him down heavier than the Earth’s gravity. “Just leave me. Why did you come and save me?” 

I’ll admit, my heart ached at the depressed tone of his voice. Lifeless. Hopeless. But damn him to hell if I was leaving without him! Bending down, I scooped the man up into my arms, disregarding the warts that were beginning to form on his face and skin, and pushed to a stand. Behind me was a large machine gurgling and violently shaking, the force enough to make even the ground quiver.  

I took a step forward, the ground splashing beneath it. Pools and pools of blood covered the place. The walls were made of metal and bolts, and the temperature was set well below zero degrees.  

I didn’t know why. And I don’t want to know why. 

When I had dashed into the secret room, I found the remaining board members surrounding Jack like coyotes, whipping and slicing at his skin in sheer madness. The gas masks they wore were indicators enough that this room was exactly the source.  

“W-Why are you even saving me... Just leave!” Jack groaned louder as I dragged his body with a limp across the dead bodies.  

My left leg was acting up once more, choosing the best time to malfunction as I couldn’t even bend it now. The bullet still lodged in my shoulder caused great pain when I moved my arm, but I had to hold on. I had to. 

“I can’t just leave you here!” I bit back harshly.  

Shrill screams were erupting from the machine behind us. Fuck, why was the secret room so long!  

“We’re not going to make it...”  

“Shut the fuck up. We’re going to leave here. Alive!” 

“N-No, Genji. Stop.” Jack gripped onto my arm with a hand. A last attempt. A last breath. “You deserve to know why I did what I did.” Jack cut me off with a stern look, one that I still reflexively clammed up patiently. “A little under six months ago, Angela had an accident in her apartment.” I knew that one. “I found her lying there on the floor and had her sent to the hospital. It was then that when she woke up from the short coma that she had forgotten her memories. It was painful, but I was also glad. Because I didn’t want her to suffer.” 

My eyebrows shot up in confusion. 

“You may not know this but she was ostracized while she was in the bureau.” Jack wheezed in a sharp breath as I fought to take another step forward. “Fellow colleagues were stabbing her in the back and dehumanising her.” 

“Why?” I bit out through gritted teeth. 

“Because of you.” I froze in place, pausing in my steps and turning my head slowly to stare at the half-dead man. He managed a bitter smile. “I didn’t want you to know because it’s not your fault. They spoke badly of her behind her back because she saved you, because she created a monster, quote unquote, like you.” He shook his head. “And when the two of you were seen together, it made everything worse. I tried to stop it. I tried to protect the two of you. But things kept getting out of hand. They simply refused to accept someone like you or her.”  

I watched, literally watched, as the life in his eyes dimmed. Blood began to flow from his orifices as warts began to break out faster on his skin.  

“And when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, she wanted to propose to you.”  

“Propose!?” 

That was the only word I could get out when the machine behind us exploded, blasting us through the air and across the room. I vaguely heard a scream, as though someone was calling my name, but I couldn’t tell with the ringing in my ears before Jack and I ate the blood on the ground.  

Everything was still for a while, when Jack’s lifeless voice floated over. 

“Part of me was selfish. When she lost her memory, I wished it stayed that way. Then at least I’ll have a chance of loving her too.” 

No, no, no. Stop talking. I’ll get us out of here.  

I felt his grip on me slacken as I tried to orientate myself right, but my head was still ringing and my back was burning. Probably from the poison. Maybe I shouldn’t have jammed the thing shut and cut off the supply.  

“Just leave, Genji. Go.” 

I got onto shaky feet and fought to stand upright on the quaking ground, one hand stubbornly clinging onto Jack’s sleeve and mustering all the willpower it took to not pass out from pain. “No. We’re leaving t-together.”  

Heavy pants. Screaming muscles.  

I pushed against the ground with my left foot, a little too much as I slipped and fell face first onto the blood puddle. I cried out in pain with a crack of my foot, bent back too much sideways, just like it was back in the hospital.  

No no no – We're not dying here. Noo! 

“And this whole mess? Started with me anyway,” Jack mumbled under his breath as he felt the darkness gradually closing in. The vibration was numb against his fingertips, the blood tasteless. “Slade was someone like you, a cyborg. Only thing was that he was incomplete. He wished he had someone like Angela to save him, but Overwatch turned him down when he asked for our help. He wouldn’t have started this whole crusade… I should have said yes... I should have said y-ye...s… ” 

I pushed up against the floor, gripping onto a motionless Jack with all my might. If only I was better, stronger, then I could get us both out of here. The ground began to shake even harder, the puddles rippling faster and more. Oh, Kami-sama. Please.  

 ~*~*~ 

 There is something about two people who find each other time and time again. No matter what situation they end up in, or how far apart they are – They come back to each other.  

 Genji... 

Genji... 

“Genji!” Angela screamed on top of her lungs when she spotted the man before her. In a swift glide towards him, she cradled his face in her arms, ignoring the blood that soaked the gloves. Dark crimson covered his scarred – beautiful – face, mixed with tears and snot. His eyes were glazed over until realisation rubbed at them.  

Angela. It was Angela Ziegler. Doctor Angela Zielger, fully decked out in her combat medic uniform.  

I lifted a shaky hand to gently caress her cheek, surprise and disbelief shocking my system. If this was a dream, then I never wanted to wake up.  

Oh, how I wish I could tell her how much I love her. That I’m sorry I left without saying goodbye. That I’m sorry I couldn’t spend the rest of my time with her.  

This was the end for me. And Jack.  

Oh, Angela... Please forgive me.  

 “There’s nothing to forgive, you idiot,” she cried out in desperation, but her hands were already moving faster than her words.  

She prayed she was also at least quicker than the explosion. The rumbles were getting stronger and a crack split the ground from where the machine was. The Caduceus Staff lit up with a warm yellow glow as the mechanical wings on her back unfurled. She could feel it rush through her blood, the same familiar power that she wielded all those months ago. At its peak, she felt the holy power surge like a rising tide, spreading out towards her wings and into her palms. 

A phrase, all so familiar yet foreign rolled off her tongue, as the power rushed towards the men in one swift gust. “Helden sterben nicht!” 

 Heroes never die!

 ~*~*~ 

 I suppose, you do remember that I would have married her if not for Jack Morrison, right?  

Without him hiding her away, keeping secrets, then yeah, I was supposed to get married to Angela Ziegler. Although I never knew we were dating, according to her, we already were. All those times we spent together eating dinner, drinking coffee, chatting by the window – Just us two? We had already been dating since the very first dinner I took her out (for constantly saving my life). We didn’t need to put a label on it. So, by technicality, we were already dating for years.  

Now I just feel dumb for wanting to ask her out. (She’d disagree, of course. Saying she found it cute.) 

Which she did, again, by the way. Saving my life. She single-handedly saved Jack and I from disaster, and single-handedly killed anyone that got in her way. The woman’s aim was pretty damn good, probably third to Ana and Jesse if I may say so. I heard from her later that she did find the mole, one of the few doctors that led the party against her. She found him on route to escape. Nevertheless, he wouldn’t be a mole for anyone else. Anymore.

In the end, I did kill Jack, if you think about it. If I was better, stronger, faster, and less entrenched in my preconceived views of him, I could have saved us both. And he would have wanted to live even more if I wasn't the cause of his heartbreak. 

But like she said, sometimes men did need saving, sometimes just by women.  

 “Does this mean you agree?”  

I looked up from the handmade book I gave Angela to quirk an eyebrow at said woman herself. “Agree with what? That men needed saving?” 

“That and if you’ll marry me.”  

I slowly blinked at her. She slowly blinked back. 

“If you’re worried about a ring, I do have one,” and she fished out the red velvet ring box that she had found in the box sitting in Jack’s office.  

My eyes widened in a pleasant surprise. No, no, I was not blushing. It was just a little warm, okay! “Aren’t I supposed to ask you out?”  

Angela innocently shrugged her shoulders as she leaned over the hospital bed. “You didn’t even take me out for dinner. I figured I should make a move first.” 

“But I didn’t know we were dating!” 

“So, that’s a yes.”  

“O-Of course, it’s a yes! Why would it be anything other than a – mmpfh!”  

 And of course, like all happy endings... we have the kiss.  

 Her fingers gently traced my jaws before sneaking around to my neck and pressing her lips against mine a little harder. It was only a momentary pause when I felt the sweetness upon mine, and I wholeheartedly responded when my brain booted up again, meshing my lips tightly against hers, fitting like two puzzle pieces. A bandaged hand curled around the back of her head, feeling the soft locks fall between my fingers as I deepened the kiss, this time taking the lead. Her hair had grown longer, much longer I realised, but it was nice. Still made her carry the charm of a beautiful and elegant mature woman. Her body melted against my touch as she matched my movements. My other hand worked its way to her waist, feeling every curve, every perfect line of her body while hers traced the muscles it could reach. 

We pulled apart when air was much needed, and I grinned proudly at the redness of her lips. I stared into her eyes, full of love and warmth, and couldn’t resist pulling her in again.  

 Remember the two people that somehow, constantly, keep finding each other no matter what?  

I believe that those are the people who have a little thing called ‘fate’ on their side.  

Such an enviable thing, hah, but it’s alright. 

Because dear readers, it’s almost as if the world is telling us: “Stop separating. You’re meant to be together.”  

[slothgiirl]

FOREVER ISN’T FOR EVERYONE (IS FOREVER FOR YOU?) part 2

Lucy and I are up before the sun. I've called a cab and manage to grab a banana from the complementary breakfast. Most of the team's still asleep.

 "Fucking techies," Ben mutters, rubbing at his eyes from behind his sunnies, "get to sleep while I do all the work.” He'd stayed out with the rest of the band all night. Who knows they'd gotten back in. And now we had actual work to do. 

"Just you," Lucy replies archly.

"You two weren't out until three in the morning. At least I got a nice shag out of the whole thing."

"TMI Ben!" It's too early for this. But the whole city is too beautiful too miss. New Zealand. I have too at least make it to the beach once during these few days we have here before heading to Auckland. Maybe even make it to hobbit town. 

"It's true. I hate dealing with the business side. I just signed on to party and travel."  

"Where did you guys even go?”

"A bunch of bars. Got some late night eats." He shrugs, looking way too relaxed in jeans and a t shirt. But maybe I was the one out of place in slacks and a silk cami. I just couldn't get my head around doing business in jeans. "You should've come with us Ellie. We missed you last night."

"I prefer not feeling like shit two days in a row actually."

Lucy snorts, "oh you're perfect. You'll do great out here with us."

There's complimentary coffee and I make sure to pour as much creamer as I can into the cup. Ben and the venue manager talk, go over some last minute papers. He passes them to me and I read them and nod, passing them back. They're the same as I have in my files. 

Ben signs off and then they're joking and bantering and I want to stab my eye out. Lucy's gone to go over the press list and signing off on the state of backstage. It's not a huge venue. Nothing like the O2 back home. But the size does give everyone a better look at the stage, probably without selling a kidney for it. 

We're done, having taken longer than we planned. We have to race back to meet up with band to do press. Fuck. Our taxi gets caught up in traffic. 

"How's there even enough cars for there to be traffic," Lucy complains. She doesn't trust the band to speak without her there to do damage control. 

"Fuck it. We're just meeting them at the radio station. Then we can head to hotel and do the rest of the day's press in there." He sends a text. "Can you send a taxi for them Ellie?"

"Got it." At some point I've got to get lunch. A banana and coffee isn't enough to hold me over. 

We barely make it in time and I run off to get them all breakfast while they do their radio interview for the morning. Without specifics I'm left with a bit of time to wander about and find someplace to eat. 

The air feels fresher. Everything has a rose colored cast from it's newness to me. Even I feel lighter without the weight of being known here. Like I could change and be the person I wanted to away from home. In this new place. 

There's a restaurant a street over and the coziness amid the skyscrapers catch my eye. It's homey and welcoming and it smells amazing. I order a couple of their breakfast specials and lunch sandwiches, taking one for myself as the kitchen preps the rest. 

"Large family," the waitress asks. 

I shake my head, "for work actually. I went to school for years to be a glorified assistant." It's funny. I did. But this job, it felt right, even now. 

"That's what my son keeps telling me." 

The foods great. I sip at some tea and wait to be called back. Content to use to wifi. After we get back to the hotel, where some of the crew are setting up for the press, and with the help of the first interviewers of the day, I'll finally have some free time. 

Go walk about the beach. Oriental bay is supposed to be beautiful. And close by. 

Ben texts me and I met up with them at the curb, carrying a large bag of takeout, "It's good," I promise. 

"You ate without us," Miles accuses, all boyish naughtiness, clad in a wife beater and trackies. 

"Down old boy," Lucy says, slapping his chest. Nick laughs, taking a box eagerly as Ben hails us a cab, of which there are plenty in this part of the city. 

"Do we really have press all day," Jaime groans. 

"Bet you didn't think of that when you wanted more people to hear you play," Ben notes with a mouthful of sandwich. 

Miles shimmies, features twisted in delightful amusement, "fame's half the reason I joined a band. Who doesn't want to be a fmaous rockstar. Sex. Drugs, and rock n roll baby."

"You look more like the fifth Beatle than Mick Jagger," I note as we pile into a cab. His hair's certainly Beatlesque. He's also got the boyish charm down, however rakish. 

"Oi!"

Lucy and Ben shepherd the boys to another interview, with promises of partying and beaches later on our last full day before the concert here. 

I wave them off and head up to our room to change out of slacks. I'd been right, I'd been overdressed. And the heat only made it worse. 

By the time I change into some shorts, I feel to tired to go out and sigh see, figuring tonight I'll actually go out with the rest of the crew. It'd be more fun that way. Instead of alone. 

Instead I head down to the lobby with a bag and book and head out to wander the area at least. There's some fast food, the names I know, Mcdonalds and Domino's, and some obvious tourist traps that I go into. 

My family and roommates will at least want a mug. For the first time, I use my own card to buy some souvenirs, opting for keychains to save space. I wander into some of the regular shops to kill time. 

All the stores nearby have a striking similarity to the ones back home. But the architecture's all different. 

My phone is soon full of pictures of streets and buildings and me wearing a New Zealand hat, before I give in and get Mcdonalds, heading back to the hotel, ready to curl up in the beautiful lobby with the book I've lugged all the way from home. 

The air conditioning is a gift. The couch by the indoor fountain perfect and I try to focus on reading Anna Karenina. It's been nagging me since uni. But I've never managed to get through it. 

So many beautiful quotes out there and I can't ever finish a book. 

I almost drop my book as Lucy startles me, taking a seat next to me. "Want to grab lunch by the beach? I mean dinner really but either way?"

"And the boys?"She rolls her watery eyes, the color of fog bound sky, "up to change before having margaritas by the pool. I think they're going out bar hopping again later if you're up for it."

I shrug, "let's see how we feel after wandering about." It's a long walk, but how else will we get to see everything. 

Lucy makes me take a pictures of her against various backdrops. "Make sure you get that building!" She poses. "Wait, over here!" She fixes her hair, back and out of her eyes, "Wait! I think I closed my eyes in that one."

I laugh, willingly taking photo after photo and waiting for her to check them, swiping and zooming in to make sure she likes how it came out. 

"Thank you so much Ellie!"

"It's really no problem."As we get to the beach we duck into the first place that smells good and has a line. 

"First rule of traveling," Lucy grins. "Follow your nose."

It's not half bad. Fish and chips. The fish claiming to be fresh from the day's catch. A perfect dinner. 

Lucy tells me about her last job. "A smaller band, mostly big in europe. I think breaking out into the world's the hardest part. So many bands flounder in the states and unfortunately it's a huge market setter."

"Did you always want to do this kind of PR?" 

"No. But who could refuse traveling! Especially compared to a desk job."

We each pay for our food and head down to the water. The water too inviting to refuse, both of us wading in. 

"It's warm," we both squeal, use to the icy waters of England. 

"It's probably easier to deal with them though."

Lucy's eyebrows rise as she snorts, "you'd be surprised at how crazy things in the boardroom can get!"

We go in past our knees. Yelping as the waves splash, breaking against us. "My underwears soaked," I admit, blushing fiercely. The wet feeling making me want to go running into the water or for a change of clothes.  

"Didn't you say we were just dipping our feet in?"

We laugh. 

The groupchat goes off and we glance at each other, before heading back out of the water. We read over the texts with the sun setting on the water. "This place is paradise," I tell her. Its warm and by the beach and so green. 

"Oh and we've barely even started. Ben told me you didn't even have a passport?" 

I blush. "Yes. I'd only ever been up as far as Scotland." It had been the first and only time I had met my mother's parents. Her family. And despite how it ended, it was a lovely time in the highlands. 

Lucy laughs, scrolling through the messages. "Ben and the rest are heading out to drink up on Cuba street. 'cept for Miles and Alex. They want to go catch some film at a quaint little theater."

"What movie?" 

"The Red Shoes. There'll be food and drinks there too." We trudge through the sand and peddles and reach the sidewalk. This time we hail a cab. 

"How's Cuba street," I ask. She's travelled before. Probably been here with a different band. A different crew. Older than me, lines around her eyes. 

"I mean it's cool," she offers, "but mostly pubs and-it's very much Camden town than Shoreditch."

"A movie sounds nice after all the walking. Maybe along with a nice glass of wine."

"I'll tell Miles we'll be over then," she says, looking up with a smile. It's great to have her here, to get along with her so easily. I'd been nervous before, never having made friends easily in school. Just my dorm mates and whoever I ended up sitting near in class. 

"And I'll tell the cab where to."

Miles and Alex are waiting for us outside when we pull up. Even illuminated by dim streetlights, it's easy too see how pretty Alex is, his face now sans aviators and with a good night's sleep.  

Large and expressive caramel eyes, a softness to his sharp jaw, and a well formed mouth. It helped that he was a good mood, joking with Miles.

"-and I said fuck that mate and drained the whole thing. Burned to bloody hell and back though!"

"Just can't beat an englishman!"

Lucy rolls her eyes, "boys will be boys."

"Ah my dear sweet Lucy who pelts me with candy as I mouth off! Reminds me of me history teacher," Miles winks exaggeratedly. "This is me mate Alex ," he clasps him on the shoulder, pulling him into his embrace, "Alex. This is Lucy and Ellie who I know you already met but."

"Speaking of which," I note, aware of the sand still stuck to my legs and the drying hem of my shorts, "you owe me a drink."

"Oi! What a woman! Hell El, gotta at least wait until we sit down or you might be what we call the local old dog who spends all his days in the back booths of pubs." His voice is all over the place as he twirls an imaginary mustache and it's a combination of it all and him being him that has us all laughing at his antics.

We order chips and a bottle of wine, "to keep it classy," Miles winks, and take our seats in the tiny theater. 

Alex takes the seat between me and Miles, attention dominated by the other man. All the better for me to sneak glances off and it's stupid but I already feel my heart speed up at the sight of him like I'm a teenager all over again. 

"Any if you seen this movie before," Lucy asks conversationally.

" 've not but then again i'm not the most cultured," Miles does a very bad accent as he continues, "je ne sais quoi."

"The french give us films and Serge Gainsbourg and this is how you pay them back," Alex teases, smacking Miles lightly in the arm. I chuckle at that, watching Miles go all mock affronted and tease Alex right back. 

"Is it anything like that old fairy tale?" I can vaguely recall something about cursed red shoes, but the twelve dancing princesses was the story I asked for night after night to my mums despair. 

Alex nods, with a delighted smile on his lips, "loosely. It's great. I think you'll like a lot."

The lights dim and the screen flickers on. I sit back and watch, glass of wine in hand feeling like I'm finally living that life that doesn't really exist, the moments that come straight of of films like this one.

Alex is right. I do like the film.

Its beautiful and I'm not bored at any point. I can here Miles making quite snide comments and am not surprised. 

"It was good," Lucy remarks after as we head out, "very black swan."

"Wouldn't black swan be like this film since it came out before?" I utter. 

"She's got you there Lucy darling," Miles snipes. "Who's up for some drinks! The rest of the boys are still out and about and I've got a bloody mary calling my name." 

He glances at Alex for a second before erupting into laughter that has Alex smiling as well. Must be an inside joke of there's. 

"Are you two coming," Alex asks, meeting my gaze. 

I shake my head. If I wake up early enough tomorrow I could probably squeeze in a trip to hobbit town and back before I had to run anywhere. 

I tell him as much. "Mums a huge Tolkien nerd, so I kind of have to."

Alex nods in understanding, "I've never cared for Tolkien. 've always preferred science fiction. Going way back to good ol Mary."

It take me a second for it to click. Mary Shelley. As in Frankenstein. "Never read it."

"You should. It's a great little book."

Miles snorts, "just watch the movie with the willy wonka fella!"

Alex rolls his eyes fondly. 

We hail a cab and part ways. 

Lucy boldly proclaiming she intends to get a good nights sleep and still look "banging in my fourties."

"Ya that old Lucy darling," Miles snorts, unable to help himself.

"Don'tcha know never to ask a lady her age Kane," Lucy calls out as the cab pulls away and I'm giggling, carefree. No one here knows me. I feel unabashed, making a scene and taking cabs about town. 

"So that Alex is right fit," Lucy states with a knowing smile as she plays the spice girls loudly in our room, handing me more wine. I blush and think I must've drunk way more than I though I did. He is! And I don't know what to do with that. 

So I shrug and reply, "I guess," to her very unconvinced face. With ease, a down another glass of wine, shamelessly crying out spice girls lyrics. 

I might as well be thirteen again.