#I’m still not out to my parents and I don’t plan to anytime soon

[lesbiantiana]

💖

[spacebell]

it’s 10 am on Monday and I have no motivation left for the rest of the week

[scribblesofagoonerr]

— whoa, we're going to ibiza! | buddy & monkey: double the trouble - pt. 1

a little something i've been working on the past couple of days

thanks to @alotofpockets and @lvnleah for helping me out along the way!

“Whoa, isn’t this place fantastic?” Jordan broke the silence, turning to look at you from where you are reluctantly standing on a balcony looking out to the view of the pool, “What a view, ey, kid?” She asks.

It does look fantastic, but you’re not willing to admit that anytime soon.

You are in Ibiza on holiday with Jordan along with the rest of the girls, but it’s not like you had a choice in coming here.

Well, you’re excited to be here, however you’re not so thrilled about the company.

More so, Jordan. You don’t get along that well, it’s a given fact so the whole idea of Leah forcing you to come on holiday with her was your own version of hell currently.

“Yeah whatever,” You murmur, paying more attention to your phone that’s planted in your hand, “I don’t care.” With the usual attitude of a typical teenager, you shove your way past her to go back inside the villa that you’re currently staying at with everyone.

“So, I thought we could go for a walk in the nearby town later once we’ve settled in if you’re up for it?” Jordan still tries to continue to be positive about things.

“No thanks, I’m fine here,” You're reluctant to want to willingly spend any alone time with the woman, it’s something you want to try and avoid if you can help it.

Jordan frowns at you turning down her office, “Okay, alright… Well, how about we relax by the pool instead? You know, we can just spend time together like we used to do?” She suggests, trying to be hopeful.

“Yeah, like we used to do,” You can’t help but scoff in disagreement, “I don’t want to be here, Jordan. Don’t you get that? The only reason I’m here is because Leah all but forced me into it– I don’t care about wanting to spend time with you when you… When you abandoned me!” You spit out the words.

You can tell that Jordan feels hurt by that statement, “Kid, I… I know that I hurt you but I never meant to abandon you. I had to do what was right for my career,” She pauses to gather her thoughts, “I needed to move away from Arsenal, you can understand that, right?”

“Sure, yeah. Career first, family second, ain’t that right, Jord?” You remark, bitterly. “Whatever, I don’t see how this holiday is going to change things.” You want to make it clear that you don’t want to amend the relationship any time soon between you both.

“Monkey if you just give me a chance to show you–” Jordan’s words are cut short.

You shake your head, “Like I said before, I don’t want to be here!” With that, you start to head out of the room to get away from Jordan, who seems all but determined to make things right.

“Monkey, please…” The older woman's pleas are useless when she’s left in the empty room before she exhales a sigh, sitting down on a vacant chair and planting her head in her hands.

“Oi, kid,” Katie approaches you as your now lounging by the pool later in the day, you have your headphones in to completely drown out any background noise and that is going so well until their yanked out of your ears by none other than the Irish left back, “Do you plan to ignore everyone with them headphones in?”

“It’s working so far,” You remark sarcastically, dropping your phone into your lap.

Katie rolls her eyes at the sarcasm she’s all too familiar with, “What was all that about with the argument between you and Jord?” She wonders.

“Jordan’s trying to act like my parent when I don’t need her to be, cos’ it’s too late for that,” You murmur, attempting to stick your headphones back in but Katies’ quick to reach for them and pull them out, again, “Katie, I just wanna listen to music. Can’t you pester someone else instead?”

The Irish woman chuckles and shakes her head, “You know the idea of this holiday is so that you can spend time with everyone, not keep yourself hidden away like you’re currently doing.”  She states.

“I don’t want to be here, I don’t even want to enjoy myself with everyone else,” You tell her honestly, showing very little interest in still wanting to be here, “So, I’m fine here as I am, thanks.” You add, irritated.

Katie exhales a sigh and takes a seat on the opposite lounger, “So, why did you come here then if you don’t want to be here then, kid?” She wonders.

“Well I didn’t really have much choice in the matter, Leah was the one who all but forced me into it!” You exclaim, letting out a huff to prove your clear disagreement about this still, “She thinks it will be a somewhat magical way for me and Jordan to fix things.”

“I get that you’re upset and you feel like Jord abandoned you, Monkey but that was over a year ago now,” The Irish woman reminds you gently, “You gotta let it go at some point, kid. You know she’s really trying here with you.” She adds.

Shaking your head in disagreement, you’re not so keen to agree with that, “She left us– She left me, when she promised she never would!” You end up raising your voice slightly.

“Alright, alright, calm down,” Katie lifts her hand up at that to gesture to try and calm down a bit and not get upset, “You’re upset, I get that but come on… Give Jord some credit, eh? She’s still there for you and Buddy, Jord’s a fantastic Mama, to you both despite what you may think!” The woman can’t help but feel bad for the way that her best friend is being treated like this.

You can’t help but scoff and shake your head in disagreement, “Yeah well it still doesn’t change the fact that she did leave, cos’ she said she wouldn’t and then oh look, she’s gone! Poof!” You gesture the hand action with your hand and glare at the brunette woman, “Why should I give her a chance?”

“Listen kid, I get it, I do. Things have been rough in the past but Jord’s still here,” Katie continues to stick up for her best friend, “Jord’s here, she’s trying to make things right. Yeah she might not be perfect, but she loves you. She’s just trying to be here for you and Buddy if you’ll just let her!” She exclaims.

“Yeah?” You scoff in response once again and lean forward to try and square up to the brunette with a bit of confidence that you have,  “If that’s the case then why did she just up and leave like that without a second thought.  If… If she really cared about me then, why would she do that?” You question.

You can feel the tears welling up in your eyes, but you refuse to show any sign of weakness at this moment.

Katie exhales a deep sigh, “Sometimes people have to make a choice in life, Jords’ move wasn’t about upping and leaving just to hurt you, Monkey. It was about getting a chance to be a part of a team where she would get regular minutes and she would get to the world cup– Monkey, she’s here now,” The women shouts abruptly when you go to stand up from the lounger, being down with this conversation as she takes a gentle hold of your wrist, “She wants to fix things, so just let her.”

“I… I can’t trust her so easily,” You admit, quietly to the older woman as you bite your bottom lip, “I’m scared to let her in again in case she just walks back out without a second thought.”

Katie smiles sympathetically and squeezes your knee, “I understand that and it’s okay to feel like that, but she’s genuinely trying here so at least give her a chance, for me?” She pauses, “I know it’s not going to be easy but I mean it when I say that she does love you, so much kid.”

After the abrupt conversation with you, Jordan is left with her own feelings of despair as she takes the time to sit outside on the balcony of the villa, where she looks out to the sunset as her phone starts to ring in her pocket.

Sliding it out of her pocket, Jordan smiles faintly as Leah’s contact photo appears from the day that Buddy was born, it mirrored the makeshift family of 4 on such a happy day, which is such a stark situation right now.

“Hey,” Jordan presses the phone up to her ear and answers the blonde with a look of exhaustion on her face.

“Hey Jord,” Leah replies, taking a quiet moment aside from her own holiday to check in with her ex and see how things were going, “How’s it going with Monkey?” She wonders.

The older woman sighs in response to her ex’s question, “Well, it’s… it’s difficult to say the least.”

“Oh, really?” Leah questions, concerned.

“I… I don’t know how to fix things, Le,” Jordan admits, biting her bottom lip, “Where did it go so wrong?”

Jordan can’t see Leah’s facial reaction on the other side of the call but she does her a sigh, “Is she being really difficult? I thought this would be a good way for you to bond,” She pauses, “What’s happened?” Curious to know the events that led to this.

“Monkey doesn’t want to be here, she’s unhappy and I hate the idea of that,” Jordan tells her ex, fiddling with a loose thread of her shorts, “Especially if I’m the one who causes it.” She murmurs.

“It’ll get better, Jord,” Leah tries to promise the older woman.

Jordan can’t help but scoff in disagreement with the blonde's words, “Will it? I’m half tempted to put her in a cab and send her to you on the other side of the island,” She admits, “At least I know she will be happier then.”

There’s another sigh from Leah’s end of the phone, “Give it time, where’s the Menace now?” She asks.

“Le, I know you thought this might work out well, but she hates me Le, our daughter completely hates me,”  Jordan tells her, feeling like her heart is breaking at the words, “She’s inside the villa, I think she’s hanging out with Grace, Less, Ella and Anna. Do you want to speak to her?” She asks.

“She doesn’t… She looks up to you still. You know our girl is stubborn and finds it hard to deal with change all that well, but she’ll come around in time, you just have to keep on trying with her,” Leah tells her ex honestly, “No, no, leave her be with them. I’ll text her later before she goes to bed.”

Jordan forces a weak smile on her face, “I’m gonna try, but I don’t know how much more of this I can,” She murmurs, bowing her head, “Please tell me it won’t be this difficult when Buddy gets to this age?”

There’s a chuckle from Leah on the other side of the phone, “Oh no, with Buddy, things will be a walk in the park, well we can hope,” She states, feeling confident about her words, “If not then we at least have experience in what to do, eh?” She jokes with her ex, hoping to lighten the situation.

“That will be true,” Jordan lets out a laugh, mission accomplished.

“I know it’s tough to not seem hopeful, but she will come around soon enough,” Leah turns back to serious mode to reassure the older woman, “Just don’t let her get away with complete blue murder, okay? You need to remember to set boundaries, even if she tests them!” She states, firmly more than aware of the antics that you will no doubt get up to when she’s with her English accomplice, Grace, around her.

“I hear you, Le, but I don’t want to be too lenient but I find it hard to scold her about things when I just want this whole mess. I hate how distant she is,” Jordan tells the blonde, “I know Monkey is strong willed at the best of times, but does she really despise me for leaving that much still?”

“Listen, you know… When you left to go to Aston Villa, Monkey, well you know she found it tough and you know there’s been a lot of challenges. Our girl still has that childlike innocence that she doesn’t understand these things– You know with what happened with her biological parents, she’s afraid that people will leave her at the drop of a hat,” Leah explains to the older women, hoping it helps with things, “But I know that despite whatever she’s lashing out and saying to you, she really doesn’t mean it. Even if Monkey is reluctant to say it, she still does need you, Jord, so be patient with her and don’t give up yet, okay?”

“So, really think she doesn’t hate me?” Jordan feels like there’s a glimmer of hope reconnecting with you  after all, “I just want to make things right, but it feels like I’m not getting anywhere.” She murmurs.

“No Jord, I know that she doesn’t hate you. Monkey struggles with emotions, but her words are well, there just words and you know she doesn’t mean any of what she says,” Leah reassures her ex, “If Monkey is giving you this much of a hard time I can have a word with her, if you like?” She offers, not liking the  idea of you two getting on.

Jordan smiles hearing Leah say that, “Thanks, Le. I needed to hear that, I’m just going to keep trying to be patient and hopefully something good will come of it soon enough, hey?” She tells her ex before she shakes her head, quickly realising that Leah can’t see her do that, “No, that’s okay, there’s no need to do that. I’m going to make things right with her. I’m not giving up.”

“Of course, just remember to be patient, alright?” Leah pauses as she hears someone shout her name in the background, “Yeah, comin’ now– Jord, I’ve gotta go, but you’ve got this. I’ll see you next week when you drop her off.”

“Thanks. See you next week,” Jordan replies before she ends the call, having been left with a mixture of hope and determination to try and make things work with you.

“You gonna eat that, kid?” Jordan gestures to the food on your plate that has so far barely been touched.

You weren’t all that keen to be where you are right now, sitting round a table with the rest of the girls as they all laugh and chat about things, catching up on life outside of football.

You wish to be anywhere but here, but Jordan was determined to get you out of the villa to come to the restaurant and join everyone here.

At least you are able to sit between Alessia and Grace, while Jordan is sitting directly opposite beside Katie with Beth on the other side of her, so there’s some distance at least between the two of you.

“No, I’m not hungry,” You make your point well known as you scrunch your face up and push the plate aside, “And I don’t like it!”

Jordan frowns but tries to remain positive with Leah’s in the back of her mind, “You’ve not even tried any of it. How do you know you don’t like it if you haven’t eaten any of it?” She questions, apprehensive of your potential backlash.

“I just don’t,” You continue to be downright horrible towards the older woman, “Don’t act like you know what I like and dislike, you don’t have a clue!”

“Oi, kid!” Katie’s glaring at you from across the table, “We talked about this before, quit being such a brat about things!” She states, not putting up with the fact that you were treating her best friend like complete shit.

It was valid for you to do this, Jordan left you. You have a lot of resentment towards the woman.

You smirk and shrug your shoulders, “Well maybe I’m not in the mood to pretend that things are fine, huh?”

Beth exhales a sigh and shakes her head, “Monkey, come on, that’s enough. We’re all just trying to have a good time here,” With being on same time as you, Beth is more than aware of your reluctance be around Jordan but being that Beth is also one of Jordan’s good friends, she isn’t just going to sit there and let you act the way you are, “If you don’t like your food, how about we find something else you’d like?” She offers.

“Nah, I’m good. It’ll probably all taste just as shit,” You murmur in disagreement.

“Hey, knock it off with the language,” Viv chips in, shaking her head, “Monkey, I get that you’re upset about things, but Beth is right. This holiday is for us to enjoy that and right now, it’s hard to do that when you’re upsetting Jordan like you are.” She tells you, giving you a pointed look.

“Well boo hoo, soz for hurting your feelings and all, but what about my own feelings?” You exclaim without so much as a care in the world, “She left me and now I’m here, stuck on holiday like this is going to fix things!” You don’t mean to be so abrupt with your words, but you feel hurt right now.

“Monkey!” Katie exclaims, clearly had enough of your attitude.

“What? It’s true!” You respond, smirking at the Irish woman, “I don’t want to be here. I’ve already said that. I wish I could be with Leah instead!” You shout in anger, you miss the stern blonde but at least you felt safe and happier around her, compared to being stuck here.

“As much as you want that kid, this is my time to spend with you,” Jordan insists, still trying to remain calm despite your words living in a stinging feeling.

“Yeah, well I don't want to be here with you, Jordan!” You sneer with venom in your voice.

“Monkey, that’s enough!” Katie shouts, standing up from her seat as she slams her hands on the table loudly making the whole table to go silent, “You’re being so rude to Jord right now and I’m not gonna let you continue speaking to my best friend like that! Jords’ is literally doing everything that she can to amend things and you’re still holding this grudge against her. Newsflash kid, she didn’t abandon you like your biological parents did, she’s still here! She loves and cares about you so much and here you are, spouting words and throwing it completely back in her face!”

“Katie,” Jordan whispers, shocked that her best friend would bring your parents into this.

Tears start to well up in your eyes as the words hit home, “I… I’m sorry,” Feeling a certain sense of overwhelm, you abruptly stand up from your chair as it topples over behind you, you don’t care much as you run out of the restaurant as quickly as you can.

“Well done, Katie,” Beth mutters, shaking her head in the direction of the Irish girl.

Jordan exhales a sigh and begins to stand up from her seat, “I’d better go after her so she doesn’t run off.”

“No, Jord, it’s fine, you stay here,” Alessia shakes her head and stands up from chair, “I’ll go and talk to her.  If she sees it's you coming outside then she might attempt to run.” She explains, carefully.

As much as the words hurt to hear, Jordan knows that Alessia is right about that so she nods in agreement, “Thanks, Alessia,” She thanks the blonde girl, who quickly leaves the restaurant in search for you as Jordan turns to look at Katie, “Did you really have to go and say those things to her?”

“What? Sometimes the truth hurts to hear,” Katie replies, looking defensive, “Jord, you’re trying so hard with her to build bridges and she’s just being rude!” She states.

“I know you’re trying to help but you know that her parents are a… sensitive topic to talk about,” Jordan murmurs, exhaling a deep sigh.

“Katie, you didn’t have to be so abrupt with her like that,” Viv tells her in disagreement as she shakes her head, “Monkey is upset and that is understandable, let me also remind you that she’s on holiday with people who she isn’t all that close to, is she?” She pauses to let the Irish girl think, “She’s going to be acting reserved like this.”

Katie frowns in confusion, “What’d you mean? Jord is here, I’m here, Beth’s here, Alessia’s here… You’re here,” She is left feeling dumbfounded.

The Dutch woman exhales a sigh, “Well yes, Jord is here, along with the rest of us. The whole purpose of Monkey coming along is to try and rehash things with her and we shouldn’t interfere with that,” She tells her friend, “But yes we’re here, but Monkey isn’t particularly close to any of us, is she?” She repeats her words, trying to get her point across.

“I… I don’t get it,” Katie continues to look confused.

“Who’re the top people that Monkey is closest to on the team?” Beth chimes in, trying to help the brunette understand things, “Go on and name them.” She prompts.

“Leah, Jord, Kim, er Lia,, Alessia and… uh Kyra,” Katie reels off the list.

Viv hums in agreement with her friend, “Yes, exactly, and out of them 5 people, who’s here, like right now?”

Katie furrows her eyebrow, “Jords’ here… And Less is as well.”

“Right, okay, but Monkey and Jordy aren’t really on the best of terms right now, are they?” Beth states, exhaling a sigh, “Okay, let’s look at it this way. Whos’ not here, that Monkey all but depends on?” She asks.

“Leah,” The realisation hits Katie and she smacks the palm of her hand against her forehead, “Oh, shit. I messed up.”

"Yep," Viv murmurs in agreement, "Can you really blame Monkey for acting out in the way she is when she's missing Leah so much?" She questions, knowing that despite the way you have been acting, there’s a reason behind it when you’re not with the blonde, who is all but home to you now.

"I... I didn't see it that way," Katie immediately starts to feel remorseful, "I was just upset with how she was treating you Jord, I'm sorry."

Jordan smiles in understanding and nods, "It's alright mate, I know you're only trying to help but I know that things with Monkey are going to take time, Vivs' right about her missing Leah, she's always attached to her so this is bound to be hard for her to come on holiday with me, you and everyone else." She explains.

You had to wonder why Katie would stoop so low to mention your biological parents?

She really knew where to hit a nerve and her words completely caught you off guard.

You hadn’t really thought about either of them in a long while if you’re being honest, well, that’s a lie, you’d been having recurring nightmares more so about your dad recently but with the anniversary of his death soon approaching, it was bound to happen.

Of course, you have been good to hide any of this from people, even if you have some kind of inkling that people know you’re not sleeping well again.

However, your biological mother? You couldn’t help but resent that woman for leaving you so young with the cruelty of a man who hurt you and left you with a lifetime of scars.

“Monkey?” Alessia calls out to find you, pulling you from your thoughts that were swirling around in your head, “Monkey?” She repeats, unable to spot you from where you sit on a bench tucked away, your shoulders hunched over and the tears streaming down your face.

“I’m over here,” You speak up barely loud enough to be heard.

“There you are,” Alessia looks relieved before she makes her way over to where you are sitting.

Sniffling slightly, you try and harshly wipe the tears that flow away, “I… I didn’t mean to be so horrible, I didn’t mean to run off like that either,” You admit, looking up to the older girl, “I’m sorry.”

“Hey, it’s okay. You don’t need to apologise,” Alessia perches beside you and wraps her arm around your shoulder, “I know you’re having a tough time being here, everyone gets that and Katie didn’t mean to upset you in the way that she did.” She explains, trying to comfort you and be there for you.

“It… It just hurts to hear her say that, I know my real mum and dad are shitty people, but I hate the fact that Katie brought them up after all this time,”  You mumble, burning your face in the older girl's shoulder, “I miss Le.” You admit.

You can’t help but miss the blonde, she’s been a constant presence in your life for the better part of four years and with the anniversary coming up soon, it hurts that she’s not currently around.

Sure you’ve been away without her before, but this time is different when the events are looming and she’s the one person you trust the most.

That used to be Jordan, at least until she abandoned you… Now she felt like a complete stranger to you.

“I know you do,” Alessia sympathises with you, because despite you being 19, this is your first proper time really away from Leah for a whole week with people that you’re not all too familiar with in such an overwhelming place, “I know it’s a lot to deal with and handle, Jord understands that as well.”

“It’s hard right now,” You murmur quietly as you start to pick at the skin around your nails as a bad habit returns, “I… I really didn’t mean what I said back there, Lessi. I just… I’m scared to trust her again. Things are difficult right now, the… the anniversary of my dad’s death is coming up soon and it just… everything feels hard.” You admit the blonde, trying to stop any further tears from spilling again.

Alessia frowns in realisation, “That’s soon, huh? Does… Have you spoken to anybody about this?” She asks, concerned about your emotional wellbeing.

Shaking your head, you rest it on her shoulder, “No, I… I didn’t want to give Leah another reason to worry about me,” You tell her, knowing that the blonde would be beside herself with worry if you did tell her.

“I’m sure that she’d want to know if you’re upset, wouldn’t she?” The blonde questions, squeezing you gently, “Or Jord, I know things are tough but she’ll be there for you, you know she will.” She adds, hesitant for your reaction of pushing the woman away.

“Maybe, but she’s enjoying herself and I don’t want to ruin that because I can’t handle my emotions,” You state bitterly, shaking your head in disagreement, “I want to trust Jord, Lessi, but… but I’m afraid of getting hurt again.” You murmur the truth, allowing yourself to be vulnerable with the blonde.

“Oh Monkey, its’ okay,” Alessia continues to comfort you until your sobs subside, “It’s not my place to make you tell them, but I do think it might help a little bit, yeah?” She suggests, still trying to be supportive.

“No, I don’t… I’ll tell Le, but after Ibiza, I don’t want to ruin her time away,” You disregard the idea of telling the blonde about any of it right now.

“Okay,” Alessia replies, knowing your stubbornness will win and you will tell her when you are ready.

“Hey, girls,” Vic shouts aloud, slowly limping over to you both with the unfortunate luck of a recent ACL injury that will leave her on the sidelines for the months to come, “Not interrupting anything am I?” She asks.

“No, no, we’re just chatting, aren’t we, kid?” Alessia smiles at you in reassurement.

You nod in agreement, “Yeah… Yeah, I’m fine now,” You pause to look at the Dutch girl, “What’re you doin’ out here?” You ask.

“Just needed some fresh air,” Vic answers honestly, “The girls are talking about going to a club but I don’t think I could handle that with my knee, so I think going back to the villa would be better for me.” She states.

“Yeah, I’m not much in the mood for going out tonight,” Alessia admits as she turns her head to look at you, “How about you, kid? Want to come back to the villa with us?” She asks.

“M’ tired,” You tell them in agreement as the exhaustion catches up to you.

“Well in that case, I think we’d best head back there then before you fall asleep on the bench. I heard all about your sleeping shenanigans in Glastonbury,” Alessia jokes, finding amusement in the stuff that Leah had filled her in about, “Edible gummy bears, hm?”

“I thought they were sweets,” You pout as you begin to slowly walk back to the villa with the two of them, “They still tasted nice, anyways!”

By the time that Jordan arrives back at the villa with the rest of the girls, it’s completely silent no doubt down to the fact that it was late and you, Alessia and Vic would be asleep.

“It’s quiet,” Ella’s somewhat loud voice is the first to break the silence as they enter the villa following their time at the club, “Are they still awake?” Flopping down onto the sofa in the living room area, she’s more than ready to tuck into the burger she brought on the journey back.

“The lights are still on,” Anna points out.

Beth looks around the villa, “I can’t see them anywhere.”

“Maybe they are asleep?” Jordan thinks aloud, knowing from the text she received that Alessia and Vic did bring you back to the villa so you had to be somewhere.

Grace starts to walk in the direction outside, “There not in the pool.”

“Why would they be in the pool? It’s pitch black dark out there, Grace!” Ella asks with a mouthful of burger.

Teyah snorts and settles down onto the sofa beside the Man U player, “Late night swim?” She jokes.

“Be quiet, if they’re asleep then you’re gonna wake them up,” Viv chimes in, walking into the kitchen area to grab a glass of water.

“I’m clueless,” Katie pipes in.

Vic, hearing at the commotion from outside the bedroom where she sleeps, hobbles out to see what all the commotion is about, “Hi, you’re back,” The tiredness in her voice is evident to the fact she’s not long woken up, “How was the club?”

“Good, a lot of fun. We wished you could have come!” Beth grins, throwing her arm around the girl but careful to not knock her knee.

“I wish I could but my knee needed rest,” Vic replies, honestly.

“Do you know where Monkey is?” Jordan wonders, anxiously.

“Or Less?” Maya chimes in.

“Oh, they’re both asleep in Monkey’s room,” Vic answers, trying to stifle her yawn but fails, “Monkey crashed and wouldn’t let go of Less.” She adds as Jordan walks down the hallway and peeks into the dark room to see where you are sprawled out on top of Alessia, the both of you are both completely out of it as the woman notes you’re wearing Leah’s Arsenal hoodie that she swore the blonde thought she had been missing this whole time.

“Aw,” Ella coos, poking her head round the door while still eating the remaining half of her burger.

“Keep your voice down, will you? I don’t want you to wake her up,” Jordan warns her, firmly as she sees how out of it you seem to be.

“Oh sorry Mama Bear,” Ella winks playfully at the older woman before she heads back in the direction of the living room, “Guys, don’t wake Monkey up or Jord might kill yer!” she jokes with the rest of the girls.

Jordan rolls her eyes hearing the brunette girls’ words as she softly steps into the dimly lit room to see a clearer view of you completely clutching on to Alessia while you sleep.

“I’m awake,” Alessia whispers, opening her eyes and adjusting to the natural light in the room, “I have been for a while. I just didn’t want to move and disturb her.” She explains, motioning to you sleeping directly on her.

“Yeah she can have a tight grip when she sleeps,” Jordan replies in a hushed whisper, “Has she been alright?”

Alessia stretches slightly to try to get you to loosen your grip on her, “Yeah, she’s been fine, she was upset about what Katie said and I think it brought up a few things but when she got back here, we talked a bit more and then well, she fell asleep.” She explains.

“Has she been asleep for long?” Jordan wonders, curiously as she looks at you and it makes her heart ache slightly that she can’t be the one you are asleep on.

“A few hours or so,” The blonde tells her as she lets out another yawn, “Is everyone back now?”

“Yeah, but heads up that most of the girls are drunk,” Jordan chuckles in amusement, “Thanks for bringing the kid back to the villa. I’ve been worried about her.” She admits.

“I know, Jordan. I know things are tough right now but Monkey will come around in time,” Alessia tells the older woman, “Right, I’ll go and join the rest of them and leave you to be with Monkey.” She adds.

"Thanks,” Jordan thanks the blonde again.

Alessia carefully gets up from the bed while trying to not wake you up in the process, giving the older woman a reassuring nod before she leaves the room.

“I’m trying here kid,” Jordan exhales a sigh and lowers herself down to sit on the edge of the bed beside you, before she kisses your forehead, “I know it’s hard to trust me but I still love you kid, that’s never changed. Regardless of flesh or blood, you’re my kid.” She tells you, quietly.

The woman watches you for a little while longer before standing up from the bed, she makes sure you are tucked in before she dips out of the room to join the rest of the girls out in the main area of the living room and leaves you to sleep.

© scribblesofagoonerr

[deathmetalunicorn1]

Here’s a cute thought I had.

Toddler!reader seeing Shiva and Adam treat their wives well,so when a boy comforts them by sharing delicious snacks and hugging them when they’re crying, they automatically associate that with love. Since he treats them nice like how Adam and shiva treats their wife(wives). The family soon realizes readers feelings when reader invites them to their “wedding” since reader plans to marry the boy.

-You looked up at Shiva fed Kali a strawberry, smiling as she beamed, enjoying her treat, holding a hand to her cheek, before you looked over, seeing Adam resting his head on Eve’s lap, the two of them exchanging sweet words with each other.

-The father of all humans and the god of destruction both adored you, as did their wives, and they co-parented you, all six of them, showering you with love and teaching you so many things.

-You saw how Adam and Shiva treated their wives, with soft kisses, hugs, gentle words, making them smile, and you learned, in your mind, that’s what love was.

-Unfortunately for your papas, you took these lessons to heart while you were at school- attending pre-school. Your teacher was teaching you about weddings, as she recently went to her sister’s wedding, and was showing you all pictures.

-While at recess you slipped and fell, hurting yourself and as you were sitting the classroom while your teacher called the nurse to come down, a boy who was good friends with you, who was always sweet, came over, taking one of your hands in his, “Don’t cry Y/N- I’m here. It won’t be so scary if I’m here!”

-You sniffled softly, smiling at him, thanking him quietly as many of your other friends were saying the same thing, telling you not to be scared but B/N was the only one to hold your hand.

-He stayed with you for the rest of the day, as you couldn’t play, since your hands and knees hurt, and when you asked him, “You’re not playing with your baseball?” he just beamed brightly, “I can play with that anytime- you’re the one who needs me the most right now.”

-By the end of the day, when your six co-parents came to pick you up, Adam and Shiva froze, seeing you holding hands with a boy, wearing matching bracelets you had made together, smiling at each other.

-Eve and Parvati thought you were adorable as you waved goodbye and Shiva picked you up, seeing your injuries- they knew about them, as your teacher had to call them, but they weren’t anything super serious, “Did you have fun today?”

-You beamed brightly, “I did! B/N and me are in love and we’re gonna get married!!”

-Shiva turned to stone in shock, unable to respond and Durga pulled you into her arms, grinning down at you as the other mamas came over, “Oh and how do you know you’re in love?”

-You beamed brightly, “B/N took care of me when I got hurt, he held my hand and helped me not get scared, and he shared his snacks with me, and treated me nice and made me smile!”

-The four women were in shock while Adam was frozen and Shiva was still a statue, but they realized that you saw how those two would treat with, with kindness, love, and respect, because that’s what love was.

-It was over an hour after they arrived home, that they realized their husbands were still at school, stunned stiff, after the principal called Eve, asking her to come pick them up, as school was now over and they were freaking out some of the kids.

[nochukoo97]

brother’s best friend

Pairing: Jungkook x OC

Summary/Warnings: Jk and oc’s older brother are childhood bestfriends, but they both move away for college, oc experiences a breakup, oc fights with parents, running away from home, this will be a series so first chapt is just an intro :)), but oc meets jk here, a little cliffhanger??

Word count: 0.7k

Masterlist

next chapter

You knew of Jungkook, the two of you were close even, but that was many many years back, when you were just finishing middle school and Jungkook and your brother were in highschool. Jungkook had been your brother’s wingman, bro-for-life, ride or die friend ever since kindergarten, and your parents and his parents became good friends. When your brother moved away with Jungkook for college, of course they went to the same one, you never saw him again, only rarely when your brother would come home and Jungkook would pay a visit. However, you were also busy away in college, but you had settled on a college closer to home, since you did not plan on moving out of your parent’s house anytime soon.

It’s been almost a year since you’ve seen both Jungkook and your brother, both of them occupied with the heavy load of work and other activities, and you will admit, you miss the both of them a lot, and constantly wonder what they’re up to.

However, that was not something you could think about now, not when your parents were currently screaming their heads off of your poor grade in chemistry, as well as the fact that they had found out you have a boyfriend, or well, had, after you had found him cheating on you with another girl at a bar.

“What are you thinking huh? You not only have such a horrible grade on your recent test, and I find out you secretly have a boyfriend?” Your mum is yelling at you as she throws the pen she was holding on the coffee table in front of the couch as you stand in front of her with your head hanging low. “You’re a disappointment, what makes you think you can mess around with boys if you aren’t even scoring straight As HUH?” You couldn’t take it anymore, and ran up to your room, slamming the door shut as tears of frustration and pent up anger spilled out of your eyes.

You don’t bother with your mother screaming from behind your locked door, because in ten minutes, you’ve packed a luggage full of your toiletries and clothes, opening the door and brushing past your mum.

“Just where do you think you’re going?” She continues to yell as she chases after you, “Okay fine! Go ahead! Run away from my house, and you will be back tonight because you finally realise that I am the one who provides your life for you! Maybe you will learn to be more grateful!” She screams over your cries as you slam the front door, running with your luggage, not sure where, but you just keep walking.

As you slow down your pace after a few minutes, you turn on your phone, dialling your college best friend, Chaeyoung. “Hello?” She answers after three rings, “Chae, do you think I could crash at your place for a few nights? I just fought with my parents and there is no way I am going back after what Mum said to me,” You said between pants as you continued walking with no sense of direction. “Babe, I’m so so sorry but my cousins are over and I have no space in my home, maybe try calling Yeji?” You just hummed and hung up after saying bye, you knew Yeji was out of town so she wasn’t even an option at this point.

You continue to walk, mind empty, until you see a dark alleyway next to a bar. You look at the street sign, and you realise that you had literally walked so far you were currently in the same area as where your brother’s shared apartment was, and you stood still for a while, considering asking him, but you came to a conclusion that if your parents had tried to look for you, they would definitely ask your brother.

“I guess I will just settle with this…” you mumble to yourself as you turn the corner of the alleyway, hoping to find maybe another homeless soul who has turned to the sketchy place for a home.

“Y/N?” You hear a familiar voice call out your name as you walk head down into the alleyway. You look up in surprise, only to see Jungkook standing there, a beer in his hand as he stares at you with confusion.

note: hello! i know this chapter is really short but i promise the rest of the chapters wont be after i write what happens after the cliffhanger LOL also im like having a block rn, i cant think of anything to write at the moment so i will just focus on this 😆

[sadhours]

Wicked Sensation

part seventeen // billy hargrove x f!reader

part one | part two | part three | part four | part five | part six | part seven | part eight | part nine | part ten | part eleven | part twelve | part thirteen | part fourteen | part fifteen | part sixteen | part seventeen

a/n: I’m going through a bit of family stuff but writing is my outlet so i don’t think it should be affected but to play it safe, this is going to be the hardest week of my life and I might get to requests slowly and post chapters slowly but maybe I’ll post more who knows. Anyways, thank you all so much for reading. I appreciate you all endlessly.

word count: 6k

warnings: 18+ minors dni, hey Eddie still exists!, Neil being Neil, pregnancy, smut, oral (m receiving), p in v

tag list: @blue-eyed-lion @bbyhargrove @sweet-villain @actuallyspencerreid @trapistani @sierrahhh @likeanimagepassingby2

Okay, so maybe it’s a bit ridiculous. The man has put a baby in you and is moving in to your parents house, you shouldn’t have to devise a plan to get him to propose to you. You never even pictured yourself in this role before but with all the pregnancy hormones and the devotion you feel towards Billy, the prospect of being his wife and the mother of his kids is insanely appealing. Perhaps this was all Mary’s fault. She’d put the idea in your head and now it was all you could think about.

That’s how you’re awake at the ass crack of dawn with her, making a lunch for Billy to take to his first day at your dads shop. You think that maybe if you start doing wife type things, Billy will realize how badly he wants to marry you.

“You wake up this early every morning?” you ask, rubbing the sleep from your eyes.

Mary smiles wide as she pours you a cup of coffee, “How do you think I get anything done?”

“There’s like more than 12 hours left of today, that seems like too much time,” you complain as you hear footsteps down the hall.

You turn to see a sleepy, messy haired Billy with an unlit cigarette perched between his lips already. That same familiar feeling warming your chest and making you swoon whenever you see him. He walks into the kitchen, pulling the cigarette from his mouth to lean down and peck your cheek.

“Morning,” he grumbles to Mary and reaches for the coffee pot.

“Oh, here!” you cheer, extending out the cup Mary had just poured for you.

Billy takes it, smiling at you, “Thanks, darlin. Care to join me?”

“You haven’t quit smoking?” Mary gives you a look of shock.

Shamefully, you shake your head. You were going to schedule an appointment today for the doctors and figured you’d ask him about your options for that. You’d been smoking since you were thirteen and weren’t sure if you could quit and Billy wasn’t going to anytime soon so you’d always have the temptation.

“They’re Lights,” Billy offers, “It’s something.”

Again, your heart swells. It’s a small thing but you love how he defends you at any opportunity. Mary gives you both a disappointed look as you follow Billy out to the backyard. He lights the cigarette and takes a long drag before handing it to you.

“We can share,” he says, “At least you’re cutting back.”

You nod and lean your shoulder into his, “Thank you. I feel like you’re the only person who gets me.”

He kisses your temple but doesn’t say anything. You’d like to think you’re the only person who gets him. Billy’s still not good at talking about his feelings. He shows you how he feels through touch, and maybe that’s enough. For now, at least. If you’re gonna start a family with him, you’d like that to change.

He takes another long drag from the cigarette and speaks up, “I’ve got to get my things today. If there is anything left. You willing to make that trip with me when I get back?”

You think that means he feels safe with you. With a soft smile, you tell him yes. You know you two have to tell Neil that you’re pregnant, or at least, you think you should. See, Billy hadn’t told you about his dad finding the Polaroids of you and you still thought that Neil liked you, so you think maybe he’ll be excited that you’re pregnant. Billy knows better and is dreading telling his dad. In fact, he doesn’t really want to tell him, doesn’t want Neil to be a grandfather at all. He knows Neil will try to control his kid since he can no longer control Billy.

“Are you excited to work for my dad?” you ask.

Billy nods, he genuinely is. He likes working on cars, figures it’ll pay enough for you guys to find an apartment in a few months. He is thinking about marriage, but he’s afraid of it. Having a child together isn’t enough to make sure either of you stay, he’s learned that. He’s also worried you might run off into another man’s arms at the first sign of trouble. It’s a fear he can’t shake.

“Yeah. You looking for jobs today?” he asks as he stumps the cigarette out in the ashtray.

Sighing, you shrug. You hadn’t planned for that but you know you should. Billy shouldn’t have to have all the financial responsibility but you had no idea what you would do. Working at your dads shop could easily turn into a career but you didn’t have that luxury. Your options were limited with only being able to work until the baby was born.

“I suppose I should,” you tell him as he stands and helps you up.

-

You pick up the phone and dial a number you’ve had memorized since grade school but you don’t remember the last time you called it.

“Hello?” Eddie’s voice rings through.

“Hi,” you say meekly.

Eddie scoffs, “You remembered I exist.”

You lay on your mattress, looking up at the ceiling as guilt drips into your system. Billy kept you so distracted from everyone and then when you were broken up shortly, Steve took up most your time. Eddie wasn’t supportive of you and Billy and selfishly, you decided Billy was most important. He still was, even more so now that you were carrying his child but you and Eddie had so much history that it would be cruel to never talk to him again.

“I’m sorry… I haven’t been fair to you,” you say softly.

“I expected you to call when I heard Billy dumped your ass but you never did,” Eddie replies, “Guess you couldn’t bear to hear an ‘I told you so’.”

“We got back together,” you mumble, “But I should’ve called. I don’t want to have to chose between the two of you.”

“Then don’t.”

“Eddie, you’re the one who made me feel like I had to in the first place,” you explain, “Billy has no issues with you.”

He’s silent and your skin crawls. You didn’t want to lose him but you understood if Eddie wanted nothing to do with you.

“I just don’t want to have to deal with it,” he says finally, “If you guys are constantly breaking up and getting back together, I’m never gonna come around to the idea of him.”

“I don’t see that happening,” you reveal, “He’s moving in and I’m pregnant, so…”

“You’re what?” Eddie’s voice sounds shocked.

“Yeah. I’m having Billy Hargrove’s baby.”

“Jesus Christ,” he exhaled, “I tell you what, I didn’t see that one happening.”

“Yeah, we didn’t either,” you chuckle.

“And he didn’t run away? He’s moving in with you? Are you guys engaged or something?”

“No! Well, not yet. I don’t know if he wants to get married,” you admit, shyly.

Eddie laughs, “He’s moving in with you and you guys are having a baby. Why the hell would he skip marrying you?”

“I don’t know. Marriage is like a big deal, a big commitment,” you say and Eddie’s laughing harder, you picture him doubling over from it.

“Why are you laughing?” you pout, feeling like you’re missing out on some joke.

Once his breathing calms down, he starts, “He’s all fine and dandy knocking you up and you’re scared he can’t commit.”

Eddie starts laughing again and you really don’t see why it’s hard to believe. You and Billy both know that kids and marriage don’t keep people together. Eddie should know that too, but here he is laughing hysterically.

“It’s not funny,” you whine and finally, he sighs.

“You’re right,” he deadpans, “it’s stupid. So I have Hellfire tonight but if you’re not busy later this week, we should hang out.”

“Can I bring Billy?” you ask, twirling the phone chord around your finger.

Another sigh and he says, “Yeah… guess I should get to know him if he’s gonna be the dad of my god child.”

You’re heart swells, but you deep down knew Eddie would forgive you. You guys were practically family.

-

Dale holds out the light blue uniform shirt to Billy, tells him they can get him an embroidered patch soon and Billy thanks him. Having a name on the shirt was a privilege at the shop in San Diego and Billy never earned it. At your dads shop, it was something everyone typically got from the first day. He wanted his employees to feel important, like they belonged on a team.

Billy pulls the shirt over his white tank top and starts buttoning it up, eyes scanning over your dads office. It’s in disarray. Tools, papers and empty paper coffee cups placed sporadically. On his desk, is a photo of you and your brother. Billy picks it up and looks closer. He suspects it’s from a past trip to Florida because your hair is shorter.

“You’ll have to come out with us from now on,” Dale says.

“What? Sorry,” he places the frame back on the desk.

“Florida. For Christmas, you’ll have to come with us,” your dad explains and Billy feels weird but not in a bad way. Christmas wasn’t ever a special holiday since his mom left. In fact, they didn’t really even celebrate it before his dad met Susan. The only thing he’d looked forward to was a card from his grandparents. However, you talked about Christmas excitedly, you’d told Billy it was your third favorite; after Halloween and Thanksgiving of course. It must be that it was fun in Florida, that holidays with your family weren’t as empty or angry as the ones Billy was used to.

“Yeah,” he says, smiling at the thought, “Wonder what the surfs like down there.”

Your dad laughs, “The waters a lot choppier than California but I imagine you’ll have fun.” He gestures to the door, “Let me give you a tour, real quick.”

Billy listens closely as your dad explains the routine of the shop and what Billy’s primary responsibilities will be before sending him in with Darla from accounting and Billy recognizes the name when your dad says it. He walks into the little office and is met with a member of his fan club, one of the housewives that would hang out around the pool.

“Billy!” she smiles wide, “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, hi,” he says as he walks up to her desk.

She keeps looking over Billy’s shoulder, causing him to turn and look.

“Oh, don’t worry,” she says, “We’re alone.”

He looks back at her with his brows furrowed. Alone? he thinks and his eyes dart down to the worn romance novel sitting on her desk. She stands and he shakes his head, “Oh, no.”

“No?” she looks disappointed.

Billy chuckles, “Dale just hired me, he sent me in here so I could fill out paperwork.”

Her disappointment evolves back into excitement, “You’re working here now?”

“Yep!” he chirps as he sits at the plastic chair across from her desk. “Saving for the baby and all.”

“Baby?” she asks and Billy revels in the defeated tone.

“Yeah, that’s why Dale’s giving me the job. His daughter and I are having a baby,” he puts his elbow on his knees and leans forward.

“Congratulations,” she says as she slams a clipboard on the desk. “Just fill this out quickly and I’ll have you in the books.”

“Awesome,” he grabs it, “Thanks.”

-

Billy takes the long way home, chain-smoking and listening to an entire cassette even though it’s typically a fifteen minute drive from the shop to home. He just needs to clear his head and his favorite way to do so is to take the road that stretches all around Hawkins and back. It’s mostly fields and farms, but it’ll take him right where he’s needs to go and he likes that it’s empty roads. He figures his alone time will be limited from here on out.

When he finally gets home, you’re voicing concerns. They’re in the form of questions, he knows you were worried but he can’t help but feel a bit suffocated. He knows these feelings are because of his looming fear of seeing his dad but he can’t help but lash out.

“I just took a drive,” he bites, “Can you chill out? It’s not even late.”

You stare back up at him, a little stunned but you press your palm on his chest and rub in circles, “I’m sorry.”

Billy doesn’t expect that reaction and his first response is to push you away, but that’s Neil getting in his head. He sighs and wraps his arms around you, pulling you to his chest and tucking his face into your neck.

“No, I’m sorry,” he mumbles into your hair, “Just not looking forward to going over there.”

Your hands circle around his waist and you squeeze him, “I’ll be with you. We’ll make it quick, just grab as much as we can and leave.”

He pulls back and hooks his finger under your chin, tilting your head back as he leans in to press his lips to yours. It’s chaste but lets you know he trusts you. And anytime his lips are on you, it heats up your thighs and leaves you a little breathless.

“Shall we get it over with then?” Billy grumbles though his tone suggests he really doesn’t want to.

You lace your fingers and pull him out the door. He allows you to lead him across the street and then the two of you just stand at the door. Billy feels as if he has to knock, like he hasn’t just spent a little less than a year living in this house. His knuckles tap against the wood as he prays Max answers the door. She doesn’t.

“It’s about damn time,” Neil spews as he stares at Billy, eyes dark. He eyes dart to you and then back to his son, “Needed your safety blanket, did ya?”

Your blood boils so you squeeze Billy’s hand tighter, “We’re just here to get some of his stuff.”

You figure you’ll do the talking, maybe make this a little easier. Neil opens the door wide, stepping back and you can see Susan peeking her head out of the kitchen. Billy tugs you inside, making a beeline for his bedroom door. Upon opening it, Billy sees that Neil has sold all his stuff and all that’s left is his stereo system and two packed boxes on the floor. His face heats up, he wants to scream at his dad but it’s a losing battle. He knows what Neil will say. He bought everything that was in there. Billy knows because the stereo is still there, it was the first thing Billy bought when he got his first ever paycheck.

He heaves a sigh and then looks over to you, “Can you manage the two boxes? It won’t hurt the… ya know.”

“Billy, I’m like maybe a few weeks along, it’s a little tadpole in there,” you say and then your eyes widen, realizing that you’ve just admitted you were pregnant.

You turn around to see Neil standing in the doorway, looking dumbfounded.

“Fuck,” Billy curses, bringing his hand to rub his brow.

“What was that?” Neil asks, stepping into the room.

Billy heaves a sigh and turns to his dad, “Nothing.”

“Nothing?” he scoffs, “Sounded to me like your little girlfriend just said she’s pregnant.”

“Pregnant?” Susan’s voice rings through the hall and she hurries to stand in the doorway.

Billy doesn’t say anything, he just starts stacking the speakers onto the cassette deck.

“You really fucked up,” Neil laughs sinisterly, the sound startling you and causing bile to rise up your throat. You swallow it down and go to grab the boxes but Neil stops you, “I’ll get the boxes. You shouldn’t be doing any heavy lifting.”

“No, it’s fine,” you try but he’s already picking them up with ease and heading for the door.

“Shit,” Billy says, grabbing the stereo and following after his dad.

You eye Susan curiously before walking out behind your boyfriend. Neil’s already at your doorstep when you get outside and Billy’s quickly shuffling across the street after him.

“Dad,” he calls out.

Neil bangs on the door and your dad opens it. Your hearts in your chest as you run after them. You have no idea what Neil’s plan is but you’re scared he’s gonna deck your dad right in the face.

“Neil,” your dad says, opening the door wider to let him in. You and Billy right behind him.

“Go ahead and just set those down anywhere,” Mary says to him, perched over the kitchen counter.

You shut the door behind you, letting out the breath you hadn’t realized you’d been holding.

“Dad,” Billy pleads again, but nothing follows. He doesn’t know what he’s asking Neil not to do.

“So my sons knocked your daughter up, has he?” Neil says after dropping the boxes on the floor.

This is all your fault. The guilt rises in your throat and threatens to pour out, you reach to Billy for comfort once he’s set the stereo down.

“It would appear so,” your dad says, leaning against the kitchen table as he looks to Neil casually.

“And you didn’t kill him?” Neil responds, crossing his arms.

Your dad shrugs, “I like the kid.”

Neil chuckles, but it doesn’t sound happy, like he can’t fathom anyone liking his son. He shakes his head, seems defeated and you and Billy both admire your dad.

“Is that all, then?” your dad asks, crossing his arms.

“Well what’s the plan then? When are you getting married?” Neil asks, turning to his son now.

Billy clears his throat and you notice he starts tapping his foot, “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” Neil scoffs, “Well, boy, you better figure it out. You don’t want to marry her? You should’ve thought that before you did something so damn irresponsible.”

The words sting your chest and your dad moves in front of Billy, physically shielding him from Neil.

“Thanks for stopping by,” your dad says, “We’ll make sure to let you know the plan.”

Billy’s shocked when his dad retreats, through all the years of abuse, he’s never seen his dad give up on a fight. He takes a deep breath when the door slams. Most of all, though, he’s embarrassed. Without a word, he picks the stereo up and lugs it into your room.

“Thank you, dad…” you hug your father, unable to truly express your gratitude.

“Let Billy know that I didn’t only do that for you, I did it for him,” your dad says, a solemn smile on his face.

You nod, squeezing him once more before trailing to your room to see Billy still holding the stereo. He has no idea where to put it, you have too much stuff. You put your hand on his shoulder, “I’ll give mine to my brother. Yours is better anyways.”

Billy heaves a sigh, remaining silent as he watches you unplug your stereo and gather the speakers. You leave to put it in your brothers room, saying a quiet hello to him when he peers up at you from his book.

“Aw, really?” he sets the book down and sits up.

You place it on his dresser, “Yeah, Billy’s is better than this one.”

“Thanks, sis,” he says, springing up from his bed, “I don’t have any cassettes.”

“I’ll give you some,” you offer, placing your hands on your hips as you look at him.

“Was that his dad?” he asks, biting his nail.

You slap his hand from his mouth, not wanting him to form the habit, “Yeah.”

“Are you really having a baby?” he asks, a tilt of his head.

You nod, giggling as you ruffle up his hair, “Yeah, you’re gonna be an uncle.”

He grins up at you, “I hope it’s a boy.”

“Billy does too,” you reply, “I hope it’s a girl.”

“Typical,” your brother says, poking at the buttons on the stereo set.

You roll your eyes and head back to your room, noticing Billy’s set up the stereo but he’s no longer in the room. You peer curiously out the door to see him walking up to you with the boxes in his hands. He sets them on the floor and sits in front of them, opening the first up to inspect what Neil wanted him to keep. To his surprise, it’s all the things he's kept of his mothers. His heart aches, wanting so desperately to tell her she’s going to be a grandmother, wanting to tell her everything that’s happened since she left.

“He didn’t throw any of it away,” Billy mumbles in disbelief.

“Is it your moms stuff?” you ask, as you sit beside him.

He hands you a photo, it’s of an infant Billy being held by a beautiful blonde lady. You’d never seen any photos of Billy as a baby.

“Huh,” you say, “So our kids gonna be this cute.”

Billy shoves you playfully, “With any luck, it’ll only have my genes.”

You giggle, happy when this side of Billy makes a resurgence. “I’m hoping and praying.”

He hands you another photo, one of when he’s roughly a year old and he’s standing in front of his mom while holding onto her hands. He’s learning how to walk. You scan over it, smiling back at his mom. “She’s so pretty,” you muse, “You look like her.”

You swear he blushes, “Yeah, she was beautiful.”

He continues pulling the items out, showing you every photo and explaining every random item. Billy visibly relaxes, an easy smile plastered on his face and he’s never looked prettier. You kiss his face, starting at his jaw and all the way up to his hairline.

“Oh! Wait!” You spring up and barrel out of the room, only to return with an empty photo album. You sit back down and hand it to him, “Here, you can put them in here.”

He takes it gratefully and gradually, the two of you fill the photo album. Billy then moves onto the second box. It’s his jewelry and a few clothing items but at the bottom of it, his dirty magazines sit. Billy laughs, pulling them out.

“Why the hell didn’t he just throw these away?”

“Who is he to become between a man and his porn collection?” you tease, pulling the first Penthouse magazine from him.

You start flipping through it, seeing in your peripheral that Billy’s watching you with an amused expression. After flipping a page, Polaroids fall into your lap. You drop the magazine and gather up the photos, blushing when you see they’re of you and Billy. Some raunchier than others.

“You kept these?” you ask, softly.

“How do you think I got through those weeks without ya?” he nudges your shoulder.

You look at him, mouth agape. You’re extremely flattered at the thought of Billy pleasuring himself to photos of you. Granted, half of these, his dick is inside of you but still.

“You jacked off to these?” you ask, lowering your voice.

“Oh, yeah,” he says, grabbing them from your hand and shuffling through them. “This one’s my favorite,” he hands you a Polaroid, it’s one of the day at the lake.

You’re embarrassed as you look down at your body, riding Billy on a towel with your swimsuit top not covering your breasts but pulled to the sides. Then you tilt your head, looking at where your bodies meet and you can see just the tiniest inch of his cock. It is a hot photo and you remember how turned on you got when Billy reached for the camera.

Suddenly, you feel his lips on your neck and then his tongue, wet and hot against your sensitive flesh. You moan softly at the feeling, tilting your head even more to give him access while you continue to look at the photo. He reaches into your pants, cupping you over your underwear and your breath hitches in your throat. He gently moves his fingers, teasing the wetness out of you. The photo flutters out of your grip.

“You like it, too,” he notes, feeling you soak through the thin cotton.

“Uh huh,” you moan, awkwardly spreading your thighs and feeling as the magazines and photos fall from your lap onto the floor.

His hand rises a bit, just to snake into your underwear and his fingertips drag up through folds and stop at your clit. He sucks on your neck, rubbing languid circles against your sensitive bud. You lean back, hands pressing on the floor behind you to keep you upright. Billy’s fingers feel like magic, always do. You ache for him, want to feel him all over. You get frustrated sometimes, wanting him closer even if he’s as close as he can physically be.

“Billy,” you whimper, your arms shaking as you try to hold yourself up but when he slides two fingers inside you, you collapse onto your back and kick your feet out to spread your legs further.

He chuckles, leaning down to kiss your lips softly. He pulls away too quickly, so you cling onto his shirt and pull him back down, feeling his smile into the kiss. You lick against his teeth, still pulling at his shirt. He gives you what you want, licking into your mouth and curling his fingers inside you. Your back arches off the ground, moaning into his mouth. He groans back, his fingers faltering when you reach over to feel his cock straining against his jeans. You’re eager, unbuttoning his jeans and trying to claw them down, but with the way he’s positioned you can’t. He lifts his bum up and helps shove them to his thighs with his free hand. Your fingers wrap around his cock as soon as it’s free, stroking him quickly. He laughs against your mouth.

“Slow down,” he mumbles and you lick his teeth again, groaning in protest but you still listen.

You can hear his breathing and the slick sound of his fingers pumping in and out of your soaking pussy. You swipe your thumb against his tip, feeling his precum bubbling out and you spread it around which earns you a guttural groan from the blonde. You lift your other hand and push him back, leaning yourself over to take him in your mouth. You have to taste. Swirling your tongue around his pulsing head, your hand strokes whatever’s not in your mouth. Billy leans his head back, biting his lip to stifle his moans. If only he’d turned on the stereo when he plugged it in.

Billy’s pulling his hand away only to snake both of them into your hair, propping himself on his knees and pushing you further down on his cock. You’d be pissed about the loss but his pursuit of his own pleasure turns you on more. You position yourself better in front of him, grabbing onto his thighs while you breath through your nose as you take him into your mouth as deep as you can. You bob your head, by the aid of Billy’s grip on your hair as he guides you up and down. You look up to see his eyes meeting yours, mouth slightly agape and his eyes glassy. You can’t help but gag as he reaches the back of your throat and he moans, voice hoarse and just a tad whiny. It makes you squirm, feeling slick dripping down your thighs.

“Fuck,” he whines, as you pull off him with a loud pop, drool stringing between your lips and the head of his cock.

You stick your tongue out, eyes wide up at him and he wraps his fingers around his cock as he slaps it against your tongue. Your lips tug up before you wrap them around his head again, sucking hard and then pulling off again. Billy’s pushing you down into your back, then. He rips your leggings and panties off before following suit with your top and bra. As he’s lining himself up with your center, you start unbuttoning his work shirt and pushing it off his shoulders, the sleeves catching at his elbows. He gets the hint, smiling when he pulls it off and then grabs the hem of his tank top, bringing it over his head and tossing it aside. He presses his palm against your chest, easing you back down. He grabs his dick again and presses his tip through your folds, shaking it against your clit. You gasp, hands squeezing your own breasts.

“Give it to me, Billy,” you beg, “please.”

He smirks and then plunges his cock into you. It stings slightly as he bottoms out, his hand coming up to dig his fingers into your thigh. Your eyes flutter shut and he brings his other hand to grab your jaw.

“Look at me,” he orders and you obey, eyelids flying open to see his gorgeous, flushed face looking back at you.

Billy shoves his fingers in your mouth and you suck on them lazily, moaning around them as he rocks his hips against you. He pumps in and out of you, deep and slow as his thumb digs into your cheek. It’s crazy, with his fingers shoved in your mouth and his cock balls deep in you, all you can think is how fucking much you love him. How you can’t live without him. How you never want to go a day without this.

“Closer,” you mouth around his fingers.

He pulls them out and looks down at you curiously, slowing his thrusts.

“Closer, want you closer,” you plead.

Billy smiles, leaning down and wrapping his arms around you before pulling you up, holding you against his chest. Your arms circle his neck, holding him close while he moves his hips quicker again. You moan softly against his ear, clinging onto him for dear life. His arms tighten around you and you’re thankful for all the working out he does. He’s able to press against your g-spot with every thrust as this angle and you’re quickly coming undone around him. In attempt to help, you writhe against him. His labored breathing followed by small, high pitched moans in your ear pushes you along. You scratch at his upper back, letting him know you’re close and he starts pounding up into you harder. It snaps, the build up of your orgasm falling over the edge and you shake against him, biting his shoulder to quiet the cry you let out.

Billy’s leaning down, resting you on your back and relentlessly thrusting into you. You scratch all the way down his back, overwhelmed with pleasure as you ride out your climax. He freezes, eyes squeezing shut and gritting his teeth as he releases inside of you. You hold onto his face, wrapping your legs around his waist and grinding your hips up against him. He whimpers, hands grabbing onto your hips to pin you down. He collapses his weight on top of you and it’s the most comfortable feeling in the world. You squeeze him in your arms and pepper his neck with kisses.

He finally lifts himself up to his elbows and gazes down at you, curls sticking to his face with sweat. He looks ethereal, always does but more so now than ever.

“I love you,” he whispers, caressing your face.

“I love you, Billy.”

-

Three months of saving and he’s about to burn through it in an instant. Billy peers down at the ring, reading the engraving and second guessing himself. Not about proposing, but about the words he’s chosen.

Forever, Snoopy.

He knows you’ll get it but it feels cheesy and he’s a bit uncomfortable with that side of him showing. He knows he shouldn’t feel embarrassed around you. Besides, girls like that kind of mushy, romantic stuff. Billy has a hard time with being perceived as anything other than tough and cool so he tells himself you’ll think the ring is cool and that it was very cool of him to reference how you met and totally not tacky and cheesy.

It burns a hole in his pocket as he walks into the restaurant, seeing you sitting there with your dad, brother and Mary and wonders if proposing in such a public setting is a bad idea. Oh, God, what if you say no?

He feels his lunch threaten to make a reappearance and he redirects his path to the bathroom. He locks the door behind him and looks at himself in the mirror. He wore his best shirt, the maroon one and he’s only buttoned the last two buttons. He shimmies out of his leather jacket, suddenly feeling too hot. He rests it on the counter and then turns the cold water on. He splashes it on his face and then takes a deep breath. Why would you say no? There’s no possible timeline in which you say no to marrying him.

Hell, he’d asked your dad this morning and if he doubted your acceptance he would’ve said something like ‘Sure, Billy, spend all of the tiny bit you’ve saved to move out of my house to get rejected by my daughter’ instead of “Yes, of course you have my blessing.”

Billy takes a deep breath and exits the bathroom, only to turn around and retrieve his jacket. Nerves be damned, he was gonna marry you. He arrives to the table and you stand to greet him, his eyes darting to the tiny baby bump more obvious than it’s ever been in the tight dress you’re wearing. He kisses you, hand pressing to your hip as he does so.

“Hi, baby,” you say to him with those dreamy eyes.

“Hi,” he coos back, his nerves subsiding the second your eyes meet. He forgets why he was nervous in the first place. “Sorry, I'm late,” he apologizes to you and then your family, as he sits down.

Your dad gives him a knowing smile and it makes Billy even more nervous. He’s in his own head during the whole dinner, missing questions directed at him. You reach over and squeeze his bicep, asking if he’s alright and Billy just nods.

Then he tells himself he’s got nothing to worry about and maybe right now isn’t the right time to propose. He ignores your dads pointed looks and when you excuse yourself to restroom Billy announces to the table, “I am going to propose just not here.”

“You nervous?” Dale chuckles, sipping his wine.

Billy blushes, “I just… I don’t know, feel like we should be alone.”

Mary reaches in her bag and pulls out the Polaroid camera, “Then you have to take the photo.”

“I can’t do both at the same time,” Billy explains, a little exasperated.

Mary grins, “Why don’t you do it when she gets back? As she walks up, get down on one knee.”

Billy’s eyes widen, thinking about what a spectacle that would be, “God, no. I want to do it when we’re alone.”

“It’s their story, Mary,” your dad says, “Let them write it.”

“Fine,” she grumbles and reaches for her wine.

“I’ll ask for you if you’re scared,” your brother offers Billy earnestly.

Billy pats his back, “Thanks, kid but I’ve got to do this myself.”

You return to the table and raise an eyebrow as they all turn to Billy expectantly, “What’s going on?”

“Nothing!” Billy smiles too wide at you.

And he doesn’t ask, he thinks about it when you’re cuddling before bed that night but he can’t bring himself to do it. He presses kisses against the back of your neck

“You know I love you, right?” he mumbles, almost too quiet for you to hear.

You lean your head back, awkwardly angling your lips to his. He squeezes your waist and kisses back deeply.

“I love you, too Billy. Why are you acting weird?” you turn around to look into his eyes.

“I’m not acting weird,” he argues, but his cheeks feel hot.

“Are you trying to ask for a blow job?” you tease, pushing his hair back.

“I mean…” he laughs, “If you’re offering, I’ll accept.”

“Go to bed,” you giggle and tuck your head in his shoulder.

He’ll ask in the morning, he decides.

[peachblossom-odyssey]

So I am in love with and obsessed with your works, "How Familiar the Danger". So much so I have been reading it to my friend like an audiobook. Each work is compelling and passionate and thoroughly enjoyable. Then my heart sank when I realized it hasnt been updated since last August. Is there any hope for future updates? Do you have other plans for the story? Has it been dropped all together? If so I understand, but I think its just amazing and thank you for writing it in the first place.

Thank you, I’m so happy to hear you like it! It really does my heart good, thank you for making my day! Unfortunately my fixation on Nimona has faded right now and I’m focusing on another series atm, so as of right now I don’t plan to update anytime soon, but that will probably change if the fixation returns because I do love that au and I’m proud of it and would like to write Ballister meeting Ambrosius’ parents and Nimon meeting Ambrosius and all that. I have a half-written wip for the next chapter but the motivation isn’t there. All I can offer rn is a snippet from Nimona’s pov if that’s alright.

—

Then he kissed her Boss.

He kissed her Boss.

That motherfucker.

She couldn’t let that stand, she couldn’t let this happen, not now when the Boss’ health was so precarious and his heart was so fragile. Whatever the knight was planning, whatever sick game he was playing with Ballister’s feelings, she was putting a stop to it here and now. She struck, shifting into a coiling viper to leap onto the bed and sink her teeth into his wrist with a hiss of utter fury, forcing him to release her Boss with a sharp cry of pain.

“Nimona!?” Ballister yelped as the knight practically fell off the couch, twisting and jerking to try and wrench Nimona off of him, only to go prey-still when she reverted to her humanoid form, kneeling on his chest with murder in her eyes as she hissed down at him, her tongue still forked and serpentine as it flicked between her fangs.

“Stay the fuck away from him.” she growled, “You hear me, creep? Get the fuck out of our house now!”

[y0urzayn3]

12:03 a.m.

Kurokawa Izana x GN! Reader

Tw - Bl00d, Bru!ses, Swearing, Lots and Lots of Kisses

Let me know if I missed any!

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ‧₊˚✧

12:03, or at least, that’s what the clock on your bedroom wall read. You were simply finishing up your nighttime skincare routine. School work had you up ridiculously late, and by some miracle, you managed to finish early today. Humming a soothing melody as you applied some cream on your face, you heard a soft knock on your window.

“Love? ..It’s me. …Could you let me in please?”

You recognised the voice instantly. It was none other than your boyfriend, the Kurokawa Izana, leader of Tenjiku - the gang that ruled Yokohama.

“Zana, you know my parents are home today. They can’t see you!”

“Please Love, I can’t go home bleeding like this. Please. I won’t be loud, I promise!”

It was rare to see Izana like this. His voiced hitched with pain at every syllable he spoke. It simply broke your heart and you finally gave in.

Making sure to lock your door, you opened the window to let him in, and gasped. He was covered in blood, and bruises were scattered across his body.

“What did you do?!”

You were shocked. He had come to you many times after all out brawls, but he never looked this beaten up.

“We got into a massive fight and I couldn’t dodge a few hits..”

“You call those a few hits?!” you exclaimed as you scanned the room for your first aid kit. You found it, and lead him to the seat on your dressing table. Pushing the your skincare aside, you placed the first aid kit on the surface.

You then proceeded to take out the essentials required. You started with his face, placing gentle kisses on the bandaged areas. Izana let out a nearly inaudible groan and cursed under his breath.

“Fuck.. That hurts..”

“Stop moving so much, it’ll hurt less.”

With that, you move on to the wounds on his arms and legs. Even to say that they were a lot was an understatement. Surely by now he had lost an unimaginable amount of blood, as he began to sway a little in his seat. Thankfully, you noticed.

“H-hey! Easy now..” you said as you helped Izana steady himself.

At last, you finished tending to him.

“Now that that’s done, you need to g-“

But Izana didn’t plan to leave anytime soon. He cut you off with a quick peck to your lips. He got up swiftly, making you flinch.

“Oi! Don’t get up that fast, your still injured.”

“It’s fine love.”

He walked towards your bed and settled himself under the comforter, beckoning you to join him. Which of course, you gladly did.

You snuggled into his warm embrace, sighing contentedly.

“Next time, be more careful. What if I’m not there to treat you huh?

“I will be dear, after all.. what would I do without my pretty little nurse?”

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ‧₊˚✧

Belongs to @y0urzayn3, please do not steal my work!

@jd1233 👀

[leiawritesstories]

Stick Season (Part 1)

Rowaelin Month 2023, Day 1: Song Fic

inspired by "Stick Season" by Noah Kahan (giggles in Frederick) I've had so much fun writing this and I am beyond excited to share it with all of you! happy Rowaelin Month once again! <3

Word count: 2,480

Warnings: swearing, bad decisions, heartbreak, not-great parenting, angst, simmering sexual tension, pining idiots in love but they won't admit it

Enjoyyyy! (yes there will be more, i promise)

@rowaelinscourt

Prologue

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Downtown Orynth, Vermont, still looked exactly the same as it always did when Aelin paid her occasional, brief visit to her hometown. Same “cozy” wooden buildings, same storefronts lining Main Street, same pine boughs wrapped around the light posts, same dusting of snow brushed across the rooftops in a postcard-picture kind of perfection. Same kindhearted shopowners waving at her as she strolled down the cleanly swept sidewalk. 

If she smiled hard enough, maybe she could pretend there wasn’t a gaping hole in her heart. 

Three years since she cut the other half of her soul out of her life, and no amount of friendship and laughter and girls’ nights could fill the empty chasm that leaving Rowan left in her. 

“Aelin?” The voice came from her left as she passed the local bookstore, a place where she’d spent some of the happiest hours of her youth. 

She turned. “Philippa!” A genuine smile curved up her lips. “I didn’t think you were still working here all the time.” 

Philippa waved off the mild protest with a flippant hand. “You know how busy it gets at this time of year, my dear.” She pulled Aelin into a warm hug. “It’s so good to see you again!” 

Aelin melted into the older woman’s motherly embrace. “Want to know a secret?” 

“Is that even a question?” Philippa laughed, opening the bookstore door and nudging her inside. “I live to collect secrets.” 

“Of course you do,” Aelin chuckled. “Well, here it is: I wasn’t planning to be back home this year. Or next year. Or anytime soon, really.” She blew out a short, sharp sigh. “I’m only here because…well…” She trailed off, not fully ready to voice the reason she’d returned. 

Philippa patted her arm. “It’s alright to let yourself grieve, dear. Your mother’s passing was a shock to all of us.” 

“And something of a relief,” Aelin mumbled under her breath. 

Ever tactful, Philippa pretended not to hear. “Will you be here through New Year’s?” she asked, smoothly changing the somber subject. 

Aelin nodded. “Yes. I’ll drive back to New York sometime around January fifteenth, unless Dad needs me for longer. I’m working remotely until then.” 

“Thank goodness for modern technology, right?” 

“Right.” She half-grinned. “I don’t suppose you’re still resisting that modern nonsense, hmm?” 

Philippa pretended to hide. “You caught me.” 

Aelin fake-groaned. “How many times have I told you that it will help the bookstore grow? Think of all the customers you could reach with something as simple as a website and maybe an Instagram profile!” Pasion seeped into her words, coloring her thoughts with excitement. “And you could easily keep up with the online orders–that crappy old monitor you have barely runs basic word programming, let alone internet.” 

“You be nice to Mort, now,” Philippa teased. She’d named the bookstore’s ancient computer Mort in honor of the many times it had brushed with death. 

“Mort deserves to be laid to rest once and for all,” Aelin laughed. “Are you trying to keep me in town or something, asking when I’m heading home?” 

“Maybe.” The older woman’s laugh lines crinkled as she grinned. “Or maybe I’m just planning to offer you a job here while you’re in town.” 

“You know I work in publishing, right?” Aelin raised her brows. “I’m pretty sure that’s enough books and book stuff for one woman.” 

“How long has it been since you remembered why you work in publishing in the first place?” 

The question made Aelin stop in her tracks, mind whirling as she sifted through years of memories. “I…years. God, it’s been…years.” For a moment, yearning flickered across her face. “Maybe not since the last time I volunteered here at Christmas.” 

“Exactly.” Philippa gave Aelin’s hand a motherly squeeze. “Christmas season is far too busy for one old woman to handle alone. So…will you help me?” 

A fond smile curved Aelin’s lips. “Of course I will.” 

~

Snow-dusted evergreen boughs adorned the lampposts of downtown Orynth, weaving their crisp pine breezes through the early evening air. Hands tucked into the pockets of his quilted flannel jacket, Rowan strolled down Main Street, determined to avoid being sidetracked into one of the golden-lit shops that smelled invitingly of cedar, maple sugar, pine, and spiced cider. Christmas scents always had been his weakness, despite the pain he couldn’t separate from the holiday. 

A single paper bag dangled from his left wrist, the only sign that he’d been out shopping for the holidays. His entire brood of cousins was about to descend upon Doranelle, the next town over, for the next few weeks, so he’d come into Orynth to pick up a few things. He refused to admit that the massive canister of peppermint hot cocoa mix was an impulse buy–it had been on sale, and he knew how much his relatives adored all the sweet holiday treats. 

It had nothing whatsoever to do with peppermint hot chocolate being Aelin’s favorite. Nothing.

“Whitethorn?” The call came from his left. 

Rowan turned towards the voice. “Who–” 

“Whitethorn! It is you!” Aedion Ashryver stepped out of Staghorns Tavern, a popular local brewery. “Come inside, man, have a drink.” He pulled Rowan into a brief, back-slapping hug. “Good to see you again.” 

“Good to see you too, Ashryver.” Rowan returned the hug but hesitated at the offer of a drink. “I dunno about the drink, though.” He raised his shopping bag. “Gotta go home and prepare the place for the Whitethorn horde.” 

Aedion snickered. “You’re still letting them crash at your place, huh? Thought you would’ve liked the house to yourself every once in a while.” 

Rowan shrugged. “It’s a big house, and I live alone all the rest of the year.” He flashed Aedion a smirk. “Besides, Sellene and Enda would just barge in anyways, so I might as well allow it.” 

“Fair enough.” Aedion glanced into the brewery, waving off someone inside. “You sure you don’t want to grab a quick drink? I feel like we haven’t seen each other in forever.” 

“Yeah, give me a rain check on the…” Rowan trailed off into silence, his brain stalling at the sight of Aelin Galathynius opening Stag’s door and grabbing her cousin by the arm, halfway through a teasing jibe about Aedion wasting his body heat trying to warm up the December chill. 

“...not worth it to–oh.” Her wide-eyed turquoise gaze slammed into Rowan with all the force of an avalanche. 

“What are you doing here?” The question, though whispered, tore out of him with the force of a deafening scream. 

Aedion brushed a protective touch over Aelin’s shoulder, murmured something softly into her ear, and slipped back into the brewery, wisely leaving the two of them alone. 

She swallowed thickly and steeled her spine, meeting his stare head-on. “I’m home for my mother’s funeral and the holidays.” Her tone was cool, detached, nothing more than an old acquaintance responding to a casual question. 

“I–I had no idea,” Rowan murmured. “I’m so sorry, Aelin.” 

“Don’t be.” She snorted quietly, her shields snapping back into place as swiftly as they’d fallen. “About Evalin, Rowan. Don’t be sorry.” A pause, a crack in her controlled exterior. “I can’t say I am.” Her expression sharpened. “Can I ask what you’re doing out here…um, by Staghorns?” 

He read the unspoken question, finding himself surprised that she hadn’t asked outright. “I was in Orynth to pick up a few things before my cousins get here tomorrow, and I was heading down towards the parking lot.” Downtown Orynth was strictly car-free, so the town had built parking space by the edge of the no-traffic zone. “Your cousin saw me, so I stopped for a bit.” And held off the alcohol, he added, silently. 

She nodded in understanding. “I…I should go.” She turned. 

“Wait!” Unexpectedly, he reached for her hand, stopping himself with bare millimeters between his skin and hers. “I…when are you leaving?” 

“After New Year’s.” The words were clipped. 

The shields encasing his heart slammed back down with finality. “So you’ll just up and leave again, no warning, not telling anyone?” He laughed, a sound as brittle as the winter air. “I don’t know why I expected any different.” 

“Some things never change,” she whispered, half to herself, her voice teetering dangerously close to anguish. Without another word, without a backward glance, she yanked open the brewery door, walked in, and vanished into the crowd packed into the bustling space. 

His heart a tangle of stormy emotions, Rowan turned on his heel and strode down the rest of the street, not stopping until he reached his pickup. There, he dropped his shopping bag in the back seat, leaned himself against the truck’s battered old green frame, and breathed as deeply as he could. Eyes screwed shut, he allowed the flood of memories to wash over him, sinking into the aching familiarity of her golden hair and wild laugh, her burning resilience and unwavering strength. The watery croak of her voice when she told him she was sorry three years ago. The tsunami of anger and rage and grief and torment that had ripped through his whole being for weeks after that afternoon.

Then he locked those precious, shattered memories back into the dark recesses of his mind, swung himself up into the truck, and drove off into the December night. 

~

Three Years Ago

Rowan pulled into his driveway in shell-shocked silence, muscle memory guiding him out of his truck and into the house. He kicked off his boots in the mudroom, shook the loose snow off the soles, and placed them neatly on the rack. Numbly, he shed his thick winter jacket and hung it on its peg, made sure he was free of tray snow and ice, and walked into the warmth of the wood-paneled house. 

A beer bottle shattered at his feet the second he came through the door. 

“The hell y’been, boy?” His stepfather’s slurred words were barely distinguishable. 

“Work, then the store.” Rowan had learned years ago to keep his words as brief and subdued as possible, lest he face another of Arobynn’s famous eruptions of drunken wrath. “Picked up another six-pack.” He placed the case of beer bottles on the kitchen counter. 

Arobynn squinted at the six-pack. “Leas’ y’did one thing right,” he sneered. “Clean up the fuckin’ floor, boy.” He grabbed two bottles of beer and stumbled back out into the living room, where he collapsed into his reeking, tattered old leather recliner and lost himself in his usual world of alcohol and blaring television. 

Rowan clenched his fists and jaw and picked up the broom. He made quick work of the broken glass, dumped it in the trash bin, put away the broom, and grabbed some food as he hurried off to his room. Arobynn’s alcoholism was a blessing, in a way–he confined himself to that side of the house, not moving much between the den, the kitchen, and his bedroom and bathroom. It meant that Rowan could stay in the master bedroom, which was at the other end of the house, and keep the rest of his family home as clean as possible. 

Every time he looked at the single portrait of his parents that adorned his bedroom wall, he swore he could hear their sorrow at the state of their once-beautiful home. 

That goddamn crash had taken so much from the Whitethorn family. 

Rowan was only a child when he lost his dad, and his mother had been so buried in her grief that she’d failed to see the giant blaring red flags of the first man that showed her any affection. She’d married Arobynn Hamel partially out of what she thought was love and partially out of necessity; the property needed another pair of adult hands to maintain it, not to mention another income. It was only a few months before Arobynn’s true colors showed themselves. 

For five years, Rowan’s mother had stayed strong, protecting her son by sacrificing herself. She’d protected her son from his stepfather’s fits of drunken rage, from the anger that reverberated through the house, and even from the knowledge of her medical diagnosis. When he lost her, too, Rowan lost all hope that his life could be anything but alcohol and anger and abuse. 

Then he went away to college and met Aelin, and her warmth rekindled his frozen soul. 

Watching her drive away from him mere hours ago had ripped the fragile, carefully patched scraps of his heart into bleeding shreds. 

Fuck it. If he didn’t blow off some steam now, he’d do something he’d regret later.

As silently as possible, Rowan slipped out of the house, crossed the snowy yard to the barn, hauled open the door that desperately needed some oil, and flicked on the overhead lights, illuminating the large, chilly, wooden-beamed space. He’d slowly transformed the barn into a gym over the years, picking up old equipment at estate sales and local gyms who were remodeling or getting rid of old machines and other stuff. Right then, he only had eyes for the punching bag–his favorite way to release the pent-up anger his fists itched to rain down upon Arobynn’s worthless face. 

He took off his jacket and sweatshirt, pulled on his well-loved boxing gloves, and strode over to the punching bag. With a grunt, he launched into a punishing round of strikes and punches, pummeling the taut leather sandbag with enough force to send it rocking on its chain. That first volley loosened the knot of tension in his chest, opening the floodgates, and every tangled, indecipherable, raw emotion he’d bottled up came pouring out in the erratic rhythm of his gloved fists (and occasionally his shoes) against the punching bag, interspersed with hoarse yells, broken shouts, curses, groans, and grunts. He lost himself in the slap of leather on leather, barely remembering to draw breath, slapping and punching and kicking until the flood of grief and pain and rage had subsided enough for his head to clear. 

Chest heaving, rare tears seeping hot and salty down his face, Rowan sank to the weathered wooden plank floor, buried his head in his hands, and felt the crushing weight of abandonment, an old familiar companion, press down upon his shoulders once again. 

Although he didn’t know it, Aelin was curled in the same position on the floor of her childhood bedroom, her face buried in her hands, tears streaming unchecked down her cheeks. The same anguish tore through her ruined heart, a white-hot knife of grief and guilt piercing her to her core. Leaving him was the last thing she ever wanted to do; it was like splitting herself in half. Yet she had left him, tossed him to the snowy curb without a backward glance. Leaving him shell-shocked on the edge of the highway, heart in his throat and the winter wind whistling through his empty hands.

~~~

TAGS:

@live-the-fangirl-life

@superspiritfestival

@thegreyj

@wordsafterhours

@elentiyawhitethorn

@morganofthewildfire

@backtobl4ck

@rowanaelinn

@house-of-galathynius

@tomtenadia

@julemmaes

@swankii-art-teacher

@charlizeed

@booknerdproblems

@chronicchthonic14

@earthtolinds

@goddess-aelin

@sweet-but-stormy

@clea-nightingale

@autumnbabylon

@darling-im-the-queen-of-hell

@llyncooljones

@silentquartz

[armins-main-hoe]

Odd socks | Neteyam’s twin pt.2

There is now a full fic available, if you’re interested, link to the masterlist is here

Once again this is not proof read so I’m sorry :/ If you haven’t already you can read pt1 here. I’m planning to keep writing until Neteyam dies. 

 There was always the threat of sky people but you eventually had become convinced that they wouldn’t ever be too much of a big deal. You haven’t seen the worst of the fights your clan has with them but from what you have heard, no one has died from their attacks since you can remember.

Of course that all changed for you when you came home one day from hunting and couldn’t see any one from your family in sight. Your younger siblings have been told to always be back home before eclipse. It’s eclipse right now but they aren’t here. Your mother or father aren’t here as well.

You ask around and you’re told that your parents were patrolling with your twin brother but they should have been back by now. You start to worry and debate on whether you should go out and look for them.

You decided on waiting a little while longer in case they show up and the situation wasn’t as bad as you thought it was. Besides, if they don’t turn up anytime soon you’d rather take adults from the clan with you to help you look but that could only happen if they don’t come back for a while longer.

You decide to go to your grandmother while you wait. You loved spending time with your grandmother as you always annoyed her whenever you did visit her. Her reactions to your pestering amused you. “Hey grandma.” no answer. “Grandmaaaaa” Still no answer. “Grandm-” 

“Who let the screeching ikran in?” You hear her mutter as she made her way to you. “What is it? What do you want?” She was carrying a box with different types of what you suppose are medicine. 

“mom, dad and all my siblings have gone out, so I thought I would spend some time with my favourite grandma.” 

“As if you have multiple grandmas to pick a favourite from.” She walked past you and placed the box down before sitting down herself and patting the space beside her for you. You happily skip over and sit down next to her. She gave you a drink before getting one for herself. “Tsk, look at your hair, why don’t you braid it hm? Looks just like your father’s when he first came here.” 

“I’m not patient enough to sit still for that long. Mom has tried before.” You tell her before gulping the drink down.  You hear your grandma click her tongue again before drinking from her own cup. The two of you talked for a while more before you heard your mother calling for you. You said goodbye to your grandmother before leaving to find your mom. 

Soon as you made eye contact with your mother you knew something wasn’t right. She looked stressed and behind her you saw your dad gently pushing your siblings to their own tents and the looks on their faces told you something bad probably happened. 

“Where were you?” Your mom asked. 

“I was with grandma. What happened?” 

Neytiri sighed as some relief came over her knowing you were safe. She gave you hug and a kiss on your forehead before making her way over to your father. You were confused so you went over to Neteyam in his tent to find out what happened. 

“Neteyam?” You called out. With him you saw Lo’ak who sat with him. They both put on a small smile as you walked in. “What happened?” You asked again. 

The two brothers looked at each other before Neteyam began to tell you everything. 

“You’re both okay right? You didn’t get hurt or anything?” 

Neteyam shook his head. It was almost hard to believe that your younger sibling’s lives were held under a gun. A gun that belonged to a avatar no less. An avatar that belonged to the man that had nearly killed your father so many years ago. You hugged the both of them, glad that they both came back alive. Once again, you were no where to be seen when your siblings were in danger. You felt bad, you really did. 

You felt more guilty each time you looked at Neteyam, he was the one who had to help save your siblings while you were relaxing and laughing. You knew that it really wasn’t your fault but that didn’t stop you from feeling so guilty. The three of you heard voices of your mother and father from their tent, it seemed as if they were arguing. 

Walking over to your parents’ tent you saw Kiri and Tuk, Kiri waved you three over and all five of you eavesdropped on your parents’ argument.  

It was that day the five of you found out that your family would be moving away. To you it was all happening too fast. You would have never have thought back when you came back hunting today that the rest of your family were fighting for their lives and when they come back, you would be leaving the forest.  

That night, in your shared tent that you have with your sisters, you couldn’t sleep at all. Not while your mind kept running wild with thoughts of the events that happened earlier on that day. You nearly lost so many people who are so dear to you all at once. You could have been all alone for the rest of your life.  

Tuk had fallen asleep while hugging your arm, you looked over at her and pulled her closer. That night, you silently swore to yourself that no matter where your family end up going, you will take your role as the eldest sister much more seriously. 

You had to say bye to all your friends you had made and seeing them for what you know is the last time made you want to hide and not fly away with your family. Though you know that at the end of the day, you’d rather follow your parents, you will still miss your friends a lot. You had known them since you were a kid and now you won’t ever see them again. You don’t want that. The group hug you shared with your friends was bittersweet. 

 You and your family had only packed the bare minimum before you all had set off to fly away on your ikrans. The journey was long and tiresome. While flying you noticed how sad everyone looked, like there was this dark gloomy cloud hovering over all of you. In an attempt to cheer your siblings up you showed them a few tricks you learn’t to do on your ikran. Your brothers soon joined in and Kiri joined in soon after. Your dad turned around and told you guys off for messing around. So you all stopped and flied quietly for a bit before you ‘accidentally’ flew your ikran a little too far the the right, causing lo’ak to quickly move so you both don’t bump into each other. He looked at you while you shrugged and let out a ‘sorry’ with a smile. He caught on and the two of you began to try and bump into the other. Again, your dad told you off, this time more sternly so the two of you actually stopped but soon you reached the home of the metkayina clan.

The first thing you noticed when you got off your Ikran was how different the sea people looked. Their skin was a much lighter colour than yours, their tail and arms were also much thicker. Your dad went ahead and was slowly approaching the crowd that was still forming with open arms. You noticed Neteyam doing the same. You walked besides Kiri who seemed rather uncomfortable with the many stares you all were getting. 

Soon the Olo'eyktan appeared as well as the Tsahik. You watched and listened as your dad and mom talked with them both. The Tsahik walked over, observing your mothers tail and arm, commenting on how weak and thin they are. She then walked over to you and quickly grabbed your hands. She saw that your right hand had an extra finger and held that hand up for the entire clan to see. “These children aren’t even real Navi.” 

“yes, we are.” Kiri spoke from besides you. “They have demon blood in them!” The Tsahik ignored your sister. You tugged your hand out of her grip and looked at your dad. He stepped towards you and the Tsahik and showed both of his hands and how he had 4 fingers. 

“See here, I was born with the sky people and now I am Na’vi. You can adapt.” He spoke to not only her but the rest of the clan members too. 

It seemed as if they weren’t took keen on letting you guys stay. You began to wonder, where else would your family go if you can’t stay here. The journey here was long and you’re sure that everyone was tired and hungry. 

“My husband was Toruk Makto.” You heard your mom say but what followed after seemed to go by as a blur. You couldn’t help but noticed the many stares you and your sister were getting. Most of those looks going to your hands, arms and tail. You didn’t like it. You don’t want to be here. You just want to go back home. 

The sea people eventually let your family stay, you had been shown the place at which you will stay at. It was different, obviously but if felt different in an uncomfortable way. You didn’t say it but you really wanted to go back home. 

Your father then called for a family meeting, Neteyam pulled you and Lo’ak down down to sit on either side of him. Your father went on about how you should all be on your best behaviour and that you need to learn quick. You weren’t worried about falling behind or being the one to start fights but the people not actually accepting you. 

“I want to go home.” You look up and see Tuk sulking. So even your siblings felt the same. You watched your dad comfort Tuk by saying that his place is your new home. 

You look around your ‘new home’, yeah you don’t think you could ever  call this place home and mean it. You felt someone nudge you and you looked to your left.  It was your twin brother. “What?” You asked. 

“Go on, say it.” 

“Say what?” 

You heard your mother sigh so you look over at her. “Try not to daydream so much Y/N. We can not afford to slack.” She told you. 

“Come on, now this time say it like you mean it.” Your father spoke. 

“Sullys stick together.” 

Oh that. 

You and your siblings were being taught by Tsireya and Ao’nung, sometimes joined by Rotxo who was a friend of Ao’nung. You didn’t mind Rotxo, he was nice to you and your siblings. Tsireya was sweet as well and neither you or Neteyam failed to notice how her and Lo’ak seemed to have something for each other. Ao’nung on the other hand, you know you shouldn’t judge someone so quickly but it was something about his smile that made you keep your guard up around him. Sure, he was teaching you but there would be times where he would give you this menacing smile when Tsireya was not looking. 

Both you and Neteyam shared a look when you first caught him giving you that smile. 

After a few days though, you and your siblings had learn’t quite a lot. To start, you could now hold your breath for much longer with this new breathing technique that Tsireya had taught you. You could also ride an ilu though it look a few tries to get it right. Neteyam laughing at you failing off of your ilu didn’t help but you got back at him when he fell off too.  Ao’nung was teaching the two of you, he was teaching you first while Neteyam watched. 

“Which one of you is the eldest?” He asked you both while you were getting on the ilu. You looked at Neteyam, you both are of the same age and you don’t know who came out first and never really bothered asking.

“We’re both of the same age.” You told Ao’nung. 

“You both can’t be of the exact same age though, one of you obviously must be older.” He spoke while looking down at you. 

“We’re twins.” Neteyam told him. “We were birthed at the same time.” 

Ao’nung looked a bit shocked while looking back and forth from the two of you. “Ah, I see it now. You both do look awfully similar. Just one happens to be uglier.” 

“Hey-” 

Before you could speak, your ilu jerked forward and got scared of something, throwing you off in the process. When you surfaced, you could hear Ao’nung laughing. Now he just makes your blood boil. You walked the ilu back and watched neteyam get on his. 

“You did that on purpose.” You blamed Ao’nung. “You did something to the ilu.” 

He just shrugged and and started to tell your brother what to do. You glared holes into his back and then you caught Neteyam’s eye, he shook his head at you, silently telling you to let it go. You let out a frustrated sigh and looked away at your younger siblings. 

Apart from Ao’nung, you suppose living by the sea wasn’t too bad. You liked swimming, though some of the creatures living in there scared you a little. You naturally were very curious of the sea when you first saw it all. You would go down to the coral and see all the different brightly coloured fishes. At first you didn’t mind the fishes, you thought they looked cute but there was this one particular fish that caught your eye. You swan closer to it to see it from a closer view. You then went to touch it. You couldn’t see Ao’nung watching you from a distance, he knew what would happen if you touched that particular fish but he decided on letting you find out yourself. 

As soon as you touched the fish slightly, the first immediately turned around, locked eyes with you and began to attack you. It nipped at your skin and you tried to shoo it away but it didn’t give up so you tried swimming away but the fish seemed to be a better swimmer than you. Ao’nung couldn’t hold back his laughter anymore so he swam up to the surface so he could let it out while Tsreiya and Lo’ak helped you shoo the fish away. 

You later learned while getting your fish bites treated that the fish you touched were not particularly friendly to Na’vi and attacked if you touch them first. If you were to touch them, they would memorise your face and attack you again if they ever see you again. You were peeved at Ao’nung since he kept chuckling to himself whenever he saw the fish bite still healing on your skin. 

Your anger towards Ao’nung only grew when you and Neteyam found him picking on Kiri. Lo’ak was already there by the time you both were close enough. Neteyam went up to Ao’nung, telling him to leave Kiri alone. You went and stood by Kiri, making sure they hadn’t physically hurt her. 

“Back off, now.” 

As you all walked away you threw a middle finger at Aonung and his friends, though they definitely don’t know what it means. You heard them mumbling words to each other, something about how your whole family were freaks. You tried to ignore them but Lo’ak couldn’t. You, Kiri and Neteyam watched as he walked back and began to talk to Aonung again. He caught Ao’nung off guard with a punch and soon it turned into a real fight. You looked at Neteyam and he smiled at you before joining the fight. 

You watched your two brothers fight, they were outnumbered but were still able to hold their own. Kiri let out a small laugh and you had to jold yours in while going in to break them apart before someone gets seriously injured. 

Well thats what what you intended to do, before one of Ao’nung’s friends accidentally hit you. You let out a groan of pain before glaring at the boy who hit you. All the boys stopped fighting and watched you. The boy who hit you mumbled out an apology, not actually meaning to hit you but then went on to say how it was your fault getting in his way in the first place. 

Before he could finish his speech you cut him off with a punch. Then your brothers continued fighting and you ended up joining the fight. 

The three of you ended up getting an earful from Jake. He told both your brothers off first before moving on to you. “Y/N, I get why these two knuckleheads would create a fuss but you?” You looked up at your dad and saw how displeased he looked. A sheepish grin appeared on your face as your shrugged. “Um.. sullys stick together?” You dad sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose while closing his eyes. 

 He told Lo’ak to go and make peace with Ao’nung. You felt as if it wasn’t fair, what your dad was saying but as you and Neteyam were on your way out, your dad stopped you both. 

“What do the others look like?” He asked. 

“Worse,” Neteyam answered and then pointing at you. “Especially the one she beat up.” You looked at him offended, he was trying to shift the blame onto you. 

“Good.” You heard your dad say before you could speak. You slowly smiled at him. 

“Wait, actually the one I beat looks even worse-”

“Get out of here, both of you.” Your dad shooed you both away. While you both walked away, you looked at Neteyam.

 “what did you say? ‘Especially the one she beat up’? You were trying to make me look worse.” You mocked him, making your voice go lower when recalling his words. He playfully told you to shut up while you laughed. 

Read pt.3 here

@luvlykrispy @minkyungseokie

[sugarsfics]

Birthday

Summary: Steve says he never had a birthday party, so you give him one, even though it is not his birthday. The gang helps you plan and set up, let’s hope it stays a secret.  

Trope: Steve x reader; established relationship 

Warning: fluff, kissing, talk of drinking, use of y/n once

Word count: 1.0k 

30 Day Challenge: Day 3 Send request <3 

You and Steve were shopping for a present for your little cousin when your jaw dropped hearing the words that came out of your boyfriend's mouth, he had never had a birthday party before. “Wait what do you mean” he shrugged “I just never had one my parents would take me to a fancy restaurant with their friends then give me cash” poor baby “I’m so sorry” “Eh it's alright” he said kissing your forehead “I think they will like this one” he said holding up a drawing set.  

The drive back to Steve's place was quiet windows down, Duran Duran playing on the radio. But your mind was somewhere else Steve had never had a birthday party, you loved Steve so much and wanted to give him everything, give him the love he lacked from his parents. Even though it was the middle of August, and his birthday wasn’t till April, you didn’t want to wait till April to give him a party so why not celebrate his half birthday? “You ok” Steve said worriedly “Yes why” you answered quickly “Girls on Film was just on and you didn’t scream the lyrics at the top of your lungs” “ I'm fine just thinking” “About” “It's nothing” “If you didn’t sing your favorite song than its not nothing” he challenged “It’s just that you never-” “AH if you are getting worked up on me not having a birthday party before I will.....not sure what but don’t get work up about it ok” “But-” “Sh now let’s go inside there is a couch and a movie calling our names”  

The movie didn’t interest you at the moment you were too busy planning in your head Steve’s half birthday party. Where would it be? Who will come? food? drinks? cake? Games? Money wasn’t a problem just like Steve, you lived a wealthy life that is how you met Steve. It was at one of the big fancy parties this time your parents were hosting. You walked outside bored out of your mind when I figure came out from the dark “Bored too” said the figure “Yea not a kid friendly party” you joke. The figure came out from the shadows, and you were met with a handsome young man “You're that Harrington boy right Steven?” “Steve, but yea that’s me” he smiled. From that moment on you and Steve were always together at parties, soon becoming best friends than lovers. He has become one of the most important people in your life, he was so sweet, even though he knew your wealthy status he payed for everything. It was time to spoil him. 

After your movie date you went straight home writing down the plans, luckily the weekend you wanted to have it your parents would be gone so the party will be at your house. You would give a call to Robin tomorrow for a guest list most likely being her, the kids he is always with, and probably Nancy and Jonathan maybe that Munson kid. Food, you have a taco man that Steve loves so easy, his favorite snacks, popcorn chips. Drinks he loves his lemonade so many versions of that, water, juice boxes for the kids, maybe alcohol. Cake, he mentions for your graduation party he loves the cake which was chocolate and strawberry from the bakery three towns over. Games? Do you have games at parties for 19-year-old, since it is still summer your pool will be ready, maybe drinking games for later at night.  

The next morning you called Robin for the guest list “Y/N his birthday is April” “I know but he never had one before” “Yea ok so” “I want to give him a surprise one” “Ok fine it would be his kids, Eddie, Nancy, Jonathan, Hopper, Joyce and me” “That’s it” you said dumbfounded “Yea he not popular King Steve anymore” right you thought “Do you need any help” Robin asked “Not till the day of the party oh make sure no one tells him” “Gotta girly” “Thank you so much Robin” “anytime” next was taco man he was shocked to hear that it was such small party but gave you the yes that he will be there. The cake was ordered and would be picked up at 2 that day. Everything was going perfectly.  

Surprisingly, no one told Steve, Eddie and Dustin almost blurted it out by asking what time that party would be, but Robin caught them in time, but other than that he suspected nothing. It was the morning of the party and the plan was that Dustin was going to have Steve drive him around for a couple of hours while the rest of you set up. You had balloons on the ceiling, drinks in the cooler, taco man out back preparing, snacks on the table, cake in the fridge. Perfect. Dustin radio the kids that they were on the way. Everyone got into a hiding place “Dustin why are we at my girlfriends house- don't just walk in ”“ SURPRISE” Steve jumped back “What” “Happy half-birthday"

The party was so much fun. Steve was having the time of his life in the pool surrounded by the people he loved. The tacos were amazing, he lost count after his 4 plates. no one mentioned it but Steve started to tear up when everyone was singing happy birthday. He loved his cake and was shocked when everyone handed him presents. Overall, he loved his first birthday party. After everyone left the house was clean, you and Steve went up to your room. “Did you like your surprise handsome” “I loved it thank you so much” he said bringing his lips to yours. After putting on pj’s Steve hopped into your bed, opening your blanket for you to hop in. You snuggled into his chest “Can I tell you a secret” he whispered “Yes” you whispered back “I knew about the party” you sat up “How” “Well the kids were talking about it on the walkie in the same channel I'm on and you left your list out” SO CLOSE. 

Tag list: @thefreak0fhawkinshigh

[bluestrawberrybunny]

Pssst. Pssst! You guys wanna see another design of Exubus?? Do ya??? Do ya??? (Warning, body horror, kinda… as well as mentions of death, manipulation, depression, and cult stuff)

I drew this back in March, please go easy on me-

The scarred-face-guy is Exubus, by the way, although he goes by Talon at that time because he had his memories erased and it’s a whole thing… (basically boils down to reincarnation with Exubus being split in two, his memories and majority of his powers being locked away from his physical body, which was put in a sarcophagus and locked away to keep the two halves from reuniting.)

What is Exubus’ main goal in the Abnormal Freedom Force/Paranormal Investigations world? Simple. Destroy literally everything because in his eyes, mortals should not exist due to there being even a sliver of bad.

So, context for the drawing above, Exubus has people working for him, manipulating them like he did the in Apprenticeship AU. Kris (red sweater) and Manny (blue scarf) Boyce were tricked into working for him as hitmen due to them both being orphans who were basically willing to do anything to survive.

Ace Rook (shades) is the head of the Galactic Alliance and is using Earth for illegal experimentation, now under Exubus’ orders. Why did he join Exubus? It was a purely selfish reason, because he was illegally experimenting on his own children before Exubus even came into the picture, so it was to save his own ass.

Cassidy Williams (redhead at the bottom) joined Exubus in order to become more human, as she was only half human due to her mother being an alien. So, she became more human and now works as a sort of figurehead for Exubus to use to control the masses, same with Darius Dunn (glasses and suit boi). Although Darius joined because his father was the leader of the cult worshipping Exubus before his father was… killed… by Exubus. Since he was the golden child, he continues with what his father was doing, ignoring everything bad the man did.

Kris and Manny are the only ones who end up escaping Exubus’ influence and control. However… one did it through a not-so-happy way. Kris accidentally killed Manny while on a hit. Manny had a change of heart, stepping in front of Kris as he went to kill their target, only to have killed his twin instead.

Kris breaks down, and is eventually found by Paranormal Investigations in pretty bad shape, as Exubus wasn’t too happy about him messing up the job, and Kris lashed out at him due to his grief. They take him in and nurse him back to health, and are well aware of what he did. Kris is… broken, to say the least. He barely eats or moves unless someone forces him to.

They have a funeral for Manny, burying him next to the parents of some of the members, and Kris decides to help them stop Exubus, despite him still technically having control over him.

That’s all I’m gonna share for now! But yeah, the AFF/PI gets a bit dark…

But I did want to share more info about it because this is something I’ve been working on since late 2017, and I don’t plan to stop working on it anytime soon either ^^

(But as you can tell i like to add OCs and put them in fandom/au stuff too because these are my children and i love them)

[pedrito-friskito]

a strawberry wine announcement

ok babes!! hi!!!

okay first of all, thank u thank u thANK U to everyone who has been reading and liking and reblogging and commenting on strawberry wine. I was never expecting this fic to turn into what it has, and reading all your excitement and theories (and love for Cowan 😂) has truly made me the happiest gal.

I’m not slowing down anytime soon - there’s sooooo much more story to tell, and I love it too much to stop now. it’s evolved into something much more complicated than what I originally planned, and so, I’m making a few changes.

I’m giving reader a name. specifically, Liv, or Olivia. mainly Liv.

I know some people may not be thrilled with the change from reader character to a named OC, and all good if that’s not your thing, no hard feelings here! to each their own 🤍

I’m not backtracking and adding the name into parts that have already been posted. it will be used sparingly, I’m still avoiding specific features best I can, but as I’ve been writing more and more, she’s changed, to me. she’s not just a blank-slate to insert myself into. yes, it’s still reader-insert, and it’ll still be written in that format. she has a backstory, she’s turning into a person I hadn’t envisioned when I first threw down the start of this.

a few more details to add to the mix (and my askbox is always open if you want more 😉)…

Olivia “Liv” Lauren Stone was born in San Francisco, California on September 26th, 1978 (this makes her 11 years younger than Joel)

she’s the first daughter to her parents (who will still remain nameless), her only sister Anna is four years younger than her

Liv was born in California, Anna in Colorado, and the family moved around often before Liv ended up in Michigan for school, while her parents and Anna moved to Austin, Texas to take over her grandparents’ hardware store

she went to Michigan State University and has a degree in English lit, with a minor in business (not exactly helpful in the apocalypse) and played in the softball league all four years

the butterfly tattoo on her ankle was a gift from herself on her 21st birthday

she’s feisty, she’s witty, she’s strong as hell, and god help the infected (and not) that try and mess with her

I don’t have a face claim for Liv, nor do I really want one. any images I use in moodboards are only ever for aesthetic purposes. she is still as nondescript as possible, but (for reasons that have yet to be revealed…👀) this feels like the next logical step.

thank u again to everyone who has been loving these characters as much as I am 🤍 I never anticipated it, and I’m the most grateful.

part ten coming tomorrow 😌

all my love and gratitude and affection and nonsense,

kay xo

(also massive thank u’s to @allfoolsinluv and @psychedelic-ink who let me stress out about this to them both 🤍)

[hyunsvngs]

So I hope this is a safe space to rant. I just need to get this out to someone and this seems like the place to do it.

I have never had sex with another human being where I have cum by the other person. I’m pretty limited on my consensual experiences, but still most have just been the worst. I do have a thing going with my best friend and we’re just taking a minute to figure out what works. Unfortunately it is incredibly hard to make me finish and I’m terrible at explaining the right way to do it.

But my biggest issue is actually my experience with my piss kink. My all time biggest kink is and always will be piss. It was first introduced to me by my high school boyfriend. It started with him holding me close to him anytime one of us had to pee and saying we should just stay together and piss. I always thought it was a joke though. Until one day at my parents lake house he suggested us finding a private place for him to piss on me. I was confused by it but I’ve never been one to kink shame, so I agreed. I have never felt more beautiful, more sexy, more special, or more loved than I did in that moment. I’m a very insecure person, but in that moment I felt like perfection. Since our breakup I have found one person who was comfortable with this kink. Everything we did together was bad except for the piss. That was when I experienced letting it get into my mouth. I came very close to cumming without any stimulation.

But other than those two people any friend or sexual partner that I’ve brought this up to has made me feel so bad about it. Calling me fucked up and disgusting. Don’t get me wrong when said in the right tone “my disgusting little fucked up slut” is the best thing to hear. But these people are intentionally putting me down. Striking it off as weird before I can even explain how the kink makes me feel.

So now I’m like extremely insecure about this kink, and literally the only way I can somewhat satisfy my desires is by your fanfics and an occasional good porn video.

Side not about the whole sleeping with my bestie thing. One of her only big No’s is excrement, so piss is off the table with her. She has stopped making fun of me at my request, but I still low key feel like she judges.

So I guess my question is, how do you go about introducing this to people without getting shot down so horribly? How do you deal with the rejection?

Another thing people judge me for is my nose kink. I have no fucking idea why, but other than a phat ass the sexiest feature of a person is a big nose. When I tell you that I drip just from looking at Chan’s face because of how perfect his nose is, oh my fucking god. But people make me feel so bad about it.

Anywho that’s my rant. I feel a bit better.

I put another anon ask out recently where I brought up the idea of Chan coming home to you in the shower and inviting himself in for some piss fun time. If it wasn’t of good taste, I understand. Just a little fantasy.

I also asked if 🥃anon was available. Is it? I’m a dark liquor girlie so that’s my favorite emoji

Anyway, love you and everything you post bestie

I literally check this page everyday

hi friend!! so i'm so sorry to hear you haven't had a good time with sex :( before i respond to everything i want to say i do still have your previous ask in my inbox!! i had planned to respond to it soon and yes 🥃 is definitely free <3

firstly please do not feel as though you should be ashamed for this kink. trust me there is a lot worse out there lol and as long as they're consensual who cares! you're not forcing anyone into trying this with you, you're just being open about what you're into. that's absolutely nothing to be ashamed of.

secondly in terms of introducing it to other people, i would personally wait until a topic about sex came up with the other person and maybe slide in a little "oh, what are you into in bed?". i think a LOT of people are into piss and just don't want to say it either (further reinforced when i started writing about piss here and so many ate it up). in terms of dealing with rejection, i think it's just a sort of thing like ah, okay, ygm? like not everyone's into choking. not everyone's into bdsm. it is exactly the same with piss! not everyone's into it, and some people are, and that's okay.

i really hope you feel more accepted soon. this is always a safe safe place for kinks and piss in general so please do not ever feel afraid to come here and rant to me <3

[pinnithin-writes]

A Helminthic Romance

Short story about a girl who falls in love with her intestinal parasite, told through entries in the narrator's journal.

[Posting these in short installments in conjunction with the the dates of the journal entries.]

Read on Ao3

<- May//June//

June 1

Will messaged me again. I should just block his number at this point. He seriously asked me if I wanted to hang out, after everything that happened. I don’t know what he doesn’t get about “don’t speak to me again.”

I’m looking back at my entries from spring break and realizing I never actually talked about the aftermath. There’s like, a two week gap where I didn’t even write anything. I guess it was too raw then. Now that it’s been a couple months it’s kind of scabbed over, so I can poke at it a little. 

After he cheated he tried to go back to how things were before. I don’t know if he was counting on me not finding out or was just planning on lying about it or what, but when I tried to confront him about it he just acted like it hadn’t happened. I had to show him the screenshots to make him actually acknowledge it.

“You can’t just act like spring break doesn’t count,” I told him, and he was like, what does it matter? I’ll never see her again. And then he added a passive aggressive comment about how he couldn’t expect me to give him everything he needed, so he filled in the gaps where he could.

I hate to say it but that was my breaking point, not the cheating. I was almost willing to forgive him and let him have another chance after that. I mean, it’s not like anyone has ever shown any romantic interest in me before him, and it’s unlikely I’ll get another shot at love anytime soon. And I did like him. I still do, really.

But then he went and said that? I gave him everything. I carved out hours of my life to hang out with him. I listened to his stories about how his parents hit him and how all his exes used and discarded him and I hugged him while he cried and I held his hand while he learned to heal. 

We could have been something. He was my broken doll and I was his starving dog. The only two people fucked up enough to understand each other. 

I should have known establishing a boundary would have been taken as an attack. He’s been hurt too many times to assume good intentions. But he didn’t have to turn around and cheat on me.

Just because I can’t figure out what I want doesn’t mean I’m not able to tell what I don’t want. I knew I didn’t want to move in with him after only dating for six months. It didn't matter that I was aging out of the dorms. I didn’t want to live with him because that would give him a front row seat to all the weird shit I do behind closed doors and I knew I wasn’t ready for that. 

I think he took me signing the lease with Gina as a sign that I was going to leave him just like the rest of his exes. The first in a series of steps to distance myself after he showed me all the undesirable parts of him, and I’d decided I couldn’t handle it. If he knew all my undesirable parts he’d have known it would take quite a lot for me to draw the line. Maybe he tried to find where the line was early so he could save himself some heartbreak. Or something.

This is so fucking stupid that I just inherently psychoanalyze people. Thanks, Mom. He’s already wasted so much of my time, but here I am wasting more of it figuring out why he thought that was okay.

God. Whatever. The worm’s doing fine. The one inside my body, that is, not the other one. I’ve sort of gotten used to the indigestion, and it’s nice I can eat whatever I want now. It seems to perk up when I feed it chocolate covered pretzels, which is great because I love eating those. 

I really thought for a second about naming the tapeworm Will, just as a funny joke to myself about how Will is a parasite, but this feels like kind of an insult to the worm. It hasn’t led me on for months only to decide I wasn’t worth the emotional effort of waiting on me. All the worm ever does is wait on me, really. It just sits there in a dark little part inside of me I’ll never get to see, waiting patiently for whatever I decide to give it. It doesn’t complain, and it never leaves because it can’t.

I think I want to be kind to it. It didn’t choose these circumstances, much like a child doesn’t choose to be born. The least I can do is treat it well while it’s forced to exist in my digestive tract.

I don’t know. I shouldn’t name it Will, but I should probably name it something, now that I think about it. We’re past the point of avoiding missing it when it’s gone - I’ll miss it. We’ve already spent so much time together and it’s always there with me. But what does one name a worm that’s attached to your intestines, eating when you eat, sleeping when you sleep, fully dependent on you?

And  if we’re being honest I’m a little dependent on it, not only for getting my weight down, but for keeping me on a schedule. I’d probably be in bed all day long if the worm didn’t stir every once in a while, reminding me to go about the daily maintenance of being alive. I actually showered today because my stomach hurt so bad I couldn’t stay curled up in bed any longer. It’s like it’s reminding me to keep being a person.

Hard to pick a name for someone that important. 

[ascendancy-echoes]

Chapter 26: Capture

Ismene was no longer restrained, but she knew she wasn’t free to leave the camp. If she left, humans would no doubt find her and she’d be punished for trespassing. If she stayed, she knew Oz and Belinay had no intention of keeping their promises to Russ about her safety. But she was safe for now, so Ismene brooded in the far end of the church’s remains, counting and recounting her supplies she had been ordered to bring along with some other herbs she was able to pack. Vaiko, or rather Silence, had forced her at dagger-point to make as much Ether as her supplies back home allowed. Russ had given up on trying to reason with her, only giving her hurt expressions anytime they happened to look in each other's directions. As much as she was still mad with Russ, Ismene held out hope that he’d see the truth and they could do something to avoid whatever fate Belinay and Oz had planned.

“You’re as stubborn as your Nana.”

Ismene looked up from her bag and saw Kallisto slithering towards her. She glared at her fellow Naga and told her to piss off.

“Look, as your cousin-“ Kallisto began to say.

“Second cousin,” Ismene corrected tersely. “And don’t go throwing around the fact we’re family like it’s gonna persuade me more than Russ’s piss-poor attempts to help me ‘see reason’… You’re all fucking idiots. You really believe Oz is gonna summon Lavos and rid the world of humans?”

“At least I have faith,” Kallisto replied defensively. “You keep up this attitude, you’ll end up alongside the humans.”

“Faith didn’t save your father or my parents…” Ismene muttered. “... Look, I’ll keep my mouth shut around Oz and Belinay but don’t expect me to be a believer given what happened.”

Kallisto sighed, “I know it’s hard to believe, but-”

“Shut up! None of you are going to convince me until I see it happen, okay?” Ismene hissed. “You know what I have faith in? That this whole thing is going to get fucked sideways just like last time our kind tried to do anything. The humans always win, somehow, someway. They always do.”

Kallisto frowned. She took her frozen flame pendant off and forced it into Ismene’s hands. “I won’t tell the Elder or Nocturna about what you just said, but just... for Russ’s sake and your own, try to have faith in this. Faith is what got me through losing my dad. I’m only saying this because we’re family. If I didn’t care about you, I wouldn’t be trying to talk to you about this.”

Ismene scoffed. “You’ve had years to try and persuade me, Kalli. It’s like Nana always said… Show me, don’t tell me.”

Kallisto let out a soft, half-hearted chuckle. She was about to say something when she and Ismene heard Belinay call for her. Kallisto knew Belinay well enough that she needed to go and see what was needed of her. Turning to leave, Kallisto looked back at Ismene and said, “Just think about it, okay?”

Ismene shrugged and nodded apathetically. Once she was alone, she stared at the pendant in her hands. The twisted shape of the red-orange ombre stone reminded her of a candlelight. Vaguely, she recalled her father wearing something like it once. It was the faintest memory, second only to what her parents’ faces looked like. She let out a sigh. Faith was something she couldn’t find in herself.

~o~O~o~

Russ knew he had a terrible plan, but it was better than no plan at all. After attempting to move Nox’s body and failing, Russ decided to take Janus back to camp as a hostage. He gathered up Nox’s baton and shackles, threw some fallen branches onto Nox’s body and set to work on his half-baked plan. Using his overcoat as a blindfold to cover Janus’s face, he forced Janus to his feet. Then he picked up Nox’s unloaded crossbow and pushed it against Janus’s back, ordering him to walk forward into the forest. If they could make it back without getting caught, Bel and the others would have a better idea of what to do with Janus.

As he stumbled forward, Janus’s thoughts went to hoping Lucca would come home soon, figure out what happened and rescue him. Then he would do whatever it took to get Zarya back. Survive. Escape. Warn the others. Get Zarya back. That is what he kept telling himself over and over.

“Can’t you walk any faster?” Russ muttered after several minutes of pushing Janus along. It frustrated Russ that Janus was stumbling so much and taking short steps for someone so tall.

Janus shook his head no. It wasn’t out of any defiance as much as he wanted to fight back against this Mystic. He genuinely had trouble walking as breathing was a struggle, his head throbbed and he felt dizzy. It certainly didn’t help that he couldn’t see where they were going. At least with the damned cloth over his head, Janus didn’t have to deal with the bright morning light.

“C-can’t b-breathe,” Janus wheezed quietly, unsure if he could be heard. “Walk-walking’s h-hard, t-too…“

Russ huffed and moved the overcoat so it was no longer covering Janus’s mouth. He asked tersely, “Better?”

Janus refused to respond, even if it was easier to breathe without his mouth being covered. Did this Mystic expect a thank you or something? He heard the Mystic mutter a sarcastic ‘you’re welcome’ before they resumed going forward. The two continued to walk in relative silence, although Janus could hear his captor cursing quietly to himself, chastising himself for the current situation. While it was hard to think clearly at the moment, Janus was in a similar mood, angry with himself for failing to keep Zarya safe and for losing a fight to this cowardly Mystic.

It was impossible for Janus to be sure how long they had been walking. He could feel his magic hadn’t recovered yet, but his headache was fading, a sign that his medicine had kicked in to ease those symptoms. Still angry, he decided to demand answers from his captor if only to keep his mind present on the situation.

“Why… d-didn’t you… ki-kill me?” Janus asked bluntly, struggling to get each word out as Russ pushed him forward. His voice was hoarse and he wasn’t sure if he could be heard.

A valid question but one that Russ didn’t want to dignify with an answer. Continuing to push Janus, Russ kept silent.

Janus took a deep breath and slowly asked, his voice barely above a whisper, “What… did… you do… to my… d-daughter?”

He found himself suddenly grabbed, pulled backwards, and turned around with such force he almost fell over.

“I already told you, I didn’t do anything to her!” shouted Russ. “Whatever happened to her wasn’t my fault! Stop accusing me of something I didn’t do, human!”

Janus scoffed softly. “B-Bullshit.”

“Listen here-” Russ began when a familiar voice called out from ahead.

“Holy Lavos, you suck at sneaking. I heard you stomping and shouting from the path.”

Russ looked up to see Kallisto slither out of unnatural shadows. Kallisto looked at him then at his captive. Her eyes went wide and she said, “What the fuck happened, Russ? Where’s Nox?”

“I- He’s dead,” Russ answered. “We were scouting, Then-Then Janus attacked us.”

Janus took the opportunity to try and fidget in his shackles, finding out quickly that they were rather secure and there was no getting out of them to escape while Russ was distracted by their companion who was berating them for not following orders and for leaving Nox’s body behind, demanding to know what they were thinking.

“You want to go back and drag his corpse through the forest? He weighs a ton,” Russ snapped. “I figured taking the human hostage now was a better idea.”

“It’s a risky and stupid idea, why isn’t he gagged? He could’ve shouted for help this whole fucking time,” Kallisto hissed.

Janus coughed and wheezed quietly, “You-You are lucky t-talking is h-hard f-for me r-right n-now… or-or I would be.”

“Shut up,” Kallisto snapped.

Janus quickly found himself gagged, still able to breath but unable to talk. He strained to listen as this newcomer quietly berated this ‘Russ’ further before he was turned around and pushed forward, ordered to keep walking.

“Lucca has to be home by now”, Janus thought to himself. “She’ll know something is amiss before these Mystics can act… I just need to bide my time.”

~o~O~o~

Russ practically held his breath as he and Kallisto entered the camp with Janus. Belinay wasted no time walking over to them. She looked at Janus, tilting her head slightly before turning her gaze towards Russ. The camp was silent as all eyes were upon them, waiting for Belinay’s reaction.

“Russ, dear… You and Nox had the simplest of tasks,” Belinay said with an eerie calm to her voice. “How exactly, pray tell, did this go wrong?”

“I-We were spying on the house like you asked,” Russ explained. “But…”

“But?”

Russ had spent the whole trip thinking of what he was going to say to Belinay, even before Kallisto had shown up and told him that she was sent to see what had happened after he and Nox were late to return. He stood firmly and told his story. Things had been going fine until the Ashtear’s child had somehow seen them. Russ suggested that perhaps she shared her father’s ability. He claimed the girl used some unknown magic but it backfired and she vanished into some sort of rift. That was when Janus saw them and attacked. Russ said he tried to get his shield up to protect them both but the bolt of lightning summoned by Janus must have bounced off his shield and hit Nox. It was luck that Janus faltered in his magic and that he was able to stun and capture the human for them.

“I’m sorry, but after that… I wasn’t sure what to do,” Russ admitted, perhaps the only thing truthful to his story. “So, I blindfolded him and thought I should bring him back… I mean, you mentioned using him as a sacrifice, right?” “You could have ruined everything,” Oz snapped. “Now, now Oz,” Belinay tutted. “As brash as his decision was, I agree with Russ. With Janus Ashtear as a hostage, the other humans will hesitate to harm us.”

“What about the original plan?” Oz grumbled.

Belinay turned to Oz and said, “We can still stick to that with the added bonus of showing up with Ashtear in tow. Think of the looks on their faces when we force their surrender, Oz.”

Oz smiled slightly. The idea that they could hold that kind of power over the king and queen of Guardia was admittedly appealing.

“Fine, but get him into the ruins and out of sight for now,” Oz said.

Janus felt himself taken by the arm and dragged forward and up some stone steps. After several more steps forward, Janus was pushed down to his knees. He felt a soft rope wrap tightly around him, preventing him from standing up.

The overcoat over his eyes was ripped away and Janus found himself tied up to a stone column in some crumbling stone ruins. A masked Kotengu and a masked Gargoyle stood before him. The Kotengu handed the overcoat to the Gargoyle, telling them to return the item to Russ.

“I’ll have a word with our guest alone,” she added. “Please do something about Nox before the humans find him. And one more thing…”

The Kotengu whispered something to the Gargoyle who nodded and left. The Kotengu turned her attention back to Janus. Janus guessed from her voice that the Kotengu was Belinay, the Mystic who had scolded Russ for bringing him here.

“Janus Ashtear…. It’s been some time since you ruined my last mission and caused the deaths of two of my agents,” she said coldly, tapping the baton at her side.

His vision was a bit blurry, but Janus looked at the baton in her hand and the shackles slung on her belt. They both looked familiar with their dark metal finish and black bird emblems. It was at that moment, Janus realized what the baton and shackles were. Now his sudden loss of magic and inability to regain it made sense. Somehow, someway, Zeal technology had survived to this era and it was the very technology that Dalton’s security forces had wielded to temporarily seal a user’s magic. If his throat wasn’t so tight and he wasn’t so exhausted, Janus would have asked Belinay how she got the baton and shackles.

“Why don’t you make yourself comfortable while we prepare to visit your friends,” Belinay said, turning to leave. “Soon you will bear witness to humanity’s end and I want you alive for it.”

~o~O~o~

Lucca would have been home sooner from the market if she hadn’t ran into her parents there. It was nice to catch up with them and she promised them that she and her family would visit soon. Arriving home, Lucca entered the house and immediately noticed the odd silence and the open side door to the garden. Something didn’t feel right. As she put away the groceries, Lucca called out to Janus and Zarya. Getting no answer, she hurried through the house, checking every room and calling out louder and louder, more and more worried. She knew something was wrong. Janus would never have left for the castle on his day off without leaving a note. She ran out into the garden and yelled for Janus and Zarya.

Except no sound came out. It took Lucca a second to register it but the world had lost all sound. Then she felt a painful jolt in her back and fell down, losing her glasses in the process. Her body felt like she was running a fever and she couldn’t move. As she felt her arms being pulled behind her, Lucca looked back over her shoulder to see the blurry view of a masked Gargoyle wordlessly shackling her.

The Gargoyle picked up Lucca’s glasses and pocketed them before forcing her to her feet. The world continued to be unnaturally silent as Lucca was forced forward into the forest. A few steps into the forest, Lucca found herself blindfolded and pushed forward onto an unknown path. Eventually the silence was replaced by the sound of footsteps and twigs snapping. Lucca could hear murmured conversations nearby. She tried to speak to ask who her captor was and what was going on, but her voice still failed her.

“Excellent work, Silence,” praised a new voice. “And Nox?”

“Dead as Russ declared, his body has been dealt with and I retrieved his flame.”

“Let’s reunite these two and prepare to replace the guards,” said the newcomer.

Lucca felt herself being pulled forward and up stone steps. After several more steps she was pushed and forced to her knees before being tied up against something made of stone. She could hear muffled, frantic sounds nearby.

The voice from before smirked. “Relax, she’s unharmed… Why don’t you have a nice little chat while we prepare for your friends? It’s not like they can hear you from here and if you get too annoying, I’ll have Silence work their magic.”

Lucca found her blindfold ripped off. Through blurry vision, she saw a Kotengu walking away towards someone more in focus, but the Mystic blocked her view. A voice gasped and coughed as the Mystic did something to them. She could hear the Mystic make a threat towards the other captive before they stood up and walked away towards a masked Gargoyle some distance away who snapped their clawed finger. Both Mystics left and Lucca’s eyes went wide as she realized Janus was tied to a stone column across from her.

“Janus? Where’s Zarya? What happened?” She asked frantically. Her mind was racing. She didn’t see their daughter in the ruins of wherever they were being held captive.

Tears welled up in Janus’s eyes as he spoke, his voice hoarse from the magically-induced asthma he was enduring. Through wheezing breaths and very few words, he told Lucca of the red Gate and how Zarya fell into it. He told her about how a Mystic drained his magic and captured him. He whispered an apology.

Lucca wanted to look on the bright side of things, Zarya wasn’t captured but knowing that she was lost in time did nothing to comfort her. Had she ended up somewhere safe? How were they going to escape to tell Crono and the others what happened? Lucca had not felt this hopeless in decades, not since the day she and Marle lost Crono in the Ocean Palace. Still, she forced a weak smile and promised Janus they would find a way to get out of this and get their daughter back. Somehow, some way, they would get Zarya back and stop whatever the Mystics had planned.