#IT'S PIZZA'S BIRTHDAY TODAY!! EVERYBODY SAY THANK YOU TO PIZZA!!!

[marclef]

HAPPY 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY TO THE GAME RESPONSIBLE FOR MY STRONGEST HYPERFIXATION EVER!!! 🎉🎉🎉

thank you for the good times you wonderfully-silly little game. you've given me more happiness and new friendships than i think any other game ever has ❤❤❤

here's to many more years of fun!!!

[posttexasstressdisorder]

https://lefsetz.com/wordpress/2024/04/17/laquila/

Happy Birthday, Mr. Mancini...thanks for three of the biggest tunes of my younger years...and many more!

L’Aquila

We’re here for a hundredth birthday concert for Henry Mancini.

L’Aquila is somewhere between one and two hours from Rome, depending on the traffic. It’s in the Apennine mountains. (You remember them from elementary school, right? Well, I remembered they were in Italy, but I couldn’t have picked them out on a map, nor did I know they were so close to Rome.) It’s a bit over two thousand feet high and feels like it, it’s in the fifties today, and supposed to go down to almost freezing tonight. If it weren’t for the long days, I’d think winter is coming.

Actually, Hank’s birthday was yesterday. We celebrated with dinner in the hotel, in a restaurant with multiple cases of aged beef wherein you can see your dinner before it is cooked. Actually, I was the only one who had steak, from the local cow, as opposed to one from Russia, Ireland or Japan or even America, all of which were in the case. And they served this round bread that was a cross between naan and pizza and it was very good.

But speaking of the food…

I just have to testify about the bread. It’ll crack a tooth, I tell you. Which is the crusty exterior you want, which Americans won’t tolerate. That’s the way bagels used to be, now they’ve got the consistency of Wonder Bread. Furthermore, everywhere you go in America, except for a few restaurants, the bread in the basket they serve with dinner is soft, basically bland, empty calories. But at lunch today, the bread might have looked pedestrian, but the crust reminded me of my youth, back when you bought rye bread at the local bakery, when they sliced it upon order.

So the key is not only making people aware it’s Henry Mancini’s hundredth birthday, but that they consume the music.

Now if you’re my age, everybody knows Henry Mancini. But over the past week I quizzed two twentysomethings and got blank stares in response. Then I started to sing “Pink Panther” and their eyes immediately lit up. But still, it’s such a challenge crossing old acts over to younger generations, attaching the composer to the song. The family switched to Primary Wave to quarterback this centenary celebration, we’ll see how it works out.

Anyway, the conservatory in L’Aquila reached out, they were doing four concerts, would we come?

Well, here we are.

Now the head of the conservatory’s passion is prog rock, I kid you not. Unfortunately, he doesn’t speak English so well, but I did get him to say his favorite prog rock keyboard player was Rick Wakeman.

And the conductor of the program… He’s not that great with English either. But Daniela studied at the University of Chicago, she’s the conservatory’s musicologist. And she’s a fount of information. They say you learn most when you hang with the locals…that is true. Although I still wish I spoke Italian. You know, like Jackie Kennedy, that’s what we heard when JFK was president, before she was married to Onassis, when her image was at its peak, that she spoke six, or was it seven languages. You have no idea of the hope JFK’s election generated. A turning point, a young man to lead us into the sixties. We thought we had something similar with Obama but he punted, for fear of looking like the angry black man. Biden is standing up to the status quo more than Barack, then again, Biden was vice president for eight years and saw firsthand that you can’t negotiate with the unreasonable.

I had to ask Daniela about “Gomorrah.” Of course she’d seen it, and “Suburra” too (although it took a while for her to understand what show I was talking about, I didn’t have the accent right). Streaming television is now the universal language.

So after waking up we went to the Fountain of 99 Spouts. Built in the 1200s. No one knows where the water comes from, supposedly they killed the architect and buried him under the fountain to preserve the secret.

And then we went to the local museum.

Most of the art was religious, but it all made me feel insignificant. That and the Forum back in Rome. You’re born and you feel so important, believing you matter, that you’re going to put a dent in the universe. Meanwhile, almost no one achieves this. And frequently those who are remembered were overlooked during their lifetime. But you see the antiquities and you realize nothing has changed over the years. Oh, of course travel is much speedier, and health care is much better, but everybody thinks they’re important when they’re alive, that the era within which they’re living is the most significant. I don’t know, it’s weird. Museums are sanctuaries, where the trappings of regular society don’t count. How rich you are, what kind of car you drive… You leave those at the door at the museum. It’s just you and your senses. Your thoughts start to percolate. Today money triumphs, but not at the museum. It’s a great correction.

So we’ll be back in Rome, but for less than two days. The whole trip is barely a week.

And L’Aquila is not a tourist town. Although there are ski areas in the mountains, one where Pope John Paul II used to surreptitiously ski. And there is still snow on the peaks. And every car I’ve been in so far has had a stick shift. Nearly extinct in the U.S., from Skodas to Volvos, everybody’s rowing through the gears here.

And oh, on the conservatory stage, I saw this Fazioli concert grand. I figured they couldn’t afford a Steinway. But it turns out Fazioli is usually more expensive, and their concert grand is even bigger, and you learn something every day.

That’s the name of the game.

“Al Conservatorio dell’Aquila parte l’omaggio a Henry Mancini”: https://shorturl.at/houxX

[khoicesbyk]

The Royal Romance.

Love Everlasting.

A/N: I had a different name and plot for this fic over a year ago. But after being in the RP community for more than a year, I've decided to write the current Royal Life of my favorite OTP.

Rated: Mature (at times can and will be Explicit. I'll be sure to change the rating when and if that happens). | Contains sexual content and strong language. (You know? The usual. Y'all should be used to this from me by now 😁) | Bolded and/or italicized words are conversations and thoughts of the characters. | Main Characters: King Marquise Rys (LI) and Queen Shanelle Miller-Rys (MC) | All Characters and names: (except MC and original characters created by me and/or other authors [their characters have been mentioned and/or used in the story with their permission] ) are property of Pixelberry.

Current Word Count: 18K words. (may be slightly more or may be slightly less. Look, I stop counting after editing and re-editing and driving myself insane. 🤷🏾‍♀️)

If you’d like to be added to my tag list. Just reblog or dm me and I will gladly add you! 😁😘

This series is rated Mature and/or Explicit. It is NOT reading material that is safe for those under 18. Reader discretion is STRONGLY advised!

Missing a chapter or want to read a chapter again? I got you covered! Click ——> Here!

And this is Part 2 of Chapter 12! I hope you all enjoy it!

Tag List: @choicesficwriterscreations

Chapter 12.) Best Birthday Ever. Part 2.

The rest of the week went by smoothly and that Friday, it was finally Khari’s birthday. Her parents were just as excited about the day as she was. 

“Today is a very special day! Do you know why Princess?” Marquise asked his daughter.

Khari giggled.

“No, why Daddy?” she replies playing along.

“Because today is your birthday! Happy Birthday my love!” 

Seeing the smile on her face was all Marquise wanted in life.

“And do you know what we do on your birthday?” he asked.

“What?” Khari replies.

“We sing ‘Happy Birthday’ in different languages!” 

Khari clapped as Marquise cleared his throat.

“Now bear with me, Daddy is a tad bit rusty.”

“Sing Daddy sing!” Khari cheered.

“Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday my Princess! Happy Birthday to you! Now that's how we sing it in English. En français, nous chantons: Joyeux anniversaire à toi! Joyeux anniversaire à toi! Joyeux anniversaire ma princesse! Joyeux anniversaire à toi! En español cantamos: ¡Feliz cumpleaños a ti! ¡Feliz cumpleaños a ti! ¡Feliz cumpleaños, mi princesa! ¡Feliz cumpleaños a ti!” 

“Thank you, Daddy!”

“You are more than welcome, my love.”

That's when Shanelle walked into Khari’s room.

“There's my birthday girl! Happy Birthday, baby!”

Khari got up and ran into her mother’s arms. 

“Thank you, Mommy! I'm excited about my party tomorrow. I wanna see everybody be pretty!” 

“Then you, me, and Mommy better get dressed! We have a flight to catch.” Marquise quipped.

“Okay, Daddy!” 

Once everyone was dressed, it was time to go but first Khari had to say goodbye to Margo.

“Bye Grammy! I love you!” Khari said as she hugged Margo.

“Goodbye, my darling. I hope you have a great time at your birthday party.” 

“Daddy said you weren't feeling good.”

“I'm not but I promise when you get back from celebrating with all your friends and family, we'll have our own party. Okay?” 

Khari nodded.

“Okay!”

“Good. Now go have fun, my love.” 

“Will do!”

With that everyone was off to the winery for Khari’s Pokemon Party. The next day it was kids, Pokemon costumes, pizza, cupcakes, and loads of fun. The winery had been transformed into a life-size Pokemon gym. Almost everyone had on a costume. Even the hosts of the party.

“Oh. My. God!” Shanelle said to Bron and Logan who were dressed up as Poke Balls.

“Ohhhh my!” Marquise said with a snicker.

“Don't mind him! You two look adorable!” 

“Thank you, Nelle,” Bron said to her.

Marquise looked at Logan and snickered.

“This your idea?” he asks Logan gesturing to the costume.

“Nope. Wife’s idea.” Logan replies.

Marquise nodded before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a cigar. 

“For later.”

Logan nodded gratefully.

The party was a hit. It was heartwarming to watch the kids run around, hopped up on sugar, and have the time of their lives. When the party was officially over the kids were out cold and sleeping in their daddy’s arms. 

“Annnnnnnd the kiddos are out like taillights,” Shanelle said to Bron, “thanks again, babe. I don’t know how to repay you and Logan for everything.”

Bronwyn smiled. 

“It was an absolute pleasure. Anything for her.”

The two friends smiled at each other. Shanelle couldn't have been any happier. Her daughter’s birthday party was everything she could've hoped for. 

Next up was His Majesty and Dee’s shared birthday and the day she's been waiting for: The Last Apple Ball. It is still October after all. 

The palace staff was all abuzz about the upcoming ball. Many were busy with final preparations for the Last Apple Ball and Shanelle was getting her husband's birthday gifts ready. Starting with the new cigar and whiskey lounge she had built for him. Cigars aren't her thing but she knows what they mean to him so she wanted him to have a place where he could enjoy a good drink and an even better cigar. 

Then there was Dee. She couldn't wait to spoil her. She had her birthday presents ready to go but first, it was hosting Dee’s birthday dinner at the palace. 

These are two people that Shanelle cares about the most and she wanted them both to have the best birthday ever. So on October 21st, her mission was simple, it was Operation: Birthday Bash.

On the morning of the 21st, Shanelle was awake while her husband was still asleep so she laid there next to him with a hand on his chest. When she looked at him she didn't just see the King, the Father, and the Husband that he is. She saw a survivor. 

He has survived all these years when many thought and wished him to fail. Has he always gotten it right? No. But that's what she loved about him, even when he stumbles he does not give up nor does he know how to quit. He can't. When she looked at him she saw a man who always strived for peace even when it wasn't always attainable. 

As she traced abstract shapes on his chest he slowly started to wake up. He blinked sleepily before turning to face her with a slow smile.

“Good morning my love.”

“Good morning handsome. Happy Birthday.” 

He kissed her softly.

“Thank you.”

“How do you feel? Any older?” she asked.

He chuckled softly.

“No, not really. It feels like any other day I am excited to celebrate though,” he replies.

“I'm sure. You and the boys are going to the new casino in Fydelia.”

“I can't wait! I do hope you and the girls have fun tonight.”

“It's gonna be us and all the pasta combinations we can eat.”

Just then the sound of running feet was heard. 

“Uh oh! I hear the pitter-patter of little feet.”

“Quick! Hide me!” he said as he ducked under the covers. 

“What are you doing?” Shanelle asks.

“If she asks, I’m on the moon!” he replied.

Shanelle cackled as her daughter excitedly entered their bedroom with a gift in her hand. 

“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!” Khari said as ran to his side of the bed, “Oh! Morning Mommy!” 

“Morning baby.”

Khari turned her attention back to her father.

“Daddy! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!” she said as she tried to shake him. “Come on Daddy! You gotta wake up!”

“What's that?” Shanelle asks, gesturing to the item in Khari’s hands.

“It's a birthday card I made in arts and crafts at school yesterday. Ms. Renard, my art teacher, said that Daddy would like it.” 

Shanelle looked down at Marquise who was still hiding.

“Jig’s up. You can come out now.” Shanelle said to her husband. 

Marquise pulled back the covers.

“Daddy! Happy Birthday!” Khari said as she hugged her dad.

“Thank you my little one. Now what's this about a birthday card you made?” he replies.

“Right here Daddy. See?” Khari said before handing him the card. 

It was decorated with stickers and glitter.

“Happy Birthday Daddy. I love you. Love, Khari.” Marquise read aloud. It melted his heart and brought a tear to his eye that Khari made him a birthday card. “Thank you, my beautiful one. This means the world to me.”

“So you like it?” Khari asks.

“I love it. It's the best birthday present I have ever had. And do you know why?” he replies.

Khari shook her head no.

“Because you made it for me. I could not ask for a better birthday present.” 

Shanelle loved their relationship. There was nothing he wouldn't do for their daughter. And nobody loves that man more than Khari. 

“You two are gonna make me cry,” Shanelle said to them.

“Nooo! This is a no-crying zone, Mommy.”

“Is it a hugging zone?” Shanelle asked.

Khari nodded. 

“Yup. Right Daddy?” Khari asks.

“Always,” Marquise replies.

What started as a hug between father and daughter turned into a family hug. This was all Marquise wanted and needed. His girls. They are everything he could've ever asked God for. Their love gives him strength. Their support gives him courage. They are his reasons for everything that he does in life. 

“Now as much as I love our family moments together, I’m starving! Let's all get dressed so we can go eat.” Marquise said.

“Okay!” Khari replies before hopping out of their bed and running to go get dressed. 

Marquise sat with Shanelle for a second holding the handmade card. 

“You okay?” Shanelle asks.

Marquise smiled to himself.

“Yes, I’m fine. This just touched my heart is all,” he replies.

Shanelle kissed his cheek.

“You. Teddybear. Ring a bell?” she asks.

Marquise rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

“Come on. Let's get dressed.”

After getting dressed and having breakfast with her family, and surprising her husband with his fully stocked cigar and whiskey lounge, the men were off on joy rides while the girls were celebrating Dee. 

“Those boys were outta here quick,” Dee said. 

“And they'll be out of our hair for the rest of the day thank goodness,” Shanelle said as they watched the kids play together.

“So it'll just be us, the moms, and the kids?” Dee asks.

“Yup. Just us girls. And Brayden, Branden, and Rain.” Shanelle replies. 

“I can't wait!” Dee said. 

That night while the guys were out, the girls and kids were celebrating Dee for her birthday. 

“Happy Birthday Dee!” the girls said to her. 

“Thank you, everyone! This has been amazing! The food is top-tier. The company…I couldn't ask for a better group of friends, sisters, nieces, and nephews,” Dee replies.

“Time for presents Mommy?” Khari whispered to her mom.

“Go for it kiddo!” Shanelle replies.

“Aunt Dee! It's time for birthday presents.” Khari said to Dee.

“Birthday presents?” Dee asks.

“Yeah,” Khari replies.

“What did you get me?” Dee asks.

Khari whistled.

“Bring it in!”

Attendants walked in with four giant vases of different colored roses.

“Oh. My. God!” Dee exclaimed.

“Here Aunt Dee,” Khari said as she handed a card.

Dee read the card out loud.

“For my birthday twin. Happy Birthday! P.S. Khari helped me pick out the roses.”

Dee looked at Khari. 

“You did this?” Dee asks.

Khari nodded.

“Yeah! Daddy’s not very good at buying flowers. So I helped,” Khari replies.

Everyone died laughing.

“Little girl! No, you didn't just embarrass your Daddy in a room full of people!” Shanelle said with a laugh.

Dee shook her head with a smile.

“Thank you, Khari. They're absolutely beautiful.”

Khari hugged Dee.

“Happy Birthday!”

“Thank you, sweetie.”

That's when an attendant handed Shanelle a tablet.

“Oh, Dee! Apparently, you left these at the airport.” Shanelle said. 

“Left what?” Dee asks.

“These,” Shanelle replies.

When Shanelle handed Dee the tablet, she nearly dropped it. Sitting in a hangar was an all-white Maybach and a private Jet. 

“You…” Dee trailed off.

“Weren't about to be upstaged by my husband and daughter? No, I wasn't.” Shanelle replies.

Dee squealed.

“Thank you, Nelle! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

“You're so welcome baby. Hopefully, James won't be too mad at me?”

Dee scoffed. 

“Who cares if he is? You got me a jet!”

The rest of the night was filled with giggles, kids, and love. That night Shanelle was leaning against the railing of her balcony when her husband came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

“You wonderful, amazing, beautiful woman! Oh, how I love you, let me count the ways!” he whispered in her ear.

“You are so drunk,” she said to him.

“And rich! Did I mention rich?” he asks.

“What do you think I’m doing here?” she replies.

He snickered.

“How was the casino?” she asked.

“Amazing. It's in a perfect location,” he replies.

“I'm not so sure Regina would agree. After all, you did seize the majority of her parent's lands and have the casino built there.”

Marquise rolled his eyes.

“It's not my fault that her father owed on a loan that he never paid back and it forced her to have to pay the interest.” 

“That's funny. Because I don't remember seeing that loan on the books for Duke Henri.”

“Her husband was a crafty one. He hid it from the Monarchy. Carlo found it and well my hands were tied.”

“Are you sure you weren't being petty?” she asks.

Marquise gave her a look out the corner of his right eye.

“Okay fine. Whatever your reasons were my King, I'm sure they were justified.”

He brought the palm of her right hand to his lips for a tender kiss.

“Indeed my Queen. And now onto tomorrow night!” 

“Finally!” 

The two smiled at each other before they turned in. 

It was finally the day of The Last Apple Ball. Tonight, the Palace and Cordonia as well as The Royals' family and friends would gather together to celebrate the coming to an end of Shanelle’s pregnancy. What they didn't know was she had one more birthday surprise for her unsuspecting husband. 

That whole day was spent as a whirlwind at the palace. It was also the time for her to go over the plan to surprise Marquise with Khari.

“Alright, Peanut! What's the plan for tonight?” Shanelle asked her daughter. 

“To surprise Daddy!” Khari replies.

“Right on kiddo! But what are we surprising him with?” Shanelle asks.

Khari thought for a moment.

“The surprise from you and me!” Khari replied.

Shanelle snorted. 

“Yes, baby. But what is the surprise?” Shanelle asks.

“The big surprise! The one with me and Daddy.” Khari replies.

“That's right! So go get ready and you can join Grammy and Pop Pop.” 

“Okay, Mommy.”

Shanelle watched Khari run off to get ready. Then got ready herself. She was excited for tonight. Because it was about her and her twins. After final hair and makeup, it was time to get dressed. With Abhi’s help, she was ready. She and Marquise opted to skip tradition and not to wear crowns this evening. 

They were led to a separate small room as guests were let into the main ballroom. They could hear voices fill the room. Once guests were seated in the main ballroom, the herald announced the entrances.

“Introducing the Mistress Of Ceremonies, Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Khari Rys! Accompanied by His Royal Highness Prince Damien Miller and Duchess Shantel Miller!” the herald announced. 

Khari walked in with her grandparents and when they reached the center of the room, they were joined by Margo. 

“Hello everybody! Welcome to the palace and welcome to The Last Apple Ball! Tonight we celebrate my Mommy and my brothers!” Khari announced to the room.

Hearing their daughter announce brought tears to Marquise’s eyes. It reminded him of all the times he had announced for his mother and Shanelle noticed. 

“You okay?” she asked her husband. 

“Yeah. I'm okay. I'm just…I’m so proud of her.” he replied.

“I know. I am too.”

Shanelle laid her head on his shoulder just as Damien was heard clearing his throat. 

“Ladies and Gentlemen! Please rise! For His Majesty Marquise Rys and Her Majesty Shanelle Miller-Rys!”

“My Mommy and Daddy!” Khari added.

“The King and Queen Of Cordonia!” Damien announced. 

Shanelle slipped her right hand into his left as the Cordonian National Anthem played and the main doors opened up. The couple walked into the room with all eyes on them. 

“This is all for you,” Marquise whispered to his wife.

“Us. This is all for us. You deserve to be celebrated just as much as I do. After all, you’re the one who’s had to put up with me.” she replies.

Marquise chuckled softly as they reached the center of the ballroom and their daughter. 

“Daddy, were you and Mommy able to hear me?” Khari asked.

“Yes, my love we were. You did fabulously. You were a very big girl. I'm so proud of you.” Marquise replies.

Khari smiled at her father before standing off to the side with her grandparents.

“On behalf of our children, I want to personally thank all of you for coming tonight to celebrate this courageous woman to my left.”

Marquise cleared his throat. 

“Being pregnant is not easy. Sacrificing nine to ten months of your life to nurture the precious life of an unborn child is a burden I could never bear. Much less bear the burden to nurture the lives of two unborn children. But she has. My wife has practiced and mastered the intricacies of the arts of grace, poise, patience, tenacity, strength, courage, resilience, beauty, and most importantly love.”

“And my mommy did a great job too!” Khari added. 

Marquise chuckled before looking at his wife.

“Tonight is all about you. This celebration of life and love is all for you. Your courage. Your strength. Your protectiveness. Your love. All of these things are privileges that you freely give to the world but mostly to your family. Tonight we celebrate the Queen you are. Tonight we celebrate the Wife you are. But mostly tonight, we celebrate the Mother you are. And the Mother you will become. Because in a matter of just days, your long, arduous journey through pregnancy and your sacrifice will come to an end. And at that end, our boys, our Princes, your sons…will be here. Safe and sound in your arms and surrounded by your love.”

Marquise took a deep breath before kissing the back of her left hand and kneeling before her.

“I want and desperately need you to know that I absolutely adore you, I cherish you, and above all else I love you. As a King, I bend my knee to no one…except you. Tonight, the world celebrates you, it's one true Queen.”

“I hate you so much right now!” she replied quietly with tears in her eyes.

Marquise smiled before rising to his feet.

“Now I believe the Princess has one more thing to say.”

Khari nodded.

“Let the party begin!” Khari declared. 

Once the couple took their seats, dinner was served and the celebration began. 

Dinner was divine. It was an upscale meal fit for the Queen. 

Soon, it was time for dancing! Because they always dance in Cordonia. The ballroom was filled with couples swaying and twirling together in a sea of colors.

“Daddy! Will you dance with me?” Khari asked her father. 

“Mon amour, ce serait un honneur pour moi de danser avec toi,” Marquise replies as he took Khari’s hand in his and went out on the dance floor. 

Many of the other couples on the floor stopped and watched as the King danced with his daughter. She stood on his feet as they danced around the floor.

“Daddy you're very tall!”

“And you're very short.”

Khari made a face.

“I’m a kid Daddy!”

Marquise snickered.

“No, you're a Princess.”

“Yup!”

Shanelle smiled as she watched them with her parents.

“You know there was a time when you used to do that with me,” Damien said to his daughter. 

Shanelle snorted. 

“Still could. Wanna dance Daddy?” Shanelle asks.

Damien bowed.

“I would love to,” Damien replied.

Damien took Shanelle by the hand and led her out to the dance floor. Around the dance floor, they went. Eventually dancing in circles with the King and the Princess.

“Hi, Mommy! Hi, Pop Pop!” 

“Fancy meeting you two here,” Shanelle said to them.

Marquise looked at Damien with an eyebrow raised. 

“Careful Your Highness. That's my wife you got your hands on.” 

Damien scoffed. 

“She was my daughter way before she was ever your wife. Don't ever forget that.”

Marquise smirked.

“Well played…dad.”

“You're welcome…son.”

Shanelle rolled her eyes good-naturedly.

“You two never stop.”

“Your husband started it!” Damien complained.

Shanelle shrugged.

“Technically, you are in his kingdom.”

Damien grumbled.

“You'll be okay Daddy.”

Eventually, His Majesty switched partners with Damien and was happy to dance with his wife as other couples joined the dance floor.

“My feet hurt and I was starting to get a crick in my neck.” 

Shanelle rolled her eyes with a smirk.

“And you enjoyed every second of it.” 

“Oh absolutely. Dancing with our 5-year-old ball of energy and giggles is always fun. Reminded me of dancing with my mother.”

“You really miss her.”

Marquise smiled ruefully.

“With us being so close to your due date, I can't help it. I can't help but wish that she was here. I can't help but wish she could be here for you and Khari and especially the boys.”

Shanelle smiled softly at him. 

“She's proud of you. You know that right?” Shanelle asks.

“God I can only hope so.”

As the night went on and everyone mingled, danced, laughed, and had a good time. While Shanelle pulled Khari aside for their surprise.

“Alright, kiddo! Are you ready?” Shanelle asked her daughter. 

“Yup! Let's surprise Daddy!” Khari replies.

Shanelle looked out to the dance floor to see her husband dancing with Margo.

“He’s gonna be so happy!” Khari said.

“Indeed he will, baby.”

Shanelle cleared her throat before calling for everyone’s attention.

“If I may have everyone’s attention!” Shanellen announced to the gathered crowd, “This little one and I have a special surprise for her father. “

“What?!” Marquise called out from the dance floor.

“You heard me!” Shanelle replies.

Marquise looked at Margo who just shrugged.

“Damien! What is your daughter talking about?” Marquise asked.

“I have no idea, Your Majesty! I’m not part of this!” Damien replied.

“Oh God! This is how I die. Oh God! Oh God! Oh God!”

Margo stifled a laugh.

“Stop complaining and go see what it is.”

Marquise gave her a look.

“If I die because of whatever it is they have planned, I will haunt you until the end of your days,” Marquise warned her.

“Duly noted my King. Now go.” 

With a kiss on Margo’s cheek, Marquise joined his wife and daughter. 

“Okay, I’m here. What is it?” he asked them.

That’s when Shanelle signaled for the surprise to be presented. Attendants wheeled in a large square covered in a crushed red velvet veil.

“Now Daddy you gotta close your eyes,” Khari told her father. 

Marquise looked over and raised an eyebrow at Shanelle.

“This better not be an assassination attempt.”

Shanelle shrugged innocently. 

“That doesn't help. At all.“

“Come on Daddy! You gotta close your eyes.”

“Okay…”

Marquise closed his eyes and Khari led him closer to the surprise. After angling him just right, Khari looked at her mother. 

“You ready?” Shanelle mouthed. 

When Khari gave her mother two thumbs up, Shanelle gave the signal to have the surprise unveiled. 

It was a portrait of him and Khari. Sitting on the steps of the library at Duchy Anyango. They were holding the Monarchial Orb and wearing matching t-shirts. 

“Okay, Daddy. You can open your eyes now.”

When Marquise opened his eyes he was stunned. He just stood there staring at the portrait with a hand over his mouth. 

“Uh, Mommy?” Khari asks.

“Yeah?” Shanelle replies.

“I think we broke Daddy.”

“Quick! We gotta go!” 

“Go where?” Khari asked.

“To your daddy’s office! If he's broken then that means you’re the new Monarch!” Shanelle replies.

��But I’m 5!”

“Exactly! Until you become of age I get to rule! Come on girl! We gotta move!”

Khari gave her mother a look.

“Mommy!” she fussed. 

“What?! This is what me and Grammy have been working for! I get for rule and she gets to finally retire. This is our chance!”

Khari wouldn't budge.

“Ugh! Why do you have to be such a Daddy’s girl?” Shanelle fussed.

“Ask Pop Pop that question,” Khari replies.

Shanelle rolled her eyes with a smile.

“Fine! Go check on your Daddy.”

Khari walked over to her father and put her right hand in his left. 

“Daddy?” Khari asked.

Her question snapped him out of whatever trance he was in.

“Huh?” he replies.

“Are you okay?” she asks.

“Yes, my love. I'm okay. Did you do this?” he asked.

“Me and Mommy did this. Do you like it?” Khari replies.

He knelt down to look his daughter in the eye.

“I love it. When did you and your mother do this?” he asked.

“A few weeks ago. Mommy said it would be a big surprise for your birthday but I had to keep quiet. Do you know what it means?” she replies.

Marquise looked at the portrait with a smile.

“Cordonia Forever?” 

Khari giggled.

“No silly! It means Cordonia present,” she said as she placed her right hand over his heart. 

“And future,” he said as he placed his hand over hers and finished her sentence. She nodded. Marquise shook his head with a sniffle.

“I don’t think you understand what you mean to me. God knows I adore you. I will do any and everything for you. You are my entire reason for everything that I do. You are my pride and joy. My reason for waking up. My reason for being the King that I am.“

“I love you, Daddy.”

He smiled at her with tears in his eyes.

“I love you too. You are my sweet Princess, and no matter how old you get, no matter how independent you become, no matter where you go or what course you chart in this life…I want you to know that you will always be my little girl.”

Khari threw her arms around his neck and gave him the biggest hug that she could muster. When he stood up, she was in his arms.

“Do me a favor, go stand over there with your grandparents while I deal with your mother.”

Khari nodded.

“Be nice Daddy!” 

“I'm always nice!”

Khari gave him a look. 

“Okay, I’m nice most of the time.”

“Much better.”

With a sweet kiss on her forehead, Marquise put his daughter down and watched her run off to her grandparents before turning his attention to his wife. 

“Hi!” Shanelle said to her husband.

“You tried to kill me!” 

“I did not!”

“You did too! I nearly had a stroke!”

“Why would I kill you in a room full of witnesses, specifically our daughter?” Shanelle asks.

“Because you’re a sadist who is evil like that!” he replied.

Shanelle couldn't disagree with him.

“Good point.”

Marquise shook his head with tears in his eyes.

“How did you do this?” he barely managed to ask his wife. 

“I wanted you to have something that symbolizes your love for Khari and the boys,” she replied. 

He took a deep breath as he ran a hand over the border of the portrait. As if to remind himself of the love he is so blessed to have. 

He spoke softly, “I don’t even know what to say to you. You have given me the greatest I could ever ask for in our daughter and our sons but this…Shanelle you have no idea how much this means to me.”

She smiled softly at him and said, “I think I have a pretty good idea. But in all seriousness, I’m happy that you like it.” 

He shook his head and said, “I don’t like it, my love. I love it. I truly love it.”

“Happy Birthday, Marquise. It might have taken a while but this was the birthday present we wanted you to have. Isn’t that right babe?”, she said as she looked over to see their daughter who was asleep in her father’s arms. “Annnnd…she’s out!”

Her mother mouthed the words, “We’ll go put her to bed.”

“Awww! Poor baby couldn't hang.”

Marquise chuckled.

“Message well received,” he said. 

He knelt before her. Resting his forehead against her stomach.

“I would be dead without you in my life. You have given me the life I always prayed to God for. I adore you. I cherish you. I worship you. I lay myself, my love, and my life at your altar. You are a Goddess to me and to the world. You have given me our beautiful children. You have given me a love I am not worthy of. I don't deserve you. I never will deserve you. Tonight is about you. Not me. And yet you refuse the spotlight that was always meant to be just for you.”

“Because tonight is about us. Not just me. I can't do any of this, hell I would not have any of this without you.” 

Marquise took a shaky breath before standing up.

“I'm reminded of the song we chose for our anniversary this year.”

He cleared his throat before singing softly.

“We were made, we were made to love. Oh, baby. You came along and rescued me, rescued me. Stuck on you. And Lord I pray, we keep holding on.”

“Holding on…” she sang to him.

“I'll be holding on. I’ll keep holding on.” he sang to her.

They smiled at each other. 

“I love you Shanelle.”

“I love you too Marquise.” 

Marquise signaled to an attendant to bring him and her a glass. 

“If you all will take a glass and indulge me in one last toast,” he said to the crowd before turning to Shanelle.

“I can say a million and one things to and about you. And all of it would do you no justice. But I will say this, my love, you are an incredibly phenomenal woman. You are brave. You are selfless. You are unconditionally loving. You are protective. You are fierce in your unwavering loyalty. You lead this kingdom with conviction. You give without question, rhyme, or reason. You are the Queen this world deserves to have and to celebrate. So here's to you.”

Marquise raised his glass and others followed suit. 

“All Hail The Queen!”

Shanelle nodded tearfully as she clinked her glass with his. She placed a hand on her stomach before speaking. 

“You know one would think I could do this whole closing speech thing in my sleep. Because I have done it a million times before. But right now I’m speechless. I have no words to thank everyone with. Many of you traveled far and wide to attend this ball tonight and I have not been and can not be more grateful. To my friends, and especially to my family, I love you all so much. Tonight was about joy and excitement. And I couldn't ask for a better night to celebrate. But tonight was not just about me. It was about us. It is about our family. And the life and love we share.”

Shanelle took a deep breath. 

“So I say this to you. My husband.”

Shanelle cleared her throat.

“Long Live The King! May your reign be steadfast and true!”

Marquise bowed to her. As the crowd began to filter out of the ballroom, Marquise led his wife to a side door.

“Walk with me?” he whispered.

“Sure. Where are we going?” she replies.

“To the hedge maze.”

She looped her left arm with his right as they stepped out into the cool autumn air. They walked in companionable silence to the entrance of the maze. 

“So why are we walking to the hedge maze?” she asks.

“It's been a long time since we walked the maze. And with the boys due soon, I was feeling nostalgic,” he replied.

They walked into the maze hand in hand. Disappearing into the hedges and flowers. They walked until they came to the swing at the halfway point. 

“Here sit,” he said to her.

“I don’t know if you know this but I don't fit in this swing anymore.”

He gave her a look.

“Okay but if I get stuck that's gonna be your ass,” she warned him.

“Worth it.”

He knelt before her as if to pray.

“You've been doing that all night. Your knees are gonna be killing you in the morning,” she said to him.

He smiled softly before looking at her.

“It's worth the pain.”

He rested his forehead against her stomach before placing a sweet kiss. When he stood up he walked behind her gently placing his hands around hers. 

“You know what I saw as we walked the path here?” he asked her.

“No, what?” she replies.

“I saw our children. Laughing and running down the path. Each one trying to be the first to get to the swing.”

“Like you and Leo used to do?” she asks.

“Yes. Just without all the tripping and snickering,” he replied.

“And what else do you see in this vision of yours?” she asks.

“I saw me behind them. Way behind them,” he replies.

“Why are you way behind them?” 

“Because I’m still at the entrance trying to catch my breath.” 

Shanelle snorted.

“But when I finally reach them, they're all on the swing together. The boys are sitting in Khari’s lap and they're just waiting for me to push them.”

Marquise shook his head.

“You probably think it's silly.”

“No. I think it's beautiful. You see them being children. Getting to be happy and carefree for a time. Getting to laugh and run around. But mostly you see them having the childhood you didn't. You see them getting to feel the love of their father. Something you never had.”

She felt his hands tighten around hers.

“I can't get this wrong. I can’t. I can't screw this up. I will never be able to forgive myself. I will never be able to live with myself. I can't be like him. I refuse to be like him.”

“You aren't. And you never will be. You are not your father. You love and care for your children. Will you always get this father thing right? No. But you never give up. You always strive to be the best father you can be. Because you know what it feels like to not have a father. Connie was horrible. The absolute worst example of a father. He was cruel, cold, neglectful, arrogant, and callous. You aren't like that. You could never be like that.”

Marquise sat down in front of her. Resting his head against her belly. She rested her arms on his shoulders.

“I know you see him as your demon. And I understand why you do. But he is not your burden or your cross to bear. Connie made his own choices in life and now his soul sits in whatever hell he created for himself. You are not responsible for him. You never were. Unlike him, you are good to your children. Just look at Khari. That little girl adores you and will cuss out anyone before shanking them with a Barbie doll if they dare to speak ill of her Daddy. Because her Daddy is the best Daddy in the whole wide world.”

Marquise cackled.

“Shanking them with a Barbie doll?” he asks.

“Have you met your daughter?” she replies.

“True enough.”

Shanelle leaned forward slightly.

“Our kids are so incredibly blessed to call you their father. You have always been the father to Khari that you always wanted Connie to be to you. You guide her. You love her. You teach her. You sing to her. You dance with her. You will embarrass yourself just to make her laugh and smile. When she's scared you’re there to comfort her. You put in the work to show up and be present in her life. Because that's who you are. You’re a good father. And soon, these two munchkins will know the love that their sister knows.”

“Thank you, my love.”

“You're welcome. Now get me out of this swing before I get stuck.”

Marquise stood up before helping his wife out of the swing and brushing off the grass stuck to his pants.

“Abhi is going to blow a gasket when he finds out you got grass on your pants,” Shanelle said to him.

Marquise threw her a cocky smirk before falling back into the grass wildly moving his arms and legs up and down.

“What are you doing?” Shanelle asked.

“Making grass angels! They're like snow angels but without the snow!” he replies.

Shanelle couldn't help but laugh at her husband's antics.

“Stop it before you give your uncle a stroke,” she said to him while laughing. 

“Oh come on! You should try it!”

“If I get down there with you I won't be getting back up.”

“Suit yourself! Wheeeeeeee!”

“You are so childish!”

The two laughed until both were out of breath. Finally, Marquise stood up covered in grass. 

“You are something else. You know that right?” she asks.

“I made you laugh and I got to see that smile that I love so much. So I’d say my childishness paid off,” he replies.

Shanelle shook her head before wrapping her arms around his neck. 

“You know why I love this part of the hedge maze?” he asks.

She shook her head no.

“Because this is where we spent our first anniversary. Just you, me, a blanket, a ton of snow, and mugs of hot chocolate.” 

She smiled at him.

“I love you. So much,” he whispers to her.

“I love you too,” she replied before kissing him sweetly.

He took her by the hand and they walked back into the palace. 

This whole weekend had been a birthday to remember for him and now it was her turn to celebrate. She and the girls are going to see Usher. 

The days leading up to her birthday flew by. And before she knew it, she was on a plane headed to Spain to pick Robin up so they could fly to Las Vegas together. While the plane refueled, Shanelle went to pick up Robin who was more than ready to go. 

As soon as Shanelle stepped out of the waiting car, Robin ran past her.

“What in the world?” Shanelle asks.

“Nelle! Let's go! We got a plane to catch!” Rob replies.

“Why did you run past me like that?” Shanelle asked.

“Because your friend is on demon time!” Rob replied.

“My friend?” Shanelle asked herself. Just as Eddie walked up. 

“Hey, Butta!”

“Boy don't ‘Hey Butta’ me! What did you do?” she asked him.

“I ain't do nothing!” he replies.

“Uh huh. Then why did she run past me talking about you on demon time?” she asked.

“You really gotta ask me that?” he replies with a grin.

“You know what? Bye! Ain't got it in me to go down that rabbit hole. See you Monday!” Shanelle said before she walked off. 

When Shanelle got back in the car, she and Robin just shared a look before they died laughing as they drove off. 

“Demon time huh?” Shanelle asks.

“Chileeeeeeee! That man has been on my ass!” Robin replies.

“I mean is that such a bad thing?” Shanelle asks.

“Girl! Bye!” Robin replies.

Shanelle snickered. 

“Anyways! You ready to go see Usher?” Robin asks.

“I can hear him calling me now,” Shanelle replies.

“Chile! I can't wait to see that man!”

“Look, all I know is y'all better not let me drop these twins while we’re there.”

“Speaking of, how are my babies?” Robin asks.

“Ready to come out. I'm ready to meet them.” Shanelle replies.

“I know. It's just a matter of time before they get here.”

“That time can't come fast enough.”

The two rode to the airport. Giggling and gossiping and were soon in the sky bound for Las Vegas. After touching down the girls grabbed dinner before heading to the Presidential Suite at the Bellagio Hotel.

“Look at the views! And your husband paid for all of this?” Robin asks.

“All of it baby! We will be living like Queens this whole weekend!” Shanelle replies.

“Remind me to thank your husband later. In the meantime, I’m gonna go raid the bar.”

“Have fun baby.”

Shanelle watched Robin head to the bar before turning her attention back to the skyline before her. As the sun started to set her excitement started to peak. Her birthday was in just a few hours. And she gets to spend it with her friends. Once most of the girls got there it was time to party. 

The next day was the day of the Queen. It was finally Shanelle’s birthday. And she was planning on acting a whole fool. Pregnant belly and all. She and the girls spent the day getting pampered, going shopping, and being a part of the groundbreaking for her newest hotel. Slated to open on her birthday the following year. 

Before dinner, she got a call from the two people she loved the most. Her husband and daughter.

“Happy Birthday Mommy!” Khari said to her.

“Thank you Peanut. And thank you for my card. I love it so much.”

“You're welcome, Mommy. Are you having fun?” Khari asked.

“Yes, baby I am. We've had so much fun today.”

“That's good. And when you come back Daddy and I will have a big surprise for you!” 

“Oh really?” Shanelle asks.

“Yeah! Right Daddy?” Khari replies.

“That's right my love,” Marquise said.

“Uh-huh. What did you do sir?” Shanelle asks.

“Can't tell you. It'll ruin the surprise,” he replies.

“Fine! Be that way! Oh! And thank you for all the flowers. They're beautiful.”

“You're more than welcome. Now you should go. We can hear your stomach.”

Shanelle looked down at her belly.

“Good idea. I love you both so much. Thank you for the birthday wishes. I'll talk to you both soon.”

“Okay,” Marquise replied.

“Daddy! Your phone is ringing!” Khari said to him. 

He groaned. 

“What's wrong?” Shanelle asked.

“Group chat,” he replies.

Shanelle winced.

“They giving you the third degree?” Shanelle asks.

“You have no idea,” Marquise replies.

“Yikes!” 

“Yeah…we’ll let you go. Have fun, my love. Happy Birthday.”

Shanelle smiled at him.

“I'll see both soon. I love you.”

“We love you too.”

With that, the call ended with butterflies fluttering in her stomach, and not because of the twins. 

At her birthday dinner, the girls enjoyed a full luxury 5-course meal courtesy of Marquise. Well, all except Bronwyn who was late getting there. She texted the group chat that she’d meet them at the hotel. The girls couldn't help but crack jokes about it.

“Oh no! It actually happened!” Shanelle said in feigned shock.

“What?” Dee asked.

“For the first time, Aly and Chut weren't late! Normally we’d just be leaving the show when they showed up!” Shanelle replies.

The girls died laughing as their waiter brought Shanelle’s favorite cupcakes. Red Velvet and Marble.

“Mmmm! These are divine!!” Shanelle said as she devoured hers. 

“This chocolate frosting is heaven!” Robin added. 

“We're gonna save some for Bron right?” Nina asks.

Everybody looked at each other.

“We gonna try to,” Shanelle replies with a mouth full of cupcake.

Later after dinner, the girls were all together at the hotel suite getting ready for the show.

“I can't believe we're going to see Usher!” Bronwyn squealed.

“I can't believe you were late. You broke the streak!” Shanelle teased.

“Oh, my God, Nelle! I texted you and said I would be late. I had to put out a small fire at the winery!”

“You're lucky that I love you so much. Otherwise, I wouldn't have saved you some cupcakes.”

Bronwyn hugged her.

“I love you too, birthday girl. And if I may, those cupcakes were to die for!”

“Indeed they were. Now ladies! It is time! Let's go see our husband!” Shanelle announced. 

With a cheer, the girls were out the door and on their way to see Usher. The girls were chauffeured to the venue and then taken to a private VIP lounge before the show.

“Just so we're all on the same page, Usher is gonna come through that door, right?” Aly asked.

“Yup. All tall, fine, and chocolate of him.” Shanelle replies. 

The excitement was through the roof and when Usher walked in the girls damn near melted. They couldn't get enough of him. His smile dazzled them. His voice made them hot all over. They couldn't wait to get to their seats. The show was amazing. They watched him perform on skates. And the way his body moved was hypnotizing. 

Usher was just about to change to his next song when he stopped and said, “I wanna take a moment to shoutout some very special guests. The FabBabes are in the building because it’s Queen Shanelle’s birthday so Happy Birthday Beautiful! I hope you, Robin, Desha, Nina, Bronwyn, Chutney, and Alyssa enjoy yourselves tonight.”

And when he winked at them, that did it for them. That put the girls on the floor. They didn't know what to do with themselves. When they got back to the hotel room they were buzzing. 

“So to recap, Usher basically proposed to us right?” Shanelle asks.

“Yup!” the girls replied.

“And we all said yes right?” she asks.

“YES!!” they replied.

“BEST FUCKING BIRTHDAY EVER!” 

And now it was time for act two of the Birthday Bachelorette Bash. That Saturday was all about Nina. And Shanelle was gonna make sure the girls sent her off to married life right!

They met up for brunch and then went running loose around Vegas. Exploring and genuinely having fun in Sin City. They wound up at a pool party and took over the scene. So many at the party wanted to get autographs and pictures with the girls. They were celebrities after all. Later that night at dinner, Shanelle toasted her best friend. 

“My beautiful one. My love. My Bride to be. In a few short days, you will go from Miss Nina Keane to Mrs. Sam Dalton. And I can not wait to watch it all unfold. I will get the honor and privilege to bear witness to you cementing the love you have worked hard to achieve and keep. I will bear witness to you receiving the love you have always been worthy of. I can not tell you how happy that makes me. I have only ever wanted the best for you. And baby. You found it. And the best found you. We love you. Here's to Mrs. Sam Dalton!” 

The girls toasted Nina who had tears in her eyes.

“Thank you, girls! I could not ask for a better send-off than this one. And we're not done! We're STILL going club hopping! I appreciate you all. And I love you all so much! Here's to me bitches!”

The girls cheered before heading out into the night to party til they dropped. 

The next morning, Shanelle was just walking into the living room when she was met with blue balloons and gifts galore.

“Uh, what is all this?” she asks.

“Your baby shower! Duh!” Nina replied.

Shanelle looked around in shock.

“Y’all serious?” she asks.

“No. We got presents and food for those two special boys for no reason.” Nina replied.

“Y’know I'd kick you square in your ass but unfortunately my leg can't go that high right now.” 

The girls laughed.

“Sit down Nelle. You've got gifts to open.” Bronwyn said to her.

“Yeah sit!” Nina added.

Shanelle sucked her teeth before throwing a pillow at Nina as she sat down. As Shanelle looked around at the many presents for the boys, she couldn't help but get emotional. 

“Oh my goodness! Y'all didn't have to do this.”

“Um, your husband told us we could plan your baby shower so yes we did. And with The Last Apple Ball being last week, we wanted to do something small and intimate.” Robin replied.

Shanelle smiles before looking down at her belly.

“You two hear all that? You’re being spoiled.”

“As our nephews should be!” Dee piped up.

Shanelle laughed as she wiped away tears.

“I don’t know what I would do or where I would be without you girls by my side. Thank you so much!”

Shanelle took a deep breath and then dried her eyes.

“Okay! Okay! Enough tears! I got presents to open!” 

Shanelle couldn't believe her friends did all of this. She loved all the gifts her friends had gotten for the boys. They spent the rest of the day hanging around the hotel suite and ordering room service. Later that night the girls decided to try their luck at the casino. They all split up going about the casino. Eventually, they met up at the private poker room where Shanelle and Bronwyn were killing their competition.

“How much money have you two won?” Dee asked.

Shanelle looked at her enormous stack of chips.

“More than enough to set our kids up for the rest of their lives,” Shanelle replied.

“Shanelle has been a beast since we sat down,” Bronwyn said as she raked in her chips.

“Learned from the best and now I teach others how to win, not just play.” 

The girls sat around and watched Shanelle and Bronwyn slaughter everyone that tried to beat them. 

That Monday it was time to say goodbye. And Shanelle summed the weekend up perfectly.

“Best. Weekend. Ever!” 

[abueverything]

Chapter 1 part 4

My connection with money goes back as far as I can remember. See I come from a family that believes in taking care of the young ones but once you hit eighteen you’re on your own. As much as I mom will never admit my grandmother played an important part in our lives as an extension or a life credit source especially in the years when my father moved out and my mom assumed the single mother role. My memories are faint but I do recall such words as thank you for helping and my mom having conversations how tough it is for her and she could use a little help. The elder at that time were many and didn’t mind helping the eldest daughter who gave birth to the eldest grandchild and eldest and only great newphew from my mothers side. The family is small now but at that time there was like three or four generations living at one time. I would receive money for my birthday, Christmas, school shopping and I would always make out like a fat rat when I went to New York to visit Grandma, Grandpa and all the family that was in New York. Sometimes I come back with like four to six hundred dollars. Those were the good old days. I learned about the value of a dollar quick because my financially savvy mother who worked while supporting me and my father worked at a bank so I had a bank account since like seven or eight or maybe even earlier. I remember day like saying lets order pizza and I’ll pay for I remember going half with her on a 38 or 40 9 inch tv which was like cool at the time (this was back in the nineties). When my father was around when I was much younger he had a good job because she was a smart man, an engineer to be exact. I remember him giving dollars bills for the hell of it and the value moved up to fives than tens then twenties. I thought I would get fifties but it never happened.

For school they always made sure I had money to go to school with mainly to eat and they would give me like five dollars day. Well when I wanted something I would go hungry so I could save and splurge on what I liked. I remember buying Tupac cd All Eyez On Me and Notorious B.I.G. Life After Death. Without the help of somebody teaching me I learned how to save and manage money so I didn’t blow it all at one time. That was truly my first hustle saving and managing my money. My second experiencing with hustling came in my junior year when I was in between a school transfer. I found out my coach was keeping letters from me and I had enough so I decided to corner my mom into transferring school explaining my basketball career was on the line. I ended up at a neighborhood school though it wasn’t my home school. I fell on hard times and decided to buy like 24 packs of soda sell a can for fifty cents. Hey I must have been doing something right because the kid who sat across from me started doing the same thing.

Now that I look back on those situations God was always preparing for the situation I’m in today. If you told me that I was going to end up in a state hospital barely escaping life in prison without the possibility of parole I would of told you what the hell are you smoking. My destiny was in the NBA on the bench or getting little minutes or at the least overseas getting a few millions. But you can’t escape God’s will and his plans if that is what he has in store for you. You see God is in everybody life but for some he is a little more active and I will take that because if he is not active in your life than you have no purpose and without him who will save you and come to your aid. Each situation between me and money was grooming me to become the business savvy individual I am today. Each situation was a learning tool and don’t think that I just live it than understood. No I had to reflect, meditate, contemplate all that stuff to truly understand how all that I went through hand was going to go through was business in its smallest form. Now I will get to my earlier street experiences in the street life in the next chapter, but it is important to see that your life is not just yolo (you only live once) or it means nothing. Life is about evolution and growing while learning. See you only take the wisdom you acquire with you to the next life and everything else falls to the waist side. So one may say what wisdom is there in business. Business itself is not he wisdom the wisdom is in the concepts and philosophy I acquired. You see people say there is no way to create a utopia society but I beg to differ. I could create a utopia and a thriving one all from business and commerce. I mean imagine a place where everybody eats, no one is starving and everybody can get what they need to survive while the government still functions and takes in money. I know you can’t imagine that because as of know they use business as a tool to control and discriminate and create wealth gaps. One of my many skills I acquired was I’m able to look at the structure of activity of the business and tell you how to duplicate what they are doing on a more efficient level, I can tell you how they are probably getting their money, or I can tell you how to undercut them. This wasn’t made possible doing business from a young age this was made possible by understanding the concepts, and practices that made up my business activities. I look at my life right now and as an adult I only had one mentor and that was only less than a year so everything that I got and acquired as far as understanding and comprehending came from doing than meditating on it and reflecting. Meditation is pretty strong in the right hands.

[rphelperblog]

Brooklyn 99 Quote Rp Meme

inspired by @nctafraid​

“Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool. No doubt, no doubt, no doubt.”

“Love, it sustains you. It’s like oatmeal.”

“You’re under arrest for ruining something perfect!”

“Every time you talk, I hear that sound that plays when Pac-Man dies.”

“A place where everybody knows your name is hell. You’re describing hell.”

“Two steps forward and one step back is still one step forward.”

“Every time someone steps up and says who they are, the world becomes a better, more interesting place.”

“All men are at least 30% attracted to me. My mother cried the day I was born because she knew she would never be better than me.”

“My Snitches are the best. The key is to always send them handwritten thank-you notes.”

“How did you manage to step on both of my feet at the same time?”

“You can't handle the me!”

Never took off the Speedo. Big mistake. It is inside me!”

“Oh, man, I had a really gross tennis instructor.”

I don't know! I didn't want to make the name too sexual and I panicked!”

That means nothing to me. I don't see those movies, I'm too pretty.”

“Well done, detectives. That is if you were trying to disappoint me.”

“What is the bandwidth on the Wi-Fi here? We have much content to stream.”

“We’ve busted murderers; we’ve taken down cartels. But today we face the worst New York has to offer: the fire department.”

“Aw, man. All the orange soda spilled out of my cereal.” 

“Captain, hey! Welcome to the murder.”

“I ate one string bean. It tasted like fish vomit. That was it for me.” 

“You don’t care who you piss off, do you?”

“Do not trust any child that chews bubble gum-flavored bubble gum. Do not trust any adult that chews gum at all. Never vacation in Banff.

“Actually, that’s exactly your place to say. You are my assistant. What, precisely, did you think your job was?

“Let’s not overlook the fact that he turned his crime scenes into tea parties for dollies.”

“If I die, turn my tweets into a book.” 

“This man is a Timberlake and you need to stop treating him like a Fatone.” 

“You should make me your campaign manager. I was born for politics. I have great hair and I love lying.”

“You think you can just bully people, but you can’t. It’s not OK. I’m the bully around here. Ask anyone.”

“The only thing I’m not good at is modesty, because I’m great at it.”

“A place where everybody knows your name is hell. You’re describing hell.”

“We can go to my apartment. No one knows where I live.”

“Great, I’d like your $8-est bottle of wine, please.”

“Fine, but in protest, I’m walking over there extremely slowly!”

“I wasn't hurt that badly. The doctor said all my bleeding was internal. That's where the blood's supposed to be.”

“Anyone over the age of six celebrating a birthday should go to hell.”

turn your greatest weakness into your greatest strength. Like Paris Hilton.”

It'll be the perfect opportunity to update my rankings. Can we stop at home for a pizza bib?

I think you mean 'Checkmate.' You really need to learn how to play chess.”

“I appealed to their sense of teamwork and camaraderie with a rousing speech that would put Shakespeare to shame.”

“I just negotiated my baby girls down from a pony to a hamster. Little fools.”

“I don't know what's gonna happen on this assignment, and if something bad goes down, I think I'd be pissed at myself if I didn't say this. I kinda wish something could happen, between us, romantic styles.”

“The English language cannot fully capture the depth and complexity of my thoughts, so I’m incorporating emojis into my speech to better express myself. Winky face.”

Move over! Okay. And if I may do a third toast, it’ll be focused primarily on the mango yogurt.”

“I asked them if they wanted to embarrass you, and they instantly said yes.”

with all due respect, I am gonna completely ignore everything you just said.”

[nxtsnw]

So I saw asks are open! It was my birthday today but nobody remembered and it made me kinda sad. So can I request the tokyo revengers boys( I dont know who to pick so feel free to) like celebrating their s/o birthday or comforting them when everybody else forgets abt it? TIA

n.a.: hihii<3 i really hope I'm not late, first of all HAPPY BBDAY BBBY⁽⁽ଘ( ˊᵕˋ )ଓ⁾⁾, i really hope u like it, remember to take care <3

*sends a lot of sweets and hugs to u*

genre: comforting, fluff

TOKYO REVENGERS CHARACTERS

...CELEBRATING THEIR S/O BDAY <3

RAN HAITANI

since the morning it seems like an ordinary day, your boyfriend came to you in the morning to take you to school and as usual he went to his "work".

so you found yourself in the afternoon alone in your room, grabbed some snacks and started watching your favorite movie.

Despite the sense of sadness, you wiped your tears and ignored it, until your phone pattern lit up. It was a notification, and it was from Ran.

"Get ready and get out ". Thinking it was something serious you settled down slightly and rushed out of the house, where you found your boyfriend to wait for you.

He was wearing a black smoking, and his hair pulled back into a bun, a light thread of eyeliner and a such a reassuring expression.

"hey y/n...were you crying?" he asked.

"uhm..no...not at all. But why are you so elegant"

"oh love, it's your birthday, how could I not be? "

Your eyes lit up, and your heart started beating faster.

"c'mon let's go. I'll take you out to dinner in a special place. ” You were still freezed, he grabbed your wrist and led you to the restaurant where he had booked.

"You know, I've been organizing this for quite a while, I hope you like it." he said looking away, blushing slightly.

The place was perfect, there were few people and the soft light made the atmosphere even more romantic. You were still very excited, but there was no embarrassment, you thanked him and enjoyed the evening.

"Don't think it's over here" he told you when you two left the restaurant.

"uhm do u trust me?"

You nodded, and he tied a blindfold around your eyes. He pulled you close to him and guided you to a special place

when he took off your blindfold, the view was breathtaking

A huge expanse of stars, where it seemed almost possible to touch them. The lights of the city and the sounds of the animals made everything even more magical.

Before you could I would say anything, he silenced you with a kiss, and in the meantime he put a clip in your hair.

"I took this a while ago, it reminded me of you and I was sure it would look great on you."

And in that magical atmosphere you sat hugged to contemplate the beautiful panorama <3

"happy birthday love" were the last words you heard before falling asleep in his arms.

MITSUYA TAKASHI

So your boyfriend forgot your birthday too? The only thing he left you was the usual note that said "today will be a long day for me, see you tonight" and that message was so cold.

It was 3pm when you heard your doorbell ring. You opened it and the only thing you found was a small box outside the door. You opened it, and there was another note in it. "Smell this letter, and you will understand where to go" despite the amazement you did.

It had an intense jasmine scent, the same that you and Mitsuya smelled every time when he walked you home. So you headed down that road.

There you met Draken, who after greeting you and wishing you a birthday, gave you a small package.

You opened it and you found a drawing of a brioches and a cofee. Like what mitsuya brought you every morning. So you headed to your fav bar, where you found the owner who handed you a cupcake and told you that someone was waiting for you outside.

You went out and found Chifuyu and Takemichi waiting for you.

"I HAVE FOUND THE SOLUTION" you yelled, and just when you looked up, you found Mitsuya that was staring at you and smiling softly.

"the solution is "happy birthday my love" " you said.

"oh so you quickly found the solution" he replied before giving you a kiss on you nose.

"I'm proud of you darling, I hope you enjoyed this little game, now come with me and I'll take you to the final prize"

He took you by the hand, and led you to the roof of an abandoned building. From there you could see a beautiful sunset and there was a large tarp filled with snacks and drinks.

After you sat down, he pulled out a gift.

"here, this is for you, I did it so it won't be perfect. I really hope you like them"

They were beautiful white gloves, exactly your size.

"oh, they're so beautiful. Thank you so much Takashi" u said smiling at him.

"Everything for you" he told you before approaching you. So you stayed close to watch the beautiful sunset

CHIFUYU MATSUNO

It was such a busy day that you didn't even have a second to dedicate to yourself, even though it was your birthday.

Also, your boyfriend hadn't written or called you, maybe he just forgot about it you tought. As soon as you got home, you were very tired, but a delicious smell of pizza invaded your nostrils. You followed the perfume and in the kitchen you found Chifuyu that was cooking

He had a funny pink apron, and he was intending to get the pizza out of the oven.

"Y/N- uhm I didn't hear you" he yelled as soon as you saw. You started laughing, it was so funny seeing him with a face full of flour and ruffled hair

"It's a surprise. You g-go to rest, I'm almost done".

So you went for a quick shower and then changed. When you went out they were off, not all the lights no noise. Although you were a little scared, you headed for the room and as soon as you entered, the big light came on and a large table set up before you.

Shortly thereafter Chifuyu appeared and made his way towards you. He took you by the hand saying:

"here at your table, I hope you like it" and as a gentelman, he married the chair for you to sit on.

" It took me a while, but I'm pretty sure all your favorite foods are there," he said, stammering slightly and now his face was very red.

"It's all so good !! How long did it take you?"

"let's forget the time- the important thing is that you like it"

And you two continued to eat, it was all very good and all your favorite dishes were on that table<3

As soon as you finished, he ran to get a small box. "Well, since today is your birthday I got this for you. Close your eyes please."

You did what he said and felt warm hands moving your hair. To put you a necklace.

As soon as you opened your eyes you saw yourself in a mirror, it was such a beautiful necklace

"chifuyu, it's so pretty, thank you so much"

"Y/N, I'M SO HAPPY YOU LIKE" and he hugged you without thinking.

It seemed that all the exhaustion had been replaced by pure happiness.

" uh and it's not over yet, " he added. Soon after you were out, he let you get on his bike without telling you where you were going.

Until he stopped in front of the cinema, you entered and the hall was completely empty. It was literally just the two of you watching the movie

"Chifuyu, what are we going to see?"

"oh, you'll find out love". And your film started

It was your favorite movie, but how was it possible? It hadn't gone out to the cinema.

"WAIT Chifuyu how did you do it ?? How is it possible"

"shh, happy birthday" and saying this, he put his head on your shoulder and you watched that movie laughing and commenting happy <3

[hwrryscherry]

The one where Harry and Model Y/N go undercover in the internet

characters: HARRYxMODELY/N

blurb: Harry and Model Y/N go undercover on the internet with fake accounts on TikTok and Instagram for an interview for GQ magazine on a video pre Grammys.

word count: 3.3K

HARRYxMODELY/N masterlist

author's note: HI GUYS! This is a request that I received a while ago but only finished it now because of school and all that stuff that I've told y'all a million times. Anyway, I tried my best on this request cause I think I lost my way of writing a little lol but anyway, I hope you like it and I hope that for the ones who misses Harry and Model Y/N this can be a great gift. Love y'all and thank you for the constant support and love on them💜 Stay Safe and Always remember to tpwk and that you're so golden💜💜💜

It was about 3 pm when you and Harry naturally came into the studio set on the building of GQ magazine with tender smiles on your faces covered by masks as you greeted everybody in the room in which there wasn’t many people in it. Harry was dressed in one of the many Gucci shirts he owned, with freshly washed hair that made you smell his pleasant scent from inches away just because he was wearing your favoured one and you'd always recognize it. You also detected the many rings on his fingers, including the one that you had bought for him as a 27th birthday present and by god, he was so thrilled about the ring and had a big smile on his face all day so he felt like he wanted to use it every day. Oh and how good his birthday was. You weren't able to have a party, obviously, but you still managed to celebrate somehow. In the morning, you gave him his favorite breakfast and then he, Gemma and Anne stayed on a zoom call for about an hour. You bought some yellow balloons to put in the living room just to give that birthday vibe and during the night, you had no more than four friends in your LA house, all properly protected and saved. You just ordered a few pizzas and watched some of Harry's favorite movies. It was simple but with an incredible energy, receiving a tiny group around while doing something y'all liked was everything Harry wanted most, mainly because he would have to wake up early the next day to go to the set of "Don't Worry Darling." as they were about to finish filming.

But today was another day. In earlier Febraury, the GQ magazine team reached out to your businessmen with the proposal that you and Harry would record a video together answering questions about your relationship to be published before the Grammys and after you consider whether it would be the best thing to do or not because of the many reactions you could get from it, you both agreed to do it. You’d always try to consider every little possibility when it comes to your and Harry’s relationship as the media can be very mean and disrepecftul.

Instead of Harry, you had a black miniskirt, long sleeve white blouse and a small black blazer with your Fendi plaid boots, which was Harry's personal choice for today as you’ve told him that he could chose an outfit for you to wear. You two spent a few minutes in the makeup chair doing touch-ups on your hair and makeup right before you were both ready to shoot. You walked from the makeup table to the center of the studio where you could see the crew behind the cameras and the big white background with a table and two black chairs right in the center. The table had a computer upon it only. After sitting down and having the microphones popped at you, you looked up when you heard the directors asking if you were ready and when you nod and the count is over, the camera started recording.

   ‘‘Hi, I'm Harry Styles!'’ You greeted the camera with a big smile on your face, eliciting a laugh from Harry about your unexpected "joke.". Honestly, today was a good day for both of you where you were both in an extremely good mood. Unlike the other days where you were quarantined, you were emotionally untired and in the mood to film and have a small social interaction, which is rare.

   ‘’And I'm Y/N Y/L/N!'’ Harry said joining in the joke with you and then looking at you as he waited for you to say the rest of the introductory phrase but only realizing you were smiling at the camera without saying anything.   '’Y/N!'’  Harry called calmly causing you to turn your head to face him and realize he wanted you to continue instead of continuing himself.

   '’Oh sorry, I thought you were going to continue'’    You whispered conspiratorially to him before taking a deep breath and resting your hands on the table when you returned your gaze to the camera.   ‘’And we’re gonna go undercover on the internet today!!’’

   ‘’Yeah, I'm scared!'’  Harry said when opening the laptop that was over the table and turning it on. You sat back in your chair so that you could see the laptop screen clearly and smirked a little when you heard your boyfriend's words.

   ‘’Hm... Let's do TikTok!'’   Harry said after a few seconds in silence while thinking. Harry's words made you chuckle his words because you knew that Harry doesn't comprehend anything about TikTok and didn't have an account but you both would usually find yourselves in bed watching tiktoks for hours. '’Which username should we put in?'’, Harry asked without taking his eyes off the screen.

   ‘’You should be! I’ll expose all of your deepest secrets in this video'’   You said while raising your eyebrows in a playful way eliciting a laugh from Harry, one by the way, that he tried hard to sound a little desperate for people watching  '’Alright, what should we do first?’’

   ‘’Put ‘’simp4harry’’ !"  You said with a smirk on your lips as Harry let out a nasal laugh but put that username either way.

   ‘’Okay, but how did you think of that username so fast? I think it’s very creative'’  Harry asked as he finished creating the account.

   ‘’It's the username I put on everything!'’  You answered as you ran your right hand through your hair.

   ‘’Oh yes? So is this your Only Fans username?'’  Harry mockingly asked making you laugh and take your eyes off the screen and look at his face.

   ‘’No, I don't even have an account on Only Fans, for God's sake Styles'’. You answered as mockingly as he did, '’Why? You have one?'’  You asked calmly.

   ‘’No, I'm a one-woman man!'’ Harry said to cause you to smile convincingly.

   '’Can someone get me a bottle of water, please?'’ You asked gently for the people who were on the set and smiled thanking the person who brought you.

   ‘’Thank you!'’   You answered sounding a little bit shy, even though you’re a public person and listen to compliments quite often, you still don’t know how to react to them. You took a deep breath and raised your eyebrows before using your finger to point to the laptop screen as he opened your tiktok account,  ‘’I mean, I don’t even know why I’d be one of the best ones to follow since all I post on tiktok is unnecessary and stupid things that goes through my mind during the day.’’

   ‘’So inconvenient!'’  Harry whispered playfully. You two had this habit of being sassy to each other, and everyone around you was used to it. This craze started because the first time you guys hang out together in Shanghai, you just talked like you’ve known each other for years and not just five hours.

   '’I didn't drink water today, do you want me to be thirsty? I thought you loved me!'’   You used a dramatic tone when speaking before drinking a sip of water.

   ‘’I did!'’   Harry replied in a low tone finishing logging in the TikTok feed.

   ‘’What do you mean ''you did''?'’   You answered in a loud tone holding the laugh with Harry.

   ‘’Okay, focus on TikTok! Focus on TikTok!'’  Harry said with a laugh as you now brought his attention to the screen as well,  ‘’Hm, let's look at my girl's account!'’, Harry said as he typed your tiktok username in the search bar. You took a sip of the water in the bottle and put it on the table,  ‘’AND by the way, do you guys know that this woman over here was listed by The Cut as one of the best tiktokers to follow today? And I’m so proud’’

   ‘’Well, I love how you appreciate your talents, love!'’  Harry replied sarcastically with a smirk on his lips making you chuckle. He didn't like it very much when you belittled something you did, even if it was something that was really bad, he didn't like it. Not just with you though, but with all the people in the world. Harry doesn't like it when people don't recognize their worth.

   ‘’Ok, here’s the first one! I’ll be reacting to it!'’   Harry spoke in a playful tone while clicking on the video as he knew very well it was not a react video but to answer questions. Harry clicked on the first video, this time you were propped up with your face close to the camera with folded arms dubbed to the sound that was in the background. You then take the transparent glasses pulled over the beige in a matter of color that was in front of you on the table and put them under your eyes never failing to dub the song. Then you move away from the camera and can see you are wearing leggings and a sweatshirt. And then you take your Louis Vuitton Coussin PM silver bag and place it on your shoulder before the video ends   ‘’Alright, so on this video you don’t do anything else than mimicking to the song.’’

   ‘’No, but like, seriously!'’   You complemented. '’We’ll watch some of them, and you’ll see how silly they are!

   ‘’I know that’s why I said that it stupid!'’   You exclaimed as you crossed your arms on the table. ‘’Let’s see the comments'’   You, yourself clicked on the comments area with your hand before Harry did and observed as comments poped up.

   ‘’Ok so the user @username1 asked ‘’How does it feel being the coolest person ever’’, tell me Y/N, how does it feel like?'’  Harry asked with a smirk to you as he turned his head to encounter your face with raised eyebrows.

   ‘’Oh, it feels so nice!'’ You responded in a playful tone causing both of you to laugh at your conviction, even though you knew it was a teasing tone and not narcissistic  ‘’Everybody knows I’m like, the coolest person alive so...'’  You convincingly said running your hand through a few strands of your hair and then take a deep breath and put a lock of hair behind your ear.   ‘’No, I’m just kidding. I’m not cool everyday, honestly there are days that I’m the most annoying person ever so I definetely have my good and bad days.’’

   ‘’Oh and those annoying moments'’   Harry said in an ironic tone, letting out a dramatic sigh causing you to frown and slightly open your mouth as an offense while holding your laughter as you exclaimed a loud '' excuse me?’‘ as an answer. Harry returned his attention to the comments on the screen again and frowned and brought his face slightly closer to the screen to read   ‘’Okay so @username2 asked ‘’new trend: are you engaged?’’. No guys are not. We’ve never been engaged.’’

   ‘’I feel like we’ve been engaged since 2017!'’   You said sarcastically remembering all the rumors about engagement, babies and dating. Since the first time you has met there were rumors, thousands of them, all the time but you and Harry chose not to comment on them as it would just be a big waste of time.

   ‘’Exactly and we weren’t even dating in 2017!'’  Harry complemented by looking away from the camera at his nodded face. '’But anyway...’’   Harry said taking a deep breath  '’I love how random your tiktok actually is!’’

"I know! I am planning a whole video to film on Grammys day because I'm in love with my outfit and i’m so excited for it!" You said changing the subject but being excited about the idea. After the announcement of nominations and with all the excitement you felt for Harry, you agreed you would attend the Grammys together; it was something important because not only was he running for three awards but also because you never attended any events side by side, except at the 2019 Met Gala. Then the pressures would increase but Harry knew it would be so much easier if he had you there with him. Because whether or not he took the awards home, he knew you were there and he would be grateful for at least being nominated for sure.

"Wait, which outfit did you pick? " Harry asked as he left the tiktok site on the laptop and entered Instagram. Harry selected searched for the hashtag of both of your names as a ship name on the explorer, so it would be easier to find what both of you wanted. "You showed me three different outfits but didn’t told me which one you chose!"

"Oh, I choose the black Prada one!"  You answered calmly. Harry stopped using the laptop and turned his head quickly to face his face causing you to look surprised and confused at him due to your reaction. It was his favorite outfit from the three that you had shown to him. "What?I wanna look great before you win your first award and I start ugly crying."

"Oh my god, you’re probably more excited than me." Harry said turning his attention back to the laptop screen.

"Of course I am, I cannot wait to walk around telling people that my boyfriend is not only a three times grammy nominated but a grammy winner!" You answered as you grabbed the water bottle that you had previously asked and drinking a sip.

"Anyway, let’s see!" Harry said as he started searching through the hashtag posts, also drawing his attention to the same screen. You then see a post that catches your eye and points it so that Harry can click. The post was a picture of Harry on the Met Gala carpet with ‘’Harry pierced his own ear for the Met Gala with a needle’’ written on it. "Ok, that’s true! But, now ask me why I had to pierce my own ear?!"  He asked ironically, as if he were playing a trick on you, because he knew very well you had a mini argument that day since you refused to pierce his ear with the fricking needle.

"I told you I wouldn’t do it! Do you even have any idea of how dangerous that was?"  You replied right after rolling your eyes, but your tone of voice remained calm and you didn't get heated when you spoke. "You know you need to sterilize, right? And what if you had caught an infection? Do you really think I was going to do that? You're an adult. I can't stop you, but I wasn't going to pierce your ear."

"Hey, hey, hey!" He said causing you to stop talking and look at him. Harry raised his eyebrows and looked at you with a smirk before speaking. "The thing is: I really wanted to pierce my ear, and we wear finishing getting ready in New York. I asked Y/N if she had a needle. Neither her and Alessandro wanted to do it. Literally no one wanted to do it but I was very much decided so I did it myself and my ear is completely fine by the way" Harry said the last part making you roll your eyes again while looking at the camera and take a deep breath.

"Anyway..." You said as you dived back into the posts. In one of them you read someone saying in a comment that you and Harry would probably never fight. "Here, this one says ‘’I feel like they’re the type of couple that never fights and when they do, the fight lasts for 30 seconds’’".

"Absolutely untrue!" Harry said almost that immidiately while you nodded agreeing with him.

"Guys, every couple in the world argues. It’s natural, it’s not because we don’t have big arguments and talk shit about each other on the internet that we don’t have conflicts or understatement" You explained. You and Harry are really compatible, but you still have your moments and it’s important to recognize it. No relationship is perfect and disagreeing on things is absolutely understandable.

"Yeah, specially ‘cause we’re different people that come from different places and had different experiences. As long as the disagreements are not causing you serious mental and emotional harm is normal" Harry complemented your thought. It’s important to notice when a relationship is not making you feel good anymore. If your unhappy for any reason is important to leave and to search for help if needed. "See, if you could change anything in our relationship, what would it be?" Harry asked making you pay attention to his words and face as you thought attentively in silence for a few seconds.

"I think I would probably change the fact that we’re usually really far away from each other!" You said calmly while looking at him. "Like, you’re always travelling and so I am, so I feel like it can get hard sometimes because of that and I’d definitely would change that if I could do it without like, changing our whole careers and lives."

"Yeah, I’d probably change that as well!" Harry agreed nodding to you as he was thinking as well. "I’m very grateful for quarantine on that point because we could spend more time together without being so long apart from each other. Of course I wish it was on different situations but I’m grateful for that" Harry said and you could understand that completely. You and Harry had been dating since 2018 and had spend months apart from each other and only you both truly knew how hard it could get sometimes, specially when you had the whole world to judge both of you.

"I fully understand it! Sometimes I think about everyone who spent this past year alone, and I’m really grateful for having you with me...LIke, you’re my best friend, you know this" You said looking at Harry’s face. He had a growing tender smile on his face that was starting to make you nervous and emotional on the same time as you remembered the past year. You felt your eyes getting wet and let out a chuckle looking away from his gaze. "I’m getting emotional! It’s all about my cancer rising today!"

"Oh sure, it’s always zodiac’s fault!" Harry said laughing and then looking at the screen and the crew on the backstage while gesturing with his hands. "That’s probably one thing about Y/N that you guys don’t know. She fully believes on zodiac signs and those stuffs. Actually, there was one time when she told me that we couldn’t be together because our signs were incompatible."

"Okay but like, Harry is an Aquarius and I’m a Taurus. We are incompatible when it comes to zodiac signs!" You said between giggles as you tried justifying your point even though Harry knew you were joking when you said that to him. He didn’t know at the time though he was very much surprised and scared when you said it.

"But anyway, I’m glad that we spend this time together. It’s been weird and funny at the same time like the spaghetti day!" Harry said holding his giggles as he watched your eyes widen because you knew exactly what he was talking about.

"NO, we're not talking about this!" You talked fastly while laughing at the same time as Harry as you both remembered that one night in quarantine when a spaghetti night went completely wrong and he came on the kitchen to see you and a kitchen with spaghetti and tomato sauce all over the floor and the walls and how you cried to convince him to clean the whole kitchen alone and failed. "Ok, let's finish the video here before things are leaked!" You said giggling.

"Alright, this was very nice. Thank you GQ for having us and I hope we weren't the worst guests you've ever had!" Harry said joking even though you both knew that it was quite hard to be very open in the media specially about your relationship but you tried your hardest.

"Don't forget to watch Harry peform on Grammys on sunday!" You said.

[drakenology]

Operation Deku Day- Izuku Midoriya

author’s note: hiiii! so today’s inspiration is drunk sex. anyone who’s ever had drunk sex before knows that shit hit different. Something about it is soo nasty and hot ugh I’m a sucker. I firmly believe that izuku is an insatiable sex god don’t let that innocent sweetness fool you so he was the perfect candidate for my idea. please enjoy! all characters are aged up 18 +

warnings: cussing, smut!, alcohol use, breeding kink? and sex under the influence. also light degradation

summary: For Izuku’s 21st birthday you and the girls decide to throw him a surprise birthday party. As the night progressed, you and Izuku got real drunk and couldn’t keep your hands off each other... in more ways than one. 

word count: 2.4k

You spent all week preparing for this surprise party for Izuku. It was his birthday and you really wanted him to feel special and appreciated for being a great friend and loving boyfriend. You were pretty good at pretending that all the things you snuck home were just “things for the apartment” instead of decorations and all his favorite foods for the party. Bakugo being Izuku’s childhood friend couldn’t pass up on helping you and everyone from your graduating class of 1-A prep for the party, keeping everything hidden from Izuku. 

“MIND YOUR DAMN BUSINESS DEKU!” He’d yell at him if the green haired pro hero asked one too many questions. Today was finally the day to set up the party. You just had to keep everything hidden for a little while longer. You woke Izuku up with kisses and a plate of his favorite breakfast. He’d always loved pancakes but for whatever reason, he loved your waffles. Izuku could eat them for dinner if you’d let him. He smiled and ate his food, gushing about how he’s finally 21. 

“I can drink with you now, Y/N.” He said with a mouthful of waffles. You grinned and kissed him on the cheek as he ate. “So, what are we doing today?” He asked. Even though today was his birthday, the hero still had to work. 

“Oh.. uhm.. well.” You struggle to tell Midoriya that you had “nothing planned” knowing that he’d be hurt by that. 

“Maybe we could just go out to the bar and have a few drinks?” You lie, wincing at the upcoming disappointment in his voice. He nodded with a weak smile, trying not to seem too disappointed at the lazy plans. But he was grateful anyways and kind of excited to see the bar scene. After eating his birthday breakfast, he stood up from the bed and got ready for the day. While he was in the bathroom you text the mass group chat with the entire class in it named “Operation Deku Day!” Mina had already been messaging you all throughout the morning reminding everyone that the party starts at 9 pm; right when Izuku is expected to be home. 

“So what kind of cake does he like? I’m at the bakery right now.” Todoroki texts followed by an image of the options of cake the menu had. 

“Get him chocolate.” You text, giggling at the plan all coming together nicely. You wait for a response while looking at all the gifs and memes everyone’s sending sharing the same excitement for the party.

“Cool. I’ll have them decorate it and drop it off at your place, Y/N. Just let me know when Midoriya leaves.” Shoto texts back, you responding with an Ok and answering any questions about the party from the others. 

“Your phone’s going off a lot today, Y/N. Who are you talking to?” Izuku asks, his hips adorning a towel as he just got out of the shower. You look his wet body up and down, almost forgetting to respond to the question before he gets too curious.

“OH! Uh, It’s just the girls. Yaoyorozu wished you a happy birthday.” You laugh nervously, clearly awful at keeping secrets. Izuku just smiles and tells you to tell her he said thank you and got dressed in his hero costume. 

“Well, I’m off. I love you Y/N. I’ll see you later tonight.” Izuku says giving you a small peck on the lips as he leaves your shared apartment. You wave goodbye as he shuts the door and jumped up from your bed, texting the group chat

 “THE EAGLE HAS LEFT THE NEST. OPERATION DEKU DAY IS AGO.” 

Momo, Mina and Uraraka spend all day decorating the house and setting the ambiance for the party. Todoroki brought the cake and put it in the fridge and starting making a small ice sculpture in the shape of All Might for the spiked punch he made (He was known for making a good cocktail). Kyoka made a playlist for the party, she was the DJ afterall. She tweaked the stereo so the sound system would be JUMPIN and laughed maniacally as she knew she was gonna rock the fucking house down. Katsuki insisted on cooking since “You can’t cook half as good as he can.” Or at least that’s what Katsuki said. He handed a hot dish of buffalo chicken dip (my favorite) to Mineta, who insisted on helping with... idk something.

“It’s hot on the bottom, idiot. If you drop my dip I’m gonna drop my fucking fist down your throat.” Bakugo shouts, making Mineta nervous as he walks carefully with the dish. Sero and Yaoyorozu were putting the finishing touches on the decorations as you check the clock on your phone. Shit. It was 8:59. You see a text you received from Izuku 30 minutes ago saying he was on his way home and another from just now saying he’s coming upstairs. You squeal and start panicking. He was probably already on your floor. 

“Everybody ready? Izuku’s home!” You yell over everyone’s excited chatter. Everyone replied in a harmonious yes and took their places. You run towards the door and adjust your strapless dress, turning off the lights. You stand behind the houseplant by the door and almost squeal in excitement as you hear the door click unlocked. 

“Y/N?” You hear Izuku say nervously as he turned on the lights. He gasps as everyone jumps out from their hiding places and yell 

“SURPISE!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY IZUKU!” 

He smiles brightly and grabs you, giving you the biggest hug while lifting you off your feet. 

“Wow, thanks everyone!” He says excitedly, looking around the room to see all his friends. He became a little emotional knowing that you all went through the trouble of planning a surprise birthday party for him. You wipe his tears and give him a big fat kiss, earning an excited spin from him. 

“We love you Izuku. Now, let’s enjoy your party!” You said as you let him to the delicious spread of food to start Izuku off. Kyoko started the music and danced along to the beat to get everyone to join in on the fun. Mina pulled Uraraka towards the living to dance with her as she waved Asui over to join in. Shoto manned the punch bowl, serving everyone with a half smile hoping they like his punch. Midoriya walks over to grab a plate of food from Katsuki.

“Yo, Ka-Chan!” He yelled over the music. Bakugo smirks and gives the birthday boy his plate. They chat over the food and laugh together as they have a good time in each other’s company. Katsuki seemed to cease the usual teasing, just for this one special night. You giggle and run over to the dancefloor with your cup of punch in toe. You drink and dance at the same time, spilling a little bit of punch as it ran down your chin. Mina laughs and takes your hands dancing along to the beat with you. The night was young and the party was a success. You were just glad Midoriya seemed to be having a great time. 

Drink after drink you feel yourself get extremely tipsy, stumbling around with a drunk Mina and Asui. Uraraka had passed out on the couch from all the drinking and dancing. Even Momo was drunk, creating a phone to drunkenly call in some pizza since there was no more of the food Katsuki made. It was 1 am and everyone was still partying like there was no tomorrow. Including Midoriya. You had never seen this shy boy act so boldy and confidently. It was kind of a turn on. He was in a chug contest with Bakugo, seeing who out of them both could drink the most drinks the fastest. Ida, Shoto, Kirishima and Kaminari crowded around the two chanting chug chug chug as they both drank themselves into a drunken stupor. Izuku finished first, erupting into a loud and boisterous burp. Bakugo grunts and raises Izuku’s arm in the air claiming him the victor. When the hell did Katsuki EVER admit to defeat?

“ *hic* IZUKU’S THE FUCKING CHAMPION! *hic* And he’s one of my best fucking friends! I- I love you bro.” Katsuki says, slurring his speech and stuttering over his words. Midoriya winks at you, who was watching the whole thing go down from across the room. 

“L-Love you too, Kaaaachan.” Izuku slurred, stumbling over to you to give you a kiss. He wanted to celebrate his victory the right way; with a kiss from his girlfriend who was looking sexier than usual tonight. Midoriya approached you, smelling like beer and sweat as he pulled you close to him. Without warning he crashed his lips into yours, turning a sweet kiss into an intense and passionate make out session in front of the whole party. Something definitely took over in Midoriya. He was more aggressive with you than usual. You hear encouraging whoos and a jealous aww from Mineta who wished he was the one kissing you. Izuku waved him away as if he was shooing a fly and lifted you up, carrying you away from the party and into your bedroom. He shut the door with a slam, you squealing with excitement as he heatened the kiss. Izuku’s hands were all over you, groping your ass, squeezing your boobs and leaving sloppy kisses all over your neck. He was a beast, hungry for his well deserved prize. 

“Do you know what you do to me, Y/N?” Izuku asked, pulling away from the sloppy kiss as he throws you on the bed. You can’t even answer as you stare at him dumbly, still shocked at your normally sweet and gentle boyfriend turn into a lust stricken beast. He hovers over you on the bed, drinking in your body in that tight little dress you wore. Izuku feels himself stiffen at the sight of you, pulling your panties down under your dress. 

“’M gonna leave this dress on. You look so good right now, ya know that? Your tits are popping out of this little thing” Midoriya hisses, taking his calloused hand and rubbing tight circles on your already sensitive bud. You moan at his dirty words, intoxicated on his touch as you grab a pillow and cover your face with it. Izuku snatched the pillow away and threw it across the room, eager to hear your moans no matter who else was around to hear them. 

“Let everyone know how good I’m making you feel.” He said, easing two fingers inside you wet walls. You moan like a pornstar, grabbing onto Midoriya’s arm for dear life as he fingered you with a steady pace. Izuku’s eyes were glued to your face, watching you make those faces he loved to see pull on your features as he pulled your breasts out of your dress suckling on your swollen nipple. You pant, gasping at the euphoric feeling as the pit of your stomach tightened, threatening to snap as you approach a fast climax. Izuku noticed you body language automatically able to tell you’re about to cum. He quickened his pace as he watched you arch your back as you came undone before him. 

“Good girl.” Izuku coos as he takes his hand and sucked his sweet juices off his fingers. You flutter your eyes open as Izuku pulled his pants and boxers down in one swift movement, his impressive length springing out as you lick your lips at the sight. You wanted him in your mouth so you grab his dick and stroke it with a tight grip earning an eager moan from Midoriya as he grabbed your hair. 

“N-No. As much as I want you to, I have to be inside you.” He stutters, pulling your dress up over your hips. He kissed you sloppily, slipping some tongue in as you moan into the kiss. He motioned for you to bend over and you do so with excitement, wiggling your ass to tease him as he smacked it with fervor. 

“You ready for me?” Izuku asked tapping his dick against you as you nod and back yourself onto him, feeling his dick slide inside you with ease. You both moan at the feeling as Midoriya grabs your hips and thrusts harshly inside you, holding nothing back as he pulled your hair and smacked your ass. The muffled sounds of the music along with the sinful noises coating the walls of your room were all you could hear as you feel his hand reach forward to rub your clit as he brushed up against your g-spot repeatedly. You scream, trying to keep up with his swift and hard strokes as you throw your ass back on him, gripping the sheets for dear life. You’re sure everyone can hear your loud moans over all the music as you approach a second climax. 

“I’m gonna fill that pretty pussy with my cum, baby. You want me to fill you up don’t you, you filthy whore?” Izuku said, earning a frantic yes from you as you whine for him. You’re shocked at his words but more so turned on by them as you clench around him, cumming for him a second time. Izuku hissed as he rode out your orgasm, chasing his own. Soon enough, he’s coating your insides with his hot seed, grunting and moaning as he ruts into you a few more times. You whine at the loss of his dick as he pulled out of you. Izuku watched as his thick sperm dripped out of you, satisfied with the job for now. He grabbed a towel and cleaned you off sloppily, still heavily intoxicated. You giggled and grabbed your underwear and slipped them back on to rejoin the party. Izuku and you were both a visual mess. It looked as if you both just had sex, your hair was an absolute wreck, your dress was disheveled and you were missing a shoe. Izuku was just as bad, sweat glistening on his forehead and he had this big cheesy grin plastered on his face. You hoped you were both inconspicuous enough for you both to just rejoin the party as if nothing happened in your bedroom. But Mina took one look at you two and erupted into laughter. 

“You two just had sex didn’t you?!” 

[rpmemestorehouse]

“Rat Movie 2: The Movie“ Starters

Change wording as needed

“That’s right! It’s MY birthday today, not anybody else’s!”

“I get all the presents, [Name] doesn’t get any because she’s an IDIOT!”

“Come on [Name], you ruin your fuckin’ birthday every year for everyone else.”

“Can we just dance together as a family for once?!”

“Rats, rats, we are the rats! Celebrating with the birthday rats!”

“This year I got something new and exciting and different for everybody!”

“What the hell is happening? I’m just a clown!”

“Why did you invite him?!”

“I’m stuck. I said - I knew this was a bad idea.”

“You’re making us late to the birthday party!”

“Dad, those are rats!”

“Thanks for the guy.”

“I remember that box - I shit in that one.”

“All right, honest opinions: what did you guys think?”

“...That wasn’t good at all.”

“That’s the beauty of this whole thing, son. None of it even matters at all!”

“Now the movie itself could be, about a blue toothbrush, and as long as we sell the merchandise and keep the suits happy, who cares about the subject matter?”

“But...what if I don’t have a suit?”

“Prepare the drop, and please, hit the right target this time.”

“You don’t need to know what I had for breakfast this morning, alright?”

“Save me a slice - don’t eat the whole thing!”

“Maybe if I press it I’ll get a pizza.”

“I’m going home, I wanted chicken nuggets!”

“Walk with me, and talk with me.”

“I’m going to show you something I haven’t shown anyone in over 2,000 years.”

“It is a toothbrush. One of the most important in the entire galaxy.”

“This toothbrush holds the DNA of every single animal on Earth.”

“THE INFILTRATION WAS A SUCCESS!!!”

“Sound the alarm! We have been breached!”

“What’s happening? I’ve been in a nightmare for two weeks straight!”

“Now hold on there just a second! Pause the movie!Hit pause!”

“Oh mate, it’s just a movie.”

“You’re telling me it’s just a movie? Was Finding Nemo just a movie? No, that was a documentary! They had cameras down in the ocean.”

“I’m gonna go to the sewer, you comin’ with me?”

“Nice and easy, you don’t want any cops seein’ us pulling in here.”

“We’re gonna have to split up for this - lotta junk.”

“They’re fuckin’ everywhere man, so just grab a couple.”

“I know EXACTLY who we can sell these to!”

“Put your seatbelt on, I’m about to step on the gas!“

“I would go to a doctor, but I-I’m just scared of what he has to say, y’know? That’s why I asked you about it.”

“Let me do the talkin’. You keep your mouth shut.”

“We don’t have time for small talk. Did you bring the product or did you not?”

“Enough! The least of your concerns should be text messages, and how we are about to decimate your disgusting planet.”

“You don’t see shit until I get 40 bucks.”

“The rats have told me everything!”

“One-on-one, I’ll beat you up.”

“For centuries we have tried to find the [artifact], and for centuries we have failed. But not tonight.”

“You intergalactic space beings will never win! We will always band together and stop you, at any cost!”

“Now, let us show you OUR TRUE POWER!!!”

“AND NOW WITNESS THE POWER OF OVER 2,000 GALAXIES CONQUERED!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! AND YOURS WILL BE NEXT!!!”

“I will hold him off as long as I can!”

“Mount Doom. *flushes [object] down the toilet*”

[liam-93-productions]

This weekend it’s the UK’s biggest event on the entertainment calendar, with the 74th EE British Academy of Film and Television Awards taking place at the Albert Hall with guests and nominees attending virtually for the first time, thanks to Covid-19. And while the awards promise to be as exciting as possible in these unprecedented times, on Sunday night we will also be treated to another exciting world-first in the form of Liam Payne being beamed into houses up and down the country while performing for the opening of the ceremony.

Yup, if you’ve ever fancied the former One Direction crooner serenading you at the end of your bed, on Sunday you can make your dreams a reality – or augmented reality – as Liam has joined forces with the EE network to create a 3D avatar hologram of himself that can be beamed through the app ‘The Round’ (available on any mobile device) as he performs at the Albert Hall. Super fans can also get to experience the avatar in their homes, or on-the-go, ahead of the performance, if they tune in via the app at 6.45pm, 15 minutes before the hologram joins real Liam on stage to perform.

GLAMOUR caught up with Liam to discuss this sci-fi sounding excitement as well as hear how the past year has treated him. In a wide-ranging chat with the ever-charming Liam, we covered all things from the struggles of lockdown and coping with his mental health to his former bandmates, burgeoning acting career, new music (...).

Is the fact that you're performing at the BAFTAs a sign that your acting career is on the rise?

I've done a lot of auditions, a lot of tapes. The thing about acting somebody told me, it’s very much like: are you right for the part and is the part right for you? I think it takes a lot of talent, luck and judgment going into acting to actually get into a job. I mean, hat's off to anybody who does it because it's a long process. I seem to get through to like the final five or final three people for every role and then not quite get it. Which is frustrating but, you know, that’s how it goes. I've had a fair few auditions and I was lucky enough to get into the final five again for one audition that I got to meet Steven Spielberg [a couple of years ago] on my 25th birthday which was quite amazing. But it's been fairly slow through the pandemic obviously.

And what about music? Have you been writing anything, or even been in the studio?

I'm going to the studio later on today actually, to record something for the first time in a while. Which is quite weird to be traveling back into London to go into work. I've been doing some stuff from home as well, which has been quite interesting. Zoom sessions don't really work out all that well, it's very difficult. I'm sure a lot of musicians will agree. So, it's been kind of hard to work properly during this half of the pandemic. The other first half of the pandemic, I just did these live shows, which was really amazing to play live and do them online, which was kind of strange... It's been difficult in terms of the creative process for me.

The past year has been challenging for absolutely everyone, no matter their circumstances. How has it affected you on a personal and a professional level?

In the first half of it, I was so busy that I didn't really notice it as much, except for having to do a lot of stuff myself without crew and learning to do hair and makeup was kind of a weird experience. But then this second half, I stopped working and I had a full, proper month off [and that was] really hard. And it was all a bit dark for me for a little bit and I'm sure many people experienced it. Just not being able to go anywhere, not be able to do anything. It really, really hit home. And I just found myself sat in the same place day in, day out. And I was like, okay, I really do not know what to do with myself.

You’ve bravely spoken about struggling with your mental health in the past, and you say now that you did go into a bit of a dark place recently, how have you coped with that?

I think it's an ongoing experience. For me, learning to relax has always been quite a hard thing to do because I feel like if I'm not moving forward, then I must be going backwards. And I think that's something that I've always struggled with. So, in a way it's kind of a blessing in disguise, as this has all kind of taught me to relax a little bit more. And to not be so worried about that, like the world is not going to fall over if I don't do something today. So, it's been nice in that respect. But I think for a lot of people it's difficult, and I definitely took for granted how much I miss my family. I'm used to being away from home, I'm used to being abroad and not seeing very much of them. But I'd always see them at a show or at something once a year. And then now that that's all been taken away, it's been a lot to not see my family and realise how much they actually ground me.

So, what have you found helpful or supportive during the past year? Have you turned to anything to get you through these dark times?

Friends that are there for you... [talking to] one of my managers that I'm quite close with. I think a lot of guys struggle to talk about what the hell is going on a lot of the time. And for me and him, actually we're quite heart on our sleeves sort of people, so we talk a lot about different things. But I think if I didn't have that, someone to share that with, I think I would have struggled a hell of a lot more.

Like a mental health mate?

I mean, we literally talk about everything. We're probably too honest with each other! But I think it's important that everybody has that person. I'll be honest, at the start of this, drinking definitely became a lot more of a thing because there just didn't seem to be any boundaries. I wouldn't say I drank too much, I'd say I drank too often. Just through the boredom, I guess. A lot of people were going through that though I think - there was so many funny, great memes about it I saw friends of mine put up. But it can be quite dark at times. I think the only thing that's really helped me through that is just learning to work out again and learning to put boundaries in for myself in terms of what food I'm eating. As a pop star, I think you're always quite weight conscious. My job has always been about having to work out, doing underwear modelling and all that sort of thing, it makes you quite body conscious at times. It was nice to be able to just sit and eat pizza and chocolate, I really enjoyed that. But getting myself back into the habit of working out and then having a cheat day put in place, so that there was more boundaries in line, I think has definitely helped me.

I'm quite fortunate that I don't put a stack of weight on, although I have gone up rather a lot in size over this time. But I think it was more about routine for me than anything. And I always say, having a small victory before you get into bed at night time. Or life just gets depressing. Whether that small victory is making sure you've spoken to a family member, you've worked out, or whether you did learn to do something today, just something small. There's one task that you literally can't be arsed with, you should get done just on the day, so that you feel good about yourself when you get into bed.

That's so important. So, do you almost have a checklist before you go to bed?

I think as long as I make the gym and I've done that bit and I've taken care of my needs, just cooked some nice food. That's mainly it for me, really. And then I feel good about it. (...)

(...)

Moving on to social media, you've obviously got such a massively positive fan base, but how do you cope with the negative side of social media and the impact that can have on your mental health?

I struggled with it for a long time. I argued with people. I was aggressive on their points trying to fight my own side. And I think for some people you are talking to a brick wall, you will not win and there's no point trying. And also, the more you talk about it, the worse it gets. So, I just shut up and put up a lot of the time. I think it's the Queen that says, "never complain or never explain." And that's something I think myself I do live by because it's just like, with some people it gets worse having the argument and trying to explain yourself. But all of it, it's like five minutes of your life for somebody who doesn't know you, it's just a bit pointless.

You have so much intense public scrutiny on you all the time, how do you navigate keeping something back for yourself, and how have you managed to maintain that sense of privacy over the years?

I think this has been one of my biggest struggles this whole time. Because, I'm very much a heart on the sleeve sort of person. I didn't actually realize this for a long time, but I often give a little bit too much away…But it's definitely a difficult one to flick the two people apart. So that you're on stage, you're a certain type of person, and at home you're a certain type of person. That's always something I've really struggled with.

And you've been famous since the age of 16. How did you manage growing up in that sort of public glare?

Never did! [laughs] My friend was [recently] talking about how he’s got a teenage son that he was really struggling with at the moment. And I was thinking, "oh my God, imagine how much people would have struggled having five teenagers, rowdy boys in a band. It must've been terrible, there's no getting through to them!" And for a while, it probably was. I think we all go through that awkward teen phase where you're finding yourself. And most of us, we get to get away with it. And they're funny family photos for later on; here was your emo phase or whatever you went through! And for us, we never got away with being awkward or annoying at points. It was kind of out there for everyone to see; the awful haircuts and we’re talking terrible clothes, it was all out there.

What has your career taught you about the idea of success and the idea of failure?

I think it's taught me lots about how you would measure success. I came from a family that weren't very well off. We didn't have a lot. My dad was in debt actually when I started. So, success for me always meant a monetary thing to start off with. But then as I got older, I realized I don't really buy all that much. I don't really spend a hell of a lot of money. So, it can't be about a money sort of thing. And it's more now become more about happiness and experiences. And the one thing I always say about my job, no matter what, and everybody gets annoyed at their job sometimes, it is what it is. But for me, at least I get to put a smile on someone's face.

Yes, you do! And what has it taught you about failure?

That's a really good question. It’s taught me I think that perseverance will always prevail in that sense. Because it doesn't always go exactly to plan. We were really lucky when we came up, we absolutely skyrocketed. And then, it's been hard to follow that ever since. But you know, measuring a failure as well. What is a failure? And people will look at this and, for us sometimes getting a 100,000,000 streams isn't quite what we aim for, but it's still 100,000,000 streams….you have to kind of get a hold of yourself. Everything is about perspective at the end of the day, isn't it? That was something I struggled with for a long time, because of how well it went [for the band.]

So you had such high expectations for everything?

Yeah. And it's like, time to give that a break really. And Louis from my band has always been quite great to sit with me and talk with me about stuff. And if I'm feeling a certain way. We've been quite good with each other, actually in that respect and helping each other out, which has been nice.

And finally, if you could sit down with the Liam who was starting out in One Direction in 2010, what advice would you have for him?

I think just have more fun and relax a little bit. I think I was a very serious child, one of those man-childs, I was a man in a child's body pretty early on. And I think I would have avoided that stage, to be honest with you. To enter One Direction as that difficult, because it just meant that I got completely a different job to everybody else.

You were the grown up one?

That was it. And it was boring. I should have just larked around and thrown plates out the window and stuff!

More rock and roll?

Well, I mean at the start, and then later on a bit less rock and roll [laughing.]

Well, thank you so much, Liam. And we look forward to seeing your performance on Sunday at the BAFTAs.

I'll see you wherever you want me in your house, I guess.

Liam Payne is performing an exclusive EE BAFTA AR real-time music performance, ahead of his 5G-powered opening show at the 2021 EE BAFTA Film Awards. Download ‘The Round’ app to enjoy the live AR experience through your mobile phone, wherever you are, this Sunday 11th April 2021 at 18:45pm BST.

[callmebliss]

It's Wednesday my dude

I wasn't sure, I had to ask SALM. It feels like I've been dealing with this longer than I have.

Last night I was asleep by 10, and the prescription cough medicine knocked me the hell out because I didn't wake up until 2, and I drank some water and took two nighttime mucinex cold & flu and conked back out. I think I woke up once more to cough and roll and jump ship from one dreamscape to the next, but when I did finally awaken in the daylight I thought, "Hm, feels like it's after 10," and grabbed my phone.

12:57 is definitely after 10, that is a fact.

I responded to a text from my supervisor instructing me to call the HR lady, which I did, and she was confused; apparently Bosslady didn't realize I'd already spoken with her yesterday. She was very sweet, and asked if anybody was taking care of me. I laughed and if that laugh was a little bitter she said nothing of it as I pointed out that I have Covid, as does SALM and his daughter, AND we have the two lad!Spawn who DON'T yet have it (praise be to videogames, YouTube, and Discord for keeping them naturally isolated), and who takes care of everybody? Who keeps it all nailed down? So yeah, someone's taking care of me - the same someone taking care of everyone else.

FWIW the Spawn are all pretty good at self-caretaking at this point, so it doesn't take much except to attempt to enforce bedtimes and to rigorously enforce maskwearing outside of their rooms. And SALM is a grownup, not a large child, and responds well to "I am handling This Thing so I need you to make the decision on That Thing without me right now."

After hanging up with HR Lady (who is so sweet she asked if she could bring us food or anything even though she's like 6 towns away and I thanked and refused because I am making due with Instacart but also cannot WAIT to be well again to not have to use it anymore because it is EXPRENSIVE), I made an espresso to deal with the caffeine headache, and stuck a Hot Pocket in the microwave. While it whirred, I drank my cough medicine and marvelled at how it says the dosage is 7.5 ml but there's no half mark between the 7 and the 8 on the spoon, but there IS a 1 1/2tsp hash mark on the other side opposite where the 7.5ml would be. And then I took my first dose of prednisone (a.k.a. steroid) for the inflammation, which goes in stepping-down doses of 6 tablets, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. So today was 6.

I've had to take prednisone before. It makes me get angry and it makes me go speedyfast. I feel like I've been up for hours. It is almost 2pm.

I need to get on Instacart and figure out foods to order for the next few days. It needs to be easy stuff, foods the Spawn can make without me and things that require no prep so I'm not standing over things breathing on it. All I can think of right now are frozen pizza and microwave soups.

Friday is my birthday. I want to order a goddamn cake, but not today.

Bosslady sent me a tiktok, which I watched, and it was a guy from the Boston area i bed talking very very fast about how everyone he knows has covid and he has it for the second time and why doesn't everyone with covid get together for the holiday and have a covid covid christmas and all I can think is does this guy REALLY have covid because he has a LOT of energy right now and then I look back at this sentence and wonder if maybe he, too, is on prednisone. He was weirdly energetic, anyhow, and I didn't enjoy it because I can't decide if Bosslady was trying to make me laugh or if she was being passive-aggressive because she's dealing with short-staffing anyway and now I'm not there and I am her workhorse/powerhouse.

Maybe both? Doesn't matter. I have sick time and my job right now is to not get anybody else sick.

I want to write and have no ideas.

Good mornthing.

[himaboroshi736]

IronDad fic recs

Here. I’m a french reader, but I’ve read A LOT (like...a lot) of IronDad, so, eventually, here my fic rec. (I tried to class it by categories, but well...) (it’s gonna be very long, guys)

 Peter Parker has anxiety 

Don’t let me get me, by hopeless_hope 

He picks up his phone and sends a quick text. "hey, happy! i’m not feeling too hot today, so i think i’m gonna have to cancel. tell mr. stark i’m sorry!"

He stares at his phone, waiting for a response. It never comes, and Peter sighs sadly. There was a part of him, a small part, that really hoped he was wrong. His insides burn, and he curls up tighter into a ball and turns off his phone.

(No one’s going to try to contact him anyway.)

or

Anxiety has a way of convincing Peter that everyone hates him. Tony has a way of proving him wrong.

Midnight Oil, by @jolinarjackson

After everything that has happened to Peter over the last year - or five, really - he shouldn’t be worried about something as mundane as the ACT. When he fails it, though it sends him into a spiral of self-doubt, which only gets worse when Peter realizes that he doesn’t seem to be able to fix whatever is broken.

Tony Stark has anxiety 

do you even remember what the world looks like ?, by @iron--spider

Tony’s heart has been working on overdrive since this whole thing started. Friday has a countdown clock plastered on the heads up display, but it feels like hieroglyphics to him at this point, like some ancient language he could never master.

Because when Peter Parker is missing, things start losing their meaning real quick.

“Should be around here,” Rhodey says on the com. May is still on the other line, listening in, because once a certain amount of time goes by without word from Peter, things move into Extremely Worried Aunt territory. They’re already in Tony Is Panicking territory, and when both of those territories overlap it’s never a good time for anybody.

Time? What the hell is time? His mind is blanking numbers out entirely. Minutes are seconds are hours are years.

not like megatron, by @iron--spider

“Hi! This is Peter Parker, I can’t get to the phone right now, so leave a message and I’ll call you back later! Hopefully not too much later, but don’t get your hopes up!”

Tony knows that message by heart. He’s heard it hundreds of times, in a greyer world, and it sends shivers down his spine as he climbs into the car.

He doesn’t think about that place. That half-world. No way, that’s done, that’s over, that’s history.

“Hey, kid, don’t you know it’s bad etiquette to go and disappear on your birthday? Not allowed, really, really bad vibes from the universe. What’s going on with your suit? I wasn’t watching. Nope. Just got an alert. What’s going on? Uh, call me back.” He clears his throat and hangs up like a moron, driving out into the street.

Hypothermia trope (i really like it so if you have any suggestions...)

i knock the ice from my bones, by hopeless_hope

Peter tries to move his legs through the water, dread filling him when they don’t move, and he just hangs there, doing anything and everything he can not to focus on the feeling of ice clinging to his bones. He feels sluggish, the world blurring around him, and he rests his head on the ice, not even registering the cold anymore.

He’s just so damn tired.

“PETER!” he hears someone yell, but it’s all muffled, and he lazily drags his eyes up to see a figure descending towards him.

Somewhere, in the back of his mind, he thinks, This is not how my vacation was supposed to go.

or

While on what's supposed to be a relaxing vacation with the Starks, things for Peter quickly go south, and he finds himself on thin ice. Literally.

Ice Ice Baby, by @wolfypuppypiles

If Tony, Bucky or pretty much anybody that knew Peter had seen him that morning they would have smacked him upside the head. Helping people was great, everyone should give it a go, but when helping people puts you in danger it’s not so smart anymore.

AKA Peter can't get from Avenger tower to the subway without giving his winter clothes to homeless people and ends up with a severe case of hypothermia

Candle in the Window, by @madasthesea

Finals are over and Peter just wants to go home. The weather has other ideas.

Burn This Out, by @ephemeralstark

It's summer and Peter is free to be Spider-Man all day which is great, but it's summer and Peter is out as Spider-Man on the hottest day of the year which is not great.

Or, Peter gets heat stroke because he can't thermoregulate and things could not go worse for him.

(yeah, it’s not an hypothermia, but it’s linked to the fact that Peter can’t actually thermoregulate)

Post-Endgame (really like this trope too lmao)

the first birthday after, by iron_spider 

(Endgame spoilers. But The Thing doesn't happen.)

The rain falls harder and Tony turns, his neck creaking and cracking, and he sees Peter asleep over by the window. He’s holding a small, flat box, and he’s slowly slipping to the right side of the easy chair he’s in.

Tony thinks about letting him sleep, but he finds himself speaking anyway. “Pete,” he says, his voice rough and raspy.

Peter immediately startles awake. “Happy Birthday,” he says, almost like he’d fallen asleep practicing it, planning to say it as soon as he woke up. He blinks at Tony, shivering a little bit, and then he smiles. “Happy Birthday. Happy Birthday.”

Tony snorts, smiling back. “Thanks, bud,” he says.

Second Best, by Rowan_M

Tony had adjusted to parenthood quickly when Morgan came along, and was always conscious of making sure Peter isn't left out ... Almost always. When Peter gets hurt while taking care of Morgan, Tony obsess over his daughter and takes his anger out on Peter, without even checking to see if he was okay. Steve finds Peter later that night in serious pain and in need of immediate medical attention.

Or, Peter gets hurt while taking care of Morgan and Tony basically ignores him.

when you’re feeling empty keep me in your memory, by JkWriter

after everything with thanos he forgets it's his birthday. he just assumed everyone else did too.

All For You, by @ironxprince

Three weeks after the snap that saved the world, Peter learns he was the reason behind it. He learns that Tony risked death, and now has to live with the ramifications, both physical and mental, all because of him.

This doesn't sit right with him.

you save everybody, but who saves you ?, by @iron--spider

Tony doesn’t sleep, because he can’t, because too many things are plaguing him, most of all where Peter is and what he’s doing. Tony has a good view of the hallway through the windows to his room, and he stares and stares until his eyes cross, until he hallucinates, until he knows he’s going insane.

He sees Peter sneaking into the med bay at about four in the morning.

The kid’s mask is off and he’s got two short, harsh slashes across his cheek, and he’s bleeding from a slice across his neck. His suit is ripped in a few places and he’s holding onto his middle, and Tony can see his hands are shaking.

It’s like something splinters in Tony’s already broken brain, like his world narrows and there are hazy edges, both weakness and strength entwining in his veins when he sees Peter struggle up onto one of the beds in the main atrium, starting to tend his wounds without calling anybody to help.

BAMF Peter Parker 

Pizza, a Movie, and... an Attempted Kidnapping ?, by Pogokitten

“Tony. We’ll be fine,” Peter tells the man for what must be the tenth time in the last half hour.

Peter’s sitting on the couch of his and May’s apartment and building Legos with Morgan as they both watch their father’s methodical, yet anxious, pacing. He’s dressed to impress, as is Pepper who is watching the scene slightly exasperated.

“Are you sure? We can ditch the gala, kid. Just say the word,” Tony offers, halting in front of his kids.

Or: Tony and Pepper leave Peter in charge of Morgan while they go to their first gala since the third snap. Peter is expecting a calm night in with his adopted sister, but some thugs throw a wrench in his plans.

he’s good like that, by @iron--spider

“Get the hell outta here, boy,” the man says. “Or you’re gonna watch your boss die in front of you.” Then he grabs Tony by the shoulders hard, and shoves him down to his knees. The gun is louder now, like it’s filled with words that are eager to be shouted, and Tony winces when he feels the barrel press against the back of his neck. His knees weren’t ready to hit the ground that hard, and he tries to keep the pain from reaching his face.

He must fail, because Peter looks pissed.

“You’re not gonna shoot him, mister,” Peter says, somehow still trying to maintain a respectful tone, despite the clear anger written all over him.

stark robotics and technology conference, by @iron--spider

Peter leans against the wall while Tony chooses their floor, and the doors close. “Do you, uh, want me to do some interning stuff? Like go and get you coffee? Make sure the, uh—programs are all ready? Make sure the paintings are straight in the ballroom? Make sure the chairs are—”

Tony snorts. “Kid, I just thought you’d enjoy this. May told me about when it came through Queens but you two couldn’t make it because she was working and didn’t want you to go alone, and I thought, after all the shit you’ve been through lately, that you deserved something fun. No interning for you. That’s just an excuse.”

Peter remembers that. It was six months after Ben died, and he wasn’t gonna bother May too much about the conference. He didn’t know how much tickets cost anyways, or if kids his age could even go.

He really hung onto the idea of Iron Man after Ben died. Peter held him closer than ever.

Peter and Tony fighting 

dinner and a jailbreak, by killerqueenwrites

“I’m not your kid!” Peter shouts.

“Don’t walk away from me, I’m not done–“

“You’re not my dad!”

Peter fitting in after the Blip isn't as easy as Tony hoped it would be. He wants his kid back, but they can't seem to stop fighting.

and then Peter goes missing.

my old man, by parkrstark 

"I just want to help you. I want to help you understand what's wrong here and how to stop it. I used to be the same way until my father showed me how to be a man." He glanced back at Peter to sneer. "He's old enough to know better by now, but it's not your fault you didn't know how to teach him." "Teach him what?" Tony asked even though he didn't want to know the answer.

"Discipline, of course," Junior said with a wink.

--

Tony takes Peter on a weekend trip to try and change his mind about college and things go wrong. Then, they go even more wrong.

Between how it is and how it should be, by @frostysunflowers

''Doesn’t Captain Rogers ever…wonder,'' Peter winced as he fumbled for the right word, ''where you are?''

Bucky smirked. ''Steve’s a regular mother hen. Used to be me that worried about him.'' He gave Peter a pointed look. ''Better question is, isn’t Stark wondering where you are?''

Soulmates trope 

presumed dead, by killerqueenwrites 

Tony gets his first soulmark when he’s fifteen, his second when he's thirty. He's forty-six when his third appears, and forty-eight when it fades to grey.

did you see the flares in the sky ?, by justt-ppeachy

‘hi’  

One simple word was displayed proudly on the inside of his right wrist. Tony wasn’t sure when this word showed up or how long it had been there.

A line formed underneath the word and Tony could almost feel the pressure on his arm from the marker his soulmate was using to push one phrase from their skin into his.

‘i loev yu’

The letters were written slowly and messily as they showed up upon his wrist while he watched in disbelief. Not sure if he was hallucinating or just going insane, Tony rubbed at the writing, wondering if they would disappear once he looked again.

The words were barely recognizable, but they were still the best thing Tony had ever seen.

IronDad Fluff (yeah)

peter wearing tony’s hoodie, by killerqueenwrites 

Tony’s used to his clothes going missing. His MIT hoodie doesn’t often leave his closet, though, which is why he notices its absence straight away. There’s a lifetime of safety and comfort in this old hoodie, for both of them, and that’s all Tony could ever wish to give Peter.

Career Day, by @superhusbands4ever

“Hey, sorry I’m late,” Peter’s enhanced senses picked up the familiar voice from outside the door. “I had a meeting this morning and then I got lost looking for the class… anyway, I’m here for Peter? Peter Parker?”

He frowned at hearing his name, still unsure what exactly was going on. He watched as his teacher continued to stand and stare out the door for a minute before seemingly remembering herself and taking a step back.

“Of course! If you could just go sit next to him until your turn, he’s in the back on the right side.”

The man stepped through the door and Peter gaped with the rest of the class as Tony Stark, in his signature suit and goatee, sporting a pair of red sunglasses and carrying a suitcase walked through the door.

Kryptonite, by forensicleaf 

The kid is acting weird.

Tony tries to figure it out.

father’s day, by @iron--spider 

It’s Father’s Day, and Tony never really had a father. Not in the real sense of the word, not in the way that counts.

Peter Parker doesn’t have a father, either. Not anymore, anyway, not since he was little, and the amount of years that have passed since then outweigh the amount of time he got with Richard Parker.

Tony wouldn’t call himself Peter’s dad. He wouldn’t, he doesn’t, he doesn’t think of himself that way, no way, no way.

He stares at himself in the mirror. He pulls down on his cheeks, makes his eyes water. He runs his hands over the roughness of his jaw and sorta hates everything about himself right now, because he’s acting like a goddamn idiot. It’s Father’s Day and he’s not a father. He doesn’t know why the hell he’s pining for something that isn’t his, shouldn’t be his, can never be his. He isn’t a father, he isn’t Peter’s father, so there’s no reason on God’s green earth for Peter and him to do something for Father’s Day.

ain’t no valley low enough, by @iron--spider (yes, again, ‘cuz she’s the best)

Peter snorts. “You know I didn’t apply anywhere in Florida.”

“Please, kid, you know all you have to do is write a beautiful essay with my recommendation attached to it and you’re in. You’ve got the scores.”

Peter has a list. Of all the places he applied to, all the places he got into. A lot of it was encouraged by the adult role models in his life, some of it by Ned daydreaming about places like California and Colorado. Mostly, Peter just applied everywhere he could think of, because he’s known for a long time that Tony was gonna help May pay for it, and he didn’t wanna limit his options. Thinking about college has been strange for him, strange to the extent that he had a full blown panic attack about it in the middle of Avengers taco night last month. He can’t really understand it, doesn’t get why it feels like the end of the world—because he’s experienced the end of the world, and it’s not which campus has a bowling alley and which school has circus classes. But he nearly blacked out all the same, sobbed in Tony’s arms on the balcony until Tony proposed this. The road trip.

and when it’s hard, i’ll place your head into my hands, by hopeless_hope

“Tony,” Pepper sing-songs to get his attention. “Your mother hen is showing.”

“What?” he snaps indignantly. “I am not a mother hen. This is just... concern. Of the average kind. Perfectly normal.”

“Of course,” Pepper humors him, and he shoots her a dirty look as he types out a quick text to Peter.

or

It's been five days since Tony's heard from Peter, who's away at college, and Tony is not coping well. (Neither is Peter.)

Peter likes cuddles (and Tony too, but he always denies it... until he can’t)

my arms will hold you (keep you safe and warm), by parkrstark 

“So, you’re telling me your body...is going through Oxytocin withdrawals?” Tony asked slowly.

“Cuddle withdrawals,” Peter corrected him. “Mr. Stark cuddles.”

TW : Rape/non-cons

make me strong, by parkrstark 

It all started when Tony introduced Peter to Skip Westcott. He just didn't know until it was too late.

(There is a lot more, but I can’t find it rn ;-;)

5+1 

5 times peter clung to tony, by parkrstark 

... and the one time tony clung to him.

You are my Dad, you’re my dad, boogiewoogiewoogie, by Hittinmiss

“Peter? What’s going on kid?” Tony asked, him popping up on the phone’s screen.

“Hey da-” Peter started automatically before immediately noticing his mistake, the look on Ned’s face proved that yes, he almost called Tony Stark dad. He needed to try recover quickly because the look on Tony’s face seemed confused, especially with his slight pause. “-aaaaaamn Mr. Stark I really like your shirt. Where’d you get it?”

Smooth.

---

5 times Peter called Tony Dad and the 1 time Tony called himself Dad

5 Times Tony Took Care of Peter..., by As_Clear_As_Crystal 

“Think if I coded a sign into your suit that says ‘Baby on Board,’ maybe criminals wouldn’t be so enthusiastic about murdering you?” Tony asks airily, poking at the bottom of Peter’s foot.

Peter halfheartedly kicks at Tony with his toe. (“That’s offensive, Mr. Stark.” )

- - -

aka: Five times Tony took care of Peter, and one time Peter took care of Tony.

5 times Peter is stuck with Tony, by @iron--spider

(...and one time he’s stuck alone.)

“I wonder if Pepper’s reported me missing yet,” Tony says, with an exaggerated sigh. “I wonder if this is some kind of scheme to kidnap me or something.”

“I think the ride’s just broken,” Peter says.

“Today of all goddamn days,” Tony says, exasperation clear in his voice and in his eyes. “Ruining our trip—”

“It’s not ruined,” Peter says. “Look, we’re hanging out."

“Real quality time,” Tony huffs. “Us, a few other trapped members of the general public, and a handful of animatronic pirates. Drunk pirates. Repeating themselves.”

5 times tony forgot peter was just a kid, by @parkrstark

...and the 1 time he didn't.

Or the one where it was hard for Tony to remember that the kid fighting next to him was still just a kid.

can i get a good night’s sleep ? can i PLEASE get a good night’s sleep ?, by peterstank 

The doors open and there’s Peter, perched on a gurney with his shirt gone and a whole lot of blood staining his side. He’s bent awkwardly, clearly trying to feel his way around whatever wound he’s got.

“Um,” Tony says, approaching, “What.”

Peter looks up and—yeah, he’s lost a lot more blood than Tony had originally thought. His face is completely fucking drained. “Hey,” he says, offering a jaunty wave before returning his attention to his side. “I got shot.”

“Oh!” Tony nods. “Oh, okay. What the fuck, kiddo?”

or: five times peter doesn’t sleep + the one time he does

Five Times Peter and Tony Had Each Other’s Back, by Sahiya

... and One Time They Needed Help.

Peter is Tony’s Biological Child

I Had the Dream Again, by Skeeter_110

Peter calls Tony in the middle of the night crying.

Congratulations, it’s a Boy, by capiocapi 

"Sir, I have the results.”

“Okay, Jarvis. Hit me.”

“It’s a match. 99.9% chance that he is your biological son, which is the percentage needed to be recognized by law as a biological parent.”

Tony’s stomach did a funny swooping dance. “Great. Congratulations to me then, eh? It’s a boy.”

You Are My Sunshine, by @iamconstantine

Tony Stark had always been a man of science and he always would be. It was his personal and fundamental belief that everything had an explanation. His eventual encounters with Norse gods, alien life, and sorcerers did kind of quake this a little bit, but still.

One thing that had always confounded him as the one thing that had no scientific explanation was fate. Murphy’s law, Finagle’s law, the butterfly effect, the domino effect, the snowball effect, and the wisest of all: “Shit happens.”

So how peculiar was it that one of the greatest things to ever happen to him began with a tray of champagne?

Serie i love you more than anything, by @iron--spider 

The highs and lows of Tony unexpectedly becoming a single dad at 31– from Peter’s early baby years, all the way past the defeat of Thanos

May’s abusive boyfriend trope 

A Peter Parker Problem, by @spagbol99

Peter Parker was back from the dead. At least that is what everybody told him. He'd been snapped out of existence until some sort of time travel and an active death wish by his mentor had saved him and the universe. Just your average sort of life for a 16 year old from Queens.

Peter comes back to find May has a husband and a kid. A new family he has to fit into. But he has done it before, he can do it again.

The only thing that feels solid is Tony: the Blip and fatherhood have mellowed him and Peter loves the bond they have now. He knows Tony would be there for him through anything. But Tony needs to focus on his own recovery - not small time Peter Parker problems. When things at home take a turn for the worse, Peter decides that he'll handle it himself. He is Spider-man. He's been to space and fought aliens. He can get through anything. After all, if May is happy, he is happy, right? Right?

(again, I’ve read a lot more but can’t find it...)

Peter Parker Whump (everyone’s favorite trope)

Danger Pizza, by alice_in_ink

The window was pushed open, and Iron Man’s head popped into his bedroom. “Here’s where I’m confused—why lock the front door but leave the fire-escape-accessible windows unlocked?” He clambered through said window. “Seems like a safety hazard.”

Peter eyed the metal suit as it straightened to a standing position. “Did you break into my window to kill me?”

The face plate lifted, and Tony’s eyes quickly looked over the teen. “Christ, kid. It looks like you’re halfway there.”

...

A wild night on patrol leaves Peter with a broken back, and boy, does he want to be able to move without dying. (So he calls Anthony Stark, obviously.)

If You Can’t Catch A Breath (You Can Take The Oxygen Straight Out Of My Own Chest), by @losingmymindtonight

"And I would hurry. Little Peter is about to be under quite a lot of pressure, and it might get a little hard to breathe.”

I’ve Got You, by @thedumbestavenger

Peter runs into a Copycat Vulture out on patrol, from there, everything escalates.

Meetings and Migraines, by AllThingsGeeky

Peter has another migraine at an unfortunate time and despite his best efforts he can’t ignore it forever.

The Most Important Thing In The World, by S0lstice

Peter’s door creaked and began to bend under the force of the crowbar and for the first time since regaining consciousness, fear began to press into him. Something very bad was happening and it was happening fast - too fast for his sluggish mind to keep up.

He went with his instincts instead, the first one always being, Help Mr. Stark.

Friendly Fire, by @jolinarjackson

Finding a careful truce with the government, the “rogue Avengers” are allowed to return to the Compound where they are put under house arrest. Peter coming to spend one week at the Compound during his summer break couldn’t have come at a more inconvenient time as the opportunity to bond a little more with his mentor is overshadowed by a conflict he doesn’t quite understand. When he starts to develop a mysterious medical condition, however, the former team is forced to work together – not just to protect Peter’s identity from the DODC, but also to find the cause for his illness before it’s too late.

“He’s my kid,” Tony said, his voice hoarse. “He’s my kid and I failed him.” He covered his eyes and took a few deep, shuddering breaths. “All I ever do is fail him.” Natasha knelt down in front of him and cupped his face in her hands, waiting for him to meet her eyes before she said, “Right now, he doesn’t need you to fix this. He doesn’t need you down here. He needs you over there, in the medbay, by his side.” She thumbed tears from the corners of his eyes and ignored the ones running down her own face. “You haven’t failed him yet.”

alarm bells and panic levels, by @iron--spider

Tony lands heavy on the dock, the wood splintering hard under the metal suit. He’s having trouble breathing, his nose is bleeding, he most definitely has more than the recommended amount of broken ribs. But none of that fucking matters. The sky is clear, the assholes are down, but there’s one thing missing.

He looks over his shoulder when Rhodey lands too. His suit is dented in a few places but other than that he looks alright. His face mask flips up and Tony lets his mask retract.

“Where’s Peter?” Tony asks, his voice rough with the amount of yelling he’s been doing. Fuck these stupid assholes. They were supposed to go mini-golfing today. The kid had been looking forward to it for weeks.

Rhodey looks around, breathing hard through his mouth. “I thought you knew.”

there’s something wrong, by @iron--spider

“I’m sorry, Pete,” Tony whispers. “We should have checked you for something like this when we were resetting your arm and checking on the concussion. Goddamnit. We didn’t think.”

“He poisoned us both?” Peter asks, trying to open one eye to look at him.

“Yeah,” Tony says, brushing Peter’s hair back from his forehead. “He’s dying. He got the brunt of it, a nice fucking cocktail of bullshit, including mercury and a bunch of other toxic shit—”

“Am I dying?” Peter whispers, voice breaking.

Fitting In (Tiny Spaces), by aloneintherain

Peter's trapped beneath a collapsed building during a mission, hurt and unable to move. Luckily, his comm still works. Unluckily, the Avengers don’t realise how bad of a state Peter is in, and Peter isn’t inclined to tell them.

“Spidey, they’ve got reinforcements. We’ve hit a bit of a snag here, and I don’t think anyone will be able to help you for a while. Think you can sit tight while we deal with this?”

The pressure on his lower back and legs was becoming too much. Peter swallowed thickly, fighting down panic. He could handle this.

“Yeah,” Peter said. “I can do that.”

Collections/Series (’cause I could make an inventory of all @iron--spider stories, you know, but you have to read all of her work, if you haven’t yet) (God she doesn’t even know who I am)

iron dad bingo, by @iron--spider

stay at home, by @iron--spider

whumptober, by @iron--spider

Whumptober 2019, by @marvelous-writer

Day in the life of the Iron Family, by @marvelous-writer 

The Tumblr Archives, by @losingmymindtonight

Everything comes back to you, by @losingmymindtonight

Nice work, kid, by @madasthesea

Irondad Bingo 2019, by sahiya 

The Adventures of Spidy-son and Iron-dad, by eva7673

Tony adopts Peter (why everyone kills May, btw ?)

Accepting the Tides, by @emma--anacortes

Tony had dragged Peter from the depths of despair after May's death. It was normal that he'd grown to care a little about him, right?

Yeah, okay. He freaking loved the kid.

So naturally he would feel a little weird when Richard Parker randomly shows up in Peter's life. Naturally he'd feel protective, nervous, and confused because where has Richard been all this time? And why does Tony feel sick every time he sees him around Peter?

All he knows is if Richard hurts his kid, Tony's gonna give him hell.

Series Out of Darkness, by @starryknight09

“Is this Peter Parker?”

“Yes…”

“This is Dr. Nguyen. I’m sorry but your aunt’s been in an accident and we’re going to need you to come to Queens Memorial as soon as you can.”

Peter's life shatters with a phone call. The last person he expects helps him pick up the pieces.

[myonechicagoworld]

CHICAGO FIRE – RETALIATION HIT (S01E21)

Commander (Sgt. Halstead): How long was she in your apartment?

Kelly Severide: Half hour. Hour tops.

Commander (Sgt. Halstead): And how many beers did you have?

Kelly Severide: Two.

Commander (Sgt. Halstead): In 30 minutes?

Kelly Severide: First time in history anyone ever drank two beers in

                          half an hour?

Commander( Sgt. Halstead): Ms. Little stated that it was hard to

                                                 keep up with you. She felt buzzed.

Kelly Severide: That’s what happens when you drink beer. She’d

                           know since she brought the six pack over.

Commander (Sgt. Halstead): She said you tried to kiss her, but

                                                  she was uncomfortable and tried to

                                                  leave. You backed her against the

                                                  wall, leaned into her body and put

                                                  your hand on her buttock.

Kelly Severide: Unreal.

Commander (Sgt. Halstead): Care to respond?

Mouch: Lieutenant Severide is not obligated to respond to any of

              these questions, Commander. He came in good faith to

              hear the charges against him.

Kelly Severide: Actually, I faked a yawn and said I was tired and she

                          should probably get going. Because I started

                          thinking she was a little… desperate.

                                           cutscene

                                       [door buzzing]

                                        [door opens]

Police Officer (Officer Blair): You’re up, Voight.

                                   [handcuffs clicking]

                                            cutscene

Hallie Thomas: How’s Dawson?

Matt Casey: Good. Great.

                      Why?

Hallie Thomas: Don’t even pretend.

Matt Casey: Um, she’s dating young Peter Mills.

Hallie Thomas: That sneaky little bastard. Good for him.

Matt Casey: How about yourself? Seeing anybody?

Hallie Thomas: Nah, no one serious.

Matt Casey: You heard about Curtis, right?

Hallie Thomas: Yeah. Um, is Voight behind it?

Matt Casey: I have no idea. I mean, the kid was in a gang, but

                     still…

Hallie Thomas: That doesn’t make any difference in terms of

                           Voight’s case, right?

Matt Casey: Apparently there’s a dismissal hearing today, and his

                      union is pushing hard for entrapment. All I know is I

                      can’t get sucked into it again.

                                               cutscene

Hank Voight: [sighs]

                       I’m hungry. Let’s go.

                                              cutscene

                                [coffee machine steaming]

Christopher Herrmann: Drink coupons?

Otis Zvonecek: It’s called a loss leader, okay? It gets people in the

                          door. Once they’re inside, they keep spending.

Christopher Herrmann: I’m already confused, all right? It’s a bar,

                                         not the New York stock exchange.

Matt Casey: It’s actually not that complicated, Herrmann.

Christopher Herrmann: Well, we have a soft opening in a week,

                                          andwe don’t even have our decorations

                                          up yet.

Otis Zvonecek: Call it a drink special. I don’t care.

                                           [kissing sound]

Leslie Shay: Oh, marry him.

Chief Boden: Okay, everybody listen up. In light of recent events…

                       recent allegations, rather… personnel division has

                       flagged this house for sexual harassment sensitivity

                       training.

Matt Casey: [silently groans]

Joe Cruz: Uh, Chief? I think actually it’s sexual harassment and

                  sensitivity training. ‘Cause the way that you just said it, it

                  makes it sound like we have to be, uh, sensitive toward

                  sexual har…

Christopher Herrmann: All right, what the hell? This house needs it.

                                        All right, listen up everybody. CFD special,

                                        okay? Happy hour prices all night long

                                        when Molly’s opens.

                                   [murmuring and applause]

Otis Zvonecek: [groans]

                                               cutscene

Peter Mills: Lieutenant. What you’re going through ain’t right. So if

                    there’s anything I can do to help, name it. I mean if you

                    just want to grab a beer or put on some gloves…

Kelly Severide: Appreciate it.

                                       [locker door shuts]

Kevin Hadley: Hey Mills.

                                      [locker door closes]

Kevin Hadley: His shoes need shining.

                               [alarm buzzing and blaring]

(Over PA): Truck 81, Squad 3, Engine 51, Ambulance 61. Car

                  accident, 3464 Morgan Street.

Chief Boden: Casey, I just heard from the state’s attorney. Voight’s

                        out.

Matt Casey: All right.

Chief Boden: Yeah.

                                          [sirens blaring]

Chief Boden: What’s the story here?

Police Officer (Officer Sobek): We got two people stuck.

Chief Boden: What happened?

Police Officer (Officer Sobek): Driver got shot and lost control.

                                                    Word is this is the guy that shot

                                                    Curtis. Retaliation hit.

                                      [engine humming]

Kelly Severide: Looks unstable. Be careful.

Matt Casey: He’s pinned in. Foot’s stuck on the gas.

Victim 1: [screams] Oh God! Oh God! Help me, please!

                                         - title screen -

                                      [indistinct chatter]

Kelly Severide: Hey, stand clear of the car! Second victim’s

                          underneath.

                          Hang on, ma’am. We’re gonna get you out, okay?

Victim 1: Hurry, please.

Matt Casey: Driver’s got a head wound. We’ve got to get him out of

                      there.

Kelly Severide: Hey, we budge this car, it’s gonna take off.

Chief Boden: We lift the car. Kelly, you get the woman. We stabilise

                       this on the truck and get the driver at the same time.

                       Go.

Kelly Severide: Capp, Hadley, air bags and halligans!

Matt Casey: Cruz and Mills, we need bottle Jacks and cribbing as

                      much as we have. Mouch, take the center punch.

                      Herrmann, sawzall. Let’s move.

Christopher Herrmann: Got it.

Gabby Dawson: What do we got?

Matt Casey: Looks like a perforating head injury. The driver’s still

                     alive. You’re gonna have to move fast.

Gabby Dawson: We’re on it.

Victim 1: [whimpers]

Kelly Severide: Okay, help me out with this. We gotta lift it.

                          Don’t worry, ma’am. We’re right here with you.

Chief Boden: Don’t let it touch that wheel!

Victim 1: [whimpers]

Kelly Severide: Hang in there. Hang in there.

                          Watch your back.

                          All right, let’s get that board in!

Victim 1: [cries out]

Kelly Severide: Easy, easy.

                           Watch it.

Victim 1: [whimpers]

Kelly Severide: You got it?

Chief Boden: Keep her away from that wheel.

Victim 1: [whimpers]

Chief Boden: Good job, guys. Good job.

                                    [glass shattering]

Matt Casey: [grunts]

                              [engine stops humming]

Chief Boden: Pop those hinges.

Firefighter: I got it.

                                         [grinding]

Chief Boden: There you go! Get the board in now.

Leslie Shay: He’s got a pulse. Barely.

Kelly Severide: Watch his head.

                           Okay.

                           Watch it.

                           You got it?

Leslie Shay: Got it, yeah.

Gabby Dawson: Did I hear right? Voight’s out?

Matt Casey: Yeah.

Gabby Dawson: Let’s go.

                                           [siren blaring]

Mouch: You’re not doing what I think you’re doing, are you?

Kelly Severide: [sighs] What if I just meet her face-to-face and…

Mouch: Do not contact this woman, you hear me? We have a

              follow-up interview tomorrow, and we have the upper hand

              right now. Okay?

                                               cutscene

Gabby Dawson: Single gunshot to the head through and through.

                            Entrance is at the cheek.

ER Doctor: Pressure?

Gabby Dawson: 50 over 30.

ER Doctor: Get him into six.

Leslie Shay: I told you that Tara chick was bad news. Now look.

Gabby Dawson: So there’s no way that Severide could have gotten

                            a little too frisky with her?

Leslie Shay: Against her will? No way.

Gabby Dawson: Well, what’s Severide saying?

Leslie Shay: Not much. Whenever he gets this look on his face, I

                     just steer clear and let him figure it out. ‘Cause me

                     trying to fix it never does any good. She’s not gonna

                     get away with this, is she?

Gabby Dawson: Well, that’s what they said about Voight.

Leslie Shay: Ugh, crazy town. I mean, how does that guy walk?

Gabby Dawson: I don’t know. It reminds me of this joke my dad

                            once told me. Why is Chicago style pizza so

                            thick?

Leslie Shay: Why?

Gabby Dawson: Don’t worry about it.

Leslie Shay: She’s not here.

Gabby Dawson: Who?

Leslie Shay: Hallie.

Gabby Dawson: I’m not looking for Hallie.

                                      [cell phone vibrating]

Leslie Shay: Who is it?

Gabby Dawson: Blocked. Who blocks their phones anymore other

                            than drug dealers.

                                               cutscene

                                   [tapping on whiteboard]

Man 1 (Trainer): Nice slacks! Acceptable compliment? Yes, no or

                            depends?

Christopher Herrmann: I don’t think people call them slacks

                                        anymore.

Man 1 (Trainer): Oh come on, come on. No, you know what I mean.

                                              [laughter]

Man 1 (Trainer): Pants, dungarees, whatever.

Joe Cruz: Depends.

Man 1 (Trainer): On?

Joe Cruz: What part of the pants?

Man 1 (Trainer): Exactly. A female co-worker is standing in front of

                           you... ”Nice pants,” is acceptable. Walking away

                           from you, noway, Jose. And why not?

Christopher Herrmann: Isn’t it kind of obvious?

                                              [laughter]

Man 1 (Trainer): Look, I know all this new political correctness-type

                           deal is a head spinner, ‘cause it was a little more

                           loosey-goosey back in the day. I mean, hell, when I

                           first started working for the city you’d-you’d walk

                           into some locker rooms, they’d have Hustler

                           centrefolds taped up. You do that nowadays, ninjas

                           drop from the ceiling and will airlift your ass right

                           out of there.

                                              [laughter]

Christopher Herrmann: Tell me about it. When-when I started there

                                         was this guy, Eric Weinburger…[chuckles]

                                         and if it was somebody’s birthday, he

                                         would walk around with his testicles

                                         hanging out of his fly…

                                               [laughter]

Man 1 (Trainer): Okay. Okay! Look, tap the brakes, pal. That’s what

                            I’m talking about.

Christopher Herrmann: Hey.

                                              cutscene

Antonio Dawson: Voight’s got a condo in Myrtle Beach. And there’s

                              a good shot he threatens to sue the department

                              for wrongful prosecution, settles for a chunk of

                              change and then goes to play golf year round.

                              That’s according to my buddy who used to work

                              for Voight.

                              He’s dirty, but he ain’t stupid. He knows he

                               dodged a bullet on this one. And with his son

                               already doing a year, there’s no way he’s gonna

                               come after you again.

Matt Casey: That’s what they told me right before he tried to have

                      my skull cracked open.

Chief Boden: You’ll keep us apprised, won’t you, Antonio?

Antonio Dawson: Of course.

Chief Boden: Casey. Do not get drawn back into this.

                                          cutscene

Man 2 (Paramedic): Leslie Shay!

Leslie Shay: Hey, Derek.

                     What’s wrong?

Gabby Dawson: That was Voight.

Leslie Shay: What’d he say?

Gabby Dawson: He’s calling in that favour I owe him.

                            [exhales]

                                          cutscene

Matt Casey: You’re gonna call Voight back?

Gabby Dawson: [sighs] I mean I guess I have to.

Matt Casey: Want me to?

Gabby Dawson: No. No, no, no. But… that’s really nice of you to

                            offer.

Matt Casey: You let me know. And we’re cool. No matter what you

                      do. I don’t want us going down the same road we did

                      last time and not talking to each other for a month.

                      You’re too important to me for that.

Gabby Dawson: Thanks. I feel the same way. Which is why I wanted

                            to bring you in the loop. So that you didn’t think I

                            was scheming with Voight or anything behind your

                            back.

Matt Casey: Dawson, I’m serious though. You-you try to deal with

                      Voight on your own, you’ll end up in quicksand.

Gabby Dawson: Okay.

Man 1 (Trainer): Can I borrow you two for a second?

Matt Casey: [clears throat] “You look very nice today.”

Gabby Dawson: “Thank you.”

Matt Casey: “A bunch of us are gonna get some beers after work.

                      Care to join?”

Gabby Dawson: Sure, yeah. That sounds fun.”

Matt Casey: Keep going, or…

Man 1 (Trainer): Please.

Matt Casey: Okay.

Leslie Shay: Oh look, he just groped her. Did everybody see that?

Chief Boden: Shay.

Leslie Shay: I’m just saying. That’s all it takes, right?

Matt Casey: “Have you been going to the gym?”

Gabby Dawson: “Um, yeah, you know, here and there. Not as much

                             as I’d like.”

Matt Casey: “Because your physique looks really good.”

                                            [laughter]

Gabby Dawson: “Well, thank you. That’s really nice of you.”

Man 1 (Trainer): Now freeze it. Freeze it. What did we talk about

                            behavioural modifiers?

Matt Casey: I think he means stop the role-play

Gabby Dawson: Oh.

Man 1 (Trainer): Matt should not be making comments about

                            Gabby’s body. We know that.

                                     [cell phone vibrating]

Man 1 (Trainer): But Gabby should not be accepting compliments

                            about her body from Matt.

Chief Boden: Keep your radio on.

Man 1 (Trainer): Uh why don’t we break for lunch?

All: Yes.

       Sure.

Matt Casey: Thank you.

Harold Capp: Hey, candidate?

Peter Mills: Yeah?

Harold Capp: You park across the street?

Peter Mills: Yeah, why?

                    Oh! Son of a bitch!

Kevin Hadley: Oh, man.

Peter Mills: Man, right in front of the house! God!

Harold Capp: Whoa, wait a second. Wait a second. Isn’t this an

                        ’03?

Peter Mills: Yeah.

Harold Capp: I think this is the model they built with the spare

                       window.

                       Yeah.

Kevin Hadley: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Harold Capp: Hang on a second. Hold on, let me show you.

                                     [engine starting]

Peter Mills: [sighs] Ooh… [chuckles]

                    Yeah funny. Give me my keys.

                                [Capp & Hadley chuckles]

Peter Mills: That was a good one.

                    [groans]

                                             cutscene

Kelly Severide: [exhales] I just wanted to talk, you know. Human

                          being to human being.

Tara Little: I-I-I don’t want to talk about the other night. It’s still so

                   painful.

Kelly Severide: Tara, come on. We were both there. And if I said

                          something that offended you…

Tara Little: Look, IAD is pushing me to file a police report. And

                   despite what happened, I’m not interested in making

                   this a criminal case.

Kelly Severide: For what?

                          Look me in the eye. Tell me what I did.

Tara Little: But there is another option. If you apologise on record,

                   it’s called an Alford plea. You won’t be admitting guilt,

                   but we could both…avoid the embarrassment of

                   reliving this in public.

Kelly Severide: You’re crazy.

Tara Little: I knew I shouldn’t have agreed to meet you.

                                              cutscene

Antonio Dawson: I’ll take care of it.

Gabby Dawson: Look, I don’t have a problem calling him to see

                            what he wants.

Antonio Dawson: No.

Gabby Dawson: Hey. Don’t do anything crazy.

                                [alarm buzzing and blaring]

(Over PA): Truck 81, Engine 51, Squad 3, Ambulance 61.

                  Overturned tanker, Eleanor and Fuller.

                                        [sirens wailing]

Kelly Severide: Squad’s set to pull the driver out. We just need

                           engine to get some water on this fire so we

                           have some clearance.

Chief Boden: This first tank is leaking sodium hydroxide. We have

                        an active chemical spill. That is a negative on the

                        water. That’s going to spread the spill out even

                        further. We need to get foam on this fire… and

                        masks on!

Victim 2 (Truck Driver): Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey, get me out of here!

                                       Get me out!

Chief Boden: (into radio) Squad three, suit up for rescue. Call in

                        Hazmat.

                        Hang on in there! We’re gonna come and get you!

                        (into radio) Battalion 25 to dispatch, we need the

                        closest available foam engine to Bridgeport right

                        now. We are on Eleanor and Fuller.

Dispatch: (over radio) Copy that, 25.

Chief Boden: Let’s dyke off this area right now. If it gets into the

                        river, it’ll spread into Chicago.

Matt Casey: Got it. Shovels and pick axes!

                      Right here. Start digging

                                             [grunting]

Matt Casey: (over radio) Chief, where’s our foam?

Chief Boden: (into radio) We’re working on it, Casey.

Kelly Severide: Chief, if you need us to pull him out now, we’re

                          ready.

Chief Boden: (into radio)That diesel fire’s impinging on that tanker.

                       It’s getting ready to blow! You can’t go in yet.

Matt Casey: (into radio) Driver’s gonna get burned inside and out if

                     he stays in there much longer.

Chief Boden: (into radio) Where the hell is that engine?

                                       [foam spraying]

Chief Boden: Severide.

Kelly Severide: Yeah.

Chief Boden: That foam will cover up the vapors. You ready?

Kelly Severide: Yeah, let’s do it!

                           Hadley!

Kevin Hadley: Yeah!

Kelly Severide: Have the descender ready to send up the aerial.

Kevin Hadley: Uh, it-it’s new. I don’t know the set-up yet. I’ll just,

                         uh, I’ll rig up a rope and pulley.

Kelly Severide: Nah, that’s not enough. We’re gonna need the

                          descender. Ask Mills to do it.

Peter Mills: On it.

                     Let’s go.

                     Hadley, stand by.

                     Here. Take that, run it up

Chief Boden: (into radio) Mouch.

                                          [motor humming]

Chief Boden: Capp, make sure you stay tight to Severide.

Victim 2 (Truck driver): [breathing heavily]

Kelly Severide: Chemicals flooding the cab. Driver’s losing

                           consciousness.

Victim 2 (Truck driver): [groans]

Kelly Severide: Hey buddy, hang in there. We’re gonna get you out!

                          Watch your eyes!

Victim 2 (Truck driver): Okay.

                                         [glass shattering]

Peter Mills: Okay, throw me the rope bag.

Harold Capp: It’s coming down.

Kelly Severide: (over radio) Got the harness attached.

Victim 2 (Truck driver): [groans]

Kelly Severide: (over radio) Okay, pull him up!

Peter Mills: Haul!

Victim 2 (Truck driver): [groans]

Kelly Severide: Keep it going!

                          Okay, Mills, the driver’s clear.

Peter Mills: We’re good!

Kelly Severide: Let’s go, let’s go!

Chief Boden: All right. Bring him over, Mouch.

Joe Cruz: This way!

Peter Mills: Keep it going! Keep it going!

Firefighter: Keep coming!

Victim 2 (Truck driver): [groans]

Gabby Dawson: Let’s go!

Chief Boden: Good job.

Peter Mills: [chuckles]

                                          cutscene

Joe Cruz: Hope we weren’t too much of a pain in the ass.

Man 1 (Trainer): Not at all. Fully aware that you work 24 hour shifts

                           together and you see the things that you see. And

                           there should be consideration for that. You just

                           have to be careful, or you can find yourself in a

                           real predicament.

Chief Boden: Did everybody hear that?

All: We got it.

       Mm-hmm.

Man 1 (Trainer): Still using the Elkhart brass nozzles, I see. Is that a

                            75/100?

Joe Cruz: Yeah, how you know about nozzles?

Man 1 (Trainer): Ah I took the CFD exam. Back when dinosaurs

                           roamed the earth. Made it all the way through,

                           then got dinged on the last day.

Chief Boden: What happened?

Man 1 (Trainer): Colourblind.

                            What are you gonna do? It all worked out.

Christopher Herrmann: Eh, you know what’s gonna work out on

                                         my end? Molly’s bar. This thing takes off

                                         we’re gonna brand it, franchise it. We’re

                                         gonna have Molly’s Kansas City, Molly’s

                                         Des Moines…

Gabby Dawson: Easy, tiger. Let’s get this one off the ground first.

Peter Mills: Ugh…

                    Who put dog food in here?

Kevin Hadley: [chuckles]

Peter Mills: That’s funny to you?

Kevin Hadley: Relax, mutt.

Peter Mills: What did you say to me?

All: Hey! Hey! Hey!

Peter Mills: What did you say?

Chief Boden: Hey! Hey!

Kelly Severide: Take it easy!

                           Mutt? You out of your mind?

Kevin Hadley: When I was a candidate over at 38, they put menthol

                         in my underwear. What is the…

Chief Boden: No, no, no, no, what you did was so far beyond that,

                       that if you can’t tell the difference, you are dumber

                       than you look.

Kevin Hadley: [chuckles] What…

Chief Boden: I mean this house was already under a microscope.

                       You really couldn’t put that together? You are so lucky

                       Mills is not filing an incident report. Not to mention

                       knocking your teeth out.

Kevin Hadley: Did I not apologise?

Peter Mills: You don’t talk to me. I’m serious.

Matt Casey: Everybody shut up. He’s coming in.

Man 1 (Trainer): I told my boss that the course work was complete

                           here but that a follow-up might not hurt. I did not

                           mention the infraction, because it would turn into a

                           major, major deal. I’ve seen folks lose their jobs

                           over less. And in my sense, this was an isolated

                           incident involving otherwise good people.

Chief Boden: First of all, let me say thank you. And second of all, I

                       can assure you that I will deal with all of this in-house.

Man 1 (Trainer): How exactly?

Kevin Hadley: [scoffs]

Chief Boden: Look, anybody asks, I’ll tell them you wanted a

                       change of scenery. A lot of guys like to float from

                       house to house as it is.

Kevin Hadley: You know if I had known that kissing ass was the

                         way to move up in this house, I would have brought

                         some lip balm.

Chief Boden: Good luck, Hadley.

Kevin Hadley: [scoffs]

Chief Boden: Yeah, good luck.

                                             cutscene

                                 [train in the background]

Antonio Dawson: Come on.

                                       [car door shuts]

Antonio Dawson: Why are you calling my sister?

Hank Voight: I got an ethics panel over at the IG’s here in a little bit.

                       I was looking for some character references.

Antonio Dawson: Not her. You helped me out of a jam, I don’t

                              dispute that. But if you got a favour you need

                              done, you come to me man-to-man and leave

                              her out of it.

Hank Voight: I hear you left Vice.

Antonio Dawson: What about it?

Hank Voight: Working in that Intelligence unit here in the district?

                       You got backbone, Antonio. You’ve always been an

                       aggressive cop. I respect that.

                                             cutscene

Kelly Severide: And?

Mouch: You may be asked to go back in, so… sit tight.

              I told you not to contact her.

Kelly Severide: Fine. I screwed up.

Mouch: Big time. Now they’re looking into your history.

Kelly Severide: Of?

Mouch: Other women you’ve... banged on the job.

Kelly Severide: What?

Mouch: Remember Nicki Rutkowski?

Kelly Severide: What about her?

Mouch: Her name came up. Did it end bad?

Kelly Severide: No!

                          We slept together a couple times, and she went on

                          her merry way. Ask her.

Mouch: Oh they’re going to.

Kelly Severide: Unreal.

                                          cutscene

Matt Casey: The new place is very, uh… zen.

Hallie Thomas: I’m hardly here.

                                      [liquid pouring]

Matt Casey: Thank you.

Hallie Thomas: Mm-hmm.

                          To new beginnings, I guess. Right?

Matt Casey: I like it.

                                       [glass clinking]

Matt Casey: Well, uh, this is all your stuff. Just some pictures and

                      jewellery.  

Hallie Thomas: And here’s yours. Pictures and Blackhawk

                          memorabilia.

Matt Casey: I was wondering where all that went.

                     Yes!

                                        [kissing sound]

Hallie Thomas: [chuckles] You know, I found this contract that we

                           both signed after we had that argument about

                           where to spend Christmas. Do you remember it?

Matt Casey: I do. Yeah.

Hallie Thomas: [giggles]

Matt Casey: Let’s always keep the fighting clean and the sex dirty.

                                              [laughter]

                                         [kissing sounds]

                                              cutscene

                                          [coins clinking]

Hank Voight: IG office on a Tuesday afternoon, that can’t be good.

                       Just remember, squeakiest wheel always wins around

                       here.

Kelly Severide: Looks like it.

Hank Voight: You’re Benny Severide’s kid, huh?

Kelly Severide: That’s right.

Hank Voight: Ol’ Benny…

                       [chuckles] I’ll be seeing you around.

Kelly Severide: Yeah, I don’t plan on making it out to Myrtle Beach

                           anytime soon.

Hank Voight: Well, neither do I. I just got reinstated.

                                        [door closes]

                                           cutscene

Matt Casey: Where on the job?

Kelly Severide: No, he didn’t say.

Peter Mills: God, has the world gone crazy? What the heck is going

                     on?

Kelly Severide: I know. Tell me about it.

Gabby Dawson: Well, they’ll just park him somewhere behind a

                             desk, right? Let him collect a paycheck for

                             nothing. I mean if I’m CPD, that’s what I would

                             want.

Matt Casey: That’s got nothing to do with it. It’s what Voight wants.

Gabby Dawson: [whispers] Damn it. Maybe I should have just

                            played ball with him.

Peter Mills: No, absolutely not.

Gabby Dawson: But now I’m on his enemy list?

                                       [door opens]

Peter Mills: Who’s that?

Kelly Severide: Nicki’s dad.

                                    [knocks on door]

Chief Boden: Hey! Big Al!

Al Rutkowski: Hey, Wallace.

Chief Boden: [chuckles] What brings you out?

Al Rutkowski: I guess that Severide character’s got himself in a bit

                         of a pickle, huh?

Chief Boden: How’d that get on your radar?

Al Rutkowski: Well, the girl he attacked, her lawyer contacted me.

Chief Boden: Attacked? Since when do you believe everything the

                       lawyers tell you?

Al Rutkowski: [scoffs] Yeah, well, regardless, I guess they want my

                         account of events. They’re looking to establish a

                         pattern of behaviour. And I wanted you to hear it

                         from me first out of respect for our friendship.

Chief Boden: Hear what?

                                          [door closes]

Al Rutkowski: How I came here to pick Nicki up, and I saw him

                         guiding her out of that change out room after doing

                         God knows what. How she came home in tears 

                         after being over at his apartment. How she broke

                         off her engagement with a guy I happened to like.

                         And how Nicki came in and quit her job and ran off

                         to Europe and she hasn’t been able to get her life

                         back on track since.

Chief Boden: Al, I spoke to him. Nothing happened.

Al Rutkowski: No, he was screwing around with a subordinate on

                         the job. My daughter. And shame on me for not

                         having made a bigger stink of it back then,

                         because now it looks like a girl got hurt.

Chief Boden: Al, I know you’re pissed at him, but if you, as a Chief

                       in the department, if you go forward with your beef,

                       you will sink him.

Al Rutkowski: Do you really believe that he didn’t push that girl up

                        against the wall because she didn’t want to be

                        another notch on his belt?

Chief Boden: We go way back. I’m going to vouch for Kelly

                       Severide.

Al Rutkowski: Yeah, well, like I said, I want you to hear it from me.

Chief Boden: Please don’t do this.

Al Rutkowski: I already did. They have my statement.

Chief Boden: Yeah. Nice knowing you, Al.

                                [alarm buzzing and blaring]

(Over PA): Ambulance 61, fallen person. 1610 Kedzie Street.

                                         [siren blaring]

Child 1: Hurry, I think my dad’s sick.

Gabby Dawson: What’s your dad’s name?

Child 1: Terrence. I’m Patrick.

              And that’s Buddy.

Leslie Shay: Oh.

Gabby Dawson: Okay.

                                         [snake hissing]

Victim 3 (Terrence): [groans]

Gabby Dawson: Okay, see ya.

Leslie Shay: Okay, here we go.

Gabby Dawson: What was that, a pet?

Child 1 (Patrick): What about my dad? Something’s wrong with

                              him.

Gabby Dawson: [groans] I don’t believe this!

                            Patrick, how long since that snake bit your dad?

                            Patrick?

Child 1 (Patrick): My dad says not to tell anyone about Buddy.

                             We’re not supposed to have him.

Gabby Dawson: How long, sweetie?

Child 1 (Patrick): Ten minutes?

Gabby Dawson: Okay, I’m gonna call animal control.

Leslie Shay: What kind of snake is it?

Child 1 (Patrick): Rhino Viper. He got out of his cage.

Leslie Shay: We gotta go back in there.

Gabby Dawson: Bitch, are you out of your f… Dear valued

                            colleague, I strongly disagree with your

                            suggested course…

Leslie Shay: Okay, God only knows what Rhino Viper venom does

                      to a person, okay? We can’t wait on animal control.

                      He might not even have 30 minutes.

Gabby Dawson: [groans]

Leslie Shay: Patrick, hi, um, what does your dad use to handle

                     Buddy?

Child 1 (Patrick): The hook.

Leslie Shay: The hook. Come on.

Victim 3 (Terrence): [groans]

Child 1 (Patrick): Here it is.

                                             [snake hissing]

Leslie Shay: That is a longass snake.

                      [heavy breathing]

                      Here.

Gabby Dawson: Whoa! What?

Leslie Shay: You do it. I can’t. I can’t.

Gabby Dawson: [exhales] Okay, Patrick. What do I do?

Child 1 (Patrick): Dad puts the hook under him and grabs his tail.

Gabby Dawson: Mm-hmm. Grabs his tail. Right, of course

                            [exhales]

                            Hey, Buddy.

                            [groans]

                            [snake hisses]

Gabby Dawson: Oh God! Okay.

                                           [metal rod clanging]

Gabby Dawson: [heavy breathing]

Leslie Shay: We’ve got to try again.

Gabby Dawson: Yeah.

Victim 3 (Terrence): [groans & whimpers]

Leslie Shay: Just… try again.

Gabby Dawson: [frustrated groan]

                                             [snake hissing]

Gabby Dawson: [whimpering]

                            Come on. Come on.

Leslie Shay: Yes. Yes. Yes.

                                                  [thud]

Gabby Dawson: [panting] Nightmares. I will have nightmares.

Victim 3 (Terrence): [gasping]

Gabby Dawson: Okay, let’s put him in the chair and get him out of

                            here.

Victim 3 (Terrence): [struggling to breathe]

Leslie Shay: Watch the cabinet.

Gabby Dawson: Let’s go.

Child 1 (Patrick): Is he gonna be okay?

Gabby Dawson: He’ll be okay. Hop in.

                                         [ambo door shuts]

                                                cutscene

                                              [door closes]

Kelly Severide: What’s up?

Mouch: Uh, a couple things. Internally, Tara’s not gonna be acting

              on the charges.

Kelly Severide: What do you mean internally? Are the charges

                           dropped or not?

Mouch: Well, there’s where it gets complicated.

Chief Boden: She’s been reinstated as commander of operations at

                       field division headquarters.

Kelly Severide: Promoted?

Chief Boden: IAD felt an administrative post might be a better fit for

                       her.

Kelly Severide: For a liar?

Mouch: IAD lacked the sufficient amount of confidence needed to

              disprove her claim, so they wanted to move quickly to have

              this go away.

Kelly Severide: Great! Y-You know what? Make her the… Queen of

                          England, I don’t care.

                          Are-are we done?

Mouch: No. Because of Chief Rutkowski’s rather incendiary

              statement, the IG has sustained Tara’s allegations. They’re

              kicking the case up to the State Attorney’s office.

Kelly Severide: Meaning what?

Mouch: Meaning they will review it. And if they feel there’s a case,

              they’ll file charges. Criminal charges.

Kelly Severide: [sighs]

Chief Boden: You need to get an attorney, Kelly. You need to be

                        ready.

Mouch: Listen… this is not coming from me. But it was put out

              there that if you did apologise for what she’s claiming, it

              might go a long way towards…

              [sighs]

                                               cutscene

                                          [water running]

Kelly Severide: I walked her to the door.

Leslie Shay: We’re gonna fight this. We’re gonna be all right.

Kelly Severide: I don’t trust anyone in this world other than you.

Christopher Herrmann: Hey buddy. We heard. No one can believe

                                         it. Look, we’re doing our soft opening

                                         tonight. Maybe you want to come down,

                                         tie one on, be around your friends.

Kelly Severide: I’m not up for it.

Christopher Herrmann: No. Of course. All right.

Joe Cruz: Hang in there, man.

                                               cutscene

Gabby Dawson: This is it, you guys.

Otis Zvonecek: Ready or not.

Christopher Herrmann: I got jitters, I ain’t gonna lie.

Gabby Dawson: This is probably like, the craziest, riskiest, insanest

                            thing any of us has ever done.

Otis Zvonecek: And for Herrmann, that’s saying something.

Christopher Herrmann: [chuckles]

Gabby Dawson: But if nothing else, I have had so much fun

                            spending all those days off and all the wee hours

                            building Molly’s with you guys. And I know that

                            you guys have heart because I saw it when you

                            put it in the business, and I just want you to

                            know that I consider you guys family. You’re my

                            brothers.

Christopher Herrmann: Wow. You’re beautiful. I know it’s been a

                                         tough couple of shifts for everybody. But

                                         that is why this place is gonna rock

                                         tonight. Because we’re gonna put aside

                                         our worries, and we’re just gonna have a

                                         good time.

Otis Zvonecek: Amen.

Gabby Dawson: Amen.

Christopher Herrmann: Amen.

Gabby Dawson: To Molly’s.

Christopher Herrmann: To Molly’s.

Otis Zvonecek: Does it sound like we’re saying “tamales”?

Christopher Herrmann: What? Who cares? This place is gonna

                                         rock!

Otis Zvonecek: I hope so, ‘cause I’m a little concerned about the

                           number of hits we’re getting on Facebook.

Gabby Dawson: Oh my gosh.

Otis Zvonecek: Not as much traffic as I want. Not to mention…

Christopher Herrmann: Will you please celebrate the moment, for

                                        God’s sake.

Otis Zvonecek: To Molly’s.

                                              [glass clinking]

                                                  cutscene

Peter Mills: [grunts]

                     Come on, another one.

                     All right, another one.

Kelly Severide: [grunts]

Peter Mills: Throw it out!

Kelly Severide: Unh! Unh!

Peter Mills: Come on! Come on. Come on man.

Kelly Severide: [grunts]

                          [laboured breathing]

                          [spits]

                                               cutscene

Christopher Herrmann: Are you guys good?

Crowd/Customers: We’re great!

                                  All right.

                                       [chatter & laughter]

Christopher Herrmann: Who is this guy?

Joe Cruz: That’s my Uncle Zoozie!

Leslie Shay: Hey, so I cannot stop thinking about Tara being

                      promoted?

Gabby Dawson: Oh, she is a bureau bitch now. We’re never gonna

                             see her.

Leslie Shay: Oh, if I do, I’m gonna drop her. Not joking.

Joe Cruz: Good to see ya.

Hallie Thomas: Thanks.

Matt Casey: Hey.

Gabby Dawson: [clears throat]

Leslie Shay: When did that happen?

Gabby Dawson: Good for them.

Leslie Shay: [sighs] Oh, yeah…

                                             [door closes]

Christopher Herrmann: [laughs]

                                         Cop walks into a bar…

                                              [chatter dies]

Hank Voight: Wow. It’s a nice place. Congratulations.

                       [chuckles] Chief.

                       [exhales] Listen, there’s…there’s been a lot of bad

                       blood between cops and firemen in this district.

                       Since we’re all gonna be working together, I want

                       to be the first to put it all behind us.

                       This round’s on me.

Gabby Dawson: So what was that about?

Antonio Dawson: You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.

Gabby Dawson: What?

Antonio Dawson: He was promoted to Sergeant, and he’s running

                              the Intelligence Unit.

Gabby Dawson: You’re in the Intelligence Unit.

Antonio Dawson: Don’t I know it.

Hank Voight: I want to apologise. To you both. It got way out of

                       hand. You know, as it turns out my son needed to

                       hit rock bottom. Prison has certainly provided that.

                       I just want to say I’m sorry. And I am looking forward

                       to working with you, Lieutenant.

                       [sighs]

                                                       - end -

Definitions:

Bottle Jacks – Have a capacity of up to 50 tons and may be used to lift a variety of objects

Hustler – Prostitute

IAD – Internal Affairs department

Alford plea – Guilty plea in criminal court, whereby a defendant in a criminal case does not admit to the criminal act and asserts innocence. Defendants usually enter an Alford guilty plea if they want to avoid a possible worse sentence were they to lose the case against them at trial. It affords defendants the ability to accept a plea bargain while maintaining innocence

Dyke – a ditch

Descender – The descender or “descent control device” is another important element of a bailout kit selection. They are used as friction brakes when descending a rope in a rescue situation

IG’s – Office of Inspector General (I believe)

Rhino Viper – Small doses of the snake’s primarily hemotoxic venom can be deadly. This venom attacks the circulatory system of the snake’s victim, destroying tissue and blood vessels. Internal bleeding also occurs. In only a few detailed reports of human envenomation, massive swelling, which may lead to necrosis, had been described.

[babymetaldoll]

Danger Days - Chapter seven: "This mess we are in"

Word count: 12,7K

Summary: Matthew is worried after the incident Joey had with a fan. The drummer gets drunk celebrating Frank's birthday. In fact, everybody but Gerard is drunk, and they end up in a strip club. Joey makes a few bad decisions she regrets in the morning.

Warnings: Alcohol consumption, bad decisions. Cursing.

A/N: Missing Gubler? don't worry, he'll be very present in the next chapter. Meanwhile, read how these kids keep making a mess they are gonna regret pretty soon.

Also, all of this is fiction and the gif ain't mine. Love you!

Masterlist

Chapter one | Chapter two | Chapter three | Chapter four | Chapter five | Chapter six | Chapter seven | Chapter eight | Chapter nine | Chapter ten | Chapter eleven | Chapter twelve | Chapter thirteen | Chapter fourteen | Chapter fifteen | Chapter sixteen | Chapter seventeen | Chapter eighteen | Chapter nineteen | Chapter twenty | Chapter twenty one | Chapter twenty-two | Chapter twenty-three | Chapter twenty-four |

--

- "We are not going out!"- Ray was emphatic and looked like an angry father as he stood in front of Joey, who kept frowning, very upset.

- "But Ray!!"- the drummer whined- "It's gonna be Frank's birthday!! We have to party!!"

- "No!"

Toro was serious. He stood in the middle of Joey's room, arm-crossed on his chest. She was dressed and ready to go, pouting.

- "Joey, there is no way I'm letting you leave the hotel in this country ever again!"

- "The country has nothing to do with what happened!"- there was a knock on the door, and she walked over to answer- "You already posted against the attack, Gerard made a speech, nothing is gonna happen to me!"

- "Hello Bug!!"- Frank walked in with Mikey and Gerard- "I heard you were ready to party!"- Ray sighed and covered his face with both hands.

- "Finally! my people are here!!"- Joey shouted, excited.

- "Yeah!! We brought pizza, beer, and video games. Let's do this!!"- Frank said, and Joey knit her brows immediately.

- "You have to be kidding me!"

- "Nope! It's gonna be my fucking party, and we are doing the fuck I want to do"- Frank said, smiling.

- "Fuck..."- Joey sighed and sat on her bed- "I got all pretty for nothing."

- "Not true. You are gonna look as hot as fuck in all the pictures we are gonna post of this lovely evening"- Iero chuckled at his own words.

- "Don't you fucking dare posting anything!"

Ray started the preach the minute Joey's cell phone rang, and the girl locked herself in the bathroom to have some privacy.

- "Akumu, I miss you"- she whispered and sat in the bathtub and stared at her boyfriend's face on the cell phone screen.

- "How are you? What the fuck happened?"- and he looked honestly worried and upset.

- "What?"

- "What the fuck happened today?? Why didn't you tell me a fan smashed a bottle against your head?!"- the drummer sighed and closed her eyes

- "'Cos I didn't want you to get worried."

- "Well, too bad 'cos I found out on Twitter, and I am fucking worried!"- Joey sighed, staring at him, and pouted- "Don't give me that all innocent look 'cos I am mad! How couldn't you fucking tell me, Joey?! This is serious!"

- "I am ok, Akumu. Nothing bad happened."

- "This is all Frank's fault!!"- Matthew was honestly upset. He kept walking around the set, hitting walls. and making his best not to yell at his girlfriend- "I wanna break that fucker's face!"

- "Please don't say that. He was just trying to help,"- Joey whispered but didn't have another excuse for her friend.

- "Well, he is an asshole..."- Gubler looked at Joey on the screen and sighed- "What if something worse would have happened?"

- "But it didn't"

- "Joey, I mean it, what if something awful happened to you on tour and I am not there with you..."- he paused 'cos a knot in his throat didn't let him say another word.

- "Matthew... I am ok, I am going to be ok. It was just a psycho fan. There are bodyguards around us the whole time. I am not walking around alone. And most important of all, I am not going to hide just 'cos a few teenagers hate me for touring with this band."

- "Joey, please don't be the tough girl I know you are this time. This is serious."

She sighed and stared at Matthew. Sometimes Joey felt he was more sensitive than she was. He wasn't afraid to feel, and she was scared to feel weak.

Joey's cell beeped as she and her boyfriend kept staring at each other in silence, both of them feeling like shit for being apart.

- "What is it?"

- "Mom is calling... I bet she knows too."

- "Call me later?"

- "Ok..."

- "I love you, Yami. I don't want anything bad ever to happen to you."

- "I love you too, Akumu... I'll call you in a few minutes, ok?"

- "Are you ok?"- Gerard asked his brother as he watched him drink a can of beer in less than two minutes.

- "Yeah, why?"

- "'Cos you look sad? Weird? Depressed?"

- "No, I'm ok. Have you talked to Lynz?"

- "Yeah, earlier today"

- "How is she?"

- "Good, she has a lot of work, but that's good 'cos she is busy"- Gerard didn't get why his brother was asking so much about his wife- "Are you sure you..."

- "Yeah, dude! I'm ok! I'm fine"- Mikey looked around and frowned- "Where's Bug?"

- "In the bathroom talking with Gubler"- Frank said as he walked to the door, and James walked in with more booze- "Yeah! Party time! excellent"

Iero was excited. A big part of him wanted to be back home with his wife and kids, but after the shitty day they had had, he felt like he could use a chill party with his friends to ease his mind from the deep guilt he was feeling.

Frank felt like the shit, to be honest. Before and after the show, he locked in his room alone and basically cursed himself for being such an asshole. He stared at the picture he took with Joey for a long time and felt he had been too selfish. He got carried away by the moment and his urges to kiss her, and everything ended up being a fucking disaster. The worst part of the whole mess: he fucking loved the picture. He would frame it if he could.

- "Iceland!"- Iero sort of yelled and hugged Joey as soon as she walked out the bathroom, making her chuckle surprised.

- "Jersey! are you drunk already?"

- "No, I'm just happy to see you! Now let's get drunk!"- the girl smiled and nodded- "Everything ok?"

- "Yeah, I was just talking with Matthew and my mom, and then with Matthew again. They saw the whole deal on the internet and were pretty scared... and Gubler hates you now"- Frank fake smiled at that, praying Joey didn't notice- "I'm just kidding!"- she quickly added and hugged Frank for a second- "He is just worried sick about everything."

- "We are all worried, but nothing bad will happen to you again"- Iero smiled, and Joey nodded, walking away from him.

To be honest, Frank didn't give a shit if Matthew hated him. He wasn't a fan of the actor either at that point. He followed Joey with his eyes across the room until he found Gerard looking at him with a frown. Iero smiled and nodded. Gerard did the same.

It wasn't even midnight yet, and Mikey was drunk. Seriously drunk. He sat next to Joey on the floor and rested his head on her shoulder.

- "Are you ready to sleep?"- she whispered and moved her head on his.

- "Nope."

- "Are you gonna puke?"

- "Not yet."

- "I always forget you are the most functional intoxicated person I have ever met,"- and Mikey chuckled.

- "I love you, Bug,"- the girl smiled and sighed. It made her happy to know she had a friend on him.

- "Thank you, bróðir, I love you too. I'm glad I met you"- she made a pause and turned to him- "But if you puke on me, I'll kill you"- and Mikey burst out laughing.

- "Got it."

- "Joey, you are up!"- Frank said and handed her the joystick- "Dude, come on! You can't be that drunk just yet! I'm still halfway there!"

- "Then you should catch up!"- Mikey answered with barely opened eyes.

- "It's on bitch!"- Frank laughed and walked to grab another beer. Joey chuckled and walked closer to the tv, to bump into her opponent: Gerard.

- "Hey"- she smiled and sat next to him- "What are we playing now?"

- "Mario Kart."

- "Ok, ready to lose?"

- "I don't know, are you?"- Joey turned to him and found his eyes on her, making her heart skip a beat.

- "Eat dirty, Gerard Way"- she answered and pressed start.

Gerard was chuckling nonstop as Joey groaned, frustrated. He was winning, and she hated it. Although, she knew she was having a good time. The rest of the guys were talking and drinking, so no one really paid attention to them.

- "And suck it!!"- he shouted, winning another race.

- "No way, José! You are fucking cheating!"- Joey argued immediately- "I want revenge! I need revenge!!"

- "Fine by me"- the singer smiled and watched how the girl started another race.

- "Hey, Gerard"- she said after a few minutes of playing.

- "Yeah?"

- "This is the first time we do something together in days... actually, this is the first time you talk to me in days... is everything ok?"

- "Yeah, why?"

Gerard pretended to be surprised. He was thankful they had to be looking at the screen, 'cos it kept him from staring at her eyes and melt. Joey was thinking the very same thing.

- "After the day you found me crying, you basically ignored me."

- "I didn't! I've been tired, that's all."

- "Is that it?"

- "Yes, of course. "Liar liar pants on fire."

- "Good,"- Joey made a pause and just spit out- "I thought maybe you were mad or uncomfortable with me after that nap."

- "No! of course not!"

Gerard was blushing and his deepest desire at that moment was to run away from that conversation. He felt like he had to lie about every single thing he had to tell that woman.

- "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

- "You didn't"

- "And if..."- Gerard paused the game and turned to her. He even sighed as his eyes locked in hers.

- "Joey, it's not a problem. I really enjoyed our time together that night, it was very special to me"- and suddenly he realized he wasn't lying, and it was a mistake- "I mean, we didn't start with the right foot and the fact we were able to talk and have a moment together made me very happy 'cos... it meant we were... leaving all that bullshit behind."

Joey nodded and sighed. They kept staring at each other, and Gerard had to literally fight the instinct of leaning over to kiss her. Until it got weird.

- "Can you please unpause the game so I can fucking kick your lousy ass??"- she said, waking from the trance and making her best to look cool after all whole time staring at him.

- "Burn!!"- Mikey yelled and sat next to Joey at the end of the bed.

That party was wild. By two in the morning, everybody was trashed, and Frank was drunk as a skunk. He kept walking around the room, holding a beer, wearing the dragon onesie Joey had gotten him as a birthday present. Why? She didn't have a reason. She just wanted to see if he would wear it. And he loved it.

- "Bug!! My phone!!"- Mikey shouted and looked at the girl, who stood at the other side of the room, laughing with Ray and James.

- "No!"- she replied and frowned as Mikey stumbled over, wasted.

- "I need it!"

- "No, you don't!"

- "I have to call my mom"- he begged with closed eyes in a big pout.

- "No, you can't call you "mom" this drunk"- the girl said with air quotes- "I told you I was gonna stop you."

- "You also said you were gonna get drunk with me."

- "Dude, I am drunk! You are intoxicated. There is a bunch of booze in between, but I'm not sober, and that's the point."

- "Bug, that made no sense"- Ray said, laughing, also pretty drunk.

- "Shit!"- and she giggled.

- "Now, the phone!!"- Mikey demanded, again.

- "No! I'm not gonna give it to you!"- Joey argued and felt Mikey wrapping his arms around her, searching for the phone in her pockets- "Dude! I don't even have it with me!"

- "Where is it?"

- "Why is Mikey not allowed to use his phone?"- Frank asked with glassy drunken eyes.

- "'Cos he is wasted"- Joey simply explained as the youngest Way kept searching around for his phone- "You are not gonna find it bróðir!! gefast upp!! (give up!)."

- "Don't go all drunk and Icelandic at the same time!"- Frank argued and wrapped an arm around Joey's waist, laughing along with her.

- "þú ert sætur! (You are cute!)"- the girl chuckled and kissed Frank's cheek.

Gerard was burning in anger, sipping his diet coke at the other side of the room, staring at the scene, thinking of a way to stop it all. Being jealous of Frank hadn't happened before, and he didn't know how to deal with it 'cos he was his fucking best friend.

- "You are a lovely drunk. Now, what the fuck did you say?"

- "Happy birthday"- she lied and stuck out her tongue- "Mikey!!"- and she turned around and let Frankie go- "You are never gonna find it!"

- "But I wanna call her!!"- he shouted, starting to lose it.

- "Why?"

- "'Cos I love her"- he whispered and felt Joey hugging him.

- "Come on, bróðir. You shouldn't do this... you know what's gonna happen."

Mikey broke into tears, and everybody was lost 'cos none of them knew what had happened.

- "Mikey, are you ok?"- Gerard asked and walked to his brother, honestly worried

- "I'm getting a divorce"- he simply confessed- "And I didn't want you to know."

The whole bunch of friends stayed quiet. Joey hugged Mikey again and felt him sobbing on her shoulder.

- "Dude, I'm so sorry"- Ray walked over and rubbed on his friend's back, as pretty much everybody in the room walked to hug him.

- "And you are not calling her,"- Joey added, and the whole bunch agreed with her- "You and I made an agreement when we were sober, and I am going to respect it."

- "Bug is right, dude"- Ray sat down next to Mikey and wrapped an arm around his shoulder in support- "You are going to regret everything you say to her in the morning."

- "You know what we should do?"- Joey kind of yelled- "We have to go to the Red Light District! Right now! I am gonna buy you a lap dance, my dear brother!!"

The girl's eyes shone as soon as she delivered that line, and no one in the band said a thing until...

- "Fuck yeah!!"- Frank yelled- "It's my birthday, and we are doing this!!"

- "We are not leaving the hotel this drunk"- Ray quickly said, being a bummer.

- "Can you stop being a dad just for tonight?"- Joey asked and pinched his cheeks- "Please! I can buy you a lap dance too."

- "Can you give me a lapdance, Bug?"- Frank asked, and Gerard clenched his fist.

Way had been in silence the whole time, surprised by his brother's news and not getting what was going on with that drunk bunch of people.

- "I'm just asking 'cos you are offering a lot, and I could help you save some money"- Joey hit Frank's arm and didn't even answer. Instead, she looked at Ray again and pouted.

- "Please, dad! Let me get a stripper to my friend"- and Toro chuckled.

- "Fine, let's do this, just 'cos I don't wanna be a bummer."

- "But I don't want a stripper"- Mikey argued- "I just wanna call my wife and tell her I love her!"

- "Mikey, you are getting tits on your face. You are not calling that bitch! Come on!"- Joey grabbed his hand and forced him to stand up- "I know I got this hot for a reason tonight!"

James was the first one to avoid the plan and returned to his room. The same about their tour manager, though he gently got them a van to take them from and to the bar and tickets to get into the best strip club in the Red Light District.

Gerard was only coming along 'cos he was worried about his brother and Joey. And about the fact Frankie sat next to her in the van, wrapping an arm around her waist, again. She smiled and rested her head on his shoulder for a part of the trip, and Gerard couldn't do anything to stop it. He only knew he felt he had to rescue Joey from his friend. And make his best not to punch him in the process.

Gerard hadn't felt this jealous in years. Years. He didn't even remember if he had ever felt like that about his wife. Probably he had... but he couldn't recall it, 'cos this blind jealousy had taken over all his brain.

Joey was on fire that night. She was pretty drunk and mostly very worried about Mikey. He was her buddy and best friend in the band, and she wanted him to feel a little bit better. He had always been the nicest with her, aside from Ray. She wondered suddenly what nice thing she could do for Ray, but it was Mikey's moment that day.

They walked into the BonTon Stripclub Club Amsterdam, Joey singing Careless Whisper followed by the band. They were all pretty shy about going to a strip club. None of them would have ever thought about doing such a thing... well, not in a long while at least.

- "Come on, kids!"- she chuckled and thrust Mikey in.- "Let's get more booze and a lap dance for my buddy!"

- "Was she always this..."- but Gerard couldn't finish the sentence.

- "Fun? Drunk? Hot? Yeah, she has always been that"- Frank said, wasted, and followed the girl inside, grabbing her by the waist and walking to the bar.

But that time, Gerard didn't just stare. He quickly moved along and grabbed Joey's hand. Ray frowned and nodded. He totally got what was going on right away, and he knew how childish any dispute between Iero and Way could be. They were both like kids when they wanted the same thing, in this case, Joey's attention.

- "Hey... are you ok?"- Toro asked Mikey as he stood still, looking around in shock.

- "How did we end up here?"

- "Joey is gonna buy you a lap dance."

- "Right..."

- "Come on, buddy."

The band sat at the private VIP area, 'cos Ray (being the dad in every situation, even when drunk) thought it was better to catch the least attention as possible. Joey argued no one was going to pay attention to them in a strip club but gave up arguing when she got a champagne bottle in her hands and got to pick a girl for Mikey.

- "It's my birthday!"- Frank said and smiled in the sexiest way he could, considering how drunk he was.

- "Do you want a girl on your lap, too?"- Joey asked and grabbed another ten euros from her pocket- "Let me get a hot one!"

Frank chuckled, he didn't want one, but it was fun looking at the girl all hyperventilated.

- "Fuck! What if she makes out with a stripper? Shit! she totally should make out with a stripper! I wanna see her doing that!"- and now Frank couldn't get the idea from his head.

- "Ok, can we settle on being here for an hour and then going back to the hotel?"- Gerard tried to convince the bunch, but no one listened. Joey arrived with another girl, placed the money on her bra, and sat with the guys to enjoy the dance.

- "Mikey, Natasha was just telling me she thinks you are hot,"- Joey lied, 'cos the girl's name wasn't even Natasha, and she didn't speak English, but no one cared actually.

- "Really?"- "Natasha" kept dancing on Mikey's leg as he looked at her hypnotized. Joey chuckled, thinking at least for a while her friend wasn't going to think about the shitty wife who dumped him. She knew a stripper wasn't the solution to his problems, but it wasn't going to hurt under the circumstances.

Ray looked at Gerard and chuckled. For being the one who wanted to go home an hour ago, he seemed to be having a good time. Way sipped his diet coke and laughed as Joey and Mikey danced for them to a Loveage song. The girl kept putting bills on the edge of Mikey's pants as Frank spanked him.

- "Best birthday ever!"- he shouted- "Can we do this every year?"

- "You don't get to celebrate your birthday in Amsterdam every year, Jersey!"- Joey laughed and sat next to him to catch her breath- "Fuck, I'm tired"- she closed her eyes for a second, and the room started spinning- "Oh fuck! I'm wasted."

- "We should go back, then"- Gerard quickly said, staring at her with a worried gaze. It was apparent she had drunk way too much, and he still felt the urge to carry her in his arms and put her in a safe place, probably in his bed, to take care of her on his own.

- "Not until Mikey gets one last dance!"- Joey rang a bell, and Ray closed his eyes.

Honestly, Ray never thought Joey could be like that when she got drunk. Then again, you never really know anybody until you are locked with them on tour for weeks, not having many more people to talk with.

A stripper walked into the room, and Joey pointed at Mikey. But the woman walked to her instead and held her hand. Frank clapped like a maniac as Joey and the stripper started dancing together. Gerard wanted to stop the whole thing, and at the same time, he felt like staring at the show, hiding the boner in his pants. It was a hot scene. It was way too hot. He had material to jerk off for an entire month.

The stripper ran her hands over Joey's body as the girl chuckled nervously but actually enjoying her time. She knew it was harmless, and she was with her buddies... and Gerard. She was drunk, and for some weird reason, she wanted him to want her. She wanted him to think she was sexy.

- "I'm not gonna do anything about it, but if I fancy him, it's only fair that he fancies me as well"- she thought, drunk. And so, she slowly moved even closer to the stripper and smiled, staring into her eyes. The woman smiled back and slowly ran her tongue on her lips, landed her hands on Joey's waist, moving her closer to her and kissing her.

- "Holy shit!!"- Frank Iero yelled, jumping on his chair. Mikey widened his eyes, not believing what he was seeing, as Joey and the stripper kissed once more, with more passion, a little dirtier than the first, before giggling and splitting. Frank clapped. It was the only thing he could do with his hands in public at the moment. Ray did his best not to make eye contact with Joey, who blushed and sat down, looking at Gerard. She was a little embarrassed, a little aroused, and mostly wondering if Gerard Way wanted her at the moment. The answer was yes, but she had no idea how badly.

The stripper finished, and the whole gang stayed in silence. Joey chuckled again as Frank burst out laughing.

- "I thought the onesie was the perfect present, but that show was priceless. You, my friend, are the fucking best"- and Joey giggled.

- "Guys are so simple, a girl just gotta kiss a girl to get some attention"- she mumbled and yawned.

- "Bug, are you ok?"- Mikey asked and sat next to her- "Bug?"

- "I think she is falling asleep"- Gerard said and moved his brother away from her- "Let's take her back to the hotel."

- "Ok, I'm gonna pay"- Ray stood up, but Joey raised her arm and chuckled.

- "Dad, it's all covered."

- "What Bug?"- he leaned closer and moved the hair carefully from her face.

- "I owed you"- she smiled, and Ray sighed- "I told you I was gonna get you something with my first paycheck... I got you hoes!! Best drummer ever, right?"- the whole band nodded and smiled.

- "Best drummer ever, Iceland"- Frank stood up with her and kissed her temple- "Now let's get you to bed."

Gerard grabbed her jacket and made sure there was nothing else left when they left the room. They all walked to the door, doing their very best to look sober... of course, except for Gerard, who was, as always, the only one sober.

Raymond Toro carried Joey in his arms, bridal style, when they got off the van. Gerard was helping his brother Mikey walking, along with Frank, who was doing his best to look sober than he was.

- "Best fucking birthday ever!"- he chuckled in the elevator- "Thank you, guys."

- "We love you, Frankie"- Mikey whispered and tapped on his back- "Remember that when I throw up on you in a couple of minutes."

- "No one is going to throw up in the elevator. Come on, let's get Joey in bed,"- Ray argued immediately.

- "I'll puke in her bathroom"- Mikey nodded in agreement with his own words.

Gerard checked on her things until he found the key to her room, and everybody walked in. Mikey rushed into the bathroom and locked himself in there. Ray walked to the bed and carefully dropped Joey on it. Gerard took off her shoes and hesitated for a second if he should take anything else off. But he didn't.

- "Dude, we really trashed her room,"- Ray said and looked around. Frank was drinking a can of beer that was left on a table- "Really?"

- "I'm not even so..."- Frank didn't finish talking and gagged. He had to rush to the bathroom and fight for a place to puke.

- "This got wild"- Ray chuckled and started cleaning. He was wasted, but he still acted like the responsible one. Gerard didn't answer. He sat next to Joey and looked at her in silence.

- "Dude, stop that"- Ray argued right away.

- "What? I'm not doing anything"- Gerard tried to act cool, but it was too late.

- "I'm drunk, but I got it, you have a cr..."

- "Shh!"- Gee commanded his friend to stay quiet, and Toro chuckled.

- "So it's true."

- "I don't! I'm just worried about what happened today with the fan and how bad I acted when we met her... I just feel like I owe her being extra nice."

- "Sure, dude"- Ray laid on a couch and yawned- "Just remember I met you a million years ago, and you can't fool me that easily."

- "I am not fooling you, just... stop talking or even thinking about this."

- "Fine."

Ray yawned again and closed his eyes for a second. Gerard turned to Joey again to make sure she was asleep, suddenly he panicked, thinking she might have heard that conversation. But she didn't.

- "Ok, I feel better"- Mikey said, stumbling over the bed and lying next to Joey.

- "What the fuck are you doing?"- Gerard nearly yelled.

- "I'm crashing with Bug here 'cos I don't wanna sleep alone"- he kicked off his shoes and closed his eyes.

- "Dude, you can't sleep with her!"- Gerard wanted to do that, but he couldn't, so he wasn't going to let anyone sleep with her either.

- "Shut up, you are not mom"- Mikey argued, cuddled with Joey, and fell asleep a second later. Gerard was furious, staring at the scene. His little brother was spooning Joey, and he couldn't do anything about it.

- "Ray, help me take Mikey back to his room"- he said and turned to his friend: he was snoring on the couch- "You have to be fucking kidding me, Ray! Come one! Let's take Mikey to his room"- Gerard shook Toro's arm.

- "He's already asleep there. Let him rest"- he mumbled and took off his shoes.

- "Really? Are you doing this too?"- Ray didn't even answer- "Fucking shit!!"

Gerard was about to yell and force everybody out when he heard Frank retching in the bathroom. Way walked over and opened the door. Iero has kneeled next to the toilet, flushing.

- "Are you ok?"

- "Yeah! Best birthday ever"- Frank smiled and repeated- "We hadn't had this fun in a long time, everything has been so serious lately... it felt good to just... be stupid for a while"- Gerard knew Frank wasn't just talking about the band- "And that chick, man! She knows how to party"- Way smiled and nodded.

- "Come on, let's get you to your room"- Frank nodded, and both of them walked out of the bathroom.

- "And where's everybody?"

- "Crashing here apparently"- Frank looked at Ray on the couch and at Mikey on the bed.

- "Oh, man! I wanted to crash here!"

- "Well, you are not!"

- "Why not?"- Frank whined, almost pouting.

- "There is no room to crash here!"

- "There is room right there!"- Frank laughed and walked to Joey's bed, but Gerard grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

- "You are not getting there!"

- "Oh, come on! Mikey is there!"

- "Can you shut the fuck up?!"- Joey grunted, her eyes still closed- "If there's room somewhere in this bed, get in there, stay quiet and make sure Mikey won't puke on me."

She moved to a side and hugged her pillow.

Neither Gerard of Frank said a thing. They just kicked off their shoes and crawled into bed. That was the fucking moment the two of them had been waiting for. In a way, at least.

Mikey cursed as soon as he woke up. He felt someone had hit him in the head with a stone. He opened his eyes and stayed still in shock: Joey was sleeping next to him. And so he panicked immediately.

- "What the fuck did I do?! No! no! No! I didn't fuck my best friend! Please! Somebody tell me I didn't fuck my best friend!"

He looked down and noticed he was fully dressed and that his brother was sleeping next to him. He was drunk, but he would never fuck his own brother. So for a second or two, Mikey felt better.

That until he remembered why he had gotten so drunk and his chest ached. He was getting a divorce. His wife had confessed she had been cheating for months now. She said she didn't love him anymore. He felt like he wanted to die. Not in an emotional way, but physically and painfully.

Tears fell from his eyes, but he didn't want to cry in the middle of the room surrounded by his friends. So Mikey slowly stood up and looked for his shoes.

- "Thank you, Bug"- he whispered and looked at the girl snoring before leaving the room quietly.

Gerard opened his eyes and contained his breathing for a second. Joey was sleeping next to him. It took him a minute or two to gather all the pieces of the night before. He stared at her making his best not to move. His heart was racing. He knew none of what he felt was right. He loved his wife very much. He had to stay away from Joey. But at the same time, damn it! He wanted to kiss her.

- "I don't wanna think about this anymore. Just five more days and this leg of the tour will be over, and I won't see her for a month..."- he slowly moved his hand closer to her but didn't dare to touch her. She could wake up, and he would be busted.

Joey started waking up slowly but refused to open her eyes. Her head hurt, and her mouth was dry. Hangover hit her as soon as she stopped dreaming. What happened the night before? It was Frank's birthday, they got wasted in her room... Mikey was in terrible shape... she forced them to go to a strip...

- "Fuck!"- she wide opened her eyes and sat on the bed as soon as she remembered she had taken her friends to a strip club, paid for lap dances to pretty much everybody, and even made out with one of the strippers.

But it didn't get better when she opened her eyes, 'cos first thing she noticed was Gerard and Frank with her on the bed, jumping with her yell, waking up pretty scared.

- "Oh shit! What the fuck are you doing here?"- she wide opened her eyes in shock

- "What? Oh... hey, Bug"- Frank opened his eyes and smiled- "We crashed your room 'cos we were too drunk to move."

Iero simply answered and laid back, to keep on sleeping. Joey looked at him and Ray on the couch, waving and literally falling asleep again a second later.

- "Are you ok?"- Gerard whispered and made her chill immediately. Gerard Way was sleeping with her on her bed. What the fuck?

- "My head is killing me"- the girl laid back and turned to him- "Fjandinn! (Damn!)"- she covered her face with both hands and wished to be sucked by the earth as soon as the memories kept hitting her- "Did I..."

- "Yeah, you kissed a stripper..."- Gerard whispered and smiled. Joey's cheeks were burning as she kept her eyes closed and covered herself with a blanket

- "Fuck, I'm so sorry, I never get so drunk and stupid and... I just..."

- "Nah, it's ok"- he whispered, making sure neither Ray nor Frank would wake up- "I mean, it was a fun night..."- he added, in a hopeless attempt to make the girl feel a little better.

- "Yeah, it was... but shit, I feel I made a fool out of myself"

- "Don't worry... you didn't"- Gerard made a pause and stared at her in deep silence for a moment- "It was... very... "it was so fucking hot! the way kissed that girl, I got a hard-on for so long, I almost locked myself in the bathroom of the bar to jerk off like a manic" very nice of you to try to cheer Mikey up."

- "He was so sad... he has been so fucking sad for so long..."

- "So you knew the whole thing?"- Joey stayed still and looked into the hazel eyes next to her. She could lie... but what for? Mikey had told everybody everything already.

- "Yeah... we've... he trusted me with his problems, and I've been trying to cheer him up ever since"- she made a pause and watched how Gerard's face was calmed and sweet. It was hard to concentrate if he was there staring at her- "Ég elska augun þín (I love your eyes)."

- "What?"- Gerard whispered, confused.

- "I... "Stupid!! It's a good thing you are rambling in Icelandic and not in English!" nothing, I'm just cursing 'cos my head is killing me."

- "Do you want to sleep some more?"- she nodded and took a look at her wristwatch.

- "It's too early to be awake"- he nodded and looked at her smile, scared to ask what he was about to.

- "Do you want me to go?"- he murmured and fought the instinct of moving closer to her.

- "No..."- she whispered immediately, not even thinking- "You can stay."

They looked at each other for a few seconds felt like minutes, though. Until Joey moved slowly on the bed and grabbed a blanket

- "Are you cold?"- Gerard asked and moved the blanket closer to her

- "Thank you"- he covered her with it and automatically wrapped his arms around her protectively, snuggling with her.

- "Goodnight, Gerard."

- "Goodnight, Joey."

When Frank woke up, he had to take a minute to remember where he was and what had happened the night before. He heard Ray's snores from somewhere in the room with him and rolled in the bed to see Joey and Gerard sleeping next to him.

- "What the fuck happened?"

Iero nearly grunted, staring at the scene. He remembered Mikey drunk puking, Joey kissing a girl, and... that was it. But none of that actually mattered that much, considering how pissed he was staring at Joey in Gerard's arms. She looked cozy and calmed, and... she could look even better in his arms. Why was she in Gerard's anyway?

Frank stared at her for a few seconds and then started coughing. Fake cough, noisy cough. Stridently enough to wake everybody up in a minute.

- "Are you dying?"- Joey asked, opening her eyes and staring at him, honestly concerned

- "I hope so, 'cos I feel like dying"- she smiled at him still in Gerard's arms. He was the big spoon in the hug, so Joey never saw his face when he woke up with her in his arms. Only Frank noticed that glance in his eyes. But refused to think his friend had a crush on the girl he was crushed on. They were both married men. They couldn't even think of being crush on her. It was just some silly thing, nothing to worry about.

- "Happy birthday, Jersey"- she whispered and smiled at her friend.

- "Thank you Iceland, I had a lot of fun last night."

- "It's still your birthday"- the girl added- "We can still do fun shit."

- "Stop trying to make fun shit"- Ray argued and walked from the couch to the bed, laying at it, next to Joey and Frank- "You are too young, and we are all old men who need to rest and eat soup."

The girl chuckled at his words and raised her hand, reaching Ray's wavy hair.

- "Move closer, old man, let me pet you"- she argued, and Ray chuckled.

- "We are not old men"- Gerard whispered and refused to take his arms from around Joey's waist, even though Ray and Frank could see him, and everybody knew it was weird.

- "You are the only one who's not hungover, man"- Frank smiled, watching how Joey was now braiding Ray's hair- "And yet last night you were the one who kept repeating we had to go back to the hotel."

- "'Cos you were all too drunk, especially you"- he said and shook Joey's arm sweetly.

- "Sorry, Gerard. I won't get that drunk and irresponsible again."

- "So you won't kiss strippers anymore?"- Frank asked, and Ray burst out laughing. Joey quickly grabbed a pillow and covered her head with it, forcing Gerard to remove his arms from around her.

- "I am never drinking again!"- the girl sentenced and stood up a few minutes later- "Now if you gentlemen excuse me, I am going to take a long shower. Then, I hunt this whole hotel for coffee... dad, when do we leave?"

- "After lunch, my dear, promiscuous, and slightly lesbian daughter"- Ray joked, and Joey grunted, walking to the bathroom and locking the door behind her back.

- "Get out of my room!!"- she yelled before starting the shower. Frank and Gerard sighed as Ray pulled them out of bed.

- "Come on! You heard her! Let's go!"

Joey took the longest shower. Well, Gerard's was longer 'cos he was jerking off. Just as Frank... not in the same shower. But it's not the point. Joey stood under the hot water for a good fifteen minutes 'cos she actually felt bad. She had flirted with Frank and with Gerard. She didn't know if they had noticed it, but she had, in fact, been a flirt with the two of them while being seriously drunk.

Besides, she slept with Mikey, Gerard, and Frank on the same bed. That wasn't better either. They were her friends, but they just met a few weeks before. She couldn't just act like that! They were all married. And besides, they were technically her employers.

Everything about the night before was wrong except for the part where they cheered Mikey up. Mikey worried Joey the most, and he and Ray were the only ones she wanted to talk to that day.

After her shower, Joey got into her sports outfit and hit the gym. She wasn't into it for beauty, but because she had to keep and work on her upper body strength for drumming. Besides, working out kept her mind from rambling into random thoughts, like Gerard's arms around her body. Damn, that felt good, which made it something very, very bad.

Gerard knocked on Mikey's room and waited, looking down at his shoes until his little brother showed up. Neither of them said a thing. Mikey walked back to his bed, and Gerard closed the door behind his back.

- "If you are coming here with the whole "Why didn't you tell me?" speech, I'm not in the mood for giving you stupid explanations."

- "I just wanted to bring you coffee"- Gee whispered and handed Mikey a cup.

- "Thanks."

- "How's the hangover?"

- "It's lovely, I am dying"- Mikey chuckled and closed his eyes for a moment. The tv was on, though neither of them paid any attention to it. Gerard sat next to his brother on the bed, and they stared at the screen for a while.

- "Frank is dying too."

- "The little rat was on fire last night... shit, how's Bug?"- Mikey asked, honestly concerned- "I'm gonna text her, her head gotta hurt like shit, hangover and hit with a bottle..."

- "She was fine. She kicked us out of the room and got into the shower."

- "Did she remember the whole stripper thing?"- Mikey snorted at his own words as she texted Joey.

- "Yeah, she was pretty embarrassed."

- "Dude, your boner was epic!"- Gerard looked at his brother and frowned, disgusted and busted.

- "What the fuck, man?!"

- "You looked so fucking funny trying to be the cool one"- Mikey was now laughing. Making fun of his brother was always something that made him feel better- "And hiding your woody with a jacket, adorable!"

- "Fucker!"- Gerard smacked his brother's head, but Mikey kept laughing.

- "You were at a strip club with two girls making out. You weren't the only one!"

- "Stop!!"

- "It's awkward to think about it because we were all hard at the same time, which is pretty much like watching porn together, and that's disturbing!"

- "Stop it!"

- "Never!! I'm the annoying little brother you had a hard-on with last night!!"- Mikey was laughing, and Gerard was disgusted- "Shit! That didn't come out quite right."

- "You think??!"

Gerard smacked him again, and they stayed quiet for another while. Mikey sighed and looked at the tv for another while. It was some random local show he couldn't even understand. But it was better than thinking.

- "Thanks for the coffee"- he whispered, and Gerard nodded

- "Any time you want..."- the silence continued for a while until Mikey turned to his brother and tried to explain.

- "I didn't want to tell you 'cos I didn't want to talk about it. I didn't even want to think about it, 'cos it made it real, and I kept trying to pretend it was all in my head"- he made a pause and rearranged the words in his head- "I told Bug 'cos I didn't know her, she was there, I was drunk... I trusted her, and she was understanding with the whole "we are not analyzing this shit" deal. We just talked about random shit the whole time, and whenever I felt bad, I'd told her, and she would come up with something to do to ease my mind."

- "She is a good friend"

- "The best..."

- "I'm sorry I was jealous you were spending too much time with her"- Gerard was honest. However, he meant he didn't know his brother needed to hang out with her so badly, and he was just jealous Mikey had her attention the whole time.

- "Anyway... I still don't wanna talk about it."

- "That's cool."

- "So, let's pretend none of that happens or even exists."

- "Deal"- Gerard wrapped an arm around Mikey and rested his head on his shoulder- "Wanna go get something to eat?"

- "Not really"

- "Too bad I'm forcing you 'cos I don't wanna eat alone."

- "Fuck you."

- "I'm your annoying older brother. Deal with it."

Frank wiped off the tears as he stared at his daughters on the screen of his phone. They were so beautiful, sleeping in their little cribs. Jamia smiled and whispered happy birthday for the hundredth time to her husband.

- "I miss you so fucking much"- he said and sighed.

- "Just a few more days and you'll be changing diapers"- she answered with a big smile- "I'm happy you had a big celebration last night."

- "Yeah, it turned into a "let's cheer Mikey up" kind of thing pretty quickly, though."

- "I can't believe she cheated."

- "Me neither... I wanna kill her. He doesn't deserve this."

- "At least he has you there."

- "Yeah, Joey was so drunk she dragged us into a strip club and bought Mikey so many lap dances"- Jamia stayed still thinking what she had just heard- "Sorry, I mean, nothing happened."

- "Frank, calm down. I just never imagined she would be like that."

- "Neither did we... but she... Mikey had only told her about it, and I guess she was desperate to get him happy somehow."

- "That's nice"- and Jamia meant it- "What happened with her head?"

- "She is pretty hungover."

- "I mean, with the hit she got from that fan, Frank."

- "Sorry"- he smiled and watched his wife's face- "She is ok, she was very calmed, Ray was a dad."

- "Shocking!"

- "Yeah"- Frank chuckled- "Her boyfriend hates me, though."

- "Frank, what you did was so fucking stupid, and I feel you still don't get it! I should hate you for making that hot guy mad at you! Now we are never gonna be his friends... and I wanted to spend the holidays with him in California, where it's hot, and he can walk around without a shirt!"

- "Jamia Iero!!"- and she chuckled.

- "Sorry, I got carried away."

- "Yeah, you did."

- "Happy birthday, Frank."

- "Thank you."

- "You are the only hot guy I wanna see without a shirt"- he blushed and smiled.

- "'Cos I've got amazing tattoos?"

- "Yeah, that too."

Ray and Joey were having lunch together in the hotel. The two of them were eating, sunglasses on, and drinking coffee with their food. That's how bad it was.

- "Please stop me next time you see me with a drink."

- "Ditto"- he quickly answered ad smiled- "You seemed to be having a lot of fun, though."

- "I was."

- "I never imagined you were that wild when drunk"- and Joey laughed a little. Her head didn't let her make or listen to loud noises.

- "Well, I'm not wild... I just... sometimes..."- she made a pause and blushed. The truth was simple: he never really partied that much. She didn't have a lot of friends to party like that. Tucker was the only one, actually. And they never saw each other.

- "Is everything ok?"

- "Yeah, just don't tell Matthew about the stripper"- and Ray nodded, laughing.

- "Deal... the whole strip club thing or just the kiss?"

- "The whole deal, especially the kiss, I don't know if he is going to like that."

- "Why not? It was hot"- Joey raised an eyebrow and stared at her friend- "Sorry, it was..."

- "I mean, Matthew has this thing where he keeps trying to treat me like a little porcelain doll or a fragile princess. And that's so not me. If he knows what I did, I just feel that he will think less of me or something."

Ray looked at Joey and noticed how honest and vulnerable she was. For the first time since they met, Ray saw her winding down her shield.

- "Come on, Bug. It's not like you killed someone."

- "I know..."

- "You should tell him because it's a good party story, and he is gonna think it's awesome. Besides, Gubler looks like a nice guy who loves you very much,"- she nodded in silence and sipped her coffee.

- "He is the sweetest guy I've ever been with."

- "See?"

- "I just don't wanna disappoint him"- Toro landed a hand on her, and she smiled- "This is when you say, "If he hurts you, I'm gonna kill him" or something dad like"- he chuckled and nodded

- "You know that's how I feel"- he smiled and stayed in silence for a second- "And you are grounded for being such a party animal"- he added in a very paternal tone of voice.

- "But dad!! All the guys were drinking!"

- "I don't care what the other kids did! You are grounded, and tonight we are staying at the hotel watching horror movies"- she smiled and nodded.

- "Best plan ever, dad."

The ride to Paris was very quiet. Everybody was still tired from the night before, so they all basically just slept the whole trip. Now Joey was avoiding Gerard and also Frank. She decided to keep a safe and professional distance from the two of them. Joey still felt awkward about everything that had happened the night before.

- "I'll see you guys tomorrow"- the drummer smiled as they got the keys to their rooms. Gerard smiled and waved. She cut him the tiniest smile on earth and turned to the rest of the guys.

- "It's still my birthday Iceland, we should eat something and maybe go out and see the city, what do you say?"- he shook her arm with a huge grin- "Where is the party girl from last night?"

- "She stayed in Amsterdam, sorry"- she answered- "Go and have fun, I just need to do nothing for a night"- Joey grabbed her bags and walked to the elevator.

- "Everything ok with her?"- Gerard asked, watching her walk away. He felt her distance, and it bothered him. After waking up with her in his arms, he just wanted to keep her close.

- "Yeah, she is ok"- Ray nodded and grabbed his bag- "Wanna get room service and watch a movie? Halloween special?"- the whole gang stayed in silence- "Fine, I'll be eating and watching some Halloween classics alone."

Joey lied about not wanting to do anything or about being tired. She just didn't want to be with Gerard or Frank. Mostly Gerard. So she locked in her room and talked with Matthew for a long while instead.

- "I can't believe I'm not spending Halloween with you."

Joey pouted as she looked at Matthew, sitting on his couch, wearing the dorky Halloween sweater she had gotten for him, eating candies. She was wearing the dorky Halloween sweater he had gotten for her, eating candies as well.

- "Yami, when we are together, every night is Halloween"- he whispered and smiled.

- "That's the cutest thing ever!"- she blushed, and he giggled- "What are you doing tonight?"

- "The guys are gonna come to watch some terror classics with me."

- "I was going to do the same with Ray"- she smiled, and so did he.

- "So, did Mikey overcome his hungover?"

- "Yeah, he is a champ, we watched a few movies on the bus on our way over, and I'm guessing he is in his room right now."

- "And the rest of the guys?"

- "I think they were all pretty sick today... we kind of went real wild last night."

- "How wild?"- Gubler raised an eyebrow and looked at Joey. The girl sighed and bit his lips.

- "I might have gotten drunk."

- "And?"- Matthew wasn't enjoying the course of the conversation.

- "And I... decided to... cheer Mikey up."

- "How?"

- "I took him and the guys to a strip club and paid lap danced for everybody."

Joey just spit it. She had to say it. She wasn't going to be able to keep it from her boyfriend that much longer anyway.

- "If he is going to be mad at that... then maybe he is not as cool as I thought,"- she said to herself as she stared at his face, as a grin appeared on his lips.

- "What?! a strip club?! I can't believe it"- and Matthew Gray Gubler burst out laughing- "You are so amazing!!"

- "Do you really think so?"- Matthew was still laughing, and Joey was in shock.

- "Yes, Yami! That's pretty cool"- the sigh sighed, relieved, and kept her eyes on Gubler.

- "I also kissed a stripper... a little bit."

- "Wow!"- Matthew almost choke on the candy corn he was eating.

- "She kissed me actually, I didn't do anything or asked for anything.... she kissed me, and I laughed and... that's it..."- Joey closed her eyes and stayed very still.

- "You had a wild night without me, young girl!"- Matthew stared at the screen, trying his best to stay serious- "Is there any chance someone had footage of that moment?"

- "No"- Joey pouted and opened an eye to see how Matthew was taking her confession. He was still smiling- "You are not mad at me?"

- "'Cos you kissed a stripper? No, Joey. It's a bit upsetting I missed it, but I am not mad at you,"- she smiled and blushed.

- "I can kiss a stripper when I come home so you can watch"- Matthew laughed and grabbed his phone, kissing the screen.

- "I just want your kisses, Joey."

- "I'm a good kisser"- the girl joked, chuckling.

- "Yes, you are. That stripper is a fortunate woman"- there was a pause in the call. Matthew had to get something out of his system- "Can you please promise me you will not put yourself at risk again, please?"

- "With my wild party lifestyle? I swear I am not drinking again after last night!"- Joey chuckled, but Matthew Gray was serious.

- "I mean, with the fan and your head."

- "Akumu, you know I can take care of myself."

- "Yes, I do... but..."- and this was something that frustrated him the most- "I want to be there to protect you if you are in danger."

- "I am not in danger."

- "You are away, and I love you. If anything happens to you, I would never forgive myself for being so far."

- "Matthew Gray, I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. And if something bad happens to me, it would never be your fault, 'cos your work is not taking care of me like a little princess. Your job as my boyfriend is to love me and support me the way I love you and support you."

That frustrated Matthew, 'cos he loved her and he wanted to protect her. He knew life had been hard on her. He knew why she could be so rational and independent. He just wished she could ever let him take care of her the way he wanted to.

- "Promise you'll come home safe"- he whispered, and she nodded

- "That I can do, 'cos I have too many kisses to give you, Akumu."

Ray walked to his room and laid in bed, talked with his wife, and ordered dinner. He was still pretty tired from the night before.

- "Dad? Movies?"- he read the text and smiled

- "Thought you were tired"

- "You promised"

- "Come over."

- "Everything ok, Bug?"- he asked when the two of them sat on his bed and picked a classic movie for the night: Halloween, the 1978 original.

- "Yeah, why?"

- "I don't know. You look off."

- "I'm hungover dude, this is the best you are getting tonight"- he nodded and grabbed a bunch of the candies Joey had brought. She was loaded with sugar for the night. Tons of Halloween candies, her only way to be close to Matthew that night. That, and the sweater.

The two of them laid down and watched the movie in silence. Ray wrapped an arm around her, and Joey rested her head on his shoulder. Neither of them overanalyzed it. It just felt nice and friendly.

- "Dude, there is something I've been longing to ask you for a long while"- she said, not moving her eyes from the screen.

- "Shoot"

- "How do you keep your hair so good?"- Ray chuckled and messed with her hair- "No! Don't destroy the best I could do with my hair today!"- she giggled and grabbed her phone after feeling the hum of a text- "Mikey wants to hang out, can he come?"

- "Are you asking me for permission to bring a friend over?"- Ray asked and closed his eyes- "Shit, I am your dad."

- "Yes, embrace it"- Joey grinned and cuddled back with him- "And thank you for that, I don't let guys take care of me"

Her conversation earlier with Matthew was still spinning around her head. She let her boyfriend take care of her, but maybe Gubler couldn't see it... she had softened a lot being with him in the last six months. Perhaps it wasn't evident for everybody, but it was for her.

- "Wait! Are you sure you are indeed letting me taking care of you?"- Toro's eyes widened, surprised at that confession.

- "Yeah! Since I signed that contract"- Joey made a pause and made her best to explain- "I kept thinking about what we talked about earlier... you give the protector friend I never had vibe 'cos..." - Ray held her hand and rubbed it with his.

- "'Cos?"

- "'Cos I'm not really good with friends, I usually push people away."

- "You haven't done that with me."

- "I know. That's weird... you give a long-lost best friend feeling like Mikey gives me the older brother sensation."

- "You feel like a little sister- she smiled and stood up to answer the door- "But I don't think you push people away."

- "I do... that's what I've been told at least."

Mikey smiled at the other side of the door and raised his arm, showing a paper bag.

- "I've got candies."

- "Awesome! Come in."

- "You are not pushing me away, Bug!"- Ray finished the conversation and smiled- "Hey dude."

- "What are you talking about?"

- "Joey says she pushes people away"- Toro sum up as Joey laid back next to him, and they cuddled again.

- "You are doomed. You are not pushing me anywhere"- Mikey added, kicked off his shoes and laid next to her, holding her hand- "You are fucking stuck with a Mikey Way now."

Joey chuckled and sighed

- "Guess I'll have to learn how to deal with that."

Gerard was staring at the ceiling, mortified. He had talked with his wife already, he was definitely not hungry, and he just wanted to knock on Joey's door and ask her if everything was ok. She hasn't talked to him since that morning, and it honestly felt she was ignoring him. That wasn't normal. No one ignored him.

- "You are not going!"- he said to himself in his head as soon as he stood up from the bed- "No! No way!"- he grabbed the key to his room and put on his shoes- "Fucking stop!! Aren't you listening to me?!"- his brain kept yelling, but his body was still moving.

- "Hello! This is Gerard Way from room 1305, can you tell me which is Maria Sveinbjörndottir's room, please? Yes, she is part of my crew."

He waited in line for a second, and to his happiness, Joey had a room on his floor, just two doors down. It was heaven to Gerard. He took a deep breath and walked over. He planned to ask if there was something wrong, smile, and go back to his room. That was it. That was everything. He just wanted to make sure everything was ok. Nothing else.

He knocked and waited. Nothing. Again. He waited a little longer, 'cos maybe Joey was asleep. Or in the shower... or something. But nothing. Slightly worried and mostly scared she could be with Frank, Gerard texted Mikey, just in case he was with her, 'cos he knew they were closer.

- "At Ray's, 1002"- Mikey texted back and stared at the screen again.

- "Why is there always a sex scene in every horror movie ever?"- Joey asked and kept chewing fun-sized snickers, or like Mikey kept calling them: Frank-sized.

- "I guess it's the guide of who's dying next"- Ray answered and grabbed some candies, too- "If you think about it, half of the fun in horror movies is figuring out who will die."

- "You are right..."

- "And it also helps to set the mood when you are watching a horror movie with a date"- the girl turned to Mikey, and he smiled guiltily- "If she is scared and she hugs you, you win proximity, but when a couple is banging on the screen, you win the chance to start rubbing her and getting the idea of having sex into her head."

- "You are disgusting"- Joey quickly argued and heard a knock on the door- "Please tell me that's a pizza. I would kill for a pizza right now."

- "Damn it, Bug!"- Ray argued as Mikey stood up to get the door- "Now I want pizza too!"

- "Hey dude"- Gerard stared at his brother and took a peek inside the room- "What are you doing?"

- "Watching movies"- the youngest Way walked around and headed back to the bed. Gerard closed the door and followed him, only to feel his heart aching. Joey was cuddled with Ray. His arm was around her. Her head was on his shoulder. Gerard wanted to hit him.

- "Hey... I didn't know you were busy"- Way whispered and stared at the scene. Joey looked at him, and her eyes just lock into his. Gerard didn't stop looking at her either. He felt betrayed. Or worst, he felt maybe their time together wasn't really that special, 'cos she would cuddle with everybody in the band, 'cos they were her friends and she wasn't making a big deal out of it like he was.

- "We are watching horror movies, wanna join us?"- Ray asked and smiled. He immediately noticed what was going on in Gerard's head and realized he would have to talk with his friend. He felt he was too crushed on Joey for his own good.

- "No... I just wanted to..."- Gerard wouldn't stop staring at Joey in Ray's arms. It just hurt too much.

- "Come on"- she whispered and moved from Toro's side- "There is room for one more. Besides, Ray is failing in his poor attempt to make me feel secure."

- "Dude!!"- Ray argued and softly elbowed her.

- "Auch!! You hurt me!!"- Joey exaggerated and rolled in the bed. Gerard smiled, though he was still feeling pretty jealous.

- "I'm gonna get that pizza"- Ray picked up the phone and dialed. Joey tapped on the bed and invited Gerard.

- "We've got Halloween candies"- she said, smiling. The drummer wanted to keep a distance from him, but watching him was making it too hard. He sat next to her and looked at the bag.

- "We ate most of the Snickers, but there are still some m&m's and Life Savers"- she whispered and felt Mikey's arm coming from behind her trying to reach the candies.

- "Bug ate all the good ones"- he argued.

- "Bróðir þegiðu!! (brother, shut up!)"- the girl quickly answered and slapped Mikey's hand coming out of the bag.

- "How many of these have you ate?"- Gerard asked and frowned- "You seemed to be a little sugar-rushed."

- "Maybe... could be... but it's Halloween, Gerard, it's the day I am allowed to do this, you can't judge me, you can only join me."

Joey raised an eyebrow making her best to look sexy. She shouldn't have, but she meant it as a joke. Not really. She just wanted to lie to herself. Just like the night before in the strip club, she wanted him to want her. Gerard grabbed an m&m and opened it. Joey turned to the screen and laid back in the bed to watch the movie. The oldest Way did the same and sat next to Mikey, 'cos it was wiser to stay away from the girl he wanted to make out with.

- "Where's Frank?"- Joey asked after a while

- "Out with James and Worm"- Mikey answered- "Now shut up and let me watch the movie."

- "Sorry"- the girl chuckled and opened another Snicker's bar. She wanted to be away from Gerard. But his body was a magnet too intense to resist.

After Halloween, they watched Bran Stocker's Dracula. Ate pizza and had a relaxed evening. It was all good until Joey decided it was time to go to bed. She yawned and stood up. She had managed to stay between Ray and Mikey the whole time, successfully avoiding being close to Gerard. She was actually proud of herself.

- "Ok kids, I'm going to bed"- she announced and grabbed her shoes, standing up- "It's not time to make a change, just relax, take it easy"- she sang, and Mikey threw her a pillow

- "I hate that song."

- "Me too! But shit is right there everything time I say goodbye. I don't know why my brain makes that fucking connection every fucking single time"

- "I'm going to bed too"- Gerard said, and Ray raised an eyebrow- "It's late, and we have a busy day tomorrow, full of interviews."

- "Yeah, we have to meet at the lobby tomorrow at nine, ready to leave"- Ray announced- "We start with a radio show at ten-thirty."

- "Oh fuck!"- Mikey whined immediately, and Joey grinned.

- "And while you do that, I'll hit the gym and relax"- she said and stuck out her tongue to her friend.

- "Shut up! No one likes a showoff."

- "No one likes a bad loser"- she added and jumped.

- "Ok, Bug, you really need to calm down. You had too much sugar"- Ray laughed, staring at her.

- "Fuck, you are right, I'm not gonna sleep in a long while... maybe I can make a marathon of scary movies... The Exorcist was in the pay-per-view, I'll watch it all alone and fucking traumatize myself" - the girl jumped on her spot and chuckled.

- "Ok, come on, let's go"- Mikey grabbed her arm and started walking to the door- "Bye, Ray."

- "Bye kids"

- "Thanks for taking care of me, dad!"- Joey smiled at him and waved.

- "Anytime you want, kiddo."

Gerard, Mikey, and Joey walked into the elevator. The girl pressed the 13th button and Mikey the 12th.

- "Which one?"- he asked, looking at his older brother.

- "I'm in the 13th too"- he answered with a short smile and avoided looking at Joey, which was pretty good for her, 'cos her cheeks were burning red.

- "Fuck! Fuck! Just say goodnight and lock yourself in your room, just say goodnight, and that's it!"- the elevator's door opened, and the girl smiled at Mikey.

- "Good night, bróðir"

- "Good night, Bug. I'll text you tomorrow"- Gerard smiled at his brother and tapped on his back- "Good night, dude."

- "See you in the morning"- he walked to the hallway with Joey and heard the door closing behind them.

- "I'm going this way"- the girl whispered and hoped Gerard was going the other way

- "Me too"- they walked in silence for a few seconds, it felt awkward, and the two of them knew it- "Joey, listen, I wanted to talk to you about something"- he just said it.

- "This is my room"- she announced, hoping to manage to get away from him.

- "Do you mind if I come in for a second?"- his words surprised him. He didn't think when he asked that. Joey didn't really have a reason to say no. She didn't want to say no. And so she nodded and opened the door.

- "Come in."

Her body shook at the realization they were alone in her room. Completely alone, just the two of them. That had only happened once before, and this time, somehow, it felt dangerous.

- "What is it?"- Joey asked and walked around the room, taking off her shoes and making her best to avoid eye contact.

- "I just... had the feeling you were mad at me over something."

- "Why would you feel that?"- she asked, pretending to be surprised. She wasn't mad at him. She was mad at herself for being such a flirt.

- "'Cos you avoided me the whole day"- he simply answered.

- "That's not true. I've been hungover most of the day, sleeping on the bus."

That was a lie. She watched tv with Mikey the whole trip, though they slept most of the time.

- "It felt like you were mad at me"- he said and kept looking at her, knowing she was avoiding his eyes.

- "You got it all wrong"- she simply answered and smiled, opening her bag and looking for a pajama- "Why would I be mad at you?"

- "I don't know..."- Gerard stayed quiet and walked around the room- "I know we didn't start with the right foot, and sometimes I feel like I'm still walking on eggshells when it comes to you"- he simply confessed. Joey raised his eyes to meet him.

- "Sometimes I feel the same about you. Until we talked about it, I actually felt you were avoiding me after we fell asleep together."

Joey made a pause and regretted landing her eyes on his. There it was, the magnet pushing her closer to him. He stood in front of her, feeling the same.

- "Maybe we are overthinking everything"- he whispered, and Joey nodded

- "Maybe we are."

- "So... friends?"- he reached out his hands to her and bit his lips- "You don't wanna be her friend, you really want to fuck her brains off, and you know it, don't you, Gerard Way?"

- "Friends"- Joey shook his hands and smiled- "I don't know why I've got the feeling this shit will never work out well."

They kept shaking their hands in silence for a while, longer than it should have been. They just stared and smiled at each other, lost in thoughts.

- "So..."- Joey finally whispered- "How are the crowds here in France?"- she asked the most random question ever, just to talk about something.

- "They are wild. It's fun playing here."

- "Great"

- "Never been to France?"

- "Never been to Europe, except Iceland"- Gee smiled and kept looking at her, still standing right in front of each other. He was fighting the urge to touch her. But it was too dangerous. The attraction he felt for her might actually cause him not to be able to stop once he began.

- "Maybe we can push the schedule to show you around, at least the Eiffel Tower"- the girl smiled and nodded.

- "That would be awesome"- and silence again, staring at each other was probably the only thing they couldn't stop doing when together.

- "And... are you gonna watch The Exorcist?"

- "Yeah, I'm not sleepy. Ray was right, I am in a sugar rush... and the worst part is, I still have some candy left, and I'm considering the idea of finishing them today"- Gerard smiled and watched how Joey took another bag of candies from her backpack.

- "Girl! Where did you get so many sweets?!"

- "Gub and I made matching candy bags for Halloween,"- she answered with a big smile- "And Mikey got me some more. I might have an addiction problem."

- "I bet you do"- Gerard stared at her with a smile and asked without thinking of his words- "Would you like some company to watch the movie?"- the girl wide opened her eyes and took a deep breath- "Don't feel pushed or something like that"- Gerard quickly added when he noticed her reaction- "I just... I'm not sleepy, and the idea of eating more candies was pretty tempting"- she giggled nervously and nodded.

- "Sure, let's watch the movie together, but you better be braver than Ray. He kept jumping with every scene.2

Gerard smiled and agreed. The two of them knew it was a bad, terribly dangerous idea. But still, it was what the two of them wanted.

They sat on the bed staring at the screen in silence for a good twenty minutes. They ate candies, they watched the movie, they were behaving great. But Gerard knew it was all bullshit. He needed to move closer and wrap his arms around her. It was totally harmless, though. Just a hug, not kissing, no nothing. Just holding her close, like the other day at the bus, or just like the night before. That had felt too good. He needed more of that.

- "I'm gonna get under the covers"- the girl announced and shivered- "I'm fucking freezing."

- "Sure"- Gerard stood up and moved the blankets, watching her getting under them.

- "Are you cold?"- she asked, and he nodded- "You can come too"- and so he did.

- "I could come, that's a fact"- he mentally slapped himself for thinking that.

- "What the fuck is your problem?! You got him in your bed! Underneath the fucking blankets! Do you have any kind of idea of the signals you are sending him?"- Joey was freaking out as she felt Gerard's warm body next to her- "I just hope he doesn't think I wanna make out with him or whatever... I mean, no, why should he anyway? I can do this with Mikey or with Ray, and I would never worry they could come with that idea... well, that's 'cos they are my friends, and I don't wanna fuck them the way I wanna fuck Gerard. Oh shit, Joey, you are fucking sick. Did you know that?"

Joey covered her face and jumped when a possessed Linda Blair kept stabbing her vagina with a crucifix. Gerard chuckled and felt how she instinctively moved to him and looked for protection. She did it so normally; she didn't even think about it. That part of the movie had always made her jump.

- "Come on"- Gee wrapped an arm around her and fondled her arm sweetly- "It's just a movie."

- "I know, but that's too upsetting to be true"- she covered her eyes again and hid her face on Gerard's neck.

- "It's ok, sugar"- he whispered and landed a small soft peck on her head.

His heart stopped for a second. He called Joey a pet name and kissed her. He hadn't. He shouldn't. He needed to undo it. Joey stayed still and made what anyone under those circumstances would do: she ignored the kiss and the pet name, sat down, and kept watching the movie.

- "I hate pet names, I hate cute nicknames, and yet, that one was heart-melting. Gerard Way fucking called me sugar..."- Joey sighed and made her best to focus on the exorcism taking place on the screen. It was very hard, though, considering all she could think of was Gerard's arm around her.

The movie ended, and neither of them moved. Joey was hoping Gerard was asleep, so he would stay with her the whole night and cuddle. Gerard felt the same. Exactly the same. The girl slowly moved from his chest and looked at him. His perfect nose, his thin lips. It was too tempting to have him there.

He blinked a few times and cut her a short smile. She rubbed her eyes and sighed.

- "Thank you for watching the movie with me Gerard, it was worse than I remembered"- he kept the smile on his lips as he rubbed his hand against his arm, still hugging her.

- "I'm glad I could help."

- "Best friend ever"- she whispered to remind herself she had to keep that distance.

Gerard fake grinned and stared at her. She was so close, he could simply just lean in a little and kiss her. It was so simple. She was right there. She stayed still, her eyes locked in his. She was never going to be his friend, and she knew it. That was an impossible friendship, no matter how much she'd try.

- "I have to sleep"- she whispered, but neither of them moved.

- "Me too"- they just stared at each other in silence. Neither wanted to move, but both knew it had to happen.

- "Thank you for hanging out with me"- Joey added, and Gerard nodded

- "My pleasure"- and pleasure was in Gerard's mind the whole time.

The girl slowly sat down and yawned. Gerard looked at her and smiled, then put on his shoes and stood up.

- "See you tomorrow, Joey."

- "Bye, Gerard."

++

taglist @all-tings-diego @worryd0ll

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[atinydise]

Ateez reacting to Hongjoong being a “grown man”

❦ Genre: Suggestive.

❦ Pairing: OT8.

❦ Word count: 12k.

❦ Requested: Yes, thank you! 🦋 

❦ Masterlist.

SEONGHWA

Seonghwa was cleaning the room. He was so thankful that you and Hongjoong were not so messy. He could clean the room peacefully without finding weird stuff or a ton of messy clothes on the floor like Wooyoung and Yeosang’s room. By thinking about that, Seonghwa was curious to know if everything was good between you and the leader. They barely see you at day since you are working or studying. And when you come to the dorm, it’s already pretty late. He was curious. How did you manage to see Hongjoong and to spend a few romantic moments together if you could barely see each other? It’s not like he wants to know your entire relationship, but he just wants to know how you make it works. When he asked Hongjoong about that, he only replied that you FaceTime a lot or that you text together the whole day. But nothing can replace the physical chemistry. “Do you need help Hyung?” Asked San. “No I’m fine,” he replied. It was his special moment; he needed to enjoy it, alone. When he finally erased all the questions from his mind, he put all his effort to cleaning. After cleaning the windows, all the surfaces and tidy all of his clothes in the wardrobe, he finally grabbed the vacuum cleaner. While the eldest member was humming to Thanxxx, he noticed that the vacuum cleaner made a weird noise. He wasn’t paying attention at first but at some time he really thought that he broke it. When he finally checked what was going on, he spotted an empty condom stuck on the brush. “I’m back,” entered Hongjoong, throwing his bag on the bed. “Oh, you are almost done cleaning?” Seonghwa was still petrified by the little item he was holding. He was hesitating to throw it on the leader face and yell at him or hide it to avoid an awkward moment. “Hwa?” “Did Y/N came here these last days?” Hongjoong raised a brow, curious to know why he was asking this question. “Yesterday, why?” “Just asking.” He finally said before rushing to the trash to hide the condom. “Why? Did she mess up with your clothes?” “N-no...” he stuttered, trying to hide the blush on his face. “Well okay.” Shrugged the leader. “Do you remember when I asked you how you could keep a good chemistry without seeing each other?” “Hum yeah?” “Forget it.”

YUNHO

Yunho was a little bit worried for his leader and especially for you. Hongjoong’s was busy the whole week and every time they had free time he replied that he couldn’t hang out with all of them, because of his work. Yunho thought that if he couldn’t even see his members who lives with him, he couldn't see you either. He concluded that you might feel alone without him. Since you arrived in South Korea, Hongjoong was like your boyfriend, your closest friend at the same time. It was difficult for you to make friends. So, Yunho decided to take care of you as a good friend. He bought a few meals at the pizzeria next to your university and went to the dormitory to spend some time with you. As a friend, nothing more. He texted you to know where your dorm was, but you never replied back. Yunho started to freak out thinking that you were probably busy somewhere. “Do you need some help?” Asked a random girl, who was surely talking with him because he was good looking. “I’m looking for my friend Y/N. Do you know where I can find her?” “Oh... she’s living at the end of this hallway. At the right door.” “Ah thank you.” He bowed to her before walking toward your direction. Right in front of the door, he knocked twice. But nothing. He tried again, but you still didn’t open the door. He really thought that you were out. But his instincts told him to open the door, thinking that you might be hurt. He took a deep breath and entered the room. “Y/N, it’s Yunho I was worried for y-“ he stopped, eyes wide open, “you...” “Yunho what are you doing here?!” Yelled Honjoong, rushing to put his pants back. “W- what? Me? What are you doing here?!” He asked. “You were the one saying that you needed to work.” “I was working.” He said. “Seems like that Y/N’s name is “work” now!” Claimed Yunho. You were looking at the scene in front of you. “Since when are you “working” with Y/N?” Asked Yunho out of nowhere. “I won’t tell you! This is private.” “But you were lying to us all this time!" “Oh come on! I didn't want to tell you 'Hi I'm going to see Y/N for private and adults’ moments together'.” He claimed sarcastically. You finally spoke, “since you need to talk... can you give me the pizza?” You pointed at the box on his hands. “How can you think about food in this situation?” Asked Hongjoong. “I’m hungry when I’m horny.” You claimed without thinking twice. “Oh gosh...” sighed Yunho, covering his ears. You shrugged at your boyfriend, “what? It’s true.”

YEOSANG

Yeosang was quite silent and calm most of the time. He wouldn't be the one initiating the tease, or only if he's in a really good mood. Because of his cold or distant personality, the other members mentioned that he needed to open up a little bit more with them. Sometimes they felt like he was sad or mad, just because he would stay a bit far from the fun (a.k.a the chaos). So he decided to listen to them and to interact a little bit more or to enjoy their presence. His first target was Seonghwa. They spent a whole morning cleaning the dorm. Useless to say that he didn't help Yeosang at all, he just wanted to throw the vacuum cleaner and to run away. After his hyung, he spent time with San. They went to the Taekwondo school and trained with his dad. Honestly, it was cool. Until San pushed him accidentally in the waist. So today, he decided to spend some time with Hongjoong. He knew that he would be busy, so he could rest on the couch and fake that he's enjoying some time with his hyung. So he went to KQ's building, He took his earphones and downloaded a movie because he knew he would be bored. Yeosang didn't text the leader. He wanted to surprise him. Then, he knocked loudly at the door, "Hyung! Let's get some fun today!" Just before he opens the door, Hongjoong pushed it strongly, trying to block his way. "Yeosang? What-" "I am doing here?" He finished, "I want to spend some time with you." "R-Right now?" he stuttered. "Yes why? And open this door, it's cold here." He tried to push the door. "Just! Wait a few seconds okay!" Hongjoong closed the door again. Yeosang stayed in the hallway, not understanding the situation at all. He knocked again, "are you okay there?" "Just 2 seconds!" yelled the leader. When finally Hongjoong opened the door to welcome his friend correctly, he spotted you on the couch. "Oh! Hi Y/N, I wasn't expecting-" he stopped, realizing that something was strange. Hongjoong bite his lips. He was scared that his teammates understand the situation. A long silence remained in the room. You were trying to keep the fake smile on your face while Hongjoong sat back on his chair as nothing happened. "Did- did you just? I mean? You were not doing sinful stuff, here right?" Asked Yeosang. "We-" "Wait stop! I don't want to know anyway!" he shouted, covering his ears before exiting the room. "I don't want to be social anymore!" he yelled enough loudly that both of you could hear it.

SAN

“I think you should lock the door,” you broke the kiss with Hongjoong. “I’m too busy right now to stand up to lock this.” He said, kissing your neck softly. You giggled at how needed he was. “But don’t forget that we are not alone,” you warned him again, pushing him a bit on the side. “Y/N it’s okay,” he held your hand. “They aren't dumb.” “What do you mean?” Hongjoong rolled his eyes, a bit annoyed by your question. “We are a couple; we are alone in a room, we put on some music... I mean... it’s obvious!” You stayed silent for a second. He was right. They were all grown men; everybody probably got the message. “So? Can we do it now?” He asked while you remained silent. “Okay.” “Thank you!” He said sarcastically before pinning you down on the bed. In a matter of time, all your clothes were spread on the floor. You were enjoying all of his ministrations and foreplays, but a part of you couldn’t relax. It was not the first time you made out with him while the other members were there but today you really felt like someone would come in. “Y/N, relax...” he whispered in your ear. Just the smoothness of his voice sent you on a cloud nine. “Ready?” He said, asking for your permission, as always. You didn’t have enough time to nod that San entered in the room, almost bumping the door on the wardrobe behind. Your heart made a looping in your chest. You knew something would happen. Your instinct never fails. “Don’t say anything,” whispered Hongjoong, knowing that you would say ‘I told you' or 'I was right’ as usual. “What are you doing?!” Shouted San covering his eyes to stop seeing his leader's naked butt. “Just get out San!” Yelled Hongjoong. “I can’t move! I’m like paralyzed or traumatized!” He shouted back. “I don’t know you were into profanities!” “San just get out!” Repeated Hongjoong. “What’s happening here?” Asked Seonghwa, entering the room. You thought that it couldn’t get worse, but the eldest member was followed by all the other members. “Please wake me up... It’s a nightmare...” you whispered. “What’s wrong with y’all!” Panicked Hongjoong, finally covering both of you. They all stepped back while San was still standing there, hands on his eyes. Seonghwa got the courage to come back in the room to pull him outside. “I-” you started. “Don’t.” He cut you instantly, falling back on the bed.

MINGI

"Okay see you tomorrow idiots," said Hongjoong, putting his backpack. "What? Hyung! You promised you would stay with us to watch Tenet tonight." Hongjoong grunted, he completely forgot that he promised this. "You can't leave us there just for work." "I was actually seeing Y/N tonight, it's her birthday and I wanted to surprise her." "Oh... okay." Sighed Mingi, a bit disappointed. Hongjoong felt really bad. These times they were so busy, but they all managed to find free time between all of their individuals' schedules to spend time together. "How long is this movie?" he asked, putting down his bag. "Around 2 hours," replied Yunho. "Well I will watch it with you, but I'll run to Y/N just after that okay?" They all nodded and Yunho played the movie. As always just at the beginning Jongho needed to pee, San and Wooyoung were fighting for the blanket, Yunho was already guessing the end of the movie and Seonghwa was staring at his phone. The quiet one was Mingi. And it was unusual. The leader thought that he might be really immersed in the movie already. To be honest, Hongjoong liked the movie more than he thought, even if it was really confusing most of the time. Just when the most confusing scene was playing, Hongjoong's phone buzzed on his pocket. When he grabbed his phone, he knew that was you. Without thinking twice he unlocked his phone to check your message. He and Mingi gasped when the light of his phone turned on to reveal a suggestive picture of you. Hongjoong stared at Mingi to see if he saw the picture too. "You didn't see anything okay?" "How I'm supposed to forget this!" Whispered Mingi. "Just forget it! I'm the only one allowed to see this kind of pic of Y/N." "Then keep it for you!" he replied. "I didn't want to know that you are having the fun of your life tonight! Or any day!" "Hey, we aren't at the theater but shut up," claimed Yeosang, not even caring about the politeness. "Just keep it for yourself!" Added Hongjoong one last time. Mingi didn't say anything but it was hard for him to forget this kind of pic of you. You seemed so shy and pure, but now he will definitely change his mind.

WOOYOUNG

“Is there someone inside?” You whispered in front of the dorm door. “No seems like they are still training.” Said Hongjoong. “Then we have approximately...?” you asked. “30 minutes. But let’s make it quick, so we are safe.” He pulled you inside, instantly removing your jacket. “Here?” You asked before kissing him frivolously. “No let’s go to my room.” Useless to say that you rushed there. Both of you were so needy that you threw off all of your clothes the whole way to his room. “I feel like it’s been an eternity since the last time I touched you.” He giggled, sneaking his hands around your waist. “If you were not too focused on your work, it wouldn’t feel like an eternity.” You stuck your tongue out at him. He rolled his eyes. You were always telling him the same thing. “Did you just... rolled your eyes at me?” You raised a brow, a bit angrily. “Yes, I did.” He replied coldly. “Really? Why? I mean it’s not my fault-“ “It’s not my fault too if I’m working too much!” “Wow calm down.” You sat on the bed while he was standing and looking for his clothes. “I never said that it was your fault.” “But that’s how I felt.” He claimed. When you wanted to apologize to him, Wooyoung entered the room. “What’s happening here? And w-where the rest of your clothes?!” He shouted loudly, hands in front of his eyes. “What are you doing here?” Shouted the leader, rushing to wrap you up in the cover. “Weren’t you supposed to train with the boys?” “You told me this morning to work on my high-notes!” He shouted, facing the wall. “And you? I mean both of you! What were you doing?” “I would appreciate it if you could erase Y/N in underwear from your mind.” “Just don’t do these kinds of things here! Dis.Gus.Ting!” he said, plugging back his earphones. “Oh because it’s not disgusting when you do it wi-” “It’s disgusting because it’s both of you!” He cut him off. While you were giggling at how shy he was, Wooyoung left the room and rushed to the kitchen. “And you better get both dressed! Don’t do this while I’m here!” He yelled from the other room. “And pack up your clothes before Seonghwa-Hyung sees this mess!” You sighed. 5 minutes ago, you were arguing with your boyfriend. The next minute, one of his teammates interrupted for good your intimate session and now... you needed to clean your mess. “What a wonderful moment...”

JONGHO

The boys invited you for a chill and cool day at the park. The weather was perfect, and the park wasn’t too crowded because it was the middle of the week. It was exactly what you needed and what you wanted, to relax from this stressful week. Plus, you haven't seen your boyfriend since a week and you wanted to spend time with him. Useless to say that you wanted to spend an intimate moment with him too. To make him understand that you were needy, you planned to tease him with the ice cream you bought. When he was looking at you, you would lick the ice cream extremely suggestively. Quicly understanding your ministrations, he would smirk at you. But unlucky for you, he was not the only one who spotted your little game. Jongho was glancing at you, trying to see if it was intentional or not. Just when he thought it was just a normal way for you to eat an ice cream, you winked at your boyfriend. Instinctively, he had a terrible gag. “Are you okay bro?” Asked San, looking at the maknae. “Please Hyung and Y/N-” he stopped. Your heart almost stopped, did he... “Take a room.” He claimed, disgusted. Yes, he did. You furiously blushed and almost threw the ice cream on the trash next to you, but realized it was a bit too far. “What are you talking about?” Asked Seonghwa, slapping his member’s arm for being a perv. “Ouch Hyung!” He rubbed his arm, “I saw their little game! She’s licking her ice cream to tease him! It's not the way it should be eaten!” You hide your face behind your hands. “I didn’t know you were so perv Hyung,” he looked at the leader, who was avoiding every stare on him. “I know that Y/N was like that but you!” He added before grabbing his phone. “Wait what-” you stuttered. “I’m not.” “We all know this already Y/N.” Said Yunho, smiling at you. “Oh gosh... please, someone wakes me up.”

[starrysupercell]

Sooo... Now that its my wif- Tara's birthday... Are the Mystics (And Bo) gonna celebrate it :D? I can imagine Gene trying to set up some kind of surprise party for her, that would remain a surprise for like 4 minutes...

DANG IT. Past 12. TwT

But here you go! An outline for how Tara’s birthday is celebrated this year. 🧿 best fortune teller in Starr Park tbh. Your wife says hi 💜

I really gotta start keeping track of the Birthdays to have these things planned out.

~

One of the many good things about how much time Tara and Gene have known each other, is he knows she'll figure it out.

The surprise for her will be not the fact that there's a party because she can easily see that, but the extent of it, because she can promise not to sneak a peek at it.

(But now she's curious! Also, she's so used to checking on the future,* it takes a very conscious effort to not do so.)

So, while Gene keeps Tara preoccupied by taking a walk around the Park, Sandy, the Tribe, Gale and Mortis (because they're also friends with the Mysticals bc of the skins, shush.) are in charge of decorating.

So, with only two responsible adults in this group, how well do you think this is going to go? :)

Gale: So do you have a plan for the setup?

Sandy: hm? >.o oh. Yy*yawns*eah. here you go... *hands him a paper*

Gale: ...this just has a rough sketch of the main room and a couple of balloons.

Sandy- mm..felt sleepy but there's still.... -.-...time to...zzzz....

Gale:

Mortis laughs because well they'd just have to wing it! (He would definitely ask Emz for help, but she's busy with the teen crew for plot convenience) As long as decorations are already bought, it should an easy thing in setting it up the way they want it to look.

....decorations are already bought, right?

Sandy softly snores, and the Party Crew realizes that's their answer.

~

Meanwhile, Gene and Tara walk through the Park. The plan is picking up a few extra gifts along the way before heading back to the main party.

Their first stop is Barley's for some drinks! He gifts one bottle of Tara’s preferred drink, but does charge for the rest. Along the way, we see Brawlers greeting Tara and wishing her well on her birthday.

Colette’s very enthusiastic! She knows all the Brawler’s birthdays, and wanted to make something for Tara!

She doesn’t really have extra money recently, since there was some recent change in management, and she usually makes more detailed items, but because of the money problem, couldn’t buy as many materials she needed, but she’s derailing, so she hands Tara her wrapped gift.

It’s a cute hand-made Shade Plush!

Tara is delighted and thanks her for it. It’s a pleasant surprise, and she appreciates it. Colette fangirls a bit, thanking her, and then waving bye as the Mystics carry on.

~

Back at the Bazaar, they're trying to brainstorm on what to do. Well, half of them present are. Sandy is asleep and Nita + Leon are playing around the house.

Mortis says the only things he has back home are.. well, decorations of a more... gothic type..you know,.. (Halloween decors. they’re Halloween decors.)

Gale also offers up... some Snowtel hangings, but again, ‘tis not quite the right season to be jolly.

Bo suggests makeshift decorations. The twins are good at crafts! .. but more so along the lines of forest materials, not sand and...

Everyone’s drawing a blank, and decide that they could gather up their own share of materials, and see what could work best. Their time limit won’t really allow a break after all.

So Gale contacts Lou and asks him if he could meet him halfway with everything he can carry. Try not to get caught by the Penguin boss. Lou, ever the chaotic good guy agrees.

Bo gathers up Leon and Nita and they head out to see what they can scrounge up.

Mortis wonders if he should call up Frank too since he’ll be here later to set up and provide the music, but decides to be ~generous~  and just send a flock of his Bats to pick some things up for him. He sees them off adoringly.

With a content sigh, he lounges back and waits for his precious lovelies to return with his ideal decorations. Sandy sleeps on...

~

Back with Gene and Tara, the next item to pick up is the cake. Piper has the order ready-- a black forest chateau cake.

“Magnificent taste, darlings!” she compliments. she has it all boxed up very fancily. “It’s on the house. Take it as my gift for you. Happy birthday!”

She’ll also be attending the party later. Tara thanks her for the cake. She and Gene then take their leave.

Along the way to their last stop at the new Castle environment for the food, (because while they don’t know Ash very well yet, Tara loves trying out the new items and pizza is always great for a party.)

“Hey, Tara! ...hold up.” Edgar jumps down from a building they’re passing, just because he can and . “...this is from the rest of the Gang. Me too, I guess. Happy birthday.”

~

The party squad are actually worse off than before.

The Shaman Tribe are back, and the Twins became interested in using fabrics to try and make something too. so they’re playing around with it pretty much.

Gale just arrived, with Lou joined along because he was interested in the party planning too. (So, the snowtel is understaffed right now.) but they’re just chatting instead of working.

Mortis’ bats haven’t arrived yet, and he’s getting worried. They don’t usually take this long in running errands for him.

Leon and Nita are practically playing catch right now. They knock over something that looked priceless. Oh, a crystal ball, perhaps. Bo reprimands them.

They haven’t gotten much closer to making up the room...

There’s a knock, and the group freezes because oh no, they’re out of time. but it ends up being Frank. A very unhappy Frank who was suddenly surrounded by screeching batties who kept picking apart the house while he was packing up his set up for the party. They followed him there afterwards, along with several things.

Mortis tries joking it off ;; , and then very quietly and off-handedly apologizes when Frank doesn’t find it very funny.

But then so hey!!! you’re here so decoration time, everybody! let’s hop to it!

Gene’s Lamp, Sliver, floats in. Sent by Gene himself to check on the progress. They were nearing after all. The Lamp’s alarmed by what it sees. That is, absolutely nothing.

It glares around, and spots Sandy still sleeping. Sliver floats over to him, and hops on him-- Wake up!

Sandy does so, but is very grumpy. “what?”

Tara’s Birthday.

“yeah? what about it?”

Don’t you care?

“obviously.” he swats at the lamp. “it’s tomorrow.”

>:( Today. It’s TODAY.

“,” Sandy looks around, as wide-eyed as he could be.

broken crystal ball, a mix of decorations, and nobody currently fixing up anything from the looks of it.

They’re on the way.

Sandy makes a face. “ok... game plan on the fly.”

~

The final stretch of the day out.

Gene and Tara are nearing the Bazaar, and along the way, Gene starts to get heartfelt.

He reminisces how they first met, how far they’ve traveled together, how much longer they’ve yet to go.

He wishes he could think of something to give her that meant something like the other gifts that she received that day.

He was a Genie, but after everything they’ve been through, she deserves much, much more than what he could ever imagine to conjure up for her.

Tara smiles. “(Don’t... put me on too high a pedestal, my Friend.”)

Don’t sell yourself short either. You’ve done so much.

“(Yes. I have.)” Tara muses unhappily, thumbing the doll.

Gene suddenly gets the idea of what his gift could be, but he needs his Lamp to start on it.

~

Right before the two opened the door, a pair of bats were hanging up the last decoration.

And when the two walked in with the final party supplies at hand and are amazed at the display.

intricate ice sculptures and a more snowy feel set up where the food would go. the music section where Frank set up (who was talking with Mortis.) had a darker aesthetic, including the balloons over there.

Lastly the rest of the place was decorated with very cute works of art. no doubt the Tribe kid’s handiwork. she recognized it from when they stayed over, and the gifts Bo’s gotten from them and shown her.

You’d think that the seemed like the mix of fancier silver decorations, a more gothic theme and natural crafts would look odd together... and well, it was quaint, but it was very pleasing to see.

a patchwork of oddities, not unlike this park, really. She’s always been fond of odds and ends. Tara loved it!

Sandy yawns and walks over to them. “we actually just got done with the set up. but if it makes you feel better, we can still hide right now and yell surprise.”

Tara laughs. It’s okay.. it isn’t like she could be-- but she appreciates it. Sandy shrugs, like he didn’t just call all the shots and work in a hurry with the other eight. “you’re welcome.”

Lou offers to help set up the food and cake. Gale helps too, after presenting his gift too.

Frank and Mortis notice the arrival of the Birthday Gal and wave her over. They chat animatedly-- it’s been so long since they’ve had the chance to catch up! They should plan something soon. Tara agrees, and their gift is from the both of them. I can see it being a very nice piece of clothing, though I’m drawing a blank as to what.

The Lamp reunites with Gene, and their perspectives merge again. Oh. the party was really cut close, huh? but it worked out well! what a relief. a scrap book of actual memories is what you have in mind? how very sappy.... She would like it.

Lastly, Bo walks up to Tara, greeting her and wishing her well on this day. He hopes she likes what they helped with ....he then has the Twins apologize for breaking a few things around the house--

Tara dismisses it easily. They can be replaced. The Twins, that is. (joke to scare them.) But really, as long as they were careful from now on, it was okay. the cub and chameleon agree with no hesitation and then run off to cause more mayhem, but quieter this time.

The Psychic smiles. The guests would be arriving soon, and it was already so lively.

Time to party~!

_______

*I’m still deciding on the extent of her powers, so future sight might not be a thing, because of the characterization I have for her. I’m thinking something along the lines of “Can see past events, and make very informed guesses based on what she knows about people, but cannot see the future itself.”