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attemptingtowriteagain · 5 years ago

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Masterlist - Updated 08/17/2020

Obi-Wan Kenobi

Obi-Wan Kenobi x Reader - Kiss prompt #1

Obi-Wan Kenobi x Reader - Kiss Prompt #2 (NSFWish)

Obi-Wan Kenobi x Senator!Reader

Obi-Wan Kenobi - I’m tired of being your secret

Obi-Wan - I might have slept in your robe while you were gone

Commander Cody

Commander Cody x Jedi!Reader

Commander Cody x Reader Imagine

Cody - I had a nightmare about you and I just wanted to make sure you’re okay

Cody - We both know that I should walk away but I can’t

Captain Rex

Imagine tripping over your own feet and Rex catching you in a dip

Rex x Padawan!Reader

Rex x Reader

Captain Rex x Jedi!Reader

Imagine Rex asking you to marry him

Rex - What’s in the box

Rex - So... Breakfast?

Arc Trooper Echo

Imagine spending a lazy day with Echo

Arc Trooper Echo x Reader

Echo - I don’t know why I’m crying

Echo - I adore you

Arc Trooper Fives

Imagine Fives always telling you lame pick-up lines

Fives x Reader

Fives - This is by far the dumbest thing you’ve ever done

Clone Trooper Jesse

Jesse x Reader (NSFW)

Jesse - If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were flirting with me

Jesse - Are you really flirting with me right now

Jesse - Ugh, not you again

Commander Wolffe

Commander Wolffe x Reader

Wolffe - Well this will make an exciting diary entry

Wolffe - Let me tell you exactly where in the hell you can go

Wolffe - The baby’s kicks are keeping me up

Clone Trooper Kix

Kix - I brought you some caf

Kix - Are you still awake

Clone Trooper Hardcase

Hardcase - First one to make a sound loses

Hardcase - I love you a lot, but please stop trying to cook me dinner, you suck

500 Follower Appreciation

14 - Morning wood sliding against your ass - Kix

25 - His fingers sliding between you own - Wolffe

NSFW 5-10 Sentence Requests

(Below the cut in case people don’t like NSFW)

NSFW with Fives or Wolffe playing strip-poker? XD Thank you ;)

NSFW Headcanon: Can I get a hc where the reader strip-dances around Hardcase during a night at 79’s? owo

Hello there! For NSFW headcanon thing: may I please request first time with Obi?

NSFW head cannon request: Rex likes to surprise his S/O in the shower to initiate intimate times ;) Thanks a ton!

You said so yourself, you can send as many as you want!!! THIS IS GONNA BE GOOD!!! Lemme request a Tup ficlet, where they do a quickie before battle?

NSFW headcanon Request. Fives enjoys morning sex. Please and thanks!!

3rd time here again, back and betta aye Lemme get a Kix ficlet where Kix teases the reader throughout the day, and when they get into the barracks shit really starts going uphill?

NSFW Headcanon request please! Wolffe likes marking his s/o😏 p.s your writing is AMAZING liebling😍i love you💞

NSFW headcanon request: Cody finds the reader masturbating to him; Cody gives them an intimate time after finding them in that stance? ;)

NSFW headcannon: Hardcase loves the risk of getting caught. Thank you so much!

Hi! Can I request a NSFW with Fives and Reader having sex after having some stupid fight? Thank you!! :)

THERE HASN’T BEEN A CODY NSFW HEADCANON SO HERE IS MY THOT ASS- Nsfw ficlet Where Cody likes to use leashes on their s/o?

I love your writing! Can I get a 5 sentence NSFW Wolffe? That he loves to eat out his s/o on the kitchen table? Please and thank you!

Can you do the the Nsfw headcannon of Captain Rex fucking his gf while she wears his helmet? THANK YOU🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

For the NSFW headcannons can you write Hardcase loves cumming in his ladyfriend? I need more of him❤️ You’re the best!

NSFW head cannon please and thank you : Echo is reeeeaaalllyyy good at oral ;)

NSFW head cannon request: Anything with Rex and blindfold. Pretty please and thanks!

Hello! NSFW with a frustrated Wolffe after lost a battle? Thank you!

I just had this thought as like, an NSFW headcanon where Fives likes to talk dirty in his s/o’s ear just to tease them during the day and to just get them in the mood

NSFW ficlet with Hardcase? His S/O and him went on a secret mission, and his s/o is dressed up in a extremely revealing costume, and Hardcase just does them when they go back to Coruscant. Thanks! I REALLY LOVE THESE

NSFW heascanon for Cody. He starts off slow and loves foreplay but once the first article of clothing gets removed the whole mood changes 😉

Nsfw ficlet where his s/o is a pole dancer, and during their break, Cody just takes them backstage and just pounds into them relentlessly until his s/o cannot walk straight?

NSFW Ficlet with Kix? Kix likes to do BDSM with his s/o?

NSFW request: Rex’s reunion with his girlfriend after a long time apart gets heated ;). Thanks!

Nsfw ficlet with Fives? He likes to use sex toys on his s/o?

Your writing is awesome! Can I request nsfw Cody with a jedi lover after thinking they were dead (dat sweet ‘i almost lost you’ stuff tho)

Hi! Can I request an NSFW head cannon w/ Wolffe please? He really likes it when his s/o rides him? Thank you!

NSFW Request: Captain rex being the readers first time. Thanks a ton!

NSFW with Fives throwing a “special” birthday party for reader?

NSFW ficlet with Rex? He loves to use sex toys on his s/o in bed?

Hello! I really love your stories, and I am so in love with these NSFW ficlets!! Could I request with Jesse, please? Jesse likes to use his hands on his girl to make her cum a lot???

Nsfw headcannon? Fives loves getting head in public Thank youuu

i see that you’re writing again!!! may i get a nsfw request where cody likes to finger his s/o and see her squirt?

I see NSFW requests are open again >:D Rex gets too stressed sometimes working on files so his s/o decides to help relieve his stress by riding him

....nsfw clones? Hmm. Any that doesn't get enough love or your muse...or who fits best for this. GF that loves going down on them. And if your feeling it. Separate or together. F2f who loves being railed against a wall by their lover ;p

I love your writing! Could you write NSFW with cyborg Echo and his s/o? His metal arm could vibrate and they used it in bed. S/o convince Echo that he's still her Echo no matter how he looks.

im a hoe and im back for the requests. ANYWAYS, can i get a nsfw request where hardcase has his s/o pose up as a stripper and he gets really turned on so he fucks her really hard in the back rooms 😳😳😳

Yo I asked for an nsfw request a long time ago when they were closed and I'm so glad they're back. ❤ Can I *cough* *slides a $20* get: Can I request a rex nsfw ficlet and he and s/o got a thing for cum. Like lots of it and everywhere. 👌

Headcannon idea, Obi Wan wall sex? Or sex standing up, where he is holding the reader?

Could you do Obi Wan face sitting?

can i get a nsfw request where cody likes to get called ‘commander’ in the bedroom?

Nsfw request: Rex making his s/o squirt for the first time and being really into it??

hey! can i get nsfw request with commander cody where the reader fingers herself on a comlink video call with the commander? he commands her on what to do and stuff? thanks!

nsfw headcanon thing idk - for kix: he gets a holovideo of his s/o masturbating and he jacks off to the video then his s/o catches him; then they masturbate to one another before fucking ❤️ thanks

Can I ask for an NSFW headcannon with obi wan and the reader engaging in some bdsm?

nsfw headcanon - tup loves to eats out his s/o on the table; his s/o loves to praise him and run her fingers through his long hair. thanks!

Hello there! I love the frustrated Wolffe NSFW headcannon and was wondering if we could get one for Rex?

NSFW for Rex- reader is a huge tease and Rex finally snaps and roughly fucks the reader

nsfw request with hardcase pretty please? he likes to pick up his s/o and eat them out against the wall as he squeezes at her tits? thank you☺️

NSFW with kix needing some help from his “nurse?”

NSFW: fives eats you out from under your desk while a commander tries to talk to you!

nsfw prompt w/ jesse - they catch their s/o pleasuring themselves and see their lewd expressions and sounds; jesse teaches them some patience

hello! can i have a nsfw prompt with fives? reader is his s/o and she gives him a lap dance for him? fives takes care of her ;)

nsfw with wolffe asking his s/o if he's making them feel good

NSFW for captain rex and s/o where the s/o is pleasuring themselves when rex walks in and they're super embarrassed and tries to apologize when rex decides to help them

NSFW Jesse eating out mechanic reader while she’s bent over fixing something?

for the nsfw request! Echo talking dirty to reader at inappropriate (and appropriate) times 💙

Nsfw prompt with Cody - Cody saves reader and she repays him for his heroic act

nsfw prompt for echo - his s/o wears very revealing clothing around him and echo can't take it anymore and rips off her clothing. thanks

NSFW request: teasing Jesse in front of the shinies and he orders them to clear out so he can fuck your face 😜

NSFW: Fives x reader where it’s the readers first time please? Thanks!

i’d like to request a nsfw prompt with echo? his s/o always sends him lewd photos of herself for him when he’s away, and when he’s coming back she sends him a picture with her in his favorite set of lingerie. thank you❣️

Idk if it’s canon but I feel like Jesse is a bit bigger than your average clone? I was hoping for the NSFW prompt you could write something about him having a size kink and teasing the reader by saying dirty things throughout the day! Thank you!

NSFW with Rex where the reader made him jealous and he snaps? Thanks Love

nsfw prompt - reader is wolffe’s s/o; s/o rides/sits on her commander’s face ;)

Can you do a NSFW with Cody where he just teases her throughout the whole day please? Thanks.

Jesse smut pre order 66

nsfw with wolffe when the reader enjoys teasing

wolffe fucking his s/o inside a laat gunship? thank u❤️

NSFW: could you please do one where the reader is Cody’s first time?? I’ve never seen it done before, and your writing is amazing I thought I’d as you!

Nsfw of Wolffe fucking the reader.

900 notes · View notes

livthedragon · 4 years ago

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Dream SMP Animal Rescue Center AU

The L’Manburg Animal Rescue Center (LARC) is a well-known institution dedicated to the well-being of all animals known to man. The facility receives animals from all over the world, and has staff fit for any creature that gallops, swims, flies, climbs, or runs into their care. With hundreds of acres of land at its disposal, the Rescue Center is equipped to care for animals that cannot be released back into the wild for as long as they may live. Come and visit with our season pass, or drop by anytime with admission tickets half off for the kids! Anyone 15 or older is welcome to come and volunteer their help towards these wonderful beings!

Alright, now that the official canon stuff is done, I’d like to make a few quick notes on pthis AU! First off, this was inspired by Dazenightmare’s Grocery store AU, so go check them out as well! If you have any idea or comments about this piece, the ask box is always open! Anyway, I hope you enjoy, and without further ado, I present my DreamSMP Animal Rescue Center AU!

-Liv💫

(P.s, I’ll be setting things up by showing the character’s official staff introductions first, and then my personal notes on them! This is how most things will be presented!)

Our Wonderful Staff!

Listed below is all of our fantastic employees, each with important and essential jobs to keep LARC running smoothly! If you ever need anything, they’ll be happy to help!

Even though they all have differing roles and places in the hierarchy, the staff have always been tight-knit friends, almost a family. But, like any family, they definitely have their spats! As I come to think of more stuff I might edit this, but so far the employees are Nihachu, Puffy, Eret, Philza, Fundy, Wilbur, Tommy, Tubbo, Quackity, Techno, Ranboo, Purpled, Ponk, Awesamdude, George, Dream, Sapnap, Bad, Skeppy, Karl, Hbomb, Jack, Jschlatt, Foolish, and Ant. (Official names for introductions are Niki, Cara, Eret, Phil, Floris, Wilbur, Tommy, Toby, Alex, Dave, Ranboo, Grayson, Ponk, Sam, George, Clay, Nick, Darryl, Zak, Karl, Liam, Jack, Johnathan, Noah, and Antfrost, in the same order as above. These are the real names of most of the characters, I couldn’t do the ones that haven’t done a name reveal. (I didn’t change Wilbur because it just did not feel right) If there’s a character you wanted to see that’s not here I’m sorry, it means I just don’t know enough about them. (I’m so sorry Punz fans, I’ll add him eventually but I’ve never watched him before and don’t want to improperly represent him!) The minors (Ranboo, Tommy, Tubbo, and Purpled) are technically volunteers and not employees, so they’ll be presented separately. I mention the Regulars (regular patrons) a couple times, these include other MCYTs! So keep an eye out for special appearances! Sadly, SBI is not canon in my AU. It just didn’t make much sense to me as I tried to write it, but if you want to interpret them as family you can! (They’re still very close, so they act just like a family even though they’re not related by blood!)

Clay - Clay is the manager of our facility, and has run it for 3 years now! He’s proven to be a capable and fun leader, and you can often find him wandering about with some other staff members! If you ever see him around, don’t be afraid to ask him for anything!

Dream - Since Dream is the founder and main leader of the SMP, making him the manager made the most sense! He kinda has two ‘settings’, his official business mode for when he needs to handle serious work, and his more chill mode he presents when he’s just hanging out with everyone. He’s never really pulled the ‘I’m your boss so listen to me blah blah’ thing before, he actually prefers to emphasize that he’s on the same level as anyone else, just with a fancy title. He’s only brought out his manager mode when it comes to his employees a few times before, like when one of Tommy’s pranks went too far, and when George was slacking off just a bit too much. Other than that, he’s a nice guy who considers all of his employees his friends, but he’s often busy with ‘manager things’ as he says.

George - Our trusty head of security, George is responsible for keeping our guests safe! He’s in charge of things like security cameras, patrols, and safety regulations regarding people. He’s often found manning the cameras or patrolling about! If you ever get lost or feel unsafe, he and the other security members are always ready to help!

George - He sleeps. A lot. When it says ‘often’ manning the cameras, that means always. Always manning the cameras, and 9 times out of 10 he’s sleeping. He patrols like, once a day for the bare minimum time purely because he has too. The only reason he isn’t fired at this point is because he has uncanny luck. Every time anything comes up that he’s needed in he’s always awake, without fail. Every time a crime (not really crimes more like petty stuff, vandalism and shoplifting from the souvenir stands) happens he always sees it. No one knows how, because he’s always sleeping anytime else. Despite that, he’s a pretty nice guy that everyone gets along with, and does his job good enough to keep people safe.

Nick, Sam, and Cara - Our loyal security guards, who faithfully patrol and protect! It”s their sworn duty to keep animals and people alike safe, and can always be turned to if needed! They can be found rotating between the different wings of the center, and are glad to help with any issue! You can easily identify their signature blue uniforms!

Sapnap - Since George is nearly always ‘occupied,’ Sap is usually the one who handles planning patrol routes and shift changes. Although he can definitely be mischievous or a jokester at times, he does take his job seriously. He’s kind to the little kids that visit, and likes to give them tours whenever Ponk and Eret are busy. He’s loved among the regulars, and knows them all by heart. He’s pulled his fair share of pranks (most often with Tommy, Skeppy, and even occasionally Dream to help him) but he takes care to not cause any serious damage. Overall, he’s a prankster, but he loves his job and fellow employees.

Sam - Although he’s officially a security guard, he’s more like the resident handyman. Whenever there’s a problem with any electrical or plumbing systems (usually the fault of Tubbo, the poor kid breaks everything he touches) Sam usually handles it. He’s reliable, he doesn’t pull jokes like Sapnap does, but he can respect a good one. Despite being rather intimidating at first, Sam is gentle and can often be found helping Ant with the birds or Wilbur with the gazelles. He cares deeply for everyone, especially Tommy, Tubbo, Ranboo, and Purpled, and helps protect people whenever a Karen comes into the picture. He’s the one who helps elderly people cross the busy paths and gives directions to lost tourists.

Puffy - When she was first hired, people wondered why she chose to be a security guard. She was gentle and kind, and tried to avoid any and all conflict. But when a group of teens were spray painting the reptile house, it became obvious. Those kids not only volunteered to clean it themselves, but asked if they could help clean up garbage around the paths while Puffy stood over their shoulders. She’s been famous for her lectures ever since, and can even get Techno and Tommy under her thumb. Her gentle side definitely helps, and because she’s far less intimidating than the other guards, she’s the one who helps lost kids find their parents. She’s confident in herself, and shows it. No one questions her while she’s on patrol, despite being the smallest of the guards, she’s one of the strongest.

Eret and Ponk - Our lovely tour guides, they’re in charge of all the tours around the facility, from the reptile room to the butterfly greenhouse! Whenever you book a tour, one of these two will be in charge! They’re kind and energetic, and can be found with the scheduled tours all over our institute!

Eret - Eret is the more comedic of the two, often slipping in sarcastic jokes here and there on the tour. He’s not afraid to hide who he is, and he’s well known among the regulars for wearing extravagant outfits every now and then. Of course you always have the occasional Karen, but the moment one starts to approach him one of the security guards ‘conveniently’ needs his help. Whenever there’s some sort of event like a holiday or birthday, Eret is usually the one who volunteers to plan it. His parties are legendary, everything is always planned to perfection, and always runs smoothly. No one knows how he does it, it’s like he can predict catastrophe before it even happens. Tommy is mildly scared of him because not one of his pranks has worked on him, he always manages to get out of it (While looking fabulous, of course!) Despite his sarcasm and nonchalant behavior, he loves his job and ‘family’ he’s found!

Ponk - Definitely the more energetic of the two, he never seems to run out of stamina when he gives tours. He’s popular with the little kids because he gives out little stickers at the end of the tour, most often custom ones of all the famous animals. Whenever he’s off duty, he has a game he plays where he mixes all of the vending machine drinks together and sees who’s brave enough to try it. Sam is usually the victim, he has a hard time saying no to him! He’s been known to join in the occasional prank here and there, but never anything crazy (Like the famous Tiger incident, Tommy got suspended for a month after that…) He really cares about all his friends, and always comes into work with a smile!

Zak and Darryl - Responsible for running the various shops around our rescue center, these two are dedicated workers who can always be relied on! They’re always willing to lend a hand, and can be found at their respective stores! Don’t be afraid to say hi or ask for help!

Skeppy - Most definitely cannot be always relied on. I mean, he’s Skeppy, what do you expect? Whenever he’s on duty he’s responsible enough, but when off duty he’s even more of a trouble maker than Tommy! His stand isn’t usually as busy as BBH’s, so he has a lot of free time to goof off. He uses most of that time to plan pranks or tease BBH, much to his annoyance. Despite Skeppy always teasing him, he considers BBH his closest friend and would do anything for him. He’s faced his fair share of consequences and punishment, but he’s always managed to weasel his way out. He’s crafty and a troublemaker, but he’s also a good friend and a loyal worker when it counts.

BBH - One of the most loved members of staff, he gets along with everyone he meets. He’s kind beyond measure, and never hesitates to help. Pretty much the opposite of Skeppy, who often annoys everyone. But opposites attract, maybe that’s why they get along so well! Whenever Sapnap and George are busy, Dream usually turns to BBH for help and advice. Since the stands aren’t busy all that often, BBH usually helps out wherever he’s needed, he especially loves helping Wilbur with the butterflies. Like Sapnap, he also gets along great with the little kids, who love to hang out with him! Because of Dream’s soft spot for him, he managed to get permission to bring his dog, Rat, into work to ‘help’ him at his stand.

Alex - Alex is our responsible janitor and handyman, always ready for anything that could happen! He’s hardworking and kind, with a good sense of humor! You’ll find him wherever he’s needed, always willing to help!

Quackity - Like I said, Sam is more of the resident handyman, so Quackity usually handles the cleaning. He tried to fix wiring on the meat freezer one time because Sam was busy, but it did not… end well… he somehow flooded the whole room. The introduction isn’t entirely wrong, he is responsible and hardworking, but he’s not exactly ready for anything that could happen. It’s not his fault, it just seems that no matter how much he prepares some new problem he’s never dealt with before comes up. Like when the peacocks escaped, or the infamous Tiger incident. (When he saw the destruction that caused he just dropped his mop and said “I’m taking my vacation time now, fuck this”) He still has his sense of humor though, he enjoys yelling at Karens in Spanish to scare them off. He’s yelling about the weather, but they can’t tell the difference.

Karl - Our fantastic admission worker, he’s the first face you see when you walk in! He’s in charge of admitting all of our guests, and to answer any questions you have before entering! He can be found at his booth helping anyone and everyone!

Karl - Still had his signature good attitude and positive outlook, he’s probably the most willing to help people. Since he’s the only admission booth worker (Schlatt occasionally takes over, but he’s usually busy with his own stuff) he doesn’t get much break time in the busy season, but when he does he usually spends it with his friends. He’s goofy and kind, with a giggle that quickly got him loved by the regulars and everyone else he meets. On the slower days, usually in winter when the tourists aren’t around, he likes to sit everyone down in the break room and tell grand stories about different points in history. These tales quickly became enjoyed by even the most reluctant members, much to his suprise. He’s a very skilled storyteller, but he’s also very humble and insists he’s mediocre. He’s a great guy and loved by everyone around him, the perfect first face to see when you enter LARC. Recently, however, people often catch him stealing glances at two certain individuals throughout the day…

Johnathan - Our loyal help desk worker, he’s here for any issues you may have during your time at LARC. He’s here for anything you need, from booking tours to answering questions. Johnathan is in charge of making sure your stay runs smoothly and is as enjoyable as possible! You can find him at his desk all throughout the day!

Jschlatt - I have no actual reason for why he has this job I just thought it would be funny. Out of all the members of the rescue center, he’s the one who’s mastered the customer service smile and voice the most. He’s kind of had to, considering what his job is. Surprisingly, it isn’t as hellish as it would seem. Most of the time it’s just people booking tours or asking simple questions, which doesn’t require that much interaction. Dealing with Karens is a rare occurrence, but not unheard of. He just hits them with the “Lady, I am not paid enough to deal with this. Either go talk to the manager or ask Karl for a refund, now at least move aside so I can do my damn job.” He has a lot of free time because of this, but he’s not allowed to leave his post so he just plays Solitare on his computer and chats with whoever’s nearby. Even though he’s sarcastic and reluctant, he is a good worker and gets the job done. He rarely shows it, if at all, but he does care for all of his fellow workers and enjoys his job because he gets to be around them.

Phil and Liam - Our specialized veterinarians are equipped for any animal that needs their care, from elephants to bats, scorpions to dolphins. They’re both capable and experienced, and can be found wherever they’re needed to do their jobs!

Philza - Definitely a capable vet, he’s probably people’s first choice when they need help. He’s worked at a few other places before LARC, but he insists that this is his permanent job until he retires. Although he tends to focus purely on work when on the clock, when he’s off duty he opens up a lot more. He enjoys out with everyone in the break room, most of all Wilbur, Tommy, Techno, and Ranboo. Sometimes his wife comes in to volunteer for a day, much to everyone’s enjoyment. Since Phil is the resident dad, she was named the official mom of LARC and was given a very fancy cardboard crown. Despite his reluctant behavior on the surface, he can be passionate at times… rarely. Very rarely. He once chugged one of Ponk’s concoctions from hell and walked away unscathed, mumbling “I drink more caffeine on my good days, try again with an extra 10 energy drinks mate.” Ponk has practically worshipped him since, no one had ever been able to take any of his drinks before Phil. Overall he’s a good natured guy who loves both animals and people, but tends to avoid the public paths because it’s so crowded.

Hbomb - More of Phil’s understudy than an official vet, he’s still learning quite a bit. That doesn’t mean he’s not capable, he’s great when he’s working on animals he’s familiar with or illnesses he’s dealt with dozens of times before. This is his first job as a veterinarian, and he found it quite overwhelming at first. Despite this, he quickly won over his fellow staff with his charm and humor. When asked who his best friend is, he jokingly answers “Fundy!” While Fundy violently shakes his head no in the background. He’s relatively carefree, but he can absolutely get serious when his skills are needed. He’s fine with not being the go-to guy to help with the animals, he’s content with helping Phil whenever he’s needed and sticking to the sidelines.

Niki - Our lovely Marine Biologist, she keeps the aquarium and other aquatic exhibits running smoothly. She’s an expert in her field, and we can go about our days knowing she has everything under control! She can be found most often in the aquarium, but keep an eye out for her around other exhibits!

Nihachu - Because the aquatic exhibits are the smallest and have the least amount of animals, Niki can usually run it smoothly. She’s passionate about her job, and has loved animals since she was very little. She originally joined LARC purely for experience, but as time went on she just… never left. She has no plans to either, she loves the strange family she’s found, and the constant flow of new animals keeps her on her toes when it comes to her passion. She never really wanted fame or riches from Marine Biology, she chose to do it because of her love for zoology. On her off time she usually hangs out with Puffy or Wilbur, since their jobs place them near her area. She’s a lovable and soft spoken, but can be serious when needed. She more than pulls her weight in LARC, and has proved herself many times over.

Dave - A spectacular zoologist who specializes in predators and their behavior, Dave handles even the most deadly of animals with calm mannership. He has experience with every apex predator, and treats every animal he cares for kindly. He may seem unapproachable, but he’s willing to help anyone who needs it. He can be found all around LARC, but most often by the big predators.

Technoblade - He has proved the statement “Technoblade never dies” many times over. Many. Times. Over. He’s faced bears head-on with no safety equipment (which is not good, please use safety equipment when around wild animals) and come out unscathed. All of the permanent predators at LARC that can’t be released have acknowledged him as an equal, and accepted him into their hierarchy. Even the most aggressive of the big cats hold respect for him, but not through fear. Techno refuses to ever, ever use fear as a tactic to win over animals. He claims it’s not right to rule over other beings through fear, especially such regal ones. He takes his job very seriously, and hates his interactions with animals interrupted. (Tommy did it once and he swears to never do it again.) He’s very skilled, but he often gets put aside when the inspector comes around every 6 months because of his refusal to use required equipment. He may still be as serious and no-nonsense as ever, but he holds his friends close. He doesn’t like to be in the public eye, so he stays as behind the scenes as possible. Like Jschaltt, he doesn’t show it much, but he cares for everyone in LARC.

Wilbur - The counterpart to Dave, Wilbur is our herbivore specialist at LARC! He’s responsible for the majority of the herbivores in our institute, from gazelles to horses! You can find him all around our facility, and if you’re lucky you might catch him feeding the animals!

Wilbur - He’s the opposite of Techno in a lot of ways besides just his job. Will actually likes to be in front of a crowd when doing his job, and even got Dream to add an official feeding time for the popular animals so people could come see. His intentions aren’t vanity though, he just likes seeing how happy it makes everyone. Because he cares for the majority of the animals at LARC, he can often be found with Phil and the other animal caretakers. He’s especially close to Phil and Tommy though, and Tommy often finds ways to change his schedule to be closer to him. (Tubbo usually follows Tommy, and then Ranboo follows Tubbo, it’s a whole chain reaction.) On his off time he occasionally causes mischief with other staff, but he’s chill most of the time. He cares a lot about all of the animals he cares for, and makes sure to form a bond with each and every one. Every now and then he brings his guitar to work, and can be found quietly strumming it and humming along in secluded places. Sometimes he even plays it in front of the animals, much to their confused enjoyment. He might be carefree most of the time, but he takes his work seriously and has a close bond with everyone at LARC.

Floris - Floris is our resident field specialist, here to use his experience to help wherever he can! He’s often one of the first to see new animals or release old ones, and always does it with a smile on his face! You don’t see him as often as the other animal caretakers, but he can be found throughout LARC!

Fundy - He’s been all over the globe since he graduated, since he got to study under a rather eccentric zoologist. No one knows why he decided to work at LARC and not somewhere more recognized, but they’re not complaining. Whenever he’s on break, he likes to retail all of his adventures in a dramatic manner, but no one knows if they’re true stories or not. Sometimes he shows proof of his escapades, but most of the time he leaves it up to everyone to decide for themselves. But whether his stories are true or not, he definitely has the experience of someone who’s travelled the world. No matter the animal, he seems to know how to predict their behavior perfectly. He’s as excitable and loud as ever, but he loves his job and all the creatures he’s gotten to work with. Oftentimes he’s in charge of keeping tabs on animal behavior, so he’s the first to note when something changes or goes wrong. He has journals full of notes on different animals, both from LARC and his time traveling. He’s definitely passionate and dramatic, but he’s also a good guy that just wants to help animals.

Antfrost - A fantastic mammalogist, he’s been at LARC for a few years now and has proven himself as a great scientist. He knows how to deal with a variety of mammals, from the tiniest bumblebee bats to the biggest elephants! If you ever have any questions, feel free to ask him!

Ant - Like Niki, this is his first real job in zoology. He was out in the field for about a year and a half, but he was basically an errand boy for the bigger names he was working with. That’s not to say he’s not skilled though, he’s fantastic at what he does. He often asks Fundy for his notes on the various animals to get to know them better himself, and has read the majority of his journals. He was timid around everyone at first, but he gradually got close to his fellow staff. It was the same when it came to big animals, Wilbur had to help him during his first time with the elephants, giraffes, and other large mammals. But soon he got used to them, and now he spends most of his time with animals. He has no plans to leave LARC, he’s found that this job is more than enough to keep him busy and happy. He’s a bit shy, but when he opens up he enjoys being around everyone.

Jack and Noah - These two, although not often seen, and essential for keeping everything running like a well-oiled machine! From lending a hand wherever it’s needed to helping prepare food, Jack and Noah work tirelessly behind the scenes to make sure everything is a-ok! If you ever do spot them, they’re ready to help with whatever you need!

Jack - The more experienced of the two, he’s been working at LARC for a long time now. He can be mischievous at times, but he’s responsible and knows his job is important. He struggles a bit to be close to everyone, despite the fact he’s been at LARC for a long time. He’s acquainted with most of the staff, but he’s not sure if he can really call anyone a close friend. He does have a good relationship with Tommy and Niki, but they always have so much going on and often overlook Jack. He grins and bears it though, keeping his loud and comedic attitude. He’s often all business and work, but there are times he wishes he could just be friends with everyone, and envies the very social members of staff like Quackity and Tommy. He may be a bit distant from everyone, but he still gets along with them… at least that’s what he always tells himself. He’s a bit stubborn, but overall a good guy who’s willing to help

Foolish - Foolish has only been working at LARC for a few months now, but he’s already made quite a few friends, both animal and human. When he’s working he tends to stick to himself, but when on break he enjoys hanging out with others and having casual conversation. He actually has a little corner of the break room for his hobby, making mini-models! He’s very good at it too, he has an intricate Egyptian setup that everyone likes to ogle at every now and then! Every so often he stays after for a bit to work on them, and no one has the heart to disturb him when he gets into it. He spends a lot of time with the animals, especially the aquatic ones. He seems to be drawn to the aquarium, and he’s often caught staring at the ocean tank. He’s positive and high energy most of the time, but he’s not to be underestimated.

Our Volunteers!

Volunteering is open for anyone interested in working at LARC non-officially, as long as you follow our rules and are 15 or older! Our current volunteers are

Toby

Tommy

Grayson

Ranboo

This is subject to change at any time! If you’re interested in signing up to be a volunteer, contact us either through our official website or our in-person help desk!

Volunteers aren’t allowed to be up close to any of the large or dangerous animals for their own safety!

We hope to see new volunteers soon!

Tubbo - He breaks. Everything he touches. Much to Quackity’s dismay, who’s often stuck cleaning it up. He doesn’t mean to break things, he just… does. Despite being quiet and even shy at times, Tubbo is without a doubt the most chaotic person in the entirety of LARC. He doesn’t pull off jokes or pranks like Tommy and Skeppy, he just subtly radiates chaos wherever he goes. He and Tommy are in charge of helping the westward wing (The area with the Africa, North America, and Insect House exhibits, as far away from the Aquarium as possible because Tubbo will break everything) and occasionally the Reptile House. A volunteer’s work isn’t exactly exciting, they mainly cut up and prepare food and do whatever Jack and Foolish are too busy to. Tubbo doesn’t really mind though, he finds the work rewarding and even fun at times. Even when the food he has to prepare is especially gross, some time helping Wilbur with the beehives always makes him happy.

Tommy - Oh man, Tommy… what problems hasn’t he caused? It seems that everywhere he goes he can manage to cause trouble, often roping Tubbo and Wilbur into it. It’s a miracle he hasn’t been fired yet (can you fire a volunteer? I don’t know) despite everything he’s done. He did get suspended for a long time after the Tiger Incident, but that’s the worst punishment he’s faced. He’s also not allowed to be near any of the people that come to LARC because last time he went “Vlogging” and scared away multiple guests. That was Jschaltt’s busiest day and he still has not forgiven him for it. He’s often stuck behind the scenes with Tubbo preparing food, but every now and then Wilbur, or even Techno if he’s lucky, lets him help feed the animals. When he’s off duty he can be found pestering Wilbur, Phil, and Techno or getting yelled at by Dream for causing problems. Despite being nothing but a troublemaker, everyone around him can’t help but have a soft spot for him. And on rare occasions, you can catch him leaving gifts for people to show his thanks for dealing with him.

Purpled - Probably the most laid back of the Volunteers, he’s actually allowed within 40 feet of the Tiger enclosure. (Although he has been known to solve problems by chasing people with a foam sword and yelling “Bedwars!!”) Since Tommy and Tubbo are usually on food duty, Purpled’s the one who delivers stuff to various places around LARC. This results in two things, no one ever being able to find him when they need him and him randomly appearing behind people when they least expect it. Seriously, he’ll just appear out of thin air to scare the shit out of you 5 minutes after you need him. He doesn’t even try to do it, he just… does, somehow. He’s a good worker though, and doesn’t complain much. He somehow managed to convince Dream to get an Xbox for the break room, and every break he gets he challenges random members of staff to a game of bedwars. He beat almost everyone without a hitch, except Technoblade. Currently they’re tied at 38 wins each, and Ranboo brought in a whiteboard to keep track. He may be a bit reluctant, but he likes LARC and can’t see himself leaving anytime soon.

Ranboo - Probably the most shy of the Volunteers, he tends to keep to the background and avoids the big, public areas. Because he’s the gentlest (and the most trustworthy) of the helping staff, he’s usually the one who gets the jobs involving animals. This usually includes helping Niki give the ducklings baths and feeding the deer with Wilbur, but like it says he’s not allowed near any potentially dangerous animals. He’s the tallest person at LARC (but by far the kindest) which results in him often scaring the animals at first, much to his dismay. Because he’s also on the taller side, Wilbur taught him a few tricks to seem less intimidating, which helped greatly. When he does open up a bit (usually around Tommy and Tubbo) he can be a bit mischievous and chaotic, but he knows when to stop. He hopes to become an official member of LARC one day, but for now he’s content with being just a volunteer.

Remember, LARC always welcomes guests, new or returning! We hope to see you soon!

Thank you guys so much for reading, this AU took me waaayyyyyy too long to write, and I’m psyched to finally have it done! I’d be super happy to answer any asks you guys leave, or any questions you have in the comments! Again, thank you so much, and I hope you enjoyed!

-Liv 💫

36 notes · View notes

ddaengjo · 6 years ago

Text

love me like you do ┊ hwang hyunjin

genre: best friends to lovers au, fluff, angst

pairing: reader x hyunjin

warnings: cursing, drinking, infinity war spoilers

summary: you had been best friends with hwang hyunjin since grade school. you both knew each other like the back of your hand, and you shared everything with one another. in fact, all your friends joked that you’d eventually get married, settle down, and have five kids. of course, the both of you just saw that as funny, since you were both currently dating other people. but that was before everything became a complete mess.

author’s note: this is my first fic! i hope you all like it, because i definitely enjoyed writing it. (p.s. ― i use all lowercase when not writing formally, but in all my writing pieces i make sure to capitalize and use proper grammar!)

You're the light, you’re the night You’re the color of my blood You’re the cure, you’re the pain You’re the only thing I wanna touch Never knew that it could mean so much, so much

It was the sound of your phone buzzing loudly that woke you up at 2:30 a.m., groggy and angry and ready to fight the world. You groped around your bedside table, trusting your fingers rather than your sleep-blurred eyesight ― considering you were already myopic to the point that you could barely see something three feet away without your glasses on, you could trade eyesight with a bat and still be better off at this early hour. After a long while of uncomfortable straining, you finally sighed in victorious relief, your fingers closing around the smooth case of your phone. Dropping it onto your pillow beside you, you squinted at the bright screen, trying to adjust to the sudden burst of light in the dark room. You swiped your finger across the screen, unlocking it, and opened your texts to find new messages from your best friend, Hyunjin.

[2:30 a.m.] Y/N Y/N Y/N

You groaned, rolling your eyes and falling back against the pillows, debating on whether to answer his text or just leave him on read. Your innate sense of compassion (Hyunjin always swore that you were nothing but Satan, while everyone else who WASN’T your best friend since grade school and DIDN’T clown you for a living always called you a sweetheart) won the battle, and you ended up answering. But that didn’t mean you were going to play nice.

[2:33 a.m.] hwang hyunjin you better have a good reason for this because if i weren’t so fucking tired i’d punch you in your perfect teeth.

[2:38 a.m.] aw good morning to you too 💖💖💖 i’ve been up all night trying to make a head or tail of this history project and it just makes NO SENSE UGH Y/N I NEED YOUR GENIUS INTELLECT RIGHT NOW AND RIGHT HERE

[2:42 a.m.] i absolutely hate you and your procrastinating ass.

[2:43 a.m.] says the queen of procrastinating herself 💀💀

[2:45 a.m.] YOU WOKE ME UP AT 2:30 AM YOU ASSHOLE SO STOP CLOWNING ME OR I’M MUTING YOUR NOTIFS AND LEAVING YOU ON READ 💀💀

[2:47 a.m.] FINE FINE JUST COME HELP ME

[2:48 a.m.] i’m too lazy to get out of bed so i’m just gonna skype you. but dw, you’ll still feel the salt coming off me when i talk 😘😘

[2:50 a.m.] y/n you beautiful wonderful human being i love you so much i’d throw myself under a truck for you.

[2:53 a.m.] lmao don’t let minjoo hear you say that unless you want her to actually throw ME under a truck buddy 😉

You couldn’t help smiling; it was impossible for you to stay angry at someone as goofy and vibrant as Hyunjin, especially because you knew him so well and for so long. You didn’t really care that you were wearing just a strap-sleeved tank top and shorts, or that you had a bedhead; Hyunjin had seen you in far worse states, like when you were in the fourth grade and had the stomach flu for a month. That was bad. You closed your texts, opening Skype instead, and clicked the very first contact, waiting for Hyunjin to pick up your video call. He picked up right on the second ring, grinning ear to ear; he was wearing his “I ❤️ NY” shirt, his favorite gray hoodie, and khaki shorts, not to mention the goofy smile he always wore when talking to you.

“How’s Satan doing today?” he joked immediately, his face lighting up at the sight of you. His eyes twinkled with mischief as you rolled your eyes.

“Just fine, thanks,” you grumbled. “As great as one could be at almost 3 o’clock in the morning, when even the BIRDS aren’t awake.”

“For all it counts, I think your hair seems to be doing great at almost 3 o’clock in the morning,” Hyunjin said sagely, nodding his head. “I mean, it’s hiding your devil’s horns really well, and it also doesn’t look like a mama bat had a mental breakdown while making her nest!”

“I hate you.”

Hyunjin pretended to clutch his heart, wounded, despite the grin still playing on his lips. “Aww, Y/N, now you’re just being cruel. You know you don’t mean that.”

As much as you hated to admit it, you knew he was right. And he knew, too, judging by his little smirk. Had you been sitting next to him in person, you’d have thrown a pillow at him by this time.

“All right, what is it you don’t understand?” you asked, rolling your eyes yet again.

“Everything!”

You swallowed the urge to groan loudly. This was going to be one long, long night.

You're the fear, I don't care 'Cause I've never been so high Follow me to the dark Let me take you past our satellites You can see the world you brought to life, to life

You managed to get three hours of sleep that night, thanks to your dumbass of a best friend. He owed you big-time, you thought, sipping your coffee through pursed lips while glaring balefully out the window as you waited for him to show up at your house. You both had walked to school together since you were eight and he was nine; you weren’t planning on stopping that even when you were in college, since you were both hoping to major in some form of art ― he in photography, you in writing ― and attend the same university.

It was 7:30 a.m. when Hyunjin came jogging breathlessly up your driveway and let himself in using the spare key you’d given him. You had half an hour to kill before your bus arrived, so you’d not only made yourself coffee, you’d set a mug on the table for Hyunjin as well. He took it gratefully, crossing the kitchen in a few large strides ― he was a literal ten inches taller than you, with his 5’10” towering over your 5’0” ― to join you by the counter, where he wrapped an arm around your shoulders. To anyone else, it seemed as if you were both dating, but it to you both, it was merely just a gesture of affection between two old friends.

“So, Bigfoot, you took your sweet time getting here,” you commented dryly, looking him up and down with a wry little smirk. Your smile fading, you sipped your slowly cooling coffee and added, “All jokes aside, though, you look God-awful.”

“Thanks.”

“Your dark circles make it look as if you got punched in the eyes by an angry jack-in-the-box, and you’re looking pretty pale in the face,” you said bluntly, shaking your head. “Hyunjinnie, you’re driving yourself crazy. When you’re not staying up late for music lessons and photography projects, you’re staying up late doing your homework. You have to get more sleep.”

“Yeah, about that…” He ran a hand through his hair, rubbing the back of his neck absently as his eyes met yours. He guided you over to the couch, sinking into the seat next to you as he continued. “I’m sorry about last night. I know you didn't get much sleep because of me. So, to make it up to you, I called Minjoo and Yongwoon up, and we’re doing a movie night double date at my place. My treat.”

Hyunjin was so considerate. That was one thing that made you love him so much ― he didn’t just throw some fake apology at you and forget about it; he tried to make it up to you in full. He was like that with you, with his girlfriend, with your boyfriend, everyone.

As soon as the wall clock read that it was 8:00, you grabbed Hyunjin’s hand, practically hauling him out of the house as he chuckled, trying to keep pace with you. “Relax, Y/N, the bus is never early!”

“I know, but Yongwoon is!” you panted, skidding to a halt at your bus stop, where your boyfriend was waiting as usual, one hand in his tousled black hair. “Hey, Yong!”

“Y/N! You’re early!” He exclaimed; you caught sight of the odd expression that flitted across his face and realized that you were still holding Hyunjin’s hand. You let go of your best friend’s hand, seeing his girlfriend, Minjoo, standing a little distance away; Hyunjin fist-bumped you as he passed you, greeting his girlfriend with a brief peck on the lips. You turned to your own significant other, who pressed his lips to yours for a moment before asking, a little edgily, “Why were you holding Hyunjin’s hand? Y/N… do you like him?”

There was a long breath of silence after his words. Finally, you began to laugh ― not at him, but because you found his question funny. “Sorry ― sorry, Yong, that was just really funny. Babe, Hyunjin and I are just really good friends. We’ve known each other since our sandbox days! Things like holding hands and hanging out a lot are just… things we’ve been doing for a really, really long time. But it doesn’t change anything for us. We’ve been doing this for over a year, and I love you just the same, see?” You kissed him again, and this time he had no complaints.

As soon as the bus arrived, you scrambled to reserve the back row for yourself, Yongwoon, Hyunjin, and Minjoo; you’d all sat there as a group since freshman year. As usual, you slid into your window seat, with Hyunjin dropping into the one next to yours, as Minjoo and Yongwoon dropped into the seat across the aisle. You didn’t see the look that passed between his girlfriend and your boyfriend because you were too busy looking over Hyunjin’s paper and making small revisions, which were mainly just grammatical errors, since the majority of your cramming session had been last night.

“I think this is good,” you said finally, as the school came into view. The smile Hyunjin gave you was definitely worth all the grumblings and lost sleep; you loved the way his eyes sparkled and crinkled at the corners when he smiled, the way his dimples deepened, and it had been your personal goal since day one of your friendship, when he’d fallen in the sandbox and you’d helped him up, to never let him lose that smile. You were the one who was a year younger than him, but you were also the more protective one in the friendship. It was something people often teased you about, calling you a mother hen, but you wore the title proudly. You were indeed a mother hen when it came to your best friend.

Your first class was history, which you and Hyunjin had together; Yongwoon had psychology, while Minjoo had English, so you waved goodbye, promising to save them seats at lunch. Hyunjin blew an exaggerated kiss at Minjoo, who giggled as you punched him in the shoulder, pretending to gag. “Ugh, look who decided to become Romeo all of a sudden! Come on, lover boy, or we’re gonna be late for class, and I’ll get my first detention because of you.”

“I don’t want to spend the rest of my days in purgatory, if you please, ma’am, so on we go,” Hyunjin said very seriously, earning himself another punch from you. “Ow! You’re short, but you punch like a sumo wrestler! What, did you absorb the soul of a wrestler you reaped, Satan?”

“Ha ha ha, very funny,” you grumbled, sinking into your seat at the back table, across from Hyunjin, right as the bell rang. “I’ll reap your soul if you don’t shut up.”

Even as the lesson went on, you spent the class passing notes and doodling all over each other’s papers, sometimes laughing so hard your teacher, a well-dressed brunette in her early thirties, had to frown in your direction, her finger pressed against her lips in a signal of silence.

That was how every day was, with you both ― it was just you and him. You were the planets; everyone else was just a satellite. You were a technicolor movie; they were just the audience. You and Hyunjin were the world; they were just outer space.

So love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do What are you waiting for?

It was on the bus home that you succumbed to the sleep that had been haunting your eyelids since the morning’s coffee had worn off mid-math class. One minute you were arguing with Hyunjin over whether milk or cereal came first (you argued milk, having gotten that habit from your parents, while Hyunjin argued that it was cereal), the next you had nodded off, your petite head on his broad shoulder.

When you came to, it was in a familiar room with soft blue walls and GOT7 posters all over the wall. You sat up, squinting slightly at the pale, watery orange sunlight streaming through the window; the translucent chartreuse curtains were slightly open, showing a rapidly darkening sunset sky in the prettiest pastel shades of blue, pink, and purple. You yawned, stretching your arms, and glanced down; you were still wearing your school clothes, which were now a bit rumpled because you’d slept in them.

“Sleep well, Sleeping Beauty?” You turned your head to see Hyunjin smiling at you from where he sat working at his desk, which was a sea of scattered papers. His glasses reflected a bit of the screen of his laptop and a bit of the sunset, which didn’t seem like a beautiful combination, but somehow, he made it work. He only wore his glasses at home unless he was out of contacts to use, in which case you’d see him wear his glasses to school for about a week before going back to wearing contacts; you stuck with your glasses at all times, mainly because for one, you were terrified of putting something in your eye, and for two, you had awful bags under your eyes, which your glasses did a good job hiding ― or at least keeping anyone from noticing.

You stretched again, comfortable after a few hours of rest. “You bet I did. Like a baby, in fact. How long was I out?”

“It’s 6:05 ― you can do the math.” You could hear the smile in his voice as you took a moment to decipher his words. Then your eyes widened. “I SLEPT FOR THREE HOURS?”

“Don’t worry, you haven’t missed movie night,” Hyunjin promised. “We still have an hour till Minjoo and Yongwoon are supposed to arrive. Do you want to get changed? Maybe take a shower to freshen up?”

“Yeah ― yeah, sounds great,” you said, stretching one last time before swinging your legs out from under the covers, so that you were now sitting on the edge of his bed. “All my stuff is next door, though.”

“You can grab some clothes from my closet,” he offered, smiling in your direction. “Just like when we were kids and your parents were out.”

You got up, shaking out your legs to get some feeling back into them, and opened his closet, choosing a purple tie-dye t-shirt. “I’m wearing shorts under my skirt, anyway, so I’ll just wear this over those,” you explained, and Hyunjin nodded.

The warm water felt like a liquid hug; you spent twenty minutes under the shower before deciding you didn’t want to turn into a living prune. You found, upon wearing it, that Hyunjin’s shirt went to your knees, but what did it matter? It was cozy. You blow-dried your hair, which took another twenty minutes, before pulling it into a loose bun and glancing at the time in your watch ― 6:50 p.m., which meant Minjoo and Yongwoon would be here soon. You noticed that the light in Hyunjin’s room was now off; he must be downstairs, you realized, so you descended the stairs, knowing from the rising aroma of hot chocolate that you’d find him in the kitchen. He glanced up at the sound of your footsteps, his face lighting up with a smile as his eyes fell on you. “You look adorable. Purple is definitely your color.”

“And you look suspicious. Who are you and what have you done with Hwang Hyunjin?” you snorted, amused. “I was expecting you to clown me for how big this shirt looks on me.”

He chuckled, turning back to the stove for a moment before placing a snowflake-printed mug on the counter in front of you. “Hot cocoa?”

“Thanks!” You took the mug gratefully, blowing on the steaming liquid for a few minutes before taking a sip, appreciating the feeling of the chocolatey, sugary sweetness, mixed with a hint of cinnamon and the creaminess of whipped cream, sliding down your throat. You had just taken another sip when the doorbell rang, prompting you to move towards the door, the hot cocoa mug still in your hand. You opened it to find Yongwoon, holding a bouquet of red roses.

“Hey! You’re…” You glanced at your watch, which read that it was 6:55 p.m. “...Five minutes early! Oh my gosh, are those for me?”

“Yes, they are!” He handed you the bouquet, grinning ear to ear, until his eyes took in what you were wearing. His smile faded slightly as he added, “Is that one of Hyunjin’s, Y/N?”

“Wha ― oh, yeah ― yeah, it is,” you said, a little surprised by the question.

“She fell asleep on the bus,” Hyunjin explained, “and since she lost sleep because of me, I felt bad waking her up. So I just carried her here and let her rest up in my room while I did my homework. When she woke up, she wanted to shower, and we realized she didn’t have a change of clothes, so I let her borrow one of my shirts.”

“I see.” Yongwoon’s lips had tightened considerably at this, but he didn’t say anything. In fact, he didn’t say anything till Minjoo arrived, about fifteen minutes after him; it was just you and Hyunjin chattering away over your hot cocoa until that time.

By the time she’d arrived, Hyunjin had gotten a huge bucket of buttered popcorn ready. He had four cushions ready on the ground for everyone, but you didn’t need your cushion; you just sat down in front of Hyunjin, your head in his lap, as you grabbed a handful of popcorn, munching contentedly as your boyfriend and his girlfriend came to join you on either side. Yongwoon imitated you, grabbing his own handful of the buttery, salty popcorn, while Minjoo was more refined, choosing to take the occasional two pieces of popcorn from time to time.

“What do you guys want to watch?” Hyunjin asked, wrapping an arm around your shoulders as he leaned back, propping himself up with one elbow.

“American Horror Story,” Yongwoon volunteered immediately, earning himself identical protests from you, Hyunjin, and Minjoo. He conceded defeat, grumbling to himself before falling silent and waiting for one of you to make a choice.

“Titanic?” Minjoo suggested, earning herself a loud yawn from Yongwoon and an identical groan of rejection from yourself and Hyunjin. Her expression became a sulky one, which made all three of you laugh.

“Avengers: Infinity War?” you suggested. Hyunjin nodded enthusiastically; you two were pretty much the biggest Marvel nerds around.

“Are you sure you’re not going to soak my sleeve in tears again?” Hyunjin asked teasingly. “Remember last time, when you were bawling so hard I was afraid I’d have to pull a Noah and ark my way outta there?”

You turned and sat up to glare at him, indignant. “You were crying, too!”

He blushed, ducking his head in embarrassment. “Okay, okay, fair point. Any objections?”

Minjoo was too sulky to say anything, while Yongwoon was just too whipped for you to say a word against your wishes.

“All right! Infinity War it is,” Hyunjin declared, pulling you more closely into his lap before positioning himself comfortably, half sitting and half lying against his cushion as he tossed some more popcorn into his mouth, searching through Amazon Prime Video till he found it. Then he hit play, wrapped one arm around you, and sat back to enjoy the movie.

Fading in, fading out On the edge of paradise Every inch of your skin is a holy gray I've got to find Only you can set my heart on fire, on fire Yeah, I'll let you set the pace 'Cause I'm not thinking straight My head spinning around I can't see clear no more What are you waiting for?

Two hours and forty minutes later, you and Hyunjin were clinging to each other and sobbing your eyes out, your shoulders a mess of each other’s tears, snot, and drool. It would have been disgusting if this weren’t your usual movie-watching ritual ― you two were the sensitive ones, and if anything remotely sad were to happen in a movie, the room would be flooded within the next five minutes as you clung to each other and wept as if your hearts would break.

“I thought you said you’d be okay this time,” Hyunjin sobbed, wiping his eyes on the hem of his sleeve as he crushed you in a hug.

“I’m never emotionally prepared enough for that movie,” you sobbed back, mimicking him and wiping your eyes on the edge of your sleeve ― or at least trying to as best you could through his bone-crushingly tight embrace.

On your left, Minjoo was just staring blankly at the screen as if not sure of what to do in terms of a reaction, while Yongwoon, on your right, had his lips pursed and his fists clenched. “Damned Marvel,” he growled, shaking his fist. “Killing off Black Panther like that… that’s not fair.”

“Groot had such a bright future ahead of him,” Hyunjin hiccuped miserably, reaching for the popcorn, which was running dangerously low.

“I agree,” you sniffled. “Man, Bucky never deserves the shit he gets. He was captured by the Nazis, fell off a mountain, lost an arm, got frozen and experimented on by HYDRA, became their brainwashed puppet, killed a bunch of people, accidentally tore apart the Avengers, got frozen over again, and then right when he was spending a peaceful time in Wakanda he got drawn into the fighting and then h-he just goes ‘Steve…’ and fades away and just...” You broke down again, prompting a wince from Yongwoon and an eye roll from Minjoo.

“I know,” Hyunjin lamented, patting your back reassuringly. “Well… that was fun, right?”

“Right,” Yongwoon said unconvincingly, his eyes narrowing slightly at the sight of Hyunjin’s strong arms drawing you more tightly into an embrace. You two had been nothing but skinship since the beginning of the evening ― or, if you counted the hand-holding in the morning, since the beginning of the day ― and he was beginning to feel a bit threatened by the boy you called your closest friend. He felt threatened, jealous, every time your fingers tangled together, every time your eyes met, every time you laughed at something he said, every time you gazed at him as if he was the only boy in the world. It was getting harder and harder for him to believe you every time you declared yourself and Hyunjin “just friends”.

He didn’t like it at all.

Minjoo smiled thinly, her smile not quite meeting her movie-star eyes with their perfectly done makeup. “It was lovely.”

She, too, felt a surge of wicked jealousy every time you and Hyunjin were together. It hadn’t bothered her as much at first, but now, it was almost all she thought about. The way he smiled at you, as if there was nothing and no one more important. The way he always jumped to choose you anytime anything ― a game, a project, anything at all ― involved a partner. The way he didn’t seem to care when you saw him in his glasses, but almost always avoided wearing them around her. The way he always chose yours whenever he needed a shoulder to cry into.

The way he felt so distant from her, even if he was next to her, and yet so close to you, even when you were apart.

And she hated it.

As Yongwoon left, he turned to press his lips against yours for a long moment, the intensity almost double that of any normal kiss of yours. He stole a glance at Hyunjin, who simply smiled a bright smile at him before brushing Minjoo’s lips with his and waving goodbye as she left. “I love you, Y/N,” he whispered, stepping out into the night.

“Hey, Y/N, want to stay over for the night?” Hyunjin asked. You smiled apologetically. “Nah, I wish I could, but Mom and Dad are going to video call to check in with me in about half an hour. I have to make dinner before getting started on my homework.”

“I could join you,” Hyunjin offered, his eyes lighting up. “And, to make up for last night, I can help you with homework today!”

“Hwang Hyunjin, you legend, you’re so amazing that I could 10/10 kiss you,” you declared.

He laughed, rumpling your hair gently. “You already did once, remember? Spin the bottle, seventh grade. You were my first kiss, Y/N!”

“Oh, yeah! That girl from the classroom next door, the one who kept ogling at you, looked like she was ready to pee herself!” you snickered, choking on your own laughter and erupting in a fit of coughing that left tears in your eyes; Hyunjin rubbed circles on your back soothingly, hoping to ease the coughs. Once he deemed it safe to leave your side, he hurried back into the kitchen to grab you a glass of water, which you took and gulped down gratefully. “Thanks, Hyunjinnie.”

“Don’t worry about it. And be more careful,” he scolded, earning an amused eye roll from you.

“See you tomorrow? Noon at that bubble tea place down the block?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“Good night, Hyunjinnie.”

As you left, he watched you, his fingers tingling where yours had been resting against them just a moment earlier, realizing how much you’d grown up… and wondering how he’d grown lucky enough to have you by his side during all these years.

Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do What are you waiting for?

Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (like you do) Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (yeah) Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do What are you waiting for?

He didn’t fail to meet you the next day ― in fact, he was early, waiting for you at an outdoor table as you arrived, wearing a mint-green hoodie and black yoga pants, your hair tied back in a neat ponytail.

“Hey, Sasquatch,” you called jokingly, and his glance snapped up from his phone to you, his eyes brightening and the corners of his full, rich coral-pink lips tugging themselves upwards into a bright grin.

“Y/N! Nice hoodie, the color suits you,” he exclaimed, tilting his head slightly to the side as he added, “is it new? I’ve never seen you wear it before.”

“Yeah, I bought it last week,” you said, feeling a rush of warmth rise in your chest at the fact that he’d noticed that small detail. He really did pay attention to everything.

“I love the color. Does it come in men’s?”

“Not sure. I’ll check, though ― we can go together, sometime tonight or tomorrow.”

“Sounds like a plan!” he declared, then glanced at the menu card in front of him. “I’m guessing you want your usual coconut milk tea, Y/N?”

“Yep, that’s me. Boring and predictable, like the old granny I am at heart,” you quipped, earning yourself another laugh from your companion.

“Predictable, maybe, since I’ve known you for so long,” Hyunjin agreed. “But boring? No way. You could never be boring, Y/N, no matter how long I’ve known you.”

You felt the color rising in your cheeks as you flushed pleasurably at your best friend’s compliment, which meant a lot more to you than he could imagine. “You’re sweet.”

His grin melted your heart as you grabbed the menu. “Let me guess ― you want the watermelon bubble tea. Again.”

“Why, Y/N,” Hyunjin gasped mockingly, his eyes widening, “however did you know?”

“Gee, I don’t know,” you said sarcastically, shrugging. “Maybe because you decided to even dress like a freaking watermelon for Halloween? And because you completely weeded that bag of Dum-Dums ― the one you were supposed to be handing out to the trick-or-treaters ― of watermelon lollipops? I could hear the kids complaining all the way down the street!”

“Okay, okay, Y/N,” he admitted, going red in the face. “You… kind of have a point there.”

You sat back with a triumphant smirk, which earned a grin from Hyunjin; within the minute, you both had begun to laugh hopelessly, till tears of mirth gathered themselves in both of your eyes and your sides ached with laughter.

After you’d both gotten your bubble teas, you sat for a while in silence. But it wasn’t the awkward silence that needed an ice-breaker; it was a comfortable silence, where neither of you needed to say anything to enjoy the moment spent in the other’s company.

You were the one who finally broke the silence. “Hey, Hyunjinnie, do you want to try a sip of my bubble tea? I realize, in all the times we’ve come here, you’ve never tried the coconut milk tea, while I’ve never tried the watermelon tea.”

“Sounds fun!” Hyunjin unhesitatingly leaned over, his cheek brushing against yours, as he took a sip from your straw, letting the new flavor soak onto his tongue for a moment before nodding his approval, his eyes lighting up. “Holy moly ― this is good! You have good taste, Y/N!”

You smirked at him before leaning across the table to take a sip of his drink, the watermelon flavor coating your tongue and cooling your throat as you swallowed. “Heck, I could say the same for you, Hyunjin! You might just have passed your obsession with all things watermelon on to me!”

It was a perfect moment, just you and him, peacefully enjoying each other’s company… till the sound of soft sobbing drew your attention away from Hyunjin. Your eyes scanned the bubble tea café till they found the source of the sound.

Minjoo.

And judging by the tears pouring down her face, she’d seen everything.

The color drained from Hyunjin’s face as he jumped up, practically knocking the umbrella off the table as he tried to make his way towards Minjoo, who heaved a sob and took a step back.

“Minjoo!” he yelled. “Minjoo, wait!”

“Minjoo!” You joined him, calling your friend’s name. “Minjoo, it’s not what it looks like!”

“Shit,” Hyunjin muttered. “I’ll… I’ll be back. I’m sorry to cut our outing short, Y/N, but...”

“Go,” you said grimly, your heart hammering with dread as you watched your best friend take off after his girlfriend, only hoping that things would turn out okay.

I'll let you set the pace 'Cause I'm not thinking straight My head spinning around I can't see clear no more What are you waiting for?

This time, when you woke up at 3:00 a.m., it wasn’t because of your phone, which had remained painfully silent all evening, save for a single text from your boyfriend, asking if you were free for a date that night. You’d declined his offer, sick with worry for your best friend’s predicament. He and Minjoo didn’t ever quarrel, and yet, the last you’d seen them, Minjoo was shouting at him, tears rolling down her cheeks, while he pleaded for her understanding.

Icy fear bubbled in your stomach as you lay awake against the pillows; the room felt uncharacteristically cold. You sighed, finally deciding there was no way you could get to sleep with so much worry gnawing at your mind ― maybe a midnight snack would help. You slid out from under the bedcovers, shivering as the cold air touched your bare legs ― you were just wearing shorts and a t-shirt ― and went downstairs into the kitchen, where you rummaged through the refrigerator and pantry, finding absolutely nothing that fit your cravings. You stretched, going to change clothes into a pink hoodie and black leggings, pulling your hair into a messy ponytail before grabbing your purse, pulling your car keys from them as you went outside into the driveway, opening the door and getting into your car. You started up the engine, waiting for a few moments as the heater warmed the inside, before reversing out of the driveway and beginning the fifteen-minute drive to the local Lotte.

The classical music playing over the stereo did nothing to ease your nagging worry, and all the way there, nausea roiled in your stomach like a vat of acid. You arrived in the parking lot of the supermarket, locking your car before entering the store and going straight to the dairy aisle, grabbing yourself five small bottles of your favorite brand of strawberry milk and paying for them quickly before hurrying outside again, the cover on your arm. You got back into your car, slamming the door shut, and left the parking lot, embarking on your return journey. About five minutes had passed when you suddenly screeched to a halt, pulling over abruptly, the color draining from your face.

A tall figure was staggering around on the curb, a bottle in hand. A very familiar tall figure. Your blood turned to ice as you recognized Hyunjin.

You’d never seen him drunk like this. Come to mention it, you’d never even seen him touch any remotely alcoholic beverage. You got out of your car, your heart pounding more wildly than it had ever pounded in your life, running to meet the boy with a tight hug.

“Hyunjin!” you cried, mingled pain and relief in your tone as you crushed him in a hug, aware that you were shaking from head to toe ― whether it was with anger or fear, you weren’t sure. Probably a mix of both, to be honest.

“Hey… hey, Y/N,” Hyunjin slurred unsteadily, staggering and practically half collapsing on you, leaving you struggling for a minute with the task of supporting his larger weight. He smiled an unfocused smile down at you, wiping the wetness from his eyes. “Whatcha doin’ awake at this late hour, Y/N?”

“I could ask you the same,” you said anxiously, your pulse thrumming with worry. “What happened to you? I’ve never seen you drink before, and suddenly you’re holding a beer bottle and rambling around, punch-drunk, on the streets at…” You glanced at your watch. “...3:15 a.m. Hyunjin, what the fuck is going on here? Where were you? Why didn’t you answer my calls?”

“Minjoo broke up with me.” The boy’s voice was slurred with drinking, his balance completely off-kilter; he sank against you, his tears wetting the collar of your hoodie. “She left me, Y/N. She said she was done, that we were over.”

You were aware that you, too, were crying: crying for the horrible state you’d found your best friend in, for the blame you were allotting to yourself ― crying, mostly, because Hyunjin was crying, and his tears hurt worse than anything.

“Hyunjin,” you whispered, sinking to your knees and letting the male sag against you, his head nestling into your shoulder as he hiccuped and cried as if his heart would break ― which it already had, that night. You wrapped your arms around him, rubbing his back soothingly as he cried it all out, till he had no tears left in him to cry, numb at last.

“Come on,” you murmured, guiding an unprotesting Hyunjin into your car, helping him buckle himself into the passenger seat as you drove home, the quiet classical music and the feeling of your sleeping best friend’s head on your shoulder giving you an odd tingling feeling.

Once you got home, you gently shook Hyunjin awake, letting him use you as a support for his terrible balance. He didn’t shake you off, letting you guide him upstairs and into your room, where you let him grab a change of clothes (you left the room while he changed, coming back in as soon as he gave you the thumbs-up) before collapsing onto your bed. You would have let him use the guest room, but, truth be told, you wanted to keep your eye on him, too scared that he’d do something stupid again. So you went into the bathroom, changing into your typical t-shirt and shorts, before collapsing on the bed beside him, exhausted from the day’s events.

“Y/N?” You couldn’t stop the tear that slipped down your cheek at the sound of Hyunjin’s tired voice, which sounded less slurred and more… him. He scooted towards you, gently tugging your shoulder so you were now facing him, and brushed the tear from your lashes, wiping away the glittering trail the tear had left on your skin.

“Y/N, I’m sorry,” he whispered, wrapping his arms tightly around you, an embrace you returned with just as much fervor. “I’m really, really sorry.”

“No, I’m sorry,” you choked out, the guilt overpowering you. “It’s my fault Minjoo broke up with you. She didn’t like how much time we spent together.”

Hyunjin shook his head. “No, Y/N, this is not your fault. I should have been clearer with her, and anyway...” He hesitated, continuing, “...Maybe it’s not all bad.”

Your eyes widened with surprise. “What?”

Hyunjin flushed slightly. “This might just be the alcohol talking, Y/N… I don’t know anymore. But when you were holding me on the curb, I could feel you shaking. I could hear you crying. And I was getting my snot and drool and tears all over you, and by that time, you probably reeked of alcohol as much as I did. But you still held me. Minjoo… probably wouldn’t have.”

“Come on, I’m sure she―”

“No, Y/N,” Hyunjin interrupted, shaking his head vehemently. “The one time when you were on that family trip in France and I caught the flu, Minjoo came over. She took care of me, but… but I could see the disgust in her eyes every time she saw me throw up or cough up mucus. The one time I cried into her shoulder, she immediately went to change clothes. She’s only there in my highs, Y/N, but you’ve been there all the time. She only knows the happy Hyunjin, but you know the real Hwang Hyunjin.”

“Hyunjin...” Your voice trailed off for a long moment before you managed, “What do you mean?”

“I mean...” Hyunjin took your hands in his larger ones, hesitating for a while before answering, “I mean… or, at least, I think I mean… that in a way, it’s always been you. This was just the universe’s way of showing me. I know I make zero sense, but...”

“No,” you said slowly, his words taking a moment to register. “No, I… I kind of get what you mean.”

Suddenly, it all made sense.

Why Hyunjin and your kiss, all those years ago, had seemed better and more full of life than any that you’d shared with your boyfriend.

Why the first person you called up whenever you found yourself free ― or needed to spill some news ― was Hyunjin, not your own boyfriend.

Why, even if you were spending the entire day out with your boyfriend, you had to steal into the bathrooms at least once to hear Hyunjin’s voice on the phone for at least five minutes.

Why skinship with Hyunjin felt so much natural and easier than skinship with Yongwoon.

Why everyone naturally assumed you two were a couple.

Maybe it was because deep down, that was what you were ― the only difference was that you’d both labeled the feeling as the wrong one, assuming that you were just best friends and remaining oblivious not only to the other’s feelings, but to your own.

“Hyunjin… I’ve spent so many days wondering why none of the kisses I’ve shared with Yongwoon have even come close to matching the one we shared in the seventh grade,” you admitted. “I guess it’s because they were missing the one key ingredient: spark. I won’t deny that I really like Yongwoon ― or, at least, I did, at the beginning ― but he’s just… not right for me, and I’m shocked it took this long for me to realize. He was always trying to steal me away from you, keep you away when we were both together, while you were always ready to share me with him… all to keep me happy.”

“Y/N...” Before you knew it, Hyunjin was leaning closer, and so were you, and you didn’t know how it happened, but suddenly, your lips were pressed against his, and there it was, that spark, the one you hadn’t felt against your lips for five years.

As you both pulled away, you realized the words didn’t need to be said ― the kiss had spoken volumes more than those three simple words. That was the lovely thing about gestures ― they could explain things in ways much more nuanced than even a dictionary.

That night, you fell asleep in Hyunjin’s arms, your legs tangled with his, your heartbeats synchronizing.

Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (like you do) Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (yeah) Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do What are you waiting for?

You woke up to the warm sunlight filtering through your window; that was, by far, the most peaceful sleep you’d gotten in the last few days. You stretched, yawning appreciatively, before your eyes fell on the still-sleeping form of Hwang Hyunjin beside you. You smiled fondly, pressing a kiss to his forehead ― he stirred slightly, the corners of his lips quirking upwards ever so slightly ― before slipping out from under the bedcovers, going downstairs to make yourself and Hyunjin some coffee. Right as you’d finished pouring the two mugs, your doorbell rang; you went to open the door, your mug of coffee in hand, and saw Yongwoon standing there, smiling a little sheepishly. “Oh. Hey.”

“I was worried about you,” Yongwoon said, launching right into it with no prior greeting. “You haven’t been yourself lately ― you keep refusing dates, you don’t answer my texts quickly ― I’m worried about you, Y/N.”

Footsteps made you both turn around; Hyunjin was coming downstairs, looking tired but much refreshed after having showered and changed clothes. His smile made your breath hitch; it was funny how liking someone made them even more attractive in your eyes, because before, you’d been able to notice how pretty his smile was, but now, it was as if you’d forgotten, or never fully appreciated, how breathtakingly stunning it was.

Yongwoon’s smile had faded, and he was studying Hyunjin with a frown, furrowing his brow. “Why is he here, Y/N?”

“He stayed the night. He wasn’t… feeling the best, so I thought it best if I took care of him.” Your tone made it clear you weren’t taking any arguments, which simply made your boyfriend even more uneasy.

“I don’t like it,” he said abruptly. “I don’t like it at all, Y/N. I know you call him your ‘best friend’, but as your boyfriend, I don’t like the idea of you being home alone with another guy. I won’t let you―”

“Let me? Let me?” Your eyes widened with incredulity; the anger that burned in their depths caused him to take a step back, surprised. “I only meant―”

“No, I’ve heard enough,” you decided. “You sound like my grandpa. My annoying, patriarchal grandpa.”

“Y/N―”

“This isn’t working.”

He froze, staring at you for some hint that this was just a joke, maybe a very, very early April Fools’ prank. When he saw nothing except seriousness on your face, he managed, blankly, “Y/N, I―”

“Look. Don’t get me wrong, there was a point where I really, really liked you. But that was before I realized, whatever else we had, there was no spark.”

“Y/N!” he protested, taking a step towards you. You took a step back, shaking your head quite calmly ― you didn’t know where all this calmness was coming from, but you were glad for it.

“I want you to be happy,” you said finally. “I don’t think I’m the answer to that. And I don’t think you’re my answer, either. I’m doing this for the both of us. It’d be nice if we could stay friends, but… that’s up to you.”

Yongwoon looked from Hyunjin to you, the realization dawning in his eyes, which flared with anger. He shook his head, simply leaving the house; after a moment, he turned around, pausing, his eyes slightly wet with the reality that he wasn’t yours anymore ― and hadn’t been, for a while. “I don’t know about that, Y/N.”

You hesitated for a long, long while. “Bye, Yongwoon.”

“Bye, Y/N.”

As soon as he’d left, the tears spilled out; now, it was Hyunjin’s turn to hold you as you cried against him, your tears soaking through the thin fabric of his white t-shirt as he guided you to the couch, his arms tight and warm around you as he held you till you couldn’t cry anymore.

“Thanks, Hyunjinnie,” you whispered, looking up gratefully at him. He brushed away your tears, smiling that signature fond smile he reserved only for you, and placed a warm, soft kiss on your forehead, sending that tingling feeling flooding through your body.

And as the first snow of the year began to fall, outside, you wrapped your arms around his neck, your lips meeting his in a burst of warmth.

“I love you, Hyunjin.”

“I love you more, Y/N.”

“No! Stop that, I love YOU more!”

“Y/N! Gah, stop tickling me! I love you most!”

“Surrender already! You know I love you more than most.”

“Yes… yes, I do.”

#stray kids #skz #stray kids fic #hwang hyunjin #hyunjin #hyunjin fic #hwang hyunjin fic #angst #fluff #best friends to lovers #anki writes

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bohemian-war · 6 years ago

Text

How I met Jack Lowden…

Hi guys!

Just come from seeing Jack in MFM and even when I have met lots of celebrities in my life, this is probably one of the best experiences I’ve ever had when it comes to meeting an actor.

I am gonna try to make this short since it’s quite late and I’ve got a massive headache. Enjoy!

So everything started when it was announced that Jack was gonna be in a new play in London. I am from Spain, however, I live in the UK now so I am lucky enough to be able to see lots of musicals and plays every day.

When the tickets came out early this year, I bought them straight away. I did not even think about it for a second. In fact, I can’t believe that I bought them months ago and the whole thing is now gone. Time really flies!

I’ve been doing and covering both premieres and events for almost six years now as I work in the entertainment industry and I get to cover these and meet celebrities–in a professional way–for free so I’ve had my moments of starstruck, believe me. Especially when I met Tom Hanks or when I bumped into Aneurin Barnard a couple of weeks ago in the street (these are stories that can be told in a different time).

Unfortunately, since I moved to London two years ago, my work schedule–I am working in a theatre now–is a weird one, so I don’t have time to cover events as much as I used to do so in the past. This–alongside my self-esteem, anxiety, and depression issues–have made me become quite shy and to lose my “touch” when it comes to meeting actors. Now I am scared of approaching them! To the point that I have been rehearsing what I wanted to say to Jack for a whole week!

Since last Monday, the only thing I’ve done is overthinking things. “What if I don’t cause a good impression?” “What if he thinks I am crazy?” “What if I cannot talk due to my anxiety?” “What if my anxiety plays tricks on me again as it did with Aneurin?” Anyways, I started to look at all these fan pictures from last Friday and I was jealous of the fact that they could talk to him and I perfectly knew that I was not gonna be able to do the same thing.

Today, my friend sent me a text saying that she had got last minute tickets and that she was coming with me. I immediately felt relieved because even when there was a minimum percentage that I couldn’t get anything from Jack unless she was gonna be there to support me so that was a plus. We got to the Donmar two hours and a half before the performance began. We wanted to try to see if we could spot Jack. Obviously, we were not gonna stay there more than what it was necessary, so if he wasn’t around we would leave. Luckily, he left the building with two other actors from the play, we saw this and approached him nicely. He was on his break chatting and having a cigarette so this is when I was starting to get into a panicky kind of mood because he was definitely seeing us approaching him from afar and I didn’t want to have any “problems” with him.

When he was about to leave, we called him and he turned around. He is BEAUTIFUL! So blonde and with those gorgeous blue eyes. So tall and skinny. Did I say he is literally the most BEAUTIFUL human being in the entire planet and that he must be protected at all costs? My friend and I basically had the shortest conversation ever. We told him that we were big fans of his, that we were there to see the show and that we needed to kill two hours and a half. He was so pleased when we let him know that we were there for him and to see the show. You cannot even imagine. He felt so relieved! We asked him for a picture and voilá:

(That’s even a coats match *_*). I quickly asked him if he could sign my Dunkirk Blu-ray and he told me that he would be delighted to do it after the show and he also told me that he’d be leaving via the fire exit (thanks to everybody here who helped me with that because some people in the theatre tried to fool us but Jack himself let us all know that he’d definitely be coming out through the back door). He finally asked me if I knew where the fire exit was otherwise he could show me. I said yes. Now that I think about it tho, I wouldn’t have minded a small tour haha. After this, my friend and I went for a coffee and wait till seven to collect our tickets. The main “problem” is that my friend and I had different seats, however, people at the Donmar Box Office know me–as I work for the same company and I am very good friends with all of them–so we ended up getting a last minute upgrade. We were meant to be in the fourth and second rows and we finished sitting in the middle section of the first row!!! Jack was literally in front of us all the time!!! (Every time that he looked at me, I was literally dying inside. And he did it more than once! He is just so beautiful. I just wanna die T_T).

Anyways, I cannot stress enough how incredible the play was and everybody was amazing but both Jack and Hayley were astonishing. I don’t even have words. In fact, I am not gonna give anything away as a) they’re still on previews and things are gonna keep changing when it comes to the play in the next couple of days (in fact, the play was shortened 15 minutes today); b) there’s not enough time to say everything. I thought I had seen it all with the ravishing performance of Andrew Scott in Hamlet or the astounding performance of Mark Rylance in Othello but this was in a whole different level, I can tell you. Go to see Measure for Measure if you have the chance. You are not gonna regret it! I might actually go again because it was amazing! (If you’ve seen the play and would like to discuss it with me, my inbox is now open :)). After the show, we went to the back to wait for Jack. There were people already there and I was panicking AGAIN! I wanted to see him but I didn’t wanna be there at the same time. In fact, I was feeling that I was bothering him with my stupid presence. I already had my picture and I had seen the play. What else could I ask for? It took him about fifteen minutes to come out but he definitely did it and he was so happy to see us. BLESS HIM! Most of the fans were from Asia (especially South Korea) but us (a.k.a.the Spaniards haha). Guys, I am not even kidding, Jack spent at least 45 minutes with all of us after the show!!! After a three-hour-and-ten-minutes play, I had never seen a so well-mannered and dedicated person to his fans ever!!! He was probably exhausted and he still had time for his fans and to make jokes non-stop. He signed everything from programs and DVDs/Blu Rays to drawings. A beautiful fan drew him in Fonzo and he was blown away by the result! I literally have lots of pics, videos, and memories from the encounter. In addition, I’d like to keep most of them to myself because I’d like this to be a very special moment between Jack and me. Because it was so beautiful that I don’t want it to be spoiled. I wanna retain it in my mind forever. But I am just gonna say that we both talked about Dunkirk LOADS and when I mentioned that I first saw him in The Passing Bells he was very surprised. He answered with an amazing “Nooooo Shut Up! Are you kidding?” I told him that I am a massive History geek and he answered that he loves History too. Then that led to Mary, Queen of Scots and other projects (Fonzo etc). He was so flattered when we mentioned them all to him. When he was signing my program he was surprised by my name (he said that it is beautiful. BEAUTIFUL! *_*) and he even added an “España” (Spain) to the signature. He told me that he once went to Cadiz (South of Spain) and that he’d love to go to Madrid, which is where I am from :). I told him that I might do a trip to Scotland soon and this cheered him up even more. He also talked about his parents living in Asia and how he got to go to Asia when he was a child and that he’d love to go back one day. After this, we both hugged endlessly (he revealed to us that he’s living on his own at the moment so he needs lots of hugs awww :’)), we took lots of pics and videos and we chatted for hours. We all even joked about having a coffee together to discuss the play. Unfortunately, it was quite late but I bet that, on a different occasion, Jack would have said yes. You can see lots of videos of us here. I am the redhead asking questions all the time haha. Now I feel bad for not letting the others speak. Sorry :(. Thank you @uoize for the amazing videos and pics as well! Here you are a few of the ones I took (I include the one with Hayley as well):

He’s signing my Dunkirk Blu Ray here. I have more than five editions of the film and I took the German one with me as it’s the one with Collins on the cover. He was taken by surprise when we told him that he is in every 4K Blu Ray edition of the film all around the world and he said that he’d like to buy one copy. When we told him it was already sold out he blamed us for buying all the copies.

(Another pic with Jack. This time a selfie taken by him. P.S. The background of the pic has been edited as some people in the pic requested me not to be seen). The last thing I did was thank him for everything he’s done so far. I told him that he was so nice (he told me that I was very nice as well and that I could calm down around him. No need to be nervous) and that it was so great of him that he dedicates so much time to his fans when he shouldn’t be. Again, he was taken by surprise and with a puppy face, he replied “Of course, don’t be silly! I love it. Also, you came to see the show guys so it’s the least I can do!” Jacks is everything I wanted him to be and so much more!!! I don’t think I will ever meet someone like him again in my life. I truly wish him the best and I am sure he’s gonna smash it because he simply deserves the world. I’ve been to the theatre so many times and I`ve seen so many great musicals and plays. I’ve met lots of fans but nothing so close and welcoming as today. Thanks, everybody for making this possible!

Lots of love!

#jack lowden #dunkirk #measure for measure #actor #mine #me #personal #experience #William Shakespeare #places #London

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hartlessfiction · 6 years ago

Photo

Title: Torque to Size Ratio Rating: Teen Pairing: Sterek Summary: The summer heat makes Stiles sweat. Unfortunately not only does it make him sweat, his shitty ancient building seems to sweat. Or at least, none of the doors seem to sit in the frames correctly. Most importantly, his front door. The front door to the house that just might hate him, and at this moment, won’t let him inside to the pure and beautiful air conditioning that is just waiting on the other side. Luckily, his neighbor is there to help him, again.

Tags: sterek, flirting, awkward Derek, oblivious Stiles, alternate universe–human Notes: This prompt was posted by @pantydean on a sterek server I’m on but I sadly only have a this screen shot as a reference. Thanks for the prompt Crypto because it was the perfect inspiration for @comedicdrama‘s BIRTHDAY FIC!

Happy Birthday to my lovely Dessert Prince

<3 I hope you like these dorks falling in love.

p.s thanks to @tobythewise for jumping in and beta-ing for me <3 ily

Read on A03

“Mother fucking–shit–fuck.” Stiles, once again, runs his hands through his hair, pulling on the strands until his scalp tingles. With a frustrated growl, he kicks the base of the door and then hisses as pain shoots up his toes and into his ankle. “Mother fucker––”

“This is great.” Stiles stiffens at the voice, at that voice. Derek Hale’s voice, his frustrating, attractive neighbor. Frustrating, because the guy is perpetually grumpy, but also, like, super nice, and Stiles just doesn’t get how that even works. How does a person have constant R.B.F but still manage to be the most helpful? It’s really hard to get a read on Derek because of it. And attractive... because, well… Stiles isn’t blind and even if he was, he’s sure that he’d somehow instinctively know of Derek Hale’s Hotness™.

Slowly, Stiles turns around. Derek’s sprawled out along the stone front steps of his duplex like he’s posing for some kinda sexy summer heat photoshoot. He’s leaning back on his elbows, hips cocked forward, his long legs kicked out and crossed at the ankles. There’s a half-empty bottle of Jack sitting next to his wrist. And it’s in that moment that Stiles decides Derek should absolutely be wearing more, or significantly less than his sweat-stained white tank top and a pair of grease-stained, faded Levi’s. Boots… those scuffed work boots will be the death of Stiles.

“Being locked out together,” Derek clarifies when Stiles just stares at him.

“Yeah, great,” Stiles grumbles turning back to his door. “Except I’m not locked out.” To further illustrate his point he jerks his keys out of the lock. Well, he tries to anyway but just like the door, they’re stuck. Derek just shrugs, his long fingers stretching to grab the bottle next to him.

“Either way, we should hang out more.”

Stiles drops his forehead against the door groaning. He’d love to ‘hang out’ with Derek. He’d love to, just once, look competent and graceful in front of the guy. But that’s not his life, and Derek seems to show up every time Stiles is having a…. moment. Like now, like this moment where his shitty, ancient, prewar building is acting up, and just hates him! Scott doesn’t believe him, but Stiles is convinced the building is sentient and just… hates him! Scott’s never had trouble with the front door, he’s never tripped up the steps while holding three fresh, hot pizzas only to be caught by one, Derek Hale before he can drop the boxes. Those steps have it out for him, Stiles swears it. He’s never tripped up or down steps as much as he does with these.

Scotts doesn’t understand because the house loves him! He’s never gotten stuck half in half out of the ground floor window when the thing suddenly dropped on him. To be fair, Stiles probably shouldn’t have been going through the window to get to the laundry room but he was tired of fighting with the front door. And, just to make everything worse, of course, Derek-fucking-Hale shows up and rescues him. With his bulging biceps and wide palms, making the stupid stuck window slide up like its been freshly greased. Not like Stiles hadn’t been, valiantly, fighting with it for the last 20 minutes trying to buck it up off his spine, no, of course not. That’s the last time Stiles tries to use the window as a shortcut to the basement laundry room. Creepy dark stairs from then on out. Until they try to kill him too.

“You should kick it,” Derek says and Stiles rolls around on the front door, keeping his head connected to the ancient wood, he looks down his nose at Derek and Derek fucking smiles. It might be the first real smile Stiles has ever seen on the other man and he just doesn’t know how to feel about it.

Derek’s smile widens as he brings the bottle up to his lips and tilts his head back like he’s putting on a show, one clear, bright eye pinning Stiles back against the door as he drinks, slow, long drags of the whiskey. Stiles bites the inside of his cheek as Derek’s Adam’s apple bobs with each hearty swallow. He’s got no idea what's going on but he likes it, he likes this side of Derek.

“Go on.” Derek breathes, as he puts the bottle back down. “Kick it, you should. Yeah, try, try a kick.”

“A kick?” Stiles' brain clicks online, slow and buzzing. Sweat’s dripping down his back, thick summer air wraps around his skin like a blanket, his mouth is dry and he licks his lips watching Derek track the motion. “K–kick it?”

Sweat drips slowly down the tendons of Derek’s neck and he seems to shine in the fading early evening sun. “Yeah,” he shrugs and then points at the door with the bottle “Kick it,” he says before bringing it back to his lips.

Kick it,” Stiles grumbles pulling himself from the door. “Fucking kick it,” he repeats to himself. Yeah, he thinks. It’s time to show this fucking house who’s boss. Flattening his hands against the door for stability, Stiles rears forward, pulls his knee towards his chest and donkey kicks the shit out of the door, twisting his hip and really putting everything he has down into his leg. The vibration of his foot connecting with the sold weight of the door thrums back up his leg and chatters his teeth. But other then that, nothing happens.

“That… Wow.” Stiles looks up, jaw tensed to try and stop his teeth from clacking, at Derek who's now leaning forward, forearms braced on his bent knees. His head’s cocked to the side and his brows are raised in what could be surprise, amusement or… Stiles doesn't even know, now his knee hurts.

“Yeah…” Stiles is ready with a dismissal when Derek laughs and it’s beautiful and Stiles hates him a little for keeping that sounds caged up inside of himself for so long.

“That was, wow,” Derek smiles and stands, the bottle dangling dangerously from his fingertips. He skips down the last few steps at the front of his building and practically float/jogs across the small street. Again, Stiles hates him, just a little bit, for the beautiful flex of his neck muscles as he checks for traffic, the roll of his shoulders as he hops up Stiles’ front steps and comes to stand just a little too close for Stiles’ sanity. “That… wow. More torque than I expected.” Derek grins and Stiles flushes from his feet to his hairline. He can feel it, the burn of heat on his cheeks that has nothing to do with the weather.

“You’ve got, uh...” Derek’s eyes drag over Stiles body, slowly and he licks his lips before meeting Stiles eye again. This can’t be happening. “A surprising, uh, torque to size ratio.”

“Uh…” Stiles is never at a loss for words, but right now, with Derek looking him over, with Derek leaning in, his wide palm landing on the door over Stiles' shoulder, bringing their chests so close together that if Stiles breathes too deeply they’d touch. Well, he’s got nothing. Stiles Stilinski has nothing. Nothing to say except a very elegant: “...uh... Y–yep”

Derek makes a soft noise in his throat before tilting his head towards the door, his palm slides up the wood and it really takes every ounce of his very limited self-control for Stiles not to turn his face and lick the sweat out of the bend of Derek’s elbow.

“Here,” Derek says, almost absently handing the bottle to Stiles, his whole body changing focus to the door behind Stiles.

It’s really a beautiful thing, Stiles thinks, as he takes the bottle from Derek and–what the hell–takes a drink. How Derek gives something his entire focus and how Stiles would like to have that focus on him, just for a little while.

He sighs around the mouth of the bottle, letting the very, very stuck door take his weight. He’s suddenly tired. Whether it's the heat or Derek, or the stupid house, who totally hates him, Stiles has no idea, but he’s done. Closing his eyes he tilts his head back against the door, the bottle halfway up to his lips again when Derek grunts, the house shakes and a very, very manly squawk erupts from Stiles' mouth.

Bracing for an impact that never comes Stiles’ flailing limbs grapple for the first thing they can find. His free hand grips a thick, sweat-slick neck as strong arms wrap around his back, and before he can get too far, Derek is hauling him back to his feet, pulling Stiles into his space as he grins.

“Careful there,” he says and Stiles can smell the whiskey on his breath. “Should have warned you I guess.” Derek goes on, glancing over Stiles' shoulder at the now gaping doorway. He tugs a little making Stiles shuffle forward, his wide, scorchingly hot palms brace the small of Stiles back. This cannot be happening.

“Nah…” Stiles manages “...we–we’re good.”

“Are we?” Derek asks looking at Stiles out of the corner of his eye, one of those thick murderous brows arching in a way Stiles has never seen before. It sends butterflies swooping in his stomach.

This is happening.

“Yeah, we are so good.” Stiles grins at Derek, and hoping he’s reading the entire situation right, takes a swing of the Jack before passing it back. He slides his hand up Derek’s chest to join his other cupping the back of Derek’s neck. Derek licks his lips, brings the bottle to his lips and then places it on the wide cement banister.

“Got anything else you need me to manhandle for you?” Derek asks, his hand returning to Stiles’ back only to slip lower and dip into Stiles’ back pockets.

“You–you...and me?” Stiles tilts his head, this cannot be happening, this cannot be fucking happening. Not with Derek-Fucking-Hale.

“If... you want?” Derek says, and its soft, shy, cautious, and Stiles realizes that Derek is worried about Stiles rejecting him.

“Me?” Stiles need to clarify because he’s pretty sure he’s kept his huge, massive, crush on Derek a secret. At least he’s tried to.

“Yeah, since that time with the pizza boxes.” Derek blushes, blowing out a breath and looking away. He shrugs his shoulder, trying for nonchalance but Stiles sees the way his jaw tenses. “Been trying to work up the nerve to talk to you, but you know….”

“Uh?” Stiles is trying not to laugh, the reality of the situation hitting him full force. He’s not this lucky. The steamy hot guy across the street doesn’t like him, it’s never him, except this time it is. Derek seems to be getting more embarrassed and frustrated as he tries to explain.

“You’re always stuck in things! Or late for something, or rushing. I… I’m not good at just, doing this….stuff…. out of the blue.”

All at once it clicks. “You’re not actually locked out of your house are you?”

“No,” Derek bites his bottom lip, the hands he has stuffed in Stiles back pockets twitch. “You’re two hours late coming home! I got nervous and … it was only supposed to be like one drink, something to give me courage, make me stay out here till you got home, but…”

“My class ran late.” Stiles bites the inside of his cheek, cursing his TA responsibilities– not for the first time.

Derek clears his throat, nods, and to Stiles’ great horror starts to withdraw his hands from Stiles pockets.

“Right so…”

“You know,” Stiles grins, flinging an arm out, he grabs the bottle and gulps down the last few shots. “I think,” he says, wincing around the burn in his throat, “that the door to my bedroom….” Stiles steps backward through the front door, using the hold he has on Derek’s neck to tug him along. “Could use some man-handling...”

Derek’s smile returns full force. He steps in, pulling Stiles' hips against his own as they move out of the sweltering evening sun and into the confines of Stiles’, maybe not so haunted house. Comment/kudos on AO3

#sterek #sterek fic prompt #derek hale #stiles stilinski #awkward derek #oblivious stiles #idiots in love #neighbors #hartless writes #my mutuals #happy birthday Drama #<3

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the-supporting-character · 6 years ago

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Meanwhile... (Buttons x Elmer)

Requested: HA, I wish. I really do. A/N: After a long wait, I hope you can enjoy this while I go work things out. Don’t worry, I haven’t stopped writing completely, just expect more time between them? I dunno. Love you all! P.S. I think I saw this ship on @crystallizedtwilight ’s blog? I thought it was cute, therefore this became a thing. Warning(s): None? Don’t be afraid to send a message if you think there should be! Length: 763

Elmer tumbled into his room, a smile across his face as he managed to get through the entire Lodging House without waking up any of the other boys. He pulled the door shut, turned around to hop into bed when something comes crashing into him. Hm, so maybe he wasn’t as discrete as he thought.

“Uff-” That was all the sound he could make as the larger figure enveloped him in a tight hug from behind. The arms crushing his bruised ribs, he struggled in his grip and tried to wrench himself away. But, if this was who he thought it was, he would have better luck slamming shut a revolving door.

“Gerroff” he grunted, although not giving it his full effort. His ribs ached and his arms felt too weary to push his friend away. With a quick release, the weight was lifted off him and waited for Elmer to turn around. With the deliberate pace of a snail, he turned to face his attacker.

A pair of light eyes bore into him, sweeping at an unstable pace at him in his entirety as if he could never get enough. Elmer was just as greedy, searching over every inch of his lightly freckled face, each line that appeared far too soon on the young man’s face, following the arches of his lighter brows that always gave him a spectacular look of mischief. As much as Elmer would like to admire Buttons for the rest of the evening, it was the intense frown that drew him away. For a second, Elmer forgot what he must’ve looked like. Buttons turned around fussed with something on a chair near the bed.

Swinging back around with a little case in his hands, Elmer gave a dramatic sigh.

“It’s really not that bad.” He frowned as Buttons grabbed his arm and yanked him to sit down on the bed.

“Then clearly you haven’t been lookin’ in any mirrors.” Elmer shifted in his seat as Buttons pulled out a delicate sewing needle and thread. Reaching underneath his bed, his hand searched for something until Elmer watched him pull out an almost empty bottle of… something. Elmer raised his brows questioningly. Buttons only shrugged.

“Someone must’ve nicked it from Jack, and left it in here thinking no one would notice.” Elmer didn’t believe him, not entirely, but forgot as he saw what was left of the liquid douse the needle held between Buttons fingers. A threat was already tied and he raised it to the height of Elmer’s face with a look of concentration.

“Sorry about this.” Elmer closed his eyes as Buttons closed the distance between his hand and the cut just above his cheekbone. He really tried not to wince but moved enough for Buttons to hum a small sound of annoyance and place a hand on his head.

He instantly forgot about the blossoming pain in his face and the aches of his chest. Button’s hand was soft, and when Elmer opened his eyes he was delighted to find that as Buttons focused on closing the wound, he stuck the tip of his tongue out the corner of his mouth in total concentration. He caught his gaze.

“So, what was it this time?” His eyes peered into Elmer’s. With a small swallow, he replied.

“S’nothing.” He looked away into his lap, and Buttons resumed with a small hum, very aware that he hadn’t believed him.

Soon, four tied knots closed the edges of broken skin and Buttons was wiping off the needle once more and placing it back in the box. Elmer sat on the bed in a daze, staring at the back of the young man that treated his small kit with the expertise of a learned man. He turned around to face Elmer with the kit now tucked in his pocket. With a bemused grin, he walked towards the unmoving Elmer. He sat up straight, waiting for harsh words from the older boy, the boy he absolutely, hopelessly adored.

In a swift movement, Buttons leaned his head towards the one sitting on the bed, placing a light kiss on his clean cheek. As Elmer blinked away his disbelief, Buttons had gone to the door, almost gone before he said one more thing.

“Please, try to avoid gettin’ in ta more trouble. I’d hate to have to try to fix such a pretty picture.” Elmer’s face and ears went into a deep scarlet as he left, and began to think of all the ways he could get Buttons to place another kiss on his face.

#belmer #newsies #writing #jack kelly #ok I think i'm actually back this time

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tngrayson · 7 years ago

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Family

A/N: Written for @roxyspearing one and done challenge. The prompt was “Family don't end in blood.”

Thanks for hosting, Roxy! p.s. sorry it’s a day late!

Written directly into the tumblr box, so I apologize f there are any big mistakes. I know it’s quick, but I hope you all enjoy!

Characters: mentions of Sam, Dean, Castiel, Charlie, Jack, and Bobby

Word count: 500?

Warnings: None

Summary: Remembering some of the times the Winchesters made you feel like family.

Growing up with the Winchesters meant always hearing and living the phrase “family don’t end with blood.” The first time I heard it was when John saved my life. My parents died and he assured me that didn’t mean they weren’t still my family. After that, John took me in and promised that I would always be family to him; that even though we weren't related by blood, I would always be his daughter.

After John died, I stayed with Ellen, Jo, and Ash. They never said it to me, but they lived by that phrase. Everyone was family to the Harvelles.

The second time I heard it was right before Dean was torn apart by Hell Hounds. Bobby had yelled it at us before we tried to take out Lillith. We just wanted to spare him from the fight, but he insisted. In some ways, when we were growing up, Bobby was more of a father to us than John was. Jonh taught us hunting, but Bobby was always there to let us be kids. He took us to sports games, played ball with us, and when we grew up he didn’t change. Even when the world was ending, Bobby was there for us. He made sure we ate and slept, and somehow, he made sure we still found the time to sit down and just be a family together.

When we met Charlie, I was ecstatic. I finally had a sister. A nerdy sister! She was the greatest. Sam and Dean were always great brothers to me, but Charlie filled a gap in my heart that I didn’t even know I had.

I found myself screaming it at Sam over the phone when Dean was in Purgatory. I was so angry at him for giving up on Dean when I had kept looking for him. It I could keep going after everything--me, someone who wasn’t of his own blood-- then Sam should have been able to keep going for his brother too.

When Mary came back, I heard it again. I wasn’t taking to Mary as naturally as Sam and Dean were. I was skeptical. But the moment she was in danger, I found myself jumping at the opportunity to save her. Mary was important to Sam and Dean, so that meant she was important to me too. Before long, she was reminding me of my own mother.

Cas was always family too. He rebelled against Heaven. He defied God for us when we had no clue what we were doing. He abandoned his own family to join ours. Seeing Castiel’s charred wings spread out on that beach will always be one of my worst memories; right next to helping wrap his body to give him a hunter’s funeral.

Now we have Jack. Even though Castiel and Mary are gone and we’re all coping with that in our own ways, Jack is family too. I’m not sure Sam and Dean have realized it yet, but Jack was our family before he was even born. He’s going to be with us for a long time, I can feel it. It’s on us to take care of him right now, but I know when the time comes, he’ll be there to take care of us too...because family doesn’t end with blood.

Being a Winchester means being part of a family that will always have your back...even when it hurts.

SPN Taglist (send me an ask or add yourself here)

@nickthboywonder @lilly-sinclair @spn-imagines-fics @jadepc @fangirlofeverythingme @sillesworldofwriting @pinkleopardss @emoryhemsworth @mogaruke @xinyourdreamsx @castielisalreadysaved @lenawiinchester @liffydaze @teaand-cookies @angelofwinchester17 @tina8009 @saladalpaca

#spnoneanddonechallenge #spn #supernatural #fan fiction #fan fic #fanfic #dean winchester #sam winchester #bobby singer #castiel #Charlie Bradbury #ellen harvelle #jo harvelle #john winchester #mary winchester #jack kline

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music-my-angel · 7 years ago

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A secret named anxiety disorder

Prompt - Hi I really adore your stories and writing style I was wondering if you could do one where Hayes Grier has a panic and anxiety disorder and Nash knows but recently Hayes has been hiding it and Nash thought it had gone away but it actually got worse and Hayes has a full blown panic attack and after that he has to explain. P.S – I was wondering if Cameron could be in this and sorry for bothering you 

Prompt - Hey! I saw a request about Hayes having a disorder and was wondering if u could maybe do that for my birthday on April 3! Loved the story line! Do u think u could possibly do it with the Jacks too though? If not that’s cool

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Having grown up together, Nash knew everything about his little brother. From Hayes’s first girlfriend to the boy’s biggest fears, Nash knew all about it. But most importantly he also knew about the boy’s medical condition. From childhood itself, Hayes suffered from anxiety disorder. Nash made sure to always look after the boy, provide a safe environment for the boy and mainly, if a panic attack could be avoided, Nash tried his best not to let Hayes suffer from one. Besides this, he also kept his little brother’s anxiety disorder a secret from others as per the boy’s wishes.

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Usually nothing escaped Nash’s eyes when it came to his little brother. But this time, he happened to miss the signs of anxiety that his little brother emitted.

For the past three days, there had been only one last pill that remained out of his medicine box and it was most needed for his anxiety but still Hayes refrained from letting his brother know about it.

The Grier brothers had been busy with Jack G., Jack J. and Cameron as they worked on a new collaboration. The three boys had even been staying over at their place for two nights now.

Not wanting them to know about his anxiety disorder, Hayes didn’t utter a word about his medicines and instead kept the last pill for when the situation goes out of hand.

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It hadn’t taken long for the situation to go awry though. As Hayes wasn’t keeping up regularly with his medications, the boy was literally on the edge with his anxiety. The rush regarding the video and the stress during these days had the boy inching closer to a panic attack. And unfortunately it took quite a while for Nash to catch on what was going on. The stress, the rush, the fear of keeping his anxiety disorder at bay and missing out on his medications played against Hayes and his secret was soon out.

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It happened one early morning when everything seemed to be going against Hayes. He woke up a bit earlier than before and could already feel the tension brewing along. Jack J and Cameron arguing about the collaboration didn’t make thing easier for Hayes. But mostly, the absence of his brother had him a little concerned. Before he could even ask where his brother was, Jack G was pulling him to come break up the argument between the other two. The loud noises combined with his already conflicted feelings had the boy slipping into a panic attack right when Jack J shouted at Cameron.

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“Stop it… Stop… Please just stop…” Hayes shouted as he backed away from the boys, already sliding down the wall to rock back on his heels.

“Hayes, you okay?” Jack G asked the boy as he crouched down to look at the boy when he reached out to him, Hayes let out another shout and tried backing away further if it was possible.

“Is he having a panic attack?” Jack J asked.

“Looks like it. Someone call Nash and back away a bit. Let him have some space” Cameron instructed. He crouched down in front of the boy, trying to gently coax him out of the panic attack.

But the boy looked far lost in his panic to even hear the boys.

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It didn’t take far long for Nash to come home. He had gone out to clear his mind, leaving Jack J and Cameron to end their arguments on their own. He had been on his way back home when Jack G called him to inform him about Hayes’s panic attack. And the sight that awaited Nash had his heart breaking.

“Hayes, hey, it’s me. I’m here now. It’s okay. Just breathe kiddo. I got you.” Nash tried to coax the boy.

It did take some time but finally Hayes was starting to react to Nash’s voice.

“Nash” Hayes asked and when Nash reached out to him, Hayes willingly threw himself in Nash’s arms.

Tightening his arms around his baby brother, Nash could only sigh and let himself be relieved by the boy’s breathing returning to normal.

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Once the boy finally calmed down enough, Nash looked up to the worried but questioning looks around him.

“There’s a medicine box on the counter. Get me the box” Nash said.

Jack J brought the box and Nash had to sigh again when he saw only one pill left.

“You should have told me there’s only one left. I thought your anxiety was under control. This means you missed out on the medications for some days, right?” Nash asked the boy.

“Sorry” Hayes could only mumble as he let Nash help him take the last pill.

“Let’s get you to bed. You need some rest” Nash said and was glad for Cameron to help him with taking Hayes to his room.

Once the boy was asleep, Nash knew he has some questions to answer.

------

“So, he has anxiety disorders” Jack J stated.

“Is it going to be a problem?” the question from Nash coming out a bit rougher than intended.

“Not really but why hide it from us?” Jack G asked.

“You know the kid. He feels like you’d all judge him or treat him differently if you knew this” Nash mumbled.

“Kid’s like our little brother. We all adore him, man. There’s gonna be no difference now” Cameron assured Nash. Squeezing the boy’s shoulder, Cameron added, “We’re here for you too, dude. If ever you need help.”

For once, Nash felt like he wasn’t alone. He had friends to help him out, to help him watch out for his little brother.

------

When Hayes finally woke up, he braced himself for the questions or for the boys to start behaving differently but it never came. The boys were there with a cup of coffee waiting for and to start filming. The collaboration was more fun filled rather than nervy as the boys realized that they shouldn’t stress either Hayes or themselves. In the end, Hayes noticed that nothing much had changed apart from the fact that now along with Nash, he had three other friends to watch his back. His secret was finally out but it didn’t change much in his life.

------

A/N

Hope you all like it.

#magcon #oneshot #hayes centric #nash #cameron #jack j #jack g

15 notes · View notes

mcgonneville · 7 years ago

Text

Jack & Jill Went Up The Hill..

Hello, everyone! I didn't think I'd be back this soon but special thanks to @moonlessmondays (@breakingunbreaking on Tumblr) for convincing me to take part in this #CobertWeek, I love you, big sister!

The prompt, I chose was AU pretend girlfriend/boyfriend, but I went on and changed it the tiniest bit to pretend husband and wife.

I'm glad I took part and even though I wasn't sure I'd be able to make it on time, I did and I'm absolutely thrilled. I honestly wrote it last night without any proper planning so I apologise if it sounds a bit off and has mistakes. I didn't have time to proofread, I'm sorry. I hope you all enjoy and I can't wait to read your feedback!

P.S: I know the name sounds strange and you must be like ??? but you'll understand it when you read it, so yeah...

Happy Reading!

Robert unlocked his phone once again to check the time. He was really late. It was his own fault anyway, he couldn't blame anyone. But it's not like he had planned to go back to London two days earlier. Initially he was meant to return on Sunday, but who can argue with Mama? Apparently dinner at Mrs. Shackleton's house was of 'utmost importance' all of a sudden and his presence was an absolute necessity. Now it was his fault that he couldn't find a flight back home. All planes were fully booked and Mama couldn't even wait until the next day for him to return. Thus he was catching a train from Glasgow to London, which was almost 4 and a half hours of travel.

He had been working hard, really hard for his company; Grantham Properties & Construction. He had attended four meetings back to back in two days and chaired two conferences in Scotland. He hadn't slept properly or had time to catch his breath. He was really hoping to take a day off afterwards and visit his favorite places in Scotland but now he was running to platform number 4, hoping he hadn't missed this train as well. This would be a long ride and probably not a very peaceful one. It was almost time for the holidays and even the trains were booked and he had found the only seat available the last moment, and that too in business class, which meant loads of people and noise thus no chance of sleep. Sighing he reached the platform and located his train.

Carrying his light suitcase up the train he searched for his seat.

"43B, 43B..", he murmured to himself. Finally successful in locating it he put his bag near the rest of the cases placed and slumped down on his seat. He was glad that he made it in time, he knew Mama would be furious if he had missed it. He unlocked his phone to text his sister, Rosamund that he had made it on time when he heard a voice.

"Um, excuse me?" a feminine voice called him.

A beautiful, tall and a dark haired woman who was struggling with a gigantic box of something stood next to his seat.

"I think you're on my seat.." she took out her train ticket and showed it to him.

Robert was completely dumbfounded, being highly distracted with her bright blue eyes.

"It's 43C" she further clarified, looking at him oddly.

Robert shook his head slightly "Yes sorry.." he took out his ticket again and looked at the seat number at the tiny screen above their compartment. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I just saw 43 and I just sat down, I really apologize, Miss"

Robert got up and gave her space so that she could replace seats with him. She dragged her box with her and tried managing her handbag simultaneously, which was dangling off her arm.

"Here, let me help you" Robert offered his help as he took the large rectangular box from her.

"Thank you so much" she said as she sat down "I wouldn't have bothered you but I really wanted to have the window seat" she added with a tiniest giggle, as Robert smiled at her excitement.

Robert gave her box back and sat next to her on the aisle seat. "That's alright, I'm sorry I'm just being very forgetful lately"

The stunning woman, Cora smiled a beautiful smile at him and for a minute Robert forgot all about his tiredness and annoyance. Robert then accidently hit his foot on the box placed against Cora's knees.

"Oh, sorry" Robert said. He thought about how dumb and clumsy he must be looking in front of her.

Cora shook her head, "I know I shouldn't have placed it here but there was no space on the trolley and I really didn't want anyone to put their luggage on it"

"Oh, I..uh, is it something made of glass?" Robert asked, suddenly tensed that he might have damaged something in it.

"No, it's a painting actually and it took me a long time to finish it so I'm just being extra protective" she replied shyly.

Robert raised his eyebrows suddenly more interested in the beautiful woman next to him "Oh, you're a painter?"

Cora blushed lightly, making Robert's heart melt "No, I just enjoy painting a lot. It's one of my favourite hobbies"

"Are you any good?" Robert asked rubbing his hands together. He himself was a big fan of pretty paintings. Although he didn't have much knowledge about art and its history but he always appreciated beautiful things, just as he was suddenly very intrigued by the beautiful creature sitting next to him.

"I don't know, you tell me" she said as she carefully opened the top of the box to slide her painting out. As soon as Robert saw it, his eyes went completely round. He could immediately recognize the place, it was one of his favorite places in the world and he had planned to visit it, before he was ordered to mark his presence at home. But what captured his interest more were the beautiful colors and the careful, very refined strokes. He could easily see himself buying it and hanging him in his office, or even the drawing room. The colors were bright; strokes of greens, blues and browns filled the canvas and he could easily imagine himself standing there that moment.

"This is stunning!" he finally replied.

Cora smiled, "I don't know about stunning.."

"No, I am serious" Robert cut her off "This is absolutely marvelous. You're very good" he exclaimed.

Cora lowered her eyes now and Robert admired her long black lashes, "This is.."

"Loch Lomond." Robert completed the sentence for her.

She smiled a bright smile "Yes, it is!"

"It's one of my most favorite places" he grinned back.

"Really?" her tone was so innocently surprising that he couldn't help but giggle a little.

"I actually came all the way to Glasgow to paint this. I saw a picture and I thought I really had to visit this place" she added

"It's my favorite when it comes to having some time to myself. I was hoping to visit it again this time but couldn't. How long did it take you to paint this?"

"About 12 days" she smiled.

"It's fantastic work" he appreciated once again.

"Thank you. You don't live in Glasgow then?" she raised her eyebrows in question.

"No, I'm actually from London. Technically Yorkshire but I was raised in London" he shrugged.

"Oh, I've never been there" she put a stray of her hair behind her ear.

"Oh, you should. It's beautiful and very peaceful" he smiled at her. "You clearly aren't from Scotland" he smirked.

Cora raised her eyebrows and acted clueless, "Hm, I wonder what gave me away" she replied speaking in her true American accent.

Robert laughed and she laughed with him as their eyes met. Cora felt a real tug, as if her heart just did a backflip. She coughed lightly and could actually see the handsome man's ears turning red.

"I am from Newport"

"Oh"

"Have you been there?"

Robert thought about it for a second, "I've been to New York but not Newport"

"You should, it's beautiful…and peaceful" she mimicked him and they shared another laugh. She really was full of life.

"So what brought you to UK? Loch Lomond?" he asked, laughing at his own dumb joke.

She giggled "Not quite. I study at Oxford. We had our semester break so I jumped at the chance of doing some exploring"

"Oh wow, I graduated from Oxford two years ago. I assume you study art?"

Cora sighed "I wish. But my father really wanted me to study business administration so I could join his business as a proper partner later on, thus I chose that"

Robert closed his eyes for a split second, being able to highly relate to her "I know how that feels." He sighed with her "I always wanted to study psychology but I am the only son which means I have to handle the family business"

"Oh, you're a businessman?" This time her eyes opened wide.

"Yeah. Don't I look exactly the stereotype" He referred to his coat, his always buzzing cellphone and a pen placed on his coat pocket.

Cora smiled "I don't know, you just gave me a vibe that you must be a doctor"

Robert raised his eyebrows again "A doctor? Haha, don't let my mother hear you"

Cora smiled back at him "Parents!" she rolled her eyes.

"Yes, they are the same everywhere, aren't they?" he added "So you're clearly a student"

"Yes" she said as she relaxed back in her seat. "Don't I look like one?" she grinned.

"You look like a teacher too, like a teacher just beginning her career at teaching"

"You know what?" she jumped back up "I always thought I would be a teacher until a few years ago. Probably a sad Monday-Friday 8th grade English teacher" she chuckled.

"Or art" he added.

"Yeah, haha!"

Neither of them had realized that the train hadn't started yet. Robert suddenly realized that when he looked outside the window. He looked at the time, they were 15 minutes over. He then suddenly heard a pure, thick Scottish accent as they both turned around.

A really bulky, blonde, middle aged woman walked towards them as she talked on her phone.

"I know Billy but we had planned this a month back..I know you can't but still…" she sighed "My sister will be really sad… No, no Michael is coming, he said he'd be there by Tuesday!" her pitch rose. "Yeahh.." she sat down opposite Cora as she continued to talk.

"You know I hate travelling alone and it's almost the holidays….. That's not what…I can't bear them when they act like lovebirds, what am I going to do Billy? We are supposed to be together"

Cora and Robert both just stared at her as she spoke. For some reason her conversation was very interesting, although both of them knew it was bad manners.

The woman looked up at them and Cora and Robert both diverted their gaze. "See, all couples here Billy, all of em. Not one single here. Besides me! I'm even sitting next to one" There was a long pause as Billy ranted on about something on the phone. Finally the train moved and Robert relaxed.

"I'll tell you when I'm there. Give Mr. Simpson a kiss, don't forget to clean the den. Yes..love you, too, you devil" she snorted at the end, that almost made Cora jump.

She put her phone down and sighed again "Sorry about that, eh" the blonde woman apologized.

Before either of them could respond, she spoke once again "Husbands, eh! They're all the same" she rolled her eyes.

Robert raised his eyebrows, suddenly flabbergasted at the stereotype she associated with the role while Cora just stared at the woman with confusion. The woman ran a hand through her neck long, really blonde hair and repositioned her glasses.

"They can be so annoying, I mean they make plans, they promise they'll make it and then they cancel last minute, aren't I right?" she asked as both Cora and Robert continued staring at her.

Cora coughed and sat more properly, trying to reply "Well, um, I wouldn't know..Ma'am I.."

The woman didn't hear her as she cut her off again "They know how to talk..my Billy is an expert, I tell ya"

Robert could see Cora getting super confused so he tried to take the lead so that he could explain to the woman that they aren't married…or even dating. He would date her though, he thought, if he had the chance, though he wouldn't but..Robert shook his head; that was an absolutely foolish thought.

"Actually, Ma'am.." Robert began to speak.

"Do you do that, too, young man?" the blonde questioned Robert and he was taken by surprise that he couldn't think of a reply.

"I..uh.."

"Course you do, you tell me, darling, does he do that?" she asked Cora, who immediately bit her lip. This was such an awkward situation. The woman kept asking them questions but didn't give them a chance to reply.

"Is it just my Billy?" she further clarified.

Cora took a breath "Listen, Ma'am, I think there's a misunderstanding.."

"What? No, there's no misunderstanding, Billy does that all the time" she emphasized with her hands.

Robert rolled his eyes, this was absolutely useless. Was this woman crazy?

"Yes" Robert heard his beautiful seat mate utter this and all hair on his body stood up. What?

"Yes, he does that too" Cora replied to the woman.

The woman bobbed her head in agreement as Robert just stared at both of them. The woman then looked out the window when Cora looked at Robert and squeezed her shoulders, silently gesturing that she wouldn't have shut up otherwise. Robert agreed and relaxed back into the seat, hoping this was the last he heard from the blonde woman.

The woman's phone beeped as her screen popped up a big image of her kissing a man's cheek, which Robert assumed was the famous Billy. Billy compared to the woman was tiny, bald and extremely thin. The woman smiled as she typed back to her text.

"But you gotta love them, don't you?" the woman now looked at Cora with a grin.

Cora who had momentarily relaxed went back into a state of surprise. "Um, what?"

"Marriage is a beautiful thing, though isn't it? I mean yeah they're silly spouses but you gotta love them" she said as she looked back at her screen. She really flipped her button in seconds. "Marriage is great!" she further emphasized.

"Yeah, I'm sure" Cora replied casually, literally having no clue where this conversation was going.

As soon as Cora replied, the woman put her phone down on the table between them and lowered her glasses as she stared at Robert "What do you mean I'm sure? You're not certain? Doesn't he keep you happy?" she asked "Don't you keep her happy, young man?" The conversation escalated quicker than the pace of the train. What had just happened? Honestly what was even going on?

Both Cora and Robert looked at her with blank faces, as if they just got a scolding from a governess for being naughty. Robert felt the sweat under his collar as he saw the woman glaring at him.

Robert put his hands on the seams of his coat and gulped "I uh.." there really was no other option, he just had to play along "Don't I keep you happy.." he then realized that he didn't even know her name and the way he said the sentence, he had to finish it with something, "…sweetheart" he completed the sentence and felt the blush on his face that he could feel spreading on the face of the lovely woman sitting next to him.

Cora gulped and felt a smile creeping on her face. The way he said sweetheart was so awkward and out of force but it was equally sweet and absolutely adorable. She looked at Robert and could feel the smirk on his face. They both were ready to burst with laughter at the whole situation, but Robert very subtly raised his eyebrows as he chewed on his lower lip, signaling that they have no way out. She didn't know him of course, she wouldn't even identify herself as someone who was particularly good at reading facial expressions, but something about this…handsome man's (oh boy! She didn't even know his name!) face was so comfortable and easy to read that she felt she had known him for years.

"Of course you do" she finally replied and then turned back to the woman "Of course he does, he's a good man"

Robert smiled a very satisfied smile and Cora wanted to laugh at how cute it was. The smile was similar to the smile of a boy in class who was awarded with biggest star on his homework. As if the appreciation he received for being a very good husband was genuine and he felt so very proud of his achievements.

Robert tapped his fingers on the table and settled in comfortably. Seeing him relax, Cora relaxed too. This was going to be a long ride. A long and a very interesting ride, since they've given in to the lie, they'll just have to go with it.

Robert looked at his pretend wife and smiled to himself, being happy that she got the hint and isn't offended that he gave in the act and called her sweetheart. She truly was a sweetheart, such a gorgeous person. Though he didn't know her well, although he would've if the blonde woman hadn't interrupted but he wasn't about to complain. They made a really funny team pretending to be husband and wife. And that too without any practice. In his mind, that had to be the best improv ever.

The scenery outside was breathtaking. He had travelled between Glasgow and London several times but mostly by air. It was the first time he actually travelled via train between these two cities and he felt genuinely happy. Although his plans got cancelled and he was highly annoyed with Mama and on top of it all he was tired and lacking on sleep. But still something about the views in front of him calmed him down. Of course the lush green background of his view was absolutely beautiful and so was the foreground, of the beautiful woman who stared out the window with so much fascination. He could see the reflection of her bright blue eyes in the glass, they had to be the most gorgeous shade of blue. After staring at it for a while, it hit him that she could probably see him staring at her through the glass too. He blushed and settled back down.

"So gorgeous!" Cora exclaimed as she continued staring outside, thankfully unaware of all the staring from her partner.

"It's beautiful, ain't it?" The woman spoke up again.

"It is..Ma'am" Cora replied, keeping her attention outside the window.

"It's Estelle, lassie. Estelle Lascombe" she mentioned her name.

Oh so this very interesting woman had a name too, Robert thought to himself.

"But you can call me Mrs. Lascombe, both of ya"

Cora and Robert nodded as Cora continued to look outside the window and Robert popped out his mobile to reply to his emails.

After a few minutes in silence, Mrs. Lascombe spoke again "Ay you see this area, there? Just there.." she pointed out the window as both Cora and Robert followed her finger. "A few miles to the north is where my Billy is from. I met him there about 47 years ago" she smiled at the memory.

Robert smiled at her and then smiled at Cora. Only the smile was really short-lived as another loaded question came bursting out. "How long have you two been married?"

Oh dear! The answers had to be quick.

"3 years" said Cora

"4 years" said Robert

They just happened to say it exactly at the same time. They both looked at each other and felt a panic attack. Cora but her lip again and Robert's eyes went twice their size.

"3 or 4?" Mrs. Lascombe asked scrunching up her nose

"Uh, 3 and a half" said Cora as she giggled in nervousness. She rubbed her hand against her upper thigh and continued "It'll be 4 in mid July" she smiled at Robert then and he took it as a sign to continue.

Already being flushed at the blunder they made, he gulped a few times "Yes, uh..time passes by so quickly, I just lose track" what a dumb reply, he thought to himself.

Cora put a hand on his forearm, a gesture he thought was for him to calm down and even though he was wearing like 5 layers, he could feel the current it triggered "He's being very forgetful lately" she added and then looked at him with a smirk.

Robert lowered his face and felt a smile, but for two reasons. First, her hand on his forearm! He had had many girlfriends before but never, ever had he felt the current he felt just then. And he was wearing 5 layers! And second, he smiled because of how attentive she had been when they talked earlier and he mentioned him being forgetful lately. It was a small detail but it really made him happy.

Cora removed her hand and could feel the blood rushing through it with fast pace. She put her hand on his arm to calm him down because he turned the color of an apple when they made that mistake. And as soon as she had done it, she felt like a fifteen year old with a crush. Gosh, she was being ridiculous. But she covered it up pretty quickly, a trait she learned from her diva of a mother.

"Oh, I see, I see. Still pretty new, eh? Any kids?" she further asked.

Of course, this question was coming. What else do women of her age (which was the age of their mothers) think about!

Cora almost rolled her eyes but then she looked at Robert who had another confused expression on his face. This time he was looking at Cora to reply. Mrs. Lascombe didn't sense the awkwardness as she continued "I have three sons, eh. All married. Big family, I have!"

"Oh" Cora smiled "We don't" she tried to reply very politely and was hoping that Mrs. Lascombe would change her topic. Or better still, stop talking entirely.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't have them too soon, yeah? Don't get overexcited" she said as she winked at Robert and that was it. Robert turned almost crimson at the comment. Honestly, this woman gave him shock after shock.

Cora too, was deep pink at the comment and dug her nails in the leather of the seat at the embarrassment. She couldn't bear to look at the man sitting next to her. Whatever his name was!

Mrs. Lascombe started to laugh, the same snort like laugh she did before and people around them started looking towards them "I'm kidding, eh. It's a joke" she replied "Nevermind, what are your names, I didn't ask?"

Well, they wouldn't tell her in the first place and second they can't, even if they wanted to as they didn't know each other's. Cora looked at Robert and Robert at Cora and through eye contact they agreed that they won't give out their real names. Robert moved his head ever so slightly from left to right and Cora nodded with the same carefulness. They couldn't risk it. What if she found them on social media and started harassing them with friend requests and messages?

"Sorry, what?" Robert asked Mrs. Lascombe.

"Names, dearies"

"Oh, I'm..Jack. Jack Andrews" he smiled with his best poker face.

Mrs. Lascombe now looked at Cora who looked at Robert. Name name name, she thought to herself. When she heard the man's most probably fake name, there was only one name that came to her mind.

"Oh, Jill. I'm Jill" she smiled.

Robert looked at Cora and Cora could see the look of absolute shock on his face. Could it be more fake? Of all the names she had to use the name that was part of the famous nursery rhyme.

"Jack & Jill, eh?" Mrs. Lascombe laughed.

Cora gulped and Robert knew he had to take over "Yes, haha" he laughed and carefully moved towards her and put her arm around Cora "we're meant to be together"

As soon as he did, Cora got a whiff of his cologne and was positively awaken and when he put his arm around her, she looked at him, her face was centimeters apart from his cheek. When Robert said those words, Cora felt her body tingle. She blushed so hard that she had to lower her head. Robert saw this and carefully let her go, equally flushed as she was. They made eye contact again and just smiled through their eyes.

"Sweet. What do you do to make a living?"

"Oh, um I'm a doctor" he said grinning, as he drummed on the table. Well if they were lying already, why shouldn't they go on and exaggerate the whole thing.

Cora just chuckled and subtly covered her mouth. Just because she had mentioned earlier that he gave her a doctor kind of a vibe, he'll of course go ahead and use it.

"Really, yeah My Billy is a doctor too! He's a vet!" Mrs. Lascombe almost jumped off her seat "I tell yeah, he treats animals in a snap. Horses, dogs, chickens, any kind, he's the best, my Billy" she bragged about her husband as Cora just shook her head at the ridiculousness of the whole thing.

"What kind of a doctor, are ya?"

"I'm…a.." well they hadn't thought this through "I'm a neurologist"

"Ah, I see, I see. You do anything, Jill?"

Cora who was busy trying to digest her laugher, sat right up at the question and sucked on her cheeks for a second to regain her control, "Oh, yes yes, I'm a teacher" she said looking at Robert, who in response smirked as a kid on Christmas.

"I'm an art teacher, I teach the 8th grade"

"I like the 8th grade, yeah. Better than the 9th grade and a lot more serious than the 7th" Mrs. Lascombe replied and Cora found no sense in her logics.

"You two make a cozy couple. Doctor and a teacher. Jack and Jill. Wonderful, I say" Mrs. Lascombe slapped the table in front of her for emphasis.

"Yeah..it's..great" Robert replied, trying hard to control his laughter.

"How did you two meet then?"

Oh of course! How did this question slip their minds? They couldn't mess up this story. Cora put a stray of hair behind her ear and coughed "Darling, why don't you tell this story?"

Robert nodded and gulped. Story story story, yes. "We..met at a conference" he said drumming his fingers on his thighs.

He didn't have time to think so he just crossed his fingers and started saying whatever came to his mind "We went to her school to give a lecture to the students on…on mental health, yes. Afterwards we had a conference with the teachers, telling them the importance of mental health and that's where I met her"

Underneath the table, Cora gave him a thumbs up, at an angle only where Robert would be able to see it and he sat back comfortably at her approval.

"Good on ya, good on ya. Was it love at first sight? My Billy fell for me at first look, that foolish man. He said he knew he'd marry me at the first glance" Mrs. Lascombe blushed at the memory and Cora and Robert looked at each other, only this time without any sense of panic and tension. They looked at each other, this whole thing is their first ever meeting and both of them could feel something. So what was this? And what will be their pretend story? Will it be on the same track as the real one? Or will it just be a funny story on a train with a stranger they once met? They wondered.

After a few moments in silence, Robert looked at Mrs. Lascombe and smiled at her "Well, Mrs. Lascombe, I exactly know how your husband felt because it was love at first sight for me as well" he kept his gaze at Mrs. Lascombe as Cora felt her heart soar with joy. What was going on? She hadn't known the man 3 hours and she was already feeling so attached to him. And boy oh boy, as soon as he replied to Mrs. Lascombe she felt out of breath. She had never felt this before and maybe it was because this whole situation was extremely unusual but whatever the reason, it felt good, it felt exciting, it felt like a beautiful journey.

Mrs. Lascombe put both her palms on her fat chubby cheeks "That make me so happy" she showed off her toothy smile and Cora chuckled and smiled back at her.

She looked at Cora for a response, who was already in a puddle with all this. She gulped and tried to regain her control "Yes, he was the most gorgeous man. He was very nice, very well mannered. And then.." she looked at Robert to help her create the rest of the story "then we went on a few dates, for a few months and then he proposed" they both kept looking at each other and then Robert nodded.

"Yes, I just knew then and there. Just like your Billy, Mrs. Lascombe" said Robert.

"Yeah" she snorted "just like my Billy"

Robert looked at Cora from the corner of his eye and could see her blushing and that made his heart melt. Just to cut the awkwardness, Robert changed the topic "Coffee?"

"None for me thanks, dearie" said Mrs Lascombe, although Robert didn't ask her.

"Um, yeah" Cora nodded.

Robert stood up and then suddenly realized that he didn't know how she liked her coffee and he couldn't just straight off ask her because he was apparently her husband and he would of course know these things.

Suddenly Mrs. Lascombe's phone rang with the most obnoxious ringtone and Robert bet on his life that it would be her husband, Billy. And of course it was.

"Hey, Billy!" Mrs Lascombe spoke as if she hadn't spoken to him in years and both Cora and Robert laughed.

Robert tried to ask Cora in signals as he stood, but Cora was too engrossed in the conversation Mrs. Lascombe was having with Billy. Robert coughed, two times but she didn't listen. He tried to gain her attention and failed but of course some other person caught him.

"What is it, Jack?" asked Mrs. Lascombe putting her phone on hold "Why are you standing here, get your wife her coffee"

Only then Cora saw Robert still standing there.

"Oh, I , uh, I am. I'm just…stretching" he then did some weird actions which were supposedly him stretching and Cora couldn't help but giggle out loud.

Mrs. Lascombe gave him an odd look and then put her phone on again "Hold your horses, Billy!"

Cora raised her eyebrows at him and he tried to murmur the words. Cora couldn't get it.

"What?" Cora murmured back.

Robert then just rolled his eyes and bent towards her that his face was nearer hers. Mrs. Lascombe was busy talking about some jar of jam she left behind.

"How do you like your coffee? Robert whispered to her.

"Oh, sorry" Cora covered her mouth "Cappuccino, one sugar" Cora whispered back.

Mrs. Lascombe gave them a strange look again and they both looked at her as if being caught.

"I, uh.." Robert said.

Cora squeezed his arm that he had put on the seat for support for his leaning body "Oh, he's just being silly" she fake rolled her eyes "Go, on now baby, stop being cute with me" she said and when Mrs. Lascombe still wouldn't drop her look, Cora gave him a flying kiss by joining their cheeks together "Go on"

Robert who was completely mesmerized, wasn't sure if his head was actually twirling with joy or was it just the bouncy train. He gulped and nodded and went off.

After a good five minutes of her talk with Billy about the randomest of things, Mrs. Lascombe turned her attention back to Cora. Robert still hadn't returned yet.

"You've got yourself a gem, Jill" Mrs. Lascombe commented.

"Sorry, what?"

"Jack. He's a good lookin man"

Cora smiled and actually felt happy at the compliment, as if she was talking about her real husband, "Yes, he..he's a very good man"

"That is so rare, I tell you, Jill. To find a man who's good looking and is good to ya. Someone who wants more than just your body"

Cora sighed, thinking back to her old relationships. She had had a couple of serious relationships. She never went through any traumatizing experiences, thank the lord, but she could understand why Mrs, Lascombe said what she did. Her ex boyfriends only got attracted to her because of her good looks and genuinely didn't care about anything besides that.

"I know, I am very lucky" Cora said that and for that moment she wanted to believe it.

Mrs. Lascombe scooted forward, "I see the way he looks at you. He is in it forever, trust me. My Billy looks at me like that" she added

This time Cora really smiled at the reference "Well if Billy looks at you the same way, then that's a good sign"

"Wonderful sign! Jack's a handsome man"

Cora blushed and dug her nails in her palm "Yes, he's a gorgeous man!"

"Ay, and those hands…"

Cora felt a new wave of embarrassment. Mrs. Lascombe had been looking at his hands and thinking all sorts of things. How dare she? But..why was she getting all angry? He isn't your husband Jill..I mean Cora, Cora thought to herself. Gosh, this whole situation was a mess.

Robert returned with two cups of coffee "What are you two talking about?" he asked as he sat back down.

"Oh, just..that you've got a beautiful wife, Jack" Mrs. Lascombe covered up.

Robert handed her, her coffee and smiled "I know, she's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen" and this time he didn't even say this for the sake of the act.

Cora who was already pink, turned a deeper shade and tried to hide her face behind the cup.

"Oh, I want to hear the rest of the story" said Mrs. Lascombe

"Which one?" Robert asked as he sipped his coffee.

"Of how you proposed of course"

"Oh.." he said.

Cora took a long sip and sat back up properly "He proposed at Loch Lomond"

Robert almost choked on his latte. Of course she would say that, what else. He tried to hide his smile by the froth of the coffee on his lips. He then looked at her and gestured her to continue. Cora smirked at him and giggled.

"So he called me one day and said Jill, I have to show you something and I asked what? He said it's a surprise. So we go on a long drive. We were here in Glasgow already, he had a…" she looked at him to help her fill the gap. "What was it, darling?"

Robert sucked on his cheek "Oh, that German delegation for the…Southern General Hospital" he said the first thing that came to his mind. He only remembered this place because one time when he was here with Rosamund, she managed to twist her ankle and he took her there.

"Right" Cora said snapping her finger "so we went on a drive and we went to Loch Lomond. We went up on the hill, you know the one that gives the full view of the lake?" she said remembering the angles as she had spent days there.

"Yeah, yeah, on the west side, I know that" Mrs, Lascombe answered.

"So he took me up on the hill and I was so engrossed in the view that I didn't see him going down on one knee and take out the ring"

"You must be so nervous.." Mrs. Lascombe asked Robert.

"Oh, I was…I was feeling goosebumps. I was sweating, even though it was really chilly that day." He said and looked at Cora who was so invested in the story, it made him smile "but I just looked at her, and I never felt so right about anything"

Cora blushed and bit her lower lip at the comment.

The announcement interrupted the wonderful moment "Virgin Train will make a stop at Crewe and then proceed to our final destination; London Euston"

Only then Robert realized how much time had actually passed. They had completed more than three-fourth of the journey and it didn't feel like that at all. Never in his wildest dreams had he thought that this day would turn out like this. He would meet the most enchanting woman ever and would pretend to be her husband for hours on.

The train stopped and a bunch of teenage girls jumped on the train, in their party dresses chatting loudly to each other. For the next 20 minutes, everyone else on the train was quiet besides the large group of girls chatting about things. One of them talked about her best friend's cousin engagement ring which was apparently the most beautiful ring ever.

Until this point Mrs. Lascombe was absolutely silent and then another question popped up in her head.

"Ay, Jill, where is your wedding ring?"

Oh shit! Yes, Jill, where the hell is your wedding ring? Cora thought to herself.

"Oh, my ring, yes.." she smiled, taking time to think about it "It is gone for resizing and polishing" she said as she twisted her ring finger.

Mrs. Lascombe made a strange face "I'm so used to mine, I never take it off. Never. Now I can't.." she snorted again "My fingers are so fat now, it's stuck" she showed her bear looking hands and truly her fingers have gotten quite large and her wedding ring seemed to be stuck on it.

Robert raised his eyebrows just thinking how uncomfortable it must be for her when he became Mrs. Lascombe's next target "What about you, Jack, where is yours?" she narrowed her eyes at him.

Robert gulped again, he had no idea what to reply to this. He just stared back at her dumbly when Mrs. Lascombe said "Not good, son. My Billy never takes it off. You should wear it" she added, suddenly displeased with the whole situation.

"Oh, I.." Robert started but couldn't find the right words.

Cora looked at him and chewed on her lip, clearly seeing that her intervention was needed.

"Oh, don't worry" said Cora, taking Robert's hand on the table in front of him "You left it on the bedside table, Jack. We were in a rush this morning, you forgot. Don't worry, I packed it in the case. You haven't lost it"

She covered up quite nicely and Robert felt blood circulating in his body again "Oh, thank god!" he said, wiping his brow "Jill, you're an angel, thanks" and she really was.

She smiled at him and then added "I told you, so forgetful" she said to Mrs. Lascombe and made a funny face.

Mrs. Lascombe snorted and both Cora and she laughed at him.

After a few minutes, Mrs. Lascombe excused herself and went to the restroom and for the first time on the whole trip, Cora and Robert sat back down comfortably.

"God what a day!" said Cora slapping her forehead.

"I still can't believe this is actually happening" said Robert slapping on the table.

They both started laughing at the whole thing and Cora put her head down on the table. When Robert recovered, he started talking.

"Hey, listen. Do you want to make a run for it?"

Cora looked back up "What?"

"I think, the kind of a person that she is, she will not leave us at the station if we don't give her our address and phone numbers. I bet she has planned on sending us Christmas cards every year"

Cora laughed at this "By this point, it could be anything"

"Yes" Robert leaned in closer to whisper "She'll be back soon and we're 5 minutes away from the station. I say as soon as the train stops, we storm out. Not giving her any time for goodbyes"

Cora bit her lip and then put a hand on his forearm "Can we do that?"

"Yeah, I mean why not" he shrugged his shoulders "Otherwise we'll be forced to attend her family functions and imagine more of her"

"No, please" Cora jumped up, suddenly realizing that it might actually be true. She shook her head "No, we're going with your plan. We're running off!" she ended with a laugh.

Robert laughed back and then looked behind her "Here, I'll take your painting. You take your purse. Do you have another bag?"

"Um, yeah" Cora pointed behind them at the trolley "The brown one on the top"

Robert looked at it and nodded "Good, I'm glad it's not a roll on"

"Yeah, I was well aware that this was going to happen to me one day and I'll have to run off. I always come prepared" she joked and they both laughed.

"Alright, can you manage that, is it too heavy to run in?" he asked

He was being so sweet "Um, no it's not heavy, I can manage"

"Okay, I only have this small bag so I can manage your painting and this. Right then"

"Aye aye captain" she said and smiled at him

Mrs. Lascombe came back from the restroom as she saw majority of the people standing up and grabbing their luggage. They were almost at the station.

"Oh, we're almost there then" she commented and went to the trolley and grabbed her cheetah printed bags that gave Robert a headache.

Cora and Robert along with a few other passengers stood near the exit door and Mrs. Lascombe joined them with her horrible bags.

"You were right, Jack. Time passes by so quickly" she sighed

Both Cora and Robert were now just yearning for the sight of the platform so they could just run off as soon as the train stops. He signaled Cora with his eye that be ready and she nodded.

"You'll be glad to meet my sister, Jill. She's full of life, she talks so much though, and it gives you a headache" she snorted.

Robert wanted to laugh. If she thinks that she doesn't give other people a headache, she was absolutely clueless. And boy, if someone gives her a headache, he wondered what kind of a creature that must be.

Cora just smiled and tapped her fingers on the bag in anxiety. Robert saw this and lightly put his hand on top of hers to calm her down. She looked at him and he squeezed it to reassure her. He was truly, genuinely the kindest man she had ever met.

He then raised his eyebrows as they entered the station and the announcements went off as they had arrived at their destination. Cora too looked at the platform and smiled. She had never been happier to see a platform before.

"..you don't know what the younger generation are on about. My grandson talks of such strange things, he has me worried. Hey, Jack, you're a neurologist, can you check if his brain's alright?"

"I'm sure it's fine, Mrs. Lascombe" Robert replied half listening to what she was saying.

"No, he keeps me up at night, he doesn't play, what kind of a kid is he? I'll tell Johnny to bring him to your clinic.." she continued talking as the train came to a halt.

The doors opened and Robert nodded to Cora who nodded back.

"I'll get my sister to make an appointment, are you open on Thursday, Jack?" she said as she moved behind to grab her bags.

The passengers in front of Cora and Robert exited the train and both of them stood on their toes to make a run.

"Hey, Jack, can you take my makeup bag?" Mrs. Lascombe shouted bending down to assemble all her things.

That was it, it was their turn next and as soon as she said that Robert jumped off and gave Cora a hand to get off.

"Hey, Jill listen my sister would love you…" Mrs. Lascombe said as she turned around and saw Jack and Jill exiting the train.

"Hey Jack, wait for me.." she said as Cora and Robert stormed off. They started running as fast as they could, bumping into people.

"Jill.." they heard Mrs. Lascombe's voice from behind and Robert took Cora's hand and they both started running at the same pace. It was also easier in case they both lost each other. This was nothing sort of the panic the McCallister family felt in Home Alone.

They ran and ran and ran until they reached the exit and by that time they were completely out of breath. Robert put his hands on his knees to catch his breath as Cora held the railing behind her to do the same.

They looked behind and saw no trace of Mrs. Lascombe and then looked at each other and burst into laughter. They started laughing so loudly that people around them gave them strange looks. Robert felt tears in his eyes and Cora felt that her legs were about to give away from all the laughing.

"Oh, my god" she said.

"OH MY GOD" said Robert.

"I can't believe we did that" said Cora wiping away her tears from her face.

"I can't believe this actually happened"

"We did it!" she said grinning and put out her hand for a high five which was well received. He high fived back and grinned.

"Oh, yes we did it" he replied.

Cora adjusted her bag again and looked at the people exiting the platform "What if she finds us here?"

Robert looked behind them and nodded "Yeah, let's not stand here" and they continued to walk.

"Never have I ever ran as fast as I did today" said Cora still mesmerized by the whole thing.

Robert laughed and nodded "I bet neither of us have even lied as much as we did today"

"And with that smoothness! I mean we should be applauded"

"I know" said Robert and Cora laughed at it.

Cora looked back and smiled "I do feel kind of bad though"

Robert scratched his head "Me, too"

Cora laughed again "What if she goes searching for a Jack Andrews in hospitals"

Robert's eyes popped out "Oh, dear god" Cora laughed again. "I just hope there isn't one" Robert thought back on the whole thing "By the way, Jill? Seriously?"

Cora covered her face in embarrassment and Robert thought she looked adorable "I'm sorry, I panicked. That's the first name that came to my mind"

Robert grinned back as they reached the final exit to the station and felt the chilly London air on their faces. It hit him that the beautiful day really came to an end and he wasn't ready to say goodbye just yet.

"So, Jill…" he started

Cora giggled "Yes..Jack"

"May I..uh, know your real name?" he asked shyly.

Cora smiled "I was hoping you'd ask" and that gave Robert encouragement "Cora. My name is Cora Levinson"

Cora, he thought. What a unique name. Cora. It perfectly fit her.

"Cora..I'm Robert, Robert Crawley"

Cora blushed and looked down "Well, lovely to meet you..and Jack, Robert"

Robert laughed "Yes, likewise"

They just stared at the concrete ground, wondering what to say next. It was strange, that even after all the drama they felt shy with each other.

Robert took a deep breath and gathered his courage "So, I got to know Jill very well. Is there any chance I can get to know Cora, too?" he asked, holding his breath.

Cora smiled a stunning smile and Robert knew that he just wouldn't let her go "I'd love that"

Robert didn't want to let her go, ever. He didn't want to say goodbye just yet but he knew he had to be home and mark his presence in front of Mama and only then he'd have a peaceful night out.

"Are you, uh, free tonight?"

Cora thought about it for a second "Yeah, I'm free. I'm free. How about we meet here at 7?"

"Great, I live in Belgrave Square and its pretty close. But uh, but I can pick you up…if you're okay with that?" Robert added immediately, in case she got offended.

"Yeah um, but I live all the way in Chiswick in my friend's apartment and that'll be a lot of trouble for you"

Robert smiled genuinely "That's alright. No problem" he said as they continued walking "And besides, I better be husband of the year" he smirked and Cora laughed out loud. Her cheeks pink and her red lips puffed out balls of smoke.

"Oh yes, definitely"

They came across the main road and exchanged items. Robert took out his phone and gave it to Cora "Here you go" and Cora did the same. They exchanged numbers and then prepared to say goodbye, if only for a few hours.

"Alright then.." Cora said "I'll see you in a bit"

Robert nodded and then moved towards her with all the strength that he had. He moved closer and planted a soft, quick but a sweet kiss on her cheek which made Cora close her eyes.

"Bye, Cora" Cora looked into his eyes and felt dizzy. The feeling that she felt was so beautiful.

"Bye, Robert. I'll text you my address" she said, gulping.

He called out a taxi for her and made sure that she got in safe and waved her goodbye. And so did she, through the back window.

Robert spotted his chauffer and sat back down with a smile. He had just met the most wonderful woman ever. Christmas truly came early for him this year. There was something about her that was so captivating, pure and beautiful that he wished he could just wrap her in a blanket and protect her from all harm.

He opened his phone again and laughed at what he say. Cora had saved her name by Cora Levinson and in the bracket she wrote 'Jill' and had put a ring emoji next to it. She was truly the cutest girl ever.

The radio played 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' and for the first time ever, Robert could actually relate to the song.

So there we go! And can I say, BASED ON A TRUE STORY! I'm not kidding. I actually travelled from Glasgow to London this August and I actually met a woman exactly like Estelle Lascombe. She kept asking me and my sister questions the whole journey and also had the funniest laugh ever. She was a woman full of life but a little too much, haha. And in the end, we switched trains from Crewe to save time, and she followed us, lol and we actually made a run. Although not as obvious as this one, of course this is an exaggerated account but we did, lol. Don't worry by the way, this is not her real name and there was definitely no Billy in her story, that is all made up for the sake of this story.

Well, anyways, I hope you like it. Please, let me know what you think, I'll be thrilled to hear your feedback! I'll be posting the picture of Loch Lomond that I took when I visited it on the same trip and that is the picture, I imagined Cora painted. I'll post it on my Tumblr/Instagram (@mcgonneville) so if you're interested, you can check it out.

All my love,

Zaibi.

#Cora Crawley #robert crawley #cobertweek #cobertweek2017 #hugh bonneville #elizabeth mcgovern #mcgonneville #downton abbey #downton #otp #scotland #loch lomond #glasgow #london

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renee-walker · 7 years ago

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fic: a song, high above the trees

So clearly I’m doing a fantastic job of keeping up with prompts (yes that was sarcasm), but in any case, have … whatever the hell this is.

The prompt is: carol & rosita (just friends) 3) “I wish I could feel things like you,” and this is a tiny Christmas present for the wonderful @tarascarol. I love you with my heart bby.

Anyway, I guess it’s kinda Carol/Rosita friendship with some random Caryl too, for flavor and because apparently I can’t write things that aren’t shippy?

(p.s. Idek what au we’re in here for real. We’re in Alexandria and some of the people I want to be alive are alive, basically.)

“You sure you don’t wanna forget about the cookies ‘til later and come upstairs with me for ten minutes?” Daryl slid both his hands under the hem of her shirt, warm calloused fingers brushing her ribs and then her stomach as his wandering touch moved closer to the button on her jeans.

“Ten whole minutes?” She wiggled out of his grasp, careful to put some friction in all the right places.

“Haven’t seen you in almost a week,” he mumbled, brushing a finger down the back of her neck before he leaned in to whisper against her ear, “Just tryin’ to be realistic.”

She licked a glob of peanut butter cookie dough off the spoon and turned to face him, grinning as she took in his expression, which was caught somewhere between the look he usually gave her when he was about to pull her into his arms and cuddle her until they fell asleep and the look he usually gave her when he was about to get her out of her clothes as fast as possible and put his hands and mouth all over her until she couldn’t breathe, much less think.

Bouncing up on her toes a little, she brushed her lips over his and said, her voice low even though she was pretty sure they were alone in the house, “Or we could compromise.” His hands drew her hips closer to his, and she didn’t fight it. “I’ll finish these cookies and make dinner. But it’s Aaron and Eric’s night to clean up, which means we could go to bed early.” The eagerness in his eyes combined with his hips pressing into hers made her want to forget all about compromises and cookies, but it was only two days until Christmas (or as close as they could figure anyway), and she’d promised Carl she’d do what she could to come up with something like those peanut butter cookies with the Hershey kisses in the middle.

“Early like right after dinner?”

She raised an eyebrow. “If you want.”

He took her face in his hands, tilting it up towards his. “I definitely want,” he muttered before his lips were on hers, warm and soft, the piece of chocolate he’d stolen mixing with the peanut butter cookie dough when the tip of his tongue stroked hers, and she made a low, needy noise.

“Cookies are delicious,” he whispered into her mouth, pushing her back against the counter.

“Shut up,” she murmured, her thoughts getting fuzzier as her cheeks heated and she felt her heart tapping too rapidly against his chest.

The decisive slam of the kitchen door startled them instantly apart. Rosita was standing there, arms across her chest, wearing an expression of boredom mixed with a tinge of amused disdain and … something else Carol couldn’t quite categorize.

“Just want a glass of water.” Rosita strode past them and lifted to her tiptoes to reach the biggest glasses on the top shelf. “And then I’ll let you two get right back to it.”

“Daryl was just leaving,” said Carol, shooting him a pointed look and stepping back far enough that he couldn’t reach her.

“You and I clearly have a very different definition of that word,” Rosita shot back, shoving the faucet handle up to fill her glass.

“I’m outta here.” Daryl’s face was tinted slightly pink, but it made Carol feel warm all over to notice that he didn’t look ashamed or even particularly concerned that Rosita had caught them making out.

Progress.

He leaned forward to drop a kiss on her forehead. “Later then, you promised.” His words were so soft that she almost didn’t hear them.

Almost.

He gave her a tiny, one-side smile as he grabbed his bow off the floor and fled.

Carol turned back to the cookies, spooning out a chunk of dough and rolling it between her palms.

“You want some help?” Rosita gulped down the last few swallows of her water and flipped on the tap to wash her hands.

Carol glanced up, puzzled. “I didn’t know you liked baking.”

“I don’t.”

“So why do you wanna help?” She dropped the mostly rounded ball of dough on the cookie sheet and reached for some more. “I’m fine finishing up here.”

“I don’t feel like being alone.” Her words hung in the quiet air of the kitchen.

Carol stopped and looked at her for a second, wondering why Rosita had chosen this specific moment to be so blunt. Then she nodded. “It’s really easy. Just take about this much dough- (she extended her hand to demonstrate) and then roll it until it’s reasonably close to round.” She deposited the finished product on the cookie sheet. “It doesn’t have to be perfect or anything.”

For a few minutes they worked together in silence, the only sounds in the kitchen the background hum of the refrigerator and the Andy Williams Christmas CD Carol had put on before she started. He was in the middle of “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” full orchestra and choir backing him up.

“Who the hell tells ghost stories on Christmas?” Rosita blew a strand of hair out of her face as she attacked the ball of dough in her hand with what seemed to Carol like unnecessary ferocity.

“What?”

“That stupid line. Something about ‘scary ghost stories and tales of the glories of Christmases long long ago.’”

Carol pulled in a breath, expecting the familiar ache that bloomed in her chest before it had a chance to fully form. “Sophia hated that line, too.” She scooped more dough onto her spoon. “She said whoever wrote it could have come up with something less creepy.”

“Smart kid.”

“Yeah. She was.” Carol swallowed. The song switched to “Silver Bells” and the relief that washed over her made her feel almost silly.

“Why’d you come back?”

“You’re in a talkative mood.”

“I’m sorry.” Rosita dropped her second perfectly-formed sphere on the cookie sheet and looked over at Carol. “Sometimes shit comes out of my mouth and I don’t even think.”

“I don’t mind. I’m just curious why.”

Rosita paused, resting her hands on the counter and staring at the cookie dough with a faraway look. “It’s been really hard for me to settle down since-“ She glanced up again, redirecting her sentence. “But you seem a lot less … “

“Bitchy?” Carol offered with a smirk.

Rosita grinned. “I was gonna say, ‘Touchy,’ but sure.”

“I needed some time away. To think.” She paused for a few beats before adding, “And maybe a break from taking care of everyone.”

“But here you are, baking enough cookies to feed a small militia.”

Carol let the steely edge that sharpened Rosita’s words slide. “Lori used to make those peanut butter cookies with the Hershey kisses in them every Christmas. Carl says they’re his favorite, so I figured why not try?” She shot a glance at the unevenly broken chunks of dark chocolate sitting on a plate to her left. “They won’t be as pretty, but hopefully it’s the thought that counts.”

“My abuela used to make candy canes,” Rosita said after a long pause. “You know the kind where you have to split the dough in half, then dye part of it red and twist the red and white dough together?”

Carol nodded. “I tried them once and it was a disaster.” She laughed. “Attempting those with a four-year-old assistant turned out to be a terrible idea.”

“I doubt I was much older than that when my abuela started making me help her, and goddamn if she wasn’t pickier than the lord himself.” Rosita licked the tip of her finger and started on another cookie. “All I ever did was grumble under my breath and wait to be finished. When I was little I wanted to watch cartoons, and when I got older I wanted to go to the mall with my friends or try to impress some asshole guy.” She shook her head. “I don’t even remember his name. Jack? Jake? Something like that.”

Carol remained quiet, reorganizing the peanut butter balls so she could fit the final two on the cookie sheet.

“I never just appreciated the time,” Rosita said after the silence had stretched out. “There are so many questions I wish I’d asked her. About what things were like when she was a little girl. About where she learned to grow every flower I could think of. There’s so much shit I wish I-“ She cut herself off, pushing her hair away from her face.

“Did she die before-“

“Yeah, breast cancer.”

“I’m sorry.” Carol paused in the middle of filling the sink to wash the dishes and waited until Rosita’s eyes (red and a little shiny) rose to meet hers.

“I miss her.” Rosita cleared her throat and stood up straighter, rubbing at her peanut-butter covered fingers with a paper towel. “But I’m glad she never had to see any of this.”

“Yeah.”

Andy Williams had moved on to “Do You Hear What I Hear?” Carol finished filling the sink, white mountains of soapy froth rising toward her as steam shifted and vanished into the air.

“I guess that’s the main reason I came back,” she said, searching for the sponge in the suds. “I didn’t want another endless list of ‘What Ifs?’ to deal with.”

“Well Daryl definitely didn’t look confused when he left,” Rosita retorted, but this time there was no edge to her words, and the corner of her mouth tilted up a touch. “Horny maybe, but not con-“

“Okay! Would you like to play Scrabble while we wait to put in the next batch?” Carol cut the other woman’s sentence in half, ignoring the pink she knew was in her cheeks as she walked over to the cupboard filled with games.

Rosita offered her a self-satisfied smirk. “Sure, but prepare to get your ass kicked. I was reigning champion at my high school for three years running.”

Carol dropped the Scrabble box on the counter, tiles jingling faintly inside. “Well, you should have seen my Words With Friends rank.”

Rosita dried the last of the water off her fingers, hung the reindeer-print dish towel over the stove door, and pulled out one of the wooden stools. “Bring it on.”

#carol peletier #rosita espinosa #twd #fanfic #lmao why do i even try u guys #caryl #kinda

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ohstardust · 7 years ago

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Longing For You

REQUEST: from lizardpumpkin

Your lil fics are so lovely! If you're accepting, I've got a billion different prompts running through my head but my favs would be the total cliche girl on the Moonstone clicking with Collins or the one where the girl is an actress and has never met Jack Lowden but fans like the idea of them together and they both respect each other's work/are interested in each other. I'm total Dunkirk trash though so everything is great. Thanks!! :)

A/N: I’ve chosen Jack for this one, however the Collins one may get written at some point! Sorry it took me so long though, I didn’t forget about you! :)

Title: Longing For You by Dan Caplen

@ YourName: Congrats to @JALowden on another brilliant film. @EnglandisMineMO is a belter. Is there no stopping you?! @ YourName: P.s. @JALowden - who knew early-twenties Morrissey was so cute? 😜 @JALowden: @ YourName You're far too kind to me, glad you enjoyed it. Hope I wasn't too distracting? 😏

Twitter was easily the pairs nemesis when it came to interacting with each other and the fans were lapping the interaction up as they so often did. The teasing, praise and flirting had been continuing on for almost a year and Y/N didn't want it to end, the banter providing her with some normality in her crazy and hectic world. Despite being in the same industry as each other, Y/N and Jack had still yet to meet, with endless schedules, premieres and more promos than felt necessary, neither of them could catch a break where they were in the same city and actually free at the same time. That didn't stop the outpour of comments from fans providing theories on their so-called 'relationship', if it wasn't so laughable, Y/N probably would have felt giddy at the thought. @ YourName: @JALowden now you're just flattering yourself babe. That's not cute. @JALowden: @ YourName you take that back. "This is ridiculous, can you guys meet already? It's sickening, and so public!" Y/N's friend Jen whined from her position on the other girl’s sofa, the box of Milk Tray was on its way to being completely demolished and she drank the wine from the bottle, "Just because my love life has fallen down the shitter, doesn't mean yours should." The young actress rolled her eyes and nabbed a chocolate from the box, "It's just harmless flirting, it doesn't mean anything." "Well it definitely doesn't look like nothing from where I'm sitting, quite the opposite actually." "I think you need to give me the bottle and I'll make some tea instead," she grabbed the drink from Jen’s hand and quickly exited towards the kitchen. She popped it on the inside of the fridge door and took out the milk instead. "Look, it’s not that I don't like him, because I absolutely do, but it can't mean anything. I don't even know him," her voice rang through the apartment as she tried to defend the situation. When she heard no response, she continued to make the tea and took both mugs back into the living room. "Are you not talking to me no- what are you doing?!" Jen had pulled the other girls laptop onto her knee, Twitter open as she hotly typed away. Y/N tried to pull the device away but to no avail, so she pulled her mobile phone from her back pocket and opened the Twitter app to see what damage was being made. The next moment her phone buzzed and she noticed the little '1' on the message box along the bottom. She curiously tapped the icon and saw Jack’s name sitting at the top. Jack Lowden @JALowden

It's about time you messaged me, thought I was gonna have to up my game. Again. What. The. Fuck. She pressed into the conversation and saw a message sat above his that she most certainly did not send. "You absolutely did not, you little cow," Y/N turned to her best friend who was all too engrossed in the screen before her, she grinned and continued to type. “I’m helping your love life along sugar, you’ll thank me for this later.” Before Y/N even had chance to give her own input into the Twitter conversation, another message from ‘her’ had appeared on the small screen. Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

Sorry it’s been so long, you know how it is. But my good friend gave me a small nudge to get in touch. The young girl raised her eyebrow at her friend, her left hand rested on her hip, “‘my good friend’? No bloody clue who that is.” Jen quietly closed the laptop over and stepped in front of Y/N, she pressed the laptop into the other girls hands before looking at her with a soft expression, “I know you think I’m just teasing you, but I – I just worry that you’re gonna stay single forever and you talk about him so often, I don’t even think you realise you do it. There’s no harm in pushing this, worst case scenario you just stay friends, best case? You fall in love.” Y/N huffed out a small laugh, “That’s a bit dramatic, isn’t it?” “Stop deflecting. I’m crashing in the spare room, please don’t wake me before noon unless it’s to tell me you got a date. Actually, fuck off, don’t wake me up for that.” And with that, Jennifer left the room. Y/N waited for the sound of the spare bedroom door as it closed before she released a defeated sigh. She sat herself down on the sofa and rested her head in her hands, she felt somewhat scared that the meddling of her friend would cause some sort of a rift between her and Jack, but she began to re-think his response. ‘It’s about time you messaged me’, had he really been waiting for a signal from her? ‘thought I was gonna have to up my game. Again.’ Time to throw caution to the wind, girl. She raised herself from the chair and headed back to the kitchen to retrieve the half empty wine bottle and a glass from the cupboard and returned to the living room. The woman poured herself a glass and settled down with her laptop and a relaxing playlist on Spotify. It’s now or never. There was a reply waiting for her when she opened the lid and she nervously opened it to see Jack’s reply. Jack Lowden @JALowden

You’ve been talking about me to your friends? I must have made quite the impression on you then. Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

Didn’t have to, she was quick to notice that you practically cyber stalk me. Jack Lowden @JALowden

You cheeky rascal, I do no such thing. Would it be such a bad thing though? Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

Being cyber stalked? I mean, it’s certainly alarming, let’s hope I don’t need to have a restraining order put against you. Jack Lowden @JALowden

You wouldn’t dare. Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

Guess you’ll have to prove yourself then, Lowden. Jack Lowden @JALowden

Are you free tomorrow night? That one simple message took Y/N by surprise, it’s not that either of the pair hadn’t asked the other that before, they had on a few occasions and it’s no secret that they wanted to meet, but never had Jack asked that during a flirtatious conversation. Never had he actively stopped himself from sending a teasing reply to ask if she had a free evening. Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

Yeah, I am. Jack Lowden @JALowden

Come to mine, I’ll cook dinner, and then maybe I won’t need to cyber stalk you, and you can drop the restraining order nonsense. F.U.C.K. She was all of two seconds from banging down the door to where Jen was sleeping and having a heart attack, the beating in her chest was almost audible in her ears and she couldn’t quite believe he’d actually asked her to his home. Before she had time to reply, another message popped up on the screen. Jack Lowden @JALowden

Please tell me that was okay to ask. Y/N frowned at the man’s words, confused why he would start to doubt himself. She waited a moment more to allow her heart rate to slow down, took a long gulp of her drink and set to work on her response. Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

Of course it was, and I’d really like that. Is THE Jack Lowden getting all domestic? Jack Lowden @JALowden

You really are a terror, you had me worried. But yeah, I am, only for you though so don’t go shouting it all over Twitter, don’t want all the girls thinking I’m a slave in the kitchen. Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

My oh my, I sure feel special now. Jack Lowden @JALowden

You are aren’t ya? Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

Well if you say so then it must be true… Y/F/N Y/L/N @ YourName

Send me your address and a time and I’ll be there. As soon as the message had been sent, she closed the lid on her laptop and grinned idiotically. For years, her career was her sole source of happiness, the one thing that kept her striving, working and aiming even higher, but for once she felt like this side of her life was starting to pick up too. No matter what happened tomorrow night, the friend boundaries had been pushed and pulled a few to many times for it to remain what it once was. She just hoped she wouldn’t be disappointed with the outcome, hoped that he genuinely liked her for who she was and not her acting ability, and that he liked her full stop. The following evening, after a day of taunting and teasing from Jen, Y/N arrived at Jack’s front door, feeling every bit self-conscious, excited, apprehensive and content as she could. But as soon as he opened the door with that all too endearing dimpled smile, all the negative feelings vanished and all she could think was, thank god for social media and meddling best friends. She didn’t return home that evening, she didn’t think about the outside world, she didn’t think about the fans, or work or anything but the man in front of her that was so clearly falling as in love with her as she was with him. And who knew they'd have one single tweet to thank. @ YourName: Why was @JALowden not on my radar before War & Peace? This is an outrage! My Sunday nights have just gotten better.

#jack lowden imagine #jack lowden #jack lowden x reader #dunkirk imagine #dunkirk cast #dunkirk imagines

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rachelbethhines · 8 years ago

Text

The Antoine and Bunnie Retrospective - 136

“Line of Succession Part 1″ - Line of Succession I - Sonic the Hedgehog #155

To the surprise of no one, it’s revealed this issue that “Antoine”, a.k.a. Patch, was the one poisoning the King and most likely the General as well.

Meanwhile, it’s revealed that Sonic and Fiona are now in a relationship and Tails is jealous.

“Since when?” You may ask. After all weren’t they building up to a Bunnie/Sonic relationship all this time? Also why? Fiona just stated two issues ago that she still blamed Sonic for leaving her behind in Robotnik’s prison and thought he was selfish. And before you say “well Scourge charmed her”, we never actually saw the two of them together in issue 150; we’re just told through editor text boxes that he flirted with her.

I give Bollers a lot of shit for his cliched and forced romances, but at least he bothered to establish those relationships first. However, Penders’ romantic drama is just pointless and thrown in here without any thought what so ever.

(P.S. It’s still weird that Tails got upset over “Sonic” and Bunnie making out. I don’t know why the comic feels the need to bring that up again. It makes it look like Tails is in love with Sonic instead of Fiona)

Anyways due to the King’s illness worsening, he cuts his world tour short and places Sally in charge permanently; on one condition that is.

This is the biggest criticism I see hurled at this story; Sally’s lack of agency. And to be fair I can see where they’re coming from. After all, if Max is too ill to lead then Sally would be placed in charge regardless of his blessing and once in charge she can do or not do whatever the hell she feels like. There’s no logical reason for her to be forced into an unwanted marriage.

But abuse isn’t logical.

That’s what we’re seeing here. This is what we’ve been leading up to since issue 59, way back when Max first revealed the Source of All. Remember the Source told him that she would marry Antoine; it just failed to say which Antoine it would be.

Basically, after all of the manipulation, lies, and emotional abuse over the years, Sally’s lost control over her life. Yes, she could logically tell her dad to fuck off and do what she wanted, but that wouldn’t be in line with her character thus far. And honestly breaking away from such relationships is rarely that easy.

Now you could make the argument that Sally should never have been written into an abusive relationship begin with, or that after this story she should have made more of an effort to escape. Those are legitimate complaints. But within the context of the ongoing story, her behavior here does make sense.

Of course this news doesn’t go over well with Bunnie.

Babe? So are you two dating or not? Since when did you ever call her “babe’? Did Penders forget that this is the real Sonic and not Scourge?

Turns out that Bunnie is still in love with Twan, once again to the surprise of no one.

But enough of her feelings, which have been the primary focus of the “dark Antoine” arc up till now, lets focus on Sonic and his feelings instead.

Yeah, I’m not going to lie, I sometimes hate the fact that Sonic’s the main character of this series. He often steals panel time away from far more interesting characters.

And no I’m not delusional or anything. I fully understand why he is the main character and that it’s something that’ll never ever change regardless of medium. But lets face it, Sonic is constantly surrounded by a unique and likable supporting cast that quite often gets the shaft in terms of story development.

Also, there’s this....

Ummm...Sonic, Sally’s not beholden to tell you a damn thing. She broke up with you, remember? And regardless of my personal feelings about the slap, she has every right not to have you involved in her relationship decisions.All this talk about how she hurt you and how it’s all her fault only serves to make you look bad, not the other way around.

Any hoo, Sonic is stopped at the gate by “Antoine” and they duke it out.

I love this scene. In fact there are a lot of little moments that I’ve cut due to time and their lack of plot reverence that I personally enjoy. If there’s one thing that this story does really well, it’s that it makes Patch a credible threat. He’s not only manipulative and conniving, but a physical force to be reckoned with. One that can and has taken on Sonic and won.

In fact I would argue that Patch is the most effective villain in the entire comic. In that he’s the one to accomplish the most without deteriorating due to diminishing returns. Think about, Snively and Linda are enjoyable characters but they aren’t real threats, Robotnik/Eggman, Mammoth Mogul, and the like start of competent but slowly lose their effectiveness due to constantly losing, while characters such as Scourge, Fiona, and Jack Rabbit can be interesting but their goals are generally more petty and focused on one individual rather then bringing harm to everyone, and Dimitri, Gefforey, and Thrash are more anti-villains then anything.

So that pretty much leaves who? Finitevus and the Iron Queen are pretty much the only other big bads to be serious threats to world but they don’t have the psychological edge that Patch does. Patch is both a villain who threatens the realm and one who personally harms and challenges our main heroes. But most importantly, he very nearly wins. I’ll get into it more next issue, but basically the only thing that stops him is the plot convenience fairy.

Speaking of being a manipulative asshat, after his altercation with Sonic, Patch visits Sally.

Ooooh, he’s good; acting like he’s just as much a victim as her, reinforcing the same bullshit about “duty” that her father has ingrained into her since childhood, pretending to still be her childhood friend that she’s known and trusted for years. This conversation would be almost sweet if it wasn’t for the fact we know who he really is. It’s easy to see from this scene just how Patch managed to replace Antoine with little suspicion despite the obvious changes in behavior. He knows just when to drop the cold exterior to keep people guessing.

The next morning, the King has gotten worse and Sally’s come to a decision.

You know it’s not explained very well about why Sally changed her mind. I’d like to think it’s a misguided attempt to honor her father’s dying wishes rather then “duty” or “obligation to the kingdom”. Especially since there is no real political, strategic, nor moral reason for her to marry anybody. The only reason this is a dilemma to begin with is because Max’s a jerk.

So we therefore end this part of the arc on Sally’s and “Antoine’s” wedding, while Sonic rushes off to find a way to stop it.

I do like Sally’s internal monologue here as she tries to justify to herself this horrible mistake. Especially the part about how the real Antoine has a lot of good qualities that she does like. Just the other day @nuttyrabbit asked me how I think a real Sally/Antoine relationship would play out, particularly if they came together early in the comics run. And I honestly do think they would be good for each other if they got together naturally and didn’t have this predestination forced down their throats. And if, you know, Patch and/or the Source of All wasn’t a total dick manipulating events.

The rest of the comic is a dumb and unimportant backstory for Ducly. Pay it no heed.

Next time we’ll finally conclude the dark Antoine arc. However I make no promises as to when the next review will come out. I’m going out of town next weekend and the weekend after that is my birthday. But rest assured I won;t leave you hanging for too long viewers.

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic #fiona fox #Miles Tails Prower #sally acorn #patch d'coolette #Antoine D'Coolette #max acorn #Bunnie Rabbot #archie sonic #archie comics

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emospritelet · 8 years ago

Note

Outsider 39, 42, p.s. I love your fic and you are a wonderful writer.XD

Thank you Nonny!

A fic based entirely on prompts from this post.

AO3 link

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] [Part 6] [Part 7] [Part 8] [Part 9][Part 10] [Part 11] [Part 12] [Part 13] [Part 14] [Part 15] [Part 16] [Part 17] [Part 18] [Part 19] [Part 20] [Part 21] [Part 22] [Part 23] [Part 24] [Part 25] [Part 26]

Gold drove closer to the complex, parking out of sight behind the scrub and stunted bushes that covered the lee of the small hill to the north. Belle sat with Jefferson’s box on her lap, thumb flickering over the keypad of the phone that was linked to it.

“Okay, I’m in,” she said. “I’ve set the security cameras up to play their recordings in a loop, so you won’t show up on the monitors, right?”

“You’re remarkable,” he said quietly, and she blushed, pleased.

“It should take me five minutes or so to disable everything,” she said. “Are you ready?”

Gold flashed her a grin, all white teeth and sparkling eyes, and she could have sworn he was enjoying himself, despite the danger.

“Ready when you are,” he said, and got out of the car, opening up the trunk and taking out the leather bag of weapons.

He didn’t take them all, merely slipping one of the Glocks under his coat and fitting a silencer to the other, the barrel looking unnaturally long because of it. There was a clinking sound as he carefully lifted out two little glass vials and tucked them into the pocket of his overcoat.

“What are those?” asked Belle, interested, and he grinned.

“An old trick I learned,” he said. “Throw them at the wall and they’ll make a loud bang and a lot of smoke. Either a distraction, or a lure.”

He checked the hunting knife strapped to his bad ankle, and Belle bit her lip. She had never asked him how he had been injured, and suddenly it seemed important, that she should know more of his past, of him, before he walked away to face her father and his men.

“I think there’s a lot we need to talk about,” she said.

“I suspect so,” he said. “But now is not the time.”

“No,” she agreed. “But later, okay? I want to know how you got here, how you can do all this. I want to know you.”

He straightened, tugging at the cuffs of his jacket.

“Well, when I return, I’ll share my tale,” he said lightly. “It’ll give us something to discuss on the way home, yes?”

She nodded, flicking her eyes back to the phone.

“The door locks should be open and the alarms silent,” she said. “You can go in. I’ll keep jamming the signals from the system, okay?”

“Thank you, Belle,” he said, and she chewed her lip.

“Remember there’s a side door into the house,” she said. “You can reach it through the garage.”

Gold plugged headphones into the jack of his phone, putting an earbud in and slipping the phone into his pocket.

“Oh, worry not, I’ll be going in through the front,” he said, with a grin. “It’s more dramatic.”

His grin widened, and she sighed.

“Just come back to me,” she said. “Please.”

“I promise,” he said. “Call my number and you’ll be able to hear what’s going on, at least until I get in there. We won’t be able to talk when I’m sneaking around, but I’ll speak when I can.”

“Fine,” she sighed, fretting, and he reached down to cup her cheek, his touch warm against her skin.

“Stay out of sight, you hear?” he said quietly. “And don’t come after me, no matter what.”

She rolled her eyes, but dialled his number, and listened to the sound of his breathing through the tiny speaker on his headphones. He flashed her another grin, giving her a tiny bow, and sauntered off in the direction of the complex, tucking the gun in his pocket. She watched the desert wind ruffle his hair and lift the tails of his coat, moonlight glinting on the ebony length of his cane, until the darkness swallowed him up.

Gold listened to the noises of the desert at night, the chirp of insects and the rustle of rodents in the dry brush. The sound of his shoes on parched, rough ground. Ahead of him, the white mass of Maurice Marchland’s lair rose up in the moonlight, and Gold kept a sharp eye out for men on the walls, seeing no one. There would be patrols inside, though. He would need to avoid them. Or kill them.

“I’ve disabled the lock of the main gates.” Belle’s quiet voice came through his headphones. “You should be able to just walk in, okay?”

“Understood.”

He reached the heavy gates, and waited in the darkness until the pair of guards made their rounds, the two men bickering with one another about some sporting match that Gold had no interest in.

“Look, all I’m saying is that if the coach didn’t favour the guy, he wouldn’t be such a fucking girl on the field,” one was saying. “He needs to man up; the team’s more than one player, I don’t care how much he cost.”

“You’re an idiot!” said the other scornfully. “I’ve met smarter sandwiches! He’s their star player, you moron! He wins, they all win, right? Of course the coach is gonna favour him!”

The men moved off, and Gold waited a full minute before pushing at the wrought-iron gate ahead of him. It opened easily, the electronic lock cut by Belle, and he slipped inside as quick as a snake and closed it behind him, slinking into the shadows and making his way towards the house. He slipped in through a door that opened at his touch, and grinned to himself.

“Okay, I’m in,” he whispered. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, of course, but what about you?” Belle said softly. “Stop talking and concentrate on what’s around you!”

“Yes ma’am,” he said, amused, and grinned at her hiss of frustration. “I’ll call you when I have something to report, okay?”

He ended the call, tucking the ear bud in his pocket again with the phone, and slipped along the corridor like smoke, ears pricked for any sign of life.

“Hey, who are you?”

Gold spun on his toes, whipping his cane upwards and catching a very surprised-looking man hard in the groin. The man collapsed without a sound, and Gold bent to draw the knife, slitting his throat with a practised slice. He cleaned the knife on the man’s shirt, sheathing it beneath the leg of his suit pants and straightening up. Then he kept going, making his way through the kitchens and up a set of back stairs, the layout of the house as clear as a map in his mind’s eye. The sound of voices approached and he ducked into an open doorway, letting the shadows of an empty room flow over him and hide his presence.

“We’ve had a sighting,” one of the men was saying. “Some motel up in Indiana. He’ll want one of us to go, scope it out.”

“Wipe the bitch out, you mean?” said the other, and they both snickered.

“Well, she could have moved on by now, I guess, but she’s with a guy, if it’s her.”

Gold watched as two men with guns at their belts passed the doorway in which he waited, part of the darkness.

“I’ve got a description,” the man went on. “Some old guy with a limp, should only be a one-man job.”

Gold stepped out in the corridor behind them.

“Oh, I beg to differ,” he said, and fired twice as they turned, the silencer emitting tiny shrieks as the bullets flew, blood spraying like spilled wine. Both men dropped, dark holes between their eyes, and Gold skirted the bodies, sidestepping the worst of the blood splatters. Two down. He estimated another two before he could reach the central apartments that Belle had said her father was most likely to occupy. Noises ahead made him duck out of sight again, and he almost laughed as two more men sauntered in front of him. The idiots made it too easy. There were two more squeaks from the gun, two thumps as bodies hit the ground, and he relaxed back into his rapid, uneven stride, flowing along the corridor like the inevitable coming of night.

The decor was plush in the centre of the house, the apartments of its owner decorated with rich silk carpets patterned in gold and green against cream-painted walls. He moved silently but for the gentle tap of his cane, his senses heightened. The murmur of voices came from up ahead, and he checked the bullets in his gun, calmly reloading before moving closer.

“I don’t care how many fake sightings you have to wade through!” a voice snapped. “And no, I don’t want her killed yet, okay? We need to know what she has, first, and who she’s given it to. I can’t expect our guys in the Bureau to keep stalling when I don’t know what the hell’s gonna turn up on the news next, understand?”

Gold moved closer, wondering if the time was ripe to use a distraction or two. Staying still and letting them come to him seemed efficient. He slunk back along the corridor, and reached into his pocket for one of the tiny vials he had taken from the bag. There was an innocuous looking clear liquid inside, and he hurled it at the wall opposite, creating a loud bang followed by a cloud of white smoke.

“What the fuck was that?” snapped the first voice.

“Nothing on the monitors,” said the second. “Someone’s gun go off by accident, d’you think?”

“How the hell should I know? Get your arse out there and look!” bellowed the first voice. “Do I have to do everything my fucking self, what am I paying you for?”

There was the sound of movement, and Gold grinned to himself. Almost done.

Belle was almost beside herself with frustration at not knowing what was going on, not knowing whether Gold was alive. There had been no commotion of any sort from the house, so she presumed he had gotten inside without incident. The guards were still making their circuit of the place, and her thumbs flew across the phone screen as the security system tried to reassert its default settings. She frowned as she worked, willing the phone to ring. A knock on the window made her jump almost out of her skin.

“Well, well,” said a voice, and she recognised the leering face of one of her father’s men. “What have we here? You know everyone’s looking for you, little lady?”

Belle’s eyes widened, and she locked the car door quickly, squirming in her seat as she tried to reach for something, anything, with which to defend herself. The man simply smashed the window with the gun in his hand, glass scattering over her, and she shrieked, trying to twist away as he grabbed for her.

“Oh, no you don’t!” he said firmly, dragging her out. “The boss wants to see you, missy!”

Gold stepped over the bodies of the two men, avoiding the blood that was sinking into the carpet in a spreading tide of crimson. He let the gun hang loose in his hand, listening to the silence around him. The lamps in the corridor cast a warm glow, fewer shadows here in which to hide, and he settled into a relaxed pace, sauntering along the corridor to where he knew his prey waited. Rounding an open doorway, he saw a large, opulent study with walls lined with books and a tall, stockily-built man bending over a series of files on a polished wooden desk.

“I take it it was nothing,” he said, not looking around.

“Depends on your point of view,” said Gold.

The man straightened with a start, reaching for the gun at his belt before noticing that Gold’s was already trained on him. He let his hand fall to the side, his eyes narrowing in surprise, and he nodded.

“Mr Gold,” he said carefully. “Been a while.”

Gold smiled, his gold tooth glinting briefly.

“Hello, Maurice.”

#rumbelle #rumbelle fic #fic: outsider #prompts #ficlets #Anonymous #blood tw #violence tw

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