#SHE HAS AN ENTIRE NEW LIFE SHE DOESN'T REMEMBER OR KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT

[generalluxun]

Ah, what I mean is that even if Chloe were to have a damnation or a redemption arc, it seems that she's somewhat aimless in S4 and S5. I think that her personality was a bit convulted in the later seasons? Her becoming a big meanie again to everyone is somewhat understandable. And Chloe teaming up with Lila was hilarious. But it doesn't make sense? Somehow? Why is Chloe treated as a greater villain than Hawkmoth and worse than her parents? Why is Chloe dumber than the previous seasons? Why is Lila suddenly ordering her around when Chloe is proven to have a strong will? Though I am sure you've heard these complaints again and again.

I'm just, I'm sorry. I'm so used to shows like Young justice, Teen Titans (the og, not the chibis), Gravity Falls, and other popular child shows that at least respects their plot and characters.

I guess what I am saying is, that I am having a hard time understanding the Chloe from the lastest seasons. Other than the list I've made, is that really all there is to Chloe? You've got this character that is rich with potential and it doesn't really go anywhere. Sorry for this confusing ask, by the way. I guess I can't disentangle myself from what I want Chloe to be or to be used in the plot.

One thing to remember about ML is that characters can be wrenched this way and that for a plot or a joke. Characters can even develop speech impediments(and cure them) , addictions, or PTSD as suits the needs of an episode.

When trying to parse any character I find it best to aggregate their personality and to check if anything that feels off is plot-required for a specific episode.

Chloé cheating for grades and ignorant of other cultures? That seems reasonable! Chloé being painfully dumb and somehow doing zero schoolwork for 8yrs? That seems like it was done for specific episodes. I mean- a child doing no work for 8yrs isn't a mark against the child, it's a mark against the system. 6yr olds aren't masterminds.

The end of S5 involved a *lot* of Chloé being manipulated by Lila and also by Gabe. We know Chloé is insecure, has no home life, and can be manipulated. We know Lila is a master manipulator. She turns the entire class against Marinette(to a degree) she tricks Gabe, Nathalie, and manipulates Kagami.

Did Chloé ever stand a chance?

Most of her worst behaviors in S5 involve Lila in her ear- quite literally with an earpiece no one notices.

S4 she wasn't actually horrible? Aside from being upset when her new sister turned on her for the other kids, and being replaced both at home and in hero-work, what did she do? She was mad that one time about being forced to play soccer(in ballet flats no less!) which honestly anyone who hates gym can related. Other than that a couple petty snipes?

Her thing in Gabriel Agreste was just funny to me honestly. And heck- she was nice to Marinette before she knew who Marinette was.

Chloé is a character full of contradictions only if you assume she is acting rationally all the time. She very clearly is not. She is acting emotionally most of the time- common in abusive households, and the 'rational' handbook her parents gave her is gravely flawed at the best of times.

[autism-swagger]

Can you imagine going back in time with knowledge that could save people's lives, not only failing but actively making things worse, and then going back to find out that not only is your entire life almost completely different, you don't even get to keep your name.

And you can't even tell anyone about it.

[ruvviks]

toying with the idea of making yancey's friends not real. would that be too evil

[writing-is-a-martial-art]

You meet god and she's mostly dead fish. You ask her why and she says most of the world is dead fish, and she's made herself to appeal to the most common denominator, the everyman funnyman comedy show that runs for eleven seasons but with the entire universe in mind. You ask her how much of the dead fish is your fault, she says it's far less than you'd think, in the grand scheme of things. You ask her if you matter at all. If you can do anything. She shrugs her rotting shoulders and says mattering is a made-up concept, like life, but sure, you can matter if you want to, on some scale. She has many scales. She doesn't know what you mean by 'anything', but you can do everything you can. You ask her if it's enough. She says there's no base requirement for deserving to exist. She's smoking a joint and the smoke filtering out of her gills gathers and forms gas giants and red dwarfs. You ask her if there's any hidden secrets of the universe you should know and she says it's not a secret if she tells, plus it's fun to let you figure it out yourself. You ask her if any of your questions were right questions and she says you worry about being right so much it might keep you from fucking around, which is as close to meaning of life as she ever bothered to make. You don't ask but she says she loves your hair, also your whole being, also your planet. She says she figured out what love is yesterday and is trying it out, which explains the ten thousand rainbows and sudden influx in rains of fish. She offers you a drag of her joint and you wake up half past midnight behind a chain restaurant clutching a smoked salmon. The new stars are winking like they're in on some joke and you're sure if you try hard enough you'll remember what it is.

[rayroseu]

You know what's sick as hell about the design of the Briar Senates??? It's that their design mirrors the weapon of the Draconias 😭✨

I know they're getting flak rn bcs they feel like "boomers who's against any progress because they value toxic tradition" but i don't really think they're like... entirely evil lol or the root of every bad thing that happened in Malleus'/Lilia's life (though im side eyeing them as one of the perpetrators still lol)

Tbh, removing them would also cause more harm (just some social issues inside the fae society tbh) than good imo, (I know many ppl say this bcs they think removing the Senates would make it possible for the peace between human and faes, but the thing is, the Senates aren't the only group that thinks this way, almost the entirety of Briar Valley does lol so forcibly removing them now would only come off as "Malleus forcing "human ideals" on the faes just because he has spent 4 years with the humans"(plus is the understanding between humans and faes truly achieved if you try to silence one group(even if that group is kinda disagreeable with anything human related lol), plus realistically the faes would trust their fellow faes first rather than some humans,

so for me, Briar Senates doesn't give off the vibe of toxic old people who drags others down in their toxic practices (while that can be an accurate description i feel like it generalizes too much about their behaviour), rather than that, Briar Senates feels more like thorns, like thorns that surrounds Briar Valley, they're not exactly harmful unless you go against them, but ultimately they're still protection for Briar Valley.

Which makes it fitting that their design has a similarity with the Draconia's weapon, they're the thorns that protects the Draconias, even if it means sheltering them.

And, tbh, if the Senates other job is to ensure Draconias lives, they're kinda doing a "decent job"??? If we can assume through Maleficia's (and Malleus' case), since we didnt hear about her leaving the Senate's side, she managed to survive for so long, unlike Meleanor😭 Also could explain why they're so enraged when Lilia arrived with the news that Meleanor died and why they hated the weak bcs what would weakness could protect JJDSJD Kinda wish their hatred against Lilia wasnt that he was a weak bat fae, but rather they doubled down on the fact he failed protecting Meleanor, imagine if Gen. Lilia wasnt as great in magic as the fae nobles were, yet he still managed to earn a position beside the Princess, all that hard work only to fail at the most crucial time, it wouldve make sense in the Senates' side to say, "Meleanor shouldnt have appointed him" (because "he's weak from the start")

oh additionally, this is just my assumption, bcs I felt like the way the Senates recoiled when Lilia hatched the egg was kinda... random?? so this is my made up reason lol Remember, the Senates were adamant that Maleficia should only be the one to hatch the egg because she's a Draconia, but Lilia did it and he's not a Draconia, What if because Lilia hatched the egg, it also affected the development of Malleus?? Like maybe for instance, it affected Malleus' lifespan, maybe he still lives more than one thousand years but he won't live for another thousand years like a pure Draconia because he's been hatched by Lilia as opposed to who they wanted it to be, which is Maleficia, OF COURSE Lilia hatching the egg is heaps better than Malleus dying before being born, but this is just my auto thoughts regarding the random hate reaction the Senates did when Lilia hatched Malleus lol

Interestingly, the placement of the stone of Draconia against the thorns (of the Senates) can also be hinted at their relationship with them??? In Meleanor's case, her stone is on top of the thorns, which may indicate that she's not under the Senate's commands or that its just telling she just lived distantly from the Senates, most importantly her stone is bigger than the thorns which may tell the fact that the Senates worships her because she's powerful and greater than them, and she's not someone who can be trapped/ordered around within the Senates. But, tragically, in Malleus' case, his stone is under the thorns, like its telling that he's under the Senates protection at all cost and his stone is little compared to Meleanor's because he's still young.

I also have a theory that the Senates are part of Briar Valley's land, like its been canonically said that they're the dead faes of Briarland, which makes think that their death is similar to the death of Conall from Maleficent 2, when Conall was buried, his body literally morphed to the land, which makes me think this is how the Senates used to be buried, when they die, they become one with the land, that's why you can't just remove them, when they are literally the Lands of Briar Valley,,,, get it lol

Though this is making me think that if this is the case then Maleficia's city,,, if the Senate's presence are the strongest there bcs that's where they're nearly buried, does that mean around Black Scale Castle is just lowkey a graveyard.... Is that why Halloween is special for Briar Valley bcs they have close ties/respect for the dead and Halloween is essentially about honoring the dead 😭✨

Off topic, but maybe the thorns part of the Draconia's staff may also tell about their age. Notice how Meleanor's staff has 3 twists which may tell that she's atleast 300~ years old, (if each twists signifies a century), while Malleus' staff only has one twist on its thorns which is accurate considering he's only 178 years old (one century).

If this is true, I'm kinda curious about Maleficia's staff... does that mean hers will be convered in thorns (she needs at least 7 twists (7 centuries~ and more) there on her staff 😭✨)

[mirohlayo]

https://www.tumblr.com/mirohlayo/736270231017865216/my-introvert-girl-ln4?source=share

Is it bad I wanna see avas reaction andl her showing everyone she hates reader?

okay so i didn't intend to write a part 2 for my introvert girl but many anons asked me for ava's reaction so here is it !! 🫶

MY INTROVERT GIRL | LN4 (pt2)

( lando and you are finally together, but it seems one girl still hates you no matter what )

warning : slight angst, insecurity, fluff, like a lil innuendo but that's all, soft lando

note : not gonna write a part 3 because i think it's useless, but already pretty proud of these 2 parts !!

word count : 4k

!! english not my first language !!

lando and you are dating for quite some weeks now. and everything is going wonderfully. he has never been so in love, and therefore the same for you. he loves you so much and he's never tired of showing it, you being overwhelmed by his affection.

he doesn't hesitate to show the entire world how precious you are to him, and if he has to prove it until everyone notices that you are his he will do it for eternity. and you would do the same for him without a doubt, he is your first boyfriend ever and certainly the last of your life.

your love is so intense and can be feel wherever you two go, that necessarily it does not go unnoticed. especially in the eyes of the pretty blonde who obviously feels the same feelings for lando as you. even if it's always good to remember that lando only has eyes for you and only you.

and it gets on ava's nerves. when she knew about you dating, her jealousy towards you has only increased. she saw red. she was horrified by this sudden new. she was sure lando would ends up dating her because there was no world in which he would have ended up with an introvert like you.

she finds you so bland. uninteresting. you're not comfortable with people and being shy you're not talkative. and you're always stuck on lando's side as if you were going to die if you didn't stay close to him.

and the fact that lando doesn't see anything wrong with it and isn't even a little annoyed by your behavior because he adores when his girl gets clingy. he always ends up staring at you with tenderness like you are the most beautiful thing in the world.

you here, you there. ava hates it. she detests you. if we would offer her the choice to break your couple she would do it without hesitation. and this is obviously what she intends to do. because since she sees no point in lando dating his complete opposite, such an introvert girl. no, he needs an funny and extrovert girl like ava to match him.

winter break allows the f1 drivers to relax and to rest, to spend time with their loved ones. lando was looking forward to it since it's his first winter break with you, so he wants to make the most of it to spend as much time as possible with you.

he organized many trips, one of them is a trip to vietnam. some of his closest friends will take part in the trip, including ava. normally, she wasn't supposed to come but ria had an hold up so she ended up replacing her. to her greatest happiness of course.

for your part, you weren't comfortable with going on this trip with the blonde girl. you know very well how much she hates you and that she wants to ruin your romantic relationship. you don't want to alert lando or anyone else, you don't want to create problems because it's not in your nature unlike ava. so you just decided not to say anything.

you told yourself that putting up with her presence and her stupid remarks for a week wasn't going to be that complicated. and then you'll be with your lover most of the time, so ava won't be able to speak to you much. ignoring her will be the best solution.

you arrived two days ago now, and after eating you all decided to spend the afternoon on the beach playing games like volleyball or even mini football. nothing but just activities for fun.

everyone is excited to play games, but you're not really in the mood. you're feeling a little tired and you just don't feel like having fun right now. on the one hand, your shyness also forces you to stay locked up in the hotel. you like playing games but you're afraid of making a fool of yourself in front of others. especially in front of ava.

so you inform lando about it, that you weren't coming, and he told you that he wasn't going to leave the hotel and stay with you either.

"baby it's okay, i'll stay in the hotel room. go play with the others" you say to him before slip in under the blanket. "no. if you don't go then neither do i. i’ll stay with you" he retorts, joining you in the bed.

he places himself above you, his chest on yours and his arms tightly wrap your waist. "please lando. i know how much you want to spend time with your friends so i would never refuse that to you. i don't want you to stay locked up because of me" you say to convince him.

"but that's the point, i want to stay locked up with you baby. you’re the one i want to spend time with the most. i don't really care about the others for now. if you stay here, then me too. i just want you with me” he pouts, and places his chin on your stomach.

you look down to plant your eyes in his gaze and he shows you his prettiest smile. what an adorable man. "okay fine. but i don't want you to be mad at me for that later" you warn him. "never. i would never blame you, love” he said before hiding his head in the crook of your neck.

"love you" he muffles and his breath tickles you. "i love you too lan" you says before pressing a soft kiss on his hair. you start playing with his curls, while he's here holding you close, leaving some kisses here and there on your shoulder and neck.

an hour passes like this, you two cuddling close to each other. a text from max makes lando's phone vibrate and he groans. he extends his hand lazily and grab his phone to read the text. "what he's saying ?" you ask, sounding sleepy. "if we're going to join them or not" he replies sounding the same as you.

you think for a few moments. lando was going to put his phone down on the nightstand when you finally suggest that you must go out and join the others on the beach. "are you sure? do you really want to go outside?" he asks you cautiously, his tired eyes scanning your face. "yes. i want to stretch out. your body made me sag" you tease him and he rolls his eyes letting out a laugh. “just say i'm too heavy” “no you’re perfect baby”.

he can't help but blush so hard. god it's the first time that a girl has had such an effect on him. and it seems that it flutters him even more coming from an introvert. "fine. let's go then my girl" he says and in a second you're already outside, walking hand in hand to join your friends.

“it looks like the sloths are back” pietra says, nodding towards the couple arriving on the beach. “we didn’t even sleep” lando responds defensively. “oh so you must have done dirty things then" max said playfully, giving implied glances to the two lovers.

lando can feel himself blushing really hard, just like you. “shut up you muppet. you're saying bullshit" you reply embarrassed. everyone seems amused by the situation except of course one person.

ava.

she seems to be killing you with her gaze, looking you up and down like you're the plague itself. of course lando doesn't notice, too hypnotized by the beautiful girl walking beside him. he almost falls to the ground because of you.

“well, looks like y/n finally got the guts to show herself. which is rare with her, we almost wonder if she even exists sometimes.” ava looks at you and displays a fake, hypocritical smile. no one seems to laugh at her remark and the atmosphere becomes uncomfortable. you don't know where to go or how to react. you feel a little humiliated to tell the truth.

"huh, what did you say ?" lando remarks, a little confused by what the blonde just said. the girl sighs and rolls her eyes before showing her smile that you dream of making her swallow. “oh it’s okay, it was just kidding. we all know that y/n isn’t comfortable with people but i love her anyway” she finally added.

you feel like shit. she's talking like you're the worst scumbag on earth and you don't even have the strength to defend yourself. your shyness seems to be taking over. "um well. okay ava just stop talking and instead start playing. you've been losing every round since a while ago" martin says to lighten the atmosphere because everyone seemed disturbed and embarrassed by the situation.

you sigh and slowly drop lando's hand, but he holds it tightly and looks at you. “don't worry baby, i'm going to stay with you. we can relax on the deckchairs if you prefer” lando kindly offers you, he wants to make you feel comfortable.

“as you wish” you shrug your shoulders trying to hide your sadness and pain and lando smiles at you before leading you towards the deckchairs. he lays down comfortably on one and you move towards another one close to his. but he grabs your hand and makes you sit on his legs. “lie on me love” he begs you with his eyes.

you smile shyly at him and stand up. "nah. we're in public lando, i don't want to receive all the teasing from our friends" you declare before lying down on another deckchair. he pouts, disappointed not to feel your body against his. he even brings his deckchair closer to yours so he can hold your hand, or play with a few strands of your hair.

the sun is strong and the beach umbrella protects you, with of course the sunscreen that you put on before. the waves dance loudly and the laughter of your friends fills the atmosphere with joy. it's calming.

well, it was calming for a little while. ava noticed that you weren't with them playing a game of volleyball and while scanning the surroundings, she spotted you on the deckchairs, silly smiles on your races and lando being extremely touchy with you.

she hates this view. she hates you. she would like to tear off your smile and make you disappear. she already imagines herself in your place, laughing loudly with lando. you are not in your place. it's her. you don't deserve lando.

she walks briskly towards the two of you, and your faces turn towards her. the blonde smiles hypocritically and without any hesitation, she sits on the edge of your lover's deckchair. which you don't like at all. and neither does lando, since he doesn't wait a single second to gently push her with his leg.

she seems hurt and shows it openly, putting her hand to her heart to express her pain ironically. "you hurt me lando. i thought we were friends" she said in a sad tone. “we kind of are. but this place is reserved for my girlfriend only” he answers, holding your hand tighter.

you feel more reassured and you feel your heart soar at the words of your lover. he knows when to show others that it's only you who matters. this comment makes ava roll her eyes, but it's subtle enough that only you notice. she sits on another deck chair and turns to you.

“why don’t you come play with us?” she starts to start a conversation. “y/n doesn’t really want to and neither do i, so i'm staying with her.” lando says and she lets a mocking laugh come out of her mouth and you look at her surprised. “it looks like you’re babysitting her” she says, laughing.

did you hear that correctly? is she serious? you can't let this go. “what did you say?” you ask with a frown. she lets another laugh escape and it also attracts lando's attention. "you seem like you're a baby who always needs lando's attention. he looks like a babysitter because of you"

it’s lando’s turn to frown. he holds your hand a little more firmly. “what do you mean ava?” he says, he knows something is wrong. the blonde sighs deeply and rolls her eyes, glaring at y/n.

"look, she's not even capable of playing with others and having fun. she's stopping you from having good times. she's so shy and... introverted that she's ruining your holidays, even your personal space. she's always stuck to you, it seems like she doesn't know how to cope without you it's just... pathetic." she unpacks it all while looking at you with disgust.

oh you feel so humiliated now. you feel tears coming but you hold them back, crying in front of her will only make things worse. you feel so weak and worthless. you blame yourself for being so insecure, being so shy and reserved. because maybe it's the truth.

maybe lando is finally fed up with you and he hates being around you, stuck with an ordinary and shy person like you. he probably can't have the fun he wants because of your shyness. maybe it's true, you're like a child who's ruining his life.

"don't ever talk about her that way again. you really disgust me ava. you don't even measure up to her and you dare open your fucking mouth to say bullshit" lando starts to raise his voice. you can tell he looks extremely angry.

“oh because you also want to defend her?” she asks mockingly. "i defend her and will defend her no matter what happens. you don't have to talk to my girlfriend like that when she is everything you will never be" he spits his words in her face and gives her a cold look.

he jumps up and holds your hand tightly. when his gaze falls on you, it softens. “come on y/n. let’s go back to the hotel” he pulls you towards him and walks you to the hotel pushing ava out of the way. “get out. i don’t want to see you anymore.” he says his last words to her.

the blonde remains standing, alone. a strange, painful and hurtful feeling takes hold of her. the rest of the group stopped playing, observing the scene. now it's ava's turn to feel humiliated. why did she do that?

for your part, you and Lando return to your hotel room. it's silent. he opens the door and you run to take refuge in the bed, so that he joins you a few seconds later. "don't worry baby. don't listen to her, she's talking nonsense. she just wants to destroy you" lando tries to reassure you and you just nod your head.

you smile at him to reassure him in turn, although deep down you are still a little worried. you're still a little hurt. a part of you tells you that it's true, that Lando doesn't like being constantly stuck to you. you don't like it at all.

the rest of the afternoon passes quickly for your boyfriend, but slowly for you. you can't stop overthinking, thinking about ava's words. part of your brain still makes you believe that you don't deserve lando and that he will be better off with ava. it eats you from the inside. you don't like to doubt lando but ava makes you feel vulnerable and insecure.

and your boyfriend noticed it. he noticed that you had become quieter, you only spoke to him very recently. and he starts to worry about you. he suspects deep down that it's because of earlier that you seem off. so he knows exactly what to do.

he proposed, well more like forced you to watch the sunset, just the two of you, him and you on the beach. no group of friends, no ava, no games, no, just the two of you on the beach. you weren't for it at first but you love sunsets and night walks on the beach, so you finally gave up. especially if it's with lando. you walk hand in hand on the warm sand. the waves rock your ears and the sun slowly begins to set on the horizon. how beautiful. you find a comfortable spot and sit down, lando still holding your hand in his.

he gently caresses it with his thumb, pressing a few random kisses on the back of your hand. he rests your head on his shoulder, and you admire the magnificent landscape in the distance. it's soothing, it's romantic.

"beautiful right?” lando murmurs against you, staring into the distance. you smile to yourself. “very beautiful” “just like you” he responds quickly and you can tell he’s grinning. you laugh softly and shake your head. “how cheesy” you blurt out and it’s his turn to let out a soft laugh.

oh his laugh.

although you still hide it, lando knows he needs to talk to you. that he must reassure you. that he has to make you sure how much he loves you and that he would literally do anything for you. because you're the only girl who makes it feel this good.

“y/n” he whispers your name so softly, and it warms your heart. “hmm babe?” you hum. he moves to get a little closer to you and rests his head on yours. "i know what you're thinking about since this afternoon” he begins cautiously not wanting to rush you. he knows your nature.

"w-what ?" you try to hide. but you know very well that he knows you by heart. “please don’t try to avoid the subject. you know what i'm talking about.” he ends up saying.

you sigh. you know you have to talk to him about it, it will only do you good. “yes sorry.” "don't feel sorry love. take your time". he said in such a caring way. he presses a soft kiss against your hair. and another on your cheek. he loves kissing your face so much.

you take a deep breath. you press your hand a little more against his. "it's just... it's just that i feel so insecure when ava talks about me like that. i keep telling myself that i don't deserve you, that you deserve someone who looks like you and who is not your opposite. like ava". you pause but you know he continues to be attentive and listen to you.

"i..." you continue "i keep thinking that it must bore you to stay constantly and always with me. that my shyness surely prevents you from having fun and enjoying your life to the fullest. that i'm like a drag and dating an introvert like me is a bad idea” you finish, tears soon escaping your eyes.

now he faces you. he looks at you with so much gentleness, so much affection and love. his gaze becomes sadder when he hears what is on your heart and his heart suddenly tightens at your words. he hates hearing you talk about yourself like that, devaluing you when all he loves about you is what you're insecure about.

“my baby…” he whispers and places his hands on your cheeks, caressing them gently. he wipes with his thumb a tear that has just escaped your eyes. he places a soft kiss on the tip of your nose and smiles affectionately at you.

"i wish you could see you through my eyes". he places another kiss on your forehead. the sun illuminates his face, the waves seem to transport you.

"i fucking love you. like fucking fucking love you. it's me who doesn’t deserve you. it's me who should hate myself for not always making you feel secure about me and our relationship" he explains. "i don't care about ava, you know that. she is absolutely nothing compared to you. it's not her or someone like her that i want. it's you. you're the only one i want and need so badly".

his hands slide to grab yours. "being constantly by your side is the best thing in the world. i don't care if we are in the worst place in the world, in the worst possible situation, as long as i am with you and by your side i know that everything will be fine. there's nowhere i'd like to be without you. it's just impossible. all i fucking want is to stay with you as long as possible."

he smiles brightly at you before finishing. "and your shyness will not change my love for you or how i live my life. i fell in love with you because of this side of you, because you are introverted and you are so much my opposite that i am extremely attracted to you. it's like that. so don't blame yourself, because i don't want you to change that even though it doesn't even bother me a little bit. i love it. i adore you. i love you and i love you. love you and i will always love you"

you sure you look like nothing now. your eyes must probably be puffy and red but that's okay. lando doesn't care too. you can't help but smile at him with all your teeth. “i love you so much lando. i love you with all my heart and that will never change” you whisper against his neck.

he places thousands of kisses on your head, caressing your back. god how much he loves you too, your love is so deep and strong. “hope it'll never change then” he adds and puts his arms around your waist, bringing you as close to his body as possible.

and without a word, in a calming silence, you stay in each other's arms until the sun sets completely. a starry sky now paints the night. you are still glued to each other, your head on your lover's stretched out legs. you admire the stars while he admires you. it's perhaps one of his favorite activities. just looking at you, like the most beautiful paintings in the world. but soon you notice that he doesn't pay attention to the sky and you point this out to him, teasing him.

“look at the sky, it's so pretty” you hum “but you're prettier” he simply retorts, telling the truth. you roll your eyes and let out a small laugh. “never tired of being cheesy” you laugh shyly. “never” he adds while smiling. but he ends up raising his head towards the sky. it is true that the stars are infinitely beautiful. they shine so much, and he can't help but describe them like that, as he describes you the same way. he runs his hand through your hair, eyes anchored to the stars.

“do you see all these stars?” he asks and you hum in response. "i would hunt them all for you if you asked me. i would bring them all to you if that's what you want. ask me to bring down the moon and i would do it without hesitation just for you" he said softly, a silly smile on his lips.

you can’t help but burst out laughing. “how romantic” you tease him but deep down you melt, feeling so confident after all those sweet words. he lowers his head to look at you, smiling fully.

he admires you for a moment, take in your features. his heart never stops beating faster at the sight of you, even after weeks of being in a relationship. and he leans down to finally kiss you, his lips capturing yours perfectly. gosh he loves kissing you so much, he might never stop. he pulls back and pecks your nose.

“love you always, my introvert girl” he smiles softly.

[dreamsteddie]

The Other Bank

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This is a repost of something I worked on earlier in the year. It's one of my favorite concepts but it didn't get much traction so I thought I'd give her one more try!

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There is something so beautiful and melancholy about the idea of failed rockstar Eddie who was on the verge of being a major hit but ended up giving up his dreams because he didn't like who he was turning into.

Eddie who leaves Hawkins behind as quickly as he can and dedicates his entire life, every waking moment, to building up his music career. He sleeps on couches for years, staying with whoever will take him in for a night or two in exchange for a bump of coke or joint from the remains of his sizeable Reefer Kick stash. He carries everything he owns in the back of his trunk. Amp, wires, guitars, clothes, etc and basically converts it into a portable practice studio.

He plays every gig he can get his hands on. Playing as a last-minute substitute guitar or base for any band that calls, playing for pop bands and punk bands alike until he convinces enough people to join up with him and start a new metal band.

With the band comes more stability, for a while. They share a cramped two-bedroom among the five of them. Writing and jamming every day, going home to smoke up and decompress.

Just over four years after Eddie lands in the city, they play their first real show. A show at a respectable, if small, bar venue with people in the audience there to see them. People sing their songs and dance to their music. It's not sold out, not even close really, but it's the start of something big, they can all feel it. That night they go out to the club around the block with a couple of people who came to the show and party harder than Eddie ever has before. He wakes up with that distinctly fuzzy feeling the next morning that tells him he dipped into the harder drugs the night before, something he hasn't done since he learned his dad passed three years ago.

It scares him. He can't remember anything past walking into the club last night. He doesn't remember anything he did or said and desperately hopes he didn't do anything weird with a fan, but he brushes it off. Tells himself it was a one-time thing, a celebration of their success. They deserved to let loose, right?

Except it wasn't a one-time thing. In fact, it turns into an almost every night kind of thing, and as their fan base grows what feels like overnight, the parties grow in intensity with them. They play their hearts out on stage, eventually selling out all of the smaller local venues and moving on to the larger, more serious ones. The occasional disagreement over music between the band members turns into larger, more personal arguments. Eventually, they reach Fleetwood Mac Rumors Era levels of drama. Everyone is sleeping around, the drugs are out of control, and they can't hardly stand to be in the same room together anymore, only pulling it together enough to go on stage at the end of the day.

Eddie lives that handful of years in a daze. It can mostly be attributed to the copious amounts of alcohol he's turned to to cope with the stress, but he uses his fair share of snow to keep himself in the creative spirit too. It feels inevitable when he reaches a kind of low he doesn't know if he can come back from.

Eddie wasn't a saint, but he has always sworn off meth. It was the thing that killed his mom. He remembers the way she'd wasted away, the days when she seemed crazed, and how sorry she was to him when she stabilized. The regret in her eyes when she looked at him. But when he's asked if he wants a needle all he can think about is the prospect of spending the rest of his life stuck with this band full of people he can't stand and people who can't stand him if the record deal they've been negotiating goes through, and it feels like it will.

Thinks of what all his hard work will mean if it doesn't.

He says yes.

Wakes up the next day starfished in the alley of an apartment he doesn't recognize staring up at the little sliver of blue sky he can see between the fire escapes and weeps. He's become exactly the kind of person he never wanted to be, some asshole almost rich guy laying in a damp alleyway all alone with no real friends.

Eddie lies there for an hour just thinking. Trying to remember when the last time he called Wayne was. Thinking of all the girls he slept with when he probably shouldn't have, when they were both too fucked up to make the right choice. Thinks of his mom and dad.

Tries to remember the last time he made the world a better place to live in instead of contributing to the filth.

He gets up and leaves. Leaves it all behind. Gets in a taxi to take him to where his van is parked by the venue from last night. Frantically takes everything out of the back and leaves it on the street. The only things that remain are the few keepsakes he brought with him to the city and his acoustic, the one his mom left him and Wayne helped him paint. The amps, his sweetheart, and the performance wear all get dumped on the side of the road and then he's jumping into the front seat.

Hours of driving leads him back home to Hawkins Indiana, the one place he promised never to return. Hawkins has seen a boom in the last few years, it seems. More shops, a bigger main street. He even spots a proper cafe. It all feels less haunted than he remembers. More people, fewer familiar faces. The trailer park, though, looks almost the same as it did the day he left, right down to the sight of his uncle lounging on the porch, waiting patiently for whatever comes next the way he always has.

Wayne doesn't ask any questions, not right away. He just scoops his nephew up in his arms and holds him in the cool morning air. He always knew his nephew better than anyone else, never needed words to know when he needed his uncle to help hold up the weight of the world.

And that's how Eddie finds his way back home. It takes a while for him to feel well enough to face the world again. A mixture of detoxing and coming to terms with the feeling of starting back at the beginning, like the last six years of his life didn't even happen leaves him licking his wounds in his partially empty childhood bed. It looks the same way it did when he walked out the front door.

When he does come back to the world, he starts small. Stepping out on the porch to share a cup of coffee with his uncle feels like one of the hardest things he's ever done. Maybe the most important.

He's proven right when he steps out to find he's not the only guest his uncle is entertaining this morning. Another resident of the park has already claimed the second chair as his own.

Steve Harrington.

Steve Harrington who never made it out of Hawkins but also never regretted it. Who's made a small, happy life for himself here in the trailer park after his parents kicked him out for good when he turned 20. Who works part-time under the table at Miller's Mechanic and collects disability checks for the lost leg and minor brain damage he got from a car accident at 21. Steve Harrington who keeps his uncle company and makes sure he has everything he needs, taking care of the other residents in the park to the best of his ability doing easy car maintenance, babysitting, or just offering company to the more lonely residents.

Steve is so different from the guy Eddie vaguely knew in high school that he might as well be a stranger. They all sit and talk together for the entire morning, laughing and sharing stories. Steve never asks about where he's been or why he's back and Eddie wishes he could tell Steve how much he appreciates it.

Before Steve heads back he asks if Eddie would like to come over after he gets back from his shift. Asks if he wants to drink a beer and watch a movie. Eddie is quick, maybe too quick judging by the sympathetic look Steve sends his way, to turn down the beer and scoop up the movie invitation like the precious thing it is. There's something about Steve that soothes his soul. An easy connection between them that Eddie hopes they both feel.

Steve kisses him that night, slow and easy like they've been doing it their whole lives. Like they didn't basically meet for the first time this morning. Like Eddie hasn't been in denial about his sexuality for his entire life. Eddie cries at the warmth it fills him with. Steve just cradles him by the cheeks and lets him. That night Eddie doesn't go back to Wayne's. He lets Steve drag him to bed and hold him close. Lets him tangle their legs together and breathe warm air into the crown of his head until morning.

Steve shows Eddie how to live a life without big dreams, a life without ambition but full of love and comfort. A life without plans but with the knowledge that every day, someone who loves you will kiss you when you wake up and hold you through the night.

[arc-misadventures]

Advice For The Heartbroken

: Oh? Hello, Jaune.

Jaune: Hello, Mrs... Miss Schnee. I'd offer my condolences, but I don't think you'd truly care for that.

Willow: No, not at all.

Jaune: I will say you are looking better; you, and this house seems more lively. Like a new wave of fresh air has blown in.

Willow: Yes, the oppressive aura that, Jacques carried about him has been lifted, bringing new life to my family, and house. Speaking of looking better; I must say I like your new outfit; Is that a, Specialist uniform?

Jaune: Ahh... yes... Yes it is. I recently became a member of the, Specialist as of, Winter's recommendations.

Willow: Oh congratulations, Jaune! That uniform suit you perfectly.

Jaune: Thank you, Miss Schnee.

Willow: Please, Jaune I already told you, you can call me, Willow. No more of this, Miss Schnee business.

Jaune: Alright then... Willow...

Willow: See, that wasn't too hard. Now then, please take a seat, I assume you're here not because of your new position. Perhaps about the odd circumstances around, Jacques's suspicious death?

Jaune: Thank you... and, uhhh no. I'm not aware of anything in regards to, Jacques's death, and the investigation. I'm a, Huntsman, not a detective.

Willow: Thought I should ask; Winter is unable to tell me anything. Something about the: 'Confidentiality pertaining to the ongoing investigation pertaining to the suspicious death of, Jacques Schnee.'

Jaune: In essence: No.

Willow: Precisely~!

Willow: Now then, since you are not here to talk about, Jacques death, what can I help you with, Jaune?

Jaune: Well... Since you mentioned, Winter... I need some help with her...

Willow: Oh, what is wrong? Did my daughter do something to you?

Jaune: Uhhh... kinda...?

Willow: Kinda... what?

Jaune: Winter likes me...

Willow: So? You are a well mannered, polite, respectable young man. There is very little to hate about you, Jaune. So of course she likes you.

Jaune: Uhhh... no, not that... Winter likes me... As in, like-likes me...

Willow: ...

Willow: S-Seriously...?

Jaune: She's blushed in front of me. She's laughed with me, not at me. She's smiled at me. She gave me this sash on my waist. And, I swear on my mother's life; she winked, and said 'tee-hee' at me!

Willow: Holy shit... Winter does like-like you... I can't believe this...

Jaune: Neither can I.

Willow: I picked a wrong time to stop drinking...

Willow: Okay... you have my permission.

Jaune: ...

Jaune: Wha...?

Willow: You have permission to date my daughter.

Jaune: Oh... thank you... B-But, that isn't why I'm here... kinda...?

Willow: Oh? Then what is it, Jaune?

Jaune: I have... absolutely no experience when it comes to romance. If you ask, Weiss about my attempts to, 'whoo' her, you'd whinge in shame at my antics...

Willow: Yes, I do believe I remember hearing, Weiss complaining about that.

Jaune: ...

Jaune: I... I like, Winter... I'm not entirely sure how much I care for her, but I know I do care for, Winter... If there is a possibility of us having a relationship, I want to try... I don't want to miss this chance... not again... So, I came to you to... ask for advice.

Willow: Advice? Why me, couldn't you ask one of your friends for advice?

Jaune: Ha! Ruby has no experience when it comes to love. Weiss, has poor taste in men, and we have that whole history together, not to mention it's about her sister! I can't possibly talk about this with her.

Willow: That would be an ill-advised endeavor to take.

Jaune: Nora, and Ren are out of the question. Nora is pinning for, Ren so hard she might as well become a pine tree. And, people call me dense?! They should take a look at, Ren! A woman is literally fawning over him, and he doesn't see a damn thing!

Willow: Oh, she liked him, I never notice...

Jaune: Don't even get me started on, Blake, and Yang's thing.

Willow: Oh please do, I do love gossip~!

Jaune: Oh, that's right, woman love to gossip; My mother, and sisters love to gossip too.

Jaune: Okay... Blake, and Yang are stuck in this will they won't they situation upon which I don't think they should, because dating, Blake would end up being a part of a very toxic relationship. I mean... Blake is a coward, she has a habit of running away from her problems, and dumping them on others, and refusing to take the blame. Not to mention her past dating experience is horrible! Her first lover was Adam Taurus! A psychotic race supremist terrorist! And, a fanatical lesbian who like, Adam, tried to kill her! Twice!

Willow: Oh~? Now isn't this juicy~!

Jaune: Yang has abandonment issues! Her mother abandoned her when she was a child! It would destroy her if, Blake ran away, again! My sister is a lesbian who is married. and in a loving relationship. I told them about, Blake, and Yang, and they looked horrified at the thought of the two of them dating. Not, because its a human, and faunas relationship, because they know how toxic it could be!

Willow: Oh my~! Even the lesbians are looking down on them~! Now things are getting interesting~!

Jaune: Since I don't get involved in their conversations, I just observe. And, I don't like what I'm seeing... Is there a chance they get together, yes. Is there a chance it will be a healthy relationship, maybe... But, I wouldn't bet money on it.

Willow: Ohh~! It's so much fun hearing all the juicy gossip! I feel like I'm a teenager again~!

Jaune: So... I said, I have no experience with dating, so I've come to you for advice. I know you had a toxic relationship with your ex-husband...

Willow: That's an understatement...

Jaune: But, even before that there must have been moments that were happy? Or, the very least you can tell me the does, and don'ts of a relationship. Mostly the don'ts all thing considered...

Willow: ...

Jaune: I know you didn't have a good relationship... But, of everyone I know... You're the only one I can ask.

Willow: Couldn't you ask your sister? She's married after all.

Jaune: Yeah, I could ask my sister how she got together with her wife, but...

Willow: She has no idea how it happened?

Jaune: No clue whatsoever.

Willow: So you came to me for advice.

Jaune: Yeah, I did.

Willow: Listen, Jaune... I do not understand my daughter well enough to give you advice when it comes to having a relationship with her. I estranged myself from my children when I escaped, Jacque's abuse to the bottle. I am in the middle of trying to rebuild our relationship. I'm learning who my children are, and plan to become. So, I can't tell you what you could do to enter a relationship with her... But, if what you said is true, that if you're making my daughter laugh, and smile. Then you should be together, or at the very least, give it a chance. And, don't regret not taking the chance.

Jaune: ...

Jaune: I don't want to lose that chance again...

Willow: Again?

Jaune: Okay... for now I'll just play it by ear, and see where it will take me... hopefully somewhere nice... Thank you, Willow.

Willow: My pleasure, Jaune. I hope the best for you two. I wouldn't mind you becoming my son in law.

Jaune: O-Oh... Thank you... Now, I best get going there is work to be done.

Willow: Do, Say hello to, Whitely before you leave. He's been wanting to talk to you again.

Jaune: Oh? I'll go do that. Goodbye, Willow.

Willow: Goodbye, Jaune.

Willow: ...

Willow: I wish you the best of luck, Jaune...

[hiraethwrote]

just come home pt. 2 - satoru gojo

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[satoru gojo - f!reader] ✧ summary: dealing with the breakup has been hard for the both of you, and it doesn't help when your randomly bump into each other ✧ cw: angst, some fluff, denial, slight intoxication, somewhat proofread ✧ word count: 3.6k

part 1 - part 2 - part 3

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35 days has passed since he had last seen you, let alone heard your voice and he never knew he could miss something so much. The first week after everything had went down, he had blown up your phone in hopes you two could talk it through. But he hadn’t been so lucky, as he was sent straight to voicemail every time.

He was dying to know how you were doing, wondering if you were as miserable without him as he found himself to be without you. Every time he stepped into the abandoned apartment, the scene of you leaving him played over and over in his head. It wasn’t until your friend had picked up all your stuff he realised how imprinted you were in the apartment. It didn’t feel like home to him anymore.

The apartment was, in theory, Satoru’s. In the beginning, you spent the night every now and then. But the relationship was just so intense, quickly escalating to spending the night, every night. Eventually you both figured it was just better you moved in, so you wouldn’t have to travel in between places for small necessities. As time went on, your stuff and decor brought new life to the place, something he had wanted for a long time but never taken the time to do. But now every trace of your time in his apartment was erased and he couldn’t stand being there.

“She’s not telling me anything, Satoru,” Suguru sighed as he was continuously begging him to spill whatever he had heard from you. Throughout your relationship, it was only natural for you to get to know his friends. Therefore, Suguru had reached out to you once he learned what had happened. But much to Satoru’s dismay, you gave short replies, only answering out of pure politeness.

“She’s a chatty person, I find it hard to believe she’s sending you one-word texts.”

With a sigh, Suguru threw his phone at him, taking Satoru by surprise. “Have a look for yourself.” Suguru didn’t have to ask him twice as he instantly entered the texts exchanged between the two of you. Not only did you answer shortly, but you took your sweet time sending any form of reply. But once he saw the last message he had received from you was yesterday, his heart did a small jump. It was the first sign he’d seen himself that you were even alive.

y/n: doing fine. hope you have a nice weekend too :)

His eyes kept staring at the small screen, fighting the urge to start typing anything just to be in contact with you. After a while, he reluctantly handed the phone back to Suguru.

“Happy now?” Suguru asked, earning him a cold glare from Satoru. “If I’m gonna be honest, I thought the two of you had been having issues for a while.” His glare instantly softened and his entire demeanour had changed into one of pure sadness.

“Come again?”

“You can’t be serious, Satoru?” Suguru asked tauntingly, his voice dripping with disappointment. “You hate work. I thought the first time you volunteered to stay after a meeting, you guys had been fighting and you were just being petty.”

“I’m not petty,” Satoru raced to defend himself.

“That’s beside the point!” Suguru said, rolling his eyes. “You know how you can get. I thought you just wanted to piss her off, but it kept happening. I tried asking you about it, but you just brushed it off every time.”

“I’m telling you, we were fine. There were no issues!”

“You keep saying that, but something changed. Satoru, do you remember the last time Shoko or I begged you to shut up about her?” Now that Suguru mentioned it, Satoru began to think about what Suguru had said and realised he was making a point.

He felt as if his heart was breaking all over again, to hear how even his friends had managed to pick up on his blatant disregard for his girlfriend, but it had managed to slip right by him. And because of that, the image of you, choked with tears because of him was forever burned into his mind.

“I just really want her back!” He stuttered, clearly in despair which caught Suguru off guard. For all the times Satoru had explained the situation to his friends, he had never really let his emotions show to anyone. He kept all that locked up until he was sound in his bed, when he couldn’t keep it together anymore. Nearly every night since you’d left, he fell asleep crying.

“It’s not like you deserve it.”

Satoru scoffed. “I never meant for this to happen, Suguru." He really didn’t appreciate his closest friend going against him on the matter, even though he was fully aware it was what he deserved.

“I’m sure you didn’t,” his friend shrugged. “But it did. This is the bed you made, it’s time you lay in it.” Every word that left Suguru’s mouth was entirely true, and Satoru hated himself for it. Ever since he last saw you, he had tried to convince himself this wasn’t his fault, that there was no way for him to have seen this coming. But every time he went down that road, he came to the same conclusion that he could have avoided it a hundred times over.

Satoru was definitely blaming himself enough, to the point where he was in no mood to sit there and listen to his friend spew statements of how badly he screwed up, so he got up from his seat and headed for the door.

“Where are you going?”

He didn’t even bother answering Suguru, as he slammed the door behind him as he left.

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It had been the longest and most dreadful 35 days of your life. Luckily, your friend had been kind enough to open her home to you and put absolutely no pressure for you to leave anytime soon.

She’d been asleep when you came banging on her door in the middle of the night, extremely confused at first when you had just collapsed into a bundle of sobs on her living room floor. Once she’d wiped the sleep out of her eyes, she had managed to decipher your broken words into a coherent narrative about how you and Satoru had broken up.

The first week was definitely the worst, huddled up on her couch in a blanket, only getting up to go to the bathroom. She had provided you with whatever you needed; ice cream, movies and takeout. You name it, and she brought it.

You were thankful she’d just let you have some time to be a complete mess before being forced to deal with life again. So after the first week, she started to pull you out of you comfort zone in order for you to start a healing process. At first, she just had you help her cook dinner, then she brought you along to shop for groceries. Before you knew it, you found yourself doing your makeup again which seemed like a huge step. Finally you were putting in some effort in making yourself feel a little better. It felt like a breath of fresh air when you returned to a form of normalcy.

That didn’t mean it hurt any less. In the moments you found yourself thinking about your relationship — past relationship — the sadness struck you all over again, and it didn’t seem like it would fade away just yet. But it had at least become manageable, and it was nice falling asleep without sobbing to the point where you couldn’t breathe.

Finally, your progress had resulted in the first social outing since the breakup. Your friend had been invited to a barbecue, and she had begged for you to join her. After some convincing, you decided it would actually be nice to go out and meet some people and regain some of the social life you had lost.

That’s how you found yourself in the grocery store, trying to find anything to bring to the barbecue, not wanting to come empty handed. You stopped your search when you felt a pair of eyes staring at you. Turning to face the person, you immediately froze, your breath hitching in your throat.

A few feet from you, Satoru was standing, his mouth slightly hanging open. You felt your heart begin to race, banging against your chest like a hummingbird.

Time stood still as you both stared at each other, wondering who would be the one to break the ice first. Wrapping your arms around yourself in comfort, you tightened your grip to contain the overwhelming feelings filling your body.

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“You didn’t see his face, y/n. I mean, he has never been embarrassed like that before,” Satoru laughed. He had his arm tossed over your shoulders, while your arm was wrapped around his waist, stumbling down the deserted street. It was definitely not unlike the two of you to leave a party early, as you both much more preferred only each others company.

“Why didn’t you come and get me?” You whined. “I would have loved to see a girl get Suguru all flustered.”

“I mean, she was hot too. Way out of his league.” With the hand resting in his waist, you pinched hard.

“Watch it mister!” You growled, but in reality you were chocking back the drunk giggle that was bubbling up inside you. “If she was so hot, why don’t you go see if she wants to join you for the night.” You shrugged his arm off your shoulders, and released your grip on him. However, he was quick to grab ahold of your hand again and pulled you towards him so you collided with his chest.

“Oh, don’t be like that, pretty girl.” His voice was teasing you, clearly not taking your fake anger seriously. He wrapped one arm around your waist, making it impossible for you to pull away. The other hand grabbed your face before he began to place a bunch of kisses all over your face.

“Satoru!” You squealed in between giggles. Pressing your hands against his chest, you tried to push him away and get out of his grip, but to no prevail.

“What? You don’t want my kisses?” He pouted, loosening his grip, but you remained close to him. “Maybe that girl is interested in them instead?.” His eyes were so soft as he looked down on you, a small genuine smile dancing on his lips. Even with his playful attitude, you had zero concern he would even consider going back to her.

“You’re a funny guy, aren’t you?” You hooked your arms around his neck, standing on your tiptoes leaning in closer.

“I think I'm hilarious.” Your nose brushed against his, your lips only an inch apart. His hot breath touched your skin, and his eyes travel your face.

“What makes you think she’d even go for you, darling?” His head fell back in laughter, as you flashed him a huge grin, still hanging on around his neck.

“Suguru’s a handsome guy. If I were her-“

“Shut up,” Satoru cut you off before he finally connected his lips with yours in a sweet and passionate kiss. The butterflies went wild as you felt him smile into the kiss. “Doesn’t matter anyway. You’re the only girl I have eyes for.” He said after he reluctantly pulled away.

“Keep it that way,” you giggled before pulling him in for another kiss.

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It was strange to see him again, and a new sensation of melancholy entertained you. From the second you’d left his apartment, you began to picture what it would be like to see him again. You imagined you’d be struck with the same sorrow of that night, only thinking of how he had been unable to provide for your needs. But you found yourself only thinking of the good memories you had shared with him. Every sweet affirmation, every gentle touch, just in general the time spent together.

“Hi,” you croaked, observing how his body was brought back to reality at the sound of your voice. He took a few steps closer and removed his signature sunglasses. Seeing his captivating eyes in person for the first time in so long made you tighten the grip around yourself even more, if that was even possible.

“Hey.” His voice didn’t have the same unease as yours, but it was visible on his stance he wasn’t as confident as he usually was. “What brings you here?”

“To the grocery store?”

“Yeah, what brings you to the grocery store?” Satoru repeated awkwardly, trying to play off his weak attempt to make small talk, his cheeks turning to a faded shade of pink.

“Well, I’m going to a barbecue party so just wanted to bring something.”

“Barbecue party. Fun!”

Seeing you again was overwhelming for him as well, and created a twinge of hurt within him. You looked so different from the last time he saw you. There was a hint of a glow in you he hadn’t seen in a long time, and it hit him again that he was the one who had smothered that glow in you in the first place.

Satoru knew he couldn’t continue to lie to himself much longer, and seeing you again was what made him realise that. Right now, looking at you wearing a cute summer dress, looking absolutely stunning, he saw the extreme contrast in your person compared to a month ago. He finally had a clear visual of how his ignorance had truly damaged you, when time away from him had brought a new form of life into you.

What was even worse, was how he could still see the love you had for him in your eyes. From the moment you had gotten together, one could never have doubted the fact that you loved Satoru Gojo. And you’re unwavering love for him had made him feel so safe and seen, like he’d never experienced before. Which was probably the reason he’d let everything get to this point. He knew your feelings for him wouldn’t change if he stayed late a few times, because you never hesitated to show your affection. He just took it for granted he did the same. To him, it wasn’t a question if he was entirely devoted to you, since he was so adamant that he was willing to do absolutely anything for you. He just sort of figured he had given you the same reassurance he’d received. But looking back, he could clearly see that wasn’t the case.

“I hope it’ll be,” you said with a weak smile and his heart fluttered instantly.

“I thought you weren’t big on barbecues though,” he dared chuckle a little.

“I'm not, but figured it was a good opportunity to meet some people.”

He so wanted to reach out his hand and cup your soft cheek, slowly stroking his thumb while his other hand intertwined with yours.

“How are you?” He blurted out, asking the question he had dreaded the answer to.

“Well, I’ve been better,” you stuttered. “But getting there I suppose. Taking it one day at a time. You?”

Whatever dumb thing he thought of answering, trying to conceal how broken he had been the past month, would do no good as you would see right through him. He simply shrugged, which was received by a compassionate, yet sad smile from you.

“You look great, by the way,” he gestured towards you, causing you to blush.

“Thank you,” you whispered, not able to peer your eyes off of him. He was still as gorgeous as ever, but he didn’t look the same. He clearly wasn’t sleeping well, dark circles under his eyes. Knowing him, he probably wasn’t eating well either. But his snow white hair fell the same way, and his eyes looked at you the way they always did. “I have to get going.”

“Wait-“ Satoru quickly interjected, stepping closer again so he was only standing two feet away from you. “Would you like to grab coffee or something sometime?” He sounded so unbelievably innocent, almost like a child as he made his suggestion. He anxiously waited for your answer, his shoulders tense with anticipation.

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea, Gojo.” He flinched ever so slightly at the use of his last name, something you’d never done in the span of your relationship. It created a new distance between the two of you that felt untouchable.

“Don’t you think we could both benefit from talking about everything? I mean, things ended very abruptly-“ he quickly shut up when your friend joined your side, pure fury written all over her.

His posture changed, immediately portraying more confident. He seemed now like the Satoru everyone knew, but you saw through his façade.

“Don’t you have anything better to do than torture this poor girl?”

“We were simply chatting.” Satoru tried to play it cool by flashing your friend a smug grin, but it only seemed to fuel the fire.

“Suddenly have time for her now?” He squinted at her comment, knowing it was more than called for. It didn’t stop the urge he had to fire back at her. “Hope your job promotes you, so it’s all worth it at least.”

“I don’t see how this concerns you,” he replied, trying to keep a considerate tone, but you knew better than to think it was genuine.

“It concerns me when she’s absolutely inconsolable, bawling her eyes out in my apartment.” Your friend didn’t need to go into further detail for him to get a pretty clear picture of the scene. He had, after all, been unfortunate enough to witness it himself.

“I just want a few words with y/n alone,” he said, a hint of desperation in his voice. Your friend was about to continue to argue, but you placed a hand on her shoulder, signaling for her to put down her pitchfork.

“It’s okay,” you took a deep breath. “Just wait by the register and I’ll be with you shortly.” She gave one last stern look in Satoru’s direction before doing as you requested.

Looking at Satoru, his cocky expression had disappeared the second your friend had turned a corner. It felt so bittersweet, seeing the kind person you knew inside out, standing before you so fragile. Old habits die hard, and you felt yourself fighting the urge to stroke his cheek and comfort him.

“Y/n, I just feel like there is a lot of stuff that we’ve left unsaid.” His calm, cool and collected manner had been thrown out the window and he resembled himself the evening of the breakup. “I never got to say my piece or apologise properly.”

“I know,” was all you said, using every fiber of your body to seem levelheaded. You observed how he constantly tried to reach out for you, but stopped himself every time out of respect.

“Believe me when I say, I truly am sorry. I’ve never regretted anything more.”

“I know,” you repeated, same calm tone.

“Maybe it would give us a chance to heal properly if everything is out in the open. So we both know exactly what the other is thinking.”

“Gojo-“

“No, please, listen. I know I messed up and I really want to fix this!” He rambled on, his desperation resembling the one from that night

“Gojo-“

“Maybe even there’s a chance for us-“

“Satoru,” you said sternly, finally silencing his tangent. Your eyes flickered between his as you saw him trying to find the focus to calm his breathing. “Please don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”

You saw the heartbreak wash over him, his shoulders falling in disappointment as he whispered your name. You’d missed hearing him speak it with such tender care.

“I am finally starting to get back on track. I’ve even started looking for an apartment,” you said with a sad chuckle. You wanted to show him, and yourself, that you had gotten to the point that you could at least manage to not completely breakdown when you were out in public. “I stand by what I said that night.”

“And you should! You deserve to be loved, and I can be that person. I am that person! There has never been a moment where I haven’t loved you.”

“Satoru, stop it.” You raised your voice slightly. “This is not the time or place for this.” It seemed as it wasn’t until now he was reminded of where you were standing. You gathered up the courage and walked up to him, carefully placing your hand on his cheek. The second you felt his cheek against your hand, you felt as if your skin was on fire.

Satoru didn't hesitate eitherm to place his big hand over yours as hea leaned into your touch. His eyes became glossy, realising how much he had craved feeling your skin against him again. “I just think I need to be the most important person in my life for a while.” He slowly began to nod in agreement, and you heard his breath began to quicken like it had done previously.

He licked his lips, trying to find his words. “See you around then?” His voice was unsteady and his chin quivered.

“Yeah, probably,” you spoke sadly. You let your hand fall from his face, but he held onto your hand until you were too far away. In a way, it felt as if both of you were aware that your story wasn’t over just yet. Satoru was right, there was a lot of stuff still left out in the open which made you believe there were still chapters to be written, whether they were good or bad. But it brought you some form of comfort.

Drying the single tear that had fallen from your eye, you turned away and began to walk away. “You look beautiful, darling,” he said, making your head turn one last time. You gave him a sad smile before he disappeared out of view.

⋆⭒˚｡⋆

tags: @alisstaa

a/n: oh my, thank you guys so much for all the positive feedback on part one. it is greatly appreciated and really motivates me to write. that being said, i am not as happy with part two as part one but i rewrote it like two times and i guess it's alright. its more important you like it rather than i. hope you guys like it, and again thank you guys so so much for the feedback. reblogs, comments are greatly valued

Plagiarism not authorized

[rxmqnova]

Hi!, how are you? So i saw that you have your request open can I request

Mama!Nat x daughter (around 3-4) in where on one of Natasha's missions she lost her memories and her memory stayed around when she left the red room so she doesn't know she has a daughter (duh), when she is told she can't believe it because she never though she would be able to have a child or they take her daughter to see her for when she wakes up and she finds out that she has a daughter that way. she feels insecure about being with her thinking she may hurt her So she avoids her. But reader insist to be with her mama angst with happy ending pls.

Hope you have a wonderful Christmas an new year🎉

Btw sorry for the bad grammar/English. it's no my first language

Lost memory

Y/N: 4 years old ——————————————————

NO ONE'S POV "Please, auntie Wanda, I want to see mommy" Y/N begs, hugging Wanda's legs tightly and looking up at her with the best puppy eyes she can do.

Y/N's been begging every single Avenger, one by one, to take her see her mommy. Natasha's last mission didn't go as planned and she got badly hurt. She even was in coma for the entire 3 weeks, but thankfully she's much better now.

Though there is one problem… Unfortunately, Natasha doesn't remember the last years of her life… more specifically, the last memory she has is from more than ten years ago when she escaped the Red room.

Y/N's been begging and crying everyday, wanting to see her mommy. She knows Natasha's here on the compound as she saw how Steve carried her mama to Bruce after the mission.

"Y/N/N" Wanda sighs, lifting Y/N up and sitting her on her hip. "Honey, I know you do, but your mommy needs to rest" She kisses the little girl's head, receiving a whine as Y/N buries her head into Wanda's neck.

"I want mommy" Y/N cries out into Wanda's neck, making Wanda sigh once again.

"I know, bubs, I know"

———

It took a few hours of begging, but Bruce and Doctor Cho agreed that they can't go on like this for much longer. Because the only one Natasha briefly remembers is Clint, he agreed that he'd be the one who tells the redhead about Y/N.

"How are you feeling?" Clint smiles at his best friend, sitting down on the bed.

"I'm fine, I don't know why I still have to be here" Natasha sighs, crossing her arms over chest. "Why are you here?"

"Can't I just come to see how's my friend doing?" Cling teases on which Natasha raises an eyebrow. "But yeah, I'm here to tell you something" He looks at the redhead, preparing himself to tell her about Y/N.

"Why are you looking at me like that? What is it? I feel like nothing can be worse than that I forgot the past 14 years of my life" Natasha sighs, waiting for Clint to speak.

"… We haven't really told you everything, Nat. There's something we left out, but we can't keep that from you anymore" Clint starts. "… You saved a little girl on a mission 3 years ago… She's spent here for about… 2 months and you decided to adopt her. She's 4 now and she's been begging us to take her to you. I know it's-"

"Wait. Wait. I adopted a child? Me?" Natasha asks shocked, not believing anything from what Clint has just said.

"Yeah, I-"

"Mama! Mama!" Y/N bursts into the room, Wanda running after her.

"I'm sorry, I turned around for 2 seconds and she was gone" Wanda explains with a sigh.

"Mama, I missed you!" The tiny girl says, attempting to climb the bed. "Mama" A whine escapes Y/N's lips after another failed attempt of climbing the bed as it's too high for her, holding her arms up for Natasha who's just staring at her shocked.

Wanda's quick to lift Y/N up, sitting her on her hip and holding her tightly as Y/N's trying to wiggle out of her arms and reaching her tiny arms for Natasha.

"N-no, no, I can't" Natasha panics, shaking her head.

"Calm down, Nat" Clint moves closer, trying to comfort his best friend. "Take her out, Wanda" He orders, Wanda nodding immediately.

"Want mommy! Mama!" Y/N cries loudly, kicking her legs and trying to wiggle out of Wanda's arms while the witch is carrying her out of the room again.

———

A few days have passed since Natasha found out about Y/N and she still doesn't know how to feel about that. And now when she's finally allowed to leave the bed and get back to normal life, it seems even scarier.

Y/N, on the other hand, has been crying nonstop through the days. She just wants her mommy and everyone's been keeping her away again.

"Mama!" Y/N grins once she sees Natasha step into the kitchen, immediately jumping off of the chair and running to the redhead, crashing her little body into Natasha's legs.

"Oh, hi" Natasha says akwardly, carefully peeling the little girl off of herself.

It's not like she wouldn't want a child, but she just doesn't know how to take care of one. After all, she's never taken care of a child before… well, she doesn't remember it… so it's understandable that she's scared of it.

"Mama, I drew you lots of pictures. I'm gonna show you" Y/N informs, already running away for her drawings which makes Natasha let out a sigh of relief and she quickly makes herself something for breakfast.

"Hey, hm. You're Wanda, right?" Natasha asks, sitting down opposite the brunette who smiles and nods in response, so Natasha takes a deep breath before speaking again. "Clint told me you were the one who mostly took care of Y/N. I just… I just wanted to ask you if you could maybe take care of her for a bit more? At least a few more days please?" She asks, hoping to get a yes from the witch.

"Oh, of course. Y/N's such a sweetheart. If you need any help with her, I'll be happy to help you" Wanda smiles warmly on which Natasha lets out a sigh of relief, though the tiny footsteps that are approaching stress her out immediately.

"Look, mama! I have so many pictures for you!" Y/N informs, crawling on Natasha's lap which only makes Natasha panic. She has no idea how to hold the little girl, scared that if she wrapped her arms around her, her hold could be too strong and she'd hurt her. "This is you and me playing soccer, mama!" Y/N grins, pointing at the two figures on her picture before looking up at Natasha who only hums in response and gives the tiny girl an akward smile. "And this is us building a snowman!"

Of course Wanda senses Natasha's discomfort and calls her little niece to come sit back to her and to finish her breakfast which she's been eating before Natasha came in. Natasha mouths a 'thank you', shooting Wanda a smile before quickly finishing her own breakfast, disappearing into the gym without Y/N noticing.

"Where did mommy go, auntie Wanda?" Y/N asks after a while, looking around to find her mother.

"She needs to rest a lot, honey. We should leave her alone for a little bit" Wanda says with a sigh, already knowing this won't satisfy the tiny one.

Y/N pouts, jumping off of her chair, taking her drawings and running away, ignoring Wanda who's calling after her. She hasn't seen her mommy for weeks, she just wants to be with her. Why nobody understands?

The little girl enters Natasha's bedroom only to find it empty. There are ony two more places on the compound Natasha could be, so Y/N decides to check.

After not finding her mother in her office, Y/N ends up in the gym, smiling when she sees Natasha there.

"Mommy, you forgot the pictures!" Y/N informs, running to Natasha with her arms up. "Up! Mama! Up! Please!" The tiny girl pleads, jumping up and down in front of the redhead.

"Y/N, I… just put those drawings on the bench over there. I'll take them later, yeah?" Natasha says, trying her best to not hurt the little one's feelings.

Y/N nods, running away to put her drawings on the bench like Natasha wanted and then running back to her mama.

"Mommy, up please" Y/N requests, pulling out her best puppy eyes in hope to get some cuddles from the redhead.

"I'm sorry, Y/N. I can't" Natasha nearly whispers, hoping the little girl would just go away.

"But mama please. I want some cuddles" Y/N repeats again, tears filling her little eyes.

"Y/N, I said no. Please go away" Natasha sighs, slowly losing her patience as the little child is still standing in front of her with her arms up.

"Mama, please" Y/N pleads.

"What is so hard to understand? I said no. Go away" Natasha orders sternly, her voice raised a little bit which makes Y/N run away and cry loudly.

Natasha lets out a sigh after Y/N's cries die down, squeezing her eyes shut. She didn't want to make Y/N cry.

About an hour later Natasha leaves the gym, picking up the drawings from Y/N on the way. She throws them on her bed as soon as she enters her room, deciding to look at them after a shower. She really feels bad for making the tiny one cry.

Fresh out of the shower Natasha sits on her bed, taking all of the papers Y/N gave her and looking at all of them. She can't help the smile that forms on her face while looking at those drawings.

She spots a few more pictures hanging her closet, so she stands up and goes to look. She hasn't noticed them before as Clint only showed her where her room is this morning.

Now feeling even worse Natasha walks around the compound with hope to find the little girl somewhere. And after what feels like stepping into 100 different rooms Natasha finally finds the tiny girl in what seems to be her bedroom, laying on her bed and cuddling to her teddy bear while sobbing.

"Hi there" Natasha says quietly, sitting down on the bed on which Y/N just turns around and buries her head into her pillow. "Can we talk?" "Hm-hm" Y/N shakes her head.

"… Are you mad at me?" Natasha asks, gently placing her hand on Y/N's back and giving it a rub.

"Yes, because you're being mean and don't want to give me cuddles" Y/N mumbles out with a pout, finally looking at her mother with her puffy eyes.

"Y/N, I… I'm sorry, okay? I didn't want to be mean to you, but I just don't remember you" Natasha sighs, tears forming in Y/N's eyes again at the not very nice tone Natasha used. "No, please don't cry. I'm sorry"

"But I want you to give me lots of cuddles and be nice to me, because you're my mama" Y/N cries out, burying her head into her pillow again which makes Natasha think about whether should she leave or not. She's never been in a situation like this. What should she do?

"I'm sorry, please just stop crying" Deciding to stay, Natasha desperately tries to calm down the little girl somehow, but rubbing her back just doesn't seem to be enough.

Though Y/N's tears don't stop. She just wants more comfort from her mommy, so she crawls over to Natasha, sitting on her lap, wrapping her tiny arms around her and burying her face into her mother's chest.

"I… okay" Natasha carefully wraps her arms around the tiny girl which finally makes Y/N calm down and the redhead smile as Y/N's hug brings her this really nice feeling she doesn't remember feeling before.

"Mama?" Y/N questions, lifting her head to look at Natasha who hums in response, smiling a little bit. "Did you look at my pictures?" She continues, finally being in her mommy's arms making her forget everything that happened just a few minutes ago on which Natasha lets out a chuckle.

"I did, they're very pretty, sweetheart" Natasha tells the tiny one, receiving a huge smile from the little girl before she cuddles up to her, making Natasha smile.

It will surely take a while until Natasha learns how to take care of Y/N and it will surely be hard, but now the redhead knows she wants to try and be a mother to the tiny girl. And there was only one thing that made her realize… a hug from her little girl.

----------------------

I'm sorry it took so long. I hope you had wonderful Christmas and New year as well!! <33

Part 2

Series masterlist

Masterlist

[percevalec]

THIS WONT STAY IN VEGAS {part 2}

Pairing: Charles Leclerc x Female!Reader

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Summary: You went clubbing with your friend, celebrating her moving to Vegas. You got drunk and don't remember anything. The next morning you find yourself in bed with a stranger and a ring around your finger

Words: 8.4K

Warnings: Alcohol, Mentions of hooking up, cursing, not proof read.

do not copy, rewrite or translate any of my work on any platforms.

Charles' eyes widened in horror as you shoved the phone into his hands. There, in big bold letters, was a headline about him and his mystery wife. And underneath, a picture of the two of you at the wedding chapel. "What - how..." He was at a loss for words, disbelief and frustration in his eyes as he stared down at the article.

Explain this! Why the hell is there an article about us? You yell in frustration. There's no way this is actually happening right now

Charles looked up from the phone, his eyes meeting yours. He let out a defeated sight, running a hand through his hair as he reluctantly answered your question. “I'm a F1 driver, For Ferrari. I’m pretty well known i guess” His voice was low, sheepish. He was still having a hard time comprehending the whole situation. The fact that the marriage was all over gossip pages was just another level of insane. “Great, this is exactly what i needed in my life” you say sarcastically, sitting back down on the couch. Your eyes drift over to your friend “Did you know that?” Charles was silent as he listened to your conversation. “No, I had no idea. I just thought he was another guy at the club” She shoots Charles an apologetic smile as he returns the phone to her. “Crap, I have to head back home” Riley exclaimed as she stands up looking over at the clock “I'm going to assume your lovely husband doesn't want to taint his reputation any more than he already has so i'll trust leaving you with him” You nod in agreement “it's fine Ry, i'll text you later” You say kissing her cheek goodbye.

After Riley leaves, Charles and you are left alone, once again in uncomfortable silence. He looks over at you, his expression still somewhat stunned as he tries to process everything. His eyes linger on you for a moment before he finally speaks up “I'm sorry” he sounds ashamed and genuine, if both of you would have been mindful of how many drinks you were consuming none of this would be happening. “It's not entirely your fault Charles” you respond, giving him a soft smile. Charles was about to speak, but his phone ringing interrupted him. He picks up his phone, looking at the caller ID and lets out a sigh. It was his mom. This was gonna be a nightmare. He answers the call, sounding nervous. “Hey mom” You watch as he steps back into the bedroom.

After a long conversation with his mother Charles disconnects the call. He walked back out to the living room standing  a few feet away from the couch you're sitting on. As he looked at you his eyes seemed remorseful “So…” He took a deep breath before continuing. “She wants us to come to monaco” Your eyes widen as you sit up straight, “what? There's no way I'm going to Monaco with you! What did you say to her?” 

Charles ran a hand through his hair, his expression sheepish. “I didn’t exactly have much of a choice” he said  “She kept asking questions about us and saying how the family wanted to meet my ‘new wife’. He used air quotes as he said the words, clearly less than enthusiastic about the situation. “I couldn't tell her the truth so i said we’ve been dating in secret for a while, and we decided to get married yesterday” He walked towards the couch and sat down next to you, his knees bouncing nervously. You say nothing as you're lost in your thoughts. If you agreed to marry him you could definitely agree to meeting his family. Plus how would you go back home and explain this to your mom “Fine i’ll go to monaco with you” He lets out an almost inaudible sigh of relief, a bit surprised that you relented and agreed to come to Monaco with him. A small wave of guilt passed over him as he thought of what he had gotten you involved in. “Thank you, I didn’t expect you to say yes. I’ll uh...have my assistant book a flight for us and arrange everything.” He tries to sound confident despite his anxiety. This whole thing was absurd. He was taking the woman he got drunk-married to meet his family. “Of course you have an assistant," you say in a teasing tone.

Charles chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck as you commented on the assistant. “Yeah, it’s part of the whole F1 driver gig.” He didn’t want to come across as bragging or anything, he just figured it was something he should mention. “So, we should get going as soon as possible.” you nod your head in agreement. “I just need to go back to my hotel and pack my things” you say standing up from the couch. Charles nods in agreement. “Right, yeah. Should I… drive you back to your hotel? Or something?”  He cringed internally as he asked the question. He felt like he should at least make sure you get back to your hotel safely, since you were kind of in this mess together. Not to mention the paparazzi were bound to show up eventually.”I would actually like some time to myself” you say softly, hoping he doesn't take offense. “But I'll take your number and meet you at the airport," you follow up with a smile. "Yeah, no that's totally fair" Charles said, his mood slightly deflated. He couldn't blame you for wanting time alone to think, he was sure you had a million thoughts racing through your head just like he did. He pulled out his phone, and you quickly typed your number into the device handing it back. "I'll text you the flight details and my assistant will take care of everything else. See you at the airport then."

———————————————————————————

You get into the uber and give him your hotel address. Finally you're alone, your thoughts running through your head as you make the short drive. The whole situation still felt surreal, and now you were going to Monaco with your husband who you barely even know. What are you going to tell your mom and friends back home? Your phone was already flooded with messages from people asking you questions and fans finding your social media accounts. You really hope this won't go as far as to affect your job, there's no way you would be able to handle that. This  was like a bad rom-com.

You opened your phone ignoring every notification, especially your moms missed calls. You went to Google and typed in “Charles Leclerc”. You scrolled past the articles written about both of you and focused on the other stuff. He was pretty successful. Having won multiple races, even his home grand prix. Okay well at least you didn't marry the worst person on planet earth, and the more you thought about him you noticed he was extremely cute. Maybe this wasn't as bad as you thought. You did always admire the Soccer WAGS, now you were one according to the public, you just belonged to a different sport. 

No! What? You seriously can't be thinking that. This WAS bad and horrible, think about all the backlash you will receive when this whole thing is over and you have to divorce Charles. As you pull into the parking lot, your eyes glance around paranoid as if you’re expecting paparazzi to pop out of every corner. 

Once inside your room, you plop down onto the bed, letting out a deep sigh of exhaustion. It had been a long and chaotic day. You let your mind wander for a moment, trying to come to terms with the fact that you were technically married to one of the most popular Formula One drivers. After a few moments, you sit up on the bed and look around the room. You knew you needed to start packing for the trip to Monaco, but instead you just sat there, feeling a sort of numbness wash over you as you stared at the wall across from you. Your phone interrupts this moment, you sigh and reach for it. It was a message from Charles with all the flight information for tonight. You reply with a thumbs up and lay back down on the bed. Eventually, you force yourself off the bed and start pulling clothes out of the drawers and changing into something more casual while shoving them into a suitcase. You felt a mix of emotions as you packed, curiosity, anxiety, disbelief, confusion. It all felt like a bizarre dream, but you knew it was very much real.

As you finish packing your things, your eyes glance over to the clock on the bedside table. It was getting close to the time you agreed to meet Charles at the airport. With another deep sigh, you picked up your suitcase, called another uber and headed out the door. The drive to the airport was uneventful, but your mind was anything but calm. You thought about all the possibilities of what could happen when you arrived in Monaco. Would the paparazzi be able to find out which flight you were on? Would Charles’s family think you were some type of gold digger? This was all too much.

———————————————————————————

When you finally arrived at the airport, you took a deep breath and looked around the terminal. You spotted Charles off to the side, looking surprisingly calm despite the circumstances. He had a few bags by his feet and as soon as he saw you, he gave a small wave and a tentative smile. Charles walked over to meet you, his eyes studying your face for a moment. "Hey" he said softly, a hint of anxiety in his voice. "Are you ready for this?". “Not really but here I am” you say, accompanying your response with a sigh. Charles let out a soft chuckle at your honest answer, appreciating your candid response. "Yeah, neither am I, honestly" he replied 

He picked up his bags and motioned towards the check-in counter, signaling that it was time to get going. The two of you checked in and made your way to security, standing in line with the other passengers. Charles seemed lost in thought, his eyes wandering to the crowd of people passing by. He dreaded the thought of someone recognizing him and causing a scene before you could even make it to the gate. As the line slowly moved forward, Charles turned to you, trying to hide his tension. "Have you flown first class before?" he asked, trying to make conversation to pass the time. You nod “I have actually” "Ah, okay. Good" he replied, his voice slightly strained. He was silently hoping that the flight would go by quickly so he could get everything over with.  

Charles and you boarded the plane, taking your seats in the first-class section. Charles let out a small sigh of relief as he settled into his seat, grateful for the extra leg room and the privacy of the small space. The cabin was half full, most of the passengers already occupied with their own things as the plane prepared for takeoff. Charles looked at you and attempted a small smile. "You said you've been to Monaco before, were you just traveling or..?". “Yeah just traveling” you respond, sounding hesitant. Charles raised an eyebrow at your hesitancy, noticing that there was more to the story than you were letting on. "Just traveling?" he repeated, sounding interested. "Nothing else?" He leaned in a bit, curious to know more. The plane started moving down the runway, gearing up for take-off. “Yes Charlie, just traveling” You say, sounding annoyed. Realizing you called him Charlie made you quickly apologize “Sorry I didn't mean to”. Charles’s eyes widened as the nickname rolled out your tongue, not expecting the casual use of a nickname. For a moment, he was surprised and a bit flustered by the unexpected familiarity. But he quickly composed himself, masking any surprise with a small smile. "It's...it's fine. I don't mind, '' he said, although his cheeks tinged red. “Anyways, you told your mom we've been dating in secret for a while, right?” Charles looked at you for a moment, a hint of shyness in his eyes. "Uh, yeah, I did," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "I didn't want to say that we just randomly got married, so I lied" you watched him talk, focusing on his words before speaking. “We should probably come up with a story so nothing seems suspicious when they start asking questions” Charles nodded in agreement, realizing that the two of you did need to get your stories straight to avoid any suspicion from his family. "Right, good point." he said, his mind racing to come up with a believable story that would convince his family. "We should probably keep the details simple though, don't want to dig ourselves into a hole or anything" “any ideas?” you ask.

Charles thought for a moment, tapping his fingers absently on the arm rest. "Well, we could say we met through a mutual friend. Or maybe something more spontaneous...like a meeting at a coffee shop" He glanced over at you, searching for your reaction to his idea. “Mutual friend sounds more convincing, we can even say you asked me out after I showed up at one of your races” Charles nodded, visibly pleased with your addition to the backstory. "That could work. It would explain why the family hasn’t met you before, since we’ve been keeping the relationship lowkey" he said, taking note of the cover up story in his mind. “Right, we didn't want the media finding out so we couldn't risk telling anyone” you add. "Exactly." Charles agreed, glad that you were on the same page with the new story. "We’ll stick to that then. Let’s just hope they buy it." He shifted in his seat, feeling a bit better now that you had a plan for handling the questions from his family. “They will if we play our parts right” Charles let out a soft chuckle, amused by your confidence. "You’re right. We just have to be convincing, act natural" he said, his mind already running through different scenarios and questions he could expect from his family.

 “We should try and get some sleep,” you say, shifting your body in the seat to face him. Charles nodded in agreement, feeling the exhaustion catching up to him. "Yeah, good idea," he said, looking over at you. "We have a few hours until we land. Might as well rest while we can" “goodnight charles” you whisper softly before closing your eyes. Charles smiled faintly, a wave of unexpected fondness washing over him as you said goodnight. "Goodnight" he replied, his voice also softer than usual. He settled back into his seat as a slight feeling of comfort creeped in.

———————————————————————————

After a few hours, the plane finally touched down in Monaco, landing at the Nice Côte d'Azur Airport. Charles and you gathered your bags and made your way off the plane and into the terminal. As soon as you stepped out, you could feel the change in atmosphere. The air was warmer, the sound of French being spoken all around. It was like stepping into a different world.

Charles looked around, familiar with the airport after countless times flying in for races. “Alright, let’s go get a taxi,” he said, pointing towards the exit. They made their way through the terminal, Charles’s steps quick and a bit nervous. He was excited to be back in Monaco, but at the same time, he was dreading the upcoming meeting with his family. As they exited the airport, a group of paparazzi suddenly sprung up, snapping pictures of Charles and yelling questions at both of you. Charles tensed up, instinctively shielding you from the flashlights with his body. He was used to dealing with the paparazzi, but having you there made it even more uncomfortable. Charles wrapped his arm around your waist, moving you in front of him as the paparazzi continued to shout questions and take pictures. He could feel the tension in your body and he tried to keep his own composure as he navigated through the crowd. “Stay close” he muttered quietly, his grip on you firm but gentle. “Mhm” is all you manage to respond, overwhelmed by the situation.

Charles guided you both through the throng of paparazzi, finally making it to a waiting taxi. He put both of your suitcases in the trunk before  opening the door for you, ushering you into the backseat before climbing in himself. Once inside the taxi, he let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, grateful to be away from the flashing cameras and invasive questions. You feel a feeling you can't entirely describe, there's now way you could ever get used to that. Four weeks couldn't come any faster. Charles noticed the look on your face, realizing how hard that must have been on you.. He gave your hand a small, comforting squeeze, trying to ease your nerves. “Don’t worry, they’re not always that intense” he assured you, although he knew that wasn’t entirely true. You look down at his hand on top of yours and give a quick smile before looking out the window. Memories from your previous time here rushing back to you. Charles noticed your smile and felt a rush of unexpected warmth in his chest. Ignoring the feeling he removes his hand from your skin. The taxi began to drive through the streets of Monaco, the sun perfectly shining down on everything. “I remember these streets” you say, breaking the comfortable silence. Charles watched as you spoke. He had been caught off guard by how natural it felt to simply sit in silence with you. As you mentioned recognizing the streets he also turned his attention to the city outside. “I can't believe you grew up here” Charles chuckled softly, his eyes wandering out the window as they passed by familiar landmarks. "Yeah, it's a pretty nice place to grow up in" he said, a hint of nostalgia in his voice. "Most of the time, anyway" He looked back at you, studying your face as you took in the city.

———————————————————————————

The taxi pulled up in front of Charles’s house, the familiar building standing tall and elegant. Charles paid the driver before getting out of the car and retrieving his bags. He looked at you as you grabbed your own bags, a mixed look of nerves and anticipation on his face. "Ready?" he asked, as he led the way up the front steps to the massive front door, bracing himself for the coming conversation with his family. “Yeah, I just can't believe I actually agreed to this” you say with a sigh. Charles's heart was racing as he opened the door and led you inside. The inside of the house was just as extravagant as the outside, with high ceilings and elegant furniture. Charles’s mom and brother were sitting in the living room, watching TV, but they immediately looked up as they heard the door open. Charles’s mom, Pascale, was the first to stand up, her eyes widening in surprise. “You made it,” she said with a smile as she walked over to you. "Coucou maman" Charles greeted his mother, a slight unease in his voice. Pascale wrapped Charles in a tight hug, then turned her attention to you. “And you must be” she said, looking you up and down appraisingly. “My new daughter-in-law”. The word “daughter-in-law” felt incredibly surreal to Charles. He watched you nervously, wondering how you would respond to his mother. “Bonjour. Je suis Y/N, I've heard a lot about you! I wish we could have met a bit sooner but we really wanted to keep things private, désolé”. Both you and Charles were extremely surprised at how the lie rolled off your tongue. Pascale was a bit taken aback by your perfect French, clearly impressed by your proficiency, and your charming response. "Oh, mon Dieu! votre français est remarquable!" she exclaimed, clearly taken in by your fluency. Charles looked at you in surprise, he had no clue you understood French, let alone spoke it. “Where are you from?” she asked. Before you can even open your mouth, Charles answers the question for you “She's from New York ''. You quickly turn to look over at Charles, before returning your gaze back to his mom. “Yes, I'm from New York but my mother made me take French lessons when I was younger” You say, letting both Pascale and Charles know. “Maybe she knew you would marry someone who speaks French,” Charles' mom jokes. Making Both of you laugh. 

Charles chuckled uneasily at his mother’s joke, the mention of marriage only adding to the tension. He glanced at you again, impressed by how you were handling the situation much better than he expected. “Please come sit down,” Pascal says, leading you to the living room. 

Charles and you followed his mom into the living room. Arthur, Charles’s younger brother, was sitting in an armchair, watching the scene unfold with a mixture of curiosity and skepticism. He gave you a slight nod in greeting, studying you intently. “Hello” you say Greeting Arthur in a low voice before taking your seat next to Charles. Charles couldn’t help but feel a pang of protectiveness as you sat down next to him, unsure on why he felt more at ease now that you were closer. Arthur gave you a small smile, his eyes darting from you to his brother, clearly trying to figure something out.

"I know you guys must be tired but please do tell me how you met each other" Pascal says with joy in her voice. Charles and you both turn your attention back to his mother, trying to keep up the façade. Charles glances at you for a moment before beginning the made-up story. "We met through a mutual friend about two years ago" he started, trying to keep his voice casual. "We got to talking and it just kind of went from there" You nod in agreement, adding a smile to show that you are onboard. Pascale is hanging on every word, clearly enamored by the story. Arthur, on the other hand, is not as convinced and gives Charles a dubious look. Charles shoots him a look back, signaling for him to let it slide. "it was very romantic, he confessed his love to me after one of his races" You say continuing the story you and Charles planned on using. 

Pascale let out a small squeal of excitement, clearly loving your romantic story. "Oh how lovely!" She exclaimed, giving Charles a playful nudge. Charles tried to keep his composure, feeling more and more guilty at the way his mom was buying the lie. You look down as you feel Charles grab your hand that's resting on your thigh.  "Well maman as much as I would love to keep talking about us, we are very tired”. He says as he stands up, also dragging you to your feet. Pascale looked slightly disappointed at Charles' desire to end the conversation, but she recognized the exhaustion on both of your faces. "d'accord" she said, standing up as well. "You must be tired after such a long flight." “It was very nice to meet both of you” you say looking over at Pascal and Arthur. “I know how weird me suddenly being here must be, but we didn't expect it to get out of hand” You looked over at Charles as you spoke. “We had already booked flights to Monaco so we could talk to you before going public, but the media ruined everything” You say clearly lying  giving charles hand a squeeze. Pascale was clearly moved by your words, touched by your considerate approach to the situation. She smiled at you, "Of course, ma cherie, we understand" she said soothingly. "The media can be quite relentless, unfortunately. But i'm glad that you're here now. I need another woman in this family, "she says laughing. You chuckled, feeling guilt about all the lies you have been saying. How were you ever supposed to go through with the divorce now? You never expect this to be so hard.

Arthur's gaze seemed skeptical, his eyes looking between you and Charles. But before he could say anything, Charles spoke up. "We're going to head to bed now" he said, eager to escape the scrutiny. You wave goodbye before you grab your suitcase, Charles dragging you upstairs wanting to leave the living room as fast as possible.

———————————————————————————

Charles pushed the door open, and placed your suitcases inside. His room was large and tidy, with a king-size bed against one wall and a few pieces of expensive-looking furniture. The room had a minimalist aesthetic, with a few framed pictures and a large window overlooking the city.

Charles let go of your hand as he shut the door behind you, his mind clearly still racing. You're not sure why but the sudden loss of his touch makes you feel off. “Fuck of course theres only one bed” you say realizing you would have to share a bed. Charles noticed the slight disappointment in your voice. He glanced at the bed and then back at you, feeling the awkwardness of the situation. He hadn’t thought about the sleeping arrangements beforehand, and now it was too late. He scratched the back of his neck, feeling a bit flustered. “Yeah, I didn’t think that through '' he admitted, his voice a bit tense. “But it wouldn’t be our first time sharing a bed” he says, winking at you jokingly referring to your previous hookup. “Shut up” you say laughing, pushing him slightly. Charles chuckled with a playful smile forming on his face. “Hey, I’m just stating facts” he said, his tension fading slightly at your laughter. He reached out and poked your side, his fingers gently skimming your ribs. You freeze at his touch, turning over to look at him giving him an intriguing look. Charles noticed the curious look in your eyes, his smile growing wider. He took a step closer to you, his hand still on your side. “What’s that look for?” he teased, his fingers gently digging into your ribs, tickling you slightly. “Hey” you yelp as you squirm at his actions. Charles smiled at your squirming and laughing, his fingers continuing to torment you. “What are you going to do?

Make me stop?” he challenged, a mischievous glint in his eyes. You quickly move to face him, walking backwards to get away from him. Charles took your step back as a challenge, his smile growing wider. He stalked after you, his eyes locked on yours. His fingers continued to tickle you as he moved, closing the distance between you in quick strides. Your laughter grows as your knees hit the bed behind you, resulting in you sitting on the bed. Charles’s eyes lit up with amusement as you fell, the sound of your laugh filling the room. He closed the remaining distance, standing over you as you sat on the edge of the bed. His hands stilled, no longer tormenting you with tickles. He looked down at you, a slight hint of something else in his gaze. Your breathing suddenly clams down as you realize Charles is towering over you. He watched the rise and fall of your chest as you caught your breath from the laughing, his gaze flickering down before returning to your eyes. You look up at him, locking eyes.  Charles continued to look down on you, his mind racing. Your nearness was making it hard for him to think straight. He couldn't help but notice the way your hair frames your face. His eyes flicked to your lips, the memory of their taste all too fresh in his mind. 

“I'm pretty tired, I think I'm going to try and get some sleep” You say breaking the silence, still looking into Charles’ eyes. Charles' gaze lingered on you for a moment longer before he finally spoke, his voice a bit rough. “Yeah, okay” he said, stepping back to give you some space. You scoot back, finding your side of the bed and getting comfortable. Charles watched your movements. He thought he should give you some space, but he couldn't shake the feeling of wanting to stay close to you. “Do you mind if I join you?” he asked, his voice a little strained. “It's not like you had another option, and you're right. It wouldn't be our first time sharing a bed” You said jokingly. Charles chuckled, feeling a bit of the tension ease at your laughter. "It definitely wouldn't be the first crazy thing we do" he said, his eyes trailing over your body as you lay in the bed. He swallowed visibly, his mind flashing back to the last time you were in a bed together. 

You turn your body so you can face Charles “i still havent talked to my mom about any of this” You say in a low voice with a slight hint of worry. Charles noticed the change in your voice. He had been so caught up in the moment that he had almost forgotten about the outside world. He moved to lay a bit closer to you, propping himself up on his elbow.

"Right, the whole explaining to families thing" he said, a note of irony in his tone. "What do you plan on telling her?"  You sigh “Well I'm not sure, I was thinking…” Charles watched you in silence, patiently waiting for you to continue. He could see the conflict in your eyes. Not sure what took over him but he reached out and gently tucked a stray piece of hair behind your ear. "What were you thinking?" he prompted, his voice gentle. His touch feels soothing and familiar to you. “Well maybe I could tell her the truth. The reason this has gone far is because you can't risk the press finding out that our marriage was a drunk accident.” you reply, hoping Charles agrees to your plan. “But what if your mom tells someone and then the truth comes out, i can't risk that”. You nod in agreement, “Yeah i guess you're right, maybe i'll just talk to her when all all of this is over'' You weren't entirely sure why you cared about Charles reputation, but part of you knew that if he faced backlash, so would you. And there's no way you could handle the millions of eyes and name dropping sleazes speaking about you negatively. 

“We have time to figure something out” he says trying to ease the situation, “4 weeks” you reply with a sigh. "Yeah, four weeks," Charles repeated, his voice a bit weary. He flopped back onto his back, his eyes staring up at the ceiling. Four weeks. It felt both like an eternity and not long enough all at once. “Goodnight Charles” you whisper. Snapping him out of his thoughts. “Goodnight Y/N”

———————————————————————————

Week 1 day 2

Charles slowly woke up, his mind foggy with sleep. He opened his eyes and was immediately reminded of the night before. He turned his head to look next to him and saw that you were still asleep, a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips at the sight. A few moments later your eyes fluttered as you slowly woke. The early morning sunlight streamed through the window, casting a soft glow across the room, the shadows contouring your face perfectly. Groggily, you turned over, letting out a yawn as you struggled to shake off the remnants of sleep. Charles noticed your stirring, his eyes watching as you roused from sleep. He silently observed as you slowly awakened. He propped himself up on one arm as he waited for you to fully open your eyes.

 “Hey” you groan as you stretch. You had a goodnight sleep despite the situation you're in. Charles chuckled softly at your sleepy greeting. "Morning'" he drawled, his voice still rough "we should head down for breakfast". “Okay. yeah, let me just get dressed”. Charles nodded, reluctantly pulling away from the comfortable bed. He stood up and stretched, his back popping audibly. He watched as you rose from the bed, his eyes tracing over your figure. 

You walk into the bathroom to get dressed. You decided on a little flowy dress, you thought it would be perfect for the weather today. Naturally you took longer than Charles to get ready. He didn't really have to wait for you to finish, he could have gone downstairs by himself. It's not like couples spend every second together, but he still chose to wait. Charles watched as you came out of the bathroom, his gaze never leaving you. He couldn't help but admire your figure, the way the clothes looked on your body. He had to force himself to tear his eyes away. Why he was suddenly looking at you in a different way was a question he couldn't exactly answer. He obviously knew you were attractive. That's the whole reason you got into this mess, he thought you were so beautiful he had to ask you to marry him. But Charles knew there was no point in trying to start anything. You weren't looking for a relationship, or at least not with him. You weren't cut out for the type of fame that came with dating him, and either way all of this was ending in four weeks. Right?

“Okay, let's go,” you said, making your way towards the door. Charles nodded, watching you exit the room first. He followed behind you. You both made your way to the kitchen, the smell of freshly brewed coffee wafting through the air. As you entered the room, both Pascale and Arthur were at the table drinking coffee and chatting. Pascale looked up as you entered, a bright smile on her face.

“Good Morning” you say smiling as you greet both of them. "Good morning dear!" Pascale responds, her eyes darting between you and Charles, who stood behind you. Arthur nodded in greeting. Charles pulled out a chair for you, gesturing for you to sit. He then took a seat next to you at the table, his knee brushing against yours under the table. Pascale and Arthur continued to chat as they prepared breakfast, glancing intermittently in your direction before Pascal spoke up. "That's right, I forgot to ask to see your ring," she says with excitement. “Oh yeah, it's beautiful” The question caught you a bit off guard. You had honestly forgotten about the cause of all your problems, the ring on your finger. Regardless you extend your hand, showing Pascal the stupid but beautiful ring. Pascal's eyes widened as she took in your ring, a radiant smile crossing her face. "Oh my! Look how lovely!" she exclaimed, admiring the sparkle of the diamond in the light. Arthur peered at the ring, a stoic expression on his face. “I couldn't have asked for a better one” You laugh, turning over to look at Charles. You watched as he chuckled, a hint of pride in his eyes as he looked at you. "Yeah, I picked the perfect one" he agreed with a smirk. He reached out and grasped your hand that was holding the ring, his fingers tracing the band softly. You looked up at him, a bit confused by his actions. Charles met your gaze, his fingers still holding onto your hand. A moment of silence passed between you, the world seeming to fall away. His thumb traced small circles on the back of your hand. 

Arthur cleared his throat, bringing Charles and you back to reality. Charles quickly let go of your hand, as if remembering that you had an audience. Pascale was still gushing over your ring, oblivious to the moment that had just passed between you and Charles. "Why am I becoming so forgetful" pascal exclaims "Charles dear do you think you could quickly go and get bread from the boulangerie, it's not far on foot"

Charles gave a nod, thankful for the distraction. "Yeah, I can do that," he said, standing up from the table. Not knowing what took over you, you make the decision to grab his hand, stopping him from leaving “i'll go with you too babe” you say smiling. Charles's eyes widened a fraction as you grabbed his hand. He looked down at you, a hint of surprise in his gaze. He couldn't deny the fact that he liked the way “babe” sounded on your lips. "Yeah?" he answered, a small smile playing at the corner of his mouth. “Mhm” you respond as you stand up, pulling yourself closer to him. 

He tried to ignore the way his heart quickened at your proximity. "Alright then" he said, his voice slightly strained. "Let's go get the bread." “We’ll try to hurry,” you follow up

Charles nodded in agreement as you said goodbye to Pascale and Arthur. He led the way out of the kitchen to the front door, his hand still in yours. As soon as the door closed behind him, he turned to you "You're trouble, you know that?" he said, a hint of amusement in his voice. “Me! How?” you reply with laughter "You, grabbing my hand, calling me babe, needing to go with me for a simple task" he responded. “Well I didn't want to be left alone with your family, I know nothing about them and besides what if slip up on a lie”. Charles sighed, realizing the truth in your words. "Fair enough" he conceded, his grip on your hand tightening slightly. "Guess you have a point there." He looked over at you, taking in the vulnerability in your eyes. "But that “babe” thing?. You roll your eyes “Don't let it get to you, If we don't show affection they might get suspicious”. Charles squeezed your hand in agreement. "You're right, gotta sell the bit" he said with a smirk. “Okay well i think we’re far from the house now” you say as you let go of his hand. Charles felt a pang of disappointment as you let go of his hand, the absence of your touch creating a sense of emptiness. A part of him wanted to grab your hand again, to pull you closer, but he resisted.

———————————————————————————

You and Charles approached the bakery, the familiar sight and smell of fresh bread filling the air. As you walked up to the counter, Charles's eyes roamed over the variety of pastries and loaves of bread on display. But he was also drawn to something outside. You feel a strange sense of deja vu. Have I been here before? You ask yourself in your head. Suddenly you get snapped out of your thoughts by the cheerful voice of the woman behind the counter. "Bonjour, monsieur, mademoiselle. What can I get for you today?" she said, her eyes flickering between you and Charles. “Order the bread, i'll be back in a second” Charles says tapping your hip slightly before leaving the bakery. You ignore whatever he's doing and focus on your task. 

The worker hands you the bag of bread as you pay. You walk outside looking for charles. You can't seem to find him so you walk a little further down the street, spotting someone you think you recognize. You squint your eyes trying to get a better look. “Hey!” Charles says poking your sides from behind you. “OMG! don't ever do that again” You say nudging him slightly, realizing he's holding a brown paper bag. “Did you get the bread?” he asks, laughing at your reaction to him scaring you. “I did, but what did you get?” you reply as you furrow your eyebrows in confusion, curious to know what he bought. “Dont worry about it, i'll show you when we get home’ 

He started walking again, gesturing for you to follow him back to the house. 

——————————————————————————-

You arrive back to the house and walk into the kitchen. “I hope we didn't take long” you tell Pascal as you set the bag of bread down on the table. “Of course not dear” she responds, reaching for the bread. “Please sit down, eat something”. 

“Actually we had some on the way here” Charles says to his mom, the mystery paper bag still clutched in his hand. “Yeah, we're a bit full” you follow up with a chuckle. “D’accord, but please don't be shy with me". She says with a smile before returning to talking with Arthur.

“Come, let's go back upstairs, I have a surprise for you” Charles says, taking your hand, dragging you upstairs. You couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at Charles’ words. A surprise? What could it possibly be?. You allowed him to lead you up the stairs, your curiosity piqued.

As you reached the top of the stairs, he opened his bedroom door and ushered you inside.

“What is it?” you ask as you sit on the bed. Charles mirrored your movements, sitting next to you handing you the paper bag before replying “Open it in see”. You give him a quick look before opening the bag. Your eyes widened in disbelief “NO WAY!! THEY SELL IT HERE” You yelp standing up in excitement. He bought you the latest issue of the magazine you write for. Charles couldn't help but smile at your reaction when you saw the magazine. Your excitement was contagious, and he enjoyed seeing the happiness spread across your face. "I remember you telling me you wrote for a magazine and well I saw your last name on the cover and figured that one must be it since your mom owns the company" he admitted as you stood up.”I can't believe you remembered,” you softly say as you look down at Charles. 

Charles shrugged, trying not to make a big deal about it, but you could see the hint of pride in his eyes. "Of course I remember, I listen when you talk, and I would be a bad husband if I didn't remember," he said, his tone soft but still joking. He patted the space next to him on the bed, silently requesting for you to sit back down. You happily accept taking a seat next to him “Thank you, i know its an effortless gift but no one has ever done something like this for me” you say in a soft tone. Charles's heart ached slightly at your words. "Someone should have," he murmured, his voice low. He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind your ear, his fingers lingering on your cheek for a moment before he pulled back. "You deserve nice things, Y/N." 

You smile at him not knowing what to respond. You're not falling for him, You can't. There's a million reasons why it won't end well. You couldn't keep the lie about how you actually met a secret for your whole relationship. What would you even tell people, You hooked up, got married, met his mom, fell in love, then got together ? That would be perfect if it was reversed. But it's not and you both know that. With that in mind, you decide to speak up. “Charles, we barely know each other that well and if you really think about it, it's only been a few days we've spent together, and I can't…”. Charles sighed, realizing the truth in your words. "Yeah, I know," he said, a hint of melancholy in his voice. He had been so caught up in the moment, in the way you made him feel, that he sometimes forgot that all of this was temporary. "You're right, we barely know each other and..." he trailed off, struggling to find the right words.

“I'm sorry if you ever thought i was leading you on” you say feeling a bit guilty about your words. Charles shook his head, not wanting you to apologize. "No, no," he said. "You didn't lead me on, I just... I got caught up in all this." He let out a dry chuckle, "It's just that spending time with you feels so natural and easy. Like we've known each other for years, not days." 

“I feel it too but it could never work out, you're a formula one driver and I'm just a girl from New York. you would barely be in the states and I wouldn't be able to accompany you to the races once the season starts. it just wouldn't work.” You watched as Charles’ heart sank as you spoke, the brutal truth of your words hitting him full force. He knew you were right, that there were endless obstacles between you and him. He was a world-famous driver, and you had a life in New York, miles away from the races. But despite all that, he found himself wishing it could be different. "Yeah, you're right, let's just push through and get the divorce in 3 weeks," he said eventually, his voice heavy with resignation. You sigh before speaking “And there's no way I would move to Monaco agai-” You quickly look up at Charles hoping he didn't hear the end of your sentence. But he did, His ears perked up at the sound of your words, his eyes quickly darting to your face. "Wait, what?" he said, his tone laced with disbelief. "What do you mean again? 

You stand back up quickly changing the subject “I saw a cute store on the way to the bakery, I think I'm gonna stop by it, My Vegas clothes will only last me so long” you say referring to the clothes that you had only originally packed to only stay a few days in Vegas. Not to live a married life in Monaco. You follow up your words with an awkward smile before walking out of his room. 

Charles watched as you abruptly stood up and walked out of the room, his heart racing. Your use of the word “again” echoed in his mind, and he couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to the story. He waited for a few moments, contemplating whether to follow you or give you space.  But he also remembered your words from earlier. "It would never work" he decided to stay back letting you go.

As you walked down the stairs, you encountered Arthur standing at the bottom, a contemplative look on his face. He observed you for a moment, his eyes lingering on your expression before he spoke. "Everything alright?" he asked, his voice laced with a hint of concern. “Yeah, i'm just going to a store” you replied, giving him a forced smile as you walked towards the door, leaving the house.

—----------------------------------------- 

Day 3, 4 and five were calm, nothing crazy happened between you and Charles. Both of you maintain the facade of being hopelessly in love. You act sweet and affectionate towards each other in front of Charles's family, selling the act effortlessly. Everyone buys it, well everyone except Arthur.

Week 1 Day 6

It was later on in the day getting closer to night time. You were quickly cleaning the dishes before you got ready for bed. You were lost in thought looking outside the window above the sink until Arthur walked up to you. “Hey Y/N” he said. You found this strange. You and Arthur acknowledged each other's existence and had a few interactions here and there but you never really had a conversation with him. “Hey Arthur” you replied with a hint of confusion in your voice. Arthur leaned against the sink, studying your expression as you turned your attention to him. You could sense his hesitation, his eyes searching yours. "Can I ask you something?" he said, his voice low and laced with a hint of seriousness. “Umm sure” you respond with a confused tone. Arthur took a deep breath, as if gathering his thoughts. "I know you and Charles are in this... “pretend” marriage," he said, his tone gentle. "How did it start?" 

Your eyes widen as you hear the words come out of his mouth. His question caught you so off guard that you almost shatter a dish due to the speed you dropped it at. I- what? How do you? What? You stutter, extremely confused as to how he found out.

Arthur chuckled softly at your reaction, his eyes never leaving your face. "Let's just say I overheard you and my brother talking last time, the day we ran into each other on the stairs" he explained. "He said you were getting a divorce in 3 weeks and I figured my suspicion was true, you got accidentally married in Vegas didn't you?" He says somehow laughing at the situation. You look around nervously making sure there's no one in the perimeter. “Arthur, I-” You stutter before giving up. You figure  there's no point in lying. “Please you cant tell anyone, if the media found out it was a drunk decision not only would it get Charles in trouble but I would be dragged to filth. People are already mad I'm dating him, I don't even want to know what they would say if they found out I was a one night stand gone wrong. Arthur nodded in understanding, placing a hand on your shoulder in reassurance. "I get it, trust me and honestly I don't really care." he said, a small chuckle escaping his lips. "If I had a dollar for every time my brother did something stupid I'd be richer than he is. I won't say anything to anyone I promise, but you might need to get a bit better at keeping this lie up". You tilt your head at his words “what do you mean?” 

Arthur grins as his hand leaves your shoulder "just tell my brother Alexandra is coming to the party our mom is hosting next week"

That's all he manages to say as he leaves. You stand there by the sink, left puzzled by Arthur's cryptic words. Who's Alexandra? you think to yourself.

Part 3

A/N: I really enjoyed writing this one, I know its a bit long but I couldn't help myself. If you would like to be tagged in Part 3, comment below and I will add you to the Taglist

Taglist: @tsireyasgf @v4mp1r3bl0g @asparklysoul @sltwins @janeh22 thank you for reading, I appreciate it so much :)

[threepandas]

Bad End, Chosen: Part 4

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The Cycles never "loaded" back in at quite the same point. It was something I had noticed, though I had only suffered a few of them so far. It was like the God's were hoping "Chapter" to "Chapter", fickle and easily bored, trying desperately to find something NEW.

It made planning all but impossible.

Where... where was I?

A simple room. A suitcase before me. Loading or unloading? I held a robe in my hands. Painfully familiar. I had worn them for years. The highly protective robes of Mage initiates, at the Magic Tower. Meant to work as armor, life support, even... God's forbid, an emergency beacon. They were hideous. Function over form.

I could cry, for how deeply I loved these ugly robes.

No one had EVER been able to figure out how to style them properly. God's know, we had TRIED. But when The Dark came? This ugly, ugly things? These long complained about hand-me-downs? Oh... oh they had saved so, SO many student's lives.

Such tiny little things. Pulled from the rubble, still breathing. All because of these chaotic, gaudy, terribly comfortable and so deeply loved, old robes. T...They truely were as hideous as I remembered, weren't they? Blocks upon blocks of overlapping stitches and patches, too many colors, as though the tower was too stubborn to throw as single thing away.

We were.

We... we NEVER leave anything or anyONE behind.

Packrats, all of us. Such terrible hoarders. But... I looked around. It did not tell me the date. Was I leaving? Joining the tower? How old was I supposed to be? I pulled on my robes.

It felt like coming home. Like balm against the raw nerves of my still fragile mind. I felt old. Brittle. At... at terrible odds, with my young skin. I wondered if this was how she felt. The woman, the poor girl, that came before me. Before she broke so badly even the God's could not force her to perform. I did not want to admit I understood the impulse.

Ah, there.

I had once, what felt like lifetimes ago. What WAS lifetimes ago. Bought this very calander. It was cute. Little fairy dragons danced upon the edges, delicate and joyous. They were, of course, incorrectly drawn. The artist had never seen a real fairy dragon, only heard of them. I had seen some during the war.

People forget that neither the Fae nor Dragons are sweet or gentle things.

They were... Awe inspiring. In the oldest sense of the world. "An overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, and fear." I believe the text defined it. Like living starlight and glass, sung poetry and water. They were the fury of long dead gods and the vengeance of beings who were divine unto themselves.

They removed an entire MOUNTAIN RANGE before they fell. Burned and reduced to molten earth, an entire inland sea. They died like STARS. Violently and with a force that destroyed the void itself. Consuming all that dared stand in their shadow.

Ha. And people think they're CUTE.

Ah...my mind is wandering again. I try to concentrate on the calendar. My... my mind doesn't want too. Oh dear. That's... that's probably a rather bad sign, isn't it?

Opening my eyes at the beginning of the cycle had brough such... CLARITY. As though my head had been held under murky water and finally, FINALLY, I was able to scramble free. But... much like the drowned... I felt something like a high. Adrift. Without my anchor. I wanted my Gran-...

NO.

I grab the dresser before me. Hard enough my knuckles go white. My wide eyes focus far away. Seeing without seeing. Hyperfocused on the woodgrain before me. I am my OWN anchor. Feel the magic in your veins. The push and pull of the world. We are not his slave! Not his PET, to keep and cherish. A toy on a shelf.

I am a PERSON.

I DEFY MY FATE.

A cheerful knock at the door to my room. My eyes finally focusing on the date. Fuck. Moving IN, then. I do not know if I can act "normal". I... I will have to try. I can not unclench my jaw, but with great force of will, finger by finger, I release my grip on the dresser. Stand up. Glance up into the mirror.

I look like I am some hateful little thing, vowing some ugly little vengeance. Perhaps it is just my face. The way anger and spite only barely holds my bleeding edges together. My fear. I...I look like I am about to cry.

What a wretched child.

I try to force a smile.

It looks hideous. More ugly grimace and deep disgust then "oh, Master, how pleased I am to see you!". Fuck. When did I become so broken? A knock again. More hesitant. I breathe deep. I can not do cheerful, then. But...I... I can do nothing.

My face slides into an emotionless mask. Blank. Like a doll. Vaguely pleasant but meaningless. How damningly familiar. Gran-... HE reduced me to this in the end. A few steps. Almost distant, robotic, movement. And I open the door to a once familiar face.

"Learner." My Master smiles, awkward and uncertain. He had not wanted a student. I forced his hand. I know now I never should have done so. He was not ready. "Are you, um, settling? In? I know it is quite different from the life you once lived, but I promise. I will tale care of you. Well figure this out together."

Oh, Master.

I...I wish I could weep. I had forgotten this lie. How deeply I had once believed it. It was a child's promise, from a man who grew old but never, truely, grew up. I was to be failed again and again. Had once given him chance after chance. Because I had believed his words. My eyes feel hot. He looks panicked.

"Ah! W-what did I do? Was that wrong? Please don't cry?! Oh no! Uuuuh-!"

"Well THIS is a record. Not even a day and you've made the child weep." Comes a terrible voice. No. Please, Gods. Not so soon. "Here I am, come to greet my precious Grandlearner. And what do I find? My student, tormenting a child."

My Master sputters defenses of himself. Not even noticing that his own Master did not call him Learner. All but disowned him before me. My fear howls like a deafening beast in my ears. But... cowering? Will not... can not save me. Turning my head is almost painful, with how tightly my muscles have tensed.

That is not the look of a man who does not recognize me.

He remembers.

Alaric Blight stands in truely magnificent Tower Master's robes, as though he has every right to be there. Respected. Beloved. A legendary talent, the likes of which have not been seen for lifetimes. ANYONE would be HONORED to be in his presence. After all... he is a man who holds the world at his feet.

He is a monster.

"Hello Grandlearner," he all but purrs. Stalking forward to loom, as only an adult CAN loom over a child. The power difference between is even greater now. I can not even count myself an ant before him. I... I can not breathe. "What a delicate little thing you are. Utterly precious. And so SMALL! You certainly have a lot of training to do, don't you?"

His hand reaches forward to cup my cheek, sparks of deadly magic dancing lazily across my skin too finely for Master to notice, but not so fine I can not FEEL. It is a subtle threat. A little reminder. Not a single soul in this tower is safe, so long as he is here. All it would take? Is.. Just. One. Touch~

"I'm sure you'll BEHAVE for your Master, WONT you, Dear? After all, he only wants what's best for you. And a darling child like you, Grandlearner? Should be cherished."

"He's right." My Master said, clueless to the monster he let so close. Who so very dispised him. "But... but Master, I'm not sure, well, HOW exactly..."

"Oh don't worry, student of mine." Alaric Blight, monster of my nightmares, hummed in a laughable mimicry of pleasantries. "I'll be with you EVERY step of the way. How could do anything less? We'll train my darling Grandlearner together."

A terrible grin.

"Leave everything to me."

[littledata]

@princington's amazing art brought me back to this fic so have a little extra for them.

There are many, many terrible things about dating Beatrice.

For example: she manages to wake up at six AM every single morning to go jogging and comes home looking sweaty and sexy while Ava is still dealing with bedhead. She's also organised to the point of insanity and remembers every important date, even the ones Ava didn't realise she knew (like the date she opened the coffee shop. They hadn't even met for fuck's sake), and manages to swoop in with a thoughtful gift or kind word to mark the occasion. Meanwhile, Ava is still scribbling DON'T FORGET DENTIST - TUESDAY?? on the back of her hand like a high schooler.

And if all of that wasn't horrible enough, even after almost a year of dating, Beatrice can still roll up the cuffs of her sleeves or adjust her glasses or recite some complicated piece of research, and Ava winds up hopelessly turned on in public on the regular.

It sucks, actually. Ava's life is awful.

None of that is the worst part of it though. The worst part of dating Beatrice, who is sexy and thoughtful and intelligent, is that she's fucking impossible to buy gifts for.

Beatrice doesn't actually want anything is half the problem. She reads a lot of books but she mostly checks them out from the university library. She drinks a lot of tea, but Ava runs a coffee shop. If her girlfriend wants tea, she has a store room full of it. Other than that, she mostly likes crosswords, the gym, her friends, and… well. Ava.

It's making planning for the first birthday Beatrice has had since they've been together exceptionally stressful. Particularly since Ava knows for a fact that Beatrice's parents believed in a "socks and school supplies" style of gift giving which, as far as she's concerned, barely even count.

"What are you getting Bea for her birthday?" she whispers conspiriatorially to Camila one Saturday afternoon in Mary and Shannon's back yard. Beatrice herself is bouncing the baby on her knee and debating some obscure scientific hypothesis - something about mold. Ava is surprised to find she actually has an opinion on the topic. Probably all those mold documentaries.

Camila snorts, "Have you just figured out she's impossible to buy for?"

"Yes," Ava stresses, "C'mon, what are you getting her? And if it's really good I'm stealing your idea."

"Oh no." Camila shakes her head, "It took me all year to think of something. You're on your own."

"Cam." Ava tries her best pleading, puppy dog eyes. They don't work nearly as well on Camila as they do on Beatrice.

"Ava." Camila pats her hand comiseratingly, "Just get her what every self-respecting lesbian wants for their birthday."

Ava frowns, "Power tools?"

Camila smirks, "Strap-on and lingerie."

So that conversation was entirely useless - mostly because Ava already owns more than enough of both those things and they sort of seem like a gift for both of them more than just Beatrice. And more than anything else, Ava wants her girlfriend to feel special. Like she's worth something great that's for her and only her.

Shannon is her next port of call. Ava corners her in the kitchen where she's refilling drinks and, probably pre-warned by Camila, looks entirely unsurprised to be accosted.

"We normally order some of the gross British candy she likes," Shannon informs her. "And before you even try it - she knows that's what we get her every year, so don't try and steal the idea."

Ava groans despondently, "I'm hitting a wall here. What the fuck do you buy for someone who doesn't actually want anything?"

Beatrice does always say that her best friend is unreasonably logical and practical in her advice. For the first time, Ava understands her plight when Shannon shrugs and says, "Have you tried asking her?"

With nothing else to do, Ava tries. Admittedly, she probably picks a bad time to do it: she's shirtless and sitting cross-legged on their bed while Beatrice massages lotion into the new tattoo on her shoulder. Bea's fingers are gentle and thorough and very, extremely distracting.

"Hey," Ava says a little breathlessly, her eyes closed, "What do you want for your birthday?"

Beatrice, because she is Beatrice, says, "You don't have to get me anything."

Typical. This is why dating her is so difficult. "Obviously I do," Ava points out. "For my birthday you took me to a theme park even though it's your idea of actual, literal hell." Bea had even bought and worn a t-shirt that said "I RODE THE BIG ONE". Camila has the photograph framed in her office.

"Not actual, literal hell," Beatrice argues, "I enjoyed that you had fun."

"There's really nothing you want?" Ava asks.

Disappointingly, Beatrice's fingers stop their movement and she puts a cap on the lotion, moving off the bed behind Ava. "Is this what you were whispering with Camila and Shannon about earlier?"

"Maybe. They weren't helpful."

Beatrice's smile is affectionate, "They never are." She leans in to kiss her, her hand landing on Ava's bare shoulder and skirting over her neck, "I'd like to spend my birthday with you. That's all."

Ava wraps her arms aroud her shoulders and sighs, "Dating you is the worst."

"Mm, awful," Beatrice agrees, kissing the corner of her mouth and then her jaw. "Shall we break up?"

"Yep." Ava turns her head to press their lips together again and uses her distraction to lie back, pulling Beatrice down on top of her. "We're over."

(On her birthday, they drink tea in bed and do a crossword puzzle with Ava's head on Beatrice's shoulder. Later, they wander through a museum eating wine gums and holding hands. At Shannon and Mary's place, Beatrice unwraps the cordless drill that Ava bought for her.

"Thank you," she says, "It's just what I wanted.")

(Ava saves the strap-on and lingerie for later.)

[simpforrooster]

exactly what i was texting her.

robert 'bob' floyd x f! reader

summary: your first date with bob.

a/n: my first bob fic just for you anon! i won't lie, it was hard to tap into bob's sweetness. i wanted them to banter sooooo badly xD

phoenix has been begging you to meet her new weapon systems operator.

no. that isn't quite it.

she's been trying to set you up with him.

you don't know anything about the man other than his callsign. which is bob.

bob.

hanging around naval aviators all your life, you figured one day you'd go on a date with one of them. you just assumed he would have a cooler callsign than bob.

maybe something like snake, or the infamous maverick. a girl can dream right?

anyway.

phoenix finally wore you down, and you're waiting outside a small diner for this infamous bob.

"wow, phoenix didn't do you any justice. you're beautiful." you hear to your left. a man in navy issue glasses and sandy hair smiles, slightly awkwardly, at you.

"i'm robert, or bob," he chuckles, reaching out a hand to you.

bob was the most perfect call sign for this man.

sweetness exudes off bob immediately putting you at ease, and you praise phoenix for being so resilient in this pairing.

"phoenix has told me all about you," he tells you, a hand on the small of your back, leading you into the diner. the two of you find a place in the back corner, away from loud customers.

it doesn't escape you that phoenix hadn't told you a thing about bob, except for his name. "i want you to form your own judgment!" she'd said.

bob slide into the booth across from you and fed you another nervous smile. "i'm sorry. i'm normally not this nervous."

"it's okay, i'm pretty nervous too," you tell him, reaching across the table to lay your hand on his arm. his cheeks pinkened, and yours followed, as your hand must have done that on its own. you return your hand to lap quickly.

as the night progresses, you and bob have fallen into a comfortable rapport. the way you've fallen into step with him, and at the speed surprises you. it's not that you've been closed off entirely to dating, it was just something that you hadn't focused on too much.

now, it seems like you can't remember what it was like before you met this quirky, sweet aviator.

at some point in the evening, bob has abandoned the seat across from you, favoring sharing the seat with you. you sit, your back to the wall, fully giving your attention to him.

bob reaches for your hand, confidence having replaced the earlier apprehension. for a few moments, he plays with your hand in his while the two of you continue talking.

"for the happy couple. on the house," your waitress interrupts your story, placing a piece of apple pie and ice cream on your table. "the two of you are just too sweet."

you and bob share a secret smile. you slide a little closer to him in the booth and his hand causally falls around your shoulder. the two of you share the dessert, and soon after, your being kicked out the diner so they can close up.

standing in the cool evening air while bob pays, you pull your phone out to text phoenix.

"i hope you're telling her the date was perfect and you can't wait to see me again," he tells you over your shoulder. when you turn your head, his mouth is right there. he drops his gaze to your mouth, silently asking if it's okay to kiss you. you answer him by closing the gap between the two of you.

his hands fall to your waist, and he spins your body around to pull you into him.

"as a matter of fact, that is exactly what i was texting her."

masterlist.

[shinidamachu]

the importance of "I'll protect you with my life"

For @inukag-week's sacrifice prompt, I thought I'd expand on a topic I have only mentioned before: the "I'll protect you with my life" line and why it matters even more than we give it credit for.

The thing about Inuyasha's character is that he was build — both physically and psychologically — to survive.

Physically, the fact that his own blood can be weaponized into a powerful attack backs up that assumption.

And so does the fact that one of his defining traits is having a defense mechanism that kicks in whenever he's on the verge of certain death with the sole purpose of keeping him alive.

Psychologically, his tough childhood shaped his survival instincts into a reliable and sharpened sense. And this next part is more of a conjecture than anything else, but I believe Izayoi's death plays a huge role here.

It can be assumed that she gave up a lot in order to live her love story and her life choices ultimately resulted in an early death. Inuyasha, being the child born from that love, has no better way of honoring her memory than living. First, for her. Then, to spite those who were against his very existence.

And this — conscious or not — need to live, is deeply intertwined with his desire to belong. Fitting in is the safest way to survive and, at first, he tried to achieve that by becoming a powerful demon.

Then, he went the opposite direction and agreed to turn into human, which only cements that his true wish wasn't to simply become one or the other at all, but to be accepted, so he could live.

That's why he doesn't take threats to his life laying down, especially when unearned. It may not look like, given his reckless way of dealing with things, but in a crooked way, Inuyasha actually values his life.

So much, in fact, that putting other people's lives above his own was a foreign concept that he struggled with at the beginning and had to learn in order to wield Tessaiga.

When Kagome tells Inuyasha she will help him with the sword under the condition he promises to protect her, she obviously never meant that said protection should cost of his life.

She wouldn't dream of it because she knows she's not entitled to it. He doesn't owe her anything. Although, one could make a point that he kind of does.

Kagome is literally the reason he is alive. Through their journey, is a recurring theme that her voice would bring him back from death's grasp every time. She's constantly saving his life. In more ways than one.

And despite Inuyasha's immediate reaction to her request being to mock her and making it clear that he never said he would protect her forever, he was the one to willingly and unpromtly add the "with my life" bit.

Even though protecting Kagome with his life was precisely what he had been doing the entire time — in spite of spending a good chunk of the series thinking his life wasn't his to give away —, to say it out loud makes for an amazing paralel and it shows how much they've grown, both as characters and as a couple.

But more than that: it shows a whole new level of devotion. For the first time ever, Inuyasha is chosing to promise his life to someone for no other reason than the fact that he loves her.

And despite talking about a lifelong commitment, I can't remember a single stance of the story where Inuyasha had acted more free.

No wonder the scene can be interpreted as a proposal.

[genderqueerdykes]

i know this won't solve anything because racists are determined to be racist no matter what, but i realized i haven't shared a picture of my dad in a long time, so i'm going to do it again. when i came out as biracial a few years ago, people were asking me something to the effect of "What, did you get a new dad or something?". the thing is, i don't think a lot of folks realize that divorce can play a massive role in things like this. i'm not sure why the concept of divorce is hard for people to picture in this situation, but people's parents really do get divorced, and sometimes, the child is at a young age when it happens.

my dad left my life when i was 10 years old because he cheated on my mom and they separated. my mother kept me away from him at all costs and only allowed very rare, sporadic visits, usually where him and i would eat dinner together and that was really it. we would barely have time to actually talk or chat or do much of anything. i would pointedly avoid eye contact with him because i was still scared of him after all the abuse. i have extremely poor memory of my childhood due to constant abuse from both of my parents, resulting in PTSD and DID. i had a hard time remembering what my dad looked like because i hadn't seen him since i was a teenager, and struggle to remember damn near anything from the first decade of my life.

not everyone has both of their parents in their life, still. some people have had one or both parents die at a young age, and never get to meet their parents. because of how bitter the divorce was between my mom and my dad, there weren't just pictures of him around the house or anything like that. she hated him so bad she basically tried to erase him from both of our lives. he's an asshole, don't get me wrong, but i still deserved to know more about literally 1/2 of my parents.

looking through a photo book at my sister's house, i was finally able to see him again for the first time in a decade and it gave me a wave of emotions and memories. i remembered asking my mom as a kid if my dad was black, as he has dark skin, an afro, and nonwhite facial features. she would always laugh at me and tell me that he "just has a white guy afro" and would mock me for questioning if my dad wasn't white. she was very racist. this never sat right with me, it always felt wrong.

this photo was taken in the 1990's on a disposable camera, with the flash on. you can see the flash being reflected in my father's glasses, and on his forearm. that means that my father appears even darker in real life than he does in this photo. it's a shitty, grainy photo, i know, and i apologize, but you can clearly see my father's skin tone, hair and facial features despite how poor of a photo it is. again, the photo was taken in the 90's on a disposable camera

just because i'm pale from staying indoors most of the day due to being severely disabled does not erase my father. he is an entire ass person, and it doesn't matter how angry someone on the internet gets when i say that i'm mixed race, it doesn't erase my father and the genetics i carry from him. it doesn't matter how mad you get that mixed people look mixed. it doesn't change a damn thing.

you don't know someone's genetics just by looking at them. you don't know what someone's parents like just by looking at them. don't racially profile strangers. you have no idea what their genetics and families are like.