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nyisles · 5 years ago

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Magic in the Hamptons

Part Five

part one | part two | part three | part four

Player: Mathew Barzal

Words: 3k

Warnings: language

Notes: long long long long overdue, but i’m too critical of my writing which makes it so hard to write something i feel is good enough for y’all.. But please leave feedback. It makes writing all this feel worth it! also it’s hard to write angst???

As soon as your foot was set through the door of your apartment you peeled off the islanders t-shirt. It just made you feel dirty and used. You really wanted to be ok with this and not be upset, maybe you were overthinking your relationship/ friendship/ whatever-ship this was with Mat? Though replaying past events in your mind, you didn’t understand how he could’ve possibly thought inviting his ex-girlfriend to the game was a good idea and it did really seem like the two of you were going to be exclusive, it seemed like he was spending all his free time with you. You both were in contact every single day, how could he have possibly had time to do this to you? It honestly didn’t matter anymore. Changing into sweats, you washed your face trying to get rid of the redness from all the tears you’d let out on the ride home. You just needed to cool down and process things. Flicking on netflix, you settled on watching some John Mulaney special, you were on the market for a pick me up that actually made you laugh out loud.

Maybe ten minutes into the special you heard your apartment door buzz, you weren’t expecting any company and it was already past midnight and you didn’t order any take out. Going up to your buzzer, you pressed the ‘talk’ button. “Hello?” you questioned, pressing the listen button to hear the mystery guest had to say. “I just want to talk.” Your heart dropped into your stomach hearing the male voice. “So talk.” You said to Mat. There weren’t any voices he could’ve been confused with. You just wanted to know why he was here and not with Whitney, or more importantly at his own apartment. “Face to face, (Y/N).”

Letting out a sigh, you had no idea why, but you pressed the unlock button letting him into your building. Realizing you had a minute or two to yourself before he was able to climb up the stairs in your walk-up, you headed into the kitchen taking out a wine glass and filling it up to the brim. Taking a huge gulp before the knock on the door interrupted you. Behind the door was Mat looking awfully disheveled. His gameday suit was now missing the blazer, and what was formerly a crisp white button down was now a wrinkly wine stained mess. At least you both were on the same page about having a tall glass of wine before you spoke. “So can I come in or are you going to make me stand here?” He said plainly. No smile, no anger in his voice either, his eyes did look tired, but to be fair the boy had just played a professional hockey game. He seemed completely indifferent to the situation. No words exited your mouth, you just stepped to the side opening the door a bit wider so he could make his way into your apartment. Normally he makes himself comfortable on the couch in your living room but he just paced around a little unsure of where to go. Looking at your kitchen counter he let out an uncomfortable laugh seeing the wine, “Looks like we both had the same idea...” he trailed off scratching the back of his neck.

“Cut the bullshit.” was the first thing that came out of your mouth. It was so honest that it almost took you by surprise. If Mat being here brought anything good into your life, at least it was a little bit of a backbone. “What are you doing here? You don’t understand what ‘leave me alone’ means?” You said moving into the kitchen, leaving him to follow behind you.

Looking back you saw his jaw clench, “If I recall your text it was ‘don’t contact me’ which can be interpreted a little differently.” Mat said starting to get a bit angrier in his tone, probably because of the way you were acting, but he deserved it. He really made you look stupid in front of a large group of people you were still getting to know, most of your interactions were while you were intoxicated. Mat had to realize you were in a vulnerable state, he had brought you into his world, and then he did that. “And by the way, have you ever thought about how you embarrassed me?” You were mid-sip of your wine when you choked a little bit, not believing one word of what he was saying. You embarrassing him? All it took was that one little sentence to completely get you in your head. You understood you didn’t quite fit the bill of what a WAG looked like or acted like or how they always came through to games in head to toe designer. Or maybe you embarrassed him in the way you were acting - as if the two of you were a couple? You were unsure, but it quickly made your eyes burn, feeling another round of tears just ready to go. “If you felt that way you should’ve just let me stay home.”

“If I had known that you would just walk out on me, I probably would’ve.” it’s when he said that the tears started to roll down your face. His face didn’t even show any sort of remorse when he recognized what he said struck a nerve. This wasn’t the Mat you knew. That Mat you’d grown to like so much was much softer, he’d make you laugh at any opportunity and contrary to what he’d let his friends know, he was sensitive. You’d seen him tear up during the episode of the office when Jim and Pam got married. “So you’ve come over here to make me feel worse?” You said quietly not feeling as strong as you had in the beginning of the conversation. “You can leave now, you win. You’ve made me cry… a second time in 24 hours, okay?”

“I just want to have one honest conversation with you.” Mat said, grabbing the wine glass of your hand and putting it down on the counter looking directly into your eyes. It was the first time his hazel eyes had pierced your soul in a way that made you uncomfortable. This was the first time his gaze made you feel like you weren’t in your own home, but some strange alternate universe. “I’m fucking mad, you know why? I invited this girl, who I thought was cool to come hang out with my friends and I on an important night for me to then make me look like a fucking criminal after.”

You let out this startled laugh, “Which girl are you referring to? Me or your ex? Because I don’t remember thinking that I was going to be part of some bachelor episode fighting for your attention. Stupidly enough, I thought things between us were going to turn into something.”

“Yeah, well you sure as hell fooled me too.” Mat spat out.

“You realize how fucked up in the head you are for inviting two girls to the game, don’t you?” you said, raising your voice, wiping away some of the tears, now letting your sadness turn into anger. You were flopping back and forth between emotions and it was exhausting. “Am I some sort of joke to you? Just a friend who you kiss when your girlfriend is out of town.”

“Fuck this, I’m going home. Keep feeling bad for yourself, (Y/N). It’s pathetic.” was all that Mat could say as he looked around at everything in your kitchen except for you. “You won’t even let me talk” He said while you let out another laugh, this time exaggerated and loud and full of disdain, you picked up your wine glass taking another large sip, finishing off whatever was left in the glass. “You should be with the girl you flew in from out of town, Matty. She was so thrilled you left her ticket that I’m surprised she let you get away.” you said, doing your best to imitate her voice when you said his name, it still rang so clearly in your head. You could only imagine Whitney being in the passenger seat of his car right now, waiting for this conversation to be over so the two of them could go out on some fancy date at a fancy restaurant where he’d take someone who wasn’t so embarrassing. Maybe that’s why most of your dates had just been at each other's apartments.

“If you really think that I did that to you then you’re right. I have no purpose in coming here. You don’t know me at all.” Mat said, he made his way back to the front door of your apartment seeing his clothes in a messy pile. You could see him roll his eyes giving them a kick further in the corner, “You should wash them before finding a way to give them back to me.” and with that he left, slamming the door behind him.

- - -

You hadn’t spoken to Mat for a week, and in hockey season that might as well have counted for a whole month between the home games, away games and travel time. To be fair you hadn’t planned on speaking to him anytime soon, you did though have your friends keep tabs on Whitney, who they reported was on a flight home the morning after the game. What you did know was that the Isles had been on a bit of a losing streak, and it didn’t even bring you the joy you thought it might knowing Mat would be pissed off. You did get a sweet text from Grace inviting you out to lunch though you politely declined saying you were feeling a bit overwhelmed from a busy work week. What you didn’t expect was another buzz at your apartment door. “It’s Meg…” “And Grace.” “And Syd.” You heard the three separate voices, which honestly made you a little bit uncomfortable. You could pretend you weren’t home, or you could tell them you were feeling sick, but both options just felt wrong to a group of girls who’d done nothing but try to make you feel welcome into their group. It was practically an obligation not to leave three pregnant women standing in the chilly october air, so you buzzed them in.

“We come with gifts” Megan said when you popped your door open seeing them with brown take away bags from your favorite sushi place. It was all so odd to you knowing that these girls had taken you in a little too prematurely, because surely you were finished with Mat. He had made that very clear the night he left your apartment. He didn’t want much to do with you, and there wasn’t much you wanted to do with him. He’d played you since you’d first met him at Sydney’s wedding. The first strike was him not texting you for weeks, the second being the time Tito interrupted your date to talk about Whitney, the third being the home opener. You had no more chances left to give. Weren’t the early stages of talking to someone supposed to be fun and easy? You’d had the same amount of fun times and dates as fights which was ridiculous. You weren’t made to be some athlete’s girlfriend and Mat had kindly reminded you that during your fight when he called you embarrassing. When you recounted the events to your friends you left that part out, you didn’t want to even bring it up, it just hurt too much. There were a lot of slight digs that you didn’t want to bring up because they hit differently.

“If i’d known you girls were going to force lunch upon me I would’ve met you at the restaurant instead of making you all walk up four flights of steps.” speaking softly you invited them in to put the bags down on the coffee table in the living room figuring you all could eat there. “Well we have a lot of catching up to do, so this works.” Sydney said bringing in more bags of food, placing them on the table, as Grace held up a bouquet of flowers. “From Mat” she said softly. You gulped, taking them from her, putting them on a side table plucking out the note. “I guess we all have a lot of catching up to do.” you muttered opening up the card beginning to read it aloud. “These don’t even cover half of how sorry I am. I’m -” you stopped reading aloud and silently instead.

‘These don’t even cover half of how sorry I am. I wasn’t honest with you and I'm miserable thinking of everything I said. I wish I could re-do that conversation at your apartment. Sounds stupid, but it’s even stupider making some florist write out this card. Please call me. - MB.’

“He’s right, he really is miserable.” Meg said, as you looked up at her, Grace shot her a glare. “Megan… we didn’t read the card.” You couldn’t help but to smile, it felt better having them here as opposed to your other girlfriends. Your girlfriends didn’t quite get it, and they didn’t know Mat. They didn’t understand how in such a short time you had become so connected to Mat and how that was ripped away from you in minutes and a fight that was so meaningless and led to no real resolution.

“Well the flowers are lovely, but I don’t think I want to call anyone.”

“Just think about it. We can all agree Mat wasn’t himself, it’s fucked.” Grace said, “Now let’s just eat, I’m tired from all those steps. I gotta refuel.” The girls managed to spend the rest of the lunch not pestering you so much, just discussing upcoming halloween plans, babies, and how to get you to go to lunch with them more often. It was refreshing and honestly quite nice.

- - -

It's been another week, and another month in hockey time. Ever since the girls had come to your apartment with their ulterior motives of getting you to talk to Mat, he had stepped his game up. The poor boy had tried to call your cell phone at least five times within the past two days. He managed to sprinkle in some creative ‘miss you’ texts without being so blatantly obvious. Didn’t matter though, as fate would have it you’d find him in a place you least expected it. Right in the middle of a grocery store, with Tito. The two of them laughing in the baking aisle as you watched Tito try to decide between two different boxes of cake mix. You wanted to turn around and run. Leave the cart full of groceries but you’d accidentally bumped into someone else’s cart trying to make the u-turn out of the aisle. “Shit” you mumbled, avoiding eye contact even though you felt their gaze burning into the side of your face. Hearing footsteps behind you and his voice calling out your name you politely turned around. You needed more self restraint. You watched him pick up his pace stepping in front of your cart, gripping onto it so you couldn’t roll it away. “I’ve been calling you. Texting too...”

“I don’t really have much to say.” speaking softly staring down at his beat up stan smiths that used to sit at your front entrance because he insisted that his mom raised him properly and he wouldn’t track his mud around your apartment. Slowly raising your gaze you noticed how different he looked since the last time you’d spoken. He just looked exhausted, the dark circles around his eyes a little bit more prominent. You’d recognized that the team was moving into a more game heavy part of their schedule so you tried to excuse it as that, and not the fact he was sending you late night texts trying to fix something that seemed too broken to repair. “I just… don’t have anything to say to someone that thinks so poorly of me.”

“(Y/N)” he said, taking in a deep breath, you couldn’t tell where he was going with this, and you knew he didn’t even know where he was going to go with this. He’d already groveled through the card and voicemails. “You know that’s not true at all. I have no problem making a scene in this store if it gets you to let me talk to you for just ten minutes to explain.”

“You might embarrass me in the way I embarrassed you.” was all you could say. God, his insults still stung and bringing them up again as you stood in front of him only made your eyes start to well up again. Embarrassing and feeling sorry for yourself, just as he had originally thought. Moving closer to you, he placed his hand gently on your upper arm that was still holding onto the cart. You wanted so badly to pull away, but he felt comforting. Normally with other guys you never had such trouble blowing them off, but everything about being with Mat felt different and maybe that’s why it hurt so much to be betrayed by him. “I think… no, I know my worst trait is speaking out of my ass. Now when can we talk, maybe privately? You deserve a hell of a lot more answers than I was able to give you before.”

You shook your head looking anywhere other than his eyes that were dead set on you. Biting your lip you just shrugged, “Your place? I do have some shirts to return.” He nodded finally getting what he wanted. Pulling you close by the arm he was holding onto he kissed the top of your head. It wasn’t meant to be flirty, just something he’d done to try and comfort you. You were bothered by how the affection didn’t bother you, it didn’t make you feel any better about your situation, but you also didn’t want to claw his eyes out. “I’m leaving for some away games tomorrow, but I’ll text you later, yeah?”

“Yeah. I’ll be around.”

#mat barzal #mathew barzal #mat barzal imagine #mathew barzal imagine #new york islanders #new york islanders imagine #hockey oneshot #hockey imainge #hockey imagines #nhl imagine #nhl imagines

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ughthatimagineblog · 5 years ago

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When John Met. . .

john mulaney x reader

prompt: you’d loved him for years, before, during and after his fame, but what happens when you close your heart and he tries to win you over? oh, by the way, it’s in front of millions of people. requested: @lundqvistisgod warnings: cursing? kissing? word count:4232 a/n: jesus christ idk why it took me so long to shit this out. it was a beautiful prompt and the idea for the skit came to me from my fave fave fave rom com ever pls enjoy

You knew you wanted to be a writer, but staring at screens all day with the accompanying hum of machinery is not what you had pictured when you would think of your dream job. It never occured to you that maybe writing isn’t as simple as just “writing”. It had, but of course you were blindsided by the glitz and glamour of the flashing lights you had in your mind when it came to success in your dream career. Writing for Saturday Night Live was a dream… Sometimes. A lot of the time it was constant meetings with producers, stuck up famous people, more writers and interns that didn't know what the hell was going on. But at the same time, neither did you.

However, there was something off about this draft for next week’s show. It didn’t have a host written in. You looked over your computer to Pete who was also clicking away at his desk. You had come to be quite fond of him over the past couple of years. You were about the same age but you met him when you were also a clueless intern, prime in your senior year of university and he was only slightly more familiar to the studio than you were and just a little bit more outgoing which made him the perfect person to cling onto while you learned the ropes. It didn’t matter whatever you went through, he was there to help and it often saddened you to think of the day he moves on and expands his career without you. It was something you didn’t enjoy dwelling on and out of all the ups and downs you both had been through, you know you’d never trade them for the world.

One of the biggest issues you’d had that Pete had helped you with was John. Yes, John Mulaney. You’d met him towards the end of your intern years as you were invited back as a full time employee and writer for the show and he changed your life. He gave Pete a run for his money and even caused a little fight between you both while all three of you were first writing for SNL. You had spent so much time with John it drove Pete wild and he didn’t understand it until he drove you to confess your feelings for him. You and Pete knew you hadn’t had much luck with guys or felt so strongly for someone since high school so it was kind of a big deal for you. Alas, it did not last long and you were given the chance to move on as John left the show to pursue his standup career which turned out to be fruitful.

You remember seeing his shows start popping up on Netflix and then he’d have new ones every now and then, still performing in New York. You even went to see a few a couple years ago. But over time your frequent conversations became, well, less frequent. Every day turned into every week, every week into every month and every month into every year and then not at all. The world kept turning and he had forgotten.

By the time he’d returned to SNL to write you’d figured he’d become another washed up celebrity you both used to snicker at. You’d assumed the jabs in his shows were just quips to pander to audiences that were alien to celebrity life and not genuine like they would’ve been years ago. Now he was almost thirty two, much more skilled in his practice and you were closing in on twenty five and still at the same job you started at just with a higher pay raise and a little more creative freedom.

It pained you sometimes to see him around, to be forced to interact with him. There have been several late nights with your pal Pete where you would just rant about John and how hellish it was having to work with him again. Of course, Pete would listen and offer sage where he could but overall you would do most of the talking. At one point, he asked if you’d even spoken to him to see if your assumptions were true. You admitted you hadn’t. At least not in any way that had been genuine. You worked with him so of course you had to speak with him but not for longer than moments at a time and not for any more than a few words. It was all you’d offer John. It broke you when he left, it broke you again when he changed, something still unconfirmed but you were sure of it, and you couldn’t allow yourself to be broken again. Your fingers flicked the edge of a packet of paper idly as you debated asking Pete for help on the somewhat empty screen plan in front of you. He looked busy, like he didn’t want to be bothered and had better things to do. Besides, you were starting to feel bad about how much you ranted to him. Of course you let him rant to you as well but it was nothing compared to what you needed to let off and you could tell how much it was wearing on him. Little did you know, though, that Pete wasn’t necessarily tired of your rants, he was more tired of being the middleman. John, since coming back to SNL had been coming to him for advice as well. He knew that Pete was your closest friend and wanted to know how to get close to you again so John would go to Pete. They’d exchange emails and text, even going out for a beer a couple times a week all without your knowledge. Well, Pete would have a beer, John would go for the water or tea. If Pete let you find out, he knew just how angry you’d be and how you’d never let him live it down and he’d go down as the traitor friend who let her long time unrequited love just walk back into their lives with no fight. But that’s exactly how it was. Pete and John became really good friends since he had come back and actually found more things in common than just ‘you’. During this formed friendship, Pete learned John actually felt for you. In more ways than he had ever led on.

You sighed, finally caving in and opened your mouth to ask Pete why there were blanks in the forms when one of the interns walked into the office with a bouquet of flowers. Pete’s eyes quickly looked up from the monitor to the intern and back to you with a questioning look. Only a moment more and you stood. “Um, hi, can we help you?” You said, voice soft. “Yeah, these flowers are for a,” The intern paused to look at the note in her hands. “Y/N.” They looked back to you expectantly. “Oh, that’s me. Are you sure that’s correct?” You asked, doubt lacing your voice as you looked between Pete and the intern. They nodded, showing you the card. Sure enough your name was written in calligraphy and signed, ‘Secret Admirer’. You smiled, furrowing your brows a bit in confusion. “All right. Well, thank you.” You took the flowers from the temp’s arms and set them on your desk, staring at the card.

“Well?” Pete’s voice jolted you from your train of thought. Looking up from the piece of paper between your fingers you saw his expecting expression. “It’s from a secret admirer.” You laughed, giving the card to Pete. He smiled, shuffling in his seat as he turned it over in his hands. “Someone in the office likes you.” He grinned and you rolled your eyes. “Yeah well, very funny Pete but valentines day isnt until next year.” You turned back to your desk, ready to work again, already forgetting about your earlier question. “It wasn’t me.” His tone was serious. Looking back up at him, his face matched his voice. “You mean this wasn’t a joke?” He shook his head and you returned to your work, noticing your coworker had sent you a couple emails regarding a different project and for the rest of the day, the blanks in the form and the anonymous love had been forgotten.

For the next week, conversation with John had grown and you realized, maybe, he wasn’t as stuck up as you had previously believed. He was still kind, still funny, and still knew you better than most. But you were still wary, moving farther away when he would get close enough to, what seemed like, hear your heartbeat. Or sometimes he would say something that would edge between friendly and flirty and you’d change the subject, shutting it down before your face could heat up. But even as the interactions frequented, so did the flowers.

Followed by chocolates, and gifts that were surprisingly personal to you, each coming with a new note that became more detailed over time and by Monday, table work day, it was obvious your admirer was on the writing team for this upcoming Saturday. You smiled as you unveiled the card tucked into the sleeve of the coffee cup before you, which by the way, was ordered to your specific liking. Amused, you turned to Pete, leaning on your desk, reading the note out loud. “I hope you enjoy this special cup of your favorite blend. I’m looking forward to seeing you later today- later today?” You paused, surprised. Pete’s eyebrows shot up as a mischievous grin spread across his face.

“They must be in the table room for later.” Pete shrugged, leaning back in his chair, biting on the end of his pen with a shit-eating grin on his face. “Must be.” You giggled. “Nice sweatshirt by the way.” Pete said with a pointed look. You looked down and felt your face heat up with the realization. You had bought a shirt online with a reference to one of John’s show’s on it. Despite everything you had claimed, you still admired him and were proud. You were really just scared of getting hurt. “You know it’s nothing to be ashamed of but-“ He checked the time. “We have to get to the meeting.” You nodded grabbing your coffee and the notebook, heading out the door with Pete.

You were halfway down the long hallway towards the table room when it finally dawned on you. “Oh yeah, Pete, there was a mistake in my forms. Who is the host? The spot was blank?” You asked as he reached for the handle and opened the door. You walked into the room, still waiting for a reply from your friend. You wouldn’t get one. Sitting at the table was two other writers you were not super familiar with and then John. John Mulaney sat at the head of the table. One of the writers turned to you and smiled. “Y/N, John’s going to be our host this week.” Shutdown. Your brain began to shut down. This meant youd work with him more. Every day for a lot longer than just a few seconds. You were so shocked you didn’t feel the hot coffee that was now on your hands as you had squeezed the cup too hard.

“Oh, shit.” You cursed, face heating up and the horrid chain of events unfolding before you. John’s face changed from smiling to concerned as he leapt up from his seat to help assist in the cleanup.

You stood in the breakroom, water from the sink left running as you leaned against the sink while John was applying Neosporin onto your burn. “Does it hurt?” He asked softly, eyes focused solely on the injury before him. “No, not anymore.” You managed to get out. He was so close. Your cheeks felt hot and even though he towered over you, the proximity made him feel small. “I told you, it’s not that big of a deal-“ You were cut off by him shushing you. “Hey, I wanted to help so I’m helping.” You rolled your eyes as he finally made eye contact again. “You’re wasting time.” He scoffed. “Pete and Megan can handle it for a while.” You shook your head and it fell silent. “Nice sweatshirt.” He grinned. “Shut up.” He laughed and your heart clenched in your chest. You loved his laugh. “No animosity. It’s a good bit.” He turned to reach for the bandaid. “Yeah, a lot of people seem to think so.” You said, a hint of venom in your tone.” His eyes shot to yours. “Is there something wrong?” John’s voice has both concern and hurt in his voice.

“No. Put the bandaid on.” John’s hand withdrew. “No, now I know something’s wrong.” You looked at him and sighed. “You’ve just been gone and you’re different.” You confessed. “I’m different?” You nodded, crossing your arms, flinching and then uncrossing them. He muttered a “Give it here.” before taking your hand again and dabbing it with a cool cloth more. “You left a long time ago and it was hard seeing you go. And then it- you got really really big and famous and soon enough you were just like them.” Your words felt small saying them aloud. His expression was incredulous. “Like them? Like who? Like the people we used to shit on? Y/N, I’m not ‘like them’. I haven’t changed. But every time I’ve tried to show you that since being back you’ve backed away. Pulled away. If anything you’ve changed.” Your head snapped up at him, a ping of hurt went through you.

“I have not changed. I just don’t know when you’re going to leave again so I’d rather not lead my own feelings on and let you get close to me again just for you to run off again.” Your eyes closed after you finished confessing, only in the back of your mind registering what you had told him.

“Your feelings for me?” He asked and your eyes opened. “Yes. And I’d rather not re-open that wound if you’re just going to run off again. But thank you, for trying.” You grabbed the band aid from his hands, which were shaking but you were too quick to notice, and left. You left him in that break room with no room for a response or time to register. You didn’t want or care to know his response.

Saturday finally came and so did the end of working within more-than-close proximity with John. He had talked to you the same amount as the days before, not mentioning what you had told him, treating you just the same and eventually your heart sank at his indirect answer to how he felt in return. But the secret admirer never stopped sending gifts. Another cup of coffee, more flowers, your apartment was filled with them, and more food. By the time your last gift came in today, you marched down to the other writer for Saturday’s episode, Michael’s office to tell him to stop. You knew it was him, especially after Monday. At first it was sweet but at this point you didn’t like him that way and knew you had to tell him.

You knocked on the threshold and leaned in the frame. Michael’s eyes popped up from his desktop and smiled when he saw you. This was going to be hard. “Hey, Mike, I just wanted to say thank you for all these little gifts but,” You walked further into the room to make sure you two were alone. “I don’t like you in that way. I’m sorry. I just have feelings for someone else and you’re a great guy, and I-“

“Stop, stop, stop. I didn’t send you those gifts.” Michael said, a smile on his face. “What?” He chuckled. “Yeah, those gifts that intern’s been delivering? Those aren’t from me. Thanks for thinking it was me, but they weren’t.” He smiled with a closed mouth before returning to work.

You left his office perplexed. Who could it have been? Maybe Pete had been doing it as a joke. You would wait until he got off of lunch to confront him and tell him how mean that was but for now there was work to do and a show to air.

Night fell and Pete returned just as everyone was preparing for places and you nearly stabbed him with your own finger when he got back. “You asshole!” His arms flew up and the couple steps he took back from you were staggered. “What the fuck?” People shoved past as you pressed on. “You sent all that bullshit to me?” Pete’s face turned on a dime as he registered what you implied. “No! I did not!”

“Do not lie to me, I talked to Michael, he didn’t send them.” You claimed, crossing your arms, brows furrowed so deep you felt like you hadn’t moved your face for ages. “Of course it wasn’t Michael. Michael is gay, Y/N. But that’s not even the top reason why it wouldn’t be him.” You shrugged, throwing your arms and feeling one of them flop to your thigh as your other hand came up to pinch the bridge of your nose. “Then who did?” You released the bridge and looked up with a questioning gaze. Pete only returned with an equally expectant stare.

It registered and your turned towards the cast hallway in horror and surprise. “No.” Your voice sounded distant, even to your own ears. You stood there, frozen, people bumping into you in a hurry as they passed. What was really ten seconds felt like thirty minutes before Pete sighed. “Yes, it was him.”

“And you didn’t tell me?”

“He wanted it to be a surprise! He told me this is what he was going to do and holy shit, finally. I was so sick and tired of you both secretly pining for each other like, what kinda bullshit is that?” Pete rambled for a few moments before finding your unresponsiveness a little tiring and walking off. Your feet moved you before your brain did after that. Back to your office, to put away a couple folders given to you by some bustling assistants, cameramen or more interns, then they carried you back while the anxiety built up. You came back to see John take his place, an assistant handed him a bottle of water and he took a drink, catching your eye. The director began to count. You smiled and he waved back and they hit five seconds. The audience was in place, you were next to camera man A, aka James to oversee how well the script ran and soon enough, John began hosting.

His bit ended sooner than expected and he came straight up to you the moment the cameras were off of him. “Was that okay?” He asked, half jogging up to you, nearly chugging the water he was given. “Yeah, you did great.” You nodded, offering to hold the bottle for him but he shook his head in response. Your head was still reeling, not forgetting about the fact he was the one to send those gifts but not knowing how to ask about it. “I have to do a couple more skits before I can bring you on.” He admitted, signaling you to walk with him. “What?”

“I talked to Lorne and Don. They agreed to let you do a skit with Aidy and I. It’s close to the end and I talked to Inga. She agreed to do your makeup and hair while I go on to do my other ones.” You failed to speak as he explained and all you could do was stutter. “I won’t even know what to say? This is not what we wrote.” You tried to weasel your way out of it. “It’s an improve. You’ll do fine. Kate comes in around the middle so if you start dying she can help.” He nodded with reassurance as you reached his dressing room and opened the door to meet Inga, Louie and Cara. “Oh god.”

You waited in his room long after he left. His costume changers were also there to help, which you were booted for, but welcomed back in as he went on. They changed you into your costume which fit you surprisingly well. Well cut skinny jeans and a nice shirt. Inga did your makeup to compliment your face and eyes and your hair to complete everything. “I must be one of the normal ones in this one, huh?” You quipped and Inga just smiled which, admittedly, worried you. Just as you were about to dwell on it too much, the door opened and Stella, the girl you liked to call the cue girl, opened the door and waved you out. Your breath was shaky and steps were uneven as you made the trek to the stage. She informed you they had three minutes until the commercial break was over, the musical guest would introduce the skit and they would signal you to go on with John. You nodded adamantly, not bothering to tell her you knew how the show ran in fear of throwing up the moment you opened your mouth. Three minutes passed faster than they should have and right before you were about to ask about them rigging the clock, John came up, dragged you to side stage and whispered “Break a leg.” You smiled up at him and his eyes found yours with a soft look. It felt safe. The musical guest walked onto the main stage and introduced the skit. “New Years Eve” they had announced and before you could think of how odd it was, considering it was August, they started counting you down from behind the camera and it was also only then you realized the room was packed with extras all wearing party clothes. You recognize the scene immediately. “When Harry Met Sally.” You muttered. The camera guy’s hands counted down from ten as Aidy rushed you into place. “When John Met Y/N.” She said and winked, walking away. “What?” You asked, panic and confusion now flooded you. The room was so crowded and she was gone before the man hit five. Four… Three… Two… One… Everyone in the room began counting down as the music kicked up and the twinkling of party decor littered the set. Your confusion was appreciated but genuine as John approached you. He had the nerve to drag you into this. Your confusion turned to anger and you no longer cared. “Dammit, John, what the hell is this?” You made a vague gesture around the room. It was improv technically, or at least, you could play it like it was. The look in his eyes told you he knew it wasn’t. “You drag me into your crap the moment you come back like nothing has changed? And you sent me all that other stuff like nothing has happened? Don’t you care about me? Because if you did, you’d know you can’t just walk back into my life like that. It doesn’t work that way.” Your heart gasped. You’d said it. “Well, I do care about you. I care about the way you bite your lip when you get real nervous,” He wasn’t. “I care about how you can never make up your mind whether you want tea or coffee and how, despite claiming you hate me, you still wear my sweatshirt. And most of all I care about how, even after all this time, your laugh hasn’t changed a bit and even after I leave work and go home to my apartment at night, I can still hear it in my head. Away from home, that's what I missed most. And come to think of it, you are what I missed most and it killed me you never knew how much I loved you before I left.” He finished and it took a few moments for the blood to stop rushing in your ears long enough to realize the crowd had stopped counting and you could hear the tail end of the audience’s ‘awe’. “And all this?” “Surprise.” He whispered sheepishly, coming close to your, his arms coming up to your biceps as you had crossed your arms earlier. “You’re an asshole, yknow that?” You smiled, as he leaned down to kiss you. “Believe me, I know.” Your lips brushed his and he smiled through the tender kiss before pulling away. The audience clapped as you both pulled from each other. You looked around. “Did you plan all this just to ask me out on a skit?” You realized cameras were still rolling. He nodded and turned to the camera. “That’s right folks, you just witnessed an elaborate plan to ask the love of my life out on a date instead of an actual skit. That’s something you just paid money for. Thank you all for watching… “ You turned away from him and the giggling audience to find Pete off stage. You smiled softly at him and mouthed ‘thank you’. He smiled and winked in return. “... And goodnight!” John finished and came back to kiss you more as the credits rolled and the music resumed. Maybe he wasn’t stuck up, but he was right about one thing. Famous people are weird.

#john mulaney bull question mark #john mulaney #john mulaney x reader #john mulaney imagine #john mulaney x you

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caligobeltrao · 4 years ago

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I for one would love 2 hear ur thoughts on the hannibal novel 👀👀 - bloodybrahms ☺

ahhh thank you BB!! <3 I’m gonna throw it under a cut bc I know people aren’t gonna want my ramblings clogging up their dash lol.

Edit after I’ve written it: Holy shit this turned into a monster but tbf I did say I was going to rant. I think I miss writing college essays...

Also, I would like to note bc I’m about to bitch, I do still love Hannibal and Clarice and all of the franchise. Hell, I even love book Hannibal because I’m garbage and want to be special. So yeah. It’s a fond bitching.

Okay where to fuckin begin man... This novel was a fucking Shit Show, my dudes. It was like baby’s first fanfiction.

Let’s just jump in, shall we?

So by now, having read both Red Dragon and Silence of the Lambs, I know Harris injects of lot of sexual shit into his novels, fine whatever, but the amount of pedophilia is insane. Like, Red Dragon with the grandmother threatening to cut his dick off by holding it in between scissors????? And then we have Mason Verger, worst human on the planet. Like jfc I’ll go into him specifically more later but just. Men. Why does it always have to be sexual.

Like that time Clarice wasn’t wearing a bra and she wanted to prove to Paul Krendler she wasn’t wearing a wire so she flashed him her tits?? Unnecessary, Harris. Bullshit on all counts.

Next, poor Ardelia Mapp. So he clearly wrote out her accent in Silence, which frankly reads racist since to me it seemed like he did it every time a character of color was met but he didn’t for Clarice’s Southern accent except for this book when she was talking to Ardelia. Now, that’d be a cool way to show how close they are, sure, but it just... She didn’t show up enough to warrant that reaction from me, plus all the other casually racist shit he throws in.

Ardelia’s literally there as the wise Black best friend to help Clarice along. She doesn’t feel like her own character, she’s only there in conjunction with her, or doing something for her. She was the fucking valedictorian for Christ fucking sake, she also works at the Bureau but if her department was mentioned it was only once in passing. She was not a full character which fucking blows because she could’ve been so cool.

And real quick before I forget, I hate how she’s treated in the end. I do like she gets a reference and that brainwashed Clarice sent her an emerald ring and a note saying she was okay, but Ardelia was abandoned by her best friend (that she had lived with) with not even a phone call and they will never see each other again and I think Ardelia knows it. It sucks and I’m heartbroken for this woman.

I’m gonna touch a little bit on the racism too. Now I’m white and not the most qualified to talk about this shit, but I do wanna mention it because it makes me mad. There’s just so many unnecessary slurs, any POC is more of a background helper character to Clarice than anything or a foil.

For example, Evelda Drumgo. She starts us off. Badass Black woman who runs a drug cartel. She chooses to shoot at Clarice and risk her baby’s life, and we have Clarice wash the baby off and save his life. Then Evelda’s mother is written as irrational when she slaps Clarice for visiting the baby in the hospital; I get Clarice’s impulse, but that woman just lost her daughter because Clarice killed her. I would’ve slapped Clarice too, even if it was a totally justifiable shot.

The baby himself is used as a foil throughout other parts, most notably to me when Clarice goes to visit Mason the first time. There are two Black boys from a foster home playing in a room with a camera so Mason can watch them, and it shakes Clarice up a lil bit because of the baby, but it says she’s getting more used to it.

Now this is half and half well written and shoddy to me. It’d be a cool moment, if the whole incident wasn’t nearly completely forgotten for the rest of the book shortly afterword. It could show growth, if Clarice had any growth to show.

And then the Romani people who are literally just used and thrown away. Sickening. Also very broadly used the stereotypes we hear which Sucks; the three we meet in any sort of depth are pickpockets, one was already in jail and Pazzi used his leverage as a police officer to get her to do what he wanted and threatened to have her baby taken away from her permanently, like it was just bad. And then the man got killed. Pazzi let him bleed out. Asshole.

The slurs. I could take out all of them and pretty much have the same damn thing. Like I get showing negative aspects of characters and just because a character’s racist doesn’t mean the author is, but with the characters already being as shitty as they are, fully didn’t need it to make them worse. Entirely unnecessary. Racism or the character being racist has no impact on the plot is the major thing, I think. And you can replace that with anything along those lines, like sexist, homophobic, transphobic. It didn’t impact the plot, they can still be shitty, you just don’t need to use them.

This also goes in reference to Margot being a lesbian. And the transphobia holy shit, it was disgusting. Harris had Clarice think something so cruel and unnecessary it’s like my guy why was that even remotely something we needed to hear. We didn’t. I wanted to stop reading because that’s not my Clarice, first and foremost, and second, this is supposed to be the character we LIKE. And now I don’t like ANYBODY in this damn book.

And he treats Margot like shit too, and Barney.

Their friendship was beautiful and great and finally for once something nice was happening in Margot’s life and I was happy reading it, and then FOR SOME REASON Margot goes to shower in the same room as Barney after a workout, which makes no sense, and then Barney tries to force a kiss on her (and he was hard, Harris made that very clear) and she had been sexually assaulted by Mason her brother and ruin the whole damn thing and none of it would have changed any other piece of the novel if you removed it!!!!!!!!! Entirely unnecessary!!!!!! And Barney had the gall to say well I couldn’t help myself like none of that was realistic in the slightest, she never would have went in the same room to shower with him.

Something you need to do is basically get some suspension of disbelief from your reader and maintain and stretch that as you go, right? Well mine was gone at that moment.

Also side note Margot is basically just there to show how shitty Mason is for the umpteenth time. Her whole thing is lesbian sexual assault victim.

Also heavily implied she was a lesbian because of the sexual assault. And we rarely see Judy, her girlfriend, so. Bad. Bad all around.

Circling back around to Clarice and how disappointing she is in the books as compared to the movies. Well, Clarice is also a poorly written character. She’s 1000x better in the movie. Hell, she’s even better in this book than she was in Silence, but that’s not fucking hard.

Pretty much all the characters are so flat they don’t even classify as two dimensional.

Like sure, maybe we wanna say Clarice didn’t really solve much in the first book and was just handed everything because she was a trainee and that’s what Hannibal wanted.

Like if you remember the John Mulaney sketch of Delta Airlines where he’s just going “Okay!” and running to the next place he’s told, that’s Clarice.

Okay so why does she get goaded into all this shit now? She should know better. She should know how to handle herself better. Like she messes up basic fucking shit like clearing a room before untying Hannibal, which was stupid, she seems oblivious to some of the politics at work even though she’s been in the FBI for like 7 years now, she would at least have more fucking contacts than Brigham who died in the beginning and Jack Crawford who died at the end by rolling over in his bed to his dead wife’s side and Ardelia who would be near the same level as Clarice I guess but I still don’t know her damn department???? Like you fucking network.

Plus after her final fall from grace with the FBI, we meet or are told of random side characters that go no where and do nothing just to say “hey look at my special little girl, everyone likes her and looks up to her!!” Why? Because she caught Buffalo Bill 7 years ago and then never got a promotion or even worked with the BAU? Again, it does not make sense. People may pity her? But a random girl in the lab wouldn’t be fangirling. Starling herself said her career had gone nowhere because of the politics and not sleeping with Paul. You need to show me why she’s likable in her actions not others words.

We spend more time away from her than with her anyways but Jesus.

AND HER IN THE ENDING. She was fucking BRAINWASHED????? Bull FUCKING SHIT. He completely ruined anything he even remotely might’ve had in this cluster fuck of a novel.

Case in point, difference from the movie, Hannibal spends weeks (possibly? it’s left purposefully vague and I’m guessing that’s because Harris didn’t know the ins and outs and wanted his novel done) meticulously brainwashing Clarice, he had stolen her father’s bones and she’s so far gone at that point she doesn’t care, and the whole scene where Paul is getting his brain eaten? Yeah, she happily indulges and when he insults her, she asks Hannibal for more. Fuck you, Thomas Harris.

And Hannibal’s a Gary Stu, fucking fight me.

In the movie he either is or he’s tap dancing on that line, don’t get me wrong, but in the novels it’s insufferable because it doesn’t seem earned. The pigs didn’t attack him because they didn’t smell fear on him. No. He’s easily able to drug and brainwash Clarice and take her as his lover. No. Go away. He’s so smart and one step ahead and can manipulate anyone and everyone into doing what he wants and blah blah blah shut up! A character being perfect isn’t interesting even if he’s evil!! We all know he’s never truly in danger because of how Harris writes him and that’s boring!!

And I personally have a pet peeve where the villain is described as a monster or unstoppable. That’s boring and I no longer care about your story. I know 9 times out of 10 your main character is going to find a bullshit way around the impossible and kill it. Or it’s just like a default personality and nothing else is added to it. And that’s Hannibal.

I’m on Hannibal Rising now and, spoiler alert, he’s very bland as a character. (Also Harris switched some details in the novel which kinda annoys me like get your own canon right my man but whatever.) The plot itself is pretty fun? I guess? Like there’s action and stuff and I’m enjoying that. But it’s the same set up where Harris’s Gary Stu always wins, like he was 13 in the book when he killed the butcher. Let. Your. Characters. Lose.

Also even more racist shit but what did I expect really.

Anyways, I have no idea who I’m supposed to root for in the novel because all the characters are just kinda shitty. It really just boils down to Harris not showing any redeeming qualities or actions from any of his characters. I liked Margot for a while out of spite but she never really went anywhere and the way she killed Mason (btw she sodomized him with a cattle prod to get his semen bc side plot and then stuffed his Moray eel down his throat and somehow I still don’t think that’s the worst part of the novel) just. No thanks really.

All the random little side plots were also pretty not great. How many time does Harris have to say Pazzi of the Pazzis? Like I fucking get what you’re going for, even if I hadn’t watched the movie I’d be like, “Oh this dude’s gonna get hung outta that window, dope,” the literal first time. Stop treating your readers like idiots.

And then Margot’s side plot was that the will their father left said she needed a biological heir to inherit because he was pissed she’s gay and we needed the homophobia I guess, so Mason got everything, and she was helping him with the Hannibal shit because he’s pretty incapacitated duh, and in return he would give her his jizz so Judy could be artificially inseminated and they could have a child and get some of her inheritance. I don’t care. It was all very gross, and Mason kept saying shit like suck me off you’ve done it before, I won’t be able to feel it anyway, maybe Judy’ll suck me off you think she’d like that. It’s all gross.

And I guess this is a good a time as any to finally start on Mason. So a great rule of writing to make everything work better and give your story more depth is to give everyone both positive and negative traits right, even and especially the bad guys? Like, rules can always be broken if you’re a good enough writer, but I believe I have established that Harris isn’t quite there yet, to put it nicer than I have.

Mason is one bad trait after another. It’s like when Harris was bored of constantly writing about plain ole pedophilia, he threw a dart at a board of horrible things and landed on topics such as: pedophilia but make it incest, extreme sadism, sadism but against children now, and good old fashioned racism! Fucking Cordell was supposed to collect the children’s tears after Mason would make them cry and put them in martinis for him. Realism went out the goddamn door real fast with this novel y’all. Like a fucking Scooby Doo villain over here.

And he loves talking about being a sadistic pedophile, he will literally not shut up about it to Clarice when she first gets there telling her about his trip to Africa and this portable guillotine he has and just. I get it was probably like trying to make her uncomfortable on purpose because he’s a Freak, but it went way too far if only because it was annoying, not even uncomfortable for me as a reader. I was bored real quick. Get to the shit I actually wanna know.

And it sucks because of the weird, over-the-top way of how he died, I got zero satisfaction from his death. I couldn’t even be like, “Well at least Margot got her revenge,” because that’s not how she originally wanted to kill him!!! She wanted someone else to extract his semen for the insemination but couldn’t find anybody to do it for her, and then Hannibal, whilst tied up, said use a cattle prod and you won’t have to touch him and when you kill him you can blame it on me, and I’m pretty sure even if she hit his prostate right every time and he COULD cum from that alone in addition to how his body is Fucked Up now, it would’ve been a lengthy, gross, and re-traumatizing experience for her because all she wanted to do was avoid seeing and touching her brother’s private parts again, which I think is a totally fair and rational desire.

So I have to live with the fact that she was desperate enough to not lose the house and business because of her homophobic father to go through her childhood trauma again. There’s no place in this book that has a somewhat positive conclusion.

Even the very last bit where Barney has a girlfriend and a ton of cash from Margot, all he wants to do is see every Vermeer in the world right? Well, because Hannibal and Clarice are in Buenos Aires where one of them is on display, Barney gets spooked and has him and his girlfriend leave before he can see it and it ends that bit with he never got to see it ever so he didn’t even complete his dream!!!

Also for good measure, Harris throws in that Hannibal and Clarice enjoy having sex regularly. For no reason. Just letting us know.

I know this seemed like just a bitch fest, because it was, but I kinda sorta enjoyed it? It kept my attention at the very least. It’s really disappointing because like I said, I love the movies, all of them, and have since I was little. To see the original not stand up to that image in my mind is a little heartbreaking. Especially Clarice. She was a strong female role model to me, but turns out she’s... just kinda there. And her ending is that of her no longer being herself and getting that agency taken away from her.

There is a reference to her waking up from a sleep, if she is asleep (that’s kind of how he worded it), that kinda let us draw our conclusions on whether she was just brainwashed into being good for him or if she was willingly going along with this and was in love with him I guess and it felt like a slap in the face. She turned from a hardworking, modest country girl working her way up to the FBI into a female Hannibal. Which on the surface sounds kinda cool because we love luxe serial killers, but that’s not what she wanted or who she was set up to be. And to insinuate that she would even remotely consider choosing that path for herself is at its best an insult to her and at its worst a complete erasure of her background, what little character Harris did set up. It also completely erases my own connections to her, as a girl from a small town myself who has bigger dreams than this and also... a good, strong set of morals. He just tossed that out the window.

Obviously if you’re on this blog, you like slasher x reader shit, and this is a novel with a slasher x a person, right? So why am I so mad about it? Because the whole point of this blog and reader insert fanfiction in general is that you are taken as you are and loved wholly as yourself and that you are worthy of that love (in a fictional setting, not really loving people who are like this, which I think we understand but I want to clarify). She was not taken as she was. He is not in love with her, she is not in love with him. She was transformed into what he wanted out of her. He couldn’t get her to be Mischa, his first plan, so he made her like himself. And the fact that he was so easily able to do it makes me upset, and even more so is that it’s not written like it’s weird or wrong. It’s written like they’re in love and this is a good thing.

He may have been going for the classic “everyone is capable of doing bad things” stuff we see a lot, but we got that from Margot already. And Barney, for stealing Lecter’s stuff and selling it. And Paul, and the entire FBI for turning on Clarice, and the kidnappers, and Pazzi, and random shitty side characters. And none of it was particularly well written or made some sort of strong statement. It just was. And that’s not a good enough basis for a novel.

Anyways, if you made it this far holy shit you’re a saint and I love you, let’s be friends?? <3 Have a good day y’all, thank you BB for giving me permission to ramble.

#bloodybrahms #ask #no joke i spent like 5-6 hours total writing this i had a Lot to say

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hcurly · 4 years ago

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♡ 𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚖𝚎(𝚖𝚎) — 𝚘𝚘𝚌 𝚖𝚎𝚖𝚎.

In which Nikki could not get all three of her muses in one gif and @ariagrans comes through. ( @hollywoodland-hqs )

How long have you been roleplaying?

I feel like I was roleplaying before I even knew what it was. So, 10 years, probably.

What are your hobbies outside of writing?

I am the most boring person ever. Lately I just work, sleep, and play Animal Crossing. I have a horrible attention span for some things, but I do enjoy reading when I have the energy to pick up a new book, watching TV shows (I love Barry and rewatched it a couple times, and have SNL playing a lot) and movies, faves being drama, horror and comedies. I also admittedly watch John Mulaney’s comedy specials far too often, is that a hobby?

Do you have any pets? Tell us about them!

I live with my 5 year old dog Lucy (demon diva pug) and my family’s dog, Misty (wholesome black lab/pit mix pupper who is actually 9). We also have my sister’s ancient rabbit, Oliver, and our even more ancient turtle Speedy living with us.

If you had a month of free time to learn to do something new, what would you choose?

Sadly, I just had this and didn’t do it.. but, if I had a month of free time AND ambition / a will to actually do something, I’d love to relearn guitar and ukelele. I own both and I’m clueless to them now. I also would love to get into photography. Anything creative, I guess!

Do you listen to music while you write? What are three songs on your playlist?

Most of the time! Which is why my replies are probably a mess sometimes, oops. I have playlists for different ships, and am slowly working on muse playlists. Most of the time, though, I just listen to what I feel like at the time. Three random songs I’ve listened to most recently: Falling by Harry Styles, Liability by Lorde, everything i wanted by Billie Eilish. Yes, I’m a sad bitch sometimes.

What’s a favorite recent youtube video/channel?

I love Dylan Is In Trouble and his movie commentaries cheer me up. I also enjoy watching a lil bit of Buzzfeed Unsolved because Shane and Ryan are everything and true crime / the supernatural is interesting to me.

Tell us one random fact about you!

Some people know this already, but my only tattoo is on my forearm and it’s in Harry Styles’ handwriting. It says “all the love” and I got it just over 5 years ago. Dedication to my muse, check.

Who is an FC you’ve always wanted to use but haven’t yet?

Uhhh. I most recently picked up the ones I would’ve answered for this, so. Probably a female FC, but I’m not great at playing them therefore there’s always hesitation. Sophie Turner, perhaps. I also have FCs I’ve played years ago and would adore playing again for nostalgia, but I don’t think I’d get a good grip on them again. I guess that one would go to Brendon Urie.

What’s a plot you’ve always wanted to write but haven’t yet?

MORE ANGSTY STUFF. IDK.

Do you have a favorite plot you’ve seen someone else in the group do?

The Evan/Billie plot had me all whaaaaat. So, maybe that! But I genuinely enjoy seeing everyone’s muses and/or ships blossom, no matter what. ( @evanpeaters, @goodlourd )

Who on the dash makes you smile?

Is it cheating to say literally everyone? I think of this group as a family and am really happy writing with everyone. Some I’ve been writing with forever, and others I just simply love dearly. I’ll tag a few URLs I remember off of the top of my head, but this truly goes for everyone. ( @ariagrans , @ohlizzo , @itsgenevievegnt , @jocklowden , @hqnessa , @diannahq , @larsonhqs )

What is your favorite memory in the group?

I’ve been here since day 1, and seeing this place open and strive to become a safe haven in the RPC has to be the best memory. But from then on, I’ve loved stuff like group trips that allow everyone to interact.

What’s your favorite thing about your celeb(s)?

Harry Styles: I love how kind this man is. He truly has a heart of gold, and I try to showcase that as much as I can through writing him. I’ve stanned my lil Harry for so long, and seeing him become the person that he is makes me happy.

Bill Hader: This guy. I just love him, idk man. I could listen to his dumb laugh on repeat and the talent that he has amazes me. Cliche answer, but my favorite thing about him would be his personality. He can be serious but he also has that silly, funny side everyone loves and I think he’s well rounded and just such a delight. I adore him.

John Mulaney: I really like how open he is, especially with things that he’s struggled with and how he’s overcome them. I know he gives a lot of people hope that whatever they’re going through, it can be possible to come out on the other side. Watching him do stand up gets me out of dark times and I truly love him with my entire heart. One of my favorite people ever.

What’s a plot you miss?

I miss playing Joe and having Jack be savage as hell to him. I just miss playing him so much in general sometimes. #RIPJoe ( @jocklowden )

What would you love to see this group do in the future?

Group events are my favorite, so, stuff like trips, etc, never get old to me. I love having all my muses in one place and having some stuff sprinkled out during the week that they can chat about and get everyone involved. Maybe something like a Hollywood Land yearbook would be fun, a blog of some memories and superlatives that match our muses. To play off what Ina said, completely AU work projects that everyone could be on together sounds fun, like a movie with a random plot with directors, writers, actors, musicians on the soundtrack with a premiere at the end of it. I HAVE NO IDEA? Just... lovely group things that make my heart go whoooosh and make people feel loved and involved.

#( out of styles )#( ooc meme )#( appreciation week )

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massmurdera · 5 years ago

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2019 & 2010s Best/Worst

Because I like lists and cataloguing the dumb shit I cared about. As my brother once said after seeing and reviewing NOW YOU SEE ME on a lazy Sunday, ‘Some would say it was a waste of time, others might say it was a colossal waste of time.’

I’ll admit, it’s a bit over-the-top. Particularly including the Pats, but yeah, in the Tom Brady era that started when I was 14 as a Freshman in high school to 33 years old now and wrapping up soon-ish (?), there’s not a chance in hell I’ll care as intimately about this shit. I grew up with it at just the right time.

2019 MOVIES TOP TIER 1) Once Upon a Time in Hollywood 2) Uncut Gems 2nd TIER 3) Knives Out 4) Parasite 5) Little Women 6) Midsommer 3rd TIER 7) John Wick III 8) Ready or Not 9) Marriage Story 10) Joker 11) Irishman 12) Shazam! 13) Us UNDERRATED Ready or Not TOO LONG John Wick III; Irishman SOLID El Camino GOOD BAD 6 Underground OK 21 Bridges; Avengers: Endgame; Dolemite is my Name; Dragged Across Concrete; Fighting With My Family; Hustlers; Knock Down the House; Longshot; the Report; Two Popes MEH Always Be My Maybe; Death of Dick Long; High Flying Bird; Spiderman: Far From Home; Standoff at Sparrow Creek DISAPPOINTING Hobbs & Shaw; Toy Story 4; Triple Frontier SUCK Laundromat; Under the Silver Lake OVERRATED Ad Astra; Booksmart; the Farewell FUNNIEST SCENE Dicaprio flipping out in movie trailer BEST CLIMAX/ENDING Once Upon a Time; Uncut Gems HAVEN’T SEEN 1917; Apollo 11; Beach Bum; Dark Waters; Ford vs Ferrari; Honey Boy; Jojo Rabbit; the Lighthouse; Star Wars 2019 TV TOP TIER 1) Succession 2) Fleabag 3) Watchmen 2nd TIER 4) When They See Us 5) Barry 6) Unbelievable 7) Chernobyl 8) Sex Education DAMN GOOD Big Mouth; the Boys; Brockmire; Derry Girls; Euphoria; Loudest Voice; Mindhunter; Pen15; Righteous Gemstones; Veep WATCHABLE Atypical; Bosch; Dark; Goliath; Karate Kid; Kominsky Method; Mandalorian; Mr Robot; Mrs Fletcher; Russian Doll; Warrior HIGH/LOW I Think You Should Leave SHIT END FOR ALL-TIME GREAT Game of Thrones HALF-WATCH Living With Yourself; Raising Dion; the Society NOT UP TO STANDARD Stranger Things; GLOW; Killing Eve; True Detective BAD Luther; Shameless; Silicon Valley; SNL SUCK 13 Reasons Why; Big Little Lies; the Witcher FUNNIEST Desus & Mero DOCS 1) Fyre: both 2) Ted Bundy Tapes 3) American Factory 4) Leaving Neverland STAND-UP SPECIALS 1) Burr 2) Chappelle 3) Jeselnik 4) Birbiglia 5) Gulman BEHIND ON SHOWS I DIG Brooklyn 99; Catastrophe; Corporate; Expanse; Good Place; It’s Always Sunny; Letterkenny 2010s TV DRAMA 1) Breaking Bad 2) Game of Thrones 3) Justified 4) Mad Men 5) Hannibal 6) Banshee ANTHOLOGY/LIMITED SERIES 1) Fargo SII 2) True Detective SI 3) When They See Us 4) People Vs OJ Simpson 5) Chernobyl 6) Show Me a Hero 7) the Night Of 8) Honorable Woman COMEDY 1) Atlanta 2) Fleabag 3) Veep 4) Big Mouth 5) Parks & Rec 6) Rick & Morty 7) Nathan for You 8) Review 9) American Vandal HIT/MISS Black Mirror OVERRATED Boardwalk Empire; House of Cards; Peaky Blinders; Westworld UNDERRATED Banshee; Brockmire; Hannibal FUN HATE-WATCH Newsroom DOWNHILL Homeland; How I Met Your Mother; Legion; Sons of Anarchy HATED Girls; Leftovers; Rectify UNWATCHABLE Twin Peaks BEST ENDINGS Breaking Bad; Justified; Fleabag; Parks & Rec DUMBEST ENDING Dexter; Sons of Anarchy LATE NIGHT Desus & Mero POLITICAL John Oliver 2010s MOVIES 2010 Social Network Animal Kingdom; the Fighter; Four Lions; Inside Job; Jackass 3; MacGruber; Shutter Island; Toy Story 3; True Grit; Winter’s Bone 2011 the Raid Descendents; Drive; Fast Five; the Guard; Mission Impossible 4; Take This Waltz; Warrior 2012 Magic Mike 21 Jump Street; Argo; Cabin in the Woods; Chronicle; Django Unchained; Goon; Looper; Queen of Versailles; Silver Linings Playbook; Skyfall 2013 Wolf of Wall Street Before Midnight; the Conjuring; Gravity; Her; Inside Llewyn Davis; Prisoners; Short-Term 12 2014 John Wick the Drop; Edge of Tomorrow; Gone Girl; the Guest; Lego Movie; Nightcrawler; the Raid 2; Whiplash 2015 Mad Max 7 Days in Hell; Big Short; Brooklyn; Creed; Ex Machina; Fast 7; It Follows; Logan; Magic Mike XXL; the Martian; Me and Earl and the Dying Girl; Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation; Sicario 2016 the Nice Guys Deadpool; Edge of Seventeen; Everybody Wants Some!; Green Room; La La Land; Manchester By the Sea; Moonlight; OJ: Made in America; Popstar; Sing Street; Weiner 2017 Get Out Blade Runner 2049; Coco; Dunkirk; Lady Bird; Logan; Thor Ragnorak; Tour de Pharmacy 2018 Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse BlacKKKlansman; Den of Thieves; Hereditary; If Beale Street Could Talk; Minding the Gap; Sorry to Bother You

THE BEST Mad Max BEST DOC OJ: Made in America FUNNIEST DOC Tickled UNDERRATED DOC Weiner HORROR Hereditary FAVORITE/FUNNIEST PERFORMANCE Ryan Gosling (Nice Guys) DESERVED 5 SEQUELS the Nice Guys SUPERHERO Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse WAR Dunkirk BEST FIGHT SCENES the Raid UNDERRATED any Lonely Island project NICE TRY Dark Knight Rises; Inception; Interstellar; Widows STAND-UP 2010s FAVORITE Bill Burr NEXT BEST Ali Wong; Anthony Jeselnik; Kyle Kinane; Bert Kreischer; Marc Maron; John Mulaney; Patton Oswalt; Rory Scovel; Tom Segura COMEBACK Chappelle DOWNFALL Louis CK DIED BEFORE PRIME Patrice O’Neal, Greg Giraldo UNDERRATED Joe Derosa MUST-SEE LIVE Robert Kelly PODCASTS 2010s BEST/FUNNIEST/UNDERRATED Walking the Room RUNNER-UP 600 Dollar Podcast ONE-MAN RANT Bill Burr Monday Morning Podcast SPORTS Pardon My Take RIFFING Bodega Boys HISTORY/COMEDY Dollop HISTORY DEEP DIVE Hardcore History MOVIES Rewatchables HATE-WATCH CRITICISM West Wing Thing POP CULTURE/FILM Frotcast MIXED Revisionist History GOOD/BAD Joe Rogan: GOOD: propping up comic friends; BAD: useful idiot for propping up bad faith fascists who should be put out to pasture INTERNET CURIOSITY Reply All LEFTIST POLITICS Chapo Trap House TRUE CRIME In the Dark ADVICE Don’t Take Bullshit From Fuckers LAME Pod Save America OVERRATED Missing Richard Simmons DIDN’T LIKE S-Town SERIAL Season 3>Season 1 TRUMP Trump, Inc SPORTS SCHAUDENFREUDE Fuck the Chargers OKAY Bill Simmons WTF WITH MARON good when he talks to comics MURDER My Favorite Murder OTHER GOOD ONES Hound Tall; Press Box

2010s MUSIC FAVORITE anything Brian Fallon ROCK BAND Menzingers SONG Robyn-‘Dancing On My Own’ POP-PUNK BAND Wonder Years LIVE ALBUM Horrible Crowes-‘Elsie’ HEAVY BAND Every Time I Die ELECTRONIC Chvrches SOLO Rihanna COVER ALBUM Dustin Kensrue-‘Thoughts on a Different Blood’ GO-TO AT GYM Story So Far OFF THE INEVITABLE & IRRECOVERABLE DEEP END Kanye KIND OF LIKE THE MUSIC/HATE THE PERSON: LIKE KANYE Taylor Swift, Bieber THOUGHT I’D HATE BUT DOES NOT SUCK Lana Del Rey; Post Malone OTHER FAVES 1975; Arctic Monkeys; Beach Slang; Black Keys; Bon Iver; Carly Rae Jepsen; the National; Thrice MIXED Chance the Rapper; Kendrick Lamar I’ll be honest I spent far more time listening to podcasts nearly all the time and just listened to mostly the same couple of things I liked. 2010s PATRIOTS 2010s BEST GAMES 1) Seahawks Super Bowl 2) Falcons Super Bowl 3) Ravens 2015 Divisional 4) Chiefs 2019 AFCCG UNDERRATED CLASSIC Ravens 2015 Divisional BRADY/GRONK GO DOWN LIKE CHAMPS 1) 2018 Eagles Super Bowl 2) Broncos 2015 AFCCG: Brady’ offensive line was a sieve EITHER WAY Giants Super Bowl: game changed when Brady’s shoulder got fucked up by Tuck FAVORITE PLAYER TB12 MOST FUN/DOMINANT Gronk HEART OF TEAM Edelman BELOVED Wilfork ROCK SOLID 1) Hightower 2) McCourty 3) James White 1st BALLOT HALL OF FAMERS 1) Brady 2) Gronk 3) Revis LATER BALLOT 1) Edelman 2) Scarnecchia 3) Welker 4) Wilfork 5) Slater MAKING AN ARGUMENT Gilmore PATS HALL ONLY 1) McCourty 2) Hightower 3) Mankins 4) White 5) Gostkowski 6) Mayo 7) Chung UNDERRATED/GOOD VALUE 1) Amendola 2) Vollmer 3) Ninkovich 4) Chung 5) Woodhead DESERVED BETTER Welker UNSUNG Slater OVERRATED 1) Solder 2) Brandin Cooks NO-SHOWS Dolphins (Dec ’19); Jets Divisional (Jan ‘11) BEST REGULAR SEASON WINS 1) 2013 Broncos 2) 2017 Steelers 3) 2013 Saints BEST REGULAR SEASON LOSSES 1) 2012 49ers 2) 2016 Seahawks 3) 2014 Packers 4) 2015 Broncos LOL Miami Miracle: saved by winning Super Bowl LEAST TALENTED TEAM 1) 2013 by a mile 2) 2010 3) 2011 4) 2018 BEST TEAM 1) 2014 2) 2016 BEST PLAYS (NON-GRONK) 1) Butler INT Seahawks 2) Edelman TD pass vs Ravens 3) Buttfumble Jets 4) Edelman catch vs Falcons 5) Walk-off TD vs Falcons 6) Dan Connolly kick return 7) Brady TD pass to LaFell 2015 Divisional POUNDED TABLE TO DRAFT 1) Lamar Jackson 2) Kittle 3) AJ Brown 4) Honey Badger 5) Stefon Diggs WANTED BUT OUT OF REACH 1) Aaron Donald 2) Quenton Nelson 3) Derwin James 4) Hopkins 5) TJ Watt 6) Saquon 7) Keenan Allen 8) McCaffrey 9) Gurley WOULD’VE WON IT ALL IF NOT FOR INJURIES 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017. That’s football HEALTHIEST SEASON 2018 ROPE-A-DOPED/GOT BY ON VETERAN GUILE 2018: Belichick’s best coaching FAVORITE PICKS AT THE TIME OF GUYS I WANTED 1) Gronk 2) Hightower/Chandler Jones 3) Shaq Mason MOVES I HATED THAT I WAS WRONG ABOUT 1) Stephon Gilmore 2) trading Jamie Collins MOST IMPROVED Marcus Cannon BEST FIND Kyle Van Noy MOVE I LOVED getting Blount back the 2nd time IF BUTLER WASN’T BENCHED, DO THEY BEAT THE EAGLES? Yes 100%. If only because, if nothing else, he can tackle BUTLER’s INT KILLED THE ‘LEGION OF BOOM’ SEAHAWKS WOULD-BE DYNASTY Yes DRAFT REACH THAT MADE NO SENSE Jordan Richards: Tavon Wilson 2.0 BAD DRAFT MOVES 1) Dominique Easley 2) Cyrus Jones 3) Dobson 4) Mallett DIRTY SECRET Belichick sucks at drafting in 2nd round WOULD HAVE BEEN GOOD IF HE STAYED HEALTHY Malcolm Mitchell HATE TO SEE WALK BUT COULDN’T AFFORD 1) Trey Flowers 2) Chandler Jones 3) Jimmy G 4) Talib 5) Akiem Hicks DEFLATEGATE fraud/power trip job by Goodell/owners BRADY OR BELICHICK MORE VALUABLE Brady 100% DISAPPOINTING/GAMBLES 1) Ochocinco 2) Michael Bennett: got him 2 years too late 3) Fanene signing 4) Haynesworth BEST SHORT-TERM 1) Martellus Bennett 2) Chris Long 3) Revis 4) Brian Waters SUSPECT CHARACTERS/EDGY PERSONALITY MACHINES Brandon Spikes; Brandon Browner…SERIAL KILLER Aaron Hernandez PERSONALITY DISORDER DISASTER Antonio Brown: bad signing/unexpected HOW THE FUCK DID WE LOSE TO THAT GUY? Eli Manning/Nick Foles LIFESAVER Scarnecchia MCDANIELS Frustrating—but continuity matters REFS FUCKED OVER Gronk MISCELANNEOUS 2010s GOOD/ENJOY Bernie Sanders/AOC: people who actually want to get good done that’s long overdue…Lebron James; Stephen Curry; Kawhi; Zion Williamson; Luka Doncic...Lamar Jackson; Pat Mahomes; JJ Watt; Marshawn Lynch…Coach Ed Orgeron...David Ortiz…2011 Bruins…memes…Don Winslow crime novels…David Roth writing on Trump…David Grann non-fiction…’Book of Mormon’ DID NOT ENJOY Kyrie Irving…Deflategate…LeBron on the Heat…Bobby Valentine DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY PEOPLE LIKE ‘Between the World and Me’…Elon Musk…Lin Manuel-Miranda/’Hamilton’ INDEFENSIBLY AND INFURIATINGLY BAD THE MORE YOU LOOK AT IT Facebook…Obama Presidency/Democratic Party Leadership EVERYDAY DISASTER Media: CNN; Fox; MSNBC; NY Times Op-Ed…Trump/Republicans: Trump presidency was basically 2010s 9/11 for inevitable disastrous fallout & consequences my generation will never recover from…Grifters Trojan horsing way in shamelessly (Trump administration; Ben Shapiro; Alex Jones; Milo; Jordan Peterson, Tomi Lahren, etc.) and no repercussions...Republican Party basically one goal: to troll libs even with shitty ideas that suck FAVORITES WHO DIED Bourdain; Elmore Leonard; Garry Shandling; Muhammad Ali; Robin Williams; Tom Petty BEST TALENT CUT SHORT Philip Seymour Hoffman SHITTIEST PEOPLE WHO DIED Antonin Scalia; George HW Bush; John McCain; Osama; Steve Jobs; Whitey Bulger I FORGOT THAT SHIT HAPPENED Charlie Sheen loses it JEFFREY EPSTEIN did not kill himself WHAT DEFINES 2010s Amazon/Bezos…Climate Change/Gun Violence inaction…Journalism being taken over by Bane Capital-esque vultures/local places dying...one-sided Class War by the uber-rich…#MeToo…Netflix…Opioids…Outrage/Cancel culture…Police Injustice…Silicon Valley…Social Media…Superhero shit…Your mom

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starrystarrybabe · 5 years ago

Text

Oh, How the Mighty Fall [In Love] CHAPTER EIGHT (Ben Hardy x OC)

Lily Anne Mercury is brought in to help with Bohemian Rhapsody at the request of her Uncle Bri and Uncle Rog, and along the way, she might meet someone to share her life with. The only problem with this is that while their friends and the world can see that they’re perfect for each other, they’re going to be fully blind to this for a while.

CHAPTER ONE, CHAPTER TWO, CHAPTER THREE, CHAPTER FOUR, CHAPTER FIVE, CHAPTER SIX, CHAPTER SEVEN

DISCLAIMER: I’m fully aware that it would’ve been physically impossible for Jim and Freddie to have a child even with this method during the time they were alive, but the idea of Freddie as a dad and the idea of how his child would turn out to be was just too sweet for me to not write.

Hey, everyone! Apologies for the slightly altered formatting, the option for the lines isn’t currently available on tumblr and I am confused. If you could help me figure this out, I’d appreciate it. Thank you!

-- casey

TRIGGERS: explicit sexual content (18+ only please!)

FACECLAIMS:

Kelly Gale as Lily Anne Mercury

Sira P. Kante as Ezichi Adebayo

Erika Linder as Bronwyn Ryan-Hughes

Bree Kish as Madigan Ryan-Hughes

Sonakshi Sinha as Anusha Laghari

LILY’S DRESSES

Lily is howling in laughter as she watches comedienne Anusha Laghari’s comedy special on Netflix. It is filled with jokes about growing up Indian, dealing with white people, and being in the comic industry as a woman of color. She’s currently talking about how she’s being described as the “brown John Mulaney,” but nothing about that man is remotely like herself, as much as she likes John Mulaney.

“The man is from a bloody Catholic household and walks around like he’s taking up too much space. I don’t have anything in common with that. The only thing that’s similar about us is that we both get massive paychecks,” Anusha says, grinning as the audience cheers. “I’m alright with the success rate being similar, but I am my own person, and not any version of anyone else. It’s been a wonderful show here in Radio City, and thank you so much for coming out to see me! I love you all! Good night, New York!” Anusha blows kisses to the crowd before the screen fades away to the end credits.

Lily met Anusha when they were both very young, and the pair were in the same Indian dance class. Jer would drop her off, and the Indian mothers would look at her curiously, but not say anything.

Needless to say, the fact that she was only half Indian was very noticeable when Jim’s pale complexion and cable-knit sweaters clashed with the brown women and colorful saris he was surrounded by.

Lily had practically no friends in that class except for Anusha, who told off some mothers and walked over to Lily when she was crying. She was always there for Lily, even though her mother didn’t exactly approve of the life Lily lived. When she saw how dedicated Jim was to taking care of his daughter and helping her experience her culture, she gained respect for him and practically adopted Lily as her own daughter, bringing her along to family occasions and constantly allowing the girl to sleep over with Anusha, and vice versa. Jim would sit with Anusha’s family at recitals and smile as his little girl twirled around stage with her best friend.

Anusha was always funny. Comedy made sense for her. She struggled for years, moved to New York, booked strange hours and worked under sexist bosses to make her name in the industry. Now, she’s one of the biggest names in comedy. Lily couldn’t be prouder of her childhood bestie.

Lily calls her friend, catching her breath. Anusha picks up immediately.

“Hello, Lily!” she cheerily says. “How was the special?”

Lily wipes a tear from her eye. “Darling, you’re so talented. I’m so proud of you. Also, my stomach hurts from laughing so damn hard.”

Anusha lets out a laugh. “Thanks, Lily! You’re the best, mate. I’m so glad you like it.”

Lily sighs and pets Reykja, who jumps up onto the couch. “It was amazing, darling. I’m so proud to call you my friend, and I know that Jim is smiling at you as we speak.”

Anusha quiets, letting out a small sigh. “Lily… stop it, don’t make me cry. You know I loved Jim more than anything. He was the absolute best. I’m so proud to call you my friend. Your latest album is a hit, and you’ve got a gorgeous blonde man pining over you. Now, if I were you, I would have immediately dragged him to bed, but--”

“Can’t I be nice without you making things filthy?” Lily scoffs, shaking her head. “You don’t even like blondes.”

Anusha laughs. “You’re right. But I have an interest in one of your blonde boy’s friends.”

She raises a brow. “Gwil is taken and so is Rami.”

Anusha huffs. “I know, Lily! You think I didn’t do my research? I like Joe.” She takes a deep breath. “Joe seems really nice, and he’s very cute and talented. I looked online, and I didn’t see anything about him having a girlfriend.”

Lily smiles. “He’s single.”

Anusha lets out whoops and hollers of joy. “Yes! Could you get me his number? I really want to talk to him.”

“You’re in New York right now, aren’t you?”

“Yep! I’m coming back to London tomorrow,” Anusha says.

“He’s in New York as we speak. I can tell Joe to meet you somewhere tonight.”

Anusha nervously laughs. “Lily, babe… I’m in sweats and my hair is greasy enough to sustain a fire. I can’t meet anyone like this.”

Lily nods. “I get it. I’ll ask him if he’d be interested in meeting you, alright?”

Anusha sighs in relief. “That would be great. Love ya, Lily!”

Lily smiles. “Love you too, Nush.”

She hangs up and immediately calls Joe, who picks up after a few rings.

“Hi, Lily! I was just thinking about you!” He sounds kind of drunk. “Sebastian and I are out drinking and one of your songs came on and I screamed ‘That’s my friend!’’

Lily smiles and chuckles. “That’s very sweet of you, darling. I appreciate it.”

“I also told everyone how you and Ben are soulmates,” he continues, giggling.

She holds back anger and sighs heavily. “That’s great, Joe. The world already thought that. I can’t wait to see Ben’s reaction to the news. Can I ask you something quickly?”

Joe laughs. “Sure thing! What is it?”

“Do you know Anusha Laghari? She has a comedy special on Netflix,” Lily begins.

“Of course I know her! I love her stuff! She’s also super pretty,” Joe says happily.

Lily smiles. “She’s my best friend from Indian dance school, and she wants your number.”

Joe gasps, covering his mouth with his hand. “Me? And her? Lily, you’re joking.”

“I’m not. She told me herself,” Lily says, leaning back on her couch.

“She’s talented and funny and gorgeous and cool, and— and— I’m just a lanky white dude who met Jeff Goldblum once! Why me?”

Lily shrugs. “Because you’re funny and handsome and charismatic and sweet.”

Joe stutters. “Aw, Lily, I’m blushing. Really, she asked for my number?”

Lily nods. “Mhm.”

“Give it to her, and tell her that I’ll text her when I’m not drunk. Thank you so much, Lily!”

“Of course, Joe. Uber home and drink some water, love.”

“Sure thing. Bye, Lily!”

Joe hangs up and Lily texts Anusha Joe’s number, explaining that he’ll text her when he’s sober.

—-

The next morning, Ben looks in the mirror and tries to pep talk himself up, trying on his beanies to see which one works best with his navy blue adidas jacket and black-striped joggers.

“What’s better, Frankie? Yellow or red?” He turns to his pup, who opens one eye and sniffs in the direction of the yellow hat. “Thanks, girl. I’ve got to look good for our walk today. I’m going to ask Lily to go to the Oscars with me.”

Frankie yawns and stretches, standing up and walking to Ben’s feet. Ben leans down and puts the leash on her before checking that he has his phone, keys, and wallet. He puts on his sunglasses and they leave the apartment, walking over to his car.

They drive to Garden Lodge and Ben parks next to Lily’s G-Wagon. The gate is already open, since Ben and Lily do this joint dog walk five times a week and Ben arrives at the same time every time they do it.

“I think the garden is pruned well enough,” Ben comments, watching as Lily meticulously goes through a patch of yellow flowers looking for weeds.

Lily looks up at him and takes off her filthy gloves and large sun hat, shaking out her hair. “I saw some weeds earlier this morning, so I decided to do something about it.”

Ben smiles as Frankie licks Lily’s cheek, and Reykja runs out of the doggie door to meet her friend. Frankie barks happily and Rey yips in return, playing with the other pup.

Lily picks up the end of the leash attached to Rey’s harness, standing up and looking up at Ben.

“Ready to go?” He asks.

“Yep!” Lily responds, walking alongside Ben and locking the gates after they exit. As they walk out of the driveway, they see two teenagers pasting notes to Freddie on the wall.

They spend ten minutes with the excited teenagers who fawn over Frankie and Rey, explain how much they love Queen and Room 301, and get selfies with both of them. After the kids leave, Lily smiles up at Ben.

“They were more interested in you than me, you know. BoRhap made a difference,” she says, smiling as they begin the walk to the park a half mile away.

Ben nods. “I know. But they’re getting into your music as well because of the movie, so it’s not just Queen that’s thriving.”

She nods. “I just hope the Academy acknowledges all of that. Rami deserves to win, and BoRhap deserves all the awards it’s up for.” She chuckles. “I have a feeling I might be a little biased though.”

Ben looks down and lets out a little laugh. “I don’t mind. Actually, on that note, I’d like to ask you something.”

Lily bites back a smile and looks up at Ben. Is he going to do what she thinks he’s going to do? “Of course! What is it?”

Ben takes a deep breath as the dogs sniff the base of a tree, and gathers all his courage. “Would you like to go as my plus one to the Oscars?”

Lily’s eyes light up and her smile brightens the gray London sky. “I’d love that, Ben!”

Ben grins back at her, releases a breath he didn’t even know he was holding, and Frankie looks up at her dad, wagging her tail. “That’s great!”

Lily walks alongside Ben, and she laughs, shaking her head. “You looked nervous for a second, Ben.”

Ben feels a cold drip of sweat coming down his forehead and his face burns. “Huh? I’m not nervous. Why would I be nervous?”

Lily looks up at him and raises a brow. “I could’ve said no.”

Ben looks down, laughing nervously. “I mean, you could’ve, and gone with Joe again.”

She scoffs. “Even then I ended the night with you, Ben.”

Ben nods, smiling. “Yeah…”

She shrugs. “Besides, I practically set him up with my friend.”

Ben grins at her excitedly. “Seriously?”

She nods. “Mhm. You know the comedienne Anusha Laghari?”

Ben nods, grinning. “Of course! How do you know her?”

“She was my best friend as a child. We went to Indian dance school together as children.”

Ben nods, impressed. “Sometimes I forget that you know so many famous people.”

She grins. “Another one of my friends was Sean Ono Lennon. Yoko still sends me birthday gifts.”

Ben stops in his tracks. “You’ve met Yoko Ono.”

“Yes, I’ve been to her house for play dates with Sean. He helped me through the loss of my father.”

“Wait.” He waves his hands around in a confused gesture. “Does this mean that you met the other Beatles as well?”

She nods. “I know Paul and Ringo. I met George briefly when I was a baby but I don’t remember.”

Ben shakes his head as he continues walking. “That’s… how are you so nonchalant about that?”

She shrugs. “I was born into this life. It just sort of happened.”

Ben stutters for a minute before taking a deep breath. “Anyways, back to the topic at hand. Joe’s been single for a long time. What makes you think that Anusha can change that?”

Lily nods. “I have a good gut feeling about this, Ben. Also, she’s the one who asked for his number. He’s not chasing after someone who’s uninterested. She’s funny, he’s humble, and it wouldn’t be long distance since she lives in New York at the moment. That makes everything easier.”

Ben raises a brow. “Do you think it will last if it happens?”

She smiles and nods. “The last time I had a feeling this strong about anyone was when Zichi asked me about Gwil. Before then it was for Madi and Bron.”

Ben purses his lips. “You have a pretty good track record then. I trust your judgment. If Anusha is like she comes across in her special, her and Joe will be great together.”

She grins. “What you see is what you get with both of them. I have a good feeling about this.”

They walk along the track in the park in relative silence before Lily speaks up.

“You should wear a white suit jacket.”

Ben looks over at her and raises a brow. “All white?”

She shakes her head. “No. I think it should have a little bit of black, but that with nice dress pants and a pair of black Louboutins? Could be a major look.”

Ben nods, considering her suggestion. “What about sunglasses?”

She smiles, looking up at Ben. “That could be good.”

Ben takes mental notes of that before giving a suggestion of his own. “You should wear a red dress.”

She nods, pursing her lips. “Any particular style?”

He smiles and shrugs. “I think a princess gown would be fitting. After all, you’re the princess of Queen.”

She lets out a little laugh. “I guess I am. I’ll get it with a hoop skirt large enough to fit a person under.”

Ben raises a brow and looks away from her.

Anybody would be lucky to be under Lily Anne’s skirts. He just prays that one day, it could be him.

—-

Lily is corsetted tightly, and leans on the California King sized bed for support. “Fucking hell— holy shit! How much tighter can you go?” She asks the assistants helping her into her red ballgown.

It is heavy, large, has poofy sleeves, and her tits are barely contained by the layered fabric that dips low and squeezes her waist. The skirt looks like the curtain of an opera house, and the fabric is subtlety embroidered. She’s never worn something so grandiose before, but she has a feeling that tonight will be the night Ben admits his feelings to her, so she’s made every effort to look like a goddess.

Her heels are placed on her feet and her loose curls are adjusted before a heavy diamond choker and dangling diamond earrings are put on her. She looks in the mirror and catches her breath, her red lips turning up into a smile.

She’s never been this gorgeous before.

There’s a knock on the door, and she collects her clutch and does final checks on her outfit before opening the door and seeing Ben—

Her breath stops in her throat, because her man is looking so good tonight. That white suit with the black shoes and the perfectly tailored pants— she thinks she’s going to die.

He’s looking at her like she’s God, and in his eyes, she may as well be. Ben has never been struck speechless by how good someone looks before, but both of them are trying to form words as they look over each other.

“I— you— wow,” Ben gets out, shaking his head in awe. “You look amazing, Lily. Truly.”

She smiles and looks him over, adjusting his bow tie. “So do you. I was right to suggest the white tux jacket.” She smiles up at him. “You look stunning, Ben.”

Ben smiles and takes her hand as she exits the room and thanks her assistants. “We both look great. Now we just have to figure out how to transport me to the event so people witness how good I look.” She says, chuckling.

Ben nods, letting out a noise of thought. ��You might need to stand.”

She sighs. “The things I do for fashion.”

—-

When they get to the red carpet, they are barraged by people asking if they’re a couple, and they brush off those questions, but a little part in each of them wonders how long it’s been since they could truthfully classify each other as mere friends.

This game they’re playing has to end. They need to admit to each other that they’re so much more than just friends to one another. The tension is thick, and the unspoken truth they both know has to come out of someone’s mouth.

When they leave the interviews and take photos together, Ben’s hand rests on the small of her back, and hers on his shoulder. Paparazzi are screaming about how good they look together, and they don’t respond. They already know that they’d be a gorgeous couple. If only one of them would make a move.

—-

“We’re not allowed in?” Lily Anne asks, raising a brow. “My uncles are performing and we were all a part of Bohemian Rhapsody.”

The guard shakes his head. “I’m sorry, ma’am. Your seats were taken by other people.”

Lily huffs, and looks back to see her friends nervously pacing, Anusha looking over to see what’s going on.

The rest of the night was going great, and she and Joe have hit it off wonderfully. Everything was wonderful until now.

Lily leans in, lowering her voice. “How much did they pay? I promise I can double it.”

The guard shifts uncomfortably and after a moment says, “One thousand for a whole row.”

She nods, and pulls out two thousand from her clutch. He takes it and nods, stuffing it in his vest pocket. “I’ll be right back, ma’am.”

Lily smiles and nods. “Good choice, darling. We’ll be waiting.” She walks back to her friends and smiles. “Give them a moment to kick the Kardashians out of our seats and we’ll be let inside.”

The whole group grins except for Ben. “How much money did you give him, Lily?”

Lily looks up at Ben. “That’s none of your business, Ben. It doesn’t matter, anyways. We’re in. That’s what counts.”

Ben shakes his head. “How much? I’ll give you the money, because it’s bollocks that you had to pay in the first place.”

Gwil and Joe nod, and Anusha speaks up. “Yeah. Tell us how much it was, and we’ll pay you back for it.”

Lily rolls her eyes and shakes her head. “No. It was pocket change for me, really.” Zichi gives her an impatient and accusatory glare. Lily crumbles under the pressure. “Fine.” She leans in. “Two thousand dollars.”

Joe chokes on his own spit, and Gwil curses in Welsh. Ben looks down at her and places a hand on her shoulder.

“Lily, you did all that for us to get in?” Ben asks.

She nods. “This movie has been one of the most important projects of our lives. It’s brought together you guys in a bond that’s truly unbreakable, my band, and my best friend from childhood. We’re a family, all of us. We deserve to be there when Rami and the movie win the awards it fucking deserves. I can earn back my money. It’s worth it for this.”

They are escorted inside, and sit down, Lily Anne apologizing for her skirt going onto Ben and Joe’s chairs. She stands back up as they sit down and then sits, her skirt covering both their laps. Ben laughs and she looks over at him, frowning.

“Why are you laughing?”

“It feels like I have a blanket on my legs. How thick is the fabric of this dress? How are you even walking around in this? Your legs must be damp.”

She scoffs. “Don’t be stupid, I have ventilation installed in this thing. I can’t have a swampy vagina by the end of the night.”

Joe covers his mouth as he laughs, and Ben snorts, grinning. Anusha is trying to contain herself and failing, and the whole row tries to quiet down as the lights dim. After they settle down, Ben lets out a chuckle and Lily elbows him. Joe snorts and Anusha shakes from containing herself. Then, the music starts.

Nobody is singing louder than them. Adam looks over and blows a kiss to Lily Anne, and she winks back at him, waving to Brian and Roger. The camera pans over to them as they shout along to We Will Rock You. It’s wonderful, and they could care less about what the other people in the audience think about them. This is their moment, and they will bask in it.

Things quiet down as the award show starts, and whenever BoRhap wins an award, they stand up and jump around, hugging one another and cheering loudly. They must be annoying the fuck out of literally everyone else in the audience.

Finally, Rami wins. Lily begins to cry, and Ben hugs her. She carefully angles herself so she doesn’t get any makeup on his pristine white blazer but still enjoys the tight embrace. When he gives his speech, she squeezes Ben’s hand, and he squeezes hers back just as tightly.

The ceremony flies by after that, and while their group mingles with other celebrities, Lily and Ben stick together and make their way into a quieter area of the auditorium.

“Four out of five isn’t bad,” he says, smiling. “I think Freddie would be proud.”

Lily laughs. “He’d be proud regardless of if BoRhap won all of the categories or none of them. You all worked so hard on this film, and it showed. He knows you tried your best, and it was done with love. It was worth the time it took to develop the project. Tonight is merely proof of that.”

Ben smiles at her. “I’ve never seen you so happy before, watching Rami win.”

She shrugs. “Rami deserved that. He became Freddie, and that takes a lot of talent and hard work to be someone that big. I’m so proud of all of you. You did a glorious job.” Lily takes a moment. It’s time to say it. “There’s only one thing that could make this night even better.”

Ben raises a brow and looks down at her. “What would that be? I’d be happy to provide it if I can.”

She purses her lips, taking a deep breath. “We’re close friends, you know that as much as I do.”

Ben’s heart skips a beat. “Of course I do. Casual friends don’t just go to the Oscars or walk their dogs together.”

Lily nods. “Casual friendship doesn’t usually involve quitting cigarettes together or buying out Indian restaurants either.” She looks up at Ben, who’s looking at her with a knowing look. “I think we both know that we’re not just close friends, either.”

Ben presses his lips together, and nods slowly. “I think we’ve known that for a while now.”

“I care more deeply for you than I have for anyone else in my life, and I felt that way almost immediately after meeting you. I knew those feelings were true after you threw away your pack of cigarettes and vowed to help me quit one of our worst habits.” Lily speaks slowly and clearly, and their gaze could not be separated by anything going on around them. “You didn’t kiss me at the Globes because you were afraid of mucking it all up and losing something so precious to you.” She places a manicured hand on his chest and feels his heart pounding. “You’re just as precious to me, Ben. You’re the only man I’m ever going to devote myself to for the rest of my days, and I know that.”

His hands shake as he places one on top of hers, and the other on her waist. He has no words, but none are needed.

“You’re mine, and I’m yours. We knew that a long time ago, but tonight, I’d like to get that confirmation. That would send me over the moon.”

Ben nods and pulls her tightly against him, and in the room full of people, kisses her passionately. It feels like winning that last Oscar to finally have her lips on his, and when she cups the back of his neck with one warm hand, he closes his eyes.

The only thing that matters right now is her. Everything else is drowned out by the sensation of an embrace months in the making.

When she pulls away from him, her eyes are sparkling, and he rests one hand on her cheek, stroking it gently. She leans into him and smiles, red lips quirked into a smile.

“I’ve been waiting to do that for so long…” he admits. “But as much as you deserve gentle loving, tonight I’d love nothing more than to be the man under your skirt.”

Lily smirks, grinning like a cat that got the cream. “I know. Why else do you think this gown is so bloody wide?”

They rush off to find a bathroom stall.

—-

“No luck?”

“I can’t fit in any of these stalls, Ben. The skirt is too wide,” Lily responds, pouting.

Ben sighs deeply and runs a hand through his hair. “Stand in front of a sink.”

Lily’s eyes go wide. “Benjamin Jones, are you serious? Anyone could walk in here and see us!”

Ben nods. “I don’t fucking care. Let them see.”

Lily sighs and looks up at Ben to see if he’s actually serious, and he nods to a sink. She releases a resigned breath and does as she’s told.

Ben promptly ducks under her skirts and taps her thighs, and she spreads her legs to give him room. She’s wearing black mesh panties, and he can see that she’s freshly waxed, with only a tiny bit of pubic hair.

“Oh… you planned for this, didn’t you?” Ben says with a grin.

Lily huffs, her face burning under her foundation. “Well… yes, of course I did! But I didn’t plan for it to happen this publically!”

Ben chuckles and shakes his head, gently kissing her thigh and causing her leg to shake. “Don’t worry, darling. This won’t take long. You’re already soaking wet, and I know what I’m doing.” He kisses further up her thigh, one hand holding her leg firmly in place. “Just relax and let me take care of you.”

She lets a moan and squeezes her eyes shut, gripping the counter. After five minues of Ben’s tongue doing magical things to her clit, he tugs the thin panties aside and strokes her folds with one finger. His hot breath and amazing tongue and finger combined with the tight grip on her thigh-- she knows she’s close.

Just as she’s about to come, Lucy walks in the bathroom, and she clenches up, all chance of orgasm gone. Ben has frozen up too, so Lily is just standing there with his tongue on her clit and his finger inside of her while their best friend has no clue.

“Hi, Lily!” Lucy says, waving to her friend before frowning at her flushed face. “Is everything alright? You’re so red!”

‘I have our mutual friend’s mouth on my vagina. Everything is great.’

“Oh, it’s nothing! The dress is just heavy, that’s all,” Lily tells the blonde woman. “It’s not easy to walk around in.”

Technically that isn’t a lie. The dress is heavy, and she has had to have assistance to walk around at the event.

Lucy nods. “That makes sense. The dress is magnificent, but highly impractical.”

Lily laughs. “Isn’t that true of most fashion, darling?”

Lucy nods. “It is.” She takes a moment and sighs, smiling. “Tonight has been wonderful. I’m sure Freddie is happy.”

Does it feel wrong to think about one’s father while there’s a mouth on your clit and a finger inside of you? Yes. It does.

“Freddie is probably ecstatic right now,” Lily says, grip tightening on the counter as Ben continues slowly.

Lucy laughs. “I’m glad. The boys are celebrating. By the way, where’s Ben?”

‘Under my dress. Pleasuring me with his tongue.’

“I don’t know. He was in the auditorium last I saw him, but—“ Ben hits her G-spot and she has to take a moment. “Ah. Just some period cramps. Sorry.”

Lucy looks over and pats her shaking hand.

“I’m sorry. I have some Advil back at the hotel if you’d like it,” she says.

“I’ll be fine, but thank you, lo—“ Lily kicks Ben when he hits a sensitive spot, and he pulls away, crawling out from under her dress in pain.

Lucy looks amused. “Do you want the Advil, Ben?”

Ben is all flushed and his hair is a mess. There’s red lipstick on his mouth and his pants have dust on the knees from where he was kneeling.

“That would be great, Lucy. Thanks.” He looks down, beet red.

Lily scratches the back of her neck, and Lucy smiles at the couple.

“It was about time you two figured it out. I’m glad you did!”

Lily and Ben mumble their thanks, and Lucy finishes washing up.

“Joe wants to pick up snacks at 7/11 with you, Ben. Lily, Anusha is waiting for you. Come out once you’re ready and we’ll be on our way,” Lucy says. “Congrats!” She calls out as she leaves the bathroom.

Lily helps Ben up and sorts him out, sighing.

“I’m sorry, love. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

Ben smiles and kisses her forehead after she cleans up the lipstick. “It’s alright. That was fun.”

Lily smiles at his flushed appearance and kisses him, tasting herself on his lips.

When they leave the bathroom, Brian, having spotted them, gives Roger twenty pounds for losing their bet of whether Lily and Ben would confess to each other tonight.

—

“So we have Sun Chips, Doritos, tortilla chips, queso, and guac. Do we need anything else?” Joe asks, holding some of the items in his arms.

“I think that’s all,” Ben says, only really half engaged in the conversation. He’s still thinking about Lily.

“Is something wrong, Ben? You seem distracted,” Joe asks, frowning.

Ben lets out a little laugh and shakes his head. “No, not at all. I mean, I’m distracted, but it’s not for a bad reason.”

Joe nods, smiling. “I’m glad you and Lily figured it out, really. I’ve been waiting for that to happen for such a long time.”

“Thanks, mate. I appreciate it. How’s Anusha?” He asks, following Ben as they head up to the checkout.

Joe grins. “She’s amazing, Ben. She’s gorgeous, funny, and I’m not uncomfortable around her. We get along really well.”

After they check out, Ben walks back to the Uber with Joe and after they get in, he smiles at his friend. “Do you think you and her could date?”

Joe thinks for a moment before nodding. “I do. I really like her.”

Ben grins. “As long as I’m best man at the wedding, I’ll support you.”

Joe flushes and Ben laughs, and as they head back to the hotel, they bask in their happiness.

—-

“Then Lucy walks in—“

“He’s still under your dress?”

“Yes! So we’re talking and he hits a sensitive spot and I kick him, and he exits the skirt in pain,” Lily finishes, reapplying her mascara.

Anusha cracks up, clapping her hands. “Lily!”

“What?” She looks over at her friend, confused.

“I never took you to be an exhibitionist, but I guess life is full of surprises,” Anusha comments, grinning.

Lily rolls her eyes and shakes her head fondly, picking up her nude lipstick. “Shut up. How’s it going with Joe?”

Anusha grins, pausing her makeup routine. “He’s amazing, Lily. I couldn’t have imagined a better person to go to an awards show with.”

Lily raises a brow. “Do you want to date him?”

Anusha nods furiously. “I’m never letting him go, mate! He’s been perfect. Why would I give up that?”

Lily raises her hands in defense. “Alright! Ease up, Nush. I’m glad you like him. He’s a really nice guy, and you two will make a great couple.”

Anusha grins and adjusts her cocktail dress, looking over herself in the mirror. Lily looks over at her and nods in approval, liking the way the dress looks on her. Anusha lets out a satisfied hum and smiles before looking over at her friend’s dress and raising a brow.

“You’re certainly going for easy access tonight, aren’t you, Lily?”

She shrugs and looks in the mirror, turning in her metallic, low cut dress with lantern sleeves and a short skirt, the deep plunging fabric left leaves little to the imagination.

“I didn’t get to come in the bathroom. He has a job to finish,” Lily says, smiling. “After all, now there’s no use in playing coy after what happened earlier.”

Anusha smirks and pats her friend on the back with a knowing grin. “If you can walk tomorrow, I’ll know he didn’t do his job well enough.”

Lily’s suite soon fills up with guests, and the alcohol begins flowing. The boys finally get back from their trip and the snacks quickly become the center of attention, and as Lily heads over to get some guacamole and chips, she feels someone put a hand on her shoulder and turns to see Sarina smiling at her. She hugs the woman and grins.

“How’d you enjoy the ceremony, Sarina?” Lily asks, looking up at the woman.

Sarina grins. “It was wonderful! I loved it. Roger and Brian are very pleased with how everything turned out.” Her grin becomes a smirk. “How did you enjoy the ceremony?”

Lily laughs. “It was great. The boys deserve this, as do Roger and Brian. But I know you’re not asking about that.”

Sarina shrugs. “It was bound to happen and we both know it. Roger had a bet with Brian about it, and he won. He’s ecstatic that you two got together before he’s on his death bed.”

She rolls her eyes. “He certainly has a flair for the dramatic, doesn’t he?”

Sarina lets out a small laugh. “That he does. I’ll leave you to find your man and I’ll go off to find mine. Have a fun time, Lily.”

She kisses her aunt’s cheek and continues walking, and feels a large, warm hand on her hip. She looks up at Ben and smiles, placing her hand on his chest.

He leans down and kisses her cheek. “You certainly chose an easier dress for me to take off of you, didn’t you?”

She smirks and kisses him gently. “I’m glad you like the view, darling. I figured after the hassle of the first dress you deserved something a little more easy access.”

Ben grins and kisses her back, tugging on her bottom lip as he pulls away. She looks up at him with dark eyes, and he raises a brow. “You want to go to your room now?”

Lily sighs, looking down. “We should be a little subtle. Let’s wait a little bit. Once people are drunker, we can slip away and nobody will notice.”

Ben nods, kissing her forehead. “Sure thing, Lil.” He leans in close to her ear and whispers, “I can’t wait to absolutely ruin you.”

Her knees go weak and she looks up at him with a smile. “Was that a threat or a promise?”

Ben smirks and pinches her ass. “It’s whatever you want it to be.”

She raises a brow and grins. “I’ll see you later in my bedroom, Benjamin.” She pulls him down and whispers in his ear. “If I’m able to walk tomorrow, I’ll be upset with you.”

She walks off, hips swaying. Ben’s eyes follow her body, and she grins, feeling him follow her.

Joe is already very drunk, and so is Anusha. They sit together on the couch, leaning against one another.

“We should do karaoke!” Joe exclaims. “Can we get a karaoke machine?”

Anusha gasps and puts a hand on his chest. “We should totally get a karaoke machine. You’re a genius, Joey.”

Joe blushes and grins at her, holding her hand. “Will you sing with me?”

Anusha nods, smiling. “It would be my honor.”

Lily looks over at Ben with a knowing look, and he nods, impressed.

Joe points at Lily. “Call the front desk. We need a karaoke machine, stat.”

Gwil stands up from his place on the couch. “I’ll get it. You stay sitting, Lily.”

Lily smiles at Gwil gratefully and leans back, Ben’s hand resting on her shoulder. She moves closer to him and smiles.

—-

Surprisingly enough, this hotel can provide karaoke machines. Joe hollers as the machine is set up by a level headed Ezichi.

Anusha looks over at Lily. “You should do it!”

Lily chuckles. “What song do you propose I perform?”

Joe grins as he looks at her. “Another One Bites the Dust.”

Anusha nods enthusiastically and she nods, smiling. “I’ll appease you drunken idiots.”

“I’m not an idiot!” Anusha insists.

“I’m not drunk!” Joe adds, pouting.

Ben snorts in laughter and Lily shakes her head fondly before standing up when Gwil cues up the song and hands her the microphone.

Her performance is captivating. The dress combined with her moves, and the eye contact she makes with the rest of the group as it continues is amazing. She ends up on Ben’s lap, with her hands resting behind his neck and his own on her waist. She feels his trousers getting tighter in the crotch and smiles at the good work she’s done. The crowd cheers her on and she stands to bow, and walks off to the kitchen. She’s intercepted by Roger, Sarina, Brian, and Anita, and hugs her family.

“Turning in for the night?” She asks.

Brian smiles and ruffles her hair. “We’re too old to party like this. The rock and roll lifestyle isn’t meant for the elderly.”

She grins and kisses his cheek. “Well thanks for coming anyways. I appreciate it.”

Anita smiles and hugs her niece. “We wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

The couple leaves after saying goodnight, and after Sarina exits the room, Roger presses a small plastic square in her hand. She looks down at the condom and back at her uncle, pressing her lips together. Roger grins and ruffles her hair, kissing her forehead before leaving the room. She sticks the condom in the waistline of her dress and walks back to the kitchen, where she pours herself a glass of water.

She feels hands on her waist and breath on her neck and smiles, closing her eyes. “How’d you like my performance, Benny?”

Ben’s grip on her waist tightens. “I think everyone is drunk enough.”

She turns in his arms and presses her hips against his own, looking up at him demurely. “Promise to make me scream, Hardy?”

Ben leans down, eyes darkening. “That would be detrimental to your career if we make that a habit, y’know.”

She shrugs. “I know. I’m sure hickeys all over your neck and chest would be detrimental to yours as well. I suppose these can be our mutual indulgences.”

Ben smirks and rests on hand on her cheek, brushing back a curly strand of hair behind her ear. “I’m happy to oblige your desires, and wish for you to do as you please with me.”

Lily leans in, placing one hand on his chest. “What are we waiting for then? I have so many plans for you.”

The two of them walk into the bedroom and lock the door, and Lily pulls out the condom. Ben looks amused.

“Roger’s gift,” she explains, smiling as she throws the condom onto the nightstand.

Ben grins and pulls her close, kissing her and gripping her hips tightly in his big hands. She wraps her arms around the back of his neck and leans into him, jumping up to hitch her thighs around his waist. He supports her weight effortlessly, and his hands cradle her ass.

“I’ve been waiting so long for this to happen,” Lily says when they pull apart, catching their breath.

She gasps as Ben pushes her against the wall. “I’ve been attracted to you since the day I met you.” He begins sucking kisses down her neck. “When I saw you with Joe at the Golden Globes, I was so angry with myself.”

Lily moans and fists Ben’s hair. “Why were you mad? You’re the one who asked him to take me.”

Ben grinds into her and looks up at her, pushing her dress off her shoulders to reveal her chest. “Because you looked gorgeous, and you could’ve been my date. But I was an idiot who was too scared to ask you.” He kisses down her collarbones, leaving angry red marks all over. He relishes in her little sounds, and the cursing, and his name being said like a prayer. “I could’ve been doing this to you before the show if we had figured ourselves out sooner. You’d barely be able to walk on the red carpet, leaning on me for support. Everyone would know why you’d be unstable, since you don’t drink. The headlines would be proclaiming how filthy of a couple we are.”

Lily gasps as he nips her breast. “Do you always talk this much during foreplay, or am I just a lucky woman?”

He grins and looks up at her flushed face. “You like it?”

She nods, pupils dilated. “So much. Please don’t stop.”

He raises a brow. “Not even to finish eating you out?”

“...I can make an exception.”

He moves her to the bed and finishes what he started in the bathroom.

---

She spends five minutes composing herself before shakily sitting up in bed. Ben is taking off his white jacket, and she clears her throat, leaning against the pillows.

“Ben.”

He turns around to look at her and takes off his jacket. “Yes, love?”

“Let me,” she says, sitting on the edge of the bed.

He sits next to her on the bed and she straddles his lap, beginning to undo his bow tie. She can feel the bulge in his pants and smiles, tossing the tie aside and beginning to undo the buttons. “I’ve got you all worked up, haven’t I?”

He lets out a small laugh and squeezes her hips. “You’ve had me worked up since the day I met you.”

She smiles and finishes unbuttoning his shirt, pushing it off his shoulders. He takes off the shirt and she runs her hands over his chest slowly, eventually getting onto her knees and undoing his belt. “I’ve always thought you were very pretty, Ben.” She unzips and unbuttons his pants, and feels his thighs tense up.

“In college my friends and I would talk about our celebrity crushes, and, well…” He helps her take off his pants and slips off his shoes after she unties them. “You were always mine.”

She smiles as he leans down and kicks off his socks, and kisses him, chuckling. “We really have been into each other for the longest time.”

Ben’s breath catches in his throat as she kisses up his thighs, looking up at him. She puts one finger in the waistband of his briefs and looks up at him for permission. When he nods frantically, she pulls down his underwear and tosses it aside.

Ben isn’t the biggest she’s ever seen, but he’s proportional and thick, and she knows that he’ll feel good. She can’t wait to take him. She takes him in her hand and begins slowly pumping, and his muscles practically ripple with the release and uptake of tension in his body.

“Relax, love. I’ll take good care of you.” She presses a kiss to the head of his cock and he releases a sweet moan.

The sounds of drunken karaoke in the background are ignored, and Lily focuses on Ben’s noises as she takes him in her mouth.

---

The wet slapping sounds of skin on skin fill the room, and Lily moans out her lover’s name as he’s propped up above her, holding onto the headboard of the bed and her waist. He grunts into her neck, and she rakes her fingernails down his muscular back.

Sex has never felt this good. Sure, Frank made her orgasm, but he never made her feel quite like this. Ben sets a good pace and is incredibly attentive to her needs. She’s not afraid to voice what she wants him to do, but she’s more than happy to let him have his way with her.

She’s always enjoyed being submissive. Luckily for her, Ben enjoys being dominant.

“Lil… fuck, Lil. I can’t hold out much longer,” he groans, leaning into her neck.

Lily moans, her fingers tugging on his curls. “Me neither. Speed up-- oh! Yes! Like that!”

Ben moans as he comes, and Lily shouts out his name, orgasming at the exact same time as him.

She kisses him gently as he lays down partially on top of her, his head resting next to hers on the pillows.

“I love you,” he whispers. Her heart soars.

“I love you too, Ben.” She smiles and moves so he can dispose of the condom.

When he comes back, he brings her into his arms, and she entangles her legs with his, resting her head on his warm chest. She yawns, cuddling up to him. He closes his eyes and smiles, and they fall asleep in each others’ arms.

When they’re walking to the terminal, Lily tries to avoid Ben’s eyes, because she knows that he’s smirking. She is beyond sore, and it is painful to move after everything he did to her the night before.

They board the plane quickly and after Ben puts his and Lily’s carry on luggage in the overhead bins, he settles in his window seat. She sits next to him and immediately rests her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes and sighing.

“Did the Advil help?” He asks, kissing the top of her head.

“Not really,” she mumbles. “I can barely walk, you wanker.”

He laughs and places a hand on her thigh, smiling. “You’re welcome.”

She smiles slightly and when Gwil and Ezichi sit in the middle two seats next to them, Ezichi grins at the sight. Gwil holds her hand and smiles as well, because he’s never seen Ben this content before.

After the plane takes off, Lily readjusts herself and curls up against Ben, and he holds her, closing his eyes. The pair fall asleep entangled in each others’ embrace.

Gwil stands up and takes a picture of them, and once they land on the ground, he posts it on instagram with the caption “It took ten months. @joemazzello”

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