#Then the next year it wouldn't go over their head even with the laces totally undone

[stevishabitat]

Not even remotely historically accurate, but here are a few of kiddo's early years at the Ren Faire

Every time, the kilt would last about 20 minutes and then kiddo would be barefoot in a chemise and somehow wet and knee deep in mud.

Once my kiddo started digging in the mud or playing in the creek it was a siren call to all the kids...

and I'd be apologizing to parents who were absolutely astonished that their kid went into the creek or mud hole in their wool cloak or brand new shoes or expensive garb or fairy wings or whatever.

And I'm like, sorry my kiddo has this weird super power about finding dirt or water and every kid within radius is going to get in it too. Even the ones who "would never" are not immune to the gravitational pull of my kiddo vibing in nature.

Eventually a few years later, the Faire built an actual sandpit for kids and made the creek off-limits. I'm not saying it was because of my kiddo. But I'm not saying it isn't possible.

[stray-tickles]

Distraction

a.n. Despite being back on the Hephaestus after months lost in space, something is still bothering Eiffel. Not that it's something he can admit to.

Admitting upfront that I know this wouldn't actually work in canon, however I do not care and I wanted to write it so here we are!

Read on AO3

--

It was fine. Totally fine. It had been years now, so obviously he could handle this.

It was fine.

His hands weren’t shaking even a little bit.

Eiffel swallowed. “Hey, Hera? Are you there?”

He wasn’t sure if he imagined the fond exasperation in her reply. “Yes, Officer Eiffel. Can I help you with something?”

“Ah- no, no, just uh… how are you today?”

Okay, the suspicion was definitely not imagined. “I’m… fine. How are you?”

“I’m good! So good, everything’s great, do you wanna play a game?”

Eiffel knew his arms were trembling, and he knew Hera could see. What he didn’t know was what to do about it.

“Officer Eiffel, are you okay?”

“Yep! Yep, I’m great, just wanna hang out!”

Hera hummed. “Your heart rate and breathing are elevated. Can you just tell me what’s wrong?”

Eiffel groaned, clenching his shaking fists. “Nothing’s wrong Hera. Look, don’t worry, forget about it.”

“Eiffel-”

“I should go do some work or whatever.”

--

“Lemmie help, I’m sure there’s tons I can do.”

“Eiffel you don’t know how to do any of this.”

“How hard could it be?”

Minkowski rolled her eyes, her already thin patience fraying. “Look Eiffel, I have work to do, so if you don’t have anything useful to say…” She stood, heading towards the door.

Like lightning, a hand shot out and grabbed her arm. She looked back at him, torn between confusion and yelling, to see wide eyes laced with fear. “Please.” Eiffel seemed to force the words out against all impulses. “Don’t- don’t go.”

Minkowski stared. She didn’t like this one bit. “What’s going on?”

Eiffel opened his mouth, trying to find the words, knowing what he needed to say, and instead felt them churning around in his stomach. “I can’t- I-I need…” Crap, he could feel the wetness burning in his eyes. “Please.”

A hand covered his, warm and calloused, and when he looked up Minkowski was crouching in front of him. “Okay.” She said quietly. “I’m not going anywhere. Just tell me what’s going on. I’ll keep a close eye on Hilbert if you need medical attention, or… anything.”

Eiffel shook his head. “No, I- I need someone to- to…”

“Breathe. With me.”

He nodded, forcing the air into his lungs with shuddering breaths. Bees still filled his chest, but it helped a little.

“Good job.”

He huffed an unamused laugh, but released his grip on her arm.

Minkowski settled onto the floor next to him, leaning against the wall and making a point to keep her hand over his, which she noted was still trembling. “What’s going on, Eiffel?”

Eiffel groaned. “I don’t know if I can say it.” He admitted, hating it. He didn’t want to say it, he didn’t want it to be true, it wasn’t fair. “Hera?”

Hera’s voice crackled to life. “He’s been off all day.” She said, “On edge, elevated heart rate and shallow breathing. All within acceptable parameters, but barely.”

“Okay.” Minkowski nodded slowly. “And you can’t tell us what’s wrong.”

He shook his head.

“Okay.” She sighed through her nose. “Forget about that for now, you said you need something, can you tell us that?”

Eiffel nodded, weaving their fingers together and taking comfort in how she squeezed his hand. “I- uh, distraction.” He pushed it out before he could overthink it. “I need a distraction.”

“Oh.” Hera said. “That’s why you asked about games.”

“Yeah.”

Minkowski raised an eyebrow. “Promise you’re not hurt?”

“Yes sir.”

“Good.” She smiled and drew a deck of cards from her pocket. “Gin rummy?”

--

“Damn, Commander, you’d think if you were gonna pick the game, you’d at least be good at it.”

“Yeah, yeah, rub it in.”

“Seriously, are you stacking the deck, so you lose?”

“… Yes?”

Eiffel snorted a laugh and Minkowski felt the ball of anxiety in her chest loosen. He was certainly acting more like himself after a few rounds of cards. She shuffled the deck and put it away. “How about twenty questions? I’ll go first.”

Contrary to popular belief, Eiffel wasn’t a total idiot. He could see where twenty questions was going. But he was surprised to find that the concept wasn’t as daunting as it had felt half an hour ago. Especially having a warm-up game. “Sure. Ready?”

“Yep.”

“Okay, is iiiit a person?”

“No.”

“Place?”

“No.”

“Object?”

“Bingo.”

Hera chimed in. “Can I join?”

“Yeah, the more the merrier!”

“Of course, Hera.”

“Thanks! Okay, is it bigger than a shuttle craft?”

“No.”

Eiffel hummed in thought. “Does it… make sound?”

Minkowski frowned. “N- maybe rephrase that? Anything can make sound if you throw it hard enough.”

“Oh yeah. Does it have a speaker?”

“No.”

“Does it contain carbon?”

“Yes.”

“Hera what does that even mean?!”

“Carbon is an element in all known living things, and the fourth most abundant element in the universe.”

Eiffel buried his face in his hands, half out of exasperation and half to hide his smile. “Great, thank you!”

Hera sounded annoyingly smug. “You’re welcome.”

Minkowski nudged him with her foot. “Come on, still thirteen left.”

Groaning, he looked up. “Uhh, is it on this station?”

“Yes.”

“Ooh, okay, now we’re getting somewhere! Is it in this room.”

Minkowski looked around briefly. “No.”

He smirked. “Is it the plant monster?”

“No, Eiffel, it’s not the plant monster.”

“I’m pretty sure the plant monster isn’t an object, Officer Eiffel.”

“Oh yeah.”

“Lieutenant, is it larger than an average human?”

“No.”

Eiffel frowned. “Smaller than a human, an object, on this station…”

“And made of carbon.”

“And made of carbon, thank you Hera.”

“You’re welcome.”

Minkowski bit the inside of her lip to keep from smiling too much at those two. “Giving up?”

Eiffel put a hand on his chest in mock offense. “Commander. I would never. I’m just gathering intel.”

“Uh huh.”

“Is it a personal item?”

She thought for a moment. “Yes.”

“Do I have it?”

“I think so?”

Hera giggled. “I think I know what it is.”

“Really?” Eiffel looked up. “Well go on, share with the class!”

“No, I think it’ll be more… fun, if you figure it out.”

“Ugh, goddamnit. How many questions left.”

Minkowski smirked. “Seven, and I’m graciously not counting that as a question.”

“Oh, ha ha. Is it… culturally relevant.”

An amused grin flashed across her face before quickly being purged. “I believe so.”

Eiffel narrowed his eyes distrustfully. “Is it related to a movie or TV show?”

“No.”

“Is it a book.”

“Maaaybe.”

He crossed his arms and tried to scowl rather than smile. “Do you happen to have it memorised?”

“Just about.”

“Does it have two authors and include tips for survival in deep space that may or may not actually be useful?”

“Sure does.”

Eiffel snorted, “Jackass.”

“Is that a question?”

“No, Commander, I think it’s established fact.”

They were both smiling now. “Well, if you don’t have a guess…”

Eiffel rolled his eyes with a laugh. “Is it Pryce & Carter's Deep Space Survival Procedure and Protocol Manual, Third Edition?”

Minkowski winced. “Ooh, sorry Eiffel. Second edition.”

“Silly me.”

“Easy mistake to make.” She hesitated. “Your turn?”

Eiffel swallowed and glanced down at his non-trembling hands. “Yeah, I think I can… yeah.”

“Does it contain carbon?”

Both laughed. “Shut up Hera!”

She giggled. “I’m just trying to help, gee!”

Minkowski took a breath. “Okay. Person?”

“No.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Wow, really? Kepler’s a real. Something.”

Eiffel chuckled. “No, it’s… no.”

“Object?”

“Yes.”

“Smaller than an average human?”

“Y-yes.” Damn, this was going faster than he’d expected.

“Is it a pogo stick?”

Pause. “What?!”

Minkowski shrugged. “Thought that might get you out of your head. Did it work?”

“Heh. Yeah. Thanks.”

“And?”

He grinned. “No, it’s not a pogo stick.”

“That really narrows it down!”

Minkowski chuckled. “Shut up, Hera.”

“Is it a recent acquisition?”

“Yep.”

“Have I seen it?”

“Yeah, Commander.”

Hera hummed. “Is it organic?”

“I-I don’t think so?”

“Is it on the Hephaestus?”

He swallowed nervously. “No.”

Minkowski sighed. “Okay.” An object, recent addition, not huge, probably on the Urania, and it was really messing up her communications officer through its mere existence. “Oh.”

Eiffel winced. That didn’t sound like a very uncertain kind of oh.

“Oh?” Hera asked.

Minkowski cursed internally. “It’s Kepler’s scotch. Isn’t it.”

Eiffel looked down and nodded.

“Oh.”

“Sorry.”

There was steel in Minkowski’s voice. “No. Don’t you dare apologise.” She moved closer. “You- you did good, okay?”

He swallowed. “I appreciate it, Commander, but I don’t exactly feel good right now.”

“This isn’t your fault.”

“It kind of is, though, right?”

She sighed, not sure what to say.

Hera chimed in just in time. “You tried to get help.” She said gently. “Twice, actually. That’s hard, and it was the right thing.”

Eiffel wasn’t sure if he wanted to cry or break something. “It’s pathetic. I manage two hundred days in some barely held together shuttle but this-” He groaned, hands gripping his peach fuzz hair. “It’s been years since… I thought I was okay now.”

A solid hand gripped his shoulder. “You haven’t had the option in a long time. Makes sense that it’d get to you. Besides, we’re hardly in a low stress environment here.” She grimaced. It was awkward, but it felt necessary. “Do you want a hug?”

Pause. “Kinda, yeah.”

The met somewhere in the middle, leaving Minkowski a little alarmed at how Eiffel sagged in her arms like a sack of potatoes. “Thanks.” He muttered into her shoulder, gangly limbs wrapped weakly around her.

She squeezed him gently. “Any time. Seriously. We’ll figure this out.”

--

Figuring it out sort of worked. For a while. With Eiffel’s permission, Minkowski clued Lovelace in on their situation, and between the three of them, they could keep tabs on Eiffel easily enough. Shifts didn’t always overlap, but she made time to play cards or twenty questions with him at least every other day, and he had Hera to talk to in-between times. She’d spotted Lovelace smuggling a box out of the Urania, and if Eiffel seemed to have a large supply of chewing gum out of nowhere, well. It wasn’t any of her business.

Minkowski didn’t like seeing him like this, even if they were more or less handling it. This was hard enough on Eiffel, on all of them, without him having his worst coping mechanism dangling in front of his nose.

It drained him. She could see that every day. His jokes and sass were still there, but tinged with fatigue. When they met up for their games, he looked happy to see her, but also guilty. He hadn’t tried to apologise after the first time, but the feeling clearly didn’t fade.

Eiffel was being tortured by something he refused to allow himself to do. Minkowski was being tortured by her inability to do anything. She’d gotten her Communications Officer and secret best friend launched out into space for months that he barely survived, and now he was back in one piece and she couldn’t even take care of one measly glass bottle.

There had to be a way for her to just get rid of the thing. How hard could it be to just sneak into Kepler’s quarters and knock it over? It would look like an accident, and she could count on Eiffel or Lovelace for an alibi.

When had it gotten to the point that she was planning the assassination of a bottle of scotch?

It didn’t matter. That was too obvious, and she didn’t need Kepler interrogating Eiffel on what might have happened to his scotch. He clearly knew more about them than he let on.

Technically, she wasn’t commander of the Hephaestus anymore, so taking care of things like crew morale weren’t her job. Technically. But Eiffel still called her ‘Commander’, and Minkowski would be lying if she said that wasn’t meaningful to her. And even putting that aside, he was her friend. Someone who had made surviving on this tin can bearable, not that she’d ever tell him that.

Maybe she should…

She shook herself. Not the time. It was time for her to figure out how to take care of this, to make this place bearable for Eiffel.

No matter what it took.

--

“What does that object look like to you, Officer Eiffel?”

Eiffel squinted out the window, emotions churning in his stomach that he couldn’t quite figure out. Trepidation. Confusion. Relief. Suspicion. “Uh... like... like a bottle?” He resisted the urge to turn his head and look at Minkowski as Kepler ranted at him.

“What do you think, Lieutenant Minkowski?”

“It looks like…” She could feel the tension creeping up her spine. It wasn’t exactly a decision she had made, was the thing. The button was just right there, and Eiffel was right there and she knew that if she just happened to bump him as she walked past he’d stumble, and… “No, it is your bottle of Scotch, sir.”

Kepler hesitated, observing her for a long moment. It was a good thing she was a better liar than Eiffel, at least. “WRONG! CANCELLED!”

She didn’t let herself relax yet. This wasn’t good, this wasn’t how she’d wanted to do this, but… Honestly, she’d been feeling desperate. And an opportunity presented itself.

--

Eiffel was frankly surprised at how non-stressed out he felt, floating through the vacuum of space trying to retrieve a scotch bottle.

He might have actually had this dream before?

It did help that the bottle was empty in real life. It helped a lot. More than he’d realised it could.

He also had a lot of time to think, as he floated towards it. To reflect on the firmness with which Minkowski had bumped into him, conveniently into the button that would vent all of Kepler’s belongings into space. On whether or not that was something she would actually do, and concluding that yeah, it probably was.

Whether it was something she would do for him though…

She’d done it, so yeah, she had to have done it for him, there wasn’t really any other option there. Despite the temperature, that thought made Eiffel feel kind of warm inside. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever had a friend who would do something like that for him, especially knowing Kepler’s wrath.

“Got it!”

“Great.” Jacobi said tiredly. “Now get your ass back to the station, I need to be doing literally anything but this.”

“Copy that.” Eiffel could feel himself smiling. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to stop right now.

The second the airlock swished closed, Jacobi threw up his hands. “Great! All done, go team. I’ll trust you to get that back to Colonel Kepler?”

Eiffel hadn’t removed his helmet yet, and felt his grin widen. “Of course, Jacobi.”

“Fantastic.” He growled, turning and stomping out.

He laughed under his breath, putting the bottle down gently and removing his helmet.

“You need help with that?”

Looking up, he saw that Minkowski had joined him, an evasive sort of look on her face. Eiffel grinned still wider.

She crossed her arms and looked away, ears turning red. “Shut up.”

“I didn’t say anything.” He teased, removing the rest of his space suit.

“Good.”

“Mm-hm.” He shook himself off, seized the bottle, and followed Minkowski out, trying his best to school his features and honestly probably failing.

“You good to take this to the Colonel, Captain?” Eiffel asked, offering it to Lovelace. “Or should we deliver it personally?”

He could see her put the pieces together when she saw it in his hand, eyes darting between the bottle, him, and an obviously embarrassed Minkowski. “I think he’s had enough of you two for one day, don’t you?” She winked.

“Couldn’t agree more.” He beamed.

Lovelace shook her head fondly, “Alright, dismissed!” She said, taking the bottle and heading over to the Urania.

Eiffel waited for a moment. “Well.” He said, “In the spirit of shutting up…”

Minkowski yelped, finding herself seized in a tight and unrelenting hug. “Eiffel!”

“For the record,” He said loudly, “I am doing this because we are friends and for no other reason!”

She tried not to laugh, she really did, but he was being ridiculous and Eiffel and her ability to resist that had been worn down a long time ago. “Let me go you idiot!”

He laughed too, lifting her off her feet and getting a few half-hearted slaps for his trouble. “This is a very normal hug about nothing in particular, got it?”

“Got it.” Hera said, sounding highly amused.

Minkowski stopped trying to fight him off, sagging in his arms and shaking with laughter. “Dumbass.”

Eiffel laughed and squeezed her tightly. “Thank you.” He muttered in her ear, finally letting her go.

She rolled her eyes fondly. “Don’t mention it. Seriously.”

“My lips are sealed.”

“Good. Up for a game of cards before bed?”

“Huh?” He cocked his head, confused. “Well, the- it’s gone now, so I don’t really need the distraction anymore…”

Minkowski raised her eyebrows. “And?”

Oh. He smiled. “That sounds great.”

[yazzberry]

new chapter of endgame (published here, ao3, and wattpad)!!

So….I'm back! I started college a while ago and it's been a lot, to say the least. I haven't had much time to write, but finishing this chapter brought me immense comfort in maintaining that connection with the things that sustained my happiness through childhood (me saying that as if I'm not still a kid lol).

That being said, I know it took me forever to get this out (and trust me, I've been dying to share this chapter with you all), but it's a really long one—so cozy up and grab a nice snack because you're gonna be here for a while.

Enjoy, mwah <3

Disclaimer: I do not own Total Drama or any of the characters, only the plot of this story. Okay? Okay.

Chapter 1, Strangers in the Night

— ꕥ —

Bridgette, for all her giddiness and excitement in reuniting with her long-distance bestie, was simply too ecstatic to drive herself.

"No seriously!" she exclaimed, "I'll crash my poor car!"

So who other than Geoff, bless his head-over-heels-in-love soul, would drop their Sunday morning plans to drive her over to Courtney's new residence.

Bridgette sighed as she admired his side profile from the passenger's seat. "You're the best boyfriend ever, you know that?"

He scoffed (and blushed), "I bet you tell all your boyfriends that."

"No, just the ones I actually like." She laced her fingers with his free hand.

"Don't I feel special. Anyways, it's nothing—in Wawanakwa, nothing is more than a 10-minute drive." Geoff shrugged as he brought her hand up to his lips and planted a sweet kiss.

Bridgette had to completely hold back her swooning, because yes, even though they had been dating for 6 months going on 7, and even though she'd been crushing on him majorly for about a year before that, the feeling of butterflies in her stomach never left her whenever she was around Geoff.

She really was a hopeless romantic.

"No, but I know you're exhausted after yesterday's party, it took a long time to clean up once everyone left. And! I know you're not an early bird. in. the. slightest."

"Bridge, don't you get it by now?" He chuckled as he shook his head.

Then Geoff, being the responsible driver that he is, waited until they reached the red light to turn and face Bridgette. It was blue on hazel, an electric spark joining the two.

"There is nothing I wouldn't do for you."

Bridgette leans in for a meaningful kiss when suddenly the car behind them honks to no end—sadly, the light turned green.

"My bad, yo!" Geoff yells out the window before continuing on their drive, but Bridgette never removed her hand from his, nor did the feeling of the butterflies wear off at any point the whole ride over.

— ❥ —

It was the distinct honk of Geoff's loud, vintage convertible that signaled to Courtney of her friend's arrival.

Courtney tried to remain cordial about the whole thing—I mean, really, it hasn't been that long since we've last seen each other.

But her heart played an entirely different tune, threatening to burst in excitement at the sight of Bridgette's wavy blonde mane jumping ecstatically out the car and onto her front porch. Watching it all from her room's window, Courtney rushed out and down the stairs to meet her friend out front.

Just at the opening of the front door, Bridgette launched herself onto Courtney in one of her signature bear hugs.

"COURTNEY OH MY GODDD!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'RE HERE IT'S JUST NOT REAL!!!" Bridgette squealed as she hugged tighter and tighter, as if trying to hold onto the moment lest it all be a cruel dream.

"I can hardly believe it myself," the brunette sighed with resignation in attempting to bottle up her excitement. "I mean one minute I'm biking down Manhattan Beach and the next I'm somewhere in the middle of Canada? Talking to you? Tell me that doesn't sound like some fever dream??"

"AAAAHH, but isn't it great??!!!!" She squealed, jumping up and down.

"Of course it is, I'm so happy you're here," Courtney sighed with gratitude, giving her a heart-wrenching smile.

Suddenly a look of remembrance flashed on Bridgette's face, "Oh my god, and look who else is here!!"

She grabbed Courtney's hand and guided her out to the front porch, where Geoff was already hopping out of his car and making his way towards them.

"MOCHA'S BACKKKK!!!" He chanted as he jogged over with his arms outstretched in a victory pose.

"You and your stupid nicknames," She chuckled as she let herself be scooped up by Geoff's overbearing embrace. "It's great to see you, Geoff!"

"Aw come on, I know you love my nicknames! No one out there better at giving them," Geoff boasted with fake pride as he fixed the backwards baseball cap on his head (a fun alternative to the cowboy hat, which God knows needed a break).

"This makes me so happy—our summer squad is back together!!" Bridgette cheered as she hugged her two favorite people close together.

"Back and better than ever, baby!" Geoff hooted as he gave Bridgette a quick peck on the cheek.

"Honestly, having you guys around makes this all so much better, I don't know what I'd do if I was completely new, I mean, you guys know how bad I can be at socializing."

Geoff winced at the thought, and Bridgette offered her friend a pitiful, sheepish smile. "Well, it may not be your strongest suit," the blonde lamented.

"Calculus? I can do. Writing a thoughtful, well-structured essay on Victorian literature? I can do. But making friends? Sue me, I guess, everyone has their Achilles' heel," Courtney pouted, clutching her hands to her face in frustration.

Why she never got the hang of being a people person like Josie or Bridgette or Geoff was simply beyond Courtney—really, she blamed her parents. I love that I have another thing to blame them for.

"That's not totally true! We're your friends!" Geoff defended.

"Well no offense to you guys, but I'd have to actually be socially inept, or the biggest bitch in the world, for you guys not to befriend me," Courtney chuckled as she crossed her arms.

Bridgette just rolled her eyes and enveloped the brunette in a side hug, "Hey, we like you for who you are, and if we can see how great you are, so will everyone else."

Bridgette always had a special talent for quieting her anxious thoughts, and reassuring Courtney to keep her from spiraling. It wasn't that Courtney was too strung out by her inability to make friends (she really didn't mind the moments spent alone nor the quiet lifestyle), but she'd be lying if she said she didn't care at all about how people perceive her. 

Truly, who doesn't care in the slightest about what others think? The day she met someone like that….

But, sometimes Courtney got a little too self-conscious; not exactly insecure, just entirely aware of the fact that people were constantly building perceptions of her that she couldn't control. And that scared her.

"Bridge is totally right," Geoff pulled her out of her thoughts with a hug on her other side, "You'll have no problems making friends, I already know Gwen, Duncan, and Heather are gonna be stoked to meet you!"

Courtney offered a smile to both of them—it made so much sense to her that they were a couple. She could never imagine them getting into a fight, or having any sort of love troubles.

"Thanks guys, sorry about the mush. I didn't mean to make this into a pity party, your friends sound cool! It'll be nice to meet them," She offered a hopeful smile—a rare sight, since she wasn't usually the hope-filled type.

At that, Geoff grinned with a devious expression, "Y'know Mocha, it's funny you mention that..."

— ❥ —

"No, no, no, and oh, did I forget to mention...no!"

"Oh Courtney, come on, you don't even have to stay the whole time! It'll be so much fun!" Bridgette pleaded to her friend before turning to Josie for support, "Come on, back me up on this!"

Josie laughed as she sauntered over from the kitchen into the living room with a bag of plantain chips and flopped onto the couch (still wrapped in plastic, they hadn't finished furnishing the house) beside her little sister.

"She's right, Courtney. This is the kind of teenage shit you need to experience," she offered as she popped a chip in her mouth.

"Don't be a traitor. I'm just not really in the mood to meet so many people and socialize," Courtney cringed at the thought before stealing a chip from Josie, in a sore attempt to sweeten her mood. "And I'm exhausted! Did I mention we got here at 3:00 AM??"

Josie snorted, knowing her sister's evasive ways of making dumb excuses.

"Court, you said yourself you wanted to meet our friends. And besides, you'll just have to do all that socializing anyway on the first day of school. At least, at Geoff's darty, you can do it at the lake! Way more fun, don't you think!!?" Bridgette clasped her hands before the brunette, standing before her and speaking in an exaggerated manner to convince her much-too-stubborn friend.

"Geoff is the guy that just left, right? Also, what the fuck is a darty?" Josie asked.

"A darty is a day party! Geoff, yes the guy that just left, always throws an end-of-summer bonfire party at his lake house—it's always so much fun and I really think Courtney's missing out if she doesn't come."

Courtney sighed, biting her lip as she looked back and forth from Bridgette's eager and expectant expression to Josie, nonchalantly eating her chips. But then Josie tossed the chips on the coffee table (also still wrapped in plastic) and sat up to meet Courtney eye-to-eye.

"You said you wanted a fresh start here, maybe this is it. Go out, explore a new side of yourself! And I won't have to worry about you because you'll be in good company," Josie said as she passed a knowing smile to Bridgette, who still had her hands tightly interlaced with her chin resting on them.

So, Courtney was done. Really she was done the second both Bridgette and her sister decided to team up on her—the former too earnest and the latter too persuasive for Courtney's personal comfort. Between the two of them, they could probably get the brunette to do anything short of murder.

She threw her head back in acceptance, "Fine! I'll go."

"YESSSS!!! Court, you won't regret it!!! Oh my god! I have to help you find an outfit!!" Bridgette exclaimed, as she excitedly rushed up the stairs into Courtney's room, eager to tear her closet apart.

Josie simply chuckled as she reached for her chips again, "Well I'm probably going to sleep early tonight since I start my shift super early tomorrow...just don't stay out too late? And don't do anything stupid."

Courtney sighed as she sank into the couch, already regretting her choice in anticipation of a stressful night, "Please, like you have to tell me that."

— ❥ —

Of course, if Courtney was actually agreeing to such insanity, she needed to go out on a run and clear her mind the best way she knew how.

Exercise diffused her anxieties, and made her feel good about herself. Others pregamed with alcohol, she pregamed with productivity (though she'd probably still need a drink or two before heading out).

It'd have to be a short run, since Bridgette was coming to pick her up at 4:00 PM, and Courtney would still need to shower and get ready. Nevertheless, a short run was still a run.

It was perfect that their new house had private entry to a hiking trail that led into the sprawling forests and mountainous terrains of Wawanakwa Falls—one of the many perks of living in a small town, where the neighborhoods were integrated with nature.

It was one of the many selling points Josie brought to Courtney when she announced that she was moving to Nowheresville, Canada. It honestly didn't take much convincing on Josie's part, since Courtney's alternative option to moving with her was to go back to their parent's house in Connecticut.

Josie could be moving to Antarctica and Courtney would still opt for that over her parents.

What are you doing, Courtney? This is the opposite of clearing your head, she thought to herself as she mentally rolled her eyes.

Determined to maintain her zen (or whatever was left of it), she let her senses wander to the scenes of nature moving around her: the subtle cracks of crestfallen leaves (one of the many signs that autumn was coming) crunching with every step; the harmonic chirps and chimes of birds above; the crispness of the forest air, a palpable chill filling her lungs with every inhale; the raging sun and clear blue sky; the rich bark of the trees, its linings displaying the carvings of time and of...a skull?

Did she see that right?

The double take she did almost caused her to trip on a fallen branch. Courtney quickly saved herself by grabbing onto a nearby trunk for support, only to find that this tree also had the carvings of the same anonymous artist, except this one had writing on it: "Punk's Not Dead", and another skull symbol.

Courtney crossed her arms in disapproval, letting out a loud exhale of frustration as she shook her head. "What kind of idiot is out here vandalizing trees?" She muttered to herself as she studied it a little more.

Then, in her peripheral vision, she noticed the slight iconography of yet another skull on another tree, this one far more detailed than the last ones—she could tell its author spent quite some time on it. It would've intrigued her more, if it wasn't so destructive to the tree itself.

She follows this path of carved trees, each one either having the same carving of the skull or some insipid writing on it, "D-Man", or, "Life Sucks And Then You Die", and other such emo sayings.

Courtney considered just turning around and going back on the trail—after all, what was she really hoping to gain from humoring this guy's vandalism with an audience? It wasn't going to lead anywhere, anyways.

So that's what she should've done...but then the slightest glint of something silver caught her eye from afar. And if Courtney had any weaknesses, it was her stubborn determination to see something through.

She found the hollow of a tree, probably stolen from a poor squirrel trying to nest there for the fall, and within it a stash of all sorts of things: Altoid tins with old joints inside, packs of cigarettes (some empty), and the silver thing in question—a lighter.

It was a custom lighter, not the cheap kind you find at a convenience store; it weighed heavy in Courtney's hand, with a sort of emotional importance, and a small inscription etched in simple lettering on the side of the lighter reading, "Take a walk on the Wild(er) side."

"Hmph," she scoffed, "so he's a stoner. That checks out."

Courtney absentmindedly put the lighter in her pocket and took a pack of cigarettes while she was there (a true guilty pleasure of hers, if ever one exists). Serves him right for leaving stuff here, and for carving into trees, she justified to herself.

Feeling that her business was done, the brunette trotted back towards the direction of her path, trying to occupy her mind with something else to distract from the fact that she soon had to walk back down and get ready for Geoff's bonfire. Oh, the horror.

She started singing to herself a bit, an old habit of hers that never really died and always came back whenever she was by herself. Recently obsessed with Fiona Apple, the lyrics to Paper Bag start fighting their way out of her mind through her voice—the perfect melody to match her serene pace.

Hunger hurts,and I want him, so bad,oh it kills,

Before getting back to the trail, she finds a slightly worn path going towards a lookout spot.

'Cause I know I'm a messhe don't wanna clean up.

Deciding that she can spare an extra 10 minutes she decides to follow it.

I've got to fall 'causethese hands are too shaky to hold,

And suddenly she's met with this amazing view of the whole town and the forests expanding far beyond it—a scene as commanding of the eye as a compass is obeying of a magnet.

Hunger hurtsbut starving works,when it costs...too much to love.

And maybe it was the scenery before her that just physically took Courtney's breath away, or the overwhelming breeze that had picked up at such a high altitude, but upon realizing that she was, in fact, not alone up there, and that she was among the presence of another, Courtney nearly felt her chest seize.

"Pretty voice. Why'd you stop singing? Paper Bag is one of my favorites."

Courtney turns to face him. Wow, his eyes.

The crystal blue quality of his eyes were the first thing to strike her about him, and Courtney found herself staring into them for much longer than she'd like to admit.

The next feature of his aspect she noticed were his piercings—his ears, a stud on his nostril, one of his eyebrows, and a flash of silver peeking out from his tongue. He also wore other forms of jewelry, some rings and chains that stood out against his black hoodie. He had very strong features: a defined jawline, deep set eyes (upon further inspection, she noticed the cerulean iris contrast greatly with the tinge of redness across his eyes, he'd obviously been smoking), prominent brows—his side profile was so defined it almost cut the scenery behind it.

But, perhaps the most distinguishable thing about him was hair; it was full around his head, straight locks with a slight wave and messy ruffle to it. From the root through most of its length, it was jet black, very striking against his pale complexion; but the tips were a bright neon green that Courtney couldn't tell whether she found off-putting or attractive.

Attractive?! Please, Courtney, get a grip.

"So you must be the tree vandal?" Courtney forced herself to say, realizing that she'd been staring at him for too long (and he noticed, too, owing to his smug disposition).

"What, this?" He threw a lazy thumb over his shoulder, pointing at the tree behind him that he was apparently working on before Courtney interrupted him. "Aww, don't worry about it. The trees don't mind." 

"In fact," and he took a couple of steps towards her, nonchalantly putting his hands in the pocket of his hoodie, "I had a real heart-to-heart with this exact tree here and, it doesn't mind."

Courtney scoffed at his condescension, "You're mocking me?"

"What? I'm totally sincere. Can't you tell by my eyes?" And he closed the distance between their faces by an uncomfortable amount, gazing directly into Courtney, "They say eyes are the window to the soul."

And while she found it hard to break eye contact with him, Courtney took an unsteady step back, trying to regain her composure, "Don't be an asshole, you're harming their ecosystems."

She crossed her arms defensively, "And with tasteless graffiti, too."

"I take it you don't like my art?"

"That's a generous label. I'd hardly put your 'art' on the same order as Monet."

"The whole point of art is that it's subjective, no?"

"Frankly, there's being subjective, and then there's just having taste."

At that he clutched a hand over his chest, feigning injury, "You're breaking my heart, babe. What made you so cold?"

She just rolls her eyes, "Don't expect me to humor your theatrics with a response...and don't call me babe."

A moment of silence passes between them. For a good minute, it was just him eyeing and studying Courtney the way she had been doing to him—and it made her immensely uncomfortable. She was willing to blurt out anything to make the moment pass: "You know Fiona Apple?"

It takes him a second to snap out of his daze and form a response, "Don't sound so surprised, does it look like I don't have taste?"

She pauses for a moment, thinking before responding, "You do that a lot—answer my questions with more questions. Why is that?"

"Just an old habit of mine I guess. Those die hard, you know," he nonchalantly sighed, tilting his head to the side as he not-so-subtly studied Courtney. But it wasn't like she wasn't doing the exact same thing to him, taking in his appearance, words, and presence as a whole.

"Well, as for the taste thing, I'm afraid that's already been established," she grimaced.

"In that I have none?" he cocked a quizzical brow in smugness.

"Precisely."

He simply scoffed at her guarded disposition and looked around, searching for a response, before focusing those teal irises back on her, "You don't like me," and he paused for a second, considering what to add, "you don't know me, but you don't like me."

And now it was her turn to feign a cheery expression. "What? No, I think we get along just fine!"

"So, why are you still here then?"

The brunette rolled her eyes at his crudeness. "Whatever, I didn't mean to barge into your smoking spot anyways. I just came for the view, but I'll be leaving now—"

"No, you stay. I'm outta here. My buzz is killed."

"How chivalrous." She scoffs as she watches him walk away. He throws a lazy hand up in the air as a goodbye, not even bothering to look back.

"To a princess like you? I've got to be," he calls out before disappearing back into the woods.

Courtney breathes a sigh of relief, feels her shoulders slouch and her arms fall from their crossed position once she confirms that he's out of sight.

"Don't call me that," she mutters more to herself than anyone else before turning back towards the view, her original reason for coming there.

Having committed the naturalistic scene to memory, she turns on her heels to leave, when a splash of color briefly catches her eye. It was the tree that he was working on—one of his usual carvings, but this time, it was a rendition of the landscape she had just spent 5 minutes staring at. As much as it pained her to say, it was a good rendition, too.

He was actually using some paint for this one, and didn't even bother to clean up his station before leaving; small bottles of paint and brushes were littered on the ground. 

Courtney considered picking the mess up and throwing it away, but she figured he'd be back for them himself.

The brunette studies the carving a little more, and while she wouldn't admit it to anyone but herself, she recognized the faintest quality of talent in the etching before her. And, with a simple hum of thought, she turns to follow the path back towards her new home.

— ♔ —

The car is almost completely silent, save for the quiet sound of Heather's finger rhythmically tapping on the driver's wheel.

The ravenette checked her phone again for the time—4:11 PM. Duncan was supposed to come out at 4, what the hell is he doing??

"Can't count on men for shit," she sighed to herself as she clicked on the FaceTime app, ready to call him.

She's interrupted, though, by a sudden rap on the passenger seat window. Slightly startled, Heather looks up to see none other than Gwen, more affectionately known to her as 'weird goth girl', standing outside her car.

"When the hell did you get here?!" She exclaimed, rolling down her window. Gwen crouched down to meet her eye level, leaning on the window sill. "I literally live a couple of houses down," she said, pointing down the row of houses to where she lived.

"So you're as pale as a ghost and creep up like one, too." She shrugged, unlocking the car doors to let her in. But just as she's about to get into the backseat, Heather remarks, "Why are you getting in the back? Do I look like an Uber driver to you??"

Gwen, visibly restraining herself from saying something snarky and mustering all the patience in the world, moved to the passenger seat door and grudgingly got in. The goth seemed to mutter something to herself, but whether or not Heather cared, she didn't question it.

"Remind me to never ask you for a ride again. I'd rather walk," she huffed, blowing some of her bangs out of her eyes.

"You honestly should—God knows you need the tan."

"I'm not that pale."

"Keep telling yourself that, maybe it'll come true!"

Gwen palms her forehead in frustration, "What the fuck is taking Duncan so long?!"

Heather starts honking her car horn nonstop, hoping to get the aforementioned boy's attention and shorten the amount of time she had to spend alone with Gwen.

It wasn't that Heather totally disliked the girl or held some sort of hatred for her—it was just admittedly too easy to pick on her at times.

A part of her also resented the fact that everyone had taken to Gwen so quickly: Geoff, despite them being polar opposites, always made a point to include her in everything; Bridgette (okay maybe this one wasn't as surprising) in the way that she'd always hang out, study, joke around with her; and Duncan. Well, he was the most shocking one of all, because he wasn't exactly the type to make a conscious effort in befriending people.

Maybe it was because of their shared emo-ness ('edgy humor', they liked to call it), or their numerous overlaps in interests, whether it be music, movies, shows, etc., but the two quickly became as thick as thieves.

Obviously, Heather had to be blind to not notice the fact that Goth-y had a major crush on the guy. It wasn't that she didn't understand the appeal (obviously Duncan was hot, but too emo for her, and frankly? An absolute dick, he was a walking red flag in most respects), but the fact that Gwen thought she had a chance? Hilarious.

Sure, he seemed to maybe, slightly, care about Gwen as a friend, but in terms of romance (which Heather wasn't sure he was even capable of anymore), she was completely far from his type—at least, based on past precedent.

"Alright, alright!! You can stop honking now, he's finally coming out!" Gwen shouted over the loud horn, her hands covering her ears.

"Hmph," Heather pouted as she glared down Duncan, who was taking his sweet time walking towards the car.

"Aww, how sweet of you girls to wait up," he said smoothly as he made his way into the backseat, the strong smell of his cologne filling up her car.

"This is the last time I do you the favor of picking you up," Heather scoffed, turning around to squint her eyes at him.

Gwen chuckled, "What took you so long anyways? It's not like you had to do your makeup or anything."

"It takes time to look this good, I'll have you know," Duncan nonchalantly sighed as made himself comfortable—his head tilted back on the headrest, man-spreading to his content.

"So who are you trying to look good for anyway?" Heather smirked at him as she put her sunglasses on and started the engine to her precious car. The smooth purr of its engine was like music to her well-adorned ears—she greatly appreciated a car well taken care of.

"Dude, everyone at school is so ran-through. I can't hook up with anyone without immediately getting into some BS drama with someone else. I need is someone new," the punk loudly complained.

"The only thing I miss about my old school was that you could kinda do whatever you wanted and not have it spread to the rest of the school within minutes," Gwen sympathized, putting her head against the window sill to feel the cool afternoon breeze against her temples, "Here, it's like living under a microscope."

"So what I'm hearing is that you're going back to Dakota tonight?" Heather inquired.

Duncan rolled his eyes in annoyance just at the thought of her, "Fuck no. I've already hooked up with her three times, she's gonna start getting attached and shit."

"Three times?! Yikes, Duncan. I've never broken the cardinal rule of getting with a hookup more than two times—unless it's an established friends-with-benefits kind of situation."

"I know, Heather, I'm not stupid. I'm avoiding her like the fucking plague tonight. I've been talking to one of her friends, though, Taylor?"

"Taylor McAuley??" Heather could hardly keep her composure, "I thought Dakota was her best friend?!"

"Beats me. She's thick as fuck, though." Duncan now seemed to be scrolling through her Instagram on his phone, "but is it really stupid of me to get with her?"

"Uhhhh," Heather thought on it for a second, "normally I'd say yes but they're seniors so they'll be leaving soon anyways. Besides, if Dakota ever finds out, she'd get way more pissed at Taylor than you. Girl code, or whatever."

"Wow, you guys are both assholes." That was all Gwen could contribute to the conversation, deciding to focus her attention on the passing scenery around them on their way to the lake.

One thing Heather and Duncan had uncannily in common was their approach (or rather, aversion) to relationships: purely for the cheap thrills, no strings attached, no messy feelings. It was just easier that way.

And frankly, it was nice for Heather to have someone to talk to so casually about sex and hook-ups. Bridgette was Ms. Relationship, she wouldn't even kiss a guy if they didn't have any verbal commitment; Geoff wasn't too much of a slut before Bridgette, but Heather knows he'd gotten with at least two of her old friends before practically marrying Bridge (come to think of it, it was probably Geoff who ruined those friendships for her, not that she really cared); Gwen mentioned a boyfriend at her old school, but it didn't sound like she was too interested in hooking up with people anyways (or if she was, she never made an effort to).

So that left Heather and Duncan to swap war stories, ask each other for advice, and set each other up with friends and mutuals so that neither of them was left high and dry.

And while Duncan was definitely an established man-whore at school, Heather was way smarter at keeping her sexual life on the down-low; that sort of reputation was always worse for girls than guys. 

People slut-shamed her enough without knowing her body count; they'd all go to town if they knew the actual number.

It's easy to hate a pretty girl, Heather sighed to herself as she admired her reflection in the side view mirror.

"Don't worry, Pasty, it's all just dumb fun," he said as he yawned, stretching his arms back above his head, before resting his hands there. "The second you decide you wanna hook up with someone, just make sure they're not like me."

"Got it."

That dry response was enough for Heather to know exactly what was going through Gwen's head, and a part of her sympathized with that sense of unrequitedness.

"So Heather, what are your plots for the night? Justin again?" Duncan asked with a sly grin, completely oblivious to the moody goth in their presence.

"Hell no. He may be hot, but he's got no personality. Which normally I wouldn't mind, but kissing him is like kissing a wall."

"Harsh!" Duncan cackled his ass off.

"No, I'm a junior now. It's time I start to aim higher—I'm thinking Jose."

"Burromuerto?"

"The one and only. Hooking up with him will be easy, but if I can get him to like me enough to take me to Homecoming, then I've got Junior and Senior Prom Queen in the bag," she stated intently, tightening her grip on the wheel with determination.

"Yeah, except...you have to get him to like you," Duncan teased, even earning a chortle from Gwen, who was still facing away from them and towards the window.

"Oh, please," she turned to smirk at him, "for me, it'll be a piece of cake."

— ༄ —

Geoff had outdone himself this time.

Almost 70% of the school had already pulled up and were vastly enjoying themselves at the lake shore; drinks were going strong, people were playing cup pong, 'beach' volleyball, chicken fights in the water. Some people had even started to hook up already, and it was only 5:07 PM.

Despite the darty's avid success, the only people he cared to share it with weren't even there. But, as if in response to his thoughts, the blond's phone starts ringing to show an incoming call from Heather.

"Where the hell are you guys?" Geoff exclaims, holding the phone close to his ear since it was hard to hear anything over the music-blasting speakers.

"Take a pill, Geoff, we're here already. I just need you to open your garage door so I can park inside. Like hell I'm leaving my car out for some drunkies to try to break into and hook up in."

And he could just barely hear Gwen's retort in the background, "You're so fucking dramatic."

"Don't worry, brah, I'm coming over right now." And he hung up the phone before hearing anything else.

He rushed over to the garage and did as he was asked; currently, only his car was sitting in there, leaving space for Heather's car and Courtney's. But both of their spaces were empty at the moment.

Geoff checked his phone again to make sure he wasn't missing any notifications from Bridgette, before sighing at finding none and pressing the button to open the garage door.

Heather smoothly drove in and parked her car, they were all out and joining him on the lake within a matter of minutes.

"Now this is a party!" Duncan exclaims as he walks up to Geoff to dab him up.

"Fuck that, this is a darty!!" The blond exclaimed.

"Yeah, I'm not saying that corny ass shit," Duncan chuckles as he looks around, taking in the whole scene before him.

"Geoff! Please tell me you have some weed leftover from last night—I never got to hit it before I left," Gwen pleaded, giving him her puppy eyes.

The blond simply laughed at her desperation, "Don't worry, brah, my plug's coming later to restock me."

Satisfied with his answer, she simply looks around to see if she can find any other familiar faces.

"Wow, Geoff, this is big—even by your standards," Heather commented, crossing her arms conservatively.

"I know, right?!" He responded incredulously, "I mean, I should just host all my parties out here—we can be as loud as we fucking want! WOOOO!" He shouted victoriously, as if to demonstrate his point.

"Wait, how is Bridge not here yet?? I thought she was helping you throw this," Heather kept scoping out the place, trying to spot her bubbly friend.

Geoff's mood was watered down at the reminder of his girlfriend's absence. It may sound cheesy as fuck, but stuff really was way better whenever Bridgette was around. And the fact that she hadn't texted him in so long was just a little off-putting for him.

"Uhh, I'm sure she's on the way. She said she was getting ready with Mocha, and the two of them together is a recipe for lateness," he faked nonchalance, a hand fixing the cowboy hat atop his head.

"Mocha? You mean Courtney, the girl Bridgette mentioned yesterday?" Gwen asked, arching a brow in curiosity, to which he responded with a simple nod.

"And Bridgette wanted me to tell you that she's off limits, Duncan," he said in a serious tone, well, as serious as he could muster.

"Damn, okay. Not like that was even on my mind or anything," his hands were up in innocence, but the devilish smirk on his face said it all, "Why? Is she hot?"

Geoff knew Duncan better than most, and he could tell Bridgette's warning almost registered like a challenge in his friend's mind. It probably would've been better that Geoff had said nothing, never even planted that seed of thought in his brain.

He just rolled his eyes at Duncan, "Just don't be a dick to her, and you're good. Actually, that goes for you, too, Heather."

"What, me??? I'm not a dick!!"

A moment of silence befell them.

"Okay, you assholes! Maybe I can be mean—but I'm just honest. Everyone's so damn sensitive," the ravenette crossed her arms defensively.

"Geoff, you do realize that other than you and Bridgette, everyone else in our friend group is really unapproachable. I'm not even that rude, and people still call me intimidating," Gwen pointed out.

"That's just because you're weird and unlikable," Heather shrugged. But at the following moments of awkward silence as everyone stared her down, she simply sighed, "Sorry, it's too easy sometimes. I can't help myself."

"I don't mean to worry you guys too much about it," Geoff tried moving forward with the conversation, "To be honest, Mocha's pretty unapproachable herself. But, just...be nice guys."

"Yikes, does that mean she's a weirdo?" Heather winced, "We all know Bridgette's not above taking in strays," and, of course, she gave Gwen a wicked side eye.

Geoff really didn't understand Heather, or girls like Heather, at all sometimes. Of course, he's gotten to know Heather enough since the start of high school to know she's not a complete mean girl, but there were times where she could've fooled him. Namely, right now.

And he could never really tell when she and Gwen were on good terms; sometimes they were indifferent and other times at each other's throats—it was hard to keep up. Girls, man. Thank God Bridgette's not so hot-n-cold.

"Well, Bridgette's a good person, and a good friend to people and animals alike—lucky for you, she's not disgusted by snakes," Gwen shot back, leaving Heather with a gaping expression.

And before she could even respond with one of her usual witty retorts, Bridgette, in her usual diffusive manner, saunters over to the group, completely oblivious to whatever verbal catfight had occurred moments before.

"Babe!" Geoff breathes out a huge sigh of relief, opening up his arms, ready to scoop her into a hug.

She's more than willing to jump into them, and Geoff held onto their embrace for longer than Bridgette probably expected.

"Awwww, did someone miss me??"

"So all this hype about Latte, or whatever, and she's not even here?" Duncan asked, crossing his arms expectantly.

"What are you talking about, she's walking over right now," Bridgette laughed as she turned back around and pointed a finger to single Courtney out—though she didn't have to.

The crowds of people were naturally parting a path for Courtney as she walked directly towards them, looking as beautiful and picturesque as ever.

Geoff and Bridgette chuckled to themselves, as if sharing a secret only they were in on. 

They were used to these kinds of reactions from people whenever they introduced Courtney to them; just the 10-second delay that goes on as their brains try to process that such beauty can exist in one person.

All their friends were just staring at her, mouths gaping in surprise.

Duncan, the only one with a verbal reaction: "No fucking way."

— ❥ —

Okay, so one could be the most secure and confident person in the world, and still be shitting bricks if they were in Courtney's shoes at the moment.

Almost everyone was pausing their conversations and craning their necks to see her as she walked down the shore to where Bridgette, Geoff, and the rest of their friends were standing.

I guess they don't get too many new kids here, she thought to herself.

The bonfire was everything Bridgette described it as, and more.

"COURTNEY!!! Court!! Get over here!" Bridgette shouted at her, eagerly beckoning the brunette to pick up the pace as she made her way over.

A loose smile spreads across her face as she gives her blonde friend a knowing look.

For a moment, it was just everyone else in the group eyeing Courtney, who was trying hard not to squirm under their scrutiny.

"I'm Courtney. It's nice to meet you," and she offers a friendly wave.

The brunette first meets eyes with one of the girls—very pale skin with contrasting features, dark, almost black, eyes and jet black hair with some chunks dyed a faded, space blue. It was messily styled, her bangs sitting sparsely above her ultra-thin brows and the rest of it hanging it just above her shoulders at a grown-out-bob length. Courtney could tell from the dark berry lip gloss, silver septum piercing, and black hoodie used as a cover up over her black boyshorts, that she was very edgy—gothic.

Meanwhile, the other girl was intensely scoping Courtney out, as Courtney was her.

She's got a sharp glare, I swear it could cut right through me, she thought to herself as she took in the rest of the ravenette's appearance.

In credit to her descriptor, she had pin straight, raven black hair that just barely reached her elbow. She had very dark hazel, almost washed-out gray, eyes that oozed judgment, hidden behind a full set of well-kept lash extensions. Whereas the other girl's figure was pretty slim, this one's was toned, with very lean muscle. If Courtney had to take a guess, she'd either say this girl either did track, cheer, or dance.

"Gwen," was all the first girl said in response, before adding, "I was new last year, so, I know what you're going through."

"It's a little overwhelming, isn't it?"

Gwen merely scoffed at her, "It's basically hell for the first, hm, 3 months or so? But it gets better, I guess."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Bridgette piped in, wrapping an arm around Courtney in her usual cheery manner.

"You're sweet, Bridge, but I'm sure it'll take me some time to warm up to people. Or, at least, for people to warm up to me."

And then a third, previously silent voice joined the conversation: "Well, not if you play your cards right."

The ravenette was facing Courtney directly and outstretched a hand to rest on her shoulder, "I'm Heather. Something tells me we're going to be good friends."

Courtney slightly squints her eyes at the girl, not quite knowing what to make of her; it was clear from her gaze that Heather was a very calculated person, with intention behind every word said and action done. But honestly? So was Courtney.

Game, as they say, recognizes game. And this kind of stuff? Mind games, social politics, strategy—that, she was good at.

"Heather? Good? Oh, that's rich," Gwen chuckled to herself, earning a sheepish look from Geoff and a reproaching one from Bridgette.

Courtney also let out a slight chuckle, "For both our sakes, Heather," and she paused, giving the girl a look up and down, as she had been looking at her before, "I hope you're right."

And just for a second, Courtney could see Heather's guard falter, only slightly.

"I'm so lucky to have all my favorite girls with me!" Bridgette cheered as she clutched Gwen and Courtney's hand to her, completely oblivious to whatever was happening between the latter and Heather.

So that only left one person not yet introduced….

And, obviously, she'd noticed him walking up. How couldn't she? You don't forget someone like that, at least, not within a day of meeting them.

When she first caught sight of his green hair, Courtney stopped dead in her tracks; luckily, Bridgette didn't seem to notice and just kept on walking over to her friends. But Courtney needed a moment to compose herself and decide what she was going to do.

Well, what could she do? A) Pretend she'd never met him and be as cordial as possible, or, B) be her usual snarky self and pick up their bickering match where it left off in the woods.

Honestly, she was willing to not say anything or make a fuss about it, considering that he turned out to be one of Bridgette's good friends. After all, she really didn't mean to get off on a bad start with him—especially if they'd potentially be running in the same social circles.

"Oh! And Mocha, meet my bro, Duncan!" Geoff exclaimed, patting said friend on the back as he introduced them.

Duncan had been staring at Courtney the whole time she was there, with an expression that was very hard, even for her, to read.

"No need for the introductions, Princess and I go way back," he confidently remarked, earning puzzled expressions from the rest of the group.

"You guys know each other?" Gwen asked, drawing a finger between the two of them.

"We really don't, I don't know why he said that," Courtney rolled her eyes as she looked to the side in a sheepish manner, "And now you know my name. So don't call me Princess."

"That hurts my feelings, Princess, I thought we had a real heart-to-heart today—y'know, back at our spot," and he even had the audacity to throw in a cheeky wink at the end of his sentence.

'Our spot'?! What the hell is this guy's game? Why is he being such an ass?

"I don't understand," Bridgette said, hesitantly looking from Duncan to Courtney in complete perplexity.

"There's nothing to understand. We don't have a 'spot', we don't 'go way back', we don't know each other—plain and simple," Courtney seethed as she gave Duncan the dirtiest glare she could muster.

And Duncan, whether he picked up on Courtney's discontentment or not, was completely unfazed, returning her hostility with a lax disposition and signature smirk.

An awkward silence fell upon the group, no one quite knowing how to pivot from such a point of contention, and no one daring to. With one, notable exception.

"While you guys decide whether or not you know each other, I'm going to go have fun. This is a party, for heaven's sake." Heather scoffed as she turned on her heels, strutting away to make better use of her precious time.

Geoff let out a visible sigh at the given opportunity to diffuse the tension, "Right on! Let's party forever!!" He hooted, wrapping an arm around Duncan and Courtney alike.

The brunette merely let out a passive sigh and muttered a weak, "Yay." 

Bridgette linked her arm with Courtney's, leaning in to whisper, "Everything okay?"

She sighed, turning to her hazel-eyed friend. As off-putting as Duncan was, Courtney wasn't going to let him ruin the night. She's disliked people before, big deal. What's one more name to the list?

"Everything's perfectly fine." And with a curt nod, Courtney decided it was her turn to be the more impulsive one. "Now, let's get a drink! I need a Coke."

She grabbed Bridgette by the hand and pulled her into a playful jog towards the drinks table, barely hearing Geoff's shouts of encouragement, "YEAH, MOCHA!!"

It was about time she took a page out of Geoff's notebook. And besides, it'd be easier to forget about annoying, green-haired punks with a drink in hand.

— ❈ —

"Courtney…is so hot."

Gwen scoffed at Duncan's remark. It's not like she could disagree with him, the girl was gorgeous. Since she walked off with Bridgette, Duncan had not stopped staring at her the entire time.

Even as their conversations drifted to other topics, or as they talked to other people, Gwen couldn't help but notice that his eye would always find its way back to a certain brunette. 

She was used to Duncan always ditching her at parties to get with other girls, especially later into the night. It never bothered Gwen too much, except now it caused them to lose their previously undefeated cup pong streak.

Clearly, this was different than those other times—Duncan was keeping his distance from Courtney, which was definitely not par for the course. He was probably the most forward person Gwen knew…and maybe she could stand to learn a thing or two from him.

Anyways, why Gwen's treacherous mind forced her to focus on these things was beyond her—it's not like she was obsessively following his line of vision 24/7. But she couldn't help what she noticed; in fact, she wished she hadn't noticed these kinds of things. It'd make her life way easier, and her mind quieter.

She brushed all those thoughts away and gave Duncan a sly grin, "You really think so? I couldn't tell." He just rolled his eyes, still not taking them off Courtney.

Gwen cleared her throat, "Well, what about Taylor?"

"Who?" He scoffed.

"Taylor? You were literally just telling me and Heather about how you wanted to—"

"Who?" And this time he turned to face Gwen, giving her a deadpan expression.

Oh.

"Wow, you're forward," the goth crossed her arms in slight disapproval.

"And she's hot."

"Who, Courtney?" Heather asked as she walked up to the two of them and then gave them a bitter smile and eye roll, "That seems to be the general consensus."

"Jealous, are you?" Duncan challenged, giving her a knowing smirk.

"As if. Anyways, can you guys get over yourselves and help me out?" she scoffed, tossing her inky black hair to the side.

"Gee, since you asked so nicely," Gwen lamely rolled her eyes at her.

Completely ignoring her, Heather turned towards Duncan, "I need to start talking to Jose, like, now if I want him to be interested in me by homecoming."

Duncan and Gwen shared a similar look of dispassion, the latter crossing her arms in unwillingness.

Duncan sighed, "And how the fuck do you want me to do that?"

Heather patted an index finger on her lip, feigning thought, "Oh, I don't know—like this!"

And before Gwen could even blink, Heather pushed Duncan into the sand, making him bump into Jose—who was conveniently chatting with his friend only a couple feet away.

Gwen rolled her eyes. Here I thought she walked up to us because she wanted to talk to us.

Heather was already putting on her best performance of worry and concern, "Oh my god!! Are you okay?!" And she put a strategic hand on Jose's shoulder, "You'll have to excuse my friend, he's such a klutz."

"What the hell, Heather?!" Duncan complained as he got up from the floor, brushing the sand off his swim trunks.

"Aww, do you have a concussion? Go find Geoff." Heather couldn't get rid of him fast enough, pushing him again but this time right into Gwen, and twirling back around to focus her attention on charming Jose.

Not that it'd take a lot on her behalf; as much as Gwen hated to admit, Heather had a certain suavity when it came to flirting that made the goth just a little envious. It's not that Gwen had any direct interest in being some sort of femme fatale, but she's never known what it's like to be able to have that sort of effect on others. She was far too unsociable and off-putting for it.

"Nice friend we have, huh?" She rolled her eyes at said girl, who was laughing way too hard at whatever Jose was saying, and the consequential layer of blush covering his face was a sign of her charm at work.

"That's Heather for you," Duncan rolled his eyes, "but she's usually good about returning the favor."

"And speaking of…" He brought his palms together pleadingly. Gwen feared that she already knew where this was going…

"I need a favor from you."

Gwen only looked up at him with a cocked brow and crossed arms. Whatever was going to come out of his mouth next would probably come at the price of her contentment.

"I need you to go challenge Courtney to a chicken fight."

"What?! Why??" She shouted at him.

"Because she'll obviously say no to me! And I just want a chance to talk to her," he shrugged, beating around the bush for why he'd put in so much effort to get close to a girl when he could probably get with anyone else.

Gwen scoffed, "She's not made of stone, if you want to go talk to her, then do it yourself!!"

"It's not that easy…she just…look, if I could do that you know I wouldn't be asking you for a favor!" 

"Hello? I'm a terrible wingman! That's why you have Heather," Gwen shrieked, frankly disturbed at the thought of scoring Duncan a hookup.

"She's clearly busy right now! Come on, Pasty…"

And he did that motion of the eyes thing to Gwen again, his eyes so clear a blue that she swore she could even see her own reflection. As a cherry on top, he slouched a casual arm around her shoulder and pulled her close to whisper in her ear: "Do me a solid?"

Gwen's first instinct was to turn her face away from him, simply to hide the fact that her nose and ears were smeared an embarrassing shade of pink. So what if his proximity to her made her nervous?? 

She'd never let him know it.

The goth bit her lip as she stood in thought. She already knew what her answer was—how could she say no? She had no good reason to. 

At least, no reason that didn't involve an embarrassing confession.

Finally, Gwen let out an obnoxious sigh, "Alright! Okay! Jesus….but you owe me!"

"I knew you'd come through, you're the best!" Duncan explained as he grabbed her hand and jogged her to where Courtney was talking to Trent and Justin, Gwen leaving behind a trail of groans.

What the fuck have I gotten myself into????

When they walked up to the trio, Courtney's eyes seemed to flash with both recognition and relief at the sight of them.

"Gwen!" she exclaimed, rushing to hug the girl.

As much as it took Gwen aback, she felt herself fall easily into the role of Courtney's friend, even hugging her back. But that was probably more a response of shock than genuine affection.

Right before the brunette pulled away, she quickly whispered in Gwen's ear, "Please save me, the tall one won't stop talking and I've no idea how to get him to stop."

Laughter bubbled threateningly in Gwen's throat—she assumed Courtney was talking about Justin. Hot as he was, all sense of dreaminess and fantasy went away the second he opened his mouth…and never closed it.

Gwen never knew how his friends could stand him, like Trent, for example. Other than the fact that he played guitar and was relatively quiet, Gwen knew nothing about him. But the fact that he could stand to tolerate Justin on a daily basis told her that he had the patience of a saint.

"Courtney," Gwen began, almost forgetting the reason they'd walked up to her until Duncan had not-so-subtly elbowed her in the side. "Uhmm, I was wondering….well, we were wondering-"

Another elbow, this time to the rib.

"Nope! Just me! I was wondering if you, uhm….uh..."

Gwen kept losing her train of thought as she looked from Courtney, to Justin, to Duncan, to Trent, all dealing her puzzled expressions.

"Chicken fight?" She finally just blurted out. 

"Duncan and I against you and…" her gaze shifted to Trent, who could not look more uninterested, and then to Justin, whose eagerness could be smelled from miles away.

"Me!" Justin exclaimed before she could even finish her thought, and Gwen swore she saw Courtney's eye twitch. 

Trent, on the other hand, simply laughed out loud as he casually walked away from the train wreck.

Courtney hesitated, "Oh, I don't know…"

Justin put an arm around her, "Come on, Court, let's do it!"

Duncan cackled, seemingly at his pet name for her as well as her obvious discomfort with it, "Yeah, Court. Don't be a stick in the mud!"

"Who even says that anymore?" Gwen rolled her eyes at him. Why had she agreed to this in the first place…did she really like him that much?

The two girls shared an empathetic look with one another at whatever sad situation they'd both seemingly been roped into.

Until, a realization dawned on Courtney. 

"You know what? You guys are right, let's play." The brunette extended a hand and smug disposition towards her, "Gwen?"

It took a moment for said girl to catch on, but not as long as it took Duncan and Justin, who apprehensively followed the two girls as they walked, hand-in-hand, towards the shore.

— ꕥ —

"Okay, this isn't exactly what I had in mind!" Duncan shouted, as he struggled to balance Justin's lanky build on his shoulders.

Meanwhile, Courtney had no problem holding up Gwen's small frame, and even reveled in making competitive jabs at Duncan to throw him off even more while their teammates battled it out above the water.

It was all too funny for Bridgette to witness from afar, as she took a couple of hilarious action shots with her digital camera.

"This is definitely making it to the junior year scrapbook," she giggled to herself as she scrolled through all the prize-winning shots. She put her eye to the camera to take another nice picture of the sunset's yellow, orange, and pink before the frame was suddenly filled with tan, blonde, and blue.

"Geoff!" 

"Babe!" He picked Bridgette up and swirled her around. "Didn't I just make your shot 10 times hotter??"

She simply laughed as he ran a flirty hand through his blond, tousled waves, "How are you enjoying your party? Epic turnout, right?!"

"I guess," he lightly rolled his eyes, "but the only person I really cared about showing up was you."

Geoff touched his nose to Bridgette's nose, arms wrapped around her frame while her hands were occupied by the camera she held under her chin.

Bridgette considered sealing the deal herself and going in for a kiss, but instead she nuzzled her head into his neck and leaned into his embrace, which was more than welcomed.

She thought to herself for a moment about responding to him, only to come up with nothing. What more could she say?

Bridgette felt luckier than words could even express to have someone like Geoff in her life—someone who genuinely cared about her and was constantly thinking about her.

There were times when Bridgette felt she didn't know what to do with all this love, experiencing it in surplus. This was the kind of emotional encounter she'd only ever read about in her romance books, or seen in those movies her mom would take her to as a little girl. Where the prince swept the princess off her feet and everything was good with the world and they lived happily ever after. Period. The end.

But this was her reality. Geoff wasn't just Bridgette's dream guy—he was as real as the air she breathed, and lately, had seemed to be as intoxicating as it to.

As much as she wore her heart on her sleeve, Bridgette wasn't the overly vulnerable or codependent type. Lately, however, Geoff had her considering otherwise…

She quickly pulled away from him, "Hey, I'm gonna go check on Courtney, make sure Duncan isn't bothering her too much."

"Woah, woah, you leaving me so soon?" He whined, grabbing onto the blonde's hand as she tried to scamper away, "I feel like I've barely seen you at all today!"

"That's not true! I've seen you plenty!" She gave him a lopsided smile.

"Come onnn, let's go down to the hot tub! I specifically closed it off so we could use it!" he called to her, blue eyes beaming with hope.

"But, Courtney–"

"Look at her, Bridge. Doesn't seem like Duncan's bothering her at all—actually! She seems to be having the time of her life! Having fun! At my party! So you should do the same."

Bridgette didn't know where her hesitation was coming from as she bit her lip in thought. She blushed as she thought about the last time they were in the hot tub together; clearly, she'd enjoyed it then. So, why not now?

There was an obvious answer to follow. So she ignored the slight pit in her throat and took Geoff's hand leading her back towards the lake house.

— ✪ —

So the chicken fight may have been a failure in most respects—Duncan had Gwen to thank for conspiring against him with Courtney—but, it wasn't a complete dud.

After all, there was something to be said for the fact that he was now alone with Courtney as they both waited for Gwen and Justin to bring some towels from inside the house. 

On the one hand, this was Courtney, the girl who simply couldn't stand him and dealt him judgemental looks every possible second; but on the other hand, this was Courtney, a hot chick with an insane build wearing a tiny bikini, who had legs for days.

The only bad part about all this was that Duncan couldn't speak a word without instantly annoying her, and there was no way any of his usual pickup lines would charm her.

See, a better man might've taken the hint by now and given up—but Duncan was, well, Duncan.

"So, good game?" he offered a cheeky smile. Maybe he couldn't outright flirt with her, but he could try his hand at small-talk.

"Maybe not for you."

Rejection.

"That was a pretty devastating loss," she scoffed, crossing her arms away from him.

"Are you kidding me? That was the upset of the century!"

"Funny, I never took you for a sore loser," she lightly tapped a finger on her chin in fake thought.

"How about next time you try holding up Justin while he flails around like fish out of water—it's not easy!" He pointed out, defensively.

Courtney simply smiled at his dismay, amused at how riled up he was. "True, I mean his muscles must make up, what, 90? 95 percent of his body mass?" And that only seemed to annoy him more.

"Probably to compensate for the fact that he's got no activity going on up here," Duncan scoffed, tapping a finger to his forehead. And then Courtney laughed, and something within Duncan felt…proud? For being its source. Now that was funny.

"And hey, it's not like your partner was any better!" He added on.

"At least she was good enough to win! She may not be the strongest…like, at all, but she still got him in the water," and Courtney couldn't even finish her sentence properly without them both bursting into laughter, reminded of a less than flattering memory of Justin screaming like a prepubescent boy as he went down into the water.

It took a minute before the laughter fully subsided, and even then the two couldn't keep a straight face—even the slightest chuckle threatened a whole slew of laughter.

"You know, I'm pretty sure there's an obvious answer to this whole situation," Duncan said between laughs. 

"What?"

And he tried to keep a straighter face as he said this: "I mean, come on. Isn't it obvious? We've gotta be a team next round."

"Next round?" Courtney chuckled.

"Admit it, we'd be unstoppable."

A bit of silence fell upon the two, Courtney not quite knowing what to say. But Duncan could see the cogs turning in her mind. In fact, she didn't even need to say anything for Duncan to know what her response was—the subtle smile on her face said enough.

She opens her mouth to respond, but is interrupted by a disheveled DJ jogging up to them.

"Yo!" He shouted as approached, "What's up, Courtney?"

Said girl smiled and waved at him before he turned his attention to Duncan, "D-Man, have you been checking the group chat?"

He cocked an eyebrow before reaching into his pocket for his phone, "Uhh no. Why?"

He saw that he had 20+ unread notifications from Messages.

"There's no more alcohol, we need more for later," DJ explained.

"So? Go get some." He shrugged.

"None of us have our fakes, and none of us are good to drive," he answered, hands laced atop his durag in distress.

"Bro, didn't you only have one can of beer?"

He rubbed his eyes as he spoke, "I also popped an eddy with Harold."

At that, Duncan couldn't hold back his laughter, "Pffft, Harold? Dude—"

"He's a solid guy!" DJ puts his hands up in defense, "and anyways, I'm not getting behind a wheel right now. Mama would kill me if she ever found out!"

Courtney only gave a sympathetic look, while Duncan sighed in annoyance, "DJJJ."

"Please man! Geoff would do it but he's not answering either, and I haven't seen Bridgette in a while so, you know…"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Duncan said, shaking his head dismissively, "I didn't drive here, though."

DJ's expression instantly morphed from dejection to elation, "Okay, so all you need is a driver! Perfect!"

"Don't get so excited, almost everyone Ubered."

And suddenly, Courtney interrupted their conversation with an apologetic tone, "Right, well, this sounds like my cue to leave. I hope you guys find a driver–"

Just as suddenly, a thought occurred to Duncan, and he couldn't fight the smirk growing on his face. "Wait a second, didn't you drive here?"

Courtney was taken aback by his perception, "Stalk much?"

"Bridgette hasn't been driving lately, you guys came together, you haven't had any alcohol, ergo, you drove," he stated very matter-of-factly.

"Wow, so you do have a brain!" She said in fake-surprise.

He tilted his head at her, "Oh come on, Princess. Do us a solid?"

"I don't think I should—"

DJ cut into her sentence and pleaded with his hands laced together, "Please, Courtney! I promise I'll return the favor somehow!"

The brunette thought about it a little more, seemingly stuck between a rock and a hard place. But, in the end, one side prevailed.

She threw her hands in the air in acceptance, "Fine! Jesus Christ…but only because DJ asked me to!"

Duncan smirked at her, "Whatever makes you feel better—let's go!"

And just as he grabbed Courtney's hand and walked her towards the garage, Gwen and Justin were barely approaching a now solitary DJ.

"Wait, where are they going?" Gwen asked, holding an armful of towels.

"Getting some more drinks. We ran out." DJ shrugged.

Gwen said nothing, but observed them as they walked off together. She couldn't tell whether they were arguing or laughing together—or perhaps it was a bit of both.

Justin, who'd previously been concerned with getting the perfect ruffle through his dampened hair, came to the realization that Courtney had left.

"Wait, they left!? Damn it!" He exclaimed, slapping his arm against his leg. 

"I so wanted to ask Courtney for her number!"

— ♔ —

Heather had reached her final straw. She didn't know how much longer she could talk to a guy that had absolutely nothing going on in his brain, other than an obsession with himself.

The whole party had been nothing but her smiling and nodding as Jose talked about his accomplishments, his soccer stories, his camera roll, his unlaunched music career. It's not like she was ever expecting to talk philosophy with the guy, but this…this was worse than she'd expected.

So now, Heather found herself hiding out behind a tree, far removed from the festivities happening on the shoreline. Even just a few moments of silence, where she wasn't forced to hear him speak sentence after endless sentence, proved to be healing.

Lame as it sounded, Heather enjoyed having this moment to herself. She could hear her own thoughts, and forget all the social politics that she was so prone to obsessing over.

But somehow, becoming aware of the fact that she was alone, while everyone else wasn't, icked her out. 

"Ew, I'm like weird goth girl," she muttered to herself, shaking her head as she braced herself for making a reappearance at the party.

As she was walking back towards the shore, she inadvertently stepped into the middle of what seemed to be a group hangout—Noah, Cody, Izzy, and Owen were sitting in a semi-circle, some of them lounging on tree stumps while the rest sat on the floor. The pungent stench of weed also didn't escape Heather.

"Sorry, am I interrupting your orgy?" She scoffed down at them. 

"Aww, don't be bitter, Heather! You're more than welcome to join!" Izzy exclaimed, inching closer to her.

"Drop dead!" She scoffed, as she strutted away, hearing the roars of their laughter behind her.

Heather rolled her eyes—she really didn't understand people that chose to exclude themselves from social scenes. She simply didn't believe anyone that said they didn't care what others thought of them.

They were teenagers for crying out loud—they were supposed to care! She wasn't any crazier for obsessing about social status than they were for entirely dismissing it. People could judge her for it all they wanted, but at the end of the day, she'd graduate from high school leaving a legacy behind.

Queen Bee, Cheer Captain, and soon, only girl to bag the hottest guy in school. And! Only junior to get asked to Senior Prom.

Getting there proved to be harder than she expected—Heather internally cringed at the thought of having to talk to Jose again—but she had to do what she had to do. And she was going to succeed.

"Heather!" She's pulled out her thoughts by a voice calling to her, but her face drops any sign of interest once she sees that it's just Gwen.

"What?"

"Where the fuck is everyone?" Gwen exclaimed.

"What do you mean?"

"Geoff and Bridgette have been gone for well over an hour–"

Heather scoffed, "Does that really surprise you?"

"And Duncan and Courtney haven't come back yet."

At that, Heather's interest was piqued: "Where'd they go?"

Gwen looked sheepishly to the side, clutching her elbows, "To get more drinks, but the liquor store is like 5 minutes away and they've been gone for half an hour."

Heather thought to herself for a moment—she knew Duncan was interested in her, but Courtney didn't really strike her as the type to hook up with someone so fast. Then again, she didn't really know Courtney, like, at all.

"Okay…why does any of this concern me?"

"Excuse me for expecting you to be a real friend," Gwen rolled her eyes.

Heather crossed her arms, she didn't really know what to say or do. She didn't know how to be a friend to Gwen, even if she'd wanted to. It's not like they had tons in common.

The two seemed to be predetermined enemies based solely on their archetypes: Heather was the popular girl, Gwen was the weird goth girl. The fact that they both happened to be in the same friend group was an anomaly of sorts.

Just as Heather was about to speak in a lame attempt to start a conversation, she was saved by a lovey-dovey Geoff and Bridgette making their way over.

"Yooooo!!" Geoff hollered at them, and Heather noticed a look of relief wash upon Gwen's face.

"Finally! You guys were gone so long!" Gwen exclaimed as Bridgette dove in to hug her.

"Sorry!! We just, um, got caught up," the bubbly blonde sheepishly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Yeah, you can stop there," Heather said, crossing her arms.

"Where's Duncan?" Geoff asked, looking around.

Bridgette joined him in scanning the whole party, "And where's Courtney?"

Gwen and Heather shared a look, before Gwen finally sighed.

"Well…"

— ❥ —

Courtney sighed as she looked out the window of her car. "I don't know what the point of me coming was if I wasn't going to drive."

He took a moment at the red light to look over at her, shooting her a skeptical look, "You'd really let me drive your car by myself?"

"I mean, why couldn't you just ask anyone else for their car. Heather, maybe, or Geoff. You guys are all friends, no?"

He turned back to face the road, "Eh, don't read too much into it. This was the path of least resistance."

Courtney hummed as she refocused her thoughts on the scenery outside. Of course, this little beverage run had taken longer than she'd anticipated—nothing with Duncan was ever quick and easy, because once he recognized the cashier at the convenience store, he decided that now was the time to stop and share life stories—and now, the sun had long set and those same stars Courtney admired her first night in Wawanakwa made a reappearance.

If she was being honest with herself, Courtney didn't really mind this brief respite from the whole party scene too much, it let her social battery recharge. Even though she technically wasn't alone, Duncan wasn't too demanding of any effort when she talked to him.

Then, a thought occurred to her. She turned to face him, only to find that his eyes were intently set on the road, also deep in thought.

"Hey." 

He snapped out of it. "What?"

"Don't 'what' me."

"I'm thoroughly confused," he scoffed.

"Try amnesic," she rolled her eyes.

"If you have an issue with me, Princess, you've gotta learn to use your words."

"Well, you clearly don't remember me telling you not to call me Princess," she repositioned herself to face her body towards him, "I'm talking about earlier, when you told everyone that we knew each other."

"We did know each other," he said very matter-of-factly.

"No! We didn't! One conversation in the woods does not friends make," she huffed, at which he only laughed.

"Do you normally scramble your word order when you're mad? It's cute."

"You can be so insufferable—you'll do anything but listen to what I'm saying, won't you?"

"Don't you find it more fun that way?"

Duncan turned to look at her, and for a moment, nothing was said between them as they just held onto their eye contact.

He was the one to break it: "Though, I'm honestly not even sure you understand the concept."

Courtney scoffed, "Of what?"

"Fun."

"What?! Me…fun? Of course I do!"

He said nothing, but pressed his lips together in doubt.

"What?! I can take a joke! And I can make a joke, too!" Courtney sat up now, clearly disturbed by what he was insinuating about her.

"Calm down, Dr. Suess," he shrugged his shoulders, "I just mean. it's pretty obvious that things upset you easily."

She crossed her arms and turned away from him, "Well, it's pretty obvious that you don't know me."

Duncan sighed, sitting in silence for a second, before returning to the conversation, "Fair enough—tell me one fun thing about yourself."

"Try three: I like to read, I speak four languages, and…I dance ballet."

"Boring, boring, and….boring. No wonder you're so uptight."

Courtney turned back to Duncan and scoffed at him, "See, you fail to notice that the concept of fun is completely subjective. I mean, what can you tell me that you do for fun—vandalize trees? Poke holes in your face? Yeah, neither of those things sound fun to me."

"Quite the opposite, actually, those things are the product of boredom."

"I see, so you get bored, and you take it out on the trees?"

"It's not like there's anything else to do in this shit-hole," he shrugged, "Hell, I'm almost sorry that you got stuck in the most boring place in the world."

She shifted in her seat, not knowing how to receive his sympathies. Courtney thought of what to say to break the silence, but Duncan beat her to it.

"Tell me something, you're from California, right?"

"Right."

"So, you've been to the beach, then?"

"Of course I have."

Courtney can see him pause for second, internally debating whether or not he'll give this next question clearance through his mouth. In the end, he does.

"What," and he cleared his throat, "what's that like?"

Her response was immediate: "I don't think you need me to tell you that. Are you pulling my leg again? Another joke?"

"I've never been to a beach before."

"There's no way."

"What can I say? It's a terrible thing, to be landlocked."

She didn't know what to say, and for once, Duncan's expression seemed dead serious to her. This was unknown territory for her.

"Um, I don't know, it's nice. I wouldn't normally go during the day, it's much too crowded, and hot, and overstimulating…"

She paused to look at him again, only to find Duncan with a pensive disposition. He was waiting to hear what she had to say next, and when he realized her sentence came to a stop, he turned to look at her.

"I'd usually go by myself, at night."

"Yeah, and you call me emo."

A smile made its way to her face—this was the banter she was used to, and all feelings of discomfort simply dissipated. "Shut up! It's actually really nice at night, a good spot to think about things…or, to not think about things."

That seemed to be really intriguing to him, "To forget them?"

"Maybe."

Courtney considers stopping there, leaving her answer at that. But, maybe it was the inviting breeze of the night that drawled in through her cracked-open window, or the intrinsic beauty of the natural landscape surrounding them, or maybe it was him, Duncan….whatever it was, it made Courtney keep going.

"Whenever I'd go to the beach, I've always felt that, for a moment, all that there is, ever has been, or ever will be, is the blue right in front of me." 

"Hearing the waves crash against the sand and feeling the breeze moving through me, I guess it's nice to humor that maybe I'm just like…like a small grain of sand, tugged off-shore by a wave, or a wind."

She turns to face Duncan again, to see if he'd somehow gotten bored of her blabbing—but, much to her surprise, he still seemed utterly interested in every word coming out of her mouth. 

"The water, it makes you feel small, and all your problems small, by extension. Almost like none of it even matters in the end, because the waves will always just keep flowing and the world just keeps spinning." She chuckles sheepishly to herself, "I know that all sounds stupid and way too abstract, but it's comforting sometimes. To me, at least."

Duncan says nothing for a minute, for once, at a loss for words. Or maybe, it seemed to Courtney, thinking about how to parse through his thoughts and translate them into sentences.

"What? You're not gonna argue with me on this? Don't bother going soft on me now," she scoffed.

A smile crept onto his face, "You should be glad I'm ignoring the potential to make a dirty joke right now."

"And you've ruined the moment."

He laughs to himself, and so does she.

"No, no, I just…I always used to think that feeling small," and he laughed again (he really had the humor of a middle school boy), "I used to think that was like, a bad thing."

His expression sobered just slightly before he continued, "Small is…it's weak and powerless and shit. I mean, Wawanakwa, for example, is the size of a fucking thumbtack, and living here is like being stuck under a damn microscope."

Courtney sighed, "I guess it just depends on how you look at it. 'Nothing is always absolutely so'—so says Sturgeon, so says I."

"Uhhh. What."

She waved a dismissive hand, "It's nothing, just wise words from a dead man. He also said 90% of everything is crap."

"Sounds like my kind of guy."

Courtney laughs and considers whether or not she should let this particular slip out of her mind, but she goes through with it anyway, "You know, Duncan, you're not too bad when you're not being completely insufferable."

"Funny, I was going to say the same about you, Princess."

Duncan laughed as she rolled her eyes at that stupid nickname being used, yet again.

"I just meant that I didn't think you'd be a good conversationalist."

"To set the record straight, I'm not."

"Too cool for school, yeah?"

"Okay, see, I'm not really good at this…existential shit, and no one expects me to be anyways, so it all works out."

"I don't think anyone really is good at the 'existential shit'." 

Duncan looks at her in fake surprise, "Wow, did I just get you to curse??"

By now, Courtney's learned to ignore some of his antics, simply rolling her eyes before carrying on, "If there were right answers to these kinds of questions, we wouldn't be talking about them now."

"How thoughtful."

And another wave of comfortable silence falls upon them, but this time, Courtney is the one to break it: "Hey, thanks."

"You shouldn't be thanking me yet, I still have a whole school year to piss you off."

"And I'm sure you will….I just, I never realize the things I take for granted until I'm without them. I lose sight of things, and you just reminded me of them. Of the beach, for example."

"Hey, I'm just making conversation."

"How polite of you—cordial, some might even say."

"It's as I said before: to a princess like you, I've got to be."

She rolls her eyes for the umpteenth time that night, "I really hate that nickname."

"I know," Duncan says, without missing a beat.

And then they do that thing that Courtney partly likes and partly dislikes, where they're just looking at each other, analyzing each other, thinking about each other.

"I have a question for you," Duncan finally says.

She sets her sights on the road ahead and smugly crosses her arms, "Wow, you're just full of them tonight, aren't you?"

"It's the teacher-student thing…really turns me on."

"Don't be gross!" She lightly jabs at his arm, "You were saying?"

"I was saying…I thought they closed beaches at night. How'd you go, then?"

She paused to think about it for a moment, recalling the last time she went, "Um, I don't know, I guess I'd just sneak in."

"Sneak in? Doesn't that require", and cue the dramatic fake gasp, "breaking the rules??"

"Okay, stop. I know what you're doing," but Courtney couldn't fight the laughter bubbling in her throat.

"Woww, can't get so high and mighty on me now. What was it you were telling me about those trees?"

"Hey! There's a major difference between what I did and what you do!"

"Pot, meet kettle."

"God, you're so annoying!"

"I guess this means the princess has a dark side."

"Doesn't everyone?" She crossed her arms, "We're all a little fucked up."

Duncan thought about what she'd said for a moment, "You ever think it works the other way around?"

And there he was again, mischievous glint in his eye, turning the conversation inside out and back again, Courtney never quite sure which direction they were going next.

"What do you mean?"

"If everyone has some bad in them, then, do you think everyone has some good, too?"

"I don't really know. I guess, I like to think so. Do you?"

Duncan pauses again, eyes steady on the road. "Nah. We're all fucked up."

Courtney doesn't really know what to make of that, nor how to respond. Possibly because a part of her, the part that loathes a world in which people like her parents exist, knows that to an extent, Duncan was 100% right. And sometimes, it was so much easier to assume that dark side in people. 

But another part of her sat in quiet discomfort. She knew there was more to the human condition than could be categorized so simply into good and bad—there just had to be. 

After all, was she not looking at a perfect example of that, sitting right in front of her?

— ꕥ —

Bridgette checked her phone for the time, as she noticed the party starting to die down. 10:14 PM. For a darty, not bad at all.

She'd long noticed some friend groups dispersing and couples leaving to ride the rest of the evening out in the comfort of their homes. No one had gotten outrageously drunk, and clean-up wasn't going to be too bad. Overall, it was a good night!

She started scrolling through all the pictures she'd taken today: Lindsay and Katie tanning while Beth and Sadie drew designs on them out of sunscreen; Eva and DJ going head-to-head in an arm-wrestling competition; Izzy playing mermaids…well, by herself…while Owen was somehow drowning in the lake, only being 4 feet in; Courtney and Gwen cheering over their win while Justin and Duncan pouted like sore losers.

It brought Bridgette immense comfort to see all her friends, the people she cared about most, together and enjoying their fun. They wouldn't be teens forever, so she always took a secret moment to herself to relish in their youth and how relatively simple things were. 

"Alright, I'm out," Heather sighed as she walked up to Bridgette.

"Already?!"

"Is 5 hours not enough for you? I mean, then again, it is me, so I understand that I'll be very missed," she feigned concern.

"I was kind of thinking that you'd want to sleepover at my house tonight? We could make it a girls' night!" Bridgette dealt her the best puppy eyes she could possibly muster. And of course, contrary to popular belief, Heather wasn't made of stone, and the slightest hint of hesitation washed over her expression.

But instead of giving in, she sighed, "I couldn't even if I wanted to, Daniel starts school tomorrow and my parents are making me take him." 

Heather could only shrug, as Gwen and Courtney walked up to them.

"Wow, school actually starts on a Monday for him? Not a random Wednesday?" Gwen said incredulously, crossing her arms.

"Yep, it's crazy."

"Well please tell me that you guys can sleep over!" Bridgette pleaded, turning to her last two hopes of salvaging the night.

Gwen lets out an indifferent sigh, "Oh, what the hell. I'm game."

Now the blonde turned her attention to Courtney, who she knew would be the harder one to convince.

Under the scrutiny of three pairs of eyes on her, the brunette defensively clutched at her elbows: "I'd have to ask Josie."

"Josie?" Heather cocked a quizzical brow.

"Courtney's super cool older sister, who could not care less if you sleep over!" Bridgette clapped her hands together in hopes of swaying said girl, "Please, please, please, can you come!"

Heather squinted her eyes, "Hey, you didn't put this much effort in trying to get me to come."

"Pfft, that's because…" And Gwen trailed off before she could finish her snarky sentence, mainly due to Bridgette's deadpan look.

"Because! You have a valid excuse to miss out," Bridgette explained, putting a sympathetic hand on Heather's shoulder before she turned back to the brunette, "Come on, Court! We can even stop by your house if you wanna grab something."

There was another pause, as she mulled over her options. But Bridgette already knew she'd give in. Try as she may to make the rational choice, Courtney could never truly deny a fun opportunity when it presented itself. Especially if Bridgette had anything to say about it.

"Okay, okay, fine! I'm in!" She sighed, putting her hands up in defeat.

"YAY! Tonight is going to be so fun!" Bridgette squealed, swinging an arm around Gwen's shoulder, who only smiled in response.

Heather blew a strand of hair out of her face, "Nice to know how much I'm missing out."

Bridgette gave her a big hug goodbye, "Hey! It's an open invitation, if you ever decide to leave Daniel to fend for himself—not that I'm recommending that at all!"

"I'll consider it. Bye, Bridge." She said, hugging her back.

Then she turned to Gwen, and both girls just awkwardly waved, not quite knowing what to say other than the usual "Bye, Gwen" and "Bye, Heather".

"It was nice to meet you, Heather." Courtney nodded at her as she started making her way out.

"Yeah, same. We should talk more." Heather nodded at her as she reached for her car keys in her mini purse.

"Hey, wait a minute, aren't you driving Duncan home?!" Bridgette shouted at her as she started walking off.

Heather took a slight pause to her stride, before turning around and yelling in the general direction of the party, "DUNCAN! IF YOU'RE NOT IN MY CAR IN THE NEXT 5 MINUTES, I'M LEAVING YOU BEHIND!!"

Then, without another thought, she walked out the garage and went on her merry way out. Bridgette laughed and shook her head, Oh, Heather.

Duncan, summoned by her yelling, walked up to the three of them, pulling the hood of his sweater over his head. "Guess that means I'm heading out, too," he shrugged nonchalantly.

"Bye, Duncan!!" And Bridgette went in for another one of her signature bear hugs—Bridgette was probably the only person Duncan let hug him like that.

"I'll see you guys soon, we gotta hang out before school," he said, giving Gwen a fist bump, a signature trademark of their farewells.

"Hey, don't think I forgot. You owe me," Gwen smirked, and he shook his head laughing. Bridgette and Courtney exchanged a glance of uncertainty, both having no clue as to what was happening between them.

Bridgette noticed an awkward moment of hesitation as Duncan stood before Courtney, neither of them quite knowing what to do, when just as Duncan raised his arms to pull her in for a hug, she extended her hand for a…handshake?

Gwen chortled at the sight, "Oh, there's no way." 

"I thought you were going in for a handshake!" Courtney defended, clearly frazzled by the miscommunication.

"Maybe if this was a job interview or some shit," Duncan chuckled, the corner of his eyes crinkling from his smiley expression, while Courtney was obviously pursing her lips to bite back a smile as she looked up at him.

They stood like that for a surprising amount of time, and Bridgette squinted her eyes at them, but when she turned to see if Gwen had picked up on anything, the girl could not seem less interested as she scrolled through something on her phone.

Hmm.

"Heather's gonna leave without you, you know?" Courtney broke the silence.

"Right, then," he put out an open hand for her to shake, and she couldn't keep herself from laughing at his earnestness, "Bye, Princess."

She sighed, shaking his hand, "Bye, Duncan."

He turned to salute at Bridgette and Gwen, "Malibu, Pasty."

As he walked off, it didn't escape Bridgette that Courtney's gaze stuck to his figure until it went out of sight.

But before Bridgette could comment on it, Gwen spoke out, stretching her arms in the air, "Alright, so should we head out, too?"

"Yes!" Bridgette exclaimed, "but first, I wanna help Geoff clean up a bit. You guys can wait in the car!"

"Are you sure? We can help clean, too," Courtney assured her.

"We can?" Gwen asked, yawning.

"No, don't sweat it! I'll be fast, and I mainly wanna say goodbye to him."

"Say less," Gwen was already turning to walk to Courtney's car, lifting a single hand to wave behind her, "Tell Geoff I said bye."

Courtney shortly followed, calling out to her, "Let us know if there's more to clean than you thought!"

"Thanks!" She shouted back, practically jumping as she did so, in hopes of projecting her voice louder, "Also, I call shotgun! AND AUX!!!"

Gwen nudged Courtney with her elbow, "Get ready to listen to endless Taylor Swift."

"Let me guess, Lover album?"

"With some Reputation and Fearless sprinkled in."

"And 1989!"

"I guess you could say we know her…All Too Well."

"Taylor's-Version-ten-minute-version-from-the-vault?"

Gwen chuckled as she linked her arms with Courtney, "Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

— ❈ —

They were now in their third—yes, third—hour of Just Dance, and the only reason they'd taken a pause was because Bridgette needed a bathroom break. Gwen swore that girl had the stamina of a strung-out bunny.

Gwen took a long chug of her water bottle before belly-flopping onto Bridgette's bed, where Courtney was already laying on her back, absentmindedly playing with something in her hand.

Upon closer inspection, Gwen realized that it was a lighter. She furrowed her brows at the brunette, "Wait a minute—you smoke?!"

She was then seemingly pulled out of her thoughts, and offered Gwen a polite smile, "Trying not to, actually. It's a stupid habit to have—those die hard, I guess."

And then Courtney sort of smiled to herself, though at what, Gwen had no clue. Instead of trying to figure it out, she merely shrugged: "Everyone's allowed one of those, though I never pegged you for the type."

"Trust me, I’m not. It just finds its way back to me whenever I’m stressed or anxious…which happens more often than I can confidently admit."

"Hey, no judgment from me. I smoke too, mainly weed." This brought back the memory of Gwen’s last time smoking weed with Duncan, and how they both went insane at the local grocery, overwhelmed by a fit of munchies.

She almost laughs out loud again at the thought of Duncan sitting in the grocery cart, demanding that Gwen speed him through each and every aisle like some 4-year-old on a sugar high.

But she’s pulled out of memory lane by Courtney’s hesitant voice: "Hey, do you think something that's bad for you can also do you a little good?"

Gwen’s gaze started to focus a little more on the lighter that Courtney kept turning and playing with in her hand. It was like she was constantly analyzing the object, looking for something new in each of its surfaces. "Um, I don’t know, I guess so? I mean, if you're talking about smoking, it definitely does you more harm in the long run than—"

Courtney flips onto her side now, to level her face with Gwen’s. "No, I just mean in general. Like, by and large, the things and people you're cautioned against and supposed to stay away from, don't you think there's still something to be learned from them? Some value in experiencing them?"

"It sounds to me like you've already answered your own question."

"Answers, it seems, are the only things I'm without these days."

"For your sake, I hope you find them here, in Wawanakwa. A soul can only be so tortured until they become insufferable to themselves—trust me, I know."

Courtney laughs, "That sounds like the plotline of a really pretentious, indie, coming-of-age film…but I hope so, too. Anyways, don't bother with my ramblings, it's just dumb stuff that keeps me up when I can't sleep. Call them champagne problems."

Gwen smirked at the subtle reference, "Hey, you're talking to the queen of insomnia, these eyebags aren't just for the aesthetic." Yet another biological marker that penned Gwen into the goth girl label. She never really stood a chance otherwise, did she?

"It's nice talking to you, I see why Bridgette likes you so much," Courtney takes a moment to look away from the lighter and now puts her full attention on Gwen. She finds it a little intimidating at first, but Gwen also found comfort in how easy it was to talk to her.

She sighed, "Yeah, I wanted to hate you when we first met, but that's gonna be very hard to do now that I’ve actually talked to you."

Courtney's eyes widened, "What?! Why did you want to hate me??"

"No, don’t take it personal. It's my general policy on people: everyone's an asshole until proven otherwise. Sounds cynical, but trust me, it saves you loads of time that would be otherwise spent on fake small talk. Maybe I'd be able to stand it more if I had some talent for it, but…." and she let her sentence trail off with a shrug.

"Wow…I guess that's..productive? How's that worked out for you so far?"

"Well, I have friends I actually like—which you'd be surprised to see how rare that is here in Wawanakwa. That small-town hospitality only goes so far."

"Okay Bridgette and Geoff, I obviously understand. Heather…?"

"Is more of a frenemy," Gwen pressed her lips together, finding difficulty in labeling her relationship with Heather. 

"Yikes."

"Eh, I'm used to it. It's pretty interesting to see her every day, not knowing whether she's going to be a decent human being or literal bitch to me; honestly, it adds a nice variety to my daily, otherwise mundane, routine."

Courtney chuckles at her cynicism, "Amen to that. I guess my read on her wasn't too far off." She takes a pause, almost unsure as to whether she wants to continue, "And then, Duncan?"

Gwen prays that her cheeks haven't blushed, "He's, um, he's cool." She briefly turns her head to check the doorway to see if Bridgette's back yet, but mainly to hide her flushed expression.

"Oh, I'm sure he thinks that of himself," the brunette scoffed.

"He can seem like kind of an egotistical dick at first, but he's not actually that bad."

"See, now that's a line straight out of some high school rom-com," she pointed out.

"No I promise it's true! You just gotta get to know him better," Gwen played with one of the low-hanging strands of hair in her face.

"I suppose," Courtney hummed in thought.

Gwen pauses for a moment, deciding whether or not to ask, "Do you?"

"Do I…?"

"Want to get to know him better, I mean."

"Um…" She flips onto her back again, holding the lighter in the air so that the overhead lighting shines favorably on an etching Gwen knew all too well.

What the fuck. Thoughts raced in Gwen's mind as she tried to piece together what was happening…somehow, Courtney had Duncan's lighter, arguably one of his most prized possessions. Not that he'd ever explained to Gwen why he was so attached to it—sure, it was a nice lighter, of solid material, with a beautiful custom etching: "Take a walk on the Wild(er) side."

Either Duncan gave it to her, or she stole it from him, neither of which made any sense to Gwen. They'd quite literally just met. What. The. Fuck.

Courtney, absolutely oblivious to the discourse in Gwen's mind, sighed as she thought of how to respond, "I'm not sure yet. I haven't quite made my mind up about him."

And then, she saw it. Gwen saw it—a moment so brief and fleeting that it might've totally passed over anyone else's head. But Gwen, being Gwen, saw in Courtney what she'd been seeing in herself the past year, since the very first day her mom moved her to Wawanakwa Falls and forced her to take her little brother to the park, where she met Duncan for the first time.

That subtle tinge of pink that filled Courtney's face at the sound of Gwen's question, and the way she coyly trailed her finger across the lighter's engraved writing, wrapping it safely in her palms—that was enough for Gwen to see what she'd been denying in herself all along.

Vulnerability, feelings, interest…with, for, and in, Duncan.

And Gwen had never in her life felt more stupid, when suddenly, Bridgette barged in from the hallway and assumed the posing and persona of a famous, guitar-playing rockstar.

"WHO'S. READY. TO. ROCK?!?!"

—୨୧—

Whew. Finally got through chapter one, and I'm so happy to get it done.

Are there any other Fiona Apple fans?? I hope you guys appreciate the Paper Bag reference because that's been my most listened to song on Spotify for the last 2 years.

As always, comment out your thoughts and opinions on all the characters so far because I'd love to hear them! My current favorite character to write is Gwen—she's very jaded, but really relatable at times, at least to me. She's just a girl lol.

My writing schedule is all over the place at the moment, like most everything else in my life. But! I do have a general storyline for how I want this story to go, that's partially why it took so long for me to write this. I wanted to nail all the introductory scenes so they align with the general story arc. All that to say, hopefully writing chapter 2 won't take me too long, (it definitely will) but I hope the chapter lengths somehow compensates for how slow I am at writing. I just really want to emphasize that, no matter HOW LONG it takes me, I WILL BE CONTINUING THIS FANFICTION! Okay? Okay.

Anyways, go listen to Paper Bag in the meantime if you haven't already, or even if you have, this is your excuse to listen again!

See you next time <3

a. yasmine

[justagalwhowrites]

Have the best time at the ren faire bestie!!!! Would you have any head canons for how your Joels / OCs would experience a ren faire in their universes 👀 I could totally see them setting up a little faire in Jackson omg

Thank you so much, Bestie!! I'm excited for it! Not excited to get up at 6 a.m. to go to beat the traffic to pick up our season passes but excited for the rest of it lol

Because it's me and I love story and I know Texas ren faires (I used to work at Scarborough for those in DFW!), Joel lived close to the largest ren faire in the world, the Texas Renaissance Festival! It's a fall faire just outside Houston, and I'm assuming that's where he'd go. MAYBE Sherwood? But probably TRF so that's where I'm going to be sending the pre-outbreak and no-outbreak Joels :)

Here are my Ren Faire HCs!

Lavender: Joel and Doc definitely took Sarah to TRF at least once. Sarah and Doc got matching flower garlands and the knight gave Sarah the token at the joust. Everyone got their own turkey leg even though Joel was very skeptical that Sarah could eat one by herself. Joel ends up eating all of his and half of Sarah's because she can't finish. Sarah falls asleep on the drive home and Joel keeps looking over at Doc with the flowers in her hair and a little smile on her face while her fingers are laced with his in the glow of the streetlights. When he carries Sarah inside and tucks her into bed, Doc calls him her knight in shining armor and she has to stifle a laugh when he damn near tackles her before taking her to bed.

Yearling: Savvy finds a book that talks about renaissance faires and she asks Ellie about them. "Fuck if I know, dude" is all Ellie has to say. So they take the question to Joel and Bambi. Joel's like "Took Sarah to one of those once... kinda weird but she loved it." Bambi gets a good laugh out of it and says "Yeah, there was one of these not too far from me when I was a kid. I went with some friends in high school once, almost got kicked out for drinking too much. They wouldn't let me try jousting though..." Savvy gets a little hung up on the idea in that way teenaged girls sometimes do so Joel organizes a little Jackson renaissance faire. The more theatrical kids put on a show, Julia makes flower crowns with the girls, he convinces Bambi to play some period-appropriate music with him. Jousting isn't really possible because without the armor you're just going to get hurt but Olivia helps coordinate some contests for the best riders in town (minus Bambi because that's just unfair.) Everyone has a great time. It becomes an annual thing.

New in Town: Beautiful has never been to a ren faire. "You're shittin' me," Joel just looks at her. "Not ever?" "Nope," she says. "Kind of thought they were a kid thing. Aren't they a kid thing?" He smiles a little. "There's kid stuff but... trust me, every time I brought Sarah there, the grown ups were having more fun than the kids." So they go to TRF and Joel insists on getting Beautiful a corset and then kind of regrets it because holy shit now he has to look at her looking like that without anywhere to sneak off and fuck her. They go to the rowdiest shows and when she gets tipsy, she whispers in his ear "You sure there's nowhere around here you can fuck me?" Joel immediately gets on his phone and books the nearest open hotel room. They fuck like crazy and decide to go back to the faire the next morning and see the rest of it.

Halcyon: Joel and Goldie definitely went to TRF when they were teenagers. She would have dragged him and he would have had even more fun than her. She'd think it was because of the corsets. It's really because he could see how happy she was and dammit, it's hard to get better than that for Joel. So they decide to take Sarah for old time's sake. Sarah and Goldie wear peasant skirts and shirts and at faire Sarah gets a cloak that she PROMISES to wear for part of her Halloween costume that year and Joel catches Goldie eyeballing a particularly beautiful corset. He convinces her to try it on. "C'mon, live a little woman." So she does and she looks so good in it he forgets how to speak for a moment and she says "Sorry, I know, it's dumb..." "No!" He almost yells it before he clears his throat. "No, it's... really not dumb, Goldie Girl. Looks really nice on you, you should get it." He tries not to stare at her all day in it but he definitely fails. She asks him for help getting out of the corset when they go back to the car later and his hands shake a little as he unlaces her.

The Savage and the Sanctuary: Ellie hears about the festival from a classmate and begs to go. "There are swords, Sissy. SWORDS." And Joel tries not to groan and Reader just smiles, realizing this is just another way to annoy him. "Well, you heard her. There are swords." So they go. Ellie is obsessed with the weaponry. Reader lets her pick out a sword to take home. Joel's head is on a swivel the whole time but Reader's baseball cap and sunglasses disguise have actually helped her fly under the radar here. So many people are looking at the elaborate garb on other patrons that she's largely ignored. She does get one or two "Has anyone ever told you that you look just like..." and she cuts them off with a laugh and goes "Yeah, I get that a lot. Not sure why, she's WAY prettier." Joel tries to not like how happy Ellie and Reader look because that would mean he cares and he shouldn't care. Fuck caring. The traffic to get out of the parking lot at the end of the day looks miserable so Reader lets Joel drive. He hates that she still wins because of it.

I hope you enjoyed this little adventure into fic land Ren Faire! This was so fun to think about, thank you for asking!!

[bokoutoe-retired]

#93 “people like me aren’t supposed to have someone like you”

characters; bakugou katsuki

synopsis; after overhearing a girls night conversation bakugou questions your relationship and a fight ensues.

total word count; 1398

warnings; some swearing, and a lil bit of angst with a fluffy ending

「a/n」 big thank you to @thisisgreatg for being my first dialogue propmt request 🥺 this turned out to be a lot longer than i thought it would be because i just kinda started word spewing. but after i went back and edited i think it turned out pretty good!! also i’ll put in a ‘keep reading’ once i’m back at my computer!

it’s widely known and all around accepted that every other saturday night is girls night in the heights alliance dorms. all the girls of 1-A gather in the common room to gossip, snack, and unwind after a long week packed full of hero course work. the seven of you throw yourselves across the two green couches and spare chairs. the coffee table stands in the center with a few snacks littered on top. the bigger of the two couches contains you, laid across the length of it with your head resting in minas lap. ochako sits curled up just past your feet, munching on a bag of chips.

“i guess mr. aizawa did say the test was going to be one of the hardest this year, but i still didn't expect todoroki to get one of the lowest grades!” momo is on the floor, leaned back between jirous legs, as she helps her brush out her freshly washed hair.

“but still, you and bakugou did really good as usual.” tsu nods at momo, leaning over from her place on one of the cushioned chairs to grab a leftover cookie.

“speaking of, y/n don’t you think bakugou is a little mean to you even though you're, you know, dating?” ochako stuffs a few more chips in her mouth as she looks over at you.

“i don’t think i’ve even seen him hold your hand,” jirou agrees without looking up from momo’s hair.

“y/n has he ever held your hand? or even ever given you a hug?!” mina seems to find the possibility that bakugou deprives you of affection quite absurd as she looks down at you, completely baffled.

“I haven’t really thought about it too much, but it’s not really that big of a deal…” you shrug up at mina and she continues to play with your hair, twirling a few strands around her fingers.

“it’s like you and him aren’t even dating if he treats you like that!” tooru says quite loudly. the long sleeves of her pajama shirt raise into the air and you assume she has her arms throw up in exasperation.

“well i wouldn't say-” you start.

“how are you supposed to be in a functioning relationship if he doesn’t even act like he likes you!?” toorus sleeves continue to flail around as she interrupts you.

“well i don’t really know, sometimes i do wish he was a little more affectionate, but that's just.. how he is, i guess.” you’re not really too sure what to say as you’ve never really put too much thought into it or even noticed.

“if that's how you feel y/n, i guess! but personally i’d want my partner to be…” minas words go in one ear and out the other, along with the rest of the conversations that night. the girls continue to talk grades and crushes, but you’re far too concerned with the previous conversation to be completely involved.

by the time the night is over, everythings cleaned up and you’re walking back to your dorm you’re left wondering, is there something wrong with your relationship?

~

normally, bakugou would be fast asleep by now, it’s well past 8:30pm. he tried to go back to sleep but after tossing and turning for nearly twenty minutes, he gave in. sleep was too far out of reach, but maybe a warm glass of water would help him settle back in for the night. bakugou was fully aware that tonight was ‘girls night’, but who were some shitty extras to tell him he couldn't get water. it’s his damn dorm building too! plus he’d be in and out. nobody would notice, so no harm no foul right? wrong. now he sits in his room almost a whole half an hour later, awake and replaying your conversation with the girls in his head.

he was walking back from the kitchen, glass of water in hand, and passed the common room at just the right moment. when he had walked by the first time, he had paid no mind to the topic of conversation being something about someone's muscles, nothing of interest to him. but hearing his name certainly was of interest. he stood in the hall, just out of sight line and listened as the girls (mostly mina and tooru) badger you with assumptions about your relationship with him. it left him thinking, did you think he wasn’t enough? did you want more for him? were you unhappy?

~

the next day was completely normal, most of your overthinking had ceased and you spent your sunday studying with bakugou in your room.

monday came and went for the most part, class had been long and tiring but you were excited to head back home. bakugou walked you from the main building back to heights alliance all the time and nothing was out of the ordinary until you felt a warm calloused hand slip into yours and grip just a little too tightly.

“what are you doing?” your head shoots over to look at him, you’re shocked to say the least.

“what does it look like i’m doing, idiot?” his head is turned away from you and he’s looking up but you can still see his furrowed brows and the cringe on his face.

“well, you just look really uncomfortable, and i don’t want you to-”

“make up your mind woman!” the warmth of his hand is replaced with empty air as he roughly rips his hand from yours, looking down at you angrily.

“katsuki, what are you talking about!” you stop walking and turn to face him.

“i said make up your mind! do you want me to touch you or do you not!” he flings his arms out in exasperation.

“of course i do! i’m dating you! but i’m not going to force you to!”

“if i can’t give you what you want, why are you even with me? people like me aren’t supposed to have someone like you!” it breaks your heart to hear him sound so broken and dejected. ”i heard you talking with your shitty friends about how you want me to be more affectionate”

“did you not hear me, stupid? i’m not going to force you to katsuki!” you feel yourself soften as you think of how guilty he must be feeling. “yes, it would be nice but if you’re not comfortable with it thats okay, it isn’t just about what i want”

“i just! i just don’t know how…” he trails off and averts his gaze from your face to the ground, his tense shoulders slump. you sigh, walk up to him, rest your hand on his arm, and guide him to start walking again.

“that’s okay, you don’t have to know. we can start off small, however you want, but we’ll work on it together if that's what you want?” your hand falls from his arm. you want to make sure he has his space until he’s ready.

“fine, but only because i want to!” he keeps walking, but he looks like he has more to say. “and because i love you and i want to try for you…” he mumbles, and you barely catch it but thank god you do. his words make your heart soar.

“i love you too, but you know you we’re doing a pretty good earlier, until you started yelling at me” you playful nudge him in the ribs with your elbow.

“tch, shut up woman.” he huffs out. you think that’s the end of it until you feel his knuckles brush yours, and then the weight of his fingers lacing with yours. you look up at him again but this time, instead of looking uncomfortable he has a faint blush dusting his cheeks. and maybe, just maybe the smallest hint of a smile gracing his lips.

[uhhlucid]

pairing: hinata x cheerleader!reader

synopsis: y/n wants to support her boyfriend at his volleyball match

word count: 676

warnings: none but it does involve like three ocs cus i needed a cheer squad lol

type: drabble

a/n: i was watching a video essay on the mean girls musicial. also the volleyball match did NOT happen in the show, mainly bc i don't remember the matches much. also dw there's gonna be a pt. 2

Sunada Fumika took a seat next to Y/n. Her brown ponytail swung as she walked. It had been a few days since the basketball game and she was growing quite bored. "Y/n, since we're co-captains we need to find a game the girls can cheer at on Sunday. We need the practice before competition."

Y/n sighed. She'd been struggling with that. The first competition of the year would be in two weeks, and without practice the squad was screwed. "I'll ask my boyfriend if we can cheer at his game. I don't know if they have cheerleaders for volleyball, though."

"Anything you can do would be great. I'll let the girls know to meet at the track field after school." Y/n nodded and watched Sunada go back inside. Just as she left Y/n's boyfriend, Hinata Shoyo, took her seat. He greeted her with a hug.

"Hey why the long face?" "We just need a place to cheer before the competition. Could we maybe go to your Sunday game?" Hinata furrowed his brow. "I'll ask Daichi. I'm 110% sure he'll let you. I would love if you cheered for me at games."

Y/n found his enthusiasm amusing. "You go do that then. Since lunch is almost over I have to head to class." Hinata quickly jumped up. "Let me carry your books for you." He grabbed her books before she could even stand up.

Having memorized her schedule already, he opened the sliding door and set the books right on her desk. Y/n gave him a kiss on the cheek as a thank you. Chikae Rio poked Y/n as soon as she sat down.

Despite her being the shortest on the team, she was extremely strong. "You two are just so cute. When's the wedding?" "Chikae what about your sex friend?" She quickly covered Y/n's mouth, "Shh he still has a girlfriend so nothing's official. Did you find someone?"

Y/n nodded and began taking out her materials for class. "We can cheer for the boys volleyball team. Sunada wants us to meet at the track field." "She totally wants to stare at the third year girls. It can't be helped, they are pretty hot."

Y/n rolled her eyes. "The two of you are hopeless." For the remainder of the day Y/n mostly took notes. As soon as she stepped out of her classroom, Hinata pulled her into a hug. "Hey I love you too, but what's going on?"

"Daichi said he'll try it out. He wants to see your team and some of the cheers." He was grinning from ear to ear. Y/n lifted up his hair and planted a kiss on his forehead. "Tell Daichi we usually meet at the track field."

Hinata nodded. The two of them went their separate ways. Y/n slung her bag over her shoulder and headed for the track field. The building for sports clubs was packed seeing as school just got out. The stairway was so crowded that Y/n was glad their room was on ground level.

A few of the girls had already arrived and were busy gossiping and changing. Y/n quickly unlocked her lock and hung up her bag. She made a mental note to take home her uniform and practice clothes today to wash. She changed into a black t-shirt and orange shorts before lacing up her gym shoes.

Sunada was already waiting for the girls at the track field. Daichi was standing alongside her, so Y/n took her place on Sunada's left. As the girls were stretching, Daichi began speaking. "The team would be more than happy to have you cheer us on. So for the rest of this week, you'll be practicing in our gym.

Sunada looked at Y/n and smiled. Y/n was glad they wouldn't have to practice outside. The basketball team only let them use the gym three days out the week, so this would be a nice upgrade from their old cheer room.

[thinking-about-sw33ts]

αѕ ρяσмιѕє∂ нєяє ιѕ σиє σf тнє fαиfι¢ѕ!! ι ωιℓℓ ρσѕт тнє σтнєя σиє αѕ ωєℓℓ, ѕσ ∂σи'т ωσяяу! αи∂ αѕ αℓωαуѕ ιf тнєяє αяє αиу ѕρєℓℓιиg мιѕтαкє(ѕ)/єяяσя(ѕ), ρℓєαѕє тєℓℓ мє αи∂ ι ωιℓℓ fιχ ιт тнє ѕαмє gσєѕ fσя тнє тяαиѕℓαтισи(ѕ)!! αи∂ мαувє fσя α fєω σf тнє ∂єfιиιтισи(ѕ)! αgαιи, αℓℓ σf тнєѕє ωιℓℓ вє σи ωαттα∂ тσσ!

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

⭐️Corsets⭐️

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

Anime:

🗝Nanbaka🗝

Supporting ship(s):

🎥Tsukumo🎥 X 💢Honey💢

Type:

🌸Fluff🌸

🌶Spicy🌶

AU(Alternative Universe):

🗝Normal🗝

Love interest for Reader:

🛠Trois🛠

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

🚻(Y/N)’s P.O.V🚻(Point of View):

“For the last game! Is of course, the sake barrel tournament!” Mitsuru claimed, while floating over the roaring audience. After explaining what the objective was, the game soon began.

Samon immediately charged after Kiji, while Honey and Trois quickly ran towards the large wooden barrel, with cell 8 on their tail.

I feel myself getting worried, knowing that Trois and Honey weren’t really much of a fighter. So cell 8 beating them wouldn't really be much of a surprise.

“Quit it Monkey! Don’t you dare ruin my makeup! Do you know how much time I spent on this!” Kiji cried out, using his dual weapons to dodge Samon’s swinging staff.

“Shut up, Pheasant!” Samon shouted, trying to at least hit one of the pressure spots on Kiji’s body.

Suddenly Trois grabs Honey’s leg before swinging him around, and tossing him towards the wooden sake barrel, Honey landing perfectly in the middle, breaking the wooden seal over the wooden sake barrel, before falling in, and getting soaked by the sake.

The audience being completely silent, clearly shocked by what Trois had done, before roaring out cheers of excitement.

“And there ya have it folks! Seems like Building 3 finally won the new year's tournament, for once!” Mitsuru announced over the mic, clearly pumped up.

Suddenly Kiji brings one of his hands, and places it on his hip, striking a victorious pose. “Hmp, and that’s what you all get for doubting me.” Kiji purred out, his confidence showing.

Honey soon rises from the wooden sake barrel about to shout at Trois for what he just did, before trying to process everything that had happened staring back at the said frenchie.

Once he realizes what had happened he gets out of the barrel before cheering himself. Trois on the other hand stares at me, before flashing a charming, but gentle smile.

I felt my cheeks getting warm, before smiling back. Giving him a thumbs up. “Aren’t you going to give him a victory kiss, inmate 6?” Ahato asked, giving me a closed-eyed smile.

“I suppose so.” I replied, leaning against the red railings, desperately trying to calm down my raging blush. Soon enough Cell 6 returned back to their seats. Each boy being seated on my side.

“I, Ahato, is always and very impressed with what you do! You did great, Kiji Onee-sama! We’ll finally get a raise!~” Ahato fanboyed, high-fiving Kiji with both of his arms.

“Aren’t you forgetting something, Mon Amour~” Trois asked, tapping his cheek with his pointer finger. I rolled my (E/C) coloured eyes at him, before giving in, and giving him a victory kiss on his cheek.

While Honey sat on the other side of me, completely ignoring the both of us. The warden soon started her speech congratulating the winning building.

During said speech I had managed to nudge Honey’s arm using my elbow, catching his attention. I pointed to a different building, building 13.

While pointing to the said different building, I was also directly pointing at a certain pink haired shinobi. This action made Honey blush, turning his gaze away from me, and staring at the shinobi.

‘He totally has the hots for him.’ I thought to myself smugly, while smirking. From the corner of my eye, I saw the said shinobi waving at Honey, which Honey waved back. A little smile grazing his face.

‘I didn’t know he could make that face.’ I thought to myself, finally ignoring the two of them, and focusing on the speech.

Soon enough, the speech was over, and the feast took place! After the feast we got escorted back to our cell. “Goodnight you three!~” Kiji announced, doing his final rounds before going home.

Suddenly Honey raises himself using his elbows. Trois doing the same shortly after. While I just turned at them, laying down, too lazy to sit up.

“This year was nice.” Trois commented, smiling softly. “Another year, where I get to see your hideous face, once again, Trois.” Honey teased, a smirk planted on his face. Trois ignored his comment, paying attention to me.

“What did you two want, exactly?” I asked, my curiosity getting the best of me. “A lingerie viewing exhibit~” Both of them purred out, clearly excited. A little blush could be seen on their cheeks. While their eyes sparkled.

I just shivered, not knowing why they’re so fascinated with women’s underwear. “Lights out!” Ahato announced, before shortly shutting off the lights after. “What about you, (Y/N)?” Trois asked, while Honey didn’t say anything. Although, clearly listening in.

“A phone that stores all genres of Manga, Manhua, Manhwas, and Anime!” I announced, excited. My (E/C) eyes sparkling. “That sounds nice.” Trois commented, a small smile grazing his features.

Soon enough Honey slowly went to sleep, snuggling deeper inside his dark purple futon, the both of us following shortly after. Trois slowly gets up from his mint green futon, and slips in my (Y/F/C) futon.

Trois held me protectively, yet softly, his legs tangled with mine. He raises a few of my (H/C) coloured hair out of my forehead, before planting a soft kiss. Giving my lips a small peck as well. I placed my hand on his cheek, caressing it. He softly grabs my wrist, before planting another kiss directly on it.

Giving me yet another gentle loving smile. Me, softly smiling back.

“Ugh, get a room.” Honey groaned out, annoyed. “Says the one who has a crush on that ninja from building 13.” I replied, annoyed as well, clearly just trying to enjoy peace, and quiet with my lover.

“What!?”

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

🚻(Y/N)’s P.O.V🚻(Point of View):

The next day soon came, as well as our prizes. After eating breakfast in the cafeteria. Feeling absolute euphoria eating (Y/F/F), my favorite!~

While Trois ate some Cream stew, and Honey a clam chowder. We quickly got escorted to Kazari’s lab by Kiji. “Oh, hello there number 6. Just wait here, while I grab your prize.” Kazari explained, hurrying to go get the prize from another room.

I sat on a chair, patiently waiting for Kazari to come back. Soon after she comes back with a (Y/F/C) coloured phone, which she hands to me.

“It has all the latest Mangas and Animes, along with some of the oldest ones, and ones in between.” Kazari added, petting my head.

“Thank you so much Kazari!~” I cheered, quickly opening the phone. Hopping on a Manga I’ve always wanted to read. Soon enough we got to the boy’s prize.

Trois inviting Uno, thinking he might want to see it as well, much to Honey’s dismay. Kiji soon comes back, fetching us, before taking us to another separate room. The boys quickly head inside, clearly excited.

“Oh my~” Both boys mutter out, surprised. Once they settle down from their excitement, they scatter looking at the different lingeries, bras, and panties.

“Oh my god! This is pure heaven!~” Honey cheered, looking at the different selections of panties. “They even have white lace~” He mutters out, reading the sign on the bottom. His emerald eyes sparkling with endearment.

Uno soon joins in, entering through the door, before looking at a certain baby blue lingerie two piece set. His ocean coloured eyes sparkling with excitement.

I just stare at the unnecessary commotion their making, my (E/C) orbs judging them ever so slightly. As much as I loved my perverted boyfriend, Trois, sometimes his pervertedness can get out of hand.

I quickly go back to reading (F/M) on my(Y/F/C) phone, ignoring them, and leaning against the wall. That focus slowly breaking from the commotion the boys were making.

I walk around, looking at the different things as well. Before stumbling on a plain (Y/F/C) corset vest. ‘I have been wanting to try a corset for the last few days.’ I wondered to myself, not knowing that I was actually muttering it out. All of a sudden I felt someone hugging me from behind, making me jump, since I was surprised.

I looked behind me only to instantly calm down, seeing that it was only Trois. He places a few strands of my (H/L) (H/C) behind my ear, before trailing a few light, fluttery kisses down my neck. I chuckle, the sensation making me feel slightly ticklish. Making me blush lightly.

“Did that one catch your eye, mon chéri~” Trois asks, his deep rose coloured eyes showing nothing but mischief. “And what if I say yes?” I asked him back, wondering what he had stored.

“Ugh! I told you before, get a fucking room!”

“Damn pretty boy!”

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

✨Timeskip✨

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

🚻(Y/N)’s P.O.V🚻(Point of View):

“Apparently Honey was allowed to stay at cell 11, building 13 for the night.” Trois explained, using his towel to dry his hair, before brushing it. I nod, to show that I was listening.

“Lights out!” Kiji announces, before doing another round. Soon after the lights shut off, covering us in total darkness. The only light coming from the moon in the starry sky.

“I got you a little of something (Y/N).”

“And what might that be?”

I sat up from my (Y/F/C) futon, curious for what he got me. He quickly goes towards one of the white fancy wardrobes, pulling on one of the bottom drawers, before fetching a medium sized (Y/F/C) wrapped box.

He hands me the box, excited for me to open it. Once I opened it, I realized that it was the corset vest I took a liking to. “How did you even get this?” I asked him, generally surprised, before excitement took place.

He ignored my question, quickly pecking my lips. “You’re too cute for your own good, Mon Amour.” Trois purred out, taking my hand, and kissing it.

“Such a gentleman~” I praised him, feeding his ever growing ego. “Do you mind if you put it on me?” I ask him, turning away in order to hide my red face. “Whatever you need sweetheart~”

Trois sits beside me, before grabbing my wrist, which makes me fall directly on his lap, facing him. He quickly fetches the corset, placing it on me.

I hook the pieces on the front. I feel Trois’ hands on each side of my hips, guiding them up and down, before getting the two strings from the back of the corset, wrapping it around his hands, and pulling.

I slightly jumped, getting startled, before relaxing once again. Once he had completely pulled them he quickly tied them. “You look like an absolute God/Goddess in that (Y/N).” Trois whispers into my ear, before placing his head on my shoulder, cuddling me.

He soon raises his head, capturing my lips against his. Our tongues moved smoothly against each other. We quickly pulled apart, since the need for air was growing stronger. A string of saliva connecting to each other’s lips.

We both panted, clearly out of breath. He headed over to my neck, covering it with noticeable hickeys, and love bites. Before I could moan, I covered my mouth with my hand, so that I wouldn’t make any embarrassing noises.

“People can see them.” I panted out, blush covering my cheeks, from what had earlier happened. “Good~ People can see that you're mine.” Trois replied, smirking to himself.

“Oh my God! Trois what are you doing!” Kiji shrieked out, shining his flashlight on us. “Wait, is that the corset from the exhibit?!” Honey questions, a mixture of surprise and disgust hinted in his voice. “Honey weren’t you supposed to be with your ninja boyfriend!” I questioned back, panicking.

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

Translation(s):

• Mon Amour = My Love.

• Mon Cherie = My Dear.

Definition(s):

• (Y/F/C) = Your Favorite Colour.

• (Y/N) = Your Name.

• (H/L) = Hair Length.

• (H/C) = Hair Colour.

• (F/M) = Favorite Manga/Manhua/Manhwa.

• (E/C) = Eye Colour.

• (Y/F/F) = Your Favorite Food.

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

[avungerthatgotaway]

It all started when...

A/N: hey guys!! i'm back with new oneshot. this one includes mentions of bullying too. i have a lot of ideas about bullied reader, prolly cuz i was bullied myself, and i kinda find inspiration of it now😂

Summary: Russo brothers "host a show" for avengers cast, and they see beginings of cast in MCU.

Warnings: my broken humor (this is a HUGE warning), mention of bullying but not angsty way

Set anytime between Age of ultron and Infinity war.

You were at the show Russo brothers "hosted". It was basically occasional game between avengers cast they would post on youtube, but oh well.

There were: Evans, Mackie, Sebastian, Tom Hiddleston, Scar, RDJ, Renner, Hemsworth and you. As only teen actress on the team, everyone wanted to sit next to you. This time, however, you were between Seb and Tom. Evans was next to Seb, while Renner and Hemsworth were still bickering about who will sit next to Tom.

There was also a huge monitor across from huge sofa you were on.

Joe and Antony were yet to tell you what's going on.

"Soooo" Joe started after introducing everyone to camera. "tonight we are going to go to the beginnings of the avengers cast. Specifically events between employing them, and telling the world about their roles."

All of you looked confused, so Anthony continiued.

"MCU has a certain policy, where we do not allow actors to immidiately talk about their roles. So to ensure this for the lead role actors, we hire some kind of, let's say private detectives. They basically film you in public places, for evidence if you break the contract."

Everyone was staring at them in shock. You were shocked, how did you never notice?

"So, tonight we are gonna see a few funny incidents. Of course none of you told anything, you wouldn't be here tonight if you did."

"So let's start. Chris, you had hard time hiding your role from your brother Scott, didn't you?"

and the madness began

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|||||||timeskip cuz why not|||||||

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You just finished watching a particulary funny video, where Sebastian had to tell him mum he didn't get the role. She was threatening to beat up Russo brothers with a broomstick, claiming that "MY SEBBY IS THE BEST ONE THEY WILL EVER GET!".

The laughter died down, and they moved on.

"Y/N." Joe began. Ah, it was your time. You couldn't wait to see what do they have in store for you.

"You are the youngest of the avengers cast. You were 1st year of high school when you got this role, correct?"

"Yes." you said with a smile.

"We know that only you and one more girl from your town auditioned, and both got roles. Her role wasn't big, crossing the street in Spider Man movie. But yours is one of the most important. How did your friends find out you were both accepted?"

"Well, you posted actors statistics. And you wrote there were 2 kids from (your/hometown). You said one was the lead role, and other was not. They knew it was only us 2 on auditions, so it was pretty obvious. I didn't tell anything tho." you said. It wasn't easy speaking about other girl, since she was your biggest bully. But you didn't want to talk about that, so you went on with the story.

"We know you didn't. The other girl was very hard to cope with, from what we saw." on this Tom Hiddleston, Seb and 2 Chrises turned their heads towards you, faces laced with concern. You didn't look at them, hoping video wouldn't show too much. You never told your castmates about bullying, thinking you'd annoy them or something.

"Let's watch it, then." your train of toughts was stopped when Anthony turned on the big screen again, video starting to play.

You were in school, sitting on a bench with your friends, who were bothering you to admit that you got the lead role in MCU.

"But I didn't! I told you. I'm just an extra, what is so hard to believe in that?" you answered for 100th time that day. You couldn't tell them the truth, out of fear of getting fired before anything even started.

"Oh, nothing except that (your/bullys/name) got the lead role then." your b/f/n retorted.

"Cmon, Y/N, you really want us to believe that? That they would choose mindless, dumb bully instead if you." other friend of yours asked.

"How would they know she is bullying me? Why would they care after all, that's of none importance out there. But maybe she is better actress? Or they just like her better? There's nothing wrong with that."

Your friends didn't even get to answer that when (your/bully's/name) walked by, bragging about her lead mcu role (she didn't get) to anyone who wanted to listen. And there were plenty of people who wanted to. She knew you couldn't say anything, so she lied to everyone, saying she got the lead role. You and your friends cought a little bit of her "filming adventures". (filming wasn't even started then)

"...and then after Sebby showed up in my trailer, he kissed me so passionately. You see my make up is smeared, right? It was him."

"But didn't you say you got home yesterday afternoon?" one girl questioned.

"Oh, but he was just so passionate, I couldn't take it off. He texted me this morning, saying he couldn't take my lipstick off either. Tomorrow I have a kissing scene with Tom Hiddleston to shoot. And oh my God, that Chris Evans was just starring at me the WHOLE time. I think he likes me..." and their conversation faded away as they went on.

Your friends were giving you pointed looks.

"Okay can you now see why we don't believe you?" one of them asked.

You just stared helplessly at them,trying to think of an excuse.

"I'm just gonna. Go. Homework and some other stuff that I'm totally not using to get out of this conversation." you said, now half joking, knowing that if there was a hope of them believing you, it was now gone.

The video ended, everyone laughing their heads off at the stupidity of that girl.

"I just want to declare that I kissed no minors in anyone's trailer." Sebastian said seriously, after laughing.

"And I didn't ogle anyone." Evans added.

"And I most definately didn't shoot a kissing scene with minor, ever." Hiddleston piped up.

"I think that is pretty clear. We found out later on, that her family payed, just so she could pass by in movie since she was so untalented. Since then, we have to watch over every cast member's audition, no matter how small their role is." Joe said.

You laughed some more, and then watched RDJ's oldest son and his reaction.

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|||||||timeskip again cuz me lazy|||||||

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You and other cast members went for drinks afterwards. They all took some cocktails, and you were sipping your orange juice. Suddenly you felt a hand on your shoulder. It was Evans, looking kinda serious.

"In that videk your friends mentioned bullying. Why didn't you tell anyone that you were getting bullied?" he asked. Suddenly all eyes were on you.

"Well, it just didn't seem like a big thing. I didn't want to bother anyone with my petty problems." you said and smiled a little.

"Kiddo, you ain't bothering us. we are family here, we talk aboyt everything. Please ask for help if you ever need it." Jeremy said.

Everyone else voiced their agreement. You talked a little more about it, but then started joking around, talking about random stuff. The night was great, and you were happy to have them there with you.

[dollyshaw]

The Thing About Rain: An Adrienette Story (Part 1)

In which our heroes are introduced.

To say it rained that day would be an understatement.

From the moment Marinette Dupain-Cheng woke up, water poured from the sky, creating an unforgiving fog that prevented even the sharpest eyes from seeing so much as their hand in front of their face.

Marinette was no stranger to rain. It had never bothered her before, as many of her favorite memories came from the rain.

It was the rain that brought her the love of her life, though he may not know his status to her. It had hardly been seven years since Marinette stood outside her college waiting for the rain to subside, and in his innate kindness, supermodel and fellow-classmate, Adrien Agreste stopped to give Marinette his umbrella. He would go on to regard that encounter as a simple act of kindness to a friend. She would regard that moment as the moment she fell head-over heels in love with her classmate.

It was rain that set the scenes in many of her encounters with her best-friend and superhero partner, Chat Noir. She fondly remembered late night patrols with her leather-clad kitty, racing the rooftops of Paris as the rain wet her face. When she needed a happy memory, she thought back on how Chat Noir would vault from a balcony to a puddle claiming that he would make the bigger splash. The years may have passed and opponents may have become more fierce, but she and Chat Noir, no matter how old they'd become, would always have their rain patrols.

To say the least, Marinette enjoyed the rain.

This rain, however, felt different. Ominous, even. Marinette, though being the holder of the Miraculous known for luck, was never superstitious. This storm, for whatever reason, put her on edge.

"Something is strange, Marinette." her kwami, Tikki, called her out of her trance at her bedroom window.

"I feel it too, Tikki. Do you think I should transform? Go and find Chat?"

"I'm not sure that it's not just a feeling. You don't want to risk anything if you don't have to. Besides, if Chat is anything like his kwami, he's not even noticed that it's raining yet."

Marinette laughed at her tiny friend. Tikki was right, Chat did tend to be a little aloof.

"You're right, Tikki. Come on, we can't be late for our first day at House of Gabriel." Marinette concluded, making her way into her closet to get ready for internship with famous fashion designer (and father of the love of her life) Gabriel Agreste.

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

Adrien didn't mind the rain. He didn't particularly like it, but he never minded it. Most of the work he did was inside, so it never really interfered with his carefully calculated schedule.

He sighed as he ran over his schedule for the day in his head.

6 a.m.: Running (accompanied by Gorilla)

7 a.m.: Shower and Dress

8 a.m.: Breakfast with Father (which was usually subject to change seeing as his father was almost never seen in person anymore.)

9-11 a.m.: Photoshoot

12 p.m.: Lunch

1-3 p.m.: Photoshoot

4 p.m.: Fencing (he used to take lessons, but upon him turning 18, Monsieur D'Argencourt offered him a position as an assistant coach, much to his father's approval.)

5 p.m.: Dinner with Father (again, usually subject to change.)

6 p.m-9 p.m.: Free Time

It was roughly the same schedule as every single day from the past ten years of his life. There were few things that changed as he got older, such as the removal of school once he graduated and the addition of free time at night where he was permitted to socialize with friends, accompanied by the Gorilla, of course.

Much to Adrien's dismay, Gabriel made up his mind shortly into his last year of school that he would not need to attend University and that all the further education he needed to take over the company when Gabriel retired would be best taught by him and Nathalie.

Regardless, most nights when his father thought he was asleep, Adrien would call upon the tiny God of Destruction housed in the silver ring upon his finger. Clad in skin tight leather as black as night, he would pounce from his bedroom window across the roofs of Paris to meet with his Lady.

Oh, his Lady. What a Lady she was. The memories he shared with her were his favorite memories of the rain.

His most treasured memories were observed by the way the rain clung to her red and black spotted suit in droplets and the way it made her navy blue hair shine against the lights of Paris. He treasured the way her blue bell eyes would squint when she laughed at him as he pounced from puddle to puddle along the cobblestone streets. Her voice would ring out "Silly Kitty" with a giggle. He'd place a kiss to her gloved hand before they departed with a "M'lady" and then watch as she swung away through the sheets of rain.

Tonight, he decided, would be no different.

He carefully combed through his blonde hair as he listened to the hard beating of todays rain outside of his bedroom window.

"Mon Dieu, it's pouring les chats et les chiens out there!" his kwami snarked as he flew into the bathroom and took residence beside Adrien's hairbrush on the counter.

"I hope Marinette and Tik--- Marinette and her TOTALLY AWESOME SELF get to the office okay." Plagg commented.

"Marinette?" Adrien questioned, "What does Marinette have to do at the office?"

"You forgot didn't you?" Plagg retorted, unamused. Adrien felt a blush creep to his ears. "Personally, I would have thought the beginning of your so called 'best friends' apprenticeship at your father's studio would have been at the top of your reminders today."

"Of course! How could I forget?" Adrien lamented.

"I'm not sure she's only been talking about it for three months."

"Plagg, take a look at the schedule. Do you think if we leave now we'll have enough time to pick up a coffee and a croissant from the Bakery as a 'Welcome'?" Adrien asked as he knotted the laces on his loafers.

"You'd be cutting it close, but a certain feline I know would make it with time to spare." Plagg suggested with a sly and knowing smirk.

"Plagg," Adrien grinned, knowing all-too-well what Plagg was implying, "Claws Out!"

Then he lept out of the window into the downpour, racing to the nearest bakery to retrieve treats for his best friend on her first day of her dream job.

In his rush and excitement to find the perfect Croissant, Adrien didn't notice the figure standing at his bedroom door waiting to remind him of his commitment to Paris Fashion week in the next few days. He didn't notice the figure that watched his entire encounter with his tiny God and then his entire transformation. He didn't notice, and probably wouldn't have known if he did, that this figure was the same that had been transforming heartbroken and angry citizens of Paris to retrieve the same silver ring that he'd noticed on his son's finger so many years ago but never had any proof that it was what he was looking for. He didn't notice that his father, Gabriel Agreste, more villianously known as ShadowMoth, had seen him transform.

Maybe he should have paid a little more attention to the rain.

[anobscurename]

ocean eyes – chris evans

previous part: PART XV — masterlist

concept: the three times chris comforted you, and the times you returned the favour. the slowest of slow burns, the angstiest of all angst. part sixteen of many.

pairing: chris evans x reader

word count: 3,8k

warnings: drinking, so much fluff, heartbreaking angst

author's note: this one, guys, gals, and non-binary pals, is for @fangirlovestuff because it's her BIRTHDAY. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BABYYYY (and i'm sorry in advance). the songs are linked, so if you don't know them, you can check 'em out :)

In your ten months of knowing him, Chris had always known how to cheer you up, irregardless of how big or small the issue was.

You would even go so far as to call him a master of distraction – because by the end of the day, you wouldn't even have known you'd cried at all.

You could recall three times he had been there for you, and the two times you returned the favour.

The first time he had seen you cry – about three months into your living situation – he had been by your side immediately, pulling you flush against his body. He held you in his big arms for the longest time, and just waited the sobs out.

He wasn't the type of person to press, and he knew you'd tell him what was wrong if you wanted.

Instead, he asked you what you wanted.

You were lightheaded and cry‐drunk, so it took a moment to come back to yourself. "Huh?"

"Do you want to be quiet or loud?"

"I just..." You struggled to find words that didn't make you sound needy, but you found none. "I don't want to be alone."

"That's out of the question," he smiled knowingly. "So, what will it be, {your last name}? Quiet or loud?"

He had a twinkle in his eye, one that suggested his question delved deeper than the words implied.

"Quiet."

And then he was pulling you up off the couch and out the door in total disregard of your chosen attire.

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see."

"Chris, I'm literally in my pyjamas–"

But he was already opening the garage, the creaks of the gears overshadowing your weak protests.

"You're wearing pants this time," he winked at you. "So we have that going for us."

And then you were in the car, location still a mystery.

Any attempts to get a modicum information was shut down with a simple "it's a surprise."

"Why can't you tell me?"

"Because then it wouldn't be a surprise."

And you were glad he hadn't told you, because soon, you were pulling up outside a place you hadn't been to since you were a kid and going on school trips. You'd never been to any L.A. ones, having moved there only half a year ago. But the way your whole body immediately was overcome with such calm...

It was like you had been hoping to come here since you'd woken up that morning, and had received the news of your grandfather's admittance to the hospital earlier that night.

But there was no way for Chris to have known that your grandfather had taken you to the aquarium when you were young, telling you about all the fish, helping you make up increasingly bizarre backstories for them.

He just knew you had to leave the house, and go somewhere quiet.

And it was a weekday, so the chances of kids screaming and running through the aquarium hallways were slim to none.

So while you walked in the tinted blue light, eyes scanning over information plaques and watching the multi-coloured aquatic animals lazily drift past the glass panes in a comfortable silence, you reached out to give his wrist a gentle squeeze.

His hands had been sitting in his pockets, giving you your space, but hovering close enough to you to let you know you weren't alone.

"Thank you," you croaked out softly.

When you turned your head to look at him, he had been looking at you, a smile of heartwarming endearance on his face.

If you hadn't been so consumed by the exhibits, you'd have known that he hadn't taken his eyes off you the entire time, and you'd have known he also hadn't stopped smiling. Smiling at you, seeing just how happy you were, even though your eyes were still watery and worry was still thick in your throat.

He slid his hand out of his pocket easily to lace your fingers together, loose enough for you to pull away if you had wanted, but tight enough for you to know that he had no intention of letting go first.

But you didn't pull away, instead strengthening the intwining grasp.

And so you continued, walking through the aquarium in that comfortable silence. And at some point along the way, you found laughter again, pointing out the ugliest fish and saying it was him, only to have him gasp in mock surprise.

"My God, you're such a flirt," he'd say.

And then he'd point out the most beautiful fish he could find.

"That's you."

——————

The second time was a week later.

It was your grandfather again, but the issue had been more serious than any one of your family members initially believed.

You didn't cry this time, but Chris could sense the immeasurable sadness in your posture, the way you sat on the couch, staring blankly ahead.

He came to stand in front of you, and gently knelt down so your eyes would focus on his. Everything about his stature screamed concern as he caressed the hair away from your face.

"Quiet or loud?" He had asked so softly, so simply.

"Loud."

He helped you up, careful with your fragile state. He walked you to your room, into the bathroom, and left you to take a calming shower by yourself.

When you'd gotten out, gotten ready for whatever surprise excursion was next – dressed casually in a t-shirt and jeans, scuffed sneakers on your feet but Chris would claim you looked prettier than he'd ever seen you – Chris was waiting for you by the front door.

You knew better than to ask him where he was taking you this time. And honestly, you were too drained to even muster the words.

You wanted loud, to drown out the misery.

And you got what you wanted.

Chris had taken you to a local pop-up carnival, and in spite of the cloudy weather mirroring your emotion, threatening rain, it was filled with screaming kids and the sounds of joy.

"They come by once every six months," he explained while you waited in the line to enter. "I wanted to take you under different circumstances, but..."

"It's wonderful," you assured him, although your tone didn't sound like it.

He paid your entrance fees – buying a large roll of game tickets for the both of you – and with his hand ghosting over the small of your back, he guided you inside.

Your smile first came when you were on the ferris wheel, and it didn't fade until you were back home, saying good night.

You had spent the whole afternoon there, and even most of the evening, until around ten, when they had begun to take down the stalls and unpitch their tents.

"I'm totally going to crush you at this," you had grinned at him at some game or another. And you did, but only because he wasn't entirely focused on the game, but watching you.

He would tell himself later, as he lay in bed, the reason he couldn't take his eyes off you was because he had wanted to make sure you were alright, and having a good time. But that was a half truth. The full truth was simply because he couldn't stop looking at that smile he loved so much, on the girl he loved more.

A sense of pride would swell in his chest at the very thought of him having played a part in your happiness.

And so you did absolutely crush him. But only because he'd been distracted, and, if truth be told, because he let you.

You held your prize – a hilariously massive teddy bear, drowning you in its fluff – with both arms, laughingly taunting him for his loss, which had got him a much smaller bear (a participation trophy at best) which he carried in one hand.

You had also gone to the circus they had there, your teddy bear seated beside the two of you, taking up a whole seat by itself. You marvelled at the trapeze artists, the charisma of the ringleader, the fire juggler from Prussia, and even found it in yourself to giggle a little at the clowns who you thought you'd be irreparably prejudiced against since you watched Stephen King's It.

And if you were to now scroll back in your camera roll, you would find the hundreds of pictures you had taken together in the hall of mirrors, and the beautiful twinkling lights of the distant city that sparkled like their own constellation from your view at the top of the wheel.

But you wouldn't scroll back now.

Not now.

———————

The third time had just been a bad day.

Nothing set it off, but you'd woken feeling like trash, and it really didn't sit well with you.

It had been post kiss, post Vegas, in that week Chris had returned, and he could feel it the second you stepped into the kitchen.

His usual morning greeting of "good morning, Sleeping Beauty" fell short on his lips.

"Both," you said to him, already knowing the question he was going to ask.

You had managed to get yourself dressed that day, thinking that that one step into productivity would pull you out of your slump. It hadn't. So you told him "both," and he immediately complied.

Setting the mug down, coffee unfinished, he grabbed his keys off the counter. He called for Dodger, and you were in the car again.

This time, you already knew where you were going. It wasn't a difficult puzzle to solve, especially with Dodger there with you.

And your suspicions were confirmed when he pulled up to a remote beach, a hidden gem that only locals would know about.

And in the secluded bay, you walked alongside each other, Dodger prancing ecstatically into the water and darting across the sand.

You watched him greet other dogs, tail wagging. You encountered very few people, giving them a greeting smile in passing.

It really was the perfect mixture of both – serene in the best way possible, ocean waves loud in their crash on the shore.

Chris made no effort to hide his gaze on you this time, aside from a pair of sunglasses perched on his nose, obscuring his eyes.

"Why are you wearing those?" You chuckled.

"What?"

"You're wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses. Did it not come with instructions or something?"

"Oh, that," he grinned. "I wear the cap for the aesthetic, sunglasses for the disguise."

You had to reach up on your tippytoes to do what you did next – which, if you were so inclined, could be referred to as theft in the court of law.

You easily snatched the cap off his head, and, dancing out of his reach, put it on. It was a size too big, and dipped into your eyes, making him laugh through the stern demeanor he was jokingly putting on.

"Give that back," he warned. "You're ruining the aesthetic."

You repeated him mockingly, and then he was chasing you down the beach, your squeals of delight interrupting the peace and grabbing Dodger's attention.

You weren't being chased down by one Evans anymore, but two, and hoping to find sanctuary, you made your way into the water.

The sea lapped eagerly at your knees, stray droplets clawing to soak into the frayed denim of your shorts.

Chris had been wearing jeans – not exactly intending for a beach day that morning – and you'd hoped that would be enough to halt the attack.

"If you think that some water is gonna stop me from righting this injustice," he began, equally as out of breath as you were. He had been holding himself back from outright catching up to you, and you knew that – Chris was the epitome of fitness. What did you expect? To outrun Captain America? – "nay, this crime, then you are dead wrong."

"I'm in international waters!" You called back, flicking the peak of his cap teasingly. "I'm out of your jurisdiction!"

"Fuck jurisdiction!" He yelled out, and then he was wading towards you.

Water slowed both of you as you tried to keep out of his grasp, but he had the benefit of being naturally quicker. He had you in a bearhug, trapping your body against his as you struggled to break free.

"Give it back," he playfully growled into your ear.

"Never! You'll never take me alive!" You fought the words out through your laughter.

And then Dodger was there too, all but pushing you over into the shallows of the shore.

You both lay there, allowing yourselves to be drenched, through and through, Dodger licking your faces excitedly.

And as the laughter slowly subsided and the cold the breeze introduced to your wet forms finally registered, you both got up.

"Alright, have your stupid hat back," you sighed, moving to take it off.

He captured your hand in a lightning quick grip, stilling your movements. "Keep it," he smiled. "Looks better on you anyways."

You smiled back sarcastically, rolling your eyes, before pushing him back down onto the sand playfully. "All this?! All this for me to keep it?!"

He propped himself up on his elbows to peer up at you, sunglasses knocked askew.

"Dodger, as my head torturer," you said to the exhilarated mountain of a dog. "I command you to execute this man."

———————

It was hard to watch a strong man crumble, and there were days when that happened, too.

It was the day of Dodger's operation – a hip surgery, nothing too life threatening – but Chris, with all his quick wit and charming smiles, was a shell of himself.

Of course, you were worried too. But Chris needed you more than you needed him, and so, in the mournful silence of the waiting room, you placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.

He flinched a little at the sudden contact, but didn't pull away.

"Quiet or loud?"

In all definitions of the word – in the hour he had been in that waiting room, leg bouncing – he never thought he could hate quiet as much as he did now.

"Loud."

It took some effort to tug him to his feet, his body sluggish with worry. But he was up, and you were guiding him to the door, leaving your number with the vet secretary for any updates.

You didn't want Chris to be worrying and checking his phone every five seconds, because you knew how that dread felt. No, he needed a distraction.

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise."

You had never understood why Chris enjoyed doing that to you, never telling you where he was going to take you, but with the thrill of him not knowing, you got it. Spontaneity ran in his veins, and he didn't press like you so often did in the past.

You had been in L.A. long enough to find your own little secret spots, and to know exactly where you were without much guidance.

And if you were being honest with yourself, you didn't really know where you were taking him until your legs had absentmindedly taken you to an old vintage diner you knew had once been the talk of the town – filled to the brim with hipsters – before once again slipping into obscurity.

It was late into the night, but the diner was open 24/7, and you knew Chris hadn't eaten in a while.

When the bell jangled upon your entry, the waiters jolted, having taken to sitting down in the vacancy of their restaurant.

A few customers lingered here and there, club goers drunkenly scarfing down fries to try and sober up a little before hitting the next party and insomniacs downing their third cup of coffee that hour.

But for the most part it was empty, and, unfortunately, quiet.

"You here for karaoke night?" A bubblegum popping waitress asked. It really felt like the cliché, but it weirdly added to the charm. She stood, perched on the rubber stop of her roller skates, waiting for your response.

"Oh, hell yes we are," you grinned.

She took you to a table situated in front of a makeshift stage, a jukebox-karaoke machine hybrid standing proudly to one side.

Chris sat down, anxiety still heavy in his bones. You quickly ordered – two burgers, and a milkshake to share – before you were shedding your jacket and making your way on stage.

You didn't care about making a fool of yourself. The only thing you cared about was seeing Chris smile again, and in that moment, you'd do almost anything to make that happen.

You hummed in thought as you perused the songs available to you. You didn't expect much from the collection, given that the whole vibe of the diner was 50's through to early 90's. A total pocket dimension in time.

A song caught your eye and you grinned, selecting it immediately. Chris didn't want quiet – and you were going to be the loudest bitch here.

You could hear the whir of the machine as it came to life and you made your way to the vintage microphone. It crackled and whined when you pulled it closer to yourself.

You had caught the eye of the sobering-but-still-quite-drunk party animals, and they had come over to investigate.

"Sorry," you winced, voice booming on the mic. "This song goes out to my good friend Chris."

And then the music started to play, and he groaned. He knew the song decently enough, it having been one of your most replayed disco bops of the week.

"This is Sunny, by Boney M," you said over the intro. "Hope you enjoy."

And then you started to sing, intentionally bad at first to wheedle that cry strained laugh from Chris, and then finishing off in that voice he knew you had.

Every time the song mentioned "Sunny," you'd look directly at him, giving him an exaggerated wink. And at "I love you," you'd point at him, smile growing on your face as you danced ridiculously with the mic.

He was laughing, whole body shaking at how over-the-top you were being.

And when the song wrapped, you whooped into the mic, feedback squealing. "Thank you, everybody!" you panted.

The club goers applauded, screaming their drunken praises.

"YES, QUEEN!"

"YOU GO, BABY!"

"FUCK YES!"

"BEYONCÉ WHO?!"

That last one earned some shocked gasps and scolding. "Woah, dude. Too far."

"Thank you, thank you," you grinned, feeling alive. You could see the laughter starting to fade from Chris again, and so you moved to put on another song.

"This one," you whispered into the mic, "is a duet. So, please. Good friend Chris, wouldst thou riseth to the occasion?"

He shook his head, cheeks flushing at being called out.

"Oh, come on," you whined, the music already beginning to play out the intro. "For me?"

He narrowed his eyes at you, already smilingly weighing the pros and cons of his embarrassment. You batted your lashes. "I know you can sing, Evans. Don't start this shy shit now."

"COME ON, CHRIS!"

"YEAH, COME ON CHRIS!"

"Give the people what they want," you wiggled your brows.

He shrugged, muttering "fuck it," and reluctantly rising from his seat, he hopped on stage with one jump.

"You were working as a waitress at a cocktail bar, when I met you," he started singing flatly, eyes on yours, letting you know how much he didn't want to be up there. You arched a brow, pushing him let loose.

Slowly, with the encouragement of your smile, and the cheers from the drunk, he lost himself in the performance of "Don't You Want Me" by The Human League, even taking to dancing at your part of the duet.

And that's how you spent the rest of your waiting period – singing bad karaoke, shovelling food into your mouths between songs, and returning the favour of cheering on the clubbers when they had resolved to stay and sing because they decided the best time they were probably going to have that night was in that stuffy little diner on a street they probably would've walked right past on a regular day.

And when your phone rang for Dodger, you paid your bill, leaving a hefty tip in apology to the staff for having to endure your wailing. You said your goodbyes to your newfound friends of the night.

And Dodger was fine when you took him home.

And Chris was smiling again.

———————

You couldn't bare to dwell on the second time you took it upon yourself to cheer up Chris Evans, because the fact of the matter was, that just reminiscing about those other four had you muffling sobs all over again.

You thought about that day – the road back from Vegas, pulling off to Route 66, taking him to the food truck park – and the alcohol you urgently gulped down did nothing to numb you.

You had often looked back on those memories fondly. But now it was a gaping hole in your chest.

You were sitting on the balcony, overlooking the beach. In the distance, under moonlight, you saw a couple walking hand-in-hand, and you knew it was them.

"Thought I'd find you out here," a familiar voice said. It wasn't Chris', and that had you swigging another shot from the near empty bottle in your lap. "You holding up okay?"

"Ask me again in a month," you stated blankly. You hadn't even moved to address the newcomer, nor had you shifted over to make room for him. He sat all the same. "If you want to put a number to how long it takes to move on, ask Chris. The answer is a month."

It had taken a month for him to move from you to Lily. But it wasn't exactly like any of you had made your feelings and intentions known, aside from a kiss that you had claimed you'd been drunk for, and a confirmation of friendship.

If you let yourself think about it too long – which you had, on more than one occasion, this one specifically – it was your fault.

Sebastian reached over and gently pried the bottle from your iron grip. He looked at how much was left, surprised. And still, you gazed numbly ahead.

"This is how day one looks, huh?" He attempted a joke. Even he knew it fell flat, and instead took a sip to ease himself.

"The alcohol content in that bottle is directly proportionate to how many fucks I have left to give," you shrugged, voice monotonous.

"How much more are you going to put yourself through before you've had enough?"

"I've had enough," you sighed. "But I'll probably suffer a little more."

"You have more strength than I do, then."

His sympathetic arm wrapped around you, and you melted into his side, the comfort another person brought acting as a placebo salve to the pain. Like an ice pack on a shattered femur.

And you realised why you were so sad. Those memories meant nothing to you now.

They had lost their meaning because he wasn't there with you, on this roof, asking you that question when you needed it asked the most. Quiet or loud.

He wasn't there, and the taste of whiskey was chased away by ash.

[moonstruckholland]

Sober (t.h)

Word count: 1,918

Warnings: drinking, fluff, tiny bits of angst

A/N: The second oneshot for Cosmic Souls! I really hope y'all like this 💕 let me know what you think if you do and if you want, you can find the first oneshot in my masterlist 🥰 also, as always, shout out to the amazing @fangirlwithasweettooth for reading this over

It was obvious by the way you were dressed you hadn't originally planned on having Tom over.

Usually, you didn't care much for getting dressed up when you hung out with Tom at your place, opting for a pair of sweatpants and a loose t-shirt. Not that he ever minded, he loved that you felt comfortable enough to be yourself around him.

Tonight though you had on a pretty floral dress that complimented your skin and more makeup than you usually cared to put on, pops of color and shimmer on your lids that added to the natural sparkle in your eyes.

Tom thought you looked beautiful.

Though, to be fair, there hadn't been a moment since he met you three years ago, in the music history class the both of you were forced to take, where he hadn't thought you looked absolutely stunning.

"So, what exactly happened tonight, love?" He looked up to where you were sitting next to him on the couch, hoping he didn't seem too eager to hear your answer, "You were pretty vague with the details over the phone."

"Fuck, Tommy, it was horrible," you took a sip of your cup, that was mostly filled with vodka, scrunching your nose as the liquid went down your throat, "I had a date tonight with that dude I was telling you about the other day, from my child and family development class."

Tom felt a pang in his chest as he remembered exactly who you were talking about, recalling how you fawned over him while the two of you were having lunch together, mentioning something about wanting to jump his bones.

He felt just as jealous then as he did now, wondering if you'd ever noticed the fact that he would literally do anything for you.

"Not only was he almost an hour late, didn't even bother to warn me, by the way," you rolled your eyes, bringing your cup to your lips again, "He wouldn't stop talking about his ex the whole time, but I'm getting ahead of myself, let me start from when he finally picked me up."

You continued on, taking large gulps of your drink as the details of the story got worse and worse.

Tom followed in your footsteps, drinking more from his cup than he had originally planned when you first handed it to him, each sip helping him refrain from blurting out what he actually wanted to say to you.

It was safe to say by the time you were done talking, the two of you were definitely tipsy.

It was safe to say by the time you were done talking, Tom was definitely buzzed. You on the other hand were on a completely different level, taking shots in between drinks, going harder than Tom had ever seen.

You had just finished your third cup, already working on your fourth one, while Tom had barely taken sips of his third one, figuring it'd be best if at least one of you slowed down.

"How do you manage to find the worst guys to go on dates with?"

You sighed, "I don't know, I just want one actually nice guy to want me, that's it."

'I want you,' is what Tom's thoughts were begging him to say. Instead he gave you a sympathetic smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, "You'll have that some day, darling."

You leaned back on the couch, sadness overcoming your features, "I wish there were more guys like you, Tommy."

He barely had time to register your words, his head fuzzy from the alcohol, before you distracted him with an awkward cough, mumbling something about it being too warm.

"Maybe you should take that as a sign to take a break."

Just like that the sadness washed away, replaced with a wicked smile, "I don't know what you're talking about, I'm only getting started."

Tom rolled his eyes, getting up from the couch with a groan and walking over to the fridge to get a couple of water bottles and the bag of chips on the kitchen counter, knowing you'd have the worst hangover if he didn't get some food and something non-alcoholic in your system.

He brought them over to you, handing you the bottle and putting the chips on your lap, "Eat something please, darling."

"Don't wanna eat," you shook your head stubbornly, "I wanna dance."

Before Tom could protest, you downed the rest of your cup before jumping up and grabbing his hand, pulling him up with you. "C'mon, dance with me, Tommy, please."

"But there's no music."

Tom expected you to do the easy thing and connect your phone to your Bluetooth speakers and play one of the dozens of playlists you had on Spotify, instead you caught him off guard by belting out the lyrics to What Makes You Beautiful.

He couldn't help the laughter that bursted from him as you started swaying and twirling while you sang.

It was totally ridiculous, but Tom found himself singing along with you, wrapping an arm around you and pulling you close so you could sway together.

After a while you stopped singing and put your head on his chest, making his heart hurt. He wished this was more than what it was, more than him comforting you after a bad date.

Tom tried not to dwell on his negative thoughts, deciding to just close his eyes, lay his head on top of yours, and enjoy having you close to him like this.

He got lost in you, the feeling of your hands in his and the way your body was pressed against him, so close he could smell the scent of your favorite perfume.

He'd been close to you so many times over the years, but something about this was inherently different, more intimate than you'd ever been before.

There was nothing he wanted more than to stay in this moment, in your embrace, for the rest of the night and honestly he would've if you hadn't somehow tripped over his feet, resulting in the two of you falling back onto the couch.

You landed on top of Tom, drunken giggles escaping your lips, "Are you okay?"

"I'm cutting you off for the night," he huffed, making you laugh even more as you attempted to apologize.

You rolled off of him after a moment, your chest rising rapidly as you tried to catch your breath. It took everything in him not to pull you back, his body aching for your warmth as soon as it was gone

"I think...it's time for bed."

"Good idea," Tom stood up, holding out his hand to help you do the same.

"Will you pretty please carry me? I have jelly legs."

Tom couldn't help rolling his eyes at you, "Jelly legs from what? You're the one that fell on me."

"Please?" You pouted, "Because you love me?"

'I really do.'

If he had wanted to, he would've put up a fight, but deep down he knew he would do anything you asked of him. You had him completely wrapped around your finger.

"Fine," he said, pretending to be annoyed, as if he hadn't already decided he would carry you the second you asked him to.

He hooked one arm underneath your legs, the other under your back, holding you close to his chest as he carried you to your bedroom.

"Thank you for taking care of me, Tommy," you said softly as he laid you down, pulling your blanket over you and pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"I'll always be here to take care of you."

'I'd do anything for you.'

He was about to leave your room and pass out on the couch, when you grabbed his arm, "Stay with me? Please?"

He nodded, wordlessly crawling under the covers beside you.

You turned over so you were facing him, your hands in between you, just barely touching Tom's, an unreadable expression on your features.

"What are you thinking about?"

You shook your head, "It's so dumb."

He gently nudged your leg with his, "Tell me, darling."

"I-fuck, okay," you looked down, suddenly very interested in the pattern on your blanket. "I swear there wasn't a moment tonight where I hadn't wished I was with you."

"After what you told me, I wish I was there too."

"No, Tommy, you don't get it," you chewed your lip nervously, looking everywhere but at him, "I don't just feel this way about this date, it's every date."

Your words weren't really clicking in Tom's head and he was starting to think the alcohol was having more of an effect on him than he originally thought.

"I want you to be the one to pick me up and take me to dinner. I want to hold your hand when we go to the movies," you voice got lower the more you talked and you shyly peeked up through your lashes to gauge Tom's reaction, "I want to kiss you and murmur how much I love you against your lips."

Tom's heart was beating hard against his chest, the sound so loud in his ears he could barely hear you.

He couldn't believe it. Were you really saying the words he's been wanting to hear since the day he met you?

If his head wasn't buzzing with a million different thoughts, he probably would've kissed you or at least said a few coherent sentences but all he could manage to blurt out was, "You love me?"

Something in you seemed to switch, your words stuttering and your eyes widening with shock as you realized exactly what you just said to Tom.

"Shit. I-I'm so drunk," you turned over, your back now facing him, "I, um, I'm tired. I need to go to sleep."

"Y/n-"

"No, Tom, it's okay. Please just Forget I said anything."

He laid there in complete silence, his eyes glued to your back as he contemplated what he should do, if he should say anything or do as you said and put tonight behind him.

'Don't be an idiot, tell her.'

"Y/n?"

You didn't say anything for a moment too long, making Tom's stomach clench. What if you were asleep and he missed his chance completely?

"Yeah, Tommy?" You said so quietly Tom could barely hear you.

"I love you too."

He felt like he was going to be sick as he waited for you to say something or just do anything to let him know you hadn't suddenly changed your mind.

Tom was starting to wonder if you heard him or maybe you just didn't care when you reached behind your back and grabbed his arm, pulling it towards you. You laced your fingers through his as you brought his hand to your lips, pressing a kiss to his knuckles.

He let out a breath of relief he hadn't realized he'd been holding before hesitantly scooting closer to you, closing up the little space between you.

Once again Tom found himself in a position he'd been a million times, wrapped up in you, but the air had changed and it was almost like it was the first time.

In the back of his mind he knew there was a chance you were only saying this because of the alcohol in your system, but he pushed the thought away, and nuzzled his face into your hair before closing his eyes, hoping you'd still mean what you said when the sun came up.

Tagging: @fangirlwithasweettooth @bravest-at-heart @hollandsamor @constellatinq @aidiastyles @ravenclawmarvel @cosmicholland @sleepyhollands @devildisguiseasangel @fairytaleparker @hollandsosterfield @now-imagine @officiallyunofficialperson @stealth-spiderr @xxxxdelenaxxxx @its-the-aerieljeane @petersstarcadet @babebenhardy @antoouu @lovinnholland @kxrtwxgner @sleepybesson @awkwardfangirl2014 @brookeelee98 @nedthegay @petersmparker @parkeroffline @snjms02 @the-queen-procrastinator @tomhollandsumbrella @spideyosterfield @thollandx @styles-balor4eva @80sthottie @marvelobsessedteenager @marshyrebelcloud @sixwyrxstuff @itscaminow @tomshufflepuff @jillanaholland @howdyherron @undiadeestos @quaksonhehe @theslytherinwarrior @itstaskeen

[cbspams]

D-0: The Arena

Buckle in because this is a long one.

CW: Canon-typical violence, mentions of blood and murder

It's so quiet in the hovercraft, like no one wants to breathe. In complete darkness, there's no way to know how long they've been smoothly gliding in the air. Maybe it's been minutes, hours. Probably not days though. Felix can't imagine the Arena being too far, since they're supposed to be broadcasting today. Plus, in the Capitol, no one ever travels very far outside it's circular bounds, so there's no reason to hold the Games so very far away.

His arm hurts a bit, but that's probably some kind of placebo effect. The trackers are supposed to have a numbing agent, to make sure the tributes are at their tip top shape. Whatever that means. Felix wonders if he could pick out where they pricked him. Probably not, the trackers are teeny and the needles they use so thin.

Someone takes a breath, shuddering and unsure. A sign of weakness to be preyed on. It only raises the tension in the darkness. Felix wonders if the Careers are calculating now where the sound came from, if they can pinpoint which district area. His fellow Eight tribute shivers next to him, a near imperceptible movement to anyone else. There's a small temptation to reach over and grab her hand but... There's no point in that now.

Instead, Felix closes his eyes, letting darkness flood darkness and waits for the inevitable rumbling that signals their descent into the arena.

------

Each tribute is released one by one, escorted by a Peacekeeper. In order, from One to Twelve. So naturally, Hyunjin goes first. He glances back, makes eye contact with the girl from One and Yang Jeongin from Two and Bang Chan from Four. Nods his head ever so slightly as he's escorted out. A kind of reaffirmation. Deep down, he's grateful they nod back, or at least Chan does. Jeongin's eyes soften just a touch, which is about as good as it gets with a Two tribute. Then, Hyunjin goes down the ramp of the hovercraft, across the landing strip into a small, pristine while building. From here, he will walk down and down and down, until it feels like if he walks any further, he'll end up in the molten core of the earth.

The Peacekeeper turns him to his left and the metal doors slide open soundlessly, still with the orderly glide of Capitol doors. Hyunjin steps in and the doors shut behind him. The tribute uniform this year is... white. Pure, unadulterated white. How unusual. Normally the Arenas favor darker colors, manipulations of shadows and light. But perhaps they want more of a show this year, more excitement. White is a clean color after all, it's much easier to stain.

Hyunjin touches the fabric carefully, narrowing his eyes. The outfit is comprised of a sleeved shirt, a skin tight jacket, slim fit but flexible pants. They even give him a pair of combat boots, also white and laced with white. There's a total of four pockets, two on the jacket and two on the pants, but they run deep and zip up so at least there's that. The Gamemakers really are cruel this year. Anyone with a wearable token will stand out like there's no tomorrow. There's something particularly audacious about this outfit too, because Careers are often the ones drenched in red first. Are the Gamemakers painting them as targets? Do they expect them to lose?

What a joke.

------

Seungmin slips on the jacket and zips it up high, but not quite to the top. It's a bit snug there, and he needs full range of motion for his neck. He stretches this way and that to test how far he can extend himself, but these clothes were designed to be moved in. That's good at least. It'll make it easier to run. White though... He doesn't like that. Not at all. Seungmin had spent an extraordinary amount of time at the camouflage station, ready to hide anywhere but if the Arena is only one color... Well, that's suspicious and dangerous. There's less places to hide in that sense.

Still, this isn't completely out of the scope of his analysis. There was a year where the Arena was made of ice, pale whites and blues and hints of yellow from the fake sun. So he had prepared as much for a sort of monochrome space. Inconvenient, annoying, but not inexplicable. Likely the Arena this time won't be pure snow and ice, there's no reason to watch tributes freeze to death in this thin outfit they've been given. It's very boring, and the Gamemakers are dedicated to making these Games anything but.

The doors slide open again and Seungmin nods a greeting to Wendy, who has pale blue woven into her blond braids today, with matching blue eyes that pierce through him. She smiles sweetly and reaches out to straighten out his collar. He's put it all on correctly, she knows, so there's no point in checking that. Instead, she fixes the tiniest of details, brushes his hair out of his face, lingers a bit at his earring. Only one, a tiny ring made of wood and metal. There's nothing special about it of course, because otherwise it wouldn't have been allowed. But it is special, to Seungmin, and maybe even to Wendy as she stares at it with almost longing. She bids him good luck at the sound of the first buzzer, a warning to get on the circular platform at the corner of the room. He bids her farewell in true Seven fashion, with a clasp of his hands over hers and pushing her hands back to her chest before releasing. Now, there will be no friendly face, no kind voice.

------

Chan doesn't like the platform. No one does but... It's unnaturally smooth. He's so used to the waves of the ocean, the rockiness of the earth, and this platform is anything but. It's an odd anxiety inducing thing, to be in an environment so sterile. But the Arena might not be. Maybe the Arena will have some kind of advantage for him, an ocean or a sea replica. Even though that's dangerous in it's own way. Chan would know better than anyone else that the sea can be as unforgiving and cruel as it is accepting and kind. He takes a breath and steps onto the circle carved out, turning and nodding at Karina, who touches her hand to her neck and then extends it outward to him before bowing slightly. He smiles at that and does the same as the glass tube descends around him. A ritual of the sea, to give him comfort. He prays he can say thank you to her later.

The ride up is short, no more than sixty seconds. Perhaps even less. There are only thin strips of light on the way up, and by the speed of the platform, they flash by quicker than Chan would really like. He can only imagine how disorienting it must be for someone who's really frightened. But soon the lights flash their final and brightest and Chan has to squeees his own eyes shut to protect them. As soon as the platform stops moving though, he peers out, cautiously at first.

[ Oh and what a grand space we’ve created for you today ladies and gentlemen! Feast your eyes upon this brand new creation! ]

His eyes widen and it’s only years of strict self control that prevent him from dropping his jaw too. The Arena is white, pure and simple. But not because of snow, not because of dense cloud cover. No, it’s pure white because it is a room, a circular one with the Cornucopia in the center as it’s grand eye catching splash of color. This year, they’ve clustered everything close. Too close for Chan’s liking. But all the packs are striking colors, bold reds and blues and greens. Some are even patterned, stripes and dots. Chan glances to his left then to his right, spotting the other Careers and… again he is reminded that there are no rules here. He is reminded to be grateful that he was chosen to join. Because now, he has far more of a fighting chance than before. Gritting his teeth, he stares directly at the long spear on the edge and clenches his hands. It’s almost time.

------

Jeongin knows there’s the sixty seconds to wait until they can sprint off their platforms. In those sixty seconds, he has to calculate. There’s a set of throwing knives, those are for Hyunjin. A sword, deadly sharp and thin, for his partner tribute from Two. A spear, undoubtedly for Chan from four who’s greatest strength lies in his accurate aim and forceful throw. Jeongin himself narrows his eyes, glossing over a handheld scythe, a bow with a quiver of arrows, a machete. He decides that a dagger will do, because he has always prefer to be personal with his kills. It’s more satisfying that way.

He views the other tributes, determines that he has to take down the strong first. This first day is when they’re all in peak condition. The longer he waits to deal with the more powerful, the more trouble it will be. First would of course be the kid from Ten, who stirred up such a storm among the Capitolites. Then maybe the kid from Eight, Five. Seven is smart, but he seems like he’ll rely more on surviving than killing. Chan said to watch out for Three, but Jeongin has to pick and choose his own targets first.

The seconds count down, until Jinyoung's voice rings out, grave and yet as cheerful as usual. The voice of an entertainer. Jeongin lets it sink in his ears as he zeroes on on his weapon, does a last minute calculation to snag a bag from the edge. It'll keep the other tributes near him from being able to get resources, which means they'll either have to go without or die trying to get into the inner circle.

[ Let the 78th Hunger Games, begin. May the odds be ever in your favor.

10... 9... 8... 7... 6... ]

It's showtime.

------

[ 5... 4... 3... 2... 1 ]

The cannon booms and everyone is sprinting. There's no way out of it, you need something from the Cornucopia to make it even the first night. The precious few packs scattered around the edges would be targeted first, for anyone who wasn't a career. Changbin doesn't bother thinking about that though. Thinking was a luxury for the sixty second grace period, now it's time to run like hell.

His aim is for a medium sized pack, located not quite at the edge but far enough from the middle that it's lower risk. It's isolated, so for now he'll have to ditch potential weapons. Maybe there's some grace of the Gamekeepers here, because his platform was located between a scrawny Twelve tribute and a frightened Six, both of whom stumble at first getting off the platform. A fatal mistake, but one Changbin fully intends to take advantage of.

At the same time, he keeps an eye out for the Careers, for Ten and the few other threats around. As expected, One with his long legs reaches the center area of the Cornucopia first. Changbin forces himself not to flinch when he sees him pick up a couple small throwing knives, rearing his hand back and whipping it forward with so much force that it lodges itself lethally in the Eleven boy's eye. Changbin redirects his attention, ducking low to snag the pack he was aiming for and slinging it over his shoulder before performing the sharpest hairpin turn he can to sprint off. The Arena isn't open spaced like it normally is. No, there are hallways, placed in uneven intervals. He races down one of them just as he hears the shrill shriek of another tribute, and as he twists down a turn, he catches a glimpse of a spray of bright red painting the wall.

------

Jisung darts down the hall, turning this way and that down the twists. In his mind, he memorizes, left left right left right. There's no echoing in the hallways, which feels odd because the floor seems hard and tile like, even if it's also smooth like laminate. It must be something between the shoes and the floor, something causing the lack of friction. Basic physics. Jisung snaps himself out of it, taking two more turns (right right) and pauses to catch his breath. He warily keeps an eye out on both ends of the hallway though, just in case. Now that things aren't a blur racing by anymore, he sees... Doors? Some of them are obvious, with door knobs and embellishments. Some of them are near invisible, just a clean outline against the wall.

Natural curiosity tells him to try and open one, caution tells him to crouch down and figure out what the hell is in this bright yellow bag he grabbed. Caution wins out of course, so he crouches and unzips the backpack. It’s not big, so he doesn’t expect much out of it. A small bottle for water, some bleach drops, a couple sticks of what looks like jerky and…

Jisung lifts up the last item in confusion because it’s not something you see nearly ever. It’s a spray can, yellow paint, no markings. The rest of the items are standard, likely in every pack. But this, this is unusual. There has to be a reason for it right? They don't do jokes in the Games, not like that. Jisung narrows his eyes, turning the can over and over, trying to peel away the sticker. But there's nothing, and the sticker doesn't budge. Bizarre. Very much so. Jisung twitches as he spots something, a flickering out of the corner of his eye. He zips up his pack again and starts walking slowly, keeping his eyes peeled for anyone or anything.

------

Minho shakes the can, narrowing his eyes. He doesn't really know much about this but don't paint cans usually contain some kind of marble or something inside? That would make a rattling sound right? But there's nothing, no sound, not even the feeling of sloshing liquid inside. It just feels, full somehow.

He looks up, staring at one of the doors. It's the kind you see often in the Capitol, silent, gliding on electromagnetic whatever. The kid from Three could probably parse it out easily, but Minho's on his own. He approaches it slowly, grimacing at the blood trail left on the floor. But he doesn't dwell on it too long, since it'll get cleaned up in about five minutes. It's like the floor absorbs blood or something.

The door itself really doesn't seem to do anything. Unlike the ones in the Capitol that merely open by movement, this one stays firmly shut even as he approaches it. He hesitantly reaches a hand out, only allowing his fingertips to touch and then jerking them right back afterward. But there's no shock, no odd sticky residue. Nothing alarming. So cautiously he presses his hand against the door and then sweeps it across, brows furrowed as still, nothing happens. If it's not the door, then maybe there's some kind of panel on the edges. Antiquated but the Games are nothing if not awfully inconvenient. He moves slowly but carefully, crawling every inch until... There. A little notch.

He presses his fingers against it firmly but it doesn't budge. Well if it's not push, maybe it's pull? But when he tries, it still doesn't move. He growls softly under his breath, staring at it, studying the shape (nothing special about that), the color (still white), the size (about the size of a shirt button). He squints at it, thinking. Maybe...

-----

Well well! It seems like another one has figured it out. Minho of District Ten has brought out his spray can and is looking at it. I do believe he'll be figuring out the secret to our doors soon enough! What's that? You want a hint? Well, if you watch him carefully spray the little button notch outside the door with the can he was given... Voila! The door's open and he gets... Ahh, fresh water. A lucky first choice for Minho from Ten ladies and gentlemen!

Oh? What's this? Chan from Four and Hyunjin from One have decided to explore down a hallway together, both carrying packs and weapons of choice. Did you see Hyunjin earlier with those throwing knives earlier? A truly instant and stunning execution of skill. And Chan's forceful toss that skewered Jiho to the wall? Incredible! These two are surely on the hunt now, all the others better watch out...

Three is making their way easily around this maze, having figured out the mechanisms to the door first. Changbin and Yooa are slowly but steadily making their way outwards, exploring rooms. Changbin especially seems to be attuned to the doors, pausing frequently to open them and take what's inside. Sadly it seems Yooa is not as fortunate, and caught an unlucky room just now. Perhaps they'll be able to make alliances easier with their expertise.

Ah! Felix from Eight has just found a room packed with food. He can't stay there though folks, because unfortunately the room will shift and it does not lock, so if he stays then he may get caught by someone he doesn't want to be caught by. Besides that, this is simply too much food for a single tribute to carry, and as we all know, speed is of the essence! Yes, he's going to be smart and specifically take out the long lived items: dried fruit, smoked meat, and oh? I believe that's some kind of vitamin powder? He'll need to find water for that. And off he runs... Hopefully he won't run into anyone else.

Perhaps this is feels right at home for Two. Jeongin and Mimi certainly seem to think so! Just look at how relaxed they are, setting up camp and inventorying items at the Cornucopia. Very different from how they were earlier, Jeongin slitting the throat of Seunghee from Eleven and Mimi gutting Jine from Six. That image of their twin smiles will forever live in the history books, won't they folks? They seem to be discussing something, let's take a closer look...

[ Jeongin: If it comes down to it, we can just kill them and then Rock Bottom it Mimi, don't be so worried about it. ]

[ Mimi: Sure. But for now, rotation system right? ]

[ Jeongin: Yeah. I don't want to sit here waiting all the time, as soon as they get back I'm heading out. Arin, you gonna come with? ]

[ Arin: Sure, I could use the exercise. Hey, did we find any food? I'm starving ]

[ Mimi: Nah. There's bottles and containers but no food. Probably scattered in the Arena somewhere. ]

[ Arin: Hopefully Chan and Hyunjin bring something back, I am not going to starve on my first night here. ]

Well well, aren't they just so prepared! While these Careers get themselves settled in, let's check in on our resident Brainiac shall we? How many of us were screaming when he nearly kicked the bucket earlier! He managed to limp off but now he's very much stuck dealing with this terrible leg injury. He's currently hiding in a room that, my my, looks like the entrance of a fantasy novel! It appears to be a dense forest, filled with foliage he can hide behind. Perhaps he'll find something to help treat his wound there, you certainly don't want to let it get infected!

Oh? Our little mystery boy from Five has just found a room completely filled with darkness. Due to the quality of our cameras, you can see there is a barrier separating that space to where Jisung is in the hallway. Perhaps there's something not so nice in that room. Will he enter? He seems to be thinking about it! He's leaning forward and-- Oh! A narrow escape from some absolutely massive claws! Nearly got his head torn off there. As it is, it seems like his cheek was caught a bit, those look like some nasty gashes. Ah, but he's smart, he's taking off his shirt and not his jacket to press up to the wound! That way he will still be able to hide his body among the background, because sadly these clothes do not break down blood like the floor does.

What an exciting first day! There go our cannons, projections of each dead tribute on the white walls. Eight dead, an unusually low number but... That just means there's more to come folks! Tune in for tomorrow's recap, and as always, may the odds be ever in your favor.

------

[ TIMELINE DAY:HOUR:MINUTE:SECOND ]

00:00:00:00 GAMES START 00:00:00:30 JISUNG RUNS INTO HALLWAY 325 00:00:00:47 JEONGIN GETS HIS FIRST KILL 00:00:00:48 CHAN GETS HIS FIRST KILL 00:00:01:13 HYUNJIN GETS HIS FIRST KILL 00:00:01:24 CHANGBIN RUNS INTO HALLWAY 273 00:00:01:24 FELIX RUNS INTO HALLWAY 927 00:00:01:25 SEUNGMIN RUNS INTO HALLWAY 817, INJURED BY ARIN 00:00:01:30 MINHO CHALLENGES JEONGIN BEFORE ESCAPING INTO HALLWAY 692 00:00:02:56 JISUNG TAKES INVENTORY OF HIS PACK 00:00:05:27 CAREER PACK TAKES INVENTORY 00:00:07:26 MINHO DISCOVERS THE SPRAY CAN OPENS DOORS, FINDS CLEAN WATER 00:00:27:17 CHAN AND HYUNJIN GO HUNTING 00:00:45:28 CHANGBIN OPENS HIS FIRST DOOR, DISCOVERS WEAPONRY 00:02:37:17 FELIX DISCOVERS ROOM FULL OF FOOD 00:04:28:52 SEUNGMIN EXITS THE JUNGLE ROOM 00:07:51:27 HYUNJIN KILLS A DISTRICT 9 TRIBUTE 00:11:14:35 JISUNG GETS INJURED FROM A MYSTERY CREATURE 00:13:45:14 FELIX NEARLY GETS BEHEADED BY A TRAP ROOM, ESCAPES MOSTLY UNHARMED 00:16:06:07 CHAN SAVES HYUNJIN FROM POISON JETS 06:18:29:17 JEONGIN NEARLY BREAKS AN ARM, ESCAPES WITH A DISLOCATED SHOULDER. POPS IT BACK INTO PLACE BUT RETURNS TO THE CORNUCOPIA FOR TREATMENT. 00:17:02:18 SEUNGMIN BARELY MISSES JEONGIN, BOTH ARE UNHARMED 00:17:38:01 MINHO RIPS A CREATURE'S ARM OFF, TAKES POISONED CLAWS AS WEAPONS 00:18:27:19 CHAN HAS A CLOSE CALL WITH SOMETHING UNIDENTIFIABLE 00:20:17:28 MOST TRIBUTES SETTLE IN FOR THE NIGHT. CAREERS LOCATED AT THE CORNUCOPIA. CHANGBIN IN ROOM 182. JISUNG IN ROOM 9182. SEUNGMIN IN ROOM 827. FELIX IN ROOM 915. MINHO CONTINUES TO ROAM, SEEKING SOMETHING. 00:24:00:00 CANONS FIRE ANNOUNCING DAILY DEAD

[addictofsupernatural]

Spidey Senses (pt. 6)

Peter Parker x reader

Summary: Having to keep up a lie is hard for Peter when you're trying to help him.

Word Count: 3366

Chapter 1 • Chapter 5

"What do you mean finally?! This is bad. Really, really bad Ned. I shouldn't be thinking about her like that!"

"Dude, it's your feelings. You're gonna feel whatever way you do. You can't control that stuff."

"But this could ruin our friendship. I don't want that." Peter whined over the phone as he put his hand over his eyes, laying on his bed.

"Or~ maybe this could all work and you could score a girlfriend." Ned suggested, amusement laced in his voice. "I mean, I didn't want to be the first one to say this, but..."

"What?"

"Let's just put it this way. She's always had a cute heart. Over time, her heart got cuter and went straight to making her face kinda hot."

"Ned." Peter frustratedly said.

Ned gave him a goofy laugh. "You sound like your getting jealous or something."

Peter quickly sat up. "Do you think that'll happen?"

"Probably." He said nonchalantly. "All seriousness Peter, you should go for it. I always thought you two would be good together. There's just something there, trust me. And hey, you two could be the amazing spider couple. That'd be awesome."

"Spider couple." He smiled and laid back down. "You think people would make that, like, a ship name for us?"

"Dude, you could have a super girlfriend. How awesome does that sound?!"

Peter let out a chuckle. "That does sound pretty cool. Okay, thanks for the therapy session. Night Ned."

"No problem. Night." And with that Peter stayed up to think about you some more.

The next week at school went horribly. All Peter wanted to do was spend more time with you, but you kept pushing him towards Liz at gym class and in Mathletes. He felt so jealous whenever he saw you goofing off with Ned. You were a very touchy person, and every warm hug to Ned felt like Peter's arms were getting colder.

When Liz was finally busy, he went over to you and sat a little closer to you than usual. "Hey Peter." You greeted brightly. "Any progress?"

"On what?" He asked dumbly.

"Liz." You said quietly.

"Oh!" He voice cracked and cleared his throat. "Oh. Um, not really. I think I'm done for the day."

"Aw, Peter!" You rubbed his arm. "You shouldn't give up on stuff that's important to you."

He sighed, glancing at Ned's confused face. "Can't I just spend the rest of the day with you?"

You smiled and nodded, patting his cheek gently. Peter's phone buzzed and it was a text message from Ned.

Not Guy in the Chair: Why didn't you tell her how you feel?

He glanced at you working on your notes.

SM: I don't want things to be weird.

Not Guy in the Chair: The truth will set you free 🕊️🕊️

SM: Shhhh

You then took out left over brownies for Peter. He gladly took one as Flash came over, taking one out of the container as well. "Hey babe."

"Don't touch my stuff and never call me that." You closed your container and put it in your backpack. "What do you want Flash?"

"Just making sure you got a hot outfit for the party. Finally gonna show some skin?"

"I do have a costume. Peter was with me when I got it too. We had a lot of fun." Peter looked at you and smiled.

Flash then rolled his eyes. "Really? How could anyone ever have fun with Penis Parker?"

"Well we do." You tugged each boy at your side into a side hug. "Do you have a special trio that would do anything for you?"

He nervously scoffed. "I have more than two friends. Does every friend seem special to you when you're not popular?"

"If you called one of your friends in the middle of the night and told them to come over cause you're sad, would any of them do it?" He was silent as he looked down. "That's a special friend. Now goodbye."

"Y'know—"

"Good. Bye." You pressed, frowning.

"I—"

"Dude," MJ interrupted. "Know when you've been beat. Walk away."

He then did so, stomping away. You smiled and looked over to MJ. "Why do we not talk to each other?"

"Cause you're a loser." She said, matter-of-factly.

Though Ned and Peter have her a confused frown, your smile only widened. "What are you?"

"Friendless."

"Not anymore!" You exclaimed. The teacher then announced that the club session just ended. "We'll see you at lunch tomorrow then."

She stared at you for a moment. "...Okay, I guess. Bye." You could tell that she held back a smile as you excitedly waved at her before packing up.

You and Peter were walking home, when he asked about MJ. "I don't know." You said, shrugging. "I just feel like she's cool. My spidey senses can feel it."

"You say that about everything." He laughed.

"Because I'm always right about everything. It's a given." He chuckled again. "C'mon, don't you ever have intensified feelings about some things or people?"

He awkwardly smiled and nodded, looking away from you. "More than I should." He mumbled.

"Hm?"

"I said I should hope so."

"Well then, see? I'm right again." You grinned.

"Did your spidey senses feel that too?"

"Yup." You both chuckled.

Over the next few days MJ began to directly hang out with you and the boys, and she said that she would be going to the party as well. "I don't believe in stereotyping geeks out of parties, which is why I'm supporting you guys tomorrow." She explained with an almost unnoticeable smile.

"So generous." You teased back, Ned and Peter smiling as well. "What'll you be going as?"

"Oh, I'll be going as part of the impartial generation of today." She gave a sly smile.

"Nice, nice." You nodded contently before Flash came up to your table again. "Holy crap man, are you sure you even have friends? Why do you keep bugging me?"

"Just wanted to see what the new member of the Penis Parker group was like." He then nodded to Mj, to which she didn't respond. He then rudely waved his hand over her face. "Hello?"

She backed her face up as you smacked his hand away. "Leave her alone."

"What? This is probably the most exciting thing to happen to her. It's not like you guys have interesting lives." You and Peter looked at each other. "I'm guessing that's a no?"

"Well Peter and y/n know Spiderman and Spidergirl!" Ned blurted out.

Flash then did a breathy, wheezing laugh. "Are you kidding me? How would they know them?"

"The Stark Internship!"

"Ned, stop talking." You mumbled. Ned nodded and put his head down. "We met them a few times, so we don't really know them or anything, and even if we did were aren't supposed to talk about it."

"Well Peter," he ignored you. "If you're actually cool then why don't you invite them the the party?"

"Cause we wouldn't want to waste their time by having them go to some fanboy's party." You argued, knowing Peter would choke up if he answered.

Flash shrugged it off. "That's what I thought." He said as he left.

The next day you were talking to Linda while in your costume with your mini backpack slung over your shoulder. She was telling you about the job interview she's getting and how she's saving up the money from Tony's watch to rent an apartment in the building you live it. "I'm so happy right now Linda! You could totally be one of those super nosey neighbors, and I would pretend to be okay with it!"

"That would be a dream come true." She said as you both turned your heads to see Peter coming, also dressed up. "Just a few years older, and I would totally go for that."

You sighed. "You're such a creeper Linda."

"And you should loosen up and be more of a creeper." You gave her a look, and she only shrugged. "Just saying. Press on and go for it."

"Hey guys." Peter greeted with a smile. "Everything okay?"

"Yup!" You hopped off the steps you were sitting on. "Let's go."

"Okay. Bye Linda." Peter politely waved.

"Don't acknowledge her Peter, it makes her weirder."

"Don't be jealous that I'm more fun." She called out, smiling.

Peter chuckled and tried to put his hands in his pockets, only for his hands to slip from there being none. He didn't know what to do with his free hand that wasn't carrying the shield. He probably looked so awkward in front of you right now. This was so nerve wracking.

"Peter calm down." You suddenly said, causing him to jump a little. "It's my first party too, but we got each other. And we know Ned's gonna be there to be a dork, and Mj will be there to remind us how stupid we look. It'll be great."

He nervously laughed, scratching his head. "Yeah, I guess." He then became nervous just thinking about what would happen if you discovered this crush, especially at the party with Flash. "Y/n, what do you see in men?"

The question was unexpected, and your face felt like it was in flames. "What would you ask that?"

"Just wondering. I don't think I've ever seen you flirt with someone." He mentally sighed at the save.

"Mm, I guess he has to be nice, for starters. I'd want him to make me laugh, and care about me. I don't know, that's really it."

"Really? Only that?"

"Yeah?"

"Nothing with looks, or..."

"Peter!" You lightly smacked his arm and giggled. "You know I don't care about that stuff."

"You care about your own looks." He said quietly.

"That's different though." You grinned and tugged on his wrist. "We're here. C'mon."

Ned was waiting on the steps, looking up at you two in major relief. "Guys, tell me you brought the suits."

You both nodded. "Our suits aren't party tricks." You said. "This feels way too wrong."

"Yeah, I'm with y/n. Those suits are worth way too much to use for something like this." Peter added.

"Only for a few minutes. This is our chance for Flash to stop messing with us." Ned whined.

You huffed. "Okay, but only if Flash is being extra annoying."

The three of you walked inside and saw Flash trying to be a DJ, playing some basic techno music. He saw the three of you, and brought out his mic. "Hey Penis Parker, where's your superhero friends? That's not Spiderman, that's Ned in a onesie."

People began laughing, and you pursed your lips. "I'll be right back."

You left and went behind a building, opening your backpack and quickly changing into your hero outfit. You took a deep breath, and was about to swing in when you got a call from Peter.

"Dude, tell me she's doing it." You could hear Ned say.

"I don't know, I'm gonna ask her. Y/n?"

"Yeah?" You laughed out.

"Did you really put it on?"

"Yeah. Are you gonna join me or do you just want me to do it?"

"This doesn't feel right."

"Peter doesn't know what he's saying." Ned called out in a child-like tone.

"Ned's being mean to me." Peter responded in the same tone.

You giggled. "Look guys, I don't feel great about it, but Flash needs to be knocked down a peg. It hurts to see him treat you guys like crap. This is just gonna be a one time thing, right?"

"Right." Peter confirmed.

Ned remained silent, but Peter nudged him. He huffed. "Right."

"Okay, I'll be down in a bit." You then ended the call.

"So, I've been meaning to ask," Ned said. "But why does y/n still think you like Liz? I thought you were gonna tell her yesterday."

"I didn't know how to tell her the truth! I panicked!"

"You're hopeless." Mj said as she walked up to the two boys. "What happened to y/n?"

"She went to go get Spidergirl." Ned nodded for way to long as he said this.

"Wait," She looked genuinely surprised. "So you guys, like, actually know the Spider heros?"

"What was that?" Flash asked over his mic. "Is Penis Parker actually going to bring Spiderman and Spidergirl here?"

"Actually, um, Spiderman couldn't make it." Peter said before clearing his throat awkwardly. "But Spidergirl said she'd make an appearance."

Flash obnoxiously laughes into the mic. "Can anybody believe this guy?"

You then swung in. "I do." You raised your hand playfully as everyone began cheering. "You guys were expecting me, right?"

Everyone cheered again. "Oh my God." Flash said in a high pitched manner.

You grabbed Ned by the shoulders. "It's Ned, right?" You asked over the music, loud enough for everyone to hear. "I've heard good things about you."

"All true." He showed his goofy smile.

You patted his cheek. "I bet!" You turned and walked over to Peter, giving him a big hug. He returned it, finding the hug oddly comforting considering everyone was staring. "Peter! It's been a bit, huh?"

He awkwardly chuckled. "Yeah. Thanks for coming."

"Of course! When I heard from SM that the Peter Parker finally had time for a party, I knew I had to come and see it for myself! Maybe my partner could join in next time, yeah?"

"We... Um..." He kept doing his little pant–laugh thing that he does when he doesn't know what to say. "Yeah."

You moved over to look at Mj. "You go by Mj, right?" She nodded. "Y/n tells me you're super opinionated and awesome."

She smiled and shrugged, tucking back some hair. "I just kinda say whatever comes to mind. I don't really think before I talk sometimes."

You tapped her chin. "I love it. Never change." You then clapped your hands. "Now! Where's Flash Thompson?"

Everyone pointed to Flash, who quickly turned down the music. You swung to him quickly and caused him to back up into a small table, awkwardly steadying it. "H... Hi."

"Hi Flash. I wanted to let you know that me and Spiderman keep tabs on our friends, to make sure they're okay. We're pretty protective, y'know?"

"Yeah, yeah. I totally get that." He kept awkwardly nodding.

You nodded and patted his cheek. "I knew you would, so I need you to keep an eye on Peter and Ned while me and SM can't. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes, yes I can. I could do anything for you."

"Thank you Flash." You patted his arm, to which he looked at his arm in amazement. "Amazing. Okay, I gotta go. But remember, I keep tabs on your school, so I'll be watching!"

You then walked around for a bit taking pictures and talked to some people. You suddenly felt goosebumps all over and excused yourself, flying out and looking around. You saw a small blue explosion in the distance and quickly texted Peter.

He came as soon as he could and you explained the situation. Unbeknownst to the two of you, Mj noticed Peter leave quickly after you did. She also noticed that you weren't in sight while Spidergirl was here.

"Okay, okay. I, I need to change!" He then quickly took off his shirt and started unbuckling his pants, looking up to you dumbly staring at him. "Uh..."

"Sorry!" You quickly turned around and look off your mini backpack, plopping it down next to yourself. It had Peter's suit folded inside. "That was partially not my fault. You gotta warn somebody before you start stripping next time."

"Next time?" He asked teasingly. "You say it like you want it to happen again."

Truth be told, neither of you knew where this new found confidence of Peter came from to tease you like that. It was almost like he was flirting. You liked it though; it was as if he was becoming more confident and mature with himself.

Your face was hot as you grinned at the ground. "Well, you gotta pay for whatever expensive college you're gonna get into somehow. And I'll come visit at the strip club to support my best friend."

He hugged you with one arm from behind. "So supportive. Maybe the reason I'm a stripper is to support the both of us."

You chuckled and rubbed his arm. "My hero."

He turned you around and handed you your backpack. "This is a cool backpack, by the way. I like the mini things of Thor."

"Thank you." You said, awkwardly taking the backpack. "Now let's go."

Neither of you could get some webbing to hold onto any tree in the area, so instead you both ran across a whole field, looking kind of comical. By the time you two got there this one man was showing another some high tech weapons. You were getting closer to listen in, and it sounded like the guy wasn't interested in what the others were trying to sell.

"Why you trying to upsell me man?"

The other two guys didn't like this, and were slowly getting angrier. You tried to get closer, but Peter's phone went off from Ned calling him. You both hid as Peter fumbled to end the call, and the two merchants assumed the buyer was setting them up because of the noice. In an instant there were two guns pointed at the buyer.

"Woah, woah!" You yelled as you and Peter came out, hands up. "C'mon guys, I promise he wasn't turning his back on you two. And I'm a good guy; good guys don't lie."

"Really, if you guys are gonna shoot at anybody, shoot at me." Peter said with seriousness. "I'm the real threat."

The two guys looked at each other and pointed their guns at the both of you. "Okay."

You both dodged their shots and flung their guns away with your webs. You tried to shoot at the wheels of the car but the man with an electric glove shot at you, causing you to fling back. You noticed that the buyer hesitated to go and help you, but decided not to and instead hopped in his car and drove away.

When you got up they were getting in the car so you and Peter shot a web to the door. The door broke off, but Peter shot another web to the car to have you two ride the door.

"Hey, I got a really stupid idea!" You yelled out as the guy in the back of the van was reaching for a gun.

"Go for it!" The van hit a sharp turn, and you took this as chance to let go of the door and leap to a tree, using your strength to push and dive head first into the van.

"Woah, I did it!" The shocker guy tried to punch you with his electric glove, but you dodged it. "Someone's bitter!"

You began to go on a defensive position and dodge his contact hits and fires in the narrow van, until Peter shot a web at him that pinned one of his hands to the side of the van. He used the other hand to shoot at Peter, blasting him into a backyard.

"I'm okay!" You heard him yell out from a distance.

You slammed the shocker guy to the ground and pinned his hands and feet to the ground. You stood and shot web to cover his mouth as well. "That was a pretty rude thing to do, but I guess two v one isn't fair. Then again, you're are a bad guy."

You remembered that you had your backpack on this whole time, and took it off to hug it.

"Mh. Once again, Thor backpack comes in clutch. Odinson, you can me do no wrong." You opened your backpack and put some small weapons in it, zipping it up and putting it back on. You looked outside before turning around to talk to the man pinned on the ground. "I wonder where Spiderman went. It's all good though, I'll stop the car—"

You were cut off by something grabbing you and yanking you back. You yelped as you were whipped into this huge lake. The water hit you painfully and you began to see spots, seeing a flash of a man with mechanical wings. You almost didn't feel something bring you up.

"Thanks ma..." You looked up and winced. What was carrying you was the Iron Man suit. "Uh oh."

"I have some words for you two."

---

Tag List:

@flawlessapollo6 @them-cute-boys @lunawndrlnd @the-greatt-perhaps @babebenhardy @sofisofi1602 @smilexcaptainx @herondalism @coni-martina @youvebeenlizzed @melanisticroyalty

[lia-the-potato05]

Revenge

Reader (Ler) x Jungkook (Lee)

Description: Jungkook loves scaring the crap out of you and you just had enough of it. After an interesting information you heard from Jimin you decided to take revenge

Author: Eyyy I'm back...with another fic. I feel like this is a mess because I didnt even bother to proofread this (Im hella lazy sorry mate). Uhm anyways let's get on with the fic

✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧✦ ✧

"Boo!" You turned back and screamed, falling to the ground scared as hell after you saw a scary clown infront of you.

"Haha got you!" The clown then removed his mask revealing your best friend Jungkook "Oh my gosh have you seen your face? That was Hilarious" He started laughing his ass off

"Ugh!" You grunted as you stood up fixing yourself "Jungkook!" You screamed at him

Jungkook ignored you and continued laughing as he turned around, walking away from you.

"That f*cking prick" You said through gritted teeth.

Jungkook just recently knew how easily scared you get. And because he is known as the Evil Maknae he has been scaring you every now and then. He was a fond of your reaction when you get scared. You were extremely annoyed of his doings and worst of all he manages to get away from it aswell

•••

Up until now you were still upset with what Jungkook has been doing to you. Your arms were crossed and frustration was written all over your face. "Y/N are you ok?" You turned your head to owner of the Voice which was Jimin's.

"I'm good" You said. Knowing it was a lie Jimin sat himself next to you

"C'mon Y/N I'm your friend, I know you better than that. Now tell me what's wrong"

You sighed "It's nothing, really...Just so f*cking annoyed with that muscle bunny!" you slammed your fist against the table in front of you startling Jimin

"Chill" Jimin said

"How can I?! Ugh! He does it all the damn time! and gets away with it aswell" You pouted with your arms crossed

"Since we're friends I might have something that can surely help you" You tilted your head in confusion. Jimin then gestured you to come closer for him to whisper something into you ear.

After hearing what Jimin has said a smirk formed on your face as began mentally planning your revenge on Jungkook

Oh Jeon Jungkook you are so gonna get what's coming for you

•••

It was a Saturday morning. Jimin has given you an extra key to Jungkook's apartment. You entered his place and found him asleep like you expected him to be. You were lucky he was the type of person who wakes up late aswell. Perfect for you to continue your plan

You cleared out his bed making sure only Jungkook was on top if it. You then positioned him into an X position (which was hard by the way because he had an odd sleeping position and he was hella heavy). You then took out the straps tying his wrists and ankles to the bed post making sure he wouldn't be able to move once he woke up.

Once that was done. You took out items from your bag such as Feathers, Baby Oil and an electric toothbrush. After everything was all set all you have to do now is to wait for the muscle bunny to wake up. I mean you can start right now if you wanted too but where's the fun in that? You wanted to see his reaction first.

•••

After what felt like years (it was only an hour actually) Jungkook finally woke up. The boy tried pulling his arms down only to find them stuck above his head "What the f*ck?" He tugged on both his arms and ankles only to find out that he was strapped

Jungkook turned to his side to see you sleeping on his study table. "Y/N!"

His yelling suddenly woke you "Huh what?" You said, you wiped the drool off your mouth, letting out a yawn then stretched a little. "Oh your finally awake" You looked at Jungkook with a smile

"What the hell is this Y/N?!" Jungkook asked glaring at you

"Why that's my revenge dear friend" You stood up walking towards him

"You know if you wanted to f*ck me you could have just asked" You looked at the smirking bunny in disbelief after hearing his snarky remark.

"Eww no, What I had in mind for you is something different" You smirk back at him "Just you wait"

Without further a do you then sat on stomach. "You sure you don't plan on f*cking me?"

"You pervert!" You slapped him, not too hard though and he just laughed at your reaction "Oh laugh all you want, I'm gonna make sure of it"

You took out the baby oil and started rubbing it against his exposed stomach (He was shirtless). "Nice revenge there" You rolled your eyes at him, you ignored what he said and continued on

Once you finished you took out a feather. Jungkook looked at you now aware what this little revenge you planned is all about. But he is Jungkook the Golden Maknae he does not show fear well...that failed today

"What's wrong Kook? Afraid of a feather?" You smirked at him. It didn't start but I know this will be so much fun

"What? No! It's just a feather what's there to be afraid of?" The maknae said with confidence laced in his voice but oh how nervous he felt inside. I am so gonna regret this later on

You raised your eyebrows at him expecting that kind of attitude "Ok, then you won't mind me doing this then" You then slowly dragged the feather around his toned stomach drawing random patterns

Jungkook started biting his lip trying to hide his laughter. But it was so damn hard, it felt too ticklish.

"What's with the face Jungkook? You seem rather ticklish" You smirked

"I am not ticklish!" He yelled

"Oh I see" You then stood up

Jungkook thought it was over but boy was he wrong. He suddenly felt you rubbing oil over his foot. "I wonder what will happen if I do this?" You said wiggling your fingers on his bare sole.

"S-stop that!" Jungkook said a small giggle escaping his mouth. His eyes widened after realising it

"What's that? Is that a giggle I heard?"

"Nope, you heard nothing! You're just crazy!" He spat out making you gasp

"Well that wasn't nice, we can't let that slip now can we" You started using your nails scratching his bare two feet fastly.

Jungkook balled up his hands into fist, eyes tightly shut trying his best to bare it "C'mon Kook laugh for me" You teased

And just like that he realized he couldn't take it any longer so he decided to let it out "Oohohohohokaaayyy I'm tihihihihihicckliiisshhh nohohohoww pleheheheheaaseee stopppp!" He laughed loudly wiggling around the bed like a mad man. He tried tugging on his ankles to escape your wiggling fingers but sadly it stayed in place

"I know you are sweetie, look at how well you are reacting. But this is just the beginning" You finally stopped tickling his feet as you then went to get the electric toothbrush, two electric toothbrushes

"Now Y/N let's not have any of that please! I'm sorry! I won't mess with you again" Jungkook pleaded

"Hm let me think for a second" You said looking up, tapping your chin as if your thinking "Nahhh I'm having so much fun I don't think I wanna stop" You then turned on the two electric toothbrush with an evil smile as you went to his feet again using the electric toothbrush on them.

"NOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO" He let out a cackly laugh as he began wiggling once again wanting to escape.

Already having enough with his feet you then positioned yourself back to sitting on his stomach and roaming the electric brushes around his upper body, from his sides to his tummy then to his ribs. At this point Jungkook's face was red as a tomato and warm tears were streaming down his cheeks.

Because you are so kind you turned the two electric toothbrushes off and set them at the side. Allowing Jungkook to have a quick break.

You watch Jungkook catch his breath heavily panting "My my Jungkook you are the most ticklish person I have ever met, Even Jimin can't beat your level of ticklishness (it's not a real word but eh😂)"

"I've never been tickled this much before" He said

"Yeah? I bet you enjoyed it"

"Did not!" Jungkook lied. He unexpectedly enjoyed it. He didn't know why but he just did. Of course there is no way his gonna admit that.

"You know there's this one spot I haven't tried yet" You smirked, you decided to use your fingers this time. To tease him you started wiggling your fingers  above his face then slowly you bring it down to a specific area

Jungkook realised where your fingers were going. He looked at you in horror "No Y/N! Don't you dare!"

"Oh I do"

"Y/N no no no no no n-AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH" You were now tickling Jungkook's armpits. And so far you received the best reaction out of the other areas you tickled

Jungkook was harshly tugging on the straps and head shaking side to side "IT TIHIHIHIHICKLES SOHOHOHOHO MUHUHUHUHUCCHHH" Jungkook screamed through laughter

You giggled "I can see that"

It's been 20 since you were torturing his armpits, poking them, scratching them, using the tickle tools on them."I cahahahahan't tahahahake it aanymohohohore"

"Almost done!" You blew raspberry on his left armpit

"Stohohohohop" Then u blew again on his right armpit "Pleheheheheaaseee"

"Last but not least" You said then did a final blow to his tummy. Jungkook's laughed has now turned silent.

After that was over you then untied hus wrists and ankles.

Jungkook was extremely exhausted. His hair was messy, he was sweating, his tummy was hurting from laughing, his cheeks were hurting from smiling a lot. but nonetheless he still he enjoyed.

"Hey Look Listen..." He looked at you scratching his nape "I'm sorry for scaring you the past few days, I have totally learned my lesson and I wont do it again"

"Don't worry I already forgive you" You smiled at him

"I-I don't like like admitting this but you're right...I did enjoyed it" You looked at him surprised.

"Really now?" You grinned at him with your eyebrows raised "Guess I have to do it more often then"

Maybe you should

[lovemychoices]

Always Be My Driver - A RoD Rom-Com [Colt x MC/Logan x MC]. CH 5

Book : RIDE OR DIE

PAIRING : Colt x MC/ Logan x MC

SUMMARY: Emma and Colt have been childhood best friends since forever, they were both inseparable. In middle school they became something more but when Colt had to move with his mom away from LA all the way to Miami, things started to change between them. A small misunderstanding leads to the end of their relationship. 6 years later they meet again at the most unlikely place. Will Emma and Colt be able to mend what has been broken between them? Or will it continue to crash and burn?

Characters except my OCs belong to Pixelberry, I am just borrowing them

Word count : 3262

Chapter Summary: All secrets eventually come to light.

A/N : Posting from my phone so like tag this under #long post. Sorry for any grammatical errors! I didn’t really have the time to double check my work.

Warning : I’m rating this PG18 cause there will probably be PG18 stuff that’s going to happen in future chapters. So if you read this series you acknowledge that.

Catch up with the series HERE

Dear Diary,

It’s been a few days since that night in Colt’s room and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about him. Do I still have feelings for him? Does he still have feelings for me?

Emma shakes her head at the thought.

Gosh I feel like the worst girlfriend ever, I have the best boyfriend in the world, who loves and trusts me. Yet here I am thinking about if Colt Kaneko still has feelings for me. With everything that’s been going on I’ve been debating whether or not I should come clean and tell Logan about it.

*****

Emma stands in front of her vanity mirror putting on the finishing touches of her make up. She and Logan had plans to go out tonight, it was their fourth double date with Riya and Darius and she couldn’t wait to hangout with them, especially if it meant she could get Colt off her mind.

The door to the loft opens and she beams when she sees it Logan walking in. “Hey beautiful, I haven’t seen you all day.” He murmured in a low husky voice while wrapping his arms around her waist and slowly tracing kisses down her neck. “You have no idea how much I’ve missed you.”

Emma Lets out a soft giggle. “But we just saw each other this morning.”

“Has it been that long already?”He continues to nip the side of her neck.

“Mmm... Logan .. Our friends are expecting us at the movies, we’re going to be late if you keep distracting me like this.”

“They can wait.. Right now I need you.” He slowly unties the knot on her robe, letting it fall to the floor leaving only her lingerie on. He spun her around and lifts her on top of the dresser, immediately capturing her lips in a heated kiss.

Emma wraps her leg around his waist, running her hand through his hair, a soft moan escapes her as she feels his warm lips pressed on her bare skin. “Logan, bed now.” She whimpers and he gave her a mischievous grin.

He swiftly lifts her up and carries her to the bed, gently throwing her on the mattress. He quickly takes off his shirt and jeans before getting on top of her. Emma pulls him in for a hungry kiss as Logan’s hand slowly traces tantalizing motions from her jaw then her breast all the way inside the waistband of her laced panties.

“Oh Logan..”

BAM! The door swings right open. Emma immediately pushes Logan off the bed and he falls to the hardwood floor with a loud thud. She grabs the blanket covering her half naked body.

“What the fuck Mona, don’t you knock? People are half naked over here!”

Mona snorts. “Oh please if I see something I haven’t seen before, I’ll throw a dollar at it.”

“What do you want, Mona?” Logan scowls.

“Boss wants to see you before you go out. I suggest you put on some pants before you do.” She grins.

Logan rolls his eyes at Mona before gathering his scattered clothes off the floor. He puts his jeans and shirt back on then heads out the door.

���Piece of advise Em, next time you and pretty boy over there are having at it, make sure you lock the door first. Wouldn’t want the wrong person barging in.”

*****

At the movies Emma and Riya stares at a poster that’s currently featured on the wall. Both the ladies were waiting for the guys to buy their popcorn and drinks. “Is it just me or does Matt Rodriquez looks like he doesn’t age?” Emma admiringly said with her arms crossed.

“I think he could be in his 50’s and still look like his in his late 30’s” Riya replied then turns to see if the guys were done but someone else catches her eye. “Um.. Emma, is it just me or does that guy over there remind you of Colt Kaneko?”

Emma’s breath hitched when she heard his name. Maybe Riya is mistaken, she hasn’t seen him in like forever. Emma slowly turns to where Riya is looking her eyes go wide. Holy Crap, it’s really him. What the hell is he doing here? “Emma are you alright?” But Riya’s words go unheard as she stomps over towards Colt.

“Colt? What are you doing here?”

Colt gives a half shrug. “Why else would someone go to the movies?”

“Wait, why does it sound like the two of you have already met before?” Riya asks with a confused look on her face.

“Well yeah, it’s hard not to run into each other when you live and work under the same roof.” Colt replies then arches an eyebrow at Riya. “I thought you knew?”

Emma closes her face with the palm of her hand, in the weeks since Colt arrived she didn’t mention any of it not even once to Riya during their calls or when they texted.

“Oh really?” Riya turns to Emma quirking an eyebrow at her. “Huh.. Must have slipped my mind.”

A few seconds later a young petite brunette approaches Colt and hooks her arm around his. “Sorry for keeping you waiting, the line at the restroom was just a total nightmare.” She smiles, turning her attention to Emma and Riya, eyeing them from head to toe. “I’m sorry'' Who are you?”

Colt gently slips his arm out from the brunette before introducing them. “Jean, this is Emma and Riya. Their friends of mine back when I lived in LA. Emma and Riya meet Jean, she also goes to MIT.”

“Ah so you two go to school together?” Emma chimes in. “Are you here for summer break?”

“Only for a few days.. Colt promised he’d show me around if I was ever in town.” She replies, looking fondly at Colt. “He sort of owes me after helping him with his robotics project last semester.”

“Well I’m sure you’ll have lost of fun if Colt’s your tour guide.” Emma gives Jean a gingerly smile before giving Colt a look. I hope you fall and hurt yourself, you asshole!

Just then Logan and Darius saunter towards the group holding two large buckets popcorn and a few soft drinks. When Logan notices Colt, he glares at him. “What are you doing here?”

“Not here to see you, if that’s what you’re implying” He answers in a disdain tone then turns to Darius. “Darius, haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Colt Kaneko? it’s been so long! Man I’d give you a hug but my hands are tied.” He gestured to the tub of popcorn and drinks in his hand. “How long have you been in town?”

“Okay! While I’d love to see where this reunion is going, don’t forget we have a movie to catch which starts in like 2 minutes.” Emma quickly interrupted. If she had to be in the same place as Colt and his date she’d just lose it. This couldn't get any worse. But she spoke too soon, turns out Colt and his date were watching the same movie too and they were seated right in front of her and Logan. She couldn't keep her eyes off Colt and Jean the whole time, she practically almost missed the first half of the movie. What was it that was bugging her so much?

Halfway towards the end of the movie, Emma sees Jean slowly cozying up to Colt and she didn't know what came over her next but she abruptly gives a strong kicks on Colt's Chair making a thud sound startling him and his date. They both turn to look at her with their eyebrows raised while Logan eyes her suspiciously. "Sorry… I got excited from the scene." She said dryly.

Colt whispers something into his date's ear then shortly after he gets up and walks out of the theatre. Emma anxiously taps her fingers on the arm of the chair. Where does he think he's going?! "Hey I’m out of milk duds." She lied.

“Want me to go out and get some more?”

“No, I’ll get them myself. I need a quick run to the ladies room anyway.” She said giving him a chaste kiss before going out. Emma scans around the hall to see where Colt went. When she does she quickly follows him not realizing where he went. "What do you think you’re doing?!”

"Christ! Emma what are you doing in here?!" Colt jumps up, quickly zipping his pants. "You do know this is the men's room right?"

Holy shit! He's right! It's alright you've been in more humiliating situations before. "Don't change the subject, why are you following me?"

"Uh…I’m not the one in the mens room?" He gives her a sly grin. "What’s this really about, Emma?"

“I.. I don’t know what you mean.” She mumbled nervously with her eyes downcast. Colt scoffed. “You know exactly what I mean.. Did you think I wouldn't notice you intentionally kicking the back of my head just as things between me and Jean were getting comfy? Just admit it Em, you’re jealous.”

Don’t let him get to you. “As if…” She replied with a scoff. “I see something’s haven’t changed, Colt. You’re still as narcissistic as ever.”

“And you still can’t lie to me even if your life depended on it.” He retorts, stepping closer towards her. She could feel her heart pounding as he stands right in front of her, their body’s barely an inch away from each other. Once again they found themselves in the same position as the night before, both gazing into each other’s eyes with a sense of longing and their lips only one move away from a kiss. Do it already, just kiss me.

Colt takes one more step forward slowly leaning in, Emma could feel her heart pounding fast. She closes her eyes ready for what's about to come when she hears the sound of something being pulled out. She opens her eyes and see Colt taking a few pieces of toilet paper from the dispenser behind her. “You were in the way.”

She immediately felt her cheeks flush but tries to hide how embarrassed she was. “Okay.. So I need to go back to the movie before my boyfriend who I love very much gets worried.” She turns on her heels and bites her tongue hoping he wouldn’t notice that she thought he was going to kiss her because the last thing she needed was to be humiliated by Colt.

****

After the movies Emma, Logan, Riya and Darius continued their double date for dinner at a new korean restaurant. They were greeted by a waitress who started taking their orders. “Emma what are you going to order? Logan asked.

But Emma was too busy paying attention to her phone, stalking Colt’s date on pictagram to bother with everyone else around her. So she goes to MIT with Colt and She’s a sophomore. Originally from Boston. Urgh.. She’s a cat person! Well that would never work because Colt’s allergic to cats, plus he’s a dog person just like me. A new picture pops up on her pictagram. No he didn’t is that Barry’s Ice Cream shop? He took her to our favorite ice cream shop! Wait there is no reason to be jealous you’ve taken Logan there plenty of times.

“Earth to Emma!” She finally snaps out of it Her thoughts.“Huh what?”

“It’s your turn to order..” Riya glares at her.

“Oh right um.. So I’ll have the bulgogi and kimchi fried rice and some green tea.” She tells the waitress and hands her back the menu, when she looks around the table everyone is staring at her in a curious way. “What? Do I have something on my face?”

“No but are you okay? You’ve been acting weird since we left the movies?” Logan asks with a concerned look on his face. “I’m fine..” She sputters. “I need to use the restroom.. Excuse me one moment.”

“I just realized I need to use the restroom too.” Riya said following Emma from behind. When they reach the washroom Emma lets out a loud growl while Riya gives her a questionable look. “Okay what’s going on?” She crosses her arms. “You’ve been acting all weird since we saw Colt at the movies. Which by the way, you didn’t mention was back in town and not only that his dad happens to be your boss?”

“It slipped my mind okay? Besides, I didn’t think it was a big deal that I needed to tell you.”

“Not a big deal? Emma, this is not just some other guy you just met. It’s Colt Kaneko we’re talking about. He was your best friend, he was the first guy you ever loved.”

“We.. We were just kids. Those feelings, they were just part of some teenage phase and I’m over it.”

“Oh really?” Riya gives Emma a pointed look. “Is that why you’ve been stalking his date since we left the movie?”

Emma let out a nervous snort. “I have not.”

“Prove it..” Riya gives Emma a challenging stare with her arms folded on her waist. Emma finally admits defeat and tell every single detail that’s been going on since Colt came back and Riya listens intently.

*******************************

Meanwhile back at their table Logan and Darius both gives each other a questionable look as the girl's head to the washroom. “What was that all about?” Darius asks. “Beats me.” Logan snorts

“So I’ve been meaning to ask you, how do you know Colt?”

“Colt? I met him in 7th grade through Emma. They were pretty inseparable as kids all the way through middle school.” He replies and takes a sip of his drink. “I gotta say Logan, I admire you for being the bigger man.”

“For what?” Logan raises his eyebrows.

“Well you know? Because of their history together? They were practically each other’s first love. Colt even gave her this really expensive bracelet he worked hard for during the summer for her birthday.”

Darius words hit Logan like a knife to the heart, he’s asked Emma before if she and Colt were ever more than just friends and she looked him in the eye and lied to his face. But why? Why would she do that? When Darius realizes that Logan had no idea his eyes go wide open. “Oh man, I’m sorry I thought you knew. Crap Emma is so going to kill me and Riya is..”

“Riya is what?” Riya suddenly interrupts as she approaches the booth with Emma following behind her. “What have you boys been talking about?” She asks as they both plopped back on their seats. Darius looks at Logan who subtly shake his head. “N..Nothing.” He sputters. “I was just telling Logan how excited you always get during our double dates.”

“Huh… and here I thought you boys might have some hot gossip.”

“Oh there was alright.” Logan mutters in a barely audible tone. He stayed quiet for the rest of their time at the restaurant only replying not more than three words when being asked a question. All he could think about was how betrayed he felt, if she lied about this what else did she lie about? So many questions and doubts ran through his mind but he wasn’t going to make a scene while Darius and Riya were around. It’ll just have to wait when they get back.

*************

The ride back to the loft was awkwardly quiet, Logan didn't feel like talking after what he found out. Emma could feel the tension like something was bothering Logan, he was perfectly fine before she came out of the restroom after her little chat with Riya.

“So… The food at the restaurant was actually really good.” She said trying to break the silence but Logan just stays quiet. “We should go back there sometime, there’s still so many things I want to try.” But she only got a shrug from him as a reply.

They finally reach the auto shop,normally Logan would have his arms around her and they’d make out abit before stepping out but this time was different, without saying a word Logan immediately exits the car slamming the door behind and stomps straight to the loft. Emma quickly follows him from behind. What’s gotten into him?

“Logan what’s going on? You’ve been quiet all night, it’s not like you.” But he still doesn’t answers, his back still facing her. “Please Logan, talk to me. I’m worried.” She stepped closer to him and places a hand on his arm but he shrugs it off.

After a moment he finally spoke in a weak voice. “I love you Em.”

“And I love you, Logan.”

“Then why did you lie to me about Colt?” Emma takes a step back feeling caught off guard by his question. Shit! “You.. You know? How?”

“Darius accidentally let it slip. How long were you planning on lying to me?” Why did you?” I looked you in the face Emma! I asked you and you lied to me!” He snaps, a hurtful look on his face.

“I… I don’t know.. I guess I was afraid.” She said with her eyes downcast while fidgeting with the bracelet on her hand. Logan had a point why did she lie? She had no reason to, she knew Logan would understand and yet she chose to hide the truth from him.

“Afraid? Afraid of what?”

“You and Colt don’t exactly see eye to eye, I didn’t want to make things worse by letting you know our history. Plus it was all in the past and Colt was bound to leave after summer break.. I just.. Please Logan I didn’t mean to hurt you.” She pleads with tears welling in her eyes, her hand still unconsciously fidgeting with the bracelet that Colt gave her, which Logan noticed and then it hits him. “He gave you that didn’t he? That’s the bracelet Darius mentioned.” Emma stops and gives him a regretful look. “You’ve had that since the day we first met.”

“It doesn’t mean anything, it's just an accessory.”

“When you lost it the other day, you almost went crazy just looking for it. That doesn't feel like just an accessory to me. Just tell me the truth Emma, after all this time do you still love him?”

“I’ve known Colt for almost all my life but I’m with you now and I love you, Logan.” She said stepping towards his to reach for his hand but he swipes it away.

“That’s not an answer, just look me in the eye and tell me the truth for once Emma, are you still in love with Colt?” His was voice stern but his eyes shows a different emotion, sadness.

“I… I don’t … I don’t know.” She sputters as tears start to well in her eyes. Why was it so hard to just say no?

Logan takes a step back, running his hands through his hair while his eyes pointedly looks away. At that moment he could feel his heart shattered into a million pieces but he takes a deep breath and quickly pulls himself together. “I think we need to take a break. I’m going away for a few days for a job maybe a week. We should both just use that time to think about what we really want.” He said and walks towards the door stopping mid way to look over his shoulder. “I’ll be sleeping downstairs on the couch tonight, good night Emma.”

************************************************

Rod - @liamzigmichael4ever @client-327 @brightpinkpeppercorn @lovehugsandcandy @lilyofchoices @rideorparadise @zaffrenotes @queenkaneko @mskaneko @pintsizedelle @flowerpowell @desiree-0816 @emceesynonymroll @kinkykingliam @jlpplays1 @annekebbphotography @thecordoniandiaries @cora-nova @rainbowsinthestorm @princess-geek @leelee10898 @herladyshipxx @emichelle @kimmiedoo5 @dawn-1994 @choicesarehard

[the-daily-multi-fandom-post]

Humanity:

~ Damon Salvatore x reader ~ Mystic falls gang X reader 

A/n: there is no Delena in this sorry :/ this also isn’t the best.

Summary: Y/n pierce. The twin sister of Kathrine pierce. Y/n’s daughter Y/d/n was murdered (because the person thought that Y/n was Kathrine), making Y/n turn her humanity off. Y/n goes to mystic falls and feeds off of a few people, only to be caught by her long term best friend/ crush Damon Salvatore. Later on Y/n and Damon confess their love for each other. 

Mystic falls 1864: 

“Where’s Kathrine and Y/n?” Damon asked looking at his younger brother. The greened eyed boy looked at his brother, shrugged turning around looking in the woods. “They’re gone. Father and the counsel captured them.” Stefan explained looking at the raven haired man. “Damn it Stefan.” Damon swore as he looked around. “We have to save them.” Damon proclaimed looking at his brother. Stefan nodded as they ran through the woods in search for the carriage holding the vampires. 

Two shots were fired that night, and two lives were taking from two men who shouldn't have died. Damon and Stefan were shot by their father. There father was angry with them for associating with a vampire. In fear that he would be judged by the rest of the counsel for his sons mistake he killed them both. The next morning Damon and Stefan woke up as vampires. They completed their transition then went different ways. Not to see each other again until decades later. 

Mystic falls present: 

“Stefan I told you I have no feelings for Damon.” Elena cried out looking at Stefan. “You’re lying!” He shouted making her jump back. “Look Elena if you want to be with him go ahead, but don't lie to my face about it.” Stefan said strangely calm. “I don't have feelings for your brother Stefan. I love you, it will always be you Stefan.” Elena claimed looking at Stefan with teary eyes. Stefan looked at Elena and shook his head. “Stefan?” a voice called from the front door. “Stefan?” it sounded like Elena. “Kathrine.” Stefan said looking at the older doppelgänger. “Woops.” Kathrine sneered looking at Stefan.  “Kathrine, what are you doing here?” Elena asked looking at the doppelgänger. “Playing you, its getting quite to easy.” Kathrine said looking at Elena with a smirk. “Where's Damon, I need to talk to him?” Elena asked looking at Stefan. “With Alaric, Jeremy and Matt down at the Lake house.” Stefan said looking at Elena. “Oh yeah, I forgot.” Elena said looking at Stefan. The front door opened once again revealing Damon, Alaric, Jeremy and Matt. “Kathrine.” Damon sneered vamp speeding towards her. grabbing her neck and throwing her against the wall. “Damon, its Elena.” Elena gasped as Damon applied more pressure. “Damon stop that's Elena.” Stefan said looking at Damon. “No it isn't Elenas right behind us.” Jeremy said looking at Damon who was holding a doppelgänger by their throat. A doppelgänger walked into the room with a smile on her face. “Hello brothers.” Y/n said looking at Damon who was still holding Elena by her neck. Kathrine was smirking with Stefan seeming shocked by this confusion. “What miss me?” y/n asked looking at Damon who seemed to be shocked. 

“Y/n?” Damon asked with a smile. Damon hasn't seen Y/n since that night in 1864. Y/n was going all over the world pretending to be Kathrine so Klaus would follow her and not Kathrine. Luckily he started following Y/n and not Kathrine. once again showing you how selfless Y/n is to save her family. “Damon, long time no see.” She said with a smile looking at Damon with a smile. Damon let go of Elena neck mumbling a apology as he slowly walked over to Y/n. His long lasting best friend. He smiled looking at her. “Oh my god.” He said pulling her into a hug. “So she’s been with us this whole time pretending to be Elena?” Alaric asked looking at Stefan and Kathrine. ‘Yes, I just wanted to sneak up on my old pal here.” Y/n said looking at Damon with a smile. “How rude of me.” y/n said looking at everyone in the room. “Let me introduce myself.” Y/n said making Kathrine smile. Y/n always had a way of introducing herself ever since she had met up with her sister. 

Y/n vamp sped in front of the three men she has never met before. She smiled looking at the brown headed boy. “Y/n Pierce, the better looking sister.” Y/n whispered the last part. She vamp sped to Elena and gave her a smile. “Thanks for letting me borrow you ring.” Y/n said taking her ring from Elena and giving hers back. “When did?” Elena asked but was cut off by Matt. “Why are you here?” Matt asked with an attitude. “Well Mr. attitude. I was here to see my boys again.” y/n said looking at Damon and Stefan. “They aren't yours.” Kathrine said looking at Y/n. “No, but they are my friends.” Y/n spoke looking at Kathrine with a bitch face. “Do you have your humanity off?” Kathrine asked looking at her sister with a smile. “Damn I thought I hidden it well. Opps.” Y/n smiled vamp speeding to matt and feeding off of him. “Bye.” Y/n said then speeding off leaving a bleeding matt in the floor. 

~ “Why the hell does she have her humanity off?” Damon yelled at Kathrine. “Oh you don't know, well out of the goodness of her heart -that she used to have. Adopted a little girl back a few years ago. Long story short someone that hates me thought Y/n was me and slaughtered the girl right in front of my sister.” Kathrine said like she was just telling someone about her day. She took a swig of her bourbon looking at Damon and Stefan. The Salvatore brothers stared daggers at Kathrine shaking their head. “So your telling me you practically let someone murder you sisters kid?” Jeremy asked looking at Kathrine with a shameful face. “Look its survival. As long as Y/n and myself aren't hurt. I’m okay.” Kathrine said looking at Jeremy. “You are a sick bitch.” Elena said shaking her head at Kathrine. “You let your sisters daughter be murdered just so you can live!” Elena yelled looking at Kathrine. “You know I thought you were a monster before. Now you are totally a monster. I cant.” Stefan started looking at Kathrine shaking his head. “Look I know we can fight over this all say, but Y/n.. my best friend is probably out there feeding on some people so I suggest we go find her.” Damon said looking at everyone in the room. Everyone looked at Damon shocked. “Y/n has been there for me in ways you'll never understand.” Damon said looking at everyone. “Y/n is practically a saint. I have never seen her hurt a fly. That is until Matt. But anyway, if you all swear up and down that you are such good people. Help get her humanity back.” Damon said getting up from the sofa and going out the door. 

Dead bodies were lying all over the grill as Y/n dance and drank, while singing. “Hey Bus boy! Turn the music up!” Y/n yelled as she danced. The man did as told. Making Y/n smiled. “Hey-Hey mama, look at me, I’m on my way to the promise land. Woah!” Y/n sung sway her hips to the sound of highway to hell. “I’m on a highway to hell.” Y/n sung with a smile drinking more of her jack Daniels Tennessee whiskey. Y/n frowned noticing that her drink was empty. She walked over to the bar and compelled her another bottle of liquor. “Thank you.” She said with a smile going back to her spot drinking and dancing. “Highwa- what the hell do you think you are doing?” Y/n asked noticing someone had turned off the music. Y/n saw Jeremy gilbert stand there looking at her with a frown. “Look little gilbert.” Y/n said right before she hiccupped. She slowly started walking towards him with a angry look. “I’m a little thirsty and as you can tell I will happily feed off of you.” Y/n spoke. “And as of right now I could just kill you without even batting an eye. So cut on the music.” Y/n demanded looking at the young hunter. “Sorry no can do.” he said right before Damon injected her with Vervain. “I’m sorry.” He whispered. Y/n looked at him and smiled. “its gonna take a hell of a lot of vervain to take me down. Do you not remember. I have taken vervain everyday since I turned. You cant.” ~Snap~ her neck broke. “Woops.” Kathrine smiled looking at Damon. “Lets get this over with.” Kathrine said looking at Damon. He nodded lifting Y/ns body up and carrying her bridle style. 

Salvatore boarding house:

They put Y/n down stairs in the cellar after they drained her blood, replacing it with a hell of a lot of vervain. After a while Y/n started waking up. She opened her eyes to see Damon standing in front of her. “Howdy.” Y/n said with a smirk. Looking at Damon. “How you feeling there?”.  Damon asked giving her Smile. “Dick.” She voiced lowly. “you see I don't like this new you. You just turned to be another Kathrine and we already have one of her.” Damon spoke looking at Y/n. “Well if you let me go, I can show you I’m nothing like her.” Y/n said looking at Damon with a smirk. “sorry not until you turn those emotions back on.” He said looking at Y/n. “Well you’ll be waiting there for a long time.” Y/n said annoyance laced her voice. “Y/n I need you to turn on those emotions. If not for me do it for Y/d/n.” Damon said making her jerk her head to look at him. “Don't talk about her.” Y/n said her voice full of anger. “Oh look anger that's an emotion.” he sneered looking at Y/n.

 “Think about that little girl. She wouldn't ever want her mother to be like this. Think about that little girl. That (y/h/c) haired, (Y/e/c) girl running around with daisies in her hair. Running around with a smile on her face.” Damon said looking at her. “Go. To. Hell.” Y/n said through gritted teeth. “Been there done that.” Damon said with a smirk. “Think about her, y/n. That poor little girl when that man slaughtered her. When she cried out for you. For you to be her mother and protect her.” Damon said as he noticed more tears go down her face. “Think about that girl, now that she doesn't have to deal with your poor excuse as a sister, and now she is so lucky that she doesn't have to deal with you now.” Damon watched as the switch came on and emotions were flooding in. “You were the best mother that she could ever have.” Damon spoke looking at Y/n. “I’m sorry.” Y/n sobbed looking down at her feet. “I’m so sorry Y/d/n.” Y/n cried as her body shook in sobs. “Y/n look at me.” Damon said looking at his sobbing best friend. Y/n shook her head ‘no’, still staring down. He lifted her chin up and stared into her (Y/E/C) eyes. 

“You were the best mother she could have every had. You protected her with everything you had until those last moments. Y/n.” He said looking at his best friend who was still crying. “She loved you, she knew that you tried your best to save her. She knows that you fought to save her. But she wouldn't want to see you like this. To become like the monster that killed her.” Damon said looking at Y/n with a sad smile. “Damon, I’m so sorry.” Y/n cried. “I Know, baby.” he said pulling the ropes off of her and pulling her into a tight hug. “Its okay.” he said kissing the top of her head. “I love you, Damon.” Y/n said into his chest. “I love you, too.” He said with a smile. “No.” She said pulling back. Wiping the tears from her eyes. “I love you, love you. Like I have feelings for you.” Y/n said looking at Damon who seemed shocked. “I love you too.” Damon said looking at Y/n.