#Tris Haber

[jumbocracky]

Return to Ballet

A car made its way into the parking lot of a tiny little plaza. Soon, it parked in front of a particular building that hasn’t been in the forefront of Millie’s head up until this very day. She sat in the front seat of the car beside her mom, the driver, and she looked up and down between the building in front of her and a pink piece of paper in her hand. “This is the place.” Millie said. “Yeah.” Mom said. “Are you feeling okay, sweetie?” Millie tried smiling with the intent of remembering the good times but, without a break, one memory would always creep into her mind and it was one that made her smile feel hollow more than anything. “Yeah.” she said, not really convincing herself. “I’m not taking anything seriously. Okay, mom?” “Oh. Yeah.” “Windy Valerie made it here in that building not that long ago and… I’ve been wanting to do every part of the story.” Windy Valerie was the name of a newly-made ballet choreography that’s been getting popular in this small community as of late. Mom added, “Including the part you couldn’t do because at home, there’s never a kid who comes over that knows the dance.” “Right. I’ll have somebody to do the whole thing with if I sign up here for a day or two. After that, I’ll feel complete.”

The idea for that proposition could’ve been so much more but Millie had plenty on her plate. There was, for starters, this getting-stronger hobby on the side that she had - but there was also a memory of this place which held her back from making ballet a full thing. She looked at Mom once more for encouragement and she was given just that when Mom smiled back. “Are you ready?” Mom asked. Millie nodded. After that, she said, “Let’s get inside.” “Wh- we are inside.” Mom said, her hand gesturing that they were indeed inside this car. “Mom…” Millie exhaled, smiling a bit as she opened the car door, tugged along her duffel bag and left the car, with Mom following suit. Just like that, a tiny mood-boost.

The building doors opened and through came Millie and Mom. What they came into was a burst of nostalgia. Obviously, the posters in the waiting room showed different stories but other than that, the plaques! The pastel-green wallpapers and patterned gray carpets! None of it went anywhere! And it was just her luck because it filled Millie with the kind of energy she once grew familiar with when she was a six-year-old regular here.

And then she turned just a little to the right… and there Mabel “Abby” Haddington was. Standing there… staring at Millie with a frozen, irritated expression on the braided girl’s face… which was already ironic because she was wearing an outfit representing one of the more joyous characters of the Windy Valerie story. Millie’s smile took a nosedive into the ground and now she looked at Abby with a frown and shocked eyes just darting around nervously. That look lasted quite a while, and so did Abby’s stare. And then Millie had the idea to play it off and happily say, “Hey-y-y… This isn’t karate class! Gosh, I’m so clumsy - being in the wrong place. Welp, sayonara!” Half a second after Millie turned in the direction of her mum in the hopes of ‘getting outta here’, Abby quickly stuck a hand out to block Millie’s shoulder’s way - which pretty much stopped Millie from taking a step further towards the exit. Abby used what little force she needed for Millie to un-take steps back to the spot she just stood at before rudely trying to escape. Millie speculated to Abby, “You’re kinda trapping me in here. You’re supposed to push me towards the door so I can get out of your hair.” “You’re a veteran.” Abby said. “I know you are.” Millie looked blankly at Abby. “I can tell because only a newbie has a duffel bag that doesn’t have clothes sticking out.” Millie looked at the duffel bag she was lugging. It wasn’t fully closed and there was indeed a piece of fabric that was kind of exposed. “Practice is starting soon. You’re gonna be in it. So… tell your mom you’re in the right place? Maybe?” This is Abby in the flesh. The Abby. There was no way anything else could’ve been more jarring to Millie than having Abby - of all people - stare into her soul without a trace of fear.

Nevertheless, Abby made her demand clear. Stay… and dance. For this to happen, Millie was going to have to avoid getting into any kind of trouble after just coming back here from a long hiatus. Looks like it had to start with Millie letting Mom know everything was fine. She turned to her and said, “I’ll see you later, mom?” with a much better demeanor. Claire was taken aback. Who was this braided girl that Millie seemed to be afraid of? Well, the mother did get a formal goodbye from her daughter and Abby was indeed smiling and waving at her. With so little certainty, Claire said, “Right. Do I go home to make dinner and then come back for you?” “Yep. Yep…” “Uh… Give me a call if you need anything.” Mom took a moment to witness this strange interaction between these two girls for a second longer before leaving.

As the glass door slowly closed itself, Abby looked back at Millie again and continued speaking. “I want the recital to go well. It’s a group recital and we need the best dancers we can find.” “And you think I’m one of them? That’s a pretty big stretch.” “Which you don’t have to do.” “Huh. That’s gotta be true for the dancer playing Soldier Pete. Does that mean…?” “Yeah. We can thank a friend for that.” Another kid dressed as Soldier Pete showed up. That kid merely opened a greeting with “Salutations, Abby.” “Gary?” Millie said, recognizing the voice behind the Soldier Pete outfit that hid the wearer’s identity. Abby fiercely turned to Soldier Pete. “You’re Gary?!” she said. “I kept wondering why Millie kept…” She covered her mouth. Luckily, no one was here to hear that. “I kept wondering why Gary keeps being mentioned a lot.” Gary pulled down his scarf and replied, “And now, you know. And also now, we do our little switch-a-roo. Did she say she was in?” Millie asked, “What if I said no?” Abby hummed angrily. “I mean, of course yes! I’m on board now that Abby’s kinda freaking me out. But out of curiosity… what if I said no? I imagine Hogarth’s only here to hold my spot for me and he hasn’t been really practicing…” Gary - or Hogarth to everyone else - corrected her, “Does this… look like I haven’t been practicing?” The boy in the soldier outfit twirled skillfully. Millie gasped mystically. “Magnificent footwork…! Wait, but now that I said yes…” Hogarth and Abby sort of overlapped each other’s sentence, trying to inform Millie, “There’s a makeup examination for replacement dancers.” She barely made out what they said but still replied with, “Uh huh… Gary, did the outfit always… have a scarf?” After she noted how the outfit Hogarth wore had that unfamiliar addition, the boy responded, “I mean, Soldier Pete is a redcoat. It’s not -that- out of character for a real life redcoat back in the day to wear a scarf like this, is it?” Abby elaborated, “And we need the scarf to hide your face.” “And, while I can see you’re not a conversation-starter, this is next-level silence. You gotta be mute while on-stage. And on that note, this probably means…-” A hat suddenly popped onto Millie’s head. “-that you’ll be taking over Soldier Pete tomorrow. Tomorrow’s the recital.” “Tomorrow?!” Abby explained, “You didn’t think we’d be training for a week or something, did you? That leaves enough time for people to find out who you are. And your girl is not putting up with the headache of “ooh - ew - it’s Millie.” Not today, missy.” Hogarth helped Abby’s case, “And… o-oh. Oww. I sprained my ankles. Oh, no offense, Abby. I know you and the other girl, uh…” “Just give Millie the outfit and leave.” Hogarth was taking off the costume, starting with the coat. He was waiting for Millie to take that first so the boy could be assured that she really was going through with this crazy plan. Millie shakily accepted it. Piece after piece of the costume was going onto a chair nearby and Millie was, just as fast, having to put on the outfit, being slowed down by needing to concentrate on the order which the pieces has to be put on so the costume could be correctly worn. Luckily, Abby was there to help.

All of this was happening in the corner of the receptionist’s eyes, no doubt. Millie commented, “I’m scared that lady’s gonna say something.” Abby responded, “Don’t worry. She’s in on the plan.” “Thank God you ate a Tic Tac, Gary.” Yes. The scarf was now on Millie’s face and she could smell a remnant of Hogarth’s breath. “Does this count as kissing? ‘Cause this scarf is wet.”

It was a bustling minute and a half of changing clothes, which left Hogarth wearing casual clothes, and now it was time for Hogarth to walk out the door - but not without also saying to Millie on the way out, “Well it was nice knowing you!” “What? Wait, what?” “Uh! No, you’ll be fine! ‘Kay, bye.”

Into the Ballroom...

The one day that Millie had available for practice began with her and Abby entering a ballroom. Other dancers were there, likely all of whom were attending the recital tomorrow. Millie wasn’t fully convinced they were only fourth graders, considering the variety in height - and due to the fact that Millie might’ve suddenly been the shortest kid in the class. “Ah!” A girl said. “Hogarth’s back!” Another girl - one who Millie recognized for having a Spanish look and a short ponytail tied with a yellow scrunchie - said, “Has Hogarth always looked like that? Wait, this person has blue eyes. And light eyebrows. Who’s this?” “Hogarth’s replacement.” “What?!” That was the reaction of some of the others’. “But don’t worry! She knows the part really well.” Someone said, “She? Oh, that was the only boy we had in our cast!” “Yeah… Hogarth sprained his ankle. Anyways, let’s get practicing! This is our last day.” “Whoa, wait. Are we not gonna know this girl?” Completely ignoring the question, Abby called, “Can we play the music?”

Millie had proven to come very close to getting it perfect. All that was needed was actual first-hand experience in a real cast of ballet dancers. When they’ve gotten through two minutes of the choreography - which was close to the end of it it seemed like - they came to one particular part where Millie demonstrated how easy it was for her to lift Abby up. Momentarily after that, the performance finished.

Some of the girls clapped in celebration of how surprisingly good the mystery girl was. Abby didn’t look at anything in particular when she took a breather. And then she had the instinct of darting her eye at Millie. The latter had tears in her eyes. There were a couple drops of it that soaked up into the scarf. In the hopes of keeping their secret safe, Abby asked quietly, “What’s wrong?” Millie gently clasped her hands together, then she touched her fingers on Abby’s shoulder - and then her hands went down. Abby sensed maybe this was some kind of sentimental thing Millie was going through. Both of them looked at the rest of the dancers. One of them asked, “Can we see who’s inside the mask now?” “No.” Abby said bluntly. “I have to show her the way out now. She… needs her medication.” Millie nodded. “Mhm!”

Hmm… Yellow Scrunchie was getting a bit of an energy from that mysterious girl that she didn’t exactly welcome… It wasn’t helped by Abby refusing to talk about it so she just stared as Abby and the unknown girl left together. The Spaniard, along with the other dancers, were left hanging. Millie was in a car with her mom in the front. The sun was pretty much gone - save for the tiny ray of light which was bound to disappear as well. “So you’re expected to show up at the ballet recital.” Mom said. “Looks like it.” “And you’re already prepared for it. From… just… one day worth of practice?” “Uh huh. I mean I got the easiest role but I’ve also just been really obsessed with Windy Valerie. I probably don’t need to tell you that, we made fun of dad moving a coffee table.” They both shared an embarrassed laugh. “But the day was… weird, mom. So. Sensitive topic. You wouldn’t forget that day when everyone at school had to vote, right?” “Uh huh…?” “It seems like no one who’s dancing at the recital knows I’m in the recital with them. And that’s because I was put in a disguise. By my victim.” “Was the victim the girl I saw who gave you a mad look?” “Y-y-yep.” “Oh… wow. What’s her name?” “Abby Haddington. She covered my face up with a scarf. Mom, I was really confused back there. She’s the victim but the way she put the scarf on me seemed like -everyone else- being afraid of me is… annoying her, I guess? They already don’t know who the mystery girl is that’s playing Soldier Pete. So if they knew it was me, would they not want me there?” “If they don’t replace you… I would make the choice that would put the other dancers at ease.” “So that means…” Millie said with a smile on her face. “Keep at it with the disguise. Just until you’ve finished dancing. And then you can reveal yourself if you want.” Sounds like a plan, Millie thought. “You’re wiser now. You don’t do reckless things like that anymore, right?” “No, definitely not. Thanks, mom.” Then she said, “Y’know, I’ve never worn a scarf that was so easy to breathe into.” “I love scarves like that. Be glad you’re not wearing glasses.” Why? “Fog.” Ah.

Earlier this week…

“Here,” Cliff said, “Lemme help move the table.” Millie had to cut in, “Dad, no-no, that’s not your job.” Dad asked, “When am I gonna get to be a man? At this rate, your dad’s gonna start believing he’s the little girl in the family.” Millie couldn’t help but smile. “That’s just not true!” she said. “Mom and I just have history.” She looked at her Mom and added, “… I think that’s what you’re telling me…” Mom said, “I know your father enough to know that he’s just like most men out there; A good man with good man qualities.” There was that counterpoint that Dad was physically the weakest in the family that Mom didn’t say out loud but Cliff could already figure that out from Claire’s tone. Millie bargained, “If you need me to find you useful, I got you, Pops. But first, let me and mom move this table.” “Uhh…?” That was the dad’s reaction. And with patience, the coffee table was successfully moved by the mother and daughter at a safe place. Except… Cliff kinda noticed the table being a little off from the wall. He brushed it off as Millie being in a bit of a hurry. But then Millie asked, “Dad, could you please line the table closer to the wall?” Oh for Pete’s-… And so he did, defeatedly but patiently. There. The table was really out of harm’s way now. This called for an applause from the girls. “Yeah dad!” Millie cheered. “No.” Dad said. “Not “Yeah dad.”” He and Millie couldn’t hold back laughing at each other over the absurdity of Millie being stronger than her father.

There was more time that passed of furniture being moved around. Meanwhile, Dad’s only tasks were to prepare the music and test-play the stereo with the first few seconds of the Windy Valerie musical piece, and also fetch water for Millie. What was next was of course Millie’s solo rendition of the piece - which had, for the longest time, been an incomplete version of what it was meant to be.

Millie had her own pair of ballet shoes. The Frock family had their own personal ballet mat that was used mainly by the nine-year-old. Prior to this particular day, this arrangement had been made a few times within the span of weeks. It was an obsession Millie had that Claire was very approving of - even when Millie made it clear that there shouldn’t be any plans to get an award out of it. The girl was resourceful too. She watched a handful of videos, minding the elegance while gushing over the story the piece was based off of. Everything that Millie was doing for ballet all started when Wagstaff had that pink paper on the bulletin boards briefly detailing the recital.

The dancers that Millie encountered were surprised by her skills that day. With everything that happened from somewhere last month all the way until today, this was why Millie was ready.

The Night of the Recital…

There was now an audience, staring at closed curtains and talking to each other. Millie’s parents were among the crowd. The dad had his camera ready. “So lemme get this straight.” Dad said. “Abby is the victim.” “Right.” Mom said. “But she’s the only one who demanded… that our daughter joins her.” “Yes.” “We should’ve talked Millie out of this when we had the chance. I have a feeling we’re just opening ourselves up for a lawsuit. What do we know about this Abby girl?”

They ran out of time to talk it out now that the curtain suddenly started opening part way. A familiar looking woman with glasses walked on stage and began talking to the audience. “Thank you all for attending the Windy Valerie recital.” she said. “The girls worked hard. The tale this dance will tell will tug at your heartstrings even harder. Enjoy.”

When the curtains closed again, the audience started applauding once more. In the next moment, the curtains opened all the way this time and the audience was introduced to a row of dancers, representing soldiers belonging to two opposing factions of a sort. Somewhat early on in the minutes-long recital, Millie and Abby made their mark. Claire whispered, “There’s my baby!” Cliff also whispered, “I guess that’s Abby, huh…”

The parents were having their minds blown away. These dancers were good. They were relieved to find that Millie’s practices actually happened because, so far, this recital was not that much of a downplay to those videos they watched with their daughter - which showcased experienced “adult” doing the choreography. How on earth were these kids doing it?

The two minutes of tumultuous dancing have passed. If there was anyone in the audience who has not seen the piece, surely they would likely be surprised by how tragic the story being shown was. At one point, the choreography depicted a character being behind bars. That peaked the Frock Parents’ interest just a tiny bit more, even though they’ve seen it in the videos. And then, from the way the pianist played the song, the story was starting to take a high turn. Reach a climax! And, apparently, a clock in the background had hands that went backwards to indicate the story would go back in time for something important. A battle fought between two sides! And then a finish here was supposed to happen where Abby had to follow the choreography of being carried by Millie. When that very moment came to be for the second time - the first being that one-day practice - it was much more spectacular because it was the day of the recital. The character Abby played as was supposed to appear serious but Abby was elated.

When a scripted part came where Abby was supposed to lay on the floor - which was because her character sacrificed her life mid-battle, - the braid-obsessed girl, on the way down, accidentally knocked off Millie’s hat and pulled down the latter’s scarf, unveiling the true identity of Soldier Pete. One by one, each member of the cast gasped; Some people in the audience did the same. So now Abby laid on the floor with Millie’s hat awkwardly beside her right shoulder. Haddington was into the idea of keeping the show going - going so far as to throw the hat off the stage - but most of the dancers decided to halt everything instead; especially Spanish Girl. Just what Abby was trying to avoid…

It was clear Spanish Girl had a problem with Millie being a part of the recital - so she marched in front of her and sternly said, “You’re not allowed to be here. After you attacked Abby? You have some-…” She was going to say ‘some nerve being here’ - but Abby stood up and got all up in her grill. “No one asked you to talk, Anita.” Abby said. “Do you remember who that is?” Anita aggressively pointed at Millie as she asked that. This prompted Abby to smack away the pointy hand. Ow! Anita retaliated. After that, a slap fight commenced, wands dropped.

Millie’s mother, along with other parents in the front row, looked on in nervousness and made nervous chatter. Meanwhile, a few grown ups in the whole audience stood up. Then this one moment happened where Abby resorted to strangling Anita mid-fight with her bare hands. Millie was disturbed by what she was witnessing and her eye twitched. It was time Millie put her foot down ‘cause she wasn’t having it. She marched to a spot somewhat between the girls and then yelled only one thing.

STO-O-OP!!!

The two fighting girls separated and stood there, staring at Millie who began huffing a little. Abby put her arms down. Anita didn’t. Instead, Anita ‘looked’ down to bare witness to Millie having shaky hands. Millie exhaled the word again, “Stop…” There were staff at the side who were just about to step in to break up the fight - but after Millie shouted the magic word, pretty much -everybody- froze. In the next moment, Millie decided it was time to start walking and leave the auditorium; she slowly headed for the exit to the audience’s right. Abby asked, “Where are you going?”. She did a second-long jog before catching up to Millie and began walking beside her. “Home.” Millie said. “Our recital is not done!” “I know. But I don’t feel comfortable being here. Wherever I’m going, I get in trouble because I get someone hurt.” Abby jumped and stopped Millie in her place. “Except you didn’t do anything!” “I don’t know if I feel that way.” Millie made a reference of the past by doing a sentimental self-strangling gesture for a short moment. And then she continued walking.

Hardly a couple seconds after, Abby, for the second time, ran all the way in front of Mille and tried to motion her to stop. “Wait, Millie.” she said. “I can definitely see that that day clearly bothers you. I hate to see you feel sad but I made it worse by doing what I just did.” “I guess…” Abby looked at Anita and Anita wondered where that look was supposed to lead. Not anywhere else apparently because Abby decided at the last second not to point the finger. The braided girl still pleaded, “Millie, please. Let’s finish our recital together and I swear we’ll never fight again.”

Once that was said, the other dancers kind of gathered around Millie and Abby. Millie faced left and right at the dancers - then she faced the exit again and continued looking that way when she asked, “What does Anita have to say about that?” Now eyes were collapsing onto Anita. The Spanish One was hesitant to outright say what she initially wanted to say so instead, she suggested, “You know, I think it’s only fair that we put a vote on it.” “No.” Millie sternly said. Then she calmly told her, “Anita, you have to make the call. Should I leave or finish the recital?” Anita was anxiously taking her time. She didn’t help herself much when she made the choice to turn her head and scan the auditorium where she saw everyone glaring at her. The stage lights were beaming on just the stage but the child could still make out the wide eyes that the crowd wore on their faces. People waited. There was even someone having a cough in the background to show just how silent the suspense was.

Then she told her answer in the most dramatic way anyone could’ve anticipated. She walked to where the hat fell, then turned and started walking somewhere. “Oh God…” Millie mumbled to herself. “She’s walking away… Nevermind, there she is.” With Millie still looking away from the other girls, Anita ended up walking into Millie’s view - right in front of her - and held the hat with both hands. Then she said this… “This hat… I’m going to wear it and do Soldier Pete myself.” Everybody that heard her say that was heard expressing shock and disappointment. Millie felt half of both. After Anita made her announcement, the girl with the yellow scrunchie started to watch as Millie was on her way to bursting into tears. In a twist of fate, she then said loudly, “I’m kidding! I’m just kidding. I believe this hat is yours.” Anita held the hat above Millie’s head until Millie accepted it by bringing it down, albeit while there was an embarrassed smile on the Spanish Girl’s face. “I believed you!” Millie said as she wiped a tear away. The dancers and the crowd laughed a little. Then an applause was heard. Millie proudly secured the hat and turned back. “Places, girls!” Behind her smile, Anita simultaneously said, “I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?” “We’ll see.” Millie said all smiley.

“Hey,” Abby said, “-maybe the hat’s actually unnecessary. I -did- knock it off on accident.” “Yeah, Soldier Pete wasn’t known for a hat, you’re right.” Millie took her hat back off and posed herself so that she was ready to toss the hat away in the direction of the crowd like a frisbee. She held that pose until the crowd quickly caught on. Millie saw some hands go up in the air, ready to catch the hat, and also heard their voices going “It’s mine, it’s mine!” The second she was ready, the hat soared into the air. Whoever the lucky guy was that caught the hat will probably remember this night well.

With noticeably more passion than the last time, the cast of dancers continued at the point when time went backwards and the battle began. The mask and hat were no longer in the way. It was just Millie, the dancers and the beautiful story of Windy Valerie being told using some pirouettes, elegant wands for swords and one mighty lift of one major character done by another. When the story ended, the curtains closed all the way. When the curtains reopened, every cast were neatly lined up, hands held. As if they were both accepting of Millie’s presence, Anita and Abby were at both of Millie’s sides, holding each hand. At Millie’s lead, everyone bowed.

Epilogue...

Anita and Millie hung out outside close to the entrance, watching other people go home in cars. They were likely meant to do the same in just a moment. “You were great in there.” Anita said. “Thanks.” “I still think you’re a monster. And I’m in utter shock that Abby, of all people, defended you.” “I really don’t understand that either. Election Day happened the way it did and…” She looked straight ahead, “… you’re like that?” “You remember when I brought up my uncle in show and tell?” “The matador?” “Yeah. Guess what, you’re a bull. If you think you can just walk around Wagstaff like it’s your house, I have bad news. My uncle can teach me how to matador - and then I can keep you in your place.” “When it’s time to do that, let’s hope I’m in a good moooo-d.” Anita frowned and groaned quietly. “Sorry.” “Actually, I don’t like bringing up matadors as much as the other kids think. It’s just… the bulls…” “They have it rough, right?” “Yeah!” Anita seemed to calm down. “So what was life like after… your thing with Abby?” “Feels kinda like jail. I’ve been banned from some parts of school just so I’d be easier to keep an eye on. And I haven’t seen Abby up close in so long. Vicky, now that I’ve seen her again, she seems… more bold than I could’ve ever expected.” “Wait. I’m “Vicky” to you?” “Well… I know your name is Anita but your last name, Vasquez, makes a vuh-kuh sound like Vicky does. So I figured I could use that name on you.” “You know my last name…?” “I was bored one time and I randomly read your last name somewhere and made it more ‘local’ in my head. I accidentally burned your last name into my memory. So…”

Then Millie’s mum showed up. “Oh, Millie,” she said, “you danced as beautifully as you did when you were here last time. I remember how small you were. You didn’t have your middle teeth back then…” Anita commented, “So -that’s- how you got good so quickly.” “Will you introduce me to your new friend? I mean you already have a best friend and it’s- I don’t think it’s her, right? No offense.” “Uh huh…” Anita said. She was slowly getting it out, “Uh, mom… this… is, uh…” Millie was about to say ‘Anita.’ - and then Anita cut in and said, “Vicky. My friends call me Vicky.” Millie was surprised Anita, of all people, adopted the name. The two kids smiled at each other.

[trabandovidas]

My favourite part of this post is the people in the notes trying to translate it into Spanish without realising I already did it in the original's tags

And that not a single translation is even close to mine: Latam es el lugar más lugarcero de todos los lugares lugarceros habidos y por haber lmao

The thing with latam is that is the placest place of all the placest places out there, you know?

[wileys-russo]

Before the void. “You have a new best friend!?”

part of the fresa universe new best friend II a.putellas

if there was something alexia was used to being the eldest of three, it was an utter lack of peace and quiet. so when she opened the front door after training, body drained and muscles aching with exhaustion and called out hello without any answer back, her guard was up.

her mami's car was in the driveway, evening slippers missing where they normally sat by her door, alba's bedroom light was on and her school uniform was in a crumpled mess on the floor, and your backpack was on your bed, papers strewn about and the sneakers alexia had laced up for you before you left this morning were discarded in the corner.

so then where was everyone?

a second search of the house again didn't turn anything up, and poking her head out the back door the fading late afternoon sun bathed the empty backyard in a soft orange glow.

but right as alexia was about to grab her phone and call someone, she noticed a sliver of light coming from beneath the garage door, eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

nobody had really stepped foot in there the last two years, that used to be your papi's little hideaway from a house full of women, and though it had seldom been changed since his passing alexia knew her mami snuck out there every now and then to speak with him and make sure things were nice and tidy.

but before she could investigate any further there was a bang of a door and the thunder of footsteps through the once quiet house causing her to jolt.

"ale! ale! ale! ale! ale!" the chant had a small chuckle pulled from her lips as she called out she was in the kitchen, sliding the back door closed right as you skidded around the corner.

"catch me!" you demanded, already launching yourself at her before you'd finished your sentence, small body hurtling into alexia who grunted but scooped you up.

"hola!" you chirped happily, kissing her cheek as alexia tapped it expectantly. "hola fresita. and where have you been?" your sister asked with a smile as your arms wound around her neck hugging her tightly.

you were almost eight now and slowly starting to hit a late growth spurt, still smaller than most of your friends and classmates, and definitely a lot shorter than both of your sisters at that age.

but no matter how tall you'd grow alexia would carry you around for as long as you'd let her, so the fond roll of eli's eyes as she spotted you up and in your sisters arms wasn't unexpected.

"we went to the pet store!" you replied with a grin, alexia's eyebrows shooting up in surprise as you wiggled and she placed you back down on your feet, alba trudging in tiredly with her arms full.

"fresa! podrías haber ayudado idiota!" your sister grunted, alexia's confusion furthering at the large glass tank and assortment of objects stuffed inside which alba slowly placed down carefully onto the counter.

"mami?" alexia questioned expecting her to provide some context, eli holding both her hands up silently as her head dipped into the fridge to rummage around and start dinner.

but if you heard alba you ignored her, quickly grabbing alexia's hand and tugging her toward the back door. "come meet my new best friend!" you chirped, practically bouncing on the spot as a new look flashed across alexia's face.

and alba, didn't miss it. "scared you have been replaced?" the younger girl smirked, pouring herself a glass of water as alexia's eyes rolled and you huffed, still trying to yank your sister toward the door but having no luck.

"ale vamos! i want you to meet hector." you ordered, stamping your foot and glaring up at her as alexia looked on, completely lost as to what all of this was about.

"mami? le compraste un perro?" alexia ignored you, tugging her hand from your iron clad grip as you groaned and tried to pull her by the hem of her hoodie instead, batted away again and huffing at your failure.

"sí, un perro durmiendo en un tanque. tonta!" alba snickered as alexia shot her a glare. "ale. ven conmigo!" you whined, hitting her leg repeatedly as your sister sighed and finally looked down at you.

then as alexia glanced back to the tank, her eyes widened.

"aye dios mío is hector a snake!?" your sister asked wide eyed, hands on your shoulders and staring right down at you as you now rolled your eyes, looking scarily like a carbon copy of a much younger alexia which is what alba muttered as she snuck off to her bedroom.

"noo!" you groaned throwing your head back, grabbing her hand again and finally alexia allowed you to drag her outside and toward the garage. "hector is my best friend!" you parroted what you'd been saying all afternoon from the very moment eli picked you up from school.

mondays and fridays were the only days that alexia didn't collect you from school herself as training started earlier.

alba stepped in on fridays and eli on mondays, but alexia thrived in knowing that tuesday-thursday were your favorite as you'd come along to training with her.

and for as long as you could speak, alexia had been more than just your hermana, she had been your best friend, which you'd had no issues telling everyone and anyone who would listen, and alexia herself had also done the same, chest filling with pride every time.

"qué? you have a new best friend!? " alexia scoffed, not even sure what hector actually was yet, but still she felt the tendrils of jealousy prick at the back of her neck that she'd been so easily replaced.

normally whenever she got home from training on a day you weren't with her the moment she stepped through the door you'd be glued to her side like a shadow.

demanding she help with your homework (which she was awful at) play a game with you, read a book with you, help you get ready for bed, sit next to you at dinner, you idolised her.

but you hadn't seen her all day and yet all you could talk about was hector, your new best friend.

"hermana, meet hector! my new best friend." as you threw open the garage door you instantly lit up, gesturing happily to hector as alexia was frozen to the spot staring downward, your delighted little face peering up at her.

alexia wasn't sure what she had expected hector to be, focused too much on him being her replacement as your new best friend.

a turtle, hector was a turtle.

"pequeña. where did hector come from?" alexia squatted down to your height and asked slowly, hands on your shoulders stopping you from running away and eyes bore into yours with a look that warded you off lying to her.

not that you needed to anyway, unlike what alexia was fearing hector hadn't been kidnapped from the local park or the lake.

"school! its my turn to have hector. it was supposed to be elena's turn this week because her last name is omar and my last name is putellas, and o comes before p in the alphabet and-" you started to ramble, slowly straying more and more off track as alexia sighed.

"-but since she has the chicken pox she gets to have the week off school! so i get hector this week, and elena will have him next week." you beamed, clearly very happy with this news but there was two little words that had drowned out the rest of your sentence as alexia's eyes widened.

chicken pox, you hadn't yet had chicken pox.

but it wasn't for lack of trying, in fact eli had done her best to expose all of her girls at a young age knowing that despite being vaccinated most kids got it at least once, and alexia and alba both had it.

but your immune system was strong, and eli had foolishly assumed that meant you'd just not get it, in fact it wasn't common for kids above the age of six to get it.

but it was then that alexia noticed you'd in fact not been bouncing up and down with excitement like she first thought, you'd been itching, and scratching, and wiggling.

you frowned as alexia's arm shot out to grab your hand which tried to sneak its way up the back of your shirt, your back feeling hot and a little itchy you hadn't paid it much attention.

you'd spent the afternoon with hector doing laps up and down on the grass in the backyard, crawling along on your stomach and then when that grew boring you'd resorted to basically doing the backstroke instead much to eli's amusement as she watched on.

so when your tummy and back started to itch, you'd not thought anything of it, but now things were all starting to fall into place in alexia's mind, a little mini puzzle she hadn't realised was there all clicking together.

"oye, ale!" you groaned as your sisters hands grabbed you under your arms, your body going limp like a ragdoll as alexia carried you out of the garage and hurried back toward the house, ignoring your protests and demands to put you back down so you could go hang out with hector or he'd get lonely.

"mami? mami? mami!" alexia's voice grew louder with each shout, eli hurrying into the room, hands still wet from where she'd raced in from the bathroom.

"que? alexia por favor put your hermana down!" eli sighed as you echoed her words, kicking your feet and huffing as they still didn't meet the ground.

"stand still." alexia ordered, a strange look on your face as she finally put you down but on top of the dining table, eli's mouth already opening to yell at her to take your dirty feet off of it, but they died the moment alexia forcefully pulled your jumper and top off.

"ale!" you yelled your protests but they fell on deaf ears as both your sister and mami's faces froze at the little red dots all over your body, an irritated huff leaving your mouth as you scratched your back and winced a little.

"no! no scratching mi hija." eli warned sternly, alexia grabbing your hands and holding them out from your body, refusing to let go no matter how much you cried out your annoyance with her.

"fresa. when did you see elena?" alexia asked, having already filled eli in who rushed off to the bathroom to grab what she needed. "today! before she went home sick with the chicken pox." you rolled your eyes, having already told her this when she met hector.

"can i go play with hector now?" you whined, stomping your foot and blowing a loose piece of hair out of your face. "no pequeña, hector will have to go back to school tomorrow." alexia sighed, stomach dropping as your face fell.

"no! no no por favor. he is not my best friend! you are, i promise! don't make me take him back!" you begged, tears pricking at the corner of your eyes and alexia winced at the obvious pain behind them, watching as your foot lifted to scratch at your legs which were clearly also covered in little red dots beneath your pants.

"por favor do not make me take him back. you are my best friend ale, you!" you tried to pull your arms free and launch at her in a hug, alexias heart cracking further as she had to continue to hold them away from you, knowing the moment she let go you'd be itching again.

"hey hey no mi fresita. it is not because of that!" alexia cooed softly, recognizing she needed to intervene as you were teetering on the edge of a meltdown. "elena has chicken pox, sí?" your sister asked as you nodded with a sniffle.

"well. you also have chicken pox nena, see?" alexia moved your arm so you could look at it, nodding to the little dots all over it as you frowned. "no. thats from the grass! i was playing with hector!" you shook your head as eli returned, a tub of calamine lotion in hand.

"no hija, it is from the chicken pox. you are itchy, no?" eli asked gently as you slowly nodded, not quite understanding. "chicken pox gets worse if you scratch mi amorcita, and this will make it less itchy." eli explained, popping open the tub and showing it to you as you sniffed and immediately recoiled.

"no!" you took alexia off guard and yanked your arms out of her grip, jumping off the table and sprinting off as alba appeared and was almost bowled over, opening her mouth with a scowl to yell after you.

"get her!" alexia spoke first, running off after you as alba paused for a moment, hearing a loud crash and a yell before you zoomed past her again, dodging eli who reached for you next.

"chicken pox. vamos!" alexia shoved alba who opened and closed her mouth but after a moment to process sprinted off into the backyard where you'd raced off to.

but she was too late as seconds later alexia stepped out of the garage, you firmly thrown over her shoulder and hector in her other hand, his little shell fitting perfectly in her grip as you wriggled and tried to get free.

one thing was for certain, this was going to be a long week, and if you didn't know it yet you'd know it soon, but you were going to need your best friend.

and turtles and classmates aside, alexia knew that would always be her.

[theuntoldstorythatneedsawriter]

Disappointed 💣💧

Misa Rodriguez x reader

warning: angst 💣💔 (good ending ❤️‍🩹)

(my first language isn't english nor spanish, sorry for any grammar or spelling mistakes)

Summary :

Disappointed after a lost, Misa redirects unintentionally her anger on you and realises what she's done, only once you're gone.

These past few weeks were tense, to say the least, Misa had been training hard for her future game against Barca. Anxiety had been eating her up, and you could see right through her, how her shoulders were tense even sleeping, the sour mood she put up. You, of course, tried to help her relax, but all your tentatives were stopped by rude "leave me alone." You understood why she was so distance but that didn't stop it from hurting you.

As the final whistle blows, you could see her face filled with disappointment. 3 Goals had gone past her and you could feel how angry she is with herself. Misa ran straight into the changing rooms after a small talk with Mapi, visibly angry and disappointed.

Waiting for her in the parking lot, like you usually did, you saw Olga, one of her teammate, run towards you. You knew her cordially but never built a friendship, not seeing her really often outside of Misa training. Out of breath, she breafly explained how she absolutely needed you come take care of Misa. Panicked about what could be happening to her, you followed Olga into the stadium.

Head in her hands, sniffing, body shaking. This sight of your girlfriend made your heart ache. You were used to seeing her disappointed after a lost game, but never to this point.

My love ?

Your voice fulled of worry, you took her hands in yours, allowing you to see her face covered with tears. You softly kissed her head, putting your forehead against hers, whispering praises. Only to get pushed forcefully away of her, her eyes full of anger.

Déjame en paz, eres inútil.

Leave me alone, you're useless

You knew she didn't mean it or at least hoped she didn't, but after weeks of suffering through her attitude, it was just too much. You got up quietly, Misa face reflected a mixed of confusion and anger. You turned away from her and walked to the exit, stopping by the door, you let out a soft, almost whisper,

Te dejaré en paz si eso es lo que quieres. Me voy a Alexia a pasar la noche.

I will leave you alone if that's what you want. Im going to Alexia for the night.

Before closing it after you, you took a deep breath before going back to the parking, calling Alexia to come and get you. Alexia and you have been pretty close ever since Misa introduced you to each other, having many points in the comment. Misa would often joke about you leaving her for Alexia, which wouldn't be possible either way since you loved Misa to much and Alexia already had Olga and wasn't up for sharing her with anyone.

Alexia knew something went wrong, your face was red from tears, you talked the less possible, responding with yes or no. You went directly to bed, not eating dinner, which worried the woman even more.

By the time you woke up the next morning, your phone was fulled with missed calls and text from Misa. Knowing you couldn't escape the situation for eternity, you quickly left after breakfast, thanking Alexia and Olga for the hospitality of giving you a bed for the night and a delicious breakfast.

Your appartement door in front of you, though spiralling about if you should go in or not. You were cut off by the door slowly opening in front of you, Misa was looking down at the ground, tears on her cheek.

Alexia me llamó, lo siento muchísimo. Sé que no debí haber sido tan grosera contigo. Lo siento, mi amor, lo siento muchísimo. Te amo tanto que no puedo perderte, por favor, mi vida, haré lo que sea.

Alexia called me, i am so so sorry. I know i shouldn't have been so rude to you. I'm sorry, my love, im so sorry. I love you so much i can't lose you, please my live, i will do anything.

The only thing you could do was hug her and cry with her, her body against yours, ears filled with sniffled apologise as you comforted her.

She made it a point to show you how sorry she was for the next couple of days, preparing you breakfast, lunch, dinner, making all the house chores, taking you shopping, watching your favorite show 7 time in a row.

She wasn't perfect, but she tried, and that was more then enough for you.

[pablitogavii]

as you know gavi has a cut on his ear because of a foul and he returned back on the pitch. reader and gavi fight a lot because of this. reader is worried of his physic health and when he came back home they fight but with fluffy end

Worry

"Amor, you're being unreasonable! I need to go to Madrid! The team needs me!" Pablo and you were arguing abut his ear injury and the fact that the national team suggested he should consider taking a break to heal.

"Even the coaches said you should take it easy! You have three staples in your ear Pablo!" you said really worried when the doctor suggested about possible infection if he's not careful.

"Can you just let me do what I want!? Why do you care anyways!?" Pablo yelled feeling his ear getting sensitive and you sighed looking down sadly. He was so stubborn and you were so worried about him.

"Because I love you, cabrón!" you said pulling away when he tried to reach for your hand and walked out to travel back home to Barcelona.

"Ready to go Gavi??" Yamal called and Pablo sighed looked after you as you got into the car before leaving to the bus with his friend towards Madrid.

pablitoo❤️: pls don't be mad at me amor 🥺

pablitoo❤️: you know what this means to me

pablitoo❤️: i have to try and help my team

When you arrived home, you laid on the sofa watching some TV when your phone rang with Pablo's messages. You were not mad because of the stupid argument you had, but because he never takes care of himself properly.

You wanted to answer him but your phone died so you had to charge it first. During that time, Pablo was at the first training and he was dealing with impossible pain in his ear unable to properly concentrate on the game.

"Que pasaba contigo hermano?" Laporte asked Pablo who shrugged and started massaging his temple from the pain that started to become unbearable.

"Deberías haber escuchado a tu chica, hermano. Necesitas recuperarte." [You should have listened to your girl, brother. You need to recover.] man told him and Pablo knew he was right. When they first saw each other, he told him about the fight you had and he was going crazy that you weren't answering his messages.

He hated fighting with you especially seeing you sweet innocent eyes when you would look at him worried about his health. That same night, Pablo took a trip back to Barcelona anxious to see you again.

When he finally arrived at your shared apartment, it was the middle of the night and you were sleeping in your shared bedroom. Pablo smiled when he saw you wearing one of his big shirts and hugging his pillow while sleeping peacefully. He saw your phone charging knowing that's why you haven't seen his messages.

Pablo, you cabrón! She looks so adorable right now and you made her upset because of your stupid stubbornness!

"Amor..wake up" Pablo gently shook your body and you jumped a little afraid of who could be touching you in the middle of the night when Pablo wasn't home.

"Shh..shh.it's me preciosa..i'm home" Pablo said caressing your face while you calmed down sitting up and hugging him quickly as he pulled you onto his lap holding you tightly. Ah, how he missed having you in his arms like this.

"What are you doing home Pablito?? Did something happen?" you asked worried and he shut you up with a kiss reassuring you that he was alright.

"I couldn't stand you being mad at me..and you were right, I need to recover properly before playing again. I'm sorry preciosa" he said and you smiled nodding your head and kissing his lips again while he moved his hand underneath the t-shirt you were wearing and caressed your naked back gently.

When you laid down, you on top of him, he enjoyed touching your warm skin and smelling your freshly washed hair. This felt like home and Pablo could finally relax.

"I've missed you a lot your know..the way you smell..and feel..and even when you give me attitude..I've been craving it so bad" Pablo said and your cheeks were blushing as you looked up into his warm hazel eyes.

"It's all because I worry about you.." you say and he nods knowing that already and feeling really grateful for you in his life. He kissed your forehead lovingly and then your lips.

"I've never had anybody worry about me the way you do preciosa..so please never stop no matter what I say" he asks and you smiled nodding you head before moving up on top of him and kissing your his chin to his lips sideways to his cheek and finally to his ear.

"I promise.." you whisper into his ear before kissing around his stitched and he let you smiling wide enjoying every second of attention you were giving him now.

"What are you doing with me preciosa.." he said with a smirk and you looked into his eyes blushing while kissing him lips again feeling his strong biceps with your arms.

"Helping you recover mi rey.." you said and Pablo felt proud as he smirked nodding his head and letting you do as he please knowing that he made the right decision coming back home to his love.

[papuhater]

I THINK

┊ ˚➶ ｡˚a/n I don’t know actually, this is shitty and short. ┊ ˚➶ ｡˚ cw: reader knows spanish, miguels (both) are asses and say bad things, reader is harassed on the street but nothing happens thanks to the plot. ┊ ˚➶ ｡˚ pairing: miguel o'hara x spiderwoman!reader

series masterlist

something was wrong with y/n, miguel knew, she had not clocked in and wasn’t with webslinger or peter b. he wasn’t worried, no, he kept saying that to himself as he stared into the door, expecting her to appear. and she did

“you look dead.”

“you sure know how to charm a lady” she replied bitterly and she held a carton

“i hope you got it right this time” he shot a web and pulled it to him, she just let him take it. weird, she normally made him say thank you, what was weirder is that the empanadas were of meat, not mixtas. he huffed and side eyed her while she tried to leave

“lyla lock the doors.” he sighed and leaped from his platform “look, ninety nine, something is up” she opened her mouth but before she could speak she was cut off “and don’t try to deny it. you look as if you hadn’t slept all night, you come in late, and now you are very silent” she sighed

“why would you care?”

“i don’t”

“then stick your nose in other person’s business” she huffed and tried to open the doors, they were locked

“lyla open the doors.” miguel gave up, but the doors didn’t open “lyla?” suddenly, the lights went off “the hell?”

“boss, you might not like this..”

“we’re locked in, send people” he tried to talk to the gizmo, but it had no answer, the doors seemed to have locked it too hard and blowed a fuse, now he was locked with y/n in the room.

“you can’t communicate out of here, you imbecil, we just have to wait.” she huffed, clearly annoyed “they better come in soon” she looked at him “what time is it?”

“well it’s 8 in the morning.” she nodded and muttered something “what did you say?”

“nothing, it’s just that I have to be somewhere today, around 6:40”

they kept quiet after that, y/n not talking and looking nervously at the door, while miguel messes with his gizmo and trying to get the power back on. each of them seem on edge, as if any word could set them off.

“could you stop sighing? it’s distracting” he growled

“oh so now I can’t breathe?” she spat out, while glancing towards him

"yeah you can't, because you can't even do things right!" he scowled "everyday you come in, with a stupid smile, stupid empanadas mixtas, and a stupid teasing tone!" with every word, he got closer, until he was jabbing his finger onto your chest "you are everything i hate in a person! giving stupid advice and sarcastic remarks! no se como mi yo de otra dimensión se pudo haber enamorado de ti!"

"don't say that..." she said softly, slapping his hand off "don't even dare to day that! you know nothing!" her voice cracked, and just as it happened the door cracked too, revealing a few spider people who came to save them.

"we're done here."

and like that, she left.

"boss, not to say anything, but you're an ass."

miguel did nothing to deny it.

"amor? are you okay? you have barely touched your pasta."

"huh?" she snapped out of her daze, with a fork in her hand, she was swirling the pasta around "oh, it's nothing, you know, just a hard day."

"what could be hard about your days? cielo, you're a stay-at-home wife, not a geneticist." he laughed, he tried to lighten her up, but it only made her more gloom.

"yeah, i guess, it just gets lonely, i get sa-" before she can end the statement, she's interrupted by a vibration from her husband's phone, miguel held finger as he took the call, she just sat there in disbelief

"hey...yeah?" he let out a short laugh "oh? yes i can be there, when? right now?" he spared a glance towards y/n and mouthed a 'sorry' "hold on" he placed a hand on his phone, covering the speaker "i'm sorry, but i need to leave, see you at home" he said quickly and before she could answer, he kissed her temple and left her on the expensive restaurant.

she looked into her plate, then called a waiter.

"the check please"

after getting the plate, miguel had left in the car so she had to walk home, while she walked, her head was lost in thought, in miguel, in her miguel, was miguel even her miguel anymore? he seemed so distant, it was her fault, she never did anything correctly.

suddenly, a drop of rain fell on her head, making her look upwards, many drops followed

"mierda, esta lloviendo" she made a turn in an alleyway, a shortcut, but little did she know, that with her clouded mind did not choose the right alley.

as she made her way into the alley a vulgar sound was heard

a fucking wolf whistle

"ayo lady!" she tried to ignore them "i'm talking to you! didn't your daddy taught you good manners?" she grimaced at the comment, and walked a little faster, until she heard footsteps behind her, so she began to run.

"c'mon girly, we only want to give you a good time" one of the men said

they caught up with her, and when one tried to touch her, she punched him, hard.

"you fucking bitch!" the men grabbed a hold of her, she squirmed and kicked, scratched and punched but she was outnumbered, she wasn't gonna give up easily, she spat on the 'leader's face, and he punched her, on the nose, and she began to bleed

"i'd advise you to stop" was heard, everyone turned to the shadow, the rain droplets making a hard noise on the pavement "the lady clearly doesn't want it." her eyes tried to decipher who it was, and they did

it was miguel o'hara.

"and what if i don't you lucha libre fighter?" the man mocked miguel

with a sharp movement, talons and claws came out of miguel's body

"you won't like what come's next."

"look, macho, we don't want problems so turn around-" before he could even finish he was in a web, dangling in the air

"anyone else?" he growled.

"miguel.." she began, drenched in rain

"ninety nine, i know, i know i shouldn't have sai-" y/n hugged him, and began to cry

y/n was crying

he hugged her back

they stayed like that in the rain until miguel held her and shot a web, and pulled the two of them up, they swung through the city, until they arrived to a ceiling, her ceiling. in her ceiling, he gently let her go, and took a tuper, with empanadas mixtas, he helf them out as if they were a peace offering

"i'm sorry ninety-nine, i shouldn't have lashed out my pent up anger towards you"

she took them and smiled "call me y/n."

series list

translations:

no se como mi yo de otra la dimensión se pudo haber enamorado de ti = i don't know how me from the other dimension could've fallen in love with you

mierda= shit

taglist

@simeon-lovergirl

@allysunny

@autismsupermusicalassassin

@thel0v3hashira143

[florencemtrash]

Hummingbird: Chapter Six

Miguel O'Hara x Reader

What if the Earth-1610 (Miles’s universe) version of Miguel’s wife was actually Miles’s AP Art teacher?

Masterlist

Warnings: Mention of violence and injuries

“Why didn’t you call me? Esto nunca debería haber sucedido.”

“Hey, it’s alright. Keep your eyes open ok?”

“Mantén los ojos abiertos. Stay awake, Y/n. Mantente despierto por mí.” 

“Is she going to be ok?”

“What’s going on? What happened?!”

You forced your eyes open, blinking the sleep and time from them as your mind slowly worked to clear out the fog. Voices had murmured to you throughout your sleep, whispering words that sounded kind and gentle, but you couldn’t hold onto the specifics of what they said. 

Pain shot through uncooperative arms when you tried to sit up in bed, grimacing at the gross taste in your mouth. How long had you been asleep for? The soreness in your back told you it had been a long time.

“Hey, kiddo. Might not want to try that.” Peter said as you struggled. His hand was strong against your back as you shifted restlessly. The sheets smelled of laundry detergent and lemons. Overhead the lights of the Spidey med bay hummed softly.

“Peter?” You muttered groggily. Your vocal cords were tight and gruff like a car engine that had been left idle for too long.

“The one and only!” 

You finished clearing out your eyes and your voice. It was good to see a familiar face. 

“How long have I been out? I feel like shit.”

“You look like shit too.” He said with a forced grin like he hadn’t just lost one of his best friends, “Do you remember what happened?” 

You accepted the water he handed you, downing it in five seconds with a groan. Your hands and arms were wrapped like a mummy’s and you could feel the soft gauze rub against the sensitive skin beneath whenever you moved.

“Yeah… Yeah I think I do.” The IV drip, drip, dripped saline steadily into your arm, “How long have I been out, Peter? You never answered.” 

He rubbed the back of his neck, still wearing his pink bathrobe and matching slippers when Mayday was nowhere to be found. At this point fatherhood had become a new superhero role for him, so it made sense he should dress accordingly at work.

“Ten days?”

“Ten days?!” You sat up with a grimace, “Joder.”

Did someone call me out of work? God, I’m hungry. Isn’t Miles’s reference letter due soon? I need a shower. Fuck.

Peter held you down gently when you tried to roll out of bed. If Miguel discovered you’d gotten up on his watch, he’d never hear the end-

“You’re awake.” 

Miguel’s frame filled the doorway, a small tray of food held within white-knuckled hands. 

You were here. You were safe. He had to keep reminding himself of that.

Shit. Peter B. spun around on his heels, letting you go and spreading his arms open wide like he’d just unveiled a marble statue at a ceremony. 

“Surprise!” He sang, your irritated face appearing in Miguel’s vision from around Peter’s back. 

You may have been the one to nearly die, but Miguel looked like he’d been put through the ringer. His red eyes were bloodshot and bruised, curls tousled, and shoulders slumped over like a deflated balloon.

“She’s awake! A real fighter, this one.” 

Miguel stalked forward, sinking into the seat next to your bed that Peter had abandoned and sliding the tray of food in front of you. Everything about him spoke of exhaustion, but he hid it well as he pressed a hand to your forehead, feeling for a fever. His palm was warm, chasing away some of the pulsing pain in your head.

“How are you feeling?” 

Peter B. pouted from behind Miguel. Hey, I’m here too! His expression said, drawing a small smile from you. 

“Pretty terrible, I won’t lie. But at least I’m not dead.” 

Miguel winced and fell silent. You regretted saying anything. 

Peter fluttered around the room like a honey bee, chatting your ear off and taking the edge off of the tension that radiated from Miguel as he dutifully checked over your wounds. He barely said anything, only asking you to open your mouth so he could take your temperature or lift your arm so he could wrap the blood pressure cuff around your bicep.

Everyone had been worried about you, taking turns to sit at your bedside and wait for you to awaken (although the rotation was also made so that Miguel would be forced to take time to rest… He didn’t). 

Even some of the Spiders you weren’t familiar with left behind cards and small stuffed bears - a consistent get well gift across universes, although Spider Cat did bring you a packet of catnip. They formed a small mountain of trinkets on the coffee table. 

“We’ll leave you alone to rest.” Miguel said bluntly, stopping Peter’s rant in his tracks after seeing your eyes begin to glaze over and flutter shut.

“Oooof, sorry. I didn’t mean to talk your ear off. Hey! If you need anything, just call. I’m sure Miles will stop by later, but I told him you’d be upset if he skipped school. Oh! And I’ll bring Mayday with me next time I visit. She always makes people feel better. Doesn’t she, Miguel?” 

Miguel’s neutral expression didn’t budge when Peter nudged him with an elbow. He only continued to herd Peter closer and closer out the door.

“Anyway, I’ll see you later!” Peter said, finally disappearing around the corner. Miguel huffed. Took him long enough.

“Wait!” You called out before Miguel could escape back to his office to brood. “Could-could you stay?” The words tumbled out before you could stop them and you cringed. You didn’t like to ask him for things but… considering the circumstances…

He walked back to you, rigidly sinking back into his seat and pushing the tray closer to you.

“You should eat. Build up your strength.” He said, clasping his hands tightly against his stomach as you hesitated and then began to eat ravenously. 

He’d been in your position before - exhausted and confused and reeling from a near-death experience. A pit of shame formed in his stomach. He hadn’t been able to protect you from it. He’d been on edge ever since you’d joined Spider Society and he thought - he’d hoped - that by keeping you from the more dangerous corners of the multiverse, you’d never experience what you’d just gone through. First the incident with the Spot and now this...

“How bad was it?” You asked tentatively, poking at the leftover fries on your plate. You obeyed the comfortable stretch of your stomach, cautious of getting sick after not eating solid food for over a week. “How bad was I?”

“Pretty bad.” Miguel said gruffly and honestly, staring at a blank spot on the wall, “We didn’t think you’d make it for a while.” 

You nodded. You remembered bits and pieces of the moment between sending the anomaly back to his dimension and passing out. The electricity flowing through your body had made your skin feel like it was being peeled off the bone, every nerve screaming out in pain until your brain had short circuited and shut itself off. You were lucky that the burns on your arms were all that remained.

“But I did.” You said, gently reminding him. He closed his eyes and dropped his head into his hands. He didn’t think… he couldn’t.

“Migs-” 

The nickname threw him off guard. No one had called him that since his wife died. 

He stood up so quickly the chair squeaked in protest.

“Get some rest, Y/n.” He said without looking at you, “Call if you need anything.” He tapped the touchscreen device he left on the table - his universe’s version of a cell phone - before striding out the door without another word. 

You clenched your jaw and sank back into the pillows, part of you wishing you’d stayed asleep for a little while longer.

It took time for your body to feel like your own again. Most days you shouted at deaf limbs to move smoothly and carry things properly. Miguel had already written to Brooklyn Visions Academy about your medical leave of absence and had even gone so far as to visit your apartment to clean your kitchen and fridge while you remained bedridden at Spidey HQ. But for all the big and small ways he showed you that he cared, he neglected to do one thing - actually talk to you.

You shoved the sketchbook off the table, colored pens and pencils scattering on the floor as you dropped your head into your arms and silently screamed. Nearly a month after your injury and you still couldn’t quite hold things properly.

Your fine motor skills should return over time. Was what Dr. Parker had told you and the words should and time had been rattling around in your brain ever since.

Should or will? And how much time would it take?

“Fingers still not quite working right?” Hobie asked, leaning so far back in his seat with his legs propped up that he was nearly parallel with the floor. He held a tattered book in his hands, shifting colors with every page flip like the world’s worst chameleon.

“No.” You said, smoothing back your hair. You’d lost the bandages, but your skin was still tender to the touch in places and numb in others. Lichtenberg figure scars trailed up from your hands all the way to your collarbone, growing there like lichen on a tree. “It’s gotten better. A lot better. But it’s still not the same.”

“You’ll get there eventually.” Hobie said. He knelt on the floor and started to clean up the mess you had made, “Then you’ll be good as new.”

“How do you know?” You sighed, joining him.

He shrugged, “I don’t. But I was right before about you being able to send someone back to their own dimension without a watch. I’ve got a good feeling I’ll be right about this too.” 

He offered you a small smile and a helping hand, both of which you accepted.

You spent the rest of the day together, joined by Peter, Gwen, and Miles who cheered you through your daily exercises. You were getting strong again, albeit slowly. 

“I want to see you kiss the ground!”

“Show that stress ball who’s BOSS!”

“Yeah, THROW THAT DONGLE!”

“What did you just call-”

Miguel hovered by the door, never stepping foot into the training room with you in it. Never speaking to you, although he desperately wanted to. When you caught his eye, blinking in surprise as you kneeled in the training ring sweaty and tired, he bolted.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid.” He muttered to himself as he strode to the office you’d affectionately coined his “vampire lair.” Although he’d kept his distance, he’d never left you alone. When you asked Peter about getting things from your apartment, he was the one who visited your dimension. When you initially had trouble walking after your injury, he was the one who tracked down the best physicians and physical therapist variants he could find. He was breaking protocol left and right to make sure you were ok and he knew it. But...

“Lyla, could you pull up the video?” She didn’t need to ask for clarification on which video. It was always the same one. Always the same happy memory, followed by a terrible and harsh reality. 

Gabriella’s smiling face flashed on the screen, her bubbly laughter rising high above Miguel’s own baritone chuckle as she threw her arms around his shoulders and slapped that silly blue bow on his head. He’d taken that video to send to you after she scored the winning goal. You never made it to the game.

It was a painful reminder of everything that was at stake. He’d taken too many liberties, allowed himself to get too close to you. If he lost you like he’d lost Gabriella. He-

“Is that her?” 

Miguel’s heart dropped into the pit of his stomach. 

“Is that Gabriella?” You asked, swallowing thickly as Miguel turned around, leaving the video paused on two smiling faces. He wasn’t smiling now.

“Yes.” He answered softly, guilt heavy on his voice as you moved closer and inspected the girl on screen. 

Your breath caught in your throat, coming out as a strangled gasp. 

She looked like Miguel… She looked like you… 

“She’s got your smile.” You said softly, brushing away the unexpected dampness that had collected in your eyes. 

You’d been frustrated all day. Frustrated at yourself for your slow healing and your uncooperative body. When you had come to Miguel’s lair it was with the purpose of yelling at him for not visiting, and part of you still wanted to do that. But seeing him vulnerable and tired in front of his daughter your daughter Gabriella had taken some of the fight out of you.

“I always thought she had yours. Well, the other-”

“I understand, Miguel.” 

Silence stretched between you, tense and thin and waiting to be sliced through. You made the move. 

“Why haven’t you visited me?” The words came out sharper, more accusatory than you’d expected them to. 

Although Miguel flinched on the inside, he forced himself to take that pain and longing and shove it back into the little box he’d crafted for those feelings in the corner of his heart. The little box that you’d been steadily hacking away at from the very moment he met you.

“It wouldn’t have been appropriate.”

“Appropriate? What the hell is that supposed to mean? It’s not appropriate for you to visit a friend?” 

His jaw clenched at the word friend. It was a flimsy word, too weak to hold up all the feelings you held for each other. He ignored your question and barrelled through his next words, words that he’d been contemplating over the last month you’d been stuck in the med bay.

“Peter J. says you’re well enough to go back home and back to work if you feel ready. He wants you here every Wednesday at 7pm for the next six weeks-”

“You’re not answering my question-”

“I’ve got a write up for you to bring to any physician in your dimension-”

“Miguel, stop ignoring-”

“If you need documentation. In the meantime-”

“Y ni siquiera me estás escuchando-”

“I’m taking you off the team.” 

You took a step back, the realization of what he’d just said hitting you like a slap. “What did you say?”

Miguel gritted his teeth, eyes sliding down to the floor so he wouldn’t have to see that quiet look of devastation on your face. You were having none of it, immediately getting close to him and pressing your hands against his chest. The pads of your fingers were delicate but forceful as they tilted his chin up, forcing him to look into your eyes.

“Miguel, look at me.” Quiet. Desperate.

“I’m taking you off the team.” He repeated, clenching his jaw so tightly he could feel the grinding of his teeth.

“What-why would-why?”

“You almost died, Y/n. That stunt of yours could’ve gotten you killed.”

“Stunt? Is that really what you’re calling it?”

“You’re not cut out for this.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it.” 

It was bullshit and he did know it. 

“We couldn’t call you.” You prodded him with a finger, “We couldn’t trap him using the usual methods. We could barely hold him off long enough for anyone to come help. If I hadn’t done what I did, who the hell knows what would have happened? To Miles. To Gwen. To the millions of people living in New York. You need me Miguel, and not just for the superhero crap.”

What hadn’t occurred to you was that he knew exactly how much he needed you… and that was what terrified him so much.

“The decision’s been made, Y/n.” 

“By you. So change it.” 

“I’m not changing my decision.” Miguel growled, grabbing the hand that you’d been jabbing him with.

So this was the Miguel that everyone had told you about. Not the soft, brooding, sarcastic man you’d come to know. Not the Spider-Man whose humor revolved around making quippy comments. Not the Spider-Man who claimed to be the roughest and straight-laced of them all while still letting the cooks put his face on their signature burger. Not the smiling, laughing Miguel from the video with a blue bow in his hair.

No. This Miguel was short-tempered and hammered from steel. 

So why did he still hold your hand so gently, clutching it to his chest like he wanted to keep you there?

He shrugged you off, finally closing the screen on the video of him and Gabriella. Something about that made your blood boil.

“So what now?” You seethed, refusing to let this go. Not even as his fingers started to fly over the keyboard and his mind struggled to go elsewhere.

“You can go home. You can go back to the med bay.” 

You can stay here with me. You can help me get through all of this. 

Miguel’s heart screamed at him. His brain screamed back so loudly he felt his hold on his emotions stretch to its breaking point.

“That’s not what I meant and you know it.” 

Your voices had been steadily rising throughout the argument. So when his broad shoulders rose and fell with a heavy sigh, one hand coming up to rub at his temples, you thought you’d finally gotten to him. 

“¡Dime la verdad, Miguel! Why are you taking me off the team?” 

“I told you the truth earlier. You’re not cut out for this.” 

“BULLSHIT!”

He slammed his hand down on the keyboard, cracking it in two and sending keys clattering to the floor.

“I’M NOT LOSING YOU!” He roared, eyes alight and burning like the sun itself. “Not again!” His eyes squeezed shut like he couldn’t stand the sight of you, chest rising and falling with desperate gulps of air.

You stood there, lightly swaying on your feet like a boat caught in an unexpected storm.

“I am not your fucking wife.” Your voice cracked, “You didn’t lose me before and unless you tell me to walk out that door right now, you will never lose me. Ok? I will stay here - with you - if you just fucking ask me to.”

You expected something, anything, from Miguel. But after a minute of silence passed with him standing like a statue in front of you, you swallowed your tears before they could fall and blinked away.

It wasn’t your intention to go home. You’d planned to go back to the med bay, curl up, and sleep away your troubles before stealing a watch in the morning. But like a broken dam can’t hold back water, your emotions and powers couldn’t be contained. 

When you looked around at your cleaned apartment, the faintest smell of Miguel’s cologne still stuck to the couch pillows, you sank to your knees and started to cry.

<- Previous chapter Next chapter ->

_________

Author's note:

Autumn is here! And the colder, somber atmosphere in the coffee shop today helped inspire this chapter. I had a plan for this fic... I abandoned it long ago. But, that being said, I hope to have things wrapped up in the next 2-3 chapters and to bring some closure to the first multi-chapter fic I will have ever truly completed.

As always, I hope you're all taking care of yourselves and that your Autumn drinks are tasting ✨delicious✨

Love,

Florence B.

Taglist: @geraskier-thots @howabouticallyou @sweetheartlizzie07 @dont-mind-me27 @omg-edzia-stuff @sarcastically-defensive17 @trouble-sistar @saltyluminaryvoid @lunablue001 @sadslasher13 @yas-v @thel0v3hashira143 @trishuh8 @vague-flying-shape. @tiana76 @dinuxia-bhm @mxtokko @devilsrose666 @natbratty @zettoaizawa-shusband @dorck26 @notasadgirlipromise @niyanispunk @thecraziestcrayon @athenxt @imnotyourbcbe @jannajuju @lunamoonbby @elle-19 @aces148 @sseleniaa @elaineiswithyou-blog @summerli-u @rattlethemskulls @sunseekerlove @bubbabobabubbles @loonalockley @aleombre @littlelilies @07-bilin @nerdalicios @insanely-creative-things @enby-rising @nataliahemsworth @coralineyouareinterribledanger @louderfortheback @damnzelsoul @enheduannasposts @bontensbabygirl @mynameiswilliamblake @hyperfixationwho @corpsebridenightamare @mikeys-thighs

[auras-moonstone]

Holaaa me emocione bastante con saber q eres de argentina (yo no soy de argentina soy de Mexico) pero esta cool saber q también hablas español lol

llevo rato leyendo tus trabajos y me encanta como escribeees, no se que te parezca la idea de una historia de Ethan como Spiderman tbh es mi head canon favorito y no hay mucha gente que lo escriba ahí una idea no se si sigas aceptando requests o si ya habías escrito algo de Ethan como Spiderman pero me encantaría leer algo así escrito por ti obvi 🤭

(En ingles ofc!)

Perdooon si escribí bastante me emocione jajaja apenas agarre el valor Para dejar un request

hola 🇲🇽 ! perdón por haber tardado tanto en escribir esta request😫 me encantó la idea, hace bastante que quería escribir algo sobre ethan como spiderman <3 espero que te guste❤️🫶🏻

the story of us — ethan landry

word count: 2,693

pairing: spider-man!ethan landry x fem!reader

summary: ethan and y/n’s relationship might be ending soon because of the boy’s behaviour and secrets.

based on: the story of us by taylor swift

warnings: mention of blood. a bit of angst.

Y/N SHOULDN’T FEEL SURPRISED FOR HAVING BEEN STOOD UP BY ETHAN, it seemed to be his favourite hobby lately. But when he came up to her with regretful puppy eyes asking for them to meet so he could explain the reason behind his behaviour, she really thought he would keep his word and show up to fix things.

But once again he failed her, and now Y/N was walking back home alone with mascara running down her face and with her chest filled with disappointment and sadness.

Y/N was walking through the dark and unsafe NYC streets, wondering what excuse her boyfriend was going to use this time, when she heard a whimper coming from the creepy unlit alley she was passing by. Her whole body tightened with fear, hands instantly became sweaty, her heart thundered dangerously fast and yet she stopped walking. Then the noise came again, this time more clear—it was a pained curse from a male voice.

The girl couldn’t decide if she was stupid or too brave, but she walked towards the person. Her eyes widened at the scene—there, sitting next to a container, was Spiderman; a bleeding Spiderman.

“Holy hell, are you okay?” she cried, inspecting the wound. “Of course you’re not okay! You’re bleeding a lot! A lot!”

Ethan cursed internally. Of all the people who could have found him, it had to be her. “Thanks for the calming words.” the superhero said between gritted teeth.

“Sorry! I shouldn’t have said that. I was exaggerating, it’s not that bad.” Y/N tried to convince him.

“You’re a horrible liar” his hands were shaking as he tried to put pressure on the wound.

“Okay, let’s get you out of here, the smell is awful.” the girl said, putting one of his—very strong and muscled—arms around her shoulders. “I know you’re in pain, but I need you to use a bit of your strength to help me lift you to your feet. Can you do that?” the masked figure nodded. “Okay, at the count of three.”

Ethan closed his eyes in pain as he let out a cry of agony. He had been walking towards the cafe where Y/N worked when he heard screaming. An old woman and her granddaughter were being robbed and it was his duty to save them. He would’ve made it to his date with Y/N if the thief’s partner hadn’t caught him off guard and sliced his stomach. Time didn’t matter anymore, he couldn’t show up wounded, and he didn’t have the energy to walk so he stayed in that creepy alley where Y/N found him.

“Ouch!” he yelled when the girl carelessly dropped him on her couch as soon as they arrived to her apartment.

“Sorry!” Y/N said guiltily. “My arms hurt.”

“It’s okay. Thank you, I just need to rest here for a few minutes and I’ll be out of your sight.” he panted.

“You can’t leave! I need to clean you up and then you need to eat something.”

“No, it’s okay. Look, just lend me a first-aid kit, I’ll do it myself. Then I’m leaving.” it wasn’t that Ethan was ungrateful for her help, he just didn’t want to be a burden. Also, if she was to see his body, she was going to recognize him instantly. And Ethan was not going to let that happen.

“Hey, you’re always saving our asses, it’s time someone finally takes care of you.” she smiled softly.

“I really appreciate that, seriously. But I’d be more comfortable doing it myself, if you don’t mind.”

“As you wish.” she said in understanding. And as he stitched himself up, Y/N went to the kitchen to prepare something for him to eat.

Ethan watched her from the doorframe. He wanted to close the space so badly, he wanted to wrap his arms around her waist and never let go. They saw each other everyday, but it’s been days since the last time he got to hold her, kiss her, touch her.

Y/N was really pissed at him, and with good reason. Countless were the times he had stood her up and he slowly—and absentmindedly—started to distance himself from her. And a few days ago, Y/N just exploded and they started fighting. Instead of telling her the truth (that he was a superhero and that the NYC streets were more dangerous than he had thought) he told her she was being dramatic and that he needed a bit of space. He regretted it instantly, and wanted to throw up as soon as his eyes caught her hurt expression. He was trying to keep her safe, but he handed everything in the worst way possible and ended up wounding the person that meant the most to him.

“You cooked for me?” he spoke up. Even though she couldn’t see it, she felt the smile on his voice.

“I told you, it’s time someone takes care of you.” she answered. “Is the wound okay? Does it hurt?”

“I’m fine. I’m a big tough boy.” he said in a teasing voice when she finished. “Thank you, Y/N. You saved me.”

“Anytime, Spider-boy. And honestly, you shouldn’t even thank me, you risk your life for us every- wait a minute.” she stopped when she realised something. “How do you know my name?”

Fuck, he cursed internally. He had messed up. “You told me.” he tried to sound confident.

“No, I didn’t. Do we know each other? Do we go to the same college?” Y/N asked curiously.

“I need to go.” he stood up abruptly, and a whimper of pain left his mouth.

“No! I’m sorry, I won’t press the subject.” she said, grabbing his forearms to sit him back on the chair. “I respect you wanting to keep your identity hidden. I won’t ask any more questions, but please stay. You’re still weak, you need to eat something.”

“You already did a lot. Really.”

“I swear to god, stop being stubborn.”

Who was he kidding with the hesitation? Just one look at her doe eyes and he was on his knees. As he ate, Y/N had her back to him so he could take his mask off. She could have turned around at any time and discover that the friendly neighbour hero was her boyfriend, but she never did. She respected his wish of not wanting to show his face, and that made him love her ever more.

“Your omelette was great” he said as he put the plate on the dishwasher. “Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome.”

“Why were you crying?” he asked, even though he knew the answer. Ethan and Y/N weren’t on speaking terms, so maybe by talking to her through his secret identity would give him an insight on how to fix the relationship he tore up.

The sad girl frowned and pressed her lips into a line. She didn’t talk to her friends much about Ethan because she didn’t want to put them in an uncomfortable position, as they were all friends, so she had been keeping her frustrations bottled up. And now there was this trustful kind stranger asking her about it, so she gave in.

“My boyfriend didn’t show up to our date. He has been acting so strange lately. He shows up late, he always has a different excuse and gets all nervous and defensive because he’s obviously lying, but most times he doesn’t even show up. Like today.” the exhaustion and defeat was evident on her tone and it broke his heart. “He was supposed to meet me today, so he could open up and tell me what’s going on in his life, but…”

“He let you down again.” he added in a sad tone. Y/N nodded, tears blurring her eyes. “What are you going to do?”

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath “I honestly don’t know. I love him, I really do, but our relationship has become one-sided. I’m trying to save it, but it seems like he doesn’t care anymore.”

Fear crept into his mind. Was that it? Was it their end? Was she going to break up with him the next day? He wouldn’t blame her. Yet, he couldn’t help being selfish—he did not want them to break up.

“Maybe there is something going on in his life… something that he can’t tell you for your own good.” he said, and he knew he sounded stupid.

“What could be so bad that he can’t talk to me about it? We have always been honest with each other. He knows he can tell me anything, he knows that he’ll have my support no matter what. I just want him to talk to me. I don’t know what happened with our relationship, but there’s nothing I can do unless he talks to me.”

“Things are going to get better.” the superhero said, rubbing her arm in a comforting gesture.

Ethan had multiple opportunities to be honest with her, to explain why he had become so distant and yet he held his pride and told her she was exaggerating the whole situation. So, as much as she tried to be positive and believe Spider-man’s words, she was scared the story of them might be ending soon.

ETHAN REACHED THE TABLE WHERE THE GROUP WAS SITTING AT and eyed the two empty spots left. One was next to Chad, who was talking animatedly with Tara and Mindy, and the other one was beside Y/N. His spot had always been the one next to hers, but with their current complications and not knowing exactly in which page they were at, he didn’t know what to do. Seeing the way she was nervously pulling at her clothes and tried to look busy, he ended up choosing the first option.

Even though she was trying hard to avoid looking at him, his presence was overwhelming and it took all of her strength to hold back from peaking a glance at his gorgeous smile and perfect curls. She was dying to know if the situation was killing him as much as it was killing her.

Little did she know the boy was losing his mind. The anguish was too much, so many thoughts were running through his mind. He was dying to let her know what was going on, but he was scared it was going to put her in danger. He would rather have her be angry at him than her getting hurt because of him. The wiser thing would be to let her go, to free her from the chaos that came with being involved with a superhero, but he the selfish part of him couldn’t break things up—Ethan loved her too much to give her up.

He needed to come up with a decision. This contest of who could act like they cared less needed to end and he could not tolerate the loud silence between them anymore. “Do you think we could talk tonight?”

“If you have the decency to show up.” she shrugged.

Her armour was up, and it was understandable. “I will. I’ll meet you at your apartment after Econ?”

“Okay.” Y/N nodded. “I’m serious, Ethan. Show up. This is your last chance.”

“I won’t let you down again, Y/N/N. I promise.”

ETHAN DIDN'T KNOW IF THE AREA WHERE Y/N WORKED IN WAS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS OR IF HE JUST HAD BAD LUCK, but every time he was near, something happened that forced him to step in. Thankfully, this time it was an inexperienced thief he easily managed to bring down but his wound wasn't fully healed yet so he was in a bit of pain after the fight. But the important thing was that he made it to Y/N's house.

The girl was unable to hide her relief when she opened the door, but it soon turned into worry. "Ethan, what the hell happened? You're bleeding!"

The curly-haired boy looked down to find a scarlet stain on his blue polo shirt. The wound on his abdomen must have opened while he was stopping the thief, and he didn't even noticed because of the adrenaline. "Um, it's nothing, I-"

"Sit down." she ordered right before leaving to grab the first-aid kit. When she lifted his shirt up, she frowned.

"What is it?" Ethan asked worriedly.

"Ethan, when did this happen?"

"Um, I was robbed while making my way here." the lie slipped off his tongue in an instant.

"You keep lying to me." she let out a humourless laugh. "This has been stitched before, Ethan."

He sighed, thinking of another excuse. "Okay, fine. It's not new. I fell and landed on something sharp, and it cut my stomach."

"Okay, now I'm not only angry because you lied to me twice in the past sixty seconds, but also because you think I'm stupid."

"I don't think you're stupid."

"If you believe I'd buy that shitty excuse, then yes, I think you think I'm stupid." she spat. "Tell me the truth. Right now, Ethan."

Silence embraced the room. As Y/N worked on the wound, Ethan tried to find the words to explain. "I don't know where to start."

"Let's start by telling me how did you get this."

"A thief did it to me." he said, and ignoring his girlfriend's warning glance, he continued, "but he wasn't robbing me. He was stealing from an old woman and I stepped in. He cut me while I was distracted."

Y/N's eyes widened in surprise as they scrutinised his face, trying to spot any sign that told her he was lying. She find none. "You fought them?" she asked in disbelief, and Ethan nodded. "That's... that's really brave. And stupid."

"It's my job." he blurted out, making her look at him in confusion. "Well, it's not a job job, because I don't get paid. Not that I'd do it for money, even though I need it-"

"Eth!" she interrupted him. "I love it when you ramble, you're adorable, but could you please explain?"

"I missed you calling me Eth." he whispered, caressing her right cheek. "I miss you."

"I miss you, too, Eth. But we need to talk. Well, you need to talk. What is going on with you? Why are you so distant? Why do you keep missing our dates? What did you mean by 'It's my job'?"

"I'll tell you, but I need to warn you first. You were in danger before knowing this, but after I tell you... you are going to be an even bigger target. And you can't tell anyone, okay? No one knows, and no one has to know."

"Okay, just spit it out, Ethan."

"I'm Spider-man."

It was as if their surroundings had frozen, and minutes felt like hours. Y/N sat on the couch, dumbfounded, and Ethan's leg bounced as he bit his nails.

Meanwhile, Y/N's brain worked at a fast pace, trying to connect the dots. Now, in hindsight, everything made sense. His bruises, his wounds, why he was always in high alert, why his walls were up, his grades dropping, his tardiness... he became the friendly neighborhood spiderman. The vigilante she had found bleeding the previous night.

"Hey! You used your secret identity to get information out of me, asshole!"

"That's all you have to say?!"

"I mean, no... but I don't really know what to say."

"You're not mad?"

"I don't think so. I really wish you would've told me, could've saved up lots of arguments, but I do understand why you didn't tell me. I'm glad you opened up, tho. I am really tired of missing you and not kissing you."

Ethan laughed. “I love you. I missed you like crazy, and I'm sorry for everything.” he hold her close to his chest and let himself relax for the first time in weeks. “By the way, you need to quit that job. I swear there’s a robbery every five fucking minutes.”

“Have you been following me?” she arched her eyebrow.

“Keeping an eye on you.” he corrected. “I can’t let anything happen to my girl, and like I said, it’s a dangerous area.”

Y/N laughed and kissed his lips tenderly “I love you, my little stalker. Don’t keep secrets from me ever again.”

“Never. I promise. We’re a team.”

[saschax]

Hello ! Would it be possible some nsfw-fluff an Valeria and female reader?, maybe something ab how reader got home and she was tired decided to take a bath and vale followed her? 🤭

gruß (greetings), and of course. ill shall do this.

not entirely sure what fluff means, but it means happy ending (according to the internet)? so, mmm... hope this is good...

sorry for late response. and im terribly sorry if this is bad; im not used to female reader x female (and since im not a female myself, i have no absolutely fucking idea on how they say things amongst themselves)

people aged less than 18+ please skip this as this is not for you. please do not read this. i beg of you, do not.

i am not responsible if your child is reading this, as a parent- it is you who is responsible for your child's media consumption.

if you are 18 or above, feel free to read!

TRIGGER WARNINGS: nsfw, two females are in a romantic relationship

ding.

the door opens for reader, vale stands in front of her with narrowed eyes.

"where you've been, hm??" valeria hums, crossing her arms.

valeria is a bit frustrated reader came home later than planned. they were going to watch a movie when she gets home, but its too late to watch a movie. looking behind reader, it is night time.

getting no response, valeria opens her mouth- brows furrowing in anger, then- as her eyes looks up and down at reader's figure. she freezes.

reader's eyes was slightly droopy, her back hunched over a bit like she was very tired.

tired from work.

valeria softens when reader hugs her. although, valeria didn't quite like the smell of other perfumes on her.

debe haber otras mujeres alrededor de mi chica.. estúpido trabajo..

reader seems to pick up on this, so she lets go.

"am sorry- just- just work caught up to me, thats all." reader finally replies to vale's question.

it is vale's time to be quiet for a moment, reader sees vale's eyes looking her up and down.

"poor baby, you tired?" valeria said with a condescending tone. reader nods her head, "hm, why don't we go to bed? we can..." she tilts her head back at the tv. "watch the movie later."

"sounds okay," reader agrees, moving past valeria to walk to their shared bedroom.

when reader opens the door, realizing her partner isn't following her. she looks over her shoulder, only to see valeria having her arms crossed, and her foot tapping the ground expectingly.

reader's face flashes a goofy tired grin, walking back to valeria and taking her hand- valeria smiles back- and she drags her loving partner into the bedroom.

as they enter the bedroom, reader gently tugs valeria onto the bed and valeria allows the motion, laying on the bed (of course she took her shoes off).

expecting reader to sleep next to her, what she did next surprises her.

reader went into the bathroom.

valeria arches one of her eyebrows, and the next second, she hears water running.

oh? is she taking a bath?

without ME?

not a chance, valeria huffs as she thinks.

letting the water run for a moment, she swings her legs to the side and starts to walk into the bathroom, looks like reader was quick to get into the bathtub as she sees her there- well, she isn't laying in the bathrub- reader is standing, preparing to lay down.

reader eyes is wide, bug eyed. trying to cover herself with her hands (she's completely naked) while keeping her balance on the slippery bathtub.

reader feels nervous, but it looks like valeria is enjoying this- her smirk says it all.

"well, it seems like you need some help getting clean," vale said playfully, stepping closer to the tub and reaching out to turn off the faucet.

reader's face is red as a tomato at this point, still covering herself as much as possible. this is embarrassing!

valeria tries to move her hands away, only to met with resistance. with a tsk, she pulls harder, and reader relents.

"sit down." she says, humming after.

reader lets out an audible gulp, sitting. of course, when valeria wants her to move in a certain spot- she moved.

now, valeria is currently behind her- with reader showing her back to valeria.

reader's heart races as vale's touch sent shivers down her spine. they had been together for quite some time now and shared everything else - why not share a shower too?

as much as her mind scream she likes this- her body is stiffening. she's not used to this sort of touches on her body.

as vale begins running a soap-covered hand over her shoulders, gently massaging away any tension or stress from work or life in general, reader couldn't help but let out a soft moan of pleasure at the sensation coursing through her body.

after a moment of doing this, vale's hands trails lower down reader's body, slowly gliding over her soft curves and sensitive areas. she feels the heat emanating from reader's skin as she presses closer against her, their wet bodies molding together like two halves of a whole.

reader gasps when she felt vale's fingers dip beneath the water and brush against her most intimate place.

her hips buckle slightly in response to the unexpected touch but vale holds onto her tightly, keeping them both upright in the tub.

"you like that?" vale whispers huskily into reader's ear before moving lower to kiss along her neck and collarbone.

the sensation sent shivers up and down reader's spine as she moans softly at this newfound pleasure.

feeling embarrassed of her moans and soft little gasps- sounds vale happens to like so much, vale sees a hand sneaking their way up to reader's mouth- effectively almost drowning, if not, all their sweet little noises.

"no, no, carino, i want to hear you.." she tsks, using a free hand to moves reader's hand away, although slowly and gently, away from her mouth.

the noises continues, and every now and then- she hears a whimper.

god, it sounded beautiful. she'd kill to hear that sound forever.

vale's mouth moves upward, pausing her little attacks on reader's neck and instead, begins to bite reader's earlobe.

even reader's ears seems to be blushing red, and this only seems to make reader's cuter in vale's eyes.

"vale- ngh- i'm going to- ngh- cum-!" reader whimpers, the last word being said in a higher pitched when vale sped up her movements.

"si, si, come on my fingers mi amor." valeria eggs her on, and the last two words were reader's undone.

seeing white, she lets out a silent scream. the springy coil in her snaps..

vale however, did not relent. even after reader came down from her high, she kept going.

whimpers and pleads of stop is encouraging for valeria, only making her go faster and faster.

i think reader made valeria addicted to her sounds and wants to hear more...

XD....

after, with reader passing out, thanks to valeria's strength. she cleans reader, of course she had to renew the water, dressed reader, and places reader gently in bed.

all the while, reader was snoring happily away. into dreamlands.

and as valeria settles into the bed, last thing she says was..

"love you, mi amor." and with that, settles her head into reader's neck and sleeps.

what did i write

[didishawn]

Hiii Can I make a request? I love your stories, and I was wondering if you could do one with pedri. It would be smut, like you have a toy inside of you which he's controlling and you two are buying in a supermarket or in your parent's house or his parent's house. And he is teasing you, also if you can do that they will end up doing it.

Control over you (Pedri x Reader) smut

Warnings: use of vibrator in public, Pedri being a lovable bitch, smut, mentions of Pedri's injury, fucking on the car, lots of Spanish

Masterlist

You are starting to think that with his injury, your boyfriend is having too much time to think about dumb stuff to do.

That's at least the explanation you give yourself when he convinces you of going out with your brand new vibrator inside of you, neither you or him knowing exactly how to control it, but about to learn.

Unfortunately for you, your boyfriend learns way too fast and is now having the time of his life while on dinner with his parents.

"¿Estás bien, y/n?" his mother asks you, Rosy adores you and always has an eye out to check on you "Estás un poco roja, ¿no te estarás enfermando?" (are you ok, y/n? You are looking a bit red, are you coming down with something?)

To be honest, you are a bit out of your mind with the strong vibrations inside of you, Pedri being the little shit he is increasing the intensity as you are about to speak, making you bite down on your lip, then answer "Sisi, solo un poco acalorada" (yes yes, only a bit warm)

Everyone but Pedri gives you a strange look, yet none say anything, your boyfriend leans down next to your ear, his big hand resting on your thigh to tease you even more "Hace diez grados amor, te podrías haber buscado una excusa mejor" (it's ten degrees, love, you surely could have come up with a better excuse)

You glare at him, about to reprimand him when once more the intensity increases, making you bit back a moan once more, trembling a bit as you feel yourself get closer to the edge.

"No me digas que mi niña bonita ya se va a correr" he places a kiss on your cheek when no one is watching "¿Te vas a venir aquí delante de mis padres? ¿Vas a dejar que vean que no eres para nada como se piensan? Solo una puta deseando que la folle" (don't tell me my pretty girl is about to cum. Are you going to cum here in front of my parents? Gonna let them see you are nothing like they think you are? Just a whore begging me to fuck her)

There are low whines escaping your mouth as your whisper "Pepi, por favor, vayamonos a casa, no quiero correrme aquí, quiero hacerlo con tu polla dentro mio" (Pepi, please, let's go home, I don't want to cum here, I want to do it with my cock inside of me)

Your boyfriend thinks about it for a minute, still his thumb moving up and down on his phone screen to tease you with the levels of pleasure. He finally stands up, taking your hand into his as his parents and brother watch you "Mejor nos vamos a casa, que y/n en verdad se siente un poco enferma" (we better go home, y/n is feeling a bit sick)

Worry for you takes over everyone's faces, specially Pedri's mother who stands up to check on you.

"Nos vamos todos si queréis" she says, being in Barcelona everyone is staying back on your house. (we can all go if you want)

Pedri shakes his head "Que va que va, seguid con el plan, el cine y tal. Ya nos veremos luego" he hands his mother the money for everyone's dinner plus the movies and drags you out of the restaurant. (nono, you follow the plan, cinema and the rest. We will see each other later)

Pedri has one hand on the steering wheel, the other has his fingers thrusting roughly inside of you as you play with your clit. He tries his best to keep his eyes focused as you fuck yourself on the passenger seat.

There is no music on the car, only the sweet sounds of your unrestrained moans over the sound of Pedri's teasing.

"¿Disfrutas de mis dedos follandote, amor? Te vas a venir aquí con ellos dentro tuyo. Sigue tocandote, te pones tan puto apretada" (are you enjoying my fingers fucking you, love? You are going to cum here with them inside of you. Keep on touching yourself, you become so fucking tight)

You whine, high pitched "Pedri, por favor, te necesito dentro ya, no puedo aguantar más" (Pedri, please, I need you inside now, I can't handle this anymore)

"Joder, cariño, no me lo pones nada fácil" (dammit darling you make this so difficult)

He keeps on complaining, all while parking the car on the side of the road, on a point that no one passing by will be able to see you. He pushes his seat back, hasty hands unbuckling his belt as he indicates you to undress too "Venga bonita, dejame verte entera" (come on, pretty, let me see all of you)

As soon as you are undresses, he throws your clothes on the back as your hands lift up his sweatshirt, you too want to see him whole, almost salivating at the sight of his thick cock standing tall against his stomach, tip red and precum coming out from it, looking ready as ever to reach extasis.

Pedri doesn't waste time, picking you up by your waist and placing you above him, your hole lining up with his cock, then dropping you into him, taking him whole, you letting a loud moan out at the feeling of being so full, trembling as you grab into his shoulders, neither you or him waisting time to move your hips.

He grinds into you, his lips attached to your neck and going lower to your breasts he is so obsessed with. You look down, head dropping back at the sight of his entirety all inside of you, his cock stained with both of your juices.

"Joder, amor, no voy a aguantar mucho" (dammit, love, I won't last much)

You are pleading, big, glossy eyes looking up into his "Da igual, vente dentro mio, necesito sentirte completamente" (doesn't matter, cum inside me, I need to feel all of you)

The sounds coming from Pedri's mouth are animalistic, primitive, pleasure has completely taken over his foggy mind, he is in complete control, hard thrusts one after the other, he moves you up and down as if you don't weight anything.

One particularly hard thrust does it for you walls tightening around him and squirting everywhere, he lets out the hottest moan you have ever heard as he fills you up to the brim. His head drops to your shoulder, he doesn't move from your insides.

Suddenly, his phone dings, and with half a mind he picks it up, surprised when he sees the message coming from his brother.

¿Donde estáis? Que hemos venido a casa directamente y no habéis llegado

Where are you? That we have come directly home and you are not here

You turn red at the next next

Por cierto, dile a y/n que tiene que mejorar su actuación. Dais puto asco haciendo eso en la comida

Also, tell y/n she has to improve her acting. You two are fucking disgusting doing that while we eat

[owl-falls-au]

Inktober Challenge Day 22 - Possession | Día 22 - Posesión

IN ENGLISH

Stan reached his lowest point one night, after a fight with Eda, having discovered that she had a portal to the human world, Stan complained to Eda about his real motives for hiding it and she felt pressured, as such. point that revealed to her that the reason she didn't tell him about the portal was because she didn't want to be alone...

With that, Stan and Eda argue, while Luz is still asleep...

Stan walked out of the owl house and tried to calm down as he listened to Bill's familiar voice...

And an irresistible deal was presented to him...

Coming home with Ford ...

Thanks to that, Bill managed to possess Stan's body, curiously, Stan managed to fight to have control of his body..

Thanks to Titan, Eda, Luz and King, he was taken out of that trance and he had his own body again...

EN ESPAÑOL

Stan llegó a su punto más bajo una noche, después de una pelea con Eda, al haber descubierto que ella tenía un portal hacia el mundo humano, Stan le reclamo a Eda sobre sus motivos reales para ocultar la y ella se sintió presionada, a tal punto que le reveló que la razón por la que no le dijo del portal fue porque no quería estar sola...

Con eso, Stan y Eda discuten, mientras Luz todavía está dormida...

Stan salió de la casa búho y trato de calmarse mientras escuchaba la familiar voz de Bill...

Y un trato irresistible se hizo presente ante el...

Volver a casa con Ford

Gracias a eso, Bill logró poseer el cuerpo de Stan, curiosamente, Stan logro luchar por tener el control de su cuerpo...

Gracias a Moisés, Eda, Luz y King lo sacaron de ese trance y volvió a tener su propio cuerpo...

But with some consequences... / Pero con algunas consecuencias...

Part 2/parte 2

[bl00dst41ned]

*.·:·.✦ lost and found ✦.·:·.*

pairing: jude bellingham x female oc (named Ryan)

summary: in which Jude makes an awesome discovery

author's note: watched Paddington yesterday and it inspired me this. Jude lives in my mind rent free yet, I'm never writing him.

word count: 1085

The night felt refreshing in the streets of Madrid. Spain was known for its suffocating temperature. To get some air, you had to wait until after sunset. Which is what Jude and his girlfriend, Ryan decided to do. They wandered, hand in hand, observing their new place of residence.

“We should try that” Ryan pointed to the small restaurant selling empanadas.

They entered with no hesitation, greeted in Spanish by the worker. Once they debated on which one to choose, Ryan ordered, in broken Spanish, two different flavours for them to try. The two sat on a bench nearby, to enjoy their little snack, engaging in a small conversation about the new life they were beginning.

Following Jude’s signing to Real Madrid, he asked his longtime partner if she was willing to live with him. Ryan and he had been together since they were 15. She supported him through every big step in his career. Except, for this new one, Jude wanted her to physically be with him every day. Three months later, Ryan had packed her bags to join him.

The couple were now picking up new habits and trying to accustom to the Madrid life.

“So….How’s your Duolingo lessons going?”

Ryan basically forced Jude to learn basic Spanish. For now, he relied on her for every social interaction even though she was not fluent. And she could tell he was comfortable like that and didn’t want it to change.

“Alright I guess” Jude shrugged, rubbing his right eye, something he always did when he was lying to her. Which she knew, too well.

“Jude” Ryan sighed, Jude instantly chuckling, knowing she had caught him. “This green owl has been asking me where you at for the past week”

Somehow Jude had forgotten that the app was on her iPad and connected to her email.

He tried as hard as he could to contain his laugh but failed miserably.

“Don’t laugh” She playfully hit his shoulder, smiling. “You hurt her so much, she stopped texting me”

He stopped and laughed pulling his head down.

“Yeah I went too far, I’ll do it tomorrow”

Once they finished eating, they got up and continued walking. As Ryan observed the architecture around, Jude had come to a halt. She felt her arm being pulled and looked back in confusion.

“What are y- Shhhhh” Jude shushed her with his index finger.

He seemed to be trying to hear something so Ryan just did the same. He let go of her hand now walking towards the sound. He looked behind a flower pot finding what he looked for. He crouched down, Ryan’s curiosity rising. She came behind him checking what had his attention.

There lay a tiny kitten, letting out small meows anybody could barely hear. He seemed to be born recently since his eyes were closed. Jude took him in his hand, slowly petting him.

“Can we bring it home?”

“Jude, he surely has a mother somewhere”

“But…look at him” He looked at her with a pout showing her the kitten on his palm.

“We need to make sure he doesn’t have an owner”

Ryan tried to be rational despite wanting it as much as he did. Obviously, she didn’t want to leave him to die there. They looked around the area, looking for his mother or other kittens somewhere, before being interrupted by a voice.

“El dueño se alejó y los dejó’ An elder woman spoke lowly in Spanish, trying to mimic what she meant, hearing them speak English. “Este debe haber escapado”

With the few words she understood, Ryan figured this kitten had been abandoned. She let Jude know what she said, making him smile since he got to take it home.

They walked back to their home, Jude covering the kitten with both hands, checking on him every now and then. Ryan, on the other side, searched the internet for what they should do to take care of it.

They arrived back home and instantly went to keep the kitten warm. They grabbed a shoe box putting an old shirt inside it. Jude, who had not put down the small animal any time, carefully dropped him off.

Jude took the responsibility to feed him. He poured a bit of water on a spoon carefully as the kitten drank as well as he could. It seemed like Ryan and Jude were mesmerized by it. Their eyes were glued on it, not wanting to miss any moment.

“Is it a boy or a girl?” Ryan asked, tired of calling him an “it”.

“Don’t know, we should go to the vet, tomorrow”

There was no doubt about keeping the kitten or not. Jude picked a cloth using it as a blanket for their new pet. 

“You good, Nugget ?” He cooed to the kitten, calling it the first word that came to mind.

That reminded Ryan how Jude would automatically call animals ‘chicken’ or ‘nugget’ just because. He always gave names to beings when he didn’t know theirs. It felt like he didn’t want to offend them even though they did not understand him one bit.

Both of them catered to the tiny animal for an hour, never taking their eyes off it. Once they decided to go to sleep, Jude placed the shoe box between the cushions, a water bottle and a spoon on his nightstand. Ryan came to the room looking at the homemade pet bed.

“Really Jude?” She straight-faced him as he gave an innocent smile. “We don’t need to be glued to it,”

“But we can”

He ignored her pulling the covers over his body and glancing at the box. She decided to just give up and get in the bed too, admiring her boyfriend. Within two hours, Jude had grown so much love for this little being, already obsessed with it.

“Good night, cutie” He spoke in a sleepy voice, his eyes already closed.

“Goodnight, babe” Ryan replied.

“I was talking to Nugget, but goodnight too, love”

Ryan’s mouth fell open for a few until she decided to accept her fate: Nugget had stolen her boyfriend. She could forget about these Duolingo lessons.

like, repost and suggest if you want (requests are closing tomorrow) (hope you enjoyed it)

masterlist for more

[xjulixred45x]

I was reading some Greek mythology and I was wondering what are some hades charecters (Theseus, asterius, Hippolytus, zagreus) feelings towards Hippolytus stepmother Phaedra? As well as where is she in the story of hades. Is she in elysium?

Oh no, Phraeda is DEFINITELY in Asphodel.

She did nothing relevant in her life, and while she did do something bad like lying about what Hippolytus supposedly did to her, it was really the only bad thing. So she didn't make it to Tartarus. So fortunately Hippolytus doesn't have to see her face.

Context for those who don't know about the myth, she (Phreada) was in love with Hippolytus, she tried to seduce him and when he rejected her, she committed suicide. Of course, not without leaving a note that BLAMED Hippolytus for this, saying that he had raped her. All this while she was married TO THESEUS. HIPPOLYTUS WAS HER STEPSON.

Obviously Hippolytus is the one who holds the most resentment, not only because of what her lie caused, but because it caused him great trauma related to women. Hippolytus grew up without a mother, so he expected Phreada to be that kind of figure for him, and her only seeing him as a potential lover (WITH HIS FATHER RIGHT THERE) felt like a betrayal.

Hippolytus still has a hard time connecting with women because of what Phreada did. And while you could say that she regrets what happened, it's not enough. She was under the influence of Aphrodite when this happened, so while we could argue that she had no control over herself, at the same time it was SHE who decided to blame Hippolytus.

That's why Hippolytus still hates her with a fervor. And if he sees her, he'll most likely impale her.

Theseus is second on the resentment scale, again, it was a betrayal for him. Not only because his wife decided that he wasn't enough (something that had him already unsure of before) but because she decided to go after his SON.

Although, to be fair, Theseus doesn't hate Phreada any more than he despises having sunk so low as to believe her at the time. He was so desperate for her validation, to feel young again, that he chose to believe her over his son. And he'll always hate her( and himself) for it.

Theseus and Phreada would definitely act like those divorced people who can't stand the sight of each other. Theseus can't stand the sight of her. Not after what she did. And he'll get pretty aggressive if Phreada tries to get close to Hippolytus.

She's already hurt him in life, why does she want to hurt him more in death?

It takes Asterius a while to find out about her, but as soon as he finds out he joins the Phreada Hate Squad. He thinks Phreada's attitude, whether she's been under Aphrodite's influence or not, is deplorable.

Similar to Theseus, he makes sure to prevent any posible interaction between the Woman and Hippolytus. As well as being the one who Hippolytus talks about His feelings about the whole situation.

At least Asterius tries to be more civil about his distaste for the woman. He's curt, but not explicitly violent.

Zagreus is obviously the last to meet Phreada, though that doesn't mean he's not mad at her for what she did.

He's likely to run into her from time to time in Asphodel, and Phreada, knowing that he's "friends" with Hippolytus, tries to get messages across to him. Which are always the same. Regret. Guilt. Seeking forgiveness.

Zagreus tries to understand and empathize with mortals, but in this situation he just can't see Phreada as anything other than a bad person.

He's the most polite to her, but that doesn't mean he doesn't tell her the truth (she's only seeking Hippolytus' forgiveness to feel good about herself).

At least the dislike of Phreada is something they all have in common.

________

(ESPAÑOL)

oh no, Phraeda DEFINITIVAMENTE esta en Asphodel.

ella no hizo nada relevante en su vida, y si bien hizo algo malo como haber mentido sobre lo que Hipolito supuestamente le hizo, realmente fue lo unico malo. por lo que no llego hasta el Tártaro. asi que afortunadamente Hipolito no tiene que verle la cara.

contexto para quienes no sepan del mito, ella (Phreada) estaba enamorada de Hipólito, trato de seducirlo y cuando el la rechazo, ella se suicidó. eso si, no sin dejar una nota que CULPABA a Hipólito de esto, diciendo que el la habia violado. todo esto mientras ella estaba casada CON TESEO. HIPOLITO ERA SU HIJASTRO.

obviamente Hipólito es quien mas resentimiento guarda, no solo por lo que ocaciono su mentira, sino porque esto le genero un gran trauma relacionado a las mujeres. Hipolito crecio sin una madre, por lo que esperaba que Phreada fuera una figura de ese estilo para el, y que solo lo viera como un posible amante (CON SU PADRE JUSTO AHI) se sintio como una traicion.

Hipolito sigue teniendo dificultades para relacionarse con mujeres gracias a lo que Phraeda hizo. y si bien podrías decir que ella se arrepiente de lo ocurrido, no es lo suficiente. ella estaba bajo la influencia de Afrodita cuando esto paso, por lo que si bien podriamos argumentar que no tenía control sobre si misma, al mismo tiempo fue ELLA quien decidio hecharle la culpa a Hipolito.

es por eso que Hipólito aun la odia con fervor. y si la ve, lo mas probable es que la empale.

Teseo va segundo en la escala del rencor, de nuevo, fue una traicion para el. no solo porque su esposa haya decido que el no era suficiente (cosa que ya lo tenia inseguro antes) sino que decidiera ir tras su HIJO.

aunque, siendo justos, Teseo no odia a Phreada mas de lo que desprecia haber caido tan bajo como para creerle en su momento. el estaba tan desesperado por su validacion, por sentirse joven de nuevo, que prefirio creerle a ella por encima de su hijo. y siempre va a odiarse por eso.

Teseo y Phreada definitivamente actuarian como esos señores divorciados que no pueden soportar verse. Teseo no puede soportar verla. no después de lo que hizo. y se pondra bastante agresivo si Pheada trata de acercarse a Hipólito.

ella ya lo lastimo en vida ¿porque quiere lastimarlo más en muerte?

a Asterius le toma un tiempo saber sobre ella, pero en cuanto se entera se une al Phreada Hate Squad. cree que la actitud de Phraeda, habiendo estado bajo influencia de Afrodita o no, es deplorable.

Al igual que Teseo, se encarga de evitar cualquier posible interacción entre la Mujer e Hipólito, además de ser él a quien Hipólito le habla de sus sentimientos sobre toda la situación.

al menos Asterius trata de ser mas civilizado con respecto a su desagrado por la mujer. es cortante, pero no explícitamente violento.

Zagreus obviamente es el ultimo en conocer a Phreada, aunque eso no significa que le enoje menls saber lo que hizo.

es probable que se tope con ella de vez en cuando en Asphodel, y Phreada, sabiendo que el es "amigo" de Hipolito, trata de que le haga llegar mensajes. los cuales son siempre los mismos. arrepentimiento. culpa. busca de perdon.

Zagreus trata de entender y empatizar con los mortales, pero en esta situación simplemente no puede ver a Phreada como algo mas que una mala persona.

es el mas educado con ella, pero eso no quiere decir que no le diga sus verdades a la cara (que solo busca el perdon de Hipólito para sentirse bien consigo misma).

al menos el desagrado hacia Phreada es slgo que todos tienen en común.

[interretialia]

Ea est potens ignis flectrix nomine Pelia quae mente sua displosiones creare potest.

Ego ipse olim, contra opinionem, quemdam virum cui similis facultas erat conduxi ut Avataram interficeret.

Id non bene successit.

Noli te male habere. Nuptiis meis perditis, Corram interficere conata sum.

Res huius modi eveniunt.

She’s a powerful firebender named P’Li who can create explosions with her mind.

Ironically, I hired a guy with a similar ability to kill the Avatar myself once.

Didn’t work.

Don’t feel bad. I tried to kill Korra after she ruined my wedding.

It happens.

(Fons Imaginis.)

[its-a-ducky-mess]

Speculation: Sarah's Potential Neurodivergency

Some certain viewers and fans of Sarah & Duck have posed a certain question over time. So much so, that it's even one of Google's autocomplete results and one of the suggestions when you so much as look up the show or its characters. That question being...

"Is Sarah autistic?"

While (to my knowledge, and at the time of writing this) no staff of the show have put out an official word, some fans have theorized based on evidence seen in the show that Sarah is in fact autistic/neurodivergent. One such user is @beenovel, an autistic individual, whose theorizing has gotten me to do some of my own research over time as well. I will be paraphrasing and using their evidence here, marked by "quoted italics". I do not mean to steal their evidence or their work, but using it to compile a stronger collection of evidence for this theory/headcanon. Please check out their original analysis here.

As a warning, this post is incredibly long.

Clothing

"She has comfort clothes. A lot of cartoon characters wear the same outfit over and over again but Sarah is shown to have other clothes, she just likes her outfit best. When one of her shoes gets a hole she is very upset about the prospect of replacing them. I also like to think that the reason she’s always wearing her beanie is because (like me) she finds the pressure on her head comforting."

The shoe point is from Tapping Shoes. More about this will be elaborated on later, although it is worth mentioning that Sarah tried to play off the damage to her favorite shoes in order to keep them before being convinced to look for new ones.

While it's unknown as to her exact attachment to her pink jacket, Sarah has been shown to prize it. When the zip pull breaks off of it, she becomes incredibly upset and near-unresponsive. So much so, that Duck had to push a whimpering Sarah all the way to Scarf Lady's house in Haber Dasher.

[Source: Series 3, Episode 37, Haber Dasher]

When at her door, Sarah could only muster a heart-broken "Zip..." as she presents it to Scarf Lady. When Scarf Lady's solution doesn't work, Sarah sighs in resignation and hides behind a curtain.

Sarah's beanie/cap/hat is near and dear to her, as seen in Balloon Barnacles where she is upset over the possibility of losing her very first hat made for her by Scarf Lady. She's also had the hat long enough for it to appear (potentially) years earlier in the past, during the flashback in Duck Flies. The head pressure idea actually does have some more ground to it. During Cloud Tower, which takes place on a hot day, Sarah doesn't wear her jacket, but keeps the hat. Also in Doubles, in her tennis outfit, she actually does forgo the hat, but replaces it with a headband. This give a neat amount of credence to the pressure angle.

Favorites

"Her hyperfixations are sea cows (also known as manatees) and lemons. In one episode they are going to the zoo to see the sea cows and she mentions it’s been five days since they last visited the sea cows and the narrator replies with “[the sea cow]’s probably [wondering] where we’ve been”. This implies they often visit the zoo just to see the sea cows. For me, I was obsessed with otters... there was this one aquarium I used to go to... and it was my favorite place to go, even as an older teenager. I can watch them for hours and be perfectly happy, and Sarah seems to be the same way."

This moment is at the beginning of Paisley Sea. (This episode also contributes to another theory I'll post about later!) The zoo and aquariums are a frequent setting for certain episodes. Apart from having a poster of a sea cow in her bedroom, Sarah was upset at not getting the chance to adopt a sea cow during Basking Shark, seemingly disappointed at having to settle for the titular shark. Sarah also practically explodes with happiness upon seeing a baby sea cow during Paisley Sea.

[Source: Series 2, Episode 17, Paisley Sea]

In addition, every visit to the zoo that's occurred, Sarah has sought out the sea cow and greeted it at least once, if even for a moment. One such occurrence is in Planetarium Aquarium, where she even went back to say it was "still her favorite" and giving it a thumbs up despite not visiting them for a proper amount of time.

[Source: Series 3, Episode 15, Planetarium Aquarium] This is also a very adorable screenshot.

"She also has lemon water all the time. I don’t know if that’s a common British thing, but I know that my mom and I (both autistic) prefer our water with lemon in it because it adds flavor and makes it easier to stay hydrated."

Lemons remain a very present theme/motif throughout the show even outside of the lemon water drink.

[Sources: Series 2, Episode 13, Shallot Circus (top) | Series 1, Episode 32, Puncture Pump (bottom)]

Sarah has a lemon themed telephone, bike valve covers, and had difficulty picking a singular item from the cafe's menu in Lemon Cafe (although being on a very short time limit didn't help), let alone pick a drink. In the same episode, she goes through a lot of work to make her own lemon cafe. Sarah is the sole human enjoyer of lemon water within the show, and solely during Lemon Cafe, she seems disappointed when Duck, Umbrella, and Bug dislike lemon water, and seemingly doesn't understand why exactly they don't like it like she does. I say "human enjoyer" because Flamingo during Scared of Stairs drinks and likes lemon water, much to Sarah's enjoyment.

[Source: Series 1, Episode 30, Scared of Stairs]

Learning

"She loves learning things and pretty much every time she has a question that her dad the narrator can’t answer she looks it up on the computer or goes to the library to find out more. She gets very upset if she can’t find a satisfactory answer."

While I am personally a "NarraDad" truther as well (Despite the evidence which I'll discuss along with the theory in a future post, maybe), that's not the point here.

There are many points where Sarah will look something up on the computer in the technology room for answers, such as in Slow Quest and Tortoise Snooze. Sarah is also a frequent library visitor, and a few episodes take place there or are visited for a part of them (such as Cheer Up Donkey or Lost Librarian, to name a few).

Sarah also repeats back certain words or phrases sometimes (like repeating 'shokupan' from John during Fluff Bread), which beenovel says is how autistic children learn inflection, and hypothesizes this is a vocal stim for Sarah. She often mispronounces words, new or otherwise. Such as, saying "burger" instead of burglar (Constable Quack), "elephants" instead of eloquent (Mountain Mints), and "eyes, sky, dry" instead of "eins, zwei, drei", which is "one, two, three" in German (Woolly Memories, Duck Hotel). Possibly the funniest of these examples is Sarah pronouncing "itadakimasu", a Japanese phrase said before you begin eating, as "it's a ducky mess" (which is where I get my blog's handle from!!) during Fast Slow Bungalow. Sarah also clearly pronounces "hello" and "yes" as hullo and yus. Merchandise and social media confirms that she says them with a U as opposed to their proper versions. She also combines "it's nice" into "s'nice" at times, even to the point where the Narrator says s'nice and has to correct himself (Bench Blocked). "Suppose" also gets this treatment, sometimes sounding like "s'pose"

[Sources: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgYt4c2yHWQ | https://shop.sarahandduck.com/collections/art-prints-1/products/sarah-duck-a-z-art-print-sdaz]

On the topic of "proper" things, during Extra Bounce, Sarah and friends are brought to a room within the bouncy ball machine that houses unusually bouncing balls. The Narrator remarks "This must be the room for all the balls that don't bounce properly." Sarah then looks a bit upset and replies with a corrective/offended "Bounce differently."

beenovel writes "Autistic children are often upset at the prospect of toys or animals being treated differently just because they don’t do things the “right” way or are perceived as “broken”.

Sound Sensitivity

Tapping Shoes comes back into play here. Sarah sometimes shows an aversion/discomfort with certain noises, most prevalent being sudden, unexpected noise. In Tapping Shoes, when she unknowingly wore tap-dancing shoes and walked into the tiled kitchen, she became surprised and covered her ears first thing. She tried to quiet/muffle them, trying to get them to not make any sound until she's told that they're supposed to make sound. Before entering the noisy carriage in Train Fudge, she recoils back due to the noise and again, covers her ears first thing.

To link to another few point beenovel makes, Sarah becomes frustrated when others don't follow along with her games, such as her idea for her birthday in The Mouse's Birthday. Throughout the episode, all she wants is a quiet birthday, but is constantly annoyed and upset when her friends are loud, so much so that she retreats to the closet to escape the noise. beenovel states they've done this on multiple occasions as well.

Focus, Concentrate! /ref

Sarah has sometimes displayed inattentiveness and lack of focus, even when she's "supposed" to be focused.

"This is a common little kid trait but it’s more intense in autistic kids."

A possible instance of this is in Perimeter Pals, where while waiting for Tortoise to finish crossing their biking path, Sarah and Duck elect to take a break. They then nap for much longer than anticipated and have to scramble ahead to continue their park trip.

Funny Duck

"She’s taken an interest in an “odd” animal companion, and treats him more like a sibling than a pet."

Sarah may have a hyperfixation on ducks as well, in no small part due to Duck's presence in her life. Apart from her shirt and pajamas featuring ducks on them, she has a Duck shaped window in her house, as well as having a Duck costume already made and prepared before she even had the idea to swap with Duck during The Play.

[Sources: Series 1, Episode 3, Cheer Up Donkey | Series 1, Episode 35, The Play]

She is also very emotionally attached to Duck and becomes downtrodden at the possibility of not being around him for a long period of time. She dearly misses Duck for the short time they're apart during Duck Flies, almost unable to fathom doing anything without him.

[Source: Series 2, Episode 40, Duck Flies]

This feeling of togetherness seems to go both ways, as when Duck does come back at the end of the episode, the Narrator remarks "It seems Duck missed you too."

The Bench

Sarah is strongly attached to a specific bench in the park. She treats this bench incredibly seriously. When highlighting various parts of town, she holds the bench to a higher regard than a playground (Outside Outside). Sarah doesn't like going to other nearby parks because they lack the bench (Fancy Park), and gets very upset when something prevents them from sitting there, such as a fairground obscuring it (Fairground), or a sleeping teenager (Bench Blocked). Duck, without any word from anyone, offers to bite the teenagers leg of his own volition, which Sarah gives him the okay to do. The Narrator has to interrupt Duck, and Sarah is shown with an excited look right before Duck is about to bite. When the Narrator wonders if there's other places to sit, Sarah shakes her head "no", and gives a hesitant, begrudging headshake when the Narrator pressed her if they've actually tried to look for a place.

[Source: Series 3, Episode 14, Bench Blocked]

Later in the same instance, Sarah herself tries to bite the guy but is stopped by a squirrel. Sarah and Duck sit on the bench even while the paint on it is still wet, and are so relieved that they can sit there that they don't notice the paint on them (Fancy Park). Likely the reason Sarah likes the bench so much is because she met Duck there when she was younger (Duck Flies).

Making Friends

Going back to friends, she seems a bit awkward when meeting real people. Inanimate objects or animals, not so much. She meets Rainbow, the celestial bodies, Cake, Bug, Umbrella, Leftover Wool, and more and seems nonplussed about it. In contrast, when she meets John and Flamingo during Doubles, she walks back into her yard after exchanging neutral greeting with an awkward pause, and without the Narrator prodding, likely would've not continued a conversation. In addition, she confuses John for a girl and Flamingo for a duck, likely trying to make sense out of the new people using herself and Duck as reference. John sounded like he had a higher voice when he said hello to Sarah, so maybe she just assumed John was a girl by that. Sarah also seems a bit awkward with adults she isn't familiar with/hasn't met yet, like Music Lady and Cloud Captain, though that might just be a common kid trait.

Organization and Spontaneity

"She likes having things be organized and in their place. She also likes categorizing/matching colors."

"She enjoys looking for things. Many episodes start with [Sarah] and [D]uck looking for things like crunchy leaves, green patches of grass, things that match the colors on her color wheel, fluffy clouds, etc."

Sarah has rows of identical hats in her closet, her tuba is always seen in her room when it's not being used, and she has a drawer full of her previous drawings in the living room (Picture Planes). The color wheel point references Rainbow's Niece. Cheer Up Donkey begins with Sarah and Duck counting grass in their back garden.

Sudden interest in random things is also a trait Sarah exhibits. She often declares things to be good, saying "this one is best" or similar. Octagon Club is the best example, she sees an octagon in a shapes book, and goes to find things around the area that's octagonal. She forms the titular Octagon Club and quickly invites many other friends into it.

Literal-mindedness

Sarah often takes some of the Narrator's jokes or metaphors seriously. Either that, or the jokes completely fly over her head. Kite Flight provides this exchange:

Narrator: What we need is a windbreak.

Sarah: Don't break the wind, we need it!

Mountain Mints also has this:

Sarah: The mint's at the top!

Narrator: Fine, why not… Perhaps I'll find a nice chocolate log cabin.

Sarah: [excitedly:] Ooh!

Stimming

Sarah, when excited, sometimes does this sort of shaky-fists gesture close to her face, usually accompanied by an excited 'oooh!' or other hushed surprised sounds. She does it a few more times in the series, but at this moment, other examples are escaping me.

[Sources: Series 1, Episode 1, Lots of Shallots | Series 3, Episode 11, Fluff Bread]

Smaller tidbits I couldn't really fit anywhere else

She also sometimes does things in a formulaic fashion. Whenever she steps in snow or crunchy leaves, Sarah remarks "good crunch" (Seacow Snow Trail, Mountain Mints, Boo Night, among others) and becomes upset at Duck (albeit only for a brief moment) when he crunches some leaves in the path faster than her (Boo Night). She has commented "good crunch" since early childhood, as seen in Duck Flies.

Sarah originally would've kept her hair long and grown out simply because Scarf Lady didn't give her a good hair cut the "last time" during Hair Cut. She keeps trying to avoid it by preoccupying herself, and when she does eventually go to a salon, she tries to get Duck to take her place and admits that she's scared to the stylist. All in all, she lets a bad experience get the better of her and makes her catastrophize when trying something again.

Sometimes Sarah does things only she herself would like. One example I could think of is Cheer Up Donkey. Sarah played the tuba, which Donkey didn't like, but she was so into playing the tuba that it took the shouting of the Narrator for her to stop. When asked to try something that cheers her up and what makes her happy a short time after that, she immediately grabs the tuba again and has to be preemptively stopped before playing it again.

One more attachment related point similar to previous interests. Something ends up wrong with Sarah's tuba during Music Fixer, so she goes to the Music Shop to get it checked out. Music Lady tells her that she can hear what instruments think and that her tuba was saying it was too small for her (though that was just Bug). Sarah gets upset over having to replace her favorite instrument with something else and ends up not finding something that suits her before the episode's resolution.

As a final, sort of funny thing, Sarah is friends with a rainbow, and the rainbow lemniscate is the symbol of neurodiversity.

To my current knowledge I am not on the autism spectrum, and for that I do not wish to seem like I'm speaking on behalf of the autistic community. I do have ADHD however, which I was recently diagnosed with (I recognize those two are not the same thing). Thinking back on my childhood, a lot of Sarah's behaviors struck chords with my behaviors. Especially the sound sensitivity and lack of understanding with plans, those two were very prominent growing up, and the sound portion is still somewhat of an issue for me right now. Regardless of if Sarah is "canonically" autistic/neurodivergent, fans can interpret the cast of characters however they want, and I think it's sweet for kids watching Sarah & Duck to be almost represented in a way. It's also very nice that Sarah is never treated differently nor excluded from things because of her mannerisms. She's Sarah, and Sarah is s'nice.

[indigoesssence]

◜

⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ♱ . . . 🪵 .ᐟ

𝖢𝗁𝖺𝗋𝗅𝗈𝗍𝗍𝖾 "𝗟𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗲" 𝖬𝖺𝗍𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗐𝗌 . . .

﹫ 𝖠𝖭𝖳𝖫𝖤𝖱𝖰𝖴𝟥𝟥𝖭

‹ I LIED AND SAID I BELIEVED ›

“And God, I've tried, but I think it's about time I put up a fight

But I don't mind 'cause that's how my daddy raised me

If they strike once then you just hit 'em twice as hard

But I always knew that in the end no one was coming to save me

So I just prayed and I keep praying and praying and praying

If it's meant to be then it will be I believe.” (Ethel Cain).




Advertencias: relato superficial de terapia de electrochoques; mención de esquizofrenia, traumas religiosos, terapia de conversión y lesbofobia internalizada.

La calidez del otoño se había ido y con ello el recuerdo de Laura Lee bautizándola al que le remitía el agua corriente del lago. Ahora aquel cuerpo de agua era un monstruoso bloque de hielo que se había tragado su fe junto a Javi. Pensar en aquel lago le ponía de mal humor, debajo de una gruesa capa de hielo estaba el lugar donde el renacimiento de su fe descansaba. Para ella era curioso pensar que encontrarse en medio de la nada e intentando sobrevivir junto a las chicas que le habían salvado la vida le había llevado a creer en Dios nuevamente. ¿Realmente lo había hecho si le bastó con que aquel helicóptero que piloteaba Laura Lee explotara para perder la fe de nuevo?

En realidad no era una sorpresa para ella que su convicción fuera tan débil como un trozo de papel mojado sosteniendo una piedra. Pues había crecido en un hogar católico donde la misa del domingo era una ceremonia obligatoria para sobrevivir. Donde antes de cada alimento tenía que agradecer por lo que estaba frente a ella. Aquello estaba tan grabado en su mente que siguió bendiciendo sus medicamentos y alimentos incluso después de que sus padres habían dejado de acompañarla durante las comidas. Antes del accidente, Lottie tenía miedo de aquellas pastillas y para poder tomarlas le pedía a Dios que le ayudaran con aquel diagnóstico. Le rogaba al Ser Supremo que le ayudara con los secretos que les ocultaba a todas sus amigas a excepción de Natalie, quien desde dos primaveras atrás conocía al menos uno de ellos.

Incluso en medio de la nada, antes de cada alimento, Lottie seguía teniendo sus minutos de súplica. Eran solo ella y Dios, nadie más. Incluso en aquel inhóspito lugar rogaba por no volver a donde los electrochoques eran el único tratamiento para sus males: “esquizofrenia” y “perversión de las conductas sexuales”. El primer recuerdo de aquella corriente eléctrica recorriéndole el cuerpo desde las sienes era de cuando tenía ocho años. La pelinegra había cometido el error de contarle a su padre que hablaba con un ángel, o al menos eso creía por la forma en que los describían en la iglesia. La pequeña Matthews le había jurado a su padre que hablaba con un ser superior y aquello le había llevado al Hospital Psiquiátrico Cristiano más cercano de casa (a dos horas en auto) para ser atendida por “delirio místico”. Una estúpida etiqueta para llamarla esquizofrénica a su corta edad.

Ella se maldijo cada día que le siguió a aquel por haber confiado en su padre, el hombre que llevaba una Biblia en el bolsillo del pantalón y de frente la máscara de buen padre que ocultaba la cara del hombre más cruel del planeta Tierra. “Estúpida Charlotte” se decía a sí misma cada que las luces parpadeaban indicando el momento exacto en el que su mente quedaría en blanco por un par de semanas. Le rogaba a Dios que cada intervención fuera menos dolorosa, que cada electrochoque fuera acertado y no tuviera que sentirlo. Lo hizo hasta que a la edad de doce años una segunda etiqueta fue agregada a su expediente: “detección temprana de perversión de las conductas sexuales”. ¿Sólo por haberle confiado a su madre que cierta amiga le parecía “bonita”? ¿Qué tenía de malo apreciar la belleza de su compañera de clase?

Con el diagnóstico llegaron las terapias de conversión (una más cruel que la otra) y en un principio Lottie no había comprendido lo que aquello significaba. Sólo sabía en el fondo de su corazón que estaba estrechamente ligado a aquellas noches en vela donde rogaba a Dios que la hiciera “normal”. Donde le reclamaba por darle dos males incurables, bastaba con tener esquizofrenia, ¿realmente tenía que sentirse emocionada por el roce de su mano con la de aquella amiga suya? —Por favor, Dios, deja de odiarme. Prometo que me casaré con un buen hombre y tendré un par de hijos que te servirán. Pero no me hagas ser una enferma.— Pronto lo único que sentía para con si misma era asco. A los catorce años la heredera de los Matthews dejó los deportes y se volvió una “señorita hecha y derecha”.

Etiqueta que no le sirvió para nada. Pues cada noche antes de que su medicamento para dormir surtiera efecto, Lottie lloraba desconsoladamente contra la almohada rogando con la voz desgarrada: —Por favor, quítame esta enfermedad.— Llevaba la mitad de su vida siendo tratada contra la “esquizofrenia” y ya había hecho paz con ello. Sin embargo, ¿por qué tenía que recibir electrochoques por sentirse plena al tomar la mano de una chica?, ¿por qué debía rogarle a Dios hasta dormir que su madre dejara de verla con asco cuando estaba al lado de sus compañeras de clase?, ¿por qué debía ser ella quien rogara por encontrar un chico que no le diera tanto asco como para poder besarlo y ser “normal”?, ¿por qué tenía que ser ella la hija de Dios maldita?

Miles de preguntas sin respuesta llenaban las hojas de su Biblia que abrió cada día durante dos años. La pelinegra paró al cumplir los quince. Aquel día había regresado al campo de fútbol y con ello perdió su fe en que Dios la haría normal. Puesto que al encontrarse entre aquellas adolescentes que le hacían sentir en casa olvidó (al menos por un par de años) que al verse en el espejo sólo podía pensar en que Dios y sus padres la odiaban por ser lesbiana. —¡Lottie!, ¿estás bien? — Aquellas tres palabras que salieron de los labios de Misty la hicieron regresar al presente. Entre sus manos había un plato improvisado con  lo que suponía ser sopa (hecha con el cinturón de cuero de Jackie). —Sí, sólo… olvídalo, todo bien.— Le sonrió a su amiga en un intento de borrar de su mente y su cuerpo todo el dolor que la palabra “Dios” invocaba en ella.

Comió en silencio pensando en lo que significaba “Dios” para ella en ese preciso momento. Ya no era sinónimo de salvación, ya no era nada para ella. Lottie dejó el plato a un lado y se levantó para ir a las escaleras que llevaban al ático. Jaló la cuerda que permitía bajarlas y subió a la parte más alta de la cabaña. Se acercó a la ventana y con su diestra delineó las grietas del vidrio que aún contenían su sangre. —No existes, no como ellos creen que lo haces.— Le dijo a Dios, negaba su existencia y le interponía a ella la de Eso. —Nos acepta a mí, a Van, a Taissa, a todas. Nos protege sin importar a quien amemos o lo que hagamos. Tú jamás nos hubieras brindado a Jackie o a Javi. Tú estás muerto para mí.— Su voz era rasposa y llena de rabia, estaba dispuesta a pelear con Dios para salvar a su equipo. Estaba dispuesta a olvidarlo para dejar que Eso fuera acreedor de toda su convicción (al menos no la había hecho llorar hasta dormir por odiarse a sí misma) y si Dios quería discutirle su decisión, Lottie estaría encantada de hacerlo frente a frente.

⠀⠀⠀٬ 🕯️ ’ 𓏲 𝗐𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 ﹫𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗼𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗇𝖼𝖾.

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⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀thanks for reading !