#UGHHHH posting chapters makes me nervous | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

mcwriting · 4 years

Text

The Marriage Project (9)

I’m back with anotha one! Sorry it’s taken so ridiculously long! I’ve been soooo busy that sitting down and writing or even formatting has been such a challenge. Please enjoy this chapter!

*also i watched Cherry and Tom was so good in it I’m- that film messed me up a lil bit but like it was so good. Also I’ve loved Ciara since btr and now I’m just insanely jealous and love her even more ugh

Story Masterlist

Word Count: 2333

Warnings: Some language? I can’t think of anything else

% approximately the 3rd week of October %

Friday evening, the volleyball team arrived at the town regionals were being held at, about an hour away. You were staying in a hotel again, and as before, Julia was your buddy.

After having spent the evening laughing and having fun, your whole hotel room group was about to head up the stairs.

“Hey, y/n. Do you mind staying back for a minute?” Julia asked.

“Oh, sure. We’ll meet you guys upstairs,” you called to the other two, who waved back nonchalantly and continued walking. Julia and you went back to some empty seats near the lobby.

“What’s up?” you asked, smiling.

“Well… Sam told me he caught you and Tom yesterday and I just wanted to ask you about it…”

Your smile faltered.

“What’s there to talk about? I told him that Tom sprayed me with water so I got back at him by soaking the back of his shirt. There’s nothing more to say.”

“Well, yeah, he told me that but he also mentioned that you stayed for dinner? And met Nikki’s parents last weekend? Not trying to imply anything, but I didn’t meet their grandparents until Sam and I had been dating for like 6 months.”

You were getting annoyed, considering this was the second person in two days to ask you about Tom.

“I didn’t just meet them over nothing! Nikki took my senior pictures at the same time as Tom’s and wanted to do them there. I was just tagging along for the ride.”

“You know he’s also coming to state next weekend, right? If we pass through tomorrow?”

He is?

“Uh, no I didn’t. Doesn’t he have football stuff to worry about? It’s also Halloween next weekend, like he’d miss out on the big party.”

“They have a bye next week. Sam is going to come and I guess Tom is taking him, but Nikki might come too? I’m not sure. I guess you’d better ask him. Anyways, I just wanted to clear things up since there were all those rumors today,” she said, starting to get up.

“Wait, wai- Rumors? I never heard anything. Like about me?”

“You haven’t heard? I guess one of the freshman girls who has a massive crush on Tom was stalking Nikki’s website last night and saw some pictures of the two of you. A bunch of people think you’re dating now.”

You felt yourself pale.

“Oh no, and she changed one picture after Tom asked her to. Do you know what the picture was?”

“Something about him carrying you..? I never saw it, why?”

“Great. Now everyone is going to think she changed it because a secret got out or something. Ughhhh I just wish this stupid marriage project had never happened and I would never be in this mess.”

Julia looked at you contemplatively for a moment.

“Think of it this way, you and Tom are friends now, right?” you apprehensively nodded. “If it weren’t for that project, you two would still be fighting all the time and you wouldn’t have had the incredible Nikki Holland taking your pictures. Everyone can just get over themselves, you know?”

You snorted, then grinned.

“Yeah I guess so. You know, you’re annoyingly wise beyond your years,” you stated. “Now let’s get back upstairs. We have a long day ahead of us.”

Placing first at regionals meant two things: you were going to state, and everyone was congratulating you again when Monday came.

They also kinda looked at you funny when Tom high fived you in the hallway as he passed by, but you had decided to follow Julia’s advice and stop caring about the rumors people were spreading.

Once the morning announcements ended, your calculus teacher stood up, a small paper stack in hand.

“Okay, everyone, since I’m your first period teacher and homecoming is next week, today you get to cast your nomination votes. Y’all know the drill: three guys, three girls for king and queen. Try to make it fast, we have a lot to do today.”

She walked around handing out half-sheets of paper with six lines on them. You and Tom immediately looked at each other.

“We nominating each other?” Tom asked before you could.

“Wouldn’t have it any other way,” you joked, filling out the sheet with both of your names and four others.

In home ec, you sat next to Tom cutting fabric for yet another project you had to do together, thinking about something Julia had mentioned.

“Hey, I gotta ask you something. Is it true you’re going to the capital this weekend for our state tournament?” you asked.

“Oh, yeah. This is our bye week and I promised Sam I’d go with him and mom. Plus, we can work on the project when you’re free.”

“You do realize that’s like a four hour drive, right? I mean it’s Halloween this weekend. Wouldn’t you rather make an appearance at Johnny’s big blowout?”

“Eh, it won’t be that great. I mean his place isn’t even that big and it’s in town. There’s literally no way it won’t get busted within the first half hour. The homecoming party at Tyler’s however… that’s gonna be insane.”

“Okay Johnny’s trash party aside, you really would rather spend your one free weekend of the season four hours away watching girls play volleyball then at home doing… whatever it is you do. And please don’t tell me you watch the ‘hub in your spare time.”

“Come on, y/n I’m not an animal. Even without the tight uniforms volleyball is really cool.”

You backhanded his arm at the comment.

“Plus, I don’t need any videos to get myself off,” he added, smirking.

“You disgust me.”

“You know you love me.”

“Hmm. Debatable,” you shot back dryly, earning a chuckle and shoulder bump from him as you finally cracked.

At lunch, your friends were discussing the Halloween party when you sat down.

“Okay we really need to figure out what to wear this weekend, and we’re not going as playboy bunnies like Daisy and all her group,” said one girl.

“Well I say we dress as frat boys. It’s funny, not super sexual, and we all know half the guys are going to rush next year,” suggested Caroline.

“I like it, but what if we went a step further and dressed as dads. You know, hawaiian shirts, khaki shorts, socks and sandals. That would be hilarious. What do you think, y/n?” said Alexis.

“Sorry ladies, I won’t be there. We have state this weekend at the capital so as always, we’re driving down Friday after school. I will be at Tyler’s homecoming thing next weekend. Also, I do really like the dad thing, but I vote y’all do Guy Fieri.”

“Wait why is that literally genius,” Alexis said as the others agreed. “Of course it would suck to take your idea without you even getting to do it.”

“You guys really think I care? Just credit me in your insta captions. I’ll make the team put ribbons with flames on them in their ponytails Saturday.”

“Okay now we have to do it,” a different friend said.

“Hey, at least you won’t have to worry about Tom. I’m sure he’ll be at the party,” Caroline said. You wrinkled your nose.

“Yeah about that… His brother’s girlfriend is on the team so he’s going, too. I’m the one that’ll be seeing him instead of you guys but whatever. We’ll need to work on our project anyways.”

“Don’t you think that’ll fuel the fires people are already spreading about you? A good portion of the school thinks you’re secretly together now,” added the first friend from before.

“People are going to believe whatever the hell they want. I honestly don’t care anymore. Oh! By the way, did I tell you guys that some freshman was the one spreading shit about me Friday? The nerve those kids have,” you said.

“Wait, what? It was a freshman that was trying to tell everyone y’all are together? Ugh why would anyone believe them?” Alexis asked, incredulous.

“I know, right? Apparently she’s like obsessed with Tom or something. She must have a backwards way of thinking if she believes spreading fake rumors will make him want her. Jokes on her when she has to see us together on homecoming court. He’s just as likely to be voted as I am, maybe even more.”

The group all laughed and continued talking about random things, and you mentally wiped the sweat from your brow now that the conversation was shifted from you and Tom.

You were nervously bouncing your leg before calculus Friday morning. You’d gotten to school early to make certain you would be there for the announcements, which is when they would be releasing the list of nominees.

Tom came in a couple minutes before the bell, hair still wet from his post workout shower. Usually he blow dried it, and he obviously noticed you looking at his curls, your knee bouncing anxiously.

“Got out of the weight room late so I rushed over here. What are you wired up about, princess?”

“Do I really have to tell you? Homecoming noms.”

“You’re actually nervous about that? Everyone knows you’re already at the top of the list.”

“Uh, no, that’s you. After everything that’s happened the past few weeks, there’s no telling how people feel about me.”

“Oh you’ll be fine. I know it,” Tom finished. You wanted to disagree with him further, but then the bell rang and announcements began. After the general daily stuff, they got to the part everyone was waiting for.

You were on the edge of your seat. The disembodied voice began with the underclassmen’s court nominations, eventually working up to the senior king contestants.

“Alright, first up in the running for kings we have… Tuwaine Barrett!”

Tuwaine was a cool dude. He played basketball and was in theatre. You were happy to see him nominated.

“Next up we’ve got Harrison Osterfield!”

Ugh. I’d rather abdicate the throne than end up against him.

“And finally for the boys, Tom Holland!”

A small cheer went up in your classroom as people congratulated Tom and patted him on the back. You gave him a high five.

“And now for the ladies. First on the list is Zendaya Coleman!”

Ah Zendaya. You were never that close, but she was always nice when you’d had classes with her. She was way taller than you, a star player on the basketball and softball teams. Not to mention she was insanely gorgeous. This was already some stiff competition.

“Second, we have Daisy Ridley!”

And of course another likely contender. Daisy, who was planning on going to that evening’s Halloween party as a playboy bunny, was a cheerleader. She didn’t fit every aspect of the cheer stereotype, like the fact that she was actually really smart, but she definitely wasn’t the nicest person either.

“And finally, your last nominee for homecoming queen is… y/n y/l/n!”

It took a second to fully process that it was you they were talking about until there were people cheering you on like they’d done for Tom. He reciprocated the high five.

“What’d I tell you princess? Or shall I say queen.”

Tom was leaving football practice after the bell when a few of his buddies appeared next to him to walk across the parking lot.

They were talking when Tom saw you all loading the bus, and you sent each other a wave.

“Damn, y/n’s not gonna be at the party tonight? That’s rough, she always has the dopest costumes. ‘Least you will. What are you going as?” one guy, Jake, said.

“Did I not tell you? I’m going out of town. Won’t be there. I totally would’ve been Spider-Man though,” Tom explained.

“Wait you won’t be there tonight either?” another, Chris, asked. “You’re gonna miss out on some major exposure for homecoming votes.”

“Oh yeah, right. I’m pretty sure things are in the bag for me. I’ll just be gone tonight and tomorrow. Promised Sam I’d go to the volleyball thing with him.”

“Wait, wait, wait. You. Are going to the capital. Which is four hours away. At the same time as y/n. Am I hearing this right?” Jake asked as they finally reached their cars.

“Oh shut up, man. It’s not like that. Yeah we’ll be at the same place this weekend but whatever. We’re cool with each other now.”

“Cool? Is that code for ‘I want to make out every time I look at her?’” interjected Chris. He and Jake gave each other a look and laughed.

“Ugh, no. I’d kiss a salmon before I kissed y/n. I just meant we’ve come to an understanding and are somewhat friends now.”

They both looked at him funny.

“So you mean to tell me that there’s nothing going on between you two? Yeah right. We’ve all seen the way you look at her at games,” Jake said suggestively.

“What is up with you and everyone else at this school thinking there’s more to the story?! We are fake married for a school project and are nothing more than friends. You’re crazy to think otherwise.”

“Who are you planning on asking to the dance?” Chris asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

“What? What do you mean? I haven’t even thought about it.”

“I’m asking who you’ll take to homecoming. It’s y/n, isn’t it?”

“No. No, it’s not, because I haven’t asked anyone.”

“Would you go with her?” Chris continued, pressing in.

“I mean I guess so. If we’re voted king and queen then it’ll basically be an obligation.”

“And if you’re not?”

“Dude why are you asking all these questions! If she isn’t queen then I’ll go with whoever is. If I’m not king, I’ll just go solo and see what happens. Whatever, though, I need to get home. I’ll see you guys Monday,” Tom finished.

He walked off to his car, where his brothers were impatiently waiting.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Again, sorry for my inactivity but I’m hoping that writing will be a little easier as one of my classes was a half semester and I’ll now have a little more buffer room to write!

My asks and messages are always open!

Send a message or ask if you’d like to be added to my permanent or series taglists so I can verify you’ve been added!

Story tag list: @jackiehollanderr, @one-big-fangirl, @l0lmk, @primadonnasdream, @bookworm06, @thenoddingbunny-blog, @agentnataliahofferson, @spider-babe, @stxfxniexreads, @justafangirlduh,

#The Marriage Project #tom holland #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland fanfic #tom holland imagine #tom holland series #tom holland x y/n #tom holland x you #tom holland x reader #sam holland

67 notes · View notes

playitaagain · 4 years

Text

tumblr ate @dreamypope‘s asks so here are her questions for the fic writer ask game!

wait i just sent in like 8 of them but i guess it didn't go through ughhhh! i will leave my questions here then: 4, 9, 11, 14, 16, 18, 20!!, oooh 25, 30 pretty pleaseee, 34, 44 :)

4. Link your three favorite fics right now.

I have 923 bookmarkers on ao3 and it grows daily. Do you know how hard this is? And now I’m worried I’ll offend someone if I don’t add their fic. Please don’t take offense. I love everyone’s fics but these are three that are sticking out to me at the current moment. I’m really into DeanxSeamus right now from HP. Don’t judge me. Two are HP and one Mayward.

A Little Like This The Complex Variations of the Letter J Strength of Heart

9. Tag 3 fic writers you think are underrated/unknown in the fandom/fanfiction community.

Again, please don’t take offense if you aren’t on the list. I love everyone and it’s so hard to think of people.

@midsommers @thistreasurehunter @colfields (never talked to her and a little nervous about tagging her, but she writes amazing jjpope that I only just discovered.)

11. How do you come up with your fic titles?

By struggling. No, but this is the hardest part, even when I’ve finished the fic. I usually wait till I’m done and pick a moment in the fic I like and name it after that moment or word that I pick. Sometimes I name the title off the prompt and sometimes I have a title that I actually base the prompt off. It’s usually the first one though.

14. Do you have a personal word minimum that you hold yourself too? Why or why not?

It depends on what I’m writing. 10 minute fics I try to do 500 or under. Requests are a minimum of 500, but I aim for 1,000 or more. Oneshots I usually aim for 4k or more. That’s just the logic I came up with in my head. I don’t really know why.

16. Do you research for your fics? If so, how deep of a rabbit hole have you gone down by accident when researching?

I do minimum research because I get annoyed easily. It’s fanfiction. I can write what I want. There are things I think are more important to research, but others I just go with the basic things I know and work from there.

18. Do you have a WIP that you keep telling yourself you’ll eventually get back to, but deep down you know that’s probably a lie?

I feel guilty all the time for this unfinished chapter fic: Breaking the Cycle.

20. What’s your favorite part about the fanfiction writing process?

I love finishing the fic or making a connection back to a part I already wrote.

25. Do you listen to music as you write? If possible, link your writing playlist.

No music. I get distracted. I do watch tv though, but only shows I’ve already seen so I’m not distracted.

30. Post a snippet from your current WIP without context - no more than 300 words.

He’s only a few hours into the ride when his phone rings. Pope fishes in his pocket for his phone, frown tugging down his lips when he doesn’t recognize the number. It’s rare to get a call and usually the only people who call him are his parents or Kiara. He thinks about letting it go to voicemail, is sure they would leave a message if it was important, but something in his gut is telling him to answer so he swipes the phone and holds it up to his ear.

“Hello, this is Pope,” he states, voice cracking a bit awkwardly as he uses it for the first time today. The line is silent for a moment and he can hear a bit of shuffling on the line, papers moving.

“Good Morning, Mr. Heyward,” the voice says, oddly pleasant. The words have him confused as he tries to figure out who this might be, going through a list of people that would possibly call him Mr. Heyward. He can’t come up with any. “We are calling on Mr. Maybank’s behalf today.” That left Pope even more confused. Who was Mr. Maybank?

“I’m sorry, but who is this?” He asks, eyebrows furrowed as he shifts to look out the window, folding his leg under him just so he can change positions for a bit.

34. How much of yourself and your life experiences do you put into your writing? What do you think your readers’ image of you is?

My life is boring so not much. Maybe my readers think I have a more adventurous life than I actually have? I’m not really sure.

44. Rant about something writing related.

I’m honestly not sure what to rant about, but I’m going to go with support. If you want fanfic writers to keep writing, make sure you not only kudos but comment as well. There has been such a lack of comments lately and just make sure your supporting people who are literally doing this for free. Just, support. It doesn’t take long. You found the time to read the fic, so just spend two more minutes writing a review.

Please ask more from this list! This is fun :)

#e talks #ask #about #about me #fanfic stuff #please ask more

11 notes · View notes

suga-kookiemonster · 4 years

Note

Ok Ashley, first of all when I saw the gif you used, I know you were about to FUCK ME UPPPP. Alright bubs, buckle up this is gon be a RIDE cus phew I am the biggest hoe for ego. I’ve literally re-read the whole series MULTIPLE TIMES and it’s never NOT funny, like I still cackle at the same jokes every damn time. Anyways, yes let’s get it. I love how you’ve used common tropes like fuckboy!jk, fratboy!jk, college au, F2L, and onebed, but have completely made it your own. Like I feel like even if

you posted your work under some other pen name, I’d still recognize your style and work. You have a very specific voice? Very “YOU” BRAND of writing and that’s probably one of the HARDEST things to achieve as a writer. Mc is a delight and the way she be low key losing her cool over sleepin in the same bed as kook has me cryin cus girl I FEEL YA. “just a t-shirt advertising your university’s Segway club that you had swiped off a table for free during freshman orientation” HAHAHA mc and I are the

same fuckin people is2g cus free is for me. ALSO DUDE, “Jungkook softly, but audibly inhaled, like he was gearing up to say something of importance” BUT WHAT WAS HE GOING TO SAY?! I need to know, it’s for science. Also, high key endeared that he calls he “noona” cus I’m a pervy old lady and a lady could dream ok. Yes, now we get to the good stuffs, cus motherfucker would I love to wake up to kook’s morning wood wow he really be like a man buffet- he’s both cute and dashingly sexy. “attempting to

smooth your expression into one of ignorant unconsciousness as adrenaline pounded through you. Your eyes were closed, but that didn’t stop you from feeling his close proximity as he gingerly leaned over you to scope out your face” OMFG THE WAY MY BLOOD PRESSURE SKYROCKETED. Ngl been there and it’s SO uncomfortable like can he NOT feel my heart falling right outta my ass??? Kudos to mc for keeping composure (cus I wasn’t able to oops) kinda interested in what the situation woulda looked like had

he known she was awake tho?? “really? … fucking really gonna do this now?” HAHAH OMG “the way he was using the clothes he had apparently grabbed from his bag to hide his crotch from your view” the consistency in your writing is SO IMPRESSIVE like… when I read ego I see it as a move in my head bc of all these small, but important, details. They both migrated towards each other uwu that is SO CUTE, esp with kook as the big spoon wrapped all around her ughhh my heart. And the way she grabbed a

plate of food for baby boy has me SO ENDEARED, it’s so sweet the way she’s thinking of him and his favorite food. Ok, BUT CAN WE TALK ABOUT NAMJOON AND LISA, cus Namjesus they totally boned that night didn’t they?! The whole breakfast scene had me ROLLING “jungkookie lost his hands in a tragic paragliding accident” and “…like he was sitting there smiling at you, eyes sparkling like he was a big titty anime girl?” honestly, I gotta hand it to you, there has been no fic that makes me laugh the way

ego does. The dialogue, the pop culture references (re: pimp my ride, fear factor, “Squidward”, etc), the humor KILLS ME. You seem like the funny af friend in the group. Like “baby wine doesn’t exist because that illegal. and, frankly, immoral.” “But I would just like to state for the record that I’m the one who passed through her vagina.” “Tore it too, from what I hear” HAHA OMFG THEIR BANTER IS A+ bff shitting on each other and I’m living for it!!! The whole laser tag scene was pure gold.

The way lisa started opening up, jk’s cocky ass, mc/joon’s mess of team work, the way jungkook calls mc “babe” instead of “noona” (what’s with that anyways? He wanna be seen as manlier or something??), the return of the god of destruction, “Yeah, well you also have no upper lip” HAHAHAHA ok but I actually love jk’s sparce upper lip and buck teeth, it’s just so SWEET &ENDEARING. “You watched his tongue roll in his cheek as he considered you. It was sexy” HELL MFING YES IT’S SO SEXY!! I love this

characterization of jk- he’s very layered. He’s sweet, charming, sexy, dumb af, and annoying all at the same time which makes him feel vvv real to me. And now the smut. The fact that they’re in the same position as the other morning, but unlike last time, she’s ready to do something about it. The mouth on that boy omg reminds me of “do you kiss your mom with that mouth?” from an earlier chapter phew. I love that he’s focused on prepping her with all the grinding and fingering. While v sexy, also

shows he cares about her pleasure in that he wants her to enjoy penetration. The bit when he’s just dazed when she’s urging him to get a condom has me chuckling- is he THAT shook that it’s actually happening?? “He slid the rubber on with shaky hands.” Makes me think that he’s both nervous and excited and it’s more than just one time fucking to him. And the way she asks to ride him phew, she really be LIVIN THE DREAM that’s my ultimate fantasy let’s be real until he opens his dumb mouth “Hop on.

Please remember to fasten your seatbelt and for your safety keep all items stowed beneath the seat in front of you until after takeoff” OMFG HE’S SO ANNOYING HAHAHA “You placed another kiss on a pebbled nipple, intrigued when you heard him swallow a moan. Emboldened, you circled it with your tongue, scratched it lightly with your teeth. Jungkook whined, and the sound shot straight to your clit” FUCK THAT’S HOT. I am 10/10 a hoe for nipple play. Holy shit, and the way he pulled outta her cus he

knew he wasn’t going to make it in time for her to cum too, so he opts to eat her out first. We LOVE a man who prioritizes female pleasure!! Hnng and the way she agrees to continue fucking even after she’s already came and the way kook just GOES TO FUCKING TOWN ON THAT PUSS had my vag ROLLINGGGG damn I really feel bad for whoever is sharing a wall with them rn cus that headboard RIP my heart “I win” wtf dude his pillow talk SUCKS ASS. Just when she thinks she’s not just a game to him, he pulls

this shit. It’s probably just a dumb af joke cus we know my bby be competitive as all hell and also ain’t that smart, but damn. Not. The. Time. UGHHHH I just want to squish their faces together and be like "TALK TO EACH OTHER PLS- this is all a terrible misunderstanding" TL;DR my panties are wet, my heart is broken, and I kinda wanna knee kook in the balls. Thank you for this update!! Masterpieces are ALWAYS worth the wait!! It's bitter sweet that ego is comin to the end. Sending all my love

PHEWWWWW, THIS REVIEW!! 😭😭💕we still have one part left, so i’m not gonna confirm or deny any of your assumptions. but OMG, i’m so touched that my work left this big of an impression on you! your commentary made me smile so big 😩😩😩 truly, thank you so much for enjoying my wacky fic and my wacky characters. it really means a lot to know that people love my babies as much as i do, and that they’re actually as invested in the storyline as i am. ego was my first fic for the bts fandom, so she’s really special to me and it makes me happy that others enjoy her 🤧💕 and that you enjoy my writing style 😭😭😭pls 😭😭😭

thank you again for your sweet words. hopefully i can finish ch 8 sooner than later!

#fic: ego #lcksndkys #asks

17 notes · View notes

essaysbyciara · 6 years

Text

Thy Neighbor (Chapters 7 + 8)

[Chapter 1] [Chapter 2] [Chapter 3] [Chapter 4] [Chapters 5+6]

I gave up Tumblr for Lent so I figured I’d drop two chapters at a time to make up for only posting on Sundays. As always, message me if you would to be added to the tag list.

School and work meant nothing to Ciara once Tuesday came around. She stared at her clock hoping that time would speed up, skipping the gym so she could buy all the perfect ingredients for tonight. Her menu of red beans and rice, plantain and baked chicken was perfect. She bought her favorite wine in case Trevante needed to unwind.

As the smell of dinner enveloped the room, she mulled over if she needed to put on a different outfit. Her grey hoodie and black workout pants were perfect but did she need to put on a lip? Fill in her eyebrows? She gathers herself and realizes that this wasn't a date -- it was a lightweight Bible Study. She puts on her favorite Ella mix and awaits Trevante’s arrival.

Trevante can smell the food from the hallway as he walked past her door to drop off his things inside of his apartment. As he took a quick shower and changed clothes, he put on a grey hoodie and black basketball shorts. He grabs his laptop and notepad and heads over to Ciara’s.

“Hey!” Ciara’s braids swing as she opens her door. She laughs to herself about their matching outfits. “Come on in.”

“Thanks. Yo, that smells incredible.”

“I hope it’s good. I mean, I know it’s good. You know… you’ll like it I’m sure. Plates are in the cabinet to the right. Help yourself.”

Ciara pours her a glass of Riesling and pops a plaintain into her mouth. She’s quite too nervous to eat but knew that she couldn’t resist. As Trevante sits at her table, he marvels at the Ella Fitzgerald mix in the background.

“You like Ella?”

“You know, I do. I play the Spotify playlist sometimes to switch things up. I like it.”

“I love jazz, man. It’s great.”

Ciara watches as Trevante blesses his food. He opens his eyes to see that she’s halfway through her plate.

“What?” She asked. “What’s up?”

“I thought all of you Christians blessed your food.”

“You trying to be funny, Trevante?”

“Nah, nah. I mean… yeah.”

Ciara and Trevante both laugh as they devour their food. Trevante’s silence was all she needed to know that it was good. As they pull away from the dining table and into the living room, Trevante can’t help by stare at all of her books.

“Theology, huh?”

“Yeah. I’m going for Masters in Theological Studies.”

“I knew you were the right person to help me out.”

Ciara tries to contain her smile but can’t. She felt affirmed in a way about her passion that she never received. When she told her Mom that she wanted to pursue an academic career in religion, her Mom laughed her off. She thought her Christianity was a phase and that in due time, she’s forget all about this “moment in her life” But Ciara was committed to know about her faith. What made her tick and why she made mistakes and why she was so thankful for grace.

After Y’lan left, she fell into one of her darkness points. She’d sit in her apartment for days as a time, friends coming by and do wellness checks on her. Her depression deepened as the seasons changed, sleeping all day and waking all hours of the night. The Rahmeeks, Ezekiels and Chads found her bed but it wasn’t enough. She wanted to be left alone and alone is always how she found herself.

When she missed a week of classes, her professor reached out to her. As Ciara poured her heart out in an email, she felt relieved to know that she wasn’t alone. Her professor recommended a women’s group that could help her find peace in community. They became more than that, they became family. They’d braid Ciara’s hair when she wasn’t up to taking care of it. They fed her meals when she was too weak to go to the grocery store. They made her laugh with stories of terrible dates. They’d let her cry when something would trigger her about Y’lan.

They threw her a party when she finished on the Dean’s List that year.

“Okay, so I did some research on Proverbs. They do some great stuff.”

“I thought so too. I’m trying to figure out how to best market them though to communities who aren’t Christian too.”

“No, I totally get that. But I think you need to stick with that as their selling point. The worst thing you can do is pressure wash the faith off of an organization. That faith tag gives them some merit.”

“Yo. You wanna go into marketing?”

Trevante and Ciara laugh as she pours herself another glass.

“No, no, no. As someone who works for one, I get how hard it is.”

“Word? Who do you work for?”

“Protestant Placements. We place kids in churches and Christ-based orgs to gain experience and college or seminary credit. It’s pretty cool.”

“Again. You are perfect for this.”

Every ounce of approval makes Ciara’s heart palpitate.

“Okay, so… the book of Proverbs is like a book of instruction. It gives you the call to live right, practice grace, care for the poor, etc. You could pull out certain Proverbs to highlight certain causes they do.”

Trevante races to open up his spreadsheet.

“So like Proverbs 22:9. You could use that for their food program. You know what I mean?”

As Ciara’s trails off, Trevante starts to stare at her. He’s impressed by her knowledge and commitment. Especially to her commitment to help him. He flashes back to weeks ago when Ciara came to his aid in a moment when others would have left him alone. He remembered that she caressed his head and told him that everything was going to be okay. He remembered when she made him a cup of coffee and affirmed his hurt for the loss of his father. He remember when she told him “I got you.” and I meant it. Twice.

All of the women he ever dated never cared enough to know how he was feeling. They only wanted to have sex with him. Rather that was all he wanted. He never gave them a chance to find out. He wondered what it could be like to have sex with someone that he actually cared about and cared about him. Someone who would make him dinner and help him with work.

As he slowly drifts into another dimension, Ciara catches Trevante.

“Is this too much or…”

“No, no. This is perfect. This is great stuff. You got another glass of Riesling?”

“Of course. I got you.”

That phrase again. And she always delivered.

“You need to drink to get through this, huh?” Ciara slightly laughs as she passes Trevante his glass. He pauses before he takes a sip.

“So why did you help me other day?”

Ciara takes a longer sip before she answers. The right answer is that she saw someone in need. The wrong answer is that her fine neighbor needed help and she felt that this would be her chance to get in good with him. While she knew that wasn’t true, she wanted Trevante to know that wasn’t the truth either. And herself.

“I just saw you in pain so I figured to help. I wouldn’t want to be left like that. And when you said your Dad, I knew it was meant for me to be there.”

“What do you mean by that?” Trevante says quizzically.

“I’m a believer that you go through things to help others. As much as I still don’t understand why it had to be that, I know that God set me up to be in a place where if I ever ran across someone who needed my help, I would be able to do it. And stand firm as I did it.”

Trevante felt that answer. He was happy that it was her in that moment and not one of his late night dalliances. It was in the space of genuine care. He never felt that before.

“So yeah, that’s why.”

“Wow. Thanks, man.”

“Of course. I hope all of this helped you.”

“It did. It’ll give me a day to draft something. I really appreciate it.”

Ciara and Trevante get up from the floor to give each other a hug. As he embraces her, she rest her head on his chest, feeling his heartbeat slowly rises. They start to beat on the same syncopation. It catches her off guard. Him too. He doesn’t want to let her go. That was a new feeling.

Time slowed down for the both of them. That last person to make her feel this way was Y’lan. They’d hug longer to squandered any other thoughts they have in mind. It was their cheat code. She felt super warm and cozy. She didn’t want to let go. That was a missed feeling.

They both release with reluctance. Ciara grabs the glasses and places them into the sink. Trevante quickly grabs his things and heads to the door.

As Ciara starts to wash dishes, she hears Trevante leave. she falls to the ground, exhaling rapidly. As she texts Mahalia, she receives a text from Trevante.

Can I call you?

CHAPTER EIGHT

That phone call was two hours and 36 minutes. Trevante never been on phone that long since high school. As the hours ticked and his body grew tired, he didn’t want to get off of the phone.

“So tell me about your Dad?”

Trevante tells Ciara the entire story. The baseball dreams, the war, the PTSD, the drugs, the death. He opens up about college and his fears of living his family. He told her why he loved marketing and why he had to get to the gym at 5 AM. It was a lesson he learned from his father.

“Trevante. It’s like one in the morning. I think you need to get some sleep if you wanna make that time.”

“Ughhhh. Okay. I don’t wanna get off the phone though.”

Ciara couldn’t contain her giggle.

“That was cute.”

“Shut up. Look, I ain’t going to be one that messes up your schedule. Even though you sometimes mess up mine. “

“What you mean?”

Ciara didn’t want to blow up his spot about the soundtrack to her late nights. About the tapping of the headboard and the orgasmic screams coming from his bedroom. But there may not ever be a good time like this, she figured to go for it.

“You know I can hear you, right?”

Trevante pauses and then remembers. He starts to feel super embarrassed. Although he was proud of his work, he didn’t realize that Ciara’s bedroom was next door.

“Oh wow, my bad. I’m sorry.”

“I mean, somebody gotta get some around here. I’m glad it’s you. I can’t knock the hustle.”

Trevante wanted to know what Ciara meant by that. Was he wrong to ask? After pouring out his heart to her, he decides to go for it.

“I mean… you just threw me a softball. Are you...?”

Ciara wants to be offended but can’t. She knew the risk of letting him know that his trysts pissed her off. But also made her zone out at the possibility of her being at the receiving end.

“I practice celibacy, Trevante. Yes.”

“Hmmph. Wow. Okay. Respect.”

“That’s it? Dudes usually have a lot more to say after that.”

“Like what?”

“Like ‘would you break that for me?’ or “you masturbate though right?’ or ‘get with me and I’ll change your mind.’ and my personal favorite ‘we gonna get married anyway so let’s just test drive this shit.”

Trevante’s large frame curled over from laughter. He never tried those lines before and is kind of shocked that he hadn’t.

“Yo, dudes are trash. I’m sorry.” Trevante’s laughter fails to be contained. Ciara starts to laugh too.

“But yo Trevante it is getting late. I should be getting some sleep too.”

“Do you have to?”

Ciara doesn’t want to say yes but she knows she has to. She had no idea that her night would end with talking to Trevante for hours, laughing about life and getting close. Maybe her dream wasn’t too far off.

“Yes. I’ve been doing good about getting to class on time.”

“You wouldn’t break that for me?”

Trevante knew what he was doing with that question. And so did Ciara. And so did certain parts of her body. His deep voice and underlying sincerity sent her mind in a place that it shouldn’t have. To headboards. To orgasms. To breakfast in the morning.

“Wow, Tre. Good-fucking-night.”

Trevante lets out a hearty laugh. “Goodnight.”

As Ciara gets up to grab a glass of water, she knocks on her bedroom wall. Seconds later, she receives a text.

Yo. You weren’t kidding.

Taglist: @blackpinup22

#trevante rhodes x fanfiction #trevante rhodes #y'lan noel #fanfic #thy neighbor

43 notes · View notes

5hfanfiction · 6 years

Text

Camren: At First Sight (Chapter 4)

Trigger Warning: mention of sexual assault

A/N: Hi guys! If you want to start from the beginning, it’s posted on Wattpad (@paigejv). Enjoy :)

“UGHHHH,” I groaned into my pillow, fumbling to silence the alarm. Ms. Philips wouldn’t mind if I came late to first period, right? Surely a top student deserves a little leeway…

I jolted up in bed.

“Guys,” I rasped, my eyes squinting against the sunlight pouring through the cabin window. “It’s elimination day.”

No response. Turning to my right, I ran my fingers over the now vacant space beside me. I sighed when I found the sheets cold.

Before I could wonder further, Lauren came striding through the bunk door, her notebook tucked under her arm. “No shit, Sherlock,” she grinned. “How’s your leg?”

“Throbbing,” I winced. “But I’ll live.” I scrunched my blankets to the bottom of the bed and climbed to my feet. With a hiss, I managed to limp forward, over to Dinah’s sleeping form.

She lay curled beneath her covers, her head turned away from the wall. I cupped my hands around my mouth.

“Are you sure that’s—” Lauren started, her eyes wide.

“IT’S TIME TO GET UP,” I shouted into Dinah’s ear, my voice echoing through the cabin.

She sat up so fast, she nearly banged her head on the bedpost. “What the hell, Mila!” The younger girl grabbed for her heart, jabbing an accusing finger in my face. “You little shit.”

I shrugged, grinning. “You looked so peaceful.”

“And you, Lauren? I would have thought you knew better,” Dinah glared.

She raised her hands protectively. “Hey, hey. Don’t drag me into this. That was all Camz.”

“So when I pummel her, you won’t stop me?”

Ally’s moan saved Lauren from answering. “Remind me again why we went to bed so late?”

“Hot guys,” Lauren smirked.

“Assholes.”

I raised my eyebrow, turning toward Normani. “What?”

“Hm?”

“I thought you said—“

“We need to get ready,” she mumbled, not meeting my gaze. “There’s no time to shower.”

I nodded and limped back to my cubby. Lost in thoughts of the impending elimination, we dressed in silence, well-aware that our next trip to the cabin could be to pack our suitcases.

My hair was a disaster, so I tied it up in a ponytail before hurrying onto the porch.

“Camz—”

“Right, right, shoes.”

Lauren shook her head, smirking, as I limped back and stuffed them onto my feet.

“Don’t judge me. I’m so nervous.”

We headed toward the main building, trudging through the cold morning air. I took a deep breath.

“It will be over soon,” Ally smiled, throwing her arm across my shoulder. “Don’t worry. If anyone’s getting through, it’s going to be the five of us.”

I giggled. “Yeah, obviously, we’re—”

“All five? Those odds aren’t too hot,” Normani blurted.

Piercing green eyes turned a shade darker as Lauren glared at the older girl. “Not helping,” she spat.

“Hey, I’m just being realistic.”

I slipped my hand into Lauren’s and pulled her into the cafeteria before she could respond. “Let’s get some oatmeal.”

She followed reluctantly. “Mush, you mean.”

“Not when you add bananas.”

“Banana mush.”

I placed my hand over my heart. “And I thought we were friends.”

The corner of her mouth lifted. “Just because you have a weird obsession with bananas doesn’t mean I have to like eating them.”

“There’s a joke there somewhere,” Dinah smirked, joining us at the table.

I flushed slightly as Lauren poked my cheek.

“Hey look,” I announced, quickly changing the subject. “It’s Arin.” He stumbled into the cafeteria, half-asleep, and slid into the chair next to Keaton’s.

“Normaniiiii,” Ally sang. “You should go say hello.”

I giggled.

“Fuck off,” Normani muttered under her breath. Dinah gasped, and Ally looked hurt.

“What has gotten into you today?” Lauren asked angrily.

“Or last night, for that matter,” Dinah blurted. “Why’d you leave so early?”

I swung my eyes in her direction. Under our scrutiny, she fidgeted, her face turning red. “I—”

“Quiet, please.” Demi’s voice echoed around the cafeteria.

We had been too distracted to notice her entrance. I whipped my head around to face her, my heart already pounding. She stood with Simon at her side and tapped the microphone until the room fell silent. My stomach dropped as I braced myself for what she had to say.

“We’ll talk later,” Ally whispered.

Normani merely nodded, her eyes downcast.

“Will the following people please stand?” Demi cleared her throat and unfolded a piece of paper, preparing to read.

“Really?” Lauren whispered. “They’re going to do this here?”

“Shush,” I hissed.

“Emma Dover,” she read. “Catherine Edwards. Nate Elsen. Sam Gorman.”

My heart nearly stopped when I realized the list was alphabetical. I tuned out the rest of the names. “She skipped me.” I could feel the tears building behind my eyes, my face turning red.

Lauren squeezed my hand hard. “She’s skipped all of us, Camz.”

It was true. Demi was already past “M,” and not one of our five names had been called. Normani muttered to herself, looking as heartbroken as I felt.

“And Abby Williams,” Demi finished, replacing the mic in its stand. “Please follow me.”

We watched them leave the cafeteria mutely, gathering their things. Simon stayed at the front of the room, scanning our faces.

“She didn’t say what the names meant,” Ally whispered.

I closed my eyes.

The cafeteria door screeched shut, and we all turned to stare at Simon. He surveyed us in silence. And then the corner of his mouth lifted. “Relax. You all made it.”

The roar was deafening. I cried as Lauren’s arms came around my own, followed by Dinah, and Ally, and even Normani, who squeezed into the giant group hug so tight I could barely breathe.

Simon chuckled, then cleared his throat to call our attention. Twice. Three times. It wasn’t until Demi had returned, a good ten minutes later, that we reclaimed our seats and quieted down. My smile was so big, it felt like my cheeks were going to break.

“Congratulations,” Demi grinned. “You’ve really earned it.” Another round of applause shook the room.

“Should we explain the third challenge?” Simon murmured.

Demi considered for a moment, then turned her head and spoke into the mic. “Challenge 3 will be tomorrow afternoon. All you need to know for now,“ and she waved her hand over a stack of papers on the front table, “is the song you will perform. Once you finish breakfast, pick up your assignment and head to rehearsal straightaway.”

As the judges took their leave, Demi’s eyes met mine. She winked quickly, and like the weirdo I am, my hand raised in a thumbs-up. I flushed when she smiled knowingly.

Itching to get started, we hurried to the trashcan and dumped our bowls of mush.

I was in such a hurry to escape the rehearsal room that I left through a back door. Expecting to be alone, I was surprised to find a familiar shape sitting in the grass.

“Camz?” Lauren closed her notebook quickly when I walked toward her. She leaned forward, squinting against the sun. “What’s wrong?”

I wiped the tears from my eyes with shaking hands. “Nothing. I’m just being stupid.”

“Come here,” she implored, holding out her arms.

I scooted into them gratefully. As she stroked my hair, I let out a sigh, relaxing into her embrace. My eyelids slid shut.

“How do you do it?” I murmured.

“Do what?”

“Make me feel so good.”

I felt Lauren’s hand freeze on my hair. Then she laughed lightly, and I could breathe again. What the fuck, Camila.

“I guess I just understand where you’re coming from.”

I bit my lip. “Don’t tell me you also forgot the words when Simon walked by? No wait—you definitely didn’t knock over the music stand and spill your drink all over the floor. Only I could do that.”

She grimaced. “Sounds like a great practice.”

“The best.”

We fell into a comfortable silence. I wiggled slightly and moved down her body to rest my head in her lap. Stretching my legs across the grass, I watched as the shapes in the clouds raced through the sky, joining with the treetops when I couldn’t see any further.

These arms of mine, they are lonely / Lonely and feeling blue

My breath hitched when Lauren began to sing. At barely more than a whisper, I strained my ears, needing to hear every word.

These arms of mine, they are yearning / Yearning from wanting you

I lifted my chin to look at her, but those green eyes stared straight ahead, refusing to meet my gaze.

And if you would let them hold you / Oh, how grateful I will be

When I ran my fingers over her hand, her cheeks took on a red tinge, but her voice didn’t waver.

These arms of mine, they are burning / Burning from wanting you

She stopped as abruptly as she started. Of their own accord, my fingers reached up and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “That was amazing,” I breathed.

“Thanks.” She finally dropped her eyes to meet mine, a soft smile playing at the corners of her lips. I had never seen her so vulnerable. Those green orbs consumed me, and I couldn’t look away, desperate to decipher her expression.

“Lauren?” I murmured.

“Yeah?” she breathed, her eyes still on mine.

“Can you tell me what you’re thinking?”

I watched her blush up to the roots of her dark hair. She broke our eye contact and stared straight ahead, across the open field. “That I have to learn the end of that song if I’m going to have a shot at making it to the Judges’ Houses.” She gently pushed me off her lap and climbed to her feet, lifting her notebook from the grass. “We’d better go before lunch ends.”

I nodded mutely and wiped the dirt off my shorts.

“What,” Dinah pushed her food around her plate angrily, “has gotten into you guys?”

I looked up to see Lauren frowning into her spaghetti. She offered a vague shrug and merely rolled her eyes, avoiding my gaze completely.

“First Normani,” Dinah huffed, “and now you two.” She waved her fork between us. “No one’s saying anything.”

I reached for my napkin and let my fingers tear it to strips, too anxious to sit still.

“That’s it.” Dinah banged her cup on the table. “We’re gonna play a game. Outside, all of you, now.”

No one moved.

“We’re still eating,” Ally finally protested.

Dinah crossed her arms. “Fine. Then we’ll play right here. Truth or dare.”

“What do you want to know, Dinah? That I’m not as nice as you thought I was? That I don’t give a fuck about any of you?” Normani blurted.

I flinched and found myself leaning away from the older girl. She was my competitor, and there was a decent chance I wouldn’t see her after this week, but it hurt all the same.

“Fuck you.” Lauren finally said, her tone flat.

Instead of shooting back an insult, Normani dropped her head into her hands. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

I sat there, frozen, as Dinah stretched her hand across the table and placed it reassuringly on the older girl’s arm. “Actually…I wanted to know what Arin did to you.”

My mouth dropped open. Lauren looked just as surprised as I felt; she turned in my direction, crinkling her nose in confusion. It was the first time she had looked at me since we came inside.

“Wait…” Ally sighed. “This has to do with—"

But Dinah ignored her, focusing her attention on Normani. “He didn’t, like, you know…”

I held my breath as we waited for her reply, a sick feeling settling in my stomach.

“No,” she finally murmured in a thick voice. She wiped her eyes roughly. “But if his friend hadn’t seen us…I don’t know. He could have.”

Dinah stood up so quickly her chair skidded against the wall. “I’m going to fucking kill him,” she snarled.

“No,” Normani repeated weakly. Lauren grabbed Dinah’s arm to stop her from charging across the cafeteria and attacking Arin then and there. “I mean…it just happened so fast. I’m not sure…”

“Not sure of what, Normani?” Ally asked softly.

But she just shook her head. “Never mind. Can we talk about something else?”

“No,” Lauren and Dinah scowled. “You’ve got to report him.”

Normani just shook her head. “And say what? He kissed me?” She scoffed. “It would be weirder if he hadn’t.”

I cleared my throat. “Wait, I don’t understand. So what happened?”

The older girl reached for her fork, pushing the food across her plate. “I don’t…know.” Her voice cracked.

We fell silent at that. I replayed the conversation, barely paying attention to Dinah as she walked around the table and wrapped Normani in a hug.

“It was fucking terrible,” she older girl mumbled, her gaze fixed on a speck of dirt beside her cup. “Whether I wanted him or not didn’t seem to matter.”

Lauren’s eyes turned a full shade darker. She clenched her fists, clearly itching to…well, I wasn’t really sure. But Arin wouldn’t like it.

“There’s only two days left, Normani,” Ally said softly. “Let’s hope he gets eliminated.”

“And we make it,” Normani hiccupped. “I’m sorry, guys. Really. You’re the best.”

“Duh,” Dinah grinned. “And from now on, no boys. We stick together.”

I looked at Lauren quickly, thinking about Keaton. But the corner of her mouth quirked. “No boys,” she echoed, her green eyes settling on my own. She smiled tentatively. I think my answering grin spoke for itself.

Lauren laced our fingers and pulled me into the auditorium. “What do you think the meeting’s about?”

“Maybe they’ll explain the final challenge?” The other contestants milled around the stage, and with a jolt, I remembered the first time I had come through those doors. Just as uncertain, just as nervous…but now I had the green-eyed girl beside me. That made all the difference.

“Earth to Camila,” Lauren sang.

I blushed, realizing I had been staring at her. “Sorry. What were you saying?”

She just shook her head, a grin pulling at her lips. “Never mind.”

We sat behind our bunkmates. Dinah was still consoling a distressed Normani, but Ally smiled at us in acknowledgement. When she turned back around, I leaned into Lauren’s side, sighing happily as her fingers rubbed patterns into my arm.

“Alright, listen up.” Demi spoke into the mic. I did a double take. Beside her stood…holy hell. “As you can see, we have two new judges joining us for the third challenge and the remainder of the season. Please welcome…Britney Spears and L.A. Reid!”

The applause was deafening. I grabbed Lauren’s arm, my mouth open, too starstruck to form words.

I loved the way her eyes sparkled under the stage lights. She laughed, giddy, and ran her hand through her hair. “As if things couldn’t get any crazier.”

“Cue flashback to seven-year-old me rocking it out to ‘Toxic,’” I giggled. “If you’d told me that I’d be singing in front of Britney Spears for real…”

“So you’ve always been a dork?” Lauren teased.

“Hey,” I whined. “I—"

“Shut it, lovebirds,” Dinah called over her shoulder. I didn’t register what she had said until Lauren jumped away from me, pushing my arm off hers. My wrist crashed into the floor to support my weight. “Oof,” I winced.

“Sorry,” she muttered, refusing to meet my gaze.

I tried to listen to L.A. Reid when he stepped up to the mic, but my mind was working in overdrive, spinning out of control. It was a joke I know Dinah didn’t mean anything by it but oh god Lauren sure thought she did I could see it written all over her face the way she pushed me away in disgust like she wanted nothing to do with me—

“Coming, Mila?” Ally asked. I shook my head slowly, staring around the room, surprised to find most of the contestants standing in four columns. I blinked, confused, before spotting Lauren and the girls lined up in front of Britney. She held a sign over her head that read “Teens,” so I scrambled to my feet and moved to join them.

When Arin ambled in front of me, I curled my lip, wishing I could shove him off the stage. Assuming Ally shared the same sentiment, I turned around…and was surprised to see she had joined Demi’s line. I raised my eyebrow, frowning.

“I’m 19,” she mouthed, pointing to the sign above Demi’s head. “Young adult.”

Hm. I hadn’t known that. I smiled weakly and raised my hand, giving her a thumbs-up.

“Alright. Here’s what we’re going to do.” Demi spoke into the mic once more, dropping her sign at her feet. “The lines you’re in now are your competition. For the third challenge, you’ll be singing for one of six available spots in your age group.”

I gulped, my stomach dropping, as I looked up my line. No way in hell could I beat all those people. Not to mention…Lauren. I watched as she ran her hand through her long black hair. I willed her to turn around, but she kept her eyes trained on the judges.

“We want to give you the chance to work with other singers,” Demi continued. “Some of your coaches have complained that they can’t get through to you guys.”

I bit my lip. Whoops.

“If you look to your right and left, you’ll see your new group members. Not in your age category, of course, so help each other as much as you can, please. You’ll have the afternoon to run through your songs. After dinner, you’ll meet with your coaches and show them what you’ve learned.” Demi beckoned the first contestants forward and spoke to them briefly before sending them off to a rehearsal room.

My line moved slowly, and I tried to count across the rows to figure out who I would end up with. Lauren never turned around, but I glanced at her periodically, noting the way she shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

When Ally was paired with Arin, I smiled sympathetically at her scowl, waving to her sadly as she left the auditorium. And then it was my turn.

“Room 12, guys,” Demi consulted her notes. “Make sure you know your lyrics by tonight’s practice.” She smirked at me briefly, and I sighed, knowing that was for my benefit.

“Will do,” I nodded quickly, with all the confidence I could muster.

We trudged through the auditorium doors.

I threw my arm over my eyes and collapsed into my bed, my stomach full to bursting from dinner with our small groups. “I’m never getting up,” I croaked aloud, assuming it was Dinah on the stairs.

Wrong. Lauren chuckled as she pushed through the bunk door, stumbling slightly in the dark. “Tell me about it.”

I fidgeted nervously. Her damn mood swings were giving me whiplash, and my heart thudded as she came straight for me. Those green eyes didn’t quite meet mine. “Scoot, will you?”

I wasn’t about to question it. My bed dipped under her weight, and she curled into my side, tucking her arm behind my head. I stiffened when her fingers grazed my collarbone.

“You know we have practice in forty-five minutes?” Dinah thumped into the cabin and flicked on the light, making us both jump. “Weren’t you going to shower, Mila?”

I sighed. “Yeah.” But I burrowed further into Lauren’s neck, pressing my body flush against hers, feeling reckless.

“She smells good.”

I opened one eye, squinting against the light. My lips quirked when Lauren turned red. I didn’t bother hiding my smirk.

“I mean you could probably wait until after rehearsal to shower,” she mumbled, rolling onto her stomach and out of my arms. “If you’ll be awake enough at midnight.”

I groaned and shoved a pillow over my face. Though working with the other contestants had proved surprisingly useful—I’d fully memorized the lyrics, and Tate had suggested a genius note change to serve as my redemption—I wanted nothing more than to stay in this bed. For eternity.

But I squeezed my eyes shut and let my better sense win out. Deep breath. I counted to five and sat up slowly, reaching for my towel. “If I’m this tired now, I’m going to pass out later.” I stumbled into the bathroom and turned the tap to scalding.

I wished I could shut my brain off, just for a minute. So I wouldn’t have to remember the way my body responded to Lauren’s raspy voice, the way those green eyes bared so much, even as she said nothing at all. I hated the power she held, able to turn my day from good to bad to good again with nothing more than a well-timed smile…or a well-placed shove.

Shut it, lovebirds.

I especially refused to think about why I cared so much.

Instead, I tipped my chin toward the shower head, letting the water mingle with my tears and wash them down my skin. They pooled behind the rim of my shower shoes and only spilled over when I shook them free, spraying water across the tub. My fingers had wrinkled to prunes before I found the energy to cut the tap.

When I reached for my towel, my hand hit the wall with a painful smack. I muttered a curse, groping blindly from behind the shower curtain, certain I had hooked it on the door. I reluctantly pulled the curtain aside, shivering, and searched the tile floor. My clothes lay in a messy pile, and I tried not to drip water on them as I stepped out of the tub.

“Guys?” I cracked the bathroom door open. “Can someone pass me a towel?”

No response.

I peered around the door and into the cabin. It was completely empty…and there was my towel, crumpled on my bed. I bit my lip. Ten steps, max, and I’d be back in the bathroom, warm and dry. I shivered when I inched further around the door, half my body already into the bunk, ready to make a run for it…

“AHHHHHHH!”

I slammed the door on my toe as I jumped back, petrified. “What the fuck, guys!” I slid my hands to my knees and bent over, waiting for my heart to stop pounding.

“That was fucking hilarious!” Dinah called. “And payback for this morning. You really should have known better, Mila.”

“Oh yeah?” I gasped through the door. “You just wait, Dinah Jane Hansen. Just. You. Wait. You’re so done.”

“Hey, you can’t only blame me. It was Lauren’s idea!” she shouted back.

I blushed, wondering how much of my body had been visible when the girls jumped out from behind their cubbies. “You’re both fucked, then.”

Normani and Ally giggled. Traitors. “Still want that towel, Mila?”

“No.” I crossed my arms, even though she couldn’t see me through the door. “I’m just fine, thank you very much.” I slipped on clean clothes and ran my comb through my hair, taking care to spray water over the other girls’ belongings. “That’s what you get,” I muttered.

“Stop talking to yourself and come out here,” Lauren called. “You’re going to be late.”

Hearing footsteps pounding down the stairs, I flung the door aside and stepped into the cabin. Lauren was alone. Her hand was in her hair, and she bit her lip as her gaze traveled down my body, over my chest, and lingered on the sliver of skin peeking out from beneath the hem of my shirt. Our eyes locked.

“Come on,” she muttered, and spun on her heel. The back of her ears turned bright red as we pushed through the door.

A/N: Thanks so much for reading! As always, more chapters are posted on Wattpad (@paigejv). Skip directly to chapter 5.0 <3

#UPDATE #series #x factor #non AU #slash #trigger warning #camren #angst drama #humour #romance fluff #submission #At First Sight

17 notes · View notes

smiles4voltron · 7 years

Text

Angst (A different end to Lmcmb)

sourcandii from Archive of our own posted this Angst idea after chapter 28.

Here is it. Sob with me, my children. Sob.

ps. when I read the last bit of this chapter do you know what my first thought was? It was "omg what if he actually kills Lance this time and then Keith/Tellru/Dravla find his body?!" And then it just kept spiraling downward until it got to the point where I'm thinking "The author said the story was coming to a close, what if Lance dies and stays dead? What if the team shows up after it's too late!? What if Keith goes crazy without his true love!? What are they going to do without their blue paladin? Will Keith even be able to do anything without Lance??" and contined until "WHAT IF RURU BECOMES THE NEXT BLUE PALADIN IN REPLACE OF LANCE WTFFFF!?"

I’m dead. I’m sobbing. This idea is here for anyone to do what they will with. Ruru becoming the future blue paladin after Lance dies and I- ughhhh ;-; I’m sobbing.

I wrote something for this. here it is

The team turned when the doors opened. Standing tall, eyes shining with an excited, nervous look, Ruru entered the room. Having grown taller than even Shiro himself, she strolled into the room to show of the gear that covered her body. The team smiled at her, welcoming her with open arms. “To think today is the day,” Coran mused, recalling the many years they spent training and preparing the child. In truth, no one had been surprised when the Blue Lion had bowed to Ruru on one of their many trips to her planet, opening itself to welcome her. She was younger then, too young to pilot the lion herself, but Allura knew the Lion had chosen its future Paladin. In the years to follow since locating Keith, Allura had been the Blue paladin, piloting it in Lance’s honor.

To this day she never felt entirely right with the idea, knowing she could never be the paladin that Lance was- but she did her best to live up to his name. They had been too late in arriving at that planet. While Keith was there and alive- he was not without injuries or a broken heart. Someone Coeihn by the name of Rashra had taken Lance’s life while he was parted from Keith- attacking him from behind and stabbing him in the back. When the team arrived, Keith was in heavy mourning, his eyes cold, unable to hear their voices. Through the others Coeihns on the planet, they had learned that Keith had grown to love Lance, and had even become something known as an Equivalent to him in the time they had been separated. Allura had lost many people in her life, and she knew she shouldn’t have hoped that both of them would be alive after how long they had been gone- but hearing that Lance had passed only a day before they arrived hurt more than she could bare. If they had just been a little faster- had just gotten that message a little sooner… well, there was no point in thinking ‘what if’ anymore. So many years had passed since then. Around 14, if she recalled correctly. It had taken a while after they located Keith to get the team able to form Voltron again. Keith had lost so much life in him, like an empty shell of the person he once was. He threw himself into training, refusing to ever bring up Lance’s name in any conversation. Since it was such a touchy subject, they did their mourning, holding a funeral for Lance, but did their best to not talk about him with Keith around. Sometimes, Allura would still see him avert his gaze to prevent looking at Blue directly. They loving lion just reminded him too much of Lance. Sometimes she still worried if Keith was mad at her for taking the paladin title after his passing, but Keith assured her it is what Lance would have wanted. It took years, but Keith eventually started to open up about Lance and what happened on that planet in more detail. He talked about how Lance had changed him- how he had opened his heart again after so long. They had even returned to Earth to tell Lance’s parents of what had happened. Keith had insisted he be the one to do it, asking for a moment alone with the family. They didn’t believe him at first, but then Keith retold them stories Lance had discussed with him in secret. He showed them a ring and told them of their relationship. Allura could still recall the wail of Lance’s Mother as she embraced Keith, then how Keith broke down, crumbling to his knees and sobbing till his voice cracked. Lance’s family had welcomed Keith as one of their own, and he often went back to see them, despite how hard it was for him sometimes. To this day, he still wore a small silver ring on his finger, refusing ever to take it off. Allura was sometimes tempted to tell Keith to try and seek new love, to maybe help mend his heart. Lance wouldn’t want him to stay broken over his death forever- but she could never bring herself to do this. It was still too heavy of a scar and Keith would move on when he was ready. He didn’t need to find new love- Allura just wanted Keith to find some peace in his life. Having Ruru as the new Blue paladin gave her hope of that. When she had told Keith of her decision, he had been angry at first- but the more he thought about it, the more he agreed to the idea. Having Ruru as a paladin scared him, but he knew there was no one better for the role. It also took time to convince her parents, but they knew this is what she wanted. Plus, Zarkon had been defeated eight years before this day, so it wasn’t as dangerous as it used to be. The only role Voltron played now was picking up the damage Zarkon had left, helping rebuild societies that had been destroyed by his tyranny. There were still many planets out there still under Galra rule, despite the death of their leader. “Well…” Ruru cleared her throat, lifting her gaze at them. Dressed in the Blue paladin armor, her hair pulled back in a tight ponytail behind her, which trailed all the way down to her waist, she smiled. “How do I look?” “Like you were born for this,” Pidge says. "It is so good to have you, Ruru," Hunk agreed. Ruru smiles, moving forward to join everyone. When Shiro held out his hand to shake it, she took it with a smile. Looking over the rest of the group, she paused at Allura. “Are you sure this is okay?” she asked her, fully away that she was the former paladin of the Blue lion and not wanting to take her place. Allura nods, smiling brightly, “The Blue lion choose you. I am honored to hand over the role,” Beaming a smile, Ruru slowly lowered his gaze. She looks hesitant suddenly and takes a deep breath. When she is ready, she looks to her idol and hero. With watery eyes, she says, “Keef?” He had been staring at his feet, his gaze distant. Hearing her call, he slowly looks her over, taking in her appearance with a sad gaze in his eyes. Stepping closer, he pulls something out from behind him. “You’re ready,” he tells her, placing the blue Bayard, Lance’s Bayard, into her hands. Gripping it tightly, she inhales shakily. Sniffing when Keith puts a hand on her shoulder, he pulls her into a tight hug, whispering in her ear, “Lance would be so proud of you,” A tear slides down her cheek, and she quickly brushes it away, nodding. Stepping back from him to lift the Bayard, now officially hers, she activates it. Hunk stifles a sob when it transforms into something that heavily resembles a pistol. Surprised at it herself, Ruru lifts it up to examine it, finding that a blade was also sticking up from it. “Is that a pistol sword?” Pidge reaches up a hand to sigh, “Of course it’s a pistol sword.” Should they really be surprised that it was, considering just how heavily Keith and Lance had influenced her life growing up? Grinning, Ruru extended it out, loving how the pistol seems to stick up from the side of the blade and the trigger was on the handle. She could fire at an enemy as she slashed at it- the ultimate weapon in her mind. “I love it,” she gushes. “It suits you,” Keith agrees, lifting the helmet next and tossing it to her. Managing to give her a little smile when she caught it, Ruru nods. “I’ll make you both proud,” and Keith knows she is talking about Lance too. Lifting the helmet to put it on her head, she freezes when it doesn't seem to want to slide past her forehead. Trying a few more times, her eyes swell, and she whispers, “Keef….” He blinks rapidly, “What?” “It won’t fit over my horns,” she whispers tearfully, horrified that this touching moment was ruined by her species natural appearance. Keith throws a hand up to his mouth, and for the first time in years, he laughs. It’s then that the team knows he’s going to be okay. He won’t ever be the same, and the scar that Lance left when he died will always be there, but he was going to be okay.

#let me catch my breath #the sad/kind of happy ending #Sobbing #Lance #Keith #fanfic #Ruru #Ruru the Blue paladin #Help me ;-;#Ahhh #my heart

42 notes · View notes

mcwriting · 4 years

Text

Starstruck (9)

hello it’s me again. Second to last chapter :( but I’ve got bigger things in the works

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10

Fandom: Tom Holland

Ship: Tom x reader

Setting: LA, London

Word Count: 2230

Warnings: mild language

Rating: K+

__________________________________

Tom dodged cameras and wove through crowds as he made his way through London Heathrow Airport.

He finally was home in London, but only for about a week since he’d be coming back to LA for you.

The news had obviously broken that Tom had left South Korea, so now he was being bombarded with paparazzi who still wanted to know everything about you, especially your speech four days prior.

He continued to ignore them as he got to where Tuwaine was waiting to pick them up.

The car doors slammed shut as all four boys settled themselves in, Harrison up front and the Hollands in the back. Tuwaine locked the doors, then turned around.

“Seems like we’ve got a lot to talk about, boys.”

“You have noooo idea,” Tom muttered as the others nodded eagerly.

The drive back to their south London house was comfortable to Tom after everything that had happened. They mostly strayed from talking about you in the car, instead sharing funny stories from the long-lived press tour.

Sam decided to head back to his parents’ house after they arrived at the other boys’, ringing up an uber. He just wanted to sleep in his own bed. Their parents and Paddy had come home from the premiere before Tom went to Korea.

Once the boys were showered off and settled in, they told Tuwaine everything from the pre-release press tour before the premiere to meeting you to everything since.

“That’s mad, Tom. So when are you going back? And how do you plan on going unseen?” Tuwaine asked.

“Well we’re gonna get back to LA on Thursday to have time to adjust again and get everything settled. I’ve paid for a couple private planes to keep things off the radar as best as I can. All of you can come if you want.”

After further discussion, they decided for only Harrison and Harry to join Tom since the others had prior commitments.

After a couple more hours of catching up and reflecting on the past weeks, everyone finally decided to retire to their beds and hopefully get some rest.

As Tom layed down, he thought about the plan to see you again. He was nervous and excited at the same time, and went to sleep thinking one thing.

I’m coming to get ya, y/n.

__________________________________

As always, news of Tom’s travel back home was all over the internet with clips and pictures of him dodging through the airport being shared, you of course being tagged in those pictures by fan accounts wanting attention.

“Ughhhh I’m so tired of people tagging me in this shit like I actually care! I’m not even remotely involved in these pictures!” you exclaimed to b/f/n, who was sprawled on your bean bag chair as you laid on your stomach across a rug.

You showed her a fan edit of Tom someone tagged you in, which was just a video transitioning between pictures of him from his press tour.

“I know. It’s so dumb like, he’s even likely to see stuff if you just pester his friends, or in your case… whatever you guys are.”

“Give me a break. We’re nothing. We just met and yeah. That’s all there is to it.”

“I don’t buy it, but whatever. I need to use your charger.”

You pointed to the bed.

“It’s over on the other side if you want it.”

B/f/n sighed dramatically, then rolled her way off the bean bag to flop onto your bed, plugging the device in. After a few minutes of silent scrolling on your phones, she piped up.

“Yo. Why does your bed smell so good? New detergent or something?”

You blushed, realizing you never told her about that little detail.

“Uh, well. It’s cologne.”

She turned her head to look directly at you, eyebrows raised cheekily.

“And why do you have cologne on your bedsheets?”

You avoided looking directly at her for a second, cringing a little.

“Well… I may have kind of left out the part of the story where Tom gave me a whole bottle of his cologne and it smelled really good so I sprayed it all over my sheets… but like no biggie right?”

She sat up.

“Yes biggie! You know exactly what Tom Holland smells like and didn’t think to tell me?”

“I forgot about it until the other day when I found the bottle in a bag of my stuff. Didn’t seem important.”

“Okay, if it’s not important, then why did you douse your bed in his scent?”

“I told you, I think it smells good. That’s it.”

“You’re really going to sit there and try to convince me of that? Everyone knows that scent memory is a really big deal, not to mention that he literally gave it to you.”

You stared each other down for almost a minute before you cracked.

“Okay, fine. It helps me sleep, alright? It takes me back to the night he spent here, which honestly was one of the best nights of my life. It just felt so nice talking to him about vulnerable things, you know? At the time I thought I could trust him, and maybe a part of me wants to remember that side of him.”

B/f/n nodded as you finished.

“I get it. What he did sucks, but you can’t let that ruin the good memories you do have. Things will work themselves out. They always do. You just need to remember that you’re a boss bitch and no matter what happens, you’re gonna be alright.”

“Thanks. I really needed to hear that.”

“Anytime. Now let’s forget about him and figure out where we want to get our nails done next week.”

__________________________________

It was now Tuesday, and you and b/f/n sat in adjacent pedicure chairs, trying to lean back peacefully as yours vibrated violently in the name of a “massage.”

After you both struggled to not laugh while the nail techs exfoliated your feet, you were now relaxed and still as they began to actually polish your toenails.

You looked over to see b/f/n smiling at her phone.

“Who’s got you acting up?” you asked. She looked up in surprise.

“It’s no one. Catherine just sent me something funny on Instagram.”

“Oh, okay. Send it to me.”

In reality, she had been talking to Harrison and Tom about Friday, sending them pics of you in your dress the prior week and learning of their plans to get to LA on Thursday morning.

To cover for herself, though, b/f/n scrolled through her dm’s with Catherine, looking for something she’d received but never sent to you.

__________________________________

Wednesday in London, Tom, Harrison, and Harry sat around the dining room recapping the plan for the rest of the week.

“Okay, so we’re gonna get there pretty early tomorrow morning and then I arranged for us to stay at an AirBnb under b/f/n’s name but obviously I’m paying for it. Since none of us are 25, I couldn’t get a regular rental car, but I talked to Audi and they said they’d loan me another car as long as we post some pictures with it.”

“Won’t that defeat the purpose of laying low if we’re plastering our faces with the car online? It won't be hard to distinguish London from pretty much anywhere else,” Harry claimed.

“They said as long as we get the pictures up before we leave town, we’re good. We’ll just have to put it in the calendar so I don’t forget.”

Harry took that as his cue to put it in the calendar right then.

“What about the actual event? I know you said you got in touch with them,” Harrison brought up.

“I’m glad you asked, mate. They were down for letting us make our appearance a surprise, so they’ll have staff sneak us in the back and wait until b/f/n gives us the go-ahead. They’re gonna introduce me and I’ll give a quick word and then… hopefully y/n will let me talk to her.”

The group got everything in order and loaded their bags into Tuwaine’s car once again for him to drive them to the private jet hangars.

After saying their goodbyes again and loading up onto the plane, the boys were in the air, headed west. They would be stopping in New York to change planes, and got comfortable for the almost 8 hour flight.

By the time they got to New York, the boys were exhausted going through customs. They were happy to find that so far no one had seemed to leak the fact that they had left London and were now in the states.

They boarded the next plane and prepared for the 6 hour flight, this time planning to get sleep as it was overnight and they’d be arriving in the morning.

The sun was beginning to rise over Los Angeles as the plane touched down.

“Tom, we’re here,” Harry said, shaking his brother awake as the plane taxied.

Tom blinked his eyes a few times to adjust to the light, looking out the window.

The boys deplaned on the tarmac and sat tiredly in the small airport’s lobby as they waited for someone to drop off the car.

Tom noticed one woman at the desk looking over at him frequently. He was afraid she would end up putting him all over the internet, so he got up and came to the desk.

“Hi there.”

She looked at him, startled.

“Um, hello.”

“I couldn’t help but notice you looking over at us. Would you happen to be a fan?” Tom asked politely. She blushed.

“Yes, actually, I am.”

“Would you like a picture?” Tom offered. He knew he looked horrible from his long journey but needed to know she wouldn’t go around telling everyone about meeting him.

“That would be incredible! I was too afraid to ask.”

Tom called Harry over to take the picture on her phone, then took it from the younger brother. Tom noticed Harrison carrying a couple bags out the door to a car.

“That’s a good one! I only ask that you try to keep this to yourself? At least until tomorrow evening? I’m on a bit of a secret mission, and I don’t quite want the public to know I’m here, yet.”

The girl’s eyes widened.

“Of course! I’d hate to ruin anything for you.”

“Awesome, thank you so much. And it was quite lovely meeting you, I look forward to seeing those pictures again one day.”

With that, Tom was out the door and on his way to the spot they had rented out for the trip.

__________________________________

B/f/n woke up Thursday to work out again and saw there was an Instagram notification on her lock screen. It was Harrison (or maybe Tom, who knew who she was actually talking to).

We made it to the AirBnb. Thanks again for putting it under your name.

She saw it had been sent about an hour prior, so she replied.

No worries. I haven’t seen anything online about you being in the US, so it seems like you’re good so far

We’ll try to keep a low profile. We’re mostly trying to adjust to the time again so Tom isn’t falling asleep at the formal tomorrow night

B/f/n snorted. She figured it really was Harrison that she was talking to.

At the boy’s rented house, they were sitting around drinking black coffee to stay awake for the day. Eventually, they ran outside and took pictures with the car, being careful to watch that no one was looking at them.

As the morning went on, they quickly came to an unfortunate realization.

There was no food in the house, and they couldn’t just go out and get it. Delivery wasn’t the best bet either considering someone would have to answer the door.

So with stomachs growling, they messaged b/f/n again, asking her to pick up some groceries to hold them over for the day.

You’re lucky I’m not with y/n right now. Just send me a list and I’ll bring it over asap

It took her over an hour to get to the store, find everything on the list, and take it to the house. Her stomach fluttered when she pulled into the driveway as she was finally meeting her idol for real.

The door swung open before she could knock.

“Oh thank God you’re finally here, I’m starving,” Harrison said , taking the bags from her hands. “Come in, come in. Don’t need anyone seeing us.”

She stepped in the door to find the other two sitting on the couch. They greeted her starstruck self.

“Oh, wow. Hi. It’s nice to finally meet you in person,” she eventually spit out, looking at them in amazement.

She ended up spending almost an hour conversing with them, Tom paying her back for the groceries and them finalizing the details for the upcoming day.

She stood in the doorway preparing to leave.

“Well, I’ll see you all tomorrow. I don’t know what she’ll do, but good luck either way.”

“Thanks, b/f/n, that means a lot. And thanks for all the help you’ve been. Without you, I don’t know what I would have done.”

__________________________________

A/N: honestly I’m kinda sad that this is almost over. I started it over a year ago now and I’ve really enjoyed writing it. Hopefully I’ll put out the last chapter next week and then will begin scheduling “the marriage project.” Love you guys!

TAG LIST: @marvel-lously, @jackiehollanderr, @one-big-fangirl, @dreamyvans, @lisannehus, @honeymoonpeter, @shootingstarsaretearsofheaven, @chenellearose, @photoshopart15, @parkeret, @ilikealotofpeople-younotsomuch, @racewife2004, @joyleenl

To be added to my story or permanent tag list, pls send a message or ask

#starstruck #tom holland #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland imagine #tom holland x reader #tom holland x y/n #tom holland x you #spider-man #spiderman #spider man #Spider Man: Homecoming #tom holland spider man #Harry Holland #harrison osterfield #sm:hoco #sm:ffh #SPIDER MAN: FAR FROM HOME

31 notes · View notes