#Wonder Woman should be at LEAST 6'3

[deathspeaker]

Bad artists, to jail with you!

Artists (any artist, in the past and in the future) who draw Wonder Woman as shorter than Batman and Superman need to be put into a padded room and forced to draw the Trinity Correctly while being yelled at for their weakness by the ghost of Jack Kirby the short king who loved his tall women.

Jack Kirby's ghost will also be allowed to lay hands on the especially weak cowards who draw Big Barda as shorter than Scott Free.

[yurhighnessmio]

✍You are in a typical awkward elevator ride with a group of other people, suddenly, a man says, "So, I bet you are wondering why I've gathered you here." before hitting the emergency stop button.

Short Story #6 - March 14, 21 & 23, 2022; Monday; 3:26pm

Never in anyone's lifetime would they have the coincidence to hear a conversation between Good, Evil, Order, Chaos, Life, Death and Dave all in one elevator ride.

Seven footsteps forward, and four more to the right lead to an escape from his office where an argument occured between two of his coworkers. He takes his headphones and puts them over his ears. Not to listen to anything in particular, but to shut off anything or anyone that had the slightest intention of talking to him.

He steps inside the elevator. Just before he presses his floor number however, a few others follow in. First, there was one, a black-haired woman. Then there was two, a she-redhead and a tall black-haired man aka a blackhead. Then two more: a short brunette guy, and A blonde woman. And lastly, one last person in a suit came in and stood at the corner where all the buttons were.

The elevator was packed. He couldn't reach the floor buttons. So he thought of maybe doing it right after they all left. Which wouldn't be so bad considering he wasn't in much of a hurry.

But then the guy who came in last—which was also the same person in a suit—hits the emergency stop button the moment the elevator door closed and said, "So, I bet you are wondering why I've gathered you here."

His head raised to a shock. The people infront remained facing forward. Only he seems to be even a tad bit surprised by this. 

Not wanting to seem out of place, he glanced back down to the comfort of his phone. He scrambled to scroll, looking for a video to look at but not actually watch. The rest of the people in the elevator remained silent.

That is until—brown, puffy-haired shortie—who stood before him, answers with a question, "Is this about how right now, you're still alive?"

"Don't sound so disappointed," answers a black-haired man, smirking as he leaned towards the short guy's ear. He stood next to our boy in headphones, was at least 6'3 and as white as bleach could get your laundry. He chuckled, "I might accidentally think you dont like him."

"I heard he did die today though." said a black-haired woman who stood just behind the man in a suit, on the other corner of the elevator, "Once, I think...and it was a hell of a way to die."

"Oh?" Curious was the blonde woman who stood in between the short man and the black-haired woman, "How?"

"Dunno. Death didn't explain anything to me."

The blonde woman sighed, "Where is Death when you need her?"

"Death's not here?" repeated the brown shortie.

The black-haired woman faced his way, a brow raised when she crossed his arms, "Do you seriously think it'd be this quiet if she were here?"

"Are you actually asking Chaos that?" Inserted a redhead as she leaned in her tiptoes.

"Goodness Good," the tall man called—which was apparently his name—then he leaned into grab her by her cheeks, tap his nose unto hers, and said, "be a good Good and shut up."

Good smiled, "Okay."

"Are you all quite done?" came the voice that started this whole situation, which, as our boy just noticed, sounded the deepest and most threatening out of all them men in this room.

"Anyway Dave..." Chaos, unbothered and ignored his question, asked so eagerly: "Tell us how you died."

"Yeah, it must have been quite a feat for Death to mention it otherwise." said the tall man after letting go of Good.

Dave answered, "That's not what you're here for and its none of your business."

"Oh honey, what are you talking about?" The blonde argued, "We are the business."

Chaos roared a laughter, "Good one, Order."

Good added, "I should be the one saying that lmao."

The tall man smirked, shaking his head in disbelief, "Look at these dorks, bullying people...so proud."

"So you guys learned the newer generation of human terminology too?"

Order eyed her, "Life, dear, do you really think it's possible not to?"

Dave let out a sigh, a long and awfully noticable one, enough to silence everyone in the room. "I've rechecked last decades files yesterday and one of you fucked."

Good nearly gasped. Dave never cusses. Never. The only reason he would is if the news was gravely serious—and this would mean ultimate danger for the rest of them.

A hand massaging his left temple spoke millions of held back anger that they would not like to threaten.

Our boy finally faced them, fully looked up, and he saw the most basic face anyone could see. But just as quickly, he ducked down again when the man said aloud in an angered tone, "Who did it?"

Silence. It ate up what little sense of ease they had. Still, no one answered.

Good stood on her tippy toes and leaned into the tall man, mumbling, "This...is not good."

"It wasn't me." Chaos said, immediately to defend himself, "Whatever it is, it wasn't me."

"Even I don't like the sound of that." the tall man mumbled back.

Life's eyes darted to him, "If even Evil says that, that's saying something..."

"I vote Death..." Chaos added, "Death is sus."

Order lifted a hand at him, "Let's not jump into conclusions—"

"Where is Death?"

Silence. All looks at Life.

"Don't look at me. I don't know."

Order called out, "Wait, how many of us are present?"

Then she begins to count. Eyes moving from one person to another as her finger taps the air, eventually pointing to our boy, who at the moment, is panicking to stay calm as he pretends to be immersed in a meme he found in his phone.

But his phone is in silent  His headphones off  His heart, beating like the slamming of doors.

Good, whispering quite loudly to Life's ear, said, "...I think he's human..."

Evil grumbled, "Good. Your job is to be good, not stupid."

Chaos, who opened up the opportunity to suggestions, questioned aloud, "Should we beat him until he gets amnesia?"

"Definitely not." Said Order.

Evil glared at her, "I second Chaos' notion."

Good retaliated, "I second Order's."

Life caved to the silence of a forgotten presence, "Uh...Dave?"

Doom befalls on everyone. Dave walks close, the others making way for him. Then he stops infront of our boy. Dave's feet unmoving and waiting for him to notice.

Unfortunately, he's chosen not to notice him or the people around. He could feel himself tremble and sweat, although he's been attempting to keep them to a bare minimum—even when he can't.

Dave called, "Excuse me."

He doesn't answer.

This time, Dave taps his shoulder twice. He had no choice but to take notice. So he took it off, his headphones. Then he looked at him, his eyes as if in surprise.

What he saw was how the people around him were casually doing their own thing; checking their phones, fixing their hair, waiting. He did not for one bit believe it.

He spoke finally, "Is there anything I can help you with, Sir?"

Dave smiled, looking like the friendliest neighborhood business man out there, "Hi, my name's Dave. I'd just like to ask you a question since I couldn't help but be curious..."

"Oh, no," he stuttered, then added an assumption, "I don't have any money..."

Dave chuckled, "It has nothing to do with money..."

"Oh, that's my bad then." he put down his phone, "Ask away."

"These bombings...is it Iran or Iraq?"

"Uh..." Our boy checked his phone, "It's Iraq, I believe."

Dave smiled, the nodded, "Thank you." before walking back to the front of the elevator.

Our boy, once again, out on his headphones. Only for show, of course. And continued to pretend as if nothing special happened.

But his will caved to curiosity and he continued to listen.

There remained a quietness that no one else was willing to break. Thankfully Dave did so himself with a long announcement, "Well, we know where Death is now. Anywho, I doubt that child is listening in. If he did, it wouldn't matter as much anyway.  So to shorten things up, one of you forgot to double check and swipe one soul's memory clean before sending them back to Earth. Now the nursery's got a wondering soul with abilities and a fully intact memory of their previous life going on and off  living like the rest of the children...Find them. If not, there will be consequences. Grave ones. Do you understand? I implore you lot should think about your actions a little bit more thoroughly before I decide to fire you. Good day."

On cue, the elevator door opened. No one else noticed how as they talked on and on about their thoughts, Dave already began to click the numbers for them. And with this one, he leaves.

The door shuts, and the silence continues. No movements. No sounds. Just silence until Chaos mumbled a triggering array of arguments in their way, "I still vote Death."

Evil grumbled, "I vote you shut up."

Good, in her worries, said aloud, "This is bad...This is bad!"

Evil ticked, "No shit, I see that!?"

"Life," Order called, "you brought that thing to Earth. Do you, at least, have an idea which it is?"

"Order, do you have the slightest clue how many souls I deliver to the nursery on a humanly daily basis? Don't just expect me to be both good at my job and math."

"Maybe we should ask Death..." muttered good, "She's good at all this remembering stuff, right?"

Order replied, "We can't when she's in Iran—"

"It's Iraq, actually." Chaos cut in, "Get it right."

"Iraq, whatever. Point is, everyone's got work and I doubt anyone else other than Good is willing to do overtime. So any suggestions in what we should do?"

Evil raised a hand, "I have a solution "

Order let out a breath of relief, "Oh thank goodness—"

"It involves fire."

"Absolutely not."

"What!?"

Chaos argued, "Fire sounds good though."

"Hear this shrimp?" Evil puts his arm around Chaos' neck, "Fire sounds good—"

Good stepped in, "It doesn't though—"

Chaos pushed evil back, "Don't call me a shrimp, beanpole."

"The fuck'd you say!?"

Life interrupted, "So what do we do about the human?"

Silence. Our boy gulped. Everyone's eyes glare at him like a knifepoint.

Chaos started, "I doubt this thing is not listening in on us."

"You doubt everything you see." But Order caved, "What do you suggest we do about it?"

"I say we torturrigate him." Suggested Evil.

Good asked, "What's that?"

"Torture Interrogation."

"No!"

"I say we go for it." Said Chaos in his highs.

Order ignored it. Instead, she muttered to herself, the stress of Death's disappearance. "I can't believe Death missed out on the meeting just for Iran—"

"It's Iraq—"

"Whatever."

"Well," Life called for attention, "It does look like she's quite busy."

"Exactly." Chaos nodded, "Maybe I should pay her a visit cause she seems to be having the time of her life."

Life's lips formed a line, "Seriously?"

Chaos chuckled, "Pun intended. Evil, wanna come with?"

"Can't right now, Chaos. I have a schedule to keep track of." He said, "Gotta go tempt the Russian President into invading Ukraine."

Good heaved, "But you can't do that! That's mean!"

Evil laughed at the face of Good, "I've been doing a good job this year, Goodytoosh. If you think that's bad, I can do better."

"More like worse." Good declared, "I wont let you."

Evil howled, leaning down, "Goodluck with that...you'll need it."

Chaos, seemingly interested in their argument, caved to his own desires. "Can I come?"

"Is your allegiance going to lie with me or with her?"

"My allegiance usually lies." he said, "But which ones causes more problems?"

"Me."

"Then you for sure."

"Good!'

Good exclaimed, "No! Not good! Not good at all!"

A ring is heard, and the elevator door opens. Evil, after grabbing Chaos' hand, skips together with him to the nearest window and jumps off—shocking our boy. Because if he was keeping track of anything at all, the elevator has done nothing but go up the entire time.

Good follows in full speed. Then jumps off the same window. The elevator door closes. Silence once again.

"So..." Life started, "Which one of us is actually going to do anything about this entire problem?"

Order answered, "No one."

"And you really think that's a smart idea?"

"Nope."

"Good. I'd be concerned if you did...Do you have my number?"

"I have everyone's number...But which one are we talking about here?"

"My phone number."

"Yeah. Do you have mine?"

"Will you give it to me?"

"Here's my card." Order hands it to her.

Life's not even giving a second to look at it. instead, she immediately puts it in her jean's pockets.

Order caved, "So you gonna tell me how Dave died or what?"

"He fell off a building."

Order nodded for a bit, "Well that was lamer than I expected."

"Let me correct myself then:" Life paused with a lifted finger, "He was thrown off a building."

"Thrown off?"

"It was 16 stories high."

"Oh wow—Impressive. Though in his perspective, it must be pretty embarrassing—"

"By a child."

"Okay now that's definitely embarrassing."

Life nodded, "Definitely."

Another ring is heard, both exited the elevator as it opens to another floor.

"Well, goodbye."

"Same to you."

Then they go to two opposing directions. The elevator door closes. And with the biggest relief, out boy lets out a long and deep sigh—as if he had just reach out for breath on the surface of the ocean after being dunked at the very bottom.

In the process, his arm leaned to the wall as he dropped his phone on the floor. At the moment, he couldn't care less if it cracked or not. Muttering to himself, he paused, "Everything makes sense now..."

🌟

Questions?

Comments?

Advice?

No?

Have a great day.

[virtues-end]

FAQ

◈ Will we ever learn about the MCs past?

Indeed you will. Details about the MCs past will unfold gradually throughout the story.

◈ Does the MC age/is the MC immortal?

The MC has not physically aged since undergoing the ritual of binding ~7 years ago. As a result of that ritual, they are also effectively immortal. Canonically, the MC is somewhere between their late 20s and mid 30s.

◈ Why doesn't the MC just run away?

The MC will suffer severe (physical) consequences should they stray too far apart from their Keeper, becoming violently ill (potentially to the point of unconsciousness) if the distance becomes too great.

◈ Why doesn't the MC just kill Shea?

The magical seal on the MCs body prevents them from attacking their Keeper with the intent to kill. Also, I would not have a story if I let the MC act as a deranged murderhobo all of the time (a little murdering is okay, though).

◈ How do you pronounce Shea?

Feel free to pronounce it however you wish. I personally pronounce it as [ʃeɪ].

◈ Can the main character be trans?

Yes. You'll also be able to choose whether they've transitioned or not. It's something that might also come up later, in talks with other characters. For intimate scenes, the first time you engage in one you will be asked to 'set' your character's top and bottom parts.

◈ Who are the ROs?

Virtue's End has four relationship options: Shea, Penrose, Elexis, and Idris. You can read more information about them in this post. If you'd like to see my sketches of them, you can do so here.

◈ How tall are the ROs?

I've kept it deliberately vague in-game for immersive purposes but Shea is 192 cm (6'3"), Penrose is 198 cm (6'6"), Elexis is 176 cm (5'9"), and Idris is 169 cm (5'7").

◈ Are there any poly relationships in the game?

I'd like there to be, though it'll probably be complicated. Coding/writing-wise, but also... all of these people are not okay. Some of them hate each other's guts, or at the very least strongly dislike each other. And I don't want to force a loving relationship where there is none, so it would be toxic as hell. We'll see.

◈ Are any of the ROs trans?

Male Penrose is a trans man, and female Elexis is a trans woman. In addition, both Shea and Elexis can be set to nonbinary. All of the characters have set top and bottom parts that you will not be able to change.

◈ Are there any mystery or secret ROs?

At the moment, I've decided to limit the (full) relationship options to Shea, Penrose, Elexis, and Idris. However, the player might occasionally have the opportunity to engage in a fling/hook-up with a minor character.

If you're familiar with the old version of Virtue's End and are wondering about the ROs that were cut (namely Sutton, Eiri, Guinn, and Sinclair), some of them might still make an appearance, though they won't be full ROs. I've also chosen to 'merge' a few of them with the existing companions.

◈ Do you answer 'RO reacts’ kind of asks?

As these types of asks require a lot of energy to respond to, I generally do not answer them. However, I might make an exception if it’s a particularly interesting concept or prompt.

◈ Are you still working on the game?

Yes, I am! Although the game was on hiatus for a while, I've since resumed working on it, and am currently working on chapter two. Fair warning, I'm a slow writer, but I'm steadily chipping away at it. :-)

◈ Is there a Virtue's End discord server?

No. There used be, but I deleted it due to a variety of reasons (hiatus, inactivity, social anxiety, etc). And I'm currently not really interested in running a new one.

◈ Do you have a Patreon/Ko-Fi?

I do. I have a Patreon, where I post early access to game updates and sketches and progress updates, that sort of thing. Please note, however, that it doesn't offer very many Patreon 'exclusives' such as short stories/snippets/things like that. All game updates will be released publicly eventually, so please don't feel like you need to pay for them. I'd be extremely grateful for any support you could give me, however. I also have a Ko-Fi, though it serves as more of a tip jar.

◈ When was the game last updated?

The public version of the game was last updated on October the 15th 2024. The Patreon version currently offers no additional content.

◈ What's the current word count of the game?

The public version is a little over 76k words (excl. code). The Patreon demo currently has no additional content.

◈ Do you have an update schedule?

Sort of? My goal is to release an update roughly every 1-2 months. The length of these updates may vary, depending on how much time I've had to work on them and other (real life) factors. The Patreon version receives more frequent, 'incomplete' updates, whilst I generally try to update the public demo when I have something a little more substantial/finished.

◈ Is the old version of the game still playable?

Yep! The previous version of the game remains up on Dashingdon. Please note, however, that it will no longer receive updates.

◈ Do you accept nsfw asks?

Yes, I do, but it depends on the contents of the ask whether I feel comfortable answering it or not. Fair warning, messages that solely consist of people being horny about characters will most likely be received with a chuckle but will otherwise remain unanswered.

Any NSFW or suggestive asks will be clearly marked as mature and tagged with ‘nsfve’. Explicit content will always be hidden under a cut.

◈ Where is your awesome icon from?

It's a terrific tattoo design by artist Naomi Butterfield!

[kusagrasskusa]

Michael Myers X Reader - Part 3 - Final

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

This one made me cringe lol- Also, there's sorta a sensitive part of the story so beware.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today is the day, Y/N thought to herself. She pressed her hand against the wall of her hallway, slowly moving her hand across it as she walked towards the living room. It was in the middle of the night, around 3AM, where Michael would be asleep by now. Perfect time to finally see that face for more than 5 seconds... At that thought, Y/N furrowed her eyebrows as she wondered how Michael doesn't have terrible acne due to wearing that mask all the time.

Shaking that thought from her head, she finally entered the living room and saw a sleeping psychopath on her couch with his arms wrapped around a pillow and a large cover over him. The pillow he hugged always covered his face, hence why Y/N wasn't able to see his face in his sleep either. And because he always hides his mask when he sleeps as well, so Y/N can't just take it from him. And Michael's a light sleeper anyway, so he's catch her before she gets the chance to hide it.

But this time, Y/N had a plan. Michael sometimes goes out for a kill and she never knows. So when he comes home at 3AM and knocks on the door really loud, it scares the fuck outta her. In order to prevent that, she bought a camera that has night vision that connects to her computer. But she might as well test it out in living room, wink wink. And hey! She can find where he keeps his mask so Y/N doesn't have to look around for hours. All she needs to know is the general vicinity to find it. It was set up earlier, so all Y/N would have to do it wake him up so he goes to get his mask.

She smirked mischievously as she tiptoed over to the couch, hovering over him. He was lightly snoring peacefully, relaxed (not for long-). Y/N slowly gripped the sides of the pillow he was hugging, very delicately pulling it away from him. As soon as he started to stir in his sleep, she ripped it out of his arms and giggled as he shot his arms up over his face. "Aww, good morning, honey!" She giggled; Y/N could basically feel the anger radiating off of him, which was her que to ruN THE FUCK AWAY.

Right after saying good morning, she darted towards her room as fast as humanly possible. Rather than chasing her, Michael just hissed and stood up to grab his mask from in between the couch cushions. Sliding it on, he groggily went his way towards Y/N's room to probably scare her or something. I don't know, he was acting out in the moment.

Y/N could hear his slow footsteps faintly as he got closer to her door. She went under her bed to "hide from him" so it doesn't seem suspicious that she's just calm and all that. Yeah, poor reasoning but sTiLL. Anyway, Y/N giggled under her breath as he opened her bedroom door, walking inside her room and looking around. She could faintly hear him sigh as he went close to her bed, then turned his body so he could see under the bed. Y/N jolted backwards so she wouldn't get caught however Michael grabbed her arm strongly but gently. Y/N laughed as she was pulled out from under the bed.

"Michael, Michael, honey! I thought you were asleep or something!" She spoke innocently. She could just feel Michael's half lidded "shut the fuck up" stare. Y/N opened her mouth to speak again, but suddenly there was a loud knock on her door. I mean loud as in they were trying to break it. Y/N jumped, yelling, "what the hell!" Michael let go of her, watching as she raced towards her the kitchen to grab a knife. But as soon as she grabbed one, she heard someone yell.

"Police, open up!" Y/N's heart fucking dropped. Her lips quivered and her eyes widened with fear. Michael's image was the only thing she could think of as she opened the door, seeing a couple of large men in suits with guns and whatnot. One of them was holding a large black objects used to break down doors. Another was holding a piece of paper towards Y/N, speaking in a rough voice, "Y/N L/N! The FBI has a warrant to search your house for the wanted criminal Michael Myers. If we find any trace of him, you'll be under arrest for harboring a fugitive. For now, you'll be detained and questioned, not arrested. If it seems that your innocent, then you should remain calm and you shall have nothing to worry about. Otherwise, feel free to speak up now."

At the end of his speech, he put the paper away as a dozen of FBI agents bust into Y/N house, running across into ever room and searching for both Michael and evidence of him being here. At the sight of seeing all of this and the feeling of that officer grabbing her arms roughly and detaining them with cuffs, Y/N began to cry. Her legs became shaky and could barely support her weight. "What...What are you guys talking about?" She breathed out fearfully.

One of the FBI Agents came across an office room with a computer in it. The computer screen showed the living room as it is with agents breaking things and yelling. The agent hummed, messing with the keyboard and mouse a bit in order to see the earliest footage. It was of Y/N still setting up the camera and when she left the view of it, we can assume she went to bed. Hours later, a large and tall man was seen heading towards the couch, pulling off his mask and hiding it, then going to sleep.

"Muh-Michael is a...a..." Y/N breathed heavily, her back against the wall and an agent crouching on front of her. Of course, Y/N already knew this but at least she can get off with "not knowing."

"That's right. He's a murderer of many, including his older sister," the agent, who has Danyel written on his tag, replied. Two other agents went up to Dabyel, one of them addressing something.

"There's not a single thing of evidence of him, nor his clothing or anything. However I found camera footage of him being inside the house, sleeping on the couch in here. This woman clearly had a good relationship with him since she woke him up before we came here." Danyel responded to him, but Y/N didn't pay much attention. So Michael just left me, she thought. No, he had to leave so we both didn't get hurt! But it still hurts a little.

"Well, the good news is you didn't lie about not knowing him," Danyel laughed, grabbing Y/N's arm roughly and pulling her up. "Eh, sorry," he apologized when Y/N whenced at his grip. He started to walk her out of her extremely noisy home and to the outdoors, where she felt an amazing relief wash over. She sniffed, his breath quivering as some tears remained and more pouring out of her eyes.

"Michael was never bad to me," she spoke in a low voice, but still loud enough for Danyel to hear.

"Hmm." He walked Y/N up to his car, opening the back door to put Y/N in. She slid inside and was pushed away from the door and towards the middle of the seat. Then Danyel sat next to her, closing the door. Wait, she thought, this isn't normal. "Wanna tell me more about how he was?" He asked her, placing his hand on her cheek and using his thumb to wipe his tears. A shiver made it's way down her spine and her eyebrows furrowed together.

"He really is a nice guy. I can't comprehend he would do something so, so...evil," Y/N started, playing along. She really was hella upset about the reality of what murder really is; yes, she knew he was a killer but had never heard or seen any of it on the news or in person. And hey, if she didn't know the person, why would she care? But now in the situation where the hell that comes from murder is placed upon her so forcefully, she couldn't help but be slightly truthful when she spoke about how terrible she feels.

"My house was always open to people in need, and than I found him. He was knocking on doors, looking for a place to stay, and I let him in. He was so nice," Y/N sniffed, flinching her head back when Danyel tried to wipe away newer tears. "He was funny, loved the food I cooked and I finally had someone to talk to. No, he finally had someone to talk to. I could see so many signs of loneliness and hurt on him and I was finally curing it. Eventually, a few months in, I started to fall for him. Actually, I can't help but still love him.

"I know it's bad but he was the greatest friend, and roommate I could ever ask for. He never complained about anything either; heh heh, there was a time when he didn't have any clean clothes to change into so I had find something for him. All I had was a large baggy, blue hoodie and he it was a good look on him." Y/N chest ached as she finished her story, staring down at the car floor. Danyel hummed, a frown on his features.

Come to think of it, I never described Danyel very well. As mentioned before, he had a rough voice; it was serious and void of care. His demeanor matched it, too, as he showed no care for Y/N as she cried. Even when he wiped her tears, he didn't do it out of the goodness of his heart, but for some other reason. His uniform was a blue business suit, unlike the other FBI agents, and it matched a serious demeanor well. His stone cold blue eyes remained on Y/N as she talked, and every once in a while he was push back his slicked back grey-blonde hair.

He was around 35 with youth in his eyes yet his forehead and eyes had wrinkles. His hair was turning grey already, probably from the heavy amounts of stress that comes with the job. He was quite tall, about 6'3 (190cm) and had broad shoulders and had a slim yet muscular build. He wasn't necessarily attractive or youthful looking, but not yet ready for unattractive or old. He always had a frown and half lidded eyes showing nothing but boredom for everything around him.

"That's very touching, Miss L/N," he spoke. Y/N looked up at him, sniffing. Danyel hummed sadly and slowly changed his face to a softer expression. "Well, you won't have to worry about it after today. In the meantime, is there anyone you can stay with for now?" Y/N's lip quivered as she shook her head. "No? You have no family, no other friends? Surely a parent or sibling would help you on a time of need, regardless of your relationship." Y/N shook her head again. She doesn't really like to talk about it.

"I don't have anyone, sir, I really don't. I don't...I don't want to talk about it but I can't see my mom! I don't have any siblings or dad, but she's not a recommendation," she reassured, her heart speeding up at the mere thought of her mom. Danyel noticed this and raised a brow.

"In that case, you will stay at my place. Of course I'm putting my life on the line that way so expect some serious restrictions." Danyel spoke, a smirk almost appearing from the corners of his lips. Y/N felt a chill go up her spine and shook. "That means in case you attempt to escape, I'll be locking your room at night. Don't think I won't go further to ensure you don't attack me in my sleep. You won't be allowed to go outside at all ever. No one is allowed to visit. You'll be able to get food whenever you wish, as well. Roam to your heart's content, but please keep silent at night."

Y/N nodded in understanding but at the same time, she felt way more uneasy than she did when he suggested it. After all he never asked if she wanted to stay with him. No, he told her she would. And his rules seem way too restricting and very unprofessional for someone in the line of service. Y/N is nearly 65% of the size of him, so how the hell is she supposed to "murder him in his sleep?" He could literally just kick her if she ever tried. Lastly, it's almost like he really wanted this.

"Now that's settled, we should be heading towards the police station for questioning. If you're innocent and knew nothing of his history, you have nothing to fear so please be honest and put up no fight. May the lord have mercy on your beautiful soul."

~~~~~~

"This will be your room, Miss L/N," Danyel said as he opened a door. Inside was a small bed that was made, a dresser that was somewhat dusty besides it, and a single lap besides it. He walked up to the dresser and set down a suitcase that Y/N had packed after questioning at the police station. She had to get it searched twice in case something were to happen, which was hella annoying for her. "Please do make yourself at home. I'll cook something tonight."

Y/N nodded her head, very uneasy as the thought of staying at some strangers house. She sighed when he stepped out of her new room and she shut the door after him. She shivered, rubbing her eyes before tears well up. "I miss Michael," she whimpered silently to herself. She pushed her hair out of her face as a shaky breath came out of her mouth. Turning towards her suitcase, she walked towards it and unzipped it. She began to pull things out and pet them away in a respective place in the dresser.

"Hmm... Where's my hoodie?" Y/N mumbled to herself under her breath. She made sure to bring a certain blue hoodie with her, but she can't find it. As she scanned through it more, she noticed a few other articles of clothing was missing. "Um, alright, that's creepy," Y/N said out loud. What the hell did Danyel do? When she finished putting her clothes away, she pulled out comfortable pajamas of F/C and S/F/C. Right afterwards, she walked out of her room.

"I'm done," she called out as she walked into the kitchen. Danyel was wearing normal clothes now, no longer a suit and tie, and he was moving around something in a pan. It smelt a lot of breakfast in the kitchen, so it was probably eggs.

"Well, I hope you enjoy it here Y/N. You'll be staying for a while, heh heh," he chuckled as he turned off the stove. "I don't know if you like breakfast for dinner, but I made eggs and pancakes for us." Y/N smiled, sitting down at the table.

"It smells very nice, thanks," she answered. "I must have been in my room longer than I thought."

"You must have been. I had to go look inside to make sure you weren't sleeping, heh."

Y/N's smile dropped when she looked away from him. He was making plates at the moment, too distracted to see Y/N's look of discomfort. Maybe I'm just paranoid, she thought to herself, but he's so weird. As Danyel passed a plate in front of her and one for himself across the table, the room became filled with an awkward silence aside from the side of the a fork clinging against the plates. Y/N poked around at her food, a bit too unnerved from today to eat well. "You know, you shouldn't play with you food."

"I know, I know, sorry. It's just..." she drifted off before getting it back together. "I miss Michael. This is all so weird." Danyel frowned, picking up a few eggs and eating them before replying.

"I see. But you know, this is very essential for your well being. After all Michael is described as pure evil. If he truly cared for you, he would come here to save you and the task force will be here to protect you. If you wanted to go back to kill you because you know too much, the task force will be here to save you. I understand this sounds like I'm using you to lure him in however I am not. You're a very beautiful and intelligent girl who has a heart in the right place; as seen when you choose to let a homeless mute guy with a mask in your house.

"It would be quite a shame for someone like you to be void of life. After all, I'm sure you're a very fun woman and it would be nice for you to stick around with me for now. As you can see I'm without a family so it'd be nice to have some company." As Danyel finished talking, Y/N nodded in understanding. By now she had already finished her food as she kinda just wanted to go to sleep as fast as possible.

Y/N stood up and brought her plate to the think. "Thank you, sir, I appreciate it. I'm probably gonna go to sleep now, okay? Have a nice night," she said as she smiled at him. Danyel stared at her as she walked away and mumbled goodnight to her. Y/N walked into her new bedroom and looked around. It's depressing to not be in her own home, especially at a stranger's house. But she knew she'd see Michael soon, right? As she layer in bed and put on socks, she couldn't help but recall that one time Michael laid in bed with her because it was cold. She giggled to herself when she turned off the light and laid on her back in bed.

It was deadpan silent in that room. So if Y/N likes a fan or TV to help her sleep, this isn't very good for her. Either way, she managed to fall asleep while replaying plenty of memories in her head. Like one time, the first week of Michael staying at her house, she woke up to get ready for work. When she stood on the countertop to get the blender out of the cabinet so she can make a milkshake before work, she saw three sticky notes that said, "Short."

Giggling at the thought, Y/N closed her eyes, waiting for the day that she can live like that again. After all how can she can live in piece in her home again when her neighbors learn her roommate is a killer? She'd never be able to live in peace again. With these thoughts in mind, Y/N began to slowly drift away to sleep until finally all at once. At least, it would last like that for a little while.

A scream erupted from Y/N's mouth as she felt someone pin her to the bed. Danyel, of course, was the culprit; he held her arms tight and got really close to her. "Tell me where he's hiding! Tell me or you'll fucking regret it!" He yelled, making Y/N burst out into tears. She gasped for air, trying to kick him off of her but to no advil.

"I don't know! Let me go!" She yelled back, now trying to release her arms but of course to no advil.

"Lying little bitch," he mumbled under his breath as he let go of one of her wrists to grab something. It was too dark to see, but the metallic-plastic sound she heard means that's it could either be a knife or a gun. Y/N used her other arm to try to release her pinned down hand but she stopped when she felt something touch her head. It was, in fact, a gun. "Tell me where he is," he said as she flipped off his safety, "or die."

Y/N whimpered holding her free arm to her chest as to make herself seem smaller to comfort herself. Danyel released her other arm, putting both hands on his gun as he began to count down from 20. Y/N sniffed, her heart racing so heavily she felt like she would die. Only 20 seconds to live? What's the point of putting up a fight? She closed her eyes tightly, huffing until Danyel got to 5. As these few numbers left rang in her ears, she began to feel apprehensive.

In one swift and easy movement, she managed to hit the gun away from Danyel. A metallic clink sound hit the floor and right after that, a shot erupted. Danyel growled, slapping Y/N before lunging to grab his gun. As fast as humanly possible, Y/N shot up and ran out of the bedroom. The light from the moon shun from all the windows, making it easy for her to maneuver around and there was still enough darkness to hide. To the right outside her bedroom was the kitchen, and in the kitchen are knives, and like hell Y/N passing that up.

She swiftly grabbed one of those larger knives, one similar to what Michael carries. As soon as Y/N made it into the living room, she heard Danyel's loud footsteps run into the kitchen. In his house, the living room and kitchen don't have a wall to separate them to Y/N was in plain sight. "Put your hands up, L/N!" He yelled as he shakingly pointed his gun to her. "Make a move and I'll blow your head off!" Y/N gulped before having a master plan she learned in elementary school: she would juex him, or make him think she's going one way but she'd go the other way.

Y/N growled, jumping to her left but right as he shot, she jumped to the right again and began running. Danyel sped up after her, but it was a little too dark to actually see her move. He had to rely on her softly little footsteps that were being covered up but his own footsteps. Y/N took this time to swiftly get into Danyel's room. Luckily the floor in there was carpet rather than wood so she didn't worry about making too many sounds. In his room was a giant bed, two dressers, a nightstand, and a computer desk.

Danyel ran towards his room, not in it, and paused. "Where the hell did you go!" Y/N's lip quivered as she wiped off her tears; she looked around her for maybe something to throw so he would check inside the room, but know she was behind the door. Looking around her, she saw a binder on a bookcase she hadn't noticed before and grabbed it, throwing it against the wall across the room. Almost as soon as it hit the wall, Danyel ran in passed her, giving Y/N a good opportunity to ran out.

But instead, she gripped her knife strongly before running up to him from behind and plunging the knife right into his ribs, below his arm. Not many people know this, but one of the most vital places of the human body is below the arm; hell, sticking a fingernail in that place could pop so many vital veins that it will kill them. Danyel screamed loudly and spun around, his arm colliding with Y/N's head, knocking her over. Damn bobblehead. Danyel's blood sprayed as he pulled out the knife, dropping it onto the floor and covering his wound. He fell onto his knees. Somewhere in that time, he had dropped his gun, so he was defenseless.

Y/N ran towards the knife, as the gun was no where in sight due to the darkness of the room, gripping it. She rushed towards him a second time and this time, plunging the knife right into that bigass forehead of his. He went silent, went limp, and fell straightforward onto the floor. Y/N was covered in his blood but she weirdly didn't feel anything about it; she was basically desensitized from seeing Michael covered in it so many times.

With a small smile, she pulled out the knife and took it with her into her bedroom, throwing it onto the bed. She took of her bloody pajamas and then headed towards his bathroom to take a shower. Luckily there was much more blood on her clothes than on her body so she didn't struggle too much to get the thick liquid off her. Unfortunately, some of her skin was stained.

When she got out of the bathroom, she went back to the bedroom to get changed. No matter if she choose to put on a lovely dress, or skinny jeans and a sweater, or sweatpants and a tang top, she knew she wouldn't feel fully dressed until she could find that blue hoodie. So she headed towards Danyel's room and hummed to herself along the way. Stepping into the bedroom again, she froze when she saw a looming silhouette that was lit up by the moon threw the window. It wasn't open before, so she could only assume he had just gotten here.

A smile formed on Y/N's lips and her eyes felt watery from tears of joy. "Michael!" She yelled as she ran up to him, wrapping her arms around him tightly. She felt his arms slowly wrap around her too, lightly though as if she was fragile. Michael looked over at the fallen officer; he never knew that Y/N had it in her to kill someone. After all, Y/N once cried because Michael killed a butterfly. She must have been terrified; and although she couldn't feel it at the time, Y/N was so scared.

"Where were you?" Y/N asked as she whimpered, her lip quivering. Michael brushed her wet hair with his fingers, not answering her as expected. "Whatever... I'm so happy you're okay," she giggled to herself, wiping her tears away. "I guess their gonna link me with the murder no matter what I do, huh? So what should we do?"

Michael audibly sighed and let go of Y/N. He pulled his hands up to his mask, pulling it off. Y/N stood wide-eyed, her mouth parted open at the sight. Even in the darkness and little light the moon displayed, she could examine his ever feature for more than 5 seconds. "Oh my god," she mumbled as she brought her hands up to her mouth. "You're hot! What the hell! Why didn't you show this to me sooner you asshole!"

Her face was a light red shade and she was fangirling so badly inside her mind right now. After a solid 5 minutes, she finally calmed down; she crossed her arms and sighed to calm herself down. By now, Michael kinda just sat on his knees because he would rather not just stand there the whole time. "Well, um anyway..."

"Y/N. Obviously, we'll have to leave and hide. I've been doing this for a while; I know exactly where to go." Y/N shivered at the sound of his voice. It was serious this time instead of mischievous like the first time she heard it. Her cheeks lit up again but instead of fangirling on the outside, she kept it more on the inside.

"R-Right... I suppose we should be going now?" Michael nodded, smirking as he grabbed the sides of Y/N's face and pulling her close. They're lips collided (ew cooties) for a few seconds, and in those few seconds Y/N managed to have invented a new color, uncover a number hidden between 8 and 19376484974939, and small the word "iris." Right after they parted, Michael slid his mask back on and stood up.

"It'll be faster if I carried you. Your short legs won't go far on their own." Y/N huffed loudly, putting her hands on her hips. Her face was even brighter now, but wHatEver.

"You know what? Fine! At least I can see what it's like to be a damn giraffe." Plus she can also be held with biG StRonG ArMs or something like that, I don't know. She went up closer to him and held out her arms. "Just so you know, I want to stop by McDonald's on the way to where ever we're going."

Michael rolled his eyes, a smile on his lips under his mask as he picked her up bridal style, heading for the window. "Also! If you drop me, I'm suing." He ignored her comments as he stepped out of the window, landing perfectly. Y/N jumped in fear, "Cheezits rice!" Now if what she said didn't make sense to the reader, they should say it out loud and think about what it sounds like. Anyway, Danyel's house was actually pretty secretive. It's in the middle of the woods with only one road that leads to civilization. And that's where the two were heading.

~~~~~~~~~~

"This place is weird," Y/N said as she ate a McChicken nugget. She was holding a happy meal that contained a 6-piece chicken and fries. Also it came with a Rainbow Dash toy. Pure bliss. Anyway, the two of them were in an abandoned asylum that had concrete floors and white walls; there were cobwebs and wood and dirt scattered. "Also, if you think for a damn second that I'm cleaning this, you're wrong."

"Not you. We. We need a place to stay, right? A little work here and there would be sufficient."

"How are you gonna use big words when your handwriting looks like a mouse trying to use a pen?"

Three months later, the asylum did not look bad at all. They only used very few areas of it; by the window they entered through was three rooms that were very close together. These rooms and the hallway that connected it was basically their home. It sounds strange, but after managing to steal a bunch of lights, sweep away nasty shit, and steal certain kinds of wallpaper to cover up the old wallpaper, it became livable. They brought in tables, even a fucking fridge, chairs, etc to make it more homey.

The asylum wasn't that old either; there was outlets for plugging in lights and a fridge and all that. They were able to steal power from a nearby working place to even get the power needed, too. Things worked surprisingly well. Y/N would cook, Michael would clean, and all that good stuff. Y/N was the one to go out shopping and all that, and Michael would steal. The power of teamwork! One one of the rooms was a bed and dresser; the bed was pretty low on the ground actually and hella big too, so Michael could fit.

Y/N would be home a lot by herself, as Michael's quest to kill his family was worth more than life to him, but she would still see him pretty often.

This series is over, but if anyone suggests a story deeper into how their relationship would be or perhaps even kids, I have no shaming in making it happen. Or perhaps a different ending?!

[welovetwilight]

Cougar Town Pt.1 (Jasper Hale x Black!Oc)

Summary: There is a new teacher at Forks High School (Eleanor Brown). She just so happens to catch a certain immortals eye. But there are three things that stop them from being together. One, She was his teacher. Two, she was married, and three she just turned 40. (This is pre-Eclipse)

AN: I read a fanfiction where Bella and Alice were cougars and Edward and Jasper were still 17 and 19. It was so different but I really enjoyed it. So this is me experimenting. Enjoy?

This is Eleanor's outfit for the chapter.

Word Count: 1,218

The Cullen's were lounging about in their elegant home. Emmett and Jasper were playing a video game, Edward was messing around on his piano. Giving that, Bella was grounded, it was all he could do. Esme and Carlisle were watching him in amusement. Alice and Rosalie were reading fashion magazines. It was like any other day for them.

Suddenly Alice froze. They all knew what that meant. Quickly, they crowded around the tiny vampire. Everyone looked between her and Edward. He was confused about what he had just seen. An older- yet beautiful woman was holding hands with his older brother, Jasper. "This is wrong Mr.Hale, you should go," The woman looked down in guilt. Then, the vision ends. Alice and Edward share a look of confusion. Rosalie decided to speak up. "Well? What did you see?" She spat in a hurry. Alice shook her head. "I-I think Jasper's mate is moving to Forks," Esme gasps in excitement. "Oh, that's amazing. Right Alice?" She asks as she notices the confused look still on her daughter's face. "I-I think she's the new AP English teacher that everyone was talking about," This makes everyone's eyes widen. "She looked like she was in her late thirties and she..." He looks at his sister wondering if he should share the next part. 'You have to, Edward. We have to prepare for the worse,' The pixie comments in her mind. Edward nods. "Jasper, She's Black,"

Eleanor was ready to settle down. Her 40th birthday just past and she was looking forward to the next chapter of her life. Eleanor and her husband decided it was a good idea to move. A new change of scenery would be nice. She was offered a job as a new teacher in a small town located in Washington. And that's where they were headed. Forks, Washington.

As they drove through the small town, people started at their car in curiosity. She knew they meant no harm. It wasn't every day small towns like these got new residents. "Are you excited about your new job?" Her husband Jimmy asked. She and Jimmy have been together for 16 years. She was still in love with him just like she was at 24 years old. "Oh, I can't wait. I feel like it will be easier teaching here than back in Pittsburgh. Fewer students," She couldn't wait to start work tomorrow.

Eleanor got out of the car in a hurry. She was so happy to start decorating their small home. Walking inside she squealed. Everything was just like the pictures. She couldn't wait to leave her mark on this town.

It was the next day. Eleanor had to wake up earlier than usual due to her having to meet with the principal. She quickly got dressed (Outfit up above) and went downstairs to make some coffee. As she was about to leave, Jimmy walks down the stairs. "You thought you were gonna leave without giving your poor old husband a kiss?" She laughed at his remark and walked over to kiss him. They said their goodbyes and she started her journey towards the school.

The parking lot was empty due to it being early. Eleanor parked the car and made her way to the building labeled "Front Office". When she walked inside, she saw a red-headed woman sitting behind a desk. She walked up to her and greeted herself. "Good morning, I'm Eleanor Brown. I'm the new AP English teacher," The lady looked up at her with a smile. "Oh look how beautiful you are, I'm name is Shelly Cope. Nice to meet you, dear," They talked for a few minutes until the principal called her into his office.

The bell rung, letting her know that first period was starting. She walked into her classroom to see everyone already seated. Most of the boys were in awe of her beauty. She sat her bag down and wrote her name on the chalkboard. "Good morning class. My name is Mrs. Brown, and I'll be your AP English teacher for the rest of the year. I thought for the first ten minutes of class, you might want to get to know me, so ask away," She smiled at the teenagers. "How old are you?" A boy with blonde hair asked. "I just recently turned 40," Some of the boys whistled. She rolled her eyes at their childish behavior. "Are you married," A tan-skinned girl with glasses asked? "Yes for 16 years actually," The girl looks at her with a smile. "That's amazing. What's your secret?" Eleanor smiled at the girl's innocence. "Communication is key. That's one of the reasons most marriages don't work out," They continued on with questions for a few more minutes until she decided it was time for attendance.

She went down the row of names as usual until she got to his. "Jasper Hale?" She looked up from her clipboard to see a pale hand rise. That's when she saw his face. He had chalky pale skin with honey blond hair that stopped at his chin and liquid gold eyes that you could get lost in what seemed like forever. Eleanor cleared her throat. She couldn't take her eyes off of him. He was truly beautiful. What was she saying? 'This is one of your students, Eleanor, get a grip,' She said to herself in her mind. She forced herself to look anywhere else but at him. '"Right, let's begin the lesson," She says, clearing her throat.

Lunch finally came. Eleanor knew she wouldn't be able to keep anything down. She was so disgusted herself. She couldn't believe that she lusted over a student of hers. It was so unprofessional. She was pulled out of thought when she heard a knock at her door. Looking over, she saw Jasper Hale standing at the entrance. "Oh-uh-Mr. Hale... how may I help you?" She was so dazzled by his beauty. She started to feel guilt about how she was acting. In her 15 years of teaching, she has never acted this way towards a student. "Sorry to bother you ma'am, but I just had a quick question about the homework," Eleanor's heart almost stopped when she heard his voice. He had a smooth southern accent that could make any woman go weak in the knees. "Oh! yes yes, please come in," She realized how tall he was as he came closer to her desk. He was at least 6'3, maybe taller. "So, what was your question?" A gasp left her mouth when she felt his ice-cold skin as she took the paper from his hands. "Uh sorry, I have anemia," She just nods her head. "I just wanted to know if you wanted us to make a t-chart or just write down the differences and similarities in a paragraph," Jasper knew what to do but he needed an excuse to see her again. She was truly breathtaking. He didn't care how old she was physically, all he wanted was to be with her. "Oh- uh...either way, is fine," He smiled at her. "I guess I'll see you, next class ma'am," The immortal says with his strong accent. Eleanor could only nod. When he finally left, she let out a breath that she didn't even know she was holding. "This is going to be a problem," She replies rubbing her face.

[escapingreality1992]

Secret Pen Pals ch. 2

Keira's POV

My alarm went off at 8 a.m. sharp and I groaned as I scrunched up my face annoyed at the early hour. My hair fell in my face as I pushed myself up from lying on my stomach. Unfortunately, I couldn't go back to sleep because a client of mine was coming by to drop off her two golden retrievers to be watched for a week; She'd be here at 10 a.m. and I'd go over a couple things before having to leave the pups in the apartment two hours later in order to meet my friends for lunch.

An outward groan left my throat again, dreading the conversation I would have with them. If they had seen the advertisement for the pen pal event, I was sure that they'd have their own opinions about it. If they hadn't...well either way I planned to keep it a secret from them. I considered myself to be a romantic; to them, I'd be nothing more than a hopeless romantic, the idea that two people might fall in love through letters ridiculous in their minds.

My job was already a joke to them, a disappointing career to anyone close to me. The thing is I enjoyed what I did for a living. Dogs brought me joy to my life and today I planned on taking them for a swim at a local pool strictly for dogs. I released a content sigh thinking about it. In addition, I also wanted to stop by one of those unique specialty stores which sold anything from antiques to dolls, but more importantly the one I wanted to shop in had those instant Polaroid cameras. The reason behind this being that I had wrote Steve about sending him a picture of the coziness of my room, capturing the many blankets thrown across my bed.

Making a mental note to clean my room, I strode to the bathroom to take a shower in preparation for the day ahead of me. I let the hot water pour over my body, taking my time to cleanse it of the sweat that clung to it from the heat of the apartment. Fall came quick this year, meaning cooler nights and I had yet to make a thicker blanket to envelop me in warmth. Once finished with my usual routing in the shower, I stepped out into the coldness of the bathroom; I constantly let the fan run to avoid paint peeling off the walls from the steam that encased the entire room from the hot water. I wrapped a fluffy, light blue towel around my body - my arms and lower legs still exposed to the cool air - and ventured to the warm air of my bedroom.

Making my way to my closet, I chose an outfit consisting of a violet t-shirt, blue jeans and sneakers laying it across my unmade bed before grabbing undergarments from my dresser. Slipping those on, I dried my hair, leaving it slightly wet and pulling on the t-shirt and jeans before continuing the drying process. Since I had longer hair, it took a little while for it to get fully dry; I pulled it up in my usual ponytail and grabbed my current read and phone to sit on the couch while I waited for my client to arrive. At 10, a knock sounded at the my door, prompting me to put my bookmark in my book and set it aside to greet Andrea and Mark Peterson, the owners of the two golden retrievers; Jamie age 4 and Sherlock age 6.

"Good morning Keira. Thanks again for watching them. This trip to Paris is very important," Andrea greeted me. They were business partners who were trying to get word out for the wedding cakes they crafted from scratch. Andrea was a petite, 5'2" woman with honey blonde hair and brown eyes, while her husband stood at 6'3" with broad shoulders, dark hair and hazel eyes. They had no children apart from the dogs whom they sort of treated as such. They were humble and our first meeting involved picking out a cake for a friend's - well former friend's - wedding five years ago. They were a sweet couple and had seen my ad three weeks before that wedding, never needing to use my services until a month after; they went to travel to England for supplies for more extravagant decorations for their many delicious cakes. Now in the present, they became a regular client as their business continued to propel forward. They paid well, but it wasn't about the money for me. I loved taking care of each and every dog I watched.

"No problem. I enjoy having Jamie and Sherlock around. You said you were picking them up Saturday?" I told them, taking the leashes and walking the dogs to the couch, setting them loose once my apartment door was shut by Mark, who set down their dog bags.

"Can we pick up Sunday actually? Sunday night if possible. We'll be getting in pretty late Saturday and I have a feeling the jet lag is going to be horrendous," Andrea replied, pulling out her checkbook.

"Sunday is perfectly fine. Are you okay if I take them swimming? I'd be taking them to an indoor dog pool a few blocks from here,"

"Yes that sounds like a wonderful idea. I imagine they might enjoy that very much. If they stay until Sunday, how much more will that be?" Mark stated.

"Only 30 dollars more. Anything else I need to know about this week? Any questions about anything else?" I responded.

"30 dollars? Really? You know what, I'll give you a little more. I think 4000 should suffice," Andrea commented.

"Oh, but I only charge 2000 in most cases," I stated.

"We don't mind. You take care of them so often and so excellent that you deserve a big tip," Mark commented, smiling politely. I returned the smile and rubbed the head of Sherlock who had padded over to me and nudged the fingers of my right hand. Andrea ripped out the check and handed it to me, both owners waving goodbye to both goldens. My apartment door closed again and I turned to the pups.

"What do you say? Want to go for a walk before lunchtime?" I asked them. At this both dogs circled me jumping up to place their paws against my body.

"Okay, okay. First you two have to sit and wait so I can hook up your leashes," I told them, slipping on my sneakers. I grabbed a few poop bags, leashes and keys in the other hand before going outside for a walk. While walking, I couldn't help but wonder what Steve was up to at this very moment.

Steve's POV

Another 5 a.m. run, another training session, and another debriefing on the latest threat. That's how my day began. Not at all exciting, especially with debriefing, which wasn't even about a threat at all. It ended up being a report about the last enemy we defeated, a couple of paranormal entities, which we had to enlist Stephen Strange's help with. What followed the report was Tony discussing plans for an upcoming benefit we had to attend. As he droned on, I found myself aimlessly drawing on a piece of printer paper to stave off my boredom. Well, at least, I'll have something to send to Keira, I thought, focusing on the curvature of a ball of yarn I drew. Funny, I'm letting details of her first letter influence my sketches. Weird how it happened, I thought, a small smile creeping on my lips.

"What do you think Cap?" Tony's voice cut into my concentration.

"About what?" I answered, not even looking up, too involved in sketching out a dog's paw.

"I thought about showing up in my birthday suit and dancing all night," he stated. My pencil froze and I glanced up to see Tony grinning in pure amusement.

"I'm only joking. The theme, Steve, would be dark tones. Not necessarily black tie but shades of gray, black, maybe even white," he stated.

"No white. If you served red wine or colorful cocktails, there would be obvious stains should you spill anything on yourself. Shades of gray? Like the movies? Isn't that a little inappropriate?" I told him, my hand itching to get back to my drawing. Snorts of laughter went around the room as my friends glanced at each other.

"No, not the movies. The benefit is supposed to be formal. I didn't want it to be black tie again," Tony answered.

"Oh, alright. What is this for? Remind me,"

"Saving the world from total destruction and as it turns out paranormal beings. We're giving back to the community as well," Tony explained.

"Of course with a huge donation on your end," Natasha commented.

"We work hard and Stark Industries is doing pretty well in the technology department,"

"Maybe Strange is right. I don't see how that ego fits in..."

I barely registered Nat's entire quip at Tony, resuming my drawing as they bickered back and forth.

"You know Nat and Wanda could be having sex on the table right in front of us and you wouldn't notice. What's got you all distracted?" Bucky asked me, getting my attention by waving a hand in front of my face.

"Nothing. I hate these kind of debriefings. They're important but I find them dull and boring. At least the ones with missions have more excitement," I responded, flipping the pencil to use the eraser, correcting a mistake I made with the dog's body.

"Nothing? Seems like it's something since you've become super quiet. You must be really bored if you're drawing. What is it this time? More monkeys?" Bucky stated. He leaned over to see and I immediately moved another sheet over it to block his view.

"No. It's not finished. I'd rather not let anyone see it right now," I said, causing him to furrow his brows.

"What is it for anyway?"

"No one...I mean, it's not for anything. You know how I get when I'm bored. I doodle things instead of letting sleep take over. Especially in this meeting," I stated, a slight panic coming over me at revealing my pen pal. It's not like I didn't want to tell him but I didn't want anyone to poke fun at the idea. My friends wouldn't judge but I couldn't have them deter me from the exchange anyway. Plus, I wanted someone to talk to - write in this case - about anything I felt like. I wanted to have someone to interact with that wasn't involved in my world. Although I still had a recurring though of Keira already knowing who I am, though re-reading the letter it seemed like she didn't. If she did...maybe she hadn't revealed that fact yet, afraid to drive me away when she could have me to herself. Shaking my head, I tried to shove it away from my mind. Relax, Steve. Have some faith in this girl, I thought. Turning my attention to my best friend, I managed a small smile.

"Honestly it's a silly drawing. I wouldn't worry about it. I don't mean to be secretive about the beginnings of the sketch but I want to make sure it's perfect before I show anyone," I told him.

"That's understandable. That being said, are you sure nothing else is on your mind?"

"I'm sure, Buck. Thanks for your concern," I stated.

"That's a wrap everyone. On your way out of the room, grab a packet so you can review details of the benefit later this week," Tony informed us.

"This week? I thought it was next week," I commented, inwardly groaning.

"If you had been paying attention, you would have already known it's happening this week. Why the long face Cap? Afraid you can't get a date?" Tony mocked me. I frowned, standing up to approach the table where our packets lay.

"I'm not going with anyone. I forgot to purchase a suit to match the colors of this benefit. If you'll excuse me, I must go out and do so. Especially if I'm to be presentable for your taste," I remarked, almost hissing the last part. Tony and I had a different relationship, agreeing on some things, disagreeing on most. Today happened to be a day where the littlest of things could set me off. I could admit stress definitely was a factor, the only thing calming my mood being my pen pal and the eagerness of sending another letter growing in my heart. I picked up the packet, walking out in as much a calm manner as possible. I retreated to my room to place the packet on my desk before venturing out to a department store in order to pick up a suit for the benefit a few days later. After trying on a few suits and deciding on a charcoal gray suit with a tie that matched it, I chose to stop by a small jewelry store and purchased a birthday gift worthy for Keira. Unaware to me, Keira happened to be in the same area eating lunch; our paths wouldn't cross with each other on this day. I returned home to finish the small drawing of a dog playing with a ball of yarn and began constructing another letter for her.

Keira's POV

The golden retrievers and I returned from the walk tired and hungry; I also had sweat that accumulated on various parts of my body, deciding that I needed to take a final shower before meeting my friends. I set out bowls of dog food for Jamie and Sherlock before taking said shower, quickly going through the routine and drying off. I changed into a dark green, long sleeve blouse and black trousers remembering the restaurant we were going to was really nice. Not an overly expensive one you could see the elite dining in but one in which the prices were in a medium range. Pulling on a pair of heels that matched my blouse, I made sure my furry companions had water, giving them both a treat before heading out for lunch with my friends. Since the restaurant wasn't too far from my apartment, I decided to walk to it instead of taking a cab, the subway station out of the question being on the opposite side of where I needed to go. As usual, I ended up being 15 minutes early having to wait on the other three women to arrive. Thankfully, I always carried a book everywhere I went; the current read being about magic and wizards, the genre of fantasy drawing me into its fascinating world.

"Why is it whenever we meet up, you manage to have your nose in a book?" a voice interrupted my reading. The next to arrive was Charlotte Mathers with her red pixie cut, long legs, and green eyes. She enjoyed her job, which happened to be a general manager at a high end retail store. She got paid well, enough to live near Central Park in an amazing, huge, studio apartment, plus she had been born into a family that had a little more money than the average middle class. I smiled, trying not to be annoyed with her comment.

"Well Charlotte, I enjoy reading instead of having my face rooted to my phone," I answered her. Like she even heard me, her face locked onto her phone...this being a normal habit of hers.

"She never escapes from her fantastical world. How have you been Keira?" another voice stated. Oh good. Of course, Lena would be the next to get here, I thought. A woman with long blonde hair, a petite figure that mirrored mine and blue eyes was an accurate description of Lena Morrow. Lena had a job as a receptionist to a law firm. It was rare that she could out to lunch and we enjoyed her company whenever possible. She stayed busy exactly like Jana Elliot, who was the last to arrive. Jana was a nurse which is her schedule almost never matched Charlotte's and mine.

"I'm good Lena. I've got two dogs to watch this week which is pretty cool," I responded to the question, catching Jana's eyes as she walked in.

"Didn't you have one last week? What is it with you and babysitting dogs? It can't pay all that well," Jana greeted us.

"It pays pretty well actually. I keep getting requests from a lot of people who don't mind paying a lot. Plus, I charge 2000 for an entire week. Though for a few days it's only about 1500," I explained.

"Yeah, but you must not have enough to live anywhere nice," Lena commented.

"I live in Brooklyn. It's nice enough and save most of what I earn. Not to mention people give me tips after I watch their dogs. I even charge a little extra for training them if they need it. Sometimes I have the same dog or dogs for two weeks which gets me a lot of money," I stated.

"You're still earning money from doing book reviews right? What do they pay? 1300 per review?" Charlotte asked, looking up from her phone for the first time since she got here.

"Yes. It's more like 1500. Enough talk about my income. I'm hungry," I stated, feeling all the judgment from my friends. I loved them but there time I wondered why they bothered hanging out with me. Their comments seemed to get worse every time we met up, but I didn't want to seem like a hermit staying in my apartment, so I put up with it. They didn't bother me too much; occasionally someone would say something that rooted in me and stung a little but I never showed it until I got back to my apartment. We were seated and ordered spinach artichoke dip as an appetizer until we figured out what to have as a main course. Looking over the menu, I decided to go with a tuna poke, Lena, went with steak, Charlotte chose a salad and Jana went with a club sandwich.

"Did anyone see that advert in the bookstore downtown? An event for pen pals. Sounds ridiculous if you ask me," Charlotte said. My blood froze as Jana and Lena both nodded.

"Who would e-mail a complete stranger? What do they expect will happen? Someone falls in love with another person. Not likely," Lena replied.

"I heard it's supposed to be handwritten letters instead of e-mailing one another," I commented, nervously wringing my hands under the table.

"Oh good. Nothing like going back in time. I wonder if they had anyone sign up. Or maybe if they had any of the Avengers sign up," Lena continued, a scowl on her face.

"Maybe some might say it sounds kind of romantic. Having a connection with someone through letters of course. It doesn't have to be romance though. Some people could meet new friends," I stated. The three of them turned to glance at me; if I hadn't been judged before, then their expression certainly had judgment clearly etched out on their features.

"Did you sign up? You've always been a hopeless romantic. Sweetie, you should go out and meet someone real, not write to someone you can't even see," Jana suggested.

"No. I missed the deadline. As for meeting someone while I go out, it hasn't really worked for me," I snapped. Their eyebrows raised at the anger in my tone and decided to drop the subject. It was a quiet lunch, not much to say; I suppose my annoyance at them prevented anyone from speaking and for the first time I was happy to leave one of our outings.

Returning to my apartment, the retrievers greeted me by letting me scratch their heads, following me around while I prepared for our appointment at the dog pool. I changed into a black one piece, throwing on athletic shorts and a tank top with flip flops and leashed the dogs before exiting my home. This time, I loaded them in car and drove to midtown Manhattan, parking in the garage of the pool building, taking the elevator down to the pool. We would be the only ones there and I could eliminate the lunch from my mind as I swam around with Jamie and Sherlock. I had unleashed them and let them jump in while I pulled off my shorts and tank top, joining them immediately. We stayed there for two hours, swimming and playing, the tension I had melting away.

Packing up at the end of our session, I remembered to stop by the specialty shop that sold the Polaroid cameras for the purpose of keeping an old-fashioned theme to my letters. The shop in particular, accurately named Unique Peculiarities, allowed pets so I toted Jamie and Sherlock inside, browsing the various colors of the cameras, selecting a royal blue one and grabbing some film to prepare for my idea. I returned home and let the pups do their business before letting them loose in my apartment. I set to cleaning up and arranged my blankets in such a way to capture the coziness. I decided at the last minute to snap a picture of my bookshelves and added one of favorite books, Pride and Prejudice, for another picture. Once I got the pictures out the way, I sat down to construct another letter to Steve.

Four Days Later

Steve's POV

I spent most of the week preparing for the benefit and when it came, I still felt like something was missing, or rather someone. Maybe I was lonely and desired a companionship. Even now as I looked around at my friends, I wanted someone to hold, to kiss, to love. Most of my friends had someone; Natasha had Wanda - a surprise to all of us but we supported it - Tony had Pepper, Thor had Jane. The rest of us remained single but I couldn't help but to dream of having someone to care for. I didn't know if Keira would be the one for me. I hadn't even met the woman but still imagined what it'd be like with her.

"Can I get a beer please?" I asked the bartender, sitting down on the stools contemplating my decisions in life. I spent most days avenging the world and missed out on several opportunities to be fixed up on a date. Natasha had tried many times a few years ago but I rejected them all, set on working on missions. There was a brief relationship with Sharon Carter but it fell through pretty quickly and now I regretted not taking more chances with dating someone.

"Everything all right? You seem a bit down," Natasha's voice interrupted my thoughts as I sipped on my beer. I turned, managing a small grin.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Just thinking about some things,"

"Relationships you mean. What? I know you too well. Besides, I've been watching you tonight. You look at the couples and there's a hint of sadness in your eyes. Why don't you ask someone out?" she commented.

"I don't know. Sure, I'd like to date but the people I'm around are caught up in this world, avenging it and I don't want someone in the same line of work. I'd like to come home to some who can take my mind off this job. Other people see me as Captain America, not Steve Rogers. It's hard most days, seeing happiness of those around me when I can't provide it for myself,"

"Who knows? Maybe it'll happen to you one day. Don't give up hope,"

"Thanks Natasha," I told her. As the night died down, I wandered outside to get a breath of fresh air, hands in my pockets, the cool breeze of Autumn ruffling my hair. I reached the end of the drive and stopped by the mailbox. Mailbox. We haven't checked it in the last few days, I thought. Keira's name flashed across my mind as I opened the metal box and pulled out a stack of mail. I rifled through it on the way back to the compound. I was back inside the building when I saw it, the letter addressed to me. I set down the other mail on the coffee table and disappeared into my room, my fingers quickly opening the thick packaging of the envelope. I sat down on my bed, unfolding the letter, three Polaroid pictures facing me. One featured a bed with a multitude of colorful knitted blankets, the thickness of the material making me want to bury my body among them. The second picture had a view of three large bookshelves filled to the brim with all sorts of books ranging from fiction to nonfiction to young adult books. At the bottom of the Polaroid she had written - in Sharpie - 'Can you tell I'm a book collector?' followed by a winking face next to the question. A smile crept onto my lips as I picked up the final picture featuring Pride and Prejudice. The the end she had written 'My all time favorite.' Putting the pictures to the side, I began reading, kicking off my shoes and lying back on the sheets.

Steve,

As promised, I've sent you a picture of my cozy blankets. Don't they make you want to climb under them? They're ones for fall but there are more that I'm creating for winter. Definitely needing to stay warm, especially in this city. As a bonus, I've sent you a picture of bookshelves and one of my all time favorite book. I know, these are Polaroids but I thought it'd be kind of interesting to keep an nostalgic theme going here.

Pride and Prejudice is one story I've falling in love with ever since the eighth grade. I love the dynamic between Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy and the love that happened to always be there. I read it every Christmas curled up in bed or on the couch, a cup of hot chocolate, or tea, in my hand. The blankets surrounding me of course. You'd think after a few years of living here, I'd be used to the cold, but I'm still a southern girl at heart and desire warmth.

In my last letter, I realized I forgot to tell you I'm originally from North Carolina. Greensboro to be exact. When I used to live there, we had crazy weather too, one day it'd be hot as blazes, the next cool and comfortable. During the winter, we'd freeze, not used to it. My parents still live there of course, but we don't get to visit each other much. I miss them and I'll be visiting the some time next month and for Christmas, so if you get a letter from North Carolina, that'll be why.

Currently, I'm watching two golden retrievers named Jamie and Sherlock. We went swimming earlier and as I'm write this, my hair is still a tangled, wet mess. I hope wherever you are, you're having a good day. I was until I met up with a couple friends of mine. I think I've mentioned I'm a total romantic. If not, then now you know.

Well that makes two of us, I thought. She already had me wanting to cozy up in that bed as well since I already viewed the picture. The only difference being I wanted to be under there with her. It's only the second letter. Am I starting to crush on her already?  Another thought popped up in my head as I continued reading.

Anyway, they saw the advertisement for this event and seemed to think it ridiculous. I rather think this is unique, a great opportunity to connect. Maybe all this could be is a friendship but maybe somewhere out there it could give someone to love. Is it silly? Maybe not ideal? Perhaps, but you never know. Things could miraculously happen.

No, it's not silly. I love the way your mind works,  I thought. I sat up to remove my jacket and tie picking up the letter again, settling back on the pillows.

If that wasn't bad enough, they sought out to judge me on my job. They don't think it pays well but you'd be surprised at the amount of people who request me to watch their dogs. Sometimes they also pay to have me train them. Not to mention a side job (which I forgot to mention last time) as a book reviewer. Apparently in this city, it pays well and it's a lot of fun.

The only things that calmed me today was the pool time with the pups and knowing I could come back write to you. I wish that we have met already; I desperately need a hug at the moment. For the time being, I'll just hold the goldens close and pet them. Maybe next week will be better. It'll be my birthday after all. Nothing can go wrong on your birthday.

Sorry for the complaining but I needed to get it off my chest and my mind. Writing and talking is the best way I know how to do just that and since I can't talk to anyone about this, writing to you seems to be my only option. It's the best option, trust me.

Looking forward to your letter,

Keira

I ran my fingers over her name, a longing in my heart starting to grow. I would've wrapped her in a hug so warm she'd never feel sad again. I sighed, getting up and placing the letter and the Polaroids in a box I set aside for this very purpose. I stripped out the rest of the suit, except for my boxers and turned off the lights in my room. I slipped into the warmth of my bed and fell into dreams of one day meeting Keira.

Keira's POV

My week with Jamie and Sherlock wasn't over yet. I spent more time sitting on the couch reading, taking them out on walks or just to their business when they needed it. We went swimming two more days and I collected the mail, letting it pile up, not checking it because I got busy training the pups a few times during the week. Today my phone rang while I sat on the couch, Sherlock in my lap, Jamie on the other end sleeping.

"Hello?" I answered, not checking the ID.

"Keira, it's Andrea. We need to stay another three days in Europe. We've been requested to head to London to check on the shop there. Are you okay to watch Jamie and Sherlock for a little longer?" Mrs. Peterson greeted me.

"Yeah, no problem. I don't have any other dogs coming until next Saturday," I told her her pushing my stack of mail over to get to my calendar. I marked down Jamie and Sherlock until the Wednesday coming up. The pile tipped over, spilling to the floor and I sighed, bending down to pick up the envelopes that fell; my hands paused when I saw the new letter from Steve.

"Great. We'll pay you when we get back. is an extra 3000 okay with you?" she commented.

"Uh huh. Sounds good. Have a safe trip," I said, ending the call and standing up. I hastily threw the other envelopes I picked up back on the kitchen counter, returning to the couch. I ripped open the envelope pulling out a sheet of notebook paper, unfolding it and started reading.

Keira,

I just finished up picking out a suit for a benefit I have to attend later this week. I forgot all about it until one of my friends told me about it during a meeting today. This meeting was dull and boring, not exciting like others. In the other letter you sent, you wanted to know a favorite memory of mine. I don't have many but I always remember the one when my best friend made me ride on a roller coaster at Coney Island which made me throw up. Gross, I know, but it's the one that comes to mind first. That and the engagement of another friend of mine. He had never been happier than in that moment. Another thing about me is something we both have in common. Reading is a favorite thing I love to do. Other than drawing. Speaking of, I sent you a drawing this time. I mentioned I doodle when I'm bored. So, this took place during the meeting.

I stopped briefly to pull out the piece of paper that got stuck in the envelope. I unfolded it and smiled at the pictured of a realistic looking dog pawing around a ball of yarn. He was definitely talented, the details standing out and catching the eye. I looked back to the letter and continued to read.

It's not much but it made me think of you. Your job sounds interesting and I'm pleased you're following your passion. Now, things I like to do for fun besides reading and drawing are going out with my friends to a bar. We tend to have a good time. I like running and going to the movies, even though I'm behind on a lot of them. I love the smell of coffee in the morning and the smell of rain whenever I go out in it. The rain is almost tranquil and I feel I can escape among those tiny droplets. You should see my mood during a thunderstorm. I'm very calm throughout it. I love watching the lightning in the dark with the curtains drawn.

Oh, we'd definitely get along then, I thought, touching my free fingers to my lips.

The description of your blankets makes me want a creation of yours. No pressure though. We're still strangers after all. Your description of yourself, however, makes me want to see that lovely face. You're beautiful, though I haven't seen you yet. If we ever get to the point where we'd want to see each other in person, I know I'd have my breath taken away. That's only my opinion though. I hope this benefit goes well. I'm not going with anyone but sometimes I get this lonely feeling. I want someone to hold and to love but I haven't found the right person yet and the people I'm around are in my line of work. I;d love to come home to someone who doesn't deal with the same things I do. I would love someone who could pull me from it, to distract me from it, if only for a few hours.

I don't mean to sound sad but I feel as though I can tell you anything and not get judged for it or at least not pushed into anything. This a good way to open up indeed. To tell someone about things you wouldn't normally share with even your closest friends. I want to hear more from you. Your favorite movie? Your ideal date? Your ideal day? Maybe your favorite memory? Anything. Everything. I hope the drawing brought you joy today.

Write to you soon,

Steve

My smile spread wider at the words on the paper. A thought popped in my mind that very instant. The thought being that I might start to like him only not in a friendship way. Though the friendship was off to a good start, other feelings began to dance around in my heart. Try not to fall in love with him yet. It's too early for that, I thought to myself. I folded up the letter and the drawing, sliding them into the envelope carefully and set it aside, continuing my book well into the late night, Steve on my mind. I made a mental note to get a frame for the drawing as I got up from the couch, allowing both dogs to join me in my bedroom. I changed into pajamas and slid under the coziness of my sheets, drifting off into dreamland.

[lolainblue]

Thunderbirds    Chapter 19

 T/W:  I wrote it, so there’s language and references to people touching other people’s bathing suit zones. And drinking.

      “Wake the fuck up Shan.”

      Jared gave the end of the bed a hard kick and I started to think I was stuck in the worst Groundhog's Day ever.  But this time there was no doubt about whether I had sobered up yet; I was still thoroughly drunk. After the shower, trying to sleep off the whiskey and the shitty day, I had passed out in my boxers.  Judging by the state of my head that hadn't been that long ago. I stuck my head under the pillow and was about to tell Jared to get lost when I heard a giggle. Fucking hell.  I was blind drunk and in my underwear and there were obviously people in the room. I grabbed a pillow and pulled it into my lap as I sat up.

  “What the fuck Jared.  Haven't you done enough damage for one day?”  He was standing next to my bed with two pretty women who were probably even drunker than I was. There was a brunette in tight jeans and a cut-off t-shirt and a blonde in a skintight blue dress. They were hanging on him and giggling, and all three of them seemed to be swaying just a little bit.  I wasn't sure if that was my head or if was them.  

   “Is this him?” the brunette asked.  “He's hot.”

  “This is him,” Jared answered, and that time I'd swear he was actually swaying.  “Girls, meet my brother Shannon.  Shannon, this is Amy,” he said, gesturing to the brunette “And, uh....” He paused while looking at the blonde.  She just kept giggling and waited for him to remember her name.  “Kristin? No Kirstin!” he finally said triumphantly.

  Kirstin sat down on the bed next to me and rested her head on my shoulder. “Jared told us all about what that awful girl did to you,” she said, running her hand up and down my arm. I wonder what that story looked like when Jared told it. I gave him a nasty look but he just shrugged it off.    “So, we came to help cheer you up.”

   Amy sat down on my other side and kissed my shoulder.  Oh for fuck's sake. I tried to clear my head. I knew this was just piling one bad decision on top of another, but that was easy to do when bad decisions got delivered to you like room service. I turned to tell Kirstin that maybe this wasn't the best night, but just like that someone's tongue was in my mouth and someone else's hand was in my boxers and I figured if I couldn't drink away the misery maybe I could fuck it away.  It wasn't like I could be unfaithful to a woman who was engaged to someone else right?  I dropped the pillow and grabbed hold of Kirstin, the one with her tongue down my throat.  As I pushed her back onto the bed I heard Jared close the door behind him.

   When I woke up again at least it wasn't to Jared kicking the fucking bed. But then again I was realizing I wasn't in a bed, I had passed out on the floor at some point and now had a mouthful of hotel carpet.  I sat up to see Amy and Kirsten balled up together on the bed.  The ringing in my head and the shitty way I felt on seeing them told me my little plan to distract myself had failed spectacularly.  I got up and went into the bathroom to brush my teeth and get rid of the taste of whiskey and self-loathing.  Odd how often the two went together.  

   I woke the girls up and told them in no uncertain terms it was time to go.  They were too hungover themselves to protest much and soon I was locking the door behind them.  I climbed into the hot shower and stood there until my skin was almost raw, wishing I could just crash back into bed and sleep the day away.  But it was getting late, and it was a wonder no one had been to my room to get me up already.  We had interviews and sound checks scheduled and I needed to get something on my stomach.  I dressed and headed down to the hotel restaurant.

   The guys were already there, although it looked they had mostly finished eating. Their plates hadn't been cleared yet and there was a basket of biscuits sitting in the middle of the table.  I took one as I sat down and laid my head on the table while I waited for my coffee.

   “How was your night?” Jared asked with a snicker.  I didn't even bother acknowledging him.  He had his laptop out but was he was talking to Matt.  While I ate my biscuit I got an idea.

   As soon as I finished my coffee I grabbed Jared's laptop and headed to the small guest office facilities off the hotel lobby.  I hooked the laptop to their internet connection and opened a web search.  I had been feeling like I was two moves behind whatever chess game Jared and Jane were playing but it was time to catch up.  I entered Jane's name in the search bar.  

   Most of what came up was reviews for her new book (overwhelmingly positive, and from the little I had gotten through yesterday, well deserved) and references to some anthologies she had put together and published.  This was nice, but not helping.  With a little twist in my gut, I typed the word 'engaged' after her name and started a new search. Now I had his name: Angus McArdle.  One more search and a whole new picture emerged. No wonder Jane hadn't wanted to tell me about the guy.

   As far as I could tell, the whole “foreign correspondent” thing was just some sort of hobby.  Good ol' Angus was the son of some rich hoity-toity Australian family and from the looks of things his actual job was jetting about to private islands or showing up at fancy events in tuxedos with elegantly dressed women on his arm.  The term 'millionaire playboy' would not have been a stretch.  There were older pictures of him with a few models and some Aussie actress I had never heard of, but there were pictures of Jane there too. The older ones mostly referred to her as “unnamed female companion” or “unidentified lady friend” but the more recent ones identified her by name as his fiancee.  He was apparently quite the catch. Rich, handsome, well-educated, from a good family, and Jesus, how tall was this guy? I swear he looked like was about 6'3”.  He was like the anti-Shannon.  If this was what she was into now I was done for.

  Jared came into the office as I was scrolling past pictures of Mr. Perfect and Jane sunning themselves on a beach in Bali.  She had on the tiniest little black bikini and she looked amazing.  Even better than when I had known her in L.A..  But I guess she was quite the catch herself.  Even if she hadn't known it at the time, I had realized that first night that she was out of my league.  The years had just proven me right.

  “What the fuck are you doing bro?” Jared said from behind me.  I just kept scrolling.  Jared reached over and closed the laptop.  “Well, at least you see what you're dealing with now.  Left you pining away while she scrounged up a sugar daddy.”

    I really did not want to deal with more of Jared's bullshit today. “Really? That's what you took away from that?”

  “Joke will be on her the first time someone leaks pics of him and his mistress on that same beach,” Jared said disdainfully.  

   I whirled around in my seat.  “Okay man, what the hell is your deal with Jane all of the sudden? You haven't mentioned her name in probably a year, and now you're being all nasty about her.  Why do you even care? What is actually going on here?”

  “She's shown her true colors, Shannon." he said.

   “By getting married to a great guy?”

  “Yeah, I'm sure it's true love," he sneered.  "Couldn't possibly have anything to do with the expensive vacations or that huge rock he put on her finger or the house he's building her.  She'll do what it takes to get what she wants.  That should have been clear to you when she slept with you to get to me.  But for some reason, you don't see her for what she is.  I thought you'd come to your senses eventually but you're just as bad as ever.”

  “She's right.  You're still not over her picking me over you. I didn't think you even liked her that much.”

   “I am over it, it's not about that.  I didn't care about that two-faced little bitch then and I don't now.”

  “She's not who you think she is Jared.”

  “Maybe," he replied, "but she's definitely not who you think she is either.”

   I rubbed my hand over my face.  I was suddenly so tired of all of this. I just wanted to go back to two days ago when I was just fine with my fucked up life.  Better than fine. I was enjoying every minute of it.  Screw Jared and screw Jane.  I was done with all of this.

   Two weeks later I was asleep in my bunk when my phone rang.  Groggily I answered.

  “Shannon? I'm sorry if I woke you. It sounds like I woke you.”

  Shit. “Jane?” She was the last person I had expected to be calling me. I really didn't think I'd ever hear from her again. She must have kept my number when I called her the first time.

  “Yeah, it's Jane. How are you?” There was a pause on the line before she continued.  “I was hoping you would call again.”

    She was hoping I'd call again? After I made an ass of myself the last time and made her cry? “Why?”

  “What do you mean why?” she replied.  I could hear the confusion in her voice. It didn't slow me down any.

   “Why did you want me to call? Everything in your life is perfect. I'm just a speck of dust so far in the rearview mirror I'm surprised you still remember my name.”

  “What the hell, Shannon? Did you just wake up really bitchy? Because I remember our last conversation sounded a whole lot different.”

   What the fuck was I doing? She called you, Shannon.  She called you. Fucking talk to her.  “Yeah, maybe."  I took a deep breath and started again.  "What's up, Jane?”

   “I just wanted to talk to you.”  For the first time, I heard the tone of her voice.  She sounded tired and a little sad.  “Tell me what you're doing.”

   We were only a few sentences in but this whole conversation was giving me a weird feeling.  I didn't know what to tell her.  I couldn't imagine what she wanted.  So I just answered her question. “Sleeping.  I'm on the bus and I was sleeping.”

   “Oh. I'm sorry.”  She definitely sounded down.  I wondered what was actually going on.  “Should I let you go?”

   I peeked my head out of the curtain to see if it looked like anyone else was listening but I was the only one back in the bunk area. “No.  I'm up now.  It was just a nap. How are you?”

   She sighed.  “Exhausted.  This whole leg is really over scheduled and I'm not sleeping and I really need a day off.”

  Showing all the conversational finesse of a toddler I went straight for what I thought was her weakness.  “Why aren't you sleeping?”

  Silence. There was a lot of silence in my conversations with Jane, but I think more was said in those silences than the actual words. “Stress, I guess,” she finally answered but I think we both knew better.  “I thought I understood what I was in for with this book tour, it sounded like the most boring thing ever but I'm so tired and lonely.”

   I hadn't thought about that.  I had Jared and the guys but who did Jane have? “Isn't there someone traveling with you?” I asked her.

   “No. There's a host that meets me in each city that picks me up from the airport and drives me to things but other than that I'm on my own.”

   “I bet you miss Angus,” I said, trying not to sound too bitter.

    “I'm used to him not being around much,” she said. “I miss Roger but I'm kind of used to him being gone all the time too.”

   I hadn't even asked what he was up to.  “How is Roger? Where's he gone to all the time?”

  “He's good.  He's been working in Europe a lot.  Trying to decide what to do next. He's been really smart with his money from the beginning so it's not a huge deal but he's getting a little old for the runway stuff and it's all bound to slow down for him soon.”  

  Again there was silence. The gulf between us was huge and although I think we both wanted to close it I don't think either one of us had a clue how.  “I read your book. It was really good.”  

   “Oh. Thank you.” She didn't sound very excited.  “Did you guys play last night? How was the show?”

  “Great. Really great crowd.”  This conversation was going nowhere.  I took a deep breath and jumped back in.  “So, I looked up Angus.”

   “Oh good lord....” Jane mumbled.  But I had already walked through the door, I wasn't going to quit now.  

   “I see why you didn't want to tell me about him. He's quite the catch Jane.  Well done.”

  “Shannon I don't know what you think you know, but trust me...”

   I thought about what Jared had said. I wondered if he was the one that had the real handle on this situation. “So you're just going to follow him around and write, huh? Seems to me I made you a similar offer.  I guess mine didn't have enough zeros behind it.”

  “That's not how it is.” Jane's voice was tight, clipped.  “I knew you would start making assumptions.  That's the only reason I didn't tell you more about him.”

  “Then tell me how it is Jane.  I want to know.”  I did.  If she was happy, in love, I wanted to know.  I wanted that for her.  But if it was anything but, I felt like I needed to know that too, even if the truth was ugly.  I just needed to understand.

   “We met at NYU,” she finally responded.  “We sat next to each other at a Saturday writing workshop.  The workshop was terrible but we got to talking and just hit it off.  We started seeing each other for lunch a few days a week, then hanging out together more and more.  We were just friends.  We took a few vacations together, he brought his girlfriends along on some of them, I took a guy once.  He took me back to Australia to meet his family.  All as friends.  For years.”

   I silently wondered if she had just been biding her time, waiting for a chance to get her hooks into him.  Jared was getting into my head. She continued.  “About two years ago it changed, but it was really just a friends with benefits thing.  There was no romance, just...”

  “Fucking.” I filled in the blank she was unwilling to.  She didn't acknowledge me.

  “Eventually though he started to want more.  Started taking me out on proper dates, wanted to refer to me as his girlfriend.  But....”

   The silence again.  I hoped the blank that needed filling in here was that she was still too hung up on me but I was too chicken to say it.

   “I went along with it for a while.  I really did like him, like I said he's a great guy.” And then she said it. “But I was still too hung up on you.  I think all along I had just been waiting for the day I turned a corner and there you would be.”  I heard the catch in her voice that by now I knew meant she was about to start crying. Jane had always been a crier, she was a soft little marshmallow that wore her heart on her sleeve.  I felt like dirt.  How could I have ever thought she would be capable of the things Jared was accusing her of? Deceit on that scale seemed way beyond her. “But it never happened.  And here was this great guy, who was just crazy about me, who wanted more.  I figured fate needed a little help.  But I didn't have any way to get to you.  I thought maybe I could show up where you guys were playing one night, wait around with the groupies, maybe somehow get your attention.  But when I looked online....”

  Yeah, we both knew the next part.  I hoped she wasn't going to say it again.  “He ended up getting pretty serious.  And his family was pressuring him to settle down, they were getting tired of the gossip column items.  They would have liked me better if I came from a more well-to-do background, but they liked me a lot better than his other girlfriends. So we decided to get married.”

   This was ridiculous.  “Jane,  nowhere, in any part of that story, did I hear “and I just fell so in love with him”.  You didn't answer me when I asked you the last time either.  You are not in love with him at all, are you? Do you know how fucked up that is?”

   I heard the sniffles on the other end of the line.  Yeah, she was definitely crying now.  I waited for her to compose herself and answer.  It took a long time.  “I love him as a friend.  He knows I'm not in love with him.  He just doesn't know why.”

   I could feel the lump in my own throat.  I swallowed it down and summoned up the courage to ask.  Please let her answer be the one I need to hear.  “Why Jane?”

   I listened to her crying while my heart stuttered wildly.  Maybe this wasn't over after all.  I had lost all hope after my internet sleuthing attempt, I didn't think there was any way I could compete with this guy, but maybe I didn't have to.  Maybe he was the one that had to compete with me.  “Why Jane?”

  “Because I'm in love with you.  Still.  Probably always.”

    Yes! I felt like I had just scaled a mountain. “Then don't marry him. Fuck, Jane.  I'm telling you I still love you.  I'm telling you I want to be with you.  You just admitted you're in love with me.  So what the hell are we doing?”

   She stayed on that line crying, not answering, for at least a good ten minutes.  I was not about to hang up or give up though.  I held the line and waited.  

  “Where are you?” she finally asked.  “I've lost track.”

   I had no idea.  I leaned out of the bunk and yelled towards the front of the bus.  “What's the next stop?”

  “Tonight is Boise,” Tomo answered.  

  “Apparently Idaho,” I told her.  

   “I'm in Texas.” she laughed.  “I guess even broken hearts are bigger in Texas.”

   She really hadn't given me an answer.  “What does that have to do with anything?”

   She had stopped crying but her answer was so quiet, she sounded even more fragile.  “I don't know how to get out of this Shannon.  I don't know what to do. This wedding is a big deal...”

   “You call him up and you tell him the wedding is off.  That's how you get out of it.”

   “No one is going to understand.”

   “It shouldn't matter.  Either you love me or you don't.”

  “Indianapolis is in 10 days.  I'll figure this out.  I promise.”

   The silence settled in again.  I wasn't sure what she meant by figure it out.  I didn't understand how she could tell me she loved me and marry someone else.  None of this made a damn bit of sense. I needed to see her, and I didn't want to wait 10 days to do it.  

  “Where are you next?” I asked.

  “Nowhere near where you guys are going to be and I don't have any off days until the beginning of July.  Indianapolis is the 5th.  That's the best we can do.  But I will be there, I promise."  She got quiet again. "Shannon if I'm going to tank my whole life for you, you damn well better be sure that's what you want.”

   I hadn't thought about it like that.  I hadn't thought about her side of things much at all. Being married to a guy who was a good friend, who was crazy about you and could give you the things Angus could really wasn't that bad of a deal.  I guess I could see why she might have agreed. Was I just going to fuck her life up like I did my own? Everything I touched seemed to fall apart.  It hadn't been that way with Jane though.  I thought with her I could make it all work.

  “I'll be sure.  You be sure too.  Don't do this if it's not what you want.”

   Once again the phone conversation ended with the promise of that meeting. “I'll see you in Indianapolis Shannon.  I hope you have a great show tonight.”

   I held the phone for a while after she hung up.  I knew I needed to get my head straight, get my shit together, and I had 10 days to do it. One thing I knew for damn sure.  I wasn't going to tell Jared about any of this.

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