#YOU’RE NOT ALLOWED TO BE MEAN TO ME THAT’S HOMOPHOBIC | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

gothicchildofthenight · 3 months ago

Text

Dead-Bird

FEM DNI‼️ (She/her, She/they, etc.) - you’ll be blocked.

request: “hihi ! can you write rodrick x ftm reader thats just like , treated as one of the guys in rodricks friend group and has a sense of belonging , then heather outs the reader or something n rodrick stands up for them (???) im not sure where im going with this request u can interpret it however u want”

summary: moving to plainview for a fresh start while you’re transitioning. you meet rodrick heffley, resident emo, and become inseparable. what happens when heather hills gets jealous thats he’s turned all his attention on you?

descriptions: ftm!reader, intended for a black reader but can be read by any race, rodrick might be ooc (??), i made heather really mean (and homophobic 😭) but in reality i have no hate to her HER ACTRESS IS GORGINA, slur drop (f word), maybe the reader a girly kid sorry if that upsets anyone, cursing, throwing up (only happens once and i don’t think it’s detailed), let me know if i missed anything!!

a/n: yall, i know i said friday, but circumstances change (especially when baby siblings are sick asf) so i’m sorry. you’re allowed to yell at me in the comments!! BUT ITS FINALLY HERE‼️ pls let me know if you like it, and if you think i should change anything. i can always improve!!

word count: 8.29k (i got carried away 😭)

———————————————————————————-

For as long as you can remember, you knew you didn’t feel right with who you were. You wore the dresses, the skirts, joined the girls line when you were split off and you were ok with it, but it never felt right. You wanted to get your hands dirty, skin your knee, and you could do all of that with the girls, but you wanted to do it with the boys.

Your parents seemed to acknowledge this and your family just labeled you a tomboy. It wasn’t until your last year of middle school that you realized who you were, what you were. You were a boy, you were trans.

After going back and forth with yourself, you go to your parents with tears streaming down your face. With the way you and your parents were raised, it didn’t seem like they were going to be accepting.

“Are you done blubbering?” Your mom had asked you, which made you cry even more because you didn’t know if that could be good or bad. “We knew this could be a possibility with you just wanting to be with little boys.”

“Just because your grandparents have a skewed perspective on gender doesn’t mean we do.” Your dad joined in with a hand on your shoulder.

And with that started your transition journey. First with therapy, then doctor visits, and finally testosterone. When you started taking testosterone (end of sophomore year), you and your parents moved to give you a fresh start. With their careers, they could work anywhere as long as they could travel.

Plainview was just that, plain, but it got the job done so you can lay low. You couldn’t even point it out on a map, but it seemed like a great place to get a fresh start. Family homes, mom and pop shops, and maybe 6 schools around. No one knows you, seeing as you moved almost cross-country, so perfect.

Your first day wasn’t anything like you imagined. You thought you would be clocked immediately, especially since in the rush to move and get enrolled in school you had forgotten to get your haircut. You lucked out though, because the only reason someone (besides a teacher) came to talk to you was because of your Pearl Jam shirt.

That was the day you met Rodrick Heffley, resident “bad boy” with a band that wasn’t shit (you could say that seeing as you were in it) and a taste for rock and metal. That’s who came to talk about your shirt.

“You listen to Pearl Jam?” He asked, and you were immediately on the defense.

You knew you didn’t exactly look the part of emo metalhead, you had heard it your whole life growing up. “Listen to your normal music,” was a common one, and you won’t lie, it hurt. Especially from the popular white kids because it was just another tally mark against you.

“Yes? What about it?” You snapped.

“Woah, didn’t know I touched a nerve,” his face had reddened a little, but besides that it didn't change. “I was just gonna ask your favorite song.”

“Whatever,” you rolled your eyes. “I like Why Go from the Ten album.”

“Cool, cool, that’s a good one.” And then you both just stood there staring at each other. “Do you want to come over to my house after school?”

“I don’t even know you, kid,” you chuckled, “what are you, a kindergartener?”

“Well excuse me for trying to be nice.” He rolled his eyes. “I’m Rodrick.”

He held out his hand, which you hesitantly shook. “I’m (Y/N).”

“So are you coming over or what?”

And just like that he became one of the most important people in your life– along with his best friends; Drew, Ward, Chris, and Ben. Present day, you are never without Rodrick, and he, you. It doesn’t take a lot to convince the other to do something you probably shouldn’t, which leads to you guys getting in trouble a lot.

Like how one time towards the end of junior year in the middle of the night, Rodrick and you snuck out for a carnival almost 2 hours away. You had been relaxing at home, reading, when you heard little tinks coming from your window. You knew it was Rodrick throwing rocks at your window. He always did that when he’d sneak out of his house to come to yours.

“What the hell do you want?” You jokingly whisper-yelled as you opened your window.

“Come to a fair with me!” He whispered back.

“Last time I checked, the summer fair didn’t come until after school ended?”

“Because it’s not the one in Plainview, it’s the one in Huntington! Just come on!” He groans.

“First of all, I’m in pajamas!” You motioned up and down yourself. “Second of all, that’s almost two hours away!”

“So what, you’ve snuck out with me before! What makes this time any different? Come on, (Y/N), live a little!”

“Fuck it, fine!” and you closed your window to change. Your parents were long gone asleep, so you doubt they’d check on you, meaning you were in the clear.

You settled on baggy pants and a short sleeve, which is what you almost always wear, before you jumped out your window (you were on the second floor, yea, but your house wasn’t that big so it wasn’t a huge jump). Rodrick was waiting in his van, so you climbed into the passenger seat and set off.

You took a mini nap on the way, but after you woke up, you guys didn't shut up. From school to new albums, you talked about it all. You guys always were like this, (still were) even though at this point you’d only known each other a couple months. It scared you a little, how close you two had gotten in such a little period of time, mainly because you don’t want him to drop you because of who you were before.

“We’re here!” He pulled into a parking spot. You both climbed out of the van and met in front of it. “You brought your wallet, right?”

“Hanging with you? Of course not.” You deadpanned, before pulling out your wallet with a smile. “Why would I go to a fair without my wallet?”

He just rolled his eyes, slung his arm around your neck and walked to the ticket booth. Once in the fair, you guys set a plan to leave around 2:00 so you can get back in time for school.

You run around together, ride to ride, concession stand every chance you can get, and then barfing into a trash can. “I will never sneak out with you again.”

“Sure, ok,” Rodrick scoffed. “Come on, I want to ride the ferris wheel before going home!”

“Sure,” you rolled your eyes as you wiped your mouth, “just let me finish tossing my organs into this dumpster.”

“Let's go, smart ass.”

Surprisingly, there wasn’t a long line for the wheel. You’re on it in 5 minutes, and at the top in another 5.

“Told you it was worth it.” Rodrick teased as you looked out to the neon fair lights.

“Yea, yea, whatever,” you mumbled, too busy looking out at the eye widening view.

There’s a moment of silence. “Y’know, I’m glad we met each other.”

“Ew, don’t get all sentimental on me. Especially on a ferris wheel, that's just cringey.” You joke.

“I’m being serious!” He sighs. “Like I love the band, but I think me and you got closer in the span of a few months than me and them since middle school. It’s crazy.”

“Yea, sure, ok, dude,” you look back out to the lights. You couldn’t look him in the eyes because you had this warm feeling in your gut that you couldn’t place.

Rodrick doesn’t allow you to, though, as he grabs your face in one hand to make you look at him. “What the hell are you doing?”

“I want you to say it,” he stares into your eyes, seeming to search for something.

“Say what, jackass?” You feel your face catch on fire in the dark of the night.

“That I’m your best friend.” He looks so serious, and his eyes never leave yours.

“You’re my best friend,” you roll your eyes with a grin, “can you let me go now?”

“We’ll work on it.” He pats the side of your face and then faces the lights outside the wheel.

When you're both off the ferris wheel, you’re headed back home. The car ride home was silent, you in your own head and Rodrick seemed tired. You offered for him to stay over and sleep until school starts, but he declines, knowing his parents will wake him up in the morning.

You pull up to your house but just sit there for a second. “It was a bunch of fun, as always. Til we sneak out again.”

“See ya,” he smiles and lightly punches your shoulder.

“See ya, dude,” and you head to your house.

When you see him pull off, you lightly close your front door. As you turn around, your soul leaves your body.

“I don’t even want to know,” your mom holds her hand up to silence you. “Phone, now.”

You sigh, but do it.

It seemed that’s what happened with Rodrick, too, so for the rest of the school year you and Rodrick could only contact each other at school. He still snuck over, that wasn't going to stop.

You don’t regret leaving with him that night, because you had never had someone willingly be that close to you.

—

Currently, you’re all huddled up in the hot attic that is his room, but it was the only place without younger kids so you don’t complain much.

“Dude, I thought this year was gonna be it!” Rodrick complains as he lays upside down on his bed.

“Oh, it’s gonna be it, alright,” Ben rolls his eyes and throws a paper ball in Rodricks direction. “It’s going to be the year I finally strangle you if you mention Heather Hills one more time.” We all chuckle at how true it was.

Right now, he wouldn’t shut the fuck up about Heather Hills. Even though you had come in the middle of junior year, it was quick knowledge that he had a crush on her since middle school. At first it was cute, but after some unforeseen circumstances, you actually hated hearing her name. It wasn’t like you had a crush on him (It was), but the fact that she didn’t give him the time of day, and even when she did it was just to make fun of him or to have him do something.

“I second that, it’s fucking annoying,” you push him off the bed, seeing as you were on it right next to him.

“Ow, you dick!” he sits up and rubs his head.

“We’re, like, four months from graduating, if she wanted you, she would’ve said it.”

“Yea but-” Ward cuts him off.

“But nothing, bro, she don’t want your ass.”

It’s what you’ve been telling him this whole time, but you didn’t want to be too pressed about it because you didn’t want him to think you like her. You didn’t like her, you liked the one who liked her. You hadn’t realized it until you saw Heather sweetening him up one time and it hurt to watch– and not in a disgusted way.

You had no idea about your sexuality, you knew you liked boys even before you transitioned, but as you became more comfortable with yourself girls weren’t so bad either. You had been on a few dates with mostly girls (there weren’t many out guys in a small town, who knew?), but no one was Rodrick.

“I mean, I know, subconsciously,” he points to his head, “but she has this way of being in your head, no matter how mean she is.”

“Blah blah blah, bruh we don’t caaaarreee!” You roll your eyes and fall back on his bed. “She’s probably going to, like, Harvard or some shit and gonna marry rich. She doesn’t have time for loser guys like ourselves unless we can do something for her. It’s been that way since middle school, and it’ll be that way til the end of time”

“Major harsh, dude,” Drew pipes up.

“Whatever,” You get up and grab your backpack. “I’m going home, see you bozos tomorrow.”

You know why it bothers you so much, but you didn’t think you went that far. Hell, even Ward said something, but you were the one who was being “major harsh”? You roll your eyes as you stomp off to your house.

“Major harsh, my ass,” you murmur to yourself.

—

Tomorrow comes faster than you’d like. It wasn’t like you blew up on the guys, but you were pissed that you had been shut down. You kind of wanted to avoid them and go straight to class, but when you exit your house you see Rodricks van. The ride to school was pretty quiet except for the “good morning,” you all exchanged amongst yourselves.

“You were right,” Rodrick nudges you. When you give him a confused look, he goes on, “Heather is never gonna want me, and I’m taking myself off the market for other babes.”

“Oh, all those poor girls, saved,” you chuckle. Now you kind of feel bad, “but seriously, my bad if I went too far with what I was saying. I don’t have an excuse for what I said, but I am sorry.”

“Nah, I needed that good kick in the ass so I could wake up. Thanks, bro.” He playfully punches your shoulder.

“No problem, bro.”

As we pull up to school, you see Heather and her friends around their red convertible bug. You didn’t know whose it was, it was passed around more than a blunt in your group. Every morning they were there, and every morning Rodrick went to talk to them, talk to her, like clockwork.

“So are we skipping today, boys?” Rodrick suggests.

In a unison of ‘Hell Yea’s, you were the voice of reason. “Fuck no.”

They all groan, as they usually do when you’re right. We’re walking away from the van as you explain, “Y’all don’t have enough brain cells or credits to afford to skip. If yall want to blow this place, ya gotta graduate. You don’t even have to have honors.”

“Whatever, nerd,” Rodrick shoves you with a chuckle. “You can be a suck up and stay all day, but we’re outta here.”

“You can suck up on my balls, jackass,” you laugh and shove him back.

“You’d love that, wouldn’t you?” he shoves back.

“You’d love that!” but you don’t push him, you look in front of you.

You expected to see the red car, but you saw the stairs. You had passed the car?

You look behind you, and you still see the group talking about someone cheating on someone’s boyfriend, but you notice Heather Hills looking at you.

This wasn’t the first time Rodrick had ignored Heather for you, but that was at lunch. He always talked to her in the morning. You don’t know why, but you knew that this was her last straw.

When you had first moved here, you weren’t on her radar until you had talked to him. She was just standing off to the side and you didn’t realize it then, but he was just talking to her and stopped to talk to you. You could feel her glare, but when you looked at her she gave you a sugary sweet smile. That wasn’t the last time you would see that fake smile, but after this morning you knew it would be.

—

“I don’t know what you told him, but you need to untell him.”

The voice wasn’t unfamiliar to you, but you weren’t used to it being directed at you.

“Hi, Heather, how are you on this beautiful day?” You smile at her, though it was probably closer to a grimace.

“Cut the shit, you heard me.” She growls as you put your stuff in your locker.

“Why does it have to be me saying anything to him? Maybe he actually grew some balls and a brain.”

“You’re like a lost puppy around him, of course you said something.”

“Well, Heather,” you huff as you drop your bag and face her, “he used to follow you around like a lost puppy and I got sick of it because you were using him. I don’t know why it bothered me so much, but it did, so I told him that.”

“I know why,” she leans closer to your face with a whisper. “It’s because you’re a gay little bitch who hopes he looks in your direction but he wouldn’t even spit near you. I see how you look at him, but just remember he looks at me like that.”

“Ok,” you roll your eyes. “Why do you care so much? You admitted several times that you don’t like him.”

“He needs to like me, not the other way around. It gives other guys the idea that they can be with me and I can get gifts out of it. So if you don’t fix this, I can get so much dirt on you it’d make your head spin.”

“I think the bleach fumes are finally getting to your brain,” you scoff, trying not to seem nervous. You didn’t think that she could get to your secret, but that bitch has power in high places. But you had come so far without being outed, so you didn’t think it’d happen this close to your escape. “I don’t know what to tell you. I’m not gonna do that because you’re a bitch who doesn’t deserve any attention.”

She slams your locker in your face, “You’ll regret that.” And as she walks away you roll your eyes and mumble a “bitch”.

She doesn’t even want him, but I can’t have him? Whatever, bitch.

—

You decided to keep your little interaction from Rodrick and the gang because you knew it’d open up a) what she could find on you and b) did Heather actually like Rodrick and she’s lying? You just let them lead the conversation as you try to rationalize with yourself.

How would she find out your trans? You’ve been stealth for a year and your school medical records are locked up tight. She can’t out anything but you being gay and even that was a little chest tightening. At least you’ll still be a man, even if it was a gay one. Being outed as trans could shatter people’s perception of you and you’ll be that weird “girl” again.

“What are you thinking so hard about?” Rodrick asks you and you realize you’re the only two in the van now.

“Nothing, just exhausted. I need to be asleep right now,” you pretend to rub your eyes.

“Whatever you say, dude,” he sighs, but puts his hand on your shoulder and looks you in the eyes. “I’m here whenever you wanna talk, you seem to have a lot on your mind.”

It makes you freeze. It’s not like he isn’t always like this, he’s your best friend, but it doesn’t help after your conversation with Heather. He does this with every guy in the group, he may put on a front of being a dick to his brother, Greg, but he really cares for his friends. You have to convince yourself that this was just that, nothing more.

“Eyes on the road, weirdo,” you shrug his arm off with a nervous laugh. “I told you I was fine, I’m just tired.”

“Ok, dude,” he rolls his eyes.

Before you know it, he drops the rest of the guys off at their houses. You’re usually the last one to get dropped off since more often than not you’re the first one to be picked up. But when Rodrick passes your house, you have more than a few questions.

“Where the hell are you taking me?” You sigh.

“Obviously you won’t tell me what’s actually wrong, so we’re going to hang out til that frown turns upside down!” He smiles as he passes his house, too.

“How did I become friends with such a cornball? Aren’t you supposed to be the resident bad boy, go back to that.”

“You know you love me,” he smirks.

More than you know, that’s the reason I’m in this mess! You almost say, but stick with, “Sure, whatever you say.”

You know exactly what he’s going to do, you guys do it every time one of y’all are going through it. Head to the gas station to get slushies and snacks, then go out to your favorite clearing in the woods. He even does it with Greg sometimes, even though he likes to act like he hates his younger brothers.

“Isn’t the point of a slushy to mix all of the flavors together?” Rodrick rolls his eyes.

“We have this conversation every time we come here, I get two flavors that compliment each other! All of those flavors confuse your mouth and you lose taste buds.”

“You lie just like my mother, which means you lie like shit.” And for that you slap his shoulder. “OW!”

“Don’t talk about Susan like that!” You say, jokingly offended. You go to hit him again, but he grabs your hand.

“You’re a fucking nut case.”

“OMG!” You hear an all too familiar voice excitedly yelp. “I thought I heard your voice!”

“Oh, hey Heather.” Rodick turns to talk to her, forgetting to let go of your hand. “What are you doing in here?”

“My friends wanted to stop in here to get some junk.” She waves her hand behind her and rolls her eyes. “I obviously don’t eat stuff like that, I mean, look at me.” Rodrick doesn’t even glance down when she motions at herself.

“Good for you, me and (Y/N) are actually in here for some snacks, too.”

She finally looks at you, and then at you and Rodricks combined hands. You squirm under her stare and take your hand out of Rodricks. He looks at you in seeming confusion, but doesn’t say anything.

“I didn’t see you there, hey (Y/N)!” She has a smile on her face, but you can see in her eyes the amount of hatred she has for you.

“Hey, Heather…” You almost whisper, and then turn to seem busy with your slushy.

“Well, we should get out of here, bye Heather.”

“Oh, yeah, I think my friends went back to the car, so I should head out, too.” She turns to leave, but looks back over her shoulder and waves seductively. “Bye, Rodrick!”

When you hear the front door bell ring, you finally release the breath you had been holding in. “Holy shit,” you whisper to yourself.

“What was that?” Rodrick turns to you with a smile and points behind him. “She’s never willingly came up to me unless she needs something. And she just wanted…conversation?”

“Your guess is as good as mine,” You paint on a smirk even though your heart is racing. She had seen you with Rodrick, holding hands (completely his fault!), and he couldn’t be any less interested in her! You just know your fate is sealed.

“Well, let’s get this shit paid for and go.” He grabs up your food and you grab the slushies.

With everything paid for, you guys hop back into the van and head into the trail a few blocks down. It wasn’t anything official, but you hadn’t gotten in trouble for being out here, so yall just kept going.

You park the van and head into the back, opening the doors for some fresh air.

“So are you ready to tell me what’s up?” Rodrick asks after a few sips of his slushy abomination.

“I told you that I’m just exhausted.” You keep up your front.

“And I told you that you lie like my mom,” he sighs. “So you might as well just spill it.”

“It’s just something that me and my family have to deal with, you don’t have to worry about it!” You know if you bring your family into it, he’ll stop pushing it because he knows your parents don’t play.

“Ok, ok, I’ll let it go.” He raises his hand in defense.

You don’t respond, and you guys are submerged into silence once again. You exchange looks when you don’t think the other is looking, but besides that you take in the forest around you.

Heather could never experience these moments with Rodrick and understand how precious it is. Rodrick has always been the weird “bad boy” (people literally only say this because of his clothes and that makes you roll your eyes) who some of the girls wanted but if it got out they did like him, they’d be made fun of. You see how some of the girls look at him when he isn’t looking, and it hurts your heart. You know they have more of a chance than you ever would.

But with you, he was never like this. He was the goofy, caring friend who’d drop everything if you said the word. Heather only sees him as an object that gives her affection, but you see him as he truly is; a guy who loves and just wants it back. He just wants to be seen.

“Y’know you’re my best friend, right?” You blurt before you can think about it.

“Only took you a year to be genuine about it,” he nudges your shoulder.

“What?”

“The ferris wheel.” He states like you’re just supposed to know. And you do.

“You still remember that?” You gape.

“Anyway, yes I am your best friend, just like how you’re mine.” He grins at you, and then he drops it, “you’re not planning anything are you?”

“Oh my god, a guy can’t express his appreciation for his best friend?” You throw your hands up.

“I’m watching you,” he squints his eyes and points at you.

You get a text from your mom wondering where you are, and that’s the end of your little outing with Rodrick.

When he drops you home, Heather is the furthest thing from your mind, even though you know holding Rodricks hand (even though it wasn’t even purposely!) would be a slight against you.

—

Over the next two weeks, Heather's empty threat went to the back burner of your mind. If she wanted to out you, it would’ve happened by now. I’m safe, you sighed in relief.

Rodrick continued not to go up to her in the morning, but if she talked to him he definitely talked back. It seemed to calm her attitude toward you now, but it still was a hot seat around her. Like now, she’s passing around flyers for her party this weekend and intentionally passed by you.

“Rodrick, you’re definitely coming to my party this weekend, right?” She bats her eyelashes. “I need your band Soiled Diper to play!”

“It’s Löded Diper,” you correct and she glares at you, “and when have you ever wanted us to play anywhere near you?”

“Us?” She scoffs at you. “I just want the main band, not some wannabe.”

“Woah,” Rodrick stops her. “(Y/N) is an actual part of the band, so no him, no band.”

“Him? If that’s what you wanna say, sure.” And to the untrained ear it could just be her upset that he isn’t going along to exclude you, but you know what she means. As you perk up and look in her eyes, she’s already looking at you with a knowing smirk.

She knows. FUCK how does she know?

“I’m fine with not going, Rod,” you try to sway him. This cannot be fucking happening.

“No, it’s either all of us or none of us.”

Of course now he wants to be a fucking hero right now. He doesn’t get that this is social suicide FOR ME! Social homicide? Not important right now.

“Ok,” she has that sugary sweet fake smile. “Don’t come, then. Remember what I said.”

That last part was for you, you know it, and your blood runs cold. Fuck.

The rest of the day you’re on the edge of your seat, thinking what she might do. How the fuck did she even find out? You weren’t on social media much pre-transition, so barely any photos of you before exist. And like you said, your medical records were locked up tight.

Whatever, you try to convince yourself. She won’t do anything! She would’ve already.

You make it home with no one running around talking about your biggest secret, so your anxiety has allowed you to breathe again.

You decide to finally talk to your mom about this because who else will understand?

“You’re right to be afraid, but you’re also right about her doing it when she finally found something on you.” Your mom rubs your hair as you lay in her lap.

“It’s like I can’t get into her mind and I seriously want to. Like what is she planning?” Your thoughts literally won’t shut up. You haven’t had to worry about stuff like this for close to 2 years, and now its like your whole world is about to collapse

“For her sake, I hope nothing because I’m not above beating a little girl's ass!” And you know she’s being for real. Your mom doesn’t play around.

“Mom,” you roll your eyes.

“So, she thinks you like Rodrick…What’s up with that?”

“You know the answer if you’re asking,” you sigh.

“Do you want any advice on that? I say you should go for it.” Your mom shrugs.

“Absolutely not, because if this does come out I don’t want him weirded out by me being trans and gay.” You don’t even know if you are gay gay, but you know it’d make you that if you ask him out.

“I think you’re safe, but if something does blow, I’m in your corner.” She holds up her fist playfully to show it.

“Thank you, Mom.” You finally felt at peace with the whole thing. You trust your mom and feel like it will all blow over.

If only you knew.

The next morning, you walk with a pep in your step. You decide to walk to school, texting Rodrick you didn’t need a ride. It took a little longer to walk than drive, so you knew they’d beat you there.

When you finally showed up, people were staring at you, but it didn’t bother you much. People looked at you and the gang weirdly all the time, it just happened. It was when you finally made your way inside that all hell broke loose.

Random whispers were rampant through the hall, but when you walked by it would stop. Whatever, they were probably just talking about what you were wearing like always. You shrugged and went to find the guys.

You were right in front of them in the cafeteria and about to speak when that sugary voice stopped you, “Hey, [Redacted]!” It exclaimed.

You could’ve thrown up right then and there. You whip around to face Heather, “What the hell did you just call me?”

“Should I tell her or are you guys going to be good friends?”

“Guys, what is she talking about?” You turn to them and the look on their faces say it all.

They Know. Everyone knows.

Ben turns his phone around and you have to will yourself to not spill your breakfast out onto the concrete. It’s a screenshot from one of your parents' private Facebooks from two or three years ago with a title that stated your deadname.

The “girl” in the picture was going to homecoming, and it was obvious that it was you. Your face was softer, caked with makeup, and your hair was longer. The caption had your name and said that you were indeed going to homecoming.

“This picture was private, how the fuck?” You were whispering to yourself. You’re frozen in place, you can’t look anywhere but Ben’s phone.

“How could you hide this from your friends?” Heather fake gasps. “Pretending to be a boy? Going into the boys bathroom and locker room? What a freak!” and her whole group laughs. When you didn’t respond, she kept going, “Like, can you guys believe it? She’s pretending to be a boy to get close to you, and I even heard she had a little crush on one of you!”

That made you bark out a sob. Holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit holy-

“It’s crazy! Right, Rodrick?” and that snaps you out of it.

You glance at him, and he looks angry. Probably at you for lying to him. You darted away, looking for an exit because all you can think about is going home. You hear your name called after you, but you don’t care.

—

“What the hell are you doing home? Classes literally just started.” Your mom asks as she’s cuddled up with your dad. You don’t answer her, and just run up to your room, sobbing.

“Woah, woah woah, hey!” They get up to go after you.

When you get to your room, you don’t close your door knowing they’re after you. You shut your phone down and just throw yourself onto your bed, trying to stop your tears.

“Son, what’s wrong? What happened at school?” My dad knocks on the open door.

“Heather Hills,” you say through your pillow. Even if your dad didn’t get it, your mom did.

“She didn’t…”

“She did though, Mom!” You cry out, turning to face them. “She outed me to the whole school! She somehow found one of your Facebooks, got into it and found an old picture of me going to homecoming, and she shared it with the whole school!”

“Are you serious?” Your dad balls up his fist.

“Not only that, but she said that I was pretending to be a guy! Said I was doing it to get close to Rodrick, basically told him I liked him, and made me seem like this big ass weirdo!”

“We need to do something about this,” your mom says, and she sounds pissed. “This has to be some sort of harassment!”

“Your mother is right, we need to contact the school-”

“NO, please,” you start. “What’s done is done, I don’t want this bigger than it is!”

“(Y/N)!-”

“Mom, please listen to me!” You’re exasperated at this point. “Heather has the whole school behind her. Her parents are RICH, so if we try to do anything, it’ll just make everything worse!”

“I don’t give a fuck about her parents! She hurt my baby and she needs to be held accountable!”

“I don’t want to be in the middle of any more drama!” You groan. “I just want to figure this out quietly and on my own. I don’t want to talk to anyone about it and I just want to be left alone!”

“Ok, ok,” your dad sighs and puts a hand on your head. “If that’s what you want, we won’t push it,” he turns to your mom, “won’t we?”

“Yea, I guess,” she rolls her eyes, but gives a weak smile. “But at any point you need any help or she does anything else, we’re in your corner.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Get some rest, son,” your dad pats your shoulder. “You look like you need it.”

“I’ll try.”

But you knew you weren’t going to be able to sleep. You avoid your phone because you didn’t want to be contacted by anyone, but especially Rodrick. You didn’t want to know his disgust with you, didn’t want to know how much he thought that Heather was right.

Without the distraction of your phone, your room and the house was too quiet. You could hear your parents downstairs, trying not to be angry about your situation and watching television. Your mind keeps replaying you looking at Ben’s phone, ears ringing in anger and worry. You’re so horrified, afraid you’ve lost all of your friends. You were supposed to graduate without anyone finding out. What was the point of a fresh start if you were just gonna have to deal with all that you wanted to avoid at your old home?

You hear someone knock on your front door, and even being that far away from it you heard Rodricks voice. This time you can’t stop your stomach from lurching and you run to the bathroom.

As you flush the toilet, you hear the door close and footsteps up the stairs. That makes you pray on the bathroom floor to anything that could hear you to not make you talk to him yet.

“Hey, baby, you alright?” Your mom’s voice fills you with relief and seems to calm your stomach.

“No,” you say truthfully. You didn’t feel like lying right now, “I feel like everything is over for me.”

“You heard him, didn’t you?”

“Not what he said, but I heard his voice,” you admit.

“Then I think you should answer your phone.” And with that, she leads you back to your room, kisses your forehead, and goes back downstairs.

—

You don’t turn your phone back on until the next day. You still felt sick, and no matter how much you tried to eat you just couldn’t. You stayed home from school and your parents didn’t argue, but they still had to go out for work. Not a full trip, but they had to go to the next town over.

You had less messages than you thought you would, but it’s still crazy. Drew, Ward, Chris, Ben, and even Bill messaged you, but you didn’t care about all of them because one name caught your eye. Rodrick.

It was four messages; are you home??, answer me!, i’m coming over. were the first three, but the last message was a video.

It starts staring at the floor, and then it’s pointed to a group of people. You can make out you, the gang, and Heather behind you. You take off running, but the recording doesn’t stop there.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Rodrick stands up and gets in Heather's face.

“What?” she laughs in disbelief.

“You heard what I said!”

“Are you seriously defending her over me? I thought you liked me?!” You can hear the fakeness in her voice.

“That was before you decided to spread lies about my friend! He has done nothing to you!” the emphasis on the “he” makes your eyes widen. “You’re gonna stop talking shit about my best friend to my face! You’re such a fake bitch! I don’t know how I ever liked you…”

“Don’t tell me you’re seriously picking her over me? You must be more homo than her to like that wannabe boy.”

“Are you fucking serious?” The rest of the guys pipe up and start to surround Heather.

“He is a guy, and if you think anything other than it, you must be stupider than I thought,” Ben steps up.

“And so what if I like him? Just know I don’t like you, not anymore.” Rodrick is the angriest you’ve ever seen him, it’s kind of hot scary.

“Whatever, you’re all just losers. Lets go,” she turns and walks off with her crew.

That’s where the video ends.

You couldn’t stop rewatching it in amazement. He had stood up to Heather Hills for you without hesitation. Had said he liked you to Heather Hills. To basically the entire school, if this video has already gone around.

You debate whether or not you wanted to talk to him, but your need for your best friend wins over your need to hide. You slip on your shoes and head out.

You live a little over 5 minutes away from Rodrick even though he drives you guys everywhere. You know you could’ve told him to come over to your house, but it’s nice to finally get some fresh air. Plus, his mom was always nice to see when you went over his house.

When you get there, you see his van parked in the driveway near the garage. You have to hype yourself up to knock on the front door, but once you do it’s like a wave of nausea comes crashing over you.

I can’t do this, oh my god. What have I-

Before you can finish your thoughts, the door opens. You half expect it to be Rodrick, but it’s just Greg.

“Hey, kid.” You do a little wave as if you haven’t met him before. Whenever you come over, you tend to see Greg and Rowley, too. Most of the time they’re just in the living room, but they sometimes come up to the attic just to get chewed out by Rodrick, especially when it’s just you two up there.

“Hey, (Y/N),” he smiles, “where’ve you been?”

“Yknow.” You wring your hands. “Around.”

You can barely get words out. Does Greg know? Did Rodrick tell his family about what his best friend is?

“Rodrick should be upstairs in his room.” Greg moves out of the way so you can step into the house. “He’s been moping up there since yesterday, I don’t even think he’s left it today.”

“He didn’t go to school?” It’s not surprising, he’s always skipping, but you know it’s because of what went down yesterday.

“Nope,” Greg shakes his head. “Look, I don’t know what happened between you guys, because he only acts like this when he can’t see you, but I think you guys will work it out. It’s like me and Rowley, just less romantical.”

“W-what-” you sputter out. “I don’t-”

“Sure, whatever you want to tell yourself.” Greg cuts you off with an eye roll. “Like I said, he’s upstairs.”

“Thanks, kid.” Your face is on fire.

And with that, you mount the stairs to the attic. Is your crush on Rodrick really that obvious that even his family can see it? And with the way Greg was talking it seems to be reciprocated. You heard it come out of Rodrick’s own mouth, but what if he just said that so Heather could leave you alone?

You’re in front of his door before you can finish your thoughts. You knock, ready to get this over with.

“Mom, I told you I’ll be ok, just leave me alone!” You hear him call out.

“Not your mom, last time I checked.” You say, a soft smile grows on your face from hearing his voice.

You hear him leap up off of his bed and trip over something, but it doesn’t seem to phase him as he runs to open the door.

“(Y/N),” he breathes out.

“Hey,” you can barely look him in the face. “Can I come in?”

“Yea, yea, come in!” He pulls you through the door.

Once in his room, it’s like you’ve never set foot in it. You don’t know what to do, where to sit. It all feels new to you for some reason.

“Dude, just sit down somewhere.” Rodrick laughs at your newfound confusion.

You decide to sit on his bed, which you do every time you come over. You and Rodrick always sit on opposite ends of the bed so you can look at each other, which this time is no different.

You just sit there, staring at each other. You decide to break the ice. “It’s true, all of it. I don’t know how Heather got that picture, but I was a girl for most of my life up until now. Please, don’t hate me.”

“I’m not going to lie, it made me mad that I had to find out through Heather Hills,” he sighs, “but then again it’s none of my business. You were doing it to protect yourself, so I get it and I don’t have a right to be mad. I could never hate you over something like that though.”

You just sit there with your mouth open. You knew subconsciously that he couldn’t have hated you, but you had grown up hearing all the hatred people had for people like you. You had no choice to be on the defense when coming over here, no matter what you heard.

“I just-” You start. “I just, I know you’re my best friend, and I should’ve trusted you with this, but I couldn’t. I’ve never had anyone but my parents know. Their families don’t even know, that’s the whole reason we moved here.”

“Would you have ever told me?” He asks, kind of quiet.

“Maybe.” You shrug honestly. “I was too worried about trying to survive high school without a slip up to think that far ahead.”

“Oh,” is all he answers.

It’s another drowning silence. You’ve never had an awkward silence in your entire friendship, this is freaking you out.

“Did you watch the video I sent you?” Rodrick speaks up.

“Yea, it was the first thing I saw when I turned my phone back on.” Another beat of silence. “It was the only reason I came over here to talk to you.”

“Did you watch the whole thing?”

“Only a hundred times,” you smile evilly. “I love watching that barbie wannabe get put in her place.”

“Yea, that was great to do,” his voice lowers, “but that’s not what I was talking about.”

“I know.” You whisper and look him in the eyes.

You just sit there staring at each other, and then Rodrick looks down at your lips. It was so quick you could’ve missed it if you blinked, but you saw it. Just go for it.

“Are you going to kiss me, or just think about it?” You try to sound confident, but it ends up a quiet squeak.

His eyes widen, but he begins to inch over to you until you’re pressed up against each other. “Is this okay?” His whisper tickles your lips.

You just nod, eyes never leaving his. You don’t know who leans in first, but your lips are together in a flash. Your grip on his shirt is tight, as if when you let go it’ll all disappear. Your mouths almost move in unison, like you’re trying to devour the other. You can barely breath, feeling like this isn’t real. You dreamed about this moment for so long and now that it’s here it’s like you’re ascending.

You are the one who pulls away first, needing to breathe. Rodrick doesn’t seem like he wants to stop, kissing down your jaw to your neck. While you're breathing softly, you hear a knock at his door. That doesn’t stop Rodrick though.

“Rodrick,” you breath out as a warning.

“Hm,” he hums indifferently. Before you both know it, his door opens.

“Rodrick, you need to leave this- OH MY GOD!” His mother screams out.

“MOM!” Rodrick jumps away from you in fear and shock.

You’re all just stuck looking at both of them staring at each other before you break the silence.

“Hey, Ms. Susan…”

After that you are put through a lecture with his mom and dad. You guys can’t be upstairs alone without Greg being a buffer, door open at all times even with the other guys there. They, of course, texted your parents about what they found so that's gonna be fun to go home to. But you felt like none of that mattered because you got what you wanted. You didn’t lose your friends, and you even gained a boyfriend.

He offers to drive you home, which you take because you want to be close to him for a little longer. So you wave goodbye to his parents and get into the van.

You hold hands on the way to your house.

—

“We’re glad you decided to come back to school,” Rodrick squeezes your hand. “It’s been so boring.”

“First of all, I was gone one day,” you roll your eyes in fake annoyance. “And second of all, you literally didn’t even go yesterday!”

“But it’s always boring whenever I don’t get to see you, baby.” He wiggles his shoulders against yours.

All the guys groan in fake disgust. “Yall are so corny, break up already.” Ben gags.

“I didn’t even say anything!” You throw your hands up, taking one of Rodricks hands with you.

“Cringe by association.” And you roll your eyes in true annoyance.

“Are you sure you’re ready to go back?” Rodrick interrupts. “We could just go back to your house and hang out for the day.”

“I’m sure you’d love that,” you shove his arm, “but if I keep skipping, it’ll be like she won. Plus I’m not losing my straight A streak because of that bimbo.”

“Fine,” he huffs. “I can’t wait for the last day, school is so boring.”

“I thought without me it was boring?” You raise an eyebrow.

“You know what I mean.” He kisses your cheek.

“Yuck,” one of the guys laughs out behind your back.

“Shut the fuck up so we can get this day over with.” You flip them off.

You’re, of course, joking because you know you couldn’t have gone through this without them. After your talk with Rodrick, you all had a group hangout and talked through all of this. They let you know the whole time that they were 100% on your side. They were your boys and you were theirs.

Maybe the rest of the year won't be hell. You got the guy, smited the girl, and even if you were outed, you had all the friends you needed with you already. You were going to be fine.

#rodrick heffley #transmasc #rodrick heffley x reader #x ftm reader #transgender #x black ftm reader

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ladykailitha · 2 years ago

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Do You Know What Shovels Dig? Graves Part 1

Just dipping my toe into the shovel talks trend.

“Hey, Steve?”

Steve turned around and Jonathan frowned. Steve’s eyes were puffy and his nose was red. “Oh, hey, man. What’s up?”

Jonathan could tell he was trying not to wipe the obvious tears from his face. As if that wouldn’t draw attention to them.

“I wanted to talk to you about you and Eddie’s relationship--”

Steve crumpled. That was the only way to describe it. The man was barely holding it together as it was, but it seemed that that was straw that broke the camel’s back.

“Look, I get it,” Steve snapped. “Don’t break Eddie’s heart. It sooo soft and I’m suuuuch a bitch. I don’t need the shovel talk from you.” The last word was said with such venom, Jonathan was forced to take a step back.

“Who’s been giving you shovel talks?” he asked.

Steve threw his arms in the air. “It would be easier to list off who hasn’t. The Byers family and El, only I can’t say that because you’re here. So just Will, your mom, and El.”

Jonathan frowned. “Even Robin?” Because that didn’t sound right. He had seen the two of them together and they were like freakishly close.

“Oh, yeah,” Steve snarled bitterly. “That’s the latest one. The one that makes me just want to throw myself into the god damn pool.”

Well, shit.

“Apparently this is Eddie first real relationship and since being gay is so hard right now, breaking his heart would be a disservice to humankind,” Steve mocked. “I asked her about my heart and my first relationship with a guy. But apparently that is as important as Eddie’s experience.”

Now that? Jonathan didn’t believe. But Steve was clearly hurt and was being dramatic about it. Which he was going to allow because holy shit.

But apparently Steve was just getting started. “At least Eddie’s friends all showed up together to give one shovel talk so that was nice. Hop and Wayne each did it while cleaning their hunting rifles, like they weren’t terrifying enough. I mean Mike’s an ass, so his I could brush off, but Dustin and Erica? Why does Eddie get more loyalty from them when I literally saved their lives? But Lucas and Max also double teamed me, so that was all sorts of fun. Nancy casually brought up that she has three guns now. So yeah, just get it over with so I can go back to being the worst boyfriend in Hawkins!”

Jonathan forced him to sit down. “That was a lot to unpack, I’m not going to lie. But take a deep breath for me, can you do that?”

Steve nodded and took a deep breath.

“Now let it out slow,“ Jonathan continued. Steve followed his instruction. “Great now keep doing that until your heart no longer feels like it’s going to burst out of your chest.”

Steve started breathing more normally and Jonathan sat next to him. “I’m not actually here for a shovel talk. I was wondering if you or Eddie would be willing to talk to Will about liking boys.”

Steve blinked at him for a moment. “What?”

“Yeah, he’s going through a really hard time with it right now,” Jonathan explained. “And I’m not really getting through to him because I’m straight and it’s pretty much meaningless coming from me.”

“Oh.”

“But no, I get your reaction, dude,” he said. “I really do. Has anyone given Eddie the shovel talk?”

Steve shrugged. “It’s not like I can ask, is it? ‘Oh hey, Eddie, anyone threaten your life over our relationship lately. No, no, not homophobes, I mean our friends? No? Well that’s just peachy!’“

Jonathan barked out a laugh. “Yeah, no matter how you phrase that it’s going to come off as bitchy. Especially if no one has.”

Steve nodded.

“Look, if you talk to Will for me,” Jonathan said, “I’ll talk to Eddie. Deal?”

Steve looked at the hand for a moment before he shook it. “Deal.”

Jonathan knocked on the Munson’s door. Eddie opened it with a look of surprise.

“Look, man,” Eddie said with a sigh. “I don’t sell anymore. And besides your friend from Cali has better stuff.”

Jonathan held up his prized. “Oh, I’m aware, I’m offering to share.”

Eddie looked at him for a moment and then closed the door behind him. “Yeah, okay.”

Jonathan lit two blunts and passed one to Eddie.

Eddie took a drag and sighed. “Shit this stuff is good.”

Jonathan just smiled.

“Not that I don’t appreciate the share, man,” Eddie said after a few minutes, “but why are you here?”

“I went over to Steve’s to ask him if he would be willing to talk to Will for me,” he said after taking a drag.

“Because your brother is gayer then the May pole?” Eddie supplied.

“Yup,” he replied. “Only our Stevie wasn’t doing so good.”

Eddie leapt to his feet. “What?!”

Jonathan tugged on his pant leg. “Sit down, dude. Let me explain before you go off half cocked and make things worse.”

Eddie sat down with a grumble. “You better start talking and you better do it fast.”

“In my experience shovel talks are for people you don’t trust not for people you care about,” Jonathan said slowly. “Only it seems our friends didn’t get the memo.”

“People have been giving Steve the shovel talk?” Eddie asked, eyes wide, jutting his chin forward in shock. “But no one’s said shit to me!”

Jonathan winced. “That’s kinda what me and Steve were afraid of.”

Eddie felt his heart sink to his stomach. “Do you--did he say how long it’s been going on?”

Jonathan shook his head. “But the fact that only my house and El haven’t given him the shovel talk I would probably bet since you two announced your relationship.”

“Shit,” Eddie whispered. “I bet the first two were funny, endearing even. Steve likes that kind of stuff. And then as it kept happening...”

“Yeah,” Jonathan agreed. “Has he been distant lately?”

Eddie closed his eyes and nodded. “Now I know why.” He thought for a moment. “Is there a way to call everyone together without alerting Steve, too?”

Jonathan shrugged. “If his boyfriend were to ‘accidentally’ turn off the walkie for an hour for some hot makeup sex...”

Eddie laughed. “I can absolutely do that.”

“I’ll set it up,” Jonathan said. He flicked the remainder of his blunt to the ground and stood up to grind it out under his boot.

Dang it, this was getting longer than I planned, but I’ll put out a part two later.

Edit: and it’s later! And part three! Part four and Part FIVE! Part Six!!!

#My writing #stranger things #steddie #jonathan and steve are friends

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regregregulusblack · 6 months ago

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My official intro post . ⋆✮ ˚ . ✩°｡⋆｡

𝙷𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚘. My name is Regulus Black, and no, you are NOT allowed to call me Reg or Reggie.

A photo my friend Evan took of me without my permission. I will never forgive you, @barbie-wants-to-be-me-fr !!!

I am intersex and I go by he/they pronouns. I don’t like to label myself, but at least I am not straight. I am single and not looking for anyone at all at the moment. I am also autistic and have ADHD. NOT the wild sort. The fucking-tired-bitch-stfu-sort.

My interests:

• Art

• Quidditch (I’m a seeker)

• Poetry (both reading and writing)

• Reading books

• Defence of the Dark Arts

• Analysing every single lyric in every single Taylor Swift song and crying about it

• Makeup

On this blog I will be posting quotes, poetry, art, photographs and selfies and just silly little things that I feel like sharing. If I see any posts about me, I will read them and BEWARE, I will be critical. So you might see me around :) You have been warned.

You will also probably see me having chats with my friends, @remus-lupin-offical is one of them but I’m still waiting for my other idiot friends to finish making their bloody accounts. I will add them here as soon as I can! Update: Took as them long enough, but now they’re also on Tumblr! People you will see me interacting with:

• @sirius-thesstar (Ew)

• @remus-lupin-offical (Why’d you choose my idiot brother as your boyfriend? You’re better than this.)

• @the-real-marls-mckinnon

• @xxcassiexx Dorcas Meadows, a Slytherin I have deep respect for. Say hi to Dorcas!

• @barty-not-barry (My batshit crazy friend)

• @pandora-notyetalovegood (Fellow Slytherin, say hi!)

• @lily-evans-for-ya (In a world of annoying people you are a nice person. Take it as a compliment or don’t. It’s up to you.)

• @captainjamespotter (Annoying Gryffindor)

• @stolemyheelsfromlegolas (DO NOT CALL ME REGIANO FFS) (MARY YOU HEAR ME?!)

• @barbie-wants-to-be-me-fr (Another lovely Slytherin asshole, he and Barty should just shut up and kiss by the way)

• @ur-local-peter-pettigrew (Gryffindor)

• @itty-bitty-bella (Cousin)

• @therealcissyblack (Cousin who loves me :))

• @andro-black (Cousin AS WELL)

• @the-best-slytherin (Luna, a fellow Slytherin)

• @yourfavouritehufflepuffgirl (Ew Hufflepuffs) (Ooc: I love Hufflepuffs)

You will see me arguing with my brother, @sirius-thesstar. Like, a lot. Don’t mind Sirius, he’s an idiot. If we’re arguing in French, do NOT translate if you’re a scaredy cat…

Do not interact if:

• You’re Sirius and you’re mad at me

• You’re a Gryffindor (yeah that goes for you too Sirius) (Slytherin is the best Hogwarts house)

• You’re transphobic

• You’re homophobic

• You don’t like me for some other reason

• You’re a Taylor Swift hater

I love Taylor. Don’t you ever disrespect her. Her new album only further proves that she’s a true poet. Even @sirius-thesstar agrees with me on that.

Other things I love are:

• Cats (I dream of having two black cats and naming them Phoebe and Ruby)

• The sea (It’s so calming to watch, but I HATE swimming. It’s too cold. And wet. Yuck.)

• The rain

• Conan Gray (No one can take his album “Superache” from me. Don’t ever try or I’ll bite you.)

Hope I’ll see you around! (Or not. Depending on my mood)

My tags: #regregregulusreg, #thetorturedpoetofthecave, #regussy, #regulussy

Random edit: Ooc: Eh so I’m a minor and I’m a victim of actual physical and mental abuse and I’m still going through stuff, so eh, “Reggie” might be talking jokingly about abusive parents and a tough upbringing on here and stuff like that… just know that that is my fucked up coping mechanism okay, and I don’t mean any harm, and please if you’re joking around with me about abuse don’t take it too far since it might be triggering for me. Thank you.

#the real regulus black #regulus black #intro post #thetorturedpoetofthecave #conan gray #marauders era #dead gay wizards #taylor swift #poetry #trans #lgbtqia+#regregregulusreg #regussy #regulussy

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wetsocksinbed · 1 year ago

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shit people need to hear about COD:

Ghost isn’t some broken uwu boy. Infantilising assault victims is demeaning and disrespectful

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, König is extremely overrated for a character that only appears as a playable operator and not as anything in the campaign

You’re allowed to ship whoever you want, it’s a free world, but throwing a tantrum when people say they don’t ship GhostSoap or Korangi, and calling them homophobic (I’ve seen this too many times at this point) is disgusting and you’re essentially stereotyping us LGBTQ individuals as aggressive and pushy when it comes to queer ships. The characters of Ghost and Soap are canonically coded to be like brothers, and you need to stop thinking that a headcannon is the same as real cannon

Stop replacing Gaz with König, it’s giving ✨racism✨

Alex, König, Farah, Alejandro, Rudy and Horangi are not part of TF141, stop including them in it?????

König and Ghost are canonically enemies and wouldn’t have each other on speed dial just tag your fics as OOC at this point

the entirety of the Call of Duty franchise was coded for straight white “alpha male” boys who live in their mothers basements, stop acting like it’s anything more than that. You won’t find the representation you’re looking for in it and honestly with the way it’s headed at the moment, I don’t think you ever will

we can tell if you’ve never played the games based on how you write the fics. You don’t have to be a game fan or player, but at least do your research on the characters you’re writing about before you hit “post”

Makarov and Graves are terrible people and shouldn’t be idolised. Before you tag me with your “let people do what they want” let me remind you that Graves is canonically racist. @mockerycrow made a good post about why Makarov is a shit person and I recommend you read it

All of the characters have their flaws. Ghost, Soap, Gaz, Price, they all have done bad things. Price is known to commit war crimes if it means getting the mission done

König having social anxiety doesn’t mean he’s a broken husk. You can function completely fine with the disorder if you can find a way to distance yourself from who you are as a person. Say, like, constantly wearing a mask? I promise you that the Austrian soldier wouldn’t be a sobbing mess because he got looked at funny

Also, he is only obsessed over because of his mask and the weird obsession people on this app have with infantilising people with trauma and mental illnesses (see first paragraph regarding Ghost)

The way some of the fans obsess over the actors is uncomfortable and genuinely creepy. It’s like this generation thinks that anything behind a screen isn’t real and can’t feel anything. They’re people who act. They’re not the characters you play.

feel free to add more to this, I’m tired and sick and wanted to rant

notes:

don’t attack me with the “yeah but not me” shit. Obviously I don’t mean everyone.

this doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the games the way you want, it just means don’t fucking police it and gatekeep it and expect everyone to accept your interpretation of it

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myteavsricochet · 1 year ago

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Favorite firstprince fanfics, another incomplete list:

(Part 1)

Come Let Me Love You

Henry always struggled to have a good night's sleep. Alex made it easier over the years they had been together, but little cries in the middle of the night always woke Henry.

A little glimpse into a future where Alex and Henry are doting fathers to a beautiful little girl.

Obliviously Devoted

She looks at him in the way only June can. She's the only one he'll allow it from without a fight. "I don't know if you're ready to have this conversation or not."

His fork clatters to the plate in front of him. "What is that supposed to mean?"

June sighs a sigh of long-suffering and pinches the bridge of her nose, before she looks him dead in the eye and sets his world upside down. "You know you and Henry are dating, right?"

Alex gapes at her. Mouth hung open, eyes blown wide. "W-what?"

"I say this with all the love in the world," she says. "But sometimes, I swear, you are the most oblivious idiot on the face of the planet."

Tags: idiots in love, oblivious acd, best friends to lovers, alternate universe - roommates/housemates

(even though you want to) please try to never grow up

“You better have a good fucking reason for sending me to voicemail, Hen.” He glares at the phone for one second before he actually sees the screen, and then his face melts into something Henry can only describe as fond. “Oh,” he whispers, dropping his mug of coffee onto the counter so he can lean in closer to the phone. “Look who’s there.”

“Yeah.” Henry keeps his voice so low he isn’t even sure Alex can hear him. He doesn’t seem to mind, eyes taking in the picture in front of him with parted lips, the edge of his finger covering the camera when he undoubtedly reaches to caress his daughter’s head.

Or, Alex misses his daughter when he goes back to work after a long paternity leave.

tags: domestic, tooth-rotting fluff, family fic

Let Me Wash Away Your Worries

Alex has had a terrible week. Henry is right there to take care of him.

Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Smut, Bath Sex, Cuddling & Snuggling, Romantic Fluff, Praise Kink, Alex Claremont-Diaz Needs a Hug, Worship

ephemeral enchantments

in which Henry is an overworked barista with a tendency to embarrass himself in front of everything that breaths and Alex is charmed from the first time he met him.

Tags: Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Awkward Flirting

Three fights Alex and Henry never had

Yes, Alex and Henry got their Happily Ever After. But that doesn't mean everything was just automatically perfect when they moved in together...

Tags: Established Relationship, Domestic Fluff

am i homophobic? (URGENT) (PLEASE HELP)

Now, it might be pretty early in the morning and Alex’s brain functions might not be working as quickly as they normally do, but he can still put two and two together. There's a strange man in their kitchen. Henry is shirtless, rumpled, and holding two pairs of boxers. Henry and this Sam guy slept together. Which… obviously is fine because Alex is not an asshole, but he’s definitely feeling something about this development that he will examine at a later date. But of course, instead of saying something normal, you know, like a normal person would, he says, “Ohh.” Like a fucking weirdo.

or: the "am i homophobic?" roommate au that no one asked for

Tags: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Sexuality Crisis, Mentions of homophobia, no one is like actually homophobic though, Idiots in Love, Explicit Sexual Content, Unsafe Sex

The shape of your lips bruising my heart

So, that neck-kissing scene in the bloopers? Yeah, that one. Well. I wrote it.

—

In which Alex has a hard time leaving the hotel after their night in Paris.

you’re leaving (now i’m left amongst the living)

Six years since they've been together, Alex and Henry were now a far cry from the lovestruck couple they once were when their history began. If you ask Alex, all of it was Henry’s fault. If you ask Henry, he’d agree and say that Alex was right.

But before Alex could ever find out why Henry does not seem like the man he once decided to spend the rest of his life with, he already walked away from it all. Now, Henry was alone, left to deal with whatever shattered remains he could salvage from his life.

Or, the one where Henry’s sick and Alex only finds out two years after they've broken up.

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Lawyer Alex, Writer Henry, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Feels, Angst and Humor, Fluff and Angst, Graphic Depictions of Illness, Hospitalization

Fifty First Dates

Henry has used a dating app exactly one time. Predictably, the date turns out to be terrible. The bartender, however, is not.

A cute stranger’s solution to Henry’s woeful dating life is to set him up on fifty first dates.

Most People Exist

Henry Fox is a nurse at the New York Cancer Center. He’s happy with his job, content enough with his life, but it all gets turned on its head when he connects with a patient with a brain tumor—Alex Claremont-Diaz.

———

Henry is a nurse, Alex is a patient.

Tags: Alternate Universe - Hospital, Cancer, Nurses & Nursing, Minor Character Death, Falling In Love, Slow Burn, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, They will end up happy I pinky swear

i want your dreary mondays

“You little menace,” a voice says from the door, entirely too fond to be anything mean. “I told you to wait by the car, not go inside.” The man steps inside, shaking the rain from his hair, and Henry is treated to the sight of the most beautiful man he’s seen in his entire life, standing in the middle of his shop with clothes dripping to the floor and raincoat bundled up around him. He notices then the umbrella clutched in the little boy’s hand, the innocent wide eyes watching his father, and the picture forms in his head.

Or, five times Henry makes a piece of art for Alex's son on his drinks, and one time he does it for Alex himself.

It's Nice to Have a Friend

Two boys meet on a beach, build a sand castle, write letters, and fall in love.

Tags: Alternative Universe - Childhood friends, Friends to lovers, Slow Burn, Growing up together

Leave A Message

"This is Alex Claremont-Diaz's phone. If it's a business matter, I don't know how you got ahold of this number, but if you have my number that means you probably have Zahra's. Call her instead. If you're friends or family, just text me. If you're anyone else, I'll call you back as soon as I can."

Or: Alex's voicemail message over the years, and the messages people leave for him.

I must tell you what you will not ask

Henry's lower lip wobbles, and a fresh tear rolls down his cheek. Alex watches it track down to his chin, and wonders if Henry would mind him wiping it away. “I really was looking forward to seeing them.”

Another tear escapes, and this time Alex can't help but lean forward and brush it away with his thumb. Henry's breath catches, and he looks at Alex, wearing an expression he can't quite parse. “Come home with me,” Alex blurts out.

Henry's plans for Christmas fall through, so Alex invites him home for the holidays. They're best friends, strictly platonic roommates, so why does everyone think they're dating?

drive-thru mornings

“Would you like to pay cash or by card, sir?”

Alex startles, but recovers quickly and smiles charmingly at the girl in the window. Maggie, her tag reads. “By card, darlin’,” he says. “Actually, could I pay for the man behind me, as well? I have no idea what he ordered, but he’s strikingly handsome, isn’t he?”

Tags: Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Dorks in love

you turned a moment (into forever)

Sharing an apartment with Alex had seemed like a good idea at first. They’re best friends, prices in Brooklyn are absurd, and they had both been in urgent need of residence – it only made sense.

Except for the small, tiny, teeny, barely there fact that Henry has been in love with Alex from the first moment he laid eyes on him. And the fact that Alex doesn’t know, and can never find out.

—

Or, as coffeecatsme so eloquently put it: Roommates AU where Alex has insomnia and slips into Henry’s bed every night because it’s the only way he gets a good night’s sleep.

You Can Hear It In The Silence

At the Lake House, Henry doesn’t run when Alex tells him he loves him. But he can’t say it back; too afraid of the consequences it would have, no matter how true it is. But as the truth settles in, Henry decides Alex is worth fighting for. So he does.

A Long Way From the Playground

Henry and Alex were best friends growing up until they went to separate colleges and they grew apart. When they see each other again as adults, against the odds, both living in the same city again, will it be a joyful reunion or will the pain of the years apart get in the way? How do you become friends again when there is so much of the past in the way?

Oblivion

The man starts to cock the hammer of gun, and Alex squeezes his eyes shut, his lower lip trembling almost imperceptibly.

“Stop!” Henry shouts, his voice cracking. “I’ll give you whatever you want, I’ll do anything…just please, don’t hurt him.”

Alex’s eyes fly open, shooting Henry the same incredulous look that he gave him in the hallway, and Henry knows he’s shown too much of his hand, revealed a part of himself that he’d sworn he would take to his grave, but he’s too full of fear and desperation to feel self-conscious about it now. He can deal with the consequences when they get out of this.

If they get out of this.

******

What if the moment in the hospital wasn’t a false alarm and the publicity surrounding the forced bromance between Alex and Henry had the adverse effect of them being kidnapped together?

Confidential Memorandum

"Hello, Mr. Fox-Mountchristen's office. How may I help you?"

"Hello, can I speak to Mr. Fox-Mount-krishen, please?"

Alex blinked. After two weeks of hearing nothing but the voices of snooty men and frazzled secretaries calling in, the person on the other line now sounded decidedly neither snooty nor male nor in any way adult.

It was a little girl.

"Mr. Fox-Mountchristen's unfortunately in a meeting right now,” Alex began slowly, “but I could take a message?"

"Oh." The girl paused. "You're not Mr. Hunter."

Alex starts a new job as Henry's new assistant. Henry's daughter keeps calling the office and leaving him messages.

we thought we ruled the world

Alex stares down at his latest text from Henry. A link to an article he’s seen about ten versions of so far. He’s managed to resist clicking on any of them, but now Henry is sending it, so he supposes he should at least give it a skim.

How Prince Henry’s Relationship With FSOTUS Lost Ellen Claremont The Election

............

Or, what would have happened if Ellen lost.

Run, Don't Walk

Henry loves sex. He loved sex even before he was with Alex, although there's something to be said for the level of precision and intimacy acquired through years of learning each other's bodies. He's liked being filled from the first time he ever experienced the feeling, and he doesn't think he'll ever love anything quite as much as he loves getting fucked.

But this? This is giving him pause for thought.

Tags: Porn without plot, Marathon sex, Henry loves sex, and Alex, and sex with Alex

london bridge has fallen down

Alex can feel the eyes of the room on him as Shaan approaches his side. Then, Shaan quietly murmurs in his ear. They’re words he’s thought about before, distantly wondering about what might happen when they were finally uttered. How their lives might change. There’s nothing that can prepare him for the reality of it though, nothing that can prepare him for how his breath hitches when Shaan speaks.

‘London Bridge is down, Sir.’

---

Queen Mary is dead. Henry doesn't know how to feel.

Screw Your Courage to the Sticking Place (and forget macbeth is a fucking tragedy)

"You don't owe me anything."

"Of course I do. If you have time now...there are things I'd like to say."

Alex hesitates.

"I know I don't have any right to ask you to listen," Henry adds. He sounds so hopeful though.

A little closure doesn't sound like a terrible thing. Agreeing to go with Henry, alone, to Kensington Palace sounds like returning to the scene of a crime.

It's been over a decade since their breakup - Alex is now a single dad forging his career as a lawyer, and Henry's finally getting the courage to stand up to his grandmother. In finding themselves, can they also find their way back to each other?

#here we go #there will probably be a part 3 #firstprince fanfic #rwrb #rwrb fanfic #firstprince #red white and royal blue #alex claremont diaz #henry fox

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therainscene · 2 years ago

Text

It’s funny that Bylers are so often accused of being delusional, because I was at my most delusional when I was anti-Byler.

I spent most of S4 refusing to acknowledge that Will had romantic feelings for Mike, despite knowing damn well what all that love triangle imagery and sad gay pining was implying. I convinced myself it was just bros before hoes drama; that perhaps Will wanted to come out to his best friend but felt nervous after six months of radio silence following “it’s not my fault you don’t like girls!”

The van scene forced me to accept that he really was in love, and it pissed me off because what was even the point of making him fall for a straight boy?

Mike’s bizarre “no homo” behaviour was clearly a symptom of growing up in a conservative 80s household, and witnessing Will’s sacrificial act of love in the van was the shitty lesson he needed to get over his homophobia.

I saw a typical straight male protagonist in an 80s coming-of-age film getting to coast his way to self-actualization on the back of queer suffering; a cruel and homophobic trope I thought we’d moved past by the year 2022.

But then the NINA reunion scene rolled around--

--and I immediately picked up on the heavy parallels between Mike and Will in how they greeted El. The realization hit me like a tonne of bricks: Mike feels the same way about her as Will does.

I thought, “wait, does this mean I was wrong about...? Oh my god. No way.

No fucking way.

Will was in love with El this whole time?? What the fuck, he’s been gay since S1 and she’s his sister this is BULLSHIT I will personally strangle the Duffers--”

Heteronormativity is a hell of a drug, kids.

Let this be a lesson to those of you who think media illiteracy is to blame for Byler denial -- how well someone understands the mechanics of storytelling is irrelevant if they insist on treating Mike’s supposed heterosexuality as an axiom instead of an evidence-based conclusion. The issue lies with bias, not literacy.

I was stubbornly anti-Byler because I knew I’d immediately fall in love with this ship if I allowed myself to have hope it could be canon, and the general state of queer rep in mainstream media meant I was all but guaranteed to get hurt if I was so stupid as to have hope. But in my desperation to cling to the “safe” heteronormative outcome, I only ended up hurting myself with my own silly assumptions.

We’ve seen both canonically gay characters in the show make exactly this mistake, needlessly hurting themselves with their silly but self-defensive assumptions about their love interests.

Stranger Things absolutely nails its depiction of the subtler ways internalized homophobia can manifest -- Will may feel like a mistake and be prone to beating himself up, but he isn’t some pitiful self-loathing queer who wishes he was straight, either. He’s just so crushed by heteronormativity that he accepts it as an inescapable fact of life and lets it guide his beliefs and actions.

Don’t get me wrong: Will, like Robin, is very sensible for being cautious in such a horrifically bigoted environment -- trying to openly defy that level of homophobia by yourself, especially when you’re young, is a bad idea.

But unlike Robin, he clearly struggles to accept that he has the right to chase his same-sex love interest. He's no longer simply exercising caution, but conforming to homophobic standards -- much in the same way I thought I was sensibly refusing to be queerbaited, when really I was just agreeing with the heteronormative status quo.

I realize now that this is the real reason Will was written into a homophobic 80s trope: not to teach Mike an outdated lesson in acceptance, but to maneuver Will into position for the lesson he’s going to learn in S5 about resisting conformity.

Will needs to learn that castrating himself to make straight people comfortable is a bad idea too. Not only is that a miserable way to live his life, but what sort of world is he leaving for the next generation of queer kids if he never questions these homophobic standards?

It’s just the cycle of abuse scaled up to the societal level.

This is what gives me confidence in Byler endgame. Queerness isn’t just an incidental element of Will’s personal arc, but suffuses the show to its very core -- it’s in its themes, its allegory, its characters.

So Will getting the boy isn’t just nice fan-service for Byler shippers, but a necessary ending if the show’s most important lesson is to land:

That it’s rewarding to make the difficult choice of standing up to bigotry in the face of forced conformity. Of choosing love.

Could it be the case that I was right the first time, and Stranger Things is going to turn out to be yet another heteronormative mainstream show that doesn’t commit to its own themes? Sure, maybe. But that wouldn’t invalidate the valuable lessons this show has already -- and apparently accidentally lol -- taught me.

Anyone who calls us deluded for hoping a mainstream show is going to have a gay pairing as its main couple just doesn’t realize -- or doesn’t care -- that they’re contributing to the very problem they’re describing.

#stranger things #byler #will byers #mike wheeler #robin buckley #my analysis

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dearweirdme · 9 days ago

Note

One thing that made me stop believing that Taekook is real was when Taehyung posted that Taekook Dream photo on his IG only to be seen going on a late night date with Jennie in Paris a few days after. It made me feel like he posted that TK photo on purpose to feed shippers and keep them occupied while he went to Paris with the person whom he was really in a relationship with.

I know you also think the video was real and not edited in any ways and definitely those were not cosplayers, but then you seemed to convince yourself that everything was just media play even when it was clear that Paris walk was a "soft launch".

I never questioned the bond that Taekook have. We can all see how close they are. I would have love to think it was more than a platonic relationship, but their dating rumors are telling me otherwise and Paris was the last straw for me.

I think Taekook do fanservice as a way to help each other cover up as to whom they are really dating. They do stuff like the Wooga ring, Hello Kitty plushie, the ILY sign, the stares etc etc to feed shippers so when dating rumors emerge, no one would believe in those rumors. Do I make sense?

Hi anon!

I don’t really feel like having yet another conversation about why I feel Taennie isn’t real. I mean, look through my tag system and you’ll find everything I have said on it in the past. I will say something on why I don’t feel you make sense though.

You’re basically contradicting yourself. You think it was a soft launch, but at the same time Tae needed to use Jk to hide his relationship with Jennie. When you soft launch something, you don’t also try to hide it. To me it also makes no sense at all for him to use a rumored queer relationship to hide a straight one. We’re talking about a hugely homophobic country here.

I think your thoughts are heavily based in heteronormative thinking. Because Jk and Tae are just as much a rumored relationship as any of the straight rumored ones. Theirs is the only rumored one though in which we have gotten actual organic clues from (opposed to Taennie which was all fed to us from outsiders).

I would like you to think about this… All throughout his career Tae has been given the narrative of weird/outsider/alienish. When he was a rookie he wasn’t allowed to be visible with the other members until their debut. He then was said to be quirky. His friendships outside of BTS were somewhat used to set him aside. His talk with Jk in ITS was edited in a way that made him look like the one who caused a rift; using his mental health issues. AYS once again put him in a narrative of being a guest.. amongst two people he is super close with. What effect do you think Taennie has had on his image…? It’s once again something that’s made him stand aside. It’s something that for Army’s made him connected to Blinks. It made him part of a dating scandal. In the wider context, Taennie is just another narrative Hybe stuck to him to make him susceptible to fandom criticism.

You are free to think Jk thought about ways to trick shippers before doing his first live in a year.. and came up with the brilliant idea of the Hello Kitty plush.. which ofcourse he made sure to pack up in a convenient place just for this occasion before moving house. I am however convinced that the plushie actually means something to him.

#can this be the year i retire my taennope tag please #taekook #the one in which jk is a mastermind

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connorsjorts · 4 months ago

Note

beloved connorsjorts, I am new to the fandom! I was here in 2018 when the game came out, but I was also a kid. Grew up and have now realized how romantic the Hank and Connor route was.

Do you think it was on purpose?? Or did they accidentally insert incredibly gay vibes bc the buddy cop genre is inherently homoerotic or something??? I mean they had the Tracis so they aren’t against gay couples or something, but there’s a world of difference between gay side characters and gay main characters in gaming, if you know what I mean??? What does it all mean???

Anyways, love your fics!!! You slay every day.

Hi and welcome to the fandom!! I hope you’re having a great time, and thank you so much for your kind words about my fics 🥹💖💖

I really wanted to write an in-depth response to this, I wrote out bullet points and everything! But feeding my baby is literally a full-time job rn and it would have taken an embarrassingly long time to turn those bullet points into something coherent considering that this ask has already been sitting in my inbox for a week 🫠

So, in the interest of ensuring that I actually answer your question: The short version is that while David Cage is unfortunately homophobic, imo that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t use a queer narrative for his own gain 🤷🏻‍♀️ He already did something similar by making the game an allegory for race—he uses social issues to make his stories seem Important. So I think it’s plausible that Connor’s story revolves around intentional queer subtext, and that yes, Hank plays a “love interest” role on some level. But because gay men make Cage uncomfortable and he didn’t actually want his Cool(?) White Man character to be queer, we’re left with remnants of this idea on the thematic and structural level only. Which like, thank god, in terms of the story—the man is not subtle, can you IMAGINE how over the top it would be if he had followed through.

youtube

Fig 1: Dramatic reenactment of the Eden Club in a version of the game where Connor Detroit is allowed to be gay

I feel like this is an unpopular opinion (I think most people think it’s just 100% accidental) but if anyone wants me to plead my case in Old Man Yaoi v. That Coward David Cage lmk. Otherwise I’ll be busy plunking out my next Human Disaster Connor fic 😌 Thanks for your question!!!

#i'm happy to dig deeper into this but i wanted to make sure i actually answered you!#also please no one come at me i love queer subtext and theme and structure but i do not love to argue 😭#and i am very sleepy #ask #dbh #hankcon

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hotluncheddie · 1 year ago

Text

bet.

for the october @steddiemicrofic prompt 'suck' ! happy halloween !!

wc: 480 | rated: T | cw: none | tags: bestie robin, chubby steve, horny eddie

.𖥔 ݁ ˖🕸️🕷.𖥔 ݁ ˖

‘bet you can’t keep your hands off him for the whole party.’ robin stares eddie down from across the sofa.

‘what? on Halloween? is that how you think of me bobbie? i’m wounded’ eddie watches steve’s ass as he walks to the kitchen.

robin throws popcorn at him ‘eddie. the only reason you're not still sitting in his lap is because i asked him to get more soda.. literally a second ago.’

‘and you were so mean for that.’ eddie folds his arms, eyes flicking between robin and steve at the fridge. robin is scowling.. ‘fine. your bet, what’s the stakes?’

robins scowl drops and she sighs 'i need steve to wingman. the new girl from work is bringing her roommate and it’s been hinted her favourite colour is violet and i need this eddie, like, seriously.’

eddie softens. ’it would be homophobic of me to take that away from you.’ poking her with his socked toe. ‘do i get anything? for keeping my hands off?’

‘24 hours. i have a project due but no time till the day before. apartment will be yours. you two can do what you want.. my rooms off limits.’

‘you, miss robin buckly, have a deal.’

—

‘you, are an evil witch robin buckley’

‘oh, get over it!’ robin huffs, tipsy.

‘how could you do this to me! on halloween!’ eddie pouts.

‘suck it up buttercup. just remember what’s at stake.’

‘ughhhh’

‘yeah because i’m so sorry i convinced steve to pick that costume. even though he had to buy it, so it’s his, forever.’

‘…did i ever tell you you’re the light of my life?’

robin flicks him on the forehead and walks back over to steve and the girl.

eddie tracks her. resigned to sulking.

and blue balls.

because steve is in a sailor uniform, but this one is off-white with black accents, complementing his tan. the trousers are long, wide in the leg and tight in the ass. cupping around the curve of it, like eddie wishes he was, right now. the hat on his head is at an angle and pushes his hair down, so it frames his rosy cheeks, and pretty smile.

and the top. oh! the top. the flap collar frames broad shoulders and deep v exposes chest hair. it ends at his hipline and flowed nicely but steve’s had a few beers. bloated, his belly has started filling in the front, started pulling around his love handles. the outline of his soft, wide belly button is just visible.

‘just one night.’ eddie mumbles to himself, leaning against a wall. ‘then 24 uninterrupted hours.’

steve readjusts the waistband of his trousers, hiking them a little higher. eddie sees how the movement makes his belly jiggle.

sliding slowly down the wall and into a heap on the floor; eddie bites his fist and allows himself one tiny, tortured little whimper.

#ahoy ;)#steve thinks the bet is very funny #hotlunch #steddie #steddiemicrofic #steddiemicroficoctober #chubby steve harrington #goblin eddie munson #eddie’s dressed as dracula if u care #my fic #a belly pushing agains a sailor shirt is something so so dear to me #if anyone wants to be a freak and agree with me pls tell me in an ask #robin is indiana jones #she gets the girl <3

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lovemesomeeddiemunson · 6 months ago

Text

The Proposal - Part 3

Summary: When Steve Harrington is threatened with deportation, he blackmails his long suffering assistant, Eddie Munson, into marrying him. Steddie! The Proposal Au, Modern Au, Part 3 of 7. 5166 Words

Series Warnings: Blackmail. Food mentions. Mentions of unhealthy relationship with food. Cursing. Self harm (by means of tattooing.) Homophobia. Death of a parent. Abandonment by parents. Shitty parents. Homophobic parents. Parents with entitlement. Classism. Eventual sexual situations (no actual smut!) Brief allusion to a panic attack. Minor spoilers for Flight of Icarus.

Authors Note: It should be noted that this is a fully completed fic, I've just broken it up for ease of posting. I can AND WILL be motivated to post faster, if readers find themselves engaged lol 😂

They had reached some semblance of normalcy by the time they landed. Slipping into their roles.

Wayne is waiting for them when they get off the plane, smiling huge when he and Eddie spot each other in the crowd, the latter immediately bolting for his uncle, leaving a bewildered Steve a few paces behind.

“Uncle Wayne,” he says happily as the old man receives him in a tight hug, and damn. It’s been too long.

“Hey Ed,” he greets with a chuckle, pulling back to get a good look at him. Clicking his tongue. “Don’t they have food in New York? You’re all skin and bones.”

Eddie laughs. “I’m eating good Wayne, promise.”

Wayne gives a shake of his head. “We’ll get you a Big Mac or something on the way.”

Steve, who's gotten close enough to hear now, is baffled by what he hears. In the Harrington home, Steve was often critiqued for how much he ate. Even in peak sports season - food was a means for fuel only, and carefully regulated.

Steve carried the guilt of it around with him even now - years later, and while he indulges himself in his morning lattes, he never let it go so far as to eat fast food.

But here Wayne offered it up to Eddie unthinkingly, the offer laced with kindness.

Steve finds it hard to wrap his head around.

Noticing him standing there in silence, Wayne glances his way, and Eddie whirls around then too. “Oh!” He blurts.

“Steve, honey, this is my uncle Wayne.” Eddie introduces.

Steve sticks a hand out to shake automatically, his smile plastered on as he tells him, “Pleasure.”

Wayne smiles back. “Well hello there…Now do you prefer to be called Steve or uh, Harbinger of Souls? I’ve heard it both ways…Actually I’ve heard it a lot of ways.”

Steve’s eyes widen as Eddie elbows his uncle, no malice to it. “Hey, come on now.” He complains.

Even despite this, the older man’s smile doesn’t falter, and he laughs good-naturedly. “I’m kidding. Mostly. It’s good to have you, Steve. I was surprised when Eddie said you’d be coming along.”

“Right, uh. I’m sure…Thank you for allowing me to be part of your birthday this weekend.” Steve manages.

Wayne waves his niceties off, wrapping his arms around his boy once again and ushering him along as they head to baggage claim.

Once there, Eddie rescues Steve’s things and piles them up neatly, muttering on the last bag for only him to hear, “You’re gonna wanna use your legs to lift that one,” Before turning and slapping his hands together.

“Where did you park?” He asks his uncle as he abandons Steve to his luggage.

Wayne looks miffed at seeing it, “Eddie! Help him with those!” He huffs, having thought he’d brought up a respectable gentleman.

Eddie pouts. “I’d love to, but he won’t let me do anything, uncle Wayne. He insists on doing it all by himself…So big and strong.” He sighs.

Wayne looks at Steve, unconvinced. Steve fakes a smile at him and gets his bags in hand.

Eddie chooses then to launch into a rapid-fire round of catching up with his uncle, telling him “Gareth and Jeff send their love, and presents, by the way.”

Wayne looks fond, “Ah, how are they? I ran into Gareth’s mom at Melvald’s the other day - she says since he left he never calls. I didn’t have the heart to tell her I know how well he’s doing since my kid keeps in touch.” He chuckled softly, the two of them talking more while the three of them head out.

Once they reach Wayne’s truck, Steve piles his things into the truck bed as Wayne offers for Eddie to get behind the wheel.

He takes him up on it, Wayne riding shotgun and Steve sitting in the back seat of the cab, melding silently into the seats. Answering when spoken to, in a friendlier manner than Eddie expected.

So far so good.

They do hit a fast food place on the way, and when it becomes apparent that Steve is completely out of his element, Wayne insists on getting a bunch of different stuff for him to try. Refusing to let Steve pay.

The three men sit in a booth with cracked red leather, Steve sipping a milkshake and downing so many fries that he’s sure he’ll die, but Eddie is feeding them to him, being all cute and domestic and Steve would rather perish than give Eddie a reason to stop.

Finally, Wayne clears his throat to interrupt the pair of them. “So uh, I was thinking…and uh, you boys don’t have to indulge an old man in his wishes, but-” And his voice is soft and humble, and Steve’s heart goes out to him.

“What is it?” He asks, at near the same time Eddie questions, “What is it, uncle Wayne?”

Wayne scratches his head. “Well now, I know you’re only in town for the weekend, but I was just thinking…that nice hotel you booked is a bit of a ways outside of Hawkins…and I see so little of you as it is…Well, I was wondering if you two wouldn’t mind staying in your old room. So we can spend the extra time together.”

Wayne gives Steve a look - like a kicked puppy, all sweet and innocent and Steve is helpless to turn him down. He looks to Eddie and finds that the other man is already looking at him - with a very similar kicked puppy look that makes his heart thud traitorously.

Not wanting to dwell on that, he dwells instead on a decision that was presented to him.

Considering that being in Wayne’s home means being under his scrutiny, he knows that the pair of them will have to be continually convincing. Something that Eddie doesn’t seem put off by, and so he chooses not to be either.

“Well, I don’t see why not.” Steve says finally before Eddie’s wobbly lip really does finish him off.

At his words Eddie whoops, and the sound, particularly when paired with Wayne’s crinkly-eyed smile, fuels a wildly unfamiliar fuzzy feeling in Steve’s gut. Something homey.

He could get used to it.

Later, Wayne uses the bathroom and Steve and Eddie toss their trash, meandering back to the truck as Eddie sighs. “I feel like I should warn you before we get home.”

Uh oh. “Yeah?” Steve asks him.

Eddie purses his lips. “When uncle Wayne said we would stay in my bedroom…it’s the only bedroom. We live in a single bedroom trailer. In a trailer park.”

Steve stares at Eddie - confused, baffled even, but not for the reason Eddie might think. “And…you’re telling me this…why?”

“I don’t want you to react poorly when we get there.” Eddie snaps back. And Steve feels that earlier feeling in his gut - the warmth - shrivel up and die. He clenches his jaw, back ramrod straight.

“I won’t.” He says quietly. Yanking the door to the back of the truck open and sliding in, shutting it aggressively behind him but not quite slamming it.

Eddie gets into the passenger seat and fiddles with his metal chain, Wayne hopping in the truck shortly after, oblivious to the mood between the two men as they get back on the road.

They arrive at the trailer park in the early afternoon, and Eddie’s spirits are lifted to see that everything is exactly the same, down to the ratty old couch he and Wayne used to share cigarettes on.

Steve, for his part, doesn’t bat an eye. Once they’re parked in the driveway he announces “I’ll get the bags,” going to grab them and taking too many in hand, his muscles flexing under his dress shirt that’s now got a dollop of ketchup on it.

Eddie isn’t too proud to admit how fucking sexy it is.

As Steve moves, Wayne heads around to the back of the trailer with a quick comment about watering his plants, but Eddie knows he’s really giving them both a moment alone to settle in.

Once they have, their things - or rather, mostly Steve’s things - piled into his room, they take it all in.

Even with all they brought, there’s space to spare, the room still mostly bare but for the bed. All cleaned out as Eddie had left it years ago, his posters lingering that Wayne must have kept up. Clearly never having resumed ownership of the room, something that stirs Eddie’s heart a bit.

Running from the thought of anyone loving him enough to save a place for him, Eddie clears his throat, taking advantage of the fact that they’re alone for now. Tells Steve, “I owe you an apology.”

Steve looks surprised. “What for?”

“When I assumed - about the trailer, it’s just…” he starts.

“Oh. That.” Steve waves a hand, dismissing Eddie as he often does. “You don’t have to apologize, I get it.”

Eddie’s eyebrow raises. “You do?”

Steve nods, “Yeah. I can be pretty…”

“Pretentious? Snobby?” Eddie volunteers.

“Particular.” Steve glares.

Eddie winces. “Right.”

“All in all, I can see why you said what you said. And now that the heat of the moment has passed, I’m not upset.” He swears.

“You’re not?” Eddie confirms.

Steve nods again, hums softly. “The trailer is fine. Really. And I mean, I’m not thrilled about the cancellation fee for the hotel-” he quips, but Eddie shakes his head in answer.

“Don’t worry about that. I canceled in plenty of time.” He promises.

Steve is confused at that, “You- but you only knew we would be staying with your uncle today.”

Eddie just smiled sheepishly, and understanding washed over Steve. “No you didn’t.” He says.

Eddie shrugs. “No, I didn’t.”

“How long-“ Steve starts.

“Wayne asked me about it before we left. But I knew you’d be all whiny about it if I asked you, so, I asked him to whip out some of the old ‘Munson-charm.’” Eddie chuckles. “I knew even you couldn’t say no to him. He’s like, stupidly endearing. Old bastard.”

Eddie sounds so fond, Steve can’t even find it in him to be mad. Or to correct him on how it was his puppy dog eyes that he’d found stupidly endearing. Even so. “That’s a rotten trick.”

Eddie gave a mocking curtsy. “I know that you are used to finer comforts, my lord, but I pray that my humble abode might please thee, until we might return to your luxurious castle.”

Steve is unamused, glancing around with a neutral expression. Changing the subject. “How long has it been…since you’ve been home?” He asks.

“Too long.” Eddie sighs.

He’s taking that in. Examining his surroundings. Eddie tries to soothe his worry, tells himself that this is fine, definitely not comparing himself to a bug beneath a magnifying glass, no sir…

Steve moves closer to the wall then, taking in the handmade Corroded Coffin banner proudly displayed. “This is your band. The one from the demo. You’ve been together this long?”

“Since high school. In some form or another.” He kicks his shoes off then, getting comfortable, slides them into the closet where a few hangers linger, and his old acoustic.

“Oh!” He pulls it out, the body adorned with ‘This Machine Slays Dragons’ in a crooked scrawl. “Forgot about this.”

He sits on the bed with it, tuning it to give himself something to do with his hands as his boss turns and leans against the wall of the bedroom he occupied in adolescence, arms crossed, scrutinizing him.

“This is good.” Eddie rambles at his piercing gaze, taking his guitar pick off his necklace to use. “That’s something you should know. You should ask me more stuff like that.”

When Eddie plays a chord, the sound that emerges is pure and clear and perfectly in tune. Walking his ﬁngers up the fretboard, he picks out a bare-bones acoustic take on the intro to "Number of the Beast."

Steve stares at his hands. “Okay. So, why music?"

It's such an oblique question that Eddie has to give up on Iron Maiden for a full 30 seconds as he tries to ﬁgure out what he means. "Everyone likes music."

"Not everyone likes it the way you do." He cocks his head thoughtfully. "But I’ll rephrase. Why this music?"

Eddie laughs a little, strums some more. "Because it's badass,"

"Sure.” Steve dismisses, once the sound has died away. "But that's not the only reason, right?"

Eddie glances up at him, inquisitive.

He huffs a sigh. "Help me out here, Eddie. If I'm gonna sell this package, I need you to give me something to work with. Something real."

Ah. Leave it to Steve to be all business. Even now.

Fine.

Eddie could give him real. So he thinks…Why music? Why this music? He ﬂips his pick around in his ﬁngers as he tries to put his thoughts in some kind of order.

He'd never thought hard about it before Steve asked him. For 26 years of his life, music has just kind of... been. Like eating, breathing, taking a piss...music. Listening to it, playing it, talking about it. Grinding away for a chance to get it out there someday…It's a fact of life. But why?

"My mom." He murmurs. He’s not actually sure he means to say it. It just kind of comes out. He presses on anyway. "My dad was the one who taught me how to play guitar, but my mom, uh." He clears his throat. "She was living in Memphis when she met my dad. She'd grown up there, 19 years surrounded by music, everywhere she went. Country, bluegrass, rock...but her favorite was blues. Like, Chicago blues, the hard kind that gets into your bones, you know?"

Steve had relaxed a bit as he answered. "Yeah."

"So - when she left, when she moved up to Indiana, she took the music with her. It's like a nine-hour drive from Memphis to Hawkins, and she and my dad spent all of that time squeezed into a tiny car with 20 boxes of records. And then when I was born, she started sharing those records with me."

He’s still plucking out a tune, but it's not Iron Maiden anymore. It's a Muddy Waters riff, and as it fills the small space, Eddie can hear the static from his Mom's record player buzzing underneath, as familiar and comfortable as an old sweater.

His voice turns bitter as he recalls not having those records to listen to anymore. “She called them her plane tickets. Even when she was stuck in Hawkins," Waiting on her husband to come home from some dumbass scheme, Eddie thinks. "That music told stories. It helped her see the world."

He looks at the roof, water stained, and much safer than the man here with him.

"I didn't get it when I was a kid," he goes on. "All I heard on those records were people singing about sadness, about how shitty life was. And then, uh. She got sick and died. When I was like 6. I got it then."

Eddie pauses. Typically there's a chorus of sympathetic crooning following that reveal, one that sets his teeth on edge. But Steve is still and silent, watching him. Listening.

So Eddie gives him something to listen to. The guitar line for Black Sabbath's "Paranoid" trips off his ﬁngers, half blues and half metal, and it might be his imagination, but Eddie thinks he can see the ghost of approval, of a smile, on the corners of Steve’s mouth.

"I like this music because it's about sadness and how shitty life is. And things are sad, life is shitty. It's real. But also, it tells stories. This music takes you on an adventure, to another world where you're, like, facing down demons. Traveling into the depths of hell. My mom's music was plane tickets. I guess that makes my music a portal to another dimension."

"You like it because it's badass," Steve fills in the blanks.

"I like it because it's really fucking badass." He ﬁnishes the riff and lets his hand fall away. "Is that real enough for you?"

Steve isn’t smiling, not really, but there’s a glow in his eyes, radiance that has nothing to do with the light. He says, “I think I can work with that.”

Wayne opens the front door more loudly than he needs to then, and a few beats later he’s standing in the doorway to Eddie’s old room, his expression soft.

“Now there’s a sight for sore eyes.” He says, seeing Eddie, in his room, with his guitar.

Eddie plays him an exaggerated song with full body movement, that Steve quickly makes out to be ‘Hot Cross Buns.’

Wayne laughs. “Feel free to get settled in kids, the party’s not for a few hours.”

Eddie and Steve offer him passable enthusiasm, and then Wayne is retreating to the living room. Eddie sets the guitar to the side. “You can hang in here if you want, we’ll probably just kick it on the couch. Watch some TV or something. I can tell him your jet lagged.”

“From a less than 3 hour flight?” Steve snorts. “No, but, thank you.” It sounds genuine.

Steve strides out of the room, beating Eddie to the couch, and taking a seat on it. At seeing where he’d chosen to sit, Eddie groans and Wayne winces.

Steve blinks in surprise. “What’d I do?” He asks.

Wayne’s expression becomes playful, “That there’s Ed’s seat.”

Steve raises an eyebrow, looking at Eddie with an almost smile, but not quite. Just enough to take the bite out of his words when he tells him, “You can’t be serious.”

“It’s optimal seating, Stevie.” Eddie whines. At his graveness, Steve moves to adjust himself, really wiggling into the cushion. “Huh. Now that you mention it, I see what you mean. Great choice on my part, really.”

Eddie gawks at him, spluttering. “You’re - you’re still sitting there?”

“So I am.” Steve is cocky. So cocky. Eddie loves to hate it.

“You’re not moving.” Eddie clarifies. Wayne is looking between the two of them with amusement.

A shake of Steve’s head. Eddie gives a faux gasp. “Not even for the love of your life?” He squawks.

Steve just raises an eyebrow, looking around. “Is the love of my life in the room with us?”

“Sacrilege!” Eddie shouts, before launching himself onto the couch beside Steve, gracelessly trying to manhandle the younger man out of his seat.

Steve is stronger than he looks though, and within minutes what should have ended with Eddie depositing him on the floor, makes way instead for Steve to maintain his ground, his powerful thighs locked around Eddie’s waist, keeping him from getting Steve off of the couch without taking himself out too.

Wayne is laughing nearly hysterically at watching them both wrestle, Steve spitting Eddie’s hair out of his mouth while Eddie wishes a plague on Steve and all his houses, tickling his sides, Steve fucking licking his neck to get him to stop.

And even then, it’s only when both men are on the floor, pushing and shoving to reclaim the lost territory, that Eddie knows he’s beaten.

Steve, powerhouse that he is, is fucking laughing. Actually truly laughing.

And damn it if Eddie doesn’t fall flat on his face, catching his breath yes but also - just fucking taking that fact in for a second.

“Victory!” Steve shouts as he sits once again in Eddie’s seat.

Eddie pops up, resting his head on his elbows, nearly panting like a dog. “You have bested me. I concede.”

Steve laughs again, face flushed and his once perfect hair all in disarray, and Eddie wonders if this is what he looks like after - Okay, nope. Nope. Between the wrestling and the neck licking - Eddie needs to think of gross, unsexy things, immediately. Lest he become visibly riled up in front of his surrogate father and his fake fiancé.

In that spirit, Eddie claims another part of the couch, groaning and oh yeah he’s in terrible shape.

Wayne chortles and flips through channels on the TV now that the commotion has died down, settling on an NBA game when Steve’s interest is piqued. “Oh, basketball, nice.”

“You’ like sports?” Wayne is surprised. Eddie is decidedly…not a sports guy.

Steve has the decency to look bashful. “I’m not like a super-fan or anything. We moved to the States when I was in high school and I got recruited for the basketball team. Coach would play us tapes. I only know the teams I like.”

“Who’s your favorite?” Wayne asks him.

“Probably the Knicks.” Steve answers.

“Get out of my house.” Wayne is not at all serious.

Steve laughs again. “Is that the wrong answer?”

“This here, is a Pacer’s family, kid. Ed, what are you doing? You dating your boss who’s run you ragged the last few years I can excuse - but I can’t tolerate a man who likes the Knicks.” He holds his hand to his heart.

Steve is starting to see where Eddie gets his…dramatic flair. He can’t wipe the smile from his face.

Eddie sighs, just as playful. “Well it’s a bit too late to kick him to the curb now, uncle Wayne.”

At that Steve glances at Eddie. Tries to communicate with his eyes. Is he going to…?

“Why?” Wayne chuckles. “You get’ him pregnant?”

Steve flushes. Eddie laughs. “Nah, nothing like that. But uh…we are getting married.”

Wayne freezes. Steve doesn’t miss it - for a solid few seconds the man has gone stiff, unmoving. Not even a dropped jaw or raised eyebrow. Totally and completely offline.

Steve can’t breathe. He vaguely feels Eddie take his hand. Squeeze. He inhales.

And then…Wayne smiles. Nice and slow, and fucking big. His eyes are twinkling. “Really?” He asks.

Eddie nods. “Really.”

Wayne jumps to his feet, smacking his knee. “Hah!” He’s absolutely fucking giddy. “Well how about that! We have double reasons to celebrate tonight it seems! My boy’s getting married!”

He wraps them both in a hug, and Steve is still fucking, just - paralyzed. No longer in fear, but something entirely different. Something that wants to creep up from behind his eyelids, wrapping its way around his throat.

Wayne pulls back from them, and he sniffles. Wayne clocks it immediately, “You alright there, son?”

Son.

“My uh,” he wheezes out. “My parents, they never…they wouldn’t have…I’m sorry.” He tilts his head back, unblinking and pinching his thigh, until he gets himself under control.

Then he smiles at Wayne with watery eyes, having missed the look the older man had given his nephew. “Sorry.” Steve laughs shakily.

Wayne hugs him again. “Don’t you worry about it, Steve. We aren’t worried about displays of emotion in this house. You should have heard Ed wailing when they freed Willy.”

A laugh bursts out of Steve, and Eddie gives Wayne a look of complete and utter betrayal, whining. “Wayne…”

To which his uncle merely offers him a shit-eating grin, Steve halfheartedly defending, “That scene got me as a kid too.”

“He was 19.” Wayne clarifies.

“Wayne!” Eddie is full on shouting now. “Oh my god stop talking or I swear when you get old I’m putting you in a home!”

Offended, Wayne barks back. “My new son-in-law Steve would never let that happen!” Shaking his head, he mutters in Steve’s general direction. “Unbelievable. Threatening to commit me, and on my birthday no less. Where is the respect?”

Eddie groans, but he apologizes, he and Wayne bickering quite happily, all while Steve’s gut feeling grows into an even more confusing tangle.

Thinking to himself that it was certainly going to be an interesting weekend here in Indiana.

That night as the trio arrives at a VFW that had been rented out by some of the gentlemen at the plant Wayne works for, Steve is mildly surprised to see the parking lot packed with cars.

Eddie glances at Steve’s expression with a little chuckle. “Small town.” He explains. “Everyone knows everyone.”

Add to that the fact that his uncle was also very well loved, and it makes for quite an uproarious slew of greetings when the three of them enter, the fake couple quickly losing Wayne to a swarm of hugs and well wishes.

By the time he’s passed back around, he’s got lipstick marks on both cheeks, in varying shades, and Eddie laughs and shoves at him playfully. “You dog!”

He rolls his eyes, “Come with me boys, there’s some people who want to say hi.”

Wayne leads them over to a table where Steve witnesses a gaggle of no less than half a dozen teenagers gathered. Most of them make no effort to hide how they lose their collective minds when they see Eddie.

The tallest of them, a teen with long black hair, is the most aggressive in his attempts to get to him, nearly elbowing a curly haired kid with a row of endearingly imperfect teeth, who complains extra hard at that because of something that he calls his cleidocranial dysplasia.

Whatever that means, it gains him the lead of the queue, the others groaning at his words and holding their hands up, letting him pass.

Behind them, a wide eyed girl looks on in amusement while her two companions - a redhead toying with a skateboard that probably shouldn’t be on the table, and another girl wearing an American flag like a cape, appear uninterested.

Eddie hugs the curly haired kid enthusiastically, greeting, “Henderson! You haven’t changed man.”

He scoffs. “Of course I haven’t, you specifically, asked me not to.” Eddie laughs at whatever that calls to mind, patting him on the back, and Steve decides that he likes this kid.

Eddie takes a half a step back then, and the kid squawks at Eddie’s shirt as he ignores it in favor of beckoning Steve closer. “Children, gather.” Never mind that they’re already encroaching on the men’s space as it is.

Eddie addresses Steve, “Allow me to introduce you to my…flock of little lost sheep.” He snickers, pointing as he introduces them. “This is Dustin, Mike, Will, Lucas - the one who looks innocent but could probably crush your head through sheer force of will is Will’s twin sister Jane - that’s Max next to her, and then there’s my undisputed favorite, Lucas’s sister, Erica.”

The kids all groan at his declaration, all apart from Erica who smirks in a familiar, bitchy way at them. And Steve likes her too. A fine choice in favorite, he thinks.

“Kids, this is Steve.” Eddie introduces.

“Steve.” Max repeats his name with a raised eyebrow, looking him up and down.

“Steve.” Eddie parrots as he nods, while Wayne adds proudly from behind them, “Eddie’s fiancé.”

The kids all stifle in shock - Mike blurting, “Wait. Evil-boss-Steve? Evil-boss-Steve is his fiancé?”

Steve wants to groan. His reputation precedes him.

“Hah!” Dustin, who is also the ‘Henderson’ kid, laughs. “Boom!” The exclamation echoes as he points at his friends. “Bada…bada…boom. I told you he had a crush on him. You guys totally owe me $20.”

“No one made that bet with you, man.” Lucas rolls his eyes.

“I’m happy for you, Eddie,” Jane smiles before looking hopefully at Steve. “Does this make you our new mom?”

Steve has to laugh, bewildered and also pleased to see Eddie flustered by not only Henderson selling him out - but by the question as well.

“Oh he’s such a mom.” Erica supplies. “Look at him. He has the hips for it.”

Steve’s laughter becomes a knowing smirk. “I’m looking forward to getting to know you better, Erica.”

She smiles - more of a show of teeth than anything. And Eddie has to skip over that interaction while the kids hit him with a million questions a minute. He waves them off. “Another time, kids. I’d much rather hear what you all have been up to.”

That starts another round of talking over each other, and Wayne gently grabs Steve by his elbow in order to lead him away from the commotion.

“Best give them a minute.” He chuckles. Steve tries to decide if he can ask - if he should know-

“Ed didn't mention his old club, huh?” Wayne asks him. He doesn’t sound surprised. Steve is mildly relieved, shaking his head.

Wayne sounds fond, “Yeah, used to run it in high school. They’d spend hours wrapped up in that tabletop roleplaying game - Dungeons and Dragons? Ed was the leader. The kids were devastated when he finally graduated and moved away. He left Dustin in charge, but it's not the same, you know? They missed him.”

Steve glances back - sees them animatedly talking and laughing with Eddie, and his heart. Oh his poor heart.

He would never admit it but…He’d always wanted six kids. Six little nuggets and a Winnebago to house them all and drive across the country, all crammed together, making memories…And here Eddie had fucking…seven children, who clearly adored him, calling Steve mom. It messed him up a little bit.

“Bob! Joyce!” Wayne calls, snapping him out of it. “Meet Steve, he’s Eddie’s fiancé.” Steve kinda likes how Wayne keeps saying it - proud, but factual. Like ‘he’s Eddie’s fiancé’ is his last name now.

He embraces it - out to charm the room. Working his way through it with Wayne, the whole place positively buzzed at the engagement news.

Besides the children, it seems that no one else was aware of his prior relationship with Eddie, and Steve is met with open arms and drinks bought for him just as readily as they do Wayne, who, unlike Steve, never declines, having the time of his life.

By the time Steve leaves him in a chair with a cup of water and makes it back to Eddie, he’s a little flushed at the effort he exerted to get Wayne settled there. That, and at all the well wishes being freely and genuinely offered. Those actually had left him feeling pretty good.

Eddie looks amused by it. “Having a good time?” He asks.

“Hawkins loves me, what can I say?” Steve shrugs in reply.

Eddie grins at him, voice spilling out sweetly as he says. “As do I.”

Steve does a double-take before he realizes that there’s an older woman lingering at a desert table within earshot, and replies automatically. “Love you too.”

That makes Eddie roll his eyes, where no one can see, moving in and leading Steve away from the woman with a hand on his lower back. “You’ll have to be more convincing than that, Harrington.” He purrs in his ear.

Steve is…affected. He clears his throat, asking. “And what would you have me do?”

Eddie has led them through the entranceway to a small hallway that clearly leads to the bathrooms, where they stop, Eddie leaning against the wall.

He’s looking at Steve, who can’t get a read on him, until he suddenly hits him with, “You should kiss me.”

Steve gapes at him. “What?”

Series Masterlist

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