#almost said north dakota

[ajunicetryagain]

Or they live in South Dakota and there was a presumption of DIY pet execution in the grand tradition of that Great Plains lady liberty, Kristi fucking Noem.

reddit is good sometimes actually

[moonxknightx]

♡˗ˏ✎*ೃ˚ : STAY WITH ME (PT.3) : :;

╰┈➤ ❝ [PAIRING] ❞ 2017!Logan Howlett x F!Reader

・❥・GENRE: Fluff and a bit of angst at the start

˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆FANDOM: X-Men

ੈ✩‧₊˚ WARNINGS: Violence, blood/injury, strong language, emotional distress

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥SUMMARY: ogan is preparing himself to go to North Dakota, and you share a tender moment before he leaves. Later, he returns with a young mutant, Laura, and a group of enemies confronts you. After a violent encounter, you’re injured, and Logan helps you recover, leading to a deepening connection between you two.

Previous Part | Next Part

“ARE YOU SURE YOU GOT EVERYTHING?” You asked Logan as he finished up packing his bag.

Logan sighed while rubbing his forehead. “I think so yeah.” You gave him a small smile while walking towards him.

“Here for you.” You said as you handed him a bag of chips. “For when you’re hungry on the way.”

Logan looked at the bag of chips and then at you. “It’s your favorite right?” You asked when you noticed Logan staring at you.

Logan cleared his throat while nodding. “Yeah these are my favorite, thank you bub.” He gave you a small smile while taking the chips out of your hand and putting it in his bag.

You watched how he turned back to you, unsure of what to do now. “Please be kind for the girl Logan.” You said, causing Logan to roll his eyes.

“I’m serious!” You said a little louder while hitting his arm. “I know.” Logan said with a slight smile.

“Well go then. You promised Gabriela you would be there at 8AM.” You told Logan who nodded and grabbed his bag.

You followed him to his car and watched how he threw his bag on the backseat.

“Well…i’ll see you in a few days then.” Sighed Logan as he opened the door to the driver’s seat.

“Wait.” You said as you came up to Logan and wrapped your arms around his torso.

Logan was surprised at your sudden action but hugged you back nonetheless. “Be safe okay.” You whispered against his chest.

“I will. You too okay? And take good care of Charles and Caliban.” Said Logan as he looked down at you still wrapped around his body.

“I will.” You smiled as you finally let go of him. It pained Logan to see you let go of him. If it was possible, he would’ve taken you with him. But it was too dangerous and someone needed to stay behind to care for Xavier and Caliban.

“See you soon bub.” Said Logan while placing a kiss to your forehead before getting into his car.

You were stunned at what had just happened. Logan almost never initiated physical touch. I mean not since last year. Before, he used to cuddle you and kiss your face all the time but that stopped after the Westchester incident. And now he had kissed you on your forehead again.

You watched as Logan drove away. You kept looking until his car was out of sight before going back inside.

“So he will be back in a few days?” Asked Caliban as you entered the kitchen to prepare breakfast for Charles.

“Yeah.” You sighed softly. Caliban raised an eyebrow at you but didn’t say anything more as he retreated to his room.

When you were done preparing breakfast for Charles and grabbing his medication, you teleported yourself into his tank.

“Good morning Charles.” You smiled as you walked towards his bed. You placed the usual tray with breakfast on the small table opposite his bed before turning back to Charles.

“Good morning.” He sighed as he tried his best go get up. “Here let me help you.” You offered as you pulled the sheets back and helped Charles into his wheelchair.

“How are you feeling today?” You asked while watching how Charles rolled himself towards the table to eat his breakfast.

“Better than yesterday.” He said before taking a bite of his toast. You smiled as you started making up his bed.

“Something is bothering you.” Charles suddenly said. You turned around so you could look at him.

“Come here.” Charles offered while patting the chair next to him. You did as he asked and sat down next to him.

“Logan is going to be gone for a few days.” You said quietly as you prepared the meds for Charles.

“Is he on a mission?” Asked Charles as you handed him his pills and a glass of water. You hummed. “Sort of.” You answered.

“I regret what i said to him yesterday.” Charles mumbled before taking in his pills with a large sip of water.

“I know.” You spoke softly, remembering how he called Logan a disappointment yesterday.

“He’s dying, child.” Charles said as he looked at you. You tried your best to avoid eye contact as you looked up at the huge ceiling of the tank.

“We will find a cure or a way for him to survive.” You said quietly. Charles smiled at your words before nodding.

“Would you like to play a game of chess my dear?” Charles asked, noticing your slight change in behavior, upon hearing that Logan was dying.

You looked at Charles and started smiling. You always enjoyed playing chess with him.

“I’d love to old man.”

~

You were laying on your bed when you heard tires screeching outside. You immediately got up and went to your window to see, Logan?

“What the fuck?” You said to yourself before running downstairs and heading outside, Caliban following after you.

“Logan what happened?” You asked as Logan got out of his car.

“Did something go wrong?” Asked Caliban as you both watched Logan walk away.

“The job was wrong to begin with.” Logan said before heading inside, leaving you and Caliban both dumbfounded. Logan wasn’t even gone for two hours. What happened?

“What’s this?” Asked Caliban as he pulled out a green backpack and a ball out of the trunk of Logan’s car.

You turned around and your eyes widened as you recognized the ball. It was Laura’s.

“Logan!” You called as you inspected the backpack. “What?” Sighed Logan as he stepped back outside.

“Look at this.” You said as you showed him the backpack and the ball.

“What the…” Began Logan.

“Who’s that?” Asked Caliban as he pointed at a car approaching.

Both you and Logan looked up at the same time. “Fuck!” Cursed Logan as he watched the car.

“You two get inside and keep Charles quiet.” Logan ordered. Caliban immediately did as he was told but you lingered.

“Logan what’s happening?” You asked slowly. “I don’t know. Get inside now.” Logan ordered again. This time you did as he told you and went back inside.

You sat down in front of the camera screen and watched how a blonde guy stepped out of the car and walked up to Logan.

“Donald Pierce…” You mumbled. “The guy from that business card?” Asked Caliban as he also looked at the screens. “Yes. Get Charles, Caliban.” You said, not taking your eyes off the screen. Caliban nodded and quickly went to retrieve Charles.

A few minutes had passed, Caliban came back with Charles and Logan and Pierce were still talking until someone suddenly threw a metal pipe at Pierce’s head.

“What was that?” You asked as you immediately stood up. “Laura.” Smiled Charles.

You gave Charles a confused look and ran outside, Caliban and Charles following after you.

When you got outside, you saw Laura slowly approaching Logan while Logan looked really fucking confused.

“This is Laura.” Smiled Charles as he motioned for the girl to come closer. “We’ve been waiting for you.” He said. “Come it’s okay.” Charles added.

You watched how Laura walked over to Logan and snatched her backpack out of his hands before following Charles.

As Laura passed you, she shot you a glance before disappearing inside.

You went up to Logan to look at Pierce who laid very unconsciously on the ground.

“Are you okay?” You asked Logan as you took his hand in yours. “Yes i’m fine.” Logan said as he looked down at Pierce.

“Caliban, take his body and drop it somewhere else. Text me when you’re done so i can pick you up.” Logan told Caliban before walking inside the building.

“What if he wakes up before i arrive?” Caliban asked you as Logan had already disappeared.

You looked at Pierce for a while before kicking him in the neck. “Now he won’t.” You said before going back inside as well.

When you entered the living room you saw Logan pulling onto Laura’s backpack while she held it on the other side.

“Logan!” Said Charles while watching. “Logan let go.” You said as you came up besides Logan and ripped his hands away from Laura’s backpack.

Logan huffed and walked towards the sink to grab a glass of water. You sat down next to Laura and gave her a kind smile which she sort of returned.

“Logan, the woman you met, that’s not her mother.” Charles said while following Logan.

“So she talks?” Asked Logan while looking at Laura. “We’re communicating.” Said Charles quietly.

“Communicating?” Repeated Logan as he handed Charles his pills. “Take these in now. We have to get out of here. It’s not safe here anymore. And you can’t have an attack out there, you understand?”

Charles nodded but raised his hand. “Yes but this is the mutant that i told you about.”

Your head whipped up at hearing the word ‘mutant’. “She needs our help.” Charles added.

“She isn’t a mutant!” Scoffed Logan. “Yes she is!” Yelled Charles.

“What’s her gift Charles? Eating? Pipe throwing?” Asked Logan sarcastically while shaking his head.

Suddenly there were rumbling noises outside and the building began to shake slightly.

Laura immediately got up and looked around her. “Hey it’s okay.” You said as you got up as well, trying to calm the girl down.

“Yes it’s just the choo-choo.” Charles said, trying to imitate a train.

“No it’s not.” Grunted Logan as he looked on the camera screen. You quickly went up to Logan and saw multiple cars heading towards your direction on the screen.

“We have to go.” Said Logan as he pushed Charles towards the back door of the building. “Let’s go!” Logan said to you while walking faster.

“Logan the girl!” You said as you looked at Laura. “Leave her, let’s go!” You sighed and motioned for Laura to follow you but she stayed inside.

“Fuck!” You groaned as you followed Logan outside. You helped Logan with getting Charles in the car before getting in yourself. Logan sprung behind the steering wheel and started the car.

He immediately drove off, hoping to find a way to escape but unfortunately cars were closing in on you on all sides.

“Fuck fuck fuck!” Yelled Logan as he punched the steering wheel. “Logan!” You said loudly.

“Stay here okay?” Said Logan as he got out of the car to see Pierce in front of him again.

You watched them closely through the window until you saw Pierce punching Logan to the ground.

“Oh fuck no!” You said as you got out of the car. You saw how Logan tried to get up but a group of men came pouncing on him, hitting him and kicking him where they could, until Logan was bleeding.

“Hey assholes!” You yelled, getting the attention from the men who were attacking Logan.

You heard them growling before some of them ran towards you. A small smile appeared on your face as you teleported away just in time.

You spawned behind them and touched their shoulders. “Hit each other until you’re both dead.” You whispered into their ears before teleporting again.

The two men started hitting each other without wanting to, and soon enough they were both on the ground.

You teleported to Logan and pierced the other guys who were still hitting and kicking Logan, in their necks with a small knife you always carried with you.

“Here get up.” You said as you helped Logan up. “Are you okay.” You asked as he held onto you. “Yes, are you?” He asked while checking your body to see if there were any injuries. “I’m fine Logan.” You chuckled as you cupped his cheek.

“There she is!” Sounded Pierce from behind you two. You and Logan quickly turned around to see Laura coming out of the building with something in her hands.

You watched how Pierce tried to lure Laura to him, but Laura didn’t listen. Then she threw the thing she was holding before Pierce’s feet.

It was the head of one of his men.

“Holy fuck.” You said as you watched the sight in front of you. Logan kept you close to him as he watched Pierce’s men raise their guns to Laura.

“We have to help, Logan.” You whispered, but he shook his head. “Not yet.” He said.

The moment Pierce’s men began to fire their guns, Laura started screaming and jumped from man to man scratching at their necks, heads, shoulders, stomach’s and legs.

Then you saw it. Laura had two metal claws coming out of her hands. “Logan…” You breathed as you squeezed his arm.

Logan couldn’t believe his eyes. Charles was right. She was a mutant. And very much like Logan too.

“We have to help her!” You yelled before teleporting to Laura, helping her fight off various of Pierce’s men. Logan joined in as well. Scratching at their bodies as best as he could.

One guy tried to grab you by your neck but you were too fast. You teleported behind him and whispered something in his ear. Before you knew it he was choking on his own tongue while falling to the floor.

“Watch out!” You heard Logan yell as someone grabbed you by your arm and slammed you to the ground.

You felt lightheaded and tried to teleport but it didn’t work. You saw how the man climbed on top of you, a knife in his hand.

Suddenly Logan jumped onto the guy and smashed his claws into his head. “Get the fuck away from her.” He said as he pulled his claws out of the man.

He quickly went over to you and helped you up. “Fuck, are you okay?” Logan asked worriedly. “I’m fine.” You grunted as you held your head.

“We have to go.” You said while watching more cars approach. “Sounds like a plan.” Said Logan as he pulled you with him.

“Here get in!” He yelled as he opened the front door to the passenger seat. You jumped in the car before Logan did the same on the other side.

“Charles are you okay?” You asked as Logan took off. “Y-yes i’m fine.” Said a slightly confused Charles.

“We have to get Laura.” You told Logan. He gave you a nod and turned the car around.

“Laura!” You yelled as you neared her. Laura looked around and saw the car. You watched how she jumped onto the last guy, scratching his head open before she jumped onto the car.

“Fuck she’s amazing.” You smiled slightly as Laura slid into the vehicle through the rooftop window of the car.

Logan sped up and drove right through the entrance gates of the old facility you two had made your home.

“We’re being followed.” You said warily as you saw multiple cars chase after you, from behind and from the sides.

“Shit!” Cursed Logan as he tried his best to keep ahead of them.

A car was approaching your left and you watched how Laura smashed her claws through the window to hit the driver’s head.

“Wonderful…” Chimed Charles as he was watching the young mutant.

The same happened a few more times and you helped Laura. Using your teleporting ability to switch from car to car to kill Pierce’s men.

When it was clear you guys were ahead, you teleported back to Logan’s car.

Logan immediately looked at you with wide eyes. “What? I’m good at what i do.” You smiled causing Logan to shake his head.

“Watch out!” You said while pointing ahead of you. A train was approaching. “We have to be faster.” Logan muttered as he pressed as hard as he could on the gas pedal.

You were pressed back into your seat as Logan drove the car over the railway just in time.

You looked back to see Pierce and his men being stopped on the other side of the railway because of the train.

“We made it!” You exclaimed excitedly as Logan kept driving at full speed.

Suddenly you felt a sharp pain in the back of your left shoulder. “Fuck…” You murmured as you tried to look at what it was.

“Are you okay?” Asked Logan in a worried tone while looking at you. “Yeah i’m fine.” You said uncomfortably as you shifted in your seat.

“You’re bleeding.” You heard Charles say from behind you. Logan immediately looked at your shoulder and saw a red patch of blood forming on your shirt.

Logan cursed under his breath while tightening his hands on the steering wheel. “Logan it’s fine. It’s just a little scratch.” You told him softly.

“Yeah sure.” Logan sighed as he put his eyes back on the road.

~

After being sure you all were a big step ahead of Pierce, Logan pulled up at a small gas station to refill the gas of the car and to think of what to do next.

“I’m going to the bathroom to see what is going on with my shoulder.” You said softly as you got out of the car with a few grunts.

Logan watched how you disappeared in the small store the gas station owned while sighing.

“Logan.” Charles said, making Logan turn his head to the back of the car to see Laura getting a bit restless.

“Take her to that thing over there.” Charles pointed in front of him and Logan followed his finger. It landed on a small machine in the form of a pony. It was that kind of thing where you put in some coins and the pony would move for a minute or so. Logan scoffed while shaking his head.

“Please Logan.” Sighed Charles. Logan rolled his eyes before getting out of the car. “Fine.” He said while opening the back door for Laura.

Laura followed Logan to the pony and got lifted onto it by him. “Here.” Logan said as he handed Laura a handful of coins. He explained to Laura what she needed to do and then told her to stay put before also entering the small store of the gas station.

Logan immediately made his way to the restroom while calling your name.

“In here.” You said as you opened your stall. “Are you okay?” Asked Logan softly. “No i need your help.” You sighed as you went out of the stall into the main area of the restoom with a mirror and a sink.

“Here.” You said while handing Logan a small first aid kit. “I just bought it.” You explained when you noticed Logan’s confusion.

“I need you to stitch me up.” You spoke softly while turning to Logan. “Okay.” Was all he said as he stepped closer to you.

He placed the first aid kit on the sink before clearing his throat. “I think it works better if you take off your shirt.” Logan said awkwardly while avoiding your gaze.

“Okay.” You nodded and tried to take your shirt off, but you couldn’t due to the immense pain you were feeling in your shoulder.

“Here let me.” Logan offered quietly as he put his hands on the hem of your shirt. He very carefully pulled your shirt up and gently removed both of your arms out of the sleeves without causing too much pain.

“There you go.” Smiled Logan slightly as he threw your shirt on the sink as well.

“Thank you.” You smiled while looking up at him. Logan suddenly realized that you were just wearing a bra now and quickly looked away.

“Okay let’s get you stitched up.” He said while clearing his throat. “Yeah sure thing.” You said as you turned to the mirror. You watched how Logan moved behind you and opened the first aid kit. He grabbed the needle and a thread and started prepping.

After years of keeping his emotions tightly guarded, Logan finally allowed himself to let you in. Seeing you get hurt had triggered something in him, even though the injury was small, he realized he couldn’t stand the thought of losing you too.

It was a small yet profound moment when he helped you tend to your injury, his hands gentle despite the hardened exterior. As he carefully stitched up your wound, the walls he'd built around his heart began to crumble, revealing a vulnerability he had denied for far too long.

In that shared silence, Logan's silent admission of trust and affection spoke volumes. When he finished stitching your injury, he turned you around and looked into your eyes, and in an unspoken understanding, you both leaned in, sharing a tender kiss that sealed the beginning of a deeper, more genuine connection.

“Lo…” You whispered as your lips parted. “I love it when you call me that.” Logan breathed as he pressed his forehead against yours.

“I’m sorry it took me this long to let you in.” He said quietly while closing his eyes. “It’s okay Lo.” You smiled softly while running a hand through his hair.

“Please don’t ever get hurt again.” Logan chuckled slightly. “It wasn’t even that bad asshole.” You laughed as you playfully hit Logan’s arm.

“Still, i don’t like seeing you in pain.” Logan shrugged. You rolled your eyes before taking a step back. “I’ll be more careful then.” You smirked slightly before you heard someone clearing their throat.

You both looked to your right to see Laura in front of you.

“What the fuck.” Muttered Logan, immediately transforming back into his usual grumpy self.

You watched how Laura walked towards you and handed you a new white shirt. “Thank you Laura.” You smiled sweetly.

“Did you even pay for that?” Asked Logan, but Laura ignored him and left the restroom.

Logan sighed as he rubbed his temple. “I’m going to pay for that shirt. See you outside?” Asked Logan softly. You smiled and gave him a nod.

You watched how Logan placed a soft kiss on your forehead before leaving the restroom as well.

Logan couldn’t help but smile as he exited the restroom and thought back to the kiss you and him shared just moments ago.

He was so glad it happened, but he was also so angry at himself for letting it take so goddamn long. He knew he wanted you a long time ago. He was just so afraid of scaring you away, or hurting you, or letting you die. But Logan knew that was all nonsense now. He would never let anything bad happen to you. He would protect you until his last breath.

He swore that to himself.

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[moonlightspencie]

Everything Goes Wrong

Description: A few bouts of bad luck aren’t all that bad.

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x gn!Reader

Warnings: none. this is straight fluff

Word Count: 2.4k

The case had been a hard one, especially in the dead of winter in North Dakota. Not only had we been working tirelessly for a week and a half, but the cold had pretty much knocked me on my ass. I was sure I could say the same for the rest of the team, too. We were groggy and exhausted by the end of it.

Not to mention, we were all a little irritable with the fact that the hotel had screwed up our sleeping arrangements, leaving many of us pairing up in rooms that didn’t exactly accommodate two people.

I didn’t exactly pull the short end of the stick, getting paired up with Hotch this time around, but we definitely all were over having roommates. I needed alone time desperately a few times over the course of the time we spent, and never got it. I couldn’t have been the best person to room with considering how snappy I could get.

Then, right as we thought we were going home, plans changed again.

“You’re kidding,” Derek said as we stepped out of the local precinct.

We looked around at the snow pouring out of the sky. We could hardly see a few feet ahead of us.

“How are we supposed to get home in this?” Emily asked, groaning. “I hate the winter.”

Hotch let out a harsh breath. “Let’s try to get back the hotel, at least. I’ll call and see if we can take off, but don’t pack up yet.”

We were a chorus of annoyance as we trudged to the SUVs. It was a hard drive back, and I was more than thankful I wasn’t the one trying to drive in this. Our five minute drive to the hotel took thirty. The roads were a mess, and visibility only got worse as the minutes ticked by. It was a miracle we made it back at all.

Though, as expected, halfway through the ride Hotch got word that we would be staying the night again. Nobody took that news real well.

I sighed as I stretched out on the mattress almost an hour later. It felt more than good to finally rest after a full day on my feet. I couldn’t wait until it was my turn in the shower. I could practically feel the hot water soothing my sore muscles already.

Suddenly, silence fell over the room. It was already quiet, save for the sound of running water, but now… Something was off. Literally turned off.

I stood up, walking towards the heater with hopes that this wasn’t what was wrong. I should have known better. As my hand reached out to feel the warm air rushing out, there was nothing. I sighed heavily, retreating back to the bed to take a seat once more.

It was several minutes until Hotch was walking out of the bathroom, a towel around his shoulders, dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt. At least he looked comfortable before I had to deliver the news.

He took one look at me and knew something had happened.

“What is it?” he asked, voice exasperated.

I gave half a smile, nodding towards the heater in the room.

“I think we might be sleeping without heat.”

He furrowed his brow, doing the same thing I’d just done. He groaned quietly when he, too, felt no warm air against his hand. He mumbled something about calling the front desk, but judging by his facial expressions alone, there wasn’t much they could do about it at the moment.

He hung up the phone, shaking his head.

“I’m sorry. First we don’t have enough rooms and you have to get stuck with me, and now this. This is ridiculous,” he huffed a sigh, looking around the room.

“It’s alright. You didn’t choose this place, and you certainly didn’t make, well,” I paused, gesturing around vaguely, “all of this happen.”

He shrugged, reaching up to rustle his wet hair with the towel around his shoulders as he stepped past me. I stood for a moment, just watching as he sat on the edge of the mattress. Then, I decided now was as good a time as ever for a hot shower, in hopes that the water would still be warm.

It was.

I got out of the bathroom almost an hour later to find Hotch already asleep in bed. For him to immediately hit the hay proved that we’d worked too hard on the case. I snuck into bed next to him after shutting out the remaining lights, curling into the comforter for some warmth. The cold seeping into the room from the broken heater was getting a little bit noticeable, but luckily for me, he definitely ran hot. I realized it the second the warmth under the blankets hit me. I effectively passed out within a few minutes.

The next morning was especially warm as I woke before my alarm went off. The heater must’ve kicked back on sometime in the night. I went to stretch, but found it much more difficult to do than I had anticipated.

I looked down to see Hotch curled up against me, and my eyes immediately widened. I swallowed a lump in my throat that formed quickly. I certainly hadn’t been expecting to see him like this, with a strong arm holding me to him. It was… attractive?

It would be a lie to say I’d never noticed him before. Who couldn’t? Even if he somehow didn’t catch an eye the second he walked into a room, he just had an aura around him. Some kind of presence that could pull a person in before they knew what was happening.

But, now, in the same bed with his arm draped over my stomach and his breath against my neck… This was a whole new feeling.

It was butterflies and warm cheeks and— something that I probably shouldn’t feel while next to my boss. But, then again, he definitely shouldn’t be cuddling with a subordinate. We were both a little guilty.

He shifted in his sleep, his arm around me moving a bit until his fingers were just under the hem of my shirt. Cuddling was one thing, but if I felt his hand on much more of my stomach, I felt I might combust.

“Hotch,” I whispered.

He didn’t budge.

“Hotch,” I said, a little louder this time. “Hey.”

He shifted again, this time squeezing his eyes together a little harder.

“Time to wake up,” I said, my hand on his arm.

His eyes slowly opened, though they suddenly snapped open when he realized where he was. He pushed himself off of me, quickly glancing over me to confirm he really was doing what he thought he was.

“I’m sorry,” he rushed out.

“It’s alright. It was cold last night,” I said quickly, trying to soothe the nerves that were obviously eating at him. “At least it warmed up this morning.”

He shook his head as he stood from the bed, running a hand through his hair quickly. I swallowed, knowing he felt like he crossed a line.

“I really don’t mind,” I tried again.

“We should be downstairs soon,” he replied, glossing over my attempts. “I’ll be out soon.”

He walked into the bathroom without much of a glance in my direction. I huffed out a breath, quickly getting dressed before I heard the water in the sink stop. He opened the door right as I sat on the edge of the mattress again, hardly catching my eye as he did.

“Hotch,” I called, determined to get his attention.

He hummed in response, immediately ruffling through his bag as if there was something he was actually looking for. I stood, taking a few steps in his direction.

“Can you at least listen to me?”

I watched as his shoulders dropped with the breath he let out. He straightened, turning to face me.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered, not meeting my eyes again.

“I’ve already told you it’s fine. You really need to take my word for it.”

“I was practically on top of you,” he said, looking at me at last.

Unfortunately, he finally looked right as my cheeks were heating up a tad. I didn’t expect that innocent of a phrase to have any effect on me, but apparently my brain had other ideas.

“You didn’t mean to. It was freezing last night, and we were kind of forced to share a bed.”

He was quiet again.

I continued, “Besides, when have I been the type to hide my emotions that well? If I was upset you would’ve known immediately. Honestly, you were keeping me warm.”

He cracked a small smile, though he tried to hide it.

“I promise I was okay with it. Really.”

He nodded. “Alright. Just— Don’t report me to HR.”

I laughed. “Deal.”

Half an hour later, the team was waiting in the lobby of the hotel for news on our travel arrangements. Hotch and Morgan had gone off to figure it all out, leaving the rest of us to sip on coffee and watch the blizzard outside.

“Well, technically, the blizzard ended 4 hours ago. Now, it’s really just a heavy snow,” Reid stated, hardly glancing away from the magazine in his hands.

Prentiss rolled her eyes, looking towards me for some kind of understanding. I smiled at her, sipping at my coffee. We heard voices soon thereafter coming towards our small group. Hotch and Morgan walked up, chatting quietly.

“We should be able to take off within the next few hours,” Hotch stated, glancing around at us. “I’ll be getting a call when they’re ready. Until then, let’s get lunch and make sure we’re packed up and ready to go.”

“Eating on the company dollar?” I asked with a smirk.

He looked at me, a small smile on his face and… a bit of a blush on his cheeks?

“Yes. So, make sure you all decide on someplace good.”

Now, when I looked back at Prentiss, she was the one with a smile on her face. One that wasn’t sympathetic in the slightest. I knew what was happening in that head of hers from the twinkle in her eye alone.

I started walking towards the elevator, knowing she’d follow me, but still hopeful that maybe she’d leave it be. My former assumption was correct.

She caught up just as the doors started shutting, crossing her arms as she stood next to me.

“So,” she started.

“So?”

“What was that?”

I sighed. “What was what?”

She quirked a brow when I looked at her. I shook my head, looking away again.

“You know what. I’ve got to say, I never expected to see Hotch blushing. What did you do to him?”

I chuckled. “I didn’t do anything.”

“Oh? Who did?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I asked, stepped forward as the doors of the elevator opened on our floor.

I hoped that line would shut her up for the time being, but that was once again wishful thinking. She practically chased me down the hall.

“You’re not getting away that easy.”

“Ugh,” I groaned. “Nothing actually happened.”

“He was smiling. And blushing.”

“You ever think it’s just because I’m charming?”

“No.”

I made a sour face, finally reaching my door. She raised a brow, giving me a proud smirk.

“I’ll find out, you know?”

“You’re sure about that?”

She shrugged. “Pretty sure.”

“Sure about what?” Hotch asked, walking up on us.

I looked away quickly, hoping to catch Emily’s eye before she said something she shouldn’t. Luckily for me, she got some sense in her head at the last second.

“Nothing. Just can’t pass up an opportunity to tease her.”

He raised a brow. “Right. Well, pack up. Sooner we’re done here, the sooner we can eat.”

She nodded once, sending me a quick wink before she turned and walked towards her own door. I finally unlocked the door, walking inside with Hotch hot on my heels. We silently packed the rest of our things, though neither of us had really unpacked all that much to begin with. He finished first, standing near the door to wait for me rather than leaving for the lobby. I glanced over my shoulder as I put my toiletries bag in the suitcase.

“Ready?” he asked.

“Just about.”

He hummed. “Prentiss was bothering you, huh?”

“When isn’t she?”

“What about?”

I shrugged. “I don’t even really know.”

He chuckled as I turned around. “You’re not a great liar.”

Maybe I liked him better when he was being shy about being all over me. He seemed a little too self confident now.

“Says you,” I replied with raised brows.

We made it to lunch in one piece, deciding that even though the roads were mostly cleared now, we’d stick close by.

Prentiss nudged me a few times during lunch, trying to get information out of me, but I refused. Though, it certainly didn’t help that I found myself looking at Hotch much more often than I usually would.

Maybe I’d had a small crush on him before, but now my brain wouldn’t stop reminding me of it. Every time he laughed or talked or moved or breathed. He was stuck in my head. It was ridiculous.

Embarrassment really came when I looked at him again only to find him looking at me. He quirked a brow as my eyes widened a bit at being caught.

Emily definitely caught that interaction.

I shook my head at her as she teased me, definitely noticing the self-satisfied smirk Hotch tried to hide at the interaction. He knew. Bastard.

We started the leave the restaurant when we got the okay from our pilot, but I didn’t get far before I felt a hand on my arm keeping me behind the others. I turned.

“I’d like to see you in my office when we get back,” he said with a quirked brow.

“What about?”

“We’re not sharing a room anymore, I need somewhere where I can speak to you in private.”

“You going to try to cuddle me again if I agree to be alone with you?”

“Not yet,” he replied, a smile barely there on his face. “Maybe next time. We’ll have to see how that talk goes when we’re home.”

I nodded, hiding a smile of my own. “Deal.”

[buckysgrace]

Pumpkin Picking

Gator Tillman x fem!reader

Flufftober 2024

Gator helps you pick out the perfect pumpkin.

Winter seemed to come early in North Dakota. Far too early as the brisk wind moved through your bones, startling you as you pulled your jacket closer to your body. The sun was bright despite that, but barely reached you to warm your skin.

“What about this one?” Gator asked you, his slicked back hair hidden underneath his green hat. Your eyes grazed over his features, noting that the tip of his nose was red as well as his earlobes. You turned towards the pumpkin again, trying to make a decision. 

“Too lumpy.” You told him seriously, thinking that the pumpkin was more eggplant shaped than round. Not to mention the various bumps and growths across it. A pretty pumpkin, but not the kind you were looking for. 

“You said the last one was too round.” He turned towards you, eyebrows raised as the sun danced across the brown hue in his eyes. You simmered there for a moment too long, admiring him. 

“It was,” You defended yourself, “It looked too perfect.” You said with a laugh, recalling how that pumpkin was so round that it was almost smooth. It would roll away from your porch, you couldn’t pick that one. 

“I think you’re just tryin’ to make me work too hard.” He mumbled as he placed his hands on his hips, inspecting the same pumpkins that you were. You bit back a smile, knowing this wasn’t something that he had really wanted to do. 

“That one will topple over too easily,” You explained, “I need one that’s got a good grip. And firm.” You told him as you nodded your head, feeling like that was the best way to explain it. 

“Yeah?” He grinned, eyes flickering in mischief as you shook your head at his suggestion. 

“Not like that,” You smiled as you glanced towards him, “Something that’s easy to hold but it’ll sit well on our porch.” You explained easily, lips pressing together at the way he snorted. 

“Why don’t you just grab a bunch of them?” He asked you seriously, sticking his hands into his jacket pockets. You scanned the aisles of pumpkins a little quicker, feeling the frigid air settling harshly on you as well. 

“We just need two,” You corrected him, “One for me and one for you.” You told him excitedly, sticking one of your hands into his pockets to link your fingers together. You shivered a bit, feeling like you had just touched ice as your skin brushed against his. 

“What if I mess up on it?” He asked you as he furrowed his eyebrows together, looking perplexed as you moved further down the dirt path.

“I’ve never seen a perfect design on a pumpkin before,” You laughed at the thought, “But if you want more than two that’s fine with me.” You told him seriously, not minding the extra decorations. 

“You sure?” He flitted his eyes towards you, making your insides warm and soft. You gave his hand a little squeeze before you pulled away. 

“Uh huh,” You nodded, squatting down to inspect the pumpkins closer, “I think I might get two anyways.” You added a second later, figuring that he wouldn’t do so unless you did. 

“We should’ve brought a wheelbarrow.” He mumbled as he wiped his hand across his mouth, shaking his head as your smile grew on your lips. 

“Your muscles aren’t enough?” You teased, watching the way he snorted as you picked a pumpkin up. It was coated with dry dirt, but the shape and feel of it felt right to you. You held it against your hip proudly.

“Cute,” He commented, eyes scanning your body for a brief second before it landed against the pumpkin that was glued against your hip, “About time you picked one.” He teased you, leaning forward to spit against the ground. 

“Ew don’t spit there.” You wrinkled your nose, thinking about if someone accidentally put their hands there. 

“The dirt?” He asked dryly, “You prefer I do it somewhere else?” He suggested, lips curling into a smirk. You rolled your eyes, biting back a grin as you stepped forward and continued your search while his eyes lingered against you. 

-

Four freshly scrubbed pumpkins sat across newspapers on your kitchen floor, the table and chairs pushed out of the way as multiple plastic bags laid between the two of you. Your legs were crossed as you gently scooped the top of your pumpkin off, watching as Gator continued to cut his off. 

“Have you ever carved a pumpkin before?” You asked him as you cocked your eyebrows, scooping away the guts from the top of the pumpkin. 

“Uh,” He paused for a second, “No. This is my first time.” He admitted, struggling for a second before he got the top of his pumpkin popped off. He stared in disbelief, wrinkling his nose up as he stared at the strings and seeds that poured out from it. 

“Awe, I’m glad you trusted me.” You teased him, placing the top of your pumpkin to the side so you could show him how to scrape all of the yucky parts off. 

“I was always told Halloween is a pagan holiday,” He explained softly, eyes glancing towards yours, “You know, it’s supposedly evil and full of devil worship. All that shit.” He flicked his tongue across his bottom lip, laughing to himself as he rolled up his sleeves. 

“Oh,” You paused for a moment, trying to think of the best way to support him, “I’m sorry. That must’ve sucked.” You told him honestly, frowning as you watched him beginning to scoop pieces out from the pumpkin. 

“I never thought much of it before,” He admitted, wincing as he took another large fistful from the inside of the pumpkin, “I’m not sure I enjoy this though.” His features wrinkled up in disdain, looking less than pleased as he dropped the guts into the bag next to him. 

“I can bake the seeds,” You told him, laughing at the way his nose and eyebrows wrinkled together once again, “It’s good. I promise.” You told him as you pressed your fingers against your pumpkin, ensuring that it was thin enough to begin carving. 

“I don’t know about that,” He mumbled, nose wrinkling up as you wiped away the guts from the pumpkin seeds, “But I trust you.” He added a second later, eyes gleaming in amusement. 

“Sweet of you,” You grinned at him, appreciating his words, “I promise I won’t poison you.” You laughed a second later, sure that your cooking wasn’t that bad. At least he had never said that it was. 

Music drifted between the two of you, loud and thumping from whichever station Gator had picked out for the two of you to listen to. You glanced towards him, noticing the way his features were crinkled up in concentration. 

“Look,” You proclaimed proudly, “A cat.” You told him as you peeled the paper off of your pumpkin, fairly excited with how it turned out. It wasn’t perfect, but it was better than previous ones you’d done. 

“Shit,” He said, laughing softly as he twisted your pumpkin closer to him so he could inspect it, “How did you do that?” He asked seriously, drifting his fingers over the smooth lines of your carving. 

“I used the design,” You told him as you held up the stencil papers, “It doesn’t always work.” You admitted, knowing that sometimes the paper was too flimsy or tore too easily. 

“Looks a lot better than mine.” He grumbled as he sat back, inspecting his pumpkin on his own. He pouted his lips out a bit, looking anything but happy with his creation. 

“What design did you make?” You asked him curiously, tilting your head as he peered at it. He shook his head, sighing deeply as he looked at it. 

“Uh, none,” He replied after a brief pause, “I made a face.” He furrowed his eyebrows together as he turned it towards you, showing off the idea that he had in mind. It was a typical jack-o-lantern face, with triangle eyes and a jagged mouth. One eye was bigger than the other, but you didn’t think it was bad at all. 

“It looks cute.” You told him seriously, grinning in appreciation as you tried to touch it again. He scoffed, shaking his head as he tried to roll it away for him. You protested, grabbing it again. 

“I can do better than that.” He said as he pulled a new pumpkin onto his lap. You held his first pumpkin close, thinking it was adorable. 

“Of course,” You grinned, thinking of the random drawings he had scattered throughout your house, “This is just your first pumpkin. The second one is always better.” You sent him a playful wink, very much enjoying the one that he had already created. 

“How about-,” He started, glancing up at you before he began to dig his knife into the top of a new pumpkin, “You scoop it out and I carve it.” He reasoned, making you nod your head in agreement. You could happily work under those conditions. 

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive (Daily updates!)

Weird how this "endemic" German strain is poised to dominate worldwide... That almost sounds like a pandemic :O

By Ahjané Forbes

KP.3.1.1 is still the dominant COVID-19 variant in the United States as it accounts for nearly 60% of positive cases, but the XEC variant is not far behind, recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data shows.

"CDC is monitoring the XEC variant," Rosa Norman, a CDC spokesperson told USA TODAY. "XEC is the proposed name of a recombinant, or hybrid, of the closely related Omicron lineages KS.1.1 and KP.3.3."

The variant, which first appeared in Berlin in late June, has increasingly seen hundreds of cases in Germany, France, Denmark and Netherlands, according to a report by Australia-based data integration specialist Mike Honey.

The CDC's Nowcast data tracker, which displays COVID-19 estimates and projections for two-week periods, reflected that the KP.3.1.1 variant accounted for 57.2% of positive infections, followed by XEC at 10.7% in the two-week stretch starting on Sept. 29 and ending on Oct. 12.

KP.3.1.1 first became the leading variant between July 21 and Aug. 3.

The latest data shows a rise in each variant's percentage of total cases from Sept. 15-28, as KP.3.1.1 rose by 4.6%, and XEC rose by 5.4%. Previously, the KP.3.1.1 variant made up 52.6% of cases and XEC accounted for 5.3% from Sept. 15-28.

Here is what you need to know about the XEC variant and the latest CDC data.

COVID-19:Your free COVID-19 at-home tests from the government are set to expire soon. Here's why.

Changes in COVID-19 test positivity within a week Data collected by the CDC shows a drop in positivity rate across the board, while the four states in Region 10 had the biggest decrease (-2.7%) in positive COVID-19 cases from Sept. 29, 2024, to Oct. 5, 2024.

The data was posted on Oct. 11.

Note: The CDC organizes positivity rate based on regions, as defined by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Here's the list of states and their regions' changes in COVID-19 positivity for the past week:

Region 1 (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont): -2% Region 2 (New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands): -1.9% Region 3 (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia): -1.3% Region 4 (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee): -0.6% Region 5 (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin): -2% Region 6 (Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas): -0.8% Region 7 (Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska): -1.7% Region 8 (Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming): -1.2% Region 9 (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Marshall Islands, and Republic of Palau): -1.3% Region 10 (Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington): -2.7% The CDC data shows COVID-19 test positivity rate was recorded at 7.7% from Sept. 29 to Oct. 5, an absolute change of -1.8% from the prior week.

COVID-19 symptoms The variants currently dominating in the U.S. do not have their own specific symptoms, the CDC says..

"CDC is not aware of new or unusual symptoms associated with XEC or any other co-circulating lineage of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19," Norman said.

The government agency outlines the basic symptoms of COVID-19 on its website. These symptoms can appear between two and 14 days after exposure to the virus and can range from mild to severe.

These are some of the symptoms of COVID-19:

Fever or chills Cough Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing Fatigue Muscle or body aches Headache Loss of taste or smell Sore throat Congestion or runny nose Nausea or vomiting Diarrhea The CDC said you should seek medical attention if you have the following symptoms:

Trouble breathing Persistent pain or pressure in the chest New confusion Inability to wake or stay awake Pale, gray, or blue-colored skin, lips, or nail beds

[mariacallous]

Content warning: This article includes scenes of physical and sexual harassment and assault.

The trouble in Antarctica started in Boston. It was August 1999, and Stanford geologist Jane Willenbring was then a 22-year-old self-described “country bumpkin.” She had just arrived to start her master’s in earth science at Boston University. As an undergrad with an oboe scholarship at North Dakota State University, she’d studied beetle fossils found in Antarctica and learned how, millions of years ago, the now frozen continent once pooled with freshwater lakes. “That’s not so different from the conditions we might expect in the future,” she says. She wanted to explore this critical science. “It seemed really important for future global climate change,” she says.

Of all the geologists, few were more renowned than the one Willenbring had gone to Boston to study under: 37-year-old David Marchant. Marchant, a scruffy professor at BU, was a rock star of rock study. He was part of a research group that rewrote Antarctic history by discovering evidence of volcanic ash, which showed that Antarctica had been stable for millions of years and was not as prone to cycles of warming and cooling as many thought. To honor his achievements, the US Board on Geographic Names approved the naming of a glacier southwest of McMurdo Station, the main research base on Antarctica, after him.

Willenbring says Marchant had insisted on picking her up at the airport, an offer she thought was nice but strange. It got stranger when he started making her feel bad for his gesture, which she hadn’t asked for. “I’m missing a Red Sox game,” she recalls him chiding her. “You really should have picked a better time to fly.” He asked whether she had a boyfriend, how often she saw him, and whether she knew anyone in Boston or would be alone. In a few months, she’d be heading with him on a research trip to Antarctica and the region with his big chunk of namesake ice. “It was almost like a pickup line,” she recalls, “‘I have a glacier.’”

But it’s what happened in the glacier’s shadow that led Willenbring to take on Marchant and become the first to expose the horrors faced by women at the bottom of the world. A report released in August 2022 by the National Science Foundation, the main agency funding Antarctic research, found that 59 percent of women at McMurdo and other field stations run by the US Antarctic Program said they’d experienced sexual harassment or assault. A central employer, Leidos, holds a $2.3 billion government contract to manage the workplaces on the ice. One woman alleged that a supervisor had slammed her head into a metal cabinet and then attacked her sexually. Britt Barquist, a former fuel foreman at McMurdo, says she had been forced to work alongside a supervisor who had sexually harassed her. “What was really traumatic was telling people, ‘I’m afraid of this person,’” she says, “and nobody cared.”

With a congressional investigation underway, Willenbring is sharing her full story for the first time with the hope of inspiring others to come forward and claim the justice they’ve long deserved. But even now, decades after she first got into Marchant’s car, she can’t help asking herself how, and why, the nightmare happened in the first place. “You never hear a women-in-science panel where people are talking about stuff like I do,” she says, “because they’re smart enough to fucking run.”

[ickypuppi3]

steve and gator who are twins except their mom ran while they were learning to walk and took steve but left gator behind with roy. steve grows up with their mom, grows up not knowing about having any siblings and thinks his dad is dead or something and gator— grows up with roy. enough said.

billy gets dragged to hawkins and him and steve become sort of friends or whatever.

neil’s father dies and he makes billy go with him to north dakota for the funeral. gator pulls billy over for speeding almost immediately and billy’s all “what the hell, harrington? you followed me here? this how you get your kicks?” drags his eyes up and down and says “playing fancy dress too, pretty boy?” and gator, like. loses it ‘cause he’s ‘totally one hundred percent straight’ and who the hell does this guy think he is with his curls and blue eyes and freckles and-

billy sees he’s not kidding around. gets out the car and hands his licence over. ends up asking if gator has a brother or something and gator gets all cagey. they end up bonding a little over music and weed and gator gets all weird about billy ‘cause he has one hell of a crush now.

billy goes back to hawkins and corners steve about his brother and steve’s like dude what. i’m an only child— and billy’s like no look. and gets out a picture gator took of the two of them together and steve finds out that 1. yeah he has a brother. fuck— 2. he’s jealous as hell of the way billy’s talking about his brand new brother and 3. oh no. steve likes billy

anyway. they both end up fucking billy the end

[sidekick-hero]

caught in the careless arms of lust again

metaldeputy | explicit | 5.6k | tags: crossover Fargo/Stranger Things, No Upside Down, Modern AU, pwp | AO3

Dickinson, North Dakota was as much a shithole in Eddie's eyes as Hawkins, Indiana. The only real difference, as far as he can tell, is the cold, which is more biting than even the worst winter he ever experienced back home, and his balls are trying as hard as they can to crawl back into his body.

It's not like he wants to be here. There was no way in hell he was going to spend more time than it took to take a piss and pump some gas into his van in a state that was mostly God-fearing northern rednecks and a whole lot of nothing.

But of course, nothing ever goes according to plan in Eddie Munson's life, and his van broke down just as he was passing through Dickinson on Interstate 94. He'd seen the sign and giggled like a high school kid at the silly name, momentarily distracted and not looking at the road. That's why he didn't notice the damn deer until it was too late, and like the idiot he was, he swerved to avoid it, skidded on the slick icy road, and ended up in the ditch.

Luckily he wasn't going that fast, so after a few feet the car came to a stop in the snow, the engine dead and refusing to start no matter what he tried.

And now his van is in the hands of a guy named Ray at Ray's Auto Electric, while Eddie has to rent a room in a dubious looking hotel called the Badland Inn. It’s fifty bucks a night, which he certainly doesn’t have, but beggars can’t be choosers, and it’s too damn cold to even consider sleeping outside. Ray, who had taken one look at Eddie's long hair and tattoos before seeming to decide he wanted Eddie gone almost as much as Eddie wanted to be gone, said it would be at least three days, maybe more, depending on how fast he could get the part he needed to get his van running again.

And that's why Eddie is sitting in some dive bar, drinking a cheap watered-down beer, wallowing in self-pity, when Deputy Gator Tillman walks into his life.

At first he doesn't even turn his head to look at the man who just sat down next to him, just nods politely while staring into the smudged glass in his hands. It's only when the guy next to him orders a Bud Light, of all things, that Eddie can't help but snort. From what he's seen so far, the men here are manly men, drinking only the bitterest beer and the strongest whiskey while thumping their chests like apes.

"Something funny, shitbird?" The guy snarls at him.

And here we go again, Eddie thinks, already tired of what's sure to come.

"Listen, man," Eddie starts as he turns around to face whoever's ego he just bruised, only to be stopped by the sight in front of him.

The guy's hot, is the first thing that strikes him, square jaw, full lips, droopy eyes, and a slanted nose. His chestnut hair is slicked back and shaved with racetrack lines, as much a part of his machismo as the combat pants and bulletproof vest he's wearing. Too bad his face is just too pretty for any of it to work.

He must have been staring, because the hazel eyes looking back at him narrow even more, his whole face turning into a sneer that's still far more attractive than it has any right to be.

"What are you staring at, asshole?"

A ghost from my past, Eddie thinks. Because he once knew a boy who looked just like the guy before him, a boy who tried so hard to be the epitome of everything a wealthy white businessman's son in Bumfuck Indiana could want. He played all kinds of sports, was captain of the basketball and swim teams, had a new pretty girl on his arm every week, and sneered down at everyone below him as he looked on from his perch at the top of the high school food chain.

King Steve, a man who had been so goddamn pretty that Eddie could still remember all the times he had jerked off to fantasies of those lips and hands, and that juicy ass in Harrington's tiny gym shorts.

The man before him looked different, of course, but much of him was the same. Maybe that was the reason why Eddie didn't stop his mouth from running off on him.

"You. It's a nice view, that's for sure."

Even as he braces himself for a punch, Eddie can't tear his eyes away from the hauntingly familiar face in front of him as he sees the words land. They're mostly harmless. Not even a pretty boy or a sweetheart thrown in there. At least not yet.

The man's eyes widen, just a fraction, just enough for Eddie to notice. Just as Eddie notices the color rising up his neck and the way his tongue darts out to wet his lips. Gotcha, big boy.

"What did you just say to me?" The guy demands, taking a step forward, invading Eddie's personal space, bringing with him the smell of cologne and old sweat, tinged with something fruity Eddie can't quite put his finger on.

There’s enough of a height difference between them that Eddie can look up at him through his lashes from his seat. He curls his lips into a smile that has just enough edge to draw the guy’s eyes to it and keep them there.

"Paid you a compliment. Don't tell me a handsome guy like you doesn't get those all the time, huh?"

The brazenness makes the other man stumble, Eddie can tell by the way his mouth opens and closes without a sound coming out of it. He catches himself soon enough and leans back, pulling himself up to his full height and bringing his hands to his hips, drawing Eddie's eyes to where the tips of his fingers graze the gun strapped to his thigh.

Okay, this is how they're going to play this, apparently.

"Listen, you fucking pansy, I ain't got no idea why you think you can just come in here and talk to a man of the law like that, but I'm gonna show you where you and your kind can stick your disgusting tendencies."

This makes Eddie smile even wider. His mantra has always been 'fuck the law', so that's exactly what he's going to do. And he's pretty sure this particular lawman wouldn't mind. Just as Eddie is sure now that Harrington wouldn't have been opposed to Eddie's tendencies, but back then Eddie hadn't been the kind of guy to take such a risk. No experience, just a gut feeling, and that wasn't enough to risk getting his nose broken. Or worse.

Now, with more than a decade of hookups with supposedly straight guys under his belt, he knew the signs. And the guy right in front of him? A big fucking neon sign.

"I dunno, Sheriff. Maybe you’d rather I show you where I could stick my tendencies instead. I'm sure you can take it like a man, big boy."

Eddie makes sure to lean in again as he says this, letting his eyes roam over the guy's body in a blatant invitation that he really hopes will be taken. It's not like he has any trouble picking up guys, even in the backwoods he's been traveling through lately, though he does have to be a little more careful. But he wants this one, badly. He's sure he'll look like sin on his knees for Eddie, eyes as round and wet as his mouth wrapped around his dick, begging for anything Eddie is willing to give him.

The guy in front of him doesn't seem to be the sharpest tool in the shed, but he doesn't have to be, Eddie thinks. Not with that face. It takes him more than a few moments to work through Eddie's words, and the first thing he responds to is not what Eddie would think it would be.

"That's my dad." At Eddie's confused look, he adds, "Sheriff. My dad is Sheriff Roy Tillman. I'm his right-hand man, Deputy Sheriff Gator Tillman." He says, standing even straighter, voice dripping with pomposity.

"I figured you'd be a mouthful, Deputy Sheriff Gator Tillman."

Eddie gives him a wolfish grin and licks his lips, eyes focused on what he can make out of the bulge in the deputy's pants, which are frankly a little too loose. Guys like him should wear tight jeans or those gray sweatpants that show off the goods a lot better than fucking combat pants.

"The fuck you talkin' about, numbnuts?"

Yeah, not the sharpest tool in the shed. But maybe this is his chance to defuse the situation, turn it into a joke, and get the hell out before he finds himself behind bars or with his face bashed in. The Eddie of a few years ago would have run, just like he had run when Harrington had him pinned down at Skull Rock after Eddie had taken his flirting a little too far during a weed sale. He'd had the same look in his eyes that he sees on the Deputy's face now.

Hunger masked as anger.

So instead of running, Eddie decides to show his hand. Make his offer clear and see if the Deputy takes him up on it. And if not, he will hole up in the inn and hope that Ray gets his parts as soon as possible.

"I'm talking about your cock, Deputy." Eddie mutters.

He rises and positions himself to cover his hand as it reaches out to squeeze the bulge, feeling it swell under his touch. Big Boy, indeed. He takes a stumbling step forward to have an excuse to press himself against Deputy Tillman's hard body and leans in to whisper in his ear.

"Too bad we don't get to play with it. I'm sure you'd be so good." Eddie clicks his tongue against his teeth with a soft tzk. "But what can you do, right? Have a good evening, Deputy Sheriff Gator Tillman."

Counting on dear Deputy Tillman needing another moment to process what Eddie just said, he steps away from the other man and saunters out, heading toward the inn.

He hasn't even made it out of the parking lot before he hears the sound of heavy footsteps following him outside.

Bingo.

He keeps walking and doesn't turn around, but there's a pleased smile on his face. If the Deputy was going to bash his head in, Eddie hopes he would have done it by now. The footsteps behind him are faster than the saunter Eddie was taking, but they don’t charge at him, just follow a few steps behind.

Eddie makes sure to sway his hips as he walks, feeling the other man's eyes on him the whole way. He can't be sure, but he thinks they're fixed on his ass, and he's glad he put on his skinny jeans that hug his thighs and ass just right. Not that it will see much action tonight. Eddie knows what Deputy Tillman needs, and soon he’ll know it too when he’s on his knees and begging for it.

For now, Eddie lets him think that it's his tight ass that’ll be getting hit tonight.

The walk to the inn is silent and the cold air around them feels heavy, charged. Anticipation crackles under his skin like a summer storm brewing in the sky and he can't remember the last time he felt so alive.

After passing through the entrance, he waits at the bottom of the stairs until he hears the front door close again, and only then does he begin his ascent to his room on the fourth floor, climbing the stairs with the steady sound of steps creaking under two sets of feet.

When he finally reaches the door to his room, his chest is heaving from more than just the physical exertion. Something about the whole night feels so goddamn surreal, and he still half expects to wake up in a ditch after being beaten half to death for flirting with a fucking cop in a part of the country where that could very well get him arrested. Or worse. So much worse.

And yet here he is, inviting danger into his room, into his bed, into his arms.

Something about Deputy Tillman makes him forget everything he's learned about staying out of trouble.

In fact, he's walking right into it, with a devilish smile and a raging hard-on.

Eddie hears the heavy steps behind him coming to a halt as well and he can feel the presence of another body close to his. For just a second, he contemplates calling it off, taking the safe route, just like he promised his uncle to do. But then he remembers the hot, thick girth under his hand and the way Tillman reminds him of a ghost from the past that has come back to haunt him and thinks fuck the safe route.

Slipping the key into the lock and turning it to the right, he opens the door and walks into his room, turning on the light and waiting for trouble to follow him inside.

They still haven't said anything, not since Eddie so boldly proposed the Deputy Sheriff, but he thinks they both know why they're here.

"I take it you're here to play a little, Deputy?" He doesn't even turn around when he asks this, the question being mostly rhetorical anyway. Just him playing with his food, making Tillman admit why he followed Eddie here.

More silence answers him.

"Cat got your tongue? Don't tell me you're getting shy now." Eddie coaxes, finally turning to look at the young man he never expected to meet tonight. He's met with a defiant look on that awfully pretty face, eyebrows drawn together and lips almost pouting at him. Adorable, really.

"Fuck you," the Deputy spits, clearly at a loss for words, inferior in their duel of wits.

Eddie taps his chin mockingly, as if he has to think about it. "Nah," he finally concludes, "I think I'd rather fuck you."

His words don't immediately hit the Deputy, an almost cute look of confusion on his face before his eyes widen, first in shock, then in anger. Too bad the admittedly impressive bulge in his pants gives away just how much Tillman is not against the idea.

"But...you said...in the bar..." he stutters, more indignation in his words than in his voice. Oh, he's precious, Eddie thinks, just the kind of guy he loves to corrupt. He knows he lured the Deputy in with the vague promise of a blow job, and knowing what he packs in those hideous combat pants, Eddie thinks he might still do it. After all, he thinks the man will be much more pliable after a nice orgasm. He doesn't want to hurt his prey, he just wants to play with it, and if his prey enjoys it, that's all the better in Eddie's book.

Taking a step toward the other man, Eddie catches his eyes and raises an eyebrow. "Look, if you can't use your words, Deputy, then I can't use my mouth or my hands on you. Simple as that. Speak up or get out."

Delighted, Eddie notices Tillman's spine straighten at his tone.

Bingo.

It's clear the Deputy needs a firm hand.

With his chin sticking out, Tillman tries again, still stumbling over his words here and there, but doing a much better job than before. "You said I was a mouthful. That my," he pauses before venturing on, "that my cock was a mouthful and that you wanted to play with it."

"I did, didn't I?" Eddie wonders aloud, his eyes deliberately dropping to where the Deputy is still hard in his pants and licking his lips. "And you've been a good boy so far, haven't you, Deputy?"

Tillman nods eagerly, making Eddie grin. He just loves his men easy.

"Good boys get a reward, but I'm not sure you deserve my mouth on you just yet, Deputy. I think you need to show me how good you really can be." Another step forward brings Eddie close enough to the other man to see how his pupils have dilated, swallowing up the beautiful hazel of his eyes. He puts a hand on Tillman's shoulder, fingers spread wide so that his thumb presses into the hollow of his throat, and gently pushes him down to his knees without any real force.

The Deputy sinks to his knees in a fluid and graceful arc that sends the blood rushing to his cock so fast he feels dizzy for a second.

Fuck, who would have thought that a random cop he picked up in a bar in the middle of nowhere North Dakota would turn out to be the sweetest of temptations?

Certainly not Eddie.

"Gorgeous," he praises the man on his knees in front of him, because he is. He looks up at Eddie with wide eyes, dazed, as if he doesn't even know what he's doing here, but likes it anyway. Thumbing his full lower lip until it opens for him, Eddie can't help but want to see how far the man will let him go. When the Deputy sucks Eddie's thumb into his mouth without a second thought, Eddie doesn't even try to stop the moan that falls from his lips. It's obvious that the man kneeling before him is starved for praise, so giving it to him will only make him more eager.

He pulls his thumb out of Tillman's mouth, already missing the warmth, and unbuttons his jeans. He pushes them down just enough to free his cock, the cool air of the room making him shiver. "Now, let's see what you can do, Deputy," he murmurs, anticipation coiling in his belly.

Deputy Tillman doesn't answer with words, but with action, leaning in and enveloping Eddie's hard length in the wet heat of his mouth. It's a clumsy start, but Eddie is more than willing to show him the ropes. If he's honest, it only fuels the flame of lust burning brightly in his stomach to know that it's him the Deputy is on his knees for, sucking his cock when it's clearly something he wouldn't normally do.

It's only fair that Eddie teach him how to be a good boy for him.

Eddie guides the Deputy's movements with a hand tangled in his hair, enjoying the feeling of complete control. He expects Tillman to bitch at him for ruining his hair, but the only reaction he gets when he tangles it between his fingers and pulls is a broken moan. The night might've started with a broken-down van and ended up in a dive bar, but now, it's shaping into something Eddie never could've anticipated.

Tillman may have been clumsy at first, but with Eddie's guiding hand slowing his movements, the Deputy seems to get used to the feel of Eddie's girth in his mouth, growing more confident with every lick of his tongue and bob of his head.

Eddie continues to murmur encouragements into the quiet room, each one swallowed hungrily by the man on his knees before him. As the night stretches on, he finds himself lost in the pleasure, the cold North Dakota winter forgotten in the warmth of Deputy Tillman's mouth.

"God, you're good at this," he praises, voice hoarse and strained. The Deputy looks up at him then, surprise in his eyes, but Eddie recognizes a flicker of something else there, too. Pride. Satisfaction. It makes him smirk.

He allows himself to sink further into the sensation, guiding the Deputy's movements with a firm hand in his hair. When he hits that sweet spot at the back of his throat, Eddie can't help the groan that escapes his lips.

"That's it, Deputy," he encourages, "Just like that."

As Tillman's moans vibrate around him, Eddie can feel the tension building in the pit of his stomach, an all too familiar pressure that signals his impending release. He tries to hold back, to prolong the pleasure, but it's a losing battle. With one last thrust into the warm cavern of the Deputy's mouth, he succumbs to the pleasure. His hips buck and he spurts down the Deputy's throat, a guttural moan tearing from his lips.

Tillman swallows around him, his throat working around Eddie's length, milking him for all he's worth. When he's spent, Eddie pulls back, sliding out of the warmth of the Deputy's mouth with a sigh.

"Well," he pants, "I think that's enough for tonight, Deputy." Leaning back against the wall to catch his breath, he pulls up his pants and buttons them, ignoring the Deputy's whine at his words. It's been a long time since a simple blowjob left him feeling like that. Completely worn out, but deeply satisfied.

When he finally regains his composure, he looks down to see Deputy Tillman still on his knees, looking up at him with wide, dazed eyes. Eddie grins down at him, reaching out to ruffle his hair.

"Good boy," he purrs, watching as the Deputy's eyes flash with a mix of indignation and satisfaction.

Maybe tonight doesn't have to be over right now.

Smiling, Eddie steps over him and heads for the bed, leaving the Deputy on his knees in the middle of the room. He sinks down on the edge of the bed, his legs slightly apart, and takes in the sight before him.

It takes his breath away.

He can't get over how the hard lines of the man's strong body look unexpectedly soft in his vulnerable position, less coiled serpent and more obedient puppy. The Deputy has surpassed all of Eddie's expectations tonight and he wants to reward him. Wants to encourage this unsuspected side of him, maybe even dig a little deeper to find more of it.

Deputy Sheriff Gator Tillman is more than meets the eye and Eddie is itching to know how much more.

“Look at me,” he tells the kneeling man and after a moment’s hesitation, still slightly unfocused eyes find his. Eddie knows that this must have been pretty intense for someone who hasn’t done anything like that before and the Deputy looks like he’s still far away, only slowly coming back to the here and now. His eyes roam over where Eddie’s body is perched on the edge of the bed with a questioning look on his face.

"Very good," Eddie purrs and smiles down at him. "I promised you a reward, and after how well you did on your knees for me, I think you deserve my mouth on you now."

Hazel's eyes widen in pleasant surprise at the promise, but when the Deputy starts to get up, Eddie stops him. "Who said you could get up again, pretty boy?"

The look of confusion on the man's face is adorable, Eddie thinks before he can stop himself. This is neither the time nor the place to get attached. He can't deny that the Deputy has gotten under his skin, but he'll deal with that when he's back on the road and their night is a distant memory. Just another pretty boy haunting his dreams.

"If you want your reward, you have to come here to get it." He waits for his words to sink in, but the confused puppy dog look doesn't leave the Deputy's face, so he clarifies, "On your knees, Deputy."

He can tell the exact moment the words finally sink in when Tillman closes his eyes as his hips twitch eagerly. If he didn't just come his brains out of his dick and into the Deputy's mouth, Eddie would get hard again at the sight. The man keeps surprising him. No matter what Eddie throws at him, he takes to it like a fish to water, so eager to please, so easily led.

With an eager tilt of his pretty mouth, the Deputy crawls over to Eddie, staying on his knees as he moves between Eddie's spread legs, a look of hungry anticipation in his eyes. Eddie can't wait to show him what a real reward feels like.

He cups the man's face with his hand and pulls him closer so he can lean in and whisper in his ear. "Strip for me, pretty boy. Show me how beautiful you are."

For the first time since they started this whole thing, Deputy Tillman is using his mouth for something other than sucking on Eddie's thumb and cock. "Can I stand up for this?" He asks and Eddie hears some of the petulance creep back into his voice even though his words remain perfectly polite. Like a puppy, the man is eager to be good, but he also loves to test Eddie's limits.

"You may. But do it slowly, I want to enjoy the show."

"I thought this was my reward, not yours?"

Ah, there is the fire he was met with earlier, Eddie thinks. Despite what some people might think about him, he likes a challenge, and if the Deputy wants to make Eddie work for it, then he can. It's part of the game, and he enjoys it just as much as he did when the man was on his knees gagging for it.

Eddie leans back leisurely, spreading his legs a little wider, deliberately giving Tillman an unobstructed view of his slender body. He wears a smirk on his face, a confidence born from countless encounters of this kind. "Well, Deputy," he begins, his voice smooth like aged whiskey. The corners of his mouth twitch up into a devilish grin. "It's your reward, of course. But don't think for a second that I won't get my share of enjoyment out of this too." He leans in a little closer, his eyes twinkling with a mischievous glint. "Now, show me what you've got."

Rising to his feet, the Deputy does as he's told and with every inch of tantalizing skin he reveals, Eddie's hands twitch with the desire to touch. His skin is smooth, the fine hair on it almost golden, with the exception of his chest hair, which is dark and thick. There are beauty marks of all sizes and shapes all over his body, little beacons that call out to him to put his mouth all over them. His body is athletic, arms and legs defined but not bulky like Eddie has seen a lot of cops. Those muscles come from physical work, not pumping at the gym.

Eddie's favorite part, though, are the Deputy's legs. They seem to go on for miles, the golden hair and thick thighs make his mouth water. He wants them wrapped around his waist as he pounds into the tight heat of what must be a virgin ass, eliciting broken moans and high-pitched whimpers. For now, though, he'll take those thighs wrapped around his head.

"Come here, Deputy," Eddie says, patting the bed next to him. "Let's see how good you can be for me." He can't wait to feel those strong thighs tremble around his head as he shows Deputy Tillman exactly how good his tendencies can feel.

With a slight hesitation, the Deputy crawls onto the bed, his movements a little awkward without his clothes on. But Eddie doesn't mind. It's just another sign of how new this is for him, how far out of his comfort zone he is. And Eddie likes that about him. The way he's willing to put himself out there, to try something new and scary. It's unexpected, but endearing. It makes Eddie want to reward him all the more.

He guides Tillman until he's straddling Eddie's chest, his knees resting on either side of his shoulders. His cock is hard and leaking against his belly and Eddie can't resist reaching up to wrap a hand around it, giving it a light squeeze. Tillman hisses at the touch, his hips jerking forward into Eddie's hand.

"Easy, Deputy," Eddie says, his voice low and soothing. "I told you, this is your reward. Just relax and let me take care of you."

Then he begins to stroke Tillman in earnest, his hand moving up and down his length in a slow, steady rhythm. He watches Tillman's face as he does so, watching as his eyes flutter closed and his lips part with a soft moan. The sight sends a rush of satisfaction through him, knowing he's the one making the Deputy feel this way.

But it's not enough. He wants to taste him as well. He wants to feel the way Tillman tastes on his tongue, the way he squirms and moans as Eddie takes him in his mouth. He wants to hear the way Tillman curses under his breath, the way he begs for more.

So he leans up, pressing a soft kiss to the tip of Tillman's cock before taking him in his mouth. The taste of him, salty and a little sweet, is intoxicating and Eddie moans around him, the vibration causing Tillman to gasp and buck his hips forward. But Eddie holds him steady, one hand on his hip as he continues to suck him off.

The sounds Tillman makes as Eddie works him with his mouth and hands are music to Eddie's ears. He can feel the way Tillman's body tenses under his touch, the way his breath hitches every time Eddie does something he particularly likes. And Eddie uses all of this to his advantage, learning what makes Tillman tick, what makes him moan and gasp and beg for more.

It's not long before Tillman is coming undone under Eddie's touch. His moans grow louder, his hips start to move in time with Eddie's strokes, and his fingers clutch at the sheets beneath them. And when he comes, Eddie swallows him down, his own cock throbbing in response to the sight of Tillman losing himself to pleasure.

But even after Tillman's body goes slack, Eddie doesn't stop. He licks him clean, pressing soft kisses to his sensitive skin until Tillman is squirming and whimpering beneath him. Only then does he pull back, his eyes meeting Tillman's as he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand.

"That was your reward, Deputy," he says, his voice low and satisfied. "I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did."

The look in Tillman's eyes tells him he did, even if the Deputy can't find the words to say it. And that's more than enough for Eddie. Part of him thinks he'd actually like the Deputy to stay the night, to get comfortable under the blankets with a warm body in his arms for the first time in a long time. It's been a while since he felt connected enough to someone to let them stay close after they both got what they wanted out of their hookup.

Even longer since the last time Eddie considered a next time. And then another. It's a slippery slope, he knows, so he does the only logical thing.

He taps the thighs that are still clutching his shoulders until Tillman falls to the side and lies down beside him. Without looking at the other man, Eddie says, "I'm going to take a shower. I think it's best if you're gone when I get back."

Stripping off his clothes as he makes his way to the tiny bathroom, he continues to look everywhere but at the naked, beautiful man on his bed. They've both had their fun and now it's time to move on. Easy as that, right? Right.

Or not, because just as he opens the door to step out of the room that smells of sweat and sex, a deep, gravelly voice stops him.

"What's your name?"

Shit.

"Why? So you can look me up? Arrest me as soon as the sun comes up on some trumped up charge of sucking your dick?"

Maybe that's unfair, but in his experience you can't trust a cop, and it's on him that he forgot that, even for a second. That's what he gets for thinking with his dick.

"No," Deputy Tillman replies, his voice surprisingly soft. "I just want to know the name of the guy who just blew my fucking mind, is all."

And that's...huh. Eddie doesn't even know what to do with that.

"It's Eddie."

"Just Eddie?"

"That's all you need to know so you can moan it the next time you jack off, sweetheart." He turns around with a smirk as he says it, but he'd be lying if he said the thought of Tillman moaning his name didn't do it for him. If a next time wasn't such an epically bad idea, he'd like to hear it himself as he takes the man apart.

"Maybe I will," the Deputy replies, and Eddie wants to believe him. "Next time you should call me Gator, ya know? Only fair."

Next time?

"There won't be a next time, Deputy. This was a one-time thing."

And damn it, he shouldn't have turned around, because the look in Gator's-no, Tillman's-eyes is hurt.

It's not that Eddie enjoys hurting the guy, but it's better this way. Safer.

"Goodbye, Gator." He says as he steps into the bathroom and closes the door behind him.

The hot shower feels good, relieving some of the tension that had crept into his shoulders and neck after their conversation. He loses himself in the task of getting clean, scrubbing away the remnants of the night, and when he steps back out into the empty bedroom, he almost feels like himself again. The last few hours hadn't been how he expected to spend his first night in this shithole of a town, but he can't say he regrets a single thing.

As he settles into the soft mattress, he can't help but think that despite all the trouble, Dickinson, North Dakota might not be so bad after all.

Happy very belated birthday @baronsamediswife 💜💜💜Thank you for indulging me and watching Fargo and Marmalade with me and letting me ramble about how pretty Joe Keery is.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Carter Sherman at The Guardian:

Awash in soft, peach-colored light, the infant yawns, sticks her thumb in her mouth and flutters her eyes at the camera. As the camera pulls away from her, an umbilical cord and the fleshy tunnel surrounding the infant comes into focus. This isn’t a newborn baby: it’s a fetus in a disembodied womb. “This is Olivia,” a British female voice narrates. “Though she has yet to greet the outside world, she has already completed an amazing journey.” Say hello to “Meet Baby Olivia”, an animated video made by an American anti-abortion group that purports to depict humans’ embryonic and fetal development in an alleged effort to convert young people to the anti-abortion cause. The video – or something very close to it – will be required viewing for public school students in two states, with several more potentially on the way.

Last year, North Dakota became the first state in the nation to pass a law mandating that schools screen “Meet Baby Olivia” or a similar video. This year, Tennessee enacted its own “Meet Baby Olivia” law, requiring that “Meet Baby Olivia” or something like it be shown as part of schools’ sex education curriculum. So far in 2024, legislators in at least 10 other states have introduced bills that would require schools to show students “Meet Baby Olivia” or, in language that appears repeatedly throughout the bills, a similar “high-quality, computer-generated rendering or animation” that shows “every stage of human development inside the uterus, noting significant markers in cell growth and organ development for every significant marker of pregnancy until birth”. Including Tennessee’s legislation, bills in at least five of the states cite “Meet Baby Olivia” by name.

Classrooms are a burgeoning front in the post-Roe v Wade abortion wars, as conservative activists have increasingly intertwined their attacks on abortion with their distaste for sex ed that discusses alternatives to premarital abstinence. But medical professionals have accused the anti-abortion group behind “Meet Baby Olivia” of spreading propaganda and even misinformation in order to convert young people to their cause.

Seven of the 12 states where the bills have been introduced or passed ban almost all abortions. So far this year, state legislatures have considered at least 135 sex-ed bills – a record number, according to a CNN analysis. Sixty per cent of them would restrict sex ed in some way. Live Action has denied accusations that any sentence of “Meet Baby Olivia” is inaccurate. “‘Baby Olivia’ isn’t about abortion. It never says the word ‘abortion’,” said Noah Brandt, Live Action’s vice-president of communications. “‘Baby Olivia’ is an important place for states like Tennessee and North Dakota to turn to next, to continue to do work to educate on both biology and life, because they’ve already protected life so now it’s about teaching people when life begins and to respect that.”

A quiet success story

The emergence of the “Meet Baby Olivia” legislation comes at a precarious time for the anti-abortion movement. Since the overturning of Roe, support for abortion rights has mounted even in conservative states. Some Republicans have tried to downplay their opposition to the procedure or even supported efforts to protect it, in a sharp departure from decades of marching in lock step with the anti-abortion movement. But as the anti-abortion movement flounders, the “Meet Baby Olivia” bills are a quiet success story. Abortion opponents overturned Roe by spending years pushing for state-level abortion restrictions; if a restriction was successful in one state, lawmakers in other states would copy-paste its language and introduce their own versions. This strategy gnawed away access to abortion. In the “Meet Baby Olivia” bills, observers see a similar strategy at play – and evidence of mission creep.

“Anti-abortion, anti-sexual and [anti]-reproductive health movements have been focusing on other areas and expanding their scope in terms of what is relevant to them and what they’re working on,” said Kimya Forouzan, principal policy associate of state issues at the Guttmacher Institute, which supports abortion rights. Although Guttmacher tracks restrictions on sexual and reproductive health, Forouzan said that she had never before seen legislation quite like the “Meet Baby Olivia” bills.

[...] In at least two states, West Virginia and Iowa, “Meet Baby Olivia” bills passed one legislative chamber, but both state legislatures have now shuttered for the year. Most of the legislatures that introduced “Meet Baby Olivia” bills have either ended their 2024 sessions or are set to do so in the next few weeks. Compared to the rest of the country, the states that have introduced “Meet Baby Olivia” bills this year – which also include Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina – have less comprehensive sex-ed policies, according to Siecus: Sex Ed for Social Change, a decades-old organization that issues best practice guidelines for comprehensive sex ed. (None of the states garnered more than a C grade in the Siecus ranking system.) Most states do not require public school sex ed to be medically accurate, culturally appropriate or unbiased, according to Guttmacher. Only four states say that sex ed cannot promote religion.

The Guardian reports on the disturbing trend of red states pushing new bills that require the showing of the propagandistic "Baby Olivia" video by anti-abortion extremist group Live Action in classrooms as part of the right-wing war on sex ed in schools.

[gnomewithalaptop]

Excerpt from the one where Martha and Jonathan Kent find a baby girl out in the field that night

After the meteor shower, they put the kid in Jonathan’s old clothes. There wasn’t much else they could do with her, and maybe she was some kind of alien time bomb just waiting to go off, but Martha’d be damned if that meant she’d let her run round as a naked alien time bomb. She had standards after all.

And anyway, the kid wasn’t acting much like a bomb. So far, she’d been a bit too interested in Jonathan’s old wind-up car collection – another rescue from the upstairs closet. It was like she’d never seen one before – which, Martha reminded herself, she probably hadn’t. Every time she managed to set one off, she’d whip round and stare at her with her eyes all blown up big as North Dakota and a smile twice as broad.

It was cute. That was the word Martha was looking for. The kid was cute.

Jonathan was a bit less pleased. He hung back at the edges of the room, arms crossed up at the chest, and his chin all jutted out like it always did when he was thinking. He thought it made him look pensive. Privately, Martha thought it made him look a bit like he’d just had a root canal. He shifted a bit to the side, looking all shifty-eyed at the floor. “She looks like a boy,” he said gruffly, after a beat.

Martha blinked and looked back at the child hanging off her lap. The kid, still absorbed in studying the wheels attached to one of the more well-maintained Chevies in Jonathan’s collection, didn’t seem to notice.

When she’d been naked in that field, it’d been obvious, but now, all trussed up in Jonathan’s old sweatshirt and Jonathan’s old shorts with her hair cropped short and curly around her snubbed, wide little face – she could have passed as any one of the little boys in the local preschool. “Huh,” Martha said, leaning back on one hand. The kid glanced up at her disdainfully, momentarily annoyed by the sudden shift in her seat, then went back to studying the Chevy.

Still hanging out by the doorway, Jonathan cleared his throat, shoving his hands deep into his pockets. “Martha, sweetheart, she’s not ours to keep.”

Martha smoothed a hand across the kid’s face, into her hair, and didn’t say anything. It was good hair, she noted absently, all thick and black and curly like that. It would grow out nice. In a year or two, it’d be long enough to do up in pigtails. Not that she was making plans, of course. “I just,” she said finally, when the silence started to stretch a bit too long, “I just feel like there’s a reason she’s here. She’s exactly what I wished for in the flower shop this morning.”

It hadn’t been what she’d meant to say. But even still, it felt right in her mouth, remembering itty-bitty Lana Lang in her pink little tutu and crown. She’d tapped Martha on the forehead with her dollar store wand and grinned her gap-toothed smile, and for a moment, it’d been just them.

Lana’s parents had gotten hit by some of the first of the meteors, Martha remembered suddenly with a pang. Lana wouldn’t be smiling half so easy after today.

From the doorway, Jonathan let out a short, sharp almost-laugh through his nose, bringing Martha back to Earth, before he walked over to crouch down beside them. “Martha Kent,” he said, quirking a half smile in her direction. “Since when did you believe in magic wands?”

Martha reached over, mindful of the child in her lap, and laid a hand on top of his. “Since today,” she said. The kid squirmed in her lap, Chevy momentarily forgotten, and Martha made to lean back again to give her more room, only to stop when the kid twisted under her arm and popped her head out the other side, now sprawled completely on her stomach across Martha’s lap. She looked at them for a long second, her eyes grave, before she carefully extracted a hand from where it’d been lying pinned underneath her and gently laid it across theirs.

“Annava-bshhht,” she said seriously. Then she squirmed her way back across Martha’s lap and started playing with the Chevy again.

In the warm stillness of the kitchen, the doorbell was a gunshot.

Jonathan sprang up immediately. “Get her upstairs,” he told her. Martha nodded, once, and grabbed the kid by the middle before she could wriggle away again. “Just a second!” Jonathan called from the kitchen. He made a shooing motion with one hand, and Martha ducked out of the room and up the stairs.

The kid, it turned out, was not happy with this turn of events. Martha had only just barely set her down in the guest bedroom before she was ducking under her outstretched arms and speeding down the stairs in a jumble of tiny feet.

“No, Ethan, really,” Jonathan was saying to the copper outside, bracing one sun-browned forearm against the doorframe. “It’s fine. We’re…” he trailed off as the kid darted into the room to plaster herself around his knees. Martha slowed to a stop, wincing, and the kid looked back at her, that big broad smile of hers back in full force.

Ethan looked down at Jonathan’s feet. “Who’s the little fella?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.

Jonathan set a hand down on the kid’s shoulder. “She’s a girl, actually,” he said gruffly. “We, uh…”

Martha jumped in. “We just picked her up from the adoption agency this morning.”

Ethan broke into a smile, bending down to look the kid in the eye. The kid stared back at him, still smiling. “Well, she sure is a cute one,” he said, reaching out to ruffle her hair. He turned back to Martha, standing up. “She got a name?”

Martha stared at him for a moment, the polite smile suddenly frozen on her face. They’d never discussed names for a girl – Jonathan had had his heart set on a boy, and since they’d been planning to adopt anyway— “Clark,” she blurted out and immediately wanted to sink into the floor. She took a step forward, already backtracking. “I thought, uh, that my family name would make a good… first name,” she said.

From over his shoulder, Jonathan gave her a flat look. Ethan stroked his mustache doubtfully, glancing down at the kid again. “Clark?” he said. “Bit of a strange name for a girl.”

Jonathan glanced up to the ceiling and visibly took a deep breath. “It’s got an E at the end,” he told Ethan, after a beat.

Ethan tilted his head to one side. “Well,” he said. “How modern.” He checked his watch. “I’d best be heading back to the station. Congratulations again to you both. It’s, uh, nice to know some good came out of all this tragedy.”

Martha kept her smile firmly in place until the door clicked shut. Then, and only then, did she turn to Jonathan, hands on her hips. “’It’s got an E at the end’?” she hissed.

Jonathan raised an eyebrow. “’Clark’?”

The kid – Clarke – stared up at them from where she’d wrapped herself around Jonathan’s legs, uncomprehending, and for a moment, both of them fell silent, just watching her. Ever so slowly, her grip around his pant leg loosened. Then, all at once, she tumbled backwards onto her rear and started to cry.

Both of them knelt down at the exact same time. “Okay,” Jonathan said softly, after a beat. “I guess we’re doing this.”

Martha smiled wetly at him, and grabbed hold of his hand. “Yeah,” she said. “I guess we are.”

[scifigeneration]

Sci-fi books are rare in school even though they help kids better understand science

by Emily Midkiff, Assistant Professor of Teaching, Leadership, and Professional Practice at the University of North Dakota

Claudia Wolff

Science fiction can lead people to be more cautious about the potential consequences of innovations. It can help people think critically about the ethics of science. Researchers have also found that sci-fi serves as a positive influence on how people view science. Science fiction scholar Istvan Csicsery-Ronay calls this “science-fictional habits of mind.”

Scientists and engineers have reported that their childhood encounters with science fiction framed their thinking about the sciences. Thinking critically about science and technology is an important part of education in STEM – or science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Complicated content?

Despite the potential benefits of an early introduction to science fiction, my own research on science fiction for readers under age 12 has revealed that librarians and teachers in elementary schools treat science fiction as a genre that works best for certain cases, like reluctant readers or kids who like what they called “weird,” “freaky” or “funky” books.

Of the 59 elementary teachers and librarians whom I surveyed, almost a quarter of them identified themselves as science fiction fans, and nearly all of them expressed that science fiction is just as valuable as any other genre. Nevertheless, most of them indicated that while they recommend science fiction books to individual readers, they do not choose science fiction for activities or group readings.

The teachers and librarians explained that they saw two related problems with science fiction for their youngest readers: low availability and complicated content.

Why sci-fi books are scarce in schools

Several respondents said that there simply are not as many science fiction books available for elementary school students. To investigate further, I counted the number of science fiction books available in 10 randomly selected elementary school libraries from across the United States. Only 3% of the books in each library were science fiction. The rest of the books were: 49% nonfiction, 25% fantasy, 19% realistic fiction and 5% historical fiction. While historical fiction also seems to be in low supply, science fiction stands out as the smallest group.

When I spoke to a small publisher and several authors, they confirmed that science fiction for young readers is not considered a profitable genre, and so those books are rarely acquired. Due to the perception that many young readers do not like science fiction, it is not written, published and distributed as often.

With fewer books to choose from, the teachers and librarians said that they have difficulty finding options that are not too long and complicated for group readings. One explained: “I have to appeal to broad ability levels in chapter book read-aloud selections. These books typically have to be shorter, with more simple plots.” Another respondent explained that they believe “the kind of suppositions sci-fi is based on to be difficult for younger children to grasp. We do read some sci-fi in our middle grade book club.”

A question of maturity

Waiting for students to get older before introducing them to science fiction is a fairly common approach. Susan Fichtelberg – a longtime librarian – wrote a guide to teen fantasy and science fiction. In it, she recommends age 12 as the prime time to start. Other children’s literature experts have speculated whether children under 12 have sufficient knowledge to comprehend science fiction.

Reading researchers agree that comprehending complex texts is easier when the reader has more background knowledge. Yet, when I read some science fiction picture books with elementary school students, none of the children struggled to understand the stories. The most active child in my study often used his knowledge of “Star Wars” to interpret the books. While background knowledge can mean children’s knowledge of science, it also includes exposure to a genre. The more a reader is exposed to science fiction stories, the better they understand how to read them.

A matter of choice

Science fiction does not need to include detailed science or outlandish premises to offer valuable ideas. Simple picture books like “Farm Fresh Cats” by Scott Santoro rely on familiar ideas like farms and cats to help readers reconsider what is familiar and what is alien. “The Barnabus Project” by the Fan Brothers is both a simple escape adventure story and a story about the ethics of genetic experimentation on animals.

The good news is that elementary school students are choosing science fiction regardless of what adults might think they can or cannot understand. I found that the science fiction books in those 10 elementary school libraries were checked out at a higher rate per book than all of the other genres. Science fiction had 1-2 more checkouts per book, on average, than the other genres.

Using the lending data from these libraries, I built a statistical model that predicted that it is 58% more likely for one of the science fiction books to be checked out in these libraries than one of the fantasy books. The model predicted that a science fiction book is over twice as likely to be checked out than books in any of the other genres. In other words, since the children did not have nearly as many science fiction books to choose from, their readership was heavily concentrated on a few titles.

Children may discover science fiction on their own, but adults can do more to normalize the genre and provide opportunities for whole classes to become familiar with it. Encouraging children to explore science fiction may not guarantee science careers, but children deserve to learn from science fiction to help them navigate their increasingly high-tech world.

[pandemic-info]

‘Alarming’ rise in Americans with long Covid symptoms | Long Covid | The Guardian

March 2024

The rate of adults currently experiencing long Covid has not been this high since November 2022; the greatest height since CDC began tracking the illness was 7.6% in June and July 2022. The “estimates represent just a snapshot in time”, making it difficult to identify the role of different factors like recent surges, vaccination rates, new variants and survey methods, said Dave Daigle, a spokesperson for the CDC.

...

There are notable differences across geography, with the highest rates reported in North Dakota, Kentucky, West Virginia, Alaska and Maine, and the lowest rates in Hawaii, Pennsylvania and Wyoming.

...

The rise in long Covid cases is particularly worrisome because “we still don’t know all of the things that long Covid does, how it does it, and why,” said Lara Jirmanus, a clinical instructor at Harvard Medical School and a member of the People’s CDC. Ignoring Covid cases now is “hubris that almost assumes that we can see the future”, Jirmanus said. “Nobody knows what long Covid will do five years from now. I don’t think it’s wise to throw all caution to the wind.”

...

The advice from the agency to leave isolation after symptoms have begun improving flies in the face of scientific evidence and will probably lead to more spread of the virus and more cases of long Covid, experts said.

[usafphantom2]

IMAGES: USAF sends B-52 bombers to Indian Ocean base

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 03/26/2024 - 16:00 in Military, War Zones

U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortresses bombers were deployed on March 22 at the Diego Garcia Naval Support Center in the Indian Ocean.

The Bomber Task Force deployment offers the U.S. Air Force Global Attack Command a presence in the Indo-Pacific, with relatively easy access to the Middle East as well.

The B-52s fled to Diego Garcia from Barksdale Air Base, Louisiana, after a 30-hour direct flight. This is the first time that USAF announces a Bomber Task Force for Diego Garcia - a small island that is part of the British Indian Ocean Territory that serves as a fundamental base for the U.S. and UK military, which has hosted American troops since the 1970s. The B-1 landed there in 2021, and the last time a B-52 landed there was in 2020.

"This deployment aims to improve the readiness and training needed to respond to any potential crisis or challenge around the world, demonstrating the credibility of our forces to face a global security environment that is more diverse and uncertain than at any other time in recent history," the Pacific Air Forces Command (PACAF) said in a statement.

Although the island is in the area of responsibility of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, the U.S. Air Force used the island in the past as a base to send bombers to the U.S. Central Command's area of operations.

This latest deployment of PACAF bombers follows in the footsteps of the B-52 of Minot Air Base, North Dakota, deployed in Guam at the end of January and operating there until March 6.

Tags: Military AviationBoeing B-52H StratofortressBTFUSAF - United States Air Force / U.S. Air ForceWar Zones - Indo-Asia-Pacific

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Fernando Valduga

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, he has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Dayton Airshow and FIDAE. He has works published in specialized aviation magazines in Brazil and abroad. He uses Canon equipment during his photographic work in the world of aviation.

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[spacetimewithstuartgary]

Uranus' moon Miranda may have an ocean beneath its surface, study finds

A new study suggests Uranus' moon Miranda may harbor a water ocean beneath its surface, a finding that would challenge many assumptions about the moon's history and composition and could put it in the company of the few select worlds in our solar system with potentially life-sustaining environments.

"To find evidence of an ocean inside a small object like Miranda is incredibly surprising," said Tom Nordheim, a planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, and co-author of the study published in The Planetary Science Journal.

"It helps build on the story that some of these moons at Uranus may be really interesting—that there may be several ocean worlds around one of the most distant planets in our solar system, which is both exciting and bizarre."

Among the moons in the solar system, Miranda stands out. The few images Voyager 2 captured in 1986 show Miranda's southern hemisphere (the only part we've seen) is a Frankenstein-like hodgepodge of grooved terrain quartered off by rough scarps and cratered areas, like squares on a quilt. Most researchers suspect these bizarre structures are the result of tidal forces and heating within the moon.

Caleb Strom, a graduate student at the University of North Dakota who worked with Nordheim and Alex Patthoff of the Planetary Science Institute in Arizona, revisited the Voyager 2 images. The team set out to explain Miranda's enigmatic geology by reverse engineering the surface features, working backward to uncover what the moon's interior structure must have been to shape the moon's geology in response to tidal forcing.

After first mapping the various surface features like cracks, ridges and Miranda's unique trapezoidal coronae, the team developed a computer model to test several possible structures of the moon's interior, matching the predicted stress patterns to the actual surface geology.

The setup that produced the best match between predicted stress patterns and observed surface features required the existence of vast ocean beneath Miranda's icy surface some 100–500 million years ago. This subsurface ocean was at least 62 miles (100 kilometers) deep, according to the study, and hidden beneath an icy crust no more than 19 miles (30 kilometers) thick.

Given Miranda has a radius of just 146 miles (235 kilometers), the ocean would have filled almost half of the moon's body. "That result was a big surprise to the team," Strom said.

Key to creating that ocean, the researchers believe, were tidal forces between Miranda and nearby moons. These regular gravitational tugs can be amplified by orbital resonances—a configuration where each moon's period around a planet is an exact integer of the others' periods.

Jupiter's moons Io and Europa, for example, have a 2:1 resonance: For every two orbits Io makes around Jupiter, Europa makes exactly one, leading to tidal forces that are known to sustain an ocean beneath Europa's surface.

These orbital configurations and the resulting tidal forces deform the moons like rubber balls, leading to friction and heat that keeps interiors warm. This also creates stresses that crack the surface, creating a rich tapestry of geologic features. Numerical simulations have suggested that Miranda and its neighboring moons likely had such a resonance in the past, offering a potential mechanism that could have warmed Miranda's interior to produce and maintain a subsurface ocean.

At some point, the moons' orbital ballet desynchronized, slowing the heating process so that the moon's insides started to cool and solidify. But the team doesn't think Miranda's interior has fully frozen yet. If the ocean had completely frozen, Nordheim explained, it would have expanded and caused certain telltale cracks on the surface, which aren't there.

This suggests that Miranda is still cooling—and may have an ocean beneath its surface even now. Miranda's modern-day ocean is probably relatively thin, Strom noted. "But the suggestion of an ocean inside one of the most distant moons in the solar system is remarkable," he said.

Miranda wasn't predicted to have an ocean. With its small size and old age, scientists thought it would likely be a frozen ball of ice. Any leftover heat from its formation was assumed to have dissipated long ago. But as Patthoff pointed out, predictions about ice moons can be wrong, as evidenced by Saturn's moon Enceladus.

Before the Cassini spacecraft arrived in 2004, many scientists thought Enceladus was a frozen ball of ice and rock. But it was actually harboring a global ocean and active geological processes. "Few scientists expected Enceladus to be geologically active," Patthoff said. "However, it's shooting water vapor and ice out of its southern hemisphere as we speak." Enceladus is now a prime target in the search for life beyond Earth.

Miranda might be a similar case. It's comparable in size and composition to Enceladus, and according to a 2023 study led by APL's Ian Cohen, it may be actively releasing material into space. If it has (or even had) an ocean, it could be a future target for studying habitability and life. However, Nordheim cautions that there's still too much we don't know about Miranda and the Uranian moons to speculate about the existence of life.

"We won't know for sure that it even has an ocean until we go back and collect more data," he said. "We're squeezing the last bit of science we can from Voyager 2's images. For now, we're excited by the possibilities and eager to return to study Uranus and its potential ocean moons in depth."

Revealing the secrets of Uranus' icy moons

Uranus' icy moons have fascinated scientists ever since Voyager 2 captured stunning images of them, and valuable data about them, during its brief flyby in 1986. This latest study, led by Caleb Strom and APL's Tom Nordheim, is part of a broader effort at APL to uncover the secrets of these mysterious moons and the unusual planet they orbit:

2023: A team led by APL's Ian Cohen reanalyzed particle and magnetic data from Voyager 2's flyby and found Uranus' moons Ariel and Miranda may both be releasing material into the space environment around Uranus, possibly through plumes.

2024: APL's Richard Cartwright used observations of Uranus' moon Ariel by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to conclude the moon may have a subsurface ocean that's replenishing its surface deposits of carbon dioxide ice—a topic he presented at the recent meeting of the American Astronomical Society.

IMAGE: Uranus’ icy moon Miranda, captured by NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft on Jan. 24, 1986. Credit: NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory-Caltech

[meant-to-be-a-hero]

If You're Not Into It, Just Say The Word

WC: 4,335 | rated: E | Tags: Sexual roleplay, Handcuffs, Blow jobs, Praise Kink, Daddy Issues, Explicit Sexual Content, Implied Consent, Sexual Fantasy, Internalised Homophobia

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When Eddie comes home to find a familiar piece of paper at the bottom of the stairs, he knows he’s in for a surprise in the bedroom. What awaits him instead of his boyfriend Steve however, is a mysterious stranger who looks just like him but claims to be Gator Tillman, a deputy from North Dakota who wants to arrest Eddie for deviant behaviours. But maybe, if Eddie plays his cards right, he can use those deviant behaviours he’s so famous for to get himself out of jail free, and get himself off at the same time.

Eddie closed the door of his house behind him, letting out a sigh of relief. It had been a long day, and all he wanted to do right now was relax.

He kicked off his beaten up old sneakers, leaving them in a pile by the door that Steve would no doubt complain about later. The thought of Steve made Eddie smile. The thought of Steve could always make him smile; at the end of a long day, or first thing in the morning when they woke up next to one another, arms and legs tangled into an impossible spider web as if they subconsciously knew that neither of them ever wanted to leave the other.

Alas, capitalism, and rent, and food, and jobs, and all that kinda shit drew them apart, day after day. But they always found their way back to each other in the end.

"Steve?" Eddie called, looking around. His boyfriend wasn't cooking up a storm in the kitchen, nor was he in front of the couch watching some kind of sportsball game. "Steve, sweetheart? Sorry I'm late, Hellfire ran long, the guys were right at the end of the campaign, and-" His voice caught in his throat as he returned to the entrance hall of the house, ready to climb the stairs in search of his wayward boyfriend.

There, sitting on top of the end table at the foot of the stairs where they usually left their keys, was a piece of paper.

It was a familiar piece of paper, creased and folded many times over, with dog-ears on every corner. A well-loved piece of paper, that always heralded something interesting and different and new. Eddie picked it up with a grin, reading the well-worn words in the centre, written in his own scratchy handwriting.

If you're not into it, just say the word.

The first time Eddie had left this piece of paper on the table at the bottom of the stairs, Steve had found him dressed in a makeshift superhero costume when he arrived in their bedroom, mask askew and eyes wide, begging for help. "The only way to save the universe," he'd said to Steve in his most commanding voice, "is if you let me fuck you right now."

It had taken Steve all of ten seconds to get into character.

The piece of paper made an appearance once or twice a month after that. Sometimes Eddie brought it out, sometimes Steve did; it was never planned, that ruined the whole point of it, but every now and then one of them would find the paper on the end table, and a surprise waiting for them in their bedroom.

Eddie tucked the piece of paper into the back pocket of his jeans and climbed the stairs, almost giddy with excitement as he wondered what Steve had in store for him. They had been watching some pirate show on TV lately, maybe he'd need help with where to park his cannon, or something. Eddie’s grin only intensified when he saw that the bedroom door was ajar – meaning that Steve was ready and waiting.

He pushed the door open. It creaked, announcing his arrival.

Steve was facing away from him, fully clothed (unfortunately) and staring out of the window. He was dressed peculiarly, and certainly not in anything remotely sexy. But Eddie wasn’t one to judge a book by its cover – after all, he was intimately familiar with what was between those particular pages.

His eyes travelled up from the bottom of Steve's feet, drinking it all in, trying to work out what scenario Steve had concocted for them to enjoy today.

He had dark black combat boots on, the clunky kind designed to move through thick snow. Tucked into them were army camo pants, not exactly flattering, but still tight against Steve's ample ass. Eddie smiled as his eyes landed on that. He had a black t-shirt on the top, tucked into his pants and tight around the chest and biceps, leaving nothing to the imagination, and a sleeveless black puffer vest over that. There was a baseball cap on his head too, pulled low to shield his eyes.

The combined ensemble didn't give Eddie any idea who he was meant to be looking at. Until he saw the blue plaster cast wrapped around one of Steve's wrists. When he removed the baseball cap and ran a hand over his head, he had somehow tamed his impossibly bouncy hair flat against his skull into a slicked-back style so far removed from Steve's usual messy spikes and curls that it almost made him seem like a different person.

And then there was the gun holster wrapped around his thigh, complete with a very realistic looking handgun.

"Steve?" Eddie called again when his boyfriend didn't turn at the sound of the creaky door, suspicion rising in his mind and his voice. "Steve, sweetheart?"

"I don't know who this Steve is," said Steve's voice, a familiar voice of course, but twisted into an unmistakeable attempt at a drawl. "The name's Gator."

Steve turned then, meeting Eddie's eyes across the room. He was fully into his role, even managing to sneer at Eddie instead of the warm smile that he usually couldn't help but fire in Eddie's direction at all times, even when he was being his most annoying.

Eddie shook himself. He was going to ruin this if he didn't get into character too.

"Gator? Sorry man, I was looking for my boyfriend, Steve. But now that I’ve got you – care to explain what’re you doing in our house?"

Steve- no, Gator, tossed his hat onto the bed and slid his unbandaged hand into his pocket. He unfolded a leather wallet, flashing a gold badge in Eddie's direction. "North Dakota PD. Deputy Gator Tillman. I'm here because there have been some…deviant activities reported in this house."

Eddie closed the door behind him with a click. "I don't know what you're talking about, officer. My boyfriend and I are law abiding citizens." That line was enough to almost make them both break, given how much weed the pair of them smoked, and the fact that the things they did in this very bedroom were still illegal in some parts of the world.

"I'll be the judge of that," Gator replied. "I'd like you to answer a few questions."

Eddie took a step forward, and Gator's eyebrows shot straight up. "Whoa, whoa there! Who said you could move?"

Eddie froze on the spot. "Sorry officer, I thought-"

"How about you let me do the thinkin’, huh?" He slid his hand down his thigh and freed his gun, pointing it in Eddie's direction. It did look very realistic, almost to the point of uncomfortable. "Now, hands behind your head."

Eddie did as he was told, interlocking his fingers. He gave Gator his most sympathetic look. "But officer, I'm a good boy, really."

"Are you makin' fun of me?" Gator asked, stalking forward. "Because I can guarantee that makin' fun of me isn't gonna go the way you want. I'm a winner, and you're a loser – and that's just how it is."

"Are you sure about that?" Eddie teased.

That turned out to be the wrong move. Gator stepped beside him and dug his knee into the back of Eddie's own, dropping him to the floor. It wasn't hard – they didn't do the hard stuff without asking first, even when they were in the throes of a well-executed set-up.

"I'm a winner," Gator insisted, waving the gun in Eddie’s face. "And you're under arrest."

He pulled Eddie's arms up behind his head, awkwardly slipping a pair of familiar handcuffs around his wrists before letting them fall back into his lap. The cuffs were the easy-release type, so that if either of them got stuck, or misplaced the key (which had happened far too many times with their original pair), they could free themselves instantly.

But Eddie wasn't going anywhere. The pain in his arms was welcome, though Gator didn't need to know that.

"What are the charges?" Eddie asked him, looking up through the fringe of his hair with hooded eyes.

"You're a freak," Gator spat. "And you're…you're some kinda queer, talkin’ about you and your boyfriend."

"You don't seem so sure about that," Eddie pressed. "Do you have any evidence?"

"Don't…don't need evidence. I'm the law, you did what I say you did." His voice was unsure now, worried almost, like he was scared he'd started down a path that he couldn't walk back.

"I wouldn't want you to get in trouble," Eddie simpered, layering his voice with seduction. "So maybe I could…help you out?"

"Why would you do that?" Gator asked, suspicious, but lowering his gun slightly. "You tryin' to get one over on me?"

"Definitely not," Eddie gave. "Just trying to do my best. Maybe if I help out the law, then the law might go a little…gentler on me?"

Gator raised his eyebrow yet again. "Not sure about that. Not really up to me. But maybe I can…put a good word in? If the evidence is convincin’ enough, wherever it is?"

"It's not the kinda evidence I can give you to take away," Eddie said. He leaned forward, nuzzling at the buckle of Gator's belt with his nose. "But I can show it to you."

Gator took some hurried steps back, fumbling for his gun again. "Hey now, I ain't no queer. I don't- I don't want that. You keep away from me!"

"It's not queer, it's evidence gathering," Eddie insisted. "Doesn't have to mean anything. From up there, all you'll see is the top of my head. You see how much hair I've got? You can just pretend that it's a girl doing it."

Gator moved towards him again, a little less cautious now. He re-holstered his gun as he said, "You…you make a good point."

"Not the only thing I can do with these lips," Eddie said, perhaps trying it a little too hard, but Gator was already unbuckling his belt with his uninjured hand. "Let me take care of you."

"I'm not takin' the cuffs off," Gator informed him. "Whatever you're gonna do, you're not gettin' away from me."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Gator's belt fell open, and he forced the fly of his camo pants down roughly, revealing tight black boxers that were already straining for release. Eddie had to fight not to lick his lips. Gator's hand drifted towards the waistband, but Eddie shook his head. "No. Let me do that."

Gator's expression was unsure, but Eddie leaned forward and traced the tip of his nose through the hair that ran across the bottom of Gator’s stomach. He felt Gator stiffen against him in every sense of the word. When Eddie's teeth bit into the fabric and pulled them down, Gator's cock nearly took his eye out.

"Wow," Eddie said appreciatively. "You really are a winner, man."

"Less talkin'," Gator said, one hand making its way onto the back of Eddie's head, sliding through the strands of his hair. He applied pressure, pulling Eddie towards him. "Get to it, convict."

Eddie didn't need telling twice. But first, a warm up. He licked a stripe along the bottom of Gator's cock, from base to tip, making it tremble before him. He heard Gator take in a sharp gasp of breath and hold it in.

"You've never had a man do this for you before, have you?" Eddie tried. "I can tell. Girls are pretty good at this stuff, but who knows how to please a man better than another man?"

"Shut…shut up," Gator commanded, pulling Eddie towards him again. "And don't stop till I say so."

Eddie did as he was bid. He took Gator's cock in his mouth, swallowing it down easily; even if the characters were different, the cock was most certainly the same, and Eddie had done this for Steve more times than he could count. He dragged his lips back and forth, feeling Gator swell around him. His tongue spoke volumes without saying a word, tracing across Gator's head and dragging moans from his throat.

"Ugh," Gator cried, tightening his fingers in Eddie's hair. "Ugh, that's…oh fuck!"

Eddie took that as a good sign, increasing his speed, bobbing and weaving like his life depended on it. He could feel Gator's breaths catching in his throat, feel him heading closer and closer to his climax.

"You like that?" Eddie asked, pulling off just as Gator reached the precipice, denying him release. "See what being a little queer can do for you?"

Gator whined pathetically. It was a noise Eddie had never heard Steve make before – that one was all Gator. "I'm so fucking close," he said, shoving Eddie roughly back towards his cock. "Finish it, god damn it, finish me off!"

"As the law demands," Eddie grinned. He pressed a kiss to the tip of Gator's cock, feeling it quiver with anticipation, and then trapped it between his lips once again, taking as much of it into his mouth as he could.

"I'm gonna-" Gator sighed, tightening his grip on Eddie's hair to an almost uncomfortable degree. "I'm gonna-"

And he did. Eddie felt Gator buck towards him as he came, force himself even further into his mouth, really testing the limits of Eddie’s capacity. But Eddie wouldn't let Gator down – he couldn't, not now, not when the reluctant man was unravelling right down his throat. Eddie let him, and when he gave a whimper of pleasure and released Eddie's hair, Eddie leaned back on his haunches, looking satisfied with himself.

Gator collapsed back onto the bed, his legs completely boneless, fumbling with his underwear for a moment before giving up entirely. He shucked his puffer vest, suddenly too hot. "Fuck," he said again, eyes unfocused as he stared at the ceiling.

"You still gonna arrest me?" Eddie asked.

"Don't…don't know what I'm gonna do," Gator said in a daze, his words slurred by the ecstasy Eddie had unleashed upon him.

Eddie grinned to himself, and took his chance.

He popped his handcuffs easily, spinning them around his finger. He stalked towards the convalescing Gator, pulling the other man’s arms gently up over his head. He met no resistance as he threaded the handcuffs around Gator’s wrists, struggling a little with the cast, and then through the bars of the headboard before clicking them closed again.

"Well, well," Eddie teased. "How the tables turn."

Gator blinked, refocusing as Eddie loomed over him, a tree just waiting to fall. "Wha- what are you doin'?" Gator mumbled. Then, more sure, he rattled the handcuffs and growled in anger. "The fuck you think you're doin' to me?"

Eddie walked his fingers up the front of Gator's shirt and booped him on the nose, which only seemed to make him angrier. "Whatever I want, sweetheart," Eddie replied with a sly smile.

Gator tried to pull himself free, his biceps flexing against his tight sleeves in a way that made Eddie want to taste them. And since he'd told Gator he would do whatever he wanted, he did. He covered Gator with his body, licking across the skin of his arms, feeling the power now contained by Eddie's will (and the handcuffs, but mostly Eddie’s will).

Gator shuddered beneath him, almost involuntarily. "Don't- don't do that," he whined, his tone at complete odds with his words. "Don't- don't want you to make me feel like this."

Eddie felt pressure against his leg and looked down to find Gator's cock filling once again. "You sure about that?" he asked, sliding his fingers along it in deft movements, helping it along. "Because it sure seems like you do."

"Dad'll kill me," Gator murmured, still avoiding Eddie's eyes. "Can't have a queer son...ruin his chances of re-election if it ever got out."

"Who said it has to get out?" Eddie asked, his voice coated in promise. "What happens here with us never has to get back to your dad. It’ll be our little secret."

The pleading look that Gator fixed him with, all big eyes and wobbly lips, nearly made Eddie's heart break. Steve was really getting into this. "You...you promise?"

Eddie dragged a finger over his heart. "Hope to die. You promise not to arrest me, and I'll make you feel things you've never felt before. And nothing ever leaves this room."

Gator seemed to consider that, eyes darting back and forth, like he was reading himself his rights, word by word, and couldn't find a good reason to deny himself any longer. Then he met Eddie's eyes again and gave a gentle nod.

"You gotta give me permission," Eddie said. He leaned back in again, tracing his lips along Gator's neck, barely kisses, barely even contact, but enough to send him into another shiver of pleasure. "You gotta say please like a good boy."

"Please," Gator breathed, the word strangled, wrung out of all of its meaning. "God, please."

"That's it," Eddie said soothingly. He eased Gator's camo pants and his underwear further down until they gathered atop his combat boots, leaving his muscular legs, lightly dusted with hair, completely exposed. Eddie smiled approvingly. "Said it before, but you really are a winner. Where it counts, anyway."

"Kiss me," Gator said suddenly, leaning his head up. "If it don't mean nothin', then kiss me. So I know how it feels."

"To be kissed?" Eddie asked. "You're telling me someone as hot and powerful as you never…?"

Gator looked embarrassed then, a tiny blush rising in his cheeks. "Course I have. Loads of...loads of girls. Told you, I'm a winner. Fightin' 'em off with a stick. Just...want you to do it too, is all."

"You don't seem so sure." He ran his fingers along the hem of Gator's t-shirt, drawing it up so he could rake his nails along Gator’s sides, dancing between his ribs like a xylophone. "You can tell me, sweetheart. All your secrets."

Biting his lip at the touch of Eddie's deft fingers, Gator nodded, quickly, sharply. "Never," he admitted. "Never been touched. Touched myself plenty, but never…never had anyone else do it for me. Not till…not till you."

"I'm honoured," Eddie purred. He slid Gator's t-shirt the rest of the way up so it bunched around his wrists, covering the handcuffs from view. His torso was just as beautiful as his legs; toned pecs with a little carpet of hair that traced all the way down his body to where Eddie had buried his nose not long before, and a perky pair of nipples that Eddie ran his tongue around, enjoying the sounds he dragged from Gator’s lips almost as much as Gator himself enjoyed the feeling.

Then he captured the other man's lips with his own. Gator was reluctant at first, unsure of what to do, where to put his tongue, but Eddie, well-practised Eddie, showed him exactly how to make their tongues dance together so that when they separated a few moments later, the look on Gator's face was as if they were the last two men on a sinking ship and Eddie had just taken the last life preserver.

"Didn't know it could feel like that," Gator mumbled. "Kissin' another man."

"I can make you feel all kinds of things," Eddie promised. "You ready for me? Ready for me to make you feel good?"

"Yes," Gator said, almost prayed. "Yes, god, please, yes."

Eddie nodded. "Since you've been such a good boy, I think it's time for your reward."

"Wasn't that…when you sucked me off?"

"That was my reward," Eddie replied with a grin. "Now it's your turn."

He unbuckled his own belt, shedding his jeans in a heap on the floor, then sliding his own underwear off too. Gator looked down at the sight of him, almost reluctant, like he knew he shouldn't but couldn't help himself from giving in. Eddie couldn't blame him. His own cock sprang free, finally released from its confines. How he'd managed to go this long without cumming in his boxers, he had no idea. But he was glad he'd managed to save himself.

He slid back off the bed, knocking Gator's knees with his own. "Spread 'em," he teased. "Time for your strip search."

Gator suddenly looked scared. "You're gonna…?"

"Only if you want me to," Eddie told him, and he meant it. "Let me take care of you, sweetheart. Give you what you deserve, instead of all the shit that everyone else gives you."

"But doesn't this…make me the girl?" The way he said it was almost wretched, like he didn't want to admit it, either to Eddie or to himself.

"It doesn't make you any less of a man," Eddie told him. "If anything, it makes you even more of one. Now come on, I'll take it slow. It's your first time, after all."

Gator didn't say anything else, only eased his legs open, allowing Eddie to slot himself between them. He slid his hands onto Gator's hips, fingers digging into his ass cheeks. Steve had worked himself open already, in anticipation of this, so they didn't need to break the immersion; Eddie had such a considerate boyfriend he thought as he eased himself inside, just a little at first, not even just the tip.

Gator inhaled sharply. "Oh, god- fuck!"

"There we go," Eddie said, "little more now."

He moved forward, feeling Gator tighten around him as he slid more and more of himself inside of the other man until there was nothing more to give.

"You okay, sweetheart?" Eddie cooed. "Ready to go?"

Gator's nods were tiny and urgent. "Yeah, yeah, yes, please-"

Eddie began to thrust into him, slowly at first, just a tiny movement of his hips. "Good boy," he said, "There's a good boy."

"M..M' a man," Gator slurred, head rolling sideways like he didn’t know where to look any more.

"Sure you are. But you can be a good boy too. Bet no one's ever called you that before, huh? Not your no-account daddy, or your momma. But I will. You're my good boy, Gator. And you're doing such a good job."

Eddie increased his rhythm, and Gator arched against the bed, like he was trying to drive Eddie even deeper than he already was. His own cock was rock hard and leaking, and Eddie slipped one hand from Gator's hip to grasp at it, working it in the same time as his thrusts, a conductor ensuring that his symphony was in time.

"My dad’s gonna kill me," Gator breathed, still denying himself even in the midst of the act. "Oh, he’s never gonna speak to me again. Might even – oh, fuck – might even kill me for this. Embarrassin’ him like this."

Eddie rocked a little harder, trying to fuck the worry away as best he could. "If he tries, you just come on back to me," he told Gator. "If that’s the way your daddy treats you, then maybe you need a new one. One who treats you right. Shows you what it’s like when someone actually loves you."

"Please," Gator whined, bucking into Eddie's touch. "Please, m'gonna, I need to-"

"Me too," Eddie groaned. Sweat had slicked his fringe to his forehead, and he could feel the pressure building inside him, heralding his own orgasm soon. "You wanna go together, sweetheart?"

Gator had lost all powers of speech, but his whines of pleasure were all the acknowledgement Eddie needed. He redoubled his efforts, hips and hands moving in unison, bringing he and Gator together. Moans escaped them both, tiny little ah-ah-ahs as they mounted the last hurdle, and then they both came – Gator spilled over Eddie's fingers, into his own chest hair, while Eddie felt himself fill even further reaches of Gator's body.

Panting heavily, Eddie extricated himself from Gator. On unsteady legs he grabbed the box of tissues he kept nearby for times such as this, mopping at himself, then helping the captive police officer clean himself up too, teasing the tissue along his torso like ghostly fingers. Then he crawled up the bed and popped the cuffs off, freeing Gator at last, before laying his head on the pillow, waiting to see what was going to happen next.

When the other man looked over at him at last, coming down through the haze of pleasure, Eddie knew instinctively that he was looking at Steve now – Gator was gone, back into the recesses of Steve's mind until the next time they wanted to play with him.

"That was so fucking hot," Steve told him. "Might be my favourite one we've ever done."

Eddie grinned, pleased with himself for pleasing his boyfriend in more ways than one. He reached over and cupped Steve's cheek, leaning over and kissing him, properly this time, tender and gentle and careful, none of the rushed franticness of when he and Gator had kissed. "Was pretty high up there, I gotta admit. You got really into it." He pointed at Steve's hair; most of it was still slicked back, but some strands had escaped from the mountain of hairspray and had made their way forward to encroach into his eyes. "Can't believe you did this to yourself."

"Gotta get into character," Steve gave. "And what about you? I didn't think you even paid attention when I was watching, but you knew just what buttons to press."

"Couldn't help it," Eddie admitted. "Juno Temple's great, and the dude, whatever his name is, is hot."

"He looks just like me!" Steve cried, somehow offended.

Eddie didn't understand the problem. "You're hot too, what's your point?"

Steve hit him with a pillow. "No more late night TV for you. Now help me outta these stupid boots, I gotta go put Hopper’s gun back before he finds out I borrowed it."

"And what you borrowed it for."

[thoughtlessarse]

Scientific theory has had a rough time in America’s public schools. Almost 100 years ago, science teacher John Scopes was convicted of violating a Tennessee law that prohibited teaching the theory of evolution. Although his conviction was overturned on a technicality in 1927, laws banning classes on Darwin’s theory stuck around for another 40 years. They were ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1968. Over the past few decades, conservative or religious groups that object to including the theory of evolution in science classes have tried a different approach. Now, they argue, if the “scientific” theory of evolution is taught, other views, such as “intelligent design” – a stand-in for creationism – should also be taught. Broadening efforts The approach is not limited to evolution. Legislatures across the country are proposing or passing laws that purport to encourage scientific discussion, but instead encourage students to treat established, scientific theories as equivalent to ideas that lack scientific study. In 2012, legislators in Tennessee – the same state where the Scopes trial took place nearly a century ago – approved a law that obligated teachers to present the “scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses of existing scientific theories.” What constituted a scientific “strength” or “weakness” was not defined. Similar bills were introduced in North Dakota in 2019 and Oklahoma in 2023. If the Oklahoma bill passes, teachers will be encouraged to explore scientific theories in class and to help students “analyze certain scientific strengths and weaknesses.” And a new law in West Virginia allows teachers to discuss or answer “questions from students about scientific theories.” The bill’s author, state Sen. Amy Grady, said the law is about “encouraging students to think, encouraging students to ask questions and encouraging our teachers to be able to answer them.”

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