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strwberrytae · 4 years ago

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So Long, Farewell, and Goodbye For Now -

“I don’t know how you are so familiar to me—or why it feels less like I am getting to know you and more as though I am remembering who you are. How every smile, every whisper brings me closer to the impossible conclusion that I have known you before, I have loved you before—in another time, a different place, some other existence.” - Lang Leav

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Hello, You �� Yes, You. You ethereal, beautiful being. I am writing to you with bittersweet yet wonderful news - depending on the perspective. I am writing this post to inform all of you that I will no longer be writing for this blog for the foreseeable future. What I mean by that is that I am not giving up writing forever, no. But my life has changed so much over the last two years, I do not see myself writing again for quite some time. But don’t worry! I will be back!

Below the Read More section, I have poured my heart and soul into the real reasons why I’ve made this decision. I warn you, it’s lengthy but it’s everything that has led up to this over the years. So, if you fancy, have a read. If not, I bid you farewell and wish you all the happiness in the world. Thank you for supporting me so far. I truly appreciate it and love you all very dearly. Now, if you wish to read it at a later time, I will have a link available on my page at all times for anyone who is curious. It’s a hell of a story if you ask me ~

Edit: Made by Me - also, a surprise photo at the end Warnings/Triggers: Talks of emotional abuse, depression, and suicide but also happiness and love -

When I first started this blog, it was 2016. I had been on Tumblr for over a decade now but BTS led me to writing passionately for 2 years. I was incredibly active and utterly consumed by this website. Not just for the writing, but I was so obsessed because of my friends and mutuals that I made along the way. Can I just say that I’ve met some incredible people on this platform - including my best friend and soulmate? Truthfully, the absolute best friend I have ever had. But more importantly, Tumblr was my greatest escape. I mean this website truly has been my saving grace through very dark times.

In that part of my life, I was in an extremely toxic relationship; by then, it was 6 years I was with him. He was emotionally abusive, had such a short-fuse temper, hated everyone I knew which led me never really seeing any of my friends after college, knew I was anorexic and did nothing to stop me, knew I had depression since we started dating and always argued it as if it wasn’t real, crushed my dreams and ambitions, mocked potential suicide attempts, expected me to just abandon all hope to ever leave home to explore someplace new or get a job that I actually love. He was...just the worst. Never hit me though, so I’m grateful for that. But sometimes I wish he would so it would have given me the voice I needed to get out of that relationship much sooner than I did. But regardless, because of him plus having a soul-sucking job that wore me down to the core, Tumblr was my escape. BTS was my escape.

I fell hard and I fell deep. I created a fantasy world within this world. All of my dreams, fantasies, desires, and hopes were poured into my writing. My imagination was running wild. My activity was through the roof because I was always on here day in and out, just pretending like the outside world didn’t exist. It consumed me...but I needed it. Looking back, it was pretty excessive. At the time, I seemed perfectly normal because everyone else was just as active and saying the same things and doing the same things. I felt a belonging, like I fit in.

But I hated the person I became. It took me getting yelled at, mocked, ridiculed, and belittled by my ex to snap me out of that illusion I built and back into reality. That was the roughest night that we had filled with lots of screaming on his end and crying on my part. He thought my obsession was sick. He thought it was disgusting. It all started because he found fake texts I had made with Jimin and Tae. Don’t recall the story it was a part of but he thought they were texts with the actual members… In my eyes, I should get credit for making them look so legit but he didn’t see it that way. He thought fangirling over men was essentially cheating. No matter how hard I tried to explain, he didn’t understand. But a part of his view was right. I learned that I was a bit too much into it and I really needed to take a step back from Tumblr for a while. So I did. I deactivated my account and disappeared for months. Also because he made me and threatened our relationship if I didn’t. Should have taken the out but ah well.

Just two months prior to this incident, I attempted suicide. Well, contemplated. Everything was planned out. Bought a hotel room for Thanksgiving night as I was working a super late shift until about 1-2am. My commute home was an hour long and I still had to come back to work at 7am. So I got a room. Brought a large amount of pills with me and I was going to call it. No notes written to friends, family, or loved ones. Nothing. I was done. Didn’t think anyone would miss me. I just figured the world would keep turning without me. I had thought about doing this several times before but this was my first time making plans for it. It was my lowest of the low. But then I met someone that night that changed my life entirely just in a 10 minute interaction of talking - nothing special. We’ll get to that later. But this person just gave me hope and to this day, I still can’t explain it. It was euphoric. I felt clarity. It was in that night that I thought I might hold out just a little bit longer.

And thus @strwberrytae was born - but it was far from the same. At first, I restarted the blog in secret. Why would I do this? Why would a 25 year old open a blog in secret? Well, two months after the awful fight, my ex proposed to me and I said yes. I know. Believe me, I know. I was scared. My depression was getting worse again. I no longer had an escape except for books. All I did was read so I had some sort of reality to be in besides my own. But returning to a brand new blog did not give the same satisfaction as returning to an old blog.

I worked so hard on my first blog and this redo, I tried to consider it as a gift. Perhaps this was a chance to start anew and rebrand myself. This optimism kept up for quite some time. Slowly, I added my favorite past works then added some new chapters. If you’ve been here with me since 2017, you would know that my appearance on Tumblr was still not the same. Then I got married in October.

An empty, loveless marriage that I regret to this day. Needless to say, my writing and activity on Tumblr was still practically non-existent as I was still too scared of getting caught. Even though he finally gave me permission to use it again because he could tell how miserable it was making me. Yes, gave me permission. Thankfully, it all ended after a year. I finally went to a therapist even though I hated them so much and all past therapists I had. She was pretty great. Within five sessions, I summoned the courage to break up with this guy. I was finally set free. Nearly 9 years together and I finally felt like I could breathe.

Unfortunately, although I was free, I had to live with the guy for about 5 months after the breakup. Which was beyond rough, believe me. Imagine someone writhing in pain and bawling their eyes out and venting non-stop about all of their faults and wrongdoings every single day. At the end of the day, as shitty as he was to me, he was my best friend too. We went through a lot of shit together and he did have some good sides to him too. So witnessing this was horrendous. Needless to say, I wasn’t getting much privacy either. Writing was not my top priority. Now it’s 2019 and things changed drastically for the better - and worst.

Remember the person I met in 2016 on Thanksgiving night? Well, that person is someone I crushed on every since that night. For 2 years. People, I’m telling you. He did absolutely nothing special that night. He didn’t flirt with me. He didn’t check me out. He didn’t do anything remotely to make a girl swoon but I was so drawn to him. The only word that could describe it was “cosmic” - beautifully cosmic.

Well in January 2019, 2 months following my break up, he came into my store one day. And my god did he look incredible. He was dressed head to toe in black - a fitted black suit at that. He even wore this long, designer jacket to match. Hair shaved on the sides with beautiful, thick dark hair on top. So tall - 182cm. A smile that could kill; quite literally. The canines are on point. He looked like a five course meal. That day, he definitely flirted with me. By the end of the week, we had our first date. Sadly, I also lost my job in the same week and was unemployed for a year because no one would hire me. I was laid off and one of my seniors took my job. Of course, they needed to keep me around for the holidays and then give me the boot. I was devastated. I hated that job so much as it only aided in fueling my depression but losing it was definitely an amazing thing. And! I survived on my savings and definitely didn’t spend my time writing. I had life to sort out last year - like from the ground up. No worries though. I got a job in February 2020 and I love it, so it’s all good, baby. Now I’m in the health field and feel like I’m actually helping people, which I love.

Now, here we are 2 years later and I’m engaged to the man. Someone who makes me smile everyday, believes in me, encourages me, let’s me be 100% myself, travels with me, taught me how to love myself, taught me to accept my body, gets me on a level that only my best friend could, and someone who goes above and beyond every single day to show me how much he loves me. Bonus, he welcomes my love for BTS with open arms, reads my writing, AND has even been sucked in himself to the fandom. Jungkook and Jimin, look out. You got another fanboy. I thought true love was impossible for me but I was very, very wrong.

He has shown me that I can be happy and I have finally experienced true happiness. When people ask how I’m doing, I don’t cringe and lie through my teeth. I smile and say that I am doing well because by George, I am. Everyone around me has seen me over the last two years and made the comment, “you look so much happier”. They meet him and swoon just as much as I do. Is he perfect? No, he’s not. He has flaws just like everyone else but he actually grows and learns from his mistakes to better himself. That’s what amazes me the most. Even if we argue, which is seldom, he refuses to let it go without resolution so we can always fix whatever the issue is. As we like to call it, we’re in-sync. In everything, we’re always so in-sync. I’m wildly in love, my dudes.

So, why am I not writing anymore? To put it simply, I’m happy and don’t really feel the desire to write anymore - at least not fanfiction. Even when I was super young, like elementary school, I used writing as an outlet for my dark escape. I wrote poetry primarily and by middle school, it turned to fanfiction for Supernatural, Simple Plan, and Panic! At The Disco. Along with a very long list of other bands and shows but anyways. I’ve been severely depressed since I was 15 and fanfiction put me in this hole that I couldn’t get out of. I relied on this method to help me get through all the bad shit I was dealing with. It was my coping mechanism.

Now? While depression never truly goes away as the lovely disease that it is, I am genuinely happy. Because of this, when I opened all of my past works and works in progress, I felt nothing but guilt. Guilt for not keeping up with my chapters or keeping my account active. I felt dread to have to escape in this world that I had created. I felt no joy or excitement. It was the strangest feeling that happened all in a matter of seconds. Thus leading to my final decision to take a step away from writing. Do I still love it? Absolutely. But now I think I’m going to re-route and focus my writing on what I love - reality. I’m going to get back into journaling and write essays about love and beauty as I’ve always loved to do. But for escaping into a fantasy world? I don’t know when I’ll be back.

Now I know what you’re thinking. “But you can write and be happy!” Nah fam. Writing has been my aid through dark times and now I mostly associate it with those dark times. And for once in my life, I feel this desire to enjoy reality and remain in it - with the exception of journaling here and there. Even daydreaming is difficult. It’s strange. I love my reality. This sounds like gloating now but it’s truly a remarkable feeling. When you’ve been battling depression for 15 years, it feels really freaking nice to say that I’m happy.

So that’s why I’m taking a break - in a very long, drawn out way. But my hope was that after this long story, you might understand truly why I am doing this. It would have been easier to just say that writing doesn’t bring me joy anymore but I feel that I owe more than that; especially because I really don’t know if I’ll write for this blog ever again. The last time I took a break, I disappeared without being able to explain myself and I wanted to do so now that I have the chance.

Ultimately, thank you to everyone who has stuck by me over the years. It’s truly been one hell of a rollercoaster. The friends I’ve made on here have seen me at my lowest of the lows. But hey! I’ll still be around. I just won’t be publishing or continuing any of my works anywhere in the near future. Seriously though. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. This website has helped me tremendously and I’ll never forget it. Besides, there’s lots of other exciting things happening in my life now so you’ll certainly see me pop in here and there to talk about it ♡

If you wish, you can message me for questions or anything you want to know. I’m an open book - at least about most things hehe. And don’t worry. I still very much love Taehyung and still wildly obsessing over how marvelous he is. Umf.

(here’s some recent photos of me as i rarely take selfies anymore haha. and a derp photo of me and the man i love >_< why is the cutest photo of him with the worst photo of me? still cute though hehe)

#me #personal #goodbye for now #no longer writing #bts writer

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junglekarmapippa · 3 years ago

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Chapter 1: When is a mission not a mission?

Jen sat in Alex's office, looking around her. She hadn't been to her ex's office in a long time, since he usually talked to her in the Squad Room now, and was amazed at how little it had changed, although it really shouldn’t have surprised her at all. Alex was a creature of habit and he took change hard.

It had always amused her that Alex kept both plants and mementos in his office, since they gave him away as the sentimental type he was and tried so hard to hide. She could see a prototype of a morpher, some photo cubes and -- her heart skipped a beat -- the engagement ring he had given her –the one she had given back- displayed in a little glass box on a shelf behind his desk. It made her feel uneasy, especially after the last few months, so she looked away from it, looking at the plants on the other side of the room instead and wanting Alex to come in as soon as possible.

She had to wait a few more minutes before the door opened and Alex walked in, a file tablet of files in his hand.

"Sorry I'm late," he said, closing the door and walking towards the desk. "Got caught up in something, as usual."

She smiled. "It's alright. What's going on?"

He pressed a button on his console on the desk and the crystal wall that kept the interior of his office visible from the hallway went opaque. "I need your help with something."

"An opaque wall something. It must be serious." Jen knew that Alex didn’t like to lose his view of the squad room, so he only made the wall opaque for very serious or high-level confidentiality meetings.

"It's not serious, but it is important,” he placed his hands on the desk, folded over the tablet he had brought in with him. “Have you ever met Commander James Robertson?"

She sat in silence for a minute, trying to remember if she had seen him at the debriefing of the Ransik mission, which most of the commanders had attended. She shook her head. "I don't think he was at the Ransik debriefing and I don’t exactly hang out with commanders. And I’ve been away, so, no."

"He probably wasn't at the debriefing. James is the head of the Applied Sciences Division. He barely ever goes to debriefings, no matter how important the case."

"Do you know him?"

"Well. We met when he asked for my help testing the Time Shadow Megazord. We've become good friends since then."

"So, the Applied Sciences Division. I'm not sure there's much I can do for them, I’m not a particularly science driven person."

"Yeah, well, this isn't about the Applied Sciences Division. This is about James." Alex took a deep breath and looked directly at her eyes. "I need you to do something for me."

"Do you need me to do something for you or something for James?"

"Let’s say it’s for both of us," he looked down at the file on his desk. "James conducts research aside from his work in Time Force and he's working on an interesting project right now. A very important project."

"What kind of very important project?"

"He's trying to document and study as much as he can about the Venjix Event -- the near extinction event from early in the 21st century."

"I know what the Venjix Event is."

"Well, he found information on a woman. He could only find her by an alias, and he asked me to ask you if you'd interview her for him."

"Interview her for him? How?"

"Travelling back in time." His face expressed clearly just how obvious he thought that fact should have been to her.

"He wants me to travel back to the 21st century and interrogate someone for his research?" Jen said with a raised voice to show she was more than just slightly annoyed by the request. "I have real work to do here, Alex. Real criminals to catch! A city to rebuild! We just came out of a war!"

"I know but-"

"But nothing. The answer is no. If he wants to interview this woman, he can do it himself." She got up to leave and Alex stopped her by calling to her.

"He fears it might happen again." She turned to look at him and Alex continued, "He thinks the technological moment right now is perfect for an event similar to the Venjix one." He pointed at the chair. "Please."

She sat back down. "I still don't understand why he can't do it himself."

"Like I said, this is research he's conducting aside from Time Force for now. He will admit it's a bit of a crazy theory if you asked him right now. That's why he wants to know as much as he can about Venjix, especially where it came from and how it was defeated before presenting it to the other commanders."

"And he can't leave his post at Time Force, but I can."

"It's not just Time Force he has to worry about, it’s more complicated. But that's not why he asked me to ask you. He wasn't at the Ransik debriefing but he read the transcripts. He thinks your knowledge of the time period and your capacity to work alone as well as a part of a team are impressive, and he thinks you show great empathy, which makes you ideal for the kind of interview he needs." Jen fixed her eyes on him as he spoke of her capacities. "I have to say I agree with him."

"So he doesn't want someone to go to the past to do this interview he wants-"

"You. He wants you to do it."

She blushed slightly. "I'm flattered, but even if I agree, how will I get there? It's not like Time Force will lend me a time ship to do research, no matter if it's for a commander."

"You won't be using one of Time Force's ships. You'll be using one of James' ships." She looked at him, frozen in shock. She couldn’t imagine how someone could own a time ship, it wasn’t like the technology was accessible to the general public. Let alone more than one.

"One of James' time ships?" She heard herself repeat.

"Yes, his research labs have a small fleet," Alex said nonchalantly. "As for the permissions, don't worry. That's where I come in."

"And who will take care of my cases while I am gone? Alex, I need some time to think this through."

"I will."

Her eyes went wide. "You? You will take my cases?"

"Personally. And I will do my best to close as many of them as I can."

And by that he meant all of them, Jen knew. Whoever this James Robertson guy was, he meant a lot to Alex if he was willing to be back on the street just so she could do this for him.

"He's a really close friend, isn't he?"

Alex didn't answer immediately. He got up and paced up and down the office a couple of times. He stopped and looked at her, as if he was trying to find the right words. "Shortly after we met, I found out, and not from him, that it was James who saved my life after Ransik attacked me. It was technology he had developed that saved me. He didn't bring it up or cash in on it, and I don't think he knows that I know he saved my life. It's his technology that keeps me alive, Jen, and yet, he has never mentioned a single thing about it."

"He sounds like a very humble man."

"He is. He saved my life and if he asked me to shake Time Force from the foundation so he could test a theory, I would do it. I'm not letting you leave this office until you say 'yes'."

"If he means that much to you and if he asked for me specifically, how can I say 'no' to the man who saved your life?" She had gotten up and was standing very close to him.

He stepped away from her and sat down again. He took a couple of deep breaths while Jen sat back down. "Good, thank you. I’m sorry that got a little—anyway, here are the details." He handed her the tablet he had been holding when he came in. "James will program one other stop in your ship. There's someone he'd like you to pick up before you get to Corinth. Another asset for the interviews, I honestly don’t know how he finds these people."

Jen did a quick scan through the information in the tablet. The names of the people she had to interview, information on the specific time period, the coordinates to Corinth City and a very long list of equipment. "All this equipment is at my disposal for just a couple of interviews?"

"From James' labs, yes."

"You keep saying 'James' labs' instead of Time Force's-"

"That stuff doesn't belong to Time Force, Jen. This is not a Time Force mission. You’re not been ordered by James or me to go on this mission. This is an everything goes research mission. James is asking you, on the side, one person to another, to conduct a research mission for him. All that stuff belongs to James, not Time Force." He opened his drawer and pulled out a black box. "However, this does belong to Time Force," he said, opening the box and holding it so she could see its contents. Inside was her morpher. She looked at it, her heart racing. She hadn’t seen or worn it in almost two years. "I think you should take this, just in case. Take good care of it."

She took the device carefully and felt like she was being reunited with an old friend. He put the box in front of her. "You can't put it on while you're still in this time. Time Force can track it and you haven’t been cleared to use it again. But It's still locked to your DNA." She put the device back in the box and closed it. "It's almost lunch time. Have lunch and meet me at the main gate. I'll take you to James' labs."

"Do I at least get to meet him before I leave?"

"He was very adamant that he would be too busy elsewhere to meet you before you left. Which is code for 'I need an alibi and I will make one'."

She smirked. "So he can throw us under the bus if things go wrong?"

It was his turn to smirk. “Actually, he’s giving me an alibi too and you were never here so…”

“I see. Mischievous little commander.”

"Well, I know you are not a gossip kind of woman," Alex said getting up to lead her out of the office. "But he’s very mischievous. A total ladies’ man. And gentlemen's man too, he’s not picky." She laughed. “He says he just doesn’t like to dine alone, make of that what you will.”

He opened the door to indicate she should leave.

"I'll see you after lunch."

"See you."

After lunch, Alex drove her to what he kept referring to as 'James' labs', which turned out to be a very famous multibillionaire interplanetary applied sciences company that produced everything from ships to medication. Jen remembered something that had been in the news recently about this company.

"Alex." He grunted to let her know he was listening. "Wasn't this the pharma company that created the test for that alien plague that was causing all those deaths these past few months?"

"The test, the treatment and the vaccine. All developed personally by James."

"He developed them himself?" She scoffed, as if a such thing was ridiculous. "I'm sure that's what he told people-"

"The press release credited the research team of the pharmacological division for the development," Alex told her, briefly taking his eyes off the road to glance at her. "But James did it himself. I know that for a fact because his assistant kept calling me to drag him home. I never could, not until he was finished. He slept on the floor, ate poorly, and wouldn't stop talking to himself. I thought he had lost it. But then he developed the test, and right after that, the cure and the vaccine.

You'd think that was enough but he wouldn't go home until he was sure all three would be available to anyone who needed them-"

"For free," Jen interrupted. "I saw it on the news. Very generous of him."

"That's James."

When they arrived, Alex got out of the car and she followed his lead. Jen waited while Alex talked to a nice looking young man who smiled at her.

"Sergeant Scotts," he said, walking up to her. "I'm Charles, Mr. Robertson's assistant. Everything has been set up for your mission."

Jen was barely paying attention to him. She was looking around, searching for the gigantic portrait of James Robertson that was bound to be somewhere. Her eyes fell on Alex and Charles, who were looking at her as if waiting for an answer.

"Sorry, I got distracted by the surroundings."

"Yes, the atrium can be quite a sight," Charles commented with a smile. "Mr. Robertson has very fine taste and it is important for him that his employees like their work environment." Jen wondered why there was no portrait and asked Charles about it. The young man let out a little laugh and smiled. "That's not how Mr. Robertson does things."

"He’s as private as he can be, it gives him room to do things his way," Alex told her.

"Please, come with me," Charles said and they followed him out of the atrium towards one of the transport pods which took them through the various buildings, until finally stopping in a hangar where Jen finally saw the ship she would be using for this mission.

She was expecting something similar to the bulky, round, and yellow time ship Time Force had, but this ship was very different. It was much smaller, sleeker and the overall design was very elegant: a flat, arrow-like body with shiny silver finish. She was fascinated.

"Wow," she whispered, staring at it enthusiastically.

"The newest model. Interdimensional storage units allow for less weight and bulk, and it contains our most advanced engine and state of the art time travel technology," Charles recited. "And she's all yours."

"She doesn't need a big crew, then?" she asked, her eyes still glued to the ship.

Charles exchanged a look with Alex and cleared his throat. "I mean, she's literally all yours." Jen still didn't look away from the vehicle.

Charles looked at Alex for help. "He means the ship belongs to you, Jen."

That got Jen's attention. She looked away from the ship and over at Alex. "What do you mean the ship belongs to me?"

"Mr. Robertson thought it would be a nice thank you for accepting this mission," Charles explained.

"What am I supposed to do with my own time ship?" Jen asked him. She looked at Alex. "Why is your friend giving me my own time ship?"

"He read the transcripts of the Ransik debriefings," he reminded her, giving her a meaningful look. "Perhaps he thought you'd like to visit someone in your time ship."

Jen closed her eyes. "Alex, this is really not-"

"Necessary?"

"-kind of him," she said. "It sounds like a cruel thing to-"

"Do for someone who is in love with someone from another time?"

"-do to you," she finished.

He looked at her and his expression softened. Then he smiled at her. "You win some, you lose some, Jen." He looked at the ship. "I will take care of the permits every time you want to see him."

Jen didn't know what to say. This kind of thing was the reason she had fallen in love with Alex in the first place. He had arranged it so she could visit Wes whenever she wanted to, instead of cutting her out of his life.

“This was your idea, wasn’t it?” She looked at him as he looked at the ship to avoid answering. "I can't accept it." Both Alex and Charles looked at her but for different reasons. "I will use it for the mission but I can't just keep the ship. I'm sure Commander Robertson will find better uses for it." There was a question in Alex's eyes. She looked away from him to stare pointedly at Charles who got the hint.

"I'll go double-check everything is ready for you, sergeant," he said, walking towards the ship. Once they were alone, Jen and Alex just stared at each other in silence for a moment.

"I'm over Wes,” she said bluntly.

Alex looked at her, confused. "Sorry, what?"

"I'm over him," she repeated, averting her gaze. “The war, what happened, the things I did…” she took a deep breath.

There was no need for any more explanations.

"He wouldn't be the first love of your life you got over."

She closed her eyes, hurt by his words. "Alex, I'm sorry. I really thought-"

"This is not the time or the place to have this conversation," he said. She nodded. "We'll talk when you come back if you want, but know that James will not let this stand. He will repay you somehow for helping him and he won't take no for an answer."

"Understood. I didn't pack or anything, what if it takes me longer than expected?"

"Knowing James, there are enough clothes of your size and style packed inside somewhere," he replied, glad to change the subject.

"How would he know my size?" she wondered as she walked towards the ship. "Did you tell him?"

"It's one of his many talents," Alex commented, walking behind her. “He’s a ladies’ man.” Alex smiled and shrugged. “And a gentleman’s man too, he’s not picky.”

"Okay. I guess he probably has been with enough… ‘ladies’ to guess sizes.”

He heard her sarcasm and shook his head while he smirked. “He just doesn’t like to dine alone.”

“Right.”

“Let’s get you going, we don’t have much time,” he said and led the walk to the ship.

The inside of the ship was somehow even more spectacular to Jen. It was brightly lit, the controls were elegant silver buttons on black glass panels and the many holographic screens were sharp and easy to read. It seemed like a good example of the fine taste Charles had mentioned James had.

There were seats for five people inside the ship, but it was obvious that only one person was required to fly it, the pilot’s seat was easily recognizable.

"It seats five," she commented.

"Passengers," Charles told her. "She pretty much flies herself once she's been programmed. She will respond to verbal and tactile commands and-" He pressed a button on the console and the screen showed a list of items. "-you can access all the equipment by pressing here and then lightly placing your finger on the item on the hologram."

Jen scanned the list of items more carefully, it was the same Alex had shown her in his office. Some of the equipment seemed like odd things to pack for a research mission. She mentioned this to Charles.

"All the ships are kept ready in case of an emergency. They’re kept stocked with various equipment Mr. Robertson thinks may be useful."

Charles had said it before, but this time Jen noticed that Charles didn't refer to Commander Robertson by his rank. "Why do you call him 'Mr. Robertson'? You addressed me as ‘sergeant’."

Charles lean face went slightly red and he glanced at Alex, before returning his attention to Jen. "James, I mean, Mr. Robertson doesn't like it when people address him by his rank."

"Or as 'Mr. Robertson'," Alex added, looking at Charles. "He asks everybody to call him 'James'," he told Jen.

“And everybody does," Charles added with a shy smile.

"Except his butler, who keeps referring to him as 'Master James', making him cringe every time," Alex pointed out and both he and Charles stifled laughs, clearly remembering instances when this had happened.

"Why can't he just program his butler to call him James?" She asked. Surely a man of such wealth and wit knew how to program a household robot. Or had someone to do it for him.

Charles and Alex exchanged another knowing look. "James' butler is not a robot, Jen."

Jen just looked at them and then her eyes fixed on Charles. She could see he clearly wasn’t a robot either. She had assumed he was just a hyper-realistic android. Clearly James Robertson had a lot more money and charm than she had thought.

"You're not an android," she told Charles.

He shook his head. "One hundred percent human."

"And you are one of James'…" she stopped herself. She didn't want to call him 'servant'.

"I serve James with great pleasure, sergeant. It's no big deal. His closest staff are all humans."

"James doesn't entirely like robots. He tolerates them as the part of life they are but he prefers working with humans," Alex told her. "The story of his personal staff is fascinating but we'll save it for another day because whatever alibi he's giving himself for this won't last much longer. You need to leave."

"Just sit down and buckle up. Put your right palm on the reader. The ship has been locked to your DNA and fingerprints, and, like I said, she will fly herself," Charles instructed. He handed her a black gauntlet for her left hand, which had a beautiful pattern on it. "This control gauntlet will also give you access to the equipment from wherever you are outside the ship and he wanted you to have these." He handed her two small metallic bars. "James has been developing them for Time Force. Quantic police batons. If they come in handy, you can tell him how they do."

"Why would I need these?" she asked, looking at Alex. He had given her her morpher back too. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

Alex shook his head and looked at Charles who smiled. "You know me, I prefer to cover all the bases. These are just precautions in case you run into trouble."

"Right," she said, not entirely convinced they were telling her the full truth. “How do I use these?” She asked Charles, showing him the bars. They were the size of a pair of batteries but were remarkably heavy.

“Think of how long and heavy you need them to be and they’ll take subatomic particles from the environment to change and fit your needs.”

“They’re magical police batons?” Jen mocked, looking at the little bars.

“Quantic.” Charles corrected and moved towards the door. "I was told you travelled in a Time Force time ship before. You will find your travel in this ship a lot more comfortable."

"Comfortable?" She really doubted being spun around at top speed could under any circumstances be comfortable.

"She doesn't spin, Jen," Alex told her with a smile, as if he had read her mind, he moved towards the door too. "You won't even notice she's moved."

With that, both men exited the ship. When they were a safe distance away, the palm reader glowed green on the black glass, indicating the ship was ready for departure. Jen stared at it and swallowed. She felt like she was losing her mind. This James Robertson character sounded like the most eccentric billionaire she had ever heard of and here she was leaving everything behind for him without even meeting him.

As she put her hand on the reader and the ship started the launch sequence, she thought that maybe she could keep the ship after all.

#thesingularity #powerrangers #fanfic #fic #powerrangersjunglefury #power rangers time force #power rangers spd #power rangers samurai #power rangers mystic force #mighty morphin power rangers #power rangers rpm #power rangers fanfiction

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multimetaverse · 5 years ago

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DOAFP 1x09 Review

State of the Union was a great ep and Doafp continues to be unlike anything else on TV. Let’s dig in!

Very nice to see Camila trying to help Bobby, and I still can’t believe Fairy Gaymothers was said on Disney. She did try to help though in the end Danielle talking about Cami’s hesitance to come out to her parents as being part of Cami’s process was what did the trick for Bobby. It’s amazing that we get to see adult lgbtq characters interacting with and helping a young gay kid; really never thought I’d see this on Disney

Cami straight up says that she thinks Bobby likes Liam and that the fight was caused by misplaced passion; we’re well into textual territory. It’s interesting that they took the time to spell it out for the audience this ep. If Bobby ends up coming out to Liam or Sam or whoever by using the word gay rather than talking about his feelings for Liam then that would explain the writers having Cami spelling it out this ep but we’ll see soon enough

Glad that Bobby did the right thing and broke up with Monyca, she’s a sweet girl and by the end of the ep seems to get that Bobby likes Liam and not her. Seems like the mention of kissing in a closet at the new party is what finally tipped Bobby over which isn’t surprising given Bobby’s reaction to their first kiss

I’ll give the show credit for not having Bobby kiss Monyca again and for keeping their first kiss off screen. Realistically they’re going to have a very hard time getting Bobby kissing a boy on screen so limiting what they’ve shown when Bobby was with a girl will prove to be very wise should the show have further seasons. I don’t know how familiar the Doafp writers are with Andi Mack but they seem to be learning from its mistakes whether that’s deliberate or not. Cyrus’ story line was horribly censored and unequal when compared to all the straight characters but also compared to with what Cyrus was allowed to do when he was dating Iris, including kissing her twice

From a photo one of the writers, LaDarian Smith, posted ep 7 was already written by the end of May 2019 which suggests that all of the eps were at least in draft form before production started in summer 2019. It explains the coherence of the eps so far which seem to be well planned out. For Andi Mack S1 they only got final permission to have Cyrus come out just a few days before filming the lookback in 1x12 which shows in the writing since there wasn’t much set up for Cyrus’ crush on Jonah and until the lookback it really wasn’t anything that couldn’t be explained away by Cyrus just admiring Jonah. It’s clear that Doafp had permission either from the start or from very early on in the writing to go full steam ahead with Bobby’s story line which gives it a great sense of momentum

We once again get Gabi seemingly brushing off Cami’s concerns about her parents and implying that she should just come out to them already and we also saw that Danielle wants Cami to tell her parents about them. Cami would know her parents best and presumably her fears that they’re homophobic aren’t unfounded but Gabi and Danielle seem to think that nothing bad would happen if Cami’s parents found out. Certainly a story line where Cami’s parents are somewhat homophobic could lead to some very interesting things especially if it happens around when Bobby eventually comes out to Gabi. But if they aren’t allowed to tackle it or can’t pull it off then having Cami realize that her fears were unfounded is a good way to go. There’s no real precedent for homophobia being tackled on Disney; Andi Mack vaguely alluded to it and it did tremendous damage to the Tyrus story line because it was poorly written and not something that the show could ever have pulled off with the censorship they were under. I don’t think the Doafp writers are so stupid to introduce such a serious topic without planning it out but I hope they tread carefully

I would not have thought that it was Spring Break already, it was clear that the season started with the school year already in session but I’m surprised that we are this far along. If they do get a S2 then they’ll have little choice but to skip ahead to Elena’s 7th grade year and Bobby’s 9th grade year

Lot’s of great jokes this ep, Bobby thinking RuPaul’s Drag Race is a car racing show was my favourite with Palo Alto first base being a close second

I really liked the transitions this ep

Ah yes Escape (The Piña Colada Song), the best song ever written about a married couple trying to cheat on each other. I like these little glimpses of Robert’s personality that we get and I love the focus on Gabi and Elena’s relationship

Sam was barely in the ep, certainly the least we’ve seen a main character. This is common to shows like GMW and Andi Mack where main cast members have to be in pretty much every ep even when there’s no real plot for them

Elena finally apologizes to Sasha and we get the full version of the mall poem which is realistically awful

We see just how integrated Sam has become into the kids lives which is why Gabi was holding off on telling them the truth but also is exactly the reason why she needed to tell them the truth

Looking Ahead:

I’m not worried about Sabi longterm but if they’re having a clean break then why is Sam over at their house giving Bobby advice next ep? It’s a messy situation but if he and Gabi aren’t going to be in a relationship then there does need to be a discussion on what if any role he’ll still have in Bobby and Elena’s lives. I do wonder what the ultimate endgame is for Sabi. Weddings make for good series finales but unless there’s a major time skip I can’t see the show going on long enough to have that be a plausible ending for them. Maybe as the show draws to a close they move in with each other or get engaged?

We’ll see if the Elena, Sasha, and Jessica friendship can be repaired. I remember parties where only some people in a class or group were invited though those didn’t happen until I was in High School

We got Sam talking to Bobby earlier in the season and his advice made Bobby realize that he shouldn’t have pranked Liam. As nice as it would be to see Bobby come out to Sam I’m not sure that’s a good choice for the show as that would leave Sam keeping a secret from Gabi about her own son

I do think Bobby comes out to Liam in some fashion and that Bobby will be canonly gay after the finale which is exciting especially as his story line came out of nowhere

I remain skeptical that Cartero is mutual though Brandon Severs has still been hyping the ship up. If he’s telling the truth then we’re just days away from Disney’s first bisexual character which would be very exciting. If he’s not then he’ll have a lot to answer for. Either way he’s either spoiling the show or stringing people along and neither should be happening and I hope that someone gets him to cut back on his twitter messiness. Charlie Bushnell is now on twitter and he’s been much more circumspect and professional not getting too much into Cartero and focusing on tweets about Bobby’s sexuality and the show itself as well as the petitions and campaigns to save the show

On that note, I fear that the show is likely over for good after this Friday. It sucks that the diversity and inclusivity that makes the show so amazing is also why it’s in danger of not being renewed. The cast was due to have a Q&A at the Paley Centre in May before the coronavirus intervened which may be a hopeful sign as it would be pretty pointless to hype up a cancelled show. A part of me hopes that with Bobby being officially gay next after the finale that Disney + may be wary of outright cancelling it especially after the Love Victor debacle but I don’t have much faith in Disney. The series is co-produced by CBS studios and was originally envisioned as being a CW show which explains why it doesn’t feel like a Disney show but how comfortable Disney would be with all the boundary pushing the show has done and would continue to do in future seasons is an open question. Regardless, I’m excited for the finale and hope that it does justice for the truly wonderful season the show has had

#diary of a future president #doafp #Bobby Cañero-Reed #Elena Cañero-Reed #Gabi Cañero-Reed #Sam Faber #Camila #Danielle #doafp reviews

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soundofseventeen · 5 years ago

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Under the Umbrella (Kim Mingyu)

Alright y’all...you have my full permission to condemn me for never being on. I meant to have this posted like two weeks ago, but moving is hectic. Anyways, a happy late birthday to @notprincesscharming and @mingyulonglegs and I hope y’all like this! -Bee

Word count: 4962

“Y/N, don’t forget the umbrella,” Joshua called from the kitchen. “The news said it was actually gonna rain today.” He came into the living room, holding a bowl of popcorn, calmly sticking them into his mouth one by one. He eyed your casual attire, wondering if you’d be able to make it without getting wet.

You shook your head as if reading his mind. “They’ve been saying that since...forever ago and it’s been nothing but hot weather. I’ll live.” You sighed when your roommate shook his head at you, and went back to find said umbrella and came back out with a small huff and he nodded approvingly. You had just opened the door, stepping outside and only stopping when you remembered. “Do you need anything?”

“The will to live might be nice! I’m ready to drop out or get hit by a bus….I’m fine with either option at this point.” He flashed you his famous devil may care grin. “Anything will be better than this torture.”

You pulled out all the won in your pocket and waved it at him. “Sorry pal; the best I can do is an energy drink and maybe some ramen if you’re lucky.”

“I can live with that. Make sure it’s not that low carb shit though! Last time, I had a crash so bad that I slept for two days.” The engagement ring on his finger reflected against the sun and it shone on your face, making you turn away with a grimace. The wedding was a week away and you couldn’t believe how soon so many things that’d change. At least you knew that this would always be intact.

“You take what you get and you don’t complain!” You laughed and closed the door, ready to head to town for the week’s groceries since Joshua would be doing the cooking for a few more days. The sky was blue but a hint of the gray clouds colored around it. Rain had been in the forecast for sometime but it had yet to fall and you knew once it happened, the last traces of the humid weather would disappear for the remainder of the year and the cold would take its place.

Normally, you’d be thrilled to bring out your sweaters and blankets and parade down the streets in your favorite boots but lately you couldn’t find yourself to move past the summer or the adventures it brought. You could still taste the watermelon when you speared it with a toothpick and ate it while you waited in the laundromat for the washer to finish its last spin cycle and you could hear the songs playing on the radio while you roasted marshmallows and swatted the pesky mosquitoes while the campfire crackled happily with the attention. And you could smell the sunblock as you rubbed it on your skin even though you didn’t plan on leaving the shade. These memories you couldn’t let go of just yet and you hoped it could stay like that just a little longer until you could accept it. Especially when those expressive brown eyes and warm smiles that lit your soul from the inside out seemed dedicated to searing themselves deeper and deeper into your heart until a permanent mark took its place. You dusted the nonexistent dog hair off your shirt, hoping to shake it off.

The grocery shopping didn’t take as long as you expected it to, so you took the long way home, picking up a few extra things on the way back, even cutting your roommate some slack and picking up some takeout so he wouldn’t dirty the kitchen you spent a long time cleaning up. You didn’t enjoy the hot breeze that hit your face but it still hinted at the summer weather and for that, you were grateful. You walked past a popular restaurant, pausing when you recognized Minghao and nearly waved at him until you saw that he wasn’t alone. Your breath got caught in your throat and you struggled to get it out, your lungs failing you. Your hands trembled a little at the sight and it took all your power not to drop all the items in your hand and turn around. Minghao saw you and he waved, but you couldn’t. You merely walked past the window, not bothering to turn back until you were sure you wouldn’t see either of them. You faked a smile and a good mood for Joshua (which he bought, bless his soul) as you chatted (or rather gloated at how you were right and you didn’t need the umbrella) at the table and when you went outside to take the trash out, you looked at the evening sky once more.

Not a hint of rain.

The relationship you had hadn’t always been this way and you didn’t think you’d even make it as far as it did. You and Joshua had agreed to travel abroad together to experience a life outside of your home while you continued your studies, deciding that you needed a culture shock at least once in your life. You lucked out when you moved somewhere you could still speak English but the same couldn’t be said for others. That’s how Joshua met Kim Mingyu when they became roommates for a year.

Mingyu was someone who understood the basics of English but often had trouble communicating so the pair became fast friends because Joshua spoke Korean almost as well as Mingyu. It’s not that you didn’t have an interest in getting to know him, but you stayed in your dorm a lot, often studying and refusing to leave the place when your social anxiety kicked in, especially when it felt like you couldn’t relate to your own roommate. But when you started spending more time in their dorms, it seemed inevitable to befriend him as well.

He piqued your interest when you saw the photographs hanging all over the place and how good they looked even if he wasn’t a professional. He took a lot of candid pictures Joshua and many other boys you recognized both in your class and around the campus, and you noticed the captions on the back, writing the dates and the activities and the food stains that contrasted against the whiteness of the Polaroid he sometimes used. You were confused when you saw yourself in some of the background photos because you couldn’t remember Mingyu ever taking out a camera in your presence. It surprised you even more when you found out it was more of a hobby than a passion for him.

You weren’t sure what sparked the movement but you just knew that one day he was your best friend’s roommate and the next, he showed you his private world that included bass playing and poetry slams his other friends helped him write. He left after a couple of semesters due to him still being undecided in his major, but exchanged social media to keep in touch with each other’s lives. He was a great friend and even though it hadn’t been meant to have him around for a long time, you were satisfied in knowing you could watch him grow and cheer for him from afar. After all, it was a big wide world and you didn’t expect to cross paths with him again, not when he was destined for great things and his lack of posts on his social media proved it.

Over the school years, you and Joshua hopped around from university to university and meeting new people and being introduced to new things. You two dated around, although no serious commitments ever came out out of that, which sometimes bothered you because of the pressure to find someone hit you out of nowhere but Joshua often encouraged you to shrug it off and have fun. You wanted something serious but also your wanderlust always won in the end and you knew finding someone who was okay with you seeing parts of the world with your best friend was nearly impossible.

Your luck seemed to change when you arrived in South Korea. Tired of always asking your parents to transfer money into your bank account, you obtained a work visa to provide for your necessities and Joshua followed suit. You finally managed to move out of the dorms and into your own apartment with him as your roommate. Granted, you struggled in the beginning but anywhere seemed like a better option than sharing a place with someone you didn’t know.

It didn’t surprise you when Joshua casually announced he was going on a date one night you were doing calculus but you wondered why it had taken so long. When the first date turned into a second and then a third, you felt lonely because he didn’t stay home as much, even though he tried not make you feel left out and you appreciated that. However, you knew that you couldn’t hold onto him forever, especially because he seemed serious about this one. So you sucked it up and let Joshua be, keeping your emotions to a minimum.

One day, while at the hardware store, you were browsing the aisles, looking for the paint section because the living room needed a new coat when you saw a familiar face. He stuck out like a sore thumb even after not seeing him in a few years. Kim Mingyu carefully balanced the bird feeders in his arms and when he struggled to hold onto them, you found yourself running to help when one nearly toppled to the floor. His eyes widened when he saw you but he treated you like an old friend as he chatted away about the old lady near his house who was too old to replace her old ones and your paint was long forgotten. Just before he left, he said it had been good to see you again and it was a small world to wind up there of all places. You left home with a good mood at seeing him even though you exchanged nothing except a small catchup on your lives.

A month later, you found out you worked next door to each other when you had gone out for lunch and you saw him leave a local clinic for his own lunch. He called your name, flashed you a smile and waved you down, heading in opposite directions and all, and you ended up eating at a Japanese restaurant he swore was the best in the area. From there, not only did you try to time your lunch breaks to at least see him, but you finally managed to get his phone number although you quickly realized he was busy outside of work too. He had hobbies that included building cabinets and desks and painting them, and often checked in with the ajumma in exchange for learning her recipes. (He said it was good for future résumés.) He had switched to online courses so he’d have more time to do things so whenever you saw him during the lunch hours you couldn’t meet up, you’d see him with a laptop stuck to his face as he typed away.

The first time he asked you to hang out with him after work happened at the last minute. With work being slow, you were allowed a couple of hours earlier than usual when he had walked out, his phone wedged between his shoulder and his ear as he locked up, assuring someone it’d be okay. He had spotted you the moment he hung up and asked if you were busy. When you told him no, he apologized for asking you last minute but he had planned to go to a concert with his friend Seungcheol, but his sister had broken her arm and they were currently at the hospital and if you’d like to go. You thought about it a moment, quickly weighing out the pros and cons, and agreed. You texted him your address and he promised to pick you up within 30 minutes. Joshua wasn’t there so you wrote him a note not to wait up for you and that you had your keys in case you arrived later than planned and Mingyu whisked you away for the afternoon.

You two hit it off and before you knew it, he became part of your everyday life and you managed to balance school, work, home and now him. He began calling you weekly to see if you’d like to accompany him to do laundry late at night and most of the time, you said yes. Though most of the time he worked on his assignments, he made sure to bring the seasonal fruit in a container for you two to snack on until you complained you were hungry and he dashed to the McDonald’s across the street for a last minute meal. He invited you to a lot of other places that recommended or required a plus one and you went along with him whenever time allowed.

It took you a lot longer that you wanted to admit that he was someone who couldn’t be alone. Most of his personality trait revolved around the fact that he needed constant companionship and it wasn’t a bad thing but when you asked him about it he shrugged and said he liked being around people. But he did, however, invite you to an animal shelter and he rescued a pup that he fell in love with immediately. And then you figured out he liked helping others, felt a sense of responsibility and pride when he looked after people, and when you brought it up to him another night, he gripped the insect repellent little too tightly which made it slip from his hands and fall with a dusty crash next to Aji who woke up scared from her nap. He never thought of it like that and with a shy smile, he placed his hand on your knee and explained his dream to become a nurse to feel that sense of belonging in the world while Ed Sheehan sang contentedly in the background.

Joshua met him again and the two often made plans to hang out when their schedules lined up. Apparently they had a ton of mutual friends and they spent a lot of time together, often making a party out of study dates. You didn’t accompany them those times, instead taking advantage of the peace and quiet to catch up on your work, sleep or latest Netflix binge until your roommate came back.

Joshua noticed the sparkle in your eye whenever he saw you with Mingyu or whenever Mingyu stopped by, but he never said anything in fear of you denying it and pushing Mingyu away because it had happened in the past with a few others. However, he knew it wasn’t his business to interfere with your love life so he let you be, watching you slowly fall in love Mingyu, but also wondering if you’d ever make your move. He could tell that while watching Mingyu spraying your back with the sunblock and begging you to join him for a swim, he’d be your one that got away and he remained unsure if you’d be able to bounce back from that. That was one heartbreak Joshua would not know how to handle.

You swore you could never do that, but it was dusk and you saw him fiddling with the bass trying to keep the somber timbre between Hansol and Wonwoo rapping about hope despite the hopelessness they painted and you could feel Joshua wrapping his fingers around your hand as he let their words of affirmation sink in. You squeezed his hand back in reassurance, his breakdown still fresh in your minds and only let it go when you stood up to give Mingyu his well deserved standing ovation and you realized just how far you fell into the rabbit hole. He met your gaze bashfully and looked away just as quickly, a rare thing for someone as confident as Kim Mingyu. You threw a stray flower in his direction, to which he caught by the pink petal and fumbled out a meek, “thank you,” and walked offstage before anymore attention would be on him.

He might have not been the brightest crayon in the box, with the way he’d suddenly exclaim at a bruise he barely noticed while you talked about the possibility of failing one of your classes or whenever he called you in the middle of the night when you were dead asleep and asked if you wanted to go have dinner because he had just finished building the ajuma’s house for her blue jays (but you rejected those offers most of the time). Rather, it was the way he talked a hundred words a minute when it came down to him teaching Aji a new trick to when he raved about how Soonyoung was his favorite person for giving him extra guacamole so he wouldn’t have to ask for more. And your favorite times were when he’d swipe his eyes happily when he told you about the recovering drug addicts and alcoholics and how long they had stayed sober.

Just like that, you could feel the ache in your chest because you were just one of many of Mingyu’s admirers. He treated you the way he treated everyone else: with common courtesy and basic respect. You could easily find him having a meal with one of his coworkers while on break the same way you knew his everyday hobbies that included people. You didn’t let it get to you; just being his friend was more than enough. You merely smiled when it was your turn to spend time with him, feeling like the luckiest person walking the planet because you had been blessed with an angel...with respects to Jeonghan of course.

You kept him close, often letting him fall asleep during a movie when he overworked himself, and turning the air conditioner on as low as it could go because he radiated more body heat than you ever could and then covering yourselves with a blanket so he wouldn’t get cold and helping him make dinner when he didn’t have enough to go out and pretending you were in a relationship, because when he’d pick up whatever he was cooking with his chopsticks, and blowing on it so he could feed it to you and get your opinion, you couldn’t help but feel how domestic it was, especially if you managed to get sauce on your face somewhere and he’d clean it off with a napkin.

And then somewhere between your own mental breakdown from stressing out over everything and Joshua one day telling you he’s getting married, Mingyu also dropped the news he’d be leaving at the end of the month to Japan to pursue a cooking career which turned your life upside down and you went out of your way to shut him out so the goodbye could be easier. It worked some days, like when you agreed to open or close at work so you wouldn’t bump into him and joining a couple of study groups so you wouldn’t outright fail your classes and even accompanied Joshua to see the caterers that interested him the most. You’d be so tired at night, Mingyu wouldn’t even cross your mind as your head hit the pillow and your eyes closed involuntarily and you brought your blanket as close to your face as you could. And some days, it felt impossible because a piece of Mingyu always seemed to be everywhere: the grocery store, the gym you passed by on your way home, the park and you could recall the details, even the insignificant ones like Mingyu tying tying his shoe and jumping in surprise at the bee that flew in his face, mistaking him for a flower. (Could you blame the bee though? He bloomed fully with the light in his eyes and the clean smell from all the soaps and detergents and fabric softener he threw in the washer, and how beautiful he was to marvel at. You would’ve done the same thing.)

The leaves finally started changing their colors, the department stores breaking out the scarves for the cold weather, the coffee shops with their infamous pumpkin spiced everything, and the night crept in earlier with each passing day and yet, the warm weather remained as if not quite letting you let go of Mingyu either.

And even when the first day of autumn officially arrived with promises of rain in the forecast, you still sighed heavily and wondered when the summer would be over for you.

“Don’t wait up for me,” Joshua said on the other end of the line. “We’re still looking for homes and the person who owns the venue might be late.”

“You have three days until your wedding and-never mind. Be careful both of you. You have your key, right? Okay, yeah. I’ll see you tomorrow.” You hung up and immediately went to your room to pick up the (overdue) library books as well as the ones neatly stacked up on the kitchen counter. You were thankful that the librarian working today was familiar with you and wouldn’t charge you the late fees and for that you were grateful.

This particular day brought the time of firsts. You woke up in the morning feeling well rested and okay, and when you opened your window, a cool breeze greeted you. You even checked the weather app, and for the first time in a long time, there was no rain scheduled in the forecast. With that, you burst into a sleeping Joshua’s room and announced the good news, and running out to search for your favorite slipper socks and blanket for the special occasion. You didn’t work and you had finally caught up in most of your classes so as a reward, you binge watched all your favorite movies with your roommate until he had to get ready for the final wedding preparations and hopefully find a place to live. He asked you to come with him, especially because the temperature rose and he found it difficult not to laugh at you for getting carried away but you declined, savoring the day until reality kicked in again. That happened sooner than expected when you saw your books and cursed yourself and gave in, switching out of your pajamas for a pair of shorts.

Chan snickered at you when you sheepishly handed him the books, and as part of the deal, handed him his favorite packet of gum in exchange for the override and after picking out new reads, saw you off with a sarcastic yet happy, “See you next time!” and stuck a stick of spearmint gum in his mouth and blew a bubble.

You hadn’t even been inside long but when you stepped out, you noticed the sky had turned a dark gray color. The cold air picked at your skin and you rubbed your hands up and down along your arms to keep warm. It wasn’t a long walk but you didn’t know if you’d be able to handle it. You stopped long enough to put the books into your backpack when you felt the raindrops...and you groaned. The one time you didn’t bring your umbrella and this happened. And you hated the meteorologist in charge of the Seoul weather for not doing their job properly. It fell long and hard with the pent up energy of not doing it sooner.

You had yet to get up but you didn’t have the strength to, feeling overwhelmed as if you had just experienced a betrayal. You were supposed to enjoy the change in climate, not suffocate in it. And just like that, it stopped…but not really. It still fell around you, but it wasn’t pelting you like before. You looked up to see none other than the Kim Mingyu shielding you and himself from the rain. He offered his hand to you, and you hesitantly took it as you stood up.

“What are you doing out here dressed like that? You’re gonna get sick.”

“I didn’t know it was gonna rain. I...had to turn in some books and got some new ones.”

“Doesn’t Joshua hyung take care of you?” The tone he used surprised you. It sounded bitter, almost angry even.

“Joshua had some stuff to do for the wedding,” you mumbled, staring at the wet ground. You didn’t doubt that a few minutes, it’d be pooling at your ankles and you knew that you had to leave. Fast.

“Oh.” He stayed quiet for a moment, but not making an effort to move. “I haven’t seen him lately but please tell him I’m sorry that I’m not gonna be able to attend the ceremony.”

“Mingyu-” You were at a loss for words. “He’s one of your best friends. You need to be there.”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t. It’d…” He struggled to say thoughts out, only to fail and choke on them. “I can’t go. He’s one lucky guy.”

You nodded. “I agree. It’s what he’s wanted.”

“Is it what you want though?” He asked.

“Huh?” You looked up at him in confusion. His eyes, often telling the stories of his emotions, stared at you intensely, and you wondered if for a moment, he could see the inside of your soul.

“Does he make you happy?”

“Well, yeah. Mingyu, he’s my best friend-”

“Do you know that he’s cheating on you?”

“What?”

“While you’re over here, probably coming down with a cold, he’s out with someone else. I saw them earlier. They were laughing and holding hands and kissing I’m sorry you had to find out this way, but I can’t come to your wedding knowing that he’s gonna hurt you later in life and-”

And you laughed. So hard you cried and with those tears came all the emotions you’ve been repressing and you cried for everything and he held you with the arm that wasn’t holding the umbrella. “Mingyu…” you had to catch your breath before you could speak properly. “Mingyu, I’m not marrying Joshua.”

“Oh thank God you’ve come to your senses.”

“Mingyu, I never was. I could never, not even for all the money in the world. I love him, I really do, but not like that. Don’t you know that by now?”

“But you guys...are always doing things together...I heard you once when he called you about the flavor of cake you wanted...and how you’re always showing up everywhere together....”

“Mingyu, we’re roommates and friends. It has never gone beyond the platonic level.” Except for one drunken kiss you shared a long time ago, but it was a dare. You had witnesses. “We do a lot of things because it’s convenient for us too.” You took his hand and wrapped your pinkie around his. “He’s happy and I’m happy just the way we are.”

“So you’re not in love with him?” He wiped the last of your tears with his sleeve, looking hopeful.

“No...just you.” You dropped your gaze, not wanting to see his reaction, but wating to hear the rejection.

With that, he dropped the umbrella and took your face in his hands, not caring about getting wet. “You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to hear you say that.” He pressed his forehead to yours. “I thought, I thought-”

“It’s just you,” you assured him. “It’s always been you, I guess. I don’t think I’ve ever wanted something as much as this.”

He finally closed the distance between you, enveloping you in a kiss with so much love, it left you breathless. “Let’s go home.”

Mingyu laughed as you stepped on him again but didn’t say anything. Since the band played at the reception, he hadn’t let you take a break and while you had gotten a little better, you still had a ways to improve. He kissed your cheek at the effort, and finally cut you some slack and returned to the table, holding your hand proudly the whole time.

The room was alive with music, the laughter and squeals of the children as they ran across the floor, some of them bumping into the dancers, the compliments of the place and the critiques of those family members who wouldn’t have been pleased even if the venue was made of gold, and still you looked around at everyone, the face of the married man who was still gonna be your best friend, to his friends and their dates, smiling at Vernon and his love, just because you knew their history and how his love denied they were together, even though you could see the Hansol’s ring around the neck, loud and clear for the public to see. (You could hear the conversation despite the noise. “I’m gonna smack you right now. Just walk away while you have a chance.”

“You need to let go of my hand first.”

“I’ll do no such thing.”

“Sucks. ‘Bye.”

“Chwe Hansol, come back and give me attention. I’m not done holding your hand.”)

As Joshua clinked his glass to get everyone’s attention, he caught your eye and smiled at you. He stated his speech about his move with you and even though many things had changed, things were relatively the same as well. He was uncertain about his future but one thing remained clear: with his love, he could face anything.

And you looked at Mingyu again, staring at you with a smile on his face, and you kissed him softly. Because as long as you had him, the world could hurl whatever it wanted at you.

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punkpoemprose · 5 years ago

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December 10th- A Royal Portrait

Universe: Canon (Post Frozen 2, post Anna’s coronation, but before a KA wedding)

Rating: M-E (This teeters on the mature/ explicit line, read at your own risk)

Length: 3412 Words

A/N: I was in a bit of a rut, so I stole this lovely idea (with permission) from @kristanna who continues to do God’s work on her tumblr every day. The premise here, is of course, Anna sitting for a tasteful boudoir portrait that she sends to Kristoff while they’re apart. Not giving anything away here, but this is mature to say the least. There are also feelings and I actually did research. I apologize for nothing some things!

She thinks about changing her mind. She’s behind the dressing screen, completely naked, and Kristoff is up in the mountains, and no one ever sees her naked except for him. Not even her lady’s maids. She wasn’t particularly shy in any sense, but since she’d started seeing Kristoff there was something in her head that said that the only person that should see her naked was him. Or rather, that the only person that she wanted to see her naked was him. He’d never restrict her so. In fact they’d had an unpleasant conversation about just that point before he left for the mountains to lead the ice harvest. With Elsa living in Northuldra, the need for an Ice Master and Deliverer, someone to lead the harvesters into the mountains and ensure their safety, was more important than ever.

He’d heard that some royals, Queens and Kings in particular, often took lovers, most favored men and women of the court who attended to the regents needs when their spouse was ill fit for the task or off elsewhere. He’d brought it up with shaking hands and a downcast face, unable to look her in the eye as he told her that just because she was betrothed to him, just because they were to be married and soon would be, didn’t mean that he would stop her if she decided she needed someone else.

Her heart still ached. He’d been so nervous, so heart broken at the idea, but willing to submit to the mortifying ordeal for her sake. Even after she explained to him that it was something she’d never want, he’d seemed anxious. Sometimes she worried that he’d never see himself the way she saw him. In private quiet moments, he was so self-assured, so certain of their love, but when it came to the time they spent “entertaining” the aristocracy, or when they held court at the castle, he started to doubt himself. It hurt her in ways she couldn’t begin to explain, and she thought they maybe exile would be the best treatment for whomsoever mentioned the idea of most favored to him. It was a relic from a time where Arendelle’s rulers married for power instead of for love. It was a “tradition” that had died off with her Grandfather.

But his nervousness, even after being told as such, was enough to move her to action, to make her think of an entirely different conversation she’d had just a few weeks before.

When she had been officially crowned Queen of Arendelle, despite ruling since Elsa moved to Northuldra, there had been a weeklong celebration where other royalty from far and wide had come to celebrate. Anna had found herself very much enamored by a contingent of Princesses sent from surrounding Kingdoms and other countries and continents that considered themselves allies of Arendelle.

On the eve of their returns to their own homelands, they may have all spent the evening in Anna’s parlor getting a bit too wine drunk and giggly, sharing secrets and brilliant plans and becoming all in all, great friends. Kristoff had happily surrendered Anna for that night, and she knew that it brought him great joy to see her happily making friends and catching up on many years of doing so. He’d even managed, elsewhere, to become a bit comfortable with some minor nobility of Arendelle and with a man who was betrothed to the Princess of Corona. They’d found a comradery of sorts as she was, of course, one of the giggling women in Anna’s rooms.

They’d all at one point discussed the topic of photography, specifically boudoir photos which were evidently all the rage. Some girls had rather excitedly discussed their own personal sessions, sending them to their lovers, betrothed, and husbands, while others had mentioned that they themselves preferred the idea of having a painting done, and discussed their experiences with it. Anna had, of course blaming the wine, collected the name and contact information for a painter they’d recommended rather than a photographer, finding that she rather liked the idea of the tasteful nature a portrait leant to the whole matter.

She hadn’t expected to call upon the painter however, not until after her discussion with Kristoff.

She let out the breath she’d been holding and peeked nervously around the corner of her dressing screen to where a young woman stood smiling.

“Oh it’s fine to be nervous,” she said gently, “Most people are. If it helps, I’m very discreet.”

She had a soft French accent. Anna had been fortunate that she had been in the country doing some work for other clients when she’d reached out. It had only taken a day for her to come to the castle, and that meant that while Anna had planned to wait quite some time, she’d be able to gift the painting to Kristoff sooner rather than later.

Anna sighed, “It’s not so much that I’m worried about that… it’s just… Kristoff is usually…”

The young woman nodded, “Anna… if I may call you Anna?”

She nodded at that, “I wish more people would. Not that I dislike being Queen or anything, it’s just I like being more personal…” she laughed at herself then, “Well usually not this personal.”

That earned her a small chuckle from the other woman who nodded and continued.

“Anna, I often find the people I paint become more comfortable talking about the recipient before we paint. Maybe you’d like to slip a robe on and tell me about him?”

She found that idea very much to her liking and decided that she had been given an excellent recommendation after all. She’d be writing a discreet letter of thanks to a few Princesses after her session.

She did as she suggested and walked out, laying on her couch in her robe as the young woman did some preliminary sketching.

“So what is he like?”

Anna grinned, “He’s… he’s perfect really. I’ve never met someone so brave and funny in my life. He’s just, well he’d do anything for me, and I just… he gets insecure sometimes and I knew I had to do something for him…”

The woman nodded along, “I imagine it’s difficult being the Queen and having the man you love be of common birth. Others have married like you have, and there is always much love there, but it’s hard to navigate the climate of the court, is it not?”

Anna sighed, the young woman seemed to understand. “You seem to be doing well with it yourself, the court I mean,” she mentioned, knowing that the story others had told her about the young woman implied that she too was a commoner, and that was, of course, part of the reason she was so trusted and highly in demand by many an aristocratic lady looking for a particular sort of gift for their beloved.

“Yes, though I’ve been lucky to only have to work with those I want to work with. Some people, especially those who don’t think highly of people who aren’t of noble birth, aren’t really worth trying to talk to at all.”

Anna laughed at that. She’d met the type.

“But a word of advice for your Kristoff,” she said, turning from the canvas with a smile, “The court is but another mountain to climb to reach happiness.”

Anna gave the woman a wry smile, “How did you know he climbs mountains.”

The woman laughed, “Oh I always do my research, like I said, too many rude royals in the world, I have to know for sure that the person I’m painting for is going to be fun to speak with, and your love story is,” the woman held her hand to her chest and grinned broadly, “Well I’d love to hear more. I’m sure the gigglings of a few Duchesses don’t do it justice.”

Anna shrugged off her robe, feeling confident, and lazed on the couch as the woman excitedly started scribbling with her pencil on the canvas.

“I’ll start at the beginning. I was… unfortunately engaged to someone else…”

***

Kristoff was exhausted. He placed Sven in his stable and pulled from, a pail that Anna had sent along with him, a few carrots to give the reindeer.

Anna.

He thought of her with a heavy heart. He hated how they’d left things. He hated how he often let insecurity get in the way of their relationship. He loved her, and she loved him, and he knew in his heart of hearts that they would only ever want one another. She’d never so much as looked at another person with the love she showed him, and he’d heard a nasty whisper in court and completely lost sight of it. The truth of the matter was that Anna wanted to marry him, the people of Arendelle and most of its aristocracy wanted her to marry him as well. They were after all, marrying for love, but there were many who saw the other potential benefits of their union and they were a fairly well-liked couple as far as all went. Many were pleased that Arendelle’s new Queen was marrying for love like her father had before her, continuing the fairly new tradition of Arendelle’s monarchs wedding commoners for love instead of other aristocracy for political gain.

He’d been listening to the wrong voices, and it broke his heart to think that he’d upset Anna as a result. If it weren’t for the fact that he’d never be able to make it back to the capitol and back before he needed to be out on the ice in the morning to lead the harvesters in their work, he’d hitch up Sven again and head back home, hell he’d even walk there, if only to tell Anna that he was sorry for not believing in her the way he should have.

When he walked from the stable and found, carefully placed directly in front of the doorway into his cabin, a wooden crate.

He lifted it from the ground and brought it in with him, noting the horse prints in the snow in front of his cabin, but also seeing that Anna’s horse Kjekk was nowhere to be found, he realized that while it could only be from her, she must have sent it with a courier or guard to be deposited on his doorstep. He was both grateful to have something from her, and sad to see that she’d sent something along to him when he should have sent an apology to her. If only he could call the wind spirit to him the way Anna and Elsa could call it to themselves and send letters back and forth. He would love to send her even the simplest sorry.

He set to making himself something to eat before opening it. He wanted to know what she’d sent along, but also felt that he needed to punish himself by waiting before he was given the joy of opening something, she’d given him. Anna was too kind, always. She was feisty and opinionated and said what she thought, but she was also forgiving and compassionate, and he was certain that she’d taken what he’d said to heart in a way that made him feel like breaking.

He managed to down some flavorless mush of porridge and realized, just how used to palace cooking he’d become. He’d never complain about any food, knowing what it was like for those who had too little to eat, but also it was one more reason he longed to return home. He wanted to tell Anna that he loved her and that he trusted her and that he knew that what they had was real, and then he wanted to stare lovingly into her eyes while he ate something that tasted better than unflavored porridge. It was, of course in order of priority, though he thought that maybe he could do both at the same time if he just tasted her. She did love having his mouth on her.

He set the bowl down in annoyance when he felt his cock jump at the thought. He was supposed to be feeling bad about what he’d done, not horny.

He huffed and stood, moving towards the box she’d sent along, wishing again, that he’d not been so foolish and had taken the time to love her like she deserved before he left. The week could not possibly come to an end soon enough for him.

The lid had not been nailed onto the crate, which he was grateful for as he was sore and tired and didn’t have the energy to go and find something to break the seal with. He pulled it open carefully, the wood only giving a slight resistance to his efforts due to it being a bit damp from the snow.

Once he had it open, he smiled softly, seeing that there was something wrapped in brown paper, about the size of a book, and that with it there was a letter. She often read to him, and him to her. He thought that perhaps the wrapped parcel was a copy of whatever book she was reading while he was away, for him to enjoy as she did.

It was thoughtful.

He picked up the letter first, breaking the wax seal with a smile as he saw that she had pressed a small flower into it. Anna was excellent with details and small gestures in a way he found amazing. He was not great at planning out romantic gestures, his many failed proposal attempts highlighting that well enough.

She’d sprayed the letter with her perfume. As soon as he opened the envelope it filled the air around him. She’d once told him it was made from rose and bergamot, but to him it just smelled like Anna, and as he pulled the letter from its envelope and found himself inhaling the smell of her, reading her handwriting, his manhood decided that despite his exhaustion it was not giving him a break.

Kristoff, my love,

I miss you terribly. My bed was cold last night without you and without the promise of you not so surreptitiously sneaking into it tonight, I find my heart, along with…other parts of myself… aching for you.

Kristoff paused for a moment closing his eyes. He could scarcely believe that Anna had sent him something so raunchy. Though if he was being truthful it wasn’t so much that he thought that she was incapable of writing such a thing as he was surprised, she’d entrusted it with someone instead of simply arriving unannounced and telling him about it herself. She used to do such things, but her inability to simply take off and follow him without warning was the one downside of her new position as Queen.

He opened his eyes and looked back to the letter.

I’ve sent you a small gift, I hope you enjoy it as much in the receiving as I did in the sending.

Love always,

Your Anna

P.S. Yours and only ever yours.

He smoothed his fingers over her signature, his heart leaping at her postscript. She was impossibly perfect.

She was sometimes insecure too, mostly around points of change, but he did his best to always help her through. That she was doing the same for him, was enough to make his heart skip a beat. He still wasn’t sure of what he’d done to deserve her.

When he set the letter down and lifted the brown paper package from the box, he was surprised to feel that it had much less heft than a book normally did. He found quickly too, pressing the paper, that the back was hollow under his hand.

He undid the twine securing the package and found that written on the brown paper was again, an echo of her letter “Yours and only ever yours”. It made him even more curious, and while he had many thoughts about what it might be, he had never expected what the removal of the paper revealed.

He cursed quietly under his breathe as he gazed upon what he now realized was an unframed canvas. It was no larger than a book, and the amount of detail and expression it contained was unparalleled to anything else he’d ever seen, even in a photograph.

It was a painting of Anna, smiling a bit shyly, reclined on the couch in her bedroom. She was rendered splendidly, the artist perfectly picking up upon the little blush on her cheeks, the half-lidded look through the thickness of her lashes, the slight shine on her lips.

The fact that in the painting she was completely naked, her freckles meticulously added with the tiniest detail, was not lost on him. He knew each of those freckles well, and not a single one was out of place. He’d touched those freckles, counted them, committed them to memory and caressed and kissed and licked each and every one of them in the process of loving Anna.

His heart raced. She’d sent him a beautifully painted portrait of her entirely naked body.

His fingers brushed against the surface of the canvas. She’d posed for it. It wasn’t a last second thought to send him a novel or snack or piece of clothing he’d left behind. She’d sat and posed nude for a painting with the express intention to send it to him.

His and only ever his.

He leaned the beautiful thing on the box it came in and couldn’t help himself but to undo the ties of his trousers, sitting back in one of his rough kitchen chairs as he took himself in hand and stared at the perfectly captured details of her body.

The air around him smelled of her as he ran his hand up and down his shaft. This was what she wanted, and he knew it. She was almost certainly in her bed, laying on the side where he slept, touching herself to the thought of him.

He groaned into the silence of his cabin, “Anna!”

What he wouldn’t give for her to climb out of that painting. It was beautiful, a masterful recreation of her every curve, of the slight slope of her breasts, the blush on her cheeks that extended down her chest. It was all so perfectly Anna, but he would give anything for her to be there, for her to bend over his table and let him show her just how sorry he was for ever thinking for a moment that she’d want anyone but him.

He’d been a fool, but she had been wicked and kind in her forgiveness.

His palm pumped faster and harder as he thought of her touching herself for him, as he thought about her posing for that painting for him, as he fantasized about having her right there bent over the table.

When he came, he closed his eyes and inhaled the scent of her, letting himself forget, if only for a moment, that he wasn’t at home with her, warm and snuggled at his side.

He was going to make love to her when he got back. She deserved more than a quick bout of apology sex. He was going to kiss every freckle again, double checking that portrait for accuracy. He was going to show her why he knew that he could be secure in the fact that she never wanted anyone other than him, and he was going to show her with his hands, with his mouth, and with his cock until she looked as absolutely debauched as he felt.

He was a mess, and as he opened his eyes, gazing upon the portrait, he knew that he owed Anna all that and more as a proper thank you. He’d put it back in it’s box in the morning and keep it with loving care under his bed until the next occasion presented itself that he’d be back.

The week absolutely could not pass quickly enough for him. As he straightened and cleaned himself, he thought again of her posing for that portrait, just for him. His sweet Anna bare and blushing, likely there for hours, just to give him something special.

This time his heart leapt at the thought. He laid himself in his bed and blew out his lantern, warm with the thoughts of her love, and how he would show her his appreciation.

#kristanna advent 2019 #kristanna #This has a plot and I'm as surprised as you all are trust me #A bit unreasonably proud of this one #I'm going to go sit in the sin bin for a while and think about what I've done

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a-secondhand-sorrow · 5 years ago

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dream about that casual touch

just some nice Astrid/McAfee fluff to calm down your Sunday.

read on ao3

McAfee wasn’t ready to listen to James and Alice chatter (or argue) on. It was too early for that. She’d woken up before eight for three years straight without a single exception at Columbia, and she thought she was ambitious and ready enough that she wanted to keep on her streak of four hours of sleep a night into her working life. But the longer she worked with Payton’s campaign, the more she longed for a few hours of silence and calm without the constant debates around which subway station more voters could be swayed in.

If Payton and Skye would just return to the NYU dorm room where they were all awaiting their return from whatever convoluted errand the two of them were running, at least the conversation would be productive. But as it was, James and Alice had decided to rehash the ad campaign that McAfee had been up until three redesigning the night before. She and Astrid met eyes and sighed right as the two began discussing the specifics of the ad placements. McAfee slid down the wall she was leaning against, always too dramatic to ever just sit down on a chair or a bed in her impeccably coordinated pantsuits, and silently gave herself permission to mentally check out of the conversation. She’d designed the campaign, anyway; they could figure it out from there.

She folded her legs under herself, pulling her phone out from an inner pocket of her blazer. She considered her options, choosing to open up Instagram. She rarely used her personal account, as she spent most of her social media time managing Payton’s image and campaign, but opening it made her feel almost odd. It always felt so polished and professional, much as she tried to be herself, but she didn’t trust herself much with her own account. Her only two posts were with her and her dog from high school and a photo with her parents at Columbia graduation. She was always afraid she’d post the wrong thing, but scrolling through other’s posts couldn’t do much damage.

Rather unceremoniously, Astrid threw herself down onto the ground next to her. McAfee nearly dropped her phone from the suddenness of it, her thumb still poised over Payton’s newest photo with his mother, ready to double click. Suddenly she couldn’t think of anything else besides the place where Astrid’s shoulder pushed against her upper arm, and the little bit of blond hair that had flown loose from her ponytail and now was sticking to her own shoulder, or the slight heat coming from Astrid’s ankle as it strayed closer to hers, and the way something in her throat seemed to constrict as Astrid caught her eye and the corners of her mouth quirked up, uncharacteristically sweet.

McAfee tried to smile back without forcing that feeling in her throat to bubble up any more before looking away, back to her phone. James and Alice’s conversation presented itself to her in the form of a distraction (it was a sad day when that became the distraction) while her thumb continued its scrolling. Another good post of a good, round, fluffy dog.

“-posters may be more effective, but only along the student-heavy routes-”

“Which are those? Sure, there’s the designated ‘student’ ones, but since you’re actually a student-”

Another book promo for a comic artist she’d once found mildly amusing.

“It’s not quite that clear-cut, Alice, in a city with this many students. They all have vastly different routes and places where they’re commuting to.”

Astrid didn’t seem to mind that her stray hairs were now resting on McAfee’s shoulder; in fact, she seemed like she wanted her head to follow suit with the hairs and drop onto McAfee’s shoulder.

Which it did, a moment later.

Oh no.

In some futile attempt to stop her body from doing its normal human contact initiated, engage awkward tensing of entire body so as not to disturb the other person dear Lord do not move a single centimeter routine, McAfee attempted to keep her thumb moving, scrolling, going. Past the rows of aesthetic note-taking sets, high school acquaintances’ senior college photos, a few people from her dorm at Columbia, all the way past something that might have been a teaser for a new season of a Netflix show she’d watched in one sitting over the summer.

“I hated that show,” Astrid said offhandedly, angling her head to yawn into McAfee’s shoulder.

Truthfully, she was not offended that anyone wouldn’t like the show, but her brain was malfunctioning with the surprisingly cool feel of Astrid on her shoulder, and besides, as McAfee Westbrook, she had an image to uphold as an obnoxiously opinionated person. Some part of her brain registered Alice refer to her experience in the campaign office, but she ignored it in favor of blurting out a “how could you not like it?”

Astrid shrugged, a gesture that McAfee felt rather than saw. “I don’t know. It’s just, like, kids doing shit with their minds. We all do shit with our minds, it’s just not special.”

McAfee shook her head. “Of course you would belittle superpowers to being ‘not special.’”

The pressure against her shoulder changed at that and Astrid looked up towards McAfee. Their faces were closer together than she could ever recall them being. “Well, yeah, they’re not real, silly.”

For some reason, the word silly coming out of Astrid Sloane’s mouth like that when their mouths were only (maybe) six inches apart was too much for McAfee’s brain to handle. She started laughing before she could put a cap on the thought, her head turning away from Astrid. A moment later, Astrid’s giggles mingled with hers, warm and bright and deeper than she would have expected. She was afraid to look at Astrid’s face for fear of what she might feel, but she could feel Astrid’s shoulder shake against hers, and that was enough.

When their laughter died off, Astrid, without even looking at McAfee’s face, dropped her head to the place where McAfee’s thigh and knee met in an uncoordinated but endearingly fluid movement. Almost without thinking, McAfee dropped her hand that wasn’t holding her now-dark phone to Astrid’s hair. It was newly short, and she froze as soon as her fingertips brush the tips of her blond hair. She was glad Astrid couldn’t see her since she was sure that all the blood that had previously been in her brain and allowing her to function as a human being had rushed to her cheeks. She withdrew her hand, but Astrid grabbed her wrist before she fully could and guided it back to her hair. Hesitantly, McAfee twined her fingers through Astrid’s hair, watching the way her eyes flickered shut with a warming feeling in her chest.

The ends of her hair felt smooth and soft under her fingertips, and she allowed herself to smile. Even though her leg was starting to fall asleep, she didn’t dare move when Astrid looked so calm and relaxed in her presence. Almost every other time, she felt an edge of something sharp and bitter and unrelenting in Astrid’s actions; with a history as weird as theirs was, it seemed inevitable. But this was a different type of Astrid. This wasn’t the girl who had picked up a stupid campaign she didn’t even care about to spite someone she didn’t know that well. This was someone who had hardened in order to learn how to live and had softened to learn how to be around other people. She seemed indescribably gentle and breakable when she was close to sleep in McAfee’s lap, but she much preferred this new Astrid to the cutthroat but unimpassioned one of high school. Her heart was in her throat, but her hand continued its pattern of stroking through her hair.

She heard someone clear their throat across the room. McAfee tore her eyes up and away from the corner of Astrid’s jaw, her eyes locking with James’ automatically. Out of her periphery, she saw Alice quickly look away from her and Astrid and back at her phone unconvincingly, her lipstick-lined mouth curving into a smile. James cocked his head to one side, eyebrows raised. They’d known each other so long that McAfee could read his expression easily. She channeled every bit of intimidation she could (which was quite a lot) into a single raised eyebrow, mimicking his posture. He smirked at her, and she felt even more heat flare into her cheeks but ignored it for pride’s sake. James had the decency to finally turn his head away, but she knew the damage was already done.

She didn’t really care, however. The feeling in her chest was large and expansive enough that she didn’t think even James’ teasing could ruin her mood.

In a sudden burst of confidence, McAfee reached for Astrid’s hand with her free hand. Astrid handed it over willingly, and she rested their now-entwined fingers on her other knee. Her heart nudged the base of her throat at all of their contact. Even though it was just their hands, their entwined fingers felt more intimate to her than any real physical experiences she’d had with any other girls. She was all too aware of James and Alice’s presences before, but with Astrid’s palm against hers and her thumb tracing invisible patterns over her knuckles, the room narrowed until her world was just a golden and white and brown blur, only the detail of Astrid’s eyelashes and her sparse freckles holding any kind of sharp quality to them. She was sure she’d be able to see them when she closed her eyes, and she did. They were all she could see. She tilted her head backward and let it rest against the wall, content to lie there with Astrid’s head on one knee and their hands on her other.

Of course, Payton and Skye returned soon after - she wasn’t exactly sure when, as her sense of time was never great - and Astrid forced herself up and away from McAfee, stretching and yawning before finally standing up. But she winked quickly in McAfee’s direction, and she couldn’t stop smiling as Payton directed the conversation somewhere campaign-related. Later, at dinner, when the two sat next to each other, she’d feel Astrid’s foot tap hers, and she’d tap Astrid’s back. And when the rest of their group huddled around Skye’s phone on the walk back home, Astrid would reach over and grab McAfee’s hand again with her smaller one.

Under the faded sky, Astrid would smile and tug McAfee back, sparing one glance towards their friends. McAfee would think James saw them leave, but he’d just smile and turn his attention back to the group, claiming ignorance of their missing friend’s whereabouts when questioned. They’d stop under the relative privacy of a tree, away from the normal traffic flow.

“Oh, finally. We can’t hear them talking,” Astrid would say, eyes gleaming in the half-light. New York was never dark, but McAfee was particularly partial to the nighttime anyway. Or maybe she would simply be drawn to the way that Astrid looked, her short hair seeming to soak up the light and her blue eyes bright in contrast to the dark circles under her eyes. She had never noticed before, but in that light, she would see the flecks of amber and green that buried themselves deep in her eyes, and she’d look at Astrid’s lips, pursed against laughter, and the gentle way Astrid’s thumb rubbed against the back of her hand, and she’d look back up at Astrid’s face.

“Thank God,” she said finally.

Before she could even think about it, she would kiss her, and Astrid would kiss her back, soft at first, exploring, hesitant. It’d transform into something deeper and imploring, something a little more desperate, something that was rushing out of them all at once. Astrid’s other hand would rope around her neck to pull her even closer and her own hand would find its way into Astrid’s short, soft hair. Their bodies would fit flush together, and as the cool air fell on their cheeks, they’d have no other thoughts than that moment. Astrid’s lips drove away any doubts McAfee had had before, and she would savor the overwhelming waves of affection she felt, pulling back for the barest breaths between kisses before diving back in headfirst.

Eventually, they would succumb to laughter that built between kisses, laughing close to each other as they had that morning. Her heart and chest ached from the force of all of it, the laughing and the kiss. And as Astrid’s giggles finally faded off, she would press a kiss to her cheek, feeling a bit lightheaded with affection. They’d still be pulled close together so that it was difficult to tell where one began and the other ended, but neither cared, simply too wrapped up in their shared bubble of joy to notice anything else.

(Even James and Alice walking up just behind them, with Alice groaning and slipping James five dollars before both retreated again, bickering good-naturedly to each other.)

Astrid would shake her head and withdraw her arm from around McAfee’s shoulders, choosing to instead cup her cheek with one hand. She’ll smile again and press one last kiss to McAfee’s lips, soft and radiant and happy. And McAfee would return the smile and the kiss and the happiness. She’d probably give her anything she could, anything she ever wanted, just to see that smile again, just to feel her lips on hers.

#the politician #the politician netflix #the politician fanfiction #mcafee westbrook #astrid sloan #mcafee/astrid #mine #my fanfiction

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voice-of-anarchy · 5 years ago

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ARCH ENEMY's MICHAEL AMOTT Says ALISSA WHITE-GLUZ Has Been Treated 'Very Unfairly' By Metal Media In Recent Months

ARCH ENEMY guitarist Michael Amott says that the band's lead singer, Alissa White-Gluz, has been treated very unfairly by the music media in recent months.

One of the most outspoken vocalists in heavy metal, White-Gluz found herself at the center of a couple of controversies in the past year. First, she engaged in a war of words with a concert photographer after she allegedly posted one of his photos of her online without his permission. Then, more recently, she was accused by the singer of her former band, THE AGONIST, of trying to hold the group back in the five years since her departure from THE AGONIST.

Amott addressed White-Gluz's negative press coverage during a recent appearance on "Vox&Hops", the podcast hosted by Matt McGachy, frontman of extreme metal band CRYPTOPSY.

Speaking about the way Alissa has been portrayed in the metal media, Michael said (hear audio below): "Yeah, it's very unfair towards Alissa, I feel. Recently, there's been a few very unfair things — unfair towards her. I know her quite well now, after spending five years on the road with her and working with her very closely. But it's always gonna be more interesting when, one, she's female; [two], she's in one of the most popular metal bands; three, she's very vocal about certain issues, like veganism and stuff like that. But that's very positive, and she can use social media to her advantage to spread that message. But there's a backlash sometimes, and it's a back-and-forth; so, it can swing both ways. Those are the times we live in.

"I don't really have any advice for her or anybody else," he added. "She's doing a great job doing what she does, and I respect her tremendously."

Amott also talked about how the clickbait culture has affected the world of heavy metal journalism, with outrageous headlines and stories being used to attract visitors, and many readers focusing only on the headlines without reading the full article, particularly if it's shared through social media sites.

"It is just how it is nowadays," he said. "I never thought that kind of journalism would come into the metal scene, or the extreme metal scene; I just never saw that. Of course, with, like, [the members of] MÖTLEY CRÜE, they married people off TV shows or whatever, [and] they were a part of that mainstream… But I never thought that kind of journalism would come into our world, into our scene; I never saw that coming. But now it's here, and it's probably here to stay for quite a while.

"What is pretty scary — well, not scary; it's just sad… Because people, they just read the headline and they don't even read the story, and then if you scroll down and read the comments, it's, like, they're reacting [to] the headline, not on the actual [contents of the article], because they probably don't have the patience to read, or they can't read," he continued.

"I'm a big research guy; I like [to know] the whole story… I don't like to have just a knee-jerk reaction. I've never commented on anything online… [not even on my] own pages. I've [thought about commenting], but then I have to stop myself, because that's what they want. And you realize, 'Oh, shit. They almost got me.' [Laughs]

"At the same time, there are bands that put out great music and they don't have any followers on their social media platforms, or they don't get any comments on these metal news web sites when they announce they've got a new album," he added. "Or they do an interview and it's not even picked up by these metal news web sites. So, in that way, I guess you've gotta take the good with the bad."

youtube

#Michael Amott #Alissa White Gluz #arch enemy #2019 interviews

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ohmygoodnessgraciouss · 5 years ago

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Hello there! 😀 Can I request a Steve Rogers one-shot, where he wants to propose to Stark!Daughter!Reader? They've been together since the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D., and after Endgame, Steve realizes that he can't wait any longer (after the wedding, the R gets pregnant with twin girls). Steve is so in love with R that he completely moves on from Peggy and even replaces her photo with R's in his compass. Also: R is a super-soldier and an enhanced + with a genius intellect.

Hello!! I figured I’d post it here as well without tags! A big part of my account is my writing anyway, and I was the dummy that forgot to post about requests on my writing account, oops! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this, and thanks for sending in a request! <3

Words: 2224

Bucky Barnes had not seen his best friend this happy since Peggy Carter. In fact, he seemed happier than ever. Bucky was surprised by this, especially since it had only been a year since the final battle that destroyed the Avengers Compound. With the death of Tony Stark, Steve was left to cope with the idea of a world without Tony as well as helping his girlfriend, Y/N Stark, recover. Y/N was Tony’s daughter and Morgan’s half-sister. Although Y/N did not know Tony all her life, she was still closely tied with the playboy and loved him.

She was involved in the final battle along with everyone else due to her powers. Being a super-soldier like Steve and an enhanced like Wanda, she was a powerful asset to the Avengers. She helped Clint distract Thanos when the Mad Titan nearly grabbed the gauntlet. If it wasn’t for her, the world may have been destroyed. Either way, she knew she had to prepare for the worst. She knew Tony would die for this cause as soon as he figured out how time travel worked, but she couldn’t prepare herself for when it happened.

That’s where Steve came in. Steve, her boyfriend of several years, comforted and helped her through it all along with Pepper and Morgan. He knew exactly what to do considering the two stayed in touch after the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D, and quickly started dating. They were the other’s support for five years after the snap occurred. Steve thought that he could never love someone as much as he loved Peggy, but he learned with Y/N that he was completely wrong. She was everything to him. She helped him see that there’s always hope, that the world is still the same as it was 75 years ago, and that maybe someone can have more than one true love.

Shortly after the funeral, Steve had thrown the compass with Peggy’s picture into a box and up in the closet of his shared bedroom with Y/N. It was a box filled with items either from the 1940s or objects that reminded him of it. Amongst other things, a pack of Captain America trading cards was inside. Steve decided that he didn’t want to hold onto the past or what it could’ve been any longer, so he tucked it away. It was time to face the future. A future with his best friends and loved ones, and more importantly, with Y/N.

When a year had passed and everything seemed to be going back to normal, Steve knew that he wanted to propose to Y/N. He was only mad at himself for not doing it sooner. He wanted to be able to ask for Tony’s permission. He may have adjusted to the 21st century, but he still wanted to keep some of his old-fashioned traditions. Y/N agreed with him on that tradition, believing that it was sweet that he’d want to do that anyway.

With the help of the Avengers, Steve was able to plan a proposal. The perfect proposal. It may have been simplistic, it may have been considered cheap, but he knew it wouldn’t matter to Y/N as long as he asked the question. It took only a few days to set up, and Pepper chipped in a little as well. She even went as far as pulling Steve aside to tell him that Tony would’ve said yes.

Y/N and Steve were going on a date that night of the proposal. It was going to be a fancy dinner and catching the latest movie in the theater. Y/N loved the idea and agreed to it immediately. She was excited considering it had been so long since the two of them had had a date. With missions going on by the newly formed S.H.I.E.L.D, it seemed impossible for the couple to catch a break. She was grateful for the small moments the two had before catching a plane to somewhere far away.

Tonight it’d be so much different. Steve and Y/N caught up, explaining some of the funny moments that happened in their missions. Steve told her the story of Sam’s wings malfunctioning while he was trying to fly up to a vantage point while Bucky made fun of him. Y/N told him about the story of Stephen going off on a rant about how the mystic arts should be taken seriously while Peter was playing with his cape. When the stories ran out, the two super-soldiers admitted to missing each other so much for the past few weeks. It wasn’t unusual for them to do so, which is why Bucky and Peter stayed far away when they were together. They lost track of time and didn’t realize how late it was getting until dessert came around, where the couple shared a chocolate lava cake that was on the house.

The next part of the evening involved a movie. It wasn’t your typical movie night, however, as Steve was able to find an old drive-in theater nearby. They were playing a classic horror film night, which they called a “creature double feature.” Y/N was excited to watch as she found a love for drive-ins when they saw it on a travel brochure once, and Steve was pleased that he could find something that played movies close to his time.

What they weren’t expecting was for a pop-up thunderstorm to boom in during the end of the second movie. The thunderstorm disrupted the entire theater and caused them to shut down shortly after it started. The cracks of thunder and the bolts were striking the ground nearby. It didn’t take long for the power to go out because of it.

This wasn’t on Steve’s itinerary at all. He was supposed to take Y/N home and show her the dimly-lit room, scattering pictures and memories across the sitting room whose furniture had been moved out of the way. Towards the end of the line of pictures, there would be a single frame holding the picture of you two kissing on a “Good-Luck Bridge” as the national park called it, with a single note that asked her to marry him. While she was distracted, he’d get down on one knee and hold the ring behind her.

Things don’t always end up the way they were supposed to. Honestly, Steve was more than frustrated by it. He had the entire evening planned out and it still failed. He couldn’t wait any longer to become engaged to his girlfriend.

When he opened the door to the apartment, he was ready to explain everything. The two were using their flashlights on their phones to make sure they didn’t trip over anything. It didn’t look like it’d work out for him tonight. He was hoping maybe explaining things would still end up with an engagement tonight, but then he received a text from Pepper, who was apparently watching the hallway camera.

The single text read:

“Don’t worry about anything, Steve. There’s a transmitter that Peter and I made in case anything went wrong. Take care of her for Tony.”

Inside the room, several candles were lined up across the shelves on the wall. They were lit, casting enough light in the room to be able to see some of the pictures here and there. Right in the center laid a small plate-like computer. "What’s this all about?“ Y/N asked Steve, knowing something was up.

"Just turn it on,” He smiled at her, allowing her to walk up to it and click on the button. It started up a hologram on the wall, casting the pictures on the plaster instead of being in the frames.

From pictures to working in S.H.I.E.L.D to pictures from their first date to the very present, there had to be dozens of photos lined up in the presentation. Y/N smiled at the display, tears springing to her eyes as memories started to replay in her mind. The final picture had the question written below the bridge, on top of the water. The girl gasped and turned around to see Steve on his knee.

He couldn’t even ask the question himself before he was kissed.

The wedding quickly happened after that. News spread around like wildfire that the two were engaged, and everyone could see it coming anyway. It became known to the world that Captain America was finally marrying someone. Fury couldn’t believe it when he heard it, but he was happy for the two despite showing it. Everyone was invited to the wedding from the Starks to the Avengers. Some from S.H.I.E.L.D came along as well. Bucky was Steve’s best man while Pepper walked Y/N down the aisle. Morgan was the flower girl while Peter had to be the ring bearer.

The wedding would be considered the wedding of the century for more than a few reasons. One of the biggest reasons being how simplistically extravagant it was. Decorated with purple flowers and ribbons, the wedding gave beautiful a new definition. Especially because of the love shared between the bride and groom.

It was clear to all that those two shared a love that people dreamt of finding in their lives. They were only lucky enough to find it. Steve couldn’t even imagine picturing Peggy in Y/N’s place. The only thing that mattered was Y/N.

When they approached their first anniversary as a married couple, Y/N knew she had the best gift to tell him. They were trying to start a family for so long, but now was the time to reveal the perfect news.

Right as Steve came home from a tough mission over in Budapest, Y/N finished preparing everything. She had the papers from a doctor to confirm it because she was worried that the at-home pregnancy tests were wrong. Steve would be pleasantly surprised by it.

He wasn’t pleasantly surprised by it actually. He was elated, excited, and could barely keep his cool for more than a minute. All Steve wanted to do was hug his currently pregnant wife and tell the world that they would be parents.

A few short months later they found out that they were going to have children. Not just a child, but children. The doctor told them that Y/N was pregnant with twin girls. They nearly cried that day from happiness. The next day, due to her hormones, Y/N cried from fear.

She realized that she had no idea what it’d be like to be a parent, even if Pepper assured her that she’d be able to help. Y/N’s big problem though was that she and Steve were moving that day. They decided that the apartment would be too small for their family. They were able to find an affordable home in upstate New York, and quickly took the advantage and bought it. Moving day was rough because Y/N was starting to have some trouble picking up boxes off the ground. Her bump was becoming more noticeable and she’d start to have problems with leaning down. Steve didn’t mind at all and had a few of their friends come over to help them out. Y/N made sure to thank them all later that day.

While moving, Steve and Y/N were cleaning out the closet a little bit. Besides the clothes, they kept a few boxes in there, and one of those boxes included Steve’s box of the 1940s. Y/N didn’t know what exactly was in there, but she left it to Steve to go through and decide if he wanted to keep it. She trusted him and didn’t feel the need to go through it, which is why she walked back in to see him pick up his compass with Peggy’s picture at one point.

Steve looked at it for only a single moment, but Y/N was intrigued about what he’d do. Some days the woman wondered whether or not he still loved Peggy despite it being years ago. Those thoughts would disappear completely today.

Steve opened the glass door that kept Peggy’s picture inside. Pulling it out, he stared at her picture before placing it aside in a bin that was being used for trash. Then, he pulled a small picture of Y/N out of his pocket. It was one of his favorites. She looked beautiful in the photo, especially with one of her favorite outfits on.

He placed the picture in carefully, shutting the glass door and locking it into place. He was proud of it after that. The compass kept him grounded, reminding him of the time period he once lived in. The picture reminded him of what he has now, and the compass connected with her by always showing him that he can find his way to her no matter what.

Y/N walked over to him with a smile on her face. "Steve, are you sure you want to get rid of the picture?“ She asked him, wanting to make sure he wasn’t making a mistake.

Steve looked up at her and smiled slightly. "I’m positive. There’s no need for it anymore.”

Steve stood up to turn and look at Y/N, shutting the compass in the process. He snaked his arms around his wife’s waist, bringing her closer to him. She smiled back at him and glanced at his lips.

“I love you, Steve Rogers,” She said as she gave him a peck on the lips.

“I love you too, Y/N Rogers.”

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nekoannie-chan · 5 years ago

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Insecurities

Pairing: Steve x Reader

Word count: 2788 words

Summary: You’re married to Steve, however, there are many rumors about him, what would happen if you misunderstood a situation and believed that the rumors are true?

Warnings: Maybe it is sad.

A/N: My native language is Spanish so if you notice any mistake please let me know and I will correct it.

This is written for @prettyyoungtragedy ‘s Maya’s 10K (WTF) challenge! with prompt # 10:

“Will you still love me when I’m no longer young and beautiful?”

I took some inspiration from episodes 21 and 22 of the second season of the TV show “Desperate Housewives.”

In this universe the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. and they managed to stop HYDRA in time, so Ultron or Vision was not created, nor was there a Civil War.

My native language is Spanish so I wanna improve my writing skills in English if you notice any mistake please let me know and I will correct it.

I don’t give any kind of permission that my fics be posted in other platforms or languages (I translate myself my work) or the use of my graphics (my dividers are included in this), I did them exclusively for my fics, please respect my work and don’t steal it. There are some people here who make dividers that anyone can use, mine is not this type, please look for the other’s people. The only exception is the ones I gifted ‘cuz now belong to someone else. If you find any of my works on a different platform and is not one of my accounts, please let me know. Reblogs and comments are always welcome.

DISCLAIMER: I don’t own Marvel’s characters (unfortunately), except for the original characters and the story.

My other media where I publish: Wattpad, Ao3, ffnet.

If you like it please vote, comment, and give me feedback to improve my skills and reblog.

You had married Steve almost six years ago, you two had met after he had been thawed, and after the New York attack, you had started a relationship. Now you had two children, a girl and a boy, who were twins.

Since Steve had obtained a very important position after he and Fury managed to unmask HYDRA without S.H.I.E.L.D. fall; but a few weeks before that event you had married in secret.

Natasha had found Steve’s little secret almost two years after you had married, so that day Steve invited her to dinner with you so she could meet you, although, from the first moment she saw you, you knew she didn’t like you since then she always behaved very rude to you every time they came to meet.

You sighed and threw the newspaper away, you hated the false news that used to appear in any media, and you knew that Steve kept you as a secret to prevent his old and new enemies from hurting them.

You gave the snack to your children, while the twins ate you called to his cell phone, he didn’t answer.

“Surely he is in a meeting or a mission,” you thought to try to calm yourself down.

You watched TV distract you for a while the children were sleeping, there was an Avengers interview, but what left you frozen was the way Natasha behaved with your husband, you turned off the TV without even watching the interview.

You received a call from your best friend and he asked you if you had seen the interview, you said yes but now you feel confused, you didn´t understand what was happening, immediately your friend went to visit you, you were talking for a while about everything that had been going on and suspect things

“Y/N you must go and see if all that is true, I think your husband acts too weird,” your friend said.

“I don’t know, I’m afraid of what I can find,” you replied unconvinced.

“You need to know the truth,” she insisted.

“What if the rumors are true?” you asked afraid.

“I have a gun, so go calm and I’ll take care of the children and you can go on my car, so they won’t recognize you, it’s different from the car they know,” your friend offered.

She was right, Steve always refused to talk about his work with you, sometimes he said as an excuse that it was better that you didn´t know to prevent someone will hurt you if they tried to obtain the information and other were secret projects and therefore he wasn´t authorized to share the information with others who were not involved.

You were going to the Triskelion, you were determined to face that pair once and for all, so you didn’t mind driving more than two hours to get to the place.

Halfway while you waited for the traffic light to change, you saw something that caught your attention completely, a couple walking hand in hand towards a cafeteria, the couple looked too much like Steve and Natasha. You were so focused on what you saw that you didn’t notice the change of lights until the other drivers began to despair and heard the noise of the horn, you started and immediately looked for a parking lot.

You took the glasses that your friend always had in the car and picked up your hair, you hoped they didn’t realize that it was you, you entered the cafeteria, and you sat in a place where you could see and hear them but they couldn’t see you. You noticed that Steve didn’t wear his wedding ring.

You asked for the first thing you saw on the menu, you were most cared to listen to what they were talking about, you didn’t recognize the people they were with, by photos you knew some of their coworkers, the only ones you knew in person were Romanoff and director Fury, although it was possible that the other people also worked in S.H.I.E.L.D., because of the way they talked, it didn’t seem like they were partners.

This time Steve and Nat’s mission was simple, pretend to be a just engaged couple to get some information from the suspects because the business that these people had was wedding planning but the real business was the illegal sale of weapons.

“How long have you been in a relationship?” asked one of the suspects.

“Four and a half years,” Steve replied.

“And you have thought about what kind of wedding would you like,” the other suspect asked.

“Not yet, we have seen some ideas but we have not liked anything,” Natasha said.

The suspects show them some ideas but none seemed to convince them.

“I have a question, have any of you been married before?” One of them asked.

“Y-No…”

“No, we don’t, we want this to be forever …” Natasha intervened before anyone suspected Steve was lying.

Then you saw they kissed, you had seen enough so that you didn´t finish listening to the conversation, you had verified that the rumors were true, you left the money that covered your food and the tip on the table although you hadn´t eaten much and left from the cafeteria with your heartbroken. You return to your home immediately, you wanted to run away but you are not going to leave your children alone or with his father.

Four and a half years … the twins were four years old, which meant Steve had started cheating on you when you were pregnant.

You still didn’t believe what you saw in that cafeteria, you felt betrayed, as if during all these years you had lived in a lie, maybe he was with you just for the children and not because he loved you.

Besides, you didn’t know his friends, he always told you the same excuse and what if you were the lover?

What if you were not legally married and the wedding had been a very well planned farce?

Maybe that was the reason he kept you as a secret and Natasha treated you so badly.

When you arrived at the house, you vaguely told your friend what had happened and what you had decided to do, you knew you had her support.

You weren’t going to wait for him to hear more excuses or lies, you had to get out of there immediately, and you put in a suitcase that you had borrowed from your best friend some of your belongings, you hadn’t noticed the presence of the twins in the door frame.

“Mommy?” your son called you.

You turned and saw the little ones holding each other hands, for a moment you stopped, you sat on the bed.

“Come here, my babies,” you called them

They approached, the boy sat next to you while the girl sat on your lap.

“We’re going on a trip for a few days,” you informed them.

“And daddy?” your son asked.

You knew how much they loved him but you couldn’t break their hearts too, maybe after a while, you would tell them the truth.

“No, dad doesn’t come, he has a lot of work,” you explained and the children saw each other a little confused.

“Can we take Cookie?” your daughter asked.

“Sure, and Rufus too,” you replied when you saw that your son was going to ask the same thing.

Your son took his sister’s hand to go to their respective stuffed animals in their bedrooms.

You would not go in your car, it was obvious that they were going to locate you, nor your cell phone, you had enough money for two months at least, and then you would worry about how to get more.

You could not leave the country or go with any family because it was obvious that he would find you and you will be in problems, you wanted to disappear so you remembered that a few weeks ago you had seen in the supermarket some rent cabins in a place very far.

It was perfect, nobody would look for you there. You rented the cabin as soon as you arrived at the place, the best, they didn’t even ask your name so you didn’t have to lie, the children looked happy and they forgot that their father wasn´t with you.

You saw yourself in the mirror and you sighed, you felt that you weren´t as beautiful and young as Natasha but at least you would have liked him to tell you the truth, you had no idea how to explain what happened to your children, you weren´t sure if they would understand the seriousness of the matter.

Steve arrived at your house, he missed you a lot because the mission instead of taking it one day, took two more days because they had immediately started working on a plan to catch the enemies and also felt a little bad for the mission, he had never liked having such missions where he had to be a couple of his partner. The mission had been much better than they expected; they not only obtained the information also they caught the criminals and secured the weapons that the criminals had, he had been so busy that he didn’t even notice that you didn’t answer the messages he had sent to you.

“Doll?” he called you when he entered.

He didn’t hear any response, so he looked into the kitchen but you weren´t there.

“Kids?” he called, although later he felt silly, obviously you weren’t going to leave the little ones alone.

Terror seized him when he heard no response again, he began to check the house.

“Maybe they went to the supermarket or took the children to the park,” he thought

He found your cellphone in the bedroom when he checked the second floor, went back down and saw that the keys to your car were where they always were, and your car in the garage. He knew perfectly well that you didn´t use another transport when you went out with the children.

He called your best friend and she said she didn’t know where you were, he called all the places that thought you could be, you weren’t there it was like you just disappeared, no, rather Steve was sure that some of his enemies had kidnapped you.

He immediately called Fury, he needed to find you as quickly as possible and save them from the danger in which he believed you were.

The following three weeks were eternal to Steve, he hardly slept, the only thing that mattered him was finding you alive and safe, it was not possible that you had simply disappeared, he had checked at all airports, at all places that had thought you could be, several members of the organization participated by order of Fury in the pursuit, Clint also participated, he could understand what Steve felt, surely if his family disappeared he would also lose his mind.

That day you had decided to go to the supermarket, you let the children choose the cookies, however, you didn´t realize that someone had discovered you, you kept shopping, nor did you notice that the person had followed you to the cabin.

“Cap, I found them,” Clint informed him.

Steve immediately arrived where Clint was waiting for him.

“Barton, are you sure they are there and safe?” Steve asked incredulously, he was completely surprised at where you were.

“I found them in the supermarket and followed them here, your wife looks a bit sad, that’s all, although before you enter, I think you should listen to her, I don’t think anyone has kidnapped them but rather they ran away from you,” said Clint.

“It doesn’t make sense …” Steve felt confused.

“I just think you should know her motives first,” he said.

Steve nodded and went to the cabin, knocked on the door, you went to open the door as quickly as possible so that the children didn´t wake up but you got a big surprise to see him there.

“Steve…”

“Doll, I’ve been looking for you everywhere,” he greeted as he opened the door further and entered the place.

“Sure come in,” you murmured.

You leaned out to make sure Natasha wasn’t with him until you don´t see another person outside you closed the door and went to the room where Steve had already sat.

“Hmm, what about the children?” he asked, not seeing them.

“Upstairs, taking a nap,” you replied.

You were in silence for a few minutes, which suddenly became very uncomfortable.

“What do you want?” you asked suddenly.

“Why you run away? I’ve been worried all these weeks believing something bad had happened to them “he questioned.

“You’re a cynic, after everything you did you still ask me that” you couldn’t believe he was looking for an explanation

"I'm sorry, I know I have had a lot of work and I have hardly been with you but I will ask for vacation and go wherever you want," he tried to apologize.

He thought it was because he hardly spent time with you and the kids, in the past, you had had a few discussions about it, but now he wanted to fix things. You slapped him with all your strength because you couldn't stand that he acts like an innocent and lies to you again.

“What the…?”

“Do you think I don't know that you cheat on me with Natasha? I know you are getting married soon, at least you would have had the courage to tell me “you claimed.

“What are you talking about? I don't date her” he sounded very confused and actually in his mind he didn't know what you were talking about.

"Don't lie, I listened to the cafeteria conversation ..." you started to say.

Steve opened his eyes, now everything has sense, it was a misunderstanding, he had no idea how to fix it but he would try because he didn't want to lose you.

"That was a mission, you can talk to Fury if you don't believe me, there is nothing between Romanoff and me, Y/N you are the only one I love, I just care about you and our children," he interrupted.

"She's prettier, younger, and more talent than me," you said.

You felt like nothing in comparison to Natasha.

"For me, you are the most beautiful, seriously there is nothing between her and me," he tried to take your hand.

“Do you have…? I saw you kissing her,“ you asked by removing her hand to keep her from taking it, you needed to know the truth.

"Nothing happened, she kissed me as part of the mission, seriously Y/N, you're the only one," he assured you.

"You never tell me anything about your work, I don't even know who your co-workers are, you never tell me anything," you recriminated, you felt that at any moment you were going to cry.

"I do very dangerous things ..." he began.

"You always say the same, so you want me to believe you and have confidence?" you were tired of the same excuse.

"Give me another chance, please, I don't want to miss this, I'll tell you everything, we will go with Fury and you'll know everything there," he promised.

“I don’t know …” you weren’t convinced.

“Please Y/N, you are my only reason to continue, one last chance please,” he begged, almost crying.

“Will you still love me when I am no longer young and beautiful? You know I will grow old before you “you felt the tears fall down your cheeks.

“I don’t care about that, I will always love you,” he said.

He approached you, wiped your tears with the back of his hand, and gave you a little kiss, he was still afraid you would reject him.

“All right, just one chance,” you said.

“Daddy!” the twins shouted, they already woken up.

They ran to him and Steve took two children, now that he saw you, he felt better, nothing bad had happened to any of you.

“How have you behaved? Have you been good children? ”He asked.

“Yes!” They answered in one voice.

“Mom said that you had a lot of work,” said the little girl.

“I had it but I finished it,” Steve said.

“Are you staying with us?” The boy asked.

“Yes, what do you think if we stay another week and spend the four of us time together and have fun?”

“I love you Y/N.”

“I love you. Steve”

Now Steve was going to fix the mistake he had been making for years and you were going put on time they had lost in recent weeks.

#mayawtf #mayawtfchallenge #steve x reader #steve rogers

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makistar2018 · 6 years ago

Link

How to succeed in business by being a Taylor Swift fan

Fandom can be an expensive hobby, but there are also ways to get paid for your time and affection.

By Kaitlyn Tiffany Nov 7, 2018

Taylor Swift’s very popular snake jewelry. Big Machine Records

Twenty-two-year-old financial analyst Zainub Amir moved to New York City from Albany last June, around the time that her Taylor Swift news account @SimplySFans celebrated its seventh birthday on Twitter.

The account has 124,000 followers as of this writing, but when Amir started it at the end of eighth grade, there was almost no demand for it. She was alone on Twitter as a Swiftie, she says, with “maybe 30 other fans.” It’s that early adoption of the platform that she credits with her success, and with her permanent place at the top of the Swift fan account hierarchy — it’s too late for anyone else to get this big.

Now Amir has a full-time job and responsibilities to her employer. Also: responsibilities to the 124,000 people who depend on her for news, as well as the management and tour sponsors and brand partners for the biggest pop star in the world, which regularly ask her for help promoting awards shows, limited-edition Keds, and Swift’s every move.

“It’s hard,” Amir tells me, sitting on a corner sofa in her Midtown office building, after most of the lights have gone down but the granola bar wrappers and Lipton tea bags have yet to be scooped from the floor. “The thing is it’s, like, the same thing as texting someone while you’re at work; you just have to be really fast. The whole point of an update account is getting the news first.”

“EVERYTHING COMES DOWN TO SOMETIMES THE SECOND OR MINUTE YOU POST”

To help, Amir has push notifications set up from fan accounts on Tumblr and Twitter, for Swift’s friends and management and publicity team, and, obviously, for Swift herself, who has made a tentative return to social media in recent months after conspicuously vanishingand deleting thousands of posts last August.

“As soon as she posts, I make sure I put it on Twitter. You just have to be quick about it. After a while, it becomes second nature,” Amir says. She does not use Google Alerts, which are too slow. “Everything comes down to sometimes the second or minute you post.”’

That’s because Amir isn’t alone on Twitter talking about Taylor Swift anymore. There are dozens of update accounts, plenty of fans who are willing to take on the job of fandom as a second full-time position. And Swift is far from the only celebrity who draws this kind of cottage media industry around her.

Last summer, I spoke to 19-year-old Yucatán resident Armin Lizama, who runs one of the biggest Lorde fan accounts on Twitter and regularly helps professional music journalism outlets fact-check fan rumors and news items.

Last spring, Harry Styles fans organized to teach each other how to download VPNs and fake US streams of his first solo single “Sign of the Times,” hoping to game the Billboard charts. One account, @StylesPromoTeam, put out a public application to join them, which was longer than a traditional job application and required applicants to state whether they’d be able to dedicate up to 20 hours per week to the cause. This is just how modern fandom operates.

Most of these fans are not doing it to be compensated, but there is compensation to be found nonetheless — like any account with substantial followings, they can charge for sponsored posts and retweets; like any influencer a brand wants to woo, they can expect gifts and trips and special treatment; like any ambitious young person situated in an economy that celebrates optimizing every moment of your life, they can try to use hundreds of hours of self-managed, largely unpaid “fun” labor as a line item on a résumé.

“I don’t really care about how much money I make with it,” Amir says.

Nevertheless, she’ll readily call her account a business.

And as with any business, there are challenges. One is copyright: “Any time a video goes over 30 seconds and it has music or media, anything from Taylor or any of her sponsors, it usually gets picked up by copyright,” Amir explains. “Same thing with photos that photographers are taking, even if it’s Taylor’s own photographers with Getty Images.” They’ll get flagged and removed, and it only takes six or seven violations to get an account suspended, which is a challenge for accounts updating three or four times a day while an artist is on tour, or dozens of times a night when they’re performing and talking and raking in trophies at an awards show.

“Screen record has become my friend. Mainly when it’s YouTube or DirecTV Now, but I have to be careful, which is why I’ve resorted more to retweeting from the source,” she says. She tries not to push it, usually taking clips of around 10 seconds and asking permission whenever she can.

“You want to grow your reach as much as you can, but is it worth getting that copyright notice at the same time?”

All this is why Amir, like many of the other proprietors of major news accounts, has a separate account just for media, which she’ll retweet into her main account’s feed, giving up maximum engagement on her main page in favor of preserving it.

She’s had to learn how to streamline the process, trying to provide a good product without running herself off the road. “There are all these paparazzi pages you can go on and get the image itself, and then you have to delete the watermark,” she explains. “But it’s not worth [the effort] really, because someone’s just going to post it two seconds faster than you.” She’ll ask permission to repost GIFs and videos from fans at tour shows, but only if she’s sure they’re sharing something Swift hasn’t done before. She’ll engage in trending topics only if she has something to add, an image and a great quote, or a video clip short enough to not get pulled. “Otherwise, I’m better off retweeting from the actual source, even though I’m going to lose engagement.”

She had to figure all this out on her own, since other pages are competitors, jockeying for the same audience and the same engagement.

Swift is counting on her, for real. In 2012, before there were very many other major fan accounts, and before Swift’s team really used or understood Twitter, they asked Amir to be the official promotional account of the Red tour.

When Swift joined her favorite social media platform, Tumblr, in 2014, the account was run by her management and only followed five accounts — all update accounts, and one of them Amir’s. “I posted something about the fall, apple picking or something, and I had no idea anybody was reading it,” Amir recalls. “Taylor reblogged it and it was her first reblog of Tumblr, and she ended up adding this whole paragraph about how she loves the fall. So every fall, late August, September, I get so many notifications because people start reblogging that again and again and again. It’s a ritual.”

Being early to two platforms guaranteed that both Swift and her team would be aware of Amir, which means they regularly come back to her — to include her in special fan activities and to do promotion work. (She’s spent time with Swift in person three times in the past six years.)

“FOR ME, IT’S COMMUNITY FIRST; I DON’T REALLY THINK ABOUT THE MONEY.”

Amir says Swift’s management has a list of popular and reliable update accounts that it gives out to her sponsors and brands regularly dole out exclusive content or giveaway items to her and her update account competitors. Dick Clark Productions, for one, will fly fan account operators to awards shows to post updates live, as well as provide them with a stipend to support a vacation day in Los Angeles afterward.

“Either I get compensated through money or through free items,” Amir says. “Or it’s things like free tickets or perks or just being on the inside or being able to go to a release party. Sometimes it’s not directly money-related, but when it is, it’s per post or how many engagements it gets. That’s why stats or using Twitter analytics is so important — so you can say what your worth is. I’ve had it be $300 for retweeting someone before, because it’s a lot of followers and it’s huge engagement. I think the lowest I’ve done is $50.”

“It’s like another job, basically,” she says. But “it isn’t as stable as people think it is with a fan account like this. For me, it’s community first; I don’t really think about the money.”

Madame Tussauds’ Taylor Swift figure, revealed in 2014. Chelsea Lauren/Getty Images

It’s not all profit. “I bought the [last] album five times without really meaning to,” Amir says when I ask about how much fans typically spend to put their affection into practice.

Swift combated the ongoing industry-wide decline of album sales by selling two versions of a limited-edition magazine to go with Reputation last fall, each going for $20 exclusively at Target and each coming with another copy of the album. Buying extra copies of her album also helped fans improve their place in line in Ticketmaster’s controversial Verified Fan program, which sorted fans into a queue to buy presale tickets to her stadium tour.

“EVERY TIME SHE LETS YOU INTO HER LIFE, IT’S A NEW MARKETING SCHEME, BECAUSE IT’S A NEW PART OF HER LIFE THAT YOU DON’T KNOW”

“You want the magazine because you want to see into Taylor’s life; she had to have two different volumes for some reason,” Amir says. “You want the album for the code to put in your Verified Fan thing; that’s your first incentive. And your second is that you want to read these poems that Taylor never released to the world, or pictures that have never before been seen during her two-year [social media] blackout.” The Reputation merch was “trendier” and more expensive than previous Taylor merch, but “as a fan, you tell yourself that you’re just going to compromise and buy it, and you do it without thinking.”

She says she doesn’t want to criticize anyone, but she noticed that Verified Fan tickets were more expensive than regular sale tickets, and says she paid $160 (plus TicketMaster fees) for a decent seat, electing not to spend the nearly $800 it would cost to be in what Swift called “the Snake Pit” at the front of the stage.

“Every time she lets you into her life, it’s a new marketing scheme, because it’s a new part of her life that you don’t know,” Amir says. But again, none of this is criticism. Why shouldn’t a pop star also be a savvy business manager? Why wouldn’t intimacy with her be commodified? These are not contradictions, Amir argues. It’s also not a contradiction that she loves Taylor Swift and benefits financially from loving Taylor Swift.

Taylor Swift with Australian fans in 2012. Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

Because it involves people, business is almost always personal, but when it involves heroes, it’s even more so.

Amir is Muslim, and she says that made it difficult for her to watch Swift’s quiet refusal to engage with a swirling national debate about basic human rights in the wake of the 2016 election. “I really wanted her to say something, because she does say stuff at her concerts, or to you personally, and she’ll like things on Tumblr.” It’s not as if she didn’t know Swift was on her side. Still, “she never said stuff out there, outside the community, where it makes a difference.”

Swift’s longtime silence on political issues — which ended with an October Instagram postendorsing Democratic candidates for several key midterm election races in her home state of Tennessee, seemingly spurring a massive increase in voter registration in the state — was always in tension with her near-constant willingness to speak up on her own behalf. She has been more publicly involved in her business interests than any artist at her level, championing the 2016 battle against the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which she argued gave YouTube a free pass on copyright infringement, and sitting at the center of the debate about Spotify (and music streaming payment practices in general) for years.

That’s a chapter she closed (somewhat awkwardly) during the lead-up to the release of Reputation last year, but she is still known for her litigious spirit, which she demonstrates by trademarking the names of her cats, attempting to copyright phrases like “look what you made me do,” and sending cease-and-desist letters to Etsy sellers who put her lyrics on homemade apparel.

In each of these cases, Swift isn’t really doing anything other artists wouldn’t (or don’t) do — but because she’s built a reputation as a ruthless capitalist, further news items that fit that narrative are easy to package. Each time she adds a brand to her portfolio — be it American Express or New York City — it looks cynical.

Amir doesn’t see it that way. Swift “reinvents herself just like companies innovate products, and that’s what keeps things exciting,” she says, swirling Swift’s musical evolution and personal brand metamorphosis and business strategy into one blanket compliment. She would understand, as an aspiring businesswoman who worked at a bank all through college, graduated early, moved to New York after interning at PR firms, was briefly the social media manager for a folk-pop duo, and is now looking for a way to blend financial analysis with the marketing skills she’s been honing since middle school.

“Taylor’s been a huge part of my life and the [fandom] community’s been a huge part of my life,” Amir says. “But you mature after a while; you get older. You can’t take days off work to be at an awards show.”

Vox

#taylor swift #fan account #vox #2018.11.07

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captain-kingliamsqueen · 6 years ago

Text

I Know It Hurts But Its Going To Get Better...I promise!

Part 8 of Life Before Him

Ive been so caught up with work that I haven't gotten round to posting but here we go!! finally!! the next part!! I love reading all of your comments, reading how people reacted and felt whilst reading my stories it makes it all worth while! <3

CATCH UP!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

MASTERLIST!

Pairing: Liam x Riley

Summary: …Riley isn’t sure how to cope with all of the emotions of the past events.

Word Count: 3067

Tagged : @starstruckzonkoperatorbat @drakelover78 @queencatherynerhys @devineinterventions2 @jayjay879 @kawairinrin @hopefulmoonobject @flyawayblue56 @gardeningourmet @blackcatkita @syltti78 @decisso @theroyalweisme @hhiggs @mfackenthal @bruteforcebears @pens-girl-87 @speedyoperarascalparty @starstruckpixelberryhistoryvoid @darley1101 @crookedslimecreatorpasta @jamjar84

ASK IF YOU WANT TAGGED! SORRY IF I MISSED ANYONE! (USED THE TAGS FROM MY “ALWAYS” SERIES LET ME KNOW IF ANYONE WANTS UNTAGGED!!!)

I always notice every single spelling mistake or issue after I’ve posted…so apologies in advance!

Some of the Script has been taken from the choices trr Book for flashback purposes!

It was just a few days later that Riley was released from the hospital, the doctors gave her permission to go back to the palace, however she had to check in with them every few days so that they could keep an eye on her head and track her amnesia. No one was allowed in her room except him and the doctors.

Liam and Riley sat in the back of the car whilst Bastian drove, Riley, sat staring out of the window she hadn’t spoken a word since leaving the hospital. Liam watched her the whole time, never taking his eyes off her.

“your staring” she whispered

“I’m sorry” he flustered “I’m just worried about you”

“I’m okay” she stated bluntly

“Riley…”

“I’m fine Liam” she barked

“alright…I’ll take your word, shall I?” he sighed

“I’m sorry…” she whispered as she laced her fingers with his “I shouldn’t take that tone…I know it’s because you care” she added

The car arrived at the Palace just thirty minutes after leaving the hospital. Riley and Liam headed inside. Riley looked around as if it was the first time she was seeing the place, in her mind the last time she was there was the coronation.

“everyone looks so happy” she whispered

“because they are…they’re happy your home” he smiled as he squeezed her hand.

“everyone has missed you” he added

“Liam…do I stay with you? now that we’re…engaged?” she asked once they were out of view from everyone, they walked up the stairs heading down to their quarters.

“yes, you do, we have our own suite, like an apartment, a very big apartment” he smiled

“we live together?” she giggled

“yes” he smirked “we very much live together”

“that’s the best thing I’ve heard all day” she whispered with a smirk. Liam and Riley headed into their quarters, Riley's smile reached from ear to ear as she looked around the suite.

“it’s gorgeous…why on earth have I been wasting away in the room down the hall when this place is here? You’ve been holding out on me!” she giggled

“many nights I wanted to bring you here and just hold you” Liam stated as he took his coat off in the sitting room, whilst Riley was in the bedroom looking around.

“just hold me?” a smirk found itself on her face “you sure that’s all your wanted to do your Majesty?”

“Riley!” Liam laughed

“what?” she chuckled as she walked back into the sitting room.

“could you show me where my clothes are…I-I would like to change out of these” she asked him softly

“of course,” he replied as he took Riley's hand and showed her back into the bedroom, he walked her over to the closet then opened the double doors. Riley's eyes widened as she seen the size of it, it was bigger than her old apartment back home.

“th-this is all mine?” she asked

“yes, since becoming a duchess and the queen in waiting, you’ve gained quiet the wardrobe” he smiled as he walked in with Riley by his side.

“you see this one, this is the dress you wore in New York…when we got engaged” he squeezed her hand.

“it’s gorgeous”

“I know, that’s what I told you when I seen you wearing it” he chuckled

“Liam…” she sighed happily

Many Weeks went by and Riley's memory hadn’t progressed at all. She tried to remember, she tried as hard as she should, she asked questions, she had Liam and her friends tell her about what had happened in the time between her last memory and what happened in the lot. She wanted to hear every story, everything about the things they had all done together: Finding Tariq, their trip to Coney Island…Liam's proposal…she wanted to know everything.

Riley hadn’t slept properly in weeks, most nights she lay awake, with Liam's arms wrapped around her waist. Liam would lay whispering sweet nothings in her ear whilst linking his fingers with hers. Liam had spent the last few weeks searching for rileys parents whereabouts, it was as if they had disappeared off the face of the earth.

It was about six weeks after the incident that changed everything. It was late in the afternoon, Riley was in their quarters after spending the day with Hana and Maxwell. She had been feeling off all day…nauseous, her head was pounding so she had retired from their outing earlier than she had planned. once she got back she changed into some comfier clothes then she perched herself on the sofa with a blanket and turned the tv on. She watched television for a short twenty minutes before she found herself dozing off. It was just a few hours later that she awoke abruptly, she felt like someone had set her on fire, her temperature was sky high, she jumped from the seat and took off to the bathroom, as soon as she reached the toilet she fell to her knees crying as she violently chucked up her insides. Her breathing hitched as she cried. What was happening to her. Her felt sharp pains shooting in her head. her heart was beating a million miles an hour, with her breathing speeding up. it was then that it started…the flashbacks…they felt so real…as if they were happening all over again…

Making her way downstairs Riley sang to herself. “Mommy?!” she called as she walked into the living room…nothing…Riley smiled as she heard a clanging from the kitchen “Mommy!?” she called ecstatically as she headed to the kitchen, she sniffled seeing no one there, just the cat jumping from the counter and pan lying on the floor…where were her mommy and daddy? Her sister? She walked through the living room to the front door, she reached up on her tiptoes pulling the handle down on the door, she opened it stepping out onto the front steps…the car was gone. the next day Riley spent the day waiting…watching from the front step…hours went by and no one came…every car that past she watched like a hawk just in case it was her family. They wouldn’t leave her…would they? How could they? they loved her…didn’t they? How could they just abandon her?

It was like her heart was breaking all over again…like they left her all again….it was like she was reliving them…she could feel the pain…the emotion, everything she had felt back then…she could feel it again…her hands shook as the tears feel…she wasn’t sure what she was feeling…there were so many emotions going through her body, she was hurt…she was scared as it all came flooding back…her parents leaving, basically being homeless. Just seconds later it started again

There Riley stood in front of the grey door in the block of apartments…she took a deep breathe then knocked on the door…just moments later she was met with a face she never thought she would see again…Tariq!

Tariq took a moment to steady himself on the podium as hundreds of paparazzi aimed their cameras at him.

“I am here to make a statement regarding the photos of myself and Lady Riley…it was a misunderstanding that led me to her room that night, mistaking it for my own. The photos that were taken of us reveal only this: a breach of privacy that I alone was responsible for, and an arrogant and unwanted advance on my part.”

“We did it!” Riley whispered through her tears.

“IM KING OF THE WORLD!!!!” Liam shouted at the top of his lungs at the top of the Ferris wheel.

As Liam turned to look at Riley, he gently took her hand. “do you remember the coronation?”

“how could I forget”

“I was going to propose to you that night…in front of the entire court, not doing so will remain the deepest regret of my life.” Liam gently brushed a strand of hair from Riley's head as a soft smile finds itself making its way onto his face. “still perhaps its destiny that it happened this way, that you broke free of the conspiracy against you just as we returned to New York…as we came full circle” Liam turned to face the statue of liberty and gently pats his leg a few times, Riley quickly followed Liam's gaze to find herself looking at one corner of the base, beyond which you can only see darkness. “here, Bash!” he called. Riley furrowed her brows not knowing what was going on, why was Bash there? Bash emerged from behind the corner and begins trotting towards the couple. “I hope you don’t mind, my borrowing him tonight” as Bash approached the two Riley spotted something attached to his collar.

“Liam, what’s going on? What is that?” she asked curious

“you’ll see in just a moment” Liam smirked as he removed the object from Bash’s collar then he turned to Riley.

“Riley, you’ve opened my eyes, it has been a true honour to witness your strength in the face of every challenge you have overcome. It’s a strength that lends me courage. I know that I will be a better man for having you by my side. All I want in this world is to dedicate my life in being the best man and king that I can be…for you.” Liam fell to one knee, his eyes locked on Riley's, with passion in his eyes, he reached out and took her hand in his.

“Lady Riley Brookes, Queen of my heart, I have yearned to say these four words for a very, very long time…”

“Liam…” she whispered

“Riley, will you marry me?” he smiled

Riley's heart was going a million miles an hour as she relived the moment she and Liam finally got engaged, she cried and cried as she felt the love all over again.

“we left because we couldn’t afford to support both of you!!” Riley was taken back by her mother’s statement.

“Bullshit! Absolute bullshit!! You could afford to have nice cars…a big house…you gave Lulu everything she ever wanted! SO, DON’T YOU DARE COME INTO OUR HOME…AND TRY AND FEED ME THAT BULLSHIT!! IF YOU COULDN’T AFFORD TWO CHILDREN YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE HAD TWO CHILDREN!!! WE HAD THE BIGGEST HOUSE ON THE BLOCK…WE HAD MORE CARS THAN WE WOULD EVER NEED…WE HAD A MAID FOR GOODNESS SAKE!!” Riley shouted as she got closer and closer to the woman.

“Riley-”

“NO! IM NOT FINISHED, YOU WERE MY PARENTS…YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO LOOK OUT FOR ME…TAKE CARE OF ME…I HAD NO ONE! I SPENT YEARS EATING SCRAPS FROM THE GARBAGE BECAUSE I HAD NOTHING!! I WAS FUCKIN TEN! I WOKE UP THAT MORNING AND LOOKED FOR YOU…I LOOKED FOR BOTH OF YOU!” Riley turned her attention to the 50-year-old well-dressed man “I DON’T KNOW WHY YOUR SITTING THERE…YOU’RE AS MUCH TO BLAME AS SHE IS! BOTH OF YOU HAD A RESPOSIBILITY AS PARENTS TO CARE FOR YOUR CHILDREN, THE SECOND YOU LAID DOWN TOGETHER AND HAD ANOTHER CHILD…THAT CHILD WAS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY!!”

“Riley please don’t shout at me like that, I’m your mother, I’m sorry riley” the woman apologised

“FUCK YOUR APOLOGIES, MAYBE YOU CAN SIGN MY THERAPISTS BILL WITH IT BECAUSE I DON’T WANT IT! MOTHER? HAH! YOU STOPPED BEING MY MOTHER THE SECOND YOU ABANDONED ME! I WAITED FOR YOU…I WAITED FOR YOU ON THE STEPS OF THAT HOUSE…I WAITED FOR YOU TO COME BACK FOR ME” Riley cried hysterically “WAS I THAT BAD A CHILD THAT YOU DIDN’T WANT ME? WAS I THAT WORTHLESS TO YOU…DID I MEAN THAT LITTLE TO YOU THAT YOU COULD JUST LEAVE ME WITH NOTHING? …LIKE I WAS NOTHING! AND THEN YOU COME HERE EXPECTING ME TO FORGIVE YOU…I DON’T THINK SO…YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST COME HERE AND SAY YOUR SORRY AND I’LL FORGIVE YOU? …MAYBE IF YOU TOOK ME WITH YOU, YOU WOULD KNOW THAT, THAT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN…IM A FORGIVING PERSON BUT YOU CAN’T RUIN MY LIFE THEN EXPECT AN APOLOGY TO SUFICE?”

Riley started to hyperventilate, she didn’t know hot to handle all these feelings at once, she sat on the floor of the bathroom, knees pulled up to her chest as tried to make sense of everything. It was her next memory that threw her over the edge though…the one that really got her.

“Riley!” Liam shouted, “Riley please open the door!”

“why” she cried “why would they do that!? W-why would they leave me like that!?” she sobbed

“Riley…sweetheart” he said just loud enough for her to hear “I know…I don’t know mentally what you’re going through but if you let me in, we can talk, let me help you riley”

“no…wh-why would anyone want to help me…I’m worthless…my own parents didn’t even want me…why would anyone else” she blubbered, he felt his heart breaking a little, hearing how she spoke about herself

“hey…you are worth so much more than you give yourself credit for Riley, your friends love you, I love you, we all love you so much”

“stop! Stop saying that!! You’re all just going to do the same as they did…you’re going to get m-my hopes up…then you’re going to l-leave me…b-but I c-can’t let m-myself…b-be hurt again…I-I’m so sorry L-Liam” she started to hyperventilate.

“Riley!!!” Liam shouted panicking when he heard her moving, all her could hear was her crying and throwing things around…he banged his fists on the door, then he heard a scattering on the floor as if she had dropped beads or something of that size then the tap started running.

“Riley!!! RILEY!!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!!!”

“I-I love you Liam” she cried as she moved from their bathroom to the bedroom.

“Riley move away from the door I’m coming in!!”

“y-you can t-try but…you’ll be too late” Liam stood back, lifting his leg and forcing his foot into the door with all his might. The door flew open, banging against the chest of draws just beside it. When he got the door open he ran straight for Riley who was balled up next to the bed with her back to him, he fell to his knees pulling her into his hold with his arms wrapped around her and her back against his chest her hands covered her face. Her hands were bleeding from her nails digging into her palms so much when she was clenching her fists. Liam sat holding her as tight as he could when he looked up he got a straight line of sight to the bathroom…that’s when he panicked…painkillers…all over the floor.

“Riley? how many did you take?”

“enough t-to take the p-pain away” she cried “how could they leave me?” he held her back to his chest. Riley started to become hazy…not responding as fast as she normally would

“Riley…Riley talk to me!!! How many did you take?” the tears started to fall from Liam’s eyes…overwhelmed with everything happening before him. “BASTIAN!! BASTIAN! GET THE PHYSICIAN!!” Liam shouted at the top of his lungs.

At this point Riley couldn’t hear a thing around her…they mind was set on herself and that’s its…the whole court could be in that room and she wouldn’t have noticed, her hands shook, her nose ran, her face was red from the tears, she had cut the inside of her hands with her fingernails due to clenching her fist too tight.

The next flashback took it out of her, it was a memory…she hadn’t yet felt the backlash off, because of her amnesia…no one knew how she would feel or react when she got her memories back.

once Riley climbed out of the shower, she wrapped her towel round her, then headed into the bedroom, she changed into some comfy clothes then made her way into the living room, as she walked in she seen the balcony door lying open, assuming it was the wind or something, she just let it go and went to shut it, as she went to pull it shut, she felt someone hit her on the back of the head then a hand went over her mouth, she struggled, trying to get away, she kicked she wriggled she tried as hard as she could to get out of their hold…but no avail. she cried and screamed only for it to be muffled. Her eyes widened as she heard her mothers laugh. She was pulled from the palace, out onto the balcony then she was pushed over the edge, Knocking her out.

Everything fast forwarded. Next thing she knew, she was in a small room, about the size of a broom closet, she was alone…the only person in there. The room contained, her, a chair and a camera.

It was like her life was on fast forward. She may have just been sitting on the cold bathroom floor, but in her mind, she was in that room…she was locked up…with no oxygen.

“Liam” she stated looking at the camera so tired and beat up.

“Th-There’s no windows…the door is sealed…i-im the only person in here…they’re trying suffocate me” she coughed then winced “they s-said…If you want to s-see me again…t-they want…m-money…one hundred million. The cameras on a timer…it’s going to interrupt every channel every thirty minutes for ten minutes” She cried “Liam…d-don’t give into them…Don’t do it” her eyes were like faucets.

“I love you Liam” she whispered before the camera went off. as the red record light went off on the camera, she burst into tears…she knew she didn’t have long…she wasn’t stupid, every hole and space was sealed there was no oxygen getting into that room, she had hours and she knew it.

As the hours went by in that room, it felt like seconds to Riley sitting in the bathroom, her breathing wavered as she felt the loss of oxygen…Riley screamed and cried as she tried to stand up but quickly fell back to the floor again. As she fell to the floor, she gripped the sink basin pulling the glass soap dish down with a crash, it smashed all over the floor, pieces flew everywhere. She couldn’t handle the pain in her heart…it was all too much. It was like all her heartbreak that she had ever felt…all happening at once. She was repeatedly vomiting, hyperventilating, crying,

“…Liam…I don’t have much…time left…I…can hardly…breathe” she gasped “so I …want to say…this now” she was dying…she could hardly keep her eyes open…no energy to keep her head up

“…I want you to know…how much…you’ve changed me…for the better…how much you’ve moved me, you made me…a woman…by loving me, Liam” with gasps between each word she carried on, she knew she should really stop talking to save oxygen but she had to tell him before it was too late…he had to know she loved him “and for that…I am…eternally grateful!, promise me Liam…that…that whenever your…sad…or unsure…or you lose…complete faith…promise me…that you’ll try to see yourself…through my eyes…thank you…for giving me the honour…of getting to …know you…I have no regrets when…it comes to you…you’ve made my…life, Liam…but I’m just a …chapter in yours…there will be…more…I promise…don’t be afraid to fall in love again…marry for love Liam…I love you Liam” she gasped as her eyes flickered shut.

she couldn’t breathe and because she couldn’t breathe she couldn’t shout to anyone…she couldn’t call anyone for help.

Riley's scream could be heard throughout the palace, Liam was in a meeting he heard it, as one of the lords at the table spoke,, the scream broke the conversation, Liam quickly stood from the seat and took off out the door, he ran…he ran faster than he ever did until he reached their quarters, at this point the guard on door post duty was already in there, he was stood at the bathroom door just watching…he wasn’t sure what to do, he didn’t know if he should go near her, she was in such a state he wasn’t sure how to deal with it, he had been trained to deal with all sorts of situations but he wasn’t trained for this.

Liam came running in, stopping at the bathroom door, as soon as he seen Riley, the glass all over the floor, the blood on her hands, the glass shards that had pierced her feet, her hair was mangled from pulling at It, her skin pale as snow from all the vomiting, her cheeks stained red from the tears. Liam dismissed the guard as he carefully moved closer to her, kicking the glass away, once he reached her side he fell to his knees pulling her into his chest, he knew exactly what was happening.

“it’s alright…it’s okay…I’m right here” he whispered as he held her close. “deep breathes sweetie it’s okay…it’s okay…you’re gonna be just fine sweetie, I know it hurts, but it’s going to get better I promise” he gently pecked her head. “ive got you, your safe, your okay” he whispered softly into her ear, trying to calm her down. “shh, shh, it’s alright”

Liam could feel his own heart breaking as he watches the love of his life breaking in front of him, how two people could make someone feel like that…how they could break someone so easily…it disturbed him, what kind of person does that!

If You Like It...Reblog it! <3

#trr #trr choices #trr fanfic #trr liam #choices trr #playchoices #play choices fanfiction #playchoices fandom #playchoices fanfic #choices #choices app #the royal romance #the royal romance fanfic #royal romance fanfic #king liam x mc #liam rys #liam x riley #liam x mc

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maevefiction · 6 years ago

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Your Light in the Mist - Chapter 11

More than a week had elapsed since my last yoga session, and I was pleasantly surprised at my lack of stiffness. My iPod sat silent in the grass next to my mat…the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks proved to be the only music I required. Especially at six in the morning. The sun had just begun to rise behind us, its warmth exacerbating the flush my workout normally provided.

Simon’s skill level was far, far above mine, and some of the poses he worked through made me stop dead in my tracks as I admired the way his body seemed to defy the very laws of physics. He volunteered to work with me whenever we had the time, and I gratefully accepted, though I fully understood that a grace such as his was something that couldn’t be taught.

We chatted while cooling down, learning that our birthdays were only a day apart, his on October 30th, mine on October 31st. He found my being a Halloween baby hilarious, and I was tickled that we shared the same astrological sign. Fellow Scorpios - no wonder he’d liked my tank top. I tried to get him to reveal his birth year, but he adamantly refused until I offered mine up first. The look of delight on his face as he screeched out ‘me too!’ was adorable, and when he high-fived me and christened me his sister from another mister I embraced him and kissed his cheek, grinning at the lovely blush it caused.

I took a seat at the patio table and opened my laptop with the intention of starting work on Tom’s website design. Simon sat next to me, both of us facing the ocean, and he began typing away on his phone. He harrumphed and gave me some wicked side eye.

My brow furrowed. “For fuck’s sake, what NOW?”

He showed me his screen, scrolling through his inbox. “Seven more since last night. You’ve made an awful lot of extra work for me, woman.” I rolled my eyes. He turned on his chair to face me. “I’m curious, though…I thought you just lectured to and consulted with PR firms, which would mean their actual clients wouldn’t know much about you at all. So, it’s kinda surprising that an artist would be willing to jump ship and leave their current rep in the dust to wind up where you are, wouldn’t you say?”

I sighed and finished editing my open layer in Photoshop before replying. “I started out working directly with clients. My first was Anne Rice. She’s is a family friend and was willing to give me a cha…”

He put a hand on my shoulder and shoved. “GET. OUT. I’m assuming this means you’re from or lived in New Orleans at some point? But it mustn’t have been for long, because you have zero accent.”

“Your assumption is correct. Born there, raised there, relocated to New York City in 1998.”

He nodded emphatically. “So you dumped the accent. Understandable.”

It was my turn for side eye. “I didn’t dump it. It just…faded.”

He snorted. “Whatever you say, Maude.”

I pinched his arm, reveling in the resulting squeal he emitted. “Faded. I’m like a chameleon with accents. Soon I’ll be picking up your dialect and sounding like a pretentious asshat, too. In which case, you have my permission to kill me.”

“You can call me anything you like as long as you solemnly swear to take me to Mardi Gras next year.”

I rolled my eyes and held up my hand, palm towards him. “Simon. Please. I don’t think you’re ready for that sort of thing. But, if you start training now, we might be able to pull it off.”

He tilted his head like an oversized puppy. “Training for what? Drinking heavily? I’ve been training for that for years.”

“No. Throwing beads into the crowd. And doing the princess wave.” I demonstrated both. “Because if we go, you must ride on a parade float. It can be arranged. I know people.” I frowned. “At least, I used to know people. Anyway, what I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted was that she was my first client, and it gave me a lot of clout. For which I am eternally grateful. I moved on after three years or so with her and began working directly with clients, most of whom were too small to have a decent PR firm behind them. I did everything, created websites, set up Facebook accounts, provided instructions on how to post, when to post, what to post, yada yada. Lots of hand holding and cajoling. Word spread, and bigger names took notice, which led to PR firms hiring me to work one-on-one with their clients for a specified duration. Most of them already had websites in place, so my focus shifted entirely to social media. In early 2010, I was invited to speak for two hours at a PR conference in San Diego…they wanted me to lecture on enhancing client reputation through social media. It was winter in New York, and they were willing to pay for my travel expenses so I thought, California? Fuck it, why not?”

Simon’s legs were crossed, his upper body leaning in towards me as he listened attentively. I had paused, and he motioned for me to continue.

“So, I spoke for two hours and they handed me a check for three thousand dollars. That was more than I normally made in an entire week and it blew my tiny little mind. It seemed to be vastly less stressful than dealing with super huge egos and non-tech savvy artists and damn, the money. I adjusted my entire business model, and within a month I was turning down engagements because my calendar was full. PR firms were still asking me for assistance, so I set up a consulting procedure wherein I’d outline a plan for them to implement, collected my fee and was on my way. It was all so…easy.”

He laughed loudly. “And you decided to work for Prosper why?”

“Because my ‘easy’ job and the cash it generated had taken over my entire life. I was the job and the job was me. Much to my surprise, lecturing and consulting long term turned out to be a soul sucking bore…and it transformed me into a miserable drudge. I am, at heart, a creative individual and I missed doing graphic and website design, photography, and learning new things. Terribly. Working for Prosper allows me to do all that again, and then some. That’s why.”

He leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin with one hand. “And I’m sure it has nothing to do with the exquisite creature sleeping soundly in your bed right now.”

“No, it doesn’t. He was actually the reason why I seriously considered declining Luke’s offer.” Simon looked puzzled, but I didn’t elaborate. “So. Why did you leave such a prestigious position at the Dorchester to become a PA? Just for Luke? Or is there more to the story?”

He grinned. “Damn, turned it right around on me, didn’t you? Touché, my friend. I went to university for business management and administrative assistance, and worked in the field until 2005. Cooking had always been my passion, and I had some sort of spiritual awakening wherein I decided I absolutely needed to become a professional chef or else I would shrivel up and die. So I did. I moved from place to place, learning, working, partying my ass off, and finally landed the sous chef spot at the Dorchester in 2009. It was dandy at first, but as the years passed I felt like I’d grown stagnant, doing the same thing night after night, having little input on menu changes and so on. Like you, I was bored. I was averaging 70 hours a week in that kitchen, cut off from the world, and it hit me that all I had gotten out of it was a nicely padded bank account…and that there was no one to share it with. I’d always loved being around lots of people, and there I was seeing nothing but the same damn faces day in and day out. In 2013 I happened across Luke’s ad, reworked my resume, and the rest is history. Unlike you, though, I don’t think I would have taken the job if it wasn’t for him, because the salary was abysmal. As soon as I saw him, I knew. He was it. The one. Love at first sight. I thank my lucky stars every single day that he felt the same way.”

After wiping the tears from his eyes, he took hold of my hand. “Maude, I don’t know if he’s mentioned it or not, but Tom’s had a rough time of it lately, and I’m so, so happy that you’ve found each other.”

“Me too, Simon.” I smiled, letting go of his hand. “Now, please, for the love of all things holy, shut your cake hole so I can get some work done, okay?”

“God, you are such a bitch.”

“I am. And you’re still talking. Cease.”

We worked quietly, side by side, until Luke poked his head out the doors to inquire as to when Simon planned on getting his butt in the kitchen and making some breakfast. As he got up from his chair, he peered over my shoulder at my laptop screen. I had a basic layout set and was in the process of choosing a color combination that would contrast perfectly.

“Wow, that’s a right brilliant color palette you have there, Maude. Is that for Tom’s site?”

I nodded. “Does it look…familiar?”

He stared. “Yes…maybe…should it?”

I opened the tab that contained the HD photo of Tom’s eye that I’d drawn all my color options from. “Tada.”

Simon poked my shoulder and called for Luke to come see. He padded out onto the lanai, looked over my shoulder, nodded, then put his hands on his hips.

“So, when are you going to use your magic to revamp the Prosper site?”

I closed my laptop and put my head in my hands, then pushed my chair back and went to wait in the kitchen, muttering to myself about peace and solitude and how I couldn’t find any even though I was in paradise.

Tom bounded our of our bedroom just as Simon was plating our pancakes and bacon, freshly showered, wearing a pair of faded, loose fitting jeans and a tight, light blue V-neck tee. I leaned back on my bar stool and around the counter to look at his feet. Scuffed, well-worn boots. When my eyes finally made their way up to his face I was greeted with a dazzling, toothy smile. I groaned.

Simon pinched his cheeks. “Lovely of you to join us, Thomas.”

Tom lowered himself elegantly onto the stool to my right, resting his hand on my spandex-clad thigh as he leaned in to kiss me.

“Good morning, Maude. How was yoga?”

“Spectacular, actually. Simon and I had a lovely chat and I even managed to get some work done in spite of it.” He laughed and began slowly sliding his hand up my leg, edging ever closer to the apex of my thighs. Simon set our plates in front of us, raising a brow as he spied what Tom was up to.

“Um, excuse me. This is a fine dining establishment, people. No foreplay is permitted.” I glanced up from my plate and saw Luke directly behind him, hand cupping Simon’s ass.

“Whatever, asshole.” I pointed at my short stack. “Do you have syrup for these?”

He pulled a pot off the stove and spooned some of its contents onto them. “Made with fresh pineapples. Especially for you.”

All eyes were on me as they waited for a reaction. I broke off a hunk of pancake with my fork and shoved it in my mouth. “Mmm, yummy. Thank you.” Luke looked at Tom, who shrugged. I took another bite of breakfast. “Yeah, nice try, losers. I happen to like pineapples. Just not on pizza.”

Tom put his arm around my waist, pulled me to him and kissed the top of my head. “I had nothing to do with this. I swear it.”

I said nothing, ripping off a piece of bacon with my teeth instead. He tapped his fork on his plate.

“So, Maude, I was thinking…maybe we could take a ride out to Talk Story today? I called to see if Alani would be in, and she is.” I spun the stool around in his direction, dumbfounded. He smiled. “I did say I’d go back to meet her, did I not?”

“Yes. Yes you did.” I grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “What an amazingly generous thing to do. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me just yet. You’re going to be the one in charge of crowd control.” He stole a strip of bacon from my plate and swallowed it down before I could even muster a protest.

“I’d rather corral a group of a hundred people than have to sit next to you while I’m trying to eat a fucking meal, bacon stealer. And everything else stealer.”

He snickered, and I wolfed down the rest of my food, rinsed my dishes, put them in the dishwasher and headed for the bedroom, finally noticing that Luke and Simon had disappeared. I wrote a giant ‘thanks for breakfast’ on the chalkboard in the kitchen and drew a smiley face to go with it, figuring we wouldn’t be seeing them again before we left.

*************************************** After my much needed shower, I wound up standing in my underwear, staring into yet another wardrobe wondering what the hell to wear. Tom looked too damn good for me to get away with shorts and a T-shirt, and my black tank dress just didn’t scream ‘please behave and listen to the nice lady’. Tom was waiting patiently for me, sitting at the desk answering emails and returning calls. I looked at his boots, then back and my limited selection of dresses. The brown chiffon galaxy print sleeveless wasn’t an exact match, but pretty damn close. I pulled it off its hanger and laid it on the bed so I could unzip the back without it winding up on the floor, chastising myself for giving in to my everything-must-coordinate OCD once again. I slipped it over my head, put my arms through the proper holes and managed to zip it up on my own, then went into the bathroom to figure out a hair strategy.

I’d just wrestled it into a braid when I overheard Tom talking in the bedroom.

“How’s Los Angeles? Elsa? Kids? Good to hear. Oh, she’s unbelievable, Chris. Here, I’ll take you in and you can meet her.” He came around the corner carrying his open laptop.

“Chris Hemsworth, Maude Gallagher.” He turned the screen toward me, and there he was, Thor, God of Thunder. In my bathroom. He held up a hand in greeting.

“Hello, Maude. Nice to meet you. See you? Skype you?” He face palmed. “I have no idea what the correct terminology is.” I heard a woman yell in the background that meet was fine and for him to bring the tablet over to her so she could see me. He got up and walked into another room, and a beautiful blonde woman came into view alongside Chris. She waved madly.

“Look at you, you’re gorgeous. A natural beauty. And that dress…I am in love with it. You must tell me where you found it.” Her accent was a delight. She grinned. “I’m Elsa, by the way. Tom has told us so much about you I feel like I know you already.”

I waved at them. “Hi there. Lovely to meet you both. I’d like to say Tom has told me so much about you, but that would be a big fat lie, so suffice to say I’m sure he will tell me so much about you when we aren’t quite so…so…shit, what’s the word I’m looking for here?”

Tom moved to stand next to me, shifting the laptop so we were both visible, smirking. “Preoccupied. The word you’re looking for is preoccupied.”

They laughed, and Chris grabbed at Elsa. “Remember when we were always preoccupied?”

She slapped his hand. “Oh yes. I do. And that’s why now we’re preoccupied with three little ones, my darling Christopher.” I heard children crying in the background. Elsa said a quick goodbye and ran off, and Chris followed suit so he could assist.

Tom put the laptop on the counter and pulled me to him, hands on my ass as he pressed me up against his crotch and rammed his tongue in my mouth, then backed away quickly, leaving me panting. “Well, I guess we should get going.”

I shot him a scathing look. “We should. But I have to pee first.” He walked out into the bedroom. As I sat on the toilet, I weighed my options for getting even. I mentally high fived myself as I pulled my underwear off over my feet and left them on the bathroom floor.

*************************************** We parked a block down from Talk Story, and I scouted ahead and left Tom in the Jeep. My gladiator sandals clicked on the sidewalk as I half-jogged to my destination, anxious to see if Alani was at the desk. She was, and I texted him to come on down. He ran to meet me, and I stopped him from holding the door for me and letting me go in first.

“Nope, you should be the first thing she sees.” I had my phone all ready to go in order to capture the moment, planning on sending her a copy as a keepsake. He walked through, and she looked up as the bell dinged to announce that someone had entered the store and the look on her face was one I knew I’d remember forever. He approached her, hand extended, and I was right behind him.

“Hello, Alani. I’m Tom.” She remained motionless. He turned to me. “This is Maude. We were here on Monday, and she told me that you’re a fan of my work and would perhaps enjoy meeting me.” She nodded, gingerly lifting her arm up but unable to make herself grab his hand. He took the initiative, holding it to his lips and kissing it demurely. She squealed, so high pitched I thought my ears might bleed. Four other girls came running out of the stacks, took one look at him, and began jumping up and down, screaming, phones in hand. I stopped filming so I could set the boundaries before any issues arose, stepping between them and Tom.

“Hi, ladies. I’m Maude, Tom’s social media manager. Let’s go over some ground rules, okay?” They lowered their phones and nodded. “Tom wants to be able to take pictures, sign for and chat with all of you, but in order for him to be able to do so you need to make sure you don’t post anything to social media until after we leave the premises. No texting or calling, either. If a crowd turns up, we’ll have to cut things short, and where’s the fun in that?”

A husky, bearded, bespectacled man came out from the stacks, wearing a white and green palm leaf print Hawaiian shirt and khaki hiking shorts. “Girls, what the heck is going on up here? Why all the screaming? You know people prefer quiet when they…” He stopped short when he saw Tom, his mouth dropping open, then quickly closing as he grew closer, hand proffered. I figured he was the owner, so I let him pass.

“Aloha, Mr. Hiddleston. I’m Roger Marshal, and Talk Story is my baby. I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate your stopping by again…the girls were so bummed when they learned they’d missed you on Monday.”

Tom shook his hand vigorously. “Thank you for having me. Your establishment is outstanding…I’m a bit of a bibliophile, and if I had my druthers I’d be perusing the shelves here for days on end. My apologies for dashing off so quickly when I was in last, but I had a prior obligation and thought it better to come back when I had more time to spend.” He turned to me. “This is Maude Gallagher, my social media manager.”

I offered my hand and he clasped it gently with one of his, then placed the other on top. “Maude, nice to meet you. Is there anything I can do to make this easier for you both?”

“Actually, would you happen to have a room available that’s a bit more private?”

He nodded, then turned his attention to the desk. “Sure thing. Alani, why don’t you show our guests to the staff lunch room?” Her eyes lit up, and the faces of the rest of the staff fell. “Girls, you go too. I’ll cover the desk.” They thanked him in unison between excited giggles.

I tried to hang back behind Tom, but he slowed and fell into step with me and slipped his arm around me, hand on my lower back, whispering in my ear. “The way you jumped in and took charge did…things…to me, Maude.” His let his hand glide lower and lower, halting when he reached the spot where the waistband of my underwear should be. He felt around with his fingers, over my hip, diving quickly down into the crease of my left buttock then back up to my waist, gripping me just a smidge too hard.

I met his gaze, noting his narrowed eyes and the way his tongue darted out over and over to lick his lips. I smirked and whispered back. “Gosh, I’m sorry. I forgot to mention that I’m not wearing any panties. They sorta fell off back at the house and are lying on the bathroom floor, all alone and unloved.” The hand on my waist began to shake as we reached the staff room and he began breathing deeply as he attempted to keep his shit together. And round two of Friday’s Titillation Tease goes to…me.

Tom spent nearly two hours taking selfies, videos, signing anything the girls could get their hands on, and answering their seemingly unlimited supply of questions. The giant cup of tea I’d had on the ride over had finally hit my bladder, and I excused myself and went off in search of the bathrooms. There was only a one, unisex, located all the way on the other side of the store, tucked into an alcove deep in the stacks. Nice and roomy, too. I envisioned Tom fucking me up against the wall, then scolded myself for my blatant lack of restraint as I texted him precisely what I’d been thinking while I walked back to the staff room.

Roger had come back to check on them, which Tom took as an indicator that it was time to wrap things up. He was hugging each of the girls goodbye in turn as they left the room, saving Alaini for last. She rested her head on his chest, facing me, and mouthed ‘he smells like a FOREST’ while hugging him tightly. Up until that moment, I hadn’t been sure whether she recognized me or not. She stepped back and looked at both of us.

“This has been, like, the best day of my life. I can never thank you enough.” Her eyes shone with tears. “Would it be okay if I took a picture of you guys together?”

I smiled. “Of course. But I think it would be better if you were in it, too.” We posed, and Tom held out her phone to get the shot. I was entering my Prosper email address into her phone so she could send me a copy and she was putting hers in mine so I could send her the video from earlier when she cleared her throat.

She looked up shyly. “Um, I don’t mean to be rude or get in your business or anything, but I was just, you know, wondering…” She swallowed. “Are you guys, like, a couple?”

Tom grinned. “Is it that obvious?”

Her brow furrowed. “Well, you know, I saw what you posted on Twitter yesterday and I was like, hmm, and I know you guys work together and now seeing you in person…yeah. It’s pretty obvious, I guess.”

Tom took my hand. “Yes, Alani. Maude isn’t just my social media manager…she’s my girlfriend as well. And can I let you in on a little secret?” She nodded, awestruck. “When you saw us here on Monday, that was the very first time we met. So you played a rather important role in what turned out to be the best day of my life so far.”

I kissed his cheek. “Mine too, Alani.”

Alani flopped onto the nearest chair, clutching her hands to her chest. “That. Is. So. Romantic.” She leapt back up and hugged me. “We all want him for ourselves, but if he has to be with someone else, I’m really glad it’s you.”

I patted her on the back. “Thank you. Hearing you say that means so much…honestly, I don’t have the words to express properly how it made me feel.” We let go of each other, and she made her way back to the desk.

I turned to Tom. “I need to hit the bathroom again before we head out.” He nodded and followed my lead. He didn’t mention my text, and I assumed he hadn’t read it yet. We didn’t see another soul on the way there, and the stacks outside the alcove were deserted as well. I recalled my vision of Tom fucking me against the bathroom wall and decided this was going to be my shining moment of public indecency. I opened the door, stepped in, then turned around to face him, left eyebrow raised.

“Want to join me?” I licked my lips. He barged past me into the bathroom, fingers already working to unbuckle his belt.

“I thought you’d never ask.” I locked the door, then did a 180. He held his fully engorged cock in his right hand, stroking it, catching any drips with his left. “I do believe I need to put this somewhere immediately so I don’t make a terrible mess on the floor.”

I bit my bottom lip as I tilted my head to the side. “I think I’ve got just the place for it.”

He ceased his stroking in order to back me up against the wall, growling in my ear. “Oh yes. You most certainly do.” He bent his knees as he lifted the front of my dress up to my waist, and I wrapped my leg around his, grinding my dripping pussy against him while I rubbed my clit. He groaned, and I slipped my glistening finger into his mouth. He sucked on it, and I felt the head of his cock at my entrance and his hands cupping my ass, his full weight on me, pressing me firmly against the cool tile.

He was panting. “Put your other leg around me and your arms around my neck.” I did the latter, but scoffed at the former.

“Um, there is no way in hell you’re going to be able to hold me up.”

He leaned forward to stare into my eyes, and his expression made me whimper. “Leg. Up. Now. Please.” As I complied he sheathed himself fully. I tried to bite back a ridiculously loud moan but was only partially successful. His mouth met mine, tongues dancing around each other. He pulled back.

“Maude, my apologies, but once I start moving I fear I’m going to last all of thirty seconds. If I’m fortunate.”

I clamped down on him. He began thrusting wildly, and I focused all my energy on not coming before he did. I was doing well until he started whispering in my ear using his Loki voice.

“Give in, mortal. Come for me. I know you’ve dreamed of this, me fucking into you for all I’m worth, you pinned against the wall, unable to sway those mesmerizing hips and have your way with me as you ride my cock to find your own selfish pleasure.”

He pounded into me, almost savagely, and as he felt my walls begin to flutter he put his hand over my mouth.

“Not. A. Sound.” I came, my scream trapped beneath his hand, the wet sounds of him moving in and out of me echoing eerily off the bathroom walls. “That’s it. Look at you, coming and coming all over my cock. So, so beautiful.”

He let his hand drop, and I could feel his thrusts becoming more erratic as I stared at him, his face red, jaw clenched, the veins on his neck standing out with his exertion. His head tipped back, fingers digging into the underside of my thighs, and his entire body shuddered as he orgasmed, come spurting hot inside me. I let my legs slide down one at a time, planting my feet as firmly as I possibly could despite the fact that they felt like they were made of Jell-O.

He rested his head on my shoulder, and I rubbed his back. “I guess this means you got my text after all.” I felt him nod. “Well, if this is what not wearing underwear gets me, I’m never putting on another fucking pair ever again.”

We both laughed, quickly cleaned ourselves up, and I peeked out the door to make sure the coast was clear. Still not a soul around, and we said a final goodbye to Alani on our way out and proceeded to walk back to the Jeep. We sat for a while, neither of us feeling quite capable of driving.

He leaned over to kiss me, hand on the back of my neck, grinning as he pulled away. “I’m famished. Want to grab something to eat before we head back?”

“You already know the answer to that.” I noticed the street getting a bit congested, a small pack of women heading in our direction and what appeared to be a local news crew up the road a bit…I pulled out my phone and checked Alani’s Twitter feed. She’d posted the photo of all of us.

Here’s me just a little while ago with Tom Hiddleston and his girlfriend, Maude. He smells like a pine forest, and she’s super nice. #bestdayever, #thankyoutomandmaude

I showed it to him. “I’m thinking maybe we should stop somewhere a little further down the road. You?”

He started the Jeep, put it in first and stalled it as he tried to pull away from the curb, and then again on his second try. He smiled at me sheepishly. “Perhaps you’d better drive.”

“Gee, ya think?” We got out and switched places. I shook my head. “What a newb.”

He crossed his arms. “I am not a newb. I’m just out of practice is all.”

I patted his thigh as we got to the highway. “Right. Rusty stick skills. I remember.”

He chortled. “Yours remain top notch though, my love.”

I smiled smugly. “They do, don’t they?”

He raised his index finger. “Although, technically, you didn’t actually make use of them this go round, did you?”

“I’ll make up for it next time.”

“I’m going to hold you to that.”

“Well I’d fucking hope you’d hold me to it. That’s the whole point.” I saw a McDonald’s sign in the distance. “Dude, I want some French fries in the WORST way. And a chocolate milkshake. You game?’

“I most certainly am.”

“If you behave I’ll let you have my cherry.”

“Bit late for that, isn’t it?”

“How rude.”

“Perhaps. But true.”

“Not entirely true.”

“What do you mean, not entirely true?”

I turned off the highway and into the parking lot. The drive through line was mobbed, but the lot itself was relatively empty. “I mean that the fact that it’s a bit late for you to have my cherry is only partially correct.”

He stared at me as I engaged the parking brake, puzzled, then shook his head. “I’m not following.”

The left corner of my mouth scrunched up in mock irritation. “Really? Are you sure?” He shrugged, palms up. “Think about all we’ve…done.”

“Maude.”

“Good. Now think about what we haven’t done.” I gave him a few moments to review, watching his face closely so I’d see it dawn on him. 3…2…1…aaaannndd there it was. His jaw slackened, hips lifting almost imperceptibly. “That’s right. I’ve played around, sure, but as far as actually having a cock in my ass…nope. Which means, technically, my anal cherry is still intact.”

He covered his face with his hands, groaning, but said nothing.

I went in for the kill. “So, Thomas…tell me. Would you like my cherry?”

Shaking his head, face still hidden, he spoke in a low voice. “Maude.” He paused, remaining silent for quite some time, seemingly avoiding my question. I wondered if I’d overstepped some sort of boundary, pushing him too far.

My mind was racing, and I frowned. “Wow. I’m really sorry, Tom.”

He uncovered his face to take my hand, gazing at me with eyes full of concern. “Whatever for?”

“Because I put you on the spot there and just assumed it’s something you’d want to participate in. I didn’t stop to think that it’s something that might not be up everyone’s alley.” I rolled my eyes. “That didn’t come out…shit…DAMN. Anyway, that was incredibly presumptuous and I apologize for letting myself get so carried away. Please don’t feel like it’s something you have to…”

He leaned in to kiss me forcefully, covering my entire mouth with his, tongue darting over my lips, then pulled away before I could fully engage. “May I answer your question now?”

I shook my head. “Tom, you don’t need…”

“I know I don’t need to, but I WANT to. My answer is, with undeniable certainty, yes. Please accept my apology for not answering straight away. I’m afraid I was too busy thinking about how deliciously tight you’re going to feel around me and then I remembered that you aren’t wearing panties and it was all I could do to stop myself from dragging you onto my lap and fucking you right here in the McDonald’s parking lot.”

His eyes met mine, nostrils flaring, pupils blown wide open. Never before had I been able to do this to a man, make him want me so desperately using nothing but words. He squeezed my hand.

“That you’d trust me with something so intimate, bequeathing me such a precious gift, wishing to share something that you’ve not yet experienced with another, is…I’m honored, humbled, awestruck…so very many things.” He smiled timidly. “I’ve never been someone’s first anything before.”

My brows shot up, but I managed to keep my mouth shut.

“Maude, there’s something I’d like to ask you, but…”

“Shoot.”

“All right. This may be terribly intrusive, and feel free to not answer it if you don’t feel comfortable doing so, but…knowing what I do about you, sexually, I’m…surprised…that you…erm, never…anyway, I suppose I’m just wondering why.”

I sighed. Good job, Maude. This is what you get for trying to be a seductress.

“Long story short, you’re only the fourth person I’ve been intimate with. The first two were before I was twenty and not even remotely interested in such a thing. By the third I was very interested, but things fell apart before it happened.” I put my arms on the steering wheel and rested my forehead on them for a moment, then raised my head and turned to him. I couldn’t quite read the expression on his face.

“Okay, I’m not sure if that look means ‘I didn’t need to hear that’ or ‘wow, only three, what a loser’.”

He shook his head. “It’s neither. Well, maybe a bit of the first one, because the idea of you being with someone else is much more unpleasant than I would have imagined, but…it was mostly surprise that such an incredibly beautiful, intelligent, hilarious woman wouldn’t have men lining up to be with her.”

“Thomas. Stop being so fucking wonderful, won’t you? Christ. There was no line, believe me. I’ve always been at least a little chubby, but after I moved to New York I put on a huge amount of weight. There are reasons for that, but that’s another story for another time. By 2003 I was tipping the scales at two hundred and forty-seven pounds. I’ve always been a confident person, and I honestly never cared what anyone else thought about the way I looked, but…you know what I’m getting at here, I think. In late 2008 I started feeling like shit, and Anne, who’d nearly died due to undiagnosed diabetes in 2003, pushed me to see a doctor. Sure enough, that was the problem. It was early, and resolvable with lifestyle modifications. So, I kicked myself in the ass, and over the next year I lost more than eighty pounds, and that was when I…a woman in her sexual prime, in the best shape of her life…met number three. God bless him…I was on a mission, making up for lost time and he could barely keep up with me. One time I actually thought he was going to need an ambulance…sheese, why I am telling you this? Yikes. Sorry. Lord knows I don’t want to hear anything like it from you.” I unbuckled my seat belt. “Let’s pretend this never happened and go get those milkshakes, m’kay?”

He grabbed my arm as I opened the door, and I turned to meet his gaze. “I…Maude…I just…you are…everything about you…” He shook his head. “I fall deeper in love with you with every passing moment.”

“Right back atcha, baby.” He laughed. “Yeah. No way I was going to try and out-eloquent you there. Waste of time and energy.”

We went inside, his arm around my shoulders, and ordered two Happy Meals when we saw the new toys were Minions. Neither of us could resist playing with them as we ate. Tom went back for a Big Mac and chicken nuggets, which I shared. He stuck his fingers in through the lid of my milkshake, deftly picking up the cherry and popping it in his mouth, a huge smile on his face.

We both used the bathroom, separately, and as we were walking back to the Jeep I heard the voice of a young boy.

“Mom, Mom! That man over there! That’s the man you’re always looking at on your computer!”

A woman replied to him. “Mason, what are you talking ab…?” And with that, I knew she’d seen Tom. I pulled at his shirt, and he looked down at me and nodded. We turned around and waved. The woman was about my age, maybe a little older, and she looked like she might die of embarrassment when she realized we’d overheard their conversation. Tom strode over, hand extended.

“Hi there. Tom Hiddleston. And you are?” She moved as if in a trance, hand out, and he grasped it gently and shook.

“I…uh…um…Sarah. I’m Sarah. And this is my son, Mason.”

Tom beamed and shook Mason’s hand as well. “Lovely to meet you both.”

Sarah reached into her purse, dug around and pulled out a Coriolanus program. She cleared her throat. “I heard that you’d be on the island and I’ve been carrying this with me, you know, just in case.”

He took it from her. “Were you in attendance?”

Mason piped up. “We flew all the way across two oceans so she could go see your show. I saw Big Ben. It was really cool.”

Sarah was bright red. “I saw it twice, actually, but didn’t have time to stay after.”

Tom pulled a sharpie out of his back pocket. “May I?”

She grinned. “Please do.” He signed his name, as well as a message. ‘Sorry to have missed you there, but better late than never. Glad to finally have met you. XO’”

As he handed it back to her he asked if she’d like a picture with him. He introduced us, and I volunteered to do the honors so Mason could squeeze in as well. I gave him my Minion to keep him occupied while I took some shots of just Sarah and Tom. He held it up to give it back to me when I handed Sarah back her phone.

“Nope, buddy, that’s yours now.” I held out my hand to Tom and he put his toy in it. “In fact, you can have Tom’s too. This way he gets to stay with his friend and won’t be lonely.” He thanked me so quietly I could barely hear him, eyes full of wonder at what to an adult was such a small gesture.

Tom hugged them both goodbye, and Sarah embraced me as well. She smiled at my surprise. “Thank you, both of you, so much.”

Tom put his arm around my waist as we walked the rest of the way back to the Jeep, placing a quick kiss on the top of my head.

“It is my personal opinion that you’re a much kinder, gentler person than you’d like everyone to believe.”

I sighed. “Yeah, yeah. And it’s all your fucking fault, too.”

#your light in the mist #chapter 11

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bhavael-song · 6 years ago

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[shore leave post] facing the past

Harry is seated on the bed of a nicely appointed room. As he hears the door open, he pushes the assorted brochures off of his lap and bounds towards the unsuspecting entrant. "Celes, remember that Thromboian stringed instrument I was telling you about? That I was regretting not getting? They have a similar one here, but it has recursive tuning abilities! I think I need it."

Not expecting him to move so quickly, Tal lets out a half-shriek when he catches her in a welcoming hug, one that soon turns to laughter at his enthusiasm. “Then you should definitely get it.” She squeezes him around the waist. “Though, you’re going to start running out of storage space in your spare closet unless this one compacts itself into a PADD-sized box like the Natimastean harp you showed me last week.”

"I'll figure something out. I know I've got a lot. It’s just that, music is important. Documenting the cultures we come across, finding similarities with our own," Harry says as the palms of his hands graze across her hips, "Finding common ground...it’s all a part of why I signed up for deep space missions."

Tal nods in agreement, ignoring the blush that heats her cheeks at his wandering hands. “The differences can also be quite fascinating to learn.” She momentarily frowns, then it fades. “At least when we find friendly people like the ones here on Laethea.”

"So far, so good. How was your evening?"

“Good. What time Mariah didn’t spend browsing for gifts for Swinn’s upcoming birthday, she spent taking photos of every type of plant that grows in the marketplace area. The Laethean shop owners were all very amused. She did have one man offer her some seeds for one of the flowers when she explained we have a hydroponics bay and like to get samples when we can. It sort of looks like it could be related to the flower that Kes a—noticed by the lagoon. Maybe it’s a domestic version of that flower. Anyway, he’ll have the seeds by morning, he told us.”

"Plants, music, they're two sides of the same coping, aren't they? But Celes," Harry's hand glide up her arms to rest on her shoulders, drawing her gaze to his. "How are you?"

“I’m okay.” Her slight frown returns, while her mind turns over why he would ask such a question. “Do I....look like I’m not?”

"No...you look as beautiful as our last shore leave, in that enchanted forest, but I've also come to know you well enough to know that your still waters run deep. You can talk to me. About anything."

So he did see me flinch at dinner. Damn it. Resisting the urge to silently curse her brother for bringing up the past, she sighs quietly. “I guess I do owe you an explanation about what happened earlier. I wanted to tell you about it anyway but—I wasn’t sure how.” She moves out of his arms, and towards the cloud-looking couch opposite the bed. “We’d better sit down. It’s....kind of a long story.”

Harry curses to himself and wished he'd been off the mark. How much more can she handle? As he sat on the couch, he resists the urge to take her hand in his.

Sitting beside him, Tal instinctively reaches for his hand again, needing the warmth of his touch to ground her. “It’s probably stupid but—it was the name of that person sitting behind us that startled me.” She shrugs but ignores the sting of humiliation that normally would have stopped her from saying more. “And my brother unthinkingly brought up in his last letter to me an encounter with someone I would have rather never thought about again. Eloser Layan. Layan was...well, we were almost engaged.”

He'd be lying if he said that the word hadn't surprised him.; but he'd been engaged himself. Libby had meant a great deal to Harry. But why had Celes never mentioned Layan to him before now? It didn't matter. All that mattered was that she was opening up to him. All he cared about was that she trusted him; with her heart and her past.

“We all grew up together, though he was Sovan’s friend exclusively when we were children. It wasn’t until our ih’tanu that Layan paid any attention to me. Any ih’tanu is a cause for celebration, of course. But, for twins, it can become a big deal. As we were the only twins in La’tai of our generation, almost everyone showed up for the gathering after the blessing at Temple—from our closest companions like Harti, Olata and our individual friends to total strangers from the far edges of the colony borders. The adults often encourage the guests of honor to speak of their intentions for the future and their adult lives ahead. Sovan just jumped right out and started talking; meanwhile, I couldn’t think of a thing. So when Olata finally asked me and I found myself having to come up with something, I said I was thinking of applying for Starfleet. And the minute I said it aloud, I realized that WAS what I wanted. The chance to learn and do more and perhaps bring something back to contribute to the community.”

She shrugs and shakes her head. “I don’t think anyone but Olata and my brother believed me. Layan certainly didn’t. We were together for nearly three years, and if Starfleet or the Federation was ever mentioned in our conversations, he would change the subject or get annoyed. I was young and stupid enough to assume that, if I could actually get into the Academy, he’d accept it and support me. I turned out to be wrong. Very wrong.”

Harry nods as half a dozen remembered conversations gain greater clarity. Reassurances provided, confidences boosted. How can she believe in herself when someone she cared for so deeply didn't? He remains silent, his thumb rubbing over her knuckle, urging her to continue.

“The Academy scouts received permission from the governing council of Resda to visit the colonies and they arrived in La’tai the day before my seventeenth birthday. I had the chance to speak with the sponsor, Commander Kuszewski, that morning and take the entrance exam. Layan and I snuck out that night to be together.” She blushes but ignores it. “We’d been sneaking around like that for a couple months and I know Harti and Olata knew exactly what we were up to, but all Harti said was to be cautious. I thought they meant getting boosters. Looking back, I think they realized what type of person Layan really was and was trying to warn me. But that night, he gave me the betrothal bracelet. And I went to bed that night happy, because I had a message on my personal comm from Commander Kuszewski saying I’d passed the exam and could sign up for the next year’s classes.”

“Harti, Olata and Sovan were surprised, but happy for me. Layan....was another story.” Her hand unconsciously tightens its grip slightly. “First, he laughed, not believing me. Then, he tried to tell me as his future wife, he wouldn’t allow it. I kept pushing back at him, and that’s when he lost his temper. He has always believed that the Federation’s lack of action meant they had just as much Bajoran blood on their hands as Cardassia did.” Her voice shakes at the memory. “He even accused me of betraying him, the memory of my parents, and my people. That’s when I slapped him and tried to walk away. He in turn grabbed me by the hair and threw me on the ground. For a minute, I feared his intent was rape but all he did was rip the bracelet off my arm, spit on me and storm out. Sovan found me an hour later like that.” Her vision blurs and she swipes at her eyes with her free hand. “He had it out with Layan the next evening and their friendship was over. He didn’t let me wallow either and even asked the commander if there was a way I could get in to an earlier class so I could get away from Layan. Luckily, there was a summer session and she was able to get me into it. I was in San Francisco a month later.”

“I haven’t even had a real relationship since then. There wasn’t anyone I felt I could trust that much....until you.” Her eyes lifted to his.

It was a lot for Harry to take in. But looking in her eyes, all he knew what how much he needed Celes in his life. He pulls her small frame into his arms, and rested her head on his chest. He tries to keep his breathing low and even and strong even as his blood boils at the thought of anyone treating her so callously and cruelly.

Feeling the tension he was obviously trying to hold back, Tal tries to control her own breathing despite the few tears that escape. Blinking them away, she rubs a hand along his arm. “Say what you need to, Harry. Don’t keep it in.”

"If I ever meet him, I'll kill him." Feeling Celes startle with surprise, Harry bends down to meet her mouth with a sweet kiss. "That is, of course, unless you would prefer to do it yourself." Another kiss seals the lighter moment, and its lingering touch restores solemnity. "Celes, I'm so sorry that you had to go through that. No one deserves that treatment, especially from someone they love. But, your past has made you stronger than you realize. You don't see it, but I do, and so does Seven, and Billy, and Captain Janeway. I love you, Celes, not just the person you want the world to see, but the person that I am so honored you let me meet."

Harry's words stun Tal. The declarations of love, she accepts and expects, but the idea that she possesses some great inner strength is a concept that's foreign to her. She swallows back the automatic denial and instead hugs him tightly. "Thank you," she whispers after several moments of silence. It seems inadequate to say just that but it's all she can think of.

His arms wrapped around her, Harry breathes her in. For so long, he was convinced he'd lost his chance, and now he regrets even more that he had let her go - that he let her think that maybe he didn't care - even if they had found their way back to each other. He understood so much more now. Releasing her from his arms, he lifts her chin to look in her eyes. "Celes, there is a lot in life we have zero control over. Like what astronomical anomaly will throw us off course, or what Neelix decides to serve for lunch. But I can tell you point blank, here and now, I will never do that to you. I can also tell you," Harry was suddenly aware that dinner was several hours in the past, "that I'm starving." Harry thumbs away a stray tear from Celes' face and tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Dipping his lips to hers, he whispers, "are you hungry too?"

Tal realizes that the tension she’d been carrying in her shoulders since she’d received her letter from home has suddenly vanished. Maybe forcing herself to face that particular boryhas of her past had been what she needed. Leaning forward that last inch, she presses her lips to his in a quick, tender kiss, then leaned her forehead against his. “I know you never would be so cruel. And as to your question....” Sneaking another quick kiss, she adds, “I wouldn’t say no to a second dessert before bed.”

"Tell you what, I'll load the file of local music I picked up and you grab some of that fruit over there." Harry stood and pulled Celes into his arms. With an easy spin, they dance across the room.

She laughs as he spins her round several times and finally has to beg him to stop when she grows dizzy. The next two hours is spent poring together over the pile of brochures while the soothing sounds of Laethean woodwinds provides a backdrop. Eventually the soft music begins to make Tal drowsy, but she does her best not to show it for as long as possible.

He could see her eyelids getting heavy. When her head begins to droop, Harry knows what he has to do. Scooping her off the low couch, Celes' weary head came to rest on his shoulder. He places her gently on the bed and starts to go through the motions of removing her shoes and making her comfortable. When he looks back up at her, he sees her sleepy smile and can't resist crawling up her form and peppering kisses on her arm, shoulder, collarbone, and ear. "We should rest," Harry whispers.

“’kay,” Tal mumbles, lifting an arm in a clumsy gesture to tug at his sleeve, then patting beside her. “But only ‘f you do too....”

Kicking off his boots, Harry lifts his legs onto the bed and makes himself cozy against Celes' side. Winding his arm around her waist, he finds himself suddenly exhausted. "Nothing on this planet could tear me away."

#Voyager RP #shore leave #different perspectives #talking it out #Tal faces ghosts of the past #and hopefully drives them away for good

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aarunomura · 7 years ago

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DEAR❤VOCALIST Wired 「Vocalists’ 4th CR-Sponsored Training Camp ＠GU・A・M!! ～The Complete Documented Coverage～」Part 1 (Translation)

This short story is一according to Climax Records’ Public Relations一a transcript of recorded footage of what went down at the boys’ training camp held during Golden Week last year. Since the main training camp went on for 3 days, this translation will be split into three parts. This first part will focus on Day 1.

Please do not re-translate or post this translation anywhere.

NOTE: I didn’t include every instance of sound effects/onomatopoeia. Because I’m not very good at translating/describing sfx, I felt that my descriptions of them would only make things sound too tautological (especially when the actions are already inferred from the dialogue) and interrupt the flow of conversation between the characters.

♢ Destination

United States of America, Guam. A 3 hr and 35-55 min direct flight from Japan, it is an island in the southernmost point of the Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. Ahead of Japan in time by 1 hour.

♢ Accommodation

HOTEL・GUAM REEF & COCONUTS SUPER RESORT

Room allocation is as follows, and no changes are allowed for any reason whatsoever.

Japanese Suite: President Panda Room 1111: Ciel Room 1112: CR’s PR Room 1010: Re-o-do & Joshua Room 1011: Judah & Momochi Room 1012: A’ & Yuu

※ Smoking is prohibited in all rooms.

♢ Day 1 Timetable

DEPARTING FROM NARITA　SPECIAL CHARTER FLIGHT　NIGHT FLIGHT

All entries below are in local time.

7:00 AM:

Everyone meets up in front of the hotel. Bus transfer.

※ As President Panda and Ciel will be engaging in business matters while playing golf, their plans all day are different from the others.

7:20 AM:

Arrive at private beach @ Hagåtña.

Objective: Aim to increase stamina through all kinds of beach activities.

※ BBQ will be prepared for lunch.

※ Smoking is prohibited at the beach.

6:00 PM:

Arrive at hotel.

7:00 PM:

Dinner.

※ Buffet at the hotel’s restaurant.

♢ DAY 1

@ IN FRONT OF HOTEL・GUAM REEF & COCONUTS・SUPER RESORT

───Late at night, the CR group arrived in Guam. Local time is 7 the next morning.

Ciel: ───Because of that, I will be with the President and playing golf. In the meantime, all of you will take part in the training camp program...

Re-o-do: ...I can’t do this, I’m sleepy. So sleepy... What time is it in Japan right now...?

Ciel: There's only an hour in time difference. In short, it is currently six in the morning in Japan.

Re-o-do: S-Six...? No wonder...

A’: Anyway, playing golf first thing in the morning after getting here... How much energy does that shitty Panda have www

Yuu: Well, Panda-san was apparently the only one in first-class. He must've been sound asleep on the plane, am I right?

Joshua: Heeh, first-class? As expected ♪

Judah: Hah? You've gotta be kidding me.

Momochi: You’re right... And yet we were on economy... Anyway, to be in the same hotel room as Judah-kun... There’s no way I can sleep...

A’: Eeeeehhh? And I have to be in the same room as Yuu-kun for three nights? No waaayyy.

Yuu: What's with that. It's not like I want to be in the same room as you. Why this idiot out of all people...

A’: Hah~~~?! Idiot~~~~?!?! Shut up, you! Anyway, what are you gonna do if I lose all my hair from the stress of being stuck with this guy who's like a nagging hag~~~~~?!?!?!

Yuu: Hah!? Who are you calling a nagging hag!!

Ciel: Oi, you lot. You’re being noisy. In any case, training camp has already started. Quit complaining and be serious about this...───Hmm?

Ciel: It appears the bus has arrived. Come now, everyone, get on.

Re-o-do: Where is it taking us this time?

Ciel: I hear that the place you’ll be going to is a private beach in the area of Hagåtña. President’s instruction for you all day today is to cultivate stamina so that you will be able to endure the menu that starts tomorrow.

Momochi: Stamina...? Letting us rest at the hotel would’ve be better then...

Yuu: I know right.

Joshua: A private beach, eh. I wonder what's there. I'm looking forward to it ♪

A': Maybe this means we get to do stuff like beach activities?! That means I’ve gotta try out everythingggg!

Yuu: Just how lively are you guys...

Judah: Anyway, I'm getting on the bus. It's so hot if I stand around here any longer, I'll die.

Re-o-do: ...True. We’ll be off then.

Ciel: Right. Good luck, everyone.

@ IN THE AREA OF HAGATNA・ON A CERTAIN PRIVATE BEACH

A’: We’re hereeeeee~~~~~~~~! THE・BEACH!!!!

Joshua: Hey, hey, A-tan. Look! There’s a banana boat over there!

A’: Yayah?! Then there’s no choice but to ride it, huh?! How ‘bout we all ride it together~~?!?!

Yuu: I am not getting on it. Anyway, are you really going to ride that when you just got here.

Momochi: I’ll pass as well... If I suddenly go into the water even when I’m sleep-derived, my legs will cramp up...

Judah: Anyway, don’t they have anything to drink around here. ...Oh. That thing over there—well if it isn’t a cooler box.

───*leaves*

Joshua: Ah, Judah-kun! ...He left.

Yuu: Hmm. That thing over there—could it be a BBQ set? So this means we can go ahead and grill and eat as we like?

Re-o-do: BBQ, huh. Somehow, that reminds me of the training camp at that deserted island...

Momochi: But since there are parasols and beach chairs here, I guess it isn’t that bad compared to that time~

Yuu: Well, this place does feel like a resort, more or less.

Momochi: In any case, I’m going to rest over there... If I don’t preserve my stamina at least during this time when President Panda isn’t here, my body won’t last.

Yuu: I also need to take some measures to prevent sunburn. At this rate, my skin will be in trouble.

───*leaves*

A’: Haaaaah? Why is everyone being such party poopers? Shitty Panda isn’t here either, and we get to play as much as we want~~~~

Re-o-do: ...Alright, this should do.

Joshua: Oh? Re-o-do-kun. That outfit...

A’: Th-The charismatic prince wearing flippers wwwwww Hold it, Joshua wwww Take a photo wwww You'll fetch a good price, selling it to Minettes wwwwwww

Joshua: Heeh, snorkling, eh. It does look like there would be fish around here.

Re-o-do: Right? Drawing experience from all the previous training camps, this time, I’ve brought something good from Japan.

Joshua: Something good?

Re-o-do: Of course, I'm talking about this...!

A’: HA wwwwww A disposable waterproof camera wwwwww Reo-sama wwwwww

Joshua: Waah. This is something you can take photos with in water as well, right?

Re-o-do: Yeah, that's right. As long as I have this, I can get by without bringing my smartphone to places where it’s at a risk of being submerged in water. Also, I can take photos of fish when underwater. Convenient, right?

Joshua: That's true! As expected of Re-o-do-kun!

Re-o-do: I'm off then. Just to warn you, you better not touch my smartphone. I’m leaving it in the shade of the tree over there... But do anything unnecessary and I’ll seriously kill you.

───*leaves*

A’: ...Saying that only makes you want to touch it, doesn’t it~?

Joshua: But I think he put a lock on it, you know? In the bus earlier, he also reverted his home screen to the default, and seemed to really be on his guard.

A’: Wait www How observant are you wwww Scaaary wwwww

Joshua: Eh? I just happened to catch sight of it, that’s all ♪ By the way, everyone has already gone off, but what now?

A’: Hmm~ We don’t have much choice so why don’t us two just play for now~?

Joshua: You’re right ♪ Then, what should we start with? Banana boat?

A’: That sounds good too but~~~~ Don’t you wanna jet ski? I actually researched about it in the plane but~ apparently you can ride one without a license in Guam~~~~

Joshua: Eh, sounds fun! Then let’s ride it right away!

@ IN THE AREA OF HAGATNA・ON A CERTAIN PRIVATE BEACH・IN THE SHADE OF A TREE

Yuu: Aaah, it’s still scorching hot even though I’m in the shade. The sunlight here really is on a completely different level from that in Japan.

Yuu: I need to put on some sunscreen before it’s too late. Sunscreen, sunscreen... Found it.

Yuu: Leaving that aside, “Cultivate stamina so that you will be able to endure the menu that starts from tomorrow.” ...What on earth are we going to be forced to do? I feel nothing but worried... *rubs sunscreen*

Judah: Who knows. Not me. Mm... *gulps down drink*

Yuu: Owah! How long have you been here for? Don’t scare me like that!

Judah: Hah? I was here first. You were the one who came up to me.

Yuu: ...Is that so. My apologies then.

Judah: Anyway, there’s nothing but juice and water in that cooler box. Are they tryna mess with me or what. Damn it... *rubs sunscreen*

Yuu: Heeh. So you also brought along sunscreen. *rubs sunscreen*

Judah: Something like that. The sun’s intense. *rubs sunscreen*

Yuu: ...? By the way, that’s the same one I have. You brought that along with you from Japan? You’re unusually well-prepared...───Hmm?

Yuu: Aah, I’ve already used this bottle up. Let’s see, the new one is...

───*rummages through bag*

Judah: Sunscreen made in Japan are the most effective was what the staff said earlier. *rubs sunscreen*

Yuu: Yeah, they aren’t wrong about that... Speaking of which, where’s my sunscreen? That’s odd. I could have sworn I brought it along...

───*rummages*

Judah: Where are you even looking at. There’s one right here.

Yuu: Aah, I see, I see. You own one... Hold it! Isn’t that mine?! Why are you using it without permission for?!

Judah: Don’t mind the minor details☆

Yuu: Of course I’d mind! Not to mention there’s absolutely none left! What am I going to do about tomorrow!! THIS IDIOT!!!!

@ IN THE AREA OF HAGATNA・ON A CERTAIN PRIVATE BEACH・IN THE SHADE OF A TREE A SHORT DISTANCE AWAY

“───WAAAAAH! GYAAAAAH!”

Momochi: ... Everyone sure is lively~... Ahaha...

Momochi: Well, on a different note... Time to take a bit of a nap while I still can...

Momochi: It’s a little stuffy, but it’s better than getting sunburn. If I get about two more towels...

Momochi: Alri~ght, perfect ♪ I applied sunscreen on my face and arms and legs so it’s all even.

Momochi: And with that, good ni~ght♥️

@ IN THE AREA OF HAGATNA・ON A CERTAIN PRIVATE BEACH・IN THE WATERS

Re-o-do: ───Puhah! Alright, I was able to get a good shot.

Re-o-do: If I show her these... I wonder if she’ll be happy. Since I want to surprise her, I might as well keep this a secret until I get back. Fufu... Fufufufufu...♥️

Re-o-do: Alright, let’s take a few more snaps. This time, a different group of fish...───Hmm?

───*reckless driving* *SPLASH SPLASH!!!!*

A’: Wait wwwwwwwww What is this wwwwww This is freaking fun thoughhh~~~wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

Joshua: A-tan! That was awesome just now! It was like you were drifting! Do it again!

A’: AAAAALRIIIIIGHHHHHHT! Make sure you don’t fall off YO!!!!!!

───*WHOOOOSH!!!!*

Re-o-do: Uwaah!

───*SPLAAAASHHH!*

Re-o-do: OI! CUT IT OUT! IT’S DANGEROUS!!!!

A’: HYUUUUUUUUU~~~~~~~~~~~~! THIS IS THE BEEEEEEEEST!!!!

Joshua: This is super fuuuun!!!!!! Hey, I’ll drive next!

A’: Very well! Squad member Joshua! We shall return to base for a brief moment~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

───*reckless driving* *SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH!!!!*

Re-o-do: ...They can’t hear me at all... Damn it, I’ll have to complain directly to them after this...

Re-o-do: Anyway, it isn’t the time for that. I need to quickly take photos of the fish...

Re-o-do: .........

Re-o-do: ───Puhah! The fish are all gone...

Re-o-do: Argh! Geez! This is all A’s and Joshua’s fault!

@ IN THE AREA OF HAGATNA・ON A CERTAIN PRIVATE BEACH・IN THE SHADE OF A TREE A SHORT DISTANCE AWAY

Re-o-do: ...Hah. I ended up not finding any fish... I absolutely won’t forgive those guys...

Re-o-do: Anyway, smart phone, smart phone... Ah. Found it.

Re-o-do: Ah! I just got a message! I need to reply to her ASAP. Fufu♥️

Re-o-do: Oh no. My screen got wet. Let’s see, my bath towel... Hm? It should be around here somewhere...───Hmm?

Momochi: Zz... Zz...

Re-o-do: ...Momochi? Is he asleep? And just how many bath towels is he using... It seems hot and stuffy just from the looks of it... Hm, ah!

Momochi: Zz... Zz...

Re-o-do: He’s got some nerve, using my bath towel as well... Oi, Momochi. Give that back.

Momochi: Zz... Nn, nn......... Mm...

Re-o-do: ...It’s no use. He’s fast asleep. Geez, I’ve got no choice... I’ll be taking this back.

───*yanks*

Re-o-do: ...Momochi?!

───*Thud!*

Momochi: N, nn......... Tch, what is it. That hurt...

Re-o-do: S-Sorry. I just wanted you to return my bath towel. I didn’t think you’d fall from the chair...

Momochi: .........

Re-o-do: ...Momochi?

Momochi: Zz... Zz...

Re-o-d-o: .........Are you sleeping?

Momochi: Zzz...

Re-o-do: ...That’s a relief. That was him sleep-talking earlier too then.

Re-o-do: Ah, she replied! This isn’t the time to be doing this.

@ IN THE AREA OF HAGATNA・ON A CERTAIN PRIVATE BEACH・IN THE SHADE OF A TREE A SHORT DISTANCE AWAY

───Evening.

Joshua: Momochi-kun, wake up. All of the meat will be gone.

Momochi: Un... Nn? Eh...? Ground...? Why am I face down...? Eh...?

Momochi: Did I fall from my chair while I was asleep...? And then I continued on sleeping...?

Joshua: You must’ve been awfully tired. Have you been sleeping the entire time...?

Momochi: Ahaha... Y-Yeah. I had only intended to take a bit of a nap, but it looks like it’s pretty much evening now, doesn’t it~?

Joshua: I see. Ah, right. Everything is all set up for the BBQ so I've come to get you. The person in charge said that they’ve started a charcoal fire and that all that’s left is for us to grill the food we like ♪ Come over quickly.

Momochi: Really? Thank you~♥️ I’m coming, I’m coming♥️

Joshua: Oh? Speaking of which, Momochi-kun. Is your back okay?

Momochi: Eh? Back? Now that you mention it, it does feel tingly...

Joshua: I mean, it’s all red, you know? You should quickly get it cooled down, I think.

Joshua: The sunlight here really is on a different level from that in Japan, isn’t it. I applied sunscreen, yet my shoulders have gotten pretty tan.

Momochi: Y-Yeah... That’s true. Since it’s Guam, right. Haha... Ahaha...

Momochi: *mumbles* Wait a minute... What condition is my back in right now? I need to cool it down immediately... This isn’t the time to be casually having BBQ...

Joshua: ...? Is something wrong?

Momochi: Nope? Nothing at a~ll♥️ Leaving that aside, look! It’s a beautiful sunset, don’t you think~!

Joshua: You’re right! As expected of Guam ♪

@ IN THE AREA OF HAGATNA・ON A CERTAIN PRIVATE BEACH・IN THE SHADE OF A TREE

───*Shup!*

Yuu: The meat just now should be just about cooked. Huh?

Judah: *chews* Mm, so good.

Yuu: OI! First my sunscreen, and now this! What’s your problem! How much longer are you going to keep on stealing other people’s things until you’re satisfied?!

Judah: Hah? Ain’t got a clue. Oh, this one’s also cooked.

───*swipes*

A’: AH! The meat I was raisingggg~~~~~~!!!!!!

Judah: *chews* Mm, so good. Those who don’t pay attention are at fault.

A’: HAAAH?!?! Just how self-centred are you~~~~~!!!!

Yuu: I know right!!!!

Joshua: Now now, you two. I’ll give you mine ♪

A’: Joshua, are you an angel~~~~~ Wait, HAH?! What the hell is this! It’s just veggies?!?! You tryna pick a fight with me!??!?!?!

Joshua: Eh? That wasn’t my intention though...

Yuu: I’ve had enough. I shall be cooking by myself while defending my portion. No one come near me please.

───*trudges off*

@ HOTEL・GUAM REEF & COCONUTS・SUPER RESORT・ROOM 1012

───That night...

Yuu: Hah... I’m glad the first day has safely gone by... But the problem is tomorrow...

A’: HYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!!!!!!

Yuu: SHUT UUUUUP!!!! What’s with you all of a sudden!!!!

A': DAAAAAAAAHHH! Yuu-kun!! The shower tried to kill meeeeeee!!!!

Yuu: Hold it, why are you coming out here naked! Do you want me to beat you up?!?!?! Anyway, saying that the shower's trying to kill you, what do you even mean by that!!!!!!

A': Isn't it obvious! The shower made a direct attack at my sunburnt skin! It hurts so much I could die!!!!!!

Yuu: How would I know?! It's your own fault for not putting on sunscreen! Anyway, if you're going to get out, then put some clothes on!

A': I'm not getting out ye~t! In fact, I'm just about to get in~~~~!

Yuu: Then why did you even bother getting out for?! Arghh, geez! Seriously can't believe I'm in the same room as that guy!!

@ HOTEL・GUAM REEF & COCONUTS・SUPER RESORT・ROOM 1010

Re-o-do: Fu... About the area that’s sunburnt... Like you said, Joshua, it feels a little better if I cool it. However, with normal water, it melts in an instant...

Joshua: Since there should be a convenience store downstairs, do you want me to go and buy something that will cool it?

Re-o-do: Are you sure?

Joshua: Yup, it’s fine. I was actually thinking of going to buy sunscreen for tomorrow anyway ♪ Ah, Re-o-do-kun, you also need sunscreen, right?

Re-o-do: Then, if you don’t mind, thanks. It’d be bad if I get sunburnt any further too.

Joshua: Okay ♪ Then I’ll buy the one that looks to be the most effective!

Re-o-do: ...Say, Joshua. You're a really good guy, huh.

Joshua: Eh, you think so? That makes me happy ♪ Anyway, I'm off, okay!

@ HOTEL・GUAM REEF & COCONUTS・SUPER RESORT・ROOM 1011

───*opens sliding glass door* *walking footsteps*

Momochi: Ahhh, it hurts... I won’t be able to sleep tonight like this...

───*rummages through pockets* *lights cigarette*

Momochi: It hurts just having my clothes brush against it so I definitely won't be able to lie on my back... *puffs*

※ NOTE: Smoking is prohibited in this room. (CR's Public Relations)

Momochi: Aaahh... I want to go home already... I can't sleep, there are barely any smoking areas, cigarettes are super expensive, and what's worse, I'm stuck in the same room as Judah... *puffs*

───*Zoom!* *Smack!*

Momochi: GYAH! THAT HUUUUURTSS~~~~~~~~!!!!!!

Judah: It fucking stinks!

Momochi: Even though I tried to be considerate by coming out here to the verandah, what's with that attitude?! I can't believe you'd throw a pillow at me out of nowhere! And at my back out of all places!!!!

Judah: Hah? You’ve got something on your back? Anyway, who cares about that, hurry up and open the windo—Owah!

Judah: Don't go throwing it back!!!

Momochi: You threw it at me first! Anyway... If you don’t want to be killed, then don’t touch my back ever again! Got it?!?!

Judah: Hah? I didn’t touch it. I only hit it with a pillow.

Momochi: Like I care about your hair-splitting! Aah, I'm seriously annoyed... *puffs*

Judah: ARGHH! I’m telling you! It stinks!!

───*SMASH! BANG! CRASH!*

To be continued: PART 2

#dear vocalist #dear vocalist wired #rejet #drama cd #short story #my translation #dearvo translations

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