#and I know it was sad but I laughed when Jake turned to brad saying 'who are you?!' (he forgot again)🙈

[merry-andrews]

Reblogging because I have lots of more pictures hehe;

Me also during reading story

Thank you @earthangel-44 for giving us this wonderful experience!! It was a wild ride full of emotions and I cried with them, laughed with them and fell in love with them💗💗💗🥰🥰 I didn't even know Notebook movie but after finishing the fic I went and googled it and God, I'm happy our boys got a happy ending!! Thank you THANK YOU thank you!! For everything💕 really💕💕💕💕

Ok so I finished read this awesome story! https ://archiveofourown.org/works/41322060💕 and I had to make a post about this amazing story!

[gryffindormarveltwilight]

All We Need - Part 7 - Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Reader

A/N: Sorry guys for the delay on this part. It is a bit shorter than usual and there will probably be 1 maybe 2 more parts to this series. I hope you enjoy it - as always feel free to send through requests or feedback.

A/N2: I have just reposted this it turns out some of the tags were not working so sorry to those who wanted to be tagged and weren't hopefully that is fixed now!!

MASTERLIST

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x Reader

Warnings: angst, fluff, spoilers for the mission in the movie, naval inaccuracies, alot of Rooster x reader giving sibling vibes

Sitting in my cabin on the carrier my leg was bouncing up and down it was only two hours until the mission took place. I hadn’t spoken to Jake since last night when I left him speechless on the couch and I had my dad pick me up early before anyone was awake leaving Daisy with a kiss on the forehead. Flashbacks to my conversation with Jake running through my head when the cabin door cracks open to reveal Bradley with a sad look.

“You okay in here Thena?”

“Brad, come in, yeah i am fine”

“Want to try that again?”

“Who told you?”

“Hangman actually, said something about a disagreement last night then said he hasn’t seen you since.” I nod lowly.

“It wasn’t a disagreement I just told him why I picked you and not him.”

“Ah yes he also mentioned that. You do know you are not replaceable to anyone especially not Jake and Daisy.”

“Did you just call him Jake?” Rooster cringed slightly with a laugh.

“That is beside the point, you aren’t. I know we haven’t spoken much since we got recalled but Athena you have to see what we all see, you are Daisy’s mother and Hangman is so in love with you.”

“And you are in love with Phoenix.” Rooster laughed and looked down at his hands.

“Yes I am, how about we make a deal, we both make it through this we tell Hangman and Phoenix how we feel.”

I laugh slightly “you know what, deal.”

“We are going to make it through this aren’t we?” Bradley ask in a sad voice.

“I am going to try my hardest to make sure you do.”

“I love you Y/N, we will get through this.”

“After all we have a few angels looking out for us, I love you too Bradley.” Bradley pulls me into a tight hug and kisses the top of my head before turning towards the door. 

“Bradley! When we are up there, Don’t think, Just do.” He nods and leaves my cabin. I fix up my uniform before grabbing my helmet and heading towards the flight deck, as I get there i can see everyone else next to their planes doing there checks, at the end i see Jake and Coyote getting there planes ready incase we need back up, Jake and I make eye contact, his eyes hold a sad look, I turn quickly to my plane starting to do the checks when i hear footsteps behind me. I turn to see Ice and Mav and Hondo standing there.

“Sirs, can I help you?” Ice doesn’t respond just give me a tight hug followed by mav and Hondo.

“Be safe and come home. We all love you.” Ice says and Mav nods before they turn around and head back to the control centre. 

“You have some people looking for advice Athena.” Hondo steps aside and I see Payback, Fanboy, Bob, Phoenix, Rooster, Coyote and finally Jake right at the back.

“Daggers, some of you may know but after this we are permanently becoming a squad, therefore whatever happens up there today, we stick together and we have each others backs to make sure everyone comes home. And if by some miracle we pull this off, beers are on me.” They all cheer at the laugh statement and start hugging each other. Phoenix and Bib hug me before we hear the announcement that we are to be taking off in less than 5 mins and that kills that laughter before we all look at each other before heading back to our planes. I climb into my jet Hondo following me up.

“I don’t like that look Athena.”

“Its the only one I have Hondo.”

“Mav only says that when he is about to do something dumb.” I laugh and so does he.

“Look after them Hondo, for me.”

“Always,” i nod it was one of the things i lkked about Hondo, he was a realist and never tried to pull the whole everyone will make it back speech. “you know everyone compares you to Ice but you really do have the best of your Dad, Ice and Mav, so fly like that today okay.” I nod as i start to close the canopy up.

“Dagger Three Up and ready” i hear Phoenix say through coms.

“Dagger Spare Up and ready.” Jake comes through next followed by Payback and Rooster. I take a deep breath.

“Dagger One, up and ready.”

“Daggers ready on catapult awaiting command approval.” I hear control centre thorough the comms, then we hear Cyclone.

“Send them.” With that we are launched off the carrier and get into formation, after descending below radar level, i give the all clear to release the tomahawks looking up as they fly above us. 

“Daggers into attack formation, enter point in Tminus 30secs, 2minute 30 second on the clock - entering now.” I press the timer on my dash as i hear the others confirm they have to as we enter the canyon. As we fly at pace I can hear in the comms that rooster is falling behind.

“Rooster you have to pick up the pace.” I yell into my comms

“Come on Dad talk to me.” As I am about to respond i bear Mav come through the comms.

“Come on kid, dont think just do.” Suddenly Rooster picks up the place as i fly under a bridge speaking into the comms to warn the others.

“You with me Phoenix?”

“Right behind you Athena.”

“Popping up in 10secs be ready on that laser Bob.” 

“All system check, Laser is a go.” Bob responds.

“Popping in 3,,,2,,,,1” i suddenly feel the force on my body as we pop up and level out heading towards the target, as Bob confirms he has a lock to the target  I drop my missiles and pull up on the joy stick, crushing weight of gravity as the G-Force gets stronger, i can hear the heavy breathing of Phoenix and Bob.

“Stay with me Phoenix, Rooster status.” I say through laboured breaths,

“Nearly there Athena. Fanboy have the laser ready.” I hear Bob yell that we had direct contact, simultaneously with Fanboy saying there is something wrong with the laser. He is going back and forth with Rooster until Rooster said he was dropping blind. I levelled out when i saw smoke in the air from the SAMs.

“Here they come guys, SMOKE IN THE AIR.!” I yell. With that chaos ensures everyone screaming at each other where the SAMs were coming from and what direction to break, i saw rooster with two SAMs behind him.

“Deploying counter-measures,,,SHIT I am out of flares.” I hear Roosters panicked voice through the comms.

“Rooster Evade Evade!” I yell back at him as i see he has come up behind me, without hesitation i pulled the throttle back soaring over the top of Roosters jet releasing the flares I had left before i felt an all too familiar jolt of a missile hitting the back of my jet and before i know it I am burning in plummeting towards the snow as I reach down below me and pull the ejection handle, quickly followed by the string to deploy my parachute before blacking out as i land in the snow.

Icemans POV

Everyone let out a sigh of relief when we heard through the radio the Rooster had hit the target. The mission had been successful. I hear Cyclone mutter under his breath now they just all had to get home. I looked at Maverick who look as nervous as i felt listening to our pilots yelling directions at each other in order to avoid the SAMs. I held my breath when I heard Rooster saying he was out of flares with two SAMs on his tail. I looked at Mav as we heard Athena yelling at him to evade, and i felt like i was about to pass out when Roosters voice came through the comms.

“ATHENA NO!!” Rooster screams

“D-dagger one is down” I hear Phoenix say her voice breaking slightly “I repeat dagger one is down”

I stumble backwards sitting down on the chair behind me looking at Maverick who has tears in his eyes, Hondo has his head in his hands and Cyclone and Warlock are speechless, before we can even really process one of the operates reports that there are bandits incoming, and Cyclone is telling them to come back to the carrier, like ringing in my eyes i can hear Rooster argue that they should go back for Athena and cyclone argues that they aren’t losing anyone else. A silent sob leaves my chest when i hear Jake through the comms

“Dagger Spare request permission to fly cover and search and rescue.” Hoarseness in his voice indicating that he too probably has tears streaming down his face like me and Mav who both are yet to say anything outloud.

Cyclone shakes his head at Jakes request. “Negative spare, daggers return to the carrier.”

“Sir, what about Athena.” Hondo says his voice slightly shaky.

“There is nothing we can do for her, not in goddamn F-18s” he shakes his head “I won’t lose anyone else today.” We all look down understanding his position.

“Rooster, don’t do it, she is gone.” We hear Phoenix over the radio.

“I am not loosing her, not today.”

“ROOSTER!!” We look at the screen to see Roosters jet going in another direction before hovering for a few seconds then disappeared on the screen much like Athena’s had done minutes before. Now Mav sat down next to me head in his hands.

“We certainly raised dumb stubborn kids.” I laugh slightly but can’t form a sentence, I pat Mav on the shoulder before walking out of the control room towards the flight deck. 

When I get to the flight deck I can see Jake sitting against the landing gear head in his hand and I go and sit next to him.

“We lost them both.” Jake looks up shocked.

“What do you mean both?”

“Rooster went down as well, I think he went back for her and got shot down.” Jake let out a sob as I wrapped my arms around him.

Y/Ns POV

I jolt awake in the cold snow and unclip my parachute before I turn around and hear the sound of a helicopter approaching. At first I thought that it may have been search and rescue then I saw their guns point towards me, without hesitation I start to run and I dive behind a log, accepting that this may very well be the end of me and I start to think of my parents, my dysfunctional aunts and uncles and finally Jake and Daisy and I smile at the thought they will be my last thought until I hear an explosion and look up to see that the helicopter is spinning out of control and there is one of our jets hovering, then I see smoke in the air and the jet tail is hit, I let go of the breath I was holding when I see a parachute land a few hundred meters away from me in the woods. I start sprinting towards where I saw the parachute land, as I get closer I see Rooster wrapping up his chute.

“Rooster, are you okay?”

“Athena, I am fine.”

“Good” I say as I shove him back into the snow. 

“What the hell Athena?”

“Me what the hell! You are meant to be back on the carrier by now Rooster what the hell were you thinking!”

“Mav taught us not to think, plus I made a promise to make sure you came home!”

“YOU WHAT! Who the hell made you promise that.” Rooster just raised his eyebrow at me “Jake of course, well news flash Rooster now we are both stuck!”

“They will send search and rescue.”

“No Rooster, they won’t, we have landed to far into enemy territory for them to risk it.”

“It is good to see you alive Athena.” “You too Rooster, you too.” I gave him a hug as I pull back I give him a look.

“I don’t like that look.”

“I think I have an idea, follow me.” After a walk we are perched on the top of a hill looking at the demolished airbase that our tomahawks took out earlier that day, I grab a mini telescope looking to see if there is any planes undamaged, “Bingo.”

“You have got to be shitting me Athena, a F-14”

“Hey Mav shot down 3 MIGs I one of those.”

“We don’t even know if that bag of ass can fly.”

“Only one way to find out.” I say as we start walking across the base towards the plane, Rooster pointing out people coming near us so we start to run to the plane. Once we get there I start explaining to Rooster what to do as I climb in the pilot seat, sighing with relief as it starts up and Rooster climbs into the back seat. 

“Do you even know how to fly this thing Athena.” “Rooster I knew how to fly one of these before I knew how to drive a car.” He just nodded as we got onto the taxi way, I look over to see the runway is completely destroyed, I start putting the wings out when I hear a panicked voice from behind.

“Why are the wings coming out Thena?” I ignore him as I push down on the throttle the plane speeding up as I do. I can hear Rooster stressing behind me. We gain speed quickly and just before the end of the taxi way i pull up of the throttle the plane jolting up along with it the landing clipping the ruin of a building snapping off.

“Get us in touch with the ship Rooster.”

“Any clue how to do that Athena?”

“Uhhh circuit breaker 2 I think.” 

“Thena there is over 300 switches back here”

“Figure it out Rooster it is in you blood.” I hear him mumble a complaint before his panicked voice breaks through again “tally two low Athena”

I tell Rooster to put down his visor and pull his mask up as the other planes pilot starts to make hand signals I barely recognise.

“What is your plan here Athena?”

“I don’t know yet, have you turned your beacon on?”

“Yeah I turned it on as soon as we were airborne.”

“I want you to punch out Rooster and then the ship will send search and rescue for you”

“And what about you huh? What are you going to do?”

“Rooster…”

“No Athena, if you think for one second that I am going to punch out and leave you to draw them away with a dog fight you are extremely wrong.”

“Rooster, you have to make it back.”

“Then do some of that pilot shit Athena, cause I am not leaving my sister to die up here.” I sigh heavily.

“Alright then, its a dogfight.”

Taglist:

@dory-98 @djs8891 @brooke-stinson @emma8895eb @a-court-of-roscoe-and-baby @itsdesiree86 @dempy @kmc1989

[jeni182]

Hi here's a prompt: Andrew keeps insisting it's 'nothing' right? So now Neil is hell bent on making him admit that it isn't, so he's trying various things to do so, including making him jealous.

First, I’m sorry this took so long! Second, I know this is probably not what you had in mind and I’m sorry for that. This is just where my mind took it, and I think I just didn’t want to see Neil making Andrew mad on purpose to get him to admit it bc I’m fragile okay I HOPE THIS IS FINE.

_________________________________

Andrew’s mouth was cold.

Usually, it was warm, and Neil knew it would warm up soon enough, but he’d been sucking on an ice cube right before they kissed, and Neil was enjoying the novelty of a cold mouth on his own.

They were at the Columbia house in their room, in their bed, in their feelings. Neil was, anyway. He suspected Andrew was too, but he’d never admit it.

That was the thing though, wasn’t it? They’d been doing this for a year now. They’d been together practically every second. They’d stood together and fought together and taken each other apart together, after slowly and carefully building trust bit by bit.

Neil pulled away from Andrew’s mouth, panting slightly. Andrew turned his attention to Neil’s neck instead, and he had to fight against the urge to close his eyes.

“Hey.” Andrew stopped and looked at him. “One of the soccer guys asked if you were my boyfriend.”

Andrew’s face didn’t change. “So?”

Neil shrugged. “I didn’t know what to tell him.”

“You? At a loss for words? Wonders never cease.” Andrew didn’t lean down to kiss Neil again, and Neil knew he wouldn’t. He’d wait until it was made clear that Neil wanted to keep going. He sat up instead. They faced each other on the bed and Neil looked down to the soft black blanket Andrew kept on it because he liked rubbing his feet against it at night.

“Seriously, though. What should I have said? Are we?”

“Are we what?”

“Boyfriends?”

Andrew tilted his head just slightly, his mouth turning down a bit at the corner. “No,” he finally said, and moved to leave the bed. Neil stood with him to stand in front of him.

“So, what then? It’s been a year Andrew. This is still nothing? This is still just a fun way for you to pass the time?” Neil hated the way he sounded. This wasn’t him. Whining and carrying on about labels. He didn’t even need a label, really. He just wanted Andrew to admit that yes this was something and yes Neil was something.

Andrew patted his pockets like he was looking for his cigarettes. “Fun is objective, don’t you think?”

Neil crossed his arms, clenched his jaw, and threw his cards on the table. “So, you’d be totally fine if I hooked up with someone else? Since this is nothing and I’m nothing?”

Andrew’s head snapped up and his gaze met Neil’s. He could see a muscle tic in Andrew’s jaw, but all he said was, “Do what you want.”

He left the room. Neil didn’t follow him.

****

They were quiet with each other after that. Still together, still connected. It was like Andrew was inside his own head constantly, but Neil didn’t mind. He didn’t really know what to say anyway. He was still thinking about it but pushing Andrew to admit something he wasn’t ready to didn’t seem like a good idea.

They were in the library one day, studying for midterms. Neil felt good about this, because Andrew despised the library and the fact that he was here at all was, Neil was pretty sure, just to be with him. They sat across from each other, both reading. Neil, a history textbook. Andrew, something that looked very unacademic.

Neil startled a little when someone slid into the seat next to his. He’d gotten too comfortable here, he thought for the millionth time. He was out of immediate danger, sure. But for how long?

He looked to the person next to him, and it was a guy he vaguely remembered from one of his math classes.

“Hey, Neil.”

Neil didn’t say anything. He looked at the guy confused. He didn’t know his name. Tad or Jake or Brad or something similar to the hundreds of other white guys at this school who all looked exactly the same to him. Brown hair, eyes, a nose maybe, taller, weakness is in their lack of speed.

Tad or Jake or Brad cleared his throat, eyes flicking to Andrew before landing back on Neil’s face. Neil looked at Andrew too, who was still staring at his book, eyes not moving.

“I just wondered if maybe you want to study together? This statistics final is gonna kill me, and I know you’re so good at this.” He flashed Neil a smile of straight white teeth.

Neil shrugged. “I guess, sure.” He needed to study, too, after all. He didn’t think he’d have a problem, but his scholarship was dependent on his grades and the last thing he needed was to risk it now that his choices were to go pro or die.

“Perfect. Here’s my number.” He reached over and used Neil’s pencil to write his number on the corner of his history textbook, which seemed unnecessarily rude. He squeezed Neil’s arm and left with one last glance at Andrew. Neil watched him leave before shrugging to himself and looking back down at his book. He could feel Andrew’s eyes burning a hole in the top of his head a minute later.

“What?” he asked, without looking up.

Andrew didn’t answer. Neil did look up at him then, confused. He was staring at Neil with his normal blank expression, but there was something about the tightness around his mouth, the slight narrowing of his eyes that Neil didn’t like.

“What’s wrong?”

Andrew stood, shoving his book in his bag and leaving the library without looking back. Neil started to follow him but stopped. Whatever Andrew was pissed about, he probably just wanted space to sort it out. Neil knew by now that bugging Andrew to talk was only more likely to send him deeper inside his shell. So, he stayed in his seat, wrote flashcards to study, and thought about Andrew the whole time.

He let him have until after dinner before he tracked him down to the roof. Andrew was there like he was always there. Sitting at the edge with his knees pulled up, arms circling them loosely. A bottle of vodka at his hip and the acrid scent of cigarettes on the air. Neil took a seat beside him and looked out over the glowing lights of campus.

Neil waited for Andrew to talk first. Whatever this was, he was here as silent support until otherwise requested.

“Did you set up your date?”

Neil looked at Andrew in surprise. “Date?”

“With statistics boy. He seemed awfully eager.” Andrew threw his cigarette off the side and immediately lit another one.

“You mean to study? No, that exam isn’t until next week.”

Andrew snorted. “Oh, Neil. You can’t be this clueless. Don’t think I didn’t notice that you mention hooking up with other people and then you agree to study with a guy who looks at you like he’s already fucked you.”

Neil’s hackles rose immediately. “I seem to remember you telling me to do what I want. Or did I hear that wrong?”

Andrew threw the new cigarette off the edge, too. Even though it was only half spent. “No, you didn’t.”

“Then why are you complaining?”

Andrew took a swig of the vodka in answer, and Neil grabbed it from him before he could take another.

“I don’t plan on hooking up with anyone else. I don’t want to hook up with anyone else. I still don’t swing for anyone but you, in case you’ve forgotten. That guy was asking me to study, and I agreed. I’m not going to manipulate you into admitting that there’s something here by fucking someone else. If you really think I’d do that, you don’t know me at fucking all which is a shame, because I know you, Andrew.”

Andrew laughed with no humor. It was sad, and Neil thought maybe a little broken. “You don’t know me.” Neil’s chest tightened to the point of pain. Because he did know him. He knew this man, knew him better than he knew himself sometimes.

“Yeah?” Neil leaned into Andrew’s space and Andrew did not lean away. “I know you’re afraid of heights, and you’re afraid of me. I know you think as soon as you admit to yourself - to me - that this isn’t just two guys getting off together, it becomes real. It’s one more thing for you to lose in a life where you’ve lost so fucking much. It’s one more thing someone can hold against you when they want to hurt you again.” Neil leaned closer, and not getting any resistance from Andrew, he placed a kiss on his neck. Andrew shivered. “I know you’ve never had this, because I’ve never had it either. And I know it’s scary, because I’m scared too. But Andrew,” Neil sighed and leaned back again, “I’ve been nothing my entire life. I still feel like nothing sometimes. You are my something, and the fact that you also think I’m nothing is fucking soul crushing sometimes. As much as you don’t want to hear it, you are everything.”

Andrew looked from Neil to campus, and Neil watched his throat work as he swallowed hard. He closed his eyes before looking back to Neil.

“Are you going to study with that guy?”

“Not if you don’t want me to.” Neil honestly didn’t know if the guy was flirting, but if it was something Andrew took this seriously, he would take it seriously, too.

“I don’t want you to.” He took out his pack of cigarettes but didn’t light another one. He just flipped it over and over in his hands.

“Why?” Neil couldn’t help but ask.

Andrew looked at him, pale and washed out from the artificial lights, but eyes still bright as they landed on his.

“Because you are everything, too.”

 AO3

[gyllenhaalstories]

imagine taking rapper jake home to meet your parents.

i’m so sorry for the delay, anon! <3 buckle up, it got long and i’m emo!!!!! lil jakey jakes meeting your parents was not something i thought i’d cry about right now but here i am. i listened to nothing’s gonna hurt you baby by cigarettes after sex if you want to vibe with me!

<3

jake swore he was about to shit his pants when you reminded him of the dinner with your parents.

he ran all over his house, searching for nothing and everything at oncel. one second it was his tie, the next his phone and after that his keys. he was just so terrified. he wanted to leave a good impression.

he dressed up like he was going to the oscars. he put on a suit, a new one he got tailored to his body just for the occasion. he covered all of his tattoos, with those long sleeves. he hid his chain under the color of the shirt you buttoned lovingly. he went to the barbershop too, he got a fresh cut and his beard neat. he looked like a movie star and even if this was not the man with whom you fell in love, you still loved this new persona.

“you’re so stressed that i’m stressed” you’d scream at him while he paced around the bedroom as you put on a simple outfit, some jeans and a button up shirt too. dresses felt too formal. it was your parents, not the pope. “we’re not going. i’m calling them and i’ll say i’m sick”.

jake stopped moving and protested. “if i wanna ask your father for your hand, i better know how he looks like first. if he likes golf, i’m out”.

the joke was unexpected, but it made both of you laugh. he kept bringing up marriage. it was like a running gag, but it felt more and more real. one day you would be called mrs gyllenhaal. and this day would not happen if you died from a heart attack because you couldn’t face the judgement of your parents.

so jake waited for you in the car. he picked a black jaguar, he didn’t want to be too obnoxious. he had the head lights shining bright and blinked them so you pretended to walk like a model and twirl in front of the car before you sat on the passenger seat. “so fuckin’ gorgeous.” jake said and noticed you, too, wore the chain he got you for your birthday. he stretched his arm out to play with it lightly and then proceeded to drive to your parents’ house.

he stopped in the drive way. it was a tiny home, very old with a bunch of flower pots that were wrapped up for the winter. it was lovely already. jake stopped the car and took deep breaths.

“you sound like you’re about to get into labor”

“it’s a neat trick you’ll have to try it”

and you both breathed fast like two freaks in the car while the music was playing in the background. some U2 song. it calmed the two of you down. when you got out of the car, jake immediately grabbed your hand. he needed the comfort.

you were about to ring the door bell when your mother slammed the door open and wrapped you in a tight hug.

jake smiled and looked behind her. he waved at your father.

“mom, dad, this is my boyfriend, jake. jake, this is my mom and dad.”

“hi mom, hi dad” jake replied and it made the two of them laugh.

jake wanted to bring champagne and flowers, but you convinced him to not do too much. your parents were simple people. they would be happy as long as jake didn’t tease you from under the table (the jeans were definitely a good option) or mentioned politics. 

“our daughter has told us a lot about you” your mother said “yeah, we heard you are a singer? isn’t that the dream” your father added

“yeah.” jake smiled awkwardly and took a sip from the glass of water you both shared. you were sitting on his lap, on the love seat of the small living room. your parents asked him tons of questions. he answered them genuinely. he asked them questions too. he was relieved to find out your father preferred hockey to golf.

you sat around the table. it was weird that the fourth chair of the dining table was finally used.

none of your previous relationships lasted long enough to reach this level of intimacy. sex was one thing, but meeting your parents? that was a HUGE deal.

jake behaved like the best man in the world. he complimented the food. it was just simple spaghetti and storebought garlic bread. but it tasted like love and home. he asked for two other plates. your mom even reached to wipe his chin from the tomato sauce.

it filled him with joy. he had a tough relationship with his own family and he felt like he fit right in with yours.

you watched jake with heart eyes. he was so happy to explain his art and craft to your father who kept asking him if he had met blake shelton or the backstreet boys. you know, hip people. jake laughed and shook his head. he didn’t bother explaining that he sang about filthy things the two of you did. he was happy they considered his job as valid. he was not a carpenter or a doctor. but he was happy to spoil you nonetheless.

“you’re doing great” you’d whisper to jake.

everything was fine. until your mom pulled out the baby photos albums. THE SHAME.

“look at that tiny baby booty!” jake pointed and melted. “toohtless! that gums only look, can’t wait to see it again when we’re old and grumpy.” he pulled out a photo. you were wearing matching ugly yellow zipped hoodie and plaid pants. you were holding a teddy bear of the same colour as the one he got you for your birthday. behind the photography it was written happy y/n at the park with her best friend. he asked if he could keep it. your parents agreed. (it was his phone home screen from now on, your lock screen being a post sex glow photo when he could see a tiny drop of cum at the corner of your eye, it was still cute to him). “so she’s always been bad at cooking?” he said and laughed when you found a picture of you and your grandparents where you held a plate of burnt cookies. “hey, not cool! i was only seven!” you pushed him gently. “look at you now, you burn bread in the toaster”. your parents were the ones who melted now.

“so, jacob...”

jake insisted that it was fine your father called him by his full name.

the two of you were so stressed out. the tone of your father’s voice was suddenly heavy and scary.

“yeah?”

“does it hurt to get tattoos?”

jake squinted and you coughed loud enough to cover the whispered what the fuck that came out of his open mouth. his sleeves were rolled up and exposing the ink. “i mean, yeah, it hurts a lot. it’s worth it though. i feel like an art collector.”

“in my young days, i’ve always wanted a tattoo. i got the concept. this lovely lady as a pin up girl, quite impressive, huh?.” he winked at your mom who blushed while you tried everything you could not to throw up.

jake rolled his sleeve a little higher and pointed at a spot near the veins of the inside of his arm, close to the elbow. he got the outline of a heart tattooed. you noticed how wobbly the lines were, that’s because it was the heart you always drew at the end of your notes that you left him when you were gone or when he was out working. “that’s my favourite.”

THE WAY YOU JUST BURST INTO TEARS and your mom shouted “time for dessert!”

great timing.

“our daughter told us you loved m&m’s”.

jake turned to look at you. you shrugged.

your mother came back with chocolate cake on which she had sprinked crushed m&m pieces on the frosting.

jake asked to get the biggest slice. “that’s the best fuckin’ cake i’ve had in my whole life.” (which was a lie because the best cake was your ass but details) he said, his mouth full. your mother laughed and your father agreed. they began talking about hockey when your mother asked for your help in the kitchen.

“if we learned anything from you,” she started and handed you a plate to dry. you hated to do the dishes, especially if you were to be lectured like a child. “it’s to never judge people by their covers. we love jake. he’s good to you. you’re good to him.”

you hugged your mom and the two of you cried so loudly that jake dropped his spoon. he thought something bad happened. that you cut yourself with the butter knife or something.

“welcome to the family, jake.” your father squeezed jake’s shoulder as you walked back to him to press a kiss on his cheek.

it was now time to leave, after hours and hours of anecdotes from your childhood or from the time you were convinced you’d marry brad pitt or when you put eyeshadow in your hair to act like you dyed them to be punk but it was raining that day and you came back looking like a sad frosty rainbow.

“you’re my favourite person.” jake told you when he gave you his vest as a coat. it was chilly outside.

you all hugged and shook hands, promising to come back soon for brunch. jake told them he’d make his famous pancakes.

“hold on!” jake exclaimed and pulled you by the arm. you followed him back in the kitchen and he fed you a spoon of the cake. you fed him one in return again. “tastes almost as good as your pussy” he whispered in your ear and kissed your chocolate covered lips.

you finally left the house, waving from the car at your parents who stood on the porch. they seemed satisfied. and you? you had never been more in love.

“can’t wait to rip those tight jeans off your body and fuck you like a bitch.” jake winked and started to drive away. “i’m looking forward to the toothless viagra boosted blowjobs too, that’s gonna feel divine.” 

you slapped his thigh and he moaned in pain. you rested your hand there and he brought it to his lips, planting a soft kiss.

“welcome to the family.” you repeated.

[amyscascadingtabs]

all the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

read on ao3

(jake's internal monologue in the scene™️ from manhunter. that's it.)

Amy doesn’t seem to agree with him about Brad Pitt being Jake’s natural replacement in the upcoming action movie he’s sure they’re going to make about today’s epic manhunt, and, frankly, it offends him a little. He’s gotten pretty buff lately, thanks to the occasional visit to the precinct gym and the fact that his best pizza place closed for renovations. Pitt would totally be the logical choice.

 But then she mentions another thing happening today, and he can tell she’s nervous. It’s in the higher tone of her voice, the way her expression turns all weighty like she’s confessing something, and she says the words I thought I might be pregnant and a multitude of thoughts fire through his head at once.

First, there’s shock. Out of all the things he might have expected her to say, pregnant was not among them. He feels guilty for it throwing him off like that, but he conceals it.

There’s not fear, exactly, but there’s a bit of apprehension. If she’s pregnant that means they’re doing this, no take-backs, and if they’re doing this, he has to be ready. Kids are definite, kids aren’t something you change your mind about if you as much as vaguely care about being a parent, and there are nervous butterflies in his stomach as he quickly puts his phone away.

 “Really?”

“Yeah. I’m not,” she assures him, saying the words in a rush before explaining about her period and the failed pregnancy test. It’s clearly the water’s fault, which, it should be obvious. Water ruins everything. He makes a joke to mask the odd feeling of disappointment he can’t explain even to himself, but she doesn’t play along, just reminds him of the actual matter at hand, which makes him shift into a worried mode. Whatever his feelings about this might be, hers are more important right now, and she doesn’t look sad but she looks let down in a sense that makes him wonder. He asks, and she launches into an explanation of how she was stressed, how it wouldn’t have agreed with the careful plan they’ve made, and then she says that it would’ve been crazy, right?

 It would be crazy. It would be absolutely insane. It would go against their official agreement of waiting another year, and they even wrote that down to have proof of the decision. A year is a long time, and he was sure it would be long enough for him to feel certain before they started trying. He thought he would have longer. He’s made massive strides of progress in his mental journey towards feeling like he might not completely ruin a child, but there’s still such a long list of things he doesn’t know if he’s ready for, just yet.

“It would have been,” he agrees, and she says okay in this voice that sounds of reluctant acceptance and awakens another stream of thoughts for him, one going in a very different direction.

 He’s accepted that maybe he’s always going to be that little bit scared of fatherhood, that his fear doesn’t have to be an entirely negative thing. Being scared means he cares about whether he fucks up or not and that distinction already sets him apart from Roger Peralta. He still wants to be ready, desperately doesn’t want to bring a child into this world if it’s not one-hundred percent wanted and welcomed.

 At the same time, the longer he goes, the more he sees that it doesn’t seem like anyone is ever fully ready to have kids. They met the newest Santiago baby a couple of weekends ago. Her parents looked like they hadn’t slept in months, and they still seemed fully mesmerized by their daughter. It was like they were zombies, but also fully in a trance, and they wouldn’t stop talking about how parenting was so different from what they thought it’d be and it was worse but it was also better.

 Recently, Jake’s had this new feeling washing over him at seemingly random times, and it’s unlike anything he’s ever felt but it’s not unpleasant. It happened when he watched Amy hold her youngest niece and the baby looked so at home in her arms, so right, that suddenly he was picturing her holding their future kid and getting emotional at the thought. It was there when it was his turn to hold her, too, although that was much more terrifying because Camila was giving him scrutinizing looks throughout. It’s come to him as he’s walked past a display of baby clothes while out shopping, making him wonder how small a pair of socks really can be, and whether it would be crazy of him to buy a pair now and save them. There are these moments when he sees a couple out walking with a stroller, and the thought of that being him and Amy doesn’t paralyze him with fear anymore. It makes him excited.

It doesn’t matter, because she’s not pregnant, but he realizes that if she’d said she was, he wouldn’t have panicked. He would have been happy, and it’s a novel kind of sensation but he likes it.

 “But also,” he says, speaking the words out loud which have been slowly taking shape inside his head for the last months, “might’ve been… kind of cool.”

“Honestly? I was secretly bummed when the test came back negative.”

 It’s a spontaneous thought, but at the same time, it’s not spontaneous at all. It’s been there for a while, growing on him with the persistence and security of something permanent, vaguely reminding him of the feeling he got that evening of April 28th, 2017, when he knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Amy. It’s different, still containing a small dose of fear he’ll have to learn how to live with, but it’s safe and it’s unwavering and it keeps growing stronger.

 He shrugs, even though this is as far from casual as it gets, and then he asks,

“Should we just start trying?”

“Seriously?”

 He’s serious. Amy looks relieved, or maybe it’s surprise, maybe it’s a combination of the two. She laughs - that subtle little laugh, it’s one of the cutest things she does, he should tell her that more often - and then her hand is on his cheek and she’s kissing him something soft and light and yet with all the meaning of a thousand declarations of love.

 Her forehead rests against his for a second after, her nose softly rubbing against his, and he’s holding onto her wrist as she laughs again and he thinks, not for the first time, that his wife is magic.

 After the whole news fiasco, they cuddle. Even though he’s feeling pretty sorry for himself, because come on, he lets Amy be the little spoon since she’s on her period and she’s had a long day and also, he just really wants to hug her. The television stays on for a while, playing a segment about the weather on low volume.

 Jake wonders quietly to himself around which age their kids would be old enough to start watching cartoons. He imagines them creeping into their bed early on a Saturday morning, making space between him and Amy to make sure they're the center of attention before asking to turn on the TV. He knows kids shouldn't have too much screen time, but he could never tell them no if they wanted to watch Ninja Turtles with him. He also can't remember if you're supposed to allow your kids in your bed or not. He might be thinking of dogs. It doesn't matter, because Jake wouldn't be able to stop them. Most likely he’d be longing for a chance to snuggle them anyway, pepper their sweet little faces with kisses the way he does with Amy sometimes, until they started complaining.

Jake decides that his kids will always be welcome in their bed, and always be allowed to watch cartoons there. It feels right.

Amy turns off the television. They both turn out the light from the nightstands, and he hugs her even closer because she's warm and she smells good and god, he loves her so much. She's not pregnant, but maybe one day in the near future, she will be, and the thought makes him feel all warm inside.

 He brushes his hand over her stomach through her pink t-shirt. Someday soon, she'll be growing their child there, and one day, he’ll get to feel them kick underneath his hands. Maybe they’ll recognize his voice the way he's learned that babies can do already before they're born, or maybe he’ll play them Taylor Swift songs so they’re familiar with the greatest songwriter of all time at a young age. One day, and maybe it’s closer than he could guess, he’ll get to hold them in his arms for the very first time.

 He can't even picture what it will feel like, but he presses another kiss to Amy’s cheek before closing his eyes, and he knows he can’t wait to find out.

[iamnotoriginalphil]

Lying is the Most Fun (Loki x f!Reader) - Part 8

Synopsis: It’s time to face the music back home.

Words: 1615

Warnings: none

**GIF not mine**

You rested your head on Loki’s shoulder, your arms wrapped around his neck, swaying to the beat of the music. He was humming along, a surprise given you thought this was a pretty recent song in Earth’s history. You didn’t expect Loki to know any chart topping songs from the last year. His arms were tight around your waist as he led you.

It had been a beautiful wedding. Your sister had been radiant, Brad looking handsome in his suit, and Jake had managed to not be such a showboat for the ceremony. You had cried. You’d admit it. You weren’t ashamed.

You’d found Loki sitting with your mother. You’d never seen him look so handsome in a suit and tie. He’d smiled at you when your eyes had met as you walked down the aisle. You hadn’t seen him all morning, spending your time with the rest of the bridal party getting ready.

Now, with all the speeches done, and the first dance out of the way, you were refusing to move out of Loki’s arms. Tomorrow you would have to return to your daily lives, and you’d have to explain to your bosses about this change in your relationship. But tonight, you could forget there was anything other than this going on. Tonight, you were just a normal person at your sister’s wedding, enjoying the company of the man you were falling in love with.

“Loki?”

He stopped humming, looking down at you. You lent back to better look at him. He was smiling.

“Yes, my love?”

“Can we stay in this moment forever?”

“Whatever you wish.”

He twirled you under his arm then drew you back to his body. He lent down, capturing your lips with his. You sighed into the kiss, relaxing against him. He drew back but you kept your eyes closed, trying to follow him. He chuckled.

“Love,” he murmured.

You hummed, blinking your eyes open. He cupped your cheeks, running his thumb over your cheekbone. You wondered if you looked as happy as you felt.

“We are going to have to discuss what happens tomorrow,” he said.

“Can’t we just keep ignoring it? Just for a while longer?”

“One more dance.”

You rested your head on his shoulder, listening to the music. He wrapped his arms around you again, tight enough to have your body pressed against his. He began humming along to the violins again, the melody soft in your ear. You smiled.

________********^********________

You sat in the chair, your leg bobbing a mile a minute as you ran your fingers over your palm. Loki was sitting across from, looking bored. He was looking right into the camera in the corner as if he were on the Office. You knew his exterior was often a mask for the emotions going on beneath the surface, but you would have appreciated him looking even a little unsure about the coming meeting. You’d never seen him look so calm.

The door opened, the hinges squeaking. You looked up from your hunched over position, letting your hands fall. You found your boss staring down at you. You sighed, standing up, following as he held the door open for you.

You sunk into the comfortable chair, crossing one leg over the other. You pushed your hands under your thighs, hoping to keep them still for the coming interview.

“What the fuck am I meant to make of this?”

You squeezed your eyes shut, taking in a deep breath. You opened them again, your superior officer’s face tight with what you assumed was anger. You could understand why he felt that way. You would if you were in that position.

“Seriously (Y/N), what the fuck is this?”

“It’s all there,” you said, “I tried to make it as clear as possible,”

“Am I supposed to believe that you have fallen in love with a homicidal demigod from Asgard?” he demanded.

“I don’t think he’s homicidal,” you said, “just bored, and… sad.”

“You’re off this assignment,” he said, leaning over the desk towards you.

“I know.”

“And don’t think you’ll be able to see him.”

“I assumed as much.”

“Not until we can ascertain whether he has used his magic on you.”

“If he had letting me file a report was a stupid mistake on his part. If he was hoping that I’d let him go then this was a sure fire way of making that never happen.”

“Loki is many things but not stupid.”

“Exactly.”

He considered you before sighing and dropping into his chair. You watched him run his fingers through his hair. You waited, knowing he needed time to process.

“How did this happen?” he asked.

“I asked you not to send him with me,” you said, “but when you’re pretending sometimes it becomes too real.”

“You can’t seriously be blaming me for this.”

“No, I’m just explaining the catalyst,” you replied, “but there are days when he is the only person I see. And you know when you spend so much time with another person sometimes these things happen. This can’t be the first time you’ve seen this.”

“Sure, but usually between recruits working undercover or in a team. Not whatever this is.”

“I can’t help it, Sir. I understand if you never want me to see him again.”

He buried his head in his hands. You lent back, knowing you might be fired for this. People had been fired for less.

“You are so fucking lucky.”

You opened your mouth to say something, but nothing came out. He looked up at you, shaking his head as if you had managed to slip out of a very tight spot through sheer dumb luck.

“Aren’t you going to ask why?”

“Why Sir?”

“Because two days ago I was sent an order to release Loki,” he said, “I suppose his good behaviour convinced one of the higher ups to let him out. A car is coming to pick him up in an hour. He’s being sent to the Avengers.”

“Of course he is.”

“And unless you’re a smartass I’m going to be sending you to the base there.”

“Why?

“Because you’re our best agent to handle him should something go wrong.”

“So I’m not in trouble?”

“I wouldn’t say that,” he said, giving you a small smile, “you’re going to be working as Loki’s handler in the Avenger’s Institute. I wouldn’t say that’s getting away scot free.”

You laughed, relief flooding your body. You got up from your chair, shooting him a smile. He gave you an answering smile.

“Go put his mind at ease.”

“Thank you, Sir. Thank you.”

You pulled the door open. Loki inclined his head towards you, but otherwise showed no sign he’d noticed you. You grabbed his hand pulling him to his feet. He quirked an eyebrow at you but otherwise said nothing.

“Come on, you have some packing to do.”

“Some packing?”

“You’re getting out of here. And so am I,” you said, “you’re being let go.”

“I’m what?”

“The higher ups are giving you back your freedom. You must have been real nice at some point.”

“I’m being released?”

“You’re being released.”

He picked you up, swinging you around. Your shriek morphed into a laugh as he hugged you tight. He lowered you back to the floor, kissing you deeply. Your laughter was muffled but you couldn’t stop.

“I do not wish to take anything. Let us leave now,” he said when he’d released you.

“A car is going to be sent for you. It’s gonna take us to the Avenger’s Institute.”

“What?” He pushed you back from him.

“What?”

“I’m being sent to those do gooders?”

“If it’s any consolation, your brother isn’t there,” you said, “we believe he’s somewhere on the coast of Australia.”

“They’re trading one cage for another,” he spat.

“But I’ll be in it with you,” you said, “and you won’t be forced into anything.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, love.”

“I’ll always be with you.”

He pressed his lips together to keep from saying anything else. You sighed, pushing your fingers into your hair.

“I’m guessing this is the kindest thing he can do after find out about our relationship,” you said, “I call it a win.”

“You’re not being forced to live with a group of people that would rather see you dead.”

“They might, given our relationship,” you pointed out.

“I will not let them try,” he hissed.

“And neither will I.”

His eyes bored into you. You stared up at him, crossing your arms over your chest. You raised your chin, waiting for him to pass judgement on you.

“The way I see it, this is the only way for us to be together. If you don’t want that then you can refuse,” you said.

“Of course I want you,” he said.

“Then you’ll do this,” you said, “for me.”

He cupped your cheek, pulling you forward a step. You looked up into his blue eyes, wanting for his answer, needing him to say it out loud.

“I will do it, but only as you are the one asking it of me,” he said.

“Good.”

You pulled him down for a quick kiss, then pushed him back a step. He looked down at you, pouting.

“You might not want any of your stuff but I do.”

You turned on your heels, walking away from him. You let him wrap his arm around your waist, ignoring the looks of other agents walking by. He pressed his lips to your temple and you smiled to yourself.

It might not be in the way you thought, but it looked like you were getting your happy ending after all.

Tags: @sheridans-dynamos​​​​​​ @tumultuous-love​​​​​​ @juniperbab​​​​​​ @internetgremlin​​​​​​ @true-queen-of-mischief​​​​​​ @sev7en​​​​​​ @fleurs-en-ruines​​​​​​ @lokilover2000-blog​​​​​​ @hakuoyuki​​​​​​ @el-eldritch​​​​​​ @foreverbeingthunderbuddy​​​​​​ @fuckthatfeeling​​​​​​ @libellule2001​​​​​​ @thefallenbibliophilequote​​​​​​ @smollest-soybean​​​​​​ @jessiejunebug​​​​​​ @cxstl-e​​​​​​ @paulsonix​​​​​​ @sadwaywardkid​​​​​​ @alcoholic-muffin​​​​​​ @eveybitch @subtlemalice​​​​​​

[secretlittlerandezvous]

Choosing A Godfather - David Pastrnak

Summary: David and the reader invite the boys over to meet their newborn baby. After awhile they need to announce who they picked as the godfather.

Words: 1489

“Here’s to the nights that turned into mornings with the friends that turned into family.”

It was like the whole world around me or rather around us suddenly stopped, the time slowed down and I completely lost track of what day of the week it was. Sometimes I didn’t even know if the sun was rising or setting. But it didn’t matter to me as I was still in awe of becoming a mom, having our son with us already and of finally being a family of three which was something we wished for many long months. I couldn’t believe how in love I was with our little boy and how my feelings for David became even stronger and how strong my love for the two boys I got to call mine was. I was unable to find words that would describe all the emotions I felt. Love, joy, happiness just as exhaustion, stress and a little bit of anxiety. It was a mix of emotions some of them I knew and some of them were new to me and only those with children could truly understand them. No matter how hard I tried to describe how overwhelming and endless my love for our son was I always felt like it wasn’t quite enough and that my friends without children couldn’t possibly understand it.

The moment we found out I was pregnant David turned into a sweeter man than he already was. He willingly helped with everything and did housework without any complaining which was definitely a surprising change and he protected me more than it was healthy but it sure paid off considering how clumsy I could be. He started cooking and kept asking me about my cravings although I very rarely experienced them, he held my hair when I was throwing up in the mornings and he cuddled with me every chance we got. He insisted on going to every doctor's appointment and he cried when we saw the ultrasound or when we heard the baby’s heartbeat for the first time. I’ve never seen him happier and more excited.

People around us shared the joy and excitement together with us. My family and his couldn’t wait for the newest addition to the family and they all started planning their visit once he’s here. My closest friends cried when I announced the news to them as they knew it was a long journey for me and David, they were excited to become aunties and started buying cute outfits and toys even before we knew the baby’s gender. I was grateful yet the superstitious part of me worried each time we received a new gift and I was scared of bad things happening. The boys threw a big party for us (well mostly for David and themselves) and the ones who had kids already welcomed David to the dad’s club. I dreamed of having a family of my own one day but only when I got pregnant, I realized I was already a part of a new family.

“Bergy called saying they’ll be here in fifteen minutes,” David whispered sticking his head in between the doors to check if our boy was sleeping or not. “We can still cancel it if you’re tired. You didn’t get much sleep last night.”

“No, we’re not canceling anything. I’m alright,” I gave David a reassuring smile and took our boy out of his crib. “The boys couldn’t wait to meet him from the moment we told them. I’m not ruining the joy for them.” I chuckled.

“Not for all of them though. Don’t forget that Marchy and Torey showed up in the hospital anyway,” David laughed at the memory. Brad and Torey visited us in the hospital on the second day of being there and they couldn’t keep their eyes off of the newborn and they kept arguing about who was going to be the godfather.

Once Brad, Torey, Patrice, Jake, Coyle, and Zdeno arrived the whole house was filled with laughter and unconditional love and happiness and I felt a little sad we decided to welcome the boys in smaller groups because I suddenly missed the presence of the rest of the boys and of course Tuukka’s presence although he hardly ever hang out with us. We had good food and drinks and we exchanged different stories from finding out about the pregnancy to labor to how fast they grow.

“I gotta say I was worried that poor kid will look like David, but he looks just like you Y/n,” Marchy laughed.

“He really does,” Zdeno agreed. “Little man is lucky to have you two as parents. His dad is an absolute legend already and his mom is a gem. I’m happy for you guys.” Zdeno’s words warmed my heart and I could tell from David’s face he appreciated the words from not only his captain but also a close friend more than he would admit.

“Let’s pray he won’t be as annoying and immature then,” I joked. I always teased David about being an overgrown child and that he was immature but in the last nine months he turned into a different and more responsible man.

“Torey, I don’t want to be that person again but I have to remind you that you have a baby at home as well so you could share this one with the rest of us,” Charlie complained and carefully took the little boy into his arms, sat down to get some extra support and he started smiling and tickling him on his little stomach.

I went to sit in David’s lap, wrapped my hands around his neck and kissed his cheek to express my happiness and gratefulness without having to say a word. We looked at each other for a moment and then we glanced over at the guys who gathered around our son and made all sorts of faces at him and sang different songs.

“So, have you finally decided who’s gonna be his grandfather?” Torey asked and all of them raised their eyebrows at us. The boys started arguing and begging us to make them his grandfather shortly after we broke the news to them and me and David never had the heart to announce the decision. We knew all of them would do their absolute best and we never doubted about any of them for a single second, yet we ended up choosing one and we postponed the announcement for as long as it was possible.

“Boys, we love you all, we truly do and we know you all would be excellent grandfathers and if we could we would choose all of you without thinking twice about it,” I started the speech I prepared in my head dozens of times knowing it would be handy sooner or later.

“Oh, stop it Y/n, we all know you guys picked me and Katrina,” Marchy said confidently but the boys disagreed and immediately laughed at him.

“You seriously think they would choose you Marchy? They, of course, chose me,” Charlie joined the conversation.

“You? You don’t even have kids why would they pick you?” Torey questioned.

“That’s exactly why they should pick me. So, I can gain some experience.” Charlie answered.

“Meanwhile these idiots argue I just wanna tell you guys that I’ll be happy with being just a funny and protective uncle,” Jake came to sit next to us and smiled and we all laughed together at the group of grown-ups arguing like little kids.

“Maybe we should’ve picked Jake after all,” David laughed. “Anyway, before we tell you I would like to say thank you to my love Y/n for giving me the best gift someone could ever give me. Y/n, honey, I adore you for everything you do, and I love you.”

“I love you too,” I smiled and sent him a kiss before he continued.

“I also wanted to say thanks to all of you guys. We’re really grateful to have such an amazing family and we’re happy that our boy will have so many great uncles. I hope you won’t be mad at us for choosing Bergy as the godfather.” David said the last sentence so quietly that even I had a hard time understanding him although I sat right next to him. The boys seemed to understand perfectly. They all clapped their hands, hugged Patrice and with genuine smiles congratulated him.

“I don’t know what else to say except that I love you all and thank you. I’ll do my best to be a responsible godfather to this beautiful boy.” Patrice took his godson into his arms, kissed his forehead and then went to hug as and shortly after it we took some pictures together.

We spent the rest of the day the same way it started. We spent it by laughing, smiling and enjoying every moment of each other’s presence and soaked up the love and happiness.

[hauntedatmidnight]

(my writing for @starksparker challenge, honestly nervous about this)

Alive part I - h.o. x oc

Part II Part III

this love is good this love is bad this love is alive back from the dead

Summary: she had to find her boyfriend. She thought about it everyday since the dead began to walk. They say what’s ours always find its way back to us, even if not in the way we wanted it to.

Harrison Osterfield x OFC

Zombie apocalypse AU

Part I

Looking through the dirty window of the old principal office she now used as her own, Olivia stared down at her people working and the rays of sunshine hitting their skin. She was playing with an old stapler, the clicking noise distracting her from her thoughts. That was the only way to stop the mantra that was pounding inside her head every single day since the dead began to walk.

She needed to find him.

She could only hope he was at least still alive, even if he was different from the Harrison she knew years ago. They were all different people in the end.

“Liv” Henry woke her from her thoughts, approaching her. “We need to find more antibiotics and Lena asked some stuff for the kitchen too”

“We need to hold a meeting, then” she said, grabbing the list he handed her. She gave it a quick glance; it wasn’t a lot, but right now anything could be scarce. “There’s not much left around, we need to explore new places”

“I’ll call the council, then”

They were lucky, she thought. Most of her friends were with her when the world went to shit. It was their last year of high school and everything was supposed to be exciting, but then… It wasn’t anymore. She was the leader of a community they formed in their old school. Things were good, as far as they could be in this situation, anyway.

Waiting for the council by the end of the long table they had at the gym, Liv replayed it through her head: Tom saw him. He thinks. He’s not sure. But he wasn’t sure of anything these days.

She watched as part of her council walked to her, their footsteps echoing through the gym, biting the inside of her cheek, with a restlessness that was usual now. Olivia was able to ignore her heart beating against her chest and her breath catching at her throat, because right now being anxious about every move was her default.

They all sat down on their usual chairs and she looked around all of them, noticing some places were vacant.

“Liv, Bill has been studying our maps for days now. We may need to go farther than we ever had, but it would sure lead us to a huge department store. It’s promising” Carol interrupted her thoughts, sharing the council idea and opening up a huge map on the table.

“Do we have enough food for this? If so, you can choose three more people and leave tomorrow” she assured Carol, looking at the maps she brought with her. They were all part of Bill’s job, her ever so smart friend. They knew everything they had around them, all possibilities and how dangerous it could be thanks to him.

“I’m coming with”

“No, not you, Jake” she grabbed his shoulder when he was about to protest, a toothless smile on her face. “We need you here”

“C’mon, Liv. Tom’s back! You know I don’t like being trapped here…”

“Tom is not himself right now. Believe me, we need you” she held his gaze, brown eyes on green eyes. She understood him very well. Olivia and Jake were neighbors and friends since they were 10. That he needed his freedom was not news for her. But this world wasn’t safe and he was strong and smart and he cared deeply about their people. He cared deeply about her. She – they - needed him more than anything else right now. “Where’s Bill? And Phoebe?”

“Well…” Henry started laughing, unable to explain their friends’ absence.

“Oh for fucks sake” she laughed as well, but feeling a very familiar sting at the same time. It was always the same thing and though she wanted her friends to be happy and she was happy for them… It was impossible not to remember what could have been, what should have been.

“Bill can’t keep it in his pants, man” Jake laughed at the situation. Olivia kept laughing along, but it was not natural. She loved them. But everytime she looked at them she would remember Harrison.

“Anyway… You can leave tomorrow morning. Just get three more people to come with you, Carol. And be careful” she asked, knowing the girl could be a little reckless. The two of them met back in high school, but weren’t friends. This world had his own way to bring people closer, though.

“Sure. You know me” Carol smiled and winked at Olivia, getting her stuff and leaving.

“Henry, please get them everything they may need and get the kitchen to prepare Tom some meal”

“Sure” he nodded and left.

She turned back to Jake, who was still watching her, playing with the hem of his shirt.

“Do you need anything?”

“I’m going insane here! Since Tom left you won’t let me leave the school. I need… At least some fresh air” he asked, messing his sand-like hair.

“Fine. You can do road patrol every morning for an hour. And then you head straight back here. Do you hear me, Jake? I can’t deal with another one of my best friends going missing for months! I can barely deal with Harrison…”

“We’re gonna find him. I promise you” Jake covered the distance between them and held her tight in his arms. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, Liv” he whispered, kissing her forehead.

X

Carol left the next morning. And after that, the days dragged along and time seemed to have stopped. Or maybe it was just that Olivia couldn’t stop looking down the road, waiting for them to come back.

“You need to rest” Jake warned her one night, being the only one to put up with her pacing around in the yard, when everyone else was asleep. “You need to trust them, too. Like we trust you”

“I trust all of you” she said, stopping and glancing at him. “Guess I just have a bad feeling”

“You always have a bad feeling” he laughed, rolling his green eyes at her.

“Yeah… I don’t trust this world”

“Loosen up, Liv” he smiled, shaking her by the elbow. “Always said you needed to have some fun. Remember?”

“That was before” she laughed.

“Hey, they’re coming back. And I’m here for you”

They ended up spending the night sitting at the porch, Olivia still looking for any signs her friends would be back soon.

“They have Carol” Travis ran up to Liv the next morning, being followed closely by Rachel and Brad, the people their friend took with her. She knew she had a bad feeling for a reason. Henry stopped them and took them all to Liv’s office, away from everyone’s ears.

“We don’t need panic” he explained, closing the door behind him.

“You’re right” Liv nodded, feeling more terrified than she would ever admit. “What happened?”

“We were at the store when they came in. I guess there were ten of them”

“Who, Travis?” she asked, her heart racing against her chest.

“I don’t know… Some other group. Said it was their territory, that we were invading” he explained. “They wanted all the stuff we took back, Carol wouldn’t let them take it”

“There was a fight, but we were only four people... So they took Carol with them. And sent us with a message” Brad shrugged, avoiding Olivia’s eyes. She stared down at him, looking for any sign of his usual confident self, but he kept his head low and his gaze away from her.

“What do they want?”

“Weapons. Medicine. Some strong people. And… For some reason, they asked us if we had Tom. They want to trade him for Carol” Rachel said, confused.

“What?” Henry intervened, looking between the three and Olivia.

“We’re not giving them any of that” Liv immediately started to pace around the room. “And we need Carol back”

“They said to meet them back at the store in two days, with everything they asked”

“Or?”

“I don’t know” Rachel shrugged.

“They don’t seem the type of people who are willing to talk” Brad said.

“It’s alright” Liv sighed. “They just need to listen”

X

“Hey, Tom. We’re going for a walk” Olivia announced, not giving him time to answer. He had a candle lighting the room a bit and was facing the window to what used to be the janitor’s room. For some reason he decided this was his room, since the beginning of it all. There were much better options and Olivia tried to reason with him, but Tom just wanted a small space he could rest and that their people were well cared for. So he settled there.

For some unknown reason, he would do what she said. So she just closed the door after calling him and waited.

“Where are we going?” he asked, coming out of his room for the first time since he came back.

“Just around”

In silence, they walked around the school.

They kept going, slowly, arm in arm. Through their old class rooms, the lab where they used to hide from everyone else just to talk and, finally, the gym. They had so many memories there, she hoped it would sparkle something in him.

“Do you remember the first time we came here?” she asked, stopping by the long council table. It was actually just one of the tables used at prom they found hidden somewhere. “Before?”

“That’s when we met Harrison” his features went dark again and he let go of her arm.

“I don’t want you to feel sad about it. They’re great memories. And I’ll never give up on finding him” she reassured him, squeezing his hand. “Just like I’ll never give up on you”

“I know” he squeezed her hand back, still avoiding her eyes.

“Some other group has Carol” she told him, sighing, after a moment of comfortable silence between them. “They want you in exchange for her”

“Me?”

“You” she sat down on her chair by the head of the table and nodded to his old council seat. “What are we gonna do about this?”

“I don’t know”

“But you do. Look, I’m here for you. It doesn’t matter what happened the last few months. It doesn’t matter if you lived with another group, if you thought on leaving us forever. What matters is you’re here” they held each other’s gaze for a while. “I love you. You’re my best friend, Tom. You need to trust me, like before”

“Things are not like before”

“No, they’re not. And that’s why you need to start talking. I’ve been letting you heal for a month now. And I would let you take forever if needed. But lives are on the table here, Tom. So start talking”

“I…” he took a deep breath and broke their eye contact, looking at his hands instead.

“We have a meeting with them in two days, whoever they are. They have Carol, they want our weapons, some of our people, our supplies. And they want you. I can’t have that. Talk”

“I’m the reason Finn is dead” he said, finally.

“Not what Phoebe says”

“She doesn’t know the full story. All she knows is I left and Finn died”

“Yeah”

“I left him behind”

“Ok”

“Ok? Liv… It got him killed”

“You do know you’re not the first person to get caught in a situation where you had to make choices that got people killed, right? Because I’ve been doing it everyday for the past two years. And you’ve been the one helping me keep sane”

“Your choices kept us all alive”

“Your choice kept you and Pheebs alive”

“My choice got Finn killed. And not by the dead”

“What do you mean?” she sat straight, furrowing her brows.

“I thought I saw him. So I left Finn behind”

“You mean Harrison?”

“It wasn’t him, was it? Because… If it was him he wouldn’t have turned around. If it was him… His people wouldn’t have killed Finn over a gun and some pills”

“So why did you never come back? Where were you?” she questioned, studying his features. His chocolate eyes, his curly hair, his freckles. Everything that felt like home to her.

“I couldn’t come back after that. I just… Hid. I ditched Pheebs the moment I could and then I left and hid. I ran away, like a coward”

“We needed you, Tom. I needed you. I still do”

“I know and I’m sorry, but…”

“You’re not a coward, Tom. You didn’t have to leave because of what happened” she affirmed, standing up. “You didn’t kill him. It’s not your fault!”

“But it is! I should never have left him behind”

“I understand why you feel the way you do right now. But we need you. Because as far as I know, that happened around the same area Carol was when they took her. It could be the same group. They want our stuff. They want you”

“But…”

“I know, it wasn’t Harrison. That doesn’t matter right now. We need to focus on getting Carol back first. We know she is there and we don’t know shit about Harrison’s location”

“What do you want me to do, Liv?”

“Come with me to the meeting. Let’s do what we always did best: let’s talk our way out of this”

“Like you talked your way out of being grounded when you got drunk at Travis’ party?” he laughed and she caught a glimpse of his old self, smiling warmly at her best friend.

“Yeah, I did that on my own. You didn’t encourage me to drink like that and you sure never helped me planning my scape from my punishment”

“We’re better together” he shrugged, smiling.

X

“Listen, here’s the plan” Liv was addressing the council and a few other people that would be coming with her to the meeting. “Me, Tom and Travis will be the only ones approaching the group, I don’t want any hostilities if not necessary”

“Do we take guns with us?” Travis asked.

“Both of us, yes. Tom will only have small weapons hidden, since he’s supposed to be part of the trade”

“And the rest of us?” Lyla asked, raising her hand by the end of the table and looking around. There was at least eight people waiting for instructions with her.

“You all will come along. With weapons. But I want you all hidden around the perimeter” she showed them the store plant in the table. “Just in case. We don’t trust these people and for what you guys told us, we have no reason for that to change”

“How are we getting Carol back? We sure aren’t giving them Tom, are we?”

“No, Travis. But we need them to think we are, at least for now”

“And then what, Liv?”

“We’re gonna offer them what we can spare, we can coexist and even collab if it’s needed. But our people are not going anywhere”

“What if they are not willing to listen?” Travis questioned.

“We take what’s ours” Tom said, pointing to the guns.

“Let’s try and make this peacefully” Liv instructed. “This should only be used as a last option. Do you hear me?” she waited for all of them to agree with her, before addressing her council. “Henry, you’re in charge until I get back. Bill, be on guard. If we’re not back in two days, send a group to look for us. If they don’t find us in a week, well… Let go”

Henry nodded to everything Olivia asked. But he was damned if he would ever let his friends go that easily. They were still looking for Harrison after all that time.

“That’s the store” Rachel pointed to the big drawing of a building, surrounded little toy soldiers representing the dead. “There’s two ways in: by the back, where someone set traps for the dead. And by the roof, near the woods”

“Ok” Liv looked around her people, taking a deep breath. “Rach: you and Phoebe hide near the back. Lyla, you go up the roof and let the others know if you see anything suspicious. Do you guys have your walkie talkies with you right?” she nodded at her people when they confirmed.

“Brad and Jake I want you near. There’s still time before they come, so I want you to hide inside the store. Make sure to be silent”

X

They were hiding in the woods near the old parking lot, whispering the last details of the plan. Her people had already left to do their parts and Olivia, Tom and Travis stayed behind, waiting for them to come.

From afar they could see them arriving, twelve people this time, their leader and Carol. They moved together, with their leader in the center. She couldn’t see much of their faces from this far, but they sure sent a chill down her spine. They carried big weapons, used masks to hide their faces and looked way more trained than her people ever were. She could tell that just by the way they moved, how synchronized they walked, as if they were an army marching for something way more important than a meeting by the end of the world.

Once all of them were in and there was no sign of them finding her people hidden inside, Olivia decided it was their cue. She walked by the left, a hand on Tom’s arm, as if she was carrying him. Travis on the right, a gun on his hands with the strap by his shoulders. With her free hand she checked her gun was still on the holster and, taking a deep breath, walked right into the store.

The other group was standing by end of the building, no near exits. They were still with their masks on, guns on the ready, six to the left and six to the right with their leader on the center, his back to Olivia. He was looking at Carol and she was handcuffed. The look on her face… Was not a good sign.

“We brought you Tom” Olivia said, not bothering to greet or make small talk.

“Good” their leader whispered and then turned around, facing them for the first time, his blue eyes hitting Olivia’s like daggers.

“Harrison?”

[hockeyandstuff91]

Fate And The Saint - Part 2

Word count: 3,957

Players: Brock Boeser, basically the whole canucks team lmao

Other people: Holly, Emma, the WAGS

Warnings: Cussing, mentions of cheating, mentions of abuse, I think that’s it

Authors Note: Ahh guys I’m so glad that you all like this story so far. It’s been nice to write a new idea and have a little bit of a different setting than my other stories. I hope you guys like this part, give me some feedback and let me know! Feedback keeps me motivated to keep writing <3

Part 1    Part 3

(Brooke’s POV)

The rest of the vacation had been pretty relaxing. Most of the time Brock and I just hung out on the beach, or Holly and I would go look around some of the cute shops in town. I tried to avoid places where I knew Brad would hang out, like clubs and the bars. We did run into him a few times, however thankfully he never came over or said anything to me. I imagined it probably had something to do with the fact that at any given moment there were at least 5 hockey players around me, insuring that he wouldn't come over.

I was sad to be leaving the warm sun, and beautiful beaches, but I was ready to go home. I just wanted things to go back to normal, however I knew that wasn't going to happen. I couldn't forgive what Brad did to me, and Brock wouldn't let me even if I wanted to anyways. I was glad that Brock was my best friend. I could never ask for a sweeter more caring person to be there for me.

Brock and I had kind of grown up together, our families were friends, so we would have cookouts together during the summer and go watch Brock's hockey games. Brock and I had drifted apart for a while during high school when he was super focused on hockey, which I understood because I knew he was going after his dream. My dad ended up getting transferred with his work up to Calgary at the end of our sophomore year. It sucked having to leave everyone behind, especially Brock even if we hadn't seen each other a lot.

A few years later when Brock was drafted to the Canucks I was so excited for him. I always knew that he would make it to the NHL, he was such a talented player. He didn't get to play until April of 2017, but his last game was going to be in Edmonton which was the next city over so it was perfect, I was going to be able to see my best friend play in the NHL.

After that game the only time I got to see him was on TV when I watched the games, or the few times that he would face time me after a bad loss. It wasn't until the next season in November when they played in Calgary that I got to see him in person again.

(Flashback)

"Brooke!" Brock smiled as he walked out of the locker room, hair still wet from the shower he took after the game.

"Brock!" I smiled and ran over to him, giving him a big hug. "Congrats on the win tonight. And for your first hat trick 3 days ago!" I smiled up at him as we pulled away from each other.

"Thanks," He smiled and grabbed my hand. "Let's go out and celebrate!"

I smiled and followed him out to the parking lot where my car was. I had missed this. Hanging out with my best friend, going out to celebrate a win for one of his games. We had only been 15 at the time but it felt like yesterday. Now here he was 20 years old and playing in the NHL, and I was still living at home with my parents. I was so happy for him getting to live his dream, and watching him do that was amazing.

"So where do you wanna go? This is your city, show me around?" Brock asked as he got into the car.

"Sure!" I smiled, backing out of the parking spot.

It was later that night, after Brock had asked me at least 5 times what was wrong. He could read right through me, always could. I finally had admitted to him that living at home was hell. I loved my family, but the fighting was getting to be too much. I avoided being home as much as I could.

"Brookie I don't want you to deal with that anymore."

"Brock I don't really have a choice. I don't make enough money to live on my own, and none of my friends here need a roommate so I'm out of luck," I shrugged, pushing the food around on my plate.

"I wish you would of told me this sooner," Brock sighed.

"Why? It's not your problem to worry about Brock, you have more important things to focus on."

"Brooke I care about you okay? I know we drifted apart a while ago but I still think about you all the time."

"I know Brock, I think about you too," I almost whispered.

"Let me help you. Please. I can now and I want to," He said firmly, but still soft.

I looked up at him not sure exactly what he meant by that. Almost like reading my mind he opened his mouth to speak before I even got the chance.

"Move to Vancouver. You can stay with Troy and I until we find you an apartment."

"Brock no-"

"Brooke I can't go home knowing what you have to deal with at home and do nothing about it. I have the ability to now let me do this, please."

"But why?"

"Because Brooke you are my best friend, I love you and I want you to be happy."

The situation at home had never been super amazing. My dad was always stressed with work, and we had all thought that stress would lessen when he got transferred, but honestly it only got worse. Brock use to listen to my rants back when we would hang out, so he knew what I dealt with. He had always promised me that he would get me out of that situation, but I never expected him to keep that promise.

It was another month before he finally convinced me to move. I didn't want to be a burden on anyone, or overstay my welcome. I also had expressed my worries about his girlfriend that was back home, not really sure how she would feel about this. He went so far as to call both of us so we could all three talk about it over the phone to make sure everyone was on the same page and okay with everything. Once that was all set the plan was for me to move in in January when the boys had a week off.

I stayed with the boys for about a month before finding a pretty good job in the city. It didn't fully pay the rent that I had at this apartment but Brock wouldn't let me say no to it. The deal he made with me, honestly the only way I would say yes to it, was he would only pay half until I found a roommate to take over. It was only another month after that when I finally found a roommate. We had been introduced at my first event with the company that I worked for, he was also new to the city, which was perfect because he was looking for a place to rent.

That "sweet" guy that I had met almost a year ago turned out to be Brad. We grew close while living together as roommates, which then turned into roommates with benefits, and then a relationship. He ended up getting a good foot in the door with a few different companies, making enough money to decide that we would leave our lease early and found a house that was rent to buy. Everything seemed to be perfect, up until that summer when we moved in and then I learned who the real Brad was.

(End Flashback)

"Brookie," Brock's voice whispered into my ear.

"Mmm?" I groaned, lifting the eye mask off my face, blinking at the change in lighting.

"We're home, we just landed."

I rubbed my eyes and sighed softly, pulling my eye mask off my head and shoving it into my backpack that was between my feet.

"How was your nap?" Brock smiled at me.

"Oh sh," I laughed and sat up straight.

We watched as people got up to get off the plane, waiting for them to get out of our way before us and the rest of the boys stood up.

"So I know you probably don't want to do this right after getting back from the trip, but I feel like the sooner the better, and then you wont have to deal with him being there."

Brock didn't even have to explain what he was talking about, I already knew. I just nodded as I followed him down the plane isle. After walking what felt like forever we finally reached Bo's car and all piled in. We didn't stop anywhere to drop anything off, we just headed straight to my, now old, house.

I gasped softly as I saw a moving truck already outside, and a bunch of the boys standing around, and sitting in the back of the truck. "Brock.. what-?"

"I told you the boys wanted to help. They all love you, always have. You're like a mom to half of them, and a sister to others," he chuckled.

I smiled at that and nodded as I climbed out of the car. I made my way over to them, everyone giving me a hug and telling me they were sorry I had to deal with this.

"We wont let him anywhere near you. Promise," Markstrom smiled down at me.

"Thanks Marky," I smiled back.

The thought of all the boys in their gear, lined up around the house, with Marky standing guard in the doorway made me giggle. I was glad they didn't do that because I would of died laughing, but I wouldn't of put it past them.

We spent the next two or three hours going into each room and clearing out the things that I had bought with my own money. Honestly a lot of it was mine, and I knew Brad was going to be livid when he got home. It had always been a source of argument between the two of us anyways, he would force me to spend my money on stuff for the house only, saying that he had spent all his savings for this place, even though I also had bills to pay too.

Finally they boys piled in the last piece of furniture into the moving truck. I had packed all of the things that I would want right away at Brock's place into the back of Jake's truck so that the rest, which he didn't have room for, would just go into a storage unit for now until I decided what to do with it all.

I looked at the house from the sidewalk and sighed. I hadn't even been here a full year yet but there were a lot of memories from in there. Some good, but a lot of bad. Honestly I wasn't really going to miss this house, just missed what I thought it would of been. I tossed my key onto the porch and got into the car next to Brock, Bo driving us to his house.

A group of the guys had all gone to the storage unit, which they had all chipped in to pay for a year in advance which I kind of yelled at them for, and by yelling I mean I told them they didn't have to do that and tried not to cry at how much love and support I was getting from this crazy hockey team. The rest of the guys followed us to Brock's house, the plan being the other half of the team would meet back here and we were going to have a team party. When we got here we found that the wives and girlfriends of the players, besides Holly who had been with us at the house, were all here making lots of really yummy looking food.

Once unloading the back of Jake's truck and packing everything into the spare bedroom which would become mine, I stepped in to help the girls finish cooking.

"Ah," Emma, Troy's girlfriend said swatting my hand away. "Go relax with the boys, we got this," she smiled at me.

Emma had been on the trip with us, so she knew what had happened. I looked around to all the girls who nodded, giving me sympathetic looks. I sighed and pushed backwards off the counter and turned to go into the living room where all the guys were hanging out.

I scooted my way in between people, plopping down in the one empty spot on the couch next to Brock.

Brock wrapped his arm around my shoulder, leaning closer to whisper, "how are you doing?"

I shrugged my shoulders, because if I was going to be honest with him like he wanted me to be, I really wasn't sure. I knew I would be fine, but right now it still sucked. I was glad to be surrounded by everyone I cared a lot about.

He nodded once and gently rubbed his thumb against my shoulder. I was glad that Brock was able to read and understand my physical cues well enough, especially in a situation like this, so I didn't have to talk about it in front of everyone. He let it go, knowing he could ask later on when everyone had left for the night.

Brock had kept a close eye on me all night, trying to figure out how I was doing without asking me too many times. I knew he was just trying to be there for me, but I didn't want to think about the situation anymore than my brain was already threatening to do already. Thankfully after the guys had eaten and their minds weren't stuck on food anymore, everyone split off into groups and were playing different games.

For the next few hours the house was full of laughter and fun. It was something I needed for a long time that was for sure. I was able to forget about all the bad shit for a few hours and just get to hang out with the team and their girls which was great.

Once the party was over with I was exhausted. From traveling all morning, to moving half a house worth of stuff, to being at the party with everyone, I could barely keep my eyes open. Brock noticed pretty quickly, only about 10 minutes into he movie we were watching.

"Hey, lets get you to bed," he said, standing up and walking down the hall towards my new room.

I yawned, getting up from the couch slowly, steadying myself before I started down the hall behind him. I could heart Coolie's dog tags jingle behind Brock's door

"Hey Coolie, why don't you sleep in Brooke's room tonight, I think she could really use your cuddles bud," Brock smiled and rubbed the pup behind his ears.

Coolie wagged his tail at his dad and pushed by him to follow me down the hall a bit and into my new room. It was right next to Brock's, the other spare bedroom holding the spare boxes of my stuff for the night. I planned on spending the next few days unpacking and organizing my stuff while Brock was busy was practice and getting ready for the game in a few days.

We said goodnight to each other, Brock asking for the 5th time if there was anything I needed before he went to his room for the night. I assured him that I was fine and gave him a quick hug before walking into my room and closing the door behind me. I changed into my PJs and opened the door a bit so that if Coolie wanted to get out at some point in the night he could.

I crawled into bed and pet Coolie for a few minutes before laying down. I grabbed my phone and decided to try and read a few chapters of the book that I gotten right before we went on the trip. I was hoping it would relax me enough to let me fall asleep easily, however that wasn't the case. Eventually setting the book down on my nightstand after not really being able to focus on it that well I decided to just try and force myself to sleep.

It had been at least an hour of tossing and turning. I could not get comfortable no matter what I tried. Coolie was a good sport about it, passed out at the end of the bed even though I kept moving. Eventually I curled up on my side, facing the wall and closed my eyes.

My mind continued to flash back to that night at the club, seeing Brad dancing all over that girl. I had frozen when I first saw it, the lights were low so I wasn't sure if it was really him or not. Their faces were everything but glued together while they danced. Once they finally had pulled away I could tell for sure it was him.

I opened my eyes when I felt Coolie inch his way up the bed, curling up in front of me. I hid my face in his fur as I let go the wall I had put up over the last half week. I had tried my best to keep a brave face on when everyone was around. I didn't want them to feel bad for me, I just wanted to move on. My body on the other hand knew that in order to move on I needed to cry this out.

I was glad for Coolie being there, he muffled my cries for the most part. I was pretty sure that Brock was asleep, so he wouldn't hear me through the wall, at least I hoped not. Out of anyone I didn't want to cry in front of Brock. He was the only one I would be comfortable to cry in front of, but I knew it would make him more mad at Brad and he would always be careful around me. I didn't want this situation to change how he treated me for the next two weeks while I dealt with this.

(Brock's POV)

I was about an hour into this movie and I honestly had no idea what had even happened so far. My mind kept wandering back to the trip, and the look on Brooke's face when she told me what happened. We had known each other for so long and she was, is, my best friend. I wanted to do nothing but protect her and I feel like this whole thing was my fault.

I knew realistically it wasn't, but if I had never suggested that she moved to Vancouver, she never would of met Brad, he never would of hit her that one time, and he never would of cheated on her. I groaned and tossed over to my other side. I knew Brooke would yell at me if she knew I was beating myself up over this, but how else was I suppose to feel?

There was no way in hell I was letting her leave here. I know she thought I was just going to let her stay here until she found a new place to live, but that wasn't what I was going to let happen. I couldn't see her going through all of that again.

I was ripped from my thoughts, hearing something through the wall. I sat up quickly and grabbed the remote, turning the volume all the way off, not that it was really on much to begin with. I listened closely, not hearing anything for a little bit. Maybe it had just been in the movie, but then I heard it again. It was a faint crying noise.

My heart immediately dropped, realizing that Brooke was crying. I sat there, leaning against the headboard not exactly sure what to do. I knew Brooke long enough to know that while I'm one of the only people she will cry in front of, she had been holding herself together the best she could around all of us. After that morning in the hotel room she didn't want to ruin anyone's time, or make anyone feel bad for her.

I sighed, rubbing my hand over my face and leaned my head back against the wall while I contemplated if I should go in there or not.

(Brooke's POV)

I sniffled, pulling back from having my face in Coolie's fur so I could wipe my cheeks. Coolie sat up, licked my face, and then hopped off the bed and nosed the door open. I sighed and pulled the spare pillow up to my chest and hid my face in that. I didn't blame him for leaving I wouldn't want to be here either while I cried all night.

I looked up, eyes puffy and blurry from the tears that kept streaming down my face. It had been another half hour since I last looked. I tried to steady my breathing but it just came in another wave as I forced my face into the pillow and tried to not cry out loud.

(Brock's POV)

My eyes opened as I heard my door moving. I didn't see Brooke standing there, my eyes traveling down to see that Coolie had opened my door.

"Bud, you're suppose to be keeping Brooke company," I whispered.

Coolie made his way over to the bed, jumping up half way so his front paws were on the bed. He pushed his nose against me and jumped back down, walking out of the door. I got up and walked to the door, looking down the hall and seeing that he was sitting outside of Brooke's door.

I smiled a bit, knowing that he was trying to get me to go in and see her. I walked down the hall, stopping a moment to pet him on the head.

"You're right bud I should go in there," I leaned down and kissed his head.

Coolie laid down in the hallway as I quietly walked into the room. I looked at the bed, my face falling as I could see her form shaking from crying but trying to be quiet about it. I made my way over to the bed and sat down behind her, moving the blanket out of the way before I crawled in behind her, wrapping my arm around her and pulling her close to me.

(Brooke's POV)

I jumped a bit when I felt an arm slip around me, figuring that the movement I had felt behind me was Coolie. I turned over a bit, looking over my shoulder and seeing that Brock was behind me and pulling me closer to him.

"Shh its okay," he whispered, wiping my cheeks.

I shook my head and turned so that I was facing him and pressed my face against his chest. I could feel his hand rubbing up and down my back as he made soft soothing noises above me. My breathing slowly started to even out as the crying faded away.

"You're okay," Brock whispered as he pressed a kiss to the top of my head. "I wont let anything bad happen to you again I promise," he said softly.

I finally had calmed my breathing, my body now exhausted from the emotions pouring out of me. I nuzzled closer to Brock and closed my eyes, fully expecting the scene to be replaying in my mind again, but there was nothing. It was okay this time. I relaxed into Brock and held onto him as I finally slowly fell asleep.

[allthevmff]

Funeral Masses for Aaron Echolls: Viewing Hours 4 to 6

by iateyourheart

xx

Reporter 1: We're here outside of the Neptune County Jail where the body of actor Aaron Echolls was discovered this morning. The star of such films as In Pursuit of Happiness was awaiting trial for the murder of Lilly Kane, daughter of software mogul, Jake Kane. The official cause of death has not yet been revealed...

xx

  The worst part of all of this crap, has to be the look on their faces. It's a rather piss poor attempt at sympathy that's more than likely fueled by good manners than any honest-to-god trace of the aforementioned emotion. Despite the maximum sadness factor, you appreciate the effort they put into the lie.

And, yeah, you get it. Honestly, you do.

Aaron Echolls may have been god's biggest misuse of human cells, but the man was still your father; a bit of respect is still required in situations such as these, whether the not-so dearly departed truly deserves it.

You understand where they're coming from. Why they would feel the need to offer you condolences and ask how you're doing. Seriously. You understand completely.

But, you don't for a second let this rare sign of maturity keep you from being annoyed as fuck by all of these forced, insincere pleasantries. You weren't fucking born yesterday and you know the breaking news blurb on the death of that part-time actor, full-time sociopath lifted a weight off of many-a-shoulder. Somewhere, church bells were probably ringing, and little forest creatures with wide anime expressions were probably hopping around singing with glee.

You may understand where they're coming from, but you just wish people would cut the shit already and be honest.

So, when you breeze into the hotel room and find Veronica and Duncan cozily snuggled up like the walking embodiment of teen-dream puppy love that they are, and they grace you with uncomfortable looks and fumbled words "How are you holding up?", you're armed with a plan.

Well, not so much a plan as it is a statement. There's no doubt your feelings are going to be conveyed quite nicely:

Duncan says nothing and Veronica gives you a look that smells of righteous indignation when you flop down in between them with a bottle of Boonesfarm in your hand. Deliciously ghetto, but gets you wasted all the same.

"Flip it to CNN," you order as you go to work on unscrewing the top of the Blue Hawaiian flavored alcohol.

"What the hell are you doing?" Veronica's giving you the eye. She disapproves already. That's ashame, really, cause you planned on sharing.

There's a sigh from Duncan, but he complies, and the moment you hear the reporter mention dear ole' daddy's name, you take a big swig from the bottle.

"Celebrating," you tell her after a particularly hard swallow. "Here's to..." you begin hoisting the bottle in the air with mock dramatics, "here's to aneurysms. Nature's little miracles."

  xx

Tonight, on The Insider – the emotional interview with the daughter of Aaron Echolls, you don't want to miss.

:video clip:

Pat O'Brien: Had your father lived, do you believe he would have been acquitted of murder charges?

Trina Echolls: Oh, definitely. Definitely. I, know he was innocent. There was just so much misinformation about him before he died...

Pat O'Brien: The claims of abuse...

Trina Echolls: Right. It's all nonsense, Pat. My dad was a good man; he couldn't hurt a fly let alone his own children!

:end video clip:

xx

  "To my beloved daughter, Trina, I bequeath all of my personal effects in the house..."

A snort. "Good luck collecting that."

"Totaling two-hundred and fifty thousand dollars. In addition, I also leave you a total of five million dollars. To my son, Logan..."

This should be good.

"...I leave a total of five million as well..."

Your face scrunches; hell, you were expecting a little more than a measly five mill – five million doesn't exactly say "Sorry I murdered your girlfriend, son".

"That's it? What about my trust fund?"

A sour expression forms on Barry's face and he makes a show of clearing his throat and ruffling papers. "Not to be touched until you're twenty-one. Both of your parents made that fact very clear."

"And, uh, how exactly am I supposed to collect all of my share?" Trina speaks up suddenly. "Half of it is char grilled thanks to him."

Obviously, your sis missed that memo on the fire that claimed casa-de Echolls; the one that points out the fact that the arsonists backs were considerably wet in nature. You, however, fake shock complete with your hand on your chest and a gasp. It has the desired affect and Trina narrows her brown eyes while mumbling something that's either a threat or a curse – most likely both. She can be so incredibly easy sometimes.

"You'll have to take that up with the insurance company. Although, I think there were a few items of Aaron's that survived the fire..." Barry's sifting through papers again and you take the opportunity to clean your fingernails with his letter opener. "Ah, yes," he says when he's found what he was searching for, "Three of Aaron's awards were recovered: two Golden Globes and a Blockbuster award. They now belong to you."

You can't help but smile,

"No fair! Clearly, dad liked the you best!"

  xx

Reporter 2: Funeral services for Aaron Echolls get underway today at St. Francis Catholic Church...

xx

  "You, know, I don't understand this at all."

It's amazing, the amount of strangers who show up at the church. Fans with your father's face adorning their T-shirts. Reporters with their cameras and questions.

"What is with this attitude, son?"

Only five people Aaron actually knew in life came to his funeral. Trina's flavor of the month, counted just as much as the flask you hid away in your pocket. And when your grandmother disappeared back into the comfort of her limo, and Conner Larkin walked outside to take questions, and Barry decided to head to the cemetery, and Trina's date grew tired of the bleak atmosphere and whisked her away, you were the only one left.

All alone. With him.

"Where I stand, you should be thanking me."

The grin on your father's face is enough to turn your stomach so hard you fear you might collapse. His head cocks to the side on that pillow of eternal rest and those cold eyes burn into yours.

"Thanking you?" your voice is shaky. You grip the side of the casket for support.

"For taking Lilly off your hands," he tells you simply. "She didn't exactly love you, you know."

Your mouth fills up with blood and at that point, you think it's best to remove your teeth from the meat of your cheek. "Shut up."

"I was only trying to protect you, Logan. It's just like you to take a piece of ass and try and turn her into a housewife." He tsks. "Once a whore, always a whore."

"You know shit about Lilly."

"C'mon, you've seen the tapes." Aaron chuckles and you feel a sudden urge to vomit. "For all intents and purposes, I think I knew her pretty well. I did you a favor, boy."

"You murdered my girlfriend, and you fucking got away with it! Do you really think I'm gonna mourn you? Shed one tear because you got to die in your sleep all quick and painless?" You glower, your hand gripping the casket's side so tightly your knuckles are white as sheets. "I should've bashed your head in while I had the chance. Or set you on fire."

"Oh, so is that what all of this hostility is all about? Veronica Mars?" His laugh echoes in your ears. "I hear she's dating Duncan again. Don't 'cha wish she would have stayed in that refrigerator just a few minutes longer?"

Aaron's casket rattles violently when you kick it. Your right foot feels as if it's been broken in two, but on a scale of one-to-ten measuring how much your very existence sucks beyond the telling of it, physical pain doesn't even register.

"Logan?"

It's her concerned voice that pulls you back to reality.

  xx

:video clip:

Conner Larkin: All I ask is that you show the Echolls family the respect they deserve during this difficult time.

:end video clip:

xx

  You fractured your right foot. Way to go, brain trust.

Veronica sits, arms folded, watching you greedily gulp down the pain killers the nurse handed you. She patiently waits until the two of you are alone again,

"Did it make you feel any better?"

The question's sincere; you're just too slow to stop your mouth from spitting out the first dickhead-ish sentence that comes to mind.

"Right as rain," you snicker. "Grey skies clearing up. I'm putting on my happy face."

"Logan, I'm..." she starts and stops at the sound of your hollow laughter.

"Don't even think about telling me you're sorry, Veronica. If you feel that bad – pick out a Hallmark card and let Snoopy say it for you, cause I've heard enough 'sorrys' to last a lifetime."

She stares at you for a minute before wordlessly sitting down on the end of the hospital bed. "I'm sorry he never paid for what he did," she says quietly and you know that will be the last you ever hear of it from her lips. Veronica Mars isn't exactly the queen of overstating emotion and you'd likely drop fucking dead of shock if she did it more than once.

The pills are kicking in and to say that you feel good at the moment would be an understatement.

You fall asleep with your fingers entwined with hers.

  xx

Tonight on The Insider... Brad and Angelina, could wedding bells be just around the corner?

xx

  Giving you a cane is like giving a wino a bottle of Old English. You're quick to use it to test the limits of your fellow man; you poke waitresses, jab unsuspecting children, and get out of hours of tedious homework. When your temporary cripple status doesn't work, you kindly remind everyone you're an orphan.

An orphan with a bum foot.

Dick thinks it's hilarious. Duncan merely shakes his head and smiles at your antics. Veronica says that maybe you've been watching those House dvd's a little too much.

After your episode at the church, everyone suggests you go and see a shrink. Talk things out. Get some closure.

"Batter, up?"

You've got your own ideas on the matter.

Cane in hand, you hobble up to the makeshift plate and throw Veronica a smile over your shoulder as you fix the goggles over your eyes.

"I still don't think it's fair that you get first up," she pouts.

"Hey, when your daddy kills your girlfriend, then you can get first bat," you sardonically tell her.

She grins. "Pinky swear?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die."

Never one to pass up an opportunity for the dramatic, you point your cane out toward the sky as if you were the Great Bambino himself, and with one fluid motion, you bring the oak crashing down.

The Blockbuster Award for Favorite Actor in a Romantic Comedy shatters into a million, tiny pieces.

You'll do this closure thing in your own, special way.

via AO3 works tagged 'Veronica Mars - All Media Types' https://ift.tt/2K1PYik April 3, 2019 at 04:50AM

[foslad]

Almost Too Good (A Chris Evans Story): Part 20

A/N: I’m sorry. I say it every time. But it’s true! Life gets in the way! :( I hate the gaps just as much as you do!! But it’s another long one! :) Thank you SO much for all the love I got on the last chapter, means SO much!! <3

(Also, huge apologies for the re-uploads! This one didn’t want to play ball for some reason!)

I smiled down at my phone as I turned the corner onto Fifth Avenue. After a little shuffling and a few shots of the floor, Dodger soon came into frame; snoozing contently on the left side of Chris’ bed. His cheeks and paws were all bunched up on the pillow, making it look like he was smiling.

“I like Adrian and all, but I’m not sad to see her go.” A small voice in the background, not dissimilar to a kindergartner's, began to seep through my headphones. “Because now that we’re free of that bitch, I can finaaaalllyyyyy get my nappin’ spot back.”

My smile grew even wider. ‘Oh, wow!? You really just gonna do me like that? I didn’t realize this was a turf war!?’

Chris flopped down onto the other side of the bed and came back into view, fixing his cap and letting the back of his head rest on his hand. ‘Well, it is. And he means business.’

I shook my head and briefly looked up to make sure I wasn’t going to walk into someone before returning my attention to the phone.

‘I’ll bear that in mind next time. Anyways, I’m almost there.’ I observed, turning another corner.

‘That’s okay, I should probably get going anyways. I have a personal trainer and dietitian coming to the house and then I got a bunch of other shit to do before I see Jake tonight to run over everything that’s happening in December.’

‘Busy, busy.’ I sympathized, silently relishing in the fact I had finished for the holidays.

‘Yeah, but good busy.’ He offered, attempting to raise a smile. ‘Talk to you later, Warner.’

-

Two pairs of eyes bore into me like I held all the secrets of the universe.

‘Sooo… we’re just not gonna talk about it!?’

‘The only thing we’re going to talk about - is what I’m ordering for lunch.’ I replied, not even bothering to look up from the tantalizing menu that was currently blocking my face.

We were tucked away into the corner of Kelsie’s, my favorite spot in Manhattan to come for brunch. The food here was incredible and, for whatever reason, always cemented the feeling of properly being back in NYC to me.

‘Oh, come on! I drove all the way here - to talk about it!’

‘I didn’t ask you to.’ I replied innocently, briefly lowering the menu to raise an eyebrow in Amanda’s direction before pulling it back up.

‘Adrian, please. You know how I feel about these kinds of things! You shot Vogue’s 73 Questions yesterday, you have a huge audition next week that is so secret, you can’t even tell me what it’s for and you’re enjoying the company of quite possibly, the finest looking man that God put on this earth.’

Her fingertips gripped the sides of the paper as she lowered the menu again so that she could look me in the eye.

‘I work as a secretary. That’s it. That is as good as it gets for me.’ Amanda laid her hands flat out on the table and stared at me wide eyed; she wasn’t dicking around. ‘THE LEAST YOU CAN DO, AS MY BEST FRIEND, IS GIVE ME THE CAPTAIN HOT DELICIOUS AMERICANO EXPRESS TEEAAA!’

‘After all the advice and help we gave you, I think we deserve to know.’ A slightly more composed Amy chimed in next to her.

‘Okay, alright, you incessant demons!’ I caved, hoping to just get it over with so that I could enjoy my meal without the two hawks on the other side staring at me the whole time. ’-yes. Okay? Yes. The drought… is over.’

Their squeals attracted the looks of the table next to us.

‘When, where, how!?’ Amanda took a large sip of her coffee to gather her strength before leaning forward again. ‘And most importantly, is it goooood!?’ She grinned.

‘Mandy, c’mon! That’s a little personal, don’t you think?’ Amy swooped in.

‘Yes. Very.’ She agreed, before turning back to me and completely disregarding that part. ‘Now tell me everything.’

-

‘Ho-ly shit, you little kinkster!’ Amanda threw her head back and clasped her hands together at the fact that Chris and I had “done the deed” upstairs in my childhood room whilst my sister’s wedding reception was going on downstairs.

‘How did you manage to hide that from us at the time!?’ Amy queried, somewhat impressed. I shrugged in response but bit my lip in satisfaction as I recalled the moment.

‘That’s hilarious! Like… Grandma’s downstairs in the kitchen, enjoying some trifle, reminiscing on a beautiful day and Adrian’s just casually getting it in upstairs.’ Amanda’s eyes shut as she continued to crack up about it.

‘Well, regardless of how or when or whatever, I’m so happy for you!’ Amy beamed as she reached across and rubbed my forearm kindly.

‘Me too! This is the happiest I’ve seen you in a long time, I love it!’ Mandy gushed, causing us all to make sarcastic kissy noises to each other before she picked up her coffee mug and signaled for Amy and I to do the same.

‘Well, here’s to you and Captain Hot Delicious Americano Express.’

I rolled my eyes and took a sip of tea alongside them. ‘I’m 100% going to tell him that’s your nickname for him, you know.’ I goaded her, playfully.

‘Please do.’ She grinned.

-

“Mandy <3 has changed the name of this group to ‘I fucked Captain America and all I got was this lousy group chat!’”

Oh, for fuck sake.

‘Typical Mandy.’ I muttered as I slipped my phone back into my pocket and continued to admire all the new clothes that hung on the displays in the store.

‘Don’t make plans for dinner tonight.’ Amy toyed, shifting her eyes from side to side as she ran her hands over the fabric of a stunning Armani blouse.

Lifting my head up from the rack, I eyed her suspiciously and agreed not to “make any plans”.

-

Collapsing onto my couch, I smiled up at the ceiling. I couldn’t recall the last time I had felt this happy! Everything seemed to be going right for me and I felt like I was on cloud nine! Amy was back to work and by my side again! My family and friends were all happy! Chris was… amazing! And, I had just done a wondrous day’s worth of shopping…

I truly didn’t know what to do with all this contentment!

It felt almost… too good at times. Like it was bound to implode at some point… But I guess a part of me will always feel that way; scars from the past never really fade properly...

With a few hours to kill before dinnertime, I reluctantly decided to pick up my phone and face reality. Tapping the weather app, I peered down at the temperatures due for the coming week and… Oh boy.

I loved everything about the East Coast, literally everything, (even more so now for having spent some time on the West Coast) but admittedly, having lived in nothing but pretty much sunshine for the past while, it was going be hard to adjust back to the chill…

But, none the less, after Chris’ chat with me about getting my fitness up (and the fact that I had consumed that lunch from earlier in a little over four bites), I decided to take advantage of being back in the streets I loved so much and go for a run.

---

Twenty-five minutes in, with my workout playlist blaring in my headphones, I raised a big smile to myself as I looked down and watched my Fitbit Watch hit the 1.5-mile mark. As I turned the corner, I nipped past a little kiosk at the end of the street and allowed my eyes to fly over the blurring headlines that adorned all the gossip magazines.

‘Brad and Angelina: What Really Went Wrong’

‘Mariah Carey’s New Year’s Eve Gig!’

‘Chelsea Hewitt-Lewis and Others Join the Marvel Universe For Untitled Avengers 3…’

My eyes had stayed with that last headline for a little too long because before I knew it -

BANG!

‘Owh!’

My shoulder crashed into a currently unoccupied painter’s ladder and my ass hit the floor with such a force, my phone flew out of my hand and launched itself onto the sidewalk.

Peering up, I could see that the little kiosk worker’s eyes had broadened, and he immediately ran over to help me up.

‘Oh, Miss! You okay? You okay?’ He fussed, eyes wide with worry.

With the adrenaline I had gained from the run pumping, I paused for a brief second to give myself a once over and, to my relief, the only initial damage done seemed to be to my pride.

‘Yeah, I-I’m okay.’ I blinked wildly, attempting to gather my bearings. ‘Thank you.’ 

Taking his hand, I allowed him to slowly help me up.

The street appeared to be quite empty and, mercifully, it seemed as though no one had witnessed my little faux pas aside from the worker. Standing up straight, I was quickly alerted to the pain in my rear end from where it had smacked down onto the pavement. Oh God, that was gonna leave a bruise.

‘How you no see ladder, Miss?’ He questioned, laughing lightly now that he could see I wasn’t broken.

Turning around and gazing up in intimidation, I clocked that the ladder was pretty damn noticeable; to be fair.

‘I was… distracted, I guess.’

The pain in my ass was the only thing keeping me from marching back over to his kiosk and ripping down every single magazine with the name Chelsea Hewitt-Lewis on them and burning them in a makeshift bonfire right there on the pavement.

The worker then pointed behind me. ‘You need me to call someone? Your phone broken, I see.’

Oh crap, my phone!

Turning around and bending down, (owwwww my butt really did hurt), I retrieved the remnants of my phone and inspected to see if it was still any functioning order… Quickly deducing that it was, it was just now home to a million cracks.

Fantastic.

-

I eventually limped my way back to my apartment and attempted to strip down for a shower to try and help with the pain; but one glimpse at my naked body saw that I probably needed something more along the lines of an ice bath.

My shoulder looked like someone had punched it with an iron fist; little grazes on my palms and elbows from where I had tried to break my fall had begun to show up and my ass, which was by far the worst, had deep shades of grey and red rapidly growing on the left side and a little on the right. It looked just… awful.

As I examined myself in the mirror, I could bitterly feel the tears brimming in my eyes. I had planned to just throw on a simple tank top and jeans for my “date with Amy” tonight but that was out of the question now; my bruises would shine through like bulls-eyes.

The more I thought about the reason I was in this stupid mess, the more my tears became hot with anger and humiliation.

“Chelsea Hewitt-Lewis joins the Marvel Universe for Avengers 3”

Just thinking of her name and Chris’s film franchise in the same sentence was too much for me. It was far too close for comfort. It made me want to be sick.

That woman had ruined my life once before. Taken everything from me. What was to stop her from doing it again?

--

Despite being in both physical and mental pain, I braved the evening and opened the front door to Amy, with my good arm, at 8PM on the dot.

She smiled wide at me as she held up two different bottles of Champagne in each hand. ‘I didn’t know which one to pick… so I got both!’ She informed me as she waltzed in and strutted towards the kitchen.

‘But then again, we are celebrating, so I thought it was justified!’ Her voice began to fade away as I shut the door behind her.

Unable to resist giving her a small smile, I followed her into my kitchen and folded my arms as I leant across the counter, peering in at what food she had brought.

Ah, she’d gone to Tower’s! My favorite!

After a comfortably quiet period of setting out plates and glasses, Amy’s eyes turned to the prize as she picked up one of the bottles and began to unwrap the plastic around the cork.

Her eyebrows wriggled at me. ‘You wanna pop it? It is your big Vogue celebration after all?’

Realizing that would only cause me more discomfort, I lightly shook my head and gestured for her to go ahead.

As she poured some into the flutes, she side-eyed me. ‘You’re awfully quiet… you okay?’ She inquired as she handed me my glass.

‘Mhmm.’ I nodded, accepting the glass and immediately putting it down onto the counter next to me and my hardly touched food (that in itself was probably a red flag).

‘Let me rephrase that; what’s wrong Adrian?’ She frowned slightly. ‘You normally love Tower’s food?’

Her face fell a touch, and I could tell she was disappointed that I wasn’t as excited as she was for us to catch up.

‘I do! No, I love this!’ I attempted to assure her. God, I felt awful now. This wasn’t how our first proper night reunited was supposed to be! ‘It’s just- I fell when I was running earlier, and I got pretty banged up, that’s all.’

Upon her maternal insistence that went beyond assistant duty, I took the PG route and slipped the fabric off my shoulder and showed her the deepened purple abyss forming onto my skin and then proceeded to just tell her about the butt business.

‘Ho-ly fuck! Adrian, that’s gnarly!’ She grimaced.

I shrugged my shoulders as I pulled the wool back up, only to wince at the pain again.

Fucking Chelsea...

Now completely unwilling to have our reunion spoilt by my injuries alone, Amy set about creating a makeshift “ass fort” for me, in which my butt would feel fully supported for the night as we caught up on each other.

I smiled genuinely at her, because how could I not? Spinning around and taking a bite of the food and a sip of the champagne, I decided to just forget about the events of today. For the time being at least.

‘I’m gonna pee and then when I get back, we shall feast!’ I informed her as I spun and made for the bathroom.

‘Have you seen that new show everyone’s talking about? Stranger People? Or Stranger Things? Something…’ She asked, picking up my laptop to browse Netflix.

‘Nope!’ I called back to her.

‘Perfect!’

--

I walked back down the hall, pulling my sweater closer, when I stopped, catching sight of Amy’s somewhat unreadable face.

‘What?’ I laughed nervously, a little thrown by her serious expression. She looked at me like I was a puppy about to be put down or something.

‘You left your internet browser open…’

‘So? I-’ I began before it suddenly dawned on me.

After telling myself I was going to leave it all alone, I had proceeded to do the exact opposite. As usual.

I had googled Chelsea’s role, her casting, everything... I just wanted to find something that would give me any kind of information as to what her proximity to Chris was going to be. And, inevitably, I came up short.

And now I had been caught.

I shifted awkwardly, not knowing how I could possibly go about defending my actions.

‘I’m pathetic, I know.’ I relented.

With her eyes still sorrowful, Amy shifted the laptop across her lap and patted the couch next to her.

‘I can’t,’ I called to her, feeling like an idiot, ‘my butt hurts when I sit on it.’

She stood up and immediately made her way over. ‘You have every right to feel uncomfortable about this Adrian, I’m not judging!’

I let her pull me in for a gentle side hug. I’d be lying if I said that there wasn’t a part of me that just simply wanted to burst into tears. But I knew I deep down, I’d save those for later when I was alone. Like always.

After a short while, Amy spoke up. ‘You know what you gotta do, right?’ Her voice was a little stern, like a parent telling their child they should go apologize for something.

I looked up at her briefly before looking away again. ‘I’m not telling Chris.’

‘What!? Of course, you’re telling him!’ Amy declared, pulling away, exasperated. ‘Why wouldn’t you!?’ She held her hand to her head for a second and looked around her. ‘Wow… I legit just got Déjà vu.’

I looked at her like she was out of her mind before pulling away entirely and using my hand to gesture a fake phone.

‘Suuuure, yeah! “Hey baby! Look, I know we’ve only been dating a couple months and not to come across like a complete psycho or anything but do me a favor? Go ahead and just never go near, speak to, look at or even breathe the same air as your new co-star. She’s a man-stealing bitch and I’m afraid you’ll take one look at her and realize I’m trash. ‘Kay? Great!” NO. THANK. YOU!’

Amy rolled her eyes heavily at my pitiful excuse for sarcasm.

‘Noooo... I was thinking more “Hey baby, I know this is a little out of the blue, but I was wondering if we could have a chat about something that I know, in the long run, is going to make me feel uncomfortable and I’d rather us just be on the same page about it now whilst it’s still a non-issue”.’

I stayed silent, firm in my usual method of just burying my head under the sand until it all went away.

‘Please don’t put yourself through this again, Adrian. Not now. Not when you were just starting be happy again.’ Amy begged, before wisely dropping the subject.

Her words, though justified, we’re still contributors to the growing pit in my stomach.

-

Over the following few days, as reluctant as I was to take Amy’s advice, I wasn’t exactly not considering it either.

Aside from texting, (Facetime was now a bust thanks to my newly obliterated phone screen), Chris and I had spoken on the phone a grand total of three times. And, whilst I always had good intentions in place, it felt like anytime I would build myself up and take the deep breath to talk about it, something cut in.

The first time, it was his assistant Jake wanting to discuss an addition to his already demanding schedule for the day before Chris was due at the gym for a training session.

(Before I left LA, Chris had told me about how he was going to start grinding hard with all his work commitments; to be able to go home to Boston a day or two early for Thanksgiving. So, I knew, deep down, that add-ons were only going to set him off into a bad mood.)

The second time, I had called in the middle of him watching a game with a few friends he had over. Bless his heart, Chris had tried his best not to blow me off, but I could tell by his distant voice and Scott’s constant ‘FUCK OFF, ON WHAT PLANET IS THAT A FOUL!?’ background jeers, that now was just not the right time.

With this “cold feet” motion in place, the third time… well, that one was on me.

‘God, I can’t wait to be done.’ Chris yawned into the phone, his voice echoing as he clearly entered his bathroom. ‘I just have a table read tomorrow and then I’m free as a bird!’ I could feel him beaming as his voice broke up in what appeared to be a stretch.

‘… for a week that is.’ He clarified, reluctantly.

I lifted my head up and away from the suitcase I was packing to take to my parent’s house; my cracked phone almost slipping from my hand in the process. ‘Table read?’

‘Yep!’ I could hear a cabinet open and close.

‘Is it a big one? With the whole cast?’ I asked, sinking onto the heels of my feet before immediately lifting myself back up at the pressure it had put on my healing butt.

‘I don’t know actually,’ he answered, appearing to wonder himself. ‘Probably. I guess there’s a lot of new people joining the cast, so they’ll probably wanna get the introductions out of the way. They did it for Civil War and some of the other movies.’ He explained before his voice descended into a dating infomercial voice, ‘so it’ll be a bunch of “Hey there, I’m Chris, I’m 35 and I enjoy walking my dog and various sporting activities such as football, baseball and the odd round of golf. Welcome to the team!” bullshit around the table.’’

I managed a slight laugh before the smile on my face turned pained. What if she’s there tomorrow…

The lump in my throat was enough to choke me.

A ringing noise began to echo in my ear. It was like my mind was screaming “NOW’S THE PERFECT TIME! SAY IT! SAY IT!”

.

.

.

‘… Good luck, then. Hope it goes well!’

God, I really was pathetic.

-

I was currently sat at my parent’s dining table, with my knee bobbing like a manic and my eyes blinking every minute or so.

I know they say that a watched phone never rings, but thirty minutes ago, I had decided that that particular saying could go and fuck itself. And in return, it decided to be completely true.

‘Call you when I’m done with the table read. Probably around 3ish!’

My eyes flicked up and observed the 4:29PM time stamp on the wall clock. Chris’ text had all but consumed my first morning at my parent’s house.

‘You good? Somethin’ on your mind?’ My Dad voiced his concern as he came and sat two mugs down onto the dining table.

For someone who prided themselves on their close relationship with their family, it scared me how good I was at lying to them. But I suppose, having lied to them for well over a month about what Alex (and Chelsea) had done to me, I was accustomed to it.

‘I’m great, just waiting on a... business call.’ I shot him a half-smile.

‘Nothing to do with the guy, is it?’ He surveyed, settling into his seat.

‘No, he’s great!’ Because he was. He still is. I trusted Chris! Really, I did! But I had every reason in the world not to trust Chelsea…

‘Fair enough.’ He smiled, spooning some sugar into his coffee before reaching out to place a cup of green tea in front of me. ‘Well, whatever it is that’s got you all nervous, just know, it’ll be alright Adrian. Life has a funny way of working itself out sometimes.’

He reached out and let his hand rest on my knee, subtly calming it’s panicked jolts. I smiled warmly at him and picked up the tea he’d made for me. ‘Thank you.’

I just hoped to God he was right.

------------------------------------

A/N: As always, thank you SO much for reading!!! 

I don’t see there being toooo many chapters left. 4 or 5 maybe?? That is such a scary prospect, I’ve been in and out of writing this for so long, I can’t imagine it ending haha! <3

[gibsonsflowofthoughts]

The winners and losers of the 2018 MLB trade deadline

It’s that time of year, where we all ignore the fact that the Major League Baseball postseason is nonsense. Baseball starts drinking on Oct. 1, and when it wakes up in the first week of November, the smoke alarm is going off and there’s a horse in the bathtub. There’s no rhyme or reason to it, but we’re supposed to pretend like we can predict winners and losers at the trade deadline.

Heck yeah, we’re supposed to pretend like we can predict winners and losers at the trade deadline. It’s fun. So even though you might be from the future and laughing at my simplistic analysis, just know that I’m more interested in being fun than right. Which is good, considering this won’t be right.

Thought the Astros should have traded for Yu Darvish instead of Justin Verlander last year, for example.

Hey, it could have worked, you don’t know.

But you clicked, so I’ll write. Here are the winners and losers from the 2018 MLB trade deadline:

Rays

Acquired: Tommy Pham, Austin Meadows, Tyler Glasnow, Jalen Beeks, bonus pool money, players to be named later

Traded: Chris Archer, Jonny Venters, Nathan Eovaldi, Matt Andriese, Justin Wilson, Genesis Cabrera, Roel Ramirez, Michael Perez, Brian Shaffer

They have the payroll of a medium-sized Quiznos now, which I guess is part of the point. I’m not a fan of baseball’s current economic structure, and I’m hesitant to heap too much praise on a team trying to cut costs.

Still, as long as this is the framework, the Rays are within their rights to exploit it. And, baby, they’re exploiting it with aplomb. They’ll have an outfield of Meadows/Pham/Kiermaier, which is built to win now and for the distant future. They won’t have their ace, but they’ll have pitchers who are majors-ready or close to it coming back.

These deals aren’t for toolsy A-ballers who are five years away. This is the Rays trying to buy their cake at a yard sale and eat it, too. It’s just crazy enough to work, and I’m very impressed by the their ability to walk this weird, thrifty tightrope.

Mmmmmm, yard-sale cake.

Dodgers

Acquired: Manny Machado, Brian Dozier, John Axford, Dylan Floro, Zach Neal

Traded: Yusniel Diaz, Dean Kremer, Zach Pop, Rylan Bannon, Breyvic Valera, Luke Raley, Logan Forsythe, Devin Smeltzer, Corey Copping, James Marinan, Aneurys Zabala

The Dodgers don’t like trading prospects if they don’t have to, and they certainly gave up a lot of interesting players, Kremer has the gaudy strikeout totals, and Bannon hasn’t stopped hitting as a professional. That’s before you get to Diaz, who is supposed to be the centerpiece of the deal. It’s a lot for two months of production and the postseason.

At the same time, this is a franchise that was a single lousy game away from a World Series win last year, which is something they haven’t had since 1988. They were extremely cautious when it came to trading their prospects just a couple years ago, but now they’re trying to add to a team that’s somehow powered by minor-league free agents and lesser trades and signings.

Oh, and Clayton Kershaw. Minor-league free agents, lesser trades and signings, and Clayton Kershaw. They might have the best team in the NL, still, so it makes sense to add a hitter with Hall of Fame talent in the middle of his best season, even if he’s just a rental. If Dozier has a Dozierific second half, this could be the best lineup in baseball. The Dodgers gave up a lot of prospects, but they had a lot to offer.

When it comes to the Machado trade, it doesn’t hurt that this is a preview of what it would be like to play for the Dodgers long term, either. The weather’s pretty nice, Manny.

Yankees

Acquired: Lance Lynn, J.A. Happ, Zach Britton, Luke Volt, $2.75 million in international bonus money

Traded: Tyler Austin, Luis Rijo, Brandon Drury, Billy McKinney, Cody Carroll, Josh Rogers, Dillon Tate, Chasen Shreve, Giovanny Gallegos, Adam Warren

I’m not a huge fan of Lance Lynn, even as he’s been solid for the last two months, but he’s overqualified for what the Yankees are asking him to do, which is sit in a glass case and be ready. The Yankees have a starter with a wonky elbow in Masahiro Tanaka, one with a case of the mystery sucks in Sonny Gray, and a 38-year-old in CC Sabathia. They aren’t crossing their fingers; they’re preparing for the apocalypse. Good for them.

Happ seems like the kind of starter who can give five solid innings in the postseason before giving way to a four-headed monster of bullpen doom, and look at that, Zach Britton is here to be another head. I don’t know what happened to Tommy Kahnle either, and there are no guarantees that Britton will be back to 2014-2016 levels, or anything close to it, but the Yankees have the kind of depth that wins championships.

It’s about time. They’ve had to wait nine years and endure two 84-win seasons, but now they’ve built their best shot at another title run.

Royals

Acquired: Brett Phillips, Jorge Lopez, Blake Perkins, Kelvin Gutierrez, Yohanse Morel

Traded: Mike Moustakas, Kelvin Herrera

A fair return for two beloved players, with deft timing executed on both. The Royals swooped back into the market to sign Moustakas, which might have cost them a compensatory draft pick. Unless it just meant that he wasn’t going to have to sit out until June, which would have been incredibly annoying and sad.

Phillips is the main snag, and there’s a strong chance that he’ll whiff his way out of starting consideration soon. Still, the tools are real, and they got him for a rental. Even if that rental will have pictures of him hanging around the ballpark for the next half-century.

Orioles

Acquired: Yusniel Diaz, Dean Kremer, Zach Pop, Rylan Bannon, Breyvic Valera, Cody Carroll, Josh Rogers, Dillon Tate, international bonus space, Evan Phillips, Jean Carlos Encarnación, Brett Cumberland, Bruce Zimmerman, Jonathan Villar, Luis Ortiz, Jean Carlos Carmona

Traded: Manny Machado, Brad Brach, Zach Britton, Darren O’Day, Jonathan Schoop

It would have been more if they opened up shop in the offseason, or even better if they did this two years ago. Ah, the benefit of hindsight.

All told, though, it’s almost like having a full draft to yourself, right down to the first-round promise of Diaz. That’s a pretty sweet haul for players who weren’t going to be around for the next good Orioles team, even if it’s ultra-depressing that Machado won’t be on that team.

The part where the Orioles acquired international bonus money for Brach and Schoop made me laugh, though. They usually hold an International Bonus Money Day at the park, where they give international cap space to the first 20,000 fans, and now they’re acquiring it on purpose? I know there’s a good reason for it, but still. It’s ... almost like the organizational direction isn’t clearly defined.

Still, think of it like a free draft. Hey, free draft! If you’re going to trade away your middle infield, your bullpen, and the most reliable starter in a sea of unreliable misery, at least get 15 players so you can pretend you’re getting a free draft out of it.

Twins

Acquired: Luke Raley, Devin Smeltzer, Tyler Austin, Luis Rijo, Chase De Jong, Ryan Costello, Gilberto Celestino, Jorge Alcala, Jhoan Durán, Gabriel Maciel, Ernie De La Trinidad

Traded: Brian Dozier, Lance Lynn, Zach Duke, Ryan Pressly, Eduardo Escobar

Give me a list of the prospects the Twins were offered for Dozier two seasons ago, and I’ll tell you if they were winners or losers. As is, that’s a list of names that’s 11 players long, and there’s a fine chance that at least one or two of them will make a dumb “winners-losers” binary choice look silly in four years.

Dozier was traded too late, and the return wasn’t impressive. That’s how it goes.

Duke was traded at the perfect time, and any value he adds through trade is impressive.

Pressly is solid, even if his K-rate suggests he should be more than that. Dealing him as he’s getting deeper in his arbitration years is a good move, and while I’m not qualified to analyze the return too deeply, it sure looks like they got highly regarded prospects back, which is excellent value.

Escobar was an extreme sell-high player, and to the Twins’ credit, they sold high.

I’m leaning toward “WINNERS, ABSOLUTE WINNERS,” but as of now, I’ll turn the caps lock off. Looks good from here, and give them credit for deciding to sell so quickly after a surprise postseason run.

I just want to know what they could have got for Dozier two seasons ago.

Indians

Acquired: Leonys Martin, Brad Hand, Adam Cimber, James Hoyt

Traded: Francisco Mejia, Willi Castro, Kyle Dowdy, Tommy DeJuneas

They’re not on the loser’s list because these trades won’t help them. These trades might send them to the World danged Series. The Indians’ bullpen was a mess, and they got two low-cost relievers with loads of team control. That’s a net positive.

It cost them one of their best prospects, though, and it came after an offseason where the Indians let several relievers go and replaced them with wishes and hopes and dreams. That’s not to say that Bryan Shaw and Boone Logan have been good, because they haven’t. But their plan was something like, “Neil Ramirez and Matt Belisle and uh we’ll get back to you,” and it cost them Mejia.

If it helps them even reach the World Series, it’s a successful trade. But it sure seems like one that could have been at least partially avoided with just a modicum of urgency this offseason.

It was a reasonable trade deadline strategy, sure, but it was also a strange offseason for a team that’s so close.

Diamondbacks

Acquired: Eduardo Escobar, Matt Andriese, Brad Ziegler, Jake Diekman

Traded: RHP Jhoan Duran, OF Gabriel Maciel, OF Ernie De La Trinidad, Brian Shaffer, Michael Perez, Tommy Eveld, Wei-Chieh Huang

It’s a lot of talent for underwhelming players. Eduardo Escobar might have figured out how to be more than a super-sub at the age of 29, but the seven years of an 89 OPS+ that came before it leave me skeptical. Andriese is the best example of Just A Guy in baseball right now, right down to the 4.36 ERA, and Ziegler is an old friend suffering through an erratic season.

Most of these players are trending in the right direction, but as a deadline strategy? I want something bolder if I’m a Diamondbacks fan. These are the kinds of moves I would expect from a team like the Red Sox or Astros, teams with recent success that are running away with their respective divisions.

A team like the Diamondbacks, scrapping with three teams and without a championship since Juan Soto was an infant, should seek out trades with just a teensy bit more oomph. These players should help, so I’m probably being overly nitpicky, but with a team like this, I want EXPLOSIONS.

Rockies

Acquired: Seunghwan Oh

Traded: Forest Wall, Chad Spanberger, player to be named later

The team that spent the offseason building the Super Bullpen of Great Fortune had to go get a reliever because their plan failed. Not only did they have to get a reliever, but they got one they could have had for a pittance throughout the entire offseason.

If this isn’t a textbook lesson in bullpen construction, I don’t know what is. There are lot of ways to build a bullpen, but I’m pretty sure that throwing money at it is the absolute worst one.

Pirates

Acquired: Not Gerrit Cole

Traded: Gerrit Cole

But, yeah, go get that late-inning reliever for this year and the next. That’ll shore things up.

NEVER MIND.

Acquired: Chris Archer, Keone Kela

Traded: Tyler Glasnow, Austin Meadows, Taylor Hearn, players to be named later

This is the year they’re taking risks. This is the year they trade huge pieces of a potential future. This is the deadline where they vault ahead of their competition. The one where they’re seven freaking games back in the NL Central. The one after they traded Gerrit Cole for magic beans.

Let’s check in with the deadline action in 2014, when they actually made the postseason.

July 31, 2014

Selected Angel Sanchez off waivers from the Chicago White Sox.

What about 2013, when they won 94 games?

July 31, 2013

Traded player to be named to the Seattle Mariners. Received Robert Andino.

They did get J.A. Happ in 2015, and that was more inspired than anyone gave them credit for at the time. But this is the year to go bananas?

To be fair, though, if you’re going to go after a pitcher, one who has an owner-friendly contract is the way to go. Archer will be around for the next three years if the Pirates want him, so I don’t begrudge the Pirates for thinking he fits some sort of window for them. And if you’re making me bet on the cumulative WAR for Archer over the next three years and the cumulative WAR for Austin Meadows and Tyler Glasnow, I will probably choose Archer. If Meadows had boffo power or plate discipline, I’d be giddy about him, but he’s just shy on both fronts, and Glasnow has been erratic.

Still, it’s the timing that gets me, even if the trade might work out.

YOU’RE TAKING RISKS NOW?

NOW?

Astros

Acquired: Ryan Pressly, Roberto Osuna, Tommy DeJuneas, Martin Maldonado

Traded: Ken Giles, David Paulino, Gilberto Celestino, Jorge Alcala, Hector Perez, Patrick Sandoval, James Hoyt, their self-respect

Their bullpen is more talented now. Congratulations, Astros. Osuna can really wing it.

When I talked to people who worked for the Astros last year, I asked what about the team is it that they would want to read about. My answer was that the clubhouse was a diverse wonderland of ebullient personalities, one of the most cohesive teams ever assembled. So I wrote about it. They won the World Series. I was raised not to go overboard on the clubhouse stuff, but last year’s team sure got me wondering ...

Then they acquired a pitcher serving the second-longest suspension for domestic violence under the new rules. The ace pitcher clearly isn’t enthused, even as he tries to be a good employee. The Yankees acquired a reliever in the middle of a domestic violence suspension, and then they traded him for one of the best prospects in the game before giving themselves a better chance to win the World Series. So if you want to be cynical, you can look at this purely in baseball terms.

There were other relievers, but the Astros settled on Osuna because he was a buy-low guy. That’s extremely cynical.

Gross. And very much against the spirit of what got them their first championship. We’ll see how receptive the clubhouse is to a player who still has a court case pending because he allegedly did some repugnant shit.

Brewers

Acquired: Jonathan Schoop, Mike Moustakas, Joakim Soria

Traded: Jonathan Villar, Luis Ortiz, Jean Carlos Carmona, Brett Phillips, Jorge Lopez, Kodi Medeiros, Wilber Perez

I don’t hate these trades in isolation. I hate them only because the Brewers now have an overstuffed infield, but they’re still counting on Wade Miley to shore up the rotation. Maybe he’ll have a 2.01 ERA forever.

RON HOWARD: Get the fuck out of here.

Yeah, I’m not a believer in Miley, and neither is the narrator. The Brewers adding to their already formidable bullpen depth was smart. Getting one more infielder was necessary. Getting two, but not a starting pitcher?

Dunno. Not what I would have done. We’ll see if the post-deadline waiver madness helps them in this regard, but I would have loved to see them with Archer instead of the Pirates.

A’s

Acquired: Jeurys Familia

Traded: Will Toffey, Bobby Wahl

The A’s are good, dang it. I wanted more. I wanted a sign to the clubhouse that the A’s are capital-G, capital-F, and Capital-I Going For It. I wanted a starting pitcher kicking down the door and screaming, “COME WITH ME IF YOU WANT TO LIVE ... IN A WORLD WHERE I PITCH SIX OR SEVEN STRONG INNINGS REGULARLY.”

Instead the A’s got a reliever. A good one! At a reasonable price! But I was looking for something more when it comes to the rotation, not to mention some help for poor, lost Jonathan Lucroy behind the plate.

The A’s probably aren’t in a spot to go all-in on this year’s surprising (TO SOME) contender, and I get that. But something a little bit more than a setup man would have been nice. This fun, scrappy team deserved it.

Giants

Acquired: Nope

Traded: Nah

Will Smith is absolutely dominant right now. Of all the relievers who were traded, Smith would have been the best one. Teams are clamoring for someone just like him — a lefty who can dominate hitters from either side of the plate and is under team control for next year, too. He would have brought back a hefty return.

The Giants are holding on to him, and they’ll use him to finish .500 this year, with some crossed fingers for next year.

That’s what the Giants had to trade, though. They had relievers, with Smith, Tony Watson, and Sam Dyson all having strong years. This isn’t like their mess from the offseason, where they couldn’t even hold a fire sale if they wanted to. All they had to do is trade relievers.

It’s been extremely nice to watch a team with a competent bullpen, so I get it. But the Giants are climbing out of the bottom of the organizational rankings, and one of the golden rules of building a farm system is that when you have a chance to flip relievers for prospects, you do it.

The Giants declined. They’re five games out of the second wild card, so maybe I’m the dummy. I have a feeling, though, that it would have been an exciting return for Will Smith.

Red Sox

Acquired: Ian Kinsler, Nathan Eovaldi

Traded: Williams Jerez, Ty Buttrey, Jalen Beeks

OK. Sure. Whatever. That seems nice. Kinsler has a glove, and the bat won’t kill you. Eovaldi is still working his way back from Tommy John, and he’s always had great stuff. The Red Sox are a million games over .500 are are making the postseason regardless.

OK. Sure. These are reasonable, if boring, moves.

Not everybody is a winner or loser, dammit.

Braves

Acquired: Adam Duvall, Kevin Gausman, Jonny Venters

Traded: Lucas Sims, Matt Wisler, Preston Tucker, international bonus money

Duvall still has some believers, especially if you believe in the batted-ball stats. Gausman has a solid arm that’s always been behind his results. Maybe he’ll be better served with a different coaching staff and a ballpark that isn’t unfair to fly balls.

OK. Sure. These are reasonable, if boring, moves.

Not everybody is a winner or loser, dammit.

White Sox

Acquired: Kodi Medeiros, Wilber Perez

Traded: Joakim Soria

Always take fliers on relievers when you’re a rebuilding team. Always, always, always. Pay the extra millions. Insert yourself into the offseason deals. Then turn around and wish for a happy trade-deadline raffle ticket to pay off.

Still, these are reasonable, if boring, moves.

Not everybody is a winner or loser, dammit.

Phillies

Acquired: Asdrubal Cabrera, Wilson Ramos, Aaron Loup

Traded: Franklyn Kilome, Jacob Waguespack, PsTBNL

No Machado. No Archer. No flashy win-now pieces, no flashy win-later pieces. Just a couple of guys who could have been solid deadline moves nearly a decade ago, too.

OK. Sure. These are reasonable, if boring, moves.

Not everybody is a winner or loser, dammit.

It’s hard to judge the Ramos trade without knowing the prospects going back to the Rays, but it seems like a light price. I have no idea how the A’s, Red Sox, or even Nationals couldn’t meet it.

Cubs

Acquired: Cole Hamels, Brandon Kintzler, Jesse Chavez

Traded: Jhon Romero, Ricky Tyler Thomas, Eddie Butler, Rollie Lacy, PTBNL

Hamels got his swing-and-miss back, and there are reasons to believe that he’s still a more valuable contributor than his Texas stats suggest. They added depth in the bullpen, and you wouldn’t be wrong to think that Yu Darvish coming back is like the real deadline addition.

They’re rich. They’re young. They’re good. Sure, add the pricey veteran. Take him for a spin.

These are reasonable, if boring, moves.

Not everybody is a winner or loser, dammit.

Reds

Acquired: Lucas Sims, Matt Wisler, Preston Tucker

Traded: Adam Duvall

I’m stuck in 2014, so this seems like a fantastic package of prospects to me. Mostly, though, I like how they took a chance by trading on a cheap, under-control player who was not hitting, which limited the return. The Reds have outfielders coming out of their ears; it was a risk they could afford to take, even if it was a little bit of a buy-low trade.

The Reds have made an interesting roster out of hardly noticed trades (just look up who they got in return for Alfredo freaking Simon), and this could be a fine addition to the legacy.

This is a reasonable, if boring, move.

Not everybody is a winner or loser, dammit. Except for the Reds, who definitely aren’t winners these days, ha ha, just a little joke as I near the end of this hellpost.

Nationals

Acquired: Jhon Romero

Traded: Brandon Kintzler

There were whispers about Bryce Harper getting traded, but in the end, the Nationals traded nothing but a complementary bullpen piece, and they acquired several future moments of autocorrect-inspired confusion.

Good. They probably should have dealt Gio Gonzalez and possibly a couple of other short-timers, but at least they made a rational move, while keeping intact their desire to build a young outfield of the gods.

This is a reasonable, if boring, move.

Not everybody is a winner or loser, dammit.

Dope article from sbnation.com

[themusicenthusiast]

Saturday, May 13th, 2017 – Cheers!: Manny the Martyr Caps Off a Five Year Run with One Last Epic Party at The Curtain Club

All photos by Jordan Buford Photography This was the night no one wanted to come yet everyone was kind of looking forward to: it was the night that Manny the Martyr would put to rest. Fans and friends were eager to see what the sure to be epic final set would be like, and on top of that there was a sense of excitement about the homecoming of Jake Cravens for the band’s first club show since March, after which he moved to Chicago. That would play somewhat of a significant role in the performance; and further making this one final party was the fact that they enlisted the help of several of their friends to warm up the stage for them. Dear Rachel kicked things of early, the pop/rock outfit being able to squeeze in the majority of the songs from the two-month-old But Really, Only You, kicking things off with the high-energy “Hollywood Called”. It wasn’t long before Alex Casado commented on the significance of the night, saying they hadn’t cared what time slot they got this night, they just wanted to be a part of the bill, thanking Manny the Martyr for making it happen.

They continued tearing through their 29-minute long set; Trey Williams launching them into “Backseat Driver”, Casado noting it would be their next single. Deservedly so, because it, and for that matter, everything in their arsenal, has a mainstream appeal while retaining a freshness about it. “Translate” would conclude their time on stage, and what a striking closer it was. A great song in general, it seemed intensified this night, everything else they had done building up to that moment, allowing it to provide an explosive finish to a dynamite show. And the night was just getting started. The turnaround time between bands was quite quick (then again, with six bands playing, it needed to be), and in no time at all Werewolf Therewolf was ready to go.

No band sounded the same this night, each one bringing a little something different to the table, the Denton-based outfit expanding upon that greatly with their brand of progressive rock with a pop sensibility. It’s something completely unique, ensuring they stand apart from anyone else. But all the same, they’re still a rock band at their core, as the quartet demonstrated this night. There was an undeniable intensity about much of their material, singer and rhythm guitarist Daniel Galvan effortlessly belting out some of the lines when necessary; the vocalist even making a joke or two when he was able. “You guys having a good time?” he asked several songs in, the patrons that where there cheering and applauding. “Good, ‘cause that would be weird if you weren’t,” he commented.

From precise and technical to powerful, raw rock ‘n’ roll, Werewolf Therewolf traversed a wide spectrum, Carlo Decanini, Aaron Caruthers, Cameron Sather, and Galvan holding nothing back. They found their stride early on, but even so and with around thirty minutes to fill, one couldn’t help but think they were still just scratching the surface as the curtain closed on them. All the same, they were crucial to enlivening the atmosphere at the Curtain this night. Given Manny the Martyr’s unique sound, it was fitting that some other reggae-esque band be on the bill, and Burning Slow filled that niche perfectly. Leaning more towards the heavier side of rock, they weren’t without a little reggae and even funk flare to their music; and since Clinton Styles had prior commitments, Brian Scheid of Triple SP was filling in with them, pulling double duty for the night.

He meshed well with them, and thanks to the confidence they all exuded, those who didn’t know better wouldn’t have had a clue that wasn’t the official Burning Slow lineup. They weren’t too far into their 27-minute long set before some fans started shouting for “Justice”, Matt Brodeur promising they were getting there, what has become their signature song eventually finishing off their time on stage, fanfare from the ever increasing number of patrons seeing them out. Triple SP had the stage next, Scheid seemingly ready for more, especially since that now entailed songs he had helped write. Only about a month out from a little West Coast tour, they would prove to be a completely different Triple SP from when I had last caught them, and with that being about two years ago, that had been too long.

Their 38-minute long set was comprised of plenty of classics of theirs, such as the opener, “Alone”, which acted as a call to everyone in Curtain Club to congregate around the stage; singer and guitarist Derek Procter cutting loose during that one, taking a few steps back form the microphone and wailing on his axe. Almost immediately they revealed themselves to be a cut above, their time on the road, being able to play a series of consecutive shows and deepen their chemistry, having incredible results. “Closure” was one that exemplified that bond, from the rhythm centric intro to the blazing riffs, lead guitarist Brad Mccain putting on a clinic at times and often mingled and jammed with Procter and Scheid. “How you doing?!” the bassist asked during one of the instrumental stretches, going the extra mile to get everyone pumped up, the crowd responding with plenty of shouts.

“I Want it All” was one of those numbers that saw a phenomenal duel (and dueling) guitar solo; while “Drugs” further intensified the rhythm section, Jacob Bobo hammering out the beats with a fury, as he and Scheid demonstrated what a dominant force they are. They breezed through their set, or at least they made it feel as if they had, continuously growing more compelling, until everyone was eventually left wishing they had more time to work with to squeeze in a few more numbers. Triple SP helped bring things to the next level, truly helping build the excitement of the night. The musicianship they displayed was staggering, and they were so impeccably tight that most acts would be envious of such chemistry.

A noteworthy band of D-FW for a while now, they were a whole other kind of impressive this night, the touring shape they’ve gotten in elevating them to something grand. Despite having heard the bulk of the songs they played a few times over, they all sounded fresh this night, a little more kick added to them. In turn, that made it all feel almost new. They tore it up, fiercely rocking the stage and easily proving themselves to be one of the most notable bands here in the music scene. The main support slot went to Innrcor, who whipped everyone into shape with some straight up, slightly heavy rock ‘n’ roll. Their set wasn’t without some slight hiccups, some guitar trouble occasionally plaguing them, though the other three members marched on with what they were playing, making the best of it, which is the only thing that can be done in a situation like that.

By the time they finished it was pushing midnight, and the main act was yet to come. This wasn’t the sold-out event everyone had anticipated. In fact, more people turned out to see Manny the Martyr back in March than they did at this final show. Somewhat surprising, though that was their loss; and even then, upwards of a couple hundred people were in attendance on this Saturday night to help them wrap up their five year run. A little sadness still hung in the air, but for the most part everyone was ecstatic about seeing Manny the Martyr again; the band members earning a laugh every now and then when they would suddenly poke their head out from between the curtain, surveying everyone before disappearing again. It was 12:22 when they got their 90-minute long set going, kicking it off with a moody jam, the curtain remaining closed for a time as they built up the suspense before launching in to their first song. It was a night in which they tried to hit as many highlights as they could, touching on all of their albums and many of the covers that had become standards.

Their first two cuts came in rapid succession, Jake Cravens having just enough time between them to comment, “I have never felt so much love in life!” He was beaming as he said, and he and his band mates aimed to return that love with the best possible show they could deliver, promptly ripping into the funky fresh “Play The Part”. They stayed on their Bail Me Out EP, doing a song that has always been a fan favorite, though one Cravens was always reluctant to play, as it could be a bit strenuous on his voice. To help with the screams featured in that song they enlisted the help of Adakain’s Ryan Ray, the frontman having some kind words to say about Manny the Martyr before helping them pull off an unforgettable rendition of “Sink Or Swim”, the two vocalists commanding the stage and working together in perfect harmony. “It’s something special…” Cravens remarked as they hit their first break of the night, the singer, still overcome with emotions, talking on how amazing it was to leave his hometown and come back to a reception like this.

As they continued on, they even did a few new songs from the Full Range EP they were releasing this night, one’s they hadn’t played before, at least letting their die-hard fans know how they would sound live. One of those was “Ad Nauseum”, which stood out as one of their most creative pieces of work. The mix of funk, reggae and rock was even more intriguing than usual, the chords being mesmerizing, Mike Ubben and Brad Green being methodical and intense in their playing. It was one they had been sitting on for a while, hearing it being well worth the wait, even it was the first and only time. Everyone knew what was coming after being asked, “Where are my weed smokers at?” cheering in response. It was with “Boogyman”, an absolute classic of MTM’s, that they really hit their stride, settling into a whole new level of comfort and confidence for the night, performing it seeming more like a reflex. Jason Stark was in the zone, the bassist strolling around the stage, kicking the air every now and again throughout the night. However, the most memorable moment of that song came when Cravens welcomed a young kid up on the stage, allowing him to sing some of the lines. “…I got usurped!” he quipped, saying he felt confident they had just found his replacement.

They followed it up with the subsequent track from Brighter Sun, Cravens mentioning, just in case no one knew, that his brother had passed away while he was serving his country a few years ago. Hence why “Too Soon” was never played too often, it was often an emotionally exhausting one that, understandably, brought up strong feelings, though it was one they felt needed to be a part of their final show. He was up front in stating he didn’t think he would be able to get through it, asking for help from those who knew it, who were happy to chime in when necessary. Even at the end of the night the emotions weren’t as high as they were during the performance of that song, Cravens noting afterwards that there was something about the fact that he knew he’d never play that song again that made it even more difficult. Still, I think everyone would agree he kept his composure a lot better than most could. “Anteman” was another from the last batch of songs they released, and while it had been heard at their final few shows, they had apparently been holding back on the full version, specifically the guitar solo that Green ripped into. It was said to be his first live solo ever and he slayed it, catching everyone off guard as he laid into his axe.

A chance to catch their breath followed, the band’s plaque they had earned a few years prior being brought up on stage to them, Cravens saying he grew up coming here, mentioning bands like Drowning Pool and SouthFM who had earned their rightful place as icons of the music scene, seeing their plaques and making it a personal goal to get one of his own. It represented an older era of MTM, a couple bass players ago, and Cravens sounded excited talking about what he planned on doing do it, like making a few adjustments before hanging it on his wall. Dedicated to their longtime fans, “It's Alright” ended with a joke that only those who had been with them since the very beginning would get. The closing “And that���s okay” became, “Dad, I’m gay,” Cravens adding the context afterwards, recalling a show at House of Blues where, after a few drinks, he just thought that would be a funny addition to the song, and felt it only fitting he repeat the move for its final performance. “Cereal Killer” would be one of the final originals they would do this night, the remainder of their set being mostly covers, such as their delightful rendition of “No Diggity” that had the whole place moving. They had another one at the ready, however, after being put up to a vote, an original won out, leading them to busting out “Brighter Sun”, a little extra funk flare added to the breakdown.

Thus far, Joel Simka had been drumming like a champ, even going above and beyond what’s normal for him, and that was made exceptionally impressive due to the fact that he had thrown his back out just a couple days before the show. “…He’s in extreme pain right now,” Cravens pointed out, asking everyone give Simka a hand. Last time they were here they celebrated 311 day slightly early, playing a couple 311 songs to commemorate it, and now, they gave those who missed it a taste of what it was like. “Beautiful Disaster” had everyone raving, but before going any further, much to Cravens surprise, his dad actually got on stage with them. He had another cover in mind, trying to coax his son into playing the first song he taught him, while stressing to everyone that it had taken thirty years to get Jake to the point he’s at now, all thanks to his training and watchful eye. “I have video of him on the back porch in diapers singing this song,” he informed the audience while still prodding his son to sing “Itsy Bitsy Spider”. He wouldn’t, though his band mates and everyone else in the club had no problem with it, adding the nursery rhyme to the set list.

That drew some laughs, though there were also some tender moments shared by the father and son. And before he left the stage, he had something important to say. “Son, I’m gay, too,” he finished, the room erupting into laughter, that being the last thing anyone would have expected to hear, but oh, it made the night. The quintet got back to it with “Creatures (For A While)”, and with two-o’clock fast approaching, it was nearly time to end it. Not even because they wanted to, as it looked like they could have played another hour, but because they just had no more time to work with. Because of that, they said their cover of “Stand by Me” would be it, and that could have been a fitting end. Like most of the other songs they’ve tried their hand at over the years, that one is unexpected but they make it sound stupendous. As had become customary, Cravens got out among the people during it, making it into a sing along as the audience clustered around him, making the most of the final few moments they had with Manny the Martyr. As fitting an end as that may have been, it just didn’t feel right, and no sooner had they finished it and they fired up one more song. The last song, and one of the first ones they wrote after starting the group. Cravens would joke this night that it was his band mates fault he got tied up in all of this, answering a Craigslist post about needing a singer, first being told it was going to be more of a covers gig, and then they decided to get into the original music game, becoming a part of the club scene. Not that he would have wanted it any other way.

Just like so many times before, the action-packed “Hit the Brink” saw them out, leading to an electrifying finish not just to the night, but the career. Ubben, Cravens, Simka, Stark, and Green stood arms around one another, taking that final bow on a stage that had been their home more than any other venue; Cravens delivering a eulogy of sorts, choking up as he spoke of how much this experience had meant to him. How grateful he was the to the guys standing beside him and how much he appreciated everyone that had supported them. “…The last five years have been a blast because of you!” he said shortly before the curtain closed on them. It was sad, to an extent, though this was a perfect final show. It was a celebration of what Manny the Martyr was, being incredibly fun right up until the very end, capturing the essence of what they were about. That’s one of the things that will be missed most about them, the sheer enjoyment they got out of performing. It’s a rare treat to see a group of musicians have the amount of fun they packed into every show, which made it even easier for the onlookers to get pulled in. On top of that, there’s the fact that they stood out from every other band in the scene. There’s plenty of rock outfits and metal bands, and indie acts are still in abundance, too. But bands like MTM, ones that mix rock, funk, reggae and even a little ska, those are virtually nonexistent. That’s not a slight against all the other styles, but Manny the Martyr offered something refreshing. It was unique, even among the bands they molded themselves after, and that diversity they brought to the scene will be sorely missed as well. I know that was what drew me to them a few years back when I stumbled upon them here at the Curtain Club. I don’t recall who I was there to see that night, but Manny the Martyr certainly made a lasting impression. Five years may not seem like long, but a plethora of great memories were made in that time. Thanks to the five of them for making that possible by sharing their talents with others and best of luck to them in any and all future endeavors.

[its-the-fifth-horseman]

Chapter 5: O Brother, Where Art Thou?

11:23 AM,

Sunday,

16th November 1952,

The Pheonix Residence,

Arcadia Stream,

Green Valley Town,

West Aeston Peak,

Valendria, Novus Stellar

[Knocking sound]

“Tommy..Tommy..are you in there?..”

Tommy was busy flipping through the pages of his latest comic book, “The Flash,” when there was a knock on the door.

“Maybe if I play possum..she'll go away..”

[Knocking sound]

“Tommy..Tommy..oh, for heaven's sake!..I know you're in there!..Tommy!..Mrs Weatherby wants to see you!..it's very urgent!..”

“Mrs Weatherby? Oh great..”

He reluctantly put away his comics before unlocking his door. His mom was standing outside his room with her arms crossed.

“What are you doing in there? Didn't you hear me knock?”

“Nothing..nothing..I was just sleeping for a bit..why?”

“Mrs Weatherby is in the living room and she's asking for you. I asked her if it's anything you did but she insisted on talking to you first. For your sake, I hope I'm wrong about my assumption,” said Mrs Pheonix before walking away.

“But I didn't do anything!” Tommy's words fell on deaf ears as his mother was no longer within earshot.

“God damn it Jake..” Tommy then heads for the living room downstairs.

[Whimpering sound]

Tommy's heart suddenly began to beat faster. The sound of someone who is in distress and from an unknown cause was enough to make his imaginations run wild.

“What could she possibly want with me?”

[Whimpering sound]

His mother was sitting across Mrs Weatherby in the living room. Two cups can be seen on the small table between them. Mrs Pheonix then looks at her son.

“Take a seat, Tommy.” Tommy obeyed his mother and went to sit on the couch, right next to where Mrs Weatherby was sitting.

“Go ahead, Dolores, he's here.”

[Whimpering sound]

Dolores Weatherby, a single mother in her late 30s and wearing a gray long dress, momentarily wipes away her tears before turning towards Tommy that looked puzzled and scared at the same time. Her gleaning eyes were filled with sadness.

“Uh..Mrs..Weatherby?..Is everything ok?”

“[Sniffling]..yeah..I mean..[Sniffling]..I just needed to ask you something.”

“What is it that you need to ask me?” The suspense was killing him.

[Sobbing sound]

“Have you seen Jake? He..[Sniffling]..hasn't been home since last night..”

Tommy's eyes became wider.

“Uh..I don't understand..you mean he's not at home?”

[Sobbing sound]

“She means..Jake hasn't been home since last night..Mrs Weatherby stayed up all night waiting for him..” said his mother.

“And here I thought she wanted to talk to me first..”

[Sobbing sound]

“I..I went to the school..I know..it's the weekend but I just don't know where else to look..I've called some of the teachers and students..I even talked to the janitor but no has seen him..[Sobbing]..”

“When was the last time you seen him, Dolores?”

“[Sniffling]..uh..the day before..I mean..right after I got back from work..he was in his room when I went to check on him..uh..he..he was busy with something I guess..he was sort of “happy” when I left him..”

“Happy? How?” asked Tommy.

“Um..he was packing something into his knapsack..uh..I can't remember..looked like some sort of tools..then when I asked him where he was going..he just said that he's helping out a friend with some construction work..he..gave me a hug..then said something about “everything will be fine” and how he'll take care of me..it was sweet but..but there's was something..something that just didn't feel right..it's like a motherly instinct you know..I..I didn't even bother to ask who the friend was..I..I should have asked..[Sobbing]..and then..[Sobbing]..that was the last that I saw him..I thought he was just late..you know..from his errands at the shop..[Sobbing]..it was getting dark..I called Stanley..he said that Jake didn't turn up for his chores at the shop..[Crying]..I don't know what else to do..”

Mrs Pheonix then went to console her guest.

“There, there, Dolores, why didn't you just call the police?”

“[Sobbing]..I'm scared..I'm just so scared of losing him..it just feels like if I go to them..then that means that he's missing..[Sobbing]..I don't want him to be missing..I just don't like the idea that I..that I might not see him again..[Crying]..”

“It's ok, it's ok..[Hushing]..there, there now..of course he'll be fine..he's probably just at one of his friend's house..you know..maybe helping out and just decided to sleep there..”

“No..not my Jake..not like that..he..he doesn't have many friends at school..I only know of Tommy and Bradley..but..but he does have some friends from outside the school..but uh..he rarely talks about them..yeah..it's weird..I don't even have their phone numbers...just some first names..”

“Yeah..I know who those guys are..”

“Tommy? Anything you want to say to Mrs Weatherby?”

[Startled]

“Uh..I..I don't know what to say..”

“Oh please, Tommy! Please! Please find him for me! I've looked everywhere..[Crying]..please..please help me find him!..he's the only one I have now..[Crying]..”

Mrs Pheonix continues to hug and console Mrs Weatherby. Tommy can only look.

[Sighing sound]

12:37 PM,

Monday,

17th November 1952,

St. Christopher School,

Green Valley Town,

West Aeston Peak,

Valendria, Novus Stellar

“You want us to what?”

“[Sighing]..look..look..just hear me out first alright, man?”

“Oh, I'm hearing you alright, it's that mind of yours that's not thinking straight.”

“[Sighing]..look..his mom has been been calling for the past 2 days..and..and I don't know what else to do..”

“Serves him right! You remember what he did to us, right? Remember what he called us?”

“Brad..Brad..yeah..yeah..I remember..but this isn't just about him, ok?”

“Oh, that's right, cause’ now his mom is dragging us with him..God knows where he is now? Maybe he struck gold in Mr Hutchison's secret vault and decided to live like a superstar in the Golden Valleys..who knows..I mean he wanted so bad to be a man, right?”

“Brad..he was only helping out his mom..he works after school which is something that we don't have to do..he's..he's..[Sighing]..”

“He's what?”

“He..He's just trying to be the man of the house, ok? His dad left him and his mother...I..I guess it's only natural that he felt the pressure to...to step up..you know?”

“Which includes him being a jackass and pushing us around like we're 5 years olds? He's only a year older than us for crying out loud..and it's just a growth spurt..it doesn't turn you into an adult overnight..”

“I know..I know..God..I know..[Sighing]..”

“You actually feel bad for him, don’t you?”

“I feel bad for his mom..and yeah..maybe part of me do feel bad for him..I mean we're friends since we were little..that has to mean something right?”

[Sighing sound]

“Look..even if we're to pull this off..what are we going to tell Melody?”

“Simple..we're not..”

“What? Are you seriously out of your damn mind?”

“And tell her what? That there's a secret vault in Mr Hutchison's office that no one has ever seen or heard of except for Jake? And what happens if there's a secret vault and we do find Jake?..and I have no doubt with his “Gentleman's Club” gang..would have been stuck in there for 3 days? Then what? How exactly are we going to explain all that to Melody, let alone the police? They'll just think that we're part of the gang!”

“No..no..Melody would never do that to us..”

“Maybe not..but still..that's not good enough..we need to do this quietly..at least for Jake's mom if not for him..”

[Sighing sound]

“What are you really suggesting here, Mr Pheonix?”

“I'm just saying that all we need to do..is sneak in there..go into his office..have a look around..if there's any sign..and I mean any...sign..at all..of him ever being in there..or if the whole story of the secret vault holds up..and we absolutely have no way of getting in there..then we'll just have to tell the truth..”

“Tell the truth to who?”

“Everyone, Mr Bewsher..everyone..but not before..”

[Sighing sound]

“And how do you propose we break in anyway?”

Tommy then smiles at Bradley.

“Why..why are you smiling at me like that?”

“You know why..you think I wouldn't catch on?”

“Know what? What are you talking about?”

“Your lock picking skills..you practically broke into my room everytime I had the door locked..what is it that you're trying to catch me do anyway?”

“[Chuckling]..I don't know..maybe you playing with one of your dolls?..[Chuckling]”

Tommy then playfully punches his friend on the shoulder.

“They're called action figure, genius..”

“[Laughing]..ok..ok..say we do this..when?”

Tommy then looks at Mr Hutchison's house at a distance.

“You're free tomorrow night?”