#and i'm expected to do a shit ton of homework on the side!!!

[moinsbienquekaworu]

After about four hours, I have a lot of japanese chicken curry, seen the latest OSP detail diatribe, made a fair amount of dishes, and my back hurts (ouchie). And it's just 11pm! How very productive of me.

[bsnotoneaskedfor]

Tired MK

Before you judge, hear me out.

MK goes through SO much shit because of his "Monkey Kid" status. Like, a ton. As someone who is a teen and struggles with mental health it is so obvious that MK has been spiraling since day one. The poor dude is going to die of anxiety and depression before the Lady Bone Bitch tries to order a smackdown with a side of trauma. MK is also a people pleaser. He legit is always trying to live up to people's standards and be "just like Monkey King".

Here's the thing: I also suffer from trying to please everyone and let me tell you that shit is exhausting. Fuck magic, the thing that really makes this show fiction is that MK hasn't had a massive mental breakdown. He's had baby ones, that are still valid, but he's pushed them aside because "he has to be the hero". He never really shows signs of emotional distress besides the show poking fun at it or using it for plot. For those in the comments, please don't try to psychoanalyze the show to prove me wrong. This is just what I have seen. So, with this being said, there is something I really would love to see and have adopted it as my personal headcannon.

MK being done with everyone's shit.

Not, "MK's tired", or "MK's sassy ;D", or even Mk going through an emo phase.

I want absolutely 100% done MK.

I want to see him surviving on coffee or energy drinks because the weight of everyone's expectations keeps him up at night. I want him mad when people start blaming him/looking to him for answers because "he's the Monkey Kid". I want him done with Wukong's bullshit. I want my realistic representation of burnout and mental illness. I want to see him trying to get better and no longer caring about calling people out for being toxic.

I don't know if I'm 100% explaining this right because words are really hard so here are some examples of what I see my MK head cannon as.

(This one's based off that one TikTok audio where the guy yells at the cats to get off the couch)

MK: *Sitting peacefully, attempting to do homework or some other quiet activity*

Macaque and Wukong : *fighting like feral cats*

MK: (almost roars it) STOP IT!

Macaque and Wukong : *is startled and a little afraid*

MK : LEARN TO FUCKING GET ALONG OR SO HELP ME I'LL TEST THE LIMITS OF YOUR IMMORTALITY

Macaque and Wukong : *obeying, nearly about to piss themselves out of fear*

MK: *Deep Breath. Goes back to what he was doing*

Every Demon Within 50 miles : wtf was that?

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

MK: *chugging a coffee or energy drink*

Some Demon: *starts destroying the city*

MK : Dammit *Chugs faster. *

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

Wukong: Hey bud! When's the last time that you've slept?

MK: *completely deadpan* It is finals week.

Wukong : That doesn't answer-

MK:*getting angrier* I have to defend the city every damn day. I have to deal with your messes, including you. I train every day for at least 4 hours even when we don't meet up. I WORK FULL TIME AT THE GODDAMN NOODLE SHOP AND THEN I HAVE TO FUCKING STUDY FOR COLLEGE. WHEN IN THE NAME OF BUHDDA WOULD I BE ABLE TO SLEEP?!?!

Wukong : *sweats* So I see that you're stressed-

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

Team Monkey : Why didn't you use [ insert power] to start with?!

MK: *sarcastic* I'm sorry. I thought we all deserved a nice bonding trip where we spent the entire time bickering and getting the shit beaten out of us. Was that supposed to be next week?!?

Team Monkey : . . .

MK: How about you guys make a list of everything I can do. That way, next time, we can just all look at it together and none of you blame me.

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

Red Son : * trying to pick a fight and just being a dick in general*

MK: *Not having it* Do not make me duct tape you down so I can embroider your worst nightmares onto your skin, you pompous little fuck!

Red Son : . . .wtf

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

Red Son : *Is pretty*

MK: *deep sigh of disappointment* I need therapy . . .

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

Mei : * Gets the Samhadi Fire*

MK: *remembering all the shit and expectations he went through once he got his powers*

Mei: *About to have a breakdown*

MK: *laughs* Have fun

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

Red Son: *breaks in at the middle of the night in an attempt to capture MK*

MK: *is awake because insomnia* So, do you , like, want some tea . . .?

May do a Pt 2

[rogueofsoup]

Chapter 6 of Homework on The Moon! TW: BODY HORROR

—

Bruce had simultaneously expected this situation to end up both significantly worse and significantly better than it had. At best, he expected Jason to be perfectly fine and pissed off at him for showing up, maybe even attacking him. At worst, he expected him to be too hurt to bother being angry at Bruce for showing up at his actual apartment, and thus needing serious medical attention ASAP. What he did not expect was the door to be answered by a feral teenage girl that promptly bit him and would not let go until Jason calmly walked over and literally scruffed her. He was now sitting on Jason's couch, the two gift baskets he brought sitting on the coffee table as Bruce nursed the bite mark awkwardly with the culprit glaring daggers at him for simply existing.

Jason re-entered the room with some mugs of hot cocoa for everyone. At the very least Jason seemed fine, completely unharmed even. At worst he seemed tired, so very likely the angry sharp-toothed teenager was completely responsible for his absence. Jason sat down in the chair he had set up on the other side of the coffee table after setting down everyone's hot cocoa, the girl snatching up hers and immediately cradling it like it might be stolen by someone if she didn't protect it. Bruce cautiously lifted up his own mug, quietly thanking Jason.

"So, as you can see I'm not more dead than I was before," Jason said in a somewhat joking manner. "I'm going to assume you have significantly more questions than just that now and resign myself to the fate of having to answer them or face whatever research you're going to pull up to figure out all that's going on here."

"Hm," Bruce nodded, taking a sip of his drink first.

"First off to start this shitshow, this bear trap over here is Ellie," Jason explained, gesturing to the girl. "She's been helping me with my undeath, since I apparently fall into a category I hadn't heard about before."

"And what category would that be?" Bruce asked, his voice very level and serious.

"It's a little something called 'liminal', which is somewhere between 'living' and 'halfa'," he explained. "I'm apparently slightly more 'alive' than your average 'halfa', of which in the world there are three known. Ellie is one of those, so she knows a ton more than I do." He gestured to the girl again, and Bruce turned his attention to her.

" 'Halfa'?" he asked simply, an eyebrow raised slightly.

"Half human half ghost," Ellie explained, still glaring at Bruce. "Somehow dying and coming back didn't make him fully a halfa, and that rank ecto he got doused in seemed to just fill in cracks rather than fully let him toggle between dead and alive. See how he's got a white streak?" She pointed at Jason's hair. "That streak means his ghostie-ness is sorta combined with his human side. Though if he fully went halfa, I honestly don't know if it'd go totally black or not when human. Who knows, maybe his ghost form would have a black streak?"

"It'd probably actually be red," Jason interrupted before taking a sip of his cocoa.

"What? Why?" Ellie asked, confused.

"My natural hair color is red," Jason explained. "I dye it black. For some reason dye doesn't stick to the white part, though."

"Why would the colors switch?" Bruce shoehorned in, getting them back on topic.

"Oh, 'cus that's what happens when a halfa switches to ghost mode," Ellie explained. "Why the hell do you dye it black? Why not just white if you want it to be uniform?"

"Because white looks like shit," Jason replied flatly, looking Ellie directly in the eye while hiding his smirk.

"Oh fuck you, my hair looks awesome," she scoffed in a tone that said their jabs at one another were meant to be all in good fun.

"What does 'switching to ghost mode' entail?" Bruce asked, knowing how to work with people that just seem desperate to have more than one conversation happening at any given moment.

"Well, usually you just manifest your ghostly will into the world, altering your form to be more ghostly," Ellie explained casually. "For me and my brother, that means a color swap of our hair from black to white and our blue eyes turn ghostly green. The third halfa we know about is actually able to be a lot more ghostly, changing his skin to be blue and his eyes to be solid red. He also found out how to make his hair look supremely stupid, as well as give himself a completely dumb ugly costume. He also keeps trying to kill and or adopt my bro, and probably take over the world too I guess." She took another bored sip from her cocoa.

"Would this third 'halfa' happen to wear a primarily white costume and go by the name 'Plasmius'?" Bruce asked carefully, cupping his warm mug in his hands.

"Oh good, you've had the displeasure of meeting," Ellie said flatly, rolling her eyes. "He's really cringe. You're rich, right? You know other rich people?" Bruce nodded with a grunt. "Know Vlad Masters? White hair? Blue eyes? Always talks like he's planning something evil? Possibly claims he's dating or married to someone named Maddie?"

"Good to know he has a civilian identity," Bruce nodded. "I do know of Masters, I haven't spoken with him personally. I'll start keeping tabs on him."

"Good, the Fruitloop needs to be taken down a peg," Ellie snorted, taking another sip of hot cocoa.

"You said your brother was also a 'halfa'," Bruce said, leaning forward a bit. "Would you mind telling me more about him?" Ellie grinned in the way only a gremlin truly could.

"Oh, you mean Danny?" she said, having been texting with him and had gotten the whole story. "He's sort of famous? Royalty of the Infinite Realms and all that. Dad's favorite. I'm not jealous of that or anything, I don't get forced to attend political meetings."

Well.

Now they have a Feral Ghost Princess.

-

J'onn J'onnz knew upon his first questioning of Danny that he was in fact the actual Ghost King through the simple act of reading his mind to get his real answers to J'onn's questions. The medical scan he did of the boy turned up a lot of questions neither of them could answer, though it did also allow J'onn to start figuring out what sort of medical treatments would work on his unique physiology. He had briefly planned on telling the Justice League all about the joke Danny was playing that would undoubtedly end badly, but the absolute love for the green alien that sparkled in Danny's eyes and ran through the boy's head gave him pause. He thought long and hard about it, wondering if his one true fan would still think so highly of him if he put an end to a currently fairly harmless (and increasingly hilarious) prank so suddenly. He ultimately decided not to ruin the boy's fun, but promised himself he would put an end to it if the situation was getting out of hand. J'onn wondered if it would be beneficial for him to merely pretend he had no idea, thinking about the possible case in which Danny could be isolated from his main connections and have to work exclusively with the League for any reason, having to pretend to be two different people with no rest. It would most certainly be beneficial for the boy's mental health to have someone on the Watchtower he could confide in as the young King to an Infinity. J'onn could be that someone, be a comforting reminder to the boy that he wasn't alone. And then, and idea struck him: It would most certainly make the boy's day (possibly even more) to have a Martian prank buddy.

Once J'onn was finished with the tests and scans he had been planning to do on Phantom, he decided to tell him while they were still in private, telepathically so to keep anyone with super hearing from overhearing the conversation.

~~Your ruse will not last long without sufficient aid.~~

Danny jumped, very suddenly remembering Martian Manhunter had mind reading and telepathy. The jig was up, he'd forgotten the most important base abilities of his favorite hero, he was probably going to tell the whole-

~~I am willing to supply such aid.~~

He looked up at the hero with wide eyes, joy filling him to the brim at the thought of having the most powerful Justice Leaguer on his side in this prank. He almost couldn't believe it, this was the best thing ever. This guy can shapeshift! Maybe he could convince him to help with any other-

~~I am willing to join happily in on other juvenile activities, as long as there is no harm done. In exchange, you will inform me if there are issues caused by your royal or heroic duties.~~

Ah drat, babysitter. That's exactly what he didn't want to-

~~I do not wish to 'babysit', I merely wish to be a possible confidant. I will give aid only when requested, and listen when needed.~~ J'onn smiled comfortingly. ~~I trust your judgement and ability. You are much stronger than most give you credit for, Danny Fenton.~~

Danny smiled wide. He was internally screaming and crying with excitement, physically vibrating externally. This was officially the best day of his life. He wanted so bad to lunge towards the alien and hold him happily. The Martian's arms opened up for the incoming tackle, inviting the boy to give in. Danny wasted no time, immediately sending himself directly into the alien and squeezing as tight as he could while squealing with excitement. J'onn was briefly reminded of the children he lost as the boy held him, and a small hole he had long since forgotten was suddenly filled a bit. Well. Now he knew how Bruce felt.

"Aww, ain't that sweet," Flash said as he entered, amused by the expression of parental affection J'onn now wore. "Kid just couldn't keep himself from hugging his favorite anymore? Everyone that saw his face when he saw you knows he's been wanting to hug you since the start. Physical affection treating you well?"

"Was there something you needed, Flash?" J'onn asked, ignoring the other questions.

"Constantine's here to take a look at the kid too, Supes asked me to fetch him," Flash gestured back through the door as he leaned against the door frame. "You just about done in here?"

"We have finished medical scans, I will be able to get to work on finding 'ecto' materials to keep on hand just in case," J'onn nodded, then looked down at Danny. "Are you ready for more observation and questioning, Danny?"

"Yup!" Danny said, getting in a few more seconds of hug before finally detaching.

"Excellent, I have work to do here so I will not be following for the time being," J'onn explained, mildly disappointing Danny. "However, if you need me at any time, just call out. I will hear." Danny smiled again and nodded, then went with the speedster to meet up with the tired occult detective.

J'onn was left to himself, and he immediately went to work analyzing the scans for anything particularly pertinent. The boy was most certainly cold, though according to the scans he seemed to have a localized spot the cold was coming from. Perhaps this was his 'core'? It wasn't spherical from what he could tell, there seemed to be a slight hint of edges based on the thermal scan alone. It seemed to have five protruding points, almost like a star...? How fascinating, he'd have to learn more about-

'help'

It wasn't just a thought J'onn was hearing that was meant for him, it felt like it was an order from some kind of higher power.

'HELP'

The pleading order became louder, impossible to ignore. J'onn was already flying from the computer, phasing through walls to get to the source faster.

'PROTECT ME'

J'onn flew up to a frozen stiff Danny and a very confused Constantine, placing himself directly between them.

"What are you doing," he said with such conviction and quiet rage it made heroes and Watchtower staff alike immediately stare at the Martian, watching in horror to see what he might do.

"Wh- I just approached him and he started panicking," Constantine defended himself, not wanting the rage of J'onn upon him.

"WHY DO YOU LOOK LIKE THAT WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO YOUR CORE" Danny screeched, clinging desperately to the Martian's cape. Constantine paused, then sighed.

"Ok, maybe Clockwork severely understated how bad my soul looks," he groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. Now understanding that there was no real danger, J'onn calmed down.

"Apologies, I did not mean to overreact," he said in a much kinder tone, then turned to Danny while completely blocking the view of the horrible entity that was apparently John Constantine. "Danny?" he asked, crouching down a bit and carefully putting a comforting hand on the boy's hair. "Would it be alright for me to see what you saw, so that I might understand your panic?" Danny nodded, shuddering. J'onn put both his hands on either side of the boy's head, focusing on the memory to see what was so horrifying.

[TRIGGER WARNING GORE NEXT PARAGRAPH]

Skin peeling off of flesh in ribbons, flesh peeling off of bone in strands, teeth moving individually with a shattered jaw, fingers peeling apart to reveal fractured bone just barely holding itself together, the flesh moving like seaweed underwater, green blood dripping from EVERYWHERE staining EVERYTHING, a shape in the gaping cavity in the chest too broken to even recognize the original form of it, each piece inscribed with a different sigil. All this overlapping the form of a normal (albeit very tired) looking man.

"H'RONMEER- S'TET FOLUR'RE?!!" J'onn swore loudly, pulling his hands away from Danny's head in horror before spinning around to face Constantine. "GO! GO INTO ANOTHER ROOM!" No one argues with the yelling Martian, so Constantine very quickly moved into a different room.

"Holy cow, did we just learn a Martian swear?" Flash muttered to a nearby onlooker.

"Flash, be quiet," J'onn said hauntedly, pointing directly at the speedster without even looking and causing a primal fear to bubble up in him. "He was peeling. Everything was peeling. He will not be in the same room as the boy until that is fixed."

"He was what??" Superman asked, having been stopped from coming to Danny's side by J'onn suddenly and angrily showing up.

"You know, I was wondering why Deadman was so adamant about never being in the same room as Constantine," Green Lantern mumbled before quickly shuffling out of the room.

"Danny, do you-... see people's souls before you see their bodies?" Superman asked, very worried about the boy.

"I see their cores, yes," Danny shuddered, staring at the door Constantine left through with a haunted look. "What the hell happened to his??"

"Ah, well, Constantine has a sort of... habit, regarding selling his soul to every demon he contacts," Superman cringed. "Apparently, 'Clockwork' had said he needed to stop fracturing it?"

"Fracturing?!" Danny exclaimed, horrified. "That thing is shattered! What all demons has he sold it to?! I'm telling Dan." He pulled out his phone, tapping on it furiously.

"Who's Dan?" Superman asked, curious.

Welp, now Danny slipped up a bit and had to come up with a lie on the spot. What was he going to say?? He should have just said 'dad', that would have been so much better-

~~Secretary.~~

Martian Manhunter to the rescue already. This was going to be a very good alliance.

"My Ghost Dad's secretary," Danny said.

"Would that not be an advisor for a King?" J'onn asked. Danny got the hint of the situation the Martian put together for him, glad the Martian picked a word he'd probably use anyways.

"Eh, technically, but he's the secretary because it's funny what with his past of performing crimes against the Realms," Danny shrugged, quite giddy and getting very good at hiding it. "Anyways, he's really good at threatening people, so he'll probably be able to fix that core problem."

Superman, Flash, and Martian Manhunter were... concerned by that information. J'onn quickly checked Danny's mind for information about Dan, able to ease his worries with the knowledge of his reformation. The League just couldn't stop learning horrible things about Danny and the people around him, could they?

- hey dan buddy man guy with a plan   - for destruction   - i have a request of you   - actually no a royal order of you   - there's a guy named jon constantine   - *john   - he fucning shattered his core by selling his soul to a shitload of demons can you like   - threaten them   - and get the pieces back   - so he's not in a million pieces   - poppop told him to sop selling his soul apparently but fucking hell   - homeboy be FUCKED

Danny waited a little bit before seeing the little popup that informed him Dan was typing.

- Why do you have to type like a Tumblr user.   - Yeah, fine. I'll put Humpty Dumpty back together again.

Danny scoffed, texting back.

- you bismirch my honor   - *bismerch   - *bismurch   - fdsnlknskdln   - *tarnish

- *Besmirch. Pay attention in English class, Lancer isn't that bad.

- what is he ur bestie now

- Yes. I'm in the same book club as him. We're in the middle of a meeting.   - Do your fucking homework Danny.

- tell your new boyfriend i said hi

Danny's relationship with Dan seemed... interesting. J'onn would have to learn more one day.

"Sooooooo, we gonna do this like a game of telephone, orrrr...?" Flash finally asked.

"I could volunteer to be the telephone," J'onn said, imagining he could send information to and from Constantine telepathically and essentially have him do his job through him.

Nobody got that just by hearing the suggestion alone. It was a jarring and sudden strange suggestion that made no sense and they didn't have a Bat available to decipher. Thankfully, the man had mind reading and quickly realized how silly that sounded without context.

John, standing awkwardly in the other room, pulled a flask out of a pocket and took a sip. Maybe, just maybe, if the Ghost Prince of the Infinite Realms was freaked out by him, he shouldn't ever be seen by the King. Ever. Man, he was not paid enough to be yelled at by a Martian horrified by the memory a teenage boy had of the look of his soul. He suddenly received a text from Batman, which made him nearly drop his flask as he shoved it back into his pocket, almost as if Batman himself was about to walk in and scold him for drinking. He quickly checked the message to see if it was important new information.

- Phantom has a younger sister. Her name is Ellie, and she bites and causes problems on purpose.

Great. Wonderful. Lovely. Feral Ghost Princess. PERFECT.

-

Ellie suddenly received a text from Danny. Deciding checking her phone was much more important than listening to a conversation she was still in, she checked it.

- hey ellie there's this dude named john constantine his core looks MAJORLY fucked up   - if you wanna see the gore come check him out he's in the watchtower rn it's so messed up it's literally SHATTERED

Oh HELL yes.

"Alright, this interrogation has been fun, but I think I'm gonna go get traumatized," Ellie said, standing up and stretching. "Bye losers." White rings spread out from her midsection as she went ghost, then she completely faded out of sight.

"Wh-" Bruce stuttered, standing up and looking around.

"Well," Jason said, lazily looking around. "That can't be good."

—

Sorry if I went a bit overboard on the trigger warnings, I really wanted to put in the gore and I didn't know if I was doing too much so I wanted y'all to most certainly be ready for it. (In case you're curious, J'onn said "GOD- WHAT THE FUCK?!!" There isn't any canon swears in martian I could find, but I did find a god, so I invented a swear for him.)

AND! Since this thing is now lagging both my phone AND my computer, I'll be moving this to AO3!

I will still post links to the new chapters every update, so everyone tagged will still be tagged about the new chapters! I'm still willing to tag even more people if desired so you don't miss an update!

However, I must say that I will need a month or two break so I can figure out how this fic is gonna go, as well as edit the past chapters for posting on AO3. It's quite exciting, and I'll post my AO3 name and link once I've got the first two chapters up! I will likely be posting one or two edited chapters a week until I run out, and after that I'll be posting new chapters weekly! (until my next hiatus that is)

Thank you all for your support, I love all of you and I'm so glad you like this dumb thing I just started in my free time! Again, I'll be posting links to each new chapter on AO3 every week with everyone tagged who still wants to be, and new chapters will resume in a month or two when I have enough chapter outlines written so I know where I'm actually going with this!

See you soon! <3

Taglist -

@winterstar1412 @tryingahandinholdingapen @spoopyspoony @wackyattack @rosebloodwater @ruelukas22 @markus209 @sagaduwyrm @readingalldaysleepingallnight @idontgetpaidenoughforthisshit @kawaiikenna @izutard @theblackcatscratchpost @theobsessor1 @ma-tsu-the-male-goddess @thefanficcup @easily-broken-by-emotion @addie-lover-of-stories @digitech4starwars @plotwholls @via-the-cryptid @iron-mage @tkiesai @scaehime @vythika96 @m1kayu

Short DPXDC Prompts #837

Danny was just relaxing doing his homework on the moon. (It was quiet and had minimal distractions. Perfect for studying). He didn’t expect to see anyone during his studying but after seeing movement out of the corner of his eye he went to check it out. To his surprise: Superman was just sitting on the moon looking down at earth. Chilling.

[kusaka6e]

TUTOR

one | two | three

chapter list

———

you look up from your desk to the sound of banging on your door, sighing.

"(y/n)!" you hear mikey on the other side, making you roll your eyes.

"what is it, you little shit?" you yank the door open, mikey almost falling into your room because of how hard he was banging and leaning on the door.

"come get food with us!"

"us?"

"me, draken, and baji! you two can get introduced before you start studying."

"i'm in the middle of a shit ton of homework."

"draken's paying. and i already told them you'd be there." he smirks

"give me five minutes, come in." you sigh, closing the door behind him. you grab a hoodie and a pair of leggings and take them into your bathroom, closing the door. you weren't exactly concerned with impressing anyone, but it probably wasn't the best idea to go out in your graduation class t-shirt and avatar the last airbender print pajama pants.

after quickly changing and fixing your hair, you follow mikey downstairs.

"this place has the best ramen, you'll love it."

"if you're wrong, i'm gonna strangle you."

you two arrive at the restaurant, mikey walking over to one of the tables

"kenny, baji!" you sit next to mikey, across from draken and diagonal to who had to have been baji. the top half of his long hair was pulled away from his face in a bun, the rest hanging to his shoulders. his eyes were a striking hazel color, paired with his resting scowl he was a little intimidating to look at.

"baji, this is your future chemistry tutor, (l/n)."

"i told you i didn't want any help with that stupid ass class, mikey." he growls, not looking in your direction

"your mom is gonna be pissed if she has to find out you're failing this class, you need to take all the help you can get." draken's words make his eyes slightly widen, sighing.

"fine."

"nice to meet you too." you roll your eyes, taking a sip of your drink.

"whatever." baji grumbles, looking down at the menu.

"so nice to see you two getting along." mikey grinned

"shut up mikey." you and baji say at the same time, making him glance up at you.

when mikey had said he had someone to tutor him in chemistry, he wasn't expecting you to look... well, like that. from your appearance to your mannerisms and dialect, baji could tell you were intelligent and didn’t take bullshit.

"so, (l/n), how's haru?"

of course she has a boyfriend

why do you care if she's single or not?"

"he's okay. his treatment is going well, i'm going to see him tomorrow morning."

"emma and i will come with you, i haven't seen him in awhile."

"i have class in the morning, but tell him hi from me."

"i will, thank you guys." you smile softly, glancing up to see your server approaching your table with food.

everyone makes small talk between bites of food, you mostly listening and sometimes laughing at the boys' banter. somehow, mikey gets a smile out of baji, and you notice his fanged teeth in his wide grin.

he's not bad looking when he's not throwing a tantrum.

soon enough everyone's food bowls are empty and paid for, courtesy of draken.

"thanks for dinner kenny, i'm gonna head back and finish my homework."

"i told you to stop calling me that, asshole. you want us to walk you back?"

"nah, i'll be alright. baji, meet me in the library tomorrow at 4:30, you can get my number from mikey or draken if you need it." you get nothing but a grumble in response, making you roll your eyes.

"bye bye!" mikey smiles and waves as you exit the restaurant

[createandconstruct]

I am so sorry to bother you but I'm pretty sure your wrote this amazing story over the summer about Betty and Archie looking for Jug and when they find him in the snow he had been hit by a car and you left it off on kind of a cliffhanger with FP climbing down to find them and it was the best story I have ever read!!! Just wondering if you might ever go back to it..I know a ton of people would be thrilled. Have a great day.

O H MY GOODNESS!!!!!!!!!! @leigh3114​!!!!!!!!!! YOU’RE GONNA MAKE MY HEART EXPLODE!!!!!!!!!  I SWEAR TO YOU.  I S W E A R. If I start a fic I am 100% going to finish it. 

The next chapter of Keeping the Old has been in the works since I posted the last one and trust me I have not given up on it! I hit a lot of road blocks and I ended up reworking chapter 7 from scratch into something I think you’ll really enjoy! I’m always thinking about my fics and how badly I want to update them (I more often than not have the google doc for keeping the old open), but sometimes it’s hard for me to find time to write, if only because I’m a full time student. 

However! Spring break is almost here and I’m gonna sit myself down and get myself to finish! Especially when I’ve got a wonderful reader like you!!!! I can’t let you down!!!!!! I promise you it will be soon but until then as a little treat… I’ll give a preview for the beginning of Keeping the Old chapter 7 “Downhill from here” :

The shadowed edges slid away as he blinked once, twice, and then sluggishly pulled his arm along his eyes. With a new sense of clarity, the dark outline of the couch slowly morphed into recognizable pillows and the last memory he had rang through his head again.

He’d promised he wouldn’t do this again.

Any of this: Falling asleep when he only wanted to rest his eyes. Crashing on the couch instead of a air mattress bed. Waiting in an empty trailer for someone probably wouldn’t make it home.

It was a stupid thought, looking back now. All of it. Mostly the sleep thing.

Put your head down and you’re out for the count. Wait around with a doggy bag of diner food as a poorly disguised excuse for a check-in for a parent who couldn’t find their way back before the crack of dawn…well…

He should expected the food to go cold.

Pushing to his side, Jughead dropped his hand to skim along the floor for the belongings he should have dropped there. A brush against the center rug told him he had gone to far and he retreated back, hand patting as it went, until he skimmed the edge of his bag. With his face smushed into the seat of the couch he went about searching the pockets. He moved about the crumpled bag methodically, the far off kitchen clock ticking along to each inch he moved and besides that sound seemed nonexistent. Outside the trailer, the world had probably ended - no Serpent bikes revving or Sunnyside park dogs howling - that or he’d fallen asleep in another much quieter neighborhood. Though, even the Andrews’ second floor was plagued by the late night dog bark or teenage speeder cutting through Elm’s Street.

His mind flickered away from the stiff belly of the floral cushions to a scene of deflating air mattresses just about the time his thumb hit the metal spiral of a notebook along with the plastic side of his phone case.

“Oh shit-” Suddenly he was wide awake pulling himself up and bringing his phone to his face.

The screen blinked alive with a horrible time that had him groaning.

2:18 AM

“Great. Fantastic,” he muttered through his palm just as it slid down his face to rest over his mouth. How long had he been staying with the Andrews’ and already he was screwing things up? Not that Fred seemed the guy to throw him back onto the street - he wouldn’t right? - not when he knew how Jughead had been living? Not when Fred had done the same thing to his dad some years ago? - the denial only left a sizzling burn up and down his sternum.

The phone screen mocked the time at him - 2:19am and officially a full minute of couch crash regret -  as he tapped into his messages while reaching down to throw the strap of his messenger bag over his shoulder. He stood, trying to ignore the ache in his knees and the need to crack his back, while he found himself with only his own last outgoing message to Archie and with notebook falling from his opened bag to the floor.

Hey gigolo, headed back from Pop’s. You down for burgers tonight?

In retrospect, it wasn’t as funny as he thought it was - not to mention it was hiding a slight lie - but it had brought a stupid grin to his face when he’d sent it off at Pop’s counter while three burgers sizzled over the diner grills.

Now it left him carving out a hollow part of him while he turned a head to his notebook. Science notebook, his eyes told him as he blinked at the familiar black cover and the clearing memory that he definitely had kind of homework that he definitely forgot about. With one hand he made a grab for the thing and then struggled to shove it back into place while scrolling through his phone checking - hoping? - for any panicked messages from a backlash of it’s 2am do you know where your Jughead is?

Nope.

Just his own gigolo-Archie material from three hours ago.

He licked the film from the front of his teeth. Either the world really had ended everywhere but in the poorly heated den of his father’s trailer or-

HIs phone was shoved into his jacket pocket so this time the strap of his bag really was straightened and the flap of his bag was closed. And, oh yeah, wasn’t that that homework some huge lab report due tomorrow that he didn’t finish and didn’t care because what did it matter if he made it home or not-

The Pop’s bags still sat at the edge of the round table.

He’d stalked into the kitchen, hoping to end the jumbling of his thoughts. And just like when he dropped them there, a strangling tension was back in his throat. Clenching his teeth, keeping his breathing steady, he grabbed for the crumpled bag that held his and Archie’s smushed and less than edible dinner. The other bag, fell to its side. A swirling stain of brown leaked through the white of it, bringing a damp shadow onto the printed chock'lit shoppe logo.

The analog clock tsked at him while he stood undecided between the fridge and the front door. His teeth played with the skin of his lip until a piece tore away from him to swallow. His feet  sunk into the slits of the kitchen floor tile all the while his phone remained still, and the warm spot he’d made on the couch was going cold. When he’d stalked his way across town to the trailer two hours earlier and found himself unsurprised at the missing truck outside hadn’t he reasoned that this was better? No one would notice he was here.

Even with an out of place, obviously left by your son, burger bag, a stumbling hazy eyed man would probably miss it as sign of his lingering presence so…

“Whatever,” he choked and the clock settled onto 2:23. The next minute felt like a countdown for him to change his mind so he didn’t waste anytime. His beanie and satchel were straightened and his phone dropped into his pocket. His Pop’s bag hung in his hand by his thigh as he pulled open the door to the outside timeless town.

A frigid whip caught him across the face.

His eyes fought to open from the sting and when they crack with open with tears he was left blinded by the blend of shadows with the beginning cover of white along every surface he could spot. Jughead peered across the trailer park, just barely, he could hear the kitchen clock slur into a slower tick. Time really had been frozen it seemed. Iced over in a early autumn snowfall. He felt his body lean back, considering the idea.

Throwing the bags in the fridge, staying wrapped in the warmth in the trailer, sucking up his father’s arrival at dawn.

The wind swirled and snapped at his eyes with tiny flakes of white. Some reasonable piece of him could already see that what awaited him - a bare minimum lecture from Fred and early morning science homework with Archie who definitely didn’t finish his either - was better than the ritual  with his father that awaited him here.

Yeah, the prospect of walking back wasn’t bad at all.

Jughead shut the door.