#and paul carlos and mateo also just

[guardian-angle22]

911: Lone Star | The 126 -> FIRST AND LAST SCENE

[lily-blue-blue-lily]

making tommy and julius a thing was ... a choice

[justsomeguycore]

i feel like me and my 911 watch friend are the only people in the universe who prefer lone star lol

[katinacrisis]

my personal 911 lone star headcanons:

tk still regularly checks up on the kid who shot him in s1

tk carries around anything you could ever possibly need in an emergency in his lil backpack

paul and marjan go out to eat after every shift so that neither is alone if something heavy happens

jonah and carlos love watching bluey but tk gets bored too easily

carlos is the youngest kid out of all his siblings and cousins

tk has a group chat w carlos’s brother in laws

enzo keeps school projects and drawings from baby tk

tarlos and paul regularly went out to clubs every week before paul started dating asha. now they just do a double date

mateo and nancy are gods at karaoke and everyone in the bar love it when they show up

nancy and tk go to all of evie and izzy’s dance shows and karate competitions and any other kind of performance. evie and izzy get embarrassed by all the cheering and whistling but love the support. they also hate it sometimes tho cuz their friends think tk is hot

judd can only line dance. any other kind of dance he trips over his own feet

tk doesn’t let carlos wear the cowboy hat in the house

jonah falls in love w lou2 and he and tk gang up on carlos for another pet

wyatt is secretly very talented at smth. probably smth music related. nobody will ever find out

grace and charlie take wyatt’s wife and daughter out for spa days every month so they can complain about the boys

marjan teaches mateo how to play soccer and they join a sunday league

[herefortarlos]

There are sadly only three episodes left of 9-1-1: Lone Star, which returns on Monday, January 20, 2025 (the finale is set for February 3).

And sure, there’s a massive emergency—an asteroid heading for Austin—but there’s also quite a bit left to wrap up about the characters as well. In addition to whether or not Owen (Rob Lowe) might take that job offer and what’s next for Judd (Jim Parrack) with his drinking, there’s the matter of T.K. (Ronen Rubinstein) and Carlos (Rafael Silva) adopting T.K.’s half-brother Jonah as well as what’s ahead for the rest of the first responders. TV Insider turned to co-showrunner Rashad Raisani for the scoop.

How much are we going to see T.K. and Carlos trying to balance being parents and balancing work? They have family, but at the same time, they are the primary caretakers now of this kid.

Rashad Raisani: You’re putting your finger right on the end of the series is all I’ll tell you about that. That becomes a major issue, let’s put it that way.

Do they have time for themselves as a couple?

They will, I’ll put it that way, but I won’t tell you how.

As much as I love seeing Nancy (Brianna Baker) as captain and she’s already doing great, will we see Tommy (Gina Torres) back at the 126 before the show ends?

I can’t answer that. It would be too big. I can’t answer it. Let’s just say Gina Torres is a Ferrari. You don’t leave a Ferrari in the garage forever.

But will we see her physically at the 126? She could just be visiting.

[Laughs] If I answered it. I would be spoiling so much.

What else can you tease about the final three episodes for the characters and their relationships?

The thing that I can say is that everyone in the last two episodes gets pushed to their extreme limit—and some past it, to be honest. We have some of our most insane apocalyptic emergencies in 11 and 12. It’s basically a combination of The Last of Us and Chernobyl. It mirrors where all of the characters are, and most of them are in an apocalyptic space for one reason or another.

Mateo [Julian Works] is going to have an existential crisis going back to his status as a DACA, as a dreamer. T.K. and Carlos, they are not done with—yeah, they want to adopt Jonah, but it’s not that easy, and there’s going to be a major fundamental hurdle for them that they’re going to have to make a significant life decision to decide how they want to deal with it. Tommy is at the end of her life. Owen will be at the end of his life. Judd will have a new future that I think will both be very shocking but also feel hopefully very appropriate that will change the game of where he goes. Marjan is going to have a massive episode in Episode 10, which I think people will get a lot of joy from—I know I did, and I think it’s her best episode of the series. I think everybody’s going to have some big game-changing moments in the final three episodes.

What about for Paul (Brian Michael Smith)?

There’s a great—I have to say Brian pitched me an idea. He said there was this moment in the pilot where Owen tells Paul basically, there’s somewhere out there in Austin as a kid like you that doesn’t think they belong. And I want you here for when we run across that kid, you know what I mean? Whether it be non-binary, trans, gay, whatever. And Brian said, we said that in the pilot, but wouldn’t it be great if we did a story that showed that? And I thought, well, that is a great idea. And so the last two episodes we’re going to do that and we’re going to introduce a new major character, I should say, who Paul will be their kind of role model.

Are there any significant steps for any of the relationships in these last episodes beyond the adoption for Tarlos?

There may be new babies. I won’t tell you who. There may be deaths. I won’t tell you who. So there will be, there sure will be.

9-1-1: Lone Star, Returns, Monday, January 20, 2025, 8/7c, Fox

[911lsbts]

How much are we going to see T.K. and Carlos trying to balance being parents and balancing work? They have family, but at the same time, they are the primary caretakers now of this kid.

Rashad Raisani: You’re putting your finger right on the end of the series is all I’ll tell you about that. That becomes a major issue, let’s put it that way.

Do they have time for themselves as a couple?

They will, I’ll put it that way, but I won’t tell you how.

As much as I love seeing Nancy (Brianna Baker) as captain and she’s already doing great, will we see Tommy (Gina Torres) back at the 126 before the show ends?

I can’t answer that. It would be too big. I can’t answer it. Let’s just say Gina Torres is a Ferrari. You don’t leave a Ferrari in the garage forever.

But will we see her physically at the 126? She could just be visiting.

[Laughs] If I answered it. I would be spoiling so much.

What else can you tease about the final three episodes for the characters and their relationships?

The thing that I can say is that everyone in the last two episodes gets pushed to their extreme limit—and some past it, to be honest. We have some of our most insane apocalyptic emergencies in 11 and 12. It’s basically a combination of The Last of Us and Chernobyl. It mirrors where all of the characters are, and most of them are in an apocalyptic space for one reason or another.

Mateo [Julian Works] is going to have an existential crisis going back to his status as a DACA, as a dreamer. T.K. and Carlos, they are not done with—yeah, they want to adopt Jonah, but it’s not that easy, and there’s going to be a major fundamental hurdle for them that they’re going to have to make a significant life decision to decide how they want to deal with it. Tommy is at the end of her life. Owen will be at the end of his life. Judd will have a new future that I think will both be very shocking but also feel hopefully very appropriate that will change the game of where he goes. Marjan is going to have a massive episode in Episode 10, which I think people will get a lot of joy from—I know I did, and I think it’s her best episode of the series. I think everybody’s going to have some big game-changing moments in the final three episodes.

What about for Paul (Brian Michael Smith)?

There’s a great—I have to say Brian pitched me an idea. He said there was this moment in the pilot where Owen tells Paul basically, there’s somewhere out there in Austin as a kid like you that doesn’t think they belong. And I want you here for when we run across that kid, you know what I mean? Whether it be non-binary, trans, gay, whatever. And Brian said, we said that in the pilot, but wouldn’t it be great if we did a story that showed that? And I thought, well, that is a great idea. And so the last two episodes we’re going to do that and we’re going to introduce a new major character, I should say, who Paul will be their kind of role model.

Are there any significant steps for any of the relationships in these last episodes beyond the adoption for Tarlos?

There may be new babies. I won’t tell you who. There may be deaths. I won’t tell you who. So there will be, there sure will be.

[hazeystar]

binged all of season 3 in less than 24 hours and can i just say i'm in LOVE

like bros. nancy calling carlos bc she's the number one believer in the show, and he still comes!! bc carlos loves tk!! and tk in his coma still loves carlos and aghhhh

then when he wakes up... bro the way i was screaming when tk said 'breathe' and carlos just took the largest inhale. obsessed

the parallel!!! of carlos telling tk that of course he can wake him up at 3am if he needs to talk to someone while he's going through recovery. and then tk waking carlos up at 3am to propose!!! my english student heart loves the parallel and i'm so obsessed

honourable mentions:

the lead up to the baseball game. ladder 126 ain't playing around with their stereotypes except for the fact that they literally are their stereotypes

tommy!! my queen she's just trying to cope with charles' death and then julius shows up and she's like 'nope, not today satan.'

then her absolutely wanting julius in her life it's amazing

grace!! grace I love you my queen my icon. every scene she has? amazing? sassing billy tyson, dealing with the whole dave problem

bruh I love wyatt too. he's amazing. judd as a father, also amazing

nancy and mateo!!! they're so cute as a couple just like ahhhhhh

paul and marjan as my platonic soulmates! literally it kills those two to be apart they are such great friends

'in this house, we catan.' god i love that line, it's been stuck in my head since that episode

[ednygmasbowlerhat]

ok i'm putting in my predictions for the 911 lone star finale since I just watched the second to last episode:

the asteroid doesn't kill everyone (duh)

tk or carlos will stop working / change careers so they can still adopt jonah. i would prefer carlos because I feel like he doesn't really want to be a cop but maybe that's just me

tommy dies (duh)

mateo and nancy get married so mateo doesn't get deported

owen goes to ny and paul takes over as captain of the 126 and makes marjan his lieutenant

idk what's going to happen with judd tbh maybe he goes to join grace on her mission? or maybe grace just comes home (i mean we won't see her but maybe she gets a mention) also he gets promoted from probie

also maybe marjan announces that she's pregnant

[pimento-playing-hopscotch]

7. Silent fury with Tarlos please 🥰🥰🥰

Carlos exited the bathroom and re-entered the living room. As soon as he was in his husband's line of sight, TK got up and stalked into the bedroom, throwing a haughty stare at Carlos over his shoulder.

Carlos sighed. This had been going on for almost two hours. Carlos knew his husband didn't like it when Carlos said no, but he was really hoping TK would pout for a little while and then they could enjoy the day together.

Clearly the love of his life had other ideas.

Carlos went to the kitchen and checked on his chili. There was a gathering tonight at Captain Vega's house; Carlos knew that Paul was also bringing chili, but the two had an ongoing debate over whose was better; tonight there would be many more judges.

Carlos peered over his shoulder and saw TK come out of the bedroom and flop on the couch. Now seemed to be as good of a time as any to try and thaw that ice.

"Well, that was a fun two hours of silent fury," Carlos said, slinging his arms around TK's neck from behind. TK didn't jump up from the couch; he just crossed his arms and pouted.

Granted, he hadn't turned around, but he didn't need to; Carlos was very familiar with that pout from all angles.

"Baby, I love you so much," Carlos murmured, lightly scratching TK's scalp. "I promise, I'm not trying to be control freak husband. But this time yesterday, you had a fever over a hundred. You're a medical professional..." at this, TK huffed and sprung off the couch. He stalked into the kitchen with Carlos at his heels.

"TK, everyone says you're supposed to be fever-free for twenty-four hours before doing something," Carlos reminded him. "Which you will be by tonight, and sitting around with friends isn't super taxing. But going to an indoor trampoline park not even a full day after you didn't want to get off the floor because it felt cool on your face cause you were burning up so much... well, it just seemed like the kind of thing that could wait".

TK was at the sink and turned around to shoot his husband another murderous glare. He had some choice words for Carlos this morning when Carlos told him in no uncertain terms was TK going to the trampoline park with Marjan and Mateo; this had been set up weeks ago, but that was before TK got that chicken salad from Target that got him sent home from work because he was getting so sick.

"Baby," Carlos reached out and squeezed TK's shoulder and TK angrily shook him off. "I love you more than anything in the world. I just want you to give your body time to rest". TK was now opening the cabinets and rummaging through them.

"Can I make you something?" Carlos asked as TK was running his hands over the different things in front of him TK still didn't answer, but shut the cabinets and picked up the box of Ritz crackers on the counter. Carlos didn't care for them, but his husband was a connoisseur of all types of crackers; he had a whole shelf of club crackers and mini club crackers and saltines and mini saltines- when he wasn't feeling well the day before he went through almost a full sleeve of Ritz crackers.

"You know, that's another thing," Carlos said. "Baby, the only thing in your stomach is ritz crackers and some oatmeal. That doesn't make for good trampoline jumping". His husband shot him a glare as he ripped open a new sleeve of crackers.

Crackers in hand, he walked over to the stove and took the lid off the pot of chili.

"TK... what are you doing?" Carlos asked. TK kept eye contact as he crumbled two Ritz crackers up in his hand. "Don't even think about it," Carlos said, taking a step closer. "I'm serious. This isn't funny". TK blinked once as his hand moved over the open pot of chili.

"Tyler Kennedy..." Carlos said in a low rumble as TK released the crumbs into the chili. Seeing Carlos about to pounce, he threw a handful of crackers onto the chili before he replaced the lid and made a run for it.

"Tyler Kennedy Strand!" Carlos roared as he chased his husband around their dining room table. "Get back here!"

"You know," his husband said cheekily, speaking to him for the first time since that morning, "for someone who had no energy to trampoline, I feel like I'm moving pretty quick. Don't you, babe?"

"You think you're funny". Carlos cracked his knuckles. "Wait til I catch you".

"Gotta catch me to kill me, babe," TK said sticking out his tongue as he made a dash for the bedroom with his husband right on his tail.

Thank you for the ask!!

[beautifulhigh]

This season certainly feels like we're coming full circle on our team, or wrapping up their arcs with nice little bows. And while I'm happy about the fact they went into this season thinking (knowing?) it would be their last so they could set this up, I'm also a bit sad that we're getting this.

Owen: brought to Texas to rebuild the 126. Judd, the only survivor, was falling apart under that. He builds a team and a family - post 9/11, post-126 decimation, post-whatever comes next I'm sure.

TK: wanting a marriage and a life with his soulmate. Has the marriage, working on the family.

Tommy: wanting to provide for her family and diving back into work. Now learning to step back from work to be there for her family (through the cancer fight, not taking on too much).

Judd: falling apart at the loss of his 126 family. Comes back stronger but then falls apart at the loss of his heart.

Marjan: engaged to someone and not feeling it one bit, now married to someone she loves and knew was Her Person so quickly she bought her wedding dress within months. (Her and Carlos are tied for the whole "I knew from the start" gestures of it all)

Paul: came to Texas on the promise to be the person he needed for someone else. Spoilers suggest this is coming true.

Mateo: struggling to find his place and find a way to do what he knew he could do. Showed that with the right support he can do just that.

Nancy: went from feeling like Fire and Medical were two different groups to being someone who is loved and cherished by both "sides"

Carlos: reserved and protected and keeping things from his own parents, to being out and proud and working towards his own family.

idk, I might be sad about the show ending but I love that we're seeing this arc for them. We started with watching the 126 be destroyed, we're going to end with everything at risk of being destroyed, but we've seen that they'll always face what challenges are put in their way and they will come through things stronger and better for it.

[guardian-angle22]

[emsprovisions]

❄️ Day 20 - Stranded in Holly Grove ❄️

🎁 Today's fic is dedicated to @bonheur-cafe

Summary: The Catan Crew get stranded in a weird little small town overnight.

Word count: 998

Inspired by the prompt "5. After the car breaks down in a small town during a road trip, a group of friends decide to stay as long as it takes to fix the car and explore the town and area surrounding it." found here

24 Days of Tarlos Masterpost

“Okay, this is beyond even my level of expertise,” Marjan sighs as she drops the hood of Nancy’s car and steps back.

“So, what? You mean we’re stuck here??” Nancy groans in frustration.

“Hey, don’t blame me!” Marjan shoots back. “You’re the one who said your car could handle this cross-country road trip…”

“Guys,” Paul puts his hands up. “Let’s just call a tow truck and find the nearest town. It’s going to be dark soon anyways. Not the best time to be stuck on the side of the road regardless of what’s wrong with the car.”

“Paul’s right,” Carlos pipes up from where he’s sitting beside TK on the snowy curb. “It’s getting late, we’re surely all getting hungry. We planned on staying somewhere for the night anyway.”

“Plus it’s so cold out here my ass is freezing off,” TK adds.

“Nice image, babe,” Carlos laughs, pulling his boyfriend closer and rubbing his arm over his jacket.

“Ugh, fine,” Nancy ducks back into her car to make the call and about an hour later with the friendliest tow truck driver ever, Nancy, Paul, Mateo, Marjan, TK, and Carlos are being dropped off in the nearby town of Holly Grove–a town which the tow truck driver could not stop raving about. The driver also encouraged them to go straight to the inn to check into rooms for the night, and after to go to the local diner and order whatever is on special tonight.

Once Nancy’s car has been dropped off with the local mechanic–who has an uncanny resemblance to Santa and showed up in his robe and slippers with the promise to take a look at it in the morning–the friends spill into the inn off Main Street and are immediately greeted with warmth from a fire and a smiling woman behind the counter in a Christmas sweater.

“Y’all are shivering harder than Jack Frost during a freeze, can I get y’all some hot cocoa?” The woman asks with a blinding smile.

“Is this town giving extremely weird vibes to anyone else?” Mateo whispers in TK’s ear.

“Definitely,” TK nods.

“No, we just want rooms for the night,” Nancy explains. “My car broke down a few miles outside of town and we just dropped it off.”

“Oh! Well you are in for a real treat!” The woman laughs. “We’re having our annual Christmas pageant tomorrow if you stick around!”

Nancy glances back at the group, mouthing, ‘what the fuck?’ before turning back to the woman. “Thanks, ma’am, but we’ll probably leave as soon as my car is ready. Any chance we can get three rooms? Two rooms with two beds and one room with one.”

The woman glances around the group, as if trying to figure out who the lone bed could be for before turning back to Nancy. “Certainly! Let me see what we have available.”

Three sets of golden keys later, and they’re all heading up the stairs with their modest luggage and into their rooms.

“I’m glad Nance gave us the room with one bed,” TK grins, sitting on the edge of the mattress as Carlos opens their suitcase, rifling around for both their toiletry bags.

“Well it was pretty obvious Nancy would room with Marj and send the boys off to room together,” Carlos hums. “Kinda just leaves us.”

“Well I’m glad either way, I get enough of rooming with other people at work,” TK laughs, catching Carlos’s wrist. “Plus I like having you all to myself.”

Carlos smiles as he’s pulled into a warm kiss.

A little while later, they venture out into the cold again, in search of the diner, and cram into a corner booth when they find it, and order the dinner special as was suggested to them.

“This town is weird right?” Paul asks, leaning forward across the table to whisper conspiratorially.

“Extremely weird,” Marjan agrees.

“It’s like some sort of Hallmark movie town,” Carlos shakes his head. The rest of the table turns to gape at him, aside from TK, who just laughs and wraps his hands around Carlos’s arm. “What! My mom makes me watch them with her sometimes.”

“He’s your comfort nerd, huh, TK?” Marjan winks.

“Oh, yeah,” TK grins. “Definitely.”

Their food comes out shortly after and it’s plates of admittedly some of the best damn chicken they’ve ever had, coated in some sort of creamy peppercorn gravy, with loaded mashed potatoes on the side, and honey carrots.

“Holy shit,” Mateo practically moans into his bite.

“Same,” TK immediately agrees. “This is so fucking good.”

Dinner is followed by pie and another round of approving moans from the table. It is really good pie.

The next morning, Nancy drags TK and Carlos with her to talk to the mechanic about her car.

“I’m sorry,” he tells her. “The part I need for your car won’t be here until tomorrow.”

Carlos steps forward, eyes flicking to the mechanic’s shirt. His name tag embroidered into his shirt reads N. Kringle. “Mr…Kringle…we really have to get back on the road today.”

“It just won’t be possible,” Kringle says with a shake of his head. “But you lovely folks are welcome to stay and enjoy our Christmas pageant. There’s always a big party at the diner after.”

“Oh, we wouldn’t want to intrude,” Carlos shakes his head.

“No intrusion,” Kringle shakes his head with a kind smile. “We love having guests in town at the holidays! There’s plenty of Christmas cheer to go around, son.”

Nancy groans as they walk away. “I guess we’re staying.”

“It seems like we have no choice,” Carlos frowns.

“Maybe we can just try and make the most of it. It looks like there’s some cute shops on Main Street that might have good Christmas gifts,” TK shrugs.

“Let’s just get back to the inn and find the others and maybe start with breakfast at that diner,” Nancy says. “Hopefully their eggs and bacon are as good as that pie from last night.”

[paperstorm]

911 Lone Star countdown game

hey look at me participating in a thing! thank you for the tags @lonestar-s5countdown, @bonheur-cafe, @corsage, @strandnreyes, @reyesstrand, and @butchreyes

(1) Which character death in 911 Lone Star hit you the hardest?

Others have said the same, but Charles because I wasn’t expecting it. We had all kind of worked out that Gabriel was going to die so his death definitely was the saddest for me because it was so dramatic and the sort of ‘doomed by the narrative’ aspect of Carlos finally getting something that he’s needed from his father for almost 30 years only to have him ripped away the next day etc, but I knew it was coming. I had no idea Tommy was going to come home to find Charles dead, and then the following episode that focuses on her forcing her way forward and then finally breaking down with Owen at the end is just so heartbreaking.

(2) What is your favorite grief-related moment in the show?

The opening scene of 4x18. It’s like 90 seconds long but “I’ll rub your back” and “Tyler, I don’t …” and “I’m not going anywhere” “You better not” and the Titties of Sadness and the way Rafa has this incredible ability to make his big body look so small in moments like this and the way his face crumples and he leans into TK and is brave enough to be vulnerable … I will weep just thinking about it.

(3) Do you think there will be a character death in season 5? If so, any guesses about who it might be?

My only guess (and I’m hoping to be wrong) is Enzo. I have a vague foreboding feeling he’s dying and Jonah is going to be given to Tarlos but I’m trying to manifest that not happening 😂

(4) Which living character's death would destroy you the most?

Either of Tarlos. Don’t even think about it Tim I will put so many bees in your house and your car and your vacation home and your office and everywhere else. I will bee your whole life. No where will be safe. Where did she even get so many bees, you will wonder? And just when you think you’ve found a safe place that I couldn’t possibly have gotten to because it’s a condo in Palm Springs that you just purchased, you will open a hall closet and BAM, bees.

(5) Which character's childhood trauma do you think was most significant in shaping them?

This is so hard because comparing traumas isn’t really something you can do objectively. It all depends on circumstances, on the individual person, on the support systems they have. I think if you look at whose traumas have led them to the largest amount of harmful decisions, it would have to be Owen and TK. But Paul, Marjan, Judd, Carlos, and Mateo also all have canon childhood traumas that affect them in the present and lead to them being self-sabotaging sometimes so like who’s to say whether any of theirs are actually much bigger than we’ve seen. Trauma runs deep in this family. Luckily, so does love 💛

[tellmegoodbye]

Tag Game: Found Family

Thank you @lonestar-s5countdown for hosting this, and thank you @thisbuildinghasfeelings for tagging me!

(1) What is your favorite 911 Lone Star Found Family moment?

The gang helping Mateo study for his test!

(2) Which platonic pairing/friendship dynamic are you most looking forward to seeing again in season 5?

Owen and Carlos, Owen and Andrea, or Andrea and TK. I need more Strand and Reyes family shenanigans, and some more emotional scenes between them as well.

(3) If you could pick one Lone Star character to be friends with, who would you choose?

TK! He's just very carefree and upbeat, and I think he'd be very fun to be around. I think everyone needs a friend like that who's always going to try and cheer you up or makes it their mission to host the fuck out of you like it's an Olympic sport.

(4) Which would you rather attend: Catan night at the loft or game night at the Ryder house?

Can I combine these? I prefer the vibes of the loft hangouts but I also have no fucking clue how to play that game, and I prefer video games over board games.

I want a Mario Kart night at the loft. Nancy may have gotten shut down when she tried to introduce non-catan games but could you imagine the gang all playing Mario Kart together?? The vibes would be elite!!

(5) A character of your choice ends up in jail. Who would they call to bail them out (assuming their romantic partner, parent,and/or child didn't pick up?)

Marjan calling Paul to bail her out is the obvious answer here, I think, so another possibility could be TK calling Nancy to bail him out, or vice versa. It's the bestie-ism of it all!

Tags!

@strandnreyes @goodways @rosedavid @lemonlyman-dotcom @carlos-in-glasses

@heartstringsduet @bonheur-cafe @herefortarlos @carlos-tk @literateowl

@freneticfloetry @fitzherbertssmolder @whatsintheboxmh @ironheartwriter @reasonandfaithinharmony

@eclectic-sassycoweyes @welcometololaland @mrs-corrections-78 @butchreyes @reyesstrand

@nancys-braids @captain-gillian @theghostofashton @alrightbuckaroo @cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut

@paperstorm @guardian-angle22 @emsprovisions @sapphic--kiwi @decafdino

@firstprince-history-huh @messymindofmine @goldenskykaysani @toomanycupsoftea @reeeallygood

@tailoredshirt @lightningboltreader @fangirl-paba @fandomswonderland @rmd-writes

[herefortarlos]

911: Lone Star Season 5 Countdown - Beginnings

(1) Which 911 Lone Star season premiere is your favorite? Well, since it was the only premiere I watched live, I guess I'm going to have to say Season 4 😅. I would not call it my favorite, mostly because I hated having to wait those first few weeks to complete that Tarlos story arc and get the resolution! But I had just joined Tumblr again with my new tarlos account, so even though I wasn't active like I am now, I did enjoy seeing others speculate and talk about the episodes, and make gifs and new fics based off of things! People's engagement here is what I'm really looking forward to with season 5!

(2) Which character do you think had the best introduction or first scene in the show? I will say my favorite character introduction was TK's! His first lines were, "I'm going to ask Alex to marry me" and them using a gender neutral name was smart because then later when I realized he was talking about a man, I was like, "Ahhhhh, he's a gay character on a Fox show and starring side by side with Rob Lowe!" I am so into this and in love with him already!

(3) What is your favorite moment of 1x01? Ooooo, but there are so many to choose from! TK's overdose and Owen finding him, them doing the interviews with Paul, Marjan and Mateo! Making us think Judd was going to be a stereotypical red neck and he turns out to be this sensitive, giant teddy bear who loves and misses his family! My favorite though is probably the Honky Tonk scene and everyone coming together and of course Carlos sidling up to TK and me realizing, "Oh my, this hot man is hitting on him!" I am so far gone on them already!! And I miraculously did not have anything from season 1 to 3, spoiled for me, so I had no idea just what their relationship would become 🥹

(4) When did you first start watching Lone Star and how did you find out about it? I started watching Lone Star in October of 2022. I remember because that's also around when I started my current job 😆 I remember specifically seeing FB clips of the 1x02 racist lady scene and also the 1x03 shielding Marjan when she loses her hijab in the silo scene. Hearing TK's "I am a homosexual" and Paul's "I am trans though", and then seeing a Muslim woman, I was so unbelievably interested in this diverse cast of characters! Oh and I had the Hulu trial at the time and had just finished bingeing Modern Family and I saw Lone Star was on there, so I decided to start that while I still had it. Needless to say I started paying for Hulu monthly because of LS 🤣

(5) What is one wish you have for the season 5 premiere? Hmm, many, many wishes. But hopefully a simple, realistic one is I need to see at least one instance of Tarlos being in love and happily married! Just give me one happy thing between the two of them, and then I will gladly take the weeks of angst, I just need something to hold me over until we get whatever amazing resolution they have planned for us, as is tradition!

Thank you for the tag @lonestar-s5countdown! I really enjoyed thinking about all the reasons I started Lone Star and what I immediately loved about it!

Zero pressure tags to, @heartstringsduet @thisbuildinghasfeelings @tellmegoodbye @paperstorm @strandnreyes

@theghostofashton @orchidscript @bonheur-cafe @eclectic-sassycoweyes @ladytessa74

@carlos-tk @cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut @carlos-in-glasses @alrightbuckaroo @lemonlyman-dotcom

@whatsintheboxmh @emsprovisions @chicgeekgirl89 @reyesstrand @lightningboltreader And OPEN TAG 💖

[thisbuildinghasfeelings]

Missing Moments I Want to Know About in 1x09/1x10

The show leaves us to fill in a lot of blanks for TK and Carlos during season 1. I always want to know more, but I think the blanks I want filled in most are the ones that occur in 1x09 and 1x10. Here are the ones I think about the most:

1.How does Carlos find out that TK is awake?

Does he find out through the first responder grapevine that the firefighter who was shot is going to be ok? Does someone from the 126 (Paul maybe?) call him? Does TK call or text him himself?

If I had to guess, I'd go with Paul letting Carlos know. Maybe before Carlos leaves the hospital he gives Paul his number and asks him to update him if anything happens.

2. What is TK told about Carlos after he wakes up and how does he feel about it?

We see TK's reaction to Owen asking about how long he's "been seeing the cop," but we don't see any further than that. I think TK can assume from Owen's comment that Carlos was at the hospital...otherwise how would Owen know about them? But does anyone say anything more to TK? Does Owen/Paul/Marjan/Mateo/Judd mention how upset and worried Carlos was or ask TK if he wants them to call Carlos to let him know he's ok? How does TK feel once it sinks in that Carlos, his "boyfriend who he doesn't even really know is his boyfriend boyfriend" was sitting by his hospital bed?

I see TK in this post-coma moment as being very much in crisis, and not just about the question of his relationship with Carlos. TK feels lost and confused about where his place is and what he wants to do with his life. I like to believe (though we don't actually have much evidence of this since there's no Tarlos interaction between 1x05 and 1x10) that TK was starting to come around and let his walls down a bit more in the time leading up to him getting shot, but then, post-coma, his crisis makes him take a step back from all that until he figures out where he's supposed to be. I think TK probably felt things when he found out that Carlos sat by his hospital bed, but I think he shoved those feelings down while he dealt with the crisis at hand.

3. What led them to the juice bar in 1x10 and how did they both see the situation at the time?

Whose idea was it to go there? Did TK call or text Carlos or was it the other way around? Had they been texting or talking back and forth at all since TK woke up or was this their first contact? What was said in the conversation that led them there? What were their expectations?

TK seems to be the one most passionate about boba so that makes me think he chose where to go. Or maybe it was a place they were planning on going together before he got shot, like TK had mentioned it in passing weeks ago and Carlos remembered and suggested that as the place they could go.

I wonder if TK thought from the beginning that he'd be essentially breaking things off with Carlos. Perhaps that perceived inevitability was why he filibustered a solid 6 minutes on boba? I get the impression that they both knew there would be a conversation about their relationship because when Carlos brought up the "elephant in the juice bar," TK immediately knew what he meant. Also, in hindsight, it is HILARIOUS that Carlos calls TK out here for avoiding talking about something. Oh, Carlos.

Side note: I wonder what Carlos' reaction would have been if TK had said that he liked Carlos and wanted to continue hooking up but still didn't want anything more. Would Carlos have said that wouldn't work for him? Because I really think at that point it wouldn't have. After the strong feelings he felt while sitting beside TK's hospital bed, could Carlos have continued being casual? Or would he have agreed to it just to keep TK (HIS SOULMATE) in his life even if it would have caused him pain?

4. What happened between the juice bar and the firehouse hug?

I feel like it's obvious that we're missing a pretty big conversation in there. The best evidence for this is the way Carlos goes face first into TK's neck when he shows up at the firehouse. That is not a man who isn't sure if they're even a "we" or who is solemnly accepting that they might not be meant to be. So what happened?? There's some great fic exploring this moment (SEE BELOW), which is where a majority of my headcanons on it come from.

I think it's clear that TK had to reach out first here. Both from Carlos' attitude at the end of the juice bar scene and from what we know about Carlos in general, there's no way Carlos was going to push any further without TK making it clear that's what he wanted. HOWEVER I could possibly see Carlos going to the hospital to check up on TK as he got his stitches fixed. I don't think he would go with any motive of getting TK to agree to a relationship with him. It would solely be about making sure that TK was alright. Even then, I'm not sure if he would do it. He certainly would have wanted to, but he might have held back based on TK's attitude at the juice bar. Carlos likely would have felt that TK might not want him there. I've definitely enjoyed fic that has him doing this, though.

Probably the most likely possibility is that Carlos simply went home after the juice bar/solar storm incident. His heart was surely shattered after being essentially rejected by his soulmate after putting his feelings out there in the most direct way he'd done so far. We know so much more about Carlos now and it just makes it even more apparent how much it took for him to sit there in front of TK and tell him how he was feeling like that when he thought it might not be reciprocated! And then, when it wasn't (at least from Carlos' perspective in that moment)...HEARTBREAKING.

Ultimately, I believe that TK had his epiphany and reached out to Carlos wherever he was (either at the hospital with him or Carlos' house or somewhere else). The conversation they had is something that I would like to see more than perhaps any missing moment in the entire series. Imagine the look on Carlos' face when he realizes what TK is telling him! As his previously-shattered heart is mended in an instant 😭 I want to see it so bad! Thankfully I have fic to fill the void. Speaking of, here are just a few excellent examples of fic that fills in this and some of the other moments I've discussed here:

silver in the night by @reyesstrand

the elephant in the juice bar by @taralaurel

Simple and Plain and Not Much to Ask from Somebody by @howtosingit

Steady up ahead by @paperstorm

Still Waters Run Deep by @welcometololaland

Just Let Me Hold You by tkstrands (is this writer on tumblr?? If so let me know and I'll @ them!!)