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littleadaline · 4 months

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Mon rayon de Soleil [M.G38]

Reader is Marc’s sunshine

Warnings: noooooone

Word Count: 2.4k

A/N: I will be attempting to write this story using first person POV, so please please pretty please tell me if that is something you enjoy reading, or if you prefer the 3rd person POV.

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Days off were my favourite. I always wanted to go out, see the beach, despite having seen it hundreds, if not, thousands of times. My ideal day off consisted of waking up early, packing sandwiches, and spending the day out. Marc, on the other hand, had a very different vision. His ideal day off consisted of staying in bed and ordering in, wether it was breakfast, lunch or supper. In order to make each other happy, we compromised. We would sleep in, pack some light snacks for the afternoon, spend the afternoon at the beach, and come back home in time to order supper. This morning, things were different. I was woken up by an alarm coming from my parents’ bedroom. Lazily opening my eyes, I took a quick glance at the clock on my phone, groaning as I read the time; 8:33 A.M. I sighed, exhausted from only having gotten 4 hours of sleep, blame social media. As I was getting up to get on with my day, I heard noises coming from the kitchen. I knew my dad was already off to work, and my brother was away for university, so I couldn’t identify the man’s voice coming from the kitchen.

“Do you think she’ll like this?” It was Marc’s voice. What was he doing in my kitchen at 8:33 on a Wednesday?

“I have told you a thousand times, yes. She goes crazy for those pickled peppers. Add that to calamari sandwiches and she’s on cloud nine.” My mom confirmed with him.

“I really want her to have a nice day. She’s told me how stressed she’s been with work and school. And she’s been really keen on trying that new spa that opened.”

“So what do you have planned for her today then?”

“Bocadillos by the beach, some ice cream, by the beach again,” he grinned, “And a pamper session to finish the day. Should I… should I go wake her up?”

The floor creaked as I leaned into the doorway. My mom’s gaze diverted back to me, Marc still clueless about my presence.

“No need to wake her up.” She chuckled as Marc’s gaze found my figure standing in the doorway.

“Good morning nena, how’d you sleep?” He leaned in to kiss my forehead.

“Morning amor. I slept well, thank you.” I left a kiss on his cheek, my hand resting on his abdomen. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to overhear your conversation. We’re going to the beach?” I asked, walking over to the sink for a glass of water.

“Yeah, I got us some sandwiches and pickled peppers, courtesy of that sandwich shop you never seem to shut up about.” He playfully rolled his eyes. I chuckled, admiring the sight in front of you. Marc, with his eyes still full of sleep, yet so full of life; the way his dimples creased whenever he laughed, or so simply spoke. Every moment spent with him, I would fall deeper in love with the beauty of his personality and the way his eyes shone whenever I was in the room.

“And later in the afternoon, we’re gonna grab ice cream. Fermín and Gavi went there recently and they have not been able to shut up about it. Half the team now wants to go there.” He broke in a fit of laughter. “And to end the night on a sweet note, a massage session at that new spa place you have been raving about.” He pulled me into a hug, his abdomen pressing against my back. I could drown in moments like these. The simplicity of our relationship, the innocence of our love breathed life into our couple every day.

“There’s yogurt in the fridge if you want to grab a light snack before heading out. I should be done changing in 15 minutes.” I pecked him on the lips before leaving the kitchen.

Marc sat down at the dining table, making sure the backpack he had packed for the trip had all the essentials.

“Sunscreen, mosquito spray, bandages, snacks…” He was counting under his breath when I emerged back into the living room, having traded my pj’s for a pair of linen pants, one of Marc’s t-shirts that he had accidentally thrown into the dryer, and my sandals. I had my tote bag on my shoulder, bucket hat in hand.

“Ready to go amor?” I asked him, my hands resting on his forearm.

“Let’s go!” He kissed my cheek, grabbing my hand. We both waved goodbye at my mom as we left the house. Lucky for us, the beach wasn’t too far away from my house. After having lived in this neighbourhood my entire life, I learned new pathways to access the beach that would shield us from tourists or in this case… fans.

When we made it to the beach, the sun was shinning bright, pulling a groan from me. This did not go unnoticed by Marc, who dropped his backpack into the sand, yelling;

“Stay here! I’ll see if I can find us a spot in the shade!”

I sat down, my toes digging in the sand. I always liked this spot. When I was younger, my family and I used to spend our days out there, bringing a backpack filled with snacks and sandwiches and enjoying the weather from dawn until sunset. I heard Marc’s voice calling me as he waved me over.

“I found us a spot! It’s under a tree, so it’s got all the shade in the world!” He said excitedly.

Marc was referring to the ‘Forever Tree’. Back in the days, there used to be a rumour running around regarding the Forever Tree. Over the course of generations, couple who had sat down under the tree were known to be bound forever, their union only ever separated by death. But as time went on, the tree lost its popularity, leaving only a few locals to know about its ‘magic’.

“Do you want to start by going for a swim or eating?” Marc asked me as he laid down his towel on the ground.

“A swim would be nice. The heat’s killing me.” I chuckled as I took off my (Marc’s shirt), my pants following soon.

“Race you to the water?” Marc flashed me his killer smile before taking off in a sprint.

“Not fair! You’re the athlete, not me!” I yelled before running into the water, jumping into his arms. Marc caught me, surprised, before putting me back down on my feet, his hand never leaving my back. I could stay in this moment forever. Marc and I, in the water, chest flush against one another. The sun gently caressing our skin, prickling us with its rays. If I had one more moment to live, I would choose to spend it like this.

Marc’s movement pulled me out of my thoughts. His hand was now resting on my head, his fingers slightly brushing through my curls. He breathed in, his chest slowly rising against mine. His skin smelled of sunscreen, his perfume and my body mist, a combination of smells that symbolized home to me.

“I’m getting cold, I’m gonna lay down on my towels and enjoy some sun.” I let go of his hand, slowly emerging out of the sea. I could feel the sand clinging to my feet as I walked back to my towel. The sand was warm under my feet, the temperature slowly warming me up.

As I was setting up my towel in a warmer spot, Marc’s voice called out from the water.

“Are you hungry? Do you want to eat the sandwiches now?” I nodded yes as I chuckled. This guy was always thinking about food. Marc ran up to me, water dripping from his shorts and hair, before sitting down on my towel, his hand wrapping around my waist. I bent down to pick up a sandwich from the cooler before handing it to Marc.

“I hope they’re still fresh.” Marc said, biting into his sandwich. His eyes rolled back as he moaned in delight. “That is so fucking good.” He said, his mouth still full. “I need that recipe, one way or another.”

I laughed at his reaction, now taking a bite of my sandwich. Marc was right, these sandwiches were delicious.

“Holy- You’re right, we really do need the recipe. I could eat these day and night.”

We sat down in silence, basking in the sound of our sandwich wrappers and our delighted moans. Once we finished eating, Marc threw the wrappers away before sitting back down on the towel, pulling me closer to his chest.

“Alright princesa, spa next or ice cream next?”

“Mhh… The spa would be nice. Some mud mask would do wonders for our skin.”

Another hour went by before we started packing our stuff, making our way back to the house to get changed and head for the spa.

“Y/N? Are you ready to go?” Marc yelled out from the front door.

“Almost. I can’t find my wallet. Marc? Could you please start the car?”

I heard the door close and the garage door open. I found my wallet buried under my notebooks, on my desk. Sighing in relief, I grabbed my wallet and purse before exiting the house. A honk coming from the street caught my attention. I climbed in the car and Marc immediately drove off, catching me off guard.

“Hey there, you’re not a race car driver, Marc.” He laughed.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” He apologized, flashing me his lethal smile.

We arrived 15 minutes later to the spa, Marc pulling into the parking lot with a relieved smile.

“Doesn’t seem like a lot of people are here.”

Although Marc had progressed to sometimes playing with the first team, Marc’s family and I saw firsthand how fame had affected him. It wasn’t the fame per say, but the lack of privacy, the tabloids and being put on a pedestal by some fans, when he was simply an 18 year old kid with dreams and a bright future. I knew the smile of relief on Marc’s face wasn’t from the fact that we had finally made it to the spa, but rather, the decreased chances of being recognized in public.

“Marc…” I said as he turned off the car’s ignition.

“Mh?” He stopped in his tracks.

“Let’s skip the spa.” I blurted out, avoiding eye contact.

Marc shifted back into his seat to look at me.

“What do you mean? I thought you wanted to come here?” He sat back down in his seat.

“I did and I do, but I would much rather do something with you where you don’t constantly have to look out for a crowd or fans. Seeing how relieved you were when you realized there weren’t a lot of cars in the parking lot made me realize you wouldn’t be able to relax. You wouldn’t have enjoyed this outing, and neither would I.”

“So what do we do now?” He took my hand in his, his thumb brushing over.

“Let’s go home, put on a movie and do some sheet face masks. We can still get ice cream in the evening.” I pecked him on the lips, my hand finding the nape of his hair.

“Alright, princesa. But I pick the movie this time.” He jokingly pouted.

The drive back home was calmer, the sun blessing us with its golden rays. I closed my eyes, the smooth roar of the engine lulling me to a near state of sleep. I could smell Marc’s perfume travel around the car every time he looked over at my still figure.

“Keep your eyes on the road, cabrón. We have a movie to watch and ice cream to eat. It would be a shame to die because you couldn’t keep your eyes off of me.” I teased him, my eyes half open. I heard Marc laugh and shake his head before I closed back my eyes. Marc finally pulled into my driveway and slightly nudged me awake.

“I’m awake!” I yawned. Marc turned off the engine before sliding out of his seat and running to the passenger door.

“M’lady.” He opened the door for me, his hand extending to mine.

We made it back to the front door, walking in to find the house empty and dark.

“I’ll grab the face masks and blankets. You can pick the movie in the meantime. Popcorn?” I asked him, standing in the bathroom doorway.

“I can do popcorn. I’ll grab us some water.” I grabbed the face masks from my not-so-secret stash and the blankets from the bathroom closet. Marc already had the popcorn in a bowl.

“So,” I said, throwing a blanket at him. ”What are we watching?” I scooched closer to him, my head resting on his shoulder.

“Grown Ups.”

Marc turned on the movie and snaked his arm around my shoulder, forcing me to be flush against him. We stayed in the moment, erupting in laughter every now and then, our bodies pressed against each other, the feeling being more than familiar to us. My hand found his index finger, grabbing it gently. Marc let me.

Neither of us liked to admit it, but this simple action brought us both comfort. The thought of knowing that we had each other, we could rely on one another. Maybe I was looking too far into the future, but the only thing on my mind was to continue these little traditions with Marc as my husband; Marc as the father of our children.

As the credits rolled, Marc nudged me awake.

“Falling asleep again, mhh?” He teased me. “Let’s skip the ice cream. I’ll pick you up tomorrow after training.”

“What? No, Marc, I feel awful. We already skipped out on the spa, the ice cream was the easy part.”

“Hey, the ice cream will still be there tomorrow. We’ll go shopping after training and grab some ice cream on the way home. Deal?” He reached to peel off my face mask.

“Deal.” I whispered, feeling his gaze burn through my skin. My cheeks were heating up.

“That mask did wonders. You’re glowing. Like a ray of sunshine.” He kissed my forehead.

“I’m your ray of sunshine.” I smiled at him, fighting a yawn.

“That… you are.” He pecked my lips before scooping me up and carrying me to the bedroom.

He laid me down on my side of the bed before sliding under the covers, his arms finding my abdomen. I laid my head on his chest, feeling his heartbeat slowly slow down.

“Good night, sunshine.” He kissed my temple.

“Good night my love.” I kissed his hand.

Marc’s breath slowed down as he fell asleep, his grip loosening on my waist. I nuzzled myself in between his arms, finding comfort in the warmth of his body.

That’s what I loved about our relationship. We adapted to one another, we went with the flow. We found time to show up for each other, despite our busy schedules and the difference in our worlds. Marc brought warmth in my life, stability, amongst the journey that was… being a teenager. And I was eternally thankful for that night we met.

#marc guiu x reader #marc guiu imagine #marc guiu #fc barcelona #barca #barcelona #march guiu one shot #pablo gavi #pedri #gavi #fermin lopez #ferran torres #littleadaline

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issdisgrace · 4 months

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IT'S KINDA A LONG STORY

WARNINGS: None

A/N: This takes place in 2017, character is 28.

“You know you’ve been with us for 6 months and I don’t think you proper told us about how you started hunting.” Sam says, closing his computer.

“Well, my grandpa was a hunter, so my father became a hunter. Then I decided to continue the family tradition and become a hunter.”

“Cool. How was your childhood? Mine and Sammy’s were fucked, to say the least? Went long periods in hotels. I had to steal food and a bunch of other shit.” Dean says.

“It was a mixed bag. It’s kinda a long story.” I say, sitting up on the bed.

“We have time.” Sam says.

“Alright, strap in, I guess. As you guys know, I was born in ‘89. My mom got pregnant with me when she was 16 and.

"Had me a month after she turned 17 on my dad’s 17th birthday. My mom came from a very religious family, like super religious, and her getting pregnant with me got her kicked out. My grandma and grandpa let my mom move in. From what I heard, those months were good. My dad was working while trying to finish school while my mom dropped out of school. Mom helped grandma and grandpa with the stuff around the house. When my mom was 8 months and on some odd days with me, she went into labor. She was rushed to the hospital in the town over and had me around 11:45 pm. There were a couple of problems with me since I was premature, but the doctor got everything under control and after a week, I was able to go home.

Anyway, when I was 2, my mom and dad got married. My first memory was Christmas ‘94. I remember opening a fairy princess set. It was nice at the time, but looking back now, it was very cheaply made. But fast forward to my 8th birthday, 97. I remember we had dinner and my father unwrapped his presents first, being older than I got to open mine. I had got nothing but dresses. I remember I broke out crying then when my mom and dad tried to comfort me I yelled that I didn’t want to be a girl, then ran upstairs and hid in my room. A couple of minutes later, my dad came up and entered my room. He just sat on the bed and talked to me while I was hide telling me that there wasn’t nothing wrong with wanting to be a boy and if I wanted to I could. I crawled out from underneath my bed and sat with him. He held me as I cried and we talked. It started with, is this how you really feel? How long have you been feeling this way? Would it make me happier to be a boy? I told him, It was about 6 when I realized didn’t want to be a girl, that I hated the long hair and dresses, and didn’t like my given name. We talked until it was time for me to go to bed. My dad tucked me in and stayed with me until I feel asleep. I must have been asleep no longer than a half an hour when I was woken up by yelling from downstairs. I could hear my mom yelling at my dad, saying I can’t just be a boy and that it’s just a phase. I remember hearing my dad tell her, so what if it is I have to figure out who I am and who I want to be? I just layed their crying while listening to the yelling and ended up crying myself asleep.

The next day, things were tense, to say the least that I can remember. My grandma and grandpa talked to me after the very tense breakfast and asked if I wanted to go by something else. At that time, I didn’t know. They suggest names, even pulled out baby name books, and we looked through them. But I didn’t find a name that I liked so they were suggesting different names off the top of their head and I decide on Y/n after my mom’s brother, my uncle who is most definitely the funnest coolest person I have ever known. I remember the first time he came to visit after I came out and by then I had gotten my hair cut and a new wardrobe. I had told him that I was a boy and that my new name was Y/n. He was super chill about the absolute opposite of my mother, despite coming from the same background. And their one out he called me his mini me.

So fast forward to 99 I’m 10. My mom decide to get me nail polish and make up for my birthday. I was first upset, but that black nail polish called me and I painted them. They looked pretty good, and it made me feel masculine. After I was done with my nails and they were tried and I went downstairs to show my grandma and grandpa. They were in the living room and so was my mom. I show them and my mother butted in by asking if I was finally done with this phase and finally being a girl. I was so upset. I just ran out of the house. I ran into the woods and climbed a top of tree. I was close enough to the house that I could hear my grandparents and mother getting into a screaming match. They yelled at her for 30 minutes, then they came out to find me, but I stayed silent while I cried and they didn’t find me. They looked for another half an hour for me before my father came home from his hunt he left on a couple day prior. They rushed to meet him in the driveway and they told my father what had happened.

And then there comes my mom came out of the house to yell about the whole thing again, saying that she wasn’t going to feed into the delusion and that I needed to start acting like a girl. Shit escalated and my dad yelled that he wanted a divorce and to get the fuck out of the house by morning. Then when things died down, my dad came and found me and I climbed down from the tree and he tried to comfort me. But i just kept crying and eventually I tired myself out and fell asleep. He carried me in and I woke up in my bed the next morning hearing loud crying coming from my mom. She tried to guilt trip and have my dad take her back. But it failed and eventually my uncle arrived and got my mom and her stuff and then she wasn’t in my life. Which in all this my uncle stood beside us, but he did help my mom because of the whole family thing. Anyway, my mom wasn’t completely out of my life. She would leave letters in the mailbox condemning me every couple of weeks.

So then fast forward to when I was 14. I was home alone. When I heard a car pull up. I went downstairs and opened the door and here comes my mom and her boyfriend. I knew something was wrong and quickly closed and locked the door. They started banging on the door and my mom was yelling how she could fix and that I didn’t have to pretend anymore. I called the police and hid in my closet. Listening to the banging. After a couple minutes, I hear two cruisers pull, then a commotion. Then eventually the commotion was over and I heard my name called out by the cop saying it was safe. I realized it was my friends Chris’ dad, John.

I got out of hiding and went downstair and the front door was totaled. It was on the verge of breaking. So I go outside they got my mom and her boyfriend in separate cruiser. John and the other officer, Charlie, made sure I was ok. They got another cop to come out and take my mom from John’s cruiser so John could stay with me. He did, and eventually my dad and grandparents showed up. We pressed charges, they both ended up getting 4 years. And that is the last thing I know about the whereabout of my mom. After that whole situation, my dad and grandpa taught me self defiance, which turned into teaching me how to hunt.

Then when I was about 18, my grandparents go into a pile up caused by a drunk driver and died. It was really tough around then and I threw myself into my shitty waiter job at the local diner. Made decent money and got good tips. With the saved money, I got myself a car with my dad’s help and started traveling, doing hunts. Stayed in contact with dad through this time and still do. He ended up getting close to John after his wife divorced him and they fell for each other. They got married last year, which I attended their wedding, then I took a break from hunting. Then a couple of months ago I started back up my. band, that’s when I met you guys and here we are.”

“Damn sorry about the whole transphobic mom and grandparents thing.” Sam says.

“Eh, I got over it.”

“Pretty hard stuff to get over,” Dean adds in.

“Yeah, I went to a lot of therapy to get myself to this point.”

“Glad it went well for you. Therapists can be tricky. Some help and some don’t.” Sam said.

“I got paired with a pretty good one. Anyway, don’t mean to switch topics, but how does food sound to you guys because all that talking got me hungry?”

“Yes, I love the way you think.” Dean says.

“There’s a diner just down the road we can go there.” Sam says.

“Sounds good to me.”

#dean winchester #sam winchester #supernatural #dean winchester x male reader #dean winchester x reader #sam winchester x male reader #sam winchester x reader #supernatural x male reader #supernatural x reader

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oliveisme533 · 7 months

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My dad’s neighbor is a dilf

Chapter 4

Joel Miller x You

Summery: You had decided to spend your summer in Austin with your dad. You used to spend almost every summer there, but hadn't spent a summer there since you were a teenager. Which means you hadn't seen a certain Joel Miller in years..

Warnings: abusive ex is back. Verbal abuse and physical violence (not against reader)

You roll over in your bed with a groan and stretch your arms. Grabbing your phone you check the time 10:03. Early for you. You decide to hop in the shower before your dad can ask you to help pick up fallen branches in the yard from last nights storm. You let the scolding water hit your body and you draw in a deep breath. Tomorrow was Monday which meant your dad would be back to work and you wouldn't have anyone to talk to or hang out with until 5 o'clock. Rinsing the soap from your face you contemplated just what to do with tomorrow, in fact you were beginning to wonder how to make use of your summer in general. The last couple weeks of doing nothing had been a much needed reprieve from your busy life, but you were starting to get a little stir crazy. You turned off the water, still deep in thought when you heard your phone buzzing. You tiptoed over to your bedside table and saw Joel's name lighting up the screen. "Why is he calling me?" You pick up the phone ...

Hello Hey sweetheart didn't wake ya did I? No no I've been up...for a few minutes (Joel chuckled) Well hey listen, one of my coworkers was looking for a sitter for tonight. He and the Misses are going out and their regular girl can't make it. Any interest in an easy job for the night? Oh yeah I can definitely do that. God know I've got nothing else going on. Okay I'll send you the info! Thanks darlin'

Obviously he wasn't calling just because he wanted to chat with you. It was a stupid thing to even hope for. The rest of the day went by relatively slowly, but when 6 o'clock rolled around you put some snacks in your back pack, a phone charger, and a book you had been trying to finish for several weeks now. The babysitting was easy. It was one kid, she was four years old and for the most part did whatever you asked. The parents told you they would be out late so when 11:45 rolled around you weren't surprised they hadn't come home yet. The house was quiet...too quiet. You never much liked this part of being a baby sitter. It was different when you did it for Sarah. The millers house was always warm and full of life. Those nights when Joel did get home a little later you felt safe curling up in on his couch with the TV on. Most of the times you would fall asleep like that and Joel would drive you home the next day after making you and Sarah breakfast. You smile at the memory. The sounds of the house settling are enough to snap you from this daydream down memory lane. "Fuck I really don't like this huge, quiet house. What if I call someone to keep me company. Dad will be asleep, so would mom and my sister. I bet Joel Miller is awake..." you stare at your phone and contemplate this next move. "Fuck it" you mutter and tape his name. The phone only rings a couple of times before you hear Joel's husky voice. A twinge of guilt shoots through you as you fear you've woken him up.

Hello? Everything okay? Hey, yeah I'm so sorry did I wake you? I was just restin' my eyes that's all. I ain't in bed yet. Well I just- I really don't like being in these houses all by myself. It sounds stupid but it's kinda scary I guess. 'S not stupid. You want someone to talk to-keep ya company? Yeah... and I figured you'd be awake still, but I guess I figured wrong You're all right honey, I really don't mind. I needed to get off this couch and sleep in my bed any how. But how 'bout you tell me about your day? My day was pretty boring honestly. I played with the cat, ate some ice cream and watched TV Wat'd ya watch? Love island What in the hell is that?

You laughed and proceeded to tell him all about the show. A little while passed and then you heard the lock click and knew the parents were home. You told Joel you had to go to which he responded "alright let me know when you get home safe. Can call me if you want." Back home you pondered whether or not you should call Joel. It was late and you were feeling tired, but you wanted to talk to him. After slipping into your pajamas you felt like you could hardly stay awake much longer, but you were determined to take advantage of this invitation from Joel to call him. So you tapped his name and watched the phone ring. You put it to your ear and your heart sank with each unanswered ring. When it went to voicemail you resolved that he had likely fallen asleep and you decided to do the same.

The next day you woke up early (ish) at 9:00. Your dad had already left for work. You roll over in your bed to check your phone and your heart pounds.

Missed call from Joel Miller 36m ago

You're hoping he's not at work yet and call him back quickly. "Hey sweetheart" he picks up within a few rings. "Sorry I missed your call last night. I ended up falling asleep and didn't hear the phone." It was so nice to hear his voice first thing in the morning. "Oh you don't need to apologize. I didn't really need anything, I just like talking to you" you could almost hear Joel grin as he said "well I like talkin' to you too sugar" you had walked down to your kitchen to put on a pot of coffee at this point when you say "hey why aren't you at work?" "Waitin for some parts to come in for this current job. Until they do there's nothin else I can really do. But the parts are supposed to be here by noon... so I'll get my ass to work in a couple hours" you notice a note taped to the fridge as Joel finishes saying all this. "I completely forget" you mutter to yourself, but apparently Joel hears. "What'd you forget?" "My dad left me a note reminding me that he's gone on a business trip and won't be back until Thursday." "Oh that's right. Your dad did mention that. Told me to keep an eye out for ya." "Did he really? "Yeah I mean you're going to be by yourself in that big house for almost 3 days" "I'm a grown ass woman though!" Joel chuckled. "No ones sayin you ain't, darlin. Dads worry and that don't change from when you're 5 or when you're 25" "I guess that's fair enough" you shrug. "I should get my day started here... might go on a run and catch up on laundry" "Well if you need anything the next couple of days just hollar" You hang up the phone with brief goodbyes and run your fingers through your tangled bed head. You groan as you massage your temple. "What the fuck am I doing?? I'm catching feelings for Joel fucking Miller. What's worse is that I'm flirting with him too"

Against your better judgement you decide to text Joel later in the day Hey what time you get off tonight? I should be wrapping up by 7...Why? You want to swing by for dinner? Nothing fancy. I'm just bored and I don't love being here alone in the evenings for long periods of time lol. Well I ain't gonna turn you down for some dinner. I'll see you at 7:30. Can I pick anything up at the store for ya on my way there? Well if you're offering... maybe some ice cream? And a bottle of rosè You got it

The rest of the day went by slowly. 7:30 couldn't get here fast enough. You were hoping for something to happen tonight with Joel, but you weren't sure what that would be. You hadn't decided if the lingering glances from him were just something you were imagining or actually happening. Around 6:30 you decide to hope in the shower and of course shave...because you never know right? After your shower you settle on wearing a simple, linen dress that's super comfortable and not all that fancy. At exactly 7:30 you hear the doorbell ring. You jump off the sofa to answer it, your heart in your throat. But when you open the door, you're afraid you might be sick. It's not Joel Miller who stands there, but your toxic ex boyfriend ...Ben.

"What the fuck are you doing? You need to leave" Ben smirks. "Aren't you a delight. I just wanted to talk to you, and since you've block my number I had to take matters into my hands." Your heart was racing. Ben had never shown any physical violence against you, but you didn't know what he was capable and you didn't want to find out. "I thought I made myself really fucking clear that we are over" you said with a shaky voice. "Baby I just don't think you get to make that call. I mean I've done so much to make this relationship work. You can't just throw all that away. You know you're never going to find another guy who puts up with your shit." That was it. Something in you snapped. Something that had been brewing for literally years was about to come out. "No fuck you!" You shoved him in the chest with both palms and he stumbled back just a step, caught off guard by your motion. "Screw you! I don't need a guy to put up with anything about me, you asshole. You act like you're some fucking hero for tolerating the fact that I struggle with my mental health and stuff!" Ben was fuming now. You had never laid hands on him and you could tell the shove had lit something inside him too. "You have issues you know that?! You have fucking issues in your head!" He screamed at you getting up in your face and grabbing your arms tightly, pinning them to your sides. Out of the corner of your eye you saw Joel's truck coming down the street and pulling into your drive way. Ben was now shaking you and yelling "YOU'RE SUCH A BITCH.." he didn't get to finish his sentence because a firm hand grabbed him by the shoulder and yanked him backwards.

If looks could kill...you had never seen such an expression on Joel. He looked like he could tear Ben to pieces right then and there, yet he maintained a calm composure. "I suggest you get the fuck off this porch and don't come back, son" Joel said in a low voice. Ben scoffed. "Get out of here, old man. This ain't your business" Ben spat. "Son, we can do this the easy way or the hard way." Ben let his head fall back and let out a chuckle that sent a chill down your spine. "Is that so?" Without warning Ben threw a punch and Joel and narrowly missed "Ben!" You shrieked. Ben straightened up sent another punch. Joel grabbed his wrist, mid punch and yanked him in close. Joel towered over him. "Do not make me repeat myself again. I said get the fuck off this porch, or things will get ugly." At this Joel shoved Ben forcefully away, causing him to stumble backwards. Ben still looked angry, but now there was a hint of fear in his eyes too. He gave you one last glare and then jogged back to his car.

As soon as Ben's car sped off. Joel sun around. "Are you okay??" He asked, grabbing your face in his hands. "Um yeah" you managed to squeak. "I mean that fucking scared me tho." Joel looked like he might be sick. "I am so sorry wasn't here at 7:30. If I got here on time- " "Joel come on you don't need to do that. It's not like either of us had any idea Ben would show up here. I'm glad you came when you did though." Joel massaged the bridge of his nose. He looked stressed and was probably imaging what would have happened if he didn't show up at all. He shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut as if trying to rid himself of the notion. "Joel look at me I'm fine!" You said pulling his hand away from his face. Joel took your hand in his and stroked it with his thumb. "Okay" he said softly. "Did you get my ice cream?" You said trying to change the subject. A smile tugged at his mouth. "Yeah I did, baby"

You had made spaghetti for dinner, about one of the only dishes you were confident in preparing. You and Joel sat at the table in silence and you watched as he pushed his food around. "I'm sorry I'm not a chef...if you want we could just order a pizza?" You suggested. Joel looked up at you seemingly caught off guard. "No no no it's not that! The meal is delicious. I guess I just don't have an appetite. That's all." You pushed back from the table and the chair scraping against the hardwood made Joel jump slightly. "Baby I didn't mean to offend you it's just" you laughed as you reached for the shelf above the stove "Joel I'm not mad I'm just looking for something." Joel slowly walked towards where you were balancing on a stool trying to get the top door of the cabinet open. "Um...what's that?" You grunted as you finally got hold of what it was you were looking for. "My dad's red wine. It's gross too me, but he always says red wine gives you an appetite." You hopped off the stool and thrust the bottle into his chest. "Where's the wine you got me? I would like to get into that like asap." Before waiting for a response you went into the other room where the grocery bag still sat with the ice cream and wine and dug out the bottle. You hastily removed the top and began drinking. "Y/n...slow down what are you doing?" You removed the bottle from your lips and wiped your mouth. "What does it look like I'm doing?" Joel's face was laced with concern. "Okay that's enough. I'm calling your dad, you can stay at mine until he gets home. I'm sure he'll book the first flight back when he hears.." you didn't let Joel finish. He had tried to grab the bottle from your hands "no, fuck off I'm a grown woman. I don't need you calling me dad to tell on me or whatever." Joel placed both hands in his hair and squeezed his head "sweetheart you're clearly not okay! And for good reason... will you just let me help you? I'm worried about you. This shit wasn't in any of the parenting books I read before Sarah.." "you're not my dad!" "No no I'm not saying that I just" ... "is that all this is? You want to fill the void of not having your daughter at home this summer. So you come over here to parent me because my dad's not here? I don't fucking need that Joel I don't want you to see me that way."

...to be continued

#joel miller #joel tlou #fanfic #joel and ellie #smut #girl dad #joel miller fanfiction #joel miller fic #joel miller fluff #joel miller smut

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keelt9 · 3 months

Text

Chapter 7

Masterlist

Liam rubbing both sides of his head wasn't a good sign still the smile betrayed his face, making me feel relieved.

“Ok, ok, ok.” He claps his hands and we walk back to the shoot line. “Let’s focus, now please keep the rhythm, you’re doing pretty well.” Most of my arrows hit the yellow zone.

Social media exploded in the morning, the account of Red Bull Racing, posted an early morning photo of Max playing paddle in the factory, for them just a post for the rest of the fans, the confirmation of something unusual happening. Even in the Rehabilitation Center, they whisper about Max and his new relationship.

Max leaves to be at home surrounded by family and friends, where he expects to pass a good days of resting and keeping away from everything.

The week passes under a high scrutiny of Anton and Liam. Being back at home, want or not it means I have to go through multiple medical studies and full check ups. By that time the rumours start to fade away as Max is spotted in different places just with people related to him.

“You look cheerful.” We’re on a video call, I’m packing my things and he finished his dinner.

“I am, I really am. I miss being at home.” I closed my suitcase case, for I looked at the screen. “I miss you too.”

He bites his lip and shakes his head. “Don't do this to me schatje.” He whines, making me giggle.

“I have to go or I'll be late to the airport.” I grab the cap of Red Bull. “Keep having fun.”

“That cap.” He rolls his eyes. I scoff, the number of Checo making him grumpy is so funny.

Liam and I fell asleep all the flight. We were woken up by the steward, I peeked through the window and there it was, home sweet home. We walk through the arriving door, where mom, dad, Mia and Liam’s wife are smiling big. As soon as Mia could run and hug me, taking out all the air I have.

“Robin Hood girl. I miss you” Dad grabs my suitcase kissing the top of my head.

“Hi dad.” Mia let me go, for I hugged him properly and followed my mother.

“We're so happy having you back.” Mom says.

“Even if it is for a couple of days.” Liam's wife said as she also hugged me.

“Hi Eva, how are you?” She is such a wonderful woman and an excellent lawyer if you ask me.

“Good, really good.” I turn around seeing Liam. “I don't want to see you until next Sunday, ok?” Liam will take the week off leaving Robert all the activities while I’m here.

“You get it.” All laughing as we walk to the exit.

At home my family prepares a small welcome with close friends and family, all happy to see me and in good shape. Even Matt is there equally just arriving from Antalya. As the night approaches all leaves, just my family and Matt remain there.

“Matty will you stay the night?” Mom asked him as he kept eating another slice of cake.

“Mrs. O. You know it.” Mom smiles and dad rolls his eyes.

“This boy must have had a warning sign when we met him.” Matt winks at him before sitting next to me in the living room. “Don't sleep late all right?”

We nod before Mia stretches and stands for going to sleep.

“He doesn't know, right?” Matt starts to tease me.

I shake my head, stealing the cake in his hands. Max's topic is something my father still doesn’t know.

The first days pass with me and Robert living practically in the hospital all the mornings; the doctors find me healthy, just a little bit of sore and swelling but all seems pretty good. In the afternoons I spend time with my family and at night I sleep as much as I want.

“Are you ok?” Dad scares me appearing at my back. It’s now or never.

“Yeah, actually I…I want to tell you something.” He nods and waits for me to continue.

But Mia runs downstairs. “Shit! I'm late. LET'S GO!” She's late for his last practice before the competition. “It's ok, I'll tell you later.”

“I got it.” Mom appears grabbing the keys of the car following Mia to the garage. “Don't delay this darling.”

After they left, dad and I sat in the dining room, so we could talk. “Ok, well I have big news…” As I told him his face twisted in something I don't want, that calm face at the beginning twists in an anxious face.

“Sweety I can imagine Max is a good boy, I see he makes you happy, however I'm concerned.” Dad crossed his hands over the table.

“Dad, he’s been an amazing support for me.” He rubs his hands over his face, he bluffs and breathes in.

“I understand that but… you’re still in a critical moment of getting a full recovery.” Just in that moment the door opens, mom just goes and leaves Mia. “You…can't be talking seriously, please. You go to recover from the bursitis, not to get in trouble.”

“I can handle it, I… I'm starting to recover my good shape. You support me, the team supports me, Max supports me, I feel great.” Mom appears in the room with the same confused expression as I.

“Isn’t just that. Y/N the relationship in high-level sports could be complicated. What will happen if this doesn't work as both of you expect? I don't want you to end it with a broken heart and be distracted just when you need to be in your best moment.”

He doesn't get it. “Max is not a distraction. He supports and understands the importance of my career.”

“Things change. Your world and his world are totally different. The pressure you both will face could affect your relationship and put an end to your concentracion.” He is now fully serious. I could sense the tension in the air.

“What do you know?” He scoffs as mom sits next to him putting her hand over his arm, clearly surprised by the threatening tone.

“Y/N.” She calls for my attention. “John, it took me by surprise too…” Mom grabs his hand. “However Y/N must figure it out on her own.”

Dad kissed the hand of mom before standing and leaving us with a cold. “You are close to get it, don't put yourself in trouble.”

Thursday morning, Robert and I have an appointment with the physiotherapist of the federation, Charly, she wants to give me a look to see how I am.

<Call me, all right?> I called Max at night even though I tried to hold back the tears, my voice broke a couple of times.

My dad is one of the most important people in my life, don't have his full support is something I didn't know until now.

“Y/N?” Robert grabs the door for me to enter. “Is everything ok?” I turn off my phone after seeing his text, and smile.

“Of course.” As I enter, I receive animated greetings and claps from all the people. “What is this?”

“All are amazed at the quick recovery.” Robert with proud eyes.

“A couple of medals coming home baby.” One of the archer kids smiled as they passed by. I giggled and Robert lifted his shoulders.

After the revision in one of the practice rooms, Charly sees me in good shape, still not my best, but she's optimistic about what we can expect.

“Take care Y/N, ok?” She waves her hand, leaving Robert and I in the room where Olivia and Charlotte enter, the bow with the sling in her hands.

“That's why there is so much fuss.” Olivia said as she put her stuff on the ground.

“What? Are you going to practice with us or you don't feel ready?” Charlotte teases me as Matt enters too.

I roll my eyes, I see Matt is about to continue the teasing. “Piece of cake.”

We did a short competition, same rules as an official, Rachel taking the score. I shoot the last arrow; this time I feel a sting sensation at the side of my chin, probably I got a small burn.

“And well?” Robert helped us to take out the sling of our hands.

Rachel ends up taking the results. “Matty first place.” I expect to be the last. “Charlotte second.” Charlotte raises her arms.

“Y/N third, good job.” I look around the room not believing it. “Olivia is just 2 points behind you.”

Suddenly a sonours clap distracts us. Anna Hope, the director of the federation and Will next her were watching the small competition.

“Director.” Robert greeted first, then us. They answered back and quickly turned their attention to me.

“You got 1 of two requisite Y/N.” Anna smiles proudly. “I guess soon, we will start to see you around with more frequency.” There weren't any other words, the team waited until they left the room and jumped over me.

“I told you!” Olivia grabs my face and hugs. I smile and turn to see Charlotte and Matt.

“Oh, we’re definitely coming back.” Charlotte jumps on Matt’s back.

At Mia’s competition, her two first dives get 7 and 8, probably not what she expects, the third made us stands and screaming, the dive she “just get clean” gave her 8 and two 9, now she is in the third place; the follow two dives were absolutely brilliant, only grades of 8.5 until 9.16. All her work made her the owner of a gold medal.

The next morning I woke up early to prepare a special breakfast for Mia. Dad was already in the kitchen with the same plan as me. He observes me as he keeps preparing the mix of waffles. “It's enough space for both of us.” He was wearing his black robe, he just got out of the bed.

We helped each other for a while until he broke the silence. “Honey, I hate feeling this tension between us, just promise me one thing.” Dad grabs my hand. “Never, never let anyone or anything interfere with your dreams. This is yours and only yours.”

I smile at my dad and hug him. “I promise dad.” He kissed the top of my head. “He is a nice guy dad, he cares about me.”

But two things you have to be clear about dad. “I don't care about him, I care about you.” He's as hard as a rock and he’s overprotective of us when he senses a threat.

“Such a lovely scene.” Mia is on the frame with sleepy eyes. “Can I join?” Dad laughs and opens his left arm for Mia to join in the hug.

Breakfast was a lovely moment, all messing around and joking, when the doorbell interrupted us. “On you.” Mia said, stealing my last strawberry.

Rolling my eyes I stand for opening the door; a young boy with square sunglasses and apparently lost giggles nervously and says hi.

“Amm, I…I have this for Mia?” Is it a question or an affirmation? He checks his cellphone and nods. “Yeah, for Mia.”

I scoff and shout Mia's name, as she passes next to me I joke about the irony of the situation. “How old are you? Now I even receive your flowers?”

A beautiful bouquet of sunflowers is waiting for her with a congratulations note for her gold medal makes her jumps of joy, still I keep close just for gossip, trying to read the sender. What a surprise when the slim guy just gave it to her and turned around without saying another word.

“Wait, you don't know him?” Mia smells her flowers, she is so happy.

“What? No, he's a delivery guy.” One more time the doorbell sounds. “I'll go.”

I walked back to the kitchen, I was about to tell my parents but my words got stuck because Mia entered and raised another bouquet at the level of my eyes.

“This is not for me.” Blue peonies with key chain of a small fluffy lion stuck to them.

I couldn't avoid smiles making my sister giggles and my mother grabbing my father's hand.

“Over the moon.” Mia said as dad took a long sip of his coffee.

My last day at home the directors called me for an unexpected meeting where they explained in detail what I can expect for the next months; a 4 step plan with one goal in mind, a full team in The Olympics.

1.- Finish the month of rehabilitation that was already scheduled.

2.-I'll come back at the end of September where I get my final evaluation from head to toe, medical checkup, physical test, and arrow shooting, with the green check from all.

3.-They just give me three weeks of rest to restart practice.

4.- At the beginning of the year, they expect I will already be competing in the first round of the qualifiers.

After a teary goodbye in the airport, Liam and I started the next week full of confidence and trust, Anton kept our work with a high vigilance with the news we brought. Now all aware that what we play isn't just the comeback to competitions.

“Did you win?” Max scoffs as he raises his shoulders, it’s late at night but I insisted I was still awake for a late night call.

“Maybe, just maybe I’m still thinking the problem is the racket.” He’s been playing with Lando, George and Leclerc padel as much as they can.

I smile as I lay down in bed. “Maybe.”

“I've been thinking, I …” I shake my head, Max feels down for not being able to be here with me but it’s the few days off he has, I don’t want to have him inside of the same center he visits every time a race week ends.

“It’s fine, besides it’s not like I've been doing so much, plus tomorrow we have the first practice outdoors.” The sound of the thunder adds information to my answer. “And it’s rainy.”

We practice with different types of weather to improve our techniques and strategies, make adjustments to the equipment, get better at physical and mental resistance and help us to improve my adaptability.

And all those things we decided to leave at the end when my shoulder was strong enough.

“Ok.” His voice is pondering like he wants to say more.

“I’ll hug out, all right? I have to wake up early tomorrow.” He nods

“Night schatje.”

The practice starts at 7 am with the forecast, we have 4 hours of sunny practice before it starts to become foggy again.

“Are you sure this is going to last?” I ask as I keep putting the equipment on me.

Anton nods as he helps Liam to set his equipment. “Yes, totally.” The lighting at our back doesn’t seem to think the same.

“Let’s go Y/N.” Liam said as he made sure the bow was secure in my hands; still when I turn around I hear him scoff. “I’m sorry but… Y/N you have a… How could I say this?”

I turn around my neck to see what I have at my back. “A type of feline at the back of your chest guard.”

I laugh getting down my head. “Oh, yeah, I know, amm is a gift.” I nock the arrow to the bow.

“From the lion guy?” The question of Anton along the wind made me lose the balance and hit, so clearly the blue zone in the target. I turn around in panic. “Oh come on! Y/N do you think I am a fool?”

Liam makes the sing I keep shooting, the wind is cold and makes my hand feel rigid making the grab around the bow be soft. “Even if you try to hide it’s pretty obvious.”

Liam laughs but asks me to keep concentrating, that’s what I did; with this weather, arrows keep diverting in every shot and I fight to find the right spot and the correct grip; when small drops fall in my hand and the clouds get darker Laim ends the practice after 3 hours.

As Anton helps me to take out the sling he continues our talk. “Besides, the lion boy arrived 40 minutes ago.”

I raise my sight before taking off my arm protector, under the small roof Max stands. I watch Liam who just moves his head to his direction, I could go.

I run to him and he extends his arms, taking him by surprise; I jump hugging him with my arms around his neck and my legs around his torso.

“What are you doing here?” I get down my legs so he can put me down while still grabbing my waist.

“Causing trouble.” I laughed and he noticed the aid band at the right side of my face.

“I’m fine, just a small burn for the finger tab.” Before we can say another word Liam and Anton reach us with all packages for leave.

“30 minutes Y/N, we’re not over yet.” Liam said, winking at me. “Lion boy, nice to see you.” Max and I laughed watching them go.

“Nice keyring.” He notices and grabs it at my back.

“This is definitely a small you.” Max smiled, grabbing my neck and kissing me trying to recover the time. We split because he said a few words. “I’m recovering the lost kisses.”

Indeed he did, the next morning the social media exploit; Max posted a story on Instagram where you can see the foggy day with a few glimpses of sunlight but in the corner 2 targets with arrows on it.

In a blink I was in the middle of “Guess Who?” game, just a few people still on.

#fic #max verstappen #max verstappen x reader #f1 x reader #f1 fanfic #f1 x female reader #max verstappen imagine

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adri-2022 · 2 years

Text

Happy Birthday

Fandom: Chicago PD

Characters: Jay Halstead x FemReader / OC Thomas "Tommy" / OC Gianna "Gia" Halstead / Will Halstead

Warnings: Slight swearing/ fluff

Word count: 1722

Jay Halstead Materlist

A/N: Hello guys! I hope everyone is doing okay. Here is an original imagine. Portraying Thomas "Tommy" is Jacob Tremblay and portraying Gianna "Gia" Halstead is Maia Mitchell. Sending love 💖

Don't be afraid to leave your comment!

-------

Your boyfriends birthday wasn’t something he made a big deal about. From a certain point in time to the present days it bargained him with the memories of all the people that couldn’t be there with him, the people that had to leave too early. But nonetheless you always tried to bring him joy on the occasion, since you had started dating Jay always made sure you knew that he didn’t expect something big or anything for that matter. The only thing he wanted was his little blended family.

In a really early morning, you had all woken up to get ready for the day. Laughter and jokes filled the small house you had bought together for you and your kids. Having breakfast, sharing plans and teasing one another. And even though it was his birthday no one had said anything about it yet, you all opted to have quality time before he left for work.

There was Gianna -or Gia- Jay’s 15-year-old daughter from a previous relationship. Her mom was still around and even if things hadn’t work out between her and Jay you were all friendly towards each other, she was a nice woman. This was the difference between Gia and Thomas -or Tommy- your 9-year-old son. He didn’t have any other male figure besides Jay, his father had left a long time ago.

So because of this other young humans beings you had been hesitant to try a relationship. Having been proved wrong because almost 5 years later you’re living together and giving each other a chance to be happy again. A chance to be complete.

Sitting at the kitchen table was Jay, Gia and Tommy while you stood leaning on the sink gazing at the people that meant the most to you. A sentiment shared by the young detective.

“Alright I’m leaving” Jay said standing and moving towards the sink.

“Be careful out there okay. Happy birthday” you whispered the last part as he hugged your waist

“Thanks. Love you” he muttered before pulling away and pecking your lips with a little smile that you matched.

“Love you more. Say hi to the team for me” you said as you pecked his cheek a couple of times making him chuckle

Then he moved to the table where Tommy and Gia were making the plans for their snowy day free from school. Their relationship was very cute and even though they weren’t related by blood, they both loved each other as if they were. After all they had been really young when they first met, so they had basically seen each other grow up. As he reached the table he bent to kiss Gia’s forehead before doing the same to Tommy and ruffling his hair.

“Love you both. Behave” he said looking pointily at Gia who raised her hands in surrender making all of you laugh

“Dear father you wound me. I always behave, right Y/N?” Gia said in a matter-of-fact way, making you nod as you hummed

“Yeah right. Stop covering for her babe” Jay countered back not fully convinced and raising an eyebrow towards you

“I’m not” you said between laughs as Gia smiled innocently at her father

“They so are” Tommy whispered squinting his eyes at his stepsister

“Hush Tommy. You on the other hand. Behave, be careful and stop giving Trudy headaches” the girl said raising an eyebrow at his dad to which he squinted his eyes at her going to say something before Tommy spoke.

“Good one Gi!” Tommy said smirking

“Which side are you on?” Gia said rolling her eyes jokingly

“I’m Switzerland” Tommy said winning a snort from the people present.

“High five?” he asked Gia innocently

“You’re lucky you match my vibe” the teenager responded as they shared the high five laughing

“I’m getting bullied by my children, unbelievable. You guys are the worst” Jay said jokingly shaking his head

“You’re the one always getting shot” Tommy said between chuckles

“Not funny” you said looking pointily at Tommy

“Did he lie, though?” Gia pitched in, making Tommy point at her before nodding his head

“Okay, alright. Now I’m leaving love you all” he said walking towards the front door.

“Love you dad” the kids responded before Jay was out the door. There was a moment of silence before Gia decided to break it.

“So- what’s the plan?” she asked smirking slightly as your son smiled at his stepsister with raised eyebrows

“You shall know soon my young padawans” you answered all three exporting the same expression as you reached for the car keys.

Now hours later you stood in front of the cakes on display in the grocery store not being able to decide on which to order for Jay.

“I think this one is perfect Y/N” Gia commented pointing to a chocolate cake on display

“And I think great mind think alike. You are 100% right Gianna” you answered smiling at her as she told the clerk the cake she wanted.

“Got the balloons ma” Tommy exclaimed from behind the balloons as he walked towards the both of you

“Tommy!” you started laughing at the sight of all the balloons

“I didn’t know which to pick. So I got one of each” Tommy’s voice muffled behind the wall of balloons

“Did you use all the money?” you asked raising a hand to your forehead

“Maybe…” you heard him say in an innocent voice

“I think you might start flying Tommy” Gia said between chuckles as you shook your head with a smile

“Also, I might’ve dragged something from the shelves in isle 3”

“Oh good god. Alright. We got balloons, snacks, and the cake. That just leaves-” your sentence was cut by Tommy

“Mom can I hold the cake?” he asked innocently as you started walking out the store

“Sweetheart, Gia already has…”

“Tell you what. You hold the cake and I’ll hold the balloons. Yep- careful- so that way you don’t go floating away” she interrupted you as she slightly bent to pass him the cake and reach the balloons.

As you had reached the house you three started putting everything together for the little surprise, just to remind him of the good things in life. An hour later between break snacks and exploded balloons you had managed to finish the little details, climbing down the stairs.

“Alright” you clapped gaining their attention,

“Balloons?” “Done” the teenager answered with thumbs up

“Snacks?” “Ready” Tommy pointed to the table

“Movie?” “Set up” your stepdaughter answered

“Cake?” “Looks delicious” at Tommy’s response both you and Gia gazed at him with an amused look

“That leaves-” Gia started reaching for her phone before the back door interrupted her

“Hey! Sorry. Long shift. I parked my car in your backyard” Will, your brother-in-law and coworker said as he rushed into the house with a guilty expression. You waved him off as he proceeded to hug everyone in greeting before looking at everything he smiled.

“He’s gonna love it” he said as he hugged you tightly.

When you opened your mouth to respond the sound of the front door filled the house. Everyone rushing around to the opposite side of the kitchen table to be facing Jay.

“Babe” your boyfriend called

“Kitchen” you shouted back hearing his footsteps heading to the spot you were all in

“Hey, did the kids open the fence to the back-”

“SURPRISE!” you all screamed. As Will blew an airhorn and the kids some cheering props

“Shit!” he said jumping startled putting a hand over his chest and closing his eyes.

You chuckled as you rushed to his side grabbing his face and smashing your lips in his, feeling how he relaxed before his arms circled you by the waist. When you pulled away you smiled before leaving kisses all over his face to which he chuckled.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY” Gia screamed pressing the air horn again as everyone laughed before Will reached to take it from her hands

“Let me take this- thank you. You are dangerous missy” he said making Gia scoff

“Happy birthday, dad. Thanks for everything” Tommy said hugging Jay’s waist the latter not doubting to hug him back

“Bud, you have nothing to thank me for” he whispered before ruffling his hair as Tommy tried swatting his hands away

“Love you dad. Happy birthday” Gia followed

“Thanks sweetheart” Jay answered as he reached for his daughter in a hug

“You may be older, but you just got handsome-ish” the teenage girl said hugging her dad with all her strength as Jay rolled his eyes. You followed the kids, leaning in the kitchen aisle as they hopped on to sit.

“Man. You get uglier by the year” Will jokingly shook his head at his brother from the other side of the table

“Guess what! I look like you” Jay responded smirking before he flipped his brother off

“Are we about to witness a fight?” Tommy whispered to Gia

“Maybe” she answered throwing candy in her mouth

“You know it’s the truth” “We can go outside” Jay and Will kept bickering as you lean to pick a candy from the bowl on Gia’s lap

“Hm interesting. Who would win, the doctor or the detective/ranger?” Tommy continued as he reach for a candy as well and munching it

“Think we should step in?” you asked looking at the Gia and Tommy

“Nope” Gia muttered as you snickered

“We’re not going outside; with your luck you might get shot” Will said pointing at Jay as the latter’s mouth hung in an offended manner

“Damn” Gia muttered eyes wide passing more candy to Tommy who gasped

“You’re right I might get shot. Bullets chase me. You can’t even keep a girlfriend” Jay countered back teasingly shrugging his shoulders

“Uh. Low blow” Tommy said hand over his mouth, as Gia chuckled

“Real mature Jay” Will said throwing a cheering prop to his brother, being met with Jay’s mocking laugh.

“I am. Just got a lot wiser” Jay said in between laughs as he beckoned the kids to take pictures

Looking between the people that surrounded you in this kitchen you felt happiness. Jay’s smile as he took pictures with the kids and his brother would be ones of many. This memories lasting forever, saved in little polaroid’s on Gia’s memory box.

#jay halstead x reader #chicago pd imagines #jay halstead #jay halstead fluff #jay halstead x y/n #jay halstead x you #fan fiction #one chicago fic #jay halstead angst #jay halstead x daughter #jay halstead x son

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reigningqueenofwords · 5 months

Text

Not One of Us

Word count: 2,260 Request: Anonymous. Hey! Could you do angst where the reader is the winchesters half sister from one of Johns flings and Dean hates her guts because she taints the memory of his mom but Sam likes her. She always tries to get deans approval but it never works and she breaks down and asks why he hates her so much and he yells and she runs away. Sam goes after her and maybe in the end Dean agrees to give her a chance? Thanks! I love your tumblr! So good!

Read on AO3

Shaking, your hands pulled out the number that had been tucked away in your wallet for two years. You licked your lips and dialed it before pulling your cell phone against your ear. You were waiting to hear the voice that you hadn’t heard in about a year. Your father’s. He had come around as often as he could, and made sure to always send you letters at least once a month. They had stopped about six months ago, but he had written that something had happened, and he wanted to protect you. It hurt, but you understood.

“Hello?” A man’s voice answered. It wasn’t your father.

“I-is John there?” You tried to hide the fact that you were crying.

You heard movement. “John died.”

Inhaling sharply, you shook your head. “When?”

“Six months ago.” The man said. “Who is this?” His voice didn’t sound pleased.

“I’m his daughter, Y/N. He- he told me to ever call if I was in trouble.” You wiped your cheek. “Do you know if Bobby is still alive?”

There was a long pause. “John didn’t have any daughters.” He snapped, obviously angry.

“Well, seeing as my father is John Winchester, he must have kept my existence from whoever you are.” You sighed.

“I’m his son.” The man snapped.

You knew that you had brothers, he had shown you pictures. “Is this Dean? Or Sam?” You asked, wondering who you were talking to.

“Where are you?”

Looking around, you let out a choked sob. You were sitting in your basement, hiding. There hadn’t been any sound from upstairs in awhile, and that was the only reason you called the number. You’d explained to Dean where you were, and he was only a couple hours away. He told you to stay put. Yeah, where were you gonna go? Certainly not out there.

You must have nodded off, because you were woken up by the sound of crashing. Blinking, you saw you were still in your hiding spot. “Y/N?!” This was a different voice than on the phone. You held your breath, hoping that whoever attacked your mother wasn’t in the house. Namely, the man calling for you. “My name is Sam. Dean sent me.”

Taking a deep breath, you slid out of your hiding spot and stood up. Your clothes were covered in blood and there were streaks on your face from crying. His eyes widened when he saw you. “C-can we get out of here?” You were shaking. You weren’t sure if it was because you were a bit cold, scared, or in shock.

Sam pulled off his coat and put it around your shoulders. “Come on. Dean’s in the car.” He said gently. “Do you know what happened?”

“I just got back from visiting my aunt. It’s summer vacation, and I decided to go there this year instead of staying home. It was a spur of the moment thing.” You tried avoiding looking around upstairs. “I got back this morning. I figured that…that mom was just at work. I dropped my stuff off in my room and took a quick shower. When I came downstairs to get something to eat- I found her. I freaked, went to check on her. She was cold. Ever since I was little, I was told that if something like that happened, I needed to call my dad. And, if I couldn’t reach him, Uncle Bobby.” He looked sad. “A couple years ago, he gave me a number that he said he’d keep just in case. It’s been in my wallet since. I ran upstairs for it, and my phone. I heard something, and I panicked. I went and hid in the basement.” Stepping out into the afternoon sun, you couldn’t even enjoy the heat on your skin.

“When’s the last time you saw him?” He asked gently as you neared the car.

You thought. “About a year ago. He came for my fifteenth birthday.” You smiled sadly. “He came to my little party, had a ’talk’ with the boy I liked, and then me, him, and mom, went out for dinner.” You were now standing next to a shiny black car. “He still wrote, though. At least once a month, until six months ago. A couple letters before they stopped he wrote that he was going to stop to protect me.”

Sam gave you a sympathetic smile. “Come on. I’ll go get some of your things for you. Is there anything you want me to look for?”

“My jewelry box. In the top little compartment, there’s a locket. It has an engraving on it. That, and a photo album on my book shelf.”

He opened the back door of the car and let you slide in. Dean didn’t look at you, or say anything. The air in the car was full of tension.

In the two hours it took you to get back to the motel they had been staying at, Dean had not said one word to you. Hadn’t looked in your direction, nothing. Once there, Sam told you to get cleaned up and handed you the bag that he’d managed to stuff full of your clothes. Your locket was once again around your neck, containing a picture of your parents.

Six months had passed. Although, to you it felt like an eternity. Dean never warmed up to you. Hell, he would barely speak to you. You cried yourself to sleep every night. You’d lost both your parents in one day, and your older brother hated you.

Sam and Dean returned from a hunt, and Sam smiled at you. You and Sam were close. He’d accepted you with open arms. Bobby had confirmed your story, and had hugged you a bit too tight when he saw you. Said last time he saw you you were in diapers, and then after that, just pictures. It made you happy that John had spoken of you to him, but it only fueled the hatred that Dean felt for you.

“Hi, guys. Hunt go okay?” You tried to be in a good mood, but you could tell by looking at you that it was an act.

Sam smiled at you. “Yeah, how was school?” He had enrolled you in an online school so you wouldn’t fall behind, and you didn’t have to attend the local high school.

“I got an A on my English paper.” You grinned, as writing was something that you enjoyed.

“Good for you.” Dean muttered sarcastically as he walked by. Your grin fell. You couldn’t say your heart broke, by now it was more like opening an old wound.

Sam groaned, hating that this was how Dean treated you. “Sorry about him.” Sam sighed.

You shook your head. “It’s okay. Go relax, and I’ll start dinner.”

You made a quick and easy dinner, and spent the rest of the time making a pie. Not that you even knew how, but following directions couldn’t be too hard, right? Dean smelled when it was cooking and came into the kitchen, frowning. You had made a huge mess. “What the hell?”

Looking at him, you bit your lip. “I, uh, wanted to make you a pie.”

“Look at this place!” He snapped, making you jump.

“I…I plan to clean it up…” You said, your voice weak.

Dean shook his head and stormed off. This was yet another failed attempt to get on his good side. You had washed Baby, you had cleaned the bunker once while they were on a hunt, you had taken on most of the cooking, and now this. The pie still had a good half an hour, so you followed him.

You found him in the library with Sam. “Sam, can I talk to Dean, please?” Sam looked between the two of you and sighed when Dean rolled his eyes. He left anyone, kissing the top of your head as he went by. “Dean?” He grunted that he heard you. “Why? Why do you hate me so much?”

He got up, crossing his arms over his chest. “We’ve lived our whole lives, just the two of us. And here you come, expecting for us to just take you in. Why? Because my father couldn’t keep it in his pants?” You teared up. “All his talk about wanting to avenge my mother, and instead, he was out sleeping around. Never mentioned you at all. Made it seem like my mother was the only one for him.” It was clear that he was pissed. “That’s a slap in the face to my mother’s memory. You may have my father’s blood, but you are no Winchester.” He was so angry that he was starting to cry himself.

Turning, you walked out of the room, slowly picking up speed. You rushed past Sam, slamming your bedroom door and locking it. Sam went to the living room just for Dean to tell him to leave him alone. You grabbed your bag, throwing everything you could into it. If you weren’t wanted, fine. As soon as you knew they were asleep, you were gone.

You heard the timer go off for the pie, but ignored it. After a few minutes, it stopped, and you knew that Sam likely took it out. At least Dean liked one of his siblings. Sam tried to talk to you, but you ignored him, hiding in your room, crying.

As the clock hit one in the morning, you hadn’t heard any movement from outside your room for some time. You quickly scribbled a note and left it on your pillow.

I’m sorry I’m not a proper Winchester. I’m sure your mother was lovely. Sam- thank you. For everything. I loved having you as a big brother. Dean…I wish we could have gotten along. I tried. I hope that things work out for you. You got your wish. I’m gone, and I won’t be back.

-Y/N

Of course, you knew this was probably a really stupid move. You didn’t care. You slipped through the halls of the bunker, and out the front door. You’d have to go on foot, but you’d manage. Sam wouldn’t wake up until around six for his run, Dean around ten. Dean wouldn’t bother coming to check on you, and Sam wouldn’t until around eleven, probably. That gave you plenty of time to hitch a ride somewhere.

The next morning, Dean went about his life as usual, acting as if his temper hadn’t taken over yesterday. Sam, however, wanted nothing more than to shake Dean and tell him to apologize. He wasn’t wasting his breath, however.

Come noon, he was starting to worry. He went to your room and knocked. Getting no answer, he tried the door. It opened, and he walked in. His face fell. Sam walked over to your bed and picked up the note, his jaw clenching.

Sam stormed through the bunker to Dean. He dropped the note in front of him without stopping. He had to find you. You were a sixteen year old girl, without money, and Winchester blood. That wouldn’t end well.

Dean looked at the paper, confused for a moment, before picking it up and reading it. He had mixed feelings, but knew that Sam would be on the hunt for you.

Come three that morning, your legs were killing you. Living in a remote area, there had been no cars. You were starting to feel like an idiot. An idiot for leaving with them. An idiot for thinking you could feel anything like a family. An idiot for not calling a cab during the day. But, there you were.

You slipped into the woods and found a spot that seemed well covered and curled up there. Using your bag as a pillow, you nodded off, curled in the fetal position.

Sleep didn’t last too long, however. You woke up right after dawn, groaning. You were sore, and a bit cold. Getting up, you grabbed your bag and took a deep breath. Once back on the road, you continued on, hoping that a car would pass.

Your stomach was yelling at you, as you hadn’t even thought to grab food. That was something you would deal with later.

Around one, you finally heard a car. Sighing, you stuck out your thumb, hoping they were nice enough to stop. Hearing them pull up, you smiled and turned to the car. Your smile fell. “Come on, Y/N. Come home.” Sam pleaded, getting out.

“No, Sam. He hates me. He made it perfectly clear that I’m not wanted.” You shook your head, crying when he took you in his arms.

He rubbed your back. “He’ll come around. I want you there.” He said, his lips against the top of your head. “You’ve got to be starving. Come on, lunch is on me.”

You looked up at him and nodded, wiping a tear from your cheek.

When you got back to the bunker, Dean came out. You stayed behind Sam, waiting for him to start yelling again. Sam shot him a look telling him that he better be nice. Dean took a deep breath and sighed. “I’m…sorry.” Your eyes went wide. “I shouldn’t take this out on you. It’s not your fault.” You gave him a small smile. “I’ll try to be a better brother.” His voice was soft.

Moving around Sam, you gave Dean a quick hug. “You can start by eating that pie I made you!” You tried to lighten the mood up.

He smirked. “Sweetheart, that things half gone.”

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rogueshadeaux · 1 year

Text

Chapter Twenty-Two — Fractured Resurgence

That didn’t matter. There had to be eight people here, and I couldn’t do much at all. Everything hurt. I scooted back a bit more, and noticed a thin trail of red that followed after me; my side was open, staining the gown they had me in and blood slipping through the gaps in the side clasps.

8k words | Approx. 30 min read time | TRIGGER WARNINGS: Blood, medical facility/care, fractures [bone], anesthesia, other injuries, a long chapter because I couldn't figure out where to stop it and decided not to lol

I’d never felt more disoriented in my life.

I’ve had fevers that‘ve put me out. I’ve fainted quite a few times — a couple when I had that anemia issue back in middle school when I started having periods, and more recently because of the whole Akuran thing. Never have I woken up this incoherently.

My eyes wouldn’t focus, although that might have been because of the bright artificial light shining right in them. Bright light — Mom. She was there, she was just here, and even after being hit by her neon in an attack, she was all I could think about. Was the light coming from her still? “Mom?”

The sound came out grated and croaked like I hadn’t used my voice in years. It definitely hurt. Everything hurt, though.

“Body temperature’s at 89,” someone said off to my right.

“Oxygen is below normal,” someone else added.

Everything around me began to gain borders, outlines and shapes that moved so fast my vision couldn’t keep up, somehow lagging in their processing and making everything that moved gain doubles. Holy fuck, it was so cold in here. Every violent shiver made me cringe as it was followed by a rough twinge of pain.

“Call for a hemodialysis machine,” someone commanded.

There were more orders, some long words and ones that honestly sounded made up. What did make sense to me was the voice talking about making an ’access point’ and saying, “We’ll put the catheter in her neck.”

I then felt rapid rubbing on my collar bone, and something in the back of my brain — the bit of me still cognitive — realized they meant my neck.

I went to raise my hand, to swat away whoever was at my neck in a weak effort to keep them away — but the movement sent a whole different sort of pain up my body. I whimpered at the sting, unable to even ball up my fist as my arm lit up, the only warm part of my body as the acute agony set it on fire.

The pain did something for me, at least; my vision gained more detail with a hard blink. I was under some giant spotlight, blinded and barely able to see that I was surrounded on all sides by masked people in full green. Doctors?

They didn’t seem to care about the pain in my arm, like doctors would. In fact, the only thing they acknowledged was that I was awake, that calmed voice demanding, “We need to sedate her.”

There was bustling around all of a sudden — three of the doctors surrounding me disappeared, two new ones took their place. Someone lifted my head slightly and there was suddenly an oxygen mask on my face. How’d I get here? I wasn’t anywhere near a hospital. There was Mom just a moment ago, and before all of that, I was fighting Augustine.

Mom. I could still see her face imprinted on the back of my eyelids, could hear her insistence that I needed to go. Was this what she was trying to protect me from? What were they gonna do to me?

I wasn’t sure. All I knew is that, at some point, Archangel was involved, and I wasn’t sure if they still were.

My other arm moved with more ease, reaching up to push the mask off of my nose and mouth. I couldn’t let them sedate me, I couldn’t let them get me into a position where I was at their disposal. Who knows what they’d do!

There was a hand around my wrist, grip stronger than anything I could summon, and the mask was being slipped back on by someone behind me. I shook my head roughly and tried to demand space from them with, “Leave me alone,” croaked out on a cough.

“Cognitive.”

“Good,” that smoother voice said, “It worked, but we still need to stabilize her.”

I tried shaking off the hand on my wrist, tried sitting up. There was sudden pressure on my shoulder, and someone tried to tell me to stay still.

All it did was activate my fight response.

“Let me—“ I cut off again, yanking my arm harder to lose the grip there. “Let me go—“

“She’s becoming combative,” The one holding my shoulders warned.

“We need a tranq!” Someone else yelled.

That doctor with the calm voice looked at me over black glasses, saying, “I need you to stop fighting, okay? You’re only going to hurt your—“

I didn’t care about what he was saying; behind him, another doctor approached with a syringe, impossibly long needle surely the gateway to me losing any sort of control in this fight.

Wriggling free from the grip on my wrist, I swung my hand wildly, connecting with the stomach on a scrubbed doc on my left and making her squeak in pain. The mask on my face was coming loose from the thrashing and I ripped it off, pushing away another hand before it could intercept me. I had to leave, I had to get out of here!

My hand shook as I summoned water, the liquid struggling to crawl down my arm and into my palm as if it too was exhausted. But it crawled nonetheless, shooting off at the face of the doctor holding my shoulders and making them stumble back, releasing me.

There was a gap at my feet, wide enough to fit through, so I shifted to water and left on a mad dash, collapsing when my legs wouldn’t work like they should. Everything about me felt so sluggish, like there was something in between my brainstem and the rest of my body and slowing any communication between the two. Anything besides the pain, of course — especially when I moved to catch myself.

My right arm, the arm I watched shatter when I was ice, refused to hold my weight, something in it bending awkwardly and stabbing away at the ligaments inside, making me cry out. I collapsed on that shoulder and rolled, tucking the broken arm close to my chest as I scooted backwards. Two doctors broke from the horde and began after me, and the hand I was using to push back came up, shooting a volley of water squirts at them. I hit one in the chest, their flailing for something solid as they fell back latching onto their friend’s neckline and dragging them down with ‘em.

That doctor that had made eye contact came around the bed, hands up in surrender — but he said something over the shoulder to another scrubbed up doc behind him, who nodded and left the room. What did he tell them to go get? “Regina—“ the doctor began, but I was having none of it. No one who knows me calls me Regina.

“Don’t!” I threatened, lifting my uninjured arm from the wound on my side. There wasn’t a lot of water that traveled around it at all, and my shoulders were throbbing. I was almost out.

The doctor took another step. “You’re not sta—“

“Stay away from me!” I tried to scream, shrill and sharp. My voice cracked somewhere in the scream and a few tears pushed to the surface, both out of hurt and horror.

How was I supposed to get out of this if I was surrounded and almost out of water? If they got to me and sedated me, that was it. I was at their mercy, and I wasn’t sure if they’d spare me any.

That door on the side burst open and some giant machine with dozens of buttons was wheeled in, followed by two scrubbed doctors—

And after them came a third doc leading Dad and pointing straight at me.

He looked like hell, disheveled and with deep bags under his eyes that sank further as they widened after spotting me. My arm wavered slightly in place. “Dad?”

He looked to that calm doctor for some sort of permission and received it via nod, starting towards me the moment the head bobbing began. He rushed over on a jog and slid the last foot on his knees, a hand immediately going to the bicep on one arm while his other reached out to grip me by the wrist, prompting my water to sink away. “Jeanie…” he whispered before wrapping me into a hug.

I gripped the loose side of his hoodie like it was the only thing keeping me tethered to here and began crying, flooded with mixed feelings of relief and fear and that damn stinging pain. Dad was here. I’m safe. I had no energy to do anything anymore but shake and sob.

“You’re okay, baby girl,” he whispered into my hair, one hand going to rub my back. I flinched when he hit something in my skin that burned with his poke, and he moved that hand back to my bicep. “It’s okay.”

There were footsteps and I pulled away from Dad’s chest enough to see one of the scrubbed doctors approach, crouching just a few feet away. It was that one barking orders, the same one that tried to talk me down. I tucked a bit deeper into Dad, who’s hand absentmindedly began to rub circles into my arm. “He’s safe, Jean — you know him,”

The doctor lifted a hand to his face and pulled down the mask, the gentle smile behind it managing to shock me in place. “You’re a fighter,” Dr. Sims chuckled. “Remind me of your mom,”

Doctor Sims pioneered the mapping of the Conduit genome using information from the Bennet Protein Assay, and had used his knowledge and talents to become one of, like, seventeen doctors in the world that could be entrusted with taking care of a Conduit’s health. I wasn’t sure how it all worked, and what I did understand made it sound exhausting, but he was the person that helped break down how a Conduit became one. How it aided in heightened physiology, how the proteins it produced reacted with injuries to speed-heal them.

Healing — I was doing none of that right now, something Dr. Sims noted as he looked at the thin trail of blood by one of his netted sneakers. “You’re conscious, and that’s great — but you’re still not in the clear. We need to get you warm so your body can heal, and hypothermia is really dangerous even with being a Conduit.”

I shook my head, Dad trying to interject with, “Jean, you’re freezing—” because he thought I didn’t want to move. But that’s not what I was concerned about.

“I can’t heal,” I whimpered out.

Dad’s hand froze on my bicep. “Jeanie, you’re just exhausted—”

“I can’t heal.” I repeated, shaking my head harder. A mistake, because the room began to spin. “I can’t — they did something to me, Augustine did something to—”

Dr. Sim’s hand came up to silence me. “Let’s just — let’s do this one step at a time, then, okay? I need you to get in the bed to get warmed before your organs enter shock. Think you can do that?”

I was freezing, and not shivering like a chihuahua sounded pretty good. But I remembered how they planned to sedate me, how everything was going to be taken out of my hands and put in their trust, and hesitated. Dr. Sims seemed to register this, though, and said, “Your dad can stay the entire time, if you want.”

Dad was already looking down at me when I glanced up, giving me a sort of stiff smile that didn’t really meet his eyes. But his tone was genuine as he said, “I’ll be right there. Nothing bad’ll happen,”

I nodded, Dr. Sims looking back almost immediately after and giving the floor to a subordinate who barked orders around the room — an operating room, I realized — making it come back to life. “I’m here for the Conduit part more than medical, but I know everyone here. They’re all trustworthy.” He promised me. He then looked at Dad. “Think you can carry her to the bed, D?”

Dad nodded, the bottom of his chin gently knocking against the top of my head. “Yeah, sure,”

Dr. Sims stood and bustled off somewhere, leaving Dad to readjust so I was in his arms and lift me. I winced when he did as my broken arm bounced off my chest, something he didn’t miss, those lines on his forehead burrowing further. “What’s wrong?”

My teeth kept bouncing between being grit and chittering. “M-my arm,” I said. “It’s broken,”

“You sure?” He asked, as if I couldn’t feel the bone that was ripped in half bouncing around between the muscles in there. I didn’t have enough energy for a sarcastic quip, though, so I just nodded.

Dad gently laid me back in the bed, hesitating when some nurse came up to lead him away to get scrubbed up. I guess whatever they planned on doing to me needed to be sterile. He glanced between the nurse and me before saying, “I’ll be right over there, okay?”

I suddenly had a mask fixed to my face again, the air coming out of it impossibly warm. There were people at all sides of me; two prepping some spot on my collarbone, one trying to put in a PICC line on the hand of my fucked arm. They jerked it a bit and I cried out, causing even more poking and prodding as they diagnosed me with a break and began efforts to splint it.

The PICC safely in my opposite hand now, Dad managed to fit himself where that doctor stood when she flitted away to get some medicine to connect to it, gowned and masked. The doctors were explaining what was going on to him more than me, but I heard everything, especially when they began talking about connecting something to my jugular and wanting to sedate me for it. “We don’t want to stress her body too much right now,” one scrubbed doc said, looking between Dad and Dr. Sims.

I couldn’t see Dad’s face, but his eyes sure had that disapproval they’d reserve for the worst of punishments. But he nodded, giving them permission as my guardian to do what they needed to.

I’ve never had surgery. No traitorous appendix, no tonsilitus — I was born without wisdom teeth, for fucks sake. I’ve never had a reason to be put under until now, and I was sure the apprehension was clear on my face if the way Dad reacted was any hint. “Hey, you’ll be okay, Jeanie,” He promised again. That seemed to be all he was handing out right now, and I was terrified they were going to be broken. He leaned down till he was eye level with me, six inches away from my face. “It’s just to keep you from getting hurt. And I’ll be right here. I’m not leaving you, not again.”

All I could do was nod. It wasn’t like I had many choices here.

In the three minutes it took for an anesthesiologist to get here, Dad didn’t move from my side, even when one of the doctors looked at him in annoyance ‘cause he was in the way. He just stayed there, hand wrapped around mine, fingers avoiding the needle that was pumping something in me. I looked at our hands and didn’t realize my nail beds were dark blue until that moment. It was nothing like the black they were when we practiced, but it was still startling to see my skin that grayed and pale.

After another minute of permissions and a new machine placed on the other side of me, the anesthesiologist was reassuring me how I wouldn’t even know I was out until I woke back up, and that it wouldn’t hurt a bit. I wasn’t really listening much — Dad’s hand shifted around in mine a bit, his pinky finger twisting around mine. A silent promise.

I was back under before even really registering it, the last thing on my mind the imprint of Dad’s reassurances.

The first time I drifted back, Dad was running a hand over my forehead, pushing back the hair plastered to it. I could barely keep my eyes open, couldn’t even really register how the room changed despite knowing that it did. Dad wasn’t scrubbed up anymore, though, so I imagine whatever needed to happen while I was out was done.

“Hey, Jeanie,” he cooed when he saw my eyes flutter. “How you feeling?”

I couldn’t even find my voice to respond for a few seconds, left wheezing a bit as I opened and closed my mouth like a fish out of water. “Tired,” I finally managed to croak. Fuck, my throat was sore. My everything was sore.

Dad caught the rasp and reached off somewhere my eyes wouldn’t focus enough to see, and came back with some large jug with a straw that looked like a stretched out accordion, encouraging me to sip. It was the best feeling in the world; not only was I thirsty in a dehydrated sense, but also in a Conduit sense. Getting some new, fresh water in my system eased some tension in my neck and shoulders, made it easier to lay my head back down and close my eyes, drifting back off.

The second time I woke back up was just as hard, full of delirium and confusion as I looked to where I last saw Dad and saw the space empty. Something itched in my neck, and I moved to scratch at it — at least, that was the plan before my hand was intercepted by someone else’s.

“Don’t think they want you touching that,” Brent said, laying my hand back down into my lap.

Brent. The last time I saw him, he was at Augustine’s mercy, and I left him to that same fate after pulling the tsunami over myself. I didn’t even know what happened to him. “You’re okay,” I mumbled. I couldn’t bring my voice much higher.

“Yeah,” he whispered back, the smile on his face somehow not looking joyful at all. “Yeah, I’m okay. You’re not, though,”

I leaned my head back, letting my eyes close. Why was keeping them open so much work? “She was going to kill you,” I had to stop to cough, the action lighting up my sternum with pain.

“That doesn’t mean you go and get yourself killed,” he chastised, though there was no real bite to it. “You’re fucking crazy, you know that?”

We fell to silence, me wincing as my chest settled. Everything in me felt so broken. “Dad just went out to talk to Dr. Sims in the hall,” Brent eventually offered. “They said you’re looking good, but…”

I opened my eyes to watch him bite on his cheek a bit, unsure of where to go next. “You’re...Jean, you’re not healing. Not like you should,”

I shakily inhaled. “I know,”

“They think it’s the stress, that after resting it’ll work,” he continued. “Said if you take a few hits it can take days to recover.”

“We took a lot more than a few, huh?”

Brent chuckled lightly. “Yeah, no kidding,”

Something was pulling at the muscles in my shoulders, making them sink deeper into the bed to try and get comfortable again, and I could feel myself slipping under once more. Before it took me fully, though, I could hear Brent whisper, “I’m just glad you’re okay,”

“Me too,” I muttered back, hoping he understood I meant I was glad he was okay. I didn’t get the chance to clarify before I was out again.

The third time I came back around was different than the rest; there wasn’t any fugue, and while I was still exhausted, I wasn’t tired. That itch in my neck was stronger now, and I went to scratch at it again—

And hissed in pain when my arm twinged.

Instead of my left this time, I tried using my right hand to scratch away at whatever was irritating my skin, and the action alone was enough to make me suddenly cringe, drawing in my legs like that’d do anything to make the pain stop. My arm was in a cradle splint that just wasn’t doing enough to help it.

Dad shot out of the chair he was sitting in and rushed to my side, saying, “Hey, what’s wrong? What’s wrong?”

“My arm,” I whimpered out through grit teeth. “It hurts,”

Dad looked over me to Brent, who was propped up on the cushions of some bay window turned nest and commanded, “Go get a doctor.” Brent nodded, rushing off past a curtain that separated us from the entrance, the audible click of the door the only sign that he left at all.

Dad had coaxed my legs down and got me to lay my arm across my lap by the time Brent returned with three people in tow; a doctor, shadowed closely by her nurse, and Doctor Sims, free of anything medical and instead in a pullover hoodie and jeans.

“What’s going on?” The doctor asked, more pointedly at Dad than me. Like I couldn’t answer for myself.

“Says her arm hurts,” Dad offered simply, making me sound like the most dramatic kid alive.

The doctor nodded, though, moving to my right and greeting me briefly before asking the basics; how bad did it hurt, could I show her where? She undid the ACE bandage that held the splint in place to look closely, and the shade my arm was when it was revealed under the wrappings made my stomach flip; nearly the entire top part of my forearm was bruised purple and blue, burst capillaries poking through the negative space like stars in a cloudy sky. “Do you remember how this happened, Regina?” The doc asked after prodding me in a spot that made my eyes moisten with tears.

I wracked my brain to remember, the events from before still trapped in some sort of fog that refused to waver. “It was…” I trailed off, thinking. “I was hit with debris from a platform. I—” I cut off. How the hell do you explain watching your iced-over form shatter in place and knowing that’s when the break happened? “I watched it break when it was hit,” I finished lamely.

The doctor nodded, satisfied with the answer at least. “I’m gonna have an x-ray camera brought in here to image you and see if you’ve made any healing progress before we decide our course of action,” She finally said, looking between Dad and I.

Dad gave those permissions they always looked to him to give, and the doctor rushed off to call in the request, her nurse staying behind to check my vitals. He undid some clasping of the hospital gown at my arm and snaked his hand around till his stethoscope was on my chest, its sting from more than just cold; I was bruised all along my sternum, too, kisses left from the hit of concrete I took in my fight with Augustine that was enough to launch me into the whirlpool wall I’d made.

How hurt was I? The nurse seemed satisfied with my respiratory stuff and then peeled back the taping on a bandage at my neck, looking at something there and asking, “Does this hurt?”

“Itches,” I offered.

He nodded, trying his best to seem joyful. “Itching’s good! Means you’re healing. Stitches look good, at least. I know this is probably hard considering what you are, but you’re going to need to keep the area dry while it heals. Covered, too. You do not want air getting into it.”

I cocked an eyebrow at him as he began trying to coax me to sit forward. “Getting into what?”

The nurse looked surprised I wasn’t in the know, as if I wasn’t sleeping away the past few hours. “The hole in your jugular for the hemodialysis catheter. An embolism is a one-way ticket upstairs, so for now, keep it covered.”

I didn’t know much about what he just said, but I did know what dialysis meant. “Wh-, did my kidneys fail–”

Dad’s hand squeezed mine gently. “They used it to warm your blood when you had hypothermia.”

“Unfortunately, sticking patients in microwaves seems to have negative effects,” The nurse tried joking, pushing me forward the rest of the way. “We had to find another way to warm you up from the inside out.”

I couldn’t see what he was doing, but I could feel how he peeled back dressing after dressing, poking at points in my back that made me want to poke him back harder. Maybe punch. Dad watched for only a moment before turning away, twinging like he was going to vomit. “Stitches back there look good too. You’re lucky whatever stabbed you didn’t go too deep. The one on the side’s my biggest concern, but even that’s manageable so long as you keep it clean.”

I forgot Dr. Sims was in the room until he spoke up from the corner by the in-room sink. “Do you know what stabbed you?”

I looked over, managing to blush a bit. In the chaos of the past couple hours, I hadn’t even really processed that Doctor Eugene Sims was helping take care of me! It made me feel special…and all the more needy. He had bigger things to worry about than to take care of some kid. “There were these—” I cut off, a shiver wracking down my spine. The Archangel soldiers. God, how did they know? Was it just bad luck that they managed to freeze me? “Archangel, they — there were people with ice powers and they hit me with icicles.” I turned to Dad. “Dad, Archangel — they were trying to capture you, they wanted something—”

Dad hushed me, hand going back to run across my forehead and brush hair out of the way. “Don’t worry about it right now, Jean, okay?”

The doctor eventually returned with someone from radiology and a handheld portable x-ray camera, one of the cooler new things from this generation. All they had to do was slip a lead apron on my lap and a weird plate under my arm, and the doctor was able to look at the result on the computer cart that came in with them almost immediately. “It’s definitely still broken.” She announced, like it wasn’t painfully — and I mean painfully — obvious. She spun the computer around to show me the x-ray, and I didn’t need a degree to tell it was fucked. “Oblique fracture of the ulnar shaft.”

Dad sighed hard. “And there’s no improvement?”

The doctor shook her head. “None. We’ve waited long enough — we need to put it in a cast.”

Brent reminded everyone he was here by piping up from his spot on the windowsill bed, “She can’t have a cast — plaster can’t get wet. All she does is get wet.”

“Well, then, she may need to simply not use her powers—” the doctor began, but Dad cut her off.

“She needs to have the ability to use her powers.” He stated with a finality that said this wasn’t up for debate. “She’ll be unable to protect herself otherwise.”

“I might be able to do something about that, Del,” Dr. Sims chimed in from his place against the countertop. He pushed off, walking to stand beside Dad. “I can take measurements of her arm and print her off a plastic cast.”

Dad looked up at his friend, face entirely unreadable. They seemed to have a silent conversation for ten seconds that made the doctor impatient enough to interrupt, clearing her throat. “I need to stabilize her arm, the sooner the better. Do we have an agreement, Mr. Rowe?”

It was the first time I’d heard Dad referred to as Rowe outside of, like, my history class or Augustine. He didn’t even really flinch at the name. “Yeah,” he finally said, looking away from Dr. Sims to my arm. “Alright. Fine.”

The next part was both awesome and absolutely fucking sucked. ‘Measurements’ apparently didn’t mean tape measure or something similar, not at all; Dr. Sims needed a perfect replica of my arm to make a cast, which meant he had to actually make a mold of it using his powers. The splint was already off by then, but I had to lift and hold my arm out for Dr. Sims to mold, which was arguably the coolest and worst ten seconds of my life.

Dr. Sims’ video power seemed to burn brighter than Dad’s, lacking the firm pixels and instead taking on more of a holographic look as their shine slipped away from his arms to my outstretched one, encasing it. The power didn’t care about how hard I was shaking, it didn’t care about the fact that my arm kept jerking around with every hard exhale; it stayed in contact with my skin, melting over it until the entirety of my body, elbow to fingertip, was encased in a new type of blue. Dr. Sims pulled a hand back, and the casing around mine went with it, peeling away from me like a shedding skin on a lizard — and turning into skin, too. The more the blue pulled away, the denser it became in color until it matched the hue of my skin, the black of the bruise and the chips in my cuticles, fully becoming my arm.

Dad caught my arm the moment the shine on it was gone, helping guide it back down to the plate so that the doctor could take another x-ray and make sure nothing displaced in my holding it out. I blinked back my tears and stared at the perfect model of my arm that Dr. Sims kept at arm's length — pun fully intended. “How did you—” I started, unable to finish when the doctor readjusted my arm and sent a whole new volley of pain up it.

“Hard light hologram,” Dr. Sims explained. He rotated the model of my arm in the air and made it shadow the wave he gave me, smiling.

“With a cast, your arm should be fully healed in six weeks, give or take.” the doctor said, looking at the new picture and nodding to herself, satisfied. “You’ll have to follow up with a specialist to make sure you’re on the right track to healing.”

Yeah — the normal track to healing.

Sims disappeared with the doctor on promises they both would be back soon, leaving me with Dad, Brent, and the splint still trapped on my arm. Dad must’ve noticed how distant I was, how I couldn’t seem to tear my eyes away from the grain of the tile as he asked, “You okay, Jeanie?”

I inhaled shakily, trying my hardest not to let Dad know just how scared I was. “I don’t…” I cut off, swallowing hard. “Why won’t I heal?”

I looked up in time to see Dad’s eyes gain that faraway look that only came around with his fear of loss, and he whispered the truth I wished was a lie. “I don’t know.”

The doctor gently spun my arm around, asking, “Make a fist for me,”

I don’t know how she expected me to with the cast almost encasing my entire thumb, but I tried nonetheless, tensing my fingers against the edge of the brace. “Does it hurt?”

“A little,” I admitted, “But not, like, any worse than when I’m not.”

The cast looked like netting on my arm, gaps giving a peek to my bruised and battered skin underneath. The hard plastic was smooth and light purple, and the moment the doctor snapped it into place, it lifted so much pain from my arm that I gasped in relief.

The doctor nodded, satisfied. “Then you’re all good! I want you in a sling for now, to take stress off of it. We’ll watch the other injuries and, I don’t know, you may be out of here in two, three days tops.”

“Even after freezing?” I asked as Dad helped fit the sling around my neck. Wasn’t there still big concerns about organ failure and stuff?

Dr. Sims was the one to answer. “When we found you, you were in some sort of suspension the Sound made to protect you. Honestly, I believe it’s what kept you from getting worse.”

My water saved me?

The other doctor didn’t give me the chance to ask any other questions, looking at her watch and saying, “I know it’s late, but she’s also clear to eat, if she wants. I’ll stop the saline drip, order her some pain medicine and something antiemetic.”

“She could even sit in the tub for a while,” Dr. Sims added, jabbing his thumb over his shoulder at a door adjacent from me. That must be the bathroom. “Probably make her feel better Conduit-wise.”

Dad nodded as he leaned back, my arm now fully supported in a sling and nestled gently against my chest. “Yeah, alright. Thank you, really,”

The one doctor left, her jokey nurse close behind. Dr. Sims hovered around for a moment longer to clap Dad on the shoulder and say, “I’ll be back later,” with a knowing air that implied they had a plan. Dad just gave him a nod and he, too, was gone.

Dad’s exhale was long, like he was trying his hardest to not freak the fuck out. His hands ran through his hair, and it took a moment for him to look back up — but when he did, it was to smile gently at me. “You’re feeling better?” He asked.

“Yeah,” I nodded. I didn’t have the heart to list off how sore I was, how the itch in my neck was somehow becoming agonizing because I couldn’t touch it and the slice in my side throbbed if I breathed in too hard. “I’m doing okay.”

Dad squeezed my thigh gently. “Good. Are you hungry at all? It’s been a while since you’ve eaten,”

I nodded. Now that the nausea of my pain was subsiding, I was starving. Dad turned his eyes to Brent. “You want anything?”

“I’ll always say yes to food,” Brent joked.

Dad stood. “The cafeteria’s closed, but I know they’ve got some sort of fridge thing with sandwiches and salads and stuff. I’ll look in there and see if I can find something good. I’ll be right back, okay?”

He made sure to lean down and kiss the top of my head with that, a continuation on his promise that he wouldn’t stray far.

The moment the room door closed somewhere beyond the curtain, Brent hummed, “I think you’re the favorite, now,”

“Shut up,” I rolled my eyes. “Do you not remember how he catered to you when you broke your own arm and had surgery? You got a signed jersey out of it.”

“Oh, I milked the pain for that,” Brent laughed. He eyed the cast on my arm and the dark bruising under it, and something flashed over his features. Guilt?

“Hey,” I called gently. His eyes came back up to meet mine, and I said, “This isn’t your fault.”

“You had to save me.” He hissed. “I shouldn’t have—“

“Neither of us shouldn’t have had to.” I cut him off. There was no way he was going to make this his fault. “You’re my brother, Brent, I’m not just gonna let you die. Besides, if anyone gets to kill you, I do—”

“Oh fuck off,” he scoffed, shaking his head. It caught him off guard enough to get him to laugh, though, and that’s all that mattered to me.

He leaned back, tucking his legs under himself, and something on his chest glinted in the fluorescent lights of the room. “Hey,” I chuckled slightly, “You got my gift!”

I’d gone back to the storage room at the Longhouse for my charger — I’d left it behind after my phone took a swim, and had forgotten about it for a while. While there, though, I’d found the bullet casing that pushed out of his shoulder that night everything changed hidden behind the leg of the couch. It still had his blood on it.

The way it had impacted his shoulder shaped it into an exploding flower of sorts, and brass…well, it’s not stronger than water. I shaved down the backing with a blast that would have peeled skin off, and dulled the edges before carving a geometric design of the Conduit emblem into it that I knew he’d like. He loved symmetrical stuff like that.

One more thin blast to make holes for a leather cord to fit through, and his offhanded joke about wearing the bullet on a necklace was a possibility now. The back had 3 words carved in, so small he may have needed a magnifying glass to read them properly; Nerves of Steel.

It was cheesy, but I loved to give handmade gifts — and this time, I could make something more refined. He seemed to like it at least, if him wearing it was any hint.

Brent’s hand went up to play with the dark leather cord it was on, something Betty supplied me with when I asked. “Yeah. I…when we were waiting to see what’d happen to you, I opened…hope you don’t mind,” he finished lamely.

I shook my head. “Nah. Guess that means I ruined Christmas, though,”

“Kinda, yeah,” he laughed, hand falling.

I shrugged. “That’s okay — isn’t Boxing Day supposed to be some big second day of Christmas over in Europe? We can try again tomorrow.”

He didn’t laugh. Brent’s eyebrows creased and he leaned forward a bit, elbows on his knees. “Jean, what…what day do you think it is?”

What kind of a question was that? “Christmas?” Something in his face changed and I said, “Well, maybe late in the night. Unless…it’s already the 26th?”

Brent’s face softened a bit, but not in a good way. He looked how Dad did right before he told us S’mores was gone. “It’s — Jean, it’s New Years Eve. We didn’t even find you till the 28th.”

As if to punctuate his point, there was a whistle outside followed with a BANG that made me nearly jump out of my skin. My mind flashed back, and suddenly I was watching a huge slab of concrete slam into a lighthouse again.

I’ve been out of it for a week?

Brent opened up the paneling of the window more in time to see the golden remains of a firework dim away, two more following before the rogues illegally setting them off paused. I could barely, just barely, spot the light of the Space Needle just over the rooftops, strobing away like today was supposed to be celebratory. Like I was supposed to be okay with being out of it for 8 days.

The clock was at 9:37. Two and a half hours until 2037. And the last week…I don’t know, did I die?

I looked at Brent when he moved to sit, and another memory burst up from the fog; Mom. She looked at me just like that, with that same fucking expression, and I thought…God, I thought it was real. Was it real? The way her fingers brushed my hair, the kiss on my head…

I didn’t want it to be fake. Some sort of illusion.

“You okay?” Brent chimed in from the side. I’d been staring at him the entire time, and I’m sure the weird look of mourning on my face was unsettling. He definitely looked uncomfortable.

“Yeah,” I lied, breathing deeply. “Just…thinking. What happened? Y’know…after?”

Brent’s leg started going again. “If she just…ten more seconds, and Dad would have been there. Dr. Sims — holy shit Jean, you should have seen it! You remember that old MMORPG T—” He cut off and swallowed, like the name was hard to vomit up. “—Tommy liked?”

I nodded despite not knowing what he was talking about. Didn’t wanna rain on his parade.

“There were characters from that game there! How he made a solid copy of your arm? He did that with, like, fifteen demon characters. And Dr. Sims was this—” he held his arm up like it’d equate the size, “—this thirty foot tall knight with wings. Swear I could see the health bar on that fucker,”

I tried my best to pretend to laugh. So we were that close to being safe? “What happened to Augustine? Those Archangel soldiers?”

Brent shook his head lightly. “I don’t know. Dad made me go to the Longhouse to guard everyone and by the time we started your search party…everything was gone.”

“Did anyone else die?”

I didn’t like how he chewed on his cheek, but nonetheless he said, “They didn’t kill anyone else. Just the one guy.”

There was a knock on the door, and that cheerful dude nurse was back with a handful of vials and syringes, making a joke about how he got me the good stuff.

He dosed me up and was gone again, leaving us in an awkward still moment where it felt like so much more needed to be touched up on — but I didn’t want to worry about anything else right now. I just wanted to pretend, for fifteen minutes, that things were normal.

Brent shot me a weird look when I began to scoot to the side, asking, “Where’re you going?” and sighing in annoyance when I didn’t answer. I didn’t plan on going far — just to one side of the bed — and once the elbow of my fucked arm was nestled comfortably against the guardrail of the hospital bed, I looked at him expectantly. “What?”

“C’mere,” I requested, voice a bit soft.

I expected Brent to shrug me off and call me a baby or some other weak insult. Instead, he grabbed the hospital pillow that was nestled in his little perch, laid it vertically in the free space, and fit himself beside me, not saying a thing when I laid my head on his shoulder.

At least, for a moment. Then he whispered, “I thought you died.” and leaned his head against mine.

“To be fair,” I muttered back, playing with the tape that held my PICC line in place. “I thought I did, too.”

“Yeah. Let’s not do that again,”

“I didn’t exactly have a choice—”

“Well, now you can’t die before me. It’s my turn next time.”

“We’ll suicide pact it. Kill each other off on our eightieth birthday.”

“You really think I’m gonna make it that far?”

“If you keep diving out of the sky like you were? No,” I chuckled.

The door opened again without a knock this time, and I could hear Dad make some sort of noise as he fought the door open. He pushed through the curtain and went straight to the small counter beside the sink, dropping off food in plastic prepackaging and spinning in place. His eyes softened a bit when he saw how we were. “You okay?” he asked me pointedly.

“Yeah,” I assured him. Brent lifted his head, and I was free to straighten mine. “They just dosed me up and I am feeling whatever fucking pain medicine they gave me.”

Dad chuckled, rolling his eyes. “Don’t curse,”

“I feel like I get a free pass,”

He held out a bottle of juice for me to take. “And you just used it up, so, good job.”

“Shoulda thought that one through,” Brent muttered.

It was unnecessarily hard to hold a goddamn fork. I couldn’t bend my pinky how I wanted to, and my thumb was trapped in a little sleeve and couldn’t move at all. I ended up having to take uncoordinated stabs at my buffalo chicken salad with my left hand.

“So,” Brent said, “Guess we can’t do a bonfire tonight, huh?”

Dad chuckled. “Not in a hospital, no. No s’mores, either, but I did get you guys cookies.”

Man, the bonfire and s’mores was my favorite part about New Years Eve. We’d invite so many people over and have a huge pit going in the middle of our yard at Chapman, and we’d all eventually succumb to the need to perform arson as the night went on. I burned Daniella’s jacket in it after our break-up, Brent and Tommy got ahold of a football with the 49ers logo on it and spiked it into the flames once.

Those moments left so much pain in my chest now that I knew they’d never be replicated.

Dad instead somehow found a Disney cartoon movie marathon, dropping straight into a showing of Encanto just before the big musical number. “Oh, God, Dad, you’re gonna make us watch this?” Brent groaned.

“You know how much you two made me watch this when you were toddlers?” Dad scoffed. “It got to a point where I could quote the movie word-for-word. This is payback.”

Revenge followed swiftly after, with his enthusiastic sing-along performance to We Don’t Talk About Bruno.

There was some point during the third Encanto movie that I realized Brent was on his phone, in the messages app of discord and finger hovering over the ‘send’ button. A simple “Hey” aimed for Mei’s inbox, staying wistfully in the text box. Dad had disappeared to the bathroom, and in the stillness of it being just us, I reached over, brushed his thumb aside, and pressed send.

“Jean!” Brent hissed.

“I won’t tell Dad if you won’t,” I smiled gently, knocking my shoulder into his.

He kept my gaze a moment longer before a half-smile broke out on his face, and he shook his head. “You’re ridiculous,”

“Just make sure your phone’s on silent.”

Dad fell asleep first, looking uncomfortable as could be in the chair he was propped up in. “Should we, like, move him?” I asked Brent.

“I don’t want to,” Brent sighed. “He hasn’t slept at all since you…” he reset the thought, continuing with, “I think this is the first time he’s closed his eyes in a week.”

I couldn’t imagine the fear he must’ve felt; his daughter disappeared, and apparently, it took days to find me, if what Brent said earlier was true. If I was revived the same day, then it’s been three days. It took me three days to actually wake, to be able to hold a good conversation, and…

If it were Brent or Dad in my place, I know I wouldn’t have slept, either.

Brent moved back to the window at some point, and while I couldn’t see what he was doing, how concentrated he was on his feverish typing gave me a hint that it had something to do with Mei. He was smiling to himself and was probably seconds away from giggling like a schoolgirl. He hadn’t even noticed midnight passed until a firework let off close to the hospital, the sound making him jump and spin in place, hair shifting silver.

“You okay?” I asked when he turned back around.

Brent blinked hard before nodding. “Yeah, I, uh…”

He didn’t have to say it — I felt that same fear a bit ago, had the same flashback. “Thought it was an attack?”

He huffed. “You too?”

I chewed at my lip, watching the silver on his hair relinquish its hold as quickly as it came. “Wonder if it’ll ever go away,”

“Yeah,” Brent sighed. But then he tried to smile, and wished me a happy new year.

#Longest Erosion chapter is now here! :3 #infamous second son #infamous erosion #fanfiction #Delsin Rowe #and FINALLY #Eugene Sims #He's such a blank slate I can't wait to play with him lol #Sucker Punch Productions #fanfic

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the-grimsqueaker · 7 months

Note

Hi! I saw your post about the tickets. I’m really sorry that happened. I have a bad habit of offering potential solutions rather than empathy when empathy is what is needed, so please feel free to ignore this.

May I suggest that along with calling the box office, you have screenshots available of the money coming out of your bank account on your bank app, the confirmation email, screenshots from the website of the seating charts with your seats circled, and a nice picture or digital scan of your ID to prove who you are legally. Make sure you mention the address you would have sent the tickets to and the email address you used in the ordering process. Offer to email all of this to the box office. Actually get the email draft ready with all of these screenshots and details and be ready to just input any email they give you and click send. The more information you have the better, not just because it may help them track down your tickets, but also because it shows that you are willing to try and are a real person, as well as because it gives you a plan of action, which is super helpful for high anxiety situations such as this. Remember to ask for Will-call.

Even if you don’t get tickets ahead of time, if you are able, show up at the concert venue and give them your confirmation receipt at the door. They might not let you in, but they might send you to the correct humans that will actually be able to help you.

If all else fails, make different plans for you and your mom. Don’t let the day be a waste! You have a hotel room, so turn it into a spa day by going to the nearest store and picking up some fancy lotions or face masks and nail polish. Maybe go out and do a scavenger hunt where you challenge each other to find things like “a shoe that would never fit a human” or “a vinyl record of an artist with pun on it” don’t go back to the hotel until you’ve crossed off everything on your list.

I’m sorry if that was a weird or unhelpful message to receive from a stranger. Feel free to ignore this. ❤️

Hey, thank you, I actually genuinely appreciate this.

I was freaking out 6 hours ago, but I have since had a couple of hours sleep (got woken up by the world's loudest and clunkiest air-conditioner) and I have a plan of action to call the box office at 9am and find out exactly what they need from me. I've got my confirmation email up on my phone already so I don't have to find it again, and I've got all my I.D on me and stuff. Hopefully they can either print my tickets at the venue or send them digitally (preferably the first option).

I booked these tickets a year ago, and there were no follow up reminders, and I vaguely remember something about "you will receive your tickets one month before the event" (which I did not) which is dumb why not just send them when they're paid for? Or better yet have the "this email is not your ticket" section of the email be at the tippy top of the email, instead of "you're in!" Followed by my seat information. Which looks suspiciously like a ticket!!

When Pink was last in my city my mum was supposed to come with me and she got the flu the day of the concert and couldn't make it. She'll be devastated if she misses out again just because I'm a moron, particularly after the shitshow of the last couple of years with her getting cancer and going through treatment and beating it and everything.

Like at minimum she might just never speak to me again.

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cavinginhisfvce · 2 years

Text

'Speechless'

Pairing: Harringrove. A lil angst, but mostly fluff.

(Fluff isn't really my forte, so forgive me for this mess. I've just always wanted to write a Christmas fic, and Harringrove is the perfect couple for that.)

Modern!AU.

Billy gets the birthday/Christmas he's always deserved from the family he didn't know he needed until he found.

Growing up, Billy always dealt with other kids gushing over the fact his birthday was Christmas. They'd drone on and on about how they'd definitely get double the presents for the day.

Billy always wanted to scream at them that he's never gotten a single present in his life. He never got a Christmas gift, or a birthday gift from his mother or father. They never even brought a tree or put up any decorations. Eventually he stopped bringing up his birthday to people.

Though, older Billy would laugh and confess on his tenth birthday, he did get something. It wasn't anything good, it was probably the most terrible thing he'd experienced short of his father's backhand.

That day, his mom had woken him up, pressed a kiss to his forehead and whispered that she'd always love him. She took him into her arms and buried her face in his curls, hugging him against her chest like it was the last time she'd ever see him again.

She'd left a shoe box at the foot of his bed, he didn't know it yet, but it was filled with the things she always held close to her heart.

It was early, the sun hadn't even come out yet, making it dark in his room.

Billy, half asleep, just hugged his Mama back, mumbling his own variation of "I love you" as he dozed off in her arms.

When he woke up again, the sun was out, and his father was angrily throwing his mother's remaining belongings on the curb. He remembers spending the day in bed crying, hoping his Mama would come back for him.

He cried his little heart out, and if anyone besides Neil had been privy to the broken hearted sobs, they would've tried to comfort him. Wouldn't they? Billy guesses not.

So, yeah, Billy got his first ever gift at ten years old, in the form of his mother abandoning him with the man she always vowed to take him away from. To protect him from.

At almost seventeen, Billy no longer lives in California, he lives in Hawkins Indiana, with his father, his father's new wife, and her daughter.

Max is only two years younger than Billy.

His dad had met Susan a nine months or so after his mother left, and they married before reaching a full year of dating.

Her daughter, Max, was cool for a snot nosed nine year old.

She wanted Billy to teach her to skate, after days of begging, he finally agreed.

Less than two minutes after she'd climbed onto the board, she wiped out.

Billy remembers sprinting over to her with shaky hands. Scared out of his fucking mind that she was hurt, but before he could start fretting over her, she simply stood up, dusted herself off and hopped back on the skateboard.

Billy never told her, but he was impressed with how well she caught on.

Their relationship as siblings was tumultuous from the start, but Max had grown on him, and Billy would set the world aflame for that red-haired brat.

Max as she got older, started to notice the less than parental ways Neil treated his son.

It was hard to hide even the quietest of sobbing courtesy of black eyes and bruised ribs from the girl who slept in the room beside yours.

It was even harder to hide the fact you never had a thing to open on Christmas.

They put a tree up every year, but Billy was always absent for the decorating portion as per Neil's demand.

Max and Susan didn't even know when Billy's birthday was, let alone that it was on Christmas, until they moved to Hawkins and Susan had been the one to enroll him in classes. It was only July when they arrived in Hawkins, months away from his birthday.

They hadn't mentioned it, so Billy didn't either. He honestly thought they'd just forgotten.

Which was fine, because he's gone this long without the acknowledgement of his birthday, what difference did it make now?

Things between them changed when they moved though, Max had found real friends, she no longer needed Billy around to defend or protect her. Her friends were fierce on that front. She just didn't seem to need Billy anymore.

Her friend group was cool enough for a bunch of little brats, Billy had hung with them on more than one occasion.

Through said group, Billy met Steve, who in a matter of weeks, had asked Billy out on a date. Things were rocky for the first couple of weeks, if for no reason than Billy reluctance to let people into his personal bubble.

However, it came as a surprise when Max barged into his room two days before Christmas and practically begged him to drive her to Steve's house for an emergency D&D session.

Even if Billy hadn't already been planning to see his boyfriend, he would have agreed to take her, if only to spend some time together.

The sun had already set by the time the siblings were in Billy's Camaro, a blur of trees in the wake of them speeding down the road.

"You know, you should join us one day for D&D." Max's tone was casual, but Billy's known her long enough to be able to tell she was nervous to bring it up.

For what? Billy wasn't exactly sure. She seemed antsy the whole drive. Maybe D&D was more intense than he thought.

"You want me to play D&D with you and the nerd brigade?" He glanced over at her briefly, a brow raised before his attention flickered back to the road ahead of them.

Max let out a squawk, a small pout on her lips. "Yes! You never hangout with me anymore. I know you're like the coolest kid in school, but you're supposed to be my best friend!"

Her arms crossed over her chest as she flopped against the seat.

"You're so dramatic, shitbird. I'm still your best friend, we just have other friends now."

Billy was shocked to hear that Max saw him as her best friend, especially now that they only spoke on the drive to and from school, and whenever their parents left them home alone for longer than a few hours.

But, he also felt a warmth spread through him at the confirmation that his sister still wanted to be around him.

"I know we do, which is why you should hangout with us too! Steve always steals you away to be with him and Robin when we're all together."

Billy couldn't deny that, Steve did monopolize his time when he was actually present at get-togethers.

"I hear you, alright? We'll spend more time together. You'll be sick of me before you know it." A playful smirk formed on his lips as they pulled into Harrington's driveway, but Max was beaming at him like he'd given her a million dollars. Soon his smirk was a genuine smile.

Trekking the walkway to the door was cold, and Billy was regretting not layering up the way Steve always badgers him to. It wouldn't matter long though, the elder's house was always adequately warmed whenever Billy crossed the threshold. Sometimes he wondered how his boyfriend could stand the stuffy heat confined inside.

When Steve yanked the door open, Billy wasn't even given the chance to complain about how long he took, before shouts of "Surprise!" were silencing him.

His eyes were wide as he tore his eyes away from the doorway full of people to Max, "Merry Birth-Mas?"

The girl just shrugged at him, a sheepish grin on her face as she shoved him inside of the house.

Billy, who was at Steve's just last night was met with the sight of dozens of party streamers, and balloons. There was a tree up that hadn't been there yesterday, void of any decorations.

Billy didn't know it, but Steve intended for them to decorate it together when everyone left.

It wasn't until Steve was pulling him aside to give him a proper greeting, one full of forehead kisses and tight hugs, that Billy finally said, "what the hell is all this?"

Steve merely shrugged, his lips pulling into a small smile, "it's the birthday slash Christmas celebrations you've deserved your whole life. Just rolled up into one party, because seventeen parties is apparently 'impractical'." His tone towards the end of his sentence told Billy that Steve might've been trying to throw that many parties, but was probably overruled by everyone else.

Billy, in response just rolled his eyes and buried his face in the crook of Steve's neck, giggling to himself when the taller boy winced at the ever present cold from Billy's nose, but he didn't pull away.

After being made to eat his weight in delicious food made by Joyce Byers, Billy was forced to sit on the couch while everyone dropped various gifts into his lap.

He sat there frozen for a moment, unsure of what he was supposed to do.

It could've been seconds or minutes later, but eventually Billy grabbed one with a shiny vibrant red wrapping. The name tag read "To: Billy. My shithead brother.

From: Max. Your shitbird sister.♡"

He breathed out a laugh as he looked up at her, softly shaking his head.

It took him another moment of admiring the gift in his hand, and the pile that lay just for him, a foreign sight, before he was tearing into the paper. He wanted to persevere it, cherish it. But, even he knew that would be weird.

Inside was a vinyl record of Metallica's HARDWIRED...TO SELF-DESTRUCT. He owned one in California, but his dad had shattered in an effort to punish Billy for nearly missing curfew.

He wanted to shove all the other presents aside and hug her, but he refrained, instead settling for a 'Thank you' accompanied by a bright smile.

It had taken him almost an hour, but he had eventually made his way through the pile of gifts. They seemed to grow every time the ones in his lap dwindled.

Soon, he was the new owner of random, yet thoughtful shit.

A new basketball, and pump from Lucas. A D&D guide set from Dustin. D&D figurines from Will.

Mike and Jane got him a few band tees, the pair had decided to just put theirs together when they realized they had similar ideas.

Joyce and Hopper had gotten him new colognes and hair products.

There was way more stuff. He had yet to open the first ones from Jonathan and Nancy, but Billy found himself overwhelmed by it all.

Joyce, always the lifesaver, seemed to notice, and declared that Billy could open the rest later.

Before anyone could object, she was rushing into the kitchen to grab everyone a snack.

Billy took that time for what it was, and peeled off to Steve's room. He left the door cracked slightly, knowing Steve was likely to follow him up. For several reasons, like he always followed behind. And, he had yet to give Billy his present.

It's not like he needed one from the brunet, he was more than content with what he'd gotten now. It's more than he could say for younger Billy.

But, he could see the death grip Steve hand on the neatly wrapped present in his hand.

As predicted, by the time Billy had swapped his jeans for a pair of Steve's sweatpants, the elder was slipping into the room, the door shutting just barely behind him.

"Getting comfortable before eating all that cake?"

Billy thought it over for a moment before shaking his head, "I think if I ate a piece of cake I'd explode, Pretty Boy. My jeans were killing me."

Steve just laughed before setting the parcel in his hand down, immediately wrapping the smaller boy into his arms for the second time that night.

His nose nuzzled into Billy's curls as Billy's arms wrapped around his waist, his face pressing into Steve's chest. He took a moment to just breathe him in. He always smelled good. Always smelled like coming home after a hard day. He smelled like love, and safety. If safety had a smell, it'd smell like whatever soaps or shampoos Steve used. And a hint of sweet pea perfume that only Billy knew Steve owned.

Billy was the reason he brought it to begin with.

It was a rather short minute of embrace if you asked Billy, but he couldn't voice his disdain before Steve was thrusting the gift he came in with, into Billy's hands. "I feel like I should preface this by saying that this is only one of the gifts I got you, but you'll get the others on your actual birthday.

It's not the best one of the bunch, but…"

He was blushing as he spoke, his fingers nervously fiddling with a loose strand on his sweater.

"I wouldn't care if you gave me socks, Princess. They'd be the best damn pair of socks ever."

His joke was rewarded with a big smile from his boyfriend, but it was short lived because moments later the boy was all but shouting, "okay, now open it! I can't wait any longer."

Billy looked up at him with a devious smirk, his brows raising twice when he notes the exact moment Steve realized he made a mistake in sharing his own anticipation.

"Hm, I wonder what it could be!" He raised it to his ear, giving it a soft jingle, only to pout when the box gave away little to no sound. "Well, it's not maracas." His faux disappointment had Steve throwing his head back in laughter, "nah, sorry. That's one of your other gifts, baby. Now hurry up before they think we're fucking up here."

Billy let out a laugh of his own, clicking his tongue, "yeah, well Max is leaving with the Byers, later. Your ass is mine tonight." He pauses, "or rather my ass is yours, huh?"

Steve reaches out and slaps his shoulder. "Just open the gift, asshole."

Finally, he tears the paper off, it reveals a shiny box, it looks expensive. Handcrafted. Delicate.

Billy is almost afraid to open it, but he does anyway.

A small, startled gasp leaves his lips when the small box begins to play the tune of 'Speechless' by Michael Jackson. It was the song that played on the radio during the drive to the restaurant on their first date.

They sang along, loudly, carelessly and happily, stealing glances at one another when they thought they could get away with it.

The song had quickly become their song. They listened to it together whenever they got the chance. Which was often.

When the song reached its end, Billy gently set the music box down on Steve's bedside table, almost immediately flinging himself into his partner's awaiting arms. The music played out quietly in the background.

Steve didn't hesitate or falter, he just held Billy close to his chest, swaying their bodies lightly.

Again, they were content to just hold one another, dancing lazily to the song, but the moment was short-lived thanks to Nancy banging on the door.

"Hey, assholes! Get out here so Billy can open mine and Jonathan's gifts, not to mention the rest of the ones from the kids. Joyce convinced us to wait, but times up!"

She left no room for argument, so Steve just held his hand out for Billy to take in his. "Ready, Birthday Boy?"

Billy rolls his eyes, but takes the offered hand anyway, softly hip checking the taller.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be, Pretty Boy." He pauses while Steve opens the door, but continues when they cross the threshold. "Thank you for today. I know everyone played a part, but you're always gonna be the best part of anything for me."

Steve grins down at him, dropping a kiss to the crown of his head,

"This is just the beginning, baby. It's you and me."

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temporal-espeon · 9 months

Text

PMD: Currents Leading Home

Scrapped Prologues

My match in the pmd oc tourney is today, so I figured today would be the perfect opportunity to post a few scrapped prologues which contain Cyan and Jet’s first meeting in the fanfic starring them that I’m working on! Only the shorter one will be going on here, while both the shorter one and the longer one (which is the one that I personally like more) is now posted on AO3 here! So without further ado, here’s the shorter of the two versions!

————————————————————————

“Are we there yet?” The currents ripped at Jet fiercely, and his flippers burned as he struggled to keep up with his mother. This was nothing like the calm, sleepy waters in the bay, and Jet didn’t appreciate the difference. Still, the reef could be a lot more fun than the tiny cove that he and the other finizen calves had been stuck in their entire lives. If they ever got there, that is.

Mom continued to stare out ahead. “Mmm, just a few more leagues I believe, so-”

“What does that mean?”

“We’ll probably be at Splendent Reef in around an hour.”

Jet growned. “That’s a long time momma!”

“I know bud. Once we get there, we can find a nice cave so that all you calves can rest a bit.” Mom glanced back at him with an amused smile. “Although, for some odd reason, I feel like you’ll want to swim circles around everyone else once we find one!”

“My flippers are already tired.”

“Then you agree that you’ll go right to sleep without any objections?”

“I didn’t agree to anything!” Jet jerked his eyes to the moonlit backs of the pod members ahead of him.

Mom chuckled. “Well, I suppose we’ll just see what happens when we get there then.”

“I guess so!”

Jet glanced down then looked back up to focus on the long swim. Then he glanced down again, sending some clicks to investigate further. The fuzzy shape of something really weird laying on the seafloor echoed back. He slowed.

His mother glanced back at him with concern. "Jet, I know you're tired. Do you need me to help you swim?" Jet shook his head.

"I see something down there!" Jet swung his head, gesturing at the faint shape outlined in the murky depths. He started to tread water, and pod members began to pass him.

"But you can't slow down bud, we'll get separated from the pod!" Mom swam back to him. "There'll be plenty of new things to see once we get to the reef."

Jet darted for the shape. His mother dove after him. "You don't know what that is! Stay away from it!" Jet ignored his mom and continued down at top speed until…

"I think it's a pokemon! Not an us pokemon though." He halted. He could still only make out a silhouette, but now it was much more defined. It could have been blue, though in the water everything looked blue from far away. He clicked at the shape. The echo revealed a long and thin body, with some sort of ridged spikes on its head. "What do you think it is, momma?"

"What I think is that we need to go back up to the pod!" she said as she caught up. "We shouldn’t interact with any strang…” She gasped. “Why, that looks like a calf!" She dove down to meet the shape, and Jet followed.

At the bottom of the seafloor, he finally saw the pokemon clearly. They were small and cyan with a white belly and snout. Two spikey white fins protruded from both sides of their face, and they had a small white bump in the middle of their forehead. The rest of the body was just a thin and long flukeless tail. The creature appeared to be asleep on the seafloor, belly up and folded around a small rock that stopped them from drifting out with the currents. I wouldn’t want to sleep there. Jet frowned. Looks uncomfortable.

His mom turned the small snake over, revealing a purpling bruise on the back of their head. "They’re injured," she murmured.

That explained the weird pose. Stream looked a bit similar when she had gotten hurt running into a rock at the cove. Her mom had gotten super freaked out, even though Stream had woken up a couple minutes later.

“What are they?”

“I don’t know. But they shouldn’t be down here alone. And hurt too…”

His mom leaned down and draped the strange pokemon over her back. "Come along Jet," she said, and once Jet was beside her, they swam up extra fast to catch back up with the pod, which made Jet's flippers burn even more.

"What are we going to do with them, momma?"

“I’m not sure. I’ll have to show Flip and the rest of the pod. I suppose we’ll try to find their parents.” His mom gazed into his eyes intensely. “Don’t go swimming off again, you understand me?”

“Ok mama.”

He stared at the strange pokemon slung on his mother’s back. He wouldn’t even think of rushing off, not now that the weird pokemon was here. If Mom didn’t know what they were, then that meant that they were really interesting. Probably even more interesting than the reef! Jet grinned. Today was shaping up to be way more exciting than he ever imagined.

————————————————————————

I’d also love to hear y’alls opinions, constructive criticism or questions about my writing if you have any! I’m pretty much a new writer and I’d really like to learn where I can improve and get better.

#writing #pmd #pokemon mystery dungeon #my writing #fanfic #pmd fanfic #pokemon #beginner writer #Cyan #Jet #Team Heartseekers

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tsuki-sennin · 2 years

Text

Hey. I know I usually have a bit of silly banter to lead up to each episode, but I'm gonna be honest, I'm... feeling a little bittersweet. We've spent almost whole year with these lunatics in the town of Oniga, and yet it feels like we met them just yesterday. I personally have been given a lot to think about.

The beautiful lies of the moon, the difference between ravenously attempting to take your own desires by force and the beauty in the mindset of wabi-sabi, the joy we find in things we create ourselves, the sheer depths of cruelty we're willing to sink to for love, the importance of having those you can rely on... I might have a lot to think about once it's all over.

-The Donbrothers! Have reached their complete state! Nobody can get in our way!

-Good work, Taro!

-Seems like Sonoshigoroku are clearly incapable of getting real.

-Batsu da!

-Man...

-I only found about this last night, but Morisaki Win? Turns out the dude's from Myanmar. Funny that, huh? Would've been something really cool to know by like... the second episode, but oh well, live and learn.

-"Count off, my companions! Of course, I'll be the one to start us off."

-You might have to do a lot more exercise than you're used to when Tarou's leading the session.

-Jirou's not quite so eagerly participating. Figured he'd be three times as enthusiastic as everyone else.

-Goddang it Haruka, you're too cute for this.

-One of those five fingers is a hell of a lot lighter now...

-Tsubasa's definitely dodging the six shooters of those cops.

-This event is certainly something Sonoi's looking forward to.

-Aw, Sononi. Your romance game ate shit these past couple episodes, but now you're our beloved failgirl.

-...Sonoza, do you know a good play on number nine?

-The roster's all here!

-Let's train.

-"You're the disruptive one, Boss."

-Oh?

-Ooooooh, good work Haruka!

-"Later nerds! We're in serialization!"

-Oh, okay! That's three down.

-And then there were three.

-Spending time with your big brother and your boyfriend.

-Sonoshigoroku!

-Gettin' real serious!

-"I'm gonna power-up too! ...or, perhaps not..."

-I see Tiger Jirou's definitely there in spirit.

-SONOI NO

-OH OKAY NEVERMIND THIS IS AWESOME

-Get moron'd.

-"Momotani Jirou. Welcome to the Donbrothers."

-:)

-"I've... got a lot to think about..."

-Chief...

-Kijino's loved after all. ...in his weird way.

-Speaking of which, hello Tsubasa!

-Natsumi-san!

-"You seem... normalish, now. That's frightening."

-Jirou...

-Oh..

-You're breakin' my heart over here, man.

-Terasaki-style.

-Woken up and smelled the roses.

-Tarou...

-Guess he's feeling the ending blues too.

-Man...

-"Go back... to the nice dude you used to be."

-"Kind man you are, Tsubasa-san."

-OOOOOOH

-Y'know, I don't blame Natsumi at all, but goddamn, that hurts

-"I'll uh... I'll just go..."

-The plot thickens.

-Sononi says ACAB

-"This place... it smells too much of cranes."

-Ooooooh

-She knew.

-N

-Natsumi!?

-See the boss has taken an interest in the manga?

-Minoru-san!

-Poor Ma

-"This is the one~!"

-Honse

-The Ultimate Hitotsu-ki!

-OHHHHHH THEY'RE OVERLOADING HIM

-Noooo, Minoru-san!

-"Oh goddammit boy, not again!"

-Ouja-Ki!

-"Kneel before me, peasants! I shall become king and king alone!"

-Yeah, that backfired on you scrubs, huh?

-Yeah you better run!

-Oden-based bribery.

-"You kidding me? I can't have you randos pay for my lunch."

-"But we're enemies! That's gotta count for something!"

-...WAIT. Tarou just said "total strangers" and Tsubasa fixated on that. That's important.

-"So like, you guys need our help?"

-I mean to be fair, you did make him break his promise to his mom and tried ordering him around. I'd probably wanna kill you assholes too.

-Of course! That's how all kings eat oden!

-...or at least, that's how the King of Town probably would.

-Time to fight!

-NOOOO POPS

-"Noi-chan? :o?"

-Thems the King-Ohger colors!

-Mantis, Stag Beetle, Butterfly, Dragonfly, and Bee!

-Him being ourple implies to me that Papillon Ohger's the one in charge.

-Hahahaha~! Matsuri da!

-Oh, there they are.

-The final bosses.

-"Man, Sonoshi sucks, huh? Oh well, who cares?"

-Oh now Tarou cares about the strong.

-We ain't done yet, no doubt.

-Decrowned.

-Oh. That's all then. Seems like Minoru's had enough.

-Happy birthday~!

-National Momoi Tarou Day.

-"I lied, bitches."

-"Happy Not-Birthday, Momoi-san! I can be your wife for today, if you want!"

-Oh...

-Way to remind me that literally Tarou's entire apartment complex hated him.

-Oh well, their loss! Momo Pillow!

-Momo Oden Sticks!

-"I'm the grumpiest motherfucker on the planet around you assholes!" Fucking Dies.

-"He's dead... WE DID IT!"

-YEEEAAH

-...no, I agree Haruka, what have our lives become

-Sonona and... Sonoya. Our final bosses.

-Of fucking course Kouhei Murakami would be here at the very end.

-The final festival. The final battle.

-Our bond is true now, everyone.

-Mmmmm oden.

-Well... hard to believe we're done with these guys next week. Man...

#avataro sentai donbrothers #donbrothers spoilers #donbrothers #super sentai #don! don! it's a full force peachy festival!

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beck-derringer · 1 year

Text

Derringer Reunion

Date: Sunday, May 7th (Morning)

Location: Sunrise Diner

Notes: Beck surprises Bonnie and Jude, but Jude one-ups her with a surprise of his own.

If Beck had guessed correctly, Jude should have already woken up and made his way to the diner. She hadn’t told her brother or her mom that the crew had been on the way to Kraysha - because surprises were much more fun. Her sunglasses on, she walked into the diner. Sure enough, as she predicted, the interior had been significantly cat-ified. The waitstaff were wearing cat ears of all colors - thankfully no tails included - and there were all sorts of cat decorations strung along the tables and walls. Still, it felt like the Sunrise Diner. Just aggressively more cat.

She looked immediately towards the booth that was dubbed “the Derringer booth”, because it was the booth Beck and Jude always sat at. And sure enough, there was Jude. Still the same, albeit now with thicker facial hair. She took off her glasses and walked his way.

“‘Scuse me, cobber, I’d like to speak to the owner of this establishment,” she spoke, leaning against the table and grinning. “And maybe her galah [idiot] of a son, too.”

Jude looked up from his laptop, and immediately his eyes widened. “Becca? Holy shit!” He immediately got up and gave her a tight hug. He even picked her up for a quick second, ecstatic that his twin returned.

Beck hugged back and laughed. “Alright ya drongo, put me down. Jeez.” She lightly hit his shoulder until he decided to put her down and let her go. “Crikey, your beard got thick.” She reached up and started pulling at the hair on his face. “I couldn’t have guessed you had the hair follicles to pull this off.”

“The beard helps hide the wrinkles. You should probably think about growing one yourself,” Jude quipped. This prompted Beck to give him a harder smack on the arm.

“Oh fuck off! Prick.” She looked around the diner. “Where’s Mum?”

“She’s doing important diner owner things in her fancy office.” It was not in fact a fancy office, as this was still just a diner. “C’mon, let’s go.”

They both walked to the back of the diner to Bonnie’s office. The door was closed. Jude gave it a couple of knocks.

“I’m busy, who is it?” Bonnie called from behind the door.

Jude crossed his arms with an amused grin, and leaned against the side of the door frame. “Mum, there’s a huge mess that just happened in the kitchen.” Beck covered her mouth to keep from laughing. “Yoojeen slipped on a banana peel and got pancake batter all over fryer.”

“Again?!” Bonnie screamed in disbelief. Fast stomping could be heard approaching the door. “I swear if Yoojeen wasn’t the fastest cook we had, boy I would -” The door slid open, but Bonnie paused when she saw both the twins standing in the doorway.

Beck gave her mom a wave. “Hi Mum!”

Once Bonnie processed what was happening here, her face lit up. “Rebecca? Oh my God!” She immediately brought Beck into a tight hug. “I can’t believe it! You didn’t tell us you were coming! And - Jude!” She let go of Beck and gave Jude a light smack on the arm. “That isn’t funny! You’re thirty seven! Stop trying to stress out your mother for fun!”

Jude laughed. “I was just trying to surprise you!”

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

The three of them sat at the Derringer booth, where Beck was helping herself to a full stack of pancakes drowning in syrup.

“Oh, Becca, it sounds like you had so much fun on Earth,” Bonnie commented with her hands folded together. “Never got to go to Sydney, much less any of those other places. I’m so glad you get to see things like that.”

Beck nodded. “Yeah, it seems like Earth is different every time I go there. It’s not like here. Kraysha always seems to stay the same.”

Jude’s eyebrows raised and he made a face. “Well, damn, you make that sound like such a bad thing.”

“It’s not a bad thing. You think I’d be happy if these pancakes were different every single time I came here?” She took a big bite of pancake.

Jude and Bonnie both looked off behind her. Beck didn’t notice how a smile grew on both their faces.

“Well, actually there is something different this time around,” Jude began.

Beck looked up at him in confusion, mouth still full of pancake. Jude got up from his seat, and seemingly out of nowhere a gorgeous purple-haired Erkuss woman with pale golden eyes appeared. Holding what looked like a newborn. Also with pale golden eyes. And thick, dark brown hair. Jude placed a head on the newborn’s tiny head and looked at Beck.

“Becca, meet your niece. Cleo.”

Beck spit pancake bits onto her plate. “What the fuck?!”

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

Beck was a little pissed, not because Jude was a dad now, but because he waited until the baby slid out the damn womb before telling her. She sat in the booth, arms crossed, now sitting next to Bonnie while Jude and his baby mama - apparently named Molly, after Molly Ringwald. Bonnie was holding little Cleo and hadn’t stopped smiling once since Molly and the baby arrived.

“I found out the moment Molly took a pregnancy test,” Jude was in the middle of explaining. “You know usually I’m really careful but I guess that night I was just so drunk that I -”

“Forgot to wrap it up,” Molly interjected. Jude nodded.

“- forgot to wrap it up, that’s right!” He laughed. “I remember the wrapper ripping off and then the rest was a blur.”

Beck raised an eyebrow.

“And you didn’t feel the need to tell me during any of the times we spoke on the comms?”

Jude gave a small shrug. “I wanted it to be a surprise when you got back.”

Now both of Beck’s eyebrows were raised. “Oh, well you succeeded, Jude! I am indeed surprised!”

Her eyes went to the baby in her mother’s arms. Newborn babies generally had the same face so it was hard to tell which parent Cleo looked like. But she definitely had the thick Derringer hair and what looked like a very small version of Jude’s nose. She was so tiny.

Her gaze returned to Jude and Molly. “So... what’s the situation here?” She waved her hand between them. “Are you together?” If Jude was both a father and practicing monogamy she was sure that would be her last straw.

Molly laughed. “Oh, stars no!” She glanced at Jude and then shook her head. “No, your brother couldn’t keep that in his pants even if he tried.”

Jude laughed and gave a shrug. “This is true!”

“And I’m a big practicer of monogamy. We’re strictly co-parenting,” Molly explained. “I see how Jude is with his students and I thought he would be able to manage this.”

Beck blinked. “You... also work at his school?”

Jude answered. “Yeah, Molly joined the faculty this year. We got real munted at a before-the-school-year faculty bash and the rest is history. She teaches art theory.”

An artist, huh. At least Jude had good taste in baby mamas.

“I also had a procedure done immediately after I received the news,” Jude told Beck. “You know, so next time I forget to wrap it up, it won’t result in such a big surprise. Totally reversible, in case I ever want to give Cleo siblings someday.”

“Which you shouuuuuld,” Bonnie remarked.

Jude rolled his eyes and looked over at Bonnie. “Mum, one thing at a time, yeah?”

Bonnie shrugged innocently before directed her attention back to her precious grandbaby.

This was a lot to process. How did so much change from the last time she was here?

Jude seemed to catch on to Beck’s thinking. Twin telepathy. His head tilted to one side.

“Becca? So what do you think?”

Beck looked at him. Then at Molly. Then at her mom and Cleo. Then back at Jude.

“What do I think? I’m pissed, first of all, that you kept this from me for this long.” She saw the expression in Jude change, prepared to take whatever fire was about to come his way. “Second of all... I never expected that hearing you becoming a dad would make me so happy.”

Now there was shock on his face. He hadn’t expected to hear that part. Beck looked at the tiny infant in Bonnie’s arms.

“She’s so beautiful, Jude,” Beck continued. “I can’t believe you created her.” She looked at Molly. “You sure he’s the dad?”

Jude and Molly both laughed.

“Oh I’m sure. I was going through a real dry spell before that night,” Molly said maybe a bit too candidly, but Beck had quickly gathered she was the very honest type.

“You want to hold her, Becca?” Jude asked.

Beck looked at the baby. She wasn’t exactly a seasoned baby-holder. But she also wasn’t a coward, so, she nodded.

Bonnie carefully handed the baby over to her, and Beck looked down at her. She couldn’t believe she was an aunt. Again, because this didn’t take away the fact that Jack and Jenn would always be her niece and nephew no matter what her deal with Julia was. She gave Cleo a small tap on the nose.

“Hi Cleo,” she spoke quietly with a soft smile. “I’m your Aunty Becca. I’m so happy to meet you.”

Cleo looked up curiously at this new face she hadn’t seen before. She cooed curiously, before a tiny hand grabbed Beck’s finger.

Beck immediately knew that she would love this little bean for the rest of her life.

#self para

5 notes · View notes