#and vic was the most upset about that!!!

[isqbelevans]

vic being more upset about bianca going to new york without them than their husband cheating really says a lot

[svtskneecaps]

jaiden's adventures in purgatory remain the most BALLER shit like bolas took a beach episode and she had the WACKIEST three hours actual definition of gaslight girlboss literally the most iconic fucking moment to come out of it for me

[brainfilehasstoppedworking]

If I keep seeing my fav VAs get accused of sexual assault I'm gonna start tweaking fr fr

[wileys-russo]

put a ring on it II l.williamson x reader

lil LW6 fic based on this request put a ring on it II l.williamson x reader

"here she is!" you sung out as you launched yourself onto your friends back, alessia stumbling slightly but finding her footing with a laugh. "player of the match! player of the match!" you continued to cheer as alessia hoisted you up properly carrying you round on her back as you did your laps.

"the penalty was perfect less, see i told you they weren't cursed!" you grinned, pulling her into a tight hug as she placed you back down on your feet. "doesn't mean i'll be putting my hand up to take anymore!" the blonde shook her head, though neither of you were unable to keep the smile off her face with a 4-1 win over chelsea.

"i see now why the two of you are so perfect for each other." the taller girl laughed as you both clapped and waved to the fans, nodding toward your girlfriend who was getting a piggyback of her own off manu.

"leah's got an excuse though you're just lazy!" alessia teased, often having you demanding she piggyback you around on national duty and now you played for the same club team.

"you're one to talk! who carries all the bags when we go shopping?" you laughed shoving her, waving at a small group of girls who called out your name. "who buys the most and therefore has the most bags to carry!" the blonde countered bumping her shoulder into yours.

"thats definitely you babe, because its me who carries all the bag when we go shopping!" suddenly your girlfriend appeared, wedging her way in between the two of you with her arms slung over both yours and alessia's shoulders.

"i earn and spend my money the way i want, why all this hate!" you tutted with a playful roll of your eyes, the three of you falling into conversation as you continued on your lap round the emirates.

"heard you've got some competition for your girls hand leah!" kyra zoomed past with a cheeky grin, leah frowning in confusion but unable to ask for any further context as kyra sprinted off chased by vic.

"i didn't know your relationship was open williamson. can i have a crack?" katie was next, playfully kissing your cheek with a wink as now both you and leah looked on in confusion.

your relationship with leah could be described as private but not secret. for years now you'd posted pictures with and of one another, but paid no mind to the spamming of comments asking if you were together.

you lost no sleep to the rumours of what you two were and made no move to placate or deny them, rather just happily existing together and focusing your energy on your relationship rather than what people thought about it or assumed it to be.

however it was most certainly not open.

"what the hell is everyone on about?" leah huffed, annoyance replacing confusion as you squeezed her bicep to try and gain her attention seeing she was becoming upset. "um, i might have an idea." alessia chuckled beside you, clearly trying to cover up her amusement but failing miserably.

nudging the two of you she tried to subtly point something out in the crowd, and it didn't take very long for leah to follow along. "oh you are taking the piss mate." came the scoff and grumble as you tried to catch on, alessia rolling her eyes and moving your head so you finally spotted it.

"ohh." you sighed in realisation, your girlfriends mumblings beside you and closed off body language now making a lot more sense. "do they think thats going to work?" you laughed, which was cleary the wrong thing to say as leah scoffed again and stormed off before you could say another word.

"will you be saying i do then?" you grunted as the tables turned and kyra reappeared, jumping onto your back and wrapping her legs around your waist, vic and teyah not far behind her.

the teasing in question was all due to a large sign reading 'marry me y/n?' held up by a grinning girl who definitely looked too young for you whose eye contact you avoided as you turned away from the sign.

"someone will be sleeping with the dogs tonight!" vic roared with laughter as leah shot you a look over her shoulder and followed into the tunnel after beth.

"i didn't even do anything! this is all of your faults for pointing out that stupid sign and winding her up." you huffed and promptly dropped kyra, who swore after you as teyah helped her up and you hurried off toward where your girlfriend had dissapeared.

though before you could go after her there was a small group of fans calling your name and you diverted, spending a little while alongside laia and alessia signing and chatting things before finally breaking away and heading inside.

returning to the change rooms everyone seemed to be in good spirits and celebrations were in full swing. music was pumping and you couldn't help but laugh at some of your friends and team mates dance moves which were more than questionable.

"having fun wally?" you grinned at the poor swiss woman who was desperately trying to count heads for how many people to include in a dinner booking at one of the teams favorite pubs later tonight, with very little success.

"lee and i will be there." you laughed at her pleading eyes, kissing her cheek and searching the room for the blonde in question. "hey have you seen leah?" you asked beth who finally sat down to take her boots off and stopped singing (yelling) for five seconds at vivs pleading.

"maybe that way somewhere." beth jerked her thumb over her shoulder toward the rest of the team as you rolled your eyes. "yeah thanks beffy." you chuckled, quickly changing out of your socks and boots, a twenty minute warning given for the bus leaving you scrambled toward the showers just beating stina into the last free one.

knowing there was a line of inpatient girls waiting their turn who were only growing rowdier now someone had popped a bottle of champagne, you were fast with your shower and the way you changed into clean dry clothes in record time.

you'd think with the way the team was carrying on you'd all won the conti cup again though amusing as the celebrations were a frown was very much present on your face seeing leah was still nowhere to be seen.

you tried calling her as you grabbed your bag and filed out of the change rooms but huffed as it rang out and went to voicemail. "she's probably driving, she drove herself and laura right?" alessia tried to reassure you as your eyes roamed the carpark, leahs car nowhere in sight at all.

"yeah maybe." you mumbled, following the taller girl up and into the bus, loading your bags and settling into your seat. "ah ah no anti social behaviour we're celebrating!" you groaned as beth snatched your headphones from your hands, hanging them around her neck with a wink as jen ruffled your hair and steph smiled apologetically.

much as you did worry about leah a half hour later you couldn't help but laugh and try not to let your overthinking consume your mind too much as karaoke was in full swing and you'd almost arrived back to colney.

"macca please, give our ears a break!" alessia groaned playfully beside you, her head falling to your shoulder as the two of you plugged your ears and the older girl scoffed, making a point to saunter over closer and yell mr brightside even louder, vic belting it out from the other end of the bus.

you continued to check your phone, having still tried to call around to leah and sending her a few messages all of which had gone unanswered. "hey, get out of your head." alessia tapped at your forehead sensing the worried nervous energy pouring out of you.

"why would she be mad at you? you didn't make that sign, you didn't interact with the fan who made it, you didn't encourage anything." the girl rubbed your back comfortingly as she drew you in for a hug and the bus parked up, everyone hurrying off and agreeing to meet for dinner at seven sharp.

"text me yeah?" alessia encouraged as you nodded and sent her a grateful smile before slipping into your car and flicking through your playlists, needing the right sort of music to try and pull yourself from your thoughts as you drove home.

a small sense of relief flooded through you seeing leahs car was indeed in the driveway once you arrived, meaning at least she was home. quickly parking and shutting off your engine you grabbed your bag from the back and headed toward the front door.

though before you could even get a hand on the door it swung open taking you off guard, though the state of your girlfriend caught you even more so by surprise. "why are you-" you started, your girlfriend dressed up in a beige two piece suit with her hair done and light makeup apparent on her features.

"we're going out." leah announced, ushering you inside and grabbing your bag for you. "for dinner with the girls? i didn't think we were meeting until seven and we were just going to the local." you wandered in with a confused frown as leah shook her head.

"no, just you and i. i already called lia and let her know!" your girlfriend answered the question before you could even ask it. "but-" you started cut off by a shake of the blondes head.

"no more questions. our reservations at five and i already laid out something for you to wear. go change please darling!" leahs hands landed on your shoulders, turning and gently pushing you toward your shared bedroom. "you're being very weird williamson." you stated glancing at her over your shoulder as she waved you off and started to unpack your bag for you.

~

"come on babe it's nearly five!" leah groaned, still refusing to answer any of your questions as you finished doing your hair, nodding happily with the final product and grabbing your bag.

"hey thats not the bag i chose or the shoes!" leah huffed with a frown at your changes. "as sweet as it is that you wanted to dress me love, i get final say." you smiled pecking her lips and silencing any further protests.

"isn't it nearly five?" you reminded as she attempted to argue again, the blonde nodding and taking your hand, locking up after you and hurrying to open your door as you slid inside. "such a gentlewoman." you teased, the defender grinning and stealing a kiss before shutting your door and rushing around to her own side.

"will you tell me where we're going now?" you asked as leah pulled out of the driveway with a shake of her head, nodding for you to select some music. "you're an incredibly frustrating individual sometimes i leah catherine." you sighed but grabbed her phone none the less since it connected first.

"you still love me but." leah smirked teasingly, eyes focused on the road as she tapped her fingers on the steering wheel in time with the music. "lee. why did you run off today?" you questioned after a comfortable silence had fallen between you, unable to ignore the topic any longer.

"i didn't, just had to drop laura home." leah shrugged it off as you gave up trying to work out where you were going as she turned the opposite way that you expected her to.

"right. only after we saw that silly sign you seemed-" you continuned softly, cut off as leah turned up the current song and started to loudly sing along, wordlessly sending the message she didn't want to answer.

dropping it for now not wanting to spoil the blondes seemingly improved mood before a meal together you sang along with her as she drove. "oh we've not been here before." you perked up as leah finally turned in and parked, not recognizing where you were.

"some of the girls recommended it awhile back, i think dean took steph here for their anniversary if my memory serves correct?" leah commented, parking up and clicking her tongue at you as you went to open your door.

"you really are something else." you smiled as she appeared in front of you swinging the door open. "i will open doors any day for you my pretty lady." leah bowed as you smacked her shoulder and the defender stood up straight with a grin, grabbing your hand and placing a gentle kiss to your interlocked fingers.

the two of you fell into step as another comfortable silence fell between you, the sun starting to set bathing you in a warm golden glow, the dark clouds from earlier today now long gone.

"williamson." leah spoke with a smile to the hostess at the front who nodded, grabbing two menus and leading the two of you through the resteraunt. "its beautiful in here lee." you squeezed your girlfriends hand with an awestruck smile at the interior.

floor to roof there were old stone pillars, painted to look washed out as plants hung from the tops and vines spiraled around them, gold edged finishing on the dark mid century wooden furniture.

"wait till you see outside." leah murmered, kissing your cheek with a smile as the two of you were lead outside, your eyes lighting up seeing a small fire pit. "here?" you asked as the waitress gestured for the two of you to take a seat, the semi circle bench with an in built table a little sunk into the ground creating a cosy but private atmosphere.

there was a live band playing on a small stage and the soft chatter from your fellow diners just added to the cosy atmosphere as you thanked the hostess and sat down, leah making sure you were comfortable before taking a seat herself.

"like it?" leah raised an eyebrow but curiously and a little nervously, the two of you were creatures of habit and seldom tried new places, rather preferring the guaranteed satisfaction of what you knew wouldn't disappoint you.

"it's perfect leah. but why?" you laughed quietly, leaning in to kiss her properly and pulling away, neither of you overly large fans of pda given your shared 'famous' status and the risk of prying eyes or phone cameras.

"do i now need a reason to take my beautiful wonderful gorgeous girlfriend out for a nice meal?" leah smiled charmingly, resting her chin on her hand. "mm no but its much less suspicious when you do have one." you retorted, knocking your knee against hers as someone arrived to take your order.

not even having glanced at the menu yet you both smiled apologetically and ordered drinks, busying yourselves deciding what to eat and ordering food once your drinks arrived.

"so this lovely spontaneous meal would have nothing to do with that sign today then would it love?" you asked with a quirk of your eyebrow, sipping on your drink as leah rolled her eyes.

"no it would not!" "you do realise i've known you for years now williamson and you are a terrible liar."

"alright maybe the sign had me a little tiny teeny weeny bit jealous. but mostly i realised we'd not had a proper date night in far too long!" she grinned at the last part of her answer, hoping you'd skip over the first bit.

"jealous i might marry a wee stranger with a sign were we? thats a bit rom com cliche for me my love." you chuckled as your girlfriend playfully smacked your leg and finished her drink, setting the empty glass down as within seconds it was whisked away by someone.

"dunno i bet if i turned up outside your window with a big speaker and confessed my undying love for you you'd be swooning quite hard darling." leah smiled, eyes ablaze with nothing but sheer adoration for you.

"that would have certainly been much more romantic." you teased, leahs cheeks flushing pink at the memory. "stop! i was young and nervous and....sweaty." the defender cringed, having practically cornered you in the showers sweating bullets with nerves and practically yelling at you to go on a date with her.

"now babe how did it go again?" you pondered as leah groaned and hid her face in her hands. "go on a date with me tomorrow!" you mocked her accent and hummed. "no that wasn't it." you stroked your chin thoughtfully as your girlfriend groaned louder and smacked your knee, hiding her face in her hands.

"date tomorrow me please really like you!" you again mocked her accent and nervous stutter with a wolfish grin as the blonde was saved any further embarrassment as your food arrived.

the two of you grew up together on the football pitch in your teen years, both growing quite close through the arsenal academy leah made her senior team debut just a season before you and you couldn't be prouder.

though the distance between you now as you stayed training with the b team meant she realised she wanted to be more than friends and harboured quite unfriendly feelings.

feelings she made the mistake of confessing to her new teammates who'd at first teased her relentlessly and then came the ongoing pushing to tell you how she felt.

leah finally cracked once you signed your own contract and were finally training by her side again, the teasing growing worse for a very clearly flustered leah, a side you weren't used to having known her to be occasionally over confident.

you'd chalked it down to nerves for the talks of her impending senior national team call up, everyone else chalked it up to her being disgustingly head over heels for you and surprisingly too scared to let you know.

this meant six agonisingly slow months passed where leah continued to be given shit for the pining looks sent your way when you weren't looking, until one day something snapped and she decided no more would she hide the truth away.

it may have coincidentally also been the day she heard rumours of you allegedly being dragged along speed dating later that night with some of the other older girls 'for a laugh'.

so swallowing every single doubt which screamed at her this was a terrible idea leah had tried time and time again that day to speak with you, but something or someone seemed to pop up and get in the way every time.

which had been what lead to the abrupt and incredibly awkward shower room incident, though really as much as leah was horrifically mortified you'd found it endearingly cute.

given you still teased her for it this day and the two of you had been dating for years and years now as leah got older the regret of how she'd gone about asking you out had begun to melt away.

"ready to go baby girl?" leah asked as your plates were cleared, the two of you practically now sitting on top of one another as you relished in the welcome warmth both from the fire pit and one anothers bodies.

"did you want one more drink?" you turned your head to question, quite comfortable in your current position. "nah, one of us has to be sober enough to drive home." leah teased, ducking her head to press her lips to yours, pulling away far sooner than you'd have liked as she squeezed your hips indicating you stand up.

making your way hand in hand through the restaurant, now both well fed and a tiny bit tipsy in your case you both cared less about the displays of affection, having been papped together many times over the years anyway but just never directly addressing anything.

thanking the hostess leah was quick to grab the door for you, your cheeks flushing bright red as she lightly patted your bum as she walked out after you, causing you to shoot her a playful glare over your shoulder.

the blonde was even quicker to pull off her suit jacket, draping it over your bare shoulders and silencing your protests that now she would be cold with several kisses, mumbling about how she was warming herself up with them causing you to laugh against her lips.

many sweet kisses and cheesy compliments exchanged during the walk back to the car you shrugged off leahs arm and darted to her door, pulling it open for her for once as she raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"must be the jacket." you teased as she rolled her eyes but slid into the car, making a point to lean over the console to push open your own door for you anyway.

finally pulling into your driveway with a firm look from your girlfriend you waited patiently for her to make her own way to your door, gasping in mock surprise as she pulled it open and once again bowed.

"sap!" you teased shoving her as you grabbed her hand and stood, leah closing the door and locking her car up after you. "okay before we go inside." your girlfriend started halting you in your tracks by the front door, causing a suspicious frown to grow on your face.

"i need you to trust me please." the taller girl took your hands in hers with a gentle squeeze as you slowly nodded. "i do."

"okay good. now please put this on then, no questions." leah reached into the pocket of her trousers and pulled out a blindfold as you raised an eyebrow but begrudgingly did as she asked, flinching as her hands fell to your shoulders once you'd heard her unlock the front door.

"i got you." she chuckled, pressing a kiss to your shoulder and carefully guiding you inside, murmering when steps were coming or there was obstacles.

you heard the back door sliding open and felt your girlfriend carefully help you down the back steps as she asked you kick off your shoes and your feet sunk into the soft grass of the backyard.

eventually you felt yourself step onto something rougher causing your eyebrows to furrow curiously as leahs hands fell from your body and you heard some shuffling around but you knew there wasn't a point to you asking anything as she would just not answer.

"okay, you can take it off now love."

it took a few moments for your eyes to adjust once you'd pulled off the cloth blindfold but once they did your hand flew to your mouth and your body locked up, your reaction clearly amusing the blonde knelt down in front of you.

the roughness beneath you was a large aztec blanket, with two beanbags and cushions scattered all around as lanterns and fairy lights hung from the trees and on each corner of the blanket around you illuminating your backyard in a soft golden glow.

"leah..." you trailed off, shaking your head unable to find words as she sent you a soft smile and held up her hand to silence you.

"now you know why i was so pissed off with that stupid bloody sign today. i've had this planned out for weeks and of course the day i choose to do it, which i promise was long pre planned, some other randoms got a sign asking for your hand and making me look like some jealous numpty whose concocted a last minute proposal just to spite some teenage fangirl!" leah scoffed with a shake of her head making you let out a half laugh half sob as her features softened.

"you're such an idiot." you managed to get out making her grin and shuffle forward a little, reaching into her other trouser pocket as your heart rate accelerated even faster if that was humanely possible.

"jesus christ." you exhaled shakily as she pulled out a small velvet box and popped it open, the ring inside glinting back at you. "not my name love but i'll take it." leah grinned boyishly as you again let out a laugh, hand still covering your mouth in shock.

"my beautiful girl. i've loved you for as long as i've known you and though it took me a little bit to realise i think i might've been in love with you that entire time too." leah started as your knees felt like buckling.

"you are the most warm, caring, kind, attentive, empathetic, passionate and selfless person i've ever had the utter pleasure of having in my life let alone the absolute honor of calling my partner in life. you've always been the one whose better with words between us but i'm going to do my very best to remember all of-" as excitement shot through your body you couldn't help but interrupt.

"yes!" you cried out suddenly, taking leah off guard as she faltered mid speech and your face blushed bright red. "yes?" leah asked wide eyed as you nodded furiously. "yes, yes, yes, a million times yes." you laughed as another sob wracked your body.

the blonde was up and on her feet within seconds and hoisting you off the ground, spinning you around as tears of joy spilt over from her own eyes and you wasted no time smashing your lips to hers.

"i had a whole lovely long heartfelt speech planned out about how much i love and adore you dickhead. i've proposed to laura, lia and beth about three thousand times now for practice!" leah laughed against your lips as she carefully settled you back down on your feet and pressed her forehead to yours.

"save it for your vows?" you smiled guiltily, biting down on your bottom lip as leah let out a pelt of laughter, letting go of you to wipe away her tears before very gently wiping away your own with the pad of her thumb, tugging you into yet another kiss.

"wait! at least let me-" she pulled away and dropped down onto one knee again, carefully pulling out the ring and placing the box down by her side.

"may i please be your wife?" leah asked, eyes once more welling up with tears as you nodded and she grabbed your hand, sliding the ring onto your finger as you pulled her up to her feet.

"you know i also had this to get to, you really are so inpatient!" leah threw her head back with a laugh, stepping back and lifting one of the beanbags pulling out a bundle of red.

as she dropped it open you let out a laugh of your own, seeing it was an arsenal jersey with williamson on the back but with your own number, clearly an indicator of the future to come.

"mm mrs williamson has such a perfect ring to it my girl, i can't wait to be your wife." "i love you so so very much, fiance." "i bet that girl is gonna feel proper stupid now." "leah!" "what? she beat me to the punch but i got the final knockout." "you're forever and always the winner in my eyes baby."

[axolau]

TRANSFORMERS PRIME RANT

content warning: discussions of physical/psychological abuse

I’m going to try to write a rant but we’ll see how good I am at stringing my words together.

I love Transformers Prime with my whole heart, particularly Starscream, and despite and because of this, I don’t like the way his character plays out in season three.

After Starscream rejoins the decepticons at the end of season two, the abuse he receives from Megatron gets way worse. Megatron physically beat Starscream quite often in season one, and as season three progresses, this treatment is on full display and gets so much worse. And these abuse scenes are genuinely horrible and upsetting. Megatron physically dominates Starscream, who is much smaller and thinner, and the show spends a lot of time emphasizing his fear and screams as Megatron beats him.

Alongside Starscream’s abuse getting worse, he also gets significant Stockholm syndrome in season three, which makes the whole situation one thousand times ickier. While in season one Starscream tried to usurp and fight back against Megatron, now he looks up to the person who is actively and regularly beating him half to death.

But there’s nothing wrong with depicting a toxic character dynamic, it’s how the narrative frames it that matters.

Starscream gets treated worse by Megatron while thinking better of him as the show goes on. And the only people we get to see this ugly situation through the eyes of are Starscream and Megatron, who both think this is fine in one way or another.

We never get to see any other character acknowledge the abusive relationship. The autobots are totally oblivious or totally uncaring that it’s happening, and you can bet the other Decepticons aren’t going to do anything about it. Even after Megatron leaves behind his goal of oppression, he shows no regret of how he’d treated Starscream, the person who he had arguably made suffer the most. He just shouts at him and makes him flinch one last time then abandons him. He continues to mistreat him then leaves him behind. Leaves behind the person who he had physically and psychologically destroyed for thousands if not millions of years. Although I don’t expect Megatron to show sympathy for Starscream, since his ‘redemption’ was just him retiring and leaving everyone else to clean up the mess he made. (I have good and bad feelings on Megatron’s ending, but I don’t want to get too sidetracked)

What matters is, without Megatron acknowledging the horribleness of the situation, and without the autobots being aware of it, the only person who can acknowledge how toxic the situation was is Starscream.

But he doesn’t get this chance. His arc ends when the Predacons beat him up for revenge.

Starscream is an abuse victim, and he is never given a chance to heal. No character, himself included, ever fully acknowledges how problematic the situation is. He is never given a chance to be powerful. Over and over again he is forced to be weak and without agency. From the start of season three to the end of the movie, his character is a slow trickle into suffering more and more, being beaten down again and again until he doesn’t get back up.

When watching the show, I was fine with the amount of frightening abuse they were depicting on screen because I thought they would have some amount of healing from it. But it just gets worse and worse until the show ends and that’s it. It just feels like abuse for the sake of abuse at this point.

But the thing is, I’m not even opposed to Starscream having a bad ending. Let me explain.

I think it makes sense after him being conniving and evil and power hungry and cruel for his actions to catch up for him, and for him to be humbled in one way or another.

The thing is, they depicted Starscream’s fall to shame without ever giving him a moment of power. There’s no climax in season three where he takes control of his life again. There’s no moment where he gets to be more than humiliated and shamed.

Starscream is a victim, and he’s an abuser as well. He treats everyone around him horribly. He is a perpetuator of the cycle of abuse, where, after being abused by Megatron and others, he started to replicate their cruelty in order to have power.

The story needed to recognize him as both an abuser and a victim. It seemed to think these cancel out. That Starscream being beat by the Predacons in the end is the consequence of his abusive actions towards others coming back to haunt him. But just as a middle school bully doesn’t deserve to go home and be bullied by their sibling, an abuser does not deserve to be abused by another person. No one deserves to be abused.

Starscream being abused doesn’t pay for his crimes. And he isn’t just being humbled for treating the predacons badly; he’s being tortured.

As an abuser, Starscream deserved to see the consequences of his actions in some way, but as a victim, Starscream deserved any kind of moment of victory.

All this to say, this isn’t about wether or not Starscream deserved to be beat by the predacons (although I maintain that we should have better mindsets about paying for our crimes than “abusers deserve abuse”). This is about the fact that he deserved to see a shred of honor before his fall as well.

This is about the fact that as an abuse victim, he is given not a shred of dignity or an acknowledgment of his pain. His descent in season three isn’t even a character arc. There’s no growth, no resolution, no rising or falling climax. Like I said before, it’s just him suffering over and over, until the series ends.

Starscream is perhaps a good, although tragic, depiction of an abuser: a character who treats others poorly until it finally catches up to him. But he is a bad and problematic depiction of a victim: someone who never gets to be seen, even by himself.

[pelova4president]

Shadows are to protect III

Alessia Russo x Putellas!Reader

Victoria Pelova x Putellas!Reader

shadows are to protect I, II, IV

summary~ Victoria has been nothing but good to you but somehow you find a way to ruin everything

You picked the dead plants up and carried them into your kitchen that was still covered in white flour. Surely you could bring them back to life right. They just needed a little more loving and they’d come back. A little water and some sunlight.

You were puzzled by Alessia’s reaction. She didn’t want you, she made that very clear. But why was she so upset about it. Okay yeah, you made sure to show her that you were over her, that you moved on. But she had a boyfriend, she shouldn't even care.

You took a good look at the plants, they were doomed. In some way they were just like humans. They needed to be taken care of, they need love, light and water. They can't survive on their own, at least not long. Some can, like a cactus. But even they can't remain alive like that forever.

You've been doing most things by yourself, until Alessia. She was your water and sun until she wasn't. And you had held yourself up after but you couldn't keep doing that forever so you'd gone to your sister and then Vicky came along. And Victoria didn't just give you water and sun, she took care of you. And maybe that was the difference between the two of your teammates. One cared for you and the other pretended to.

Victoria was there for you when you needed her and she actually liked being around you. Alessia loved the idea of you, she was there whenever she wanted you. Not when you wanted her. It was a hard pill to swallow but it was the truth. You've been romanticizing this idea of Alessia Russo, the goalscorer, the golden girl, the fucking winner.

And the fucking worst of it all was that you still cared for her.

You fell into a new routine in the upcoming weeks. Victoria insisted on driving you to training even though she was clumsy in her car, maybe even more than Alessia. She'd buy you coffee on the way to training and you'd kiss her thank you every time. It was nice, she was nice.

Victoria took you out on dates after games and you'd have little picnic dates after training. You'd make the food and she covered the drinks. The two of you would spent hours playing with puppy’s and talking. You loved the park.

Training was less enjoyable. You got dirty looks from a certain striker and especially when you were with Victoria. Alessia took it upon herself to make trainings a living hell for you. She tackled you harder than was necessary and was throwing you at the ground every chance she got. You were absolutely fucking done with it and so were your teammates.

“God, Alessia what has gotten into you!” Leah scolded the blonde when she made yet another unnecessary hard tackle. “Nothing, just a bad day.” she grumbled. But Leah knew it wasn’t a bad day, she’s been doing this to you for a long time now. “Whatever, keep that out of training okay. No need to injure our own players.” Leah told her. You rolled your eyes at her, why did she have to act like this.

It wasn’t until days later that you spoke Alessia again. She hadn’t reached out since that kiss with Vic. You didn’t try to text her, if she wanted to say something she should be the one reaching out to you.

Vic drove you to Viv and Beth’s house. They planned some kind of victory dinner before the national camps. You were actively trying to get more along with the team since Victoria was close with most of the girls and you knew she’d love it for you if you got closer with them. Viv was like family for her so you tried your best to put your awkward self away to attend a team dinner.

Everything was going fine, Beth welcomed you in and Rona and Myle were happy to see you too. The dinner was amazing, since Viv cooked it for you. It’s been a while since you had a home made meal so it was nice. There were people all over their house talking and eating, it was kind of like team hang outs you had in Barcelona.

Looking around, in search of a Dutch girl’s eyes your eyes caught those of an English player. Her blues were drilling into you. It was hard to ignore the feeling of someones eyes on you, so you didn’t. You stared right back at her and the only reaction you got was a huff and some eye rolling. Jesus, what did she want.

You got up, ready to pour yourself another drink. “Vicky, you want another drink?” you asked the brunette. She was in a conversation with Teyah so she shook her head no. You walked towards their kitchen. The chaotic noise of conversations was still somewhat on the background but the quieter space was still nice.

Filling your wine glass with some water, something Caitlin would take the mick out of later, you leaned into the wall.

You were somewhat in peace until someone bumped into you. Your eyes shot open, “What the fuck?” you groaned. Blue eyes stared back at you, totally unimpressed. “What? Can’t take a little push, just like in training. Grow up man.” Alessia rolled her eyes.

Now you were getting mad. She’s been the one telling you to fuck off, how you were clingy and that she didn’t want you. “What is your fucking problem. I’ve done nothing to you, i stopped bothering you right? Just like how you wanted.” you placed your glass on the counter.

Alessia took a step towards you. “Yeah so you got with my best friend to get back at me. You’re so fucking selfish.” she huffed out.

“Joder, I didn’t do anything to you! I’ve let you do your thing with your boyfriend. I didn’t say anything to anyone about us, just how you’d like that right. I was just your dirty little secret no one should know about.” you walked out. But she captured your wrist before you could take another step.

“I broke up with him weeks ago and when i wanted tell you i saw you.. with Victoria. I wanted to say sorry but then you seemed like you didn’t want it anymore.” she whispered carefully.

It was hard to believe she wanted you, especially after what she had said to you. “Don’t say that, you don’t want to be with me. You made that very clear.” you turned around. Alessia’s brows were knitted together and her eyes were getting glossy. But she did that every time. And every time she got what she wanted, you in her bed by the end of the night. And after, she told you those lies all over again. How she didn’t want you, how nobody could ever want you and the next Saturday she’d look at you with those eyes and you’d fall for it all over again. It wasn’t healthy.

“Alessia, don’t.” you looked at her. But she didn’t take that for an answer and took your head in her hands like she’d done on some many other evenings. But those evenings were in one of your houses, where nobody could see. Her lips touched yours and you didn’t pull away, not fast enough.

You heard someone clear their throat and that pulled you out of your trance. You opened you eyes and saw Vic standing there with an empty glass in hand. “I- i uh i was just getting something to drink but..” her voice trembled.

“Vicky. Vic, i’m sorry but it’s not what you think it is.” you got out of Alessia’s grasp but Victoria was faster. She picked her keys up from the dinner table and walked out of the door.

Alessia watched the scene play out in front of her and placed her hand on your shoulder. You pushed her hand off of you. “Fucking look what you did Alessia! I don’t want you okay, you’re confusing me and i don’t need that. I just want someone that loves me as much as i love them and you clearly don’t” you breathed out. The tears had found an escape in the corners of your eyes and they traveled down your cheeks. You wiped them away angrily and walked out of the door.

Why couldn’t Alessia just leave you alone. You were finally getting along with everyone, you found your person, football was going good but she just couldn’t let you be. You’ve hurt Victoria, the only person that cared about you enough to be there for you.

You took your phone out of your back pocket and called her. No answer.

“Vicky, lo lamento. I didn’t want that. I only want you and our picnic dates, your weird movie choices and your clumsiness. I’m so so sorry. I will explain everything if you give me the chance. Ik hou van jou.” you spoke.

You knew she never listened to her voicemail but it was worth a shot. Maybe she’d listen to it. You had to leave for camp tomorrow and somehow that felt worse than your situation here. You had to pretend everything was fine and you were thriving at Arsenal like always. And you had to leave Victoria, that just wasn’t fair. You don’t get the chance to make it right.

And even though you don’t have a choice in leaving, you want to stay, or even better, disappear.

A/N i don’t know what i’m writing anymore. It seems like the story is only getting more angsty and there has to be another part. Should r just disappear and move or something?

[starsetven]

Would Link or Vic be upset if the MC addressed them about their jealousy??? Or would they just gaslight out of the situation?

Vic and Link would be upset.

They would gaslight you.

Communicating something to Vic like this would only serve to make him feel more insecure in your relationship. He’d start to spiral, he’d start having intrusive thoughts. Thoughts like maybe he should just kidnap you.

“Who knows what their intentions are! I’m sorry if i hurt your feelings, I just feel I know what’s best for you! I just want to keep you safe. Is that so wrong??”

Vic would do everything to keep your attention on him and him alone, only to double down and get defensive and angry at your more than fair confrontation.

And If you didn’t accept his ‘apology’…

Link wouldn’t outright react to your confrontational approach, rather internalizing his feelings to keep things civil- to keep things in control.

“I’m sorry you feel that way, my dear. I’ll make an effort to better my behavior for your sake.”

Link would aim to please your feelings by telling you whatever he thought would be what you needed to hear most in the moment instead of genuinely taking accountability for his toxicity-

aiming to pacify you, above all else.

All the while tracking your emotional state to ensure the best possible outcome for your happy ending

[shelbgrey]

I was wondering if you could write a Seeley Booth x reader fic possibly with friends to lovers or just let the vibes take you. Thank you :)

Friends to Lovers Headcanons:

Paring: Seeley Booth x Sweets!Reader, Sister!Reader X Brother!Lance Sweets.

Summary: headcanons about the evolving relationship of Agent Seeley Booth and Dr. Y/n Sweets.

A/n: hope you don't mind it being in headcanon form, if you want a short story you can message me with the details or send in another ask for the inbox, I'm all ears :)

MasterList

You two start off at 'right person wrong time'. You didn't really know how to deal with a relationship, nor did you have good ones in the past. Then Seeley had his eyes fixated on Temperance Brennan.

You two obviously had feelings for each other, you just didn't realize it, so you started off as friends. Your the older Sister of Lance Sweets and it took a while for him to gain your trust. You were too busy always worrying about your brother and you didn't really like how Seeley treated him at first.

He calls you Lady Sweets and prefers your comapany above all others. He kinda wormed his way into your heart.

“are you always like this?” you asked half annoyed.

“what are you talking about, I'm a joy to be around”

It started off as jokes to break the ice and soon you relized how much you two had in common.

After a couple of cases that tested both of your trust and patience, you guys were well on your way to calling yourselves best friends.

Then it got to the point that he was the only person you felt safe with.

“I'd die for you.. Ya know?” he told you after he almost lost you. “right back at you”

With that you guys usually open up to each other, mostly about people you have a 'crush' on or wouldn't minde getting in bed with, this of course was just a cover up.

But what took you guys longer to open up about was your home lives and his time in the army. Seeley trusts you with everything, even is own life so it was only a matter of time before he opened up about it.

He talked about his time as a snipper and how he lost the people closest to him during that time.

You'd tell about the awful foster homes you and Lance got sent to and how you always had to protect him. Lance was too young to remember, but you took most of the beating for him.

You started crying when you told him the stories, that was the first time he's ever seen you cry. He didn't care just held you in his arms with zero judgment.

When he started having feelings for Temperance Brennan, you were crushed but still supported him. At the time you didn't know why you felt so angry and sad, but you kept between yourself and your Shrink brother.

“I'm NOT in love with Seeley Booth, I love you Lance but please stay out of my love life”

You also hated how much pain she caused him, you had huge respect for Temperance and even consider her one of your closest friends, but Seeley just couldn't get the hint she wasn't ready for a relationship.

And sometimes Temperance doesn't realize what she's saying... To literal and honest that girl.

You hated seeing him so upset. “honey, she's not good enough for you anyway”

The more he hung around with you and the more cases you went on together, the more he realized you may be ✨the one✨... But he's not quite sure, with you, Bones, and work he's not sure what to do and it bugs him big time.

Everyone around you knew what was going on, they saw the way he looked at you and vic versa.

“two genius both in love with this same guy” Hodgins said.

“Brennan isn't in love with Seeley” Cam sighed shaking her head. “my money is on Y/n”

“I have to take Brennan's side on this one” Angela sighed, you don't turn your back on a best friend so you don't blame her.

You always felt a pit of jealously when Brennan was around. You either got incucure about your intelligence or if she was around Seeley, you got shy about your looks. She of course doesn't know and in the end she's a good friend.

But no matter what Seeley thinks your the most beautifulest and smartest person he's ever met. Your an Angel in his eyes.

When things got a little too cosy with Bones and Seeley you spilt your guts out to your little brother. “I'm in love with Seeley Booth”

Lance nodded, not shocked at all. “yeah..”

“what do you mean 'yeah'?”

Lance sighed with a soft smile. “it's obvious... On both sides even, don't you see the way he looks at you?”

You kept that conversation on repeat for about a week and then you and Seeley had a case together. It was easy and you of course solved it.

You were quiet the rest of the night trying to figure out how to tell him. “you okay? your really quiet tonight”

You took a deep breath and looked into those brown eyes you loved so much, so gentle and kind but could be blazing with anger in the next. You loved how much emotion they held.

“I lo... I'm just tired” yup... You chicken out, but don't worry new years rolled around pretty fast and your brother was getting tired of you being scared.

It just started off as a simple new years party, you and Seeley stuck close together and just had a good time, your almost confession didn't even cross your mind. But you couldn't help but notice how handsome he looked, in black dress shirt and leather jacket.

Then the count down started... The 5,4, 3, 2,

And just before one showed up Lance dropped the bomb shell “y/n is in love with Booth”.

All your friends looked at you and all you wanted to do was Shrink into your skin. “happy new year” you said sarcastically and blew your party thingy.

You left without another word, you didn't get to far because Seeley grabed your wrist stopping you.

You sighed and turned around. “wha-”

He pressed his lips to yours in a passionate kiss, it held years of built up tension and emotion was poured into that kiss.

“I love you too” he said, resting his forehead on yours.

Your relationship grew stronger than ever and there was so much weight being lifted from you guys.

You were always kinda touchy-Feely with each other, but now since your his girl he can't keep his hands off of you.

With you, he's like a big teddy bear.

He's super over protective, more than usual now, if you thought over protective best friend was just wait for over protective boyfriend.

He knows you can take care of yourself and he knows your a total badass, but he just wants to keep you safe...let your man's arms be your safe place.

He loves you and would do anything for you.

I think starting off as friends is what made your relationship strong and unbreakable, you love each other through the good and the bad.

“it was worth the wait” he said.

[mayasdeluca]

I had a lot to say about this episode and most of it was positive and then the last 10 minutes happened and now I'm just upset and speechless. In tears once again feeling like I did after the Pride episode. Why does this keep happening? Why is it always us?

Why is Maya having a heartfelt conversation with the man who bullied her for months? Why do we never get to see these moments happen between Maya and Carina? Why are we seeing a man centered in their storyline AGAIN? We have never seen Maya and Carina get to help each other through this IVF process, give each other their shots, be there for one another but don't worry, a man is always there to get the job done! And to know it's coming from a queer writer this time? It hurts so much more.

And then the sex montage...really? So you're going to have all the couples in the montage having sex, okay, fine. But then the double standards are just even more glaring. Maya and Carina are fully clothed, their kiss is barely even a kiss once again and they get the least amount of time while Vic and Theo who aren't even together are stripping down, kissing each other's neck, getting pushed onto the bed...it's just so upsetting. In a 10pm time slot no less.

I'm just so frustrated. What are we fighting for? For this? The show can be so good at times and then it does stuff like this that gets me physically upset. We deserve so much better.

[baldbaby69]

I don’t understand

Jack Gibson

summery

It was like having a best friend but a total stranger at the same time. Sometimes when you looked at him, you didn't recognise him which was weird because everyone said you two were inseparable but if only they knew. In the station it was always you and Jack this or you and Jack that but as soon as your shift ends you don't speak to him till the next time you put the uniform on.

︶꒦���♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

You always thought he must not have time for you. To send a text to see if you got home okay or if you ate. You always reached out first but are met with two letter replies most of the time. Maybe it was because he was a busy guy. You couldn't lie it did make you upset, you were such a dynamic duo when putting out fires and rescuing cats from trees. Why couldn't he be your dynamic duo outside of the station too?

Your best friend Vic knew somewhat of your situation and by situation she was making it a lot worse than it sounds.

'Why can't you admit you like the guy?' She sat on your bed one early morning. 'Because I don't? If Travis didn't text you every now and then after work wouldn't you be going a little crazy too?' You explain

'Yeah, a little crazy because I don't like him. You on the other hand.' Vic smirked. She picked up a chocolate you had displayed on the bed for the two of you to have. 'You're in love babe. By the way, these taste expensive. Where did you get them?'

'Oh someone we met on call sent them over, a thank you gesture.' 'And may I ask how does he know where you live.' You hesitated telling her. 'We met again at the bar.' You whispered.

She gasped being selfish with the air. 'You bad girl. Tell me hes cute.' 'Relax would you. It was a coincidence. He just happened to be at the same bar as me at the time. Then I was too drunk to drive home so.' 'Okay cowgirl, I don't want to hear the detail. So your not giving your little puppy a chance.'

You have given him a thought. Plenty of thoughts but you just don't feel like your going to be able to commit to him and he's probably chasing you because you saved his life and the adrenaline hasn't warned off yet. Either way the answer was a no.

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

The start of a 48 hour shift or 48 hours of acting as you preferred to call it. You came in one hour ago, had a nice long shower, took a long time blow drying your hair and put your clothes on in slow motion. Until the bell started to ring.

You rushed down where you greeted everyone with a quick hello and hopped into the engine. Usually you and Jack would sit in the ladder 19 up front, taking turns driving but you wanted to be given a little space. Vic messed with your head making you question your own thoughts but you wanted to prove her wrong. 'This is new.' Miller pointed out.

'Yeah whats your business here.' Maya Bishop threw a punch your way. 'Did Gibson send you here as a spy, to hear us backbite about you two?' Their questions put you in an awkward position. You didn't think they needed to know problems that only existed in your mind.

'I accidentally hung my coat on the engine. I didn't realise.' Brushing it off you tried to make small talk with Maya.

'You're coming right?' 'Sorry?'

'Did Gibson not tell you yet?' 'Tell me what?' You turned to Miller confused. 'Montgomery and Gibson are forcing me to through a little get together. He told me he was gonna let you know.' Was he not going to tell you at all

When you arrived at the location of the call, you hopped off and went to get the appropriate tools needed when you felt someone's hand on your lower back. Your turned to the culprit, to find Jack Gibson trying to reach over you to grab something. 'Kind of left me feeling lonely back there.' He nudged his head towards the trucks.

'Yeah well. That would've been me this Saturday.' You bicker to yourself. 'Saturday? They told you about that. I wanted to.' You could see Jack sulk. 'Yeah? When Sunday?'

During the whole call you kept your distance from the man everyone thought you knew so well. Took a little longer to put the fire out seeing as you needed a messenger to communicate through. Did he really not want to see you after work that he would leave you out of a work party. Your performance was off but there could've been numerous reasons. No one would suspect anything.

'What the hell. Are you trying to put this fire out by yourself. There are 4 more firefighters beside you. Work with them.' Captain Herrera yelled from a distance when he saw you trying to pull the hose into the house all by yourself. Sighing you call out to Warren to help when a pair of hands took the hose off you. Your saviour, Jack Gibson.

Following him into the house, you yell out to turn the power on. 'I'm sorry for not telling you about Saturday. I didn't see you before we got the call. I was looking for you everywhere at the station.' You managed to hear him say over the noise. 'Its whatever.'

'Something tells me thats not all your mad about.' He tried to make conversation after you two walked out of the burned down house. He took off his helmet and jogged up to match your pace. 'No Jack honestly, I'm fine, just a bit tired thats all.' He walked with you to the truck. 'Why? You alright.' He watched you pack things back into the engine. His eyes searching the side of your face for a reason of this sudden distancing. 'Just leave it.'

You turn away from him without giving him a second glance. Jack grabbed the back of your coat and dragged you backwards to ladder 19. 'Jack, what on earth.' 'Sit.'

The ride back was silence for the most of it. He was driving but you could almost count the amount of times he snuck a glance at you hoping you would speak. 'What's bothering you.'

'I bet its a special someone occupying her mind.' Hughes says from the back. 'Special someone? What since when did you start talking to someone.' Jack sounded thrown off.

'No its just this guy from that office building we took a call at a few days ago. He probably heard the girls and I talk about going to the bar after shift ended.' 'So what he followed you? Thats called stalking. Why haven't you reported?' She rolled her eyes at his concerned tone.

'Maybe because he litters her apartment with the most expensive chocolates and flowers ever. He's really something. You know she was actually planning to meet up with him for lunch.' Vic kept adding.

'I am?' 'You are?'

You lock eyes with your friend and giver her a questioned look. She just mouths the words 'trust me.'

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡︶

'Your one wicked witch.' Andy laughs. The girls were in the kitchen making a snack and talking about what happened. 'Wait so you aren't meeting him for lunch? It was a lie to make Jack jealous?' She gets the story straight.

'Not as much as making him jealous but showing him that I have a busy life.' You thought that was a better excuse. 'In other words making him jealous.'

'So if this is just a lie to make him jealous who's Jack arguing downstairs?' Bishop busts through the doors.

'Vic did you call him over here.' You ask before getting up to go towards the commotion. 'No, but who has lunch at 10am?'

'First the bar and now her place of work? Stalking is a crime you know.' Jack stood in front of a man at the front desk who was holding a bouquet of flowers. 'It's not stalking if we know each other and I don't really see how this concerns you.'

'Oh it does concern me but you don't need to worry about that. Just leave the flowers and go. Shes having food upstairs, doesn't want to be disturbed.' Jack tries to make him go away.

'Jack, Mark whats going on?' You jog down the stairs. 'Mark, you should've texted if you were going to swing by. Oh those are lovely.' He handed the flowers to you eyeing Jack in the process with a smirk. 'Yeah only the best, for you.' You give him a little side hug.

'Thank you. So sweet. You should get going now. The bell might go off anytime and I can not operate without food.' Mark gave you a smile before turning on his feet to leave.

'What's wrong with you?' You turn to Jack watching his jaw tense before answering you. 'No what's wrong with you? He's not good for you.' His eyebrows remain furrowed. 'Yeah Jack. You would know.' You head back up the stairs to put the flowers in some water.

The station had a good few hours of peace and quiet so they played a quick game of cards betting the looser to stay back on desk duty for the next three calls. The tension between the two best friends was ever so thick it hit off everyone in the room. They thought a friendly game would ease the tension, boy where they wrong. Ever since Mark left the station you have been checking ur phones notifications non-stop, occasionally texting someone back.

‘Come on, it’s your turn.’ Travis elbows ur side. ‘Yeah sorry.’ You put your phone away and lay a card down. While your attention was on your phone someone’s attention was on you. Staring you down like a hawk. His brows still sewed together.

Jack hadn’t been able to put the thought aside of you having a relationship with this guy. He wants you to be happy and he wants to make sure you get the best but some part of him doesn’t want to allow you to be happy. with someone else. Ever since he did the mistake of falling in love with Andy and proposing to her he knew he should never make the same mistake again. Date a college. So when he found himself growing attached to you the second week you joined he knew he needed to back off. Jack didn’t need another rejection.

‘Oh my god. Jack pay attention.’ Victoria called him out. Everyone had a little laugh except you because you were too busy typing away on your phone.

‘Well Jack. Poor game for you. Have fun answering phone calls.’ Bishop pats his back as the bell goes off.

‘Oh, My, God. That little baby was so cute. We have to tell Jack how you and Warren just delivered a baby in the middle of a car collision.’ Herrera hyped the two up. ‘Really it was nothing. Fun fact i actually wanted to be a paramedic before firefighter.’ You brush it off. That was before you heard a glass breaking coming from the other room. Everyone share a look before rushing to the room.

‘Jack what are you doing? Get off him.’ You run to the two men. Mark was laid on the table while Jack was about to throw what looked like another punch. Both of them had a few cuts and bruises here and there. ‘Guys help! Jack get off him.’ You try and pull the man off him.

Travis and Dean rush to your aid pulling the angered firefighter off the civilian. ‘Mark, what happened? Are you okay?’ You helped him up. Scanning his bruised cheek and busted lip. ‘He’s nuts.’

You turn to look at Jack. Two of the guys holding him back, his breathing heavy causing his muscular chest raising up and down in a hurry. ‘Are you insane?’ You yell at him. Maya rushes to your side with a first aid kit.

‘Who does he think he is walking into my station and threatening me.’ Jack gets aggressive. ‘Jack, come on. Let’s check your hand out.’

You pulled a chair for Mark to sit. ‘I got the things you asked for. I was going to wait for you like you asked but he came on to me. Accusing me of being attracted to you only because of your uniform or something. Then he kept telling me to leave-‘ You try to attend to his wounds but he kept going on and on about Jack. ‘You don’t have to say anything. I know it’s not your fault. Now where does it hurt.’

Jack sat at the back of the ambulance after Ben was finished patching up his wounds. He sat with his head in his hands. Yeah he messed up. He let his emotions get the best of him and now he’s holding an ice pack to his jaw. He heard two pair of footsteps come towards the van and instantly knew one was yours.

‘Gosh never thought Jack would go that far. I almost feel bad for riling him up.’ he hears Vic say. ‘Don’t it’s not your fault. Jack has some issues he needs to sort out.’ It pained him to think you thought of him like that. When you reached the back your eyes widened. Jack just sighed before getting up and walking away.

it was dark outside. The moonlight lit the kitchen of the station making it glisten when the lights were off. Tonight you sat there watching the sky and counting the stars. The doors opened behind you with quite footsteps walking in. You didn’t need to turn back to know who that was. You always knew he had trouble sleeping and a lot of the times you were there for him but you thought it would be different this time.

Jack looked at your back. You didn’t even turn around to see who was there. He opened the fridge and grabbed something cold. Without knowing why, he found himself walking towards you, pulling out a chair he quietly sat behind you following your eyes to find the moon staring back at him. ‘I’m sorry.’

You hesitated but looked back at him. He was only a few inches away from you. He was in his black tank top. His fists clenched around the glass of juice on the table making his muscles flex in the light. ‘What happened Jack? Your not one to throw fists for no reason.’

‘I had a great reason too.’ You watched his eyes trail away and fix on something else. Both of you stayed in silent, not knowing what to say or do.

‘Why have you been avoiding me?’ He lets his mind speak the words that lingered in the air. ‘I’ve been busy. You know how things are around here.’ You look at him and scratch the back of your neck

‘It wouldn’t be so busy if you would just talk to me and let me help you. Remember it’s always you and me around here but apparently it’s just you now. What’s really going on?’ His tone softens towards the end.

‘I’m sorry Jack. I didn’t mean to…I guess I just needed some space.’ You turn to him.

His expression hardens. ‘Space? Space from what?From me? Because that was it feels like.’

You keep your eyes focused on him. How the moonlight presses against the harshness of his expression making it look almost soft to touch. ‘It’s not fair to shut me out without giving me a reason.’

‘That’s ironic.’ You look back at the sky. ‘What is?’ ‘How you think me shutting you out for one day is unfair but the second you step outside this station you forget that I even exist.’ the words were said in a soft tone but it felt like someone ripped them out of you chest and to be fairly honest, it felt good.

You felt his eyes watching the side of your face and suddenly to him everything made sense. The last shift he didn’t even say goodbye before he left. He always ignored your texts to hang out.

he called let your name fall out of his lips ever so gently to grab your attention and when he couldn’t he grabbed your chair pulling it closer to him. ‘There’s no words that would make up for my previous action and I’m so sorry. Please forgive me. I’m just trying to figure somethings out. Trust me if I knew how it made you feel I would’ve never done it.’

His words felt real and sincere. It made you smile. You brought your hands to his cheeks brushing your thumb against the bruise on his face. ‘Apology accepted.’

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡︶

‘Where is that girl. Vic I thought you were getting ready together.’ Maya asks Victoria. ‘No she cancelled on me last minute.’

‘Guys hold up, a car just pulled up outside.’ 'Thats not her car- oh.' 'What she knows better why would she bring him here?' The crew whisper among themselves.

'What's happening guys?' They turn around to Jack behind them. The door opens the next second and you walk in with the one person he couldn't stand to see you with. 'Sorry I'm late guys. Hope you didn't mind that I brought a plus 1.' You enter the room all cheerful.

What were you trying to do. Make Millers place into a boxing ring? This was not going to end well and everyone knew it. Jack had only one thing in mind. To get rid of him. Somehow but he planned to have Mark gone within the next hour.

A few minutes later you two were out on the patio playing beer pong. Jack watched that snake Mark slither his arm around your waist while you laughed and made conversation with everyone. It was like a knife to the chest everytime he heard another man making you laugh.

'Here Montgomery. Its my turn.' He came out to where you were and Jack didn't intend to play nice. A few rounds after chugging down a few and making you do the same he threw the ping pong ball at the bottom of a filled cup, knocking it over. It fell on Marks trousers.

'What the hell. You did that on purpose.' Mark pointed his fingers at Jack. You rushed to him with paper towels. 'Hey man, It was a friendly game. Accidents happen.' He put his two hands up in defence. 'Not when its with you.'

'Whats that suppose to mean?' Jack raised an eyebrow, stepping closer. 'Jack don't. Please.' You pleaded stepping in front of Mark.

'No if he has something to say tell him to say it to my face.' He steps closer. 'Hey back off her will you?' Mark pulls you behind a bit too harsh. You lost your balance and fell into the large body of water.

Jack yells out your name 'She can't swim you bastard.' He took off his shoes before jumping in.

Dean gave you a towel and Victoria had packed an extra pair of clothes that she was kind enough to give. Mark walked into the room where you sat on the bed with a blanket over you. 'I'm sorry. I thought he was going to hit you or something.' he sat beside you.

'You thought Jack was going to hit me? Are you insane? He would never even touch me let alone throw me in deep ocean water to protect me.' You were starting to raise your voice. 'Well he did hit me so-' 'Thats cause you probably said something to provoke him.' You cut him off.

He sighed. 'You know what? I don't even know what I'm doing here.' 'Yeah me neither.' You throw a snarky comment. 'We could've been something if you weren't so in love with Mr anger issues.' You were thrown off by what he said. 'I'm not in love with him.'

'Yeah don't worry. He's very much in love with you too.' Mark left after slamming the door and saying goodbye to everyone.

You sat back down on the bed wondering if what he said was true but you never saw any signs or gestures that would hint about the feeling. All you could see was yourself being selfish. A knock on the door put you out of your thoughts. Jack slowly opened the door to reveal himself. His hair still wet from what happened. 'Can I come in?'

You nod and watch as he walks in with tiny steps and close the door. He stood there unsure how to start the conversation. 'Thank you.'

'It was nothing.' You smile as you pat the spot next to you gesturing him to sit down. He walks over and sits down. 'Jack your hair is soaked with water.' You mention to him as water drops on Dean's bed. You get up and grab the towel you used to dry yourself. You stand in front of Jack and put the towel on his head rubbing it dry.

'I think, I'm the one who should be apologising. I shouldn't have done that.' Jack looks up to you. 'I'm actually kind of glad you did that. He was getting a bit annoying. Plus I only brought him so I could avoid you.' You step back.

Jack stands up. 'I'm sorry. It's my fault and I deserve it.' 'No Jack. All you do is lie. Why? You told me you you try and make a better effort in our friendship. You lied. If you don't want to be friends just tell me straight to my face. Don't act like it because you got my hopes up and I waited a whole day for a simple text from you. It almost makes me feel great grateful that we aren't dating.' You look away from him grabbing a hold of yourself.

'You didn't mean that. Tell me you didn't mean that.' His voice seemed off. Almost broken. 'Why, what difference would it make?' With courage you look up and make eye contact. She watched his jaw tense and she wanted nothing more than to hold him but after this who knows what they wouldn't be doing anymore.

'Because the only reason I don't contact you after shift is because I don't what to get attached to you.' 'What.'

That was unexpected.

'Yeah because I do this thing where I rush into relationships and I didn't want to do that with you because... because you feel special. Like a piece of glass I don't want to break and wanted to take things slow but at the same time I didn't even know if you liked me back and I wasn't going to risk what we have for some stupid feelings.' You watch him mumble pieces of words that at this point you didn't even know made sense because you felt like you your floating.

You pulled him down to your level and pressed your lips against his with a passionate kiss. 'Are my feelings stupid too?' you whispered against his lips.

'Not on my bed guys.'

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Authors note I love him so much ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡ requested by @awkward-txrtle

[apocalypseornaw]

A Memory or Me (Pt 3/3)

Sam Winchester x Reader

You and Sam finally talk

You and the boys were in a motel in Corpus Christi Texas. You'd helped Garth wrap up a hunt in New Mexico a few days before and was actually without an active case. 

Sam had wanted two adjoining rooms but when the receptionist told you there was one room left you took it. At least it had two beds. 

“Sure you don't want Sam to share with you?” You asked Dean from where you sat cross legged in the center of one of the beds. You and him both had already showered and was just waiting for Sam to get out.

He'd been laying down but sat up at your words “Did something happen?” You shook your head and he didn't seem convinced “You've been acting off since we were at Bobby's. Now are you gonna tell me while it's just us or should I keep pushing until Sam joins us too?”

You shouldn't admit it to Dean, you knew that yet once he asked the truth spilled out of you “I love him Dean and I heard the two of you talking at Bobby's. He doesn't love me because I'm not soft and gentle. I can't compete with a ghost Dean. I won't” you tried not to let tears escape but when the first few fell Dean was on his feet pulling you up into a hug “Come on now Y/N. It's not like that I swear”

After a moment you pulled back to look up at him “He told her he loved her five months in. We're now at thirteen months. I never should've thought I could compete with a memory. I've tried to tone myself down, not be as much but it's not working. I can't keep doing this”

____________

About that time the bathroom door opened. You looked back to see Sam standing there looking between you and his brother “What's going on?” You could see a flash of possible jealousy in his she's until Dean dropped his arms from around you and said“She's upset. I was checking on her” 

Sam nodded and looked at you “Baby, why are you upset” “It's stupid” you tried but Dean cut his eyes at you “No its not”

You begged him with your eyes to let it go but instead he blurted out “She thinks you don't love her” Sam's eyes flicked from Dean to you so fast it was damn near comical “What?” 

“You two are gonna talk. I'm gonna go sleep in baby” Dean announced. “That's not fair to you” you told him trying to avoid the hurt you saw in Sam's eyes but he shook his head “No, you and Sam are the most important people to me. Figure it out I'll see you come morning”

You watched him walk out then turned back towards Sam. He motioned at the door “So are you gonna talk to me or just my older brother?” You took a deep breath “I know you don't love me because I'm not housewife material. I'm not Jess” “Is that what you think?”

You nodded feeling tears spring to your eyes. Damn you never cried like this. Sam was quickly in front of you pulling you into his arms “Don’t cry baby please”

You buried your face into his chest. You loved him so damn much it hurt “I love you Sam but I know I won't ever compare to Jess” he gently pulled you back from his chest and leaned down just enough to look you in the eyes “You're right. You're nothing like Jess” 

A few more tears slipped free of your eyes and he quickly brushed them away “But I don't want you to be like Jess. Yeah I loved her but not the way I love you and by the way I do love you Y/N. You make me so damn happy. After her, I thought I was done. That I'd never let anyone in ever again. But you...you walked right in without even knocking. And I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. Yes you're a hurricane but I don't mean that badly. I mean you're strong, you're unpredictable, you're beautiful and deadly when pushed but you're gentle in your own way. How you help the vics after hunts, the way you make sure Bobby's house is clean and he has meals in the freezer any time we go through. The way you make sure me and Dean eat regularly and drink actual water sometimes. You're the perfect balance in this insane life of mine and you make it so much better. I love you please don't ever doubt that”

You knew he was being genuine from the look in his eyes. He was panicked that you wouldn't believe him and hurting that you'd thought that to begin with “Will you just kiss me Sam?” The smile that slipped onto his face was nothing short of gorgeous “Never think you have to ask me just tell me to kiss you” then he pulled you into a kiss. 

The next morning Sam was half asleep when he heard the door of the motel open and quickly pulled the blanket up over your bare body before glaring at Dean who stood in the doorway with a broad grin “I see you two made up” “Get out Dean” he warned but Dean simply laughed “I'm gonna go pick up breakfast”

The door shut behind Dean and Sam looked down to see you looking up at him “He's an ass but means well” he nodded “He's forgiven because once again he pushed us to where we need to be” you laughed lightly “One day He's gonna cash in on us owing him” Sam laughed and pulled you into a kiss “That's for another day. I love you” you smiled “I love you too. Now let's go grab a quick shower before he gets back with food”

@lacilou @fullbelieverheart @prettydeaneyes

[i3utterflyeffect]

Can you explain your time-travel au?

I fell asleep this one time.

And then the au existed. With so much lore. Sounds epic though

claps hands in delight. okay so how do i explain this..........

somehow, (post-showdown+avm, pre-vic) alan gets sent back in time (or as i called it it's more accurately Karmic Multiverse Displacement) and becomes a stick drawn by his past self not long after victim's creation! he's unable to talk unlike SC, and is forced to survive through his previous self's torment! he has powers, but they're much more weak and uncontrolled than Chosen's at the time.

his program name is untitled-3 (3 is a reference to his username, noogai3!) so i call him by untitled! similar rules to nightshade

he tries his best to escape with Chosen and destroy User!Alan's PC, but they both ended up tamed and trapped on the computer. he does his best to free them as soon as possible though! so chosen and he might get out a year or so earlier at most.

Dark is still pretty much the same..... they're made to kill Chosen, spared by Chosen and Untitled, and the three destroy the computer and escape into the outernet.

things are peaceful for a while, but Dark and Chosen are destroying the outernet behind Untitled's back. Chosen decides pretty quickly that they don't want to do this anymore, but Dark kind of just continues to wreak havoc. Untitled finds out about this, and once the two find out about the Virabots, all hell kind of breaks loose, because Untitled is EXTREMELY upset with Dark, and completely freaks out when Dark sends the Virus, because he's completely worried about the CG.

he goes to rescue them immediately with Chosen, and ends up returning and confronting Dark with them. I've thought about it and I kind of like the idea another anon suggested where he brings the pencil for back-up-- but of course, things go badly, and he ends up being incapacitated with Chosen.

this means he's forced to watch not only the CG get killed by Dark, but he also watches Dark die! yes he sees SC's laserbeams, but unlike Chosen he realizes they don't know this when he sees their reaction!

he ends up visiting the CG a lot and spending time with them, even though he's very embarrassed by them idolizing him because he saved them and tells them. to please. uh. not?

his knowledge runs out around here, though! he isn't able to warn Chosen or tell them that SC doesn't know how to use their powers!!

ofc, with the memory reader, victim finds out what happened to him, and decides to use their immediate newfound knowledge and power for evil and also erasing alan from the timeline. they don't know how to do it yet but they WILL

anyway that's the au. it's just 'what if the pain was neverending and the crushing guilt of your actions never faded because you constantly witness its effects'

[ambrossart]

Oooooh. The ask about Henry and Evelyn's relationship status got me thinking... 👀

Let's say theoretically that Evelyn is asked out to hang out somewhere. Maybe to the movies by a group of her friends. And maybe someone like Jake Newham tags along or is simply invited by someone from Evelyn's friendship circle.

Then maybe for like a second the group breaks off leaving Evelyn and Jake alone and in that moment, that one unfortunate moment Henry walks in.

Would he automatically assume that they're on a 'date' and he'd lose his shit? 😬

Imagine the sheer awkwardness of Henry just screaming angrily at the top of his lungs in the movie theater only for Evelyn's friends to show up and he finally puts two and two together that this is not in fact a date.

I'm getting the feeling he wouldn't even apologise. Not at all. He'd be mad that he brought so much attention on himself and he'd dip out of the building leaving poor Evelyn hurt and confused. ☹️

You chose the perfect gif for this, didn’t you? 😂

Okay, I feel like this would either be the cutest, most embarrassing moment ever… or it would be a total fricken disaster.

I’d like to give Henry the benefit of the doubt and think he wouldn’t immediately jump to conclusions, but let’s be honest, he probably would. He’s a very emotional, reactive person.

But Henry’s exact reaction will mostly depend on a) his mood and b) what Evelyn and Jake are doing at the moment he catches them.

Henry’s going to get angry and jealous regardless, but he may not necessarily confront them about it right on the spot. Yeah, he might just bottle it up, leave, and then passive-aggressively unleash his anger on Evelyn later. It’s a toss-up.

So let’s imagine Henry just finished watching a movie with Vic and Belch (so basically the flashback in It: Chapter Two). He comes out, sees Evelyn and Jake in the lobby, and they’re…

1) just standing and talking. Nothing suspicious going on at all.

Henry could absolutely make a mountain out of a molehill with this one. If he’s in the wrong mood, he’s gonna see whatever he wants to see. Maybe he’ll think they’re standing too close. Or that Evelyn’s smiling too much. If he lets his imagination run wild (like it tends to do), he’s definitely confronting someone.

He may storm up to them and start yelling.

— “What the fuck are you doing???”

Or he may grab Evelyn by the wrist (roughly, but not too roughly) and drag her away so he can speak to yell at her privately.

Ether way, Evelyn’s gonna be so surprised and confused, but she’s also gonna be strangely happy to see him because she doesn’t encounter Henry a lot in public. They rarely frequent the same spaces. This is like a special treat.

— “What’s wrong?”

— “What’s wrong?? Are you fucking kidding me, Ev?!”

And then the rest of her friends show up and Henry feels like the biggest idiot ever.

Meanwhile, Evelyn’s going to be secretly delighted because this is a rare display of Henry’s feelings. As long as things don’t get out of hand, she’s okay with him being a little jealous and possessive, just a little.

Basically, it would be very similar to how Henry reacted to Evelyn in the yellow dress, just less sexually charged.

Anyway, if Henry doesn’t freak out right there, he’s still gonna be upset about the situation. But in this case, he’s just gonna keep these feelings to himself and give Evelyn the cold shoulder until she’s finally forced to confront him about it.

Now, on the other hand, if Henry sees them…

2) sharing a moment of brief, physical contact. Maybe Evelyn has a fuzz on her shirt or in her hair. Maybe Evelyn gives Jake a platonic little pat on the arm while she’s talking or laughing.

This is where things could get ugly. If Henry sees something like that going on, he’s gonna lose his shit.

If Evelyn’s the one doing the touching, he���s gonna grab her really hard, yank her away, and start cussing her out. No coherent sentences. It would be a full-on verbal assault.

Evelyn, shocked and horrified, is gonna completely shut down and internalize all the venomous words he’s spewing at her. She’s gonna keep apologizing and apologizing even though she has no idea what she did wrong. Anything to make it stop.

Now, if Jake’s the one doing the touching (Lord have mercy on his soul), Henry’s gonna knock his ass out. No questions asked. He’s gonna walk straight up to him without saying a word and punch him in the face.

If Henry’s had an especially bad day or if he thinks Jake’s touch lingered even a second too long, he’s gonna keep hitting him until he’s exorcized all his demons. Nothing is gonna make him stop.

Except maybe the cops.

And when it’s all over, when Henry finally realizes he’s overreacted, he’s gonna look up and see Evelyn standing far off to the side with all her friends (where did they come from? were they always there?) and watching with a vacant, traumatized expression.

It would be a relationship killer for sure. Evelyn may appreciate a little possessiveness from Henry, but that would be way more than she could handle. That would trigger Jimmy Duncan flashbacks, and she’d never been able to look at Henry the same way again.

Finally, to end on a lighter note, I’d like to say this: if Henry sees Evelyn at the movies with her friends, he’s gonna be left wondering why she never asks him to go to the movies.

— Evelyn: “Oh? Would you like to go to a movie with me?” 🥰

— Henry: 🤨 “… No.”

Yeah, that’s exactly how that conversation would go. Henry’s an immature little brat.

[multifandomsimagine]

Gif Source: youngfcs

Imagine taking care of Johnny after he gets injured while performing

Johnny watches you flitter around your shared bedroom, moving from corner to corner to tidy up the room.

There's nothing much for you to clean, neither one of you likes clutter so you make a point of never leaving a mess. If the rest of the band were to see you, they would have probably thought you wanted

No, he knows the real reason as to why you're cleaning: you're trying to ignore him, too angry at him and his recklessness. Ever since this morning when Ricky and Vic helped bring him home from the hospital and moved him to the bed, you've had your back turned to him.

Being met with your back is not his only sign telling him you're upset. You've purposefully avoided looking at him too. He knows cause he's been trying to catch your gaze for the past few minutes and he's watched your eyes flit over him to focus on a new thing to tidy up.

You had warned him about being careful and safe at each one of the concerts you attended which he always brushed off your concern with a carefree grin.

"What's rock and roll without craziness and danger." He would tell you, pulling you into a kiss before pulling away to make his way onstage.

However, his luck didn't last very long as The Relentless' most recent concert left him with three shattered ribs.

"[Name]," Johnny calls out to you, trying to get your attention once more as he carefully and slowly moves himself into a seated position. The movement causes the broken bones inside him to shift and he groans in pain when a sharp stabbing sensation erupts inside him, even though he's pretty heavily medicated.

The sounds cause you to leave the dresser and rush over to him. "Johnny, you can't move! The doctor said you shouldn't make any unnecessary moves for the first few days. You have to give the bones time to fuse together."

The singer smiles as you finally meet his gaze but the smile quickly falls down when he gets a good look at you. There's no sign of anger on your face: no furrowed eyebrows, narrowed eyes, or clenched jaw. Instead, all he sees are puffy, tear-filled eyes, wet cheeks, and a deep frown. Your name leaves his lips in a soft voice before you start crying at his gentle tone.

"Do you know how scared I was?" You start, taking a shaky breath as you wipe the tears from your eyes. "I'm watching you from the side of the stage thinking, here goes Johnny again doing something reckless again, when you start climbing up the pillars.

Johnny doesn't say anything, knowing that you need to let this all out. Instead, he takes your hand in his and intertwines your fingers together, a small gesture to let you know that he's here for you.

"Then the next thing I know, I'm just watching you try to jump back on stage only to see you push off the pillar and miss the stage. I swear it was like it all happened in slow motion when I watched you slam into the stage." You break into a sob and look away from your boyfriend to stare at the bed, the memory playing once more in your head.

Johnny's face falls into a frown. Raising a hand, he pushes past a wince of pain to brush the falling tears away. "I'm sorry," He tells you, using a finger to raise your head to meet your eyes. "I didn't mean to scare you."

The two of you stay silent, taking the other in.

Your tears gradually stop and you take a shaky breath as you stare at Johnny. You lean into him, careful to not aggravate his injury, and softly bring him into a kiss. It's different from the other kisses you've shared. It's not one of the quick pecks where either he's rushing off to meet the band or you're on your way to work nor is it one of the heated makeout sessions you frequently find yourselves in. There's a different sense of desperation underlying this kiss conveying the fear you felt but there's also a sense of relief and reassurance. Relief that he's still here and that it wasn't anything worse. Reassuring him that you still love him despite the idiotic ideas that cross his mind and will cross his mind again.

When you finally pull back for some air, you rest your forehead against his and take the moment in. "I'm just glad you're okay."

[moonlight-alexia]

Really curious about how steph will found out they're together like she walks on them while idk making out on the couch or something like that, so that adds to being traumatized 💀💀 or

i haven’t fully figured it out yet how steph would find out. i feel like steph would find out either that way that you mentioned (it seems the most plausible). or another way she could find out is yk during a cup final where arsenal win and kyra and r kind of forget where they are, too caught up in the moment of the big win and they share a little kiss or something like that. and then they’d finally get to the change rooms steph would be fuming (but the other girls would be able to calm steph down/maybe steph wouldn’t completely go off at kyra and r)

steph could find out through over hearing a couple of the girls talking about it, kyra and r while trying to keep their relationship a secret so steph doesn’t find out before they’re ready, they would definitely tell like alessia and vic. viv and beth too bc r would try to get advice from them on how to tell steph, and then steph would be upset and hurt bc her own sister didn’t tell her about it/didn’t feel comfortable to go to steph about it

or r comes home after a night out drunk and steph helps her to bed etc and then it becomes a drunken confession from r, ‘stephy you know i love kyra right?’ ‘yeah you’re best friends of course’ ‘no no, i love love kyra’. steph would act all calm bc r is in no state of mind to actually talk about it

or yeah just walking in on them while they’re kissing in the living room while ‘watching’ a movie bc r was supposed to have the apartment to herself while steph was supposed to be out for the night but comes home early

[fluentmoviequoter]

I'm the Old, He's the New

Pairing: Victor Vale x fem!reader

Summary: At your wedding, Victor realizes exactly where he fits in your array of old, new, borrowed, and blue.

Warnings: light angst, fluff!, banter, Victor kinda kills someone

Word Count: 1.1k+words

A/N: Based on Something Blue by Voilá. I had the idea and I ran with it🤷🏻‍♀️

Masterlist Directory | Victor Vale Masterlist | Request Info/Fandom List

Picture from Pinterest

“Babe,” your fiancé calls, not looking up from the wedding invite list. “Who’s Victor Vale?”

“Oh, he was a friend in college. We met at Lockland, I just thought it’d be nice to extend the initiation,” you answer.

“And you gave him a plus… five?”

You smile as you think about Victor. “Yeah, he’s got a thing for strays. Besides, you invited way more people than I did. I thought it would be okay since we had the room on my side.”

“Yeah, of course,” your fiancé assures. “Just didn’t recognize the name. He must not be an ex, then.”

You laugh with him, but when you say, “No, nothing like that,” part of you still wishes that wasn’t true. There was always something there, some promise of a future, and then Angie died, and your world was split in two: before Victor Vale and after Victor Vale. Inviting him to your wedding had been a last-minute idea. Yet, the possibility of seeing him brings more excitement than the wedding itself.

Standing in the doorway of your bridal suite, you watch people arrive, greet one another, and take seats. Most of them sit on the groom’s side and you wonder if you even want to be part of that family. Less than thirty minutes until the wedding starts, you know Victor isn’t coming. It’s probably for the best, you think, because having the man you have loved since you were a kid in the crowd rather than at the altar with you may be difficult. You sigh and turn back toward your bridesmaids, but an offended gasp stops you.

“Victor Vale,” you murmur.

One of your fiancé’s mother’s rich friends seems thoroughly upset by Victor’s presence. He’s just as you remembered: dark Parisian clothing contrasting his pale hair and skin. Yet, he’s the most handsome man you’ve seen today (and you’ve seen your groom in his thousand-dollar Italian suit). There are two people with him, a large man on his right and a blonde girl in a red coat on his left.

“Who is that?” your maid of honor asks, looking over your shoulder.

“That’s my best friend,” you answer, your eyes on Victor.

He turns, and when his eyes meet yours, you smile and gesture for him to join you.

“Ladies, I need a minute,” you inform your bridal party. “Thank you for everything.”

As they exit, they wish you luck, hug you, and your future sister-in-law tries to fix your hair before you hurry her out. Victor and his friends enter, and the young girl’s eyes widen when she sees the mountain of food and treats against the back wall.

“Help yourself,” you offer. “Nice to meet you.”

“I’m Sydney,” she replies, already walking toward the table. “Thanks.”

“Mitch,” the man offers, extending his hand to shake yours. “Congratulations.”

You smile and turn to Vic, clasping your hands before your stomach as he looks at your dress.

“Dearly beloved, we’re gathered here today,” he begins lowly. “To watch a big mistake.”

“Vic,” Mitch hisses, tossing an apologetic look your way.

“White’s not your color,” Victor adds. He shakes his head and says, “What I mean to say. And my feelings haven’t changed.”

You glance at Mitch, then ask, “Are my feet getting cold? Is it twenty below?”

“Sydney, get your food,” Mitch encourages. “We’ll be at the wed… the chairs, Vic.”

Mitch and Sydney leave quickly, Sydney asking questions around a piece of chocolate. You don’t watch them go, however, your complete attention is on Victor.

“There’s something I must confess,” you whisper. “I wish it was you instead.”

As if he knows you, Victor points to your bracelet and says, “Something old,” your shoes, “something new,” your hairpiece, “something borrowed,” and your dainty necklace, “something blue.”

“Victor,” you begin, not surprised by how easily he read you.

“I’m the old, he’s the new. Watching you got me feelin’ blue.”

“Sweetheart, it’s time to go!” your maid of honor calls from the doorway. “I’ve got your bouquet.”

You can’t look away from Victor, but he flexes his hand by his side and smiles. That alone should convince you not to go, but you take a step backward.

“Wish me luck, Victor,” you implore.

“Good luck,” he replies automatically. “You don’t need it.”

“What did you do?” Mitch demands as Victor joins them in the back row.

“Dearly beloved, for better or for worse,” Sydney teases, imitating Victor’s speech in your suite.

“He’s better in a hearse,” Victor continues. He looks to Mitch rather than your fiancé waiting for you at the end of the aisle and recounts, “‘Are my feet getting cold?’ she said. ‘Twenty below,’ she said. ‘Something I must confess, wish it was you instead.’”

“And?” Sydney presses. “What are you gonna do about it?”

Victor sits back in his seat, straightens his coat, and answers, “I’m waiting on the priest to give me my time to speak, I’m not gonna hold my peace. I wish it was her with me.”

“Excuse me?” your fiancé’s father interjects. “Are you Mr. Vale?”

Sydney half expects Victor to say Mr. Vale was my father, and I hate my father, but he simply nods.

“The bride wishes to see you. Make it snappy, we’re on a tight schedule.”

Victor walks to the back of the venue and finds you waiting in the shadows, your hand against your necklace.

“Remember the time when I bought you that locket?” he asks. “Where did it go? Maybe you lost it. Somehow it feels like it might be symbolic, like losing your love and having to watch it.”

“Vic,” you interrupt. “Let’s go.”

You offer your hand, and Victor looks at your necklace. It looks familiar because it’s the locket he bought you to celebrate the end of your first semester at Lockland. Or what’s left of it after all these years. Victor takes your hand and leads you to his (stolen) vintage Benz.

You laugh in the passenger seat as he drives away from your wedding venue, then say, “I don’t even own this dress and I’m not growing old with him.”

“Congratulations for not getting married, I guess,” Sydney says when you enter the abandoned hunting cabin they're staying in.

“Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue,” Mitch murmurs. “That’s what made you decide to go?”

“What?” you ask.

“When I got the invitation, I didn’t want to go to the wedding. Then I realized that you’re traditional, you’d do the whole something old, new, borrowed, blue thing. I wanted to know if I was the old,” Victor explains.

“Or if I still made you feel blue?”

“Something like that.”

“Your fiancé also tried to talk him out of it the night before,” Sydney says.

Victor turns toward her quickly, surprised by her sudden treachery. She shrugs, and he attributes it to having another girl around.

“How did he find you?” you inquire.

“I helped him,” Mitch answers.

“You set a trap for him?”

“Something like that.”

“It worked out,” Victor says nonchalantly. “Besides, I’m sure he was better in that hearse.”

You nod, taking Victor’s hand, then ask, “What?!”