#and was gonna graduate in engineering this week just like me

[tanktop-lou]

I feel like throwing up

[often-daydreaming]

A Quick Chat

'Absolutely not!'

'I'm just gonna talk with him!'

Following the quickly escalating shouts down to the Batcave Bruce found Dick and a heavily armed Tim at each other's throats while their siblings oh so helpfully egged them on.

They were arguing about Wally and their last universal saving mission for some reason and Tim had nearly every contingency he could think of to handle a speedster on him.

-nna talk, that's it!'

'Then you can leave the gear here!'

'What's going on?'

All of his children froze, finally realizing he was here before they started shouting over each other.

'You remem-'

'-ick's trying to-'

'Father Dr-'

'-ng crazy, just because the universe re-'

'Enough!'

'Now, can someone tell me what's going on or do I have to get Alfred?'

And Jason was happy enough to tell him. 'Replacement's pissed because we finally discovered a pretty big difference with the universe after the League hit the reset button.'

Multiple screens on the Batcomputer held information on new heroes, a Junior JLD and everything Tim could dig up on two individuals. The first one was Phantom, a new addition to the Titans and had a number of detailed conspiracy theories tracking his appearances through time while the other held the detailed background information of a recently graduated Daniel James Fenton. Tim had dug up everything from his kindergarten grades to... Oh... Oh no... That explains why they were arguing about Wally.

Most of Daniel's latest online post covered his move to Gotham, his new job offer working in their engineering department and his new boyfriend Bernard. Looking at it all made it painfully easy to piece together that... 'They stole my life!'

And Dick and Tim were arguing again but Bruce knew it wouldn't get too heated and focused his attention on the gathered information. It was easy to see that a number of encounters his kids (mainly his oldest three) should have had with the Titans were adjusted just enough to fit Phantom now and Tim's involvement with the Children of Dionysus had been shifted around to involve Daniel in this new universe.

'-e universe reset doesn't mean you can ruin their lives. Phantom seems like a good kid.'

'Dowd would have left you eventually.'

Dick had to hold Tim back from launching himself at Damien while Jason and Steph stood by egging the two of them on, but then Tim got that look in his eye when Duke brought up the idea of reintroducing himself and everyone noticed.

'No.'

'Come on. Tim, you don't need another restraining order.'

'But it didn't happen in this universe so it doesn't count.'

'It counts if we still remember it!'

But Tim wasn't listening, too busy changing out of all of his gear as a plan quickly started forming together in his mind.

Why waste time with Wally when he can just as easily win over the new couple while ignoring everything else he's learned from his friends.

He'd figure it out one mess at a time. After he won Bernard back he'd figure out the situation between Red Robin and Phantom.

-_- -_- -_-

Reading over the sticky note Danny couldn't help but wonder what Clockwork meant when he wrote 'Have Fun'.

Again, I blame my medication for this, but this came from a couple of different prompts about Tim, Bernard and Danny and I just sort of went with it. Basically the main roster of the League has to stop (Pick a threat) and end up resitting the universe again. The problem is they still remember the old universe so they spend a week or two looking up any big changes and a sleep deprived Tim starts believing he barely knows Bernard in this universe when he's actually dating him and Danny. He just hasn't dug deep enough to figure out his own connection.

[threepandas]

Bad End: Happy Hunting! (1)

I should have known better. They told us. TRAINED US. Over and over, drilled into our heads! Don't assume! Don't PROJECT Human body language onto alien species! Think that just because they look similar, are ACTING similar, their brains are in any way WORKING similar!

Not every species pack bonds! Some of them are PREDATORS. Be CAREFUL!

I was an idiot. A fucking IDIOT!

I gasped for air. Ran. Ran and ran and RAN. Desperately trying to put distance between me and the hunters behind me. I could hear screams. Crashing. The sound of weapon fire. The air here wasn't RIGHT. Too high in oxygen? Too low? Some other trace element, slowly poisoning my lungs?

I didn't know. Scared! Oh god, I'm so scared!

I thought he was my friend!

Thought THEY were my friends! Stupid. So God damned stupid! You really will pack bond with ANYTHING, won't you?! They bare their teeth and you fucking thought it was a SMILE! No wonder I barely graduated. They never should have-!

A root catches my foot.

Crashing to the mulch of the forest floor. Scramble to get up. My ankle on fire. Hurts. Oh god it hurts! Ignore it. Go! Keep going! Gotta get OUT! Find a ship. Any ship! Radio for help!

All the trees look the same. Am I even going in a straight line? Deeper or across? Away from civilization? I don't know how to survive here! Can I even drink the water? No. Run! Just RUN! Nothing else!

I can't hear them.

Him.

I thought he was my friend.

My grades were shit. Worst of the Best, but ultimately good enough. Got to see the stars. The galaxy. Meet real life aliens. Was a glorified gofer for the Earthling Diplomat's Entourage. Galactic Council offered staff. Wasn't really an offer. We took um. Some of them were the "better" guards then the super military badasses we had brought.

Military badasses were pretty offended.

But I was a gofer. Not my circus, not my monkeys. Just here for the aliens, right? Yay getting to meet some, right? I couldn't even PRONOUNCE their species name. I was mortified. Tried my damnedest. They thought it was hilarious. My pronunciation was god awful. Was calling them the cutesy babified version of "office chair".

Met Wolfe. He seemed FRIENDLY. Kind. Considerate. He told jokes. Asked about my day. I started sharing. Hobbies and interests. Stories about home. Explained weird human behaviors. We were close. I... I thought we were close! Was it a lie? Was everything A LIE!?

When my rotation in space was coming to an end, I was SAD! Fucking HEARTBROKEN! That I might never see my friends again. Since communication between our two planets wasn't even stabilized yet. Might never be. I wanted to savor our time together. Treasure it!

But then things started to go wrong.

Random malfunctions, that delayed and delayed us. Lost communications that nearly caused interplanetary incidents. Took days and weeks to fix at a time. People went MISSING. We looked. Every time we LOOKED!

They're dead, aren't they? Oh god. Dozens of crew members DEAD.

Then the engine "broke". Conveniently just close enough for us to make an emergency landing on this planet! And oh, would you look at THAT! A sacred cultural festival!? They won't help us unless we join in.

It's a MARRIAGE HUNT.

Heavy emphasis on the HUNT part!

They weren't surprised. Not a single one. Every last one just turned too different people and... and...! Wolfe planned this. THEY planned this! We're gonna die. I trusted him and now I'm gonna DIE! Can't breathe! Branches whipping at my arms and hair and face, as I RUN. Down slopes. Across shallow rivers. Even as my limbs BURN. I... I HAVE TOO-!

A powerful wall of muscle slams into me.

I scream. Thrash, even as I fall. My arms are easily tucked and pinned against my side, as the body covering mine rolls with me down a slight incline. The smell of wet plant matter and upturned soil thick in the strange air. Dizzy. I feel sick. Oh god please no!

Heat and pressure pin me down. Arms like thick steel bands. Still, I struggle, like a cornered animal. I have too. They always tell you to FIGHT. Only chance and survival. The deep rumble of crooned reassurances in an alien dialect fill my ear. I can feel how DEEPLY he breathes me in, before each sentence. Like hes been holding back and finally no longer has too, is giddy with it. How his hands already spread possessively, eager to explore.

And he's strong. Oh god, he's so strong! Please please please! Let go. LET GO!

"Shhhhhh shh shh, is 'okay' now. I have you. You ran so hard! Did so well! My precious little human~ so brave. So strong. You did it! Now, no one can EVER seperate us! You don't have to worry anymore. No more tears~" Hunter, Warrior, oh god it was never a GRIN-! His teeth are so sharp. Pressed so close to my skin!

"I'll take care of EVERYTHING~"

I'm scared.

[friendly-neighborhood-boricua]

[7] Kindergarten Graduation

Summary: Liam graduates from kindergarten, and another thing changes in your life.

Notes: Marauders modern elementary school AU, kindergarten teacher!James Potter x nurse!single mom!reader.

A/N(18/8/2024): GUYS I FINALLY FINISHED IT!!!!! ok maybe not really finished, I think I may continue to add to this au as I think of ideas and please please please send me ideas/requests if you have any and I'll do my best to write them :) thank you all so much for reading my silly little story, I really appreciate all the love and support you've given me, even when I take months and months to update (sorry) all my love to each and every one of you <3<3<3<3

Previous Part: You Get A Visitor in the ER This is the last one as of right now! Click here for the series masterlist

Alright it’s taken a hot second

But we’re here guys

The end of the year!! *jazz hands*

The school year, that is

Liam has been getting more and more excited for summer break as the weeks pass by

You promised him that you’d visit your dad, whom Liam hasn’t seen since he was two because he lives so far away

You and your dad aren’t exactly the closest but you get along well and your son thinks grandpa’s the funniest thing since sliced bread

And it’s about time that you visit him anyway

But first, Liam needs to get to the end of the school year

And he has! Yay!

The administration at Liam’s school likes to put on a little graduation ceremony for the kindergarteners and the departing fifth graders, and that ceremony happens to be today

And it’s as if your car knows that you have something important to do today

Because she’s just refusing to start up

The engine makes a horrid whining-grinding sound when you turn the key in the ignition, and it makes you a little nervous that the whole thing is gonna blow

So you’ve resigned yourself to finding a different way to get to Liam’s school

Side note: you have the misfortune of being very anxious to get to events quite early in an effort to make sure you aren’t late, and you’ve definitely imparted that worry onto your son

Which means you have a nervous six-year-old switching between pacing back and forth beside your useless car and wrapping his arms around your thigh in an anxious iron grip

At least you’d left your apartment early, so there’s still some time to figure out a solution

You run through the list in your head: the school is close enough to walk to but it would take too much time, Tonks and her parents are at her own high school graduation so that’s obviously not an option, Poppy is working today so she can’t pick you up, and you absolutely refuse to ask anything more of Ms. Hope since she already does so much for you with Liam

The idea dawns on you to take an Uber just as the front door to your apartment building opens

And of course, a solution on legs walks into the parking lot

(Even if you don’t like burdening him by asking for his help)

James smiles as soon as he sees you and Liam

Liam’s face also lights up like a Christmas tree as he waves enthusiastically from his spot attached to your leg

You shouldn’t be surprised when James saunters over to you both to say good morning

And you especially shouldn’t be surprised when he offers help with your car troubles

(You were terrified slightly worried when James had left the ER that you’d crossed a line when you kissed his bandaged palm, and maybe you did, but James didn’t let it change your dynamic—if anything, he was just more and more happy-looking to see you every morning, and it was hard not to let his happiness spread to you too)

You refuse James’ help at first under the guise that his hand was still healing from that cut, but he just laughed and reminded you that he’d cut himself a month ago and his hand is perfectly fine

Which is how you’ve ended up here

The hood of your car propped up, Liam peering eagerly at the engine, James in a very nice-fitting crewneck t-shirt and formal slacks poking around inside the car, and you holding the suit jacket he’s planning on wearing to shake his kids’ hands as they walk across the gymnasium floor and blushing furiously as you try not to stare at the way the short sleeves of James’ shirt fit so nicely around his biceps

You’re plenty familiar with human anatomy, being a nurse and all, but jesus christ—

After a minute or two, James hums in understanding and Liam replicates the sound, trying to look where James is looking

You do your best to school your face, and you succeed for the most part even if you can’t really get rid of your blush

James explains to you and Liam that the bearings in your alternator have broken down and you sigh deeply

He says he’d offer to fix it but—he laughs a little sheepishly—he’s not the best with cars

Still, his friend Sirius, an administrative aide at Liam’s school, is pretty good at car mechanic stuff and James could probably ask him to do it

You aren’t super keen on agreeing (again with the asking for help thing) but either way, getting your alternator fixed right now isn’t a possibility because all three of us have a kindergarten graduation to get to, Mr. Potter

James’ eyes go wiiiiide lmao but you reassure him that you have enough time to get to the school just in time if you leave now

And of course he offers to drive you both there

You accept (not like you have much of a choice) and quickly find yourself on the way to Liam’s school with Liam in the back, sitting in James’ “emergency car seat”

(He explains that he keeps a kids’ car seat in his trunk in case he ever needs to drive a kid anywhere and that this is the car seat he used to drive Liam to and from school that one time)

(You feel alarmed and then thankful and then terribly guilty when you realize you’d never even thought about if Liam was sitting in a car seat that day)

After all that hassle, you, James, and Liam finally arrive at the school building and hurry to the gym, where the ceremony will be taking place

You send Liam down the hall with James with a kiss on the forehead (James thinks about asking for a kiss himself but thinks better of it) before going to sit in the rows of folding chairs set out for parents and family members

You sit with Molly and Arthur, the parents of Liam’s good friend Ron

Arthur is very jolly and cheery at all times and Molly, while occasionally judgemental, is usually quite kind

This graduation ceremony is very abbreviated just because six-year-olds can’t sit still for four hours like they would have to if this was a real graduation

The event starts with a few quick words from Principal McGonagall about how hard the kids have worked this year and how they deserve to enjoy their time off from school

Then it’s time for the kids to walk across the “stage”, which is really just a mobile raised platform

The principal calls a name, hands the child their very own kindergarten diploma, and sends them to have their photo taken with their respective teacher

James (now with his suit jacket back on) has a wide smile on his face as he stands with the other three kindergarten teachers

You cheer for Ron with Molly and Arthur as he walks across the stage to take a photo with his teacher, and when it’s Liam’s turn, Molly and Arthur (and Ron from the side of the stage) cheer with you

When the ceremony is over, Ron and Liam come running to you, Molly, and Arthur asking if they can go to the playground across the street to play for a while

Molly and Arthur agree to take Liam and Ron while you go let James know where you’re going and that you and Liam can walk home if he has somewhere he needs to be

It’s pretty clear from the look on James’ face that he thinks that even just the idea of leaving you and Liam without a ride is atrocious lmao

He just shakes his head like it’s the most ridiculous thing he’s ever heard and promises to meet you at the playground once he’s done dealing with Draco’s overbearing parents

You laugh and nod in agreement

The playground across from Liam’s school is really fancy

The city built it pretty recently, so it’s tall with a merry-go-round and a tire-swing and metal slides that you’re sure sear children’s skin off on hot days

Liam and Ron are having the time of their lives already, and you sit with Molly and Arthur on a nearby bench under a tree

It’s easy to talk with them because they ask the same questions whenever you talk

How are you? Oh I’m good. How’s Liam doing? He’s good too. Everything good at the hospital? As good as it can be, yeah.

They’re easy to talk to but it’s difficult to relate to them sometimes

Molly and Arthur are so old they could be your parents, and they have seven kids, the oldest of which is only a couple years younger than you

But at the same time, they’re really rather cute

They’ve been married for who knows how long and they’re still so in love (even when Molly threatens to decapitate her husband)

It’s sort of inspirational in a way

Liam and Ron call over to the three of you saying they’ve found a frog under one of the slides

You sigh and get up, knowing Molly doesn’t want to see any sort of amphibian and Arthur has some back problems so he probably couldn’t bend down to see the frog anyway

By the time you reach Ron and Liam, Ron’s got the poor frog cupped in his hands, and you tell him he may want to put it down since it’s scared

Ron understands and finds a puddle to release the frog into

Molly, Arthur, and Ron end up having to leave pretty quickly

Their oldest is graduating today too and they need to make it to his ceremony, so you and Liam bid them farewell and promise to make plans to hang out over the summer sometime

James sees you being dragged by Liam towards the swings as he crosses the street towards the park

Neither you nor Liam realizes he’s there until he sits in the swing next to you

But Liam’s flying into James’ gut with the tightest hug ever as soon as he sees him

You laugh and James hugs Liam back and thinks to himself that this is just the best thing ever

He couldn’t be happier in any other place with any other people

Liam tells James about the frog and that somehow evolves into thanking him for being "the best teacher ever, not the bestest because of grammar"

(James thanks Liam for being such a good student, and Liam has the biggest smile after that)

Watching Liam talk to James makes a warm fuzz rise up in your chest

They’re just so sweet with each other :(

James is so attentive with Liam and Liam talks to James like they’re both adults and it’s just the cutest sweetest nicest thing ever

Liam decides to go searching for more frogs in the wooded park near the playground, and you and James are left watching him from the swings

It’s quiet for a little while between you and James, and James suddenly becomes starkly aware that this is the first time you’ve been alone together in the month since his ER visit

Usually you have Liam or maybe Remus, Sirius, or Ms. Hope as a buffer, but now?

Now it’s just him and you

But if there’s one thing James is good at, it’s making people feel comfortable in sorta uncomfortable situations

So he makes some cheesy joke about you being the parent of a kindergarten graduate, and you laugh along and say you couldn’t be more proud of your little boy

And just like that you two are talking like best friends again

You thank him for the kind note he wrote about Liam’s performance in school that he included in the report card from the most recent parent-teacher conference

He recommends a new kind of breakfast cereal you’d seen him buy at the grocery store a couple weeks ago

You update him on the gossip and drama between Poppy and your CNO at work

He thanks you for the black-and-white cookies you made for him as a thank-you for the oatmeal raisin cookies several months ago

You tell him about a large black dog you’d seen waltzing about in Ms. Hope’s front yard once

He asks you to check on the very-much healed scar on his palm (just to be 100% sure it’s not infected, you know?)

You laugh at his jokes and he smiles at your laugh, and eventually, you fall into a silence more comfortable than the last

Eventually, James speaks up

“Hey, um …” He sighs, unsure of how he wants to go about this. I mean, it’s fine now, isn’t it? He’s no longer Liam’s teacher; you’re no longer his student’s mom because Liam isn’t his student anymore. So it’s fine. Right?

“You alright?” you ask, brows pulled just slightly together in concern. James takes a long look into your eyes before turning and setting his gaze on Liam. Your son is crouched under a wide tree, eyes trained on the dirt and mud underneath in search of frogs.

“I … yeah, I’m alright,” James says. “I, uh … I … god, this is so much more difficult than I thought it would be.” He laughs quietly at himself in a way that’s a little too self-deprecating for you to approve of, but he starts talking again before you can comment.

“Okay.” James is firm in his resolve, but he refuses to meet your eyes as he speaks. “I—I’m gonna say something, and I’m not one hundred percent sure how you’ll react, so if I say something wrong or make you uncomfortable in any way, please—please—just tell me and I’ll never bring it up again, but I wanted to tell you how—how I’ve been feeling these past couple months and I hope you feel the same way—I think you do, but maybe I’m just reading into things—but I just wanted to say that, you know, I started to think of you as my friend when we started talking in the mornings, but as soon as I saw you at parent-teacher conferences I knew you were just the kindest, most hard-working, most beautiful person I’d ever had the honor of meeting and—and over the past year, I’ve begun to have these feelings that—but it’s been so hard because I would never ever voice them while Liam is in my class because that would be terribly unprofessional and completely unfair to you, and I just—” James heaves a breath, suddenly sharply aware of the fact that he hadn’t been breathing enough, and gasped for several deep breaths.

He looked into his lap with a self-pitying laugh. “I … sorry, I’m rambling.”

James dug the toe of his shoe into the wood chips, pushing his swing lightly. Why had he done this again? Liam was barely out of his class and he was already hounding after you. God, how desperate and creepy was that? He hadn’t even truly confessed and he was sure he’d already ruined every chance of you even talking to him again, let alone—

The crunch of wood chips made James wince. He closed his eyes, certain you would simply leave him on the swings without so much as a goodbye, until he heard your steps stop abruptly somewhere in front of him. Carefully, one eye peeked open, and he saw your ballet flats standing directly in front of his seat on the swings, facing him. He looked up.

James felt like he knew you pretty well at this point, but the face you were making was one he wasn’t familiar with at all. One moment he thought it was hope, but it would switch and look like fear next, then reluctance, then … was that excitement? Happiness? Eventually, you took a deep breath, shoulders squared and ready to speak.

“Do you like coffee?”

There was a moment of silence before James very eloquently responded, “What?”

You smiled—genuine this time, if awkward.

“I mean, if you don’t, that’s totally fine, I just … figured we could go somewhere to get coffee or—or tea, or a muffin or something before I go to work rather than just, you know, talking by the mailboxes.” You let out a meek laugh, and James feels his shoulders melt away from his ears.

“Do you like coffee?” he asks back.

“I’m a nurse—coffee is the only thing keeping me from falling apart at the seams,” you quip. James outright laughs, which makes you smile, which makes him smile.

“We can go for coffee,” he agrees. “I know a café that has muffins and stuff that’s pretty close to the hospital if you’d like to go there. The Leaky Cauldron. Have you been?”

“Oh, yeah,” you say with a nod of recognition. “Me and Poppy went there for lunch once. They have a rather nice quiche.”

“Alright, it’s a date—”

James’ eyes widen as soon as the words are out of his mouth, and he looks at you like he’s in trouble. The same look of reluctance and a drop of fear clouds your eyes once more, and James finds he loathes it. He prepares himself for the worst.

“I want to say, before we … before we move forward, there are some ground rules.”

James nods quickly, eyes wide as he peered up at you. “Anything.”

You try to strangle the blush that creeps up your neck at that.

“Well, really only one ground rule,” you amend. “No matter what, I’m Liam’s mother first. Always. He already likes you, which is part of the reason I offered to get coffee—I would never go out with someone he didn’t approve of—but when it comes down to it, he’s always going to be my top priority. No matter what.”

James’ eyes soften, and he nods, reassured.

“That was one of the first things I liked about you,” he admits. “Liam is your son—your world—and I completely understand that. I would never ask you to change that, or to think of me before him. Never in a million years.”

James watches your shoulders relax, and you take a small, relieved breath before nodding.

“Thank you,” you say quietly. James just smiles up at you, eyes adoring. You finally allow your own gaze to roam freely over his features, to take in his nose, his eyes, his lips.

You take a step closer, knees brushing lightly against James’ where he sits. Ever so gently, you reach a hand out of your pocket to brush a stray curl behind James’ ear, and your hand lingers there, fingertips brushing against his jaw. James is about even with your sternum, and he can’t help but love with all his heart how pretty you look from this angle.

Slowly, leaving plenty of time for him to pull back, you bend at the waist towards him. You don’t stop until his lips are on yours in a small, tentative kiss. It's gentle and the two of you scarcely move. Just a simple press lasting a handful of seconds before you pull back just enough to look into James’ eyes.

It takes a second for him to come back down to Earth, but you can see the moment when he realizes what just happened because his eyes seem to glow with a radiant sort of joy that has you wanting to kiss him again just so that look never goes away. He smiles broadly, and it must be contagious because you end up smiling slightly too as you slide your palm against his cheek and he reaches a hand up to cup the back of your neck. He simply holds you there for a moment before laughing disbelievingly and bringing your lips to his again.

This is the last one as of right now! Click here for the series masterlist

[gyunglitter]

the links

- just you dicking around with txt college!au besties

warnings: not edited, kinda long, mentions of gym bros, bitchless behavior, drunk fighting, mentions of camp rock, cursing, prolly should’ve put that last before the other lmao, partying, suspicious tampering with drinks

tags: txtxreader (platonic), non-idol!au, college!au, txt, lag, tomorrowxtogether, lesserafim, hansohee, drabble fics!, bulletpoint fics!

notes: bro i’ve been sitting on this for a while, but since i got sick, i finally had the time to actually write this—not very drabble fic of me, but i hope yall enjoyed it :) feel free to send in asks/requests abt this au!!

⚤ masterlist

just how did this rag tag group get together?

tbh with yall

the losers club took a while to actually get established

like

we’re talkin the end of the winter semester babes

to be fair tho☝️🤓

each of you were either awkward, antisocial, or autistic

but you all came around eventually

through small and simple means, the hottest friend group came to be!!

yeonjun + taehyun:

met in calc 101 in the winter semester

taehyun needed the class for his major

but yeonjun accidentally stumbled in on the first day and felt too awkward to leave

he tried to play it cool like he totally belonged

but taehyun could tell right when he sat next to him and his gigantic water bottle and protein shake

it only sealed the deal when yeonjun asked to borrow a pencil

“thanks! oh wow…i don’t think i’ve seen a pencil like this”

“it’s a mechanical..?”

“aha, yeaaaaaah…”

they really looked like 🤨 and ✌🏽🤪✌🏽

the both of them simultaneously felt transported back to their high school days

with yeonjun’s jockiness and taehyun’s brutal deadpan

the two intimidated the HELL out of each other😭

they were extremely awkward despite trying to act like they weren’t they totally were

but that hour of calc was pure torture

yeonjun made sure to stay far away from the engineering building after that lmao

it was only when they accidentally ran into each other at the gym that they bonded

after yeonjun almost dropped the bar on himself and his initial spotter got distracted

he swore he was gonna quite literally off himself at that moment

yeonjun was surprised to see the small kid from calc save him from his death with only ONE arm

an arm that was as big as HIS HEAD?!?! :O

after that, the two saw each other very often and became the ultimate Gym Bros🔥💪🏽

which took a lot of emotional work on both ends after their traumatic high school days

but taehyun STANS yeonjun and his diligence to zumba!

while yeonjun admires taehyun’s pull game when they go to the club together!

they became an unlikely platonic match made in heaven :D

soobin + hueningkai:

this friendship was DESPERATE

to be fr

soobin was LONELY :(

he’d be starting his third year of college and had yet to find his forever-friends his therapist promised he’d make once he made it to college!!

it wasn’t until he met his double at the Video and Audio Enthusiasts club meeting

a club created solely to use the conputer and projector room from 5-6pm every thursday to watch jujutsu kaisen without the faculty knowing

soobin had been apart of the club since his sophomore year when it started, but there was only so much socializing he could do with the same three people who come

at least until a very green freshman!kai walked in!!

it was kai’s first semester and first week away from home

and boy was he nervous

his older sister who had just graduated from the same college forced him to sign up for clubs in order to make good friends

she held his precious molang plushie hostage until he came back with proof of signing up for at least one club :(

BUT HE WAS SO OVERWHELMED AT CLUB RUSH??

all these ppl pitching why their club was so great with their bright posters, over enthusiastic campaigners, and loud music blasting from portable speakers???

kai just wanted to go back to his room and down the tub of mint choco he left in his mini fridge

but alas

the things he does for molang !! >.<

he signed up for the audio and visual enthusiasts club solely bc there was only one person manning the table

and she was knocked out

so when he signed up, he skedaddled out of there with the intention of showing up to one meeting before staging a dramatic but undeniable leave of absence

for the rest of the year >:)

little did he know his first day would bring him an adorable, lanky man who would never leave him alone!!

fr tho

soobin saw this 6’0 child who gave off “i WILL bit you” vibes and said

“he’s mine”

and the rest was history tbh

you never really see one without the other with the way they leech on to each other

the two of them honestly are complete angels together

beomgyu + you:

now

YOU TWO

if soobin and kai are angels, yall are the goddamn devils💀

you guys actually met your freshman year

you shared a lot of the same generals, but didn’t interact that much

mainly bc beomgyu was typically either gaming or sleeping in

meanwhile you always showed up to class zooted

unlike your classes that focused on your major, your generals were classes you couldn’t care less about

and your grades sure did show for it😬

your parents and teachers were worried you were gonna flunk out after your first semester and lose your scholarship

it wasn’t until the two of you were thrown together for a group project that things changed

forced proximity trope🥵

but not for the reasons you’re thinking!!

instead of working together, pulling all nighters, and trauma bonding together

you guys were the only ones slacking during all of the group meetings

the both of you succeed in pissing the other members off as yall constantly showed up late, distracted each other with origami cranes/airplanes/SMASH, and once got the group kicked out of the library for trying to secretly smoke a bowl behind the stacks

but you blamed that on beomgyu and his weak lungs

safe to say, you and beomgyu did a great job of alienating yourselves from the other members in your group

(fun fact: soobin was one of them—he HATED yall)

but you two ultimately bonded after skipping one of the meetings when you bumped into each other on campus and decided to go to the arcade down the street instead LMAO

after successfully beating him at the racing games and letting him win the sharpshooter games, the two of you were inseparable!!

especially since yall flunked that class and had to take it again the next semester lmao

you almost lost your scholarship

but for the rest of your classes, beomgyu helped you cram for your exams!

turns out your stoner-gamer-boy-bestie used to be student body vice president in high school??

he helped you pass the rest of your classes your freshman and sophomore years, in exchange you let him collect all your scarabs😭

hueninkai + taehyun:

this friendship is so cute omg

this came during winter semester, after kai established a friendship with soobin and restored some of his self-confidence

and with all his new, interesting classes finally catering to his curious nature

kai had started to branch out of his shell and thrive in the college environment

he still didn’t have any friends besides soobin, but he faced everyday with a bright smile :)

and then there was taehyun

fall semester had not been kind to him, having no time for socializing quite yet :(

poor taehyun at the time was exhausted from his ridiculous workload and would show up to class half dead each morning

BUT IN COMES HYUKA THE ANGEL😭

the two shared a life skills class and were seat mates

kai noticed taehyun’s state each morning

which wasn’t too hard since taehyun was slumped over his desk every morning and only woke up when class started

and sometimes not even then

in response, kai had kindly made a habit of bringing taehyun a coffee each morning and leaving it on his desk :(

not only that, kai was always just a natural energizer!

with his positive attitude and earnest countenance, taehyun couldn’t help but feel ready to take on the day as well !

as thanks, there never failed to be a copy of the answer key to whatever test was coming up on hueningkai’s desk the next day

taehyun really is THAT man🥵

ngl hyuka felt like he had a sugar daddy of sorts at the beginning

but the two have the sweetest friendship after that!!

they’re genuinely so grateful for each other and balance out really well

yeonjun + you + beomgyu:

a friendship that started off contractually

it was the winter semester of your sophomore year and you were in a bit of an artistic drought

the last time your work had taken off was a complete accident

you’d been high off your ass and posted a hodgepodge of the last 10 screenshots in your camera roll, smartly titled “Hell is A Teenage Girl”

it gained so much attention for its authenticity and now you had no idea how to follow THAT up :(

your bestie beomgyu constantly offered to model for you

but you could never take him seriously after he showed up to your house in lingerie so you could “picture him like your french girls”

“that’s not even how it goes, headass”

“it’s called taking ‘creative liberties’, birdbrain—and you’re supposed to be the artist?”

“please…just put some clothes on. i can’t take you seriously when your balls are in my face”

anyways

you were struggling to come up with anything after that stunt

until you saw your muse in him

the him being yeonjun, who came straight from zumba and was currently downing a bowl of ramyeon from the caf

you shared no classes, interests, or mutuals

but one thing you had in common?

you both thought he was hot!!

you had cornered him with the abrupt confession that he had the most "photograph-able" face and you needed to shoot him for a new project of yours

(with compensation, of course)

yall looked like 🫵🙂📷 and ⁉️😗🍜

yeonjun reluctantly agreed since he was broke and needed more ramyeon money

the shoot started off kind of uncomfortable since you two were incredibly awkward

but you eventually warmed up to each other with your terrible jokes that made him die laughing!

you never would've pegged him as a pun-lover, but you were certainly not disappointed :)

as the shoot finished up, you ended up going out for ice cream together

to which beomgyu crashed and ended up fighting with yeonjun about everything under the sun

it all started with yeonjun’s preference for mint choco, that everything started to go up in flames lmao

you were sure yeonjun would want nothing to do with the pair of you after that night

BUT THEN THE PICTURES WENT VIRAL

your work blew up once again and yeonjun got many modelling offers!!

with the newfound clout given to yeonjun, came an unlikely partnership between you two as you brought out the best in each other’s works

and with you, came beomgyu as a package deal

the two eventually ended up bonding as time went on and they discovered they shared many interests

but you were the glue to hold them together for a while since they never failed to get on each other’s nerves

tom and jerry fr🙄

everyone:

after a draining week of school and his zumba class getting cancelled, yeonjun decided he wanted to go to a party

he needed a drink and a good excuse to dance since his feet were happy and his hips were in need of speaking their truth

lucky for him, there was supposed to be a CRAZY RAGER this weekend

yeonjun was told it was thrown by some uppclassmen named jackson wang or something?

🤷‍♀️

BUT IT WAS PERFECT!!

but he couldn't go alone--he'd look like a loser

which he's NOT >:(

so he brought his gym bro, taehyun!

but then the two were faced with the predicament of looking like much worse

homosexuals!! :0

god forbid two men hang out in public

so taehyun brought his other bestie, kai!!

but mans hates large social gatherings and would rather drown in his toilet than watch the musclemen pull the pretty girls he was afraid of

so he brought the also bitchless soobin along to keep himself entertained :D

meanwhile you were also getting dragged to the party by beomgyu, whose band had gigged it, since he needed emotional support!

the event had started off fine!

beomgyu was killing it with his band

soobin and kai were awkwardly curbing girls' stares and suspicious drinks sent their way with queries as to a foursome

yeonjun was in the middle of a mosh pit, getting absolutely wrecked

taehyun was getting danced on by not one, but TWO girls

AT THE SAME TIME

and you were currently crowd surfing despite having no recollection as to how you got there

you were honestly not vibing since you had a slight fear of heights

and an aversion to sweaty men in closed spaces

so when you were eventually put down, you stumbled your way back to the kitchen to get a breather

and maybe a shot while you were at it—god knows you need one to get through the rest of the night

however, your plans halted once you caught sight of your beloved ex-group partner from biochem!!

“woah hey, soobie-boobie?!” you hollered

cue soobin, who was in the middle of a heated rant about the band refusing his request of playing “meant to be” by bebe rexha, freezing with a soulless look in his eyes

it was you

you (+beomgyu, btw) were the reason he had to pull multiple all nighters to complete your part of the project you failed to do the previous year

mans nearly lost the will to live during that project

he’d hated yall with a passion and did NOT fail to snitch after the project was submitted

it was bc of him that you had to retake that class and almost get your scholarship revoked

of course, nobody knew it was him, since he was a sly motherfucker and blamed it on kim chaewon instead

but he planned on taking that secret with him to the grave, since he would rather take a nap on the freeway than deal with confrontation

but he had no reason to, by the way you were calling for him with the dopiest smile on your face

he hoped he could get away with ignoring you since it was so loud

but then you let out a screech that pierced the heavens

“SOOBIE BOOBIE TOOBIE WOOBIE FOOBIEEEEE!!”

hhnggg

he closed his eyes to block out the sight of you now standing on the counter and waving your arms like crazy

if he couldn’t see you, then you didn’t exist

but, unfortunately, soobin wasn’t the only person with eyes and ears

“hey, hyung, i dunno if it’s just me, but i think that girl might know you!”

soobin opened his eyes to see kai waving back at the girl for him

soobin wanted to die when he saw you take that as confirmation to join them

“hey! long time no see!!” you greeted as you took a seat with the pair of them

hyuka easily took to you while soobin tried his best not to look utterly disgusted

“so how do you two know each other?” kai asked

“soobin and i were paired for a group project last year!”

soobin frowned at you, but you were none the wiser as you entertained the curious kai

“oh cool!! what class was that?”

“honestly, i have no clue! i was high half the school year, thank god soobin was there to help me and my other friend for that project!”

soobin scoffed at that, causing both you and kai to look at him questioningly

“was that a cough?”

“did you need a drink?” you innocently offered one of the many drinks the boys had discarded

soobin shook his head vigorously at that, making you shrug

“welp, more for me then!”

AND DOWNED IT

kai and soobin were too slow to stop you, and watched in horror as you finished the drink with a pinched expression

“holy shit, are you okay?!” soobin asked

but you were preoccupied with the upset feeling in your stomach

“ugh, what the hell was that?” you tried to stop yourself from burping, but you could feel yourself getting lightheaded

“ah man, i knew those drinks weren’t safe” kai winced, watching as you nearly fell out of your seat before soobin caught you

soobin groaned at the prospect of having to take care of you, but lifted you up a bit while you babbled and whisked yourself out of his hold

“hey, im fine—i actually feel great! we should go dance!”

and you were off, dragging an innocent kai with you to where the rest of the party was dancing to the band

not wanting to be left alone after you so rudely took his only friend, soobin ran after the pair of you

meanwhile kai, who had been dragged with you, felt like he was gonna have a panic attack in the face of all these people you dragged him toward

he felt like he was getting swallowed up in a sea of drunk, horny young adults

which, technically, he was

you were none the wiser to the boy’s fears as you started dancing

to hueningkai’s absolute horror, you were actually doing the camp rock stomp dance from the second movie

part of him wanted to ask you to drop a tutorial

the better part of him made him want to crawl in a hole and die

for the both of your sakes’, he blamed your behavior on the alcohol and spared you more embarrassment by turning away from you and looking for help

and his saving grace came in the form of his lord and savior, kang taehyun

mans was a lil busy with a few of the drunk and horny young adults himself

but what kai wants, kai gets!!

so when he called for his friend, taehyun came without a complaint

he also miraculously had a glass of water in hand, just in case kai got thirsty

“what’s wrong? do you need to go home?” taehyun worried, shoving the glass into his friend’s hand

kai was grateful for his friend

thank god he wasn’t too drunk to be helpful!!

kai merely shook his head at his friend’s questions, and started to drag him back to you

“there’s a girl who got roofied, and she’s doing the camp rock stomp dance—we have to help her!”

but when kai got to you, he found a mess

that mess being you and soobin squealing around while yeonjun was running away from another guy who looked drunk out of his mind and pissed as hell

how yeonjun and soobin got there? and who this other guy was?? and HOW the three of you managed to piss him off???

kai and taehyun had no clue

but they could tell things did not look good for yall

soobin was currently hiding behind a disoriented you, using your inebriated self as a shield

meanwhile yeonjun was narrowly avoiding haphazard punches thrown at him, practically dancing away from them

“what do i do?! what do i do?!?!” yeonjun screamed

“DRAG HIS ASS!” taehyun yelled, right before socking a random guy in front of him

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” kai screamed, leaping away from the new, unprovoked beatdowns taehyun was causing

“fighting my demons!”

maybe taehyun was a little too drunk to be helpful :/

kai scrambled towards you and soobin, who had backed away from the initial fighting pair

“what the hell happened? i wasn’t even gone for two minutes!!”

“i found y/n right after you left, who had saved yeonjun from the mosh pit—”

“—mans was getting his shit blended in there—”

“we were about to come find you, when y/n grabbed some random guy’s ass—”

“—to be fair, i thought he was kai—”

“and when the guy turned around to fight her, she blamed it on yeonjun!!”

“well, duh! i’m just a lil girl!!”

kai blanched at you, while you pouted up at him

you were all like 🥺 👉🏽👈🏽

you had such a sweet look on your face tbh, that kai and soobin almost cracked

before you turned around barfed into a potted plant

things literally could not get worse

“WORLDSTAR! WORLDSTAAAR!!”

it took the three of you a second to realize where that yelling had been coming from

but you finally found the source when you looked on stage and found beomgyu filming the fights going on

“fuck me, he’s here too?!” soobin whined

and while beomgyu had gotten your guys’ attention, he had also gotten a few others’ as well

“hey, you got your friend filming me? i’m here on scholarship!”

the big guy yelled, grabbing yeonjun to hold him still as he went to punch him again

“oh fuck,” yeonjun muttered

beomgyu fumbled around with his phone and guitar, going to brandish the instrument in one hand like a weapon to help out his friend

but luckily didn’t have to when a pot smashed against the attacker’s head, knocking him out cold

the partygoers watched as the big guy dropped to the floor, right in front of yeonjun

yeonjun looked in disbelief from his side of the fallen body

over to you on the other side, your hand still raised in the air from its defensive attack

“holy shit!” beomgyu gasped

“holy shit!” you gasped back

the party was silent for a second

before everyone erupted in cheers!! :D

and everyone stood up and clapped

“THAT WAS AWESOME!”

people around you were jumping around and back to partying again

meanwhile the rest of the group came back to you

“are you guys okay??” kai asked

“i think i just shit my pants,” yeonjun breathed, clutching onto his chest

he looked as white as a ghost, but he didn’t get any injuries

luckily, the guy was too drunk to properly do any damage to yeonjun

but he was still afraid at the possibility!!

you merely nodded at kai in acknowledgment, before leaning tiredly on the person nearest to you

which happened to be taehyun, as he kept you upright with his non-bloodied hand

and then there was beomgyu, who ran over to yall with his phone in the air

“oh my god, i got the whole thing on video!!”

“did i look cool?”

you asked him tiredly from your position

“kind of, you’ve got a bit of barf on your chin, but i could probably photoshop it out later!”

“let’s gooo!! :D”

the two of you fist bumped, before yeonjun turned to you

“thanks for knocking that guy out, y/n, you saved me”

“but she was the one who got you in that mess—”

“of course, yeonjun! what are friends for?!”

you unknowingly interrupted soobin, causing everyone in the group to clap at your selfless words

"come on, let's all get out of here and get some ramyeon--on me!" yeonjun pulled out his daddy's credit card

causing the rest of the group to cheer

soobin’s eye twitched at yall SO HARD

“are you fucking with me rn?? SHE’S the reason this all happened—?!”

but soobin was drowned out by your guys' cheers as you all headed for the door

"come on soobin, before that guy wakes up and tries to go for round two!"

kai shouted, dragging soobin along and stepping over the guy that was still passed out

"oh, what the hell," soobin gave in, internally praying for the strength to tolerate you and beomgyu for the rest of the night

"woah wait a sec," beomgyu said deliriously, looking at soobin like he just realized he was there

"soobie boobie? when the fuck did you get here?"

soobin, on cue, gave the heaviest eye roll known to man

"i've BEEN here, motherfucker!"

…..

…and the rest was history!!😅

after that, yall just kind of gravitated to each other until suddenly

your snapchat streaks were too high

you’d gone grocery shopping for each other’s favorite snacks

and your moms all knew abt each other and would constantly ask abt you

yall were in too deep and decided to just kind of stick together after that :)

[madlysage]

my stardew valley bachelorette headcanons… again super niche and definitely just me being insufferable

leah

- grew up in the south and still has a little twang when she speaks

- loves fleetwood mac and all 70s rock

- tried to make her own wine and elliott made harvey give her a stern lecture on botulism

- a serial dater with a string of bad ex-boyfriends in her wake (she was just a lesbian all along but that wasn’t accepted where she was growing up)

- a baby gay who still gets flustered when flirting with girls

- befriended the hat mouse and is still trying to convince elliott that he’s real

- dyes her hair but insists she’s a natural redhead (her mom was one and she always wanted to emulate her)

i always picture kennedy walsh (icon that she is)

haley

- the closet is glass babe (lesbian/possibly pan)

- wanted to go to college for photography and studio art but was worried it would put financial strain on emily

- secret little crush on leah because she loves her art and her artistic eye

- her and emily were raised by a single dad who passed away unexpectedly- it’s part of the reason she has a hard time opening up to ppl

- left anonymous mean notes about clint on the town message board for WEEKS after she found out he was hitting on emily

- uses her dad’s camera: it’s very sentimental to her

perf- would def be into clean girl makeup

emily

- nobody is quite sure about emily’s sexuality… including emily!

- very into spirituality- crystals, spirits, astrology, luck etc.

- makes alex uncomfortable anytime he comes over: she doesn’t realize she’s starting contentious political debates with him

- makes all her own clothes and hasn’t bought anything new in 3 years

- writes sweet notes to shane on the bar napkins when she can see he’s rlly going through it

- wears crystals in her bras

- stole haley’s diamond earrings for a gem mediation (it did not go over well)

- makes elliott quills with her parrot’s dropped feathers

but picture the hair blue ya know: don’t cast elle fanning as a character in a fandom challenge level impossible bro

penny

- bicon

- my image of penny is Filipino… stardew needs more diversity gonna be so real

- went to college for education and got her teaching license but had to move back home because of the debt

- learned how to do maru’s hair after she complained about how long it took

- watches old movies with maru every weekend and they do a book swap once a month

- sam is the only one who will eat her cooking (but he’ll eat anything… especially if penny made it)

- lets maru come in and give guest teaching sessions in science and math to jas and vincent

-started drinking coffee just to have an excuse to drop some off to maru and harvey at work

likeeeee beabadoobee just makes the perf penny i can’t explain it’s the vibe

maru

- lesbian queen

- my autistic love

- graduated highschool early: got a full ride to school and double majored in nursing and engineering before going to nursing school (graduated early from that too ofc)

- lives off of coffee and gets a daily lecture on caffeine consumption from harvey

- is harvey’s wingman (neither of them have any rizz…)

- goes to the bar just to quiz emily on astrology

- sets up ferris beuller type traps when she wants to sneak out and not deal with demetrius

-used to sneak into sebastian’s room during thunderstorms and still does sometimes

laura harrier my love my light… just picture her with glasses

abigail

- straight but likes to makeout with girls when she’s drunk

- goes to college online (majoring in business for pierre but double minoring in classics and anthropology) - her parents wouldn’t let her go in person because she’s too “reckless”

- brought home a squirrel once and hid it in her room for weeks

-used to do competitive irish dance as a kid (seems like something caroline would make her do)

- has a huge crush on sam and will flirt with sebastian to make him jealous

- pierced her own ears six times at once and made caroline faint when she saw her

- has a tattoo on her thigh that’s she’s desperately hiding from her parents

-helped emily dye her hair for the first time

- hooked up with alex once but will never admit it

can’t explain it she just gives kiernan - with purple hair ofc

[i-eat-mold]

this is not a request and it is not about mold (i’m so sorry). i was just scrolling through your posts because they’re so fun, and i saw that you’re a bio major! i was just wondering what you were planning to do with that degree after college? i hope this doesn’t sound judgmental at all, im actually just curious! im a college student too and i love hearing about peoples plans (if you have no future aspirations career-wise and are just studying what you like or just doing what you gotta do to get a degree thats also a very valid answer)

What up my dude. Of course your ask is welcome here but I can’t guarantee you’re gonna be satisfied with the answer. To be fair I have been extremely depressed for the last few years. I could go on and on about that but there’s no point in dwelling in that rn. When it was time to choose what to do after graduating all I could think of was that I just wanted to do something that didn’t make me want to kill myself more than I already did. And that was biology. Maybe I should have studied engineering or chemistry or math or something useful like my parents told me. But the truth is that I don’t want to die as much now. Depression still lurks and it will and I get my episodes and I get weeks where the sun won’t stop shinning to me and I get my weeks of paralysis and doing really stupid things to cope. But now most days I can brush my teeth, I can get out of bed, I can shower and I can even take the trash out. I’m studying something that I fucking love and it’s still hard to get out of bed but I love attending the lectures and even studying. Do you know how much that means to me? Honestly if any of this resonates with any of you out there, specially younger folk who are terrified by their own mental illness, it gets better. Listen to me, it really does, you have to live through to see it. You can do what you need to survive. I won’t judge you. People love you.

Also I fucking love bugs that’s why. Maybe I’ll get into research or biochemistry or if I’m really really lucky I can do marine field work and sail around

All that said I’m so happy that you like my blog! I love sharing the little worms in my brain with you all silly little gay people inside my phone

[dancingtotuyo]

The Life We Built (Joel Miller)

Part 5 of Build You The World Joel X Reader Rating: PG-13 (Language) Warnings: fluff, that's it. Tags: no outbreak, fluff, craftsman!Joel, Time jump, it's 2023 folks, no mentions of COVID, you decide if it happened Notes: So we've reached the end of this little adventure that was only supposed to be a one shot, but never fear! I have another Joel Miller idea in the works. Check out my Masterlist for some Javier Peña works as well! Thank you everyone for your support! Words: 1998

Series Master List | Author Master list

Joel eased into the chair next to you under the pergola he built 25 years ago. It was still sturdy and spoke to Joel’s craftsmanship. The sun was beginning to set, granting some relief to the spring heat as you watched your three grown children clean up the backyard. They’d insisted the two of you relax. 

Emma graduated from Duke last weekend with honors in Pre-med. Which meant traveling to North Carolina for the ceremony. Joel has insisted on driving up. He hated flying. With a 20-hour car ride one way, you caught up on a lot of reading and almost booked yourself a plane ticket home. The two of you had been gone for almost a week. So her graduation party took place this weekend at home. She’d been accepted into UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Medicine and would be going back to Durham in a couple of weeks. She was officially moving out, boxes already stacked high in her room. You and Joel both chose not to think about your baby leaving the nest for good.  

Emma laughed at something Asher said. You couldn’t see Sarah roll her eyes, but you knew by her body language. Joel chuckled next to you. He sensed it too, both in tune with your children. 

Asher graduated with a Bachelor's in Engineering from UT-Austin a few years ago, choosing to stay close to home. He had a small apartment in town working at Miller Construction since graduation. Joel joked that if he didn’t put his degree to use soon, he was gonna have to rebrand as Miller and Son. You had a sneaking suspicion that’s what Asher wanted. He and Joel shared the same love of building things with their hands. 

“Grandpa!” Sarah’s 3-year-old daughter, Jessie bounded across the yard, dark curls bouncing like springs behind her. You could see the brightly colored book in her grasp.

She panted heavily as she reached the two of you. Her small hands rested on Joel’s knees. She looked up through dark lashes. “Will you read this to me?”

Joel smiled. She reminded you so much of Sarah at her age. “Don’t you want grandma to do it? She’s a much better reader than me.”

“No, you!”

“Okay, Okay.” Joel chuckled, pulling the child onto his lap. You closed your eyes as you listened to Joel read. His drawl had only deepened with age but it still flowed like honey. It soothed your weary bones and often brought you through time, making you feel 25 again. 

Sarah had started college at the University of Georgia but transferred to UT-Austin after her freshman year. She loved Georgia, but she missed being close to her family more. She’d earned her Bachelor's in Journalism and Creative Writing (also with Honors). Working across all aspects of journalism, she went back to get her MFA several years later. She worked freelance for several publications and taught a creative writing class at the community college in town. She’d married Mike 6 years ago. They’d been together since senior year of college aside from a one-year gap. They’d bought a house just down the street from you and Joel soon after their wedding. Jessie’s 4th birthday was next week, and aside from her husband, you were the only other person to know that Sarah was 8 weeks pregnant. They were planning to reveal it next on Father’s Day.

You and Sarah were convinced Joel didn’t have a clue. The two of you were desperate to surprise him. Other than his 45th birthday party, you and Sarah hadn’t been able to surprise Joel in the 31 years you’d loved him. He’d even figured out Sarah’s first pregnancy before they’d told anyone. 

Joel continued to read. The world drifted further away only anchored by the sound of his voice. Sometimes a bird’s song drifted in and out. The warm breeze floated across your skin. Joel’s voice stayed constant. 

“Grandpa… Shhhhh, grandma is sleepin.”

Joel looked up from the book. He smiled. The wrinkles around his eyes were well-defined now. “I think she’s just restin her eyes, kiddo.”

“That’s what you say when you’re sleeping!” Jessie giggled. 

“Keep reading,” you said, keeping your eyes closed. “The story was just getting good.” 

He looked at Jessie who nodded her head, and he continued. 

The construction business had been good to Joel. Miller Construction kept its outstanding reputation throughout the years, something Joel worried about as the number of crews grew and his ability to check up on every job decreased. Joel spent most of his days on job sites in a supervisory capacity. He trained the new hires to meet his rigid standards, and his body took less wear and tear. He was able to spend more quiet morning moments with you. At 56 years old, he was still the best pitcher in the men’s rec softball league. He took every Thursday morning off to hang out with Jessie while Sarah taught her class at the Community College. He piddled in the garage on weekends, working on the next project. He’d just redone the kitchen cabinets. Tommy joked that Joel lived in partial retirement, but there was some truth to it. You liked seeing him take time 

Joel finished the book as Sarah and Mike walked over. You slowly opened your eyes, letting the world envelope you once again. 

“It’s time for us to go home, Bear,” Mike said. 

Before Jessie could issue a complaint, Joel pulled her into a back-breaking squeeze. She laughed. He tickled her sides. “Grandpa!” 

“I gotta make sure you meet your tickle quota.” 

“I have! I have!” Jessie laughed, her cheeks turning red. 

“Okay,” Joel let out a deep breath. “I think that’s enough for today.” 

Jessie wrapped her arms around Joel’s neck, kissing his cheek. “Love you, Grandpa!”

“I love you too.” He kissed her cheek, patting her back. “I’ll see you on Thursday.”

Jessie slid off his lap, rushing to you. A chorus of goodbyes between parties rose in the corner of your backyard in hugs and handshakes. Jessie nestled into her father’s arms, eyes already beginning to droop. 

Joel wrapped his arms around you. You leaned into him. His hands traveled down your back, lips finding yours. You grinned feeling warm and giddy. Even after all these years, he still had the same effect on you. 

Gagging noises interrupted your moment. Asher and Emma stood on the porch directing said sounds at you. 

“Get a room!”

“We don’t want to see that!”

Joel flipped them off before firmly grabbing your ass making a show of the steamy kiss he planted on you. You laughed. He kissed your neck softly. 

“You’re gonna traumatize the kids.”

“They’re grown adults. They can leave.” He nuzzled into your neck. “I want to kiss my wife in our backyard.”  

“Y’all are gross.” Asher chided. 

“If it weren’t for us, you two wouldn’t be here,” Joel shouted back. 

“You say that like it’s a good thing!” Emma responded. “Have you seen the world?”

“Hey,” You laughed. “You’re the saving grace of this family, Miss I’m going to be a doctor.” 

Asher scowled. “Don’t say that. Her head will get bigger than it already is.” He ruffled Emma’s hair. 

Emma rolled her eyes. “We’re done cleaning up. We’ll leave you two to do… that.” She motioned toward you and Joel. “Asher’s gonna take me out on the town.”

“Make smart decisions,” Joel called.

“Always!” Emma smiled. 

The duo filed out of the backyard leaving you and Joel alone. Joel kissed your forehead as you swayed to a nonexistent tune. 

When you finally stopped, you and Joel sought the respite of AC inside. Joel prepared a plate of leftovers for the two of you to share on the couch. You read as Joel watched the Baseball game on low volume. You propped your feet on his lap. His thumbs found the soles of your feet applying pressure. You hummed. 

You had stepped down from your position at Miller Construction after Emma started high school. As much as you loved working with Joel and helping him build and expand the business, desires drew you elsewhere. You started working part-time at the public library. When their head librarian announced plans to retire, the city had offered to pay for you to get your Masters in Library Science providing you could give them a 10-year commitment. Daunting at first, you’d managed to complete the courses in 2 years via an online program. You work at the library full-time now. Joel often brought Jessie in on Thursday mornings along with a coffee for you. You tended to the garden on weekends. Joel replaced your raised beds a few years ago. You had the kids over for dinner once a week. You and Sarah walked the block on pleasant evenings. You spent lazy evenings on the couch with Joel, something that had rarely been a part of your marriage until the past few years. 

“I’ve been thinking…”

You looked up from your book. “Uh oh, that’s never good.”

He tickled the bottom of your foot earning a squeal. Everyone talked about growing out of being ticklish. That had never happened to you. “I think it’s probably time to refinish the book nook.”

You glanced behind you, eyes trailing over the bookshelves Joel had built you more than 25 years ago. They’d been through it. The finish was peeling in a few places. The cabinet doors that lined the bottom were dented and scratched from a number of things bumping and running into it while raising 3 kids. You glanced at the farthest one, still stained with faint marks from Emma taking Sharpies to it when she was 3. Residue from stickers marked other areas. 

“Sounds like a big project.”

“I’ve got the time.” Joel smiled. 

He reached down beside him, revealing a gift bag. A simple brown paper bag with a gold ribbon neatly tied and curled. Sarah’s trademark. He handed it to you with a smile.

“This from you or Sarah?”

“Me.” Joel crinkled his nose. “Just asked Sarah to wrap it for you.”

You lifted the bag up and down. It felt like it was probably a book. It rarely wasn’t. “And what is this for?” You smiled at him.

“Just fulfilling my husbandly duties.”

You laughed as you untied the ribbon. Joel had taken your first line to him like an oath over the course of your relationship. He’d surprised you with a new book at random times. Sometimes you came home to one on the kitchen counter or your nightstand. Other times, wrapped or handed to you, each with an inscription detailing something he loved about you and how “Pretty” didn’t cut it. 

You smiled at him, pulling a hardcover book out of the bag. You opened the front cover. A piece of paper slipped out. Before you could investigate, Joel’s handwriting caught your attention. 

I don’t know if you’ve been counting, darling, but this is the 100th book I’ve given you. When I met you in that bar, I knew if I had the chance to give you just one, I’d be the luckiest man alive. 

We always talked about going on a big trip for our 25th wedding anniversary. I know it’s a little bit late, but I booked us on that trip to Italy you were eying last year. 

I’m sure it’ll be beautiful, but I still think the best view is you. 

I love you, Darling. 

You picked up the slip of paper: the booking confirmation set for mid-September. You looked up at Joel, tears blurring your vision. 

He chuckled. “Surprise.”

You set the book carefully on the end table, moving onto Joel’s lap. “You hate flying.”

“But I love new places.” He kissed your nose. He still looked at you like you hung the galaxy. You imagined you looked at him the same. “And you.”  

You kissed him, the words whispered for just the two of you. “I love you too.”

[noellie-writes217]

Unemployed and Uneducated

Summary: Peter is desperate for a job after months of living on his own

Warnings: none really, just a few mentions of loneliness and a lost relative

“Peter Parker?” A woman from the unemployment office calls into an overall dejected lobby. Peter looks up from holding his head in his hands as his knee bounces anxiously.

The same few thoughts flood his brain:

* I’m pathetic

* I can’t do this much longer

* I can’t do anything

* I need help

- Who the hell could I ask?

- I’m fucking alone!

- I couldn’t save May, who else can’t I save?

* I am so fucked in the head

- Lost everyone

1. First my parents

2. Ben

3. Tony

4. May

5. Everyone else, including my best friend, my doppelgängers, and of course, the love of my life

Man this shit is gonna give me a complex

* I am so depressed

- I should get medication

- I can’t afford medication

- That’s why I’m at a fucking unemployment agency

* And I’m back to being pathetic

“Here,” Peter pushes away all of those invasive thoughts for the next fifteen minutes in that woman’s office. She types his name into her computer and pushes her glasses up, as if that will change the astonishing lack of… anything.

Peter sits there, awkwardly, eyes darting around the room as if he has no clue about what she’s seeing— not seeing on that screen.

“I’m sorry,” she starts, “I think we’ll just have to “build your resume on print.” The red haired middle aged—Gina, Peter reads the name on the plaque on her desk— grabs a pen and some paper.

“So where did you graduate?”

“Oh, I uh… I had to, uh… dropout…?”

Gina nods and writes something down on the paper. She kinda reminds Peter of a glorified guidance counselor… but maybe a little meaner. “Look Peter, I’m not gonna lie to you, this isn’t looking good for you. Without a GED and a diploma shits gonna get real difficult. I seriously recommend you getting that GED. I can’t give you some entry level jobs to start until you get that degree.”

Now it’s Peter’s turn to nod.

“So tell me about what you like to do.”

‘Apparently, I like to self sabotage a lot.’ He filters himself so he doesn’t projectile word-vomit all over this stranger’s office.

“I wanted to be an engineer. I had my sights set on MIT before I had to drop out.”

———

Trying to think of a time before a traumatic event is extremely difficult. A victim of rape can be triggered by something that once was innocent, like a lemonade stand; a son who used to be pushed by his father on the football field might not be able to play football ever again after they stop talking to their father; a victim of domestic violence might not be able to respond to sudden movements from their partners the same way. And for all of those people, looking back on their memories before the abuse might be difficult to do with a totally unbiased opinion.

Something’s you never forget, like the way Aunt May felt in Peter’s arms just before she died. Or the words she spoke in those final moments, the same words his uncle Ben said when he died.

‘Nothing will ever be the same.’

Peter can’t afford flowers for May’s grave, but he still visits her grave three times a week on average, no less than two in that span.

And that’s where he is right now. Sitting across from her grave stone with his journal between the hedge and him.

“So I’m still looking for a job, and I haven’t really had time to make friends, but it’ll get better soon…” as soon as he feels a tear fall down his right cheek, he sniffles, blinks. And uses his sleeve to wipe it all away.

“Good God, May. Why didn’t you tell me it’d be so hard to make it on my own?” He chuckled somberly, the same way anyone would when they were trying to hide their emotions.

“I don’t want to keep going.” He cries. “I don’t know if I can.”

“You can.” A familiar, yet unfamiliar voice says from behind him. “She’d want you to.”

It’s Happy.

Peter closes the journal and stands up as fast as possible for him.

“Sorry,” Happy starts, “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop.”

Peter hides his face and can’t even bring himself to self to glance at Happy even by accident, “No no, don’t worry about it. It’s fine. I should probably leave anyways.” He starts to step away but Happy takes hold of his jacket sleeve.

“Wait, let me take you to get something to eat,” He smiles, “please. My treat.

Tom takes a moment to consider the offer. The most surprising thing about his moment of hesitation is the fact that he thought about saying no.

“Why would you want to take a stranger out to eat?” He asks.

“I don’t know. You just remind me of someone that I can’t quite place.”

Peter smiles with a glint of hope in his eyes.

— — —

“So,” Happy starts as Peter munches on his cheeseburger, “what’s a young kid like you doing visiting someone’s grave instead of going to school?”

Peter puts down the burger, “I had to drop out actually.” Happy leans back on the booth bench.

“It’s not drugs or anything,” Peter reassures the older man, “I just don’t have the money for anything and I need to earn money for rent.”

“So was May helping you with that before she died?” Happy asks.

Peter debates being forthcoming about his past, but decides against it because he doesn’t have the strength anymore. He lost that at the Statue of Liberty.

“Yeah. My parents died and she always managed to find someway to help me.” Peter smiled.

“I was her boyfriend,” Happy begins, “she never mentioned you. Peter, are you hiding something?” Peter gets a l little nervous.

“I went to the soup kitchen after school. She helped so many that she probably had no idea the effect she had on me.” He covers his ass.

Happy is still suspicious but doesn’t push. “Well, Peter, you seem like a good kid. I’m sure everything will work out eventually.”

“Thank you, Mr. Hogan.”

“So where’s the first place on your list?” He asks.

“What?”

“You said you’re looking for a job, tell me where you’re looking and I can give you a ride.”

“Stormy’s Autobody.”

[pradaxstyles]

Alexa’s notes✨: this is a little self indulgent, but I hope you all enjoy some college! Ellie <3 let me know if you like this and I can always come up w some more for different scenarios 🌷

Thinking about college! Ellie and how she’d be hanging at your house for hours just sitting with you while you did homework/studied. Her classes finished early for the semester so she’s been nothing but supportive when it came to your studies. 

❃ “Come on baby, one more problem and we’ll take a break.”

❃ Your laptop and notes would be laid out messily, colorful pens and highlighters with caps mismatched (this was all Ellie, you hated when she did it) while she’s helping you go through your notes.

❃ “Okay, do you think you could tell me how to solve Hardy Weinberg’s Equilibrium formula? Or do we need to do a few more practice problems? Here, hand me that flow chart and we’ll go over it again.” 

Ellie would be really good at math, majoring in mechanical engineering so your bio homework is a breeze for her. She'd be all over you with the encouraging words, walking you through every step of an equation and explaining it. 

❃ ”No, no I don’t wanna hear it, you can absolutely do it. Just gotta put that pretty mind to it, you got it.”

❃ She’d be sitting next to you on your bedroom floor, playing some soft music from your shared playlist through your laptop, her knees pressed into yours while she waved a pen around.

❃ “What the fuck even is this? Why is this in biology to begin with?” 

She’d crack the stupidest jokes just to see your smile. She hated when you were stressed, and as final exams approached, it seemed as if you were always stressed, and she couldn't have that. 

❃ “Baabbbeeeee I have snacks! We’re gonna hunker down and study for your history exam and we’ll watch an episode of the office! How does that sound, my pretty girl?” 

❃ “Uhhh, why did henry viii have so many wives? What a whore.”

❃ She’d go on random tangents about people in history and how “I can’t believe they used to do that! Can you imagine if we did that nowadays?” 

And when you were really down on yourself, feeling like there was no end in sight, Ellie was right there, reminding you that you were so close to the finish line. 

❃ “I know, sweets. I know. You're almost there. You have no idea how smart and capable you are. You’re gonna crush these exams, and if you don’t, I'll crush your professors,” she’d say with a sly smirk on her face, resulting in you pushing her arm slightly.

❃ “No but I'm serious, babe. I know it seems like it’s all piling up and that it’s one thing after another, but you can do it. If anyone can, you’ll be the one to kick ass.”

❃ “My girl is graduating college in a few weeks. College. That’s fucking huge. I'm sososo proud of you, angel.” 

On exam days, she’d make sure you had a good breakfast, insisting on sleeping over the night before so she could make sure you ate. She’d walk you to class and send an encouraging text as you took your seat. 

❃ “You’re gonna crush it, babe!” 

❃ “Remember to take a deep breath and think each problem through.” 

❃ “No matter what the result is, I'm so fucking proud of you.” 

At the end of finals week, she’d pamper you the way you deserved. Ellie would plan a date night where she absolutely spoiled you and showered you in kisses and cuddles. Every time she looked at you or even in your general direction, her gaze was so full of love and pride. 

[everydayfrimmel]

June 5, 2024

"The L Word (Love and/or Leaking Roofs and/or Late-Night Cable Television)"

1000 words, roommates au, Part 5/?

Frieren usually disappears as soon as she comes home from work. Himmel might catch her in the foyer if his timing is lucky, or she might drift into the kitchen for a snack while he's making his dinner, but usually, she vanishes without a trace. The only time Himmel is ever certain he'll see her is at breakfast. At any other hour of the day, she could be anywhere at all. What she's doing when she hides in her room is anybody's guess.

Reading, he soon realizes. The answer is nearly always reading.

This first becomes apparent when she falls asleep on the sofa with a novel as heavy and thick as a brick opened upside-down on her stomach. Without thinking, he takes it and dog-ears the right page. Didn't know she was into this kinda thing, he thinks, reading its spine (sounds like fantasy), but when he asks her about it in the morning, she shrugs.

Then he can't keep himself from wondering. Reading is an innocuous hobby, but the caginess makes him curious.

"Why do you always ask me that?"

A typical response by now. Perhaps Flamme had been right to say that Frieren didn't have the rosiest view of the general population if that was the kind of suspicion with which she reacted to a perfectly ordinary question.

"I want to get to know you better."

She gives him a look. "You want to psychoanalyze me."

"Uh, no?"

"You want to know what I'm reading so you can probe into my psyche, don't you." Frieren sniffs, closing her book (tank combat in World War I? Of all the topics) and clutching it protectively to her chest. Then she narrows her eyes. "I'm not gonna let you."

"Uh…"

"Besides, I don't really have specific tastes, so you wouldn't learn anything."

This is true. It's nice enough out now that she takes her reading out onto the porch sometimes, so in addition to brick-sized fantasy novels and military history, he spots her in successive days with a paperback detective novel, a philosophy textbook (what?), and a self-help book on - he examines the cover - harnessing the shape of your mind. She's right on one front, at least: there's nothing he can learn from those choices except that she is anything but consistent.

Maddening of her to go and make him curious like that. More maddening of her not to answer when he asks her anything about her latest acquisition.

"I get them from the library," is all she says. Nothing more.

"I'm surprised you like reading so much," he tries next. "Most of the engineering majors I knew in uni hated it."

"Oh," is all she says.

"You must read really fast," he comments at the next opportunity. "To be able to read that much."

"No, I just have nothing else to do."

"And you still don't wanna hang out with me?"

Frieren shrugs. "I don't hang out."

"But you could."

"No, thanks."

"It would be fun."

"No, it wouldn't."

"Rude."

"It's not personal, I just don't see the value."

"How are you supposed to" - he glances at the cover of her book to confirm its title - "Be a Tiger in a World of Inside Cats if you hide in your room all the time?"

"Oh, the book is stupid," she says. "I'm just reading it because stupid books are more fun to talk about.

"Talk about? You won't tell me anything!"

"Not with you," she says, then opens Be a Tiger again. He takes this defeat on the chin.

It is only a week before she can sense him preparing to ask about it and gives in.

"It's so I have something to talk about with Flamme," she says. "If you have to know."

"…oh."

"In uni, when she called me, I would talk about my classes. Then I graduated." Frieren won't look at him, almost looks a little embarrassed. "And she told me I better keep calling her every week, but I said I didn't know what we would talk about anymore, and first she told me I wounded her and was the coldest person she'd ever met in her life, and then she said that if I had to have something, I should just read a book and tell her about it."

Oh.

It would be just like Frieren to have that be her reason, to collect knowledge and prepare to share it because it is easier to pretend she has business to attend to than it is to admit that she misses somebody. It explains the totally random choices, the obsessive pace at which she reads.

"You miss her," he says.

Frieren flushes. "I wouldn't say that."

"There's nothing wrong with that, Frieren."

"I'm fine." She squeezes her brows together, creases the middle of her forehead as if concentrating. "I'm self-sufficient."

"Of course. Why would those two things be mutually exclusive?"

"I don't need-"

"It's okay, Frieren. Really."

Frieren isn't the type to cry, but she looks so downcast that she might as well. Her whole body seems to fold in over her book, protecting a soft core she hadn't wanted him to know she had. And Himmel kneels in front of her chair.

"I'm glad you told me," he tells her.

"Mph."

"It gets lonely out here. I know the feeling."

"You?"

"'Course. Not much for a people person to do out in the sticks."

"Hmph."

"And…do you want to know what I think?"

"No."

"Well, you're gonna hear it anyway."

"You're annoying," she tells him.

"I know. One of my best qualities." He laughs gently. "You don't always need something to talk about."

"But-"

"If you're scared of admitting you miss her or something like that-"

"I'm not."

She must be.

"Just remember that she missed you first," he says. "Or else she wouldn't have given you that advice about reading."

"I guess."

"Doesn't make you any less of an adult."

"I never said it did."

He smiles. "But you thought it, didn't you?"

[the-alice-of-hearts]

If you're still taking requests- if not please ignore this- can I plz request either 40 or 48 for Jaytim (Maybe with a hint of chubby jay-) ty for your time!

Okay, so I combined these because they work well together. also, I wrote more than expected... Hope you like it! (and I will always and forever be accepting requests) 40: exes meeting again after not speaking for years au 48: meeting again at a high school reunion au I also wasn't able to get the hint of chubby Jay in there, but know that I personally think he's built like a strongman competitor, so imagine him still jacked, but with that layer of fat that makes him the perfect shape for perfect hugs.

Jason walked off the stage to the sound of Bruce and Dick cheering for him, but his eyes were glued to Tim’s back. The genius had skipped two grades and graduated with Jason, and there he was talking to his best friend. Benard waved at Jason and Jason gave a fake smile that dropped from his face when Tim turned to look at him. The younger man quickly turned away, but Jason could see the hurt in his eyes. He had done that, but he couldn’t regret it, not when they had both worked so hard to get where they were going. Jason was going across the country to study creative writing and stage management at CalArts and Tim was headed to MIT for medical engineering, and Jason couldn’t hold him back. Tim needed this, he needed to focus and get through the hardest degree program he could possibly choose, and Jason wasn’t about to have any free time either. College was going to be murder, and no matter how much Jason wished that he could stay with Tim, they just couldn’t risk the heartbreak. He couldn’t risk the heartbreak… 

---

“You sure about this?” Artemis asked. “There’s nothing that says you have to go to your high school reunion.” 

“Yeah, not like I went to mine.” Roy laughed. 

Jason shook his head and kept packing. “You both are terrible influences. They want me to give a speech, I kinda feel like I have to.” 

“I thought that you were going in hopes of seeing your high school beloved.” Kori pointed out and Jason winced.

“What?” Roy flipped over and stared at Jason. “You think he’ll be there?” 

Jason shrugged. “Maybe? It’s not out of the question at least.” 

“This the guys you’re head over heels for?” Artemis asked. 

“Okay! Everyone is about to be kicked out of my production if we don’t stop!” Jason slammed his suitcase shut. “No, I don’t know if he’ll be there, yea I hope he will, no I didn’t write my speech about missed opportunities because of him, that’s the prompt that was given to me by the committee.” 

“Good luck my friend,” Kori whispered in his ear as she hugged him tight. 

“Make sure someone records you, I wanna see the speech later!” Roy smirked at him. 

“I leave for the airport after practice. So let’s go please.” Jason started leading his idiot friends out the door. 

---

Jason stepped up to the podium and smiled. “Well, we made it.” His former classmates who showed up laughed softly. “Look, you all got enough speeches out of me in high school, so I’m gonna make this short and sweet.” 

He took a deep breath and then stilled. Tim was standing there staring up at him, and he looked just as beautiful as the last time that Jason saw him. 

Jason cleared his throat. “So, as some of you may know, I am now a big fancy stage director of a theater here in Gotham. Shocker I know.” He paused for the light laughter before continuing. “There’s something huge about getting to do the thing that I wanted to do so badly all through school, but there’s something to be said about missed opportunities. I know, it’s not really the thing most people talk about, but I know that each and every one of us sits at home at least once a week and thinks about something that we regret not going for. Not quitting a dead-end job, not applying for something we know we could have gone for, saying no to an opportunity, saying goodbye to someone you loved.” He glanced at Tim who was still listening. “There are so many moments of regret that we can be filled with, so here’s my advice to you. Think about your missed opportunities, look at each of the ones you can change, and go for them. I know, not that much of a speech, but I mean it, go ahead and take the chance. Thank you all, and as a reminder, it’s an open bar, so drink up!” He held up his glass in a toast to the room. 

Jason wandered away from the stage accepting congratulations from his former classmates and trying to make his way to where he last saw Tim. 

“Jason!” Brad called out to him and Jason went over. 

“Good to see you man, what are you doing now a days?” Jason asked. 

“Well, I married Ashley and we have a kid on the way, I’m actually working at your old man’s company now.” Brad motioned toward one of the tables where his now wife was sitting and talking to some of the other women at the reunion. “How are you man?” 

“Livin the dream,” Jason laughed. “Just making it through.”

“Oh! That’s Bernie, I better go say hi.” Brad said his goodbyes and rushed off.

Jason continued in the direction where Tim was but by the time he made it through the crowd he was gone. 

A voice that Jason was worried he would only hear in his dreams came from behind him. “I wasn’t sure you’d want to see me.” 

Jason turned around and saw Tim standing there. He licked his lips and took a step closer to Tim. “There’s nothing more that I want.” 

“I saw your last show, the production of Newsies was amazing.” Tim commented. 

“I didn’t know you were in town.” Jason couldn’t help himself, he took another step toward Tim. 

“I was visiting friends.” Tim smiled. “When I saw the article about you being the stage manager I couldn’t help myself, I wanted to get close to your passion again.” 

“Oh, where are you living now?” Jason asked, he couldn’t uproot himself, but maybe Tim wouldn’t be too far away. 

Tim’s eyes lit up like he was about to tell Jason a big secret. “I just finished up a big project in Texas, so now I’m moving back to Gotham. I knew I couldn’t leave the city forever, but I needed to have my foot in the door first. I signed my new lease last monday.” 

“You’re back?” Jason whispered. 

“Gotham is my home, where would I be without her?” Tim responded. “So, do I get to know what regret you’re gonna try to change?” 

Jason nodded. “Tim, if you’ll have me, I would love to take you on a date, and maybe many more after that. I never stopped loving you, and breaking things off just because we were going to live on opposite sides of the country was the most idiotic thing I have ever done. Please, let me try to make things right.” 

Tim leaned in and pulled Jason forward by his lapels. “Kiss me, and it’s a date.”

[ambipom9]

That’s All We Need

Trigger Warning! Mentions of domestic violence

Chapter One

Rosie’s POV

“I still can’t believe you’re here Rosie” Javi say to me, excitement laced in his voice.

“What me to be honest with you Jav? So am I” I laugh.

“Listen I know it isn’t easy being back here, but I’ve got your back and so does Kate. We are all here for you” he smiles

“Thanks Jav” I smile “I really appreciate it, but enough about me. Tell me more about this team you put together? Also, how’d you manage to get Kate to comeback?”

“To answer your question about Kate, she’s only giving us a week. She won’t comeback permanently, not yet at least. But the team I have is great. We’ve got phd’s from NASA, FEMA and as Kate put it ‘the rest of the alphabet’. The only one’s without a phd is me and my partner Scott. He doesn’t have a phd, but he’s arguably smarter than everybody on the team. He’s got his degree in engineering from MIT.”

“How did you two meet?”

“The army. We met at basic-“

“Wait I thought you said he graduated from MIT? Why the hell would he join the army after getting his degree?”

“The army paid for his college. In exchange he spent a few years in the army to pay back his debt.”

“Ahhh okay! Continue” I smile

“He was on of the people who helped create the original program that the PAR’s use. Like I said dude is crazy smart. As we were both getting ready to be discharged, I brought up to him how that kind of technology could be beneficial in tracking storms, even helping prevent them. Or at least giving people more time to prepare. We decided there and then we would go into business together.”

“That’s awesome Javi! You two must be really close”

“We are” he smiles “I should warn you”

“Warn me about what? The tornadoes?” I laugh

“No” he chuckles. “Scott, he… well he can be a bit abrasive.”

“What do you mean?”

“He can be an ass, I’m not gonna sugar coat it to you. He can be a real prick, but I promise you he’s got a heart of gold. He’s just been through hell and this is how he protects himself”

“What do you mean?”

“It isn’t really my business to say, just keep it in mind if he’s a prick, it’s self preservation”

I just nod, still a bit confused as we pull into the motel parking lot. Javi parks the car and we get out. Immediately I see the rest of the StormPar trucks, and all the men standing around them. As we approach they all turn to us, most staring me down. “Alright guys, you all have met Kate. Well this is Rosie! Kate might only be giving us a week, but Rosie plans to stick around for a while. So play nice and treat her just like you would treat each other, oh and careful she can be feisty”

“Haha real funny Javi” I roll my eyes “it is really nice to meet all of you and I’m excited to work with you all”

Everyone greets me with hesitant smiles on their faces. I can’t tell if it’s a) because they don’t know what I know, b) if it’s because I’m a woman, or c) all of the above. Regardless they will just have to watch and learn. I turn to Javi “hey”

“What’s up?”

“Where’s Kate? And which one of these guys is Scott?” I whisper

“Kate is in her room, yesterday was a bit rough. As for Scott I’m not actually sure where he is”

Javi and I look around, while Javi knows who he is looking for, I’m just looking around for someone in uniform. As if on cue, a very tall man walks out of the diner frown on his face and he’s followed out by an older man who seems upset over something. The two go their separate ways and the younger one of the men walks over to us

“Do I wanna ask?” Javi asks him

“Ask me again later” he says shortly

“Okay then. By the way, Scott this is Rosie. Rosie this is Scott. I hope you two get comfortable with one another because you two are gonna be riding with each other for the foreseeable future” Javi smiles.

“Hi” I smile

“Hi” he says shortly, not once looking me in the eye.

“I’m looking forward to working with you Scott”

He just looks at me and doesn’t say anything

“You know, any kind of responses would be appreciated and less rude” I say

“Excuse me?”

“I can obviously see you aren’t in a good mood, but that doesn’t mean you have to be an ass”

He just stares at me, still not saying anything before he turns around and walks over to one of the trucks.

I just roll my eyes “whatever” I mumble. “Javi where am I staying. I’ll leave Kate be for now, but I’m exhausted and just need to rest a bit”

Javi hesitates for a moment before handing me my key. “Here is your key. You are in room 116. There’s.. umm there’s something else you should know..”

“What is it?”

“So when I went to book all the rooms, they didn’t have enough for everyone to have their own room so you are gonna have to share.”

“Okay I’m not seeing the problem” I say thinking I’m sharing with Kate or Javi.

“You are sharing with Scott..” he says

I just stare at him… “really?”

“I’m sorry. I offered to switch but Scott is a neat freak and I’m very much not, and I know we’re gonna be here a while and would prefer to not piss him off. You’ll be fine, you just have to sleep there.”

I sigh “you are really lucky I love you Javi”

He smiles and I walk away.

Later that night

I’m laying in bed scrolling on my phone when there is a knock at the door. I get up to answer it thinking it’s Javi or Kate, but to my complete shock it’s Scott.

“Do you not have your key or something?”

“Umm I do… I didn’t want to just walk in and scare you or something” he says kinda awkwardly.

“Oh.. I appreciate it but I knew you were coming eventually I would have been fine Scott?” I smile

I step to the side letting him in. He shows a small smile and comes in. I sit down on the bed and he just stands there awkwardly.

“Umm.. you okay?”

He hesitates for a moment.

“I’m sorry about earlier..”

“What?”

“I’m sorry about earlier. You’re right I wasn’t in a good mood and it wasn’t fair for me to take that out on you. It was uncalled for”

I sigh slightly before smiling “it’s okay Scott. Every one is allowed to have a bad day”

“But-“

“No buts, it’s okay. But if you don’t mind me asking, why were you so upset?”

He hesitates once more before answering “the man I was with, he’s my uncle. He’s one of our investors, and honestly I can’t stand it.”

“Why?”

Scott hesitates for a moment “Rosie? How much do you actually know about what we do?”

“Honestly only what Javi has told me. Why do you ask?”

“Javi and I started this company with the intent of helping people. We wanted to make a way to track these storms and get a better picture of them to see how they actually start. We were hoping that even if we couldn’t find a way to stop these storms, or we could at least find a way to give people more of a warning to prepare for them you know?”

“Yeah that makes complete sense”

“However we needed the money to build the prototype and eventually the rest of the PAR radars. We tried everything, but we just couldn’t come up with the money. That’s when my uncle found out. I don’t know how he did, but he did and he offered to give us the money.”

“That sounds great… I don’t understand why you’re upset?”

“Because he had a condition. He wanted us to give him numbers on any destroyed properties and help him convince people to sell them their property to him. These people have lost everything, and he’s using us to take advantage of them.”

I freeze for a moment, not knowing what to say.

“Why didn’t Javi tell me this?”

“I think he was worried you wouldn’t come”

“If that’s the case, he would be right. I can’t help someone take advantage of people Scott”

“I know. That’s why I’m telling you. Listen I know it isn’t ideal, but you should stay.”

“Why should I? He lied to me”

“He’s just worried about you Rosie”

“Why do you think he’s worried”

Scott gets quiet for a moment, before he kneels down in front of me and looks at me “Javi told me why you agreed to come here”

I freeze “how much did he tell you?”

“Not everything, just enough for me to put two and two together.”

“Oh”

“Listen I know it’s not ideal, but you and I both know it is safer for you to be here”

“I know… Scott?”

“Yeah?”

“Is that the real reason Javi didn’t get me a room of my own? He said they didn’t have enough rooms, but I saw the vacancy sign. He didn’t want me to be alone incase he followed me didn’t he?”

“Yeah. Originally he wanted you to room with Kate, but I told him to put you in here with me”

“Why? I would have been okay on my own”

“I know you don’t know me and I don’t know you, but you are important to Javi. After everything that has happened to you guys I wanted to do something to help him. That’s being here for you”

I smile “that’s really sweet Scott. I really do appreciate it” I pause for a moment “how much did he tell you?”

“Like I said not much, just enough to keep me in the loop”

“Do you want to know?”

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to”

“Well speaking since you basically put yourself on security guard duty, I feel like you should know what you’ve signed up for” I chuckle

“Like I said only if you wanna tell me”

“His name is Zack. We met not long after I moved to D.C for my old job. I was still a mess after the incident with our old storm chasing group and I think he picked up on that” Scott looks at me, his eyes never leaving mine. “We hit it off almost immediately, he was everything any girl would love. Smart, charming, handsome, perfect… to perfect when I look back at it. Everything changed when we moved in together. He started being super controlling when I was away for work. Things just kept getting worse and worse until one day he hit me. I should have known better and left that day, but he promised me it would never happen again, but obviously it did. And one day-“ I pause getting choked up on my words.

“Hey” Scott takes my face in his hands “breathe and take your time. You don’t have to continue if you aren’t ready to talk about it”

“No no it’s okay, I need to say it” I whisper tears threatening to spill from my eyes.

Scott just continues to hold me.

“It was a couple days ago. We were arguing, I don’t even remember what we were arguing about but he lost it. He grabbed me and threw me to the ground and he-“ I choke “he just lost it on me. He tried to get on top of me but I managed to kick him off. I grabbed my phone and keys and left. That’s when I called Javi back and took him up on the offer. The next day I went back when I knew he wasn’t home packed up my important stuff, left a note and left” I cry

Scott just stays there, not saying anything before he quickly pulls me into a tight hug.

“It’s okay Rosie. I’ve got you. You’re safe here and I promise I won’t let anything, and I mean anything happen to you.”

“Thank you” I mumble out in between sobs into his chest.

Scott holds me until I stop crying. I pull away and he looks at my face. He lifts his hands and wipes away my stray tears. “Don’t cry. You’re to pretty to cry”

I blush “thank you for everything. You didn’t have to listen or do any of this. I really appreciate it” I smile.

“Of course. Now come on it’s getting late. Let’s get some sleep, we have an early day tomorrow. Do you need to shower?”

“Yeah I probably should, but you can go first if you need to”

“No it’s okay you go first. I have some stuff I have to do real quick”

“You sure?”

“Yeah I’m sure” he smiles

“Okay. Thank you again Scott”

He smiles and goes over to his bag and grabs his computer. I go grab my clothes and head into the bathroom. I guess Javi was right. Scott really is a nice guy.

Thank you for reading! I’m really excited for this story and I hope you enjoy it. Updates may be slow, but I will do my best to put out at least one chapter a week so stay tuned :)

[novacorpsrecruit]

Eddie is a music snob. It was one of the first things that the party learned about him when he took them under his wing.

“Weird Al?” Eddie had said as he took Dustin and lead him and the two other boys to their table. “That’s very … brave of you.”

Dustin took it as a compliment that day. Later, he found out that Eddie was making fun of him, but Gareth promised he does it to everyone.

And sure enough he did.

“It’s not music, Wheeler,” Eddie sneered. “Twisted Sister is glam metal. Hardly the same thing. It’s an insult.”

“Ramones, Sinclair?” Eddie put a hand over his heart, acting like Lucas had wounded him. “I thought I taught you better.”

“Jeff for the love of god, turn off the disco! It’s 1986! Get with the times!”

“Gareth I’m going to have to be three drinks in to listen to Mötley Crüe, and maybe at least five to play them at the Hideout. Either start buying my drinks or drop the subject.”

So the day that Eddie’s van broke down and Steve offered to drive them all home, the boys itched, knowing that Eddie was going to tear into Steve’s music. Steve listens to the top 40. He has ABBA and Beach Boys tapes in the console. They knew as soon as Steve turned up the music, Eddie was going to dig into him, and they know Steve was going to bitch back. And any sight of friendship between the two will be extinguished and Mike, Dustin and Lucas will be children of divorced dads. Passed back and forth with snide comments and back talking on the way to their destination.

So when Steve turns the engine and turns the volume up on the radio, the boys tensed in the back seat —

For nothing to happen.

Billy Joel’s Glass Houses came through the speakers with the sound of glass shattering. Dustin thought it was ironic, as if Billy Joel was breaking the thin glass that kept Eddie from being an absolute douche — except Eddie kept his cool.

He leaned back in his seat and hummed.

Mike, Dustin and Lucas shared a look.

“Who is this, Stevie?” Eddie asked.

“Billy Joel,” Steve said between lyrics.

“Billy Joel,” Eddie sang. “Like Uptown Girl, Billy Joel?”

“Same man,” Steve confirmed.

Eddie opened his mouth, words forming on his tongue when Dustin interrupted.

“I think im gonna change classes,” he nearly shouted. Eddie turned around in his seat to glare at Dustin.

“What?” Eddie snapped. “We in the middle of a campaign. You had your chance weeks ago.”

“Yeah but I think our party is off balanced,” Dustin said. He looked over at Mike and Lucas who supplemented soft, ‘yeah’s in agreement. “I think I should be playing —“ he looked over at Lucas for help, none was provided. “A monk.”

“You —“ Eddie let out a deep belly laugh. “You want to be a Monk? Henderson — you’re shitting me.”

“Nope,” Dustin deadpanned. “I want to be a Monk.”

The only thing that stopped Eddie from fully climbing in the back seat was the seatbelt that Steve made him wear. Eddie went off on a rant on how a Monk doesn’t fit Dustin nor his character’s personalities, followed by “you can’t just decide mid campaign to switch classes. You can’t one day wake up and decide to switch personalities! It’s gradual! And doesn’t make sense for your character!”

It was a long rant, but at least it kept Eddie from digging into Steve’s music taste.

————

The next time Steve’s music taste is brought up, they were in Steve’s backyard. Steve told the freshman that if they had passing grades, he would throw them a pool party. It also doubled as Eddie’s belated graduation party. Dustin was the first freshman to arrive. His mom followed him in, saying her pleasantries to Steve and Wayne on the deck. Wayne grilling lunch while Steve was setting up a boombox.

Dustin sat on the edge of the pool when something ran by him, jumping in the water.

“Shit!” Dustin said, leaning back from the splash.

Eddie laughed. “You afraid of water, Henderson?”

It was something else to see Eddie happy, carefree, alive. The scar on his jaw made his smile slightly crooked. Dustin sometimes still has memories of Eddie covered in blood, struggling to breathe. But here he was, alive and happy in Steve Harrington’s pool.

Dustin’s mom wished them goodbye and Steve went back to setting up the boombox. Dustin’s heart stopped when he heard Beach Boys’ Surfin’ USA through the speakers.

“Steve!” Eddie called. “Steve!”

Crap.

Eddie was going to stir shit with Steve.

“Stevie—!”

Dustin leaped at Eddie, pulling him underwater. Eddie stood up, moving his hair out of his face. He was pissed. Dustin regretted jumping in after him. Honestly? After all the trauma they have with the upside down, that was probably the worst thing he could’ve done to any one of them. He opened his mouth, an apology on his lips.

Eddie grabbed Dustin in his arms and pulled him under water. It wasn’t until they resurfaced that he realized he was still in Eddie’s arms, almost held like a baby.

“What the hell, Eddie!” Dustin spat. He could hear Steve laugh.

“You ever heard of the color game?” Eddie grinned.

“No,” Dustin said. “Don’t you drop me.”

“I won’t drop you,” Eddie said. “Guess what color I’m thinking of.”

“I don’t know,” Dustin huffed. “Red —“

Eddie dunked Dustin.

“What the hell!”

“Wrong,” Eddie laughed. “Try again.”

They cycled through several colors until Dustin gave up. The color was emerald, which Dustin argued is a gem not a color. It wasn’t until later that Dustin realized the music had changed, and Ozzy played throughout the speakers. Someone else must have told him to change the music.

————

Mike accompanied his mom and Holly to the Family Video. She told him he could get a horror movie in exchange for babysitting Holly on Friday night, but only if she was present when he picked it out. And lucky for Mike, Eddie was working today. He could help Mike find the best horror movie and convince his mom that he could watch it.

Eddie was stocking the movies, humming along to the stores radio.

“Eddie, I need a recommendation,” Mike said.

“Of what kind, Wheeler,” Eddie snorted. “You have to be more specific.”

“Horror movie — were you humming along to Bruce Springsteen?” Mike wrinkled his nose.

“Gremlins,” Eddie supplied the first answer, but not the second.

“No, my mom is here I can get a rated R — why were you humming along Springsteen?” Mike asked.

“The Evil Dead,” Eddie said, taking it off the shelf and shoving it against Mike’s chest. “It will knock your socks off. You’ll be scared shitless for at least a week.”

“You told Lucas last year that Bruce Springsteen was an industry plant that sings about the American struggle while playing on guitars that cost hundreds of dollars,” Mike said. “You said he can’t hold a note to save his life and sounds drunk when he sings. You hate Springsteen.”

“Well things change, Wheeler,” Eddie snapped. “Sometimes you think someone being rich and popular means they don’t struggle, but then you learn about them and you understand the have hardships and struggles. People change.” Eddie cleared his throat, his tone gentler. “Uh, read an article in the Rolling Stone. Seems like an alright guy. Go check out with your mom.”

Eddie gestured over to his mom and Holly at the service desk, waiting on Mike to pick out a movie. Steve scanned the tapes, picking up Mike’s copy of the Evil Dead and snorted. “As if Wheeler. Go get Gremlins.”

Mike groaned as Steve put the copy of the Evil Dead behind the counter.

————

Lucas and Steve were at the park playing basketball. Steve brought the boombox from Eddie’s graduation party to the park for them to listen as they practiced. Lucas was pretty sure this was the same tape in it as the party, because Dustin mentioned Steve playing The Beach Boys before everyone showing up and how he had to interviene before Eddie talked shit.

After a couple of rounds, they stopped to take a water break. And that’s when it hit Lucas. This wasn’t a Beach Boys’ album. It was a mixtape.

Lucas recognized this song. It took him a second but that voice was almost unforgettable.

“Steve? Is this Ozzy Osbourne?”

“Uh, yeah,” Steve nodded his head. “Yeah, it is.”

“You listen to Ozzy?” Lucas asked. “Since when?”

Steve squatted down to stretch, moving his weight from side to side. “I don’t know, this year I guess. Why?”

“He just — doesn’t seem like your type.”

“My type?” Steve said, standing up, almost tense. “What do you mean?”

“I mean — you had Beach Boys at the start of this tape and it goes to Ozzy?” Lucas said, arms extended like a big show of how different the two music genres are. “It’s a big difference. Practically complete opposites!”

“Yeah,” Steve said with a snort. “Sometimes opposites attract. You can have a wide taste of music, you know.”

“Not according to Eddie,” Lucas said. “He’s practically a music critic. Talks shit on everyone’s music.”

“Does he?” Steve said, eyebrow raised.

“Yeah,” Lucas said. “I’m surprised he hasn’t done it to you yet.”

“Maybe my music is good music,” Steve suggested. “And your’s suck. Check the ball, Sinclair.”

————

“Eddie?” Steve called, as he slowly entered the trailer with a box of pizza and a sack of movies. “You up? Dressed?”

“Hey, Stevie!” Eddie called from the opposite end of the home. He opened up his bedroom door, wearing boxers and pulling a shirt over his wet hair. Music blasting from his bedroom stereo. “Sorry. I didn’t hear you knock. I just got out of the shower.”

“No worries,” Steve said, setting the pizza on the kitchen counter. He pulled the movies out from the bag, setting the Evil Dead on top of the stack. “I got us pizza for the movie night.”

“Aren’t you the sweetest?” Eddie said, wrapping his arms around Steve’s waist and pulling him in for a gentle kiss.

Steve hummed, catching the tune of the song. He broke out into a grin. “Al Green?”

“The one and only,” Eddie grinned. “I made another mixtape. One for your house, one for mine.”

“I hear you’re something of a music critic,” Steve laughed, leaning his head on Eddie’s shoulder. They started to sway to the music. “Surprised you don’t complain about listening to my music.”

“That’s because I love — your taste in music,” Eddie corrected himself a little too fast. “It — uh — reminds me of you. When you’re not here. If you love it, I love it too.”

“I love you, too, Eddie,” Steve said, leaning in to catch Eddie’s lips with his own in a gentle kiss. “Music taste and all.”

Oh baby

Let's, let's stay together

Lovin' you whether, whether

Times are good or bad, happy or sad

[realm-sweet-realm]

Accretion, chapter 5

Accretion is a story that follows the rise and fall of Galactic Boss Cyrus and the fate of Team Galactic and the lives of those affected by it after its reformation under Saturn.

This is gonna be a sad one. I hope you all enjoy it.

---

The stars were, well, mediocre that night. There was only so much stargazing one could accomplish from the roof of the Veilstone building. And yet, Cyrus had spent a good deal of time there, sketching constellations when he was unable to sleep. It was peaceful- Veilstone might have been big enough to produce light pollution, but there was very little noise at night.

As Cyrus was connecting the stars on Orion’s Belt, a little orange spark entered his periphery and waved at him with its lightning bolt arm. A rotom. Cyrus attempted to wave it away. It was an immense coincidence that he'd come upon the same elusive species of Pokémon twice in his life, but since the world was to be destroyed in six weeks, he wasn't interested in submitting a new subject for study or introducing a new member to his team. It was useless to him and he wanted to be left alone.

The little rotom dodged his hand, grabbed onto his sleeve, and started pulling it back.

"What are you-"

It grabbed onto Cyrus' pokétch and looked him in the eyes as though desperate to communicate.

"Are you my rotom? From the abandoned garage?"

The rotom nodded.

Cyrus wasn't sure what to think. After all these years... After it had abandoned him when he needed it... "Do you... wish to possess my pokétch?" he asked.

The rotom nodded again. Cyrus got up and went back down the elevator that led to his quarters, the Pokémon following close behind. He pulled out his toolkit from one of his drawers along with the one rotom motor he'd never thrown away- the one from his now long-discarded toy robot.

"Screwdriver," Cyrus ordered the spark. Sure enough, it threw him the tool, just as it had way back then. Forty minutes and many alterations later, the brick-sized motor was ready to be attached to the pokétch, and the rotom successfully entered it.

"Why did you leave?" Cyrus asked the rotom, which was now levitating before him as the watch.

I never meant to leave! A trainer found me. He put me to sleep with one of his Pokémon's moves. By the time I woke up, I was in Snowpoint. I couldn’t get back. Trust me, I tried! I missed home. I missed you! Came the text on the device.

"I see. And why did you come back?"

Because I want to be friends again! The spark seemed to grow worried. If you do.

It took a moment for Cyrus to process that. His best friend had come home. He carefully reached out to the possessed watch and, once he determined that it was safe to touch, held it in his hands. "Yes, I suppose we could," he said.

The little face on the edge of the pokétch smiled brightly. Oh boy! We're going to have so much fun together! You've gotten a lot better at engineering, too! I'm not making static noises anymore, bzzt! Oh, there's one, but hey, nothing's perfect! So, what have you been up to, buddy?

And with that one question, Cyrus' heart sank. His rotom would be horrified by what he'd become. "I'm an engineer," he lied.

And you were okay without me?

"Yes. You leaving forced me to find my strength. After you left, I disposed of the idea of friendship entirely. I learned not to want or need anyone's company or approval, and my life was smoother for it.”

For some reason, the rotom’s smile flipped into a frown. Of course- it didn’t understand because it was an incomplete soul like all the rest. He'd have to lie about his story more than he originally thought.

"To get away from my family, I graduated a year early on scholarships and went to Canalave University. There, I met someone who was kind and accepting and treated me well. I began to wonder if there were other people like him and opened myself up to others as an experiment. There were others like him, and I came to have the friends and support I'd allowed myself to want when you were in my life. I received my degree, worked as an engineer for a few years, had an idea for an invention, received some funding from one of the only members of my family who was nice to me, and the rest is history."

That seemed to make Rotom happy. It smiled and bounced around as much as the short cord allowed it to. Text started appearing on the screen, and Cyrus had to gently hold it still to read it.

Wow! That sounds like just what you wanted way back then! I guess life really turned out for you, huh? I was sort of the same. Since I was forced to live away from home, I had to find my courage, too! The trainer released me pretty quickly, but I still got to meet so many new people and Pokémon and see so many places! It was great, bzzt! But now that I’m here, you’ll take me to the old garage sometimes, right?

"Of course,” Cyrus lied. What was he going to do with it? Have one of his subordinates release it far away from here? That seemed more humane than letting it realize what he was and what would become of the world.

Super!!! Now can you show me around your facility? It looked really big from outside!

“Yes,” Cyrus replied, scooping up the motor. He supposed this was perfect- he needed time to plan, after all.

“What’s that?” the rotom asked before they’d left the room, gesturing toward a shape hanging from a rack in the corner.

“That is...” a Pokémon he’d manipulated into evolving in order to use its strength. The only reason it was in his quarters was that it was now too attached to him to live apart without compromising its usefulness. “My pet crobat. You will be introduced to him in the morning.”

The whole tour was like that. Rotom wanted to know about everything. Thankfully, lying was second nature to Cyrus. Bombs became computer batteries. Pokémon held for experimentation in vats of green fluid became Pokémon they were trying to heal.

As the tour wore on, Cyrus reflected on his lies. The best lies were mostly truth, but his lie about his life... it sounded almost as though it could have happened. In another life, could he have been an inventor, surrounded by friends and still in contact with the few family members who'd treated him well? If he'd allowed it, would he have met more people like Saturn and seen his desire to end the world fade away? And then he wouldn't have to come up with a way to get rid of the little spark he held in his hands.

What's in there? Rotom asked, gesturing towards a door.

Cyrus stopped dead before the door. "That is..." the door to the grunts' dormitories. How many adoring grunts were in there? One hundred and fifty-three, if Cyrus was remembering correctly. And that wasn't counting the four commanders, or the numerous scientists at his disposal who had joined for funding and lack of academic red tape but who were all somewhere in the process of coming to believe in his ideals.

"I'm adored, rotom," Cyrus said, voice steely. "I'm loved, just as I wanted back then." He was useful to them. He was on a path to release the world from its pain, and even if they didn't fully understand his vision, his usefulness had made him more powerful and loved than he ever could have hoped to be otherwise.

Yes, everything he'd done- ruining his friendship with Saturn, lying to several dozen people, blowing up three lakes, torturing three Pokémon, locking himself into this lifestyle by becoming a wanted man- it hadn't been for nothing. If he'd gone down the path he'd described to rotom, allowed himself to be weak, then not only would he have suffered rejection from everyone he tried to befriend as had always been the case, he probably would have crawled back to his family and spent his life hurting others in attempt to gain love and contentment or in frustration from the lack of it. And then the universe would still have no hope for salvation. Both he and the world should be glad for the choices he'd made, and if his circumstances had led to this, he should be glad for them, too.

Cyrus felt the rotom tugging on his vest, pulling him out of his train of thought. Its screen contained several messages.

That's great! So, what's in there?

Did you hear something?

Bzzt, Yoo hoo, you okay, buddy?

What's going on?

"You may see in there in the morning. Come. I have something for you."

Yay! A surprise!

Cyrus knew now what he must do. He took Rotom to a supply closet and allowed it to select a pokéball for itself. It was only right since they were now trainer and Pokémon, he said.

Say, did you get to go on your Pokémon journey? it asked. It was more sedate now, the late night finally getting to it.

"No."

Good. That way we can go together.

"Yes. It will be perfect. Now return. Settle in," Cyrus ordered. The sleepy rotom left the watch and entered the fast ball it had chosen.

Cyrus took the ball and headed straight for Charon's quarters. Charon was always looking for new experimental subjects to extract money and glory from, and Cyrus needed his rotom kept apart from him. It was that simple. He knocked on Charon's door, and Charon answered it after a minute, looking like he'd just dragged himself out of bed. Most likely he had.

"This had better be important," Charon grumbled. "Master Cyrus," he tacked on for the sake of decorum.

"I have a new experimental subject for you. Its name is rotom," Cyrus explained. He felt the rotom bouncing around the pokéball in attempt to escape. He tightened his grip. "It is of utmost importance that you keep it comfortable. It is a new species of Pokémon, so there will be plenty of research to be done without breach of ethics. If I find out that you have gone against this, you will be terminated. And Charon?"

"Yes, sir?"

Cyrus fought to keep the tremble out of his voice. It was a good thing that rotom had come back now and not years ago, when changing his path would have easier and his willpower was less refined. "Keep it out of my sight."

The pokéball exchanged hands and Cyrus left, intent on finding some work to busy himself with until dawn. Six weeks and this would all be over. And then he would finally be at peace.

---

“Systems online,” Saturn said, pressing a button on the rather impressive control panel in the Galactic Base. The drones following the mission of the Spear Pillar came online. The giant screens that covered most of the far wall of the command center showed Cyrus as he walked through the caves of Mount Coronet with Mars and Jupiter at his side and a hand-selected fleet of grunts following behind him. Surrounding the main screens were several smaller ones showing the images from different drones. Saturn pushed a button and the large screens' image changed to show a helicopter manned by four grunts and carrying the containment chamber of the red chain. He pushed it again and it showed the outside of the Galactic Base. Saturn cycled through a few different drones before settling on the one trailing Cyrus. After that, he could sit back and wait, watching the screens and listening to the sound of twenty-odd grunts tapping away at drone control panels.

Everything was in place. The voice locks to the secret tunnels had been turned off so that a fleet of grunts, armed to the teeth with Pokémon and weapons, could flood through them in the event of a break-in. Another fleet was waiting on their second helicopter, ready for a command to give the Coronet team some backup. As Cyrus had prepared to ascend to godhood that day, Saturn had planned to be his safety net no matter what might arise.

And yet, Saturn couldn’t bring himself to relax. He felt nauseous. He’d known all along what this day would bring, but it was only days ago that it had truly sunken in: he was about to die, and the thought of what came next terrified him.

The past few weeks, Cyrus had been ready to snap at anyone who inconvenienced him. It was the worst bout of irritability Saturn had ever seen in him. Saturn had said something along the lines of “hey, at least the Spear Pillar mission is only a while away,” to try and ease him, and what he’d said back had chilled Saturn.

“Yes. Finally, all of it will end. All of it will be over.”

“...And the new world will begin?” Saturn had replied.

"Yes," Cyrus had said, sounding as though that was an afterthought to him.

That’s when it had hit Saturn: this was the man who would reform the universe. This hate-filled man, who hated humanity, hated the world, had precious few things he felt positively about, and was more inclined to destroy than create. What was perfection to him? What would be left after he destroyed everything he loathed? It was almost a comfort that Saturn, if he weren't a part of that perfect world, wouldn't be forced to see what the universe was about to become.

Saturn closed his eyes- an act that was only mildly irresponsible since there were so many grunts watching the drones- and thought back.

It was the Canalave University campus, the winter break before Cyrus had disappeared. A gentle snow was falling. Betty, who was floating by his side, levitated a long wool scarf and, using her telekinesis, wrapped it around herself from her neck to the tip of her tail.

“I can’t believe you bought Betty a present,” Saturn said. It was a good one, too- abras were too cold-sensitive to be out in this weather unclothed and too weirdly shaped to buy snow clothes off the rack for, so this would be the first winter she could follow them around outside.

“I had a theory it would work. I wanted to test it,” Cyrus explained, taking care to look uninterested. He actually looked his age back then- cheeks less hollow, eyes less baggy, generally more alive.

They were on their way to the Canalave Christmas festival. It had become an annual tradition of theirs since Saturn didn't want to see his family more than necessary and Cyrus wanted no contact at all with his. As they walked, Cyrus made what might have been a reach for Saturn's hand, but pulled back at the last second. "So... your romantic interest, the person you wanted to impress with your project..." Cyrus began, looking forward. "It was me, wasn't it?"

"Yeah," Saturn replied, looking over to Cyrus and wondering what he would do with the information.

"I see," Cyrus said, making another reach for Saturn's hand and then stopping himself.

The poor idiot’s at war with himself, thought Saturn. Without thinking, Saturn took Cyrus by the shoulders and kissed him on the lips. Cyrus reciprocated. He held Saturn close and ran a hand through his hair. What am I doing? He's not capable of a relationship. Maybe I just wanted to see what would happen. The two separated, and Cyrus was looking at him like he was the most beautiful person in the world.

Eyes open. Cyrus was on the Spear Pillar, watching mirthlessly as the Gods of time and space were dragged through portals by tight, burning chains. Behind him, two preteens stormed through, throwing out their Pokémon with intent to interfere. Cyrus looked back at them for a moment, but once Mars and Jupiter initiated battle with them, he turned back to his work. They were an annoyance. A possible obstacle to his destruction. Nothing more. Why had Saturn spent the last six years helping to put the universe into those twisted hands?

Saturn knew the answer. Back in Canalave, he’d often considered talking to Cyrus about his toxic beliefs, and after Cyrus had revealed his plan, Saturn had the same thought anyone would have: to run, call the police, and cut ties. But he’d wanted to see what would happen if he let Cyrus do his thing without interference. He was impressed and curious. And even now, even as guilt-ridden as he was, Saturn knew that he wouldn’t have been the first to try and stop Cyrus and presumably wouldn't have been the first to try and help him, nor was it really his responsibility to. Saturn had plenty of reasons for shame. He had followed a hundred immoral orders to earn himself this front-row seat to the apocalypse. But Cyrus' choices were his alone, and this was probably inevitable.

A multi-coloured shroud erupted from the two Gods. The images in the video feed from every drone dimmed as it covered the sky region-wide. Even in the windowless control room, the air seemed to darken. Cheers erupted in the control room, followed by rapt, reverent silence.

In one of the video feeds, Saturn noticed a squadron of international police officers running for the Veilstone building. He pushed some buttons, opening the tunnels to their secret openings and sending the reserve grunts an alert message. They flooded in through the secret exits and began combat with the now-outnumbered police officers. It seemed as though the problem was handled. Saturn returned his attention to the feed of the Spear Pillar. The lake trio had appeared, but it seemed that they were helpless to stop Cyrus.

“Excuse me,” Saturn said, turning to leave the room. The highest-ranked grunt in the room wordlessly took his place. Saturn wasn't sure what he'd do in these last moments. Maybe he'd call his family. Contact with them had been minimal in the past years as more and more of his life had to be hidden from them, but right now he just wanted contact with someone who wasn't celebrating the end of the world.

Just as Saturn had walked the length of the room and was about to leave, one of the grunts called out, "Saturn, sir, what do we do!?" Saturn turned. A shadow the shape of a centipede and the size of a building had appeared on the Spear Pillar. There was no protocol for this.

The shadow dove on top of Cyrus and disappeared into the floor below, dragging him down with it.

[terristarstrike]

Meeting Khadija

Another day at the cafeteria was another meeting for the Terrestrial Kids. Normally, they'd had their afterschool meetings at one of the member's houses every 2 weeks, but at school, every day was a perfect day for all of them to have a meeting. Terri and Bailey were chatting, Candy was reading her fantasy novels, and Izzy and Sprite were watching videos together on Izzy's phone.

"So who's going to host the next meeting?" Terri asked. "I wish I could this time around" Bailey responded. "But my brother Jody is bringing his girlfriend Bella over for the night, and I don't wanna ruin his moment." "I wanted to be host sometime.." Sprite added in "but I'm a mermaid, so I literally live underwater. You thought we were gonna have a meeting on the boardwalk?" "Actually, that's not bad!" Izzy told Sprite.

"Bailey!" A starry-eyed Arab girl with caramel skin and a pink hijab waved at Bailey from the opposite side of the cafeteria. "Oh, that's Khadija, she's in my science class." "Well, I'm shocked! You actually got someone who really appreciates you. Aside from us, that is!" Izzy laughed. They always know how much Bailey felt like a misfit amongst her classmates, but Bailey has been gaining a lot of friends after she met Terri, and this one was a notable example.

"Hi! I heard that we got the same lunch period, and I was really shy to meet all of you guys, cuz you're like super cool, and Terri? She is THE superstar of the school!" Khadija began to blush in the presence of the alien. "Wow, thanks! I didn't think I'd have fans here!" Terrina flicked her ponytail back with a warm, sassy smile. Most humans her age were the ones who felt more open towards her instead of fearing her, so naturally, the teenage students were very protective of Terrina. "So, I wanted to join your team. I hope there's still room for more, if that's possible." Khadija asked Bailey. "Well Khadija, I guess we can always use a tech genius like you, if you're up for it." "I accept!" Khadija's eyes were beaming with excitement and sat down with the Terrestrial Kids.

"So I wanted to know about Terri and her kind. Is is true that your marks glow underwater? Do your people feel emotions like anxiety or depression?" Terrina was overwhelmed with many questions but she couldn't help smiling at the human's enthusiasm. "Whoa, whoa! I hate to be that person, but maybe once you join the team, you'll get to ask me all the questions." "Terri, she's only curious, I'm sure there's plenty other students who want to learn about the Jotuzons. Right?" Bailey rubbed Terri's shoulder, while Sprite asked Khadija "So what kind of gadgets have you been building?" "Oh, I built remote control toy cars and robots, and maybe someday, I'll get to be an robotic engineer! But I'm mostly just the head of the School Events Committee." "Wow, so you're the voice of the speaker??" Sprite asked. "Well, most of the time, it's just the Principal, but when it comes to Spirit Week and the Prom, I'm always the one who's planning and making announcements over the speaker. It still hits me that I'm a senior this year!" Khadija was no stranger to proms, she's been handling the job for three years, and she was almost close to finally graduating from Westshore High, albeit not ready to leave the school halls behind.

"Oh, I feel so lucky!" Candy was beaming with joy to have a school leader like Khadija at their team's lunch table. "Do you think you can spill some secrets on the theme for our next pep rally?" "I'm afraid that kind of information remains classified for now, but once you see it, you'll be amazed!" Khadija winked. "Okay, okay, okay! I know I said I wanted to join the team, but also, I'm mostly a very secretive person. I'm always busy at home working on my gadgets, so maybe I can be your little 'mission control' if you want!" Khadija smirked. "I don't see why not, you'd be great!" Bailey agreed with her classmate. "Sweet. Here's my phone number, in case you want to contact me. See you tomorrow!" Khadija waved goodbye to Bailey and went back to her usual table.

"Wow, I didn't know I was famous." Terri giggled. "Terrina. You're an alien, of course everyone's gonna recognize you." Bailey pointed out to her girlfriend. "So how does this work? Is Khadija gonna be like a honorary party member?" Izzy asked Bailey. "I guess she said she wanted to help if we needed gadgets, so I think she wants to help us." "Well I love that there are other people who want to help us, I mean we're not gonna do all this Jotuzon stuff by ourselves." Izzy snarked with Bailey. "Yeah, it always helps to have allies on our side."