#and when i was in boarding school I have to deal with these fake bitches on a daily basis its TIRINGGGGG

[languri]

The anime bitches who mocked me for drawing weird and thick eyebrows on my art at and draws thin eyebrows on their same face anime art at boarding school years ago cant even draw their own eyebrows now suck a dick dumb bitch 😎😎😎

[bkglovergirl]

♡𓂃Room 381

Bakugou X Reader

𓏲 ࣪The school tells the students the exciting news! now you gotta deal with the fact you have a new 'husband' who could care less about this whole situation.

Word count; 1.6k

𓏲 ࣪₊♡𓂃

The bell rings. There is tension in the air. Not because of a villain attack, no, there hasn't been one in days, but because all teachers have ordered all students back to the classrooms for an important discussion. No one knows what this is about and in this school, this could be anything. You pick up your bag and look around for any familiar faces hoping you can have a conversation about the situation, the lunch room is almost bare but you catch a familiar redhead and run up to him. “Hey Todoroki!” you smile at him giving him a small wave. He stops his movements and looks at you.

“Hi,” he says. It sounds very bland, you think, but what can you expect? Maybe he’s nervous as well.

“Can I walk with you to class? I’m nervous about this big discussion thing.” Todoroki starts walking but looks at you to continue the conversation so you take that as a yes and follow.

“What’s there to be nervous about?” you give him a face.

“What’s there? Are you for real asking me that right now?!” You turn to walk backward and face him. “I don’t know, let’s think. A Hero retires, A Hero has died, they are shutting down UA, a student has gone missing, the teachers are robots, and they want to recruit us!” It seems Todorokis's blank face has gotten even blanker.

“All those were completely reasonable until the last one. Do you always automatically think of the worst-case scenarios?”

“Well kinda but it’s not my fault.” you cross your arms, “you gotta think of the worse case scenarios when it comes to this line of work-!” you walking backwards didn’t notice how close you were getting to the classroom, which means you didn't notice the blond who was right near the door causing you to bump into him.

“Watch it bitch!” Bakugou pushes you away causing you to fall about into Todoroki. 

“Alright asshole I’m not a freaking domino! You didn't need to push me!” you yell back in defense moving away from Todoroki. All Bakugou can do is give a scowl and walk into the classroom. “I Know I said it but I’m gonna say it again. What an asshole.” Todoroki nods following you into the classroom. 

𓏲 ࣪₊♡𓂃

“Alright class I regret to inform you that the school board has decided that not only is it not enough we teach you hero skills we must now domesticate you. Following your continued hero work you will now be paired with someone who will be your fake married partner. You will have your dorms, each including bedrooms that only you can access with your thumbprint. You will be monitored with a sensor. If you can’t get along and you get no points or even worse, negative points you fail the semester. Which means no work study. No fighting.” Aizawa slips into his sleeping bag unusually quickly. The class is quiet for a moment before yelling commences. Questions are yelled and it isn't until Aizawas face looks annoyed it gets silent. The room is quiet enough you can hear other classrooms having the same reaction you all just had. You can’t help but think you were so far off in your assumptions and at this point you wish a hero was retiring. “I will answer questions but I am not talking over all of you.” Hands are quickly raised.

“What happens if you are paired up with someone insufferable?” Yaoyorozu asks, she’s bold but the majority of the class was thinking about it.

“To help encourage points if a pair can get over a 100 and have an overall ‘A’ Grade, you and your partner have the option to switch pairs with another group who is also in an overall ‘A’ Grade.” You and a couple of people sigh. It’s a relief.

“How does this Sensor work?” Midoriya asks, noting that he already has his notebook out on his desk.

“It looks like a camera, but it’s not. Created by some tech-savvy departments, it can sense and scan emotions and calculate to decide what points a pair shall receive. For example, if the pair gets into an argument, the machine with scan picks up what it needs to and calculates it into the point system. And more Mumbo jumbo.”

“So why exactly is this happening?” You ask.

“The school board wants to show what it’s like to balance the life you all hopefully will have when you graduate while still being a hero… there is more to it but that's neither here nor there. Pairings will be posted in a few. I need a nap.” And that's it. Aizawa closes his sleeping bag and the class is left with dreed until the pairings come out.

𓏲 ࣪₊♡𓂃

A knock is heard at the door and Aizawa slowly unzips his sleeping bag and answers the door, grabbing the paper and walking in front of the class. Everyone is quiet. Aizawa tapes the paper onto the board. “Some of you are paired with people in here and others are paired with others in other classes. I want absolutely no complaints. Next to your name is the room of your dorms.” As you would expect he goes back into his sleeping bag and the room is engulfed in chaos, everyone runs to the board, adrenaline running to see who they got. Gradually pairs start forming some cheers and some blushing tension. You get to the board and scan the paper. Down at the bottom in black ink ‘Y/N L/N and Katsuki Bakugou room 381’ 

“You gotta be fucking joking.” Of course, you two find your names at the same time. Why does he sound so disgusted, you're a fucking treat! You are about to remark him but before you can Aizawa comes out of his sleeping bag.

“It looks like you all found your names. Class is going to start now, so go back to your seats.” Are we just going to act like nothing just happened?! 

𓏲 ࣪₊♡𓂃

The class had ended, and the girls and you were walking to your new dorms with some of your things from your old dorms. You were quiet, way too quiet for someone to notice.

“Girl you okay?” Ochaco hugs your arm, “normally you are leading our conversations.”

“No, duh, she’s quiet! She's got Bakugou as her husband,” you say silently, wondering if Mina could be any louder.

“I’m gonna die. Or my eardrums are gonna die. Either way, something is dying!” You can’t help but complain.

“What’s the deal with you both anyway?” Kyoka questions, “Normally people can have at least one decent conversation with Bakugou, But I’ve never seen you guys even hold a simple conversation. He won’t even communicate in battle with you? And he communicates with Midoriya.”

“I honestly don’t even know.” Truth is you did know and it was an embarrassing story that no one can get out of you. You went to middle school with both Bakugou and Midoriya. Over time and God knows how this happened you gained a crush on him and decided it would be a brilliant idea to confess. When you did it was a total embarrassment not only did he laugh in your face and shut you down, but He told those punk friends of his and they made your middle school life an embarrassment. You swore since that day he was your enemy. Childish yes? But still partly true to this day.

𓏲 ࣪₊♡𓂃

You wave the girls goodbye and look at your new dorm you share with your new ‘Husband.’ You can’t help but think how ironic this is. You take a deep breath and enter the dorm. In the dorm is surprisingly a kitchen to your left and a small living room area in front with a door leading out to a balcony. Bakugou is sitting on the couch in the living room. It’s clear he’s already made himself comfortable with how he's sprawled out he is. You decided it’s just best to wait it out in your room and make yourself dinner once he goes to bed. You look and see two doors one with your name on it and another with Bakugou’s to the right of the living room area, you start walking over to your respective door.

“Don’t expect shit out of me.” 

“I never expect anything out of you.”

“EXCUSE ME?!” Bakugou stands up facing you, “Who do you think you are saying that?!”

“If you aren't gonna put in any effort I’m gonna say whatever I want to you assface!” You both hear a ding. You didn't notice it before but over the TV is a point counter. Negative one. Not even five minutes into the dorm and you have negative points. “Oh now look what you did!”

“I didn't do that!”

“Yeah, you did!”

“Not my fault I don’t wanna do this stupid ass simulation. I just wanna be a Hero. Number one hero at that. A family and wife-” he points at you, “is just a stupid distraction from that and I don’t need this.” you roll your eyes and walk into your room, “DON’T WALK AWAY FROM ME!” and you slam your door. You place your stuff down on your new bed and sit down putting your hands to your face. Your blushing?! Why the fuck are you blushing? Is it because he called you his wife? Which is stupid and just delusional, did you not hear what he said? A million thoughts are running through your head as you question yourself but nothing can deny the feelings in your stomach.

[cowgurrrl]

You're My Only Hope for Heaven

Pairing: Joel Miller x fem!reader

Author's note: oh bitch I'm having a fucking blast with this dynamic the slow burn is slow burning

Summary: An unlikely patron saunters into your bar [3.5k]

Warnings: one (1) creepy guy, one (1) fake marriage, lots of flirting that’s not flirting but it’s not not flirting, one (1) kiss

You try not to make it a habit of picking up bar shifts during the week. Not only is it almost always slow, and you barely make any money, but it's hard to go from teaching for eight hours directly to another job. You'd much rather be at home, grading or doing something for yourself for the first time in weeks. But you couldn't say no when Katie called you, almost in tears, begging you to take her shift so she could deal with a burst pipe in her house. You don't regret doing her a favor, but you do regret other things as you stand behind the mostly empty bar as whatever game is happening plays on the screen above your head. You think it's a UT game. Or maybe A&M. Or any of the other SEC Texas schools with an absurd football budget. 

You're basically yawning your way through your shift and working through your newest painting in your head, trying and failing to not think about school until absolutely necessary. Principal Martinez is cracking down on the stupid minutiae the school board demands of its teachers, and you spent most of your afternoon writing student objectives on the board. On top of that, your art club kids have been begging you to plan a field trip to the local art museum for weeks. You finally relented, but the paperwork is mind-numbing and requires much more work than you thought. Between working, making art, and trying to live your life, you barely have time. 

Another reason you hate working weekdays is the creepy regulars. Normally, you can ignore them on a busy Saturday night, but it's harder when it's as dead as it is. You have no idea how Katie deals with them on a regular basis. It started with a guy at the bar, you think his name is Steve, asking you progressively invasive questions. "How old are you?" "You gotta boyfriend?" "What time do you get off?" One right after each other, even after you made it clear you're not interested. Fake laughing and making excuses to run to the back or change a keg don't throw him off. 

"Keep it up, and I'll cut you off." You finally threaten after he asks you why you're being a bitch. You roll your eyes when the bell above the door rings, probably admitting yet another asshole who's gonna make your night hell. When you turn toward the door, the words leave you before you can stop them. "You've gotta be fucking kidding me."

"Now, is that any way to greet your customers?" Joel chuckles, and you sigh as he sits down in front of you. Thankfully, his brother is not in tow, and you can save yourself a little embarrassment. "I didn't know you worked here."

"I don't," you say. "Whatcha drinkin'?" 

"Looks like you're workin' to me." He smirks and you shoot him a look.

"You wanna free drink or not?" 

"Shiner," he answers quickly. You hum in acknowledgment, not even bothering with the POS system and going right to the fridge to pull a bottle out for him. You pop the cap off and place a napkin under the beer before sliding it to him. "Are you bribin' me?"

"You've gotta be faster with your questions, Miller. You've already accepted it. Might as well enjoy." You say, and he laughs. 

"Well, alright, then," he says, raising his beer to you before taking a quick sip. "So, what's this, then? You moonlightin' as a bartender?" He asks, and you fight yourself on how to answer. What if word gets back to parents? Administration? They couldn't reprimand you for that, right? You know plenty of other teachers with second jobs, so it can't be that taboo. Still, you're hesitant to open up to Joel. Out of all the people who could've walked into your bar tonight, it had to be him.

"Something like that." You settle on, wiping a sticky spot on the bar to avoid his gaze. If he feels anything negative about you having a second job, his face doesn't show it. He has a soft smile on his lips and a slight sunburn across his nose, highlighting the freckles living there that previously went unnoticed. You want to tease him about not wearing sunscreen, but the joke dies in your throat when he rests his elbows on your bar, showing off those stupid biceps you can't not look at. He catches your eyes lingering near the short sleeve of his shirt and opens his mouth like he's going to say something, but a grating voice from the other side of the bar cuts him off.

"Excuse me, sweetheart! You've got other patrons over here!" Steve yells, and you feel your eye twitch at his attitude. Joel notices.

"What's wrong with him?" He asks quietly, leaning forward over the bar to get closer to you. Looking into his brown eyes and confused expression, an idea forms.

"Pretend you know me." You say, and his eyebrows knit together, every emotion visible on his face. 

"I do know you."

"No, I mean," you sigh. "That guy over there is a regular on Wednesdays, and the girl who usually works is married, so he doesn't try anything with her, but I won't give him my number, and he's making me fucking miserable. So, just... pretend to know me." Joel is bigger than Steve. Much bigger. Probably a whole head taller and much broader than the man on the other side of the bar. One word from Joel, and he might actually shut up or, better yet, leave altogether so you can finish your day without any more hiccups.

"Okay," Joel agrees, and you reflexively reach out to touch his thick forearm and squeeze. You don't even realize you did it until he smiles like he won a staring contest or something.

"Thank you," you say before turning and bracing yourself to deal with Steve. "What can I do for you, sir?" You ask, but before you can even finish your sentence, he holds up his empty beer bottle and waves it in front of your face like you're stupid. 

"Another beer." He says, and you bite your tongue. 

"You got it."

"Finally," he groans. "You'd think for such an easy fuckin' job, you'd be better at it." 

"What the fuck is your problem?" You ask, refusing to move from your spot to get him his beer, and he scoffs.

"My problem is that you're bein' a fuckin' bitch and ignorin' me when I didn't do nothin' wrong." He's slurring his words together at this point, and you wordlessly go to the POS system to close his tab and send him on his way. "Hey, I'm talkin' to you!" He yells after you.

"Hey, man, why don't you leave her alone? She's just tryna do her job." Joel speaks up from the other side of the bar, and Steve straightens up in his seat as he assesses Joel. 

"This isn't any of your fuckin' business. Stay out of it."

"It's my business now. That's no way to speak to a lady. I think you owe her a mighty big apology." 

"I don't owe her shit," he spits, and you look over to see Joel setting his jaw and squaring his shoulders. "Why's this even matter to you, big shot?"

"That's my fuckin' wife you're mouthin' off to," Joel says without hesitation, and you quickly school your expression. Wife? You asked him to play along, but you didn't think he'd say that. "So, if you wanna keep the rest of your teeth, I suggest you apologize to her, leave her a nice, big tip for dealin' with your sorry ass, and get yourself a ride home." 

Steve is silent as you take the empty bottle away from him— just in case things get really ugly— and slide him his card and bill. He eyes Joel carefully for a few tense seconds before picking up a pen, signing his check, and leaving without another word. The second he's out the door, you feel a weight lift off your shoulders and sigh at the relief. You scrub a hand down your face and look over at Joel.

"You okay?" He asks gently like you're a spooked horse, and you nod. You take a few minutes to get yourself together, putting in Steve's 30% tip and cleaning off the empty bar before returning to Joel. "What?" He asks when he catches you smirking.

"At least buy a girl dinner before you call me your wife." You say, and he laughs, shaking his head. 

"You said the other girl is married. I just took it and ran," he says. "And I already tried to take you to dinner, but somebody said no." 

"School regulation says it's unethical." 

"Well, we're not at school now, and you're certainly not a teacher right now." He says smoothly, vaguely gesturing to your all-black outfit, and you give him a look. "What time d'you get off?"

"You're gonna get me in trouble." You whisper, and he leans forward across the bar. 

"All I did was ask you a question." He whispers back, playfully mocking you. It could be the smile on his face, the relaxed humor behind his eyes, or the fact that he stood up for you because you asked him to, but you glance between him and the clock and take a deep breath. 

"I get off at 12. Unless it stays dead like this, then I'm closing early," you say, and his smile grows. "But this is not a date." 

"'Course not." He chuckles, and you raise your eyebrows at him. 

"I'm serious. I need you to say it's not a date, so I know you won't come after me if your kid fails my class." 

"Is my kid failing your class?"

"No, she's amazing. But for my own mental well-being, I need you to say that this is not a date." You say, and he grabs your wrist to stop your anxious wringing. 

"Let me buy you a drink. That's it. Nothin' more," he says, squeezing you. "This ain't a date." 

"Thank you." You sigh, and he nods. 

You spend an hour or two idling between conversations with Joel and trying to look busy for any manager who might care enough to check the cameras. You're pretty much done with all your closing duties by 10:00, and you wait until it's been a full hour since anyone else came in to flip the closed sign and do a few last-minute things. When the bar is completely clean, empty, and ready for the next shift, you slink back behind it to make yourself and Joel a drink before sitting beside him. 

"You feelin' proud of yourself for getting us here?" You ask as you clink your glass against his and take a sip. 

"Yeah, I've got the prettiest girl in the whole place sittin' by me," he says, and before you can even scold him, he throws his hands up. "Not a date." 

"Not a date." You repeat.

"Still true, though."

"Don't make me regret saying yes to you, Mr. Miller." You say, and he gives you a look. You like teasing him, especially since you can always see exactly how he's feeling. He's not particularly subtle, contrary to what you're sure others think about him. 

"How many times do I have to tell you to call me Joel?" 

"As many times as it takes, I guess," you shrug. "You also clearly have an aversion to being called Mr. Miller."

"My dad was Mr. Miller." He says, and you roll your eyes, groaning and half-folding in on yourself dramatically. 

"Oh, my God, do you know how many men have said that to me since I've become a teacher?"

"Well, it's true!" He says. "Are you sayin' other people are tryna tell my wife to call ‘em by their first names?" He asks, and you laugh. 

"Believe it or not, you're not the first single parent to ask me out." 

"Am I the first one you said yes to?" 

"So far." 

"So far?" He asks, raising his eyebrows, and you hum. "I'll take it." 

Unsurprisingly, Joel is really easy to talk to. He asks questions about your life outside of work, where you went to school, and what made you want to be a teacher. You ask him about his job and family and, somehow, end up talking about the latest cheesy action film he's seen. When both your drinks are empty, the glasses sit there, the ice slowly melting as you talk into the night. Every time a hint of anxiety creeps up your spine, he makes you laugh or tells you an interesting story from his past and distracts you from it. You lose hours sitting there, and you don't even realize it until your phone pings you with a reminder, and you suddenly see it's past midnight.

"Oh, shit," you mumble, showing Joel the time. "I gotta lock up."

"And you have school tomorrow." He says, and you groan as you stand and grab your glasses. 

"Don't remind me. I've got like five million things waiting to get done there." You say. He watches you step behind the bar, leave them in the sink for the opener to find, and no doubt send a catty message in the group chat asking who closed the night before. His eyes don't leave you even when you reach up and grab your bag, your sleeve falling down just enough to reveal a nasty bruise.

"Woah, that looks like it hurt," he says, gesturing to your arm. "How'd you get that?"

"Promise you won't laugh." Your response does nothing to clear up his confusion, but he raises his right hand and makes a cross over his heart.

"I promise." His tone is gentle and even, but you're still hesitant to actually admit it.

"I fell off a table." 

"I told you!"

"Hey!" You scold. "You promised you'd be cool about it!"

"I promised not to laugh." He says, and you roll your eyes. "They still haven't come to fix it for ya?"

"Would I be climbing on tables if they did?"

"Fair enough," he shrugs. You find the bar keys at the bottom of your purse and walk over to where he's still sitting, your hand resting on the back of your chair. He shifts forward until he can catch the edge of your sleeve and roll it up to see the bruise in all her glory. His fingers are warm, and his touch light as he traces the edge of it, not firm enough to make it ache but enough that you feel the pads of his fingers. You freeze like your stillness will be enough for the feather-light touches to continue, your eyes meeting for a split second. He clears his throat and rolls your sleeve back down for you, drawing his hand back. "Tell you what," he says. "I gotta buddy who gets me a good deal on some spare parts. Let me see if I can track down the part you need, and I'll come fix it myself. Free of charge."

"You don't have to do that." 

"And let my wife fall off tables?" He asks, a smirk pulling on his lips, and you shake your head. "It's the least I can do for the free drinks and, ya know, teachin' my kid." 

"Fine, but don't make it a thing. The maintenance people already don't like me. I can't imagine seeking outside help will make them like me." 

"I won't make it a thing," he promises, leaning back in his chair as his eyes travel up and down your body. He sighs heavily and sucks his teeth like you're suddenly too much, and you smile. "It's a damn shame this wasn't a date."

"What'd you do if it was?" The question borders on dangerous, but you can't take it back now that you've said it. It seems to have piqued Joel's interest, too, because he raises his eyebrows at you.

"You really wanna know?" He asks, and you nod.

"I really wanna know," you say. "How does Joel Miller end a successful date?" He gets a little bashful at the question, a blush creeping up his neck, and you knock his knee with yours to get his attention. "C'mon, don't get shy on me now."

"Alright, alright," he grumbles. "If this were a date, and we were gettin' ready to go out separate ways, I'd walk you out to your car, open the door for ya 'cause a lady should never open her own doors," his voice is slow and low, and he watches your face as he speaks. "And I'd kiss you. Nice and slow so I don't scare ya off or anythin'. I might put a hand on your waist or bite that pretty lip or somethin'. And right when I can feel you wantin' a little more, gettin' a little desperate, I'd stop, say goodnight, and walk back to my truck." His words have a devastating effect on you, and you can't look away from him. The heat rolling off him in waves makes you too warm and flustered. His gaze flicks from your eyes to your lips, his own tongue darting out to wet his plump bottom lip, and you have half a mind to think he's looking at you like he wants to eat you alive. You have half a mind to let him. 

"You're right," you finally breathe. "It's a shame this isn't a date." He nods and stands, his broad chest grazing yours as you look up at him. You're not a science teacher by any means. If you were, you might be able to explain the magnetism you feel toward Joel or what stupid chemical in your brain makes you wonder what tricks he keeps up his sleeve. But you're not. You're an art teacher. So, the only thing you can focus on is the deep brown of his irises and the heavy lashes and crow's feet that frame his eyes. And the swoop of his salt and pepper curls, the tint of his slightly pink forehead and strong nose. You want to capture his image in the dim lighting of the bar, but you settle for committing it to memory to scribble in the margins of your notebook for the rest of the week. Why couldn't you have been a science teacher?

Neither of you says anything as he finally steps away, giving you the space to turn off the last of the bar lights and push through the haze he created in your mind. He lingers by the door and opens it for you when you go to the front and step into the humid Austin night. You lock the doors and give him a small smile when you turn around to see him rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet. 

Then, just as he said, he walks you to your car and opens the driver's side door for you. His truck, the only other car in the parking lot, is parked a few spaces away from yours. It would've been so much easier to just ignore you, get in his car, and drive away, but here he is, being the gentleman he's always been toward you. You step into the space created by the open door and throw your bag in the passenger seat, but don't get in the car. Not yet. He sighs heavily, like he's in physical pain, when you meet his eyes again, and his hand flexes around the edge of your car door. 

"Thanks for my not date." You mumble, and he nods. You're close (and weak) enough that brushing his lips would just take a strong breeze. It freaks you out how okay you are with the idea of "accidentally" kissing Joel Miller. You should be panicking. Alarm bells should be sounding in your head, but the only thing filling the cavernous space is the echo of his voice explaining what he'd do if this were a date. Idiot.

He leans on your door a little more, and your heart quickens, thinking he might actually be the one to make the move. His head ducks just a little, and you get a strong whiff of his cologne, your eyes fluttering shut at the scent. Your throat is suddenly dry, and you're all but pushing up on your toes when he swerves past your lips and presses a chaste, firm kiss to your cheek. His beard scratches your soft skin pleasantly, and you keep your eyes closed until he pulls away, looking like he just won a prize.

"Get home safe." He says as he steps back, still holding your door open. You sigh and fight a smile as you look at him— cocky, vindicated, and knowing exactly what he just did. 

"Goodnight, Joel." You manage to get out before sitting down and letting him gently shut the door for you. You wait until he gets in his truck to roll your window down and shout his name until he does the same. "I'm gonna get you back for that."

"Oh, I'm countin' on it, darlin'."

TAGLIST: @abbyhaslongshorts @kiwiharrykiwi @sumsworldz @myloveistoolittle @anavatazes @marantha @cosmoscoffeee @shyminnie07 @beezusvreeland @eddiemunsonsbedroom @harriedandharassed @doodlebob-mp3

[jujutsu-headcanons]

Gojo Satoru general headcanons

Let's get one thing clear: this man is absolutely chaotic. He is always full of energy. His energy levels never reach below 50%. He is loud and proud, always running, and never takes a minute to relax.

Do not give him Monster. Shoko did that once and it took her forever to get him off the ceiling. Also, avoid caffeine. Shoko replaces his normal coffee with decaf and he still hasn't noticed the difference. Keep it that way.

He was the class clown when he was younger. He wasn't exactly a trouble maker, but he may as well be. I cannot word that sentence and I am sorry. Next.

All of his teachers assumed he never listened in class, so they always called in him when they thought he wasn't paying attention. It still shocked them every time he rattled off the correct answer.

Not only did he answer the question correctly, but he could also explain his reasoning behind the answer, and if it was multiple choice, explain why the other answers were wrong. 

This tall man child would march up to the board and absolutely fill it to the brim with work, turn around, drop the chalk-like a mic drop and walk back to his desk with the smuggest look on his face.

That doesn't mean he did the work tho

Idk how schools in japan work but we all know schools in America only care about the amount of work you do and not what you actually know so we'll use that for the sake of the headcanon: he had straight D's bc he never turned in his work

Despite not doing the work snd goofing off, teachers actually really liked him

A lot of people liked him and he was super popular, but he still felt alone

Fake friends, you know how that works, he didn't meet any real friends until he became a shaman

Clean freak. This dude actually makes his bed. He scrubs his bathroom twice a week. His desk can get cluttered but he straightens up once a week. He's not exactly a germaphobe because

He cannot respect your personal space and that's actually canon but let me take it a step further 

He's a slapper. Especially when he laughs. It doesn't hurt, it's playful dw. He hugs you from behind especially when he's cold. He picks you up and carries you around. He will grab your wrist, arm, or hand and lead you around even if you're following him. He lays his legs across you or lays across your lap. Puts his head on your shoulder. Platonic cuddling between friends is mandatory. He's just so hands-on it's ridiculous.

Unless you explicitly tell him you're uncomfortable he won't stop

Don't worry, if you aren't in that type of relationship, your no-no square is safe. Except, if you seem chill, he will slap your ass regardless of friendship status. His ass is also slappable. You can't tell me Geto and Gojo didn't run around slapping each other asses, okay

He was weird and scrawny as a child. He didn't start beefing out until he started training to be a shaman and he's still kinda smaller than most beefy boys

He can pick you up and throw you around easily. He carried around a 170 pound Yuji like a sack of potatoes and can easily carry around three times that weight

It's amazing he's so tiny because you remember 2014 Shane Dawson making all of those wack ass desserts that was just s pile of chaos wrapped in chocolate?

He can eat every last bite of one of those monstrosities without getting a stomach ache, gaining weight, or dying basically

He knows bc Yuji dared him to do it

He has really cold hands and feet

He sounds old. Let me elaborate. He's constantly cracking his joints. They also creak when he moves. He complains about body pains like he's 80 y/o

He also shares wisdom with the kids as if he's actually 80 y/o

It's irrelevant advice that doesn't make sense but is also useful. Megumi can't count the number of times he's asked Gojo for feedback on his technique but had been told to remember to chew 40 times or never go to bed angry

Starts off sentences with "now son" and "when I was your age"

He uses his blindfold as a headband when he wants his hair out of his face. He also uses headbands as... Headbands... When he wants to wear sunglasses but get his hair out of his face

He owns so many pairs of sunglasses but he always wears the same pair

He's only bought a handful of them himself, most of them are gifts

No one knows what to get him for Christmas or his birthday bc he has everything, so they resort to sunglasses

His favorite pair is a pair that Shoko and Geto bought him as a gag. He thought they were dead serious, though, so he wore them around for a month

They were heart-shaped, rose-tinted glasses

Can you believe this man doesn't use any gel or anything to keep his hair spiky with the blindfold on? It just naturally defies gravity when the blindfold is on

Tell this man he's pretty because he already knows. He's narcissistic but not the cringy kind

Photogenic as hell. Takes great pictures from any angle. 

He gives everyone a different story as to why he covers his eyes. Sometimes he says it's because his eyes are too pretty and are a distraction. Sometimes he says it's because the sunglasses/bandages/blindfold look cooler than his eyes. Sometimes he says it's to protect the six eyes from seeing things he doesn't want to see. The world may never know

He's tried covering his whole face before, but he thinks he's too pretty for that. He at least wants one of his many amazing features to be shown at all times.

So about his driver's license;

He knows how to drive. He can be a good driver. When he wants to be. He just doesn't have a driver's license.

Now he TELLS people he just never got around to getting one, however, there's a rumor he lost it due to too many parking tickets

It's amazing the only tickets he's ever gotten have been from that and once he got caught without a seatbelt; he would have gotten out of that one if he hadn't been flirting with the police officer so bad

This doesn't stop Gojo from driving places though

He steals Ijichi's car a LOT and Ijichi DOESN'T KNOW HOW like??? The windows are never broken and it doesn't look hotwired-

Gojo has a key

You're not even supposed to be able to duplicate car keys but Gojo did 

Also; none of the first-year trio knows he doesn't have a driver's license, though that much should be painfully obvious

He whips around corners, speeds up at yellow lights, goes "watch this" and does a donut, it's just a mess

The poor students have to sit in the backseat too. Just imagine Megumi with all three seatbelts around him like that one meme.

He thrives off of Nobara and Yuji screaming from the backseat, and he can see Megumi being smooshed because he thought the middle seat was the safest through the rearview mirror

Which he doesn't even need because of the six eyes

Despite being such a reckless driver, he knows when danger will happen, so he's never once gotten in a wreck

He blasts the radio, which makes up for the driving.

Has a habit of getting in a car and ending up in the McDonalds drive-thru

Steals other people's fries and keeps the fullest one for himself.

He was rebellious as a kid and teenager, but hey, at least his juvie record is sealed 

He's been detained and in the back of a cop car many times, but the reason was never really bad enough for him to be arrested. Mostly he's just being mouthy. And the time he got caught spray painting on the side of a building. And that one time he and Getou hopped the fence to get into the local pool. And that other time-

It got worse after Getou wasn't around to get him out of trouble. Suddenly, breaking the rules wasn't fun anymore and he mellowed out. 

Tried alcohol and cigarettes before he was legal. Decided neither was his thing, however, he did start drinking occasionally when he was legal.

He's a fucking chaotic drunk. Oh my god he's absolutely feral

Most bars in the vicinity know him by name and they sigh whenever he walks in

Shoko is his emergency contact. She hates it

Shoko has to drag drunk Gojo home at least twice a month and is not happy about it

Once she left him in an alley. He made it home okay so she guesses it's fine

Once he got so drunk he spilled beer on his sock. The thought the fastest way to dry them was by sticking them in the microwave. Forgot about it until someone asked, "Who the fuck is cooking socks???"

I feel it important he was in the break room of the local grocery store and no one knows how he got there

As he was escorted out he stole a grocery cart and rode away in it while singing Don't Threaten Me (With A Good Time) by Panic! At The Disco

He has no alcohol tolerance at all what so ever

He will literally just stare at you and giggle

It's funny he's really flirty but also doesn't seal the deal. Literally, every woman in that bar is willing to get in his bed but he declines every offer. No one knows why

Its because he respects women

He helps his students break the rules as long as they're within reason. Once night Yuji was really hungry and after having a temper tantrum he couldn't order Uber eats bc the school is supposed to be secret Gojo helped sneak him out to get food. Who needs curfew anyway.

The shirts in his closet range from like twenty bucks to the iconic rich bitch shirt the kids ruined in that one chapter we all know the one 

He still wears that by the way, he calls it "art" 

When he was younger, Megumi drew a picture of Gojo being eaten by his shadow dogs. Gojo found it and now it's framed in his room.

He keeps up with current trends and memes like no one's business. This is how he bonds with his kids.

Don't call him old, but also, he'll tell you to respect your elders it's a mess

He has a lot of games on his phone. You can usually find him holding his phone sideways playing some RPG game he probably spent too much money on 

He did hop on the Pokemon Go hype train but after becoming overpowered he got bored

This happens to a lot of games. He pays way too much money, gets to be the strongest in the server, and gets bored

He likes games where you can kill other people's troops and likes to watch as they lose all their power

I canon him as being borderline sadistic

This is why he's Sakata Gintoki reincarnated

White hair, sweet tooth, black leather clothes, dad vibes, never takes anything seriously bc when he does he's scary as fuck, the works.

He is Sakata Gintoki

He liked Gintama growing up. He watched a lot of iconic shows as they aired. He considers himself an og

He's hella bilingual

Because he's the strongest he goes overseas for missions a lot. Because of this he speaks a lot of languages and knows a lot about international cuisine 

He takes pictures of himself eating disgusting foods like snails. He never likes them but he loves the idea of Nobara gagging back in japan

Has paperwork sitting untouched on his desk from three months ago that he will not touch for at least another three months

Does the crossword puzzles in the newspaper every week

Uses humor as a coping mechanism and it honestly just became a personality

Constantly popping his joints. I'm sorry if you find this gross I too find it gross.

Probably brought home every stray animal he ever met ever until he was at least like 22 y/o

Tags: @wasabito @kittaliapenn

[marauders-venting]

i wanna be yours

pairing: dorlene (dorcas x marlene)

genre: fluff

warnings: none

words: 2122

note: inspired by the songs ‘I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE’ by Måneskin and ‘i wanna be your girlfriend’ by girl in red

a/n: this is my first muggle au which is pretty exciting!! (it’s set at hogwarts but its a non-magical boarding school). also i love both of these songs so i kept listening to them as i was trying to write this and it was very distracting

“Marls, come on, duet with me,” Sirius begged. “What’s the point of karaoke if people don’t hear our angelic voices singing together?”

“Yeah, Marlene, go sing with Sirius,” Dorcas encouraged.

“Fine,” Marlene sighed, standing up. “But I have one condition: Dorcas has to sing a song as well.” Marlene crossed her arms, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes as she looked at Dorcas.

“Fine, it’s your funeral,” Dorcas said, shrugging. “Now go sing.”

“What are we singing, Siri?” Marlene asked.

‘I swear to god, Marlene, if you call me ‘Siri’ one more time—”

“You’re making me sing,” she interrupted. “I can call you whatever the fuck I want.”

“But it’s literally the name of an app—”

“Siri isn’t an app,” Remus said, not looking up from his phone. “It’s software that’s part of the iOS operating system. You don’t have to download an app to use it; it’s built into the software of your phone.”

“Yeah, yeah whatever,” Sirius said. “Moony, stop being so anti-social and come sing with us.” Remus looked up from his phone.

“Do you really expect me to sing?” he asks, raising his eyebrows.

“Fine then, don’t sing,” Sirius said. “Just come hear me sing.”

“Fine,” Remus said, but he smiled and joined Dorcas on the couch in front of what Sirius had clearly marked as his stage. “And I wasn’t being anti-social I was reading.”

“Reading is not socialising,” Lily said. “And since when do you read on your phone?”

“Since my favourite fanfic author updated their fic on ao3 and I’m too lazy to go get my computer.”

“Ok, ok me and Marlene are singing now so hush,” Sirius said.

“You still haven’t told me what we’re singing,” Marlene said, standing next to Sirius with her arms crossed.

“You’ll find out in a second,” Sirius said, scrolling through his playlist and selecting a song.

“I’m concerned,” Marlene said, trying to look over Sirius’ shoulder but he held his phone at an awkward angle so she wouldn’t be able to see. “At least pick a song that I know then.”

“Don’t worry you definitely know this song.” And then the song I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE by Måneskin came on the speaker and a grin spread across Marlene’s face as she and Sirius started to sing.

“I wanna be your slave, I wanna be your master. I wanna make your heartbeat run like rollercoasters. I wanna be good boy, I wanna be your gangster, cause you could be the beauty and I could be the monster. I love you since this morning not just for aesthetic, I wanna touch your body so fucking electric…” Sirius winked at Remus, who blushed and bit his lip. Somebody wolf-whistled and Dorcas turned to find James and Peter laughing and Lily jabbing James in the ribs. Her eyes wandered back to Marlene, who was really getting into the song.

“And I’m a blond girl who’s searching for redemption—” at this, Marlene pulled the elastic out of her hair and shook it out. “And I’m a freak that is searching, Imma motherfucking monster who’s searching for redemption!” Marlene and Sirius started jumping around, hair flying, limbs flailing, laughing when they accidentally slapped each other. Marlene threw her hands in the air and her shirt lifted, exposing an inch of bare skin. Dorcas caught a flash of her belly button ring and the dragon tattoo that they knew started on Marlene’s hip and reached up to her waist. She looked away and swallowed hard. Dorcas knew that seeing this shouldn’t have any effect on them but why did Marlene have to be so gorgeous?

“I wanna be your slave, I wanna be your master.” They whispered the last line and Marlene’s eyes met Dorcas’. She smiled, her cheeks turning a faint pink before looking away, her blond hair falling into her face. Dorcas felt their heart racing in her chest but thought nothing of it. Her heartbeat always quickened when Marlene smiled at them.

“Oh my god, I love that song,” Marlene said, flopping onto the couch next to Dorcas. She turned to Sirius. “I thought you were going to pick some weird, shitty song that I hate.”

“I was going to,” Sirius admitted, “but my desire to sing a Måneskin song was greater than my desire to piss you off.”

“As it should be,” Marlene says.

“You guys were actually really good,” Dorcas says. They knew that both Marlene and Sirius could sing but she wasn’t sure this song was quite the style that suited their voices. Apparently, it was exactly their style.

“Obviously,” Sirius said, one hand now slung around Remus’ shoulders.

“Thanks, Dorcas,” Marlene said, smiling at her again. Dorcas felt the familiar flutter in their stomach. “Ok, I sang, now it’s your turn.”

“Ugh, Marly, don’t make me do this,” Dorcas groaned. “You know I can’t sing.”

“First of all, yes you can; I’ve heard you. Second of all, who cares?” Marlene said. “We had a deal, now go sing.”

“I hate you,” they said.

“Love you too, Dorcas,” Marlene smirked. Dorcas felt like she was being stabbed and getting butterflies all at once. Because Marlene loved them. They didn’t doubt that. It was true. But there was no way that Marlene loved her in the same way that they loved Marlene. And the thought of that made Dorcas die inside.

She couldn’t keep going like this. Being around Marlene all the time, pretending that they’re not desperately in love with her. And Marlene not knowing. That was the worst part.

Dorcas told Marlene everything. Marlene was the one person that Dorcas shared all her secrets with, all her problems and her worries. And Marlene always knew how to help them. She could make Dorcas feel better even if she couldn’t solve their problems. Marlene was Dorcas’ first friend at Hogwarts. She was the first person that Dorcas had come out to and vice versa. She was the person who had helped Dorcas experiment with different pronouns and genders before they found what felt right. Marlene meant everything to Dorcas. But Dorcas had been keeping a secret from Marlene for months now. This was one problem that Dorcas was sure Marlene couldn't help her with. But Dorcas couldn’t pretend any longer. And besides, Marlene deserved to know.

So when Sirius handed them his phone to play her song, Dorcas picked a song she knew she would regret. They already did. But she was going to do this anyway. She picks the original version of the song, not the karaoke version. This way at least if they sound bad, girl in red will mask the sound with her voice.

She takes the fake plastic microphone and stands up in front of all their friends. As the music starts playing from the speaker, their eyes meet Marlene’s, who smiles and gives her an encouraging nod. Dorcas smiles back sadly, knowing that this was probably the last time Marlene would look at them like that, smile shining, eyes sparkling. Beautiful. So, so beautiful. Dorcas keeps her eyes locked on Marlene’s and starts to sing.

“Oh Hannah, I wanna feel you close. Oh Hannah, come lie with my bones. Oh Hannah, don’t look away. Oh Hannah, just look at me the same.” Dorcas hadn’t taken their eyes off Marlene but Marlene wasn’t looking away either. She wondered if Marlene knew that they were singing about her. Dorcas tried to convey her thoughts to Marlene through their expression.

“I don’t wanna be your friend, I wanna kiss your lips. I wanna kiss you until I lose my breath. I don’t wanna be your friend, I wanna kiss your lips. I wanna kiss you until I lose my breath.” Marlene raised her eyebrows slightly, asking the question with her eyes. Dorcas gave the tiniest nod. She was tempted to look away, to spare themselves from having to see Marlene’s reaction. But they didn’t. She kept her eyes locked on Marlene’s and sang.

“Oh Hannah, tell me something nice. Like flowers and blue skies. Oh Hannah, I will follow you home. Although my lips are blue and I’m cold. I don’t wanna be your friend, I wanna kiss your lips. I wanna kiss you until I lose my breath.” Marlene was still staring at her, lips parted in surprise. It could not have been plainer that Dorcas was singing to Marlene. They felt their heart pound in her chest. Marlene knows. And she’s not looking away in disgust. Her cheeks are flushed but she doesn’t look uncomfortable or angry. She just looks shocked. Dorcas thinks the anticipation might kill her but they’re determined to finish the song. Determined to tell Marlene exactly how they feel.

“I don’t wanna be your friend, I wanna be your bitch. And I wanna touch you but not like this.” Dorcas feels herself blushing as they sing the words and for the first time in the whole song, they close their eyes, breaking eye contact with Marlene. When Dorcas opens her eyes again, they see Marlene standing up. She seems as surprised to find herself on her feet as Dorcas is.

“The look in your eyes, my hand between your thighs—” The words die in Dorcas’ throat as they feel lips on hers. Marlene is kissing her. Marlene is kissing her. Her lips are soft, her touch gentle and unsure but Dorcas feels electric currents running through her veins as Marlene’s thumb brushes their cheek and reaches into their hair. And all the while, girl in red keeps singing in the background. Oh, this can’t be real, it’s all just a dream. But it is real. They’re kissing for real. And Dorcas’ hand is on Marlene’s waist for real. And their hips are touching for real. I don’t wanna be your friend, I wanna kiss your lips. I wanna kiss you until I lose my breath. When they break apart, Dorcas is breathless. She keeps her eyes closed until they feel Marlene take her hand. They open their eyes and see Marlene, her cheeks flushed, her eyes bright, a smile tugging at her pink lips.

“Were you— was that supposed to be— were you singing… to me?” Marlene stuttered. Dorcas nods.

“And I meant it,” they said, caressing Marlene’s cheek with her thumb. “I meant every word I sang.” Marlene rested her forehead against Dorcas’ and she closed their eyes again. Marlene squeezed Dorcas’ hand and held it against her abdomen. Dorcas tilted their chin down and kissed Marlene again, her hand rubbing Marlene’s stomach. Marlene sighed and suddenly Dorcas became very aware of the fact that all of their friends were watched them. She stepped back and Marlene turned around. They both blushed but Dorcas couldn’t keep the smile off their face. Lily caught her eye and gave them a thumbs-up, which only made Dorcas smile more. Sirius was smirking at Marlene.

“I told you so,” he said.

“I will kick you,” Marlene threatened. She took Dorcas by the hand and pulled them out of the common room.

They went down to the lake and took off their socks and shoes. They sat quietly for a while, their feet dangling in the water.

“I can’t believe…” Marlene started, breaking the silence, “I mean, this whole time we liked each other and neither one of us said anything.”

“Well, I sang just now,” Dorcas said defensively.

“You were amazing by the way,” Marlene said, taking her hand and lacing their fingers together. “Your voice is beautiful. I told you you can sing.” Dorcas shrugged.

“Sing something for me,” Marlene whispered. “Please.”

“I don’t wanna be your friend.” Dorcas sang the words quietly, slower than the tune of the song. They tucked a strand of Marlene’s hair behind her ear. “I wanna kiss your lips.” She pulled Marlene in slowly by the back of her neck and fitted their mouths together. Her hand finds Marlene’s waist and they pull her closer. Marlene’s hand is on Dorcas’ thigh drawing small circles with her finger. Dorcas sighs and she feels the smile form in Marlene’s mouth as they slide their tongue into her mouth.

When they finally break apart, they flop onto the grass and look at the night sky, littered with stars. Marlene turns to face Dorcas, propped up on her elbow.

“So what do you say?” she asks. “Can I be your girlfriend?” Dorcas laughs.

“You even have to ask?” they say. “Yes, you can be my girlfriend. But there’s one condition,” she adds, smiling mischievously. Now it’s Marlene’s turn to laugh.

“Oh? What’s that?”

“I wanna be yours,” Dorcas says.

“Hmm, let me think about that,” Marlene says, sarcastically, but she smiles at Dorcas and squeezes their hand. “Yes, Dorcas,” she says quietly, “you can be mine.” And Marlene kisses her.

[xbellaxcarolinax]

Heartbreaker- Part 3

Pairing: Modern Ivar x Female character/ reader (She)

Word Count: 6332. Yikes.

Warnings: Sexual content, language, angst

Moodboard@peterquillzsblog

AN: The third part of this thing I did for @youbloodymadgenius 400 Followers Writing Challenge. I’m a bit insecure about this part, and it was hard to write but I hope ya’ll like it. Shout out to my girl @shannygoatgruff for helping me and encouraging me with the writing process. You da best.

Part 1, Part 2

...

The stars were mocking her, she was sure of it.

Her eyes were glued to her ceiling, the stupid LED’s sparkling brighter now that the sun had completely set and the moon had taken its place. She started learning her constellations when she was 10, the age when shit at home started to hit the fan. It was her attempt at an escape to avoid her parents fighting in the other room. She ignored the yelling and banging against the walls by running to her tiny window and staring out into the sky in the hopes of catching sight of Orion’s Belt or any of the dippers. The stars were nicer then, comforting her as she did her best to drown out her mother’s screaming. They weren’t so visible now that she lived in Oslo, the city lights blocking everything that glowed in the sky. She had to settle for the cheap projector she purchased off amazon when she first called the city home, and it had been enough for her to get by until now. It ridiculed her, the fake stars shimmering together as if to form a smirk.

Fuck that.

She reaches behind her nightstand, yanking the cord from the wall with force, cutting off the starlight and leaving her ceiling pitch black. The candles were still flickering as the only light source, the scent of roses still strong. At least it smelled nice. Flopping back against her pillows, she runs her hands down her damp face from her salty tears, dropping her arms to her sides and dragging the sheets over her still naked body. She hadn’t moved since he left. She couldn’t move even if she wanted to. Her body felt rooted to the mattress, her skin glued to the sheets. She gives the dark ceiling one last glare before rolling to her side, burying her face into the pillow where Ivar’s luxurious hair had left the fragrance of his coconut shampoo and his Armani cologne. She was fucking pathetic.

Sending him away felt like a mistake.

She wanted to feel powerful kicking his ass out. She wanted to feel in control and confident watching him leave, but she didn’t. He wasn’t even angry. As soon as she told him to leave, he silently gathered his wrinkled clothes thrown about in their haste. In rigid movements he dressed himself, grabbed his crutch, and turned to look at her over his shoulder, his eyes scanning the shape of her body under the thin sheets. He said nothing, just stared at her with this look of longing, like they were the most unfortunate pair to grace the earth. It certainly felt that way. Then he reached over, holding her head gently to place a kiss on her temple before leaving her bed. All she wanted to do was to cry and call him back as soon as she heard her front door close with a soft click.

The facade immediately collapsed and the smirk slipped from her lips, settling into a deep frown. Her eyes welled up with tears and cascaded down her cheeks without so much as a fight. She had felt a heaviness in her chest, a burning that ached over her as if Ivar himself had reached inside her and ripped out her heart. He had broken it, so why did it hurt just as much when she tried to hurt him?  

Because she loved him. She loved Ivar.

She was in love with him. Completely and hopelessly and stupidly in love. Like a fucking idiot. She loved him when he visited her at the museum. She loved him when he took her home. She loved him when he took her to bed. And she loved him more when she watched him leave, his expression forever implanted in her mind like a photograph. She’d never seen such a look on him before.

When the hell did it start to get to that point? She wasn’t too sure. It started simple enough, boundaries were set, and they were both happy with what they had. The sex was great, and even greater still when she realized her feelings were getting involved. She found love in the simplest things. She felt it in their little touches whenever she handed him something, in the smile that lit up his face when she made his favorite meal of steak and potatoes, or the way he looked at her when he knew she was wearing something particularly naughty under her clothes. Or maybe she loved him from the moment they met at that fucking party. Apparently it only takes the brain 2 seconds to fall in love with someone. She couldn’t even remember where she’d read that. Probably from that corny lifestyle magazine she picked up while waiting her turn at the dental office. Whatever. The damage was already done.

She fights to ignore the delicious throbbing between her legs, her body craving more of him and his touch. It bothered her, how her body was betraying her. With a sigh, she shifts away from Ivar’s scent, curling into herself and making a mental note to wash the bed sheets as soon as possible. A bath would be nice, preferably with lots of bubbles, but she was too lazy. She’d just have to wake up earlier.

She takes even breaths to calm her heart rate as she watches the candle on her nightstand flicker, hoping she’d find sleep soon.

.

Morning came a lot quicker than she hoped.

She was the epitome of a zombie, which meant she’d need her morning coffee. Her eyes were sensitive against the morning light and her body ached from more than just a sleepless night. She took a quick shower, fed Benji, and made her caffeinated drink. She was in complete autopilot, that is, until there was a knock on her door. Irritated at the early disturbance, she goes to the door with half a mind of what was on the other side of it.

Pink daisies. Twice as many as before. This time, they were arranged in a stained glass vase, much like the windows of a cathedral, with vivid colors of green, blue, and red, depicting a simplistic design. It must have cost him a pretty penny no doubt, but money was never a problem for him. It was lighter than the porcelain vase, but still heavy in her hands. She places it on the counter, her fingertips skimming over the silky petals as gently as she could without damaging them. They were beautiful, but she found herself unable to admire them. She had a melancholic view of them now. They couldn’t be her favorites anymore.

There was that white card again, hiding within the stems of the bouquet. She hesitates, her fingers grasping the rough textured paper, reluctant to peer inside in fear of another hurtful message. With a shaky breath she flips it open.

I’m sorry.

Love, Ivar.

The words were written messily, unusual for him as he had perfect penmanship learned from his years in boarding school. Again, the water from the vase dotted the card, causing the black ink to bleed a bit. Her fingers follow the streaks down to the edge, picking up some of the faded pigment. It was as if he were the one crying this time, asking for forgiveness with fucking flowers. Either this solution worked for him in the past or he was just really fucking stupid.

She bites her lip, fiddling with the card before opening her junk drawer and tossing it inside. She didn’t have the strength to get rid of it. She carefully takes the vase in both hands, setting them down on her coffee table and arranging her candles and other knick knacks around it until it pleased her. She sits on her sofa, watching Benji put both his paws on the surface of the coffee table, curious of the new scent in the flat. Pulling her phone from her back pocket, she searches her contact list, going to her blocked numbers. Ivar’s name was the only one on that list.

Unblock?

She pauses, her finger hovering over the button. One tap, and she would be signing up for more heartbreak. Then the image of the blonde appeared in her mind, her in bed with Ivar, smirking and devious. Mocking.

It wasn’t worth it.

With a sigh she tosses her phone onto the table with a loud clack, the corner smacking against the edge of the vase and spooking Benji. She sucks her teeth.

Forget it.

…

Ivar runs his large thumb over the smooth cream colored domino piece, watching Hvitserk deal the pieces out to him and Sigurd. He’s been in a foul mood since the night he left her flat and he’s been hugging alcohol and cigarettes to his side like long lost friends, specifically Patrón and Marlboro. They dulled whatever strange feeling he felt that fluttered in his chest whenever he thought of her.

Normally, women were never a problem for him. It was always the same routine. He’d find himself a pretty girl, date her for a bit, and find another one when he got bored. He’d tell them that love was out of the equation and that was it. There were a few that grew attached, but he’d nip it in the bud before it could escalate. Others were understanding. They’d have their fun and go on their merry way to do it over again with some other asshole. It was supposed to be simple. So why was she making things so fucking difficult?

Well, he wasn’t being entirely fair, he had to admit. They were both difficult. She had fallen in love with him after he warned her not to, and he couldn’t bring himself to keep away from her after he’d sent her away. He had a routine, dammit, but now all he finds himself wanting is a fucking routine with her. Like maybe a normal one. He had gotten use to her, her smile, her touches, her scent, fuck. How long had it been? A year? The longest he’d ever been with a girl. Seriously. And now Freydis was up his ass for attention. He knew the bimbo didn’t feel anything past physical attraction for him. It was just for his time and money, which he didn’t mind at first, but the bitch was terrible in bed and an unpleasant person to be around.

And so he hoped she’d appreciate the flowers. Women loved flowers, right?

Ivar gives the longest sigh he could muster in order to keep his thoughts at bay, deciding to stare at the domino in his hand. It had 2 giant black dots, and the longer he stared at it, the more they appeared like scrutinizing eyes, judging him and his decisions. He slams the piece face down on the table with a glare. Fuck, he was going crazy.

"Where'd you even get these?" He grunts, snatching up his forgotten beer and taking a sip. It wasn’t tequila but it’d have to do for now.

"Bjorn bought them for me from Cuba." Hvitserk says pointing at the little wooden box they came in with the Cuban flag expertly painted on the surface.

"He brings domino's but no cigars?" Sigurd grumbles, arranging his pieces away from the prying eyes of his brothers, “I’d rather cigars.”

"Domino's are way cooler than cigars, Sig," Hvitserk argues, "And maybe Bjorn doesn’t like you enough to bring you fucking cigars, but forget that. What I really want to know is why our baby brother here looks like fucking shit." Both the older brothers turn to look at Ivar with knowing looks, ready to tease if need be.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Ivar argues, slamming his first piece down to commence the game. Maybe he wasn’t sleeping much these last few days. And maybe he had bags forming under his eyes and wasn’t eating much, preferring his alcohol and chimney sticks, but he wouldn’t go as far as to say he looks like shit. Then again, he wasn’t looking into his bathroom mirror much either.

“Hvits is right. You look like a kicked puppy, and not even a cute one.” Sigurd snickers, placing his own piece down with that stupid little smirk on his face.

“There is no such thing as ugly puppies.” Was the grunted reply.

“Point is, you look like shit. Have you been sleeping? We know how much you love your beauty sleep.”

“And fucking,” Hvitserk chimes in, placing down his domino, “I think Ivar has us beat. He’s competing with Bjorn at this point.”

“Or maybe it’s that little vixen of his causing trouble. How is she doing by the way? We haven’t seen her in a while.” Ivar flares his nose at the nickname that Sigurd had given her. He fucking hated it now more than ever.

“Shut. Up.” He snarls, sliding his domino piece hard enough to push the rest off the table.

“What the fuck, Ivar! If you break my shit, I’ll-”

“So this is what you guys do when I’m not at the office?” Ubbe bursts in through the door of their little lounging area, a frown forming on his lips as he eyes them in pure displeasure before they settled on the game pieces, “Who’s idea was it to play dominoes when we have clients blowing up our fucking phone’s? And drinking beer? That’s just brilliant. Assholes.”

“That’s why your girl is the secretary, Ubbe, she can handle it.” Sigurd waves his hand around, glad that Ubbe’s outburst overshadowed Ivar’s. When the youngest got mad, it wasn’t pretty, but it was fucking entertaining.

“It was my idea, by the way,” Hvitserk chuckles, placing all the pieces that fell back on the table top, “Wanna play? There’s more beer in the mini fridge.”

“You’re all fucking garbage.” Ubbe mutters, but heads over to the fridge to pull out a beer before plopping down on the empty chair beside Ivar with a sigh, “Before I forget, Ivar, Torvi says some guy just came by to drop something off for you.”

“I’m not expecting a package.”

“You sure? I’ll tell her to bring it in.” After a few minutes, Torvi peeks her head in through the crack of the door before fully opening it, a bouquet of wilted pink daisies in her hands. The color drains from Ivar’s face as the blonde approaches, handing him the flowers with this odd look on her face. Who would send Ivar fucking flowers anyway? And dying ones at that. His brothers immediately start to laugh at Ivar’s stunned look, another session of teasing on the way.

“You have another admirer, little bro?” Hvitserk chortles, mixing the domino pieces for a quick shuffle before dealing them.

“The flowers look like shit.” Comments Sigurd, leaning back against his chair. Ivar, still bewildered into silence, blinks stupidly. He stares at the wilted daisies, the petals easily falling off when he brings his fingers to touch them. They really did look like complete shit. Just like how he felt.

“There’s a card clipped in there. You gonna read it or what?” Ubbe taps his youngest brother's shoulder to elicit some kind of reaction from him. Ivar composes himself before quickly snatching the white card. It was one he had already written a message in by the looks of it. The card was bent at the edges, and he recognized the black ink from his favorite fountain pen.

Finally summing up the courage to read the message, he flips the card open, his previous simple apologetic words were crossed out. A new message was written below it that had his little cold heart hammering in his chest. He bites his lip, his blue eyes scanning the 4 words over and over again.

Sorry isn’t good enough.

…

The Tune ship is a fast sailing vessel able to transport passengers quickly across 100 meters. It is speculated that the vessel was a warship, able to carry its passenger and light cargo farther distances at a much faster-

“Ahh, there you are. In the library just as I assumed.” She quickly removes her eyes from her laptop screen in favor of the intruder that addressed her. She immediately stands, pushing it aside and placing her hands behind her back. The museum director, Mr. Kent, chuckles at her nervousness, smoothing a hand down his pale beard. He must have been a blonde in his youth as his hair had a faint yellow glow when under sunlight. He was a decent man of English origin, specifically from Winchester, who had taken over as the museum director about a year ago. He was a man who loved to dress well, fancy suits and shoes to demonstrate his abundance of money, but it wasn't haughty, not like the Ragnarsson’s. Mr. Kent came from even older money, and apparently from a line of kings that ruled England centuries ago. He had a massive reputation, to say the least. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I’m actually in need of a favor. Do you have a moment?”

“Of course, Mr. Kent, what can I do for you?”

“Please,” He chuckles, “Ecbert is fine. As for the favor, my grandson will be moving from Winchester in a few short weeks, right before the gala for the Tune ship exhibit. I’d like for him to shadow you during your tours, if that is alright with you?”

“Oh! Yes, of course. It would be an honor.” Fuck no, it wouldn’t. The last person that shadowed her was super fucking annoying and ended up getting fired anyway, but since this was Ecbert’s grandson, it would be different, he’d have privilege. Hopefully he wasn’t douche.

And shit. The fucking gala. She’d almost forgotten about it. It was the only event that the museum held in which she could attend, dress up, and feel pretty, but it was the one event that made her more nervous than anything else. She’d be surrounded by the richest people in the country, patrons of the Viking Ship Museum and other prestigious institutions and universities.  And champagne, lot’s of champagne. Rich people knew how to party.

“Excellent,” He smiles, clapping his hands together as if to solidify their agreement, “Don’t let me take up more of your time, I know you're doing your research for the new exhibit. I’ll be happy to give you access to the archives if you’d like? You might find something of interest that isn’t in the scholarly journals online.”

“That would be fantastic, Sir, thank you.”

“Have a great day.” She watches the older man leave, before plopping back down onto the cushioned seat with a sigh. He wasn’t as intimidating as their last asshole director, but she still treads softly around him. You can never get too comfy with those above you.

She did some more research for another half hour before checking her watch. Another tour of the Oseberg ship was scheduled in a few minutes and she would be free to go home and feel sorry for herself and her love life. She puts away her laptop in her purse, quickly rushing over to her office to freshen up before the tour. It was a busy day at the museum as they were now at the start of tourist season, which meant the museum allowed for bigger groups to be guided, and more people meant more noise and more irritation. Walking toward the entrance of the museum, she scans her eyes over the group of the afternoon, suddenly hoping to find a pair of blue eyes looking back at her. But that wasn’t the case. She frowns. He wouldn’t come looking for her after that fucking stunt she pulled. She shouldn’t want him to look for her anyway.

She sighs, plastering the fakest smile on her face before greeting the group.

.

Her phone was truly the devil. Honestly, did it intend to constantly notify her on Ivar’s posts and images? And since when did he post so damn much? She’d have to turn off her notifications, or block him off of Snapchat. Actually, why not just throw the whole fucking phone away? Ridiculous. She grumbles to herself, wondering why she hadn’t deleted him off of any social media apps yet. There was an answer to that, she just didn’t care to admit it. She was never into that stuff anyway, just keeping her accounts for communication purposes for her friends and family back home. It was getting rather lonely. Her time was mostly spent with Ivar, and now that they’re having their little rift, she realized her lack of friends. Had she really revolved her life around him? Shit.

Stretching her legs down the length of the sofa, she makes herself comfortable for the stupid shit she was about to do. She grabs her phone, scrolling through her apps and goes on Instagram. Ivar had posted 3 new photos. He was out at some bar in the city having a good ass time it seemed. His best friend, Heahmund, was in all of them, probably as a chaperone since Ivar couldn’t handle his liquor much. Heahmund was a good friend for that and Ivar was lucky to have the British fuck look out for him.

Ivar’s story was filled with clips of him goofing off. He was totally drunk, she could tell by how lidded and unfocused his eyes were, and how pink his lips were from constantly pursing them over a glass. His hair was all fucked up and out of its usual bun, as if he were fucking someone right before the video was recorded. Almost immediately after the thought, a drunk Freydis comes into the shot. That explained it. She should really throw her phone away.

Freydis giggles at the camera before placing her lips to his cheek, trailing them down his neck in sloppy kisses.

A rage boiled within her and she felt her fingers tighten around her phone. She needed to calm down. He was doing his own thing and she might as well do hers, though it was much easier said than done. The other videos he posted were of him taking shots of whatever it was, most likely tequila, and grinning into the camera like an idiot. Or maybe she was the idiot. Why should she mope around while he was having the time of his life? She knew how to have fun!...Right? Well, sometimes. Okay, maybe not. That party she met Ivar in? It was an invitation she had refused countless times. She couldn’t be bothered with the guy who begged her to go, but she went anyway due to her lack of socialization at the time.

Going out and partying was never fun when she was always the sober one. She did drink of course, but her tolerance was a lot better than most, say, like Ivar. She couldn’t count with her fingers the amount of times she had to call an Uber to get his ass home. The very few times she’d gone out with his brothers, it always ended with the same outcome, except Ubbe would end up saving their sorry asses.

Ubbe was the sweetheart, why couldn’t she have felt this way about him instead? Right, he had a girlfriend. She grumbles to herself, thinking she's better off alone.

…

“Where are you going?” The scent of alcohol had rooted itself deep within Freydis’s pores, her breath tickling his ear in an unpleasant manner. She stops him when he slips off the bar stool, pulling him by the collar of his shirt to bring him back to her side. He didn’t like that. He didn’t like how her hands felt on him or the look she wore. He didn’t like any of it. The loud trap music that blared from the speakers had activated him earlier that night, but now it made his head ache something terrible. The bass seemed to be vibrating right through him and he rubbed the side of his temple to subdue the growing headache. He reached out to stabilize himself on the bar counter. He was so fucking drunk.

“I gotta pee. Get off me.” Ivar grumbles, pushing her away with little grace. Clingy bitch.

“What?” The blonde scowls, her eyebrows arching and her lips set in a tight line. Shit. He said that out loud?

“Nothing.”

“I think he called you a clingy bitch, actually.” Heahmund repeats Ivar’s demeaning words, a chuckle escaping his red stained lips from the wine he was drinking. This was the fun part of the night for the older man. Ivar had no filter when he was drunk. Well, he never really did have a filter, sober or not, but it was a lot funnier when he had alcohol in his system. He could be ruthless.

“I fucking heard him, asshole.” Freydis snaps, seemingly sobering up now that she was angry. Heahmund breaks out in a smile to which she glares in return.

“I gotta pee.” Ivar announces again, not bothering to look at Freydis before stumbling towards the restrooms. He belches after letting out a series of hiccups, pausing to place a hand on the wall to steady himself. He was so fucking drunk. How many shots of Patrón had he taken? 3..4..? He started counting out loud, bringing his unoccupied hand to his face in order to use his fingers. Wait, there weren’t enough fingers on that hand. He stumbles again when he lets go of the wall, using the other hand to make his calculations. 5...8? Shit, he lost track. Forget it. It was a lot of Patrón.

Using his shoulder, he bursts in through the restroom door, mumbling an apology when he runs into someone. Ignoring the blurry image of the guy scowling at him, he makes his way into a stall and pisses his life away, his head resting against the cold tiled wall as he scrambles to gather his thoughts. He wasn’t happy. The alcohol wasn’t making him happy. Freydis wasn’t making him happy. What the fuck was wrong with him? He was a simple man with simple pleasures yet for some reason, a basic routine and a basic girl weren’t enough anymore. This was all her fault. Why was she torturing him without even trying? In his intoxicated state he could still remember how her voice trembled when she cried and how her eyes looked when they glossed over with tears. How drunk did he need to be to admit that he had hurt her? Really fucking drunk. Like now.

He slams the red door of the stall open, not even flinching when it banged against the stall beside it, maneuvering himself clumsily over to the sink. Gripping the porcelain, he leans forward to get a good look at himself through the streaky mirror. His eyes were so low he could barely see himself, cheeks flushed bright pink and lips matching in color. When did his bun get loose? He looks at his wrist hoping to find a hair tie but scowls when he finds none. He grunts in annoyance, turning on the tap to wash his hands before dragging his wet fingers through his hair. The cold water felt good on his heated face and he closed his eyes for a moment. He gazes at himself one last time before coming to a decision. He needed to talk to her. Right now.

Digging in the pocket of his simple denim jeans, he whips out his phone, struggling to find her contact name before pressing the call button and bringing the device to his ear.

You have reached the voice mailbox of 45-

Fuck. He forgot. She blocked him.

He wanted to throw his phone in frustration. Why did she block him? Did she not understand that he needed to talk to her right now?

Oh wait. Snapchat. Snapchat has video calls. That’s it. Ivar immediately takes a fat finger to scroll to the app, forcefully pressing down on the little ghost in haste. Finding her name in his contacts list, he presses the little video icon, hoping she’d answer. After a few seconds he almost gives up, but then his screen lights up, and he is rewarded with her tired eyes.

“Hey,” He breathes, noting the dim light in her room, “Were you sleeping?” He slurs, and immediately curses himself for sounding so stupid. He clears his throat in the hopes of gaining his language skills back.

“Ivar?” Her voice was heavy with sleep. It was exactly how she sounded when he used to wake her up in the morning with soft, lazy kisses to her shoulder. He missed that. “It’s like 2am. What are you calling me for?”

“I...I don’t know. Missed...your voice.” The words poured out his mouth like vomit. Actually, he was shocked he hadn’t gotten to that point. He threw up at least once after a hard night of drinking. His eyes fell shut as he leaned his head back against the wall beside the sink. God, this speech impediment was bad. He hears her snort tiredly on the other end.

“You’re drunk.”

“Mm...noooo, no. Mm not.”

“I can smell the tequila from here.”

“Wait, really?” His eyes pop open as he brings his phone closer to his face. He couldn’t focus all that well, but he could make out her sleepy features. Those pretty lashes of hers brushed over her cheeks with every lazy blink, and her messy hair was placed in a high ponytail at the top of her head.

“No.” Was her flat reply, pure irritation seeping through the word. Ivar stares at her displeased look for a moment longer, sighing in an almost dream like manner.

“You look beautiful.” He answers back, sliding down the wall to sit in a much more comfortable position. He didn’t care if the floor was dirty, he was drunk, and he didn’t want his legs to start hurting like a bitch.

“Shut the fuck up,” She says, “Words of a drunk.”

“I’m being serrrrious,” Ivar whines, “You always look amazing, you know that?”

“Right. Is Heahmund still there?”

“Yeah,” He pouts, “Why? You’d rather talk to him? You like him or something?” Ivar had never been the jealous type, but he was whenever it involved his brothers or Heahmund. When he had started seeing her, their interest zeroed in on her like fucking hawks, and so he made it abundantly clear to them that she was off limits. She was his conquest, no one else’s. So no, he wouldn’t consider himself the jealous type, but everyone else needed to stay the fuck away from her, even if she wasn’t his to play with anymore.

“No, Ivar, to make sure you’re gonna get home okay.” She sighs, shifting in her sheets and rubbing her face in frustration, “And it seems you will.”

“Aw, you worry about me?” He grins stupidly, his mood shifting wildly as he rubs his phone on his sweaty cheek as if to send her affection.

“No more than you do for me. How’s Freydis by the way?” The bitterness in her tone was enough to bring him down from whatever high he was feeling. Ivar scowls, shifting the phone back so they were now directly looking at each other. He blinks, trying to clear his head again. Freydis. He forgot about her already. And he didn’t really care anyway.

“Clingy bitch,”  He muttered his words from earlier, “I don’t wanna talk about her. I wanna talk about you.” He almost laughed when she pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance.

“What about me, hmm?”

“I dunno,” He shrugs, his eyes searching hers through his fingerprint covered screen before passing them over her visible form again. She was wearing that one t-shirt she favored, the comfy one with the large neckline that always slid down enough to expose one of her smooth shoulders. Her messy hair and tired eyes reminded him of the many nights spent together tangled under his sheets. It made him swallow thickly as he brought a hand down the center of his jeans to ease the growing ache. Fuck, he needed to get his shit together. Still, in their silence he conjured up images and ideas in his head that he certainly shouldn’t at that moment, but fuck it. He licks his lips, feeling the sly grin stretching across his face at the words his brain had given to him, ready to spill from his mouth, “Maybe I just want to talk about the way your back arches under my hands, or the sounds you make when I-”

“Ivar,” She stops him immediately, her face blooming that pink color he loved, “Kindly shut the fuck up.” She looked like she was about to say something more, something much harsher and meaner, but she stopped herself. Instead, she takes in a breath, rubbing her eyes, and suddenly, she didn’t seem all that tired anymore. “Did you like the flowers?” She asks instead.

“Huh?” His eyebrows curve in confusion as his hazy mind tries to decipher the meaning behind the question. What was she talking about? Flowers? What flow-Oh. Right.

Sorry isn’t good enough.

He sighs, leaning his head back against the tiled wall. He could hear the transition of trap music out in the bar to some basic pop he hadn’t heard on the radio in years. He was in no mood for Kesha.

“I hated them.” He mutters truthfully. The wilted daisies made his heart sink. He’d never felt that way before. Was that how he made all those other women feel? He chews the inside of his cheek, ignoring the pulse behind his eyes and the ache in his head. Finally, the nausea kicked in and his stomach churned for the inevitable. He swallows thickly, running his hand through his messy hair, her eyes following his every movement trying to read his expression. Even in his intoxicated state, he made it hard for her to read him.

“This is a lot harder than I thought it would be.” He says miserably. Why does he fuck everything up? If he had never gone to that stupid party in the first place, he would have never met her, and he wouldn’t be feeling that way he does now. Like complete trash.

“What a shame,” She says, cocking her head to the side, her ponytail brushing against her cheekbone, “Just take your own advice, and try not to fall in love.” She gives him one last look before she hangs up, having him stare at his screen for a few seconds to understand what just happened. He remains seated on the dirty bathroom floor for a few moments longer, continuing to ignore his churning stomach and the tightness of his throat.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Heahmund bursts in through the door, immediately grabbing hold of Ivar’s arm and helping in lifting him up to his feet, “You’ve been in here for 20 minutes. Freydis left in a cab.”

“Good for her.” Ivar grunts, shoving his phone back in his pocket. He pushes Heahmund away, going back to stand in front of the mirror. He looked sick, sweat building up near his hairline.

“What’s wrong with you, hmm?” The older man questions, crossing his arms and using that tone on him as if he didn’t have 4 fucking older brothers already.

“Being a fucking idiot, that’s what.” Ivar says, closing his eyes as his chest burned with that familiar sensation.

“Finally feeling bad about what you did, huh?” Heahmund questions, “You know, no amount of fucking flowers and alcohol is gunna fix anything or make you feel better. You needed a reality check. She gave it to you.”

“And you call yourself my friend, traitor?” Ivar managed to say before pushing past him and into a stall, heaving out all the contents from his tequila filled stomach.

…

The Tune ship exhibit was coming together.

The fragments of the ship were strategically pieced together to form the remains of the ancient ship to its former glory. Well, most of it anyway. It was a fraction of what it once was in the past, but it was still an impressive archeological find, and although it wasn’t as massive as the Oseberg or the Gokstad, it was still considerable in length. She felt like a speck of dust standing beside it despite its lack of framework. She observes the rotted wood and the grooves within each ancient plank, wishing she could reach out and touch it; to feel what they must have felt like a thousand years ago. It’s been 2 years since she began working at the Viking Ship Museum and she still found herself in awe at every artifact that entered their exhibits. She supposed it was the bookworm in her. Ahh fuck. That’s what Ivar calls her.

She immediately frowns, her face twisting in displeasure. Somehow, her thoughts always went back to him, and that irritated her greatly.

“Hello?” The unrecognizable voice echoes throughout the empty exhibit. She looks over her shoulder at the intruder, her gaze gravitating to meet the clearest blue eyes of a boyish young man. The blackest hair she’d ever seen frames his blushing cheeks and the tips brush softly over his shoulders. She blinks at him, cocking her head.

“Uhh, hi?”

“I’m sorry,” He lets out a nervous chuckle, looking around the unfinished exhibit to avoid meeting her eyes from his embarrassment, “I didn’t mean to startle you.” He had a gentle voice, a hint of shyness in the undertones. And extremely British.

“No it’s fine,” She approaches him, sticking out her hand to greet him with a handshake and a small smile, “You must be Mr. Kent’s grandson. I wasn’t expecting you so soon…?”

“Alfred,” He answers, grasping her hand and offering her a timid smile back, “It’s a pleasure.” 

...

@a-daydreamers-day @heavenly1927 @didiintheblog @inforapound​ @a-mess-of-fandoms​ @leilabeaux @shannygoatgruff​ @syrenak @soleil-dor @walkxthexmoon​ @zuxiezendler @homeyzeus @redenzione​ @mariaenchanted​ @laricebabe @hecohansen31

There are some of you that Tumblr won’t let me tag! They are in bold. I’m sorry 😭

[goldenraeofsun]

just say yes

The latest installment of this verse... or 5 times Dean tries to propose to Cas.

Dean bites his lip as he scans the menu. What the hell is branzino, and where the fuck are the prices? He flips the flimsy piece of cream-colored paper over, but no dice. 

Thank god there’s a steak listed among the five lone entrees. It’s probably five times his normal dinner price tag, but Dean already made peace with putting off buying that 30 year anniversary Rush album. It’ll still be there after his next pay check. 

Cas eyes him over the top of his own menu. “What are you thinking?”

Marry me.

Dean doesn’t say that, though. He has plans. Keep his trap shut until dessert. Tell Cas he’s going to hit the head. Pull a waiter aside and ask for two glasses of champagne. Return to Cas. Hopefully not shit his pants as he proposes. Drink champagne. Go home and have fantastic engaged sex.

Dean has high hopes for the last part of the plan.

“Dean?”

Belatedly, he says, “The steak.”

Cas hums. “That does look good.” He ducks back behind his menu. “I was thinking of getting that too. But maybe not.”

Dean takes a hasty sip of water. “Get the steak if you want it, man. We don’t go to places like this often.”

“I think I’ll get the honey glazed salmon.”

“Sounds good,” Dean says lamely. He drinks more water. At this rate, he won’t have to fake the bathroom run.

Aren’t they supposed to have alcohol by this point? They’ve been sitting at their fancy-ass table in this fancy-ass restaurant for nearly fifteen minutes.

Maybe he shouldn’t have picked the newest five-star restaurant to propose to Cas. He’s already on edge from the pressure, and the pristine white tablecloth isn’t helping. He can already see five ways he’s gonna stain it. There are several forks in front of him. For fuck’s sake, this place has an actual chandelier. Dean hadn’t honestly thought they existed outside of billionaire mansions and Disney movies.

The live music is nice, though. A sedate piano tinkles in the background, barely audible over the buzz of polite dinner conversation.

Dean catches a glimpse of himself reflected in the dark windows to the street. He looks a little sweaty, but not as nervous as he feels, thank god.

This is stupid. He shouldn’t even be nervous.

They’ve talked about marriage before. They’re adults in an adult relationship, so popping the question out of the blue would go down like the time Dean swept Cas away for a surprise camping trip. Turns out, Cas did not like camping. Which Dean would have known if he had asked anytime in the past four years.

But… that marriage conversation was two years ago. Dean wasn’t ready then; they both weren’t. Cas was still in a bad place with Jimmy and Claire, and Bobby had just died, so they weren’t about to roadtrip to Vegas anytime soon.

Now, Claire can have a civil dinner with her parents, and the hole Bobby left in Dean’s life can go unnoticed some days.

The deal is, Dean can’t chicken out tonight. He already told Claire to make herself scarce. She can sleep at her parents’ or at Krissy’s, Dean doesn’t care, as long as she is not crashing on their sofa when they get back from dinner.

Dean would rather read a hundred plagarized student essays on The Very Hungry Caterpillar than admit to Claire he failed to ask Cas to marry him. 

So, proposal time.

The waiter comes by with their drinks and takes their orders. Conversation is a little stilted, but hopefully Cas chalks it up to Dean being outside his comfort zone in this fancy-ass place. There’s no steady thunk of darts hitting a board or clack of pool balls in the background to put him at ease. Just that lame piano.

Cas makes porn noises over his salmon at first bite, which Dean totally doesn’t get. It’s fish.

“How’s your steak?” Cas asks as he surfaces and dabs his mouth with his cloth napkin.

Dean belatedly slices off a piece of his meal and pops it in his mouth. A generically bland compliment dies on his tongue. Jesus Christ - that’s some good cow. It practically disintegrates before he can chew. “Great,” he tells Cas honestly.

Cas hums in contentment.

“And since you’re practically at third base with that salmon,” Dean starts, “I take it-”

“Oh my god!” a woman’s voice squeals behind them.

Dean reflexively turns his head in the direction of the commotion. A few tables over, near the center of the restaurant, a man is down on one knee, and - son of a bitch.

Dean watches, his mouth hanging open, as the woman shouts, “Yes, of course, yes!” Waiters walk past their table with a whole fucking bottle of champagne. People at nearby tables fucking clap.

Dean resolutely turns back around to face Cas, at a loss for words that aren’t extremely loud swears.

“Isn’t that nice?” Cas says mildly.

“Yeah, very nice for them,” Dean says through gritted teeth. 

Of all the goddamn nights. Of all the goddamn restaurants. What are the goddamn chances?

Dean slices into his steak with extreme prejudice. If he could murder the happy couple, he would. With zero regrets.

Fuck it all, Claire’s gonna be insufferable.

  A CHARMING B&B IN VERMONT

Dean wakes up delightfully cozy with Cas spooning him from behind. No memory foam, but the bed is delightfully springy anyway. It was definitely what they needed after a full school day and a nine-hour road trip. Luckily, the owner of the bed and breakfast, a charming older woman actually named Mrs. Butters, was happy to wait up for their late check-in last night. She even had hot cocoa waiting.

Dean had held out a slight hope they could christen their room before they turned in for the night, but Cas passed right out before Dean turned on the lights. Poor guy had to deal with three sets of angry parents, and it was only the second week of school. Something about how their supposed-genius kids should be in AP Latin instead of the Fun Latin class - aka the one for dumbass seniors.

The mid-morning sunlight filtering in from behind the plaid curtains casts everything in a warm glow. The room itself is beyond charming. There’s a legit fireplace next to the bed, and they’re currently nestled under a patchwork quilt. The wood panelled walls give a distinctly rustic feel to the place, despite the reasonably sized television screen mounted on the far wall.

Dean turns over in bed so he’s facing Cas instead of the door. He resists the urge to poke him awake, and instead prods with a gentle, “Cas.”

Cas grumbles wordlessly. Fucker doesn’t even open his eyes, although Dean can tell from how his breathing changes that he’s awake.

“Cas.”

Cas wrinkles his nose and shoves his face into the pillow. “What, Dean?”

Dean can barely make out the words, but he gets the gist from the million times Cas has done the exact same thing. “I smell bacon.”

Cas’s eyes slit open. “So?”

“Don’t you want bacon?”

Cas huffs, and Dean can tell the exact moment he resigns to waking up. “Then go get the bacon. Nobody’s stopping you, Meat Man.”

Dean wiggles in bed, jostling the whole mattress. “Come on, babe.”

“I was sleeping.” Cas raises his head to look squint out the window. “It has to be before ten am. Since when are you a morning person?”

Since today is the day Dean is going to propose.

Instead, Dean reminds him pointedly, “Bacon.”

“Ugh,” Cas groans as he sits up. “I expect at least a blow job after breakfast if we’re leaving bed this early.”

Dean slaps his ass and jumps out of bed before Cas can retaliate. “Up and at ‘em!”

“I hate you.”

“Love you too, Cas.”

* * *

Claire 11:02 Did you ask him yet? If he said no I’ve got chunky monkey waiting

Claire 11:31 That was a joke Uncle Cas will say yes Theres no way he wont

Claire 11:40 If you’re not answering because of sex don’t tell me

Dean sighs as his phone lights up with Claire’s latest text. In the bathroom, Cas hurls again. 

Dean 11:41 No proposal

The bubbles showing Claire’s typing start almost immediately.

Claire 11:41 Are you serious? He’s not goin to turn you down!!!

Dean 11:41 Food poisoning

Claire 11:42 HAHAHAHA

Dean scowls at his phone.

Dean 11:44 Not now, Claire.

Claire 11:44 Wait Seriously?

Dean 11:44 We think it was something he ate at breakfast

Claire 11:44 Oh fuck I’m sorry for laughing

Dean rereads her text. He hasn’t ever received a straight-up apology from Claire before. Unsure of how to respond, he sets down his phone and gently pushes open the bathroom door. “How’re you doing, babe?”

Cas, slumped over the toilet and looking like death warmed over, raises his head an inch. “It seems to be easing up.”

“Really?”

Cas vomits into the toilet again. He groans.

“Shit,” Dean mutters as he crouches next to Cas. He rubs his back with one hand. “Do you think you can get some water down?”

Cas nods, so Dean straightens and fills a glass next to the sink.

As Cas drinks, Dean runs a hand through Cas’s sweaty hair. His forehead has a sickly sheen to it, and the back of his neck feels hot.

“Dean -” Cas breaks off to cough the water right back up into the toilet. “I’m sorry.”

“Hey, no,” Dean says quickly as he refills the glass. “Don’t be sorry. This isn’t your fault.”

“But you had all these plans,” Cas moans as he takes the water to try again.

“We’ll do ‘em some other time.” He wets a washcloth and wipes down Cas’s forehead.

“Before Thanksgiving,” Cas rasps, “we’ll come back. I don’t want to miss the leaves changing.”

“Of course,” Dean says soothingly. He moves the washcloth to the nape of Cas’s neck. “On the bright side, you’ve been puking for, like, an hour. There can’t be much left.”

Cas, the dramatic bastard, nearly brains himself on the toilet seat with the force of his next hurl.

  HOMEMADE DINNER

After the disastrous fancy restaurant and B&B, a homemade dinner has to be the way to go. They’ll be in their own goddamn house - that has to cut down on the number of things that can go wrong.

Dean spends a whole week deliberating on what to make. He could do his usual burgers and fries routine, Cas’s favorite, but it should be special.

He settles on beef wellington. Pie for beef!

It’s a bitch to make - both because puff pastry from scratch is no joke, and hiding his first experiments from Cas means inventing increasingly convoluted reasons to get him out of the house. And, sure, every Youtube chef and Great British Bake off contestant has said store-bought puff pastry is fine, but Dean doesn’t want fine, he needs perfect. 

Dean picks a day when Cas has Model UN afterschool. It’s in the middle of the week, but at least Cas is guaranteed out of the house until six at night.

By 5:58, Dean is ready. The Wellington is cooling on the counter; the red wine has been breathing (whatever the hell that does) for the better part of an hour; and he’s showered and made himself presentable.

His phone pings at six pm on the dot. 

Heart sinking with foreboding, Dean taps the screen.

Cas 6:00 I’m going to be late for dinner. There was an accident with chemistry club a few minutes ago. The building had to be evacuated.

Dean 6:00 Are you OK?

Dean takes a moment to hammer the heel of his hand against his forehead. One fucking break. That’s all he’s asking for. One goddamn evening to go right.

Cas 6:00 Yes, and the kids are too. They’re airing out the halls now, but we won’t be let in for another half hour.

Dean picks up the wine with the hand not holding his phone. 

Dean 6:01 What time do you think you’ll be home?

Cas 6:01 7:30 maybe? I’ll keep you updated.

Dean swigs back a gulp straight from the bottle before he can answer. Fuck this.

Dean 6:02 Great! I’ll order pizza when you’re on your way back

Cas 6:02 Meatlovers?

Dean 6:02 Unless you’d like something else

Cas 6:02 No thank you :)

Dean flips on a recorded Jeopardy! episode as he cleans up the kitchen and texts Charlie. He has a free dinner waiting for her if she can hightail it to his place in the next hour and never speak of it again.

  HOMEMADE DINNER #2

If Dean is anything, he’s stubborn. John Winchester raised no quitter. Try, try, and try again. And try a fourth time, when the first three go sideways.

Burgers, this time. They don’t need a days’ worth of prep. And they’ll go over well.

“Dig in,” Dean says as he sets the plate down in front of Cas.

“This looks delicious, Dean,” Cas says sincerely as he picks up his burger.

Dean waits, and he can see the moment Cas tastes the molten cheese stuffed in the middle of the patty. His eyes go wide with surprise.

“Like it?”

Cas nods vigorously and inhales the rest of his burger in record time.

“There’s enough for us to have thirds,” Dean says smugly. 

Cas smears ketchup all over patty number two, and beams at him. “These make me very happy.”

Dean laughs. “That’s the goal-”

Cas’s phone rings.

Dean falters.

Cas stares at him expectantly, waiting for Dean to continue.

“You should get that,” Dean says, his shoulders slumping as he sets his burger down. It’s probably a bad sign he was already half-expecting things to go south. “It’s probably important, or whoever it is would’ve texted.”

“We’re in the middle of dinner,” Cas protests even as he reaches in his pocket to pull his phone out. “It’s Claire,” he says, baffled, before he picks up. “Hello?”

Cas sets down his half-eaten burger. He listens, his brows slamming down forbiddingly as Claire’s voice gets louder and louder, but still not loud enough for Dean to make out actual words. Silently, Cas takes his napkin off his lap and pushes his half-empty beer in Dean’s direction. Finally Cas says, “Yes, of course, Claire.”

Dean frowns as Cas lifts his gaze up to meet his. “Jimmy and Amelia?” he mouths.

Cas shakes his head, speaking into his phone,  “Does Kaia need a pick up from the hospital?”

Dean goes cold. Kaia was actually one of his favorite students. While she was in his class, she won a Scholastic Gold Key and honorable mention for two of her horror novellas and always did the reading. But Dean and Cas haven’t seen her since she broke up with Claire the summer before college.

“Is she okay?” Dean asks quietly.

Cas’s mouth thins. He gives a short nod.

Dean sighs and picks up the plate uneaten burgers. He can probably reheat the patties. The fries won’t keep, though, so he leaves the plate in front of Cas. He shoves a few in his mouth and gets to his feet.

He’s halfway through cleaning the frying pan when Cas gets off the phone with Claire.

“Are you heading out?” Dean asks gruffly while he gives the iron a particularly hard scrub.

“Yes,” Cas rumbles as he wraps an arm around Dean’s waist. “I’m sorry to cut dinner short.”

“Hey, it’s Kaia. ’Course we gotta help.” Dean forces an understanding smile on his face. “I’ll make up the couch while you pick her up?”

Cas squeezes him gently before moving away. “Thank you.”

“You got time for the cliff notes on what happened? Why’d you get the call?”

Cas leans against the counter next to the sink. “Kaia was in a car accident. She’s a little banged up, but mostly fine. A few bruised ribs and a possible concussion.” He shakes his head, disbelieving. “You know Kaia was never especially close with her foster family, so Claire got the emergency call.”

“Huh.” Dean grabs a plate to clean. “It’s been two years since the split.”

Cas shrugs. “I’m not sure what their situation is. I know Claire was surprised. She’s already in her car, and she should be here by midnight. Hopefully she recognizes Kaia’s injuries,” he frowns, “and they won’t try any… any ‘hanky panky’ tonight.”

Dean laughs, and if it’s slightly higher than normal, Cas doesn’t seem to pick up on it. He grabs Cas and kisses him square on the mouth. “You are ridiculous. Nobody says hanky panky. What the hell is wrong with you?”

Cas scowls. “They have to be well past kissing at this point.”

Dean snorts a laugh. “Yeah, that ship has long sailed, dude.”

Cas throws his hands in the air. “We don’t have enough sleeping surfaces to separate them.”

Dean sets the dirty plate down to face Cas fully. “Do you really think they’ll get back together? Kaia broke Claire’s heart not too long ago.”

Cas throws him a look like he wonders where the hell Dean’s logical brain has flown to. “Are you asking if I think couples can get back together after a harrowing break up?”

“… no.”

Cas shakes his head ruefully. “You’re more like Claire than I ever was, and you took me back.”

“Huh,” Dean wipes his hands off on a dishtowel, “you might have something there.”

“You do call me the smart one,” Cas says as he pushes off the counter and heads to the doorway. “It has been known to happen.”

“Smartass,” Dean corrects loudly as Cas grabs his coat and keys.

“Semantics.” Cas doubles back to kiss Dean a proper goodbye, and it’s just as electric as it was when they were seventeen. Cas tastes like Dean’s cooking, and he’s been letting his stubble grow out, the short hairs rasping against Dean’s palm as he cups Cas’s cheek.

“I love you, Dean,” Cas says as he draws away.

Dean grins. “I know.”

Cas huffs an almost-laugh as he heads back towards the door. “Now who’s the smartass?”

  IN BED

Cas, the son of a bitch, falls asleep before Dean can wring out a second orgasm out of him. Such a godamn shame. Just goes to show, they really aren’t teenagers anymore. At least Dean got to use the new vibrator he bought for the occasion and the edible panties. 

Dean flops back in bed. Maybe he should put the proposals on pause. Clearly, marriage isn’t in the cards. He can be a bit dense when it comes to Cas and him, but there’s dense and there’s denial.

It’s been two and a half months. Five proposal attempts. They’re nearly halfway through October, and he’s no closer to getting a ring on Cas’s finger than he was in late August, sweating bullets in that stupid fancy restaurant.

He can’t keep planning and failing to propose to Cas every other week. One, he can’t handle the stress and constant brainstorming. And B, he’s way behind in writing college recommendations and grading his freshman’s essays on Animal Farm. 

Cas isn’t going anywhere. Dean isn’t going anywhere. So Dean can cool the proposals for now and start fresh in January.

  SCHOOL ASSEMBLY

“I hate these,” Dean mutters to Benny. He frowns across the top rows of the bleachers where the seniors are supposed to sit. There are a few notable faces missing, but nobody that belongs to Dean’s homeroom, so he couldn’t give less of a shit. Below them, sit most of the juniors, and pretty much all of the sophomores and freshmen.

“It’s thirty minutes, brother,” Benny says, patting his arm. “You’ll live.”

“Shows what you know,” Dean grumbles back as Jody strides to the middle of the gym, microphone in hand. He asks Benny, “Do you know what this one’s about? Bullying? Cliques? Hugs not drugs?”

Benny shakes his head.

Jody sighs loudly into the mike. Clearly, she wants to be here just as much as he does. “Thank you all for coming,” she starts like any of them had a real choice. “First things first, Halloween is in two days, and while costumes are allowed and encouraged, don’t be racist.” She grimaces. “God help me, I don’t know why I still have to say that. If you are unsure if your costume is racist, it probably is. Wear something else. Secondly…”

Dean tunes her out. Instead, he scans the bleachers again, this time looking for Cas. He should be with the other sophomore homeroom teachers, but there’s no sign of him. Dean frowns. He can’t remember the last time Cas played hooky. And never without Dean. Dick move, Cas.

Movement at the edge of the gym catches Dean’s eye, and he watches, puzzled, as two students roll out one of the old projectors. The overhead lights turn off.

Is Jody seriously going to make him sit through a slide show? They’re wasting a prefectly good Friday morning on a goddamn PowerPoint?

The projector flips on, and the first photo is… of Dean. 

What the fuck? His mouth drops open in horror. In the picture, he’s in his junior year of high school - he can tell from the hair - with a bunch of people he hasn’t seen in fifteen years. Plus Cas, who’s at the next table over in the cafeteria, head bowed over a book and slightly out of focus.

There’s a click, and text scrawls along the bottom of the screen, Destiel Met in Edlund High School Fifteen Years Ago! 

The projector flips to the next photo, this time showing Dean’s senior yearbook picture.

More than a handful of students peer excitedly in his direction, undoubtedly hoping for a reaction.

Scowling, Dean cranes his neck to search the crowd for Charlie’s flaming red hair. She’s the only one who refers to the two of them as “Destiel”. Everyone else uses their names like sane people.

But the projector clicks to a photo of Cas, and Dean can’t help getting distracted. In the picture, Cas is alone at a table in the library. God, he was cute back then. His cheeks were a little fuller, and his hair was curlier. He still had the same intense blue-eyed stare, though. Patented Cas.

It all started with a tutoring session. Young Mr. W needed help in Latin, and our future Latin teacher, Mr. N, was up to the task!

Dean is going to kill Charlie. He tries to get to his feet - maybe she’s hiding behind Jo or something. But Benny’s hand grips his upper arm, holding him in place. “Don’t,” Benny says softly.

“What?” Dean demands as he tries to shake Benny off and fails. “Do you know what the hell is going on?”

“Stay.” The corners of Benny’s mouth twitch like he’s fighting a smile. “Watch.”

Dean huffs a breath and turns back around. If it was anyone else, Jo or Charlie, he wouldn’t trust a word out of their mouths. Benny, though, he’s not the type to make Dean sit through this without a good reason.

But that’s all ancient history. Destiel really got started five years ago, in this very gym.

The projector shows a picture of their class reunion, when Dean met Cas after ten years of no contact. They’re standing pretty close together (but that doesn’t mean much with Castiel What-Is-Personal-Space Novak), and they appear deep in conversation.

Since then, they have been inseparable.

Dean and Cas at a softball game. Dean and Cas at homecoming. Dean and Cas at GSA’s pride party.

Here’s to fifteen more years of Destiel!

The students clap and cheer with more than a few laughs.

Musical Interlude! flashes in front of a picture of Dean playing guitar to a group of pajama-clad students at last year’s Senior Lock-In.

The lights flip back on, and Dean blinks as his eyes adjust. By the time the spots have cleared from his vision, the projector has been wheeled away, leaving the main floor of the gym empty.

A staticky crackle echoes around the gym. And - is that Def Leppard playing on the speakers?

As the intro to Rock of Ages plays, the cheerleading team troops out from the locker rooms. 

They start a routine Dean’s never seen before. To Rock of fucking Ages.

The cheerleaders sings along with Joe Elliot, “What do you want?”

Dean’s mouth falls open as the entire high school chants back, “I want rock and roll. Long live rock and roll!”

By the time they get to the “Rock of Ages” chant, all the students are on their feet, clapping along with the beat and cheering.

The song dies down soon after, and Dean, a broad smile on his face, turns to Benny. “I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I dig it.”

Benny laughs. “Good. He’ll be pleased.”

Dean’s just about to ask who he is (he’s 99% he knows), when Cas walks out from behind the bleachers. 

Cas takes the microphone from Jody. He coughs nervously, waiting for the students to settle back down. “Thank you,” he says to the cheerleading team. “That was... awesome.” He glances up at the assembled students and teachers. “Dean-” he pauses as the cheers and clapping start up in earnest “-can you please come down here?”

But Dean’s frozen to the spot.

Benny gives him a not-so-light jab with his elbow. “Go on.”

Dean shakily gets to his feet and makes his way to the gym floor, and he swears his legs are about to give out from under him.

“Alright, you got my attention,” Dean says with forced bravado. “What’s up, Cas?”

The students hoot and holler.

Cas reddens as they die down again. Clutching the microphone in a death grip, he says, “Dean, we have been together for a number of years.”

Dean grins, a wonderful, all-consuming giddiness filling him the longer he stands in front of Cas. “I know, dude. I was there.”

The students laugh and someone, probably Jo, wolf whistles.

Cas swallows. “I wanted to do this here, where we first met, where you first asked me out on a date, where we had our first kiss.”

“Don’t tell ‘em about all our firsts on school property,” Dean says in a stage-whisper, “or Jody’s gonna have an aneurysm.”

Over a fresh round of student laughter, Jody puts her head in her hands. Donna, the school guidance counselor, pats her a few times on the back.

“Dean Winchester,” Cas says, and, shit, his hands are shaking. “I have loved you for more than half my life, and I look forward to far more than fifteen years by your side. Will you marry me?’

Dean’s not stupid. He had a strong hunch, ever since Rock of Ages played - aka the cassette he put in the Impala the first time he took Cas for a drive fifteen years and a lifetime ago - that this was what Cas was leading up to. 

He’s mostly surprised Cas had the guts to pop the question this way. There was a reason Dean tried to keep his proposal plans mostly to the two of them. One of them is practically a social hermit, and it’s sure as shit not Dean.

“Just say yes, jerk!”

Dean spins around, nearly tripping over his own feet in surprise. Fuck, that’s Sam. His giant of a brother is hovering right outside the gym’s double doors, beaming at the pair of them. Claire gives a little wave from where she’s half-hiding behind him.

Dean turns back to Cas. He can’t think about Sam right now. Or Claire. Or the five hundred students with their eyes on them. 

Only Cas.

“Cas,” he says, and it feels like the whole room is holding their collective breath, none more so than Cas, who looks like he’s about to pass out. “Man, I’ve loved you since I was seventeen. Of course I’ll marry you.”

Cas lets out a shaky exhale of relief, and Dean laughs. He takes the microphone from Cas’s now slack grip, steps all the way into Cas’s personal space, and kisses him.

The cheers from the assembled students are nearly deafening.

[ot5ismyhome]

15. You will serve your purpose

To read from beginning click here.

Wanda entered her home; she tossed her footwear to the side and placed her bare foot on the floor. After a long day of standing and roaming around non-stop the feel of the cool floor against her feet was soothing. She turned on the lights and made her way to the sofa. She let out a shriek in shock. She saw a strange man sitting on her sofa in the middle of the room. She embraced herself as she took out a small blade from her purse.

“Hello, darling” the man said with a smile. “That won’t be necessary, I guess.” He flicked his hand and the knife disappeared.

“Who are you?” she demanded.

“It was very rude of me to not introduce myself” he chuckled. “I am Loki, First Born of Jean.”

The name rang a bell in Wanda’s head. Steve had mentioned him once. He had also mentioned that Loki went hell crazy before he had to be taken down. Wanda wondered how Loki had been freed and also why would he visit her.

“All your questions will be answered later, Ms. Maximoff. Now we have important business to attend to” he said with a dark smile as if he had read her mind. The evil glint in his eyes sent a shiver down her spine.

Wanda tried to back away but Loki was quick. He caught her elbow and held her in place. He pressed the forefinger of his other hand to her temple.

Wanda knew this sensation. She is entering into memories. Wanda suddenly felt her mind racing through time. She saw faces she never knew existed. She felt her head throbbing and her heart beat increasing. Every vampire’s memory was pouring into her mind and her brain was processing it all in a few seconds. She had no control over her mind. Finally, the whirling stopped. The surroundings became clear. It was a long corridor in a castle. She saw Loki standing near her. They saw a man with long blond hair walking away from them. Loki followed him.

“Hello brother, it’s been so long!”

The man didn’t hear Loki. He walked into the throne room. There a woman was waiting for the man.

“Do you have it?”

He nodded and took out a book from his bag. “Keep it safe and hidden.”

“Say no more.”

The world around Wanda started disappearing. The throbbing in her head started again. She wanted it to stop but couldn’t make it. She had no control over it. Finally, it stopped and they were standing in a meadow now. The moonlight light fell on the grass giving it a grey tinge. The woman who they saw earlier was standing there, gripping the bag in her hands. She kept looking on both sides, as if looking for someone. A stout man arrived at the scene. He gave a small nod. She returned the gesture. After a short while a bald man arrived on the scene.

“I’m giving you each an object to hide. Make sure it can’t be found for centuries to come” said the woman. She took out a spectre with a dull emerald green stone in it and handed it to the stout guy. She handed a hard-bound book to the other. Without any formalities, the three left the scene. The scene around them started to disorient.

Wanda and Loki returned to Wanda’s home. Wanda had lost her consciousness by then. She swayed and about to hit the ground but Loki caught her with his magic. With a flick of his hand, he settled her over the sofa.

“Just as I thought” Loki muttered to himself. There was a smirk playing on his lips as he cast a charm around her house.

…..

Daisy arrived at Wanda’s house a few minutes after Loki left. She rang the bell expecting her friend to open the door. Seeing that there was no response, she took the extra key that Wanda had given her. She used it to enter her home. She called out to Wanda but there was no response. She went further to see her friend lying motionless on the couch. Daisy quickly checked her pulse and breathing. Both were stable. She sprinkled water on her friend to wake her up.

Wanda woke up with a headache. She felt disoriented. For a moment, she didn’t understand where she was. She checked around her to see Daisy.

“Daisy?” she inquired.

“Yeah, babe. You alright?”

“No. I don’t remember how I got here” Wanda said, looking around her again.

“Here. Have some water” said Daisy filling an empty glass with the clear liquid and extending it to Wanda.

Wanda gulped down the water. She tried her best to recollect what happened. Slowly the incident came back to her. When she fully understood the gravity of the situation, fear hit her.

“Shit” she shouted.

Daisy was slightly thrown back. “What happened?” she inquired.

“I need to talk with Steve, immediately.”

“Okay…”

“It’s sort of private. I will be back” she said as she disappeared with her phone into her room.

Wanda dialled Steve’s number. The call immediately went to voice. She swore as she looked at the time. He must have boarded the plane. She called his number again but it kept going to voicemail. Howard had gone to Wakanda and there was no way he could come back in time. Natasha and Tony are also with Steve. She then dialled Coulson’s number. He was out of reach. Dejected, she paced the room, trying to find someone. Bucky’s name crossed her mind. She hadn’t even bothered to get his number even though he had warmed up to her in the last few months. It dawned on her that she was in this alone. She was panicking not knowing what to do.

Wanda made her way back to the living room to see Daisy, puzzled, waiting for her to explain. She decided she doesn’t have to be alone. She decided to confide in Daisy.

“I want to tell you something. But please don’t panic or… maybe think I’m crazy. Okay?”

“Wanda, you are acting strange. Is everything, okay?”

“So here is the deal...” Wanda started. She told Daisy everything except Pietro’s death and her power. Daisy does know about her late brother but doesn’t know the full story. Wanda decided to keep it that way.

Daisy sat there petrified not knowing what to say for a few minutes. Her face was of utter shock and disbelief.  

“Tell me you’re joking.”

“I wish I was”

“Then let’s stop him”

“We can’t do it alone, Daisy. We need help.”

…..

Wanda answered her door to see the guy that Daisy had said about.

“Robbie, right?”

“Yeah. Robbie Reyes, Private Investigator.”

“You are developing a catch phrase,” Daisy called out from the living room.

Robbie chuckled as they moved to the living room and settled on the sofa. Ash arrived after a few minutes. She was Daisy’s roommate in college and one of her closest friends. They called Piper and Davis too but both didn’t answer the call. Wanda had a sinking feeling that Loki had to do something with it. It increased her desire to stop Loki. Daisy filled them in about everything. She intentionally left out the vampire part and changed the story a bit. She and Wanda shared a look and nodded at each other. They knew the other two wouldn’t believe if they told them the whole truth.

“How are we going to stop the guy?”

“Good old school hacking, baby” Daisy grinned. Daisy tracked down the spectre which was in possession of ‘The Collector and Grandmaster’ in Costa Rica. She proudly showed off her skill to the other three.

“Costa Rica, here we come” commented Wanda.

“Wait, how did you figure this fast?” Robbie’s eyebrows were furrowed in confusion.

“I have my contacts” Daisy winked.

“By contacts, she means her own group of hackers” informed Wanda.

“You knew about them?”

“We ran a background check before you joined.”

Daisy smiled sheepishly.

“Matter at the hand, guys. The collector only meets people of high class. We need to pose as rich bitches to get a meeting with him” Wanda intervened

“We can either impersonate someone or create a false identity” offered Ash.

“Impersonating could go wrong. One simple search and we will be caught red-handed” said Robbi.

“False identity it is.” Daisy turning to her laptop. She started to create fake identity cards for four of them.

"Robbie and I will be your security escorts" Ash said “while you and Daisy are some mafia leader’ protégées”

“How did the spectre end up with the Collector?”

“Well, this man sold it to him two years ago.”

Wanda looked at Daisy’s phone to see the stout man she had seen earlier in the memories. The name Eric Koenig was written under his photo. She was wondering where she had seen him before. Seeing a modern photo, she was easily able to recognise it. The man in the memory, the man in the I.D. looked exactly like the new Head of Communications in Rogers Innovative, Sam Koenig.

*****

Chapter 16

[slashingdisneypasta]

Hiya! Could I possibly request a Jason the Toymaker x Reader where the reader meets Jason through their younger sibling and offers to be Jason's friend to keep their sibling safe but actually ends up liking him? Thank you so much if you choose to accept my request! ❤

Hey! Ahhhh... I literally wrote this over months and months' worth of time, so I think it gets kinda better as you read on? Haha. Still not totally happy with it but I hope you like it!! So sorry for the wait, I had a lotta trouble figuring out how I was gonna spin it😬😆😅

I really, really hope you like it!! ^^ Thank you, it definetly tested by skills, haha XD

~~~

“Oh my god,” I gasp, a sharp, almost painfully deep intake of cold air paired with a high-pitched noise because I get it. I know what he meant last night when he said he would take him. It didn’t mean to his shop, that I see just ahead, looking like it was just plopped down there on the ground like Dorothy’s house. I whip around and start sprinting back down the road the way I came. He meant wherever he came from, or wherever he’s going next.

And I left Noah at home, alone. “FUCK!” I yell, not caring that the Asian couple strolling down the path the opposite way I’m going startled at the expletive. Jason has made it perfectly clear that he’s not playing around. He’s cut him, he’s kept me in a metal box for a day, he’s taken Noah so many times in the past 2 weeks that he’s cursed our goddamn lives that I’ve learnt quickly to always be on high alert. It is always code red with him around, and now… Gritting my teeth, I force my legs against the air and stupid gravity until I get to the front door, which I lunge at so hard my wrists would probably hurt if I could feel anything except freezing, numb dread and even kick the fucking thing before I’m able to unlock it with the key and throw it open so forcefully that the doorknob slams and dents the wall. “Noah?!”

For a second, theirs no noise and I nearly stop breathing.

Then the tiniest, could-have-been-the-walls-creaking kind of muffled sound breaks the silence and that’s all I need. I rush through the house, and it feels like 2 seconds but still way too long before I find them. Of course, in Noah’s bedroom. Immediately a horrible, angry scowl because I’m so fucking scared, crashes across my face like wretched broken glass, seeing Noah held up in Jason’s arms, one covering his soft little mouth. “Put him down.”

“See, Noah? Told you you shouldn’t make any noise, Y/N’s such a killjoy!” Jason says in a light, casual tone as he ruffles Noah’s hair a little too roughly. His gradually brightening green eyes flash up to mine and make it obvious that he feels the exact opposite of relaxed, though. And poor Noah takes this time without Jason’s hand restricting his mouth to ask me to save him. Like he really believes I can, because I’m his older sibling. Jason rolls his eyes and tightens his arm around Noah’s shoulders, holding him against his chest and not even bothering to support him. “You don’t need to be saved, kiddo. It’s a playdate. Hardly a death sentence… “

“Bullshit.” I say, my brain frozen about what to do. I can try to fight him, sure, but that’s not going to go well. And might put Noah in danger. Jason rolls his eyes and pastes on a fake, sniggering look on his lips. “Go find another kid.” I half bed, half demand, not sure which he might spontaneously start to respond too. I’ve tried everything to deter him these past weeks! But he’s just rotten, right down to his core.

“-Don’t you get demanding with me, you bitch!” He snaps back, immediately, black creeping up the skin of his hands and his eyes glowing way brighter then before, telling me he’s reaching his bursting point anger level, and this is becoming as dangerous as it can get. He tries, to calm down though. Flicks the long, sharp fingers on the hand that isn’t holding up Noah… then loosens his grip on my brother momentarily, deliberately so now he’s holding him up by his neck. Forearm against his little throat. I cover my mouth with my hands in shock, watching Noah struggle and strain in vein. My heart starts to beat faster, sensing the end of this, which cannot be good for me or Noah. “… hah.” The monster stretches his neck out, rolling his shoulders. Hair turning a shocking white. “Hate to get pissed like this but you know not to talk to me like that, sunshine.”

… okay. This is the end. The rumours said that when Jason’s true colours come out, that’s when it’s over. Noah and I are not getting away from this.

I don’t have a choice anymore, like I even did in the first place… So stupid. Plan Z.

The funny thing is that now, when I should be the most afraid, I’m absolutely calm. I hold my hands up in surrender, dropping the tension in my shoulders entirely. “Okay, I’m sorry.” At least Noah will be safe. That’s the point. Jason, sensing something new, raises an eyebrow and tilts his head. “I won’t ever disrespect you again.” I love my brother so much. I would’ve done this in a heartbeat in the very beginning, if I hadn’t known that this, giving myself up, would also hurt him. I just… I don’t have any more ideas. If this means Noah will survive and he’ll grow up safe, with the chance to be happy? Then it’s worth it. I step towards them, slowly. “I’ll be kind to you, and I’ll play with you. And I’ll never leave you.” Jason’s second eyebrow meets the first halfway up his forehead. “I’ll be the perfect friend- I mean, what does a kid know about being the perfect best friend anyway? They’ll always make mistakes, Jason, and aren’t you tired of looking?” When I reach them, I swoop down and hook an arm under Noahs butt, holding him up so Jason’s choke hold doesn’t hurt anymore. But I don’t take my eyes off Jason’s, watching the understanding and agreement dance across them, both in horror and relief. It’s working. I’m so afraid, and I’m so glad, that it’s working. “I’ll be your friend instead. Just let Noah stay safe, in his home. And promise you’ll never see him, or have him hurt, ever again.”

“What makes you think you’re in a position to make demands like that?”

“Because I’m giving you what you want. No resistance this time, doesn’t… doesn’t that sound good?”

Please. Please, please, please. That’s all I can think now. Just please.

Please let this work, please let him agree. Please let him let Noah go, please let Noah forget me. Please let him live a long and happy life. I love you Noah, be happy. Please.

Then suddenly Jason’s eyes flash and turn into a brilliant golden colour, his hair goes back to red and the black, corrupted mould that had infected his skin crept down to the tips of his fingers and dappled away. He smiles.

“I’m willing to take that risk! It might work, actually!” Jason lets go of Noah, raising his hands up to either side of his head, in surrender, as I take Noah entirely into my arms and his little arms wrap around my neck. Jason almost looks like a level headed and understanding guy, as he backs off now. I turn Noah’s body away from him, looking reproachfully at the being, whatever he is.

“D-… deal then.” I state, offering a hand to Jason to shake. “Noah lives a happy life, not any longer or shorter than it was meant to be.”

Jason jumps, making me jolt in surprise and encloses his hand around mine, shaking enthusiastically- but I can see the evil glint still in his eyes and in his smirk. “’Course! You’re gonna love it Y/N, I promise. I knew you had a little something better in you, less moody and not a stick in the mud. In fact! I’m so on board, have a couple minutes alone with Noah. I’ll just be in the hall.”

With that he lets go of my hand, but his presence stays with me even once he’s gone out and into the hall. Like when you’re in the hospital, or at school, and your parent is outside the door while the doctor or the teacher sees you privately. Except, much, scarier. My stomach’s full of dread.

Finally I turn to Noah and see someone safe and I know I did the right thing. Still, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I have to go. “Okay little bro. Mum and Dad’ll be home later tonight.” I start, setting him down on his bed and leaning down to him instead of looking down at him. His eyes are wide, and full of fear. And I force myself to look at them because it’ll be the last time. Oh god, it hurts. Tearing my gaze away for a moment, I point to the clock. “When the little hand touches the 5 and the big hand touches the 12- that’s when they should be home. If not, make sure all the doors are locked-actually, as soon as I leave, make sure they’re locked, -, turn on the TV, get comfy on the couch and make some two minute noodles. Here’s my phone; Call them if you want, whenever. Keep it charged. Remember to get the police, the doctors, or the firemen then you need to call 000/911/ (Insert your countries emergency phone number). Our address is on the fridge, they’ll be patient with you so please don’t worry about that. Ummm… “I try to say everything calmly, and clearly so he understands but now my voice is starting to tremble because he’s started to cry. “I love you so, so much Noah. Please remember that I will be okay, you don’t need to worry. I’ll miss you, and I wish I could be with you but this is for the best, okay? This is not your fault, I love you. Be happy when you can, okay?” I lean in and give him the tightest hug ever, then pull back and let him go for the last time.

Finally, I blow him a kiss and leave the room.

___TIME SKIP: 3 Years___

Slowly joining the conscious world again, I feel hard floor under my shoulder blades and groan, remembering where I fell asleep. Stupid Jason making me play trains until we fell asleep- not to say it wasn’t fun, but couldn’t we have situated some pillows under me or something? Opening my eyes, I turn my head on the floor and see the monster himself.

Red hair a mess of streaks and rivers around his head and over his forehead, he’s fallen asleep on his back too, the trains still between us. Groaning again, I pull myself up from the floor into a sitting position and roll my shoulders back to relieve the stiffness. “Shhh, I’m still sleeping.”

“Time to get up now, its like lunchtime.” Smirking, I slowly stretch my arms forward, linking my fingers together as I do so. He’s an idiot.

“I disagree.”

“Are we gonna do this?”

“Me disagreeing?”

“Yes.”

He rolls over onto his side, sticking his hands under his head as if they could ever match the comfort of a pillow. “Then yes.” I roll my eyes at him, getting up and hobbling to my room.

A couple hours later, I’ve taken a 45 minute shower and warmed up my joints again and am just flipping through Pinterest in my room, when Jason finally decides to join the land of the living- slamming the door open suddenly so hard that wall behind it cracks open. “Goodmorning Y/N!”

“Its 3pm.”

“Time is a construct!” He rounds the room, stops by me as I sit calmly on my bed with my iPad on my legs, then leans down with his arms folded behind his back. His grin is wicked. “Anyway, we have places to be- Let’s go!” With his usual level of rudeness and eccentricity, he grabs my wrists and flies off out of the house.

With me just managing to not have my arm ripped off.

When I actually have our pace under control and not in danger of losing one of my most important limbs, I look around and the street that we’re on is… unnervingly familiar. I know exactly where we are, immediately.

I nearly stop dead in my tracks when the street I used to live on comes into view. “Where are we going? Jason? Jason! Where!” We’re getting closer, and I’m starting to panic. “Are! We! Going!? Where are we-”

“If you would stop asking that same question over and over, I would tell you!” He snaps, causing me to shrink back and stop trying to wrench my wrist out of his grip. Okay, point taken grumpy gills. “We’re going to check on Noah.”

Immediately blind, horrendous panic spreads to every little crevasse in me. I think the worst and I try even harder to get away; Yanking my arm so hard that Jason’s yoinked back a few whole feet. “No! You promised; We had a deal!”

He growls down at me through his teeth after quickly recovering from the shock of being yanked back. “Come on, you’ll see.”

“No!” I don’t know anything else to say but no. Nothing else that comes to mind properly describes how I’m thinking and feeling. I just want him to know, NO! No, we can’t go see Noah, no he can’t hurt him, so no. No, no, no!

He keeps on dragging me, all down the street and past my old house which I don’t care to even glance at, to a skatepark. When we stop under the shade of a tree, in the park right by the skating area where surely no one who’s skating will glance over and see us with any clarity, Jason looks over at my terrified expression and tilts his head. He looks strained. “Now, are you going to behave and let us have a looky-loo, or am I going to have to keep holding your hand, like a baby?”

I just feel stuck, and shaking. All that comes out of my mouth is a shaky, squeaky, as I’m sure I like a terrified baby bird. “No.”

He nods his head side to side for a moment and let’s go of me, crossing his arms over chest instead. “Fine, I guess that’ll do.” He rolls his eyes. “Now look over at the skaters, one of them will be familiar.”

I look over, and immediately search the helmet wearing boys for Noah. I search the face of every sweaty, lanky boy here but goddamnit, its hard! They’re all zooming all over the place, I can barely search their features. Its hard enough, since I haven’t seen Noah for 3 years!

“I… I don’t see him.” I force out, still in the squeaky, strained voice from before.

Jason’s strong hand finds my head, and turns it like a peanut butter lid carefully to the left. I keep looking immediately forward, until-

I find him.

Or, her, now.

I look at those eyes, the same as mine, and I know that the girl at the top of the curve with a Marvin the Martian skateboard is my sibling. She’s safe, and she’s smiling, and a lump grows in my throat as I watch her for whole minutes without blinking.

Slowly, I raise my hands to my mouth, tears clouding my vision so much that all Noah is, is a bright pink helmet flying all over the place. I wipe my eyes quickly, turning to look up at Jason. He’s watching Noah, or whatever her name is now, and looks bored of course. He’s never happy when he isn’t doing what he wants.  

But he came here. He brought me here. He did this for me, even though he’s bored.

All the love and the happiness I feel about him comes rushing at me all at once. These past few years were hard, yes. Absolutely yes, it’s a nuclear yes to that, but Jason has also been… an oddly wonderful friend. The way we got here was wrong, and it will always be wrong because of that and I’m never going to think otherwise, but -and this is not even really a ‘but’, because nothing will ever make what he did to me and to Noah even the slightest bit okay. It’s just a… its other feelings. Unrelated feelings that overlap the hatred and the fear, that sometimes, a lot of the time, stand out more, - there has been a certain overwhelming magic about my new life with him.

My eyes fill up with tears instantly, all over again. “Thank you, Jason.”

“Yeah, okay, great. Whatever. Can we go somewhere better, now?”

“Just a little longer?”

“I’m gonna go make a daisy chain for you.”

[missingrobin]

Unconditional (part 2)romance

Description: Love. Lies. Heartbreak. A recipe for disaster. When you move to Riverdale you have to face your dark past and a possibly hopeful future.

Pairing:Sweet Pea x Reader, Jughead x Reader

Warning:language, drugs, violence, underage drinking, parties? (just don’t get triggered)

Word count: 4199 

A/N: Yall this story is getting so good! I’m so excited to keep writing and if you’re enjoying it  tell me below and if you have any thing you might want to see in this series or just in general send me an ask or dm me :)

Part 1

You woke to feel a heavy hand on your back. The hand belonged to Sweet Pea, your sorta kinda friend. It was around 11am most people had  already left the bar but few remained because they were still too tired to drive home. You looked up and saw that Sweet Pea was still asleep, so you gently wiggled his hand off your back and grabbed your things. Toni was awake and was already cleaning up the bar. You walked over to her to see what your newest adventure together was going to be.

“Hey Toni good morning,” you said

Hey Y/N how are you feeling?” Toni replied 

“Pretty damn good honestly,”

“Hey we should probably get you all moved in,” said Toni 

“Alright let's hit the road.” 

You both jumped in your cars and you followed Toni to her trailer. You drove down a windy road till you reached the trailer park. The trailer wasn’t anything you expected. It was painted a raziliant purple color and was quite large on the outside. The trailer was partially graffitied with beautiful drawings that made the outside even better. There was a pink motorcycle and a garden with lavish plants along the trailer. The inside was so much grander there were two bedrooms and a very modern kitchen .The living room was screaming comfort from the plush chairs to the soft blankets that sat in a basket near the tv.  After your tour of your new home for the time being you resided to where your room was and placed down your few  belongings.

 You laid your bed and took some deep breaths and tried to process what the hell was going on. One second you were in California fearing for your life now you’re in Riverdale in the safety of your new friends home. Time felt like it was never ending while you were being held captive by Nico, now you feel like there’s finally room for you to love your life and yourself. 

“Y/N let's go to Pops you’ll love it.” Toni declared while almost breaking down your door

“Okay,” you agreed. 

You spang from your bed with power and met Toni in the main living area. Together you set off for Pops in Toni’s white jeep.

When you arrived at Pops you got situated and ordered a Strawberry milkshake and a large basket of fries that you and Toni would share.

“Do you miss it,” Toni asked while twiddling her fingers around her glass.

“Miss what?” You responded even though you were deep in thought. Toni noticed. 

“California.” 

“Yeah,” you hesitated slightly. “I wish things didn’t have to go so wrong,” a small sigh left your lips.

“I just miss the beaches and the boardwalk but most of all my family.”  You didn’t dare to look up. You could feel your eyes start to grow heavier and your heart start to beat faster. 

“I’m sorry you had to go through all that stuff Y/N,” Toni reached her hand across the table in hopes to comfort you.

“It’s okay things will work out they always do.” you smiled 

“Hey on a lighter note there’s a party next weekend we should totally go,  It would be a great way to meet more people  and it's being held at the Quarry so it would be fun to explore,” Toni remarked brightly. Her puppy eyes gleamed and you couldn’t resist.

“Yes! That would be awesome!” you exclaimed with fake excitement. 

You both finished your meal and drove back home.  It was already getting dark so you decided to stay in and have a girls night. You stayed up to the early hours of the morning watching Clueless, Legally blonde, and many more movies to pass the time.

When you woke up you saw that it was 3:27 pm.

“Toni, Toni wake up it's the afternoon already,” you shook her till she woke up.

“Oh damn well there goes most of our day,” Toni replied with a melancholy voice 

“It’s fine lets just go hang out at the Whyte Wyrm,” you suggested 

“That’s a really good idea, let's go,” Toni slightly cheered up. 

You both hopped on Toni’s bike and drove to the Wyrm. The parking lot was nearly empty except for a shady black van but you ignored it and walked inside. 

“Lets play pool!” Toni exclaimed 

You both walked over to the pool table and had a pleasant evening playing pool and chatting with your new friend.  

“You suck ass Toni, why did you even ask me to play?” you laughed while holding the cue stick in between your hands.

“Because I thought you would suck more,” she giggled and poked you playfully with the stick.

“I just remembered my first day of school is tomorrow ugghh,” you rolled your eyes a

“Oh it's not that bad I promise, school can actually be sorta fun and plus you have Sweet Pea, Fangs and I to keep you company,” Toni replied with warmth in her voice.

“Yeah that’s true, I should really try to be positive about this,” you declared with hope.

“Precisely.” Toni smiled 

“Oh this is gonna be such a shit show,” you said while burrowing your hands in your arms.

“I thought you were gonna be positive.” Toni looked at you with a smirk.

“I gave up,” you replied with a grim look.

Toni looked around the room. You saw a clock by a dart board that read 11:12 pm. 

“It’s getting late, we should head home, we have a big day tomorrow,'' Toni smirked with an evil look.

You flipped her off and laughed. You were home in less than 5 minutes. You both returned to your designated areas and retired for the night. You took off your makeup and itchy day clothes and picked up your latest read The Diviners from your night stand. You read yourself to sleep and soon drifted off to a comfortable slumber. 

You woke to your loud ass iPhone alarm and groaned. You rolled out of bed and got ready for the day. You put on a fabulous denim skirt and a cropped long sleeve button up top. You accessorized with gold rings and a gold necklace. You looked in the mirror and you looked like the baddest bitch ever. You threw on your black heeled boots and headed out the door. You had to drive to school alone because Toni was already gone but you weren’t worried because you knew you were gonna make this school your bitch. 

Your drive to South side high was quite refreshing. You listened to Tame Impala with the windows rolled down and thought about what school was going to be like.

You pulled into the parking lot and got out of your car. All eyes were on you, boys looked you up and down, girls gave you fake smiles and whispered to their friends . People made crude comments  in all directions but you ignored the unwanted attention. You strutted up to the school doors and you were met by Toni and Sweet Pea.

“Damn Y/N you look so fucking hot,” Toni exclaimed while stared at you in awe.

“Thanks babe,” you wrapped Toni in a tight hug.

“Yeah Y/N you really do look great,” Sweet Pea said while raking his hands through his dark lush hair.

“Thanks,” you replied 

Sweet Peas face turned a velvety shade of pink and you noticed. Sweet Pea was obviously gorgeous but you didn’t have time to deal with a boyfriend, especially another drug dealing one that likes to pull knives on you. 

You and Toni headed off to your first period class together leaving Sweet Pea in the dust. His mind was filled with thoughts of you and what he would have to do to get you. 

In your first period class you sat with Toni and her friend Fangs who you just got acquainted with and laughed and talked about how shitty the school was. You were genuinely enjoying yourself. You giggled and barely paid attention to the teacher who was lecturing the class about drugs.

At lunch you sat with Toni and her friends again but this time you met Jughead. He was simply angelic, he had the best personality and above all he was a writer just like you. You couldn’t help but stare at his gorgeous face.

“So Jughead what do you usually write?” you questioned and slid  your hand under your chin.

“Oh god Y/N please don’t get him started,” Toni begged.

You ignored her comment and connected eyes with Jughead.

“I write anything that I feel matters, from articles to poetry,” he smiled at you and looked at your red stained lips.

In your head you thought of you and him sitting in pops together sharing a milkshake on your first date and of course you thought of your wedding and how cute your kids were going to be.

“Snap out of it woman, you’ll start drooling in a second ,”  Your internal monologue told you. 

You quickly realized that you were staring at his lips and you forced yourself to look at the ground.

“Y/N do you write?” Jughead asked 

“Yeah actually I do, but I haven’t written anything in a while,” you started staring at his lips again.

“Why not?” he questioned and adjusted his hat.

“So many reasons, maybe I can tell you sometime over coffee,” you flirted, making sure to make direct eye contact then to him and look him up and down. 

“I’d like that,” he smirked playfully while sucking on a cherry lollipop.

During that whole debacle Sweet Pea was staring at you and he was pissed. He felt his insides burn with rage and jealousy. 

“Why didn’t she look at me that way, I’m ten fucking times better than that dickhead,”  he thought  and sank his head to the ground with slight defeat.

He couldn’t take it. Sweet Pea stood up and stormed off through the cafeteria. His whole face was bright red and he wanted to fight someone. Fangs noticed Sweet Pea’s change in attitude and he took off after him.

“Hey bro what’s got you all hot and bothered,” Fangs questioned trying not to make Sweet Pea even more upset. 

 “That bitch and her little boyfriend.” Sweet Pea spit 

“Huh,” Fangs said utterly confused.

“Y/N and Dickhead,” Sweet Pea had anger fuming off him at this point. He reached forward and struck a locker leaving a dent.

“How many fucking times do I have to tell you not to talk about girls that way dumbass, and Jug didn’t even do anything they were just talking,” Fangs rolled his eyes.

“Is a coffee date just talking idiot,” Sweet Pea mocked with hate in his voice. 

“Look dude, it's not that serious and aren’t you the one who pulled a knife on Y/N when you first met her,” Fangs leaned forward closer to Sweet pea and balled his fists to his sides.

 “Oh yeah she told me about that dumbass,” Fangs replied with equal amounts of anger.

“Go Fuck yourself.,” Sweet Pea slashed words at his friend and stormed off and out the doors to the parking lot.

Fangs knew that Sweet Pea could get like this sometimes but he had never seen him so upset. He wondered why Sweet Pea was so pissed off about a girl that he just met a few days ago. Fangs knew that he had to let Sweet Pea go blow off some steam by himself, but it didn’t make how he just acted okay.

The school day went very fast and was pleasant. You had noticed tension between the Sweet Pea and Fangs but you didn’t want to get in the middle of that so you ignored it. Although you didn't see much of Sweet Pea at all for the rest of the day. 

After school you had your first shift at the Wyrm and you were excited because you would be able to bartend. You had drinking experience since you were 16 but you really didn’t like alcohol too much, only the sweet refreshing stuff but you absolutely adored making drinks.

You drove to the Wyrm and Toni walked you through some of the signature drinks which were simple enough to learn. Within 30 minutes you could make anything on the menu. You were fucking amazing at bartending and talking to strangers so this job was an excellent  way to make some cash while still doing something that you loved. Time went by like a breeze and before you knew it your shift was over. When you finished and clocked out for the night FP approached you. 

“Hey Y/N your work at the bar was fucking incredible great job tonight,” FP was thoroughly impressed by you.

“Thanks FP, I really appreciate the opportunity to work here. It's great,” you gave him a bright smile and wrapped your tired arms around your body.

“You’re welcome kid, Anyways have you met my boy?” FP prodded hoping to gain insight on your relationship with Jughead.

“Yeah I met him today at school he’s really nice,” your palms started to sweat.

“Oh cool, cool, hopefully you guys can become friends, god knows that boy needs some more of those,” FP chuckled lightly.

You gave a brief lowkey uncomfortable laugh.

“Oh I should really get going goodnight FP,” you tried to make your escape as fast as possible.

“Yeah you’re right kid, goodnight,” FP replied while strolling off to a group of older serpents. 

When you finally made it to your car you sat and tried to take in that conversation. Why was FP asking about Jughead? Why did he put such emphasis on you being friends? Most importantly why did your hands start sweating when he brought up Jughead? Sure he was really cute and he liked a lot of things that you liked but it's no reason to get all worked up about. Damn it, you knew you had a teeny tiny amount of feelings for him but it doesn’t matter, or does it?

“Let it go,” you whispered to yourself with slight disappointment. 

In Jugheads trailer he was having the exact same thoughts as you. He questioned why he felt like this and how he magically felt this strongly about some girl he just met. In his head he replayed the first time he saw you walking through the cafeteria looking stunning. With your beautiful long luxurious legs and your impeccable sense of fashion. He thought about holding you in his arms while he recited poetry to you in fourign languages. What the hell man he thought. Then he suddenly slapped the shit out of himself to make the day dreaming go away. 

“That was the stupidest thing I’ve ever done.” Jughead muttered to himself as he rubbed his brutally attacked cheek. 

Several days later…

It was finally Friday afternoon. The weather was blazing and bright and you took that as a good sign. Your week had been thrilling from you starting your new school to you hanging out with your new friends and sneaking off with Jughead to hang out at the library during lunch. If you were being honest you would even say that life was currently fucking awesome. Although your week was going great you still had so much more to do like the Snake Bash starting at midnight. You still had to get on your craziest rave outfit and pregame but you just got out of school and you wanted to take a drive to reminisce on all the bomb shit that had been happening lately.

 After your drive you went back home to find sparkly shit all over the floor in your living room. 

“Y/N which one do I wear? It's the last Snack Bash of the school year.  I have to start it with a bang.” Toni was speaking so rapidly and she was quite literally jumping up and down. She held outfits up to her over and over again.

“Okay first of all where did you get all these dresses? Second wear the diamond cover up with a black swimsuit set under you’d look so hot in that.” you replied and took a second look at the shiny mess.

“Okay thank you so much.” Toni jogged over to you and wrapped you in a quick hug while trying not to step on the eight million outfits on the floor and then took off into her room.

You stepped off the mountains of clothes and went into your room to get ready. You searched through all your old rave clothes and then found the one. It was a metallic super cropped top with matching cheeky bottoms. You paired that with white fishnet tights and white doc martens that you stole from a store in California when you were homeless after your parents died. You did a ravishing makeup look that consisted of a lot of glitter and crystals. Finally your masterpiece was finished. You looked like a goddess and you knew it. 

You came out of your bedroom to find a crowd of your friends. Fangs, Sweet Pea, Jughead, and Toni were waiting for you so you all could drive to the quarry together. When everyone laid eyes on you they were stunned. You were thrown up on with immediate compliments. Jughead's jaw dropped to the floor. Sweet pea looked like he was drooling all over the floor. 

Someone finally spoke up. “U- Uh Y/N you look beautiful,” Sweet Pea professed while pushing back his hair with his strong ring covered hands. 

“Yeah you really do,” Jughead chimed in. He walked over to you on a finally clean floor and wrapped you in a warm comforting hug. 

Sweet Pea frowned and gave a look of disgust from the action but to everyone else it was just a simple hug.

The guys couldn’t keep their eyes off your body and you had to keep saying out loud that you weren’t a piece of meat. Although you looked divine your friends did too. Fangs wore a see through shirt and skinny jeans and his makeup consisted of a shit ton of glitter too. Toni wore the outfit you told her to and she curled her bubblegum pink hair into loose waves. Sweet Pea actually didn’t wear a shirt, he only had a kimono and pants on and a bandanna tied around his neck. Jughead wore a short sleeve button down shirt tucked into distressed black pants and of course that god damn hat.

You and your friends got in Toni’s jeep and drove to the Quarry. You blasted music and laughed the whole way there. 

When you reached your destination you could tell that this party wasn't going to be fucking crazy. Pretty girls danced with dangerous guys. Heads bobbed up and down, the ground almost felt like it was shaking. Colorful lights decorated the floor along with colorful outfits. You were drawn in just like the first time you went to a rave. Your eyes darted to where most people were dancing and you  and your friends immediately joined them. You ran off to the dance floor and moved your body with passion. You shook your hips along with your hair. You felt eyes on you as you got lost in the music. You were dancing with a group of Serpent girls when a handsome  stranger walked over and asked you to dance. You took the mysterious stranger's hand and deepened in the crowd. 

“I’m Leo.” the gorgeous man remarked 

“I’m Y/N,” you said while connecting eyes with the man.

He had a soft smile and beautiful hair that touched his chin. His eyes dared you to get lost in them. You danced wildly and rested your arms on his shoulders. 

The man became a little too handsy and you moved his hands off of your lower back. 

“Not so fast lover boy.” you smirked 

“Hey don’t be like that baby girl,” Leo said sternly. He moved his hands back to their previous place and discomfort washed over you. 

“Back off asshole” you spit pushing his arms off of you. You stormed off into the abyss of bodies.

You didn’t like that at all. You knew that it was probably a good idea to get away from him. You drifted off to find your friends but they spotted you first. 

“Hey Y/N is he giving you trouble?” Sweet Pea said while cracking his knuckles 

“Nah it's no big deal Sweet,” you replied in an effort to calm him down.

“Alright,” Sweet Pea hesitated

You grabbed Toni’s arm and you sped to the dance floor. You wrapped your arms around her and you swayed to the music. It was nice to have really good friends that would look out for you.

“Toni.” 

“Yeah Y/N,” 

“Thank you for everything,” you said warmly 

“You’re welcome, thanks for being here,” she pulled you into a close hug.

You both held each other and listened to Somebody Else by the 1975.  People were all around holding their loved ones and best friends. Time felt infinite. You felt Infinite. 

Behind the trees Leo and a gang of ghoulies plotted a scheme. 

“That bitch is so full of herself,” Leo spat while looking over at the crowd of people.

“Don't worry about Leo, we'll take care of her,” some goulie said while lighting his cigarette.

Sweet Pea stood lips locked with some pretty girl. Fangs was talking to some guy and you and Toni were dancing, but where was Jughead? 

“Hey I’m gonna go look for Jug okay,” 

“Got it,” Toni replied while still dancing . 

Your eyes scanned the crowd but there was still no sign of Jughead. You tried to come up with an idea of where he could be, but then a melancholy thought crossed your brain. Maybe he left with someone else, you dismissed the thought simply because you didn’t want to think of that. You walked back to the car with a droopy mood and tired feet.

When you arrived back at the car to your surprise you saw  Jughead sitting on the roof of the car looking at the stars. You strolled up to him.

“Hey stranger,” you almost whispered 

“Oh hey Y/N,” Jughead replied trying to act like you didn’t just scare the shit out of him.

“Not the party type?” you questioned

“Yeah not really.” he replied dully

You climbed to the hood and sat beside him. The sky was decorated with stars and the moon shined in the distance.

“It’s beautiful,” you sighed and laid down on the roof to rest your aching body.

“It is.” he agreed while resting his arms on his crossed legs.

“Tomorrow wanna go get breakfast at Pops and hangout?” you said calmly 

“Yeah that would be nice.” 

“It’s a date.” 

“Like an actual date?” he questioned 

“Yeah if you want it to be,” you replied with your heart racing. You were so good at flirting on accident that it should be a crime. 

“Then it’s a date,” he proclaimed while looking at you. He saw how the moonlight shined against your skin and his heart twirled. 

Your eyes were darting at all the different stars. 

“You’re a dork you know that,” you said while giggling.

“You’re too,” he said while playfully bumping you.

You sat up and looked at him. Time stopped. The World stopped rotating. It was just you and him. You turned to face him. Your eyes connected and you slid your hand on his neck. You pulled him closer and your lips locked. Your lips seemed to fit together like the perfect puzzle. The kiss was like no other, nothing could ever come close to it. It lasted a lifetime and when you parted you still felt buzzing on your lips. You had never been kissed like that. That kiss danced in your heart and was ingrained in your brain. Jughead looked at you and smiled, his cheeks were flushed with pink.

The air was filled with passion, there was no need for words. You simply just laid back down on the roof of the car and he slid his hand into yours.

You could still hear the music from the party booming in the other direction. The wind was chilled and the fresh spring air swept over your body like a blanket. Your body shivered because of the temperature outside. Jughead noticed.

“Do you want my jacket?” he questioned 

“Yes please,” you replied with a smile.

Your hand felt safe and right wrapped in his but that didn’t stop the various amounts of insecurity from coming in and drowning your brain with hesitation. Was this right? Is it too soon? What if he’s like Nico? You silenced and came to the realization that he might not be like Nico. What if he was actually a good guy.

You jumped into conversation with Jughead about the copious amount of things you shared in common. Maybe things will work out.

Well that was pretty freaking cute but the good shit never really lasts. Hearts break. People lie. And love is a dangerous thing…  

Tag list:

@chipster-21​

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[zwritestuff]

Some Things Are Bound To Be (Chapter One) - Kyara

A/N: Okay, hear me out, I know this ship barely has a week of existing - I’m very aware of it, thank you very much. But this idea wouldn’t stop haunting me, and before I knew it I churned out 2.7K in the span of two days. Obssessions be like that, I guess. With that being said - I’m hoping that this will have between 5-7 chapters, because I can’t deal with long multi-chaps at the moment. A big, massive thank you to @fromthenorthernskies​ for beta-ing this 💓 And to Winter for always being on board with my shit and peer pressuring me to write this.

Summary: When simple office gossip snowballs, Kyne finds herself faking to be Kiara’s girlfriend, the daughter of the owner of the company she works at. Not that she has any complain, though.

***

Kyne had been working a little over a week at Schatzi Co. when she met Kiara, though she had heard rumors and hushed whispers about the only daughter of the owners of the company — some said she was a bitch, others that she was a spoiled brat; to Kyne, she was none of those things.

It might just be because she exchanged a total of four words with her, and Kiara treated her as politely as she could be before going on about her day. Either way, she never participated in the insulting comments some of her co-workers made about Kiara, because she didn’t have any bone to pick with her.

Priyanka, her best friend and the one that got her the job interview in the first place, had wisely suggested she stay out of the office drama, at least during her first weeks. She had been working there for a year now, so she knows what she’s talking about; she doesn’t mind when Kyne asks one too many times what did Kiara Schatzi actually do to earn so much hate from the employees, considering she rarely is at the company.

“I don’t know, existing?” Priyanka offers as an answer, while they’re having lunch together at her office. “She’s set to inherit the company once her father decides to retire, that much I know, but I’m not sure where this hate comes from — probably from something that happened before I worked here, but nobody would tell me.” She shrugs, biting her sandwich.

“Oh, c’mon, she can’t be that bad, can she?” Kyne asks, picking at her Adobo. Priyanka is about to answer when someone knocks at the door, and as soon as she tells whoever it is to come in, they see Julia’s head poke from behind the door.

She tells Priyanka that the head of the construction team needs to speak with her about a mistake in the planes for the new project, using that very nasal voice Kyne has become used to rather quickly, and saying in a pretty non-confrontational tone to not shoot the messenger.

Priyanka groans, excusing herself to Kyne before following Julia, who’s still apologizing on behalf of the contratist, and leaves Kyne alone with her Adobo.

Not even a minute goes by when the door is opened again, but this time, it’s Kiara that interrupts in the room.

“Miss Priyanka?” She says, looking around the room and finding Kyne instead. “Oh, hello. Isn’t this Priyanka Kapoor’s office?” Kiara asks, squinting slightly.

Kyne briefly thinks that the red suit fits her so well it should be illegal, but she just nods curtly.

“She just left with Julia, something about a plane for a project being wrong?” Kyne hesitantly replies, though she heard the conversation very clearly.

Kiara groans, rolling her eyes. “How could that woman outrun me when she’s wearing six inch heels?” She asks aloud, barely holding back a laugh. Kyne chuckles.

“I mean, I’ve been working here for a month and I’ve never seen her not wear six inch heels,” she says, though she’s not sure if Kiara pretended to get an answer from her. 

She feels a weird flutter in her chest when Kiara giggles, shooting a smile her way.

 “Yeah, I guess that’s probably it,” Kiara replies, “What’s your name again?” She asks, lingering at the door.

“It’s Kyne Aguilar, miss Schatzi,” she replies with a genuine smile. Kiara smiles back, and Kyne thinks the smile suits her very well.

“I’ll see you around, Miss Aguilar,” she simply says before leaving, and Kyne’s stare stays glued to the door.

When Priyanka returns, much later and with a very visible frown in her face, Kyne doesn’t mention her encounter with Kiara, because she doesn’t find it relevant when her friend is complaining about her professionalism being questioned by one silly mistake.

When the day is over, Kyne is just making her way to the parking lot to meet Priyanka when she runs into Kiara again. She’s walking with her dad, and it makes Kyne straighten her back and avoid looking directly at him. She mutters a good night sir as she passes by their side instead, and she’d swear neither he nor Kiara listened, but she nods politely and says a have a good night that echoes in the otherwise silent hallway.

She’s not sure why, but she barely pays attention to Priyanka’s rant about her day, answering with non-committal sounds, as her mind drifted off and replayed the brief moment she’d spent with Kiara.

Yeah, Kyne is definitely skeptical about the rumors surrounding Kiara.

***

Kyne quickly gets used to her routine at the company.

She’s always been good at math and numbers, so being an accountant was one of her first options going into college, though she would’ve been as happy getting an overall degree in math and teaching children.

Her job as an accountant isn’t as dull as she would’ve imagined, though; she’s the one that everyone comes for calculating budgets, how much would they earn if they invest on a certain project and all that jazz — all of this means people don’t necessarily see her as interesting, and therefore she never gets involved in any kind of office drama, which she appreciates due to the fact that her friends seem to be a walking target for drama worth of High School girls.

Priyanka was the one that introduced her to Scarlett and Bo, and though Kyne appreciates their friendship, she has to admit they’re a little bit messy. Just a little. Scarlett and Bo know everyone’s business at the office, primarily because Scarlett sleeps around more than they’ll ever admit to, and Bo is able to charm her way through people’s most pettiest complains about other co-workers. Oh, and Priyanka is there to de-escalate situations that come back to bite the pair in the ass.

So, overall, work isn’t monotonous at all; she has her friends that always have some sort of gossip to tell her — and there’s also Kiara.

Kiara started working full-time at the company shortly after she graduated from college, just one year after Kyne. This meant she saw her a lot more frequently, instead of sporadically running into her at the hallways once or twice a week — now, it’d be a pretty weird day if she didn’t see Kiara around, talking to people, collecting reports and having meetings with other important members of the company.

They didn’t talk much, though, only exchanging words when Kiara came to collect reports at Kyne’s office and they did small talk for a moment before Kiara went on with her day. Sometimes they’d greet each other if they happened to bump into the other at the end or beginning of the day. It was a cordial enough relationship.

That was until one day she comes to her office unprompted, asking her to follow the flow if her secretary, Lena, appears by looking for her.

“She’s more of an assistant that a secretary, you know? But she can be a bit too overbearing sometimes, though I’m sure I would have to blame my dad for that, he was the one that hired her for me,” Kiara rants, and Kyne just lets her, looking up from her reports from time to time to let her know she’s listening.

She’s pretty sure that this is the first time she’s exchanged more than a few words with Kiara, and there’s some sort of excitement — and a little bit of intimidation — bubbling up in her stomach.

“I mean, you’re the boss of the boss of my boss; if anything, you could just tell her to chill or you’ll fire her. That should calm her,” Kyne suggests, and she’d like to believe her deadpan delivery is what causes Kiara to giggle. 

She feels a tad of pride in herself for making Kiara laugh.

“I would, but I’m not that mean — and she’d tell my dad, anyway,” she jokes with a shrug, and Kyne chuckles. “I have to go, I have a meeting to attend, but thank you for letting me hide here.” Kiara winks at her, and Kyne tries to ignore the weird flutter of her heart.

“You’re welcome to hide here any time, miss Schatzi,” she says earnestly, smiling up at her. Kiara hesitantly turns to look at her.

“You know what? Just call me Kiara.” She smiles back, and all Kyne can do is nod dumbly.

Kiara leaves and Kyne goes back to work, until it’s time for her lunch break, when Priyanka, Bo and Scarlett barge into her office and oblige her to accompany them to this new restaurant that opened two streets away. 

She passes by Kiara in the hallways, and Lena is talking her ear off. Kyne catches Kiara’s glance and she shoots her a smile, Kiara returns it in the form of an eye roll as she briefly looks towards Lena and then back at her, a sneaky smile creeping on her face.

Kyne snorts, trying to focus on the ongoing conversation between her friends, but, much like the first time they met, Kiara doesn’t leave her mind for the rest of the day.

If her friends notice she’s like a deer in the headlights, they don’t bring it up, choosing to instead poke fun at Scarlett for struggling to get Ilona from Human Resources to text them back.

***

It’s becoming a common occurrence for Kiara to hide in Kyne’s office. Kyne’s not sure if Kiara should do that as often as she does, but she supposes she’s allowed to since she’s the daughter of the owner — Kiara gets away with a lot of things she wouldn’t get away with had she been someone else.

Such as interrupting in Kyne’s office in the middle of the day, because otherwise she’ll snap at the wrong people, and she doesn’t want that. Kyne doesn’t really mind, if anything, she’ll gladly let Kiara crash at her office if it means she’s doing the company a favor. Besides, she enjoys her company. Kiara is funny, kind and interesting in so many ways; there’s also the fact that sometimes Kiara brings her sweets to compensate for using her as a couch therapist, which is definitely a bonus in Kyne’s books.

It all makes her wonder what did Kiara do to not be so well-liked among the employees, because Kyne really likes her — as a friend, obviously.

Her other friends, such as Priyanka, Scarlett and Bo —but mostly Priyanka— are always asking her why does the daughter of their boss spend so much time with her, especially during work hours, and Kyne just shrugs and gives vague excuses. She won’t tell anyone Kiara talks shit about the other CEOs like it’s her actual job, she’s not a snitch.

Scarlett likes to joke that Kiara has a crush on her and Kyne should take advantage of that, seduce her and get all her money. Kyne just doesn’t pay attention to them, and flat out denies such thing being a possibility. Because not even in ten lives Kiara would like her like that for more than obvious reasons.

“You don’t give yourself enough credit, Kyne,” Scarlett says one day, on their way to the parking lot. “Like, your flirting is shit, but you’re not that bad looking,” they tease, earning a few chuckles from the girls and an eye roll from Kyne at that.

“Says the one that still can’t get Ilona Verley to go out with them,” Kyne quips back, intelligently derailing the conversation thanks to Scarlett going on a tangent about how they don’t care if Ilona texts them back or not, and how they’re water under the bridge.

Kyne just brushes off her friends’ constant teasing, and doesn’t really bring it up to Kiara, because why would she? It’s just playful nagging, and she doubts anyone else gives two craps about what Kyne does and not.

Well, so she thought.

Kiara comes to her office one day, and nothing seems strange, not even when she settles a cup of coffee in her desk and offers her a bagel. She figures it’s just Kiara thanking her for never complaining when she comes to her for venting.

“Do you have plans on Saturday?” She asks out of the blue, and Kyne cocks a brow, taking a sip from her coffee. She shakes her head no, and Kiara bites her lower lip. “So, uh, the charity ball is on Saturday, I think you know that. And I’m fairly sure you’ve heard the rumors--”

“Wait, what? What rumors?” Kyne cuts her off, knitting her brows in a frown and staring at Kiara, who looks absolutely mortified.

“Oh, no, you have no idea, do you?” She asks, and Kyne can swear this is the first time she’s seen Kiara blush. She looks cute with her cheeks crimson red, actually; it’s a nice change from the poised woman she’s come to know.

“Of what?” Kyne presses, trying to not get distracted by Kiara.

Kiara proceeds to tell her through gritted teeth how many people at the company think they’re dating — apparently her constant visits to Kyne’s office had caused some eyebrows to raise their way. Kiara never bothered to say anything about those rumors, because as the future owner of the company she shouldn’t dignify cheap office gossip with an answer, but then shit hit the fan when the rumors ended up arriving to her father’s ears, and now he expected Kiara to bring her alleged girlfriend to the charity ball.

Kyne sits still at her chair, owlishly blinking at Kiara for a moment too long. She tilts her head, waiting for Kiara to say it’s all a joke and she just wants her to calculate something for her.

But that doesn’t happen, and Kiara just silently stares back.

“That would explain the looks Susan from customer support gives me when I pass from her office on my way to get lunch,” Kyne muses absentmindedly. In fact, if she thinks about it for more than a second, it makes a whole lot of sense. Now she gets why Jenna from the architecture team went on a tangent about how much she hates people that sleep with their bosses for a raise whenever Kyne was around, raising her voice a tad too loud so everyone would hear.

No wonder why one time Priyanka scolded her for not interacting more with their co-workers, saying she’d benefit by being up to date with the office gossip.

“Have you thought of telling your father it was all a misunderstanding?” She proceeds after a few moments, and Kiara shrugs.

“He was excited that I was finally going out with someone, and I didn’t want to ruin his happiness,” she explains, and Kyne cocks a brow. She always assumed Kiara was constantly dating people — with how gorgeous she is, it didn’t seem that much of a stretch.

Kyne thinks it through for an entire minute, and comes to the conclusion that though it is definitely a bad idea (lies have short legs, they say), there’s something that drives her to say yes. It might just be that she’ll never get to be with a pretty girl like Kiara ever again, fake or not, so she decides to bite the bullet.

“If I don’t get a raise after this, I’m going to work for your rival company and sell them all your corporative secrets,” Kyne deadpans, and it takes Kiara a full minute to understand that is Kyne’s way of accepting to be her fake girlfriend for the charity ball.

Kiara lets out a sigh of relief, slouching in her chair and thanking Kyne profusely, promising to take her shopping on Friday to find a dress for the charity ball. Kyne jokingly says she’ll suck the money out of Kiara’s credit card if given the opportunity.

“As if that was possible, darling.” She winks at her, and something inside Kyne twitches. “I gotta go, but I’ll text you later to sort this out.”

“Wait,” she interrupts her again, before she leaves. “How do you have my number?”

Kiara smiles mischievously, and Kyne mentally goes over what she ate today, because her stomach twitches again.

“I have my ways of finding out things,” Kiara says, winking one last time before she exits Kyne’s office.

Once she’s alone, Kyne wonders out loud what the fuck had she messed herself into.

[chanel-blossom]

Chapter 2 (Act 1)

(TW Hints of a possible ED)

Do not stand at my grave and weep

I am not there. I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow.

I am the diamond glints on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain.

I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning's hush

I am the swift uplifting rush

Of quiet birds in circled flight.

I am the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry;

I am not there. I did not die.

- Mary Elizabeth Frye

Chanel was woken up by her alarm clock going off. She stretched her hands, letting them fall beside her, on her cool pillows. After last night, she really didn’t want to go to school, but alas, she didn’t have much of a choice. Hoisting herself up, she got out of bed, into the chilly room. She was very tired, to wake herself up a bit more, she left her room to her balcony. Leaning on the rails, she smelt the fresh air of the night and smiled to herself. It was a lovely moment of tranquility, Chanel treasured these moments a lot in her life. She looked down and noticed all the bruising left on her skin, it was a very deep purple and green color and would take quite a bit of make up to cover it up.

Sighing, she made her way back inside and to her bathroom. Chanel looked like a disaster, she refused to remove her make up before she went to bed in that house, her lipstick was smeared and she had racoon eyes. Locking the door, she removed her makeup and reapplied it again. She looked into the large mirror and started pocking at herself, picking her featured apart, all her flaws, it was a part of her morning routine at that point. She knew it was unhealthy, and that she was very insecure and most likely needed help with that, but there was nothing stopping her, so she continued on anyways.

Because of last nights events, Chanel hadn’t put her hair into curlers before going to bed like she’d normally do, leaving very loose waves for her today. She started wondering what to do with her hair as she brushed through it, it would take a long time long to manually curl it and she didn’t know how to style her hair, she never learnt how. Tapping on the counter, she ended up deciding to skip her breakfast to curl it manually, she wouldn’t eat and she’d have cute hair for school, two positives in her eyes.

Once done, she got ready as fast as she could, and left her room just in time to get to the limo. She got down to the main entrance where three of the brothers were waiting. The second oldest brother Reiji greeted her, so far, he had been her favorite, even if he disapproved of her clothing choices. He was very intelligent, polite and didn’t put up with any bullshit, she admired that about him.

“Good morning Miss Blossom, I trust you slept well.” Reiji greeted her, Chanel just smiled and nodded her head. As well as giving a nod to the other brothers, Ayato and Laito. “Let’s get in the limo, shall we?” Reiji spoke as he headed for the door. Chanel followed after him but soon enough she felt two arms on her shoulders. Ayato and Laito. “Ne Bitch-chan~ let’s be limo buddies!” He pressed closer to the female. She looked up at them and just smiled her usual smile. Usually in the limo she sat at the door next to Yui. It seemed the brothers were warming up to her presence.

Everyone was already in the limo when they got in, she waved at everyone, but like normal, she was ignored, maybe she was wrong, they still seemed to hate her. She didn’t like the feeling, she was always loved and adored by everyone. It was the norm, even if they didn’t love her for her and just wanted something frim her. Her eyes looked over everyone as the car journey continued. On her right was Laito, he was nice enough to her, he seemed to be a bit of a creep, but there’s something else about him she didn’t like. To her left was Ayato, the night before was the first time she ever interacted with him, his cocky attitude left something to be desired, but he did help her out with Kanato, which she was grateful for and it gave her hope for a blooming friendship. Yui was sitting beside Ayato, it would be nice to have a friend in the house, and she looked easy enough to manipulate, the only problem was, she was always surrounded by one of the brothers making it difficult to get her alone. Then we have Kanato, she always had strange vibes with him but after last night, she will continue to avoid him to the best of her abilities. Shu was next, Chanel hadn’t formed an opinion of him yet, she’s barely even seen him with his eyes opened up. Then there’s Subaru, he is the most emotional of them all, even if his only emotion is anger, she predicts he will be the easiest to get along with. Reiji is sitting across from her, he’s very logical, she get’s a bit of a butler vibe from him, but she can deal with that. 

Arriving at school, Chanel quickly separated from her roommates to find her friends. She was quite popular at the school, cute, smart and rich, the perfect combination, on top of it, she was mute so people automatically became friends with her just so they wouldn’t be seen as rude or mean. It’s always been that way in every school she went to, she liked it that way, the most popular girl in school, not because of power, but because she’s so kind to everyone she sees. It was her way of manipulation, it gave her power, so people wouldn’t question her, or her questionable activities outside of school. 

“Chanel! Hi, nice to see you again!” Her friend Niko waved to her, Chanel ran up to her, smiling and gave her a big hug. Niko was a hugger, she was a cute girl, very long, straight brown hair, with curtain bangs framing her face, Chanel’s advice of course. Niko was sweet enough, but she didn’t care for the white haired girl one bit, she wanted Laito to notice her, it was quite obvious if you payed attention, and Chanel needed cute girlfriends to boost her scores, they were both using the other, Niko of course didn’t know about Chanel, she though she hit the jackpot, popularity and the possibility of dating a hot guy. “The rest have gone to class, want to head to ours?” Niko asked, Chanel gave her a nod.

As they walked to class, the girls mind began to drift. Niko knew sign language, It made Chanel’s life easier, in class, she could just sign to her and Niko could let the class know Chanel’s thoughts. It also meant that she didn’t have to sit with any of the triplets, the teachers preferred Niko as her translator. That left poor Yui stuck dealing with them. Fake sympathy on Chanel’s part, she was a sadist, just like the brothers, seeing Yui’s uncomfortable faces brought her joy. 

In that moment, she remembered the night before, and falling asleep to the question of why she enjoyed that kind of treatment. Chanel was a control freak, she didn’t like her mind being conflicted with itself, it lead to confusion and doubt.

“Chanel?” The girl in question saw a hand waving in front of her snapping her out of her thoughts. They were at their classroom at this point and began taking their seats. She looked at the brunette and smiled a big tooth smile. “Can I see what you got for last nights homework? I would like to see if it’s correct.” Lies, she wanted to copy Chanel’s answers, not that she minded, handing the girl the work who gratefully took it. More people started to walk into class and greet her. Until finally, the boy she was waiting for, Kai, he was absolutely gorgeous, chiseled to the gods and since day one, it was obvious he liked her, it was only a matter of time before he asks her out, to which she’d of course say yes. He sat at the table next to hers and once again, she was amazed by how beautiful he was, he was almost on the same level as the Sakamaki brothers. He had ginger hair, very fluffy with a bit of a curl to it. Gorgeous, big brown eyes and the cutest freckles. He had a smaller build than she’d normally like but, she hand to admit, he made her a little weak.

“Heya Chanel!” But that all left whenever he opened his mouth. He was so loud, and he had such a high pitch to his voice and it made Chanel want to curl up and die, one of his parents was a singer, it truly wasn’t fair. He looked into her eyes and they both just kind of smiled at each other that goofy smile before looking away, it wasn’t a fake smile either, it was one of those smiles you are trying to suppress but it’s very obvious you’re smiling, she bit her lip as she glanced at him again, before looking back to the board. Soon enough, the whole class was there and the lessons begun. Chanel was very serious about her work so not much happened during school days, usually, during breaks she sits with her friends listening in on their mundane conversations, but today was a little different, instead of listening in, she felt a hand around her wrist as she was dragged away before she could even spot her group of friends.

“Come on! Stop struggling, I wanna show you something.” It was Ayato, he really needed to learn social skills, borderline kidnapping people wasn’t a way to make friends. She kept following his hurried pace, wondering where he’s taking her, until they ended up at the hall of the school. She looked at him with one eyebrow raised as he went into the supply closet and dragged out a basketball. “Ore-sama took the liberty of reading some of your copy, where I learnt that you like sports, so I’m honoring you with a match against me!” She looked at him in disbelief, she took out her copy and wrote “Now? Really? I’m in s skirt and uncomfortable school shoes, how about when we get home, that way it’s a fair game?” His eyes skimmed the letters and he pouted. “Then how about you watch Ore-sama do awesome tricks? It’ll give you a bit of a warning for our match after school, where I of course will beat you, because I’m the best.” She just nodded, not wanting to argue with the hot headed boy.

Chanel took a seat against one of the halls walls and shot Niko a quick text, explaining that she got held up at class and to begin lunch without her. Ayato started messing around at first to warm up a bit, but soon enough he got rather serious with his playing, this time, his cocky attitude was definitely warrantied, he was amazing, she hadn’t seen anything like it, Ayato was extremely fast, he knew exactly what he was doing. He also had this endearing quality about him whenever he did one of his tricks, he’d look back to make sure she’s watching him, almost like a little kid. It was carefree and it looked like he had a lot of fun whenever the ball landed in the hoop.

Soon enough she lost track of time watching him have fun, It was a nice distraction. They didn’t even notice when a red faced teacher walked into the hall, ready to scold them for trespassing.

[theonewiththefanfics]

Hawkins’ Charm (Part 1/?)

Synopsys: They had gotten out of Hawkins. After all the shit that had happened, all the heartache and pain, Billy and the Reader had gotten away from that hellhole, building their life in California as he had dreamed. But when Max’s graduation rolls around and they go to celebrate, it’s as if the Upside Down was just waiting for all of them to return. And it has a bone to pick.

Pairing: Billy Hargrove x f!Reader; platonic!Steve Harrington x f!Reader

Genre: angst, fluff, implied SMUT

Warnings: implied SMUT but not full on, blood, gore, mentions of death and injuries, mentions of abuse, swearing, mentions of anxiety and PTSD

Word count: 5007

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CONDONE BILLY’S ACTIONS AND THE THINGS HE’S DONE! THIS IS BASICALLY AN AU, WHEN REALLY LOOKING AT IT! SPOILERS FOR S3! READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION!

Billy was a sight for sore eyes as he stepped out from the ocean, blond curls stuck to his head much like his swim trunks to his legs, the board slapped under his armpit as he shook out the warm droplets from his locks.        He ran past a little girl with light hair as she built a sandcastle and dropped down next to Y/N, who had been hiding under an umbrella to escape the direct heat of the day, a book clutched between her fingers.        “You gotta come into the water,” he groaned and laid down on his back onto the sheet, eyes locked onto hers that were hidden behind sunglasses. “It’s amazing.”        And it was. Everything was amazing ever since they’d fucked out of Hawkins. He was a different man; he had scars to prove it. The second September had rolled around, and he had been discharged from the hospital, Billy had gathered his stuff, Y/N hers, and together they’d made their way to California.        “I bet it is,” she mumbled still not looking down at him, “but stuffs getting pretty amazing here as well,” she nodded with her chin to the book where the main character was gearing up for the final showdown.        Billy huffed and rolled on top of Y/N’s legs making her grunt as she felt his weight settle on her thighs, and his hand snatched away the book, but not before dogearing the page.        “Yeah, well, the weather report says it’s gonna be pretty shit for the next two weeks, so why don’t you keep that for when we can’t get outside the apartment, and get a bit wet right now,” his tone was sultry and suggestive even though he meant it in a bit different of a way than usual. But Y/N could also play that game.        “I dunno,” she slid her palm up his chest noting how her blue nail polish had chipped away at the edges, “I’d like it if it was you making me wet.”        She got the reaction she had hoped. Billy moaned dropping his head to her chest, and his hands wove around her waist gripping at her sides as if she’d disappear unless he held onto her.        For so long it had felt that way. Y/N had been an enigma when he’d first seen her. She had made sure everyone in Hawkins knew – she was back. 

       Def Leppard blasted through the air as she drove inside the school’s parking lot, hands tapping against the wheel to the rhythm of the song. Billy’s eyes had immediately latched on to the Oldsmobile 442 and the Y/H/C haired kid who jumped out of it.        “Don’t be late, I have shit to do!” a girl hollered after the boy as she stepped out of the car, but he just held up a middle finger in response, as she heard his old friends scream in excitement seeing Alex return to their group.        “Is that Y/N Y/L/N or are my eyes deceiving me?” Steve Harrington’s annoying voice was next, but the smile that the girl threw his way from where the other guy was coming behind him, knocked Billy off balance. He didn’t even know her, yet he was already done for it.        “I dunno,” she bounded over to Steve and wrapped him in a tight hug, making Billy suck harsher on the cigarette between his lips. “Is that the King of Hawkins or just a dick?”        Steve sighed and rolled his eyes. He didn’t even get the chance to say he’d been dethroned a year ago when Nancy’s squeal made him put his hands over his ears.        “Holy shit, I can’t believe you’re back!” she leapt out of Johnathan’s car without even waiting for him to properly stop.        “Better believe it, Nance!” Y/N muttered in the crook of her best friend’s neck. “Hawkins!” she suddenly hollered. “Your heart and soul is back!”        Billy had watched the interactions without even a word, just admiring the stranger with the shining Y/E/C eyes before Tommy and Carol broke the silence with a scoff.        “Can’t believe that bitch is back," she mumbled under her breath.        “What?” Billy whipped his head to the side and saw Tommy shake his head.        “After Barb went missing, she moved to New York. The Big Apple for fuck’s sake.” Seeing the blond’s raised eyebrow, he elaborated. “They were best friends. Guess it took a toll on her, and she couldn’t stay here anymore. The chick’s really an idiot if she’s back. Fuck, what wouldn’t I give to live in New York?”        Carol only sneered. Y/N had been one of the most popular girls in school, but she hadn’t been a bitch or stuck up, and every guy seeing her step out of the car in the mornings would instantly start to drool at the sight of her.        “Hey Y/L/N!” Carol yelled over the commotion of the arriving students and plastered on a fake smile, drawing Y/N’s attention to her group. When Billy saw her eyes scan over him, he felt an unfamiliar feeling settle in the pit of his stomach. He bristled a bit as she gave him a small smile before giving Carol the attention she craved. “Didn’t expect to see you here. Thought you’d forget our small town after moving to the East coast.”        But Y/N just shrugged leaning against Steve’s side. “Hawkins has it’s… charm.” She was not going to admit that the real reason her mom had moved them to New York was because of her anxiety and PTSD since the Demogorgon incident had been so bad she spent her nights jolting awake every five minutes. Thinking it was because of Barb’s disappearance her mother decided to take Y/N away from the place that stimulated those fears.        Now that she was done with therapy, they’d come back for senior year. Despite everything, Hawkins was her home.        Billy snorted at her response, and that only made her raise her eyebrow. “Hawkins’s a shithole.”        “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” Y/N winked in his direction, making a smirk appear on his face. Yeah. He liked her a lot already.        “You going to Tina’s bash tonight?” Carol butted in, popping the bubble she’d made with her gum.        “Depends, are you gonna be there?”        Carol scoffed. “Of course. Everyone who knows what fun is, will be there.”        “Then Imma pass,” Y/N gave her a sarcastic smile. “Don’t want my night ruined by a bitch in faux leather pants.”        Steve, Nancy and Johnathan all let out small laughs as she turned around, hooking her elbow through Steve’s and Nance’s arms making their way into the school, and leaving behind the new king with his lackeys.        But Billy had to just make her notice him fully. “Hey sweetheart!” he hollered, making Y/N turn around and smirk. “And if I said I was gonna be there to keep her away from you?”        “I dunno,” she yelled back at him. “Are you gonna save me a dance?”        “I’ll save the whole night for you!”        Y/N gave him a wide smile and skipped backwards, not giving him an answer. As the bell rang, he yelled again after her, but she just waved her hand above her head and disappeared into the crowd.        In the end, she had shown up at the party. With AC/DC’s TNT roaring through the house, Y/N had pulled Nancy and Steve along. Johnathan was back at his house, Will and the rest of the Party welcoming Alex back with their usual D&D match, but because Joyce had to take a late shift, he was stuck there babysitting.        “I’ll get us drinks,” Steve said over the loud noises and the counting as someone was doing a keg stand.        The two girls nodded, and Y/N started to sway to the rhythm of the music.        “He’s bad news, I’m telling you,” Nancy repeated for like the twentieth time that day.        “I’m not going to do anything, Nance, come on,” she whined and chuckled. “Yeah, he’s a hot piece of ass, but you mess with my friends, you mess with me. I was just trying not to be a complete bitch.”        “I mean that’s pretty impossible, but sure,” Carol’s sarcastic voice invaded their conversation, and Y/N had to give herself a mental pep talk to not clock the other girl in her teeth. Some things had changed in Hawkins, but that hadn’t.        Turning around she put a hand on her hip and tilted her head. “Takes one to know one.”        “Don’t be a dick, Carol,” Billy interrupted before she could sneer a response. “Besides, I think I saw Tommy sucking Vicky’s face so you might wanna check up on that.”        With a flick of her hair, she stomped away weaving between the already drunk and the about to be drunk people.        “I didn’t need you to save me,” Y/N remarked. “Let alone from Carol. She’s a pain in the ass, but she’s harmless.”        “Yes, well, I did promise to keep her away from you,” Billy turned his charm on from ten to one-hundred as usually by that point the girl was ready to slip to her knees, but not her.        “That’s before I found out that the biggest dick is not the one between your legs, but just you.”        “Come on, dollface,” he leaned against the doorway where she’d remained as Nancy had gone to look for Steve and what was taking him so long to get the drinks, “you told me to save you a dance,” Billy said through a sly smile, but his heart dropped to his stomach when she responded, arms crossed over her chest. Usually, when a girl did that, his eyes immediately would flit down to be greeted by a gorgeous sight, but Y/N’s face had none of the light-heartedness that he’d seen in the morning.        “And it turns out, you beat up one of my best friends, and a middle schooler last year. I don’t deal with shitbags like that.”        Billy’s jaw clenched as Y/N turned around and ventured into the kitchen having given up on her two friends to find their way back. They’d meet at some point.        “Yeah, well it was warranted.”        “Really?” she raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow downing a cup of Pure Fuel like it was nothing when even Billy scrunched up his face while drinking that piss. “So, what did Lucas, a thirteen-year-old did so bad that he deserved to be smashed against the wall by practically a grown up?”        He hated being called out like that, the fist at his side balling up in anger as Y/N just stared at him unwavering and steady.        “Thought so,” she muttered, grabbed another drink and ducked under his arm that had been placed by her head        For the first time in his life, he said, “How do I make it better?” as she turned to look at him where he remained in his spot.        “You start with an apology,” and then she was lost between the moving bodies. He’d searched for Y/N throughout the night but was unable to come upon the feisty new-girl-that-was-not-so-new, and somehow, he knew she wouldn’t show up unless things changed.        And though he hated change because nothing good had ever come out of it, he actually tried. The next day after basketball practice Billy had apologized, through gritted teeth and clenched fists, but he had asked Steve’s forgiveness, and that same evening he’d followed Max inside the arcade to see Lucas and say he was sorry.        Despite how he had started off the previous year as the Keg King and the newly crowned King of Hawkins, slowly Billy started to clean up his act. Sure, he never backed down from a fight once he was involved making sure the person knew not to mess with him, but he no longer instigated them, unless it was warranted, and the walls he had so meticulously built around his heart were broken down brick by brick by a girl with a wide smile and eyes that sparkled like the stars in the sky.        The following summer changed everything though. As he’d gotten a job at the local pool in order to gather a bit of money for when he’d skip town for California, an alien from another dimension had taken control of his body. It was right after their eight-month anniversary as he’d taken Y/N to see Terminator because of her incessant begging, his world had been turned upside down. Literally.        Billy was basically a prisoner in his own mind, made to watch how his hands had wrapped around Y/N’s throat at one point and squeezed so hard that she’d passed out. It was Eleven’s harsh slam of telekinetic power that sent him through the concrete wall of the boy’s locker room at the pool, that somewhat allowed him to understand what was happening.        But it was far from over. Only when the Mind Flayer had brought its monster to the mall, Eleven limply hanging over his shoulder as he placed her on the floor did his eyes snap to the back of the court and zeroed in on his girlfriend’s face. More so the blue-black bruises that adorned her neck like a brutal chain.        Fireworks exploded all around him, and he felt the Mind Flayer recoil in pain from the flashes. It was Y/N firing a shotgun to take its attention off of the incapacitated girl when Billy was able to fully break free from the grasp, it had on him.        Two tentacles latched onto his sides, but the pain would all be worth it if he could make it right. He’d been the one to screw everything up. He had to make it right.        One that was aimed dead centre on his heart came flying out of its mouth, but it never struck. It hovered in the air a bit, as Billy saw Eleven’s outstretched hand keeping it away, and then next motion was a leaping Y/N with an axe in her hand chopping away at the limbs before the Mind Flayer retreated and stumbled all around as it screeched loudly at the feeling of the Gate being closed.        The last thing Billy saw before the monster the Mind Flayer had created fell dead, was Y/N’s face with tears streaming down it, her gentle palms holding onto his cheeks, and he heard Max calling his name.        He woke up in absolute agony, his sides burning and screaming from where the thing had latched onto him. After having heard Billy’s whimpering, Y/N’s head shot up from where she’d fallen asleep and called for a nurse. As he was sedated once more, he had dozed off to the soft whispers of her voice telling him it would all be okay. He wasn’t alone. And she’d be right there. His father hadn’t even visited, but Y/N never left. Never would.        And she was right there. Sunglasses pushed up to her forehead and smirking at him, gentle palms having settled on the nasty scars that adorned his sides. Y/N still loved him despite that.        “Trust me,” he groaned coming back to the reality of California and out the memories that had been his senior year and summer in Hawkins. “I wanna do that so bad, and I know I don’t have to do much to have you writhing and panting my name,” Billy leaned down and bit her earlobe, hearing Y/N’s shaky exhale. “And I will when we’re home, don’t you worry… but first, we gotta catch the little monster!”        He flipped around and grabbed at the little girl that had stopped playing in the sand and had decided to sneak up on the pair.        “Daddy, no!” her loud squeals as Billy tickled her sides were echoed by the other kids also laughing somewhere down the beach.        “You think you can sneak up on us and not suffer the consequences?” he gently lifted the toddler in the air and blew raspberries on her stomach making her laugh harder than before.        “Mommy, save me!”        “Sorry, hunny,” Y/N replied placing her sunglasses back on her nose, “I can’t hear you!”        But the girl just laughed harder, and Billy’s smile widened. This was his life now. A kid, a wife, a beautiful apartment that overlooked the beach. He’d gotten his dream despite all the shit that had happened, despite the shit his dad had put him through, calling him worthless and a waste of breath, Billy had proved him wrong.        Well, Neil didn’t know that. The only person in Hawkins he still kept in contact with was Max, who was also the only person in his family that knew about his marriage and baby girl Clara. He wasn’t going to let Neil taint the one pure thing in his life.        “Mommy save me from the tickle monster!” her daughter screamed as she was running to jump in Y/N’s arms, Billy chasing the three-year-old. She was just about to let Clara leap in her lap when her little fingers dug in her own sides, grabbing at the skin and tickling her.        “You traitors!” Y/N laughed seizing her daughter and returning the favor.        That’s how their day went – giggling and relaxing by the beach, with Billy surfing the waves of the Pacific Ocean and helping Clara build sand castles from time to time. As the sun slowly dipped closer to the horizon, they gathered their stuff and placed everything in the Camaro that Billy still couldn’t let go of.        Their cat Thor greeted the trio as they finally arrived home, Y/N having been and still being a nerd in her own right.        “Kitty!” Clara squealed, and the cat dashed away from her grabby hands.        “Come on,” Y/N sighed placing the big beach bag on the floor and putting her daughter on her hip, “let’s go get a bath, otherwise you’ll make the house one big sand pit.”        The apartment was beautiful, and every day Billy marvelled as to how they’d gotten there. He had actually been a really good student despite his antics. His dad would have his ass if his grades dipped down below a B-.    When they arrived in San Diego, he was going to apply for a local auto shop to work as a mechanic, but Y/N had come into their beat-up studio apartment with a flyer that advertised an accountant’s position at the same agency she worked at.        “You’ve always been good with numbers,” she’d mumbled while handing him the flyer. “Why not try and get an interview? It wouldn’t hurt, would it?”        It truly amazed Billy as to how much faith Y/N had in him. She pushed the man to do things that were out of his comfort zone, but never in a violent way. If he said no, she’d back off, though remained encouraging. She was the reason he’d gotten into university in the first place, and she was the reason the two of them were in their final year of it, with him majoring business management and her photography and journalism.        “Okay,” he’d sighed. “I’ll call them up tomorrow.”        He actually had. Y/N had helped him button up his wide-open shirt and made sure he was as presentable as possible.        “Good luck,” she’d leaned over to his side and given him a kiss before bounding off to her own office leaving him to rehearse for the questions that could be asked.       It could’ve gone better but it also could’ve gone worse. A week later he’d had a job offer, and let’s just say, the next day Y/N went to her job with a noticeable limp which her co-workers teased her relentlessly about.        Slowly but steadily they climbed the ranks of the PR company, and a year later, they had enough money to put down a deposit for a beautiful double bedroom apartment that overlooked the Pacific, because by that point, for Billy it was no longer to provide for Y/N and give her the best possible, nor was it to spite Neil who was still doing the odd job in Hawkins. It was to give the bean growing inside of his girlfriend the utmost that he could.        And he had. Billy had made sure of it.    A week after Clara was born, despite his protests that Y/N should not get out of bed and should rest, they went to the courthouse and got married.        Max had been pissed off that she wasn’t invited to the wedding, and that he hadn’t informed her he was a father the second Y/N found out she was pregnant, but Billy had just taken the berating through the phone with a soft smile on his face as he watched his wife give his daughter breakfast.        “You’re not even listening to me are you, shitbag?” Max sighed rolling her eyes.        “Nope,” Billy replied, the smile never fading. “Not one bit.”        That smile hadn’t disappeared even now three years later. As he got ready to prepare them a homemade meal, because both of them had been quite lazy during their time off work, the phone rang.        “Hargrove’s,” he grunted and heard a ‘yeah, no shit,’ from the other side of the line.        “Hello to you too, Maxine.”        “Call me that again, and I’ll knock out your teeth. We’ll see if Y/N likes you when you’re missing some of those pearly whites.” As an almost eighteen-year-old the redhead had sure become even more spunky than he remembered.        Billy heard the water running indicating that Clara was having her bath. “Listen, I don’t have much time, the girls will be out soon, and I haven’t started dinner.”        “Aww,” Max cooed. “Look at what a doting husband you are.”        “Unless you want your skateboard showed down your throat, you’ll shut it, and tell me what’s happening.”        “My graduation’s happening, that’s what… and I was wondering if you and Y/N were coming.”        Of course, Billy remembered that Max was a senior now, but he hadn’t really intended on driving back to Hawkins. Ever. They’d talked about her flying out to California during the summer, but he’d been quite clear he wanted nothing to do with Neil, and unfortunately that meant missing Max’s big day.        “Look,” he heard her sigh, and the water turned off in the bathroom. “I know you didn’t leave things the best way here but… I miss you,” it sounded like it pained Max to say, and Billy smirked, “and I miss Y/N, and I’d really appreciate if you two came.”        He heard the little pitter patter of Clara’s feet as she rushed to the living room and leapt up to the sofa, her tiny body adorned by a Winnie the Pooh robe, and Y/N’s shirt was very much so splashed by soap water.        “Max?” she mouthed in his direction, and he nodded.        “I don’t know if we can afford much more time off or find Clara a nanny in such short notice.” There were only two and a half weeks left until the ceremony, and though it was only half true, they were actually real issues. He knew Y/N was definitely going back, her brother was graduating as well, so he had decided to stay with their daughter while she was there for a bit.        “Then bring her with,” Max whined. “You know I love that little gremlin.”        “Hey, watch your mouth, that’s my gremlin you’re talking about,” but where once there would be animosity in his tone, nothing but love could be heard now. Almost five years away from Neil did wonders. “Besides, I don’t want him anywhere near her, so if we’re going, Clara’s staying in San Diego. You’ll be able to see her when you get here.”       “Fine,” Max grumbled. “Just please call me sometime this week, if you’re coming.”        He sighed and looked over his shoulder where his girls were making them dinner because he’d been preoccupied with the call, Clara holding the jar of sauce. “I’ll talk to Y/N, and we’ll figure something out.”        “Okay,” she sighed in defeat. “Tell your wife and kid I love them. Bye.”        “Yeah, yeah, whatever, bye.”        The thought of seeing Neil or Susan made the rage that had been flushed out of his system years ago, come back with a vengeance, but it melted away the second Clara asked, “Who was that daddy?”        He turned back to face his family and shook his head with a smile, bringing the blonde girl to his lap as Y/N placed plates of spaghetti Bolognese in front of them. “Just Max.”        “Is she coming?” Clara gasped in excitement.        “A bit later in the summer, you know that.”        “But I want now!”        “Clara,” Y/N soothed the toddler that was about to throw a tantrum, but there was a warning edge for her to behave in her tone. “You know Max can’t right now. She’ll finish school, and then she’ll come for a visit.”        But their daughter crossed her tiny arms over her chest and turned away her head when Billy tried to put the food in her mouth. “I hate school. School stupid.”        “Clara! What did we talk about using those kinds of words?” Y/N scolded her.        She didn’t even respond, her Y/E/C eyes looking at the wall.        “Clara,” Billy said her name in a low tone. His temper was always in check around the two, he’d never let anything jeopardize the best thing in his life, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t strict when needed. “Answer your mom.”        “Only grown-ups can use them,” Clara mumbled and accepted the fork of spaghetti, her arms still crossed.        “And are you a grown-up?”        “No,” she grumbled again but it came out unintelligible because of her chewing.        Billy just chuckled as did Y/N. They cleaned their plates in silence, the only other sounds being the honks of cars down in the streets of San Diego before he pulled her out of the chair, and her small fingers wrapped themselves in his curly hair. He’d still kept it long saying it was too much trouble to go to a barber, but he had been considering cutting it, though, in moments like these, where one of his girls softly carded their fingers through the locks, he instantly decided not to.        “Come on, you little Terminator,” he huffed and plopped down on her bed. “Let’s get you to sleep.”        “Monsters?” Clara extended a finger and pointed at her closet. Billy was up and throwing the doors open, pushing her little dresses, shirts and pants aside. If only she knew how real monsters were.        “None.”        “Under the bed?’        Crouching down he looked at the carpeted floor and shook his head. “Nope, not one.”        “Okay,” she said through a sleepy yawn. A few more seconds later, Billy stood up pecked her forehead and whispered a ‘goodnight princess’, but she was already out like a light.        He found Y/N washing up the last of the dishes, and his face immediately fell to the crook of her neck as his arms wrapped around her waist bringing their bodies flush against one another.        “Max asked to come to her graduation?” her fingers were damp with dishwater as she wove them through his placing the last plate to dry on the rack.        “Mhm,” Billy mumbled. “And I wanna go. I actually do, it’s just… I can’t’ have him ruin the one good thing in my life. I can’t have that asshole taint this…”       He meant his new life. Neil hadn’t even met Y/N properly, just seen how she had climbed in Billy’s car one time, and once his son had come back from his date, regarded to her as just ‘one of his new sluts’, so there was no way Billy would let him anywhere near his wife.        “He won’t,” she had turned to face him now, running a cold thumb across his cheek. “Not if you let him. We’ll be there for Max and Alex and all of those other little shitheads. Not for Neil or anyone else.”        He knew Y/N was right, as always. Well, except that one time they’d run off to the beach, and she’d been so confident she could surf but then on the first try had plopped into the water as if she was a baby deer just learning how to walk.        “You know how he gets under my skin,” Billy let out a shaky sigh, gripping on Y/N’s hips a bit tighter to ground himself. “I hate the person I become when he’s around.”        “Not gonna lie, I don’t like that Billy either,” she mumbled in his shoulder. “But that’s why I’m gonna be there every step of the way, and I won’t let him hurt you.”        Billy let out a sad snort. “I should be the one saying that to you.”        “Yes, well, I kinda get pissed off when someone I love is either upset or being hurt. Demogorgon, shit friends, a shittier father… things don’t end well for them.”        “I love you, you know that right?” he muttered pulling back and looking into Y/N’s eyes. Clara’s eyes.        “Yeah, I do, you absolute softie,” her lips were like clouds, gentle and fluttery as they skimmed over his. “I love you too.”        “Do you think we could get Jess to watch Clara on such short notice?” Billy referred to the high schooler they always hired if they wanted to have a date night or had a company thing.        “I’m sure she won’t mind.”        “Fuck,” Billy groaned letting his forehead rest against Y/N’s. “And here I thought I could leave Hawkins behind.”       He felt her shoulders lift as she shrugged. “It has a disgusting way of pulling people back. But I think that one time it did, somehow things turned out better in the end. Maybe it won't be bad this time around either.” Her smile was faint, but it was there as she remembered meeting the boy who’d become her life.       “Can’t deny that.”        But as Billy connected his lips to Y/N’s his hands hoisting her legs around his hips and carried them to their bedroom, something in Hawkins was stirring awake. Something evil and craving to destroy.

Tags (crossed out wouldn’t take): @lumelgy @palaiasaurus64 @supernaturalbaesduh @breezy1415 @crazy--me @thatawkwardlittlefangirl @sea040561 @staryeyedgirl @deathbyarabbit @s-c-a-r-e-d-po-t-t-e-r @reblogger-not-a-blogger @m-a-t-91 @dalilx @i-need-a-hero-i-need-a-loki @maladaptive-ninja-returns @averyrogers83 @in-the-end-im-still-trash @gallifreyansass @dewy-biitch @avxgers @unlikelygalaxygiver @sweet-ladyy @magicwithaknife @ollyoxenfrees @bnhvrdy @tvwhoresblog @celebsimagines @thatkindofgurl @sj-thefan

A/N: My first Billy fic :) I just wanted to write this cause I think there was so much they could do with that character and to be quite honest I’m a bit upset about him being axed off :D But I do gotta say - Stranger Things has more balls than Game of Throne. don’t come for me please :D

This might be a 2 parter 3 parter or even a mini-series, but we’ll see how things go. If you wanna be tagged, drop a message :)

Also, I wanna say sorry to those who saw spoilers on my blog. It was not my intention, and I completely forgot to tag the reblogs that contained them. Again, didn’t want to ruin that for you, but it was an honest mistake done at 3am. 

P.S. what did ya think?

P.S.S. if you wanna be added to the taglist or removed, please drop a message :)

[miss-choco-chips]

Put a ring on it

I’m not sure what this is, everyone. Had it on my docs for a while, got bored during work and thought ‘what if I just post this?’, and here we are. Basically the Core Four being loving and caring (and spiteful).

Shout out to @animemangasoul who pumped me up about this and @the-quiet-carrotcake and @iphoenixrising for letting me cry to them the Titans loving Tim.

Can be read as either ship or friendship

------.------

When shit went down, Wally and Roy made sure they were nowhere near the planet. A nice little interplanetary fuckery called for anyone free, and both of them had magically clean schedules, so off they went, praying to every god they knew about (and, with how many holy disasters they had faced between them, there were a lot) to be back after the worst of the mess had blown over.

Even if it meant missing the undoubtedly hilarious face Batman would make when he found out. Not even the chance of witnessing that was worth staying and waiting with bated breath until someone pointed out that, in the end, it was both their faults.

-So let me get this straight.

-Difficult for me, but go on.

Wally rolled his eyes, chucking a pillow at his little dude, wondering how Nightwing could do this with not one, not two, but three badly adjusted little brothers (and that without counting the girls, though, to be honest, they already had Babs). Truly, a hero of the ages. Arsenal just cackled from his place in front of the coffee table, where he was keeping them company and cleaning his equipment.

-I’m serious. I’ve never seen you this mad without a bad guy to blame for it.

-Well…

-As furious as you are at them, Bart, they are still the good guys.

-Debatable.

Wally threw another pillow, and Bart, arms crossed and all but vibrating on the couch, didn’t even bother on dodging. Just moved his particles quick enough that the thing went straight through him. 

Arsenal raised an eyebrow at them- It’s scary when you do that. Like a freaking ghost.

-It’s scary that Tim’s whole family can be this level of neglectful, but you don’t see me bitching at them.

-Only because you know they’ll give you your ass back to you in a silver platter after they are done whooping it -interjected the older speedster, snack bag on his lap, a few more by the ground at his feet, sitting as close to Bart as the whole ‘don’t touch, I bite’ aura he had around him would allow.

-Kinky.

This time, Wally’s pillow was aimed at the archer. Roy just dodged without looking, still cross legged on the other side of the little table facing the couch.

-Real talk now, it’s not like they are jerks on purpose. We all know the Bats are on a whole new level of ‘always busy’, it’s to be expected they wouldn’t have time for social niceties.

Wally winced, scooting a little further away from Bart when he looked up to glare at Roy. That wasn’t a nice look. That was a ‘I can take you to someplace no one would hear you scream in less than ten seconds’ look.

-My seventeen year old best friend managed to finish high school after having to take a year off to go look for his missing mentor, going through several different mourning processes and dodging a frankly creepy cradle robber of a ninja terrorist, all while kicking ass and taking names, taking care of a huge as hell company, and keeping up the intel guy work for the rest of his shitty family. And he still graduated early. The least they could do after the fuckery he was put through by their collective stupidity would be go as moral support, but no. No, other things are more important than such a big milestone on his life. Fuckers.

Wound down after the rant, Bart dropped back on the couch, shrinking in place, oozing contempt from every pore.

Roy raised his eyes to share a look with Wally. Even if the bro code meant they were contractually obligated to defend their respective best friends, there was undeniable truth to Bart’s statement. Jason had gone on killing sprees for far less than Tim’s situation, and God knows Dick would have showed a big  middle finger at his mentor and go off world with the Titans as a protest at the slightest fight. All in all, Red Robin was taking it like a champ.

-Jason’s busy with the Torinelli drug cartel thingie -tried Roy nonetheless, loyal as one could be. 

Wally nodded- And Dick had already promised Damian to go on a camping-training trip that weekend...

-Great. So criminals that aren’t going anywhere and the ‘favorite’ demon child are more important than my best friend’s graduation, which isn’t even a long thing, just a couple hours and a few photos. Awesome. Do you happen to know Batman’s excuse? I mean, I’m sure is equally as shitty as his sons’ excuses, but, you know. Variety and stuff.

Wally sighed, because yeah, point. Were it Bart’s graduation, nothing short of the end of the world would have kept him from going, but, again, he only had one little dude to worry about. Dick’s house was full.

-You’ll be there -tried Roy, dropping his arrow back on the table and resting his crossed arms next to it, leaning forward to look straight at Bart-, you and the rest of the brats, right? Supes and Diana’s babies. You guys may not be related like that, but that’s not necessary for you to be family.

Like the Teen Titans were, went unsaid- the older heroes exchanged a glance, reminiscent of their days fighting side by side under Dick’s unwavering leadership. No matter where they were now, that’s where they both came from.

-Yeah -accepted Bart, but the frown hadn’t left his face-. It’s just. His parents are dead, his ‘foster’ bat-family are dicks. He has us, yeah, but… I wished he could have his family there, you know. Like, if I could adopt him, I would, just so he can have that.

Wally dropped the empty snack bag onto the ground and took a new one, tipping it in Bart’s direction as a peace offering- I mean, it’s still a month away, maybe one of them would clear his schedule and go? Probably not all of them, but anything’s better than nothing, right?

Bart harrumphed, hunching even lower in the couch, pout still present.

-If anything else fails -joked Roy, going back to cleaning his stuff-, I hear Kara’s single right now, and Tim’s an emancipated minor. Get them to marry each other, and then your Super friend is technically his brother- or something like that. Political families still counts.

Bart went still for a second, and if Wally were less invested in his snack and more on the thoughtful expression on his face, he might have known ahead of time that his next words were a bad, bad idea.

-And if she’s not on board, you could always ask someone else on your team. Team as family and all that shit, Tim would literally be marrying into the fam. Want some chips?

But Bart was already gone.

-Huh? -blinked Roy- Where'd he run to?

-...

-...You don't think he…

-What? No. No, of course not, they aren't so dumb...

For a horrible second, Roy and Wally crossed eyes again, both remembering the stupid shit they got up to when they were seventeen, and replayed the conversation. Their jokes, that anyone with half a brain would take as that, as silliness. Then came the thought that being stupid was almost a requirement for being a Titan. 

With the kind of synchronicity one could only have after fighting side by side for years, they both jumped to their feet at the same time.

-I’ll hit Kori up, maybe she has some alien fuckery to deal with and we can tag along.

-Imma call Supes and let him know we’ll be off planet for a while. Shit, Dick’s gonna flip. He was the big B for a while, he knows stuff. Painful stuff.

-Dude, he at least doesn’t kill. Jay has guns, and it’s his favorite brother we’re talking about.

A shiver went through them when Batman’s reaction came to mind.

-If Kori’s not dealing with something, I’ll ask her to start shit up somewhere far, far away to give us an excuse to leave either way. She’s a goddess like that, she’ll help.

-Good thinking. I’ll start packing.

---.----

The secret meeting was held at one of Tim’s safe houses, because it had enough lead on the walls there was no risk of Superman overhearing them. Not that the owner of the place was aware of it; no one was, besides Cassie, Kon and Bart themselves. Keeping it hush hush was vital for the success of the mission.

-All on board then?

Kon’s smile could light up a town- Hell yeah dude. I’ll take care of getting Tim time off from work. Tam knows me and I’m fairly sure she doesn’t hate me as strongly as she does the bats. Fair warning though, she might ask to come with.

-She’s cool, so I’m in. We’re gonna need a witness anyway.

Cassie nodded, fierce smirk and challenge in her eyes- This is gonna piss so many people. Hey, do you think if we let Oracle in the know she’ll give us footage of the bats' faces when they find out?

Bart bit his lip- As crash as that would be, I don’t think it’s worth the risk.

Cassie deflated, but then shrugged it off- We’ll ask Tim, then. He’s as good as her with hacking, I’m sure he’ll figure something out.

-If he doesn’t kill us first, you mean.

-Don’t be a coward, Kon. I thought you were in.

-I’m not saying I’m backing down, just that we should put our business in order in case he snaps and murders us in cold blood. I know he has it in him, if pushed the right ways.

She nodded, because point. The almost feral look on her face wasn’t gone, though- Worth it. I'll be in charge of clothes. You reckon there's any chance I can get a dress on him?

-Sure, if you want him to actually break his no kill rule. 

-Fine, but he's wearing white anyway. It goes well with his skin tone.

Bart extended his first for her to bump- Now you're talking. I'll be the extraction man and take him to the place.

Kon crossed his arms, looking conflicted for the first time- We can't go the classic way about it, because a fake name would mean he won't take seriously what we're trying to do, and if we use his real one in a formal document, it'll hit the news before the ink has a chance to dry. And then he'll kill us for sure.

-You're awfully worried about him drawing blood, Blue. What gives?

-He's scared shitless of Cassie and you're too adorable to hurt, but me? I'm the one he's gonna focus his rage on, and you know how he gets when at his limit.

Cassie snorts- He can't live without you, you dork. I think we are all safe. And anyways, the plan is to make him too drunk to walk on a straight line, he wouldn't be able to hurt us.

-You say that -interjected Bart, getting up from where he was crouching above their carefully spread, color coded sheets of plans; Tim would be so proud- but I've seen the dude drop kick someone with a broken leg once. He can fuck shit up no matter the situation.

-True… still, we are doing it, right?

-Oh yeah, for sure, I just wanted everyone aware that it might be our last big bang.

-Then we better make sure it's one hell of an explosion, am I right?

-Hell yeah.

-This is gonna be so crash!

----.----

The entire thing had gone something like this.

On friday, Tam made Tim turn around and head back home the second he showed his face at the office, claiming the bags under his eyes clashed terribly with her new Prada handbag and she’d rather had it than him around. In Foxspeak, it meant ‘go the fuck to sleep or so help me God’. Tim would have fought back just on principle, but Tam had him at a standstill, because the spleen thing could very easily reach Alfred’s ears if he crosses her, and no one (him) wants that. As if to make sure he would obey, she demanded they share the car that would take her to the airport (did she have some meeting out of Gotham? He couldn’t remember) and dropped him at his Perch on her way there.

He wasn’t actually planning on sleep, maybe work some of his cases from home, start patrol early, possibly tracking Jason down to offer his help for the drug cartel thing. Confused by the unexpected way his morning had gone so far, he was woefully underprepared for a flash of red and yellow to whisk him from his living room the second he put his carrier bag on the ground. 

It was only years from using his team as glorified uber drives what kept him from nerve striking Bart on reflex. Knowing whatever he asked would be lost to the background sound of super fast travelling, he merely slumped over the thin shoulder he was thrown over and waited till they reached their destination.

Which… he wasn’t expecting Vegas.

The next few hours were a blur of his team explaining they had planned this gateaway as an early graduation party,  hugs and a few grateful tears on his part, and booze. So much booze. He was trained by Batman, he had a bigger than average resistance to… well, everything, and still, he got so, so wasted. 

Saturday’s hungover was cured with more booze. They hit casino after casino, danced over tables, payed a bar owner to close for the night and let them work their way through his entire supply, went to some neon party at someone’s exceedingly large hotel suite (the guy wasn’t getting his deposit back), his cellphone was thrown on a fountain after Cassie got sick of it going off again and again with Dick’s predetermined ringtone, drank some more, were kicked out of yet another casino... 

At some point Tam appeared (a very drunk Tim had hugged her and spun her around so fast her stilettos went flying and almost blinded someone), and they all went back to the hotel, where  Kon basically manhandled him into a white suit. More booze when Tim started asking questions, followed by a  two hour long stay at some park were Cassie, Bart and Kon took turns holding his hand, and then each others’, with Tam saying something about bonds, and family, and sickness, and health in the background, Kon muttering something in kryptonian and making Tim repeat it, Cassie dropping to one knee and sprouting some Amazonian speech, Bart jumping on his back after his own speech (futuristic laws and all) was done, then more booze, partying and….

Well, everything was a blur, before and after that.

They woke up saturday morning with the worst headache, in a undignified puppy pile back at their suit, minus Tam who apparently had her own room. Kon’s TTK took care of the blinds and Tim blinked awake at the sound (Robin instincts), looked at his sleeping friends and then went back to sleep, head pillowed by Bart’s butt, with Cassie’s knee denting his ribs and Kon’s arm thrown over his neck, completely disregarding the three rings hanging from his shiny new necklace.

That was a problem for sober Tim to solve. 

---.----

Monday morning, Tim went back to the office, Tam by his side, acting like everything was perfectly fine. 

Dick called after lunch asking about his whereabouts that past weekend, claiming he was missed during patrol, but backed down when informed he was actually relaxing with his friends. Bruce didn’t ask, probably had tracked him down the second he couldn’t find him and let him be after realizing he was at Las Vegas.

Everyone that saw them walking down WE’s hallways would have swore a trail of classic music followed them, graceful and elegant.

In Tim’s mind, however, the background sound was the kill bill sirens and blaring red lights.

Tam felt like a queen, coming back after conquering treacherous lands.

Tim felt like Jason may have been onto something when he died.

----.----

When the Big Day (capital letters included) arrived, and Tim got into the stage to accept his diploma (Honor Student, of course), his eyes automatically went to the loud, rowdy teenagers, sitting as close to the front as possible, cheering and smiling.

He was far enough that it could’ve been a trick of the light, but he thought he could see all three of them going misty-eyed. His own eyes watered when he shook the headmaster's hand and posed with his diploma for the cameras (Wayne Heir Graduating would be trending on every magazine by dinnertime), his friends never stopping yelling his name.

When the time came to throw the little hats, he catched by the corner of his eye how Bart held both Cassie’s and Kon’s hands, keeping them from flying in their emotion. If one paid close attention, their feet actually were floating juuust above the ground. They were just so genuinely excited for him, it was… it was amazing.

After as little smalltalk as possible with his classmates, he sneaked away into some hidden spot, away from prying cameras, and waited. Sure enough, his best friends were there barely ten seconds later, and using that same speed, they swept him off his feet. Bart was the first, latching to his front, Kon a close second jumping on his back and hugging his head. Cassie, ever the showoff, threw her hands around the three of them and spun them around as if they weighted nothing to her. That was probably the case.

-You did it, you did it, you did it!!!! Oh my god, this is so crash!!!

-Not that we had any doubt, with that big brain of yours. Making a girl so proud.

-Speak for yourself. Personally, I feared the worst. This is Gotham, after all.

-But nothing happened! And you GRADUATED!

Tim let out a laugh, allowing himself to just feel joy. Letting them see him like that, as payment for being the most awesome friends (family) in existence, he returned the hug, squeezing back as strongly as his non meta arms could.

Then, a voice behind them that he absolutely didn't expect- Congratulations, Master Timothy.

Without letting any of them go, Cassie turned around, so they could all see Alfred Pennyworth, in his Sunday’s best, looking proud and warm, his eyes glazed over with nostalgia when they landed on his young charge. One of the young men he had the honor to watch grow into the amazing person he was today.

Even more surprising, he held a tablet on his arms, screen facing them, with a familiar figure there, white streak and leather but no firearms, probably cautious of possible civilians around.

-Hey, baby bird. Sorry ‘couldn’t be ther’ p’rsonally. Hope ya don’t mind me an’ Alfie crashing like this.

-A-Alfred? Jason? What… I thought you were in Russia!!

The man on the screen scratched the back of his head, visibly uncomfortable but determined.

-Am, actually. But it’s yer big day, babybird. Wouldn’t missit for the world.

Tim’s already watery eyes just overflowed.

-----.----

It took a month for shit to hit the fan. Tim was honestly impressed, because things rarely went his way, and getting more than a few hours to mentally prepare for Disaster? Unheard of. What a shocker.

When it did went down, it was in large part because he was milking the ‘no metas in Gotham’ rule that kept his team at bay and allowed him to go days without sleeping. Kon would say it was karmatic retribution for ignoring their orders to relax and take it easy. He would protest, but really, how to deny the truth; if not for his sleep deprivation, his secret would have gone a lot longer without being unveiled.

 Between hacking into Lexcorp, running the dna samples he took during patrol half an hour ago on the database and finishing his report of the night, he was out of fucks to give. Damian bitching on his ear was the last drop.

-...And your mere presence here is an insult to Grayson's legacy. He founded it, Todd died for it, what did you even contribute to it?

A slow blink. Tim was aware his brain to mouth filter was as good as gone, but tired as he was, he just didn't care.

-Besides providing the brains on this whole fucking operation? Pants, I guess. Common sense. Ninja skills commended by your own grandfather, the king of ninjas. Virtue, too, since Dick is a verified hoe and Jason slept with your/

-C'mon Timmy -cut in Dick, Nightwing suit halfway down his chest, when Damian's face was turning an alarming shade of blue- aren't you a little old to be fighting a kid?

-Who are you calling kid?!

Typical, big bro to the rescue. Tim was too tired to be disappointed that once again Dick was siding with an eleven year old bully that kept harassing Tim. Never mind that he had been minding his business before Damian came to bark at him.

-Boys -chided Bruce and, huh, Tim had said that out loud. Whatever, not like it wasn't true. Fuck them.

-Fuck you -he told… Bruce? Dick? Definitely Damian, too- all.

-Tim! -gasped Dick. Still half naked. Standing right by Damian's side. 

That kid was going to have a very uncomfortable sexual awakening any day now.

-SHUT UP, DRAKE! YOU ARE DISGUSTING!

Wow he really needed to stop talking out loud.

-Tim -And now Bruce was walking towards them, frown firmly in place- you are obviously too tired, if you can't control what comes out of your mouth. Go to sleep.

Tim hissed at him. Dick looked too shocked to answer but Bruce, somewhat used to that reaction of the sleep deprived teen, loomed even more.

-I'm an emancipated adult. I control your company. I live on my own. You're not the boss of me. 

Now even Damian was looking at him open mouthed. Whatever. The computer pinged with his results, just as his phone did with his  'The hubbies and waifus' group chat.

-What's gotten into you, kiddo? -now Dick was worried, throwing an arm around his shoulders. Still half naked, that was an important detail.

Tim shrugged him away.

-Fucking demon spawn coming from nowhere to fuck with me just for the hell of it puts me in a bad mood, I'm weird like that -he deadpaned, replying to the group chat one handed- And the rest of this fucked up team siding with him just because he's a bad word away from a violent psychotic break doesn't help. Fuck off and let me do my shit, and I'll be out of your hair before you know it.

And then, with a sneer, ignoring both Bruce's and Dick's flabbergasted expressions, Damian said what would be Tim's down fall.

-Go to hell, Drake.

A ping made Tim look down at his phone and he replied without thinking, one hand tapping away at the screen- Wait, let me ask my wife.

A beat of silence. One sneer, one grunt, one surprised gasp.

Bruce made a half step towards him- Tim, what/?

A ping.

-She says no. Hang on, let me get you a second opinion, just to be safe.

-Timmy, what do you mean/?

Another one.

-Husband number one says no, too. Husband number two hasn't replied, probably asleep or traveling somewhere, but two already win by majority. It seems it's a ‘no’ on going to hell for me. Bummer, it would have been funny seeing your homeland, brat.

-...

-...

-...

-Aaaaand that’s my cue to interrupt -announced a new voice above them all. Kon, phone at hand, looked down with half amused, half guarded expression-. Someone hasn’t held their end of the deal and slept eight hours, huh, bud?

Tim, ignoring his family that hadn’t yet recovered from the bomb, shrugged- I slept eight hours. This past week. You never said they had to be consecutive hours.

The super just sighed and landed long enough to haul a too tired to resist bird in his arms- I can see you aren’t getting any sleep in Gotham. Let’s go back to the Tower, Cassie wants us to see The Princess Bride with her again.

-Don’t lie to me, you liar.

-Bart wan/

-Look at my face and tell me the truth.

-Okay, I want to see The Princess Bride again -he conceded, taking flight towards the closest exit, sleepy bird cocooned in his arms and TTK- Later, bats!

-...

-...

Finally, Dick snapped back to reality, although the background noise in his head was one would expect in suspense movies right before the assassin jumped a unsuspecting protagonist- ...did he say ‘husbands’? As in, married?

-...

-AS IN MORE THAN ONE?

----.----

[trvelyans-archive]

okay well i’ve been thinking about wayhaven celandine all day so here’s a fact dump (under the cut because it’s Long):

religiously does her nails - she used to bite them down to the nub when she was a kid and had a tendency to pick at her hangnails until she was bleeding, so the only thing that stops her from doing that when she’s worried/stressed is by wearing nail polish/acrylics

online shops Way more than she should and spends too too too much money on her clothes. she wants to feel sexy and badass All The Time and intimidate people by feeling sexy and badass. lots of very very simple and understated tops but with sharp angles/silhouettes 

on the other hand, has a very minimalist house - she doesn’t have very many decorations or anything.... personal, really ? she has some fake plants to Liven the place up so it doesn’t look like an ikea set but besides that not much - pretty standard furniture, coasters, etc

was in the debate club in high school and fucking Rocked it. was 100% the top debater and the only time she ever really partied in high school was debate trips. she also played lady m*cbeth in 12th grade and like. was really good at acting ? briefly considered a career in it but wanted to do something more “respectable” (i say as a theatre major slkfjsdl)

she kept to herself in high school a lot besides that, and didn’t really get along with her teachers bc if they messed something up or said something dumb she Would Debate Them, yes she Is that type of person, yes it Does come from childhood trauma of her mother not being around and therefore celandine not respecting authority very much,

met bobby bc he was assistant stage manager for the show where she played lady m*cbeth lol !!! tbh she didn’t really care too much about bobby - sure, they dated for 3 years but she never really loved him, and it was never too serious of a relationship, they just went on dates and had sex a lot but didn’t really take it seriously or fully commit to each other

then, when he steals her essay or whatever it is and she finds out, she dumps his ass and doesn’t regret it for a second, mainly bc she feels embarrassed and angry that he got the better of her and somehow did that ? like stole her whole ass paper ? but also he’s crusty so she doesn’t really care besides that !!! she starts going on dates again right away so it doesn’t really matter, in fact bobby probably got the worst deal

keeps her dad’s wedding ring on her bedside table in a little ashtray. sometimes, when she’s INCREDIBLY sad or feels really lonely, she likes to hold it in her hand and talk to him. she doesn’t remember her dad, like, at all, but the only thing she ever wanted was for him to be alive so she wasn’t so lonely and didn’t grow up relying on only herself for so long

she’s really polite when someone needs her to be nice to them- she always thought that, if her dad helped protect people and took care of them, that she should when given the opportunity to make him proud. besides that, though, she isn’t at all friendly and can easily hint to someone that they should gtfo when she wants to be left alone - she just doesn’t really care about anyone else’s opinion of her really, she grew up so independent that herself is the only person she’s felt like she can rely on. tends to act polite anyway, if a little stiffly, because a lot of the time there’s no need to bitch someone out, but when she needs to... oh boy does she deliver

she likes tina and verda well enough, and tina is just generally hard to hate, even for someone like celandine. they’re pretty close and have had a couple of girls nights with wine and like. face masks and nail polish painting, but don’t do it very often because celandine doesn’t really want to do it very often slkfjslsdfk. having fun with people and getting close to people makes her second-guess every conversation she’s had with anyone ever and every person she’s pushed away so. it’s not good to dwell on it

she’s babysat for verda a couple of times and is actually decent with kids and is pretty good at Pranking them into eating their veggies and telling them exciting bedtime stories with voices and everything. she doesn’t do it anymore for a few reasons tho, mainly just that she doesn’t have the time

she is terrified of commitment because she just doesn’t have a lot of grace when it comes to relationships and feels like she is inevitably going to say something wrong or mean (not that she would, because like i said, when someone needs her to Not be mean, she isn’t mean) or she’s going to die/get busy and leave them feeling like she’s felt her entirely life and she’s had a very sad and lonely life so she wouldn’t wish that on anyone

that being said, once her and adam get together at Some point during the series, she just has. the absolute WORST baby fever. now that she is committed and has a future with someone - guaranteed bc no matter what happens her and adam will always stay together - she can not only be a better mom than rebecca ever was, but also she just wants to be the best mom in the world. she would be ! her kid would be so stylish and also would feel so loved and respected and cherished and she would kick the ass of any bully or teacher who tried to fuck with them !!! and she would be so good at bedtime stories and playing with her kid !!!

okay, so, now that the Fun facts are out of the way, onto her very obvious flaws: mean, likes to feel better than anyone, terrible spender (like terrible, i’m serious when i say she spends probably 40% of her work paycheck on clothes), absolutely so stubborn, gets really mad and belligerent when she’s proven wrong or loses at board games, no sense of artistry and is good at no artistic things besides acting lol LKSDJFLDS, stans Shakespeare and reads his books for fun, finds looking thru ikea catalogues and furniture catalogues relaxing, showers every day, has a 1 hour bedtime routine, and, on the other end of that, she cannot be roused out of bed if she doesn’t want to be !!! 

but she has good qualities too !!! she’s not Evil, she’s just mean, so she does have a good heart and DOESN’T like when people are cruel and hurt other people on purpose (something she very rarely does unless someone is rlly pissing her off), will do work for you if you need her to (her love languages are words of affirmation and acts of service), and if you’re close friends and once she’s let down her guard a bit throughout the series, she WILL be really fun at parties bc she is very witty, she is very supportive of you and yet will be honest if you need her to be, and she really will be super loyal to you for a long time - she’s scared of commitment but, when faced with the need to commit, she will do it !!!

also she’s a master couponer so if you’re her friend FUCK buying things full price, she’ll find you the best goddamn deal in the world !!!

her and adam’s date night ideas are: 1 - sparring together ! 2 - playing board games together that ends with the winner giving the loser consolation smooches until they feel like a winner too :) 3 - reading shakespeare together :) 4 - going on walks !!! 5 - doing work together and distracting the other with an occasional smoomch or a Loving Declaration before handing them the pen they asked for !!! 6 - drinking red wine and celandine asking adam for Juicy Historical Gossip ;3 7- sleeping !!! celandine isn’t grumpy if she wakes up to hot man smooches

okay that’s all i got thanks for reading okay bye

[axwalker]

The Trade 7

Synopsis:  Liam is running for Cordonia’s presidency. To assure his victory, Constantine makes an arraignment behind his back for him to marry the rich ambassador’s daughter: Alexis O’Brien. Due to her father’s threats, she has no other option that seduce Liam and make him fall in love with her. But what does she really feel? (AU)

Pairings: LiamxMC DrakexMC

Warnings: I love drama and chaos so this will probably get a bit dark. In this chapter there is mention of rape, if you get triggered by this issue, don’t hesitate to send me a message and I’ll be glad to explain what happens without reading it.

Please note that this is my first series and English is not my first language. I really love ALL kinds of feedback.  Don’t hesitate to comment!

Disclaimer: Some of the dialogues and settings as well as most of the characters belong to Pixelberry (except for Alexis O’Brien and her evil father George O’Brien). I also used a line from Grey’s Anatomy that really made me think about Drake.

To catch up: Masterlist

Thanks to @of-course-i-went-to-hartfeld​ for being my incredible beta reader and always being there to answer my questions and her support,  to  @burnsoslow​ for helping with the first part of this episode, it was very difficult to write. and to  @mskaneko​  for the beautiful edit of Drake and Alexis in the mood-board  (I can’t stop looking at it) ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

I'm only tagging those who asked if you want to be tagged, I will be happy to add you to the list

@mskaneko​ @of-course-i-went-to-hartfeld​ @fromthedeskofpaisleybleakmore​ @burnsoslow​ @pug-bitch​ @pedudley​ @msjr0119​ @lauzales​ @yukinagato2012​ @kingliam2019​ @texaskitten30​ @desiree-0816​

The debutant’s ball was all Sienna O’Brien could think about. She adored her granddaughter and was absolutely proud to present her to her high society friends. Alexis was a smart, poised and beautiful young woman; Sienna couldn’t understand why her son had been adamant to send her to that French boarding school. The old woman admired how the sunny fifteen-year-old girl managed to make everyone around her happy. It was a miracle considering her father’s coldness and her mother’s inattention. Sienna knew that deep down, Elena loved her daughter but after years of living with George, she had become a ghost of herself, always drunk or heavily medicated. It all broke her heart, so when George took some interest in Alexis’ date to the ball, the old woman felt almost happy thinking that her son might love his daughter after all. They had finally agreed that she was going to be escorted by Bradford Davenport III, the son of a wealthy and renowned businessman. Alexis couldn’t believe her luck, Brad was extremely handsome and, even if she didn’t go to his school, she knew he was the most popular boy there; that all the girls at the cotillion wanted to be escorted by him. According to her grandmother, he was a true gentleman; the heir of a very good family. Even her father was pleased with the choice. The young girl had learned a long time ago not to seek his approval, but she was thrilled to get it when she could. As the date of the ball approached, Alexis was so excited about it that she had tried her white gown a hundred times and rehearsed more different hairstyles that she would ever admit. She felt like a princess.

Finally, the day had arrived. It had started as a dream. Brad was certainly good-looking and could dance perfectly, spinning her all over the dancefloor while he made her laugh. He took care of her, making sure she always had something to drink and he didn’t leave her side for a second. The adults left the ball early so he promised her father that he would drive her before 1 o’clock. Alexis was feeling too drunk, so she asked him to take her home at midnight. They hopped in the backseat of the car, so she could recover a little before getting back. Brad gave her a soft kiss that made Alexis feel like she was floating. Emboldened by her response he kissed her again, harder this time. Then he went further and grabbed her by her waist knowing that she was almost out of it after all the alcohol he had given her. Brad was convinced that she desired it as much as he did. After a few seconds of kissing her she started to resist him, she didn’t want this, her first time had to be special, not in the backseat of a car. Alexis could smell the alcohol in his breath, feel his sweat, and his hands everywhere. She tried to fight against him, but she wasn’t a match for him. He didn’t want to listen to her cries or see her tears. He ripped her dress and after he took what he wanted, he drove her home."

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Alexis had woken up happy and excited. The moment she had spent with Drake gazing the stars had been incredible. He was all she had imagined, behind that brooding and strong façade hid a sensitive man and she couldn’t deny any longer the indescribable power he had over her. She shivered remembering his touch when he held her hand and the warmth emanating from his body when he had hugged her after she had almost fallen.

It had been the first time in her life that she had felt completely safe.

Suddenly, she thought about Liam, and a pang of overwhelming guilt replaced the excitement. Alexis knew what a good man he was, but now she was sure she would never love him back. Maybe Liam’s interest in her was simple infatuation, but she didn’t want to make him suffer. The seed of a solution started to grow in her mind, it was a long shot but maybe if she asked him for help, he would do it. She would have to arrange a meeting and make him understand that it was in his own son’s best interest.

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Constantine decided to wait for George’s daughter in the breakfast room.

“Good Morning, Alexis.” He smiled politely pointing to the seat across the table so she’d sit. “How can I help you?”

“I need to ask you for something” She didn’t have the energy to be polite anymore. “It’s not for me, it’s for your own son, but maybe this is not the best place to talk.” She paused looking around her

“Don’t worry, the staff won’t bother us. I ordered them to leave us alone when you called.”

“I wanted to talk about Liam, about what you and my father are trying to make me do to him.” She sighed trying to compose herself. “Please Constantine, think about your son. He’s an amazing man, he deserves a woman who loves him. I’m not, or never will be, that woman.” She stopped talking to gauge his reaction. “I know you made a deal with my father but I’m sure you can continue without me. If you tell him you don’t need me, he will let me go-”

He interrupted her smirking “Oh, but I do need you, Alexis. First, because as you can see the press is already starting to associate the two of you as a couple.” He showed her the paper he was reading with pictures of her and Liam at the Masquerade ball and paparazzi’s photos of their date at the Mexican restaurant. “That was brilliant by the way, taking him to such a poor place, they’re presenting him as the people’s candidate.” She rolled her eyes as he continued, “but I’m digressing. I also need you as a guarantee that your father will complete his part of the bargain.”

She couldn’t help but snicker at him. “If you are thinking to use me as leverage, you’re sorely mistaken, Constantine. You can be sure, that if my father thinks is in his best interest to throw me under a bus, he would be driving that bus himself. Having me does not give you any advantage.”

“I’m not going to discuss this any further with you. If you’re having doubts about my son because is too soon just give it time” He stood behind Alexis putting his hands on her bare shoulders. She shuddered at the contact. “However, if it’s because there’s someone else, that could be dangerous for everyone involved. I hope you fully understand me.”

She realized how stupid she had been to believe Constantine would help her. “Yes, I do. Perfectly.” After that, she left the room, leaving the ex-president alone. He picked up the phone and called his associate number.

“George, we have a problem. I need you to control your daughter”

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Since he had met Alexis O’Brien, Liam had been feeling like a 15-year-old teenager again. He couldn’t stop thinking about her day and night, and he was really excited to start working with her on the campaign. He had read all the articles she had wrote and they had fascinated him even more.

With his heart threatening to go out of his chest, he heard the soft knock on the door and opened it.

“Hi Alexis, please, come on in.”

“Thanks, Liam.” She sat in the chair across from him. “Are you ready for me to pick your brain?”

He smiled gently “Of course. What do you need?”

She ran her hand through her hair “Well, I’d like to know more about your motivations as a candidate, about what drives you. A good speech has to reflect your personality above everything else. If it feels fake, you’ll lose the public’s trust immediately.”

“Yes, of course. Let’s see, when we met, I told you that it wasn’t until I became senator that I truly understood the value of politics” She nodded “For the campaign, I had to visit all these neighborhoods that I didn’t even know existed before. I had the chance to see real people facing problems that were completely alien to me” He sighed “There was this school we visited. There were 45 children in a class with only one teacher, and the conditions weren’t the best either: no computers, the state of the desks and chairs were deplorable, the teachers seemed completely overwhelmed by the whole situation. They were teaching, but they didn’t believe they could actually help these kids anymore” He paused again thinking “Here I was, this privileged man thinking he was living in a great country, one that gave everyone the same opportunities to go far in life, but actually ignoring everything about the people he wanted to rule. That day was the day I knew I wanted to make a change. Starting with the reform of the education’s program of Cordonia”

Alexis looked at him impressed. His passion was contagious, he had a real desire to make things better, to help others, and to improve his country. He would be an outstanding president.

“Let’s start with the anecdote and then we will move forward to explaining your education reform.” She smiled.

After a few hours exchanging ideas, they had finally written a speech draft they were equally satisfied with. They were both tired, but Liam didn’t want their time together to end so fast.

“How about we take a break before the ball?” He stood up and walk around the desk to sit on it, in front of Alexis’ chair.

Remembering the earlier conversation with Constantine, she answered trying to seem joyful “Sure! What do you have in mind?”

“There’s this amazing terrace in my room, maybe we can have a few drinks there, the view is incredible.”

Alexis' eyebrows almost touched her scalp. “Your room?”

“Hey, I’m a gentleman” He winked. “If you want me to be one of course.”

She let out a hearty laugh that almost made his heart stop. “Aren’t you smooth?” She sighed amused “Let’s go have that drink.”

Liam smiled relieved “Just give me five minutes, I have to make a call.”

Fifteen minutes later, they entered the room to access the terrace. It was magnificent. The beautiful panoramic was breathtaking, they could see the huge snowy Lythiko’s mountains, the shimmering lake that surrounded Olivia’s property, the hundreds of pines that seemed to have been planted in the snow, the wooden cabins all around the place. It felt like a Christmas fairytale. And the terrace was incredible too. Awfully sunny even in the wintery day, spacious, and luxuriously decorated. It had an outdoor couch full of beautiful cushions, and the small table in front of it was set with a rose’s bouquet, some candles, and a bucket containing a freezing bottle of champagne.

Alexis was in awe at the view. “Wow, Li. It is amazing”

“Beautiful, isn’t it? Now you see why I wanted to share it with someone.” He stood close to her, brushing her hand with his thumb

“And all of this?” She pointed at the table “You were with me the whole time”

“I have my ways,” he said grinning “and I wanted this to be magical for us”

They sat on the couch.

“You didn’t tell me if you liked it” He was looking softly at her

“Liam…” Touched by the gesture, she wasn’t sure how to answer “It’s very nice. I love red roses”

“I have to be honest with you Alexis. I’ve never really had someone I wanted so badly to please. I feel like I would do anything to make you smile and know that I am the cause”

Another pang of guilt in Alexis’ chest almost made her jump “Liam…”

He blushed “Ahem, anyway, what if we open this bottle of champagne”

After uncorking it and pouring two glasses, they toasted.

“To a great life” He clinked her glass without taking his eyes off her.

“To a great life” She repeated smiling and drank “This is so good Liam; I love it”

“There are few things better in life than a good bottle of champagne shared in good company” He took one of Alexis’ hands and kissed her palm “Alexis, I feel like I’ve been waiting for this moment the entire trip”

She smiled at him, unsure of how to behave, torn between her task of making him love her and her reluctance to hurt him.

Liam put his drink at the table and turned to watch her “You make me want so many things, things I never wanted before. I want to be careful with you, I’d hate to hurt you in any way”

“Don’t worry about me, Liam. I will be fine. I know what I’m getting myself into. Besides, you’re the model of a good person” Even if she was certain that her heart wasn’t hers to give anymore, she sincerely liked him and knew that if she hadn’t met Drake before, she would have fallen for Liam.

He caressed her cheek “If I’m not, I hope I will be, for you. You inspire me to be a better man”

He leaned to kiss her when the room’s phone rang.

“Well, if that’s not bad timing” He smiled taking her chin between his fingers “I do not know what is. “Wait here, love”

She waited a while but when it became evident that the call was going to last more than a few minutes, Alexis went into the room and waved her hand to say good-bye. They would see each other at the ball.

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Kiara left her lover’s room as quietly as she could. Even if she was perfectly aware that Rashad couldn’t care less who she was sleeping with, and if It had been months since the last time he had touched her, she couldn’t, and wouldn’t, face the scandal. She had too much to lose.

Rashad was also very careful when he left the room at the end of the hall that afternoon, if Kiara or her family knew who he had been sleeping with, he will lose everything.

They almost crashed into each other in the hall.

“Darling, what are you doing here?” And with last night’s clothes.

Kiara looked angrily at him “I… I don’t want to lie anymore Rashad. If you’re so interested in my life you should come to my bed more often. If you can’t do that, we’ll continue our relationship because that’s what’s best for us, but we will lead separate lives. I’ll go prepare for the ball, we have to arrive together. See you at 7 at my door”

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Olivia was more than content with the result of Max’s and Penelope’s work. With a bit of luck, they would be able to attract the most prominent men in Lythikos and make them contribute to Liam’s campaign. She sighed when she saw Drake arriving without a bow tie.

“God Walker! Couldn’t you make a fucking effort and dress properly for this?” She rolled her eyes, giving him his accustomed glass of whiskey “If he wins, you’re going to be the new Chief of staff”

Drake chuckled “Ha! If Liam chose me for my fashion sense, he’s gonna be in a lot of trouble”

“I think it will always be a mystery for all of us why he chose you,” she answered teasingly. “By the way, as you can’t behave like an adult around that toad Neville, and Kiara bores you to death, I seated you with Hana Lee and the new ‘speechwriter’” She almost spits the last word

“I can tell you really like her, Livvie” He smirked at her and then added more seriously “Be careful with her though” he looked pointedly at her “she’s…not bad”

Her eyes narrowed to slits “Why are you protecting her? And what have I told you about calling me that?” She arched her brows “Do you want everyone to know your nickname? Little marsh-“

“Shut up, Olivia. I’ll go find my seat” He watched her knowingly and pointed his index at her “And you better behave”

Drake was nervous to see Alexis again but with Hana acting as an unknowing buffer, the diner had gone smoothly. After it, the girls had stood up to dance, so he moved to his favorite spot at the bar and watched the dancefloor, his eyes irremediably going to her. He wasn’t disappointed at the sight; she was dancing like a goddess in Maxwell’s arms. Iit made his heart swell to see her smiling and laughing freely. Sometimes he got the feeling that there was something haunting her; some dark secret that prevented her from being truly happy.

He saw his best friend take a stool next to him, then look around the dance floor until he found her too. The goofy smile on his face while he watched her move let no doubt about Liam’s feelings. The waiter gave Liam a glass of scotch that he downed in one gulp.

“I’m falling hard for that woman,” he told Drake, nodding in Alexis' direction.

Drake’s heart literally stopped at Liam’s words, in almost 23 years of friendship, it was the first time Drake wanted the same thing that Liam did.

He sighed before answering “I know”

“Do you think she feels the same?” Liam smiled sheepishly

Drake knew that any other woman in Cordonia would have fallen instantly in love with the rich and promising candidate but he wasn’t so sure about O’Brien.  In all the moments they had shared together, even the one where she had rejected him, he had felt something strong brewing between them, something he couldn’t quite define.

He exhaled. “I have no idea, Liam. I think she’s very closed-off.” Then remembering that morning’s newspaper, he added unhappily, “but she seemed to be having fun with you in those pictures.”

“Yes, my father had us followed. I was very angry at first but as he pointed out, it all turned out well.”

Drake growled. “What do you mean it turned out well? They followed you, took pictures of you… of her, of a private moment. Doesn’t it drive you crazy that your father is trying to use Alexis like that? Like she’s a pretty object that he can use for your advantage?” Drake knew he had sounded angrier than he had intended.

Liam stared at his best friend coolly. “I don’t understand why are you angry Drake; you know perfectly how a campaign works. You know I was trying to find someone to help me boost my image. I would’ve thought you were happy that I found someone that I actually like,” he paused, “that I’m starting to love.”

Drake knew Liam was right, his biggest fear since he had entered the campaign had been to live trapped in a loveless marriage, it looked like he was going to be able to avoid it, and as his best friend, he should be happy about it.

Before answering, Drake allowed himself to look at her one last time “I apologize Li. I’m actually happy for you.��� Trying to hide the pain he was inexplicably feeling he stood up patting his friend in the back, “you deserve the best and she seems… incredible.”

“Thanks, Drake, I know you only want what’s best for me.” Liam was grinning again

“Of course, Liam.” Drake felt a sudden urge to breathe fresh air. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Without waiting for Liam’s answer, Drake left the ballroom.  

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Alexis was dancing with Maxwell again, but despite the fact that he was trying to be as joking and chatty as usual she could see that something was tormenting him. It killed Alexis how hard he was trying to hide his misery, so she finally grabbed him by his hand, stole a bottle of champagne from the bar, and took him out of the ballroom into the library.

“Ok Max, you’re gonna tell me exactly what is going on,” She said passing him the bottle after drinking from it.

“What do you mean Lexie? I’m fine, just a little tired. I’m sorry if I’m not a lot of fun tonight, though.”

“Maxwell! You’re under no obligation to be fun and sparkly all the time. And you certainly don’t need to apologize for having a night off. I only brought you here because I thought that you might want to talk to someone.”

Max sighed sadly “Remember when I told you yesterday that I was sort of in a relationship?”

She nodded

“Well... I’m not anymore”

“Aw Max I’m so sorry,” she said hugging him “I remember how happy you were. Are you sure it is final?”

“Actually, is not. I can even bet that he will be calling me tonight to patch things over but,” He took a large sip of champagne, “I don’t think I can take it anymore.”

“What do you mean Max?”

“People see me like this immature boy, but the truth is that I’m proud of myself. I came out when I was sixteen, and I’ve never looked back, but now here I am 12 years later struggling in a relationship with a man that can’t accept himself” he sounded almost angry “I love him but I just can’t do this any longer”

“If you love him and he loves you back, and I can’t imagine him not to” she smiled at him “Maybe you should give him some time. Not all of us are as comfortable with ourselves as you are, Max. If he comes from a more traditional family than yours, then he needs love and support to take that step. I know it’s not fair. How long have you been together?”

“Uh, almost a year” He drank again.

She put her arms around him “Maybe you can give him a deadline, like six more months, a little time to think. If he doesn’t do it, then you’ll probably have to move on; But at least you’ll know that you did everything that you could”

Max nodded pensively “Yes, I’ll talk to him tonight. Thank you, blossom, you’re the best” He hugged her, then offered her his arm “Want to be my lady for the rest of the evening?”

“Go on without me and find him. I’ll take a tour through Lythikos mansion, it seems fascinating”

“Ok, but don’t get lost” He shuddered a little scared “The Nevrakis love secret passages”

She winked at him “Don’t worry. I will”

She started walking, lost in her thoughts until she saw a light at the end of the corridor. She approached it to discover a spiraling staircase. Without thinking it twice, she climbed it down and found a cellar at the end of it. Her heart missed a beat when she saw Drake sitting there, looking at an empty glass.

He looked up when she entered, his heart missing a beat as well. “First the snow and now here, I’m starting to think that you’re stalking me, O’Brien”

“You wish Walker.” She arched her brow smirking “Drinking alone?”

“I needed to get out of that ballroom for a second”

“Yeah, I know the feeling. Can I sit?” She asked, smiling.

-God that smile is going to be the death of me- He moved to let her seat next to him on the floor, immediately drunk with her scent.

“What are you having?”

“Nothing yet. Olivia has a very extensive collection of fine Cordonian wines, nothing here is under a thousand dollars”

“You want to drink Olivia’s wine?” She added playfully “I thought you were more of a whiskey guy, Drake.”

They both looked at each other thinking about the night they had met, an electric tension starting to grow.

Drake broke the stare clearing his throat “Ahem, I brought this bottle of Dalwhinnie, here, taste it” he poured her a glass.

She licked her lips before taking the glass to her mouth savoring the sour smell of the beverage. It took all of Drake’s willpower not to throw the glass away and kiss those full lips until she couldn’t breathe anymore.

“So?” He asked arching a brow, trying to hide his thoughts.

“Delicious.” She gazed at him thoroughly “Care to tell me why did you want to get out? “

There was no way in hell that Drake was going to tell her the real reason “I wanted to be alone in a place where I don’t have to bow and kiss ass for five minutes. It’s fucking exhausting trying to get all those rich bastards to donate to Liam’s campaign.”

“Please Drake, tell me what you really think,” She said playfully.

He snickered and the wrinkles around his eyes made him look so handsome when he smiled that she couldn’t stop herself from carefully putting her hand in his arm, savoring the electricity that immediately passed between them. “Seriously though, if you hate politics so much, why do you stick around?”

He looked at her cautiously, her opinion mattered to him much more than anyone else’s “It must seem ridiculous to you.”

She stared at him. “No, it’s not ridiculous, Drake. I’m just trying to understand why a brilliant man as yourself is wasting his life doing something he so clearly hates.”

“It’s for Liam, it has always been for him. I would’ve left a long time ago, but Liam needs me. Growing with Constantine was especially hard for me and Olivia. My sister was so obedient that he never had to complain about her, and Leo and Liam were his sons. But the old man was very hard on them too. Eventually, Li, Liv and I became very close and we swore we would always protect each other”

Alexis looked at him with piercing eyes, biting her bottom lip, clearly wanting to say something.

He stared at her amused. “I know you’re dying to say something O’Briens. Spill it”

“Well, it seems to me that you and Olivia do all the protecting” When she saw he was about to protest, she added “Don’t get me wrong, Li is a very good and caring man. It’s just that I have the feeling that you were raised to move around him like he was the sun. And now, you’re stuck in that role. But you’re an extraordinary man, handsome, brilliant and funny. He’s not the sun Drake. You are” She blushed to realize she had said much more than she had intended.

Her words melted all of Drake’s resolutions to keep her at arm’s length, he reached her face with his thumb stroking first her cheek, then her nose and mouth, his heart threatening to go out of his chest as he looked her bright eyes and that smile he had learned to adore.

He approached her gently, pulling her to him with his left arm. Suddenly Drake felt her hands around his neck; he heard her breathing accelerate and he smelled her cherry fragrance. He stopped to inhale it and savor every single second. His eyes fixed the mouth that was driving him slowly crazy and kissed a corner of it, making Alexis softly moan, he smiled to himself and kissed the other corner, producing another tender moan. Finally, he couldn’t take it any longer and crashed his mouth with hers, trying to convey everything with a single kiss. He kissed her with all the passion, the desperation, and the pain he was feeling, he kissed her knowing that it would be the last time. After a while, the need for air made them break the kiss, and the spell was broken.

“I’m sorry Drake.” She struggled to breathe normally again. “I don’t know what we were thinking, we can’t do this anymore. “I- I should go.”

He stood up first, giving her his hand to pull her up.

“I know Lexie,” he said softly. “I know we can’t. I just needed one more time” He caressed her face with the back of his hand “Come on, we have to go back to the ball, everyone must be looking for you.”

“You go first, my father is waiting for me at the office Olivia lend him.”

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George knew that her daughter’s secret was the only means he had to control her. He had lost all of her respect after that debutant’s ball ten years ago and the truth was, he didn’t care. His daughter only existed to remind him about the worst mistake of his life. As he poured brandy into his old associate’s son glass, he congratulated himself. Calling him had been the right move. After seeing him, Alexis wouldn’t have any other choice, but to do what she was told. 

At 9 pm sharp, his daughter knocked on the door. Alexis entered the office where his father was talking to another man turning his back at her.

“Good evening, Alexis. I called you because there is an old friend of yours visiting Cordonia, and I thought you would enjoy reminiscing; he’ll be staying here with us.”

The man turned and Alexis couldn’t believe her eyes. Even if she was aware that her father didn’t have any limits and that he would do anything to assure her cooperation, she didn’t want to believe he would go that far.

However, there was no denying it. Bradford Davenport, her abuser,  was standing in front of her, his obnoxious hand reaching hers. She jerked away stupefied. The hatred was consuming her entirely. She looked at one then the other contemptuously.

“I will never, hear me, well father. Never sleep under the same roof that this excuse of a human being”

“Always so dramatic. Bradford is an associate and a friend; I couldn’t care less of your little teenage romance”  

Maybe it was the fact that her father has referred to the second most horrible experience of her life as a “teenage romance” but Alexis was so filled with rage that the next thing she knew she was slapping Brad.

His father was furious. “Alexis, apologize, now!”

She turned around slamming the door after her and ran to the garden.

When she was sure that they couldn’t see her any longer, she fell into the grass and the tears started to come. All the old feelings resurfaced: the shame of the next day, the acute pain, nausea, the deep sadness that would become depression, the sensation of being dirty all the time. In a few minutes, the tears had muted into gut-wrenching sobs, until suddenly she felt his presence standing a few inches of her.

“O’Brien?” in two steps he was on his knees next to her caressing her hair  “God! What’s going on?”

As she continued to cry Drake took her in his arms and rocked her. “Oh, Lexie, baby, please tell me what happened”

Suddenly she knew there was only one thing that would make her feel safe again.

“Please, Drake, take me far away from all of this. I just can’t take it. I know I can’t”

Drake looked at the damaged woman before him and his heart broke. He stood up determined.

“Come on, I know where we can go”