#and yeah today i finished 4 chapters of questions so i guess i can be happy with that

[toppersjeep]

[Chapter 3]- I’ll Take Him(Charles Leclerc X Carlos Sainz X Reader)

Chapter 1 || Chapter 2 || Masterlist || tags @cmleitora @gracielukey @janeholt3 @landologg

Chapter 4

(poorly translated french my apologies in advance still learning french!! - a/n)

Your POV

“So obviously we will start with the simple things then go from there” Charles said. “Sounds good to me char” I said he smiled. After hours of learning french well trying to learn it we decided to make good. Well I made food.

“Can I ask you something” I said. “What’s on your mind” Charles said. “Shouldn’t you be with your new girlfriend” I said. “Ah.. I was waiting for that question” Charles said. “Why sensitive topic” I said cooking the pasta. “It’s not that” Charles said. “So it’s complicated” I said. “Very” Charles said. “I see well pasta is done” I said.

“Looks good” Charles said I handed him a bowl. “I mean I know I cooked it” I said. “I only burnt it once” Charles said grabbing some pasta. “Still I don’t trust you in my kitchen” I said he laughed. “Alright I get it” Charles said sitting down. I sat beside him. I then heard the door open.

It was Carlos.

“What’s this” Carlos said. “Oh Charles was just offering to teach me french” I said. “Really cause it looks like a date or something” Carlos said. “It’s not I literally was teaching her French” Charles said. “Then we got hungry” I said. “Mmmh” Carlos said.

“You know you were supposed to come for breakfast and you didn’t so” I said. “So Charles just comes when he pleases” Carlos said. “He’s my best friend you’ve known that” I said. “Maybe I should go” Charles said. “No you aren’t leaving” I said. “No he should” Carlos said.

“Yeah” Charles said getting up. “You have a girlfriend anyways don’t be taking her” Carlos said. “Whatever mate enjoy the pasta” Charles said handing Carlos his bowl. “Sorry char” I said. “It’s fine he’s fine” Carlos said. “Y/N” Charles said. “What” I said. “Il te trompe” Charles said.

(Il te trompe - he’s cheating on you) (Vous êtes sûr - you are sure) (Je ne te mentirais pas- I wouldn’t lie to you)

“What did you just say” Carlos said. “Looks like someone should pick up on there French” Charles said. I just looked at Charles in disbelief. “Vous êtes sûr” I said. “Je ne te mentirais pas” Charles said softly. “I’m sorry what’s happening” Carlos said.

“Get out” I said. “Excuse me” Carlos said. “Get out of my apartment” I yelled. “Y/N what’s your problem” Carlos said. “Get out now” I said standing up. “What did he say” Carlos said. “Get your shit and leave” I said handing him his jacket.

“What the hell is your problem” Carlos said. “Talk to her like that again and I’ll become your problem” Charles said standing in between us. “Whatever” Carlos said leaving slamming the door shut. “Y/N” Charles said.

“How’d you know” I said. “I … saw him with some girl today” Charles said. “So..” I said teary eyed. “I’m sorry” Charles said. “What an idiot” I said throwing the vase of flowers. “Hey” Charles said as I went to pick up the broken vase. “I’m so stupid” I said. He grabbed my hand. “Stop” Charles said. “I” I said crying he hugged me.

“I’m here” Charles said rubbing my back. “I just” I said. “I know” Charles said. “Who was the girl” I said softly. “The girl I was talking to” Charles said. “Guess we both got played” I said. “Apparently” Charles said. “I should pick that up” I said looking at the vase. “No no I will go eat dinner please” Charles said.

“Okay” I said he helped me up off the floor. “I thought you hated daisy’s” Charles said. “I do” I said. “How does he not know what kinda flowers you love” Charles said sweeping up the glass. “He just doesn’t pay attention” I said.

“Because he’s never deserved you” Charles said. “Maybe” I said. He finished sweeping then came back over to eat with me. “This is actually very good” Charles said. “I’ll teach you to repay you for the french lessons” I said. “I’d be happy to learn” he said with a smile.

“Just don’t burn down my apartment” I said. “Then we go to mine” Charles said. “Fine but you are buying the stuff” I said. “Sounds fair” Charles said. “Actually I’ll go with you because you have no idea” I said he laughed. “Okay” he said.

The next day…

We were at the track again. I was in my office when flowers came in. This time it was a single rose.

“I don’t know someone told me to give you this ” a mechanic said. “Oh” I said taking it. He then left the room.

I read the card attached , “it’s roses anyone with ears knows this - CL”. I smiled to myself and set it on my desk.

“Can we talk” Carlos said in the doorway. “No” I said. “What’s your problem” Carlos said. “Cheaters like you” I said walking out of the room. “How’d you” he began to say. “You should be ashamed of yourself rather than asking how I know” I said looking at him.

“I’m really sorry” Carlos said. “Don’t talk to me anymore unless it’s work related” I said walking away. He grabbed my hand and pulled me back to him. “So what are you saying” Carlos said. “It’s over” I said walking away.

He just stood there as I did. He didn’t even try to fight for me or apologize further. He just stood there silently. I turned back to look at him and he walked in the other direction.

I then went to sit beside Charles.

“How’d that go” Charles said looking at me. “Fine” I said. Carlos then walked into the room grabbing a coffee. “Did it though” Charles asked. “He just didn’t even try to fight for me” I said. Charles looked at Carlos. “That’s his own problem don’t let him get to you” Charles said putting a hand on my back.

Carlos just looked over at both of us pissed off. He then walked over to our table. He sat across from us and didn’t say anything.

“What do you want” Charles said. “What do I want hmm” Carlos said. “You’ve got some nerve” I said. “Me what do you like go from teammate to teammate” Carlos said. “What are you talking about” I said. “This” he said holding up the rose. “It’s just a rose” I said. “Is it Charles” Carlos said looking at him.

“Yes” Charles said. “Sure it is” he said throwing it at Charles. “You need to walk away” Charles said. “Or what” Carlos said. “Don’t ever come near her again” Charles said. “And what will you do” Carlos said with a smirk.

“Why don’t I just tell everyone about how you cheated and ruin your perfect image” I said. Carlos looked at me. “You wouldn’t” Carlos said. “Oh I will so walk away” I said. “You two deserve each other” Carlos said walking away.

“Well” Charles said picking up the rose. “It’s alright” I said. “It was never just a flower” Charles said getting up. “What” I said. “You heard me” he said with a smile. “Oh” I said. “Umm I should get prepared for the race” Charles said. “Yeah you’re right” I said.

As the race went on I couldn’t help but think of Charles and the rose. What did he mean by it’s not just a flower. Then there was Carlos why did he do the things he did.

Charles placed P2. Carlos was a dnf because of engine issues. And Carlos was upset. We all celebrated Charles podium. After he got down he hugged everyone.

“Thank you for making the car perfect” Charles said hugging me. “Thank the mechanics too” I said. “I did but you had a big part in it” Charles said still hugging me. “You’re welcome” I said. “You are a big part of this team” Charles said I smiled. “I’m so proud of you” I whispered in his ear.

“I appreciate you more than you’ll ever know” he whispered. “I hope you know how special you are to me” he added. “Congrats” Carlos said. I stopped hugging Charles. “Thanks” Charles said. “So what was wrong with my car” Carlos said. “Engine problems” I said. “Sure” he said.

“What are you implying” I said. “Crazy how after we fight my car suddenly doesn’t work” Carlos said. “Funny you assume I’d do something when I only work on Charles car” I said. “Wouldn’t be hard for you to do though” he said. “Believe me when I say I’d rather punch you than mess up your car” I said Charles laughed.

“Come on let’s go celebrate this win” Charles said.

[pocksprincess]

Chapter 4 - Don't Clean Your Windows

Series masterlist

Obito Uchiha x f!reader

Modern AU, obi still has scars, pining, reader embarasses herself (it's kinda cringe tbh but this whole story is in a romcom kinda way soooo), reader has daddy issues but she's pretty well adjusted, reader does not find neji hot soz, unhinged group chat between co-workers

Word count - 1419

Beta baddie - @dabilove27 ty my sweet love <33

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The rest of your week flies by uneventfully. You only see Obito in passing, when you leave the house in the morning and return home in the evening, but he actually returns your little waves of greeting now. The small gesture fills you with far too much warmth.

Your second week on the job was a little more relaxed. You know how the practice runs now and after meeting Neji, your final introductions are complete. But the best part is that you've become fast friends with both TenTen and Sakura, even creating a group chat that you all take turns filling with nonsense. 

Today is Sakura's day. You are gathering up your many supplies to finish cleaning the upstairs rooms when your phone chimes from your pocket. You catch a message from the ‘girlies’ group chat as you pull it out, balancing your bucket of cloths and spray bottles on your thigh, as you unlock your screen:

Sakura-chan🌸: so do we think daddy yams is cute? 

You snort in disbelief and put down your supplies in favour of seeing where this particular question ends up leading to. 

You: Sakura, please stop calling him daddy. One of these days you'll let it slip at work, ya big creep

Sakura-chan🌸: not a chance. yeah, but he's cute. in that tired dad way?

You laugh under your breath (she's relentless) and plop down on the stairs to get comfy, too lazy to walk to the living room, and knowing full well that if you sit down on the sofa you won't get up again until dinner.

🖤TenTen🖤: Total dilf! Or I guess an honorary dilf

You: Lmao

🖤TenTen🖤: Got that “i'll provide for you” vibe going on

🖤TenTen🖤: What about Neji though? 

Sakura-chan🌸: see! daddy's provide, tenten agrees! i still think sensei is hotter though

You: NOT NEJI

🖤TenTen🖤: Sakura nooo, Guy practically raised me 🤢

Mrs Hyuuga👰💍: neji is gorgeous!! 😍 

You: lmao sakura did you really just change your name

🖤TenTen🖤: You can't deny Neji is 🔥 just because he told you off the other day

Mrs Hyuuga👰💍: what!! bet he's lonely, i can keep him company <33

You: Ew no, Neji is the dad I never had. And not in the hot ‘daddy issues’ way…before you even chime in Sakura 🚫🙅‍♀️

🖤TenTen🖤: looool sakura is down bad for neji

🖤TenTen🖤: thought you were in love w that friend of naruto's, the emo guy

Mrs Hyuuga👰💍: he pissed me off so i’m looking at other options 

You: Yeah, cuz that will last long…

🖤TenTen🖤: LOOOL the truth has been spoken 

Mrs Hyuuga👰💍: it's not my fault my type happens to be the ones who don't care if i exist 

You stifle a snort into your hand. Sakura is insatiable and TenTen only encourages her degenerate ass. Not that you are any better, honestly-gawking shamelessly at your shirtless neighbour most mornings.

Mrs Hyuuga👰💍: our newest member has avoided commenting on the hotness of our bosses 👿

🖤TenTen🖤: that's becuz she's too smitten with her sexy neighbour 👅🍆💦

You groan audibly, it's like TenTen sensed what you were just thinking about, and now your stupid heart is racing more than it should at just the mention of him. You never should have told TenTen about Obito, she is the world's worst tease.

Mrs Hyuuga👰💍: sexy neighbour got you whipped! NEED PICS 📸🔥

You: omg I hate you both 

You: PICS OF WHAT?!

🖤TenTen🖤: 🍆 pics

You: I'VE SPOKEN TO HIM ONCE 

Mrs Sexy Neighbour💋: just take a pic of him when he isn't looking, you said he runs shirtless, right? 😈

🖤TenTen🖤: Yeah and you bought him wine!! Such a come on, can't believe you didn't get his #

You: SAKURA NO

🖤TenTen🖤: that's called stalking 

🖤TenTen🖤: get help @/Mrs Sexy Neighbour

🖤TenTen🖤: horny jail 4 you

You: y'all are WILD

Mrs Sexy Neighbour💋: how can we believe you about his hotness if we don't have evidence?? gimme his name, i'll find his socials 

You: And that's my cue to leave! 🏃‍♀️

Clicking the off button, you shove your phone back into your pocket just as a barrage of pings assaults your ears. You pick up your bucket, face flaming with embarrassment, and shake your head as you make your way upstairs-those girls need a time out and housework doesn't do itself.

After doing a deep clean of the bathroom and vacuuming the carpets, you are now tackling the grimy windows in the spare room-preparing the space for your mother's visit next month. And it just so happens that from your vantage point you have a direct line of sight into Obito's backyard.

You can see him squatting in the dirt with a trowel in hand (and fully clothed this time, much to your disappointment) as he tends to his garden. You had a sneaky look at the beautiful blooms and array of vegetables and fruits from your bedroom window not long after you moved in. After meeting the mountain of a man himself it surprises you he has such a green thumb.

Although, when you think about it further, it oddly suits him. You definitely picked up on a vulnerable and sensitive side to him during your chat. It shocks you that such a blatantly attractive man could be so bashful and reserved. You initially assumed his brusque and uninterested demeanour was that of an overly confident and self-assured individual. What's the saying your mother used to always tell you? Something about the more beautiful the man, the more arrogant he is.

But how wrong you were. You suppose a man that heavily scarred has his fair share of insecurities (not that he needs to, in your opinion). He is not what you expected at all and it only piques your curiosity. 

You can't help but watch him tend to his plants in his comically small gardening apron. He clearly enjoys the hobby, otherwise why would he be out there in the mid-afternoon heat working so diligently. A few seconds more and you begin to feel like a creeper, watching him without his knowledge, so you forcefully avert your gaze to the task at hand.

You need to clean the outside of the glass, something you've been avoiding doing for fear of your clumsy ass falling out of the window. But no one else is going to do it, so with a hefty sigh you roll up your sleeves and twist the handle. And…the jamb is stuck from misuse. 

Leaning over the windowsill, you place your hands against the glass and throw all your weight behind the push you give it. The window flies open with a loud crack as it comes unstuck, followed by a thump as its extensions reach their limit. You shoot forwards with the momentum, half hanging out the window as you desperately grip onto the handle for dear life.

You barely manage to stifle the surprised screech that rises in your throat, and with a horrific realisation, you chance a glance into Obito's garden. And of course he is watching you, face a picture of shock and concern. 

You grimace at the unlikeliness of the situation playing out around you and offer an awkward smile to your concerned neighbour-letting him know that you are unharmed, but most certainly an idiot. He raises a hand at you tentatively, a funny look crossing his face, and you don't know whether to laugh at the expression or slap yourself in the forehead for embarrassing yourself in front of him. This is definitely going to colour his impression of you.

With some effort, you manage to hoist yourself back into the room and on solid flooring. You poke your head back out the window, safely this time, and hold out the old t-shirt you are using as a rag (as if that explains everything) before rubbing it against the window pane in demonstration. 

"Just…cleaning my windows!" You holler, voice carrying across the space between you. 

"Oh. Okay!" He shouts back, confused at your admission, and you just about die on the spot. You offer another wave before ducking your head back inside and covering your flaming cheeks with your hands.

You couldn't make this shit up even if it was a cheesy romcom movie. You abandon your task and jog downstairs to your kitchen in shame where you hastily prepare yourself a glass of iced tea. Time for a break, you think.

You pull out your phone and open up the chat:

You: guys, you will never believe what just happened 🙃

[cecilysass]

Shine On (4/16)

Read on AO3 | Tagging @today-in-fic

Chapter 4: The Art of Profiling

Farrs Corner, Virginia February 20, 2015

The pizza that Fox Mulder ordered isn’t from a pizza place Jackson has ever heard of, like Domino’s or Pizza Hut, but it’s really good anyway. Or at least it tastes good to someone who hasn’t eaten all day. Jackson eats the first piece really quickly, then he grabs for a second without thinking, forgetting his manners. When he realizes what he’s done, he hesitates.

“Go for it,” the older man says, his eyes darting sharply back and forth between the pizza and Jackson’s face. “Eat as much as you want.”

Fox Mulder has been acting much more intense ever since Jackson told him about the red-headed lady.

Jackson’s tired, and he has only barely skimmed the surface of the man’s difficult mind, but he can tell that the guy’s stunned by the news. Fox Mulder’s mind is channeling down a dozen different paths right now: fast, mazelike thoughts, like bobsleds going down tracks. A current of sharp worry running through like a winter chill.

It’s honestly exhausting to try to figure out. Jackson closes off the shine for now, takes another big bite of pizza. This sausage is a little spicy, which is exactly how he likes it.

“I have a lot of questions for you,” Fox Mulder says, his voice low. “I don’t want to overwhelm you. But I … gotta ask some of them.”

Jackson nods reluctantly, his mouth full. He doesn’t feel like answering questions at all. Still, he supposes the more he gets out of the way, the better.

“You said you have visions,” the man says, setting his own piece of pizza down. “Do you have other … abilities?”

Jackson studies him cautiously as he finishes chewing his bite of pizza. He’s not in the habit of discussing what he can do. It’s only really ever been trouble when he has, so he’s almost instinctively secretive about it. But things are different now. And Fox Mulder, well, he seems to know all about this kind of thing.

“Yeah,” Jackson says carefully. “I do.”

The man runs his hand over his mouth. Jackson notices he’s only eaten half of his slice of pizza. Either he’s not hungry, or he’s too distracted.

“You can read thoughts,” Fox Mulder guesses, leaning back, speaking with certainty. He folds his hands in front of him. “You can focus on other people’s thoughts. Not just one person, but several at once.”

Jackson sets his slice of pizza down in shock. “How did you know that?”

“You can move objects, too.”

Jackson blinks at him. “I have been able to do that. Some. I could do it easier when I was little.”

“What else?”

“I can, like, change people’s perceptions. What they see. Not for forever, just for a little while. So, if I, like, need a distraction in class or something, I can make the teacher think someone opened the door and mooned us. Stupid stuff like that.”

Fox Mulder looks undeniably fascinated. “Wow,” he says. “Interesting.” He taps his fingers on the table. Jackson doesn’t have to use his shine to see that the man is thinking this over. “So does that mean you could effectively shapeshift? If you wanted to?”

“Yeah,” admits Jackson. “At least I can make other people think I look like someone else.”

“Huh,” the man says, squinting thoughtfully. He tilts his head, looking at Jackson again. “Are you reading my mind right now?”

“No,” Jackson says honestly.

“Why not?”

“I’m tired,” Jackson says. “It’s work, sometimes. And no offense, but you’re kind of complicated and hard.”

Fox Mulder chuckles. “I don’t know if I should take offense at that or not.”

“I did read your mind earlier,” Jackson confesses. “And the red-haired lady …. she was really easy. I hardly had to try with her at all. It was like her thoughts just flew at me. I was wondering if that was because she was my birth mom. Do you think that could be right?”

The man stares at him blankly, not directly answering. “Her name is Dana Scully.”

“Dana Scully,” repeats Jackson.

“Have you ever heard that name before?”

“No,” Jackson says. “I don’t think so.”

“Did your parents tell you anything about your birth parents? Who they were, where you were from?”

“I don’t think they knew anything about them,” Jackson says. “It was a closed adoption.”

Fox Mulder nods, scratching his chin. “Yeah,” he says. It’s like a cloud of sadness has fallen over him. “Yeah, it would have been.” He fixes Jackson with a curious look. “Do you … have any questions for me? About any of this?”

“Uh. Sure.” Jackson looks around the room, slowly, as if the best question to ask might be scrawled on the walls. The faces peering out of the framed photos draw his attention again, but it’s all so much. He looks away, back at the box of pizza in front of them instead. “Is it… okay if I have another slice, Mr. Mulder?”

The man laughs a little, crossing his arms. “You can just call me Mulder.”

“I think I’m eating more than you, Mulder,” Jackson points out seriously. “It doesn’t seem fair. It’s your pizza.”

“I told you, eat as much as you want.”

Jackson feels like he has been polite enough. He shrugs. “Thanks,” Jackson says, taking another slice.

“Jackson,” Mulder says, watching him eat, his voice suddenly too casual. “Do you have any idea who your birth father is?”

Jackson picks up his piece of pizza and studies it, pulling off a particularly delicious-looking piece of sausage and sampling it. “Well,” he says, through a mouthful, “I’ve got a guess. Based on certain clues. But I don’t know for sure.”

“Clues you’ve read in people’s minds? Or clues you’ve noticed?”

Jackson shrugs again. “Both, I guess.” He gives Mulder a look, raising his eyebrows.

There’s a pause.

“What clues?”

“Well, I’m not stupid,” Jackson says matter-of-factly. “That woman, Dana Scully, was here, fighting with you. Lots of big feelings. Then, the way you’re acting now. Like you think I’m a brand new iPhone and you can’t stop looking at me. And how you seem to know things about me. That’s a bunch of clues.”

Mulder has been sitting with his arms crossed, and he hasn’t moved the entire time Jackson’s been talking. But now Jackson can see a tear sprouting in his eye. It surprises him. Wayne Van De Kamp, his father, would never have cried in front of him. Mulder blots it with his sleeve, and Jackson sees his hands are shaking, too.

Maybe he shouldn’t have said that so carelessly, kind of flippantly. It’s obviously a big deal to Mulder. Really, truthfully, it’s a big deal to Jackson, too—something he’s wondered about his whole life. But right now he just can’t have everything feel like a big deal all at once. Or he’ll explode or something.

He meets the man’s damp eyes.

“Yeah,” Mulder says roughly, trying to smile. “Okay. A lot of clues.” He pauses, uncrosses his arms, places his hands on the table. “I get the sense you can’t handle a lot more emotional drama right now, Jackson, and I get that, I really do. Believe it or not, I’ve been in that place myself.”

Jackson’s speechless. It’s like the man read his mind, but that’s not possible.

“I just want to say, we can talk about it whenever you want to,” Mulder adds. “No pressure.”

Jackson nods his head up and down, licking his lips nervously.

***

After dinner, they go back into the part of the room with the couch, which is surrounded by all the messy piles of books. Jackson sits on the floor and starts picking up volumes curiously. “The Art of Profiling?” he says. “Is that an art book?”

“No,” Mulder says with a smile, trying to kick piles out of the way. “It’s psychological profiling. Like for criminals.”

“Oh,” Jackson says, making a connection. “Like on Criminal Minds.”

“What’s that? A TV show?”

“Yeah,” Jackson says. “My parents love it. It’s about a team of FBI agents who profile dangerous criminals.” An exciting thought occurs to him. “Wait, is that what you did?”

“Yes,” Mulder says. “No. Kind of. I was a profiler, years and years ago. But then I was put on the X-files, where I investigated cases that had unexplainable, supernatural associations.”

“That’s why you have books like this,” Jackson says. He lifts the book Sasquatch: Diverse Perspectives. “Or this?” Extraterrestrial Abductions Beyond the Media.

“Yeah,” Mulder says, a self-deprecating shrug. “That’s right.”

“That’s badass,” Jackson says, a root of an idea occurring to him. He belatedly realizes his mistake. “I mean, that’s cool. Very cool,” he corrects himself.

“It was badass,” Mulder agrees, seemingly unaffected by Jackson’s profanity. “Although… it could be difficult. We went through a lot, working on the X-files. Scully and me.”

Jackson absorbs this information. “So you and Dana Scully worked together on the X-files. In the F.B.I.. That’s how you knew one another?”

“We were partners,” Mulder says with quiet precision, like this sentence is very important.

They’re just three words—we were partners—but Jackson can tell they tell an entire complicated story the length of a book or more. His shine cries out to be used, but Jackson pushes it aside.

“Mulder,” Jackson says slowly. “Is it a coincidence that you and my birth mom worked on these X-files … and that I have these abilities?”

“No, Jackson,” Mulder says, sighing heavily. “It’s probably not a coincidence.” He sits on the couch, looking down at Jackson still sitting on the floor. “There are things that both of us were exposed to that could have … caused the abilities.”

“But you guys don’t have them yourselves, right?”

“No. Not like you.”

It’s a frustrating answer. “Not like me? Or not at all?”

“Some things I want to wait to talk to you about,” Mulder replies. “Until we’ve had a chance to talk to your mother, too.”

Your mother.

Jackson inhales sharply, the words sending an unexpected shock through him.

“I meant Scully, of course,” Mulder says quickly, noticing his reaction. “I’m sorry.”

“Dana Scully isn’t my mother,” Jackson says with emphasis. “I have a mother.”

“I know.” Mulder’s eyes look impossibly sad. “I’m sorry, Jackson. I know.”

“I’m not looking to replace my parents,” Jackson says tightly. “That’s not why I’m here or what this is about. They’ll always be my parents. I love them.”

Mulder appears to sink further into the couch. “Yeah,” he says. “I can tell you do.”

Jackson looks down quickly at the stack of books again, playing silently with the cover of Criminology Through The Ages. He knows he shouldn’t have gotten angry. He knows Mulder didn’t mean anything by it, and he’s having to struggle with his shine now to keep from sensing any bad feelings or thoughts coming off of Mulder.

It’s just Jackson feels almost disloyal, sitting here talking to this man, learning this information about his birth parents’ lives, when his parents just died. When they probably died because of him.

“Jackson.” Mulder’s voice is kind. “What were they like? Your parents. Do you want to … tell me about them? I don’t know anything about them.”

Jackson pauses, still staring at the book in his hand. “Yeah,” he says. He tries to find the right words. He has to be the person who remembers them, who speaks for them to the world now. “They were … they weren’t anything like me. But they were great.”

Mulder waits patiently, his soft eyes on Jackson. Jackson puts the book back carefully on top of a pile.

“My dad was the shop teacher at Rawlins High School. He was good at woodworking, cabinetry. He was always trying to teach me.”

“Were you good at it, too?”

“No,” Jackson says with a tiny smile. “I was really, really bad at it.”

“Oh yeah?” Mulder echoes the tiny smile.

“I couldn’t cut straight. I forgot to measure,” Jackson says, shaking his head. “I was always disappointing him.”

“Not really,” Mulder guesses softly.

“No,” Jackson agrees, just as softly. “Not really.” He’s quiet, thinking more about his goofy, sweater-vested dad. “He was always cheerful. He thought you should look on the positive side of things, you know? Really into baseball. He coached my Little League team for a while.”

“That’s good,” Mulder says encouragingly. “It’s good to play sports.” He’s quiet, too. “And your mom?”

“Her job was running the church preschool,” Jackson says. “She was always singing. She loved holiday decorations, and to cook and bake.” He feels tears threatening. “She is just … she was a really good mom to me. Like, she hugged me all the time. I acted like I didn’t like it, but I did.”

“I’m glad she did that,” Mulder whispers. “I’m so glad.”

“She was really Christian. Really into church. They both were.”

“You were raised religious?”

“Yeah,” Jackson says. “Lutheran.” He glances at Mulder wryly. “But I was really bad at that, too.”

Mulder returns the look. “I’m not very good at that myself,” he says. “Scully’s religious, in her own way. But I’ve never been … that kind of believer. It’s just never made sense to me”

Something warm blooms in Jackson at being understood in this way. It’s never made sense to him, either.

“What are you good at?” Mulder asks. His tone is gentle, but Jackson’s shine is suddenly alert, suddenly aware of what’s underneath the man’s exterior. Mulder is hungry to know more about him, desperate for any detail. His need is so overwhelming, Jackson closes the door on it quickly.

“I don’t know,” Jackson says casually. “I’m good at math, I guess. Math comes easy to me.”

Mulder’s face lights up. “Scully’s amazing at math.” Looking over at Jackson, he seems to regret his words. His scolding to himself shines through. —stop making everything he says about me and Scully. “Sorry. You’re telling me about yourself.”

“I like to run,” Jackson continues. “I’m pretty fast, and I think I’m a good distance runner. I was thinking maybe I’d try out for the track team in high school.” He pauses. “But I guess I’m not going to high school now.”

“Come on,” Mulder says. “Of course you’re going to high school. Your life isn’t over.”

“I’m most likely going to prison,” Jackson mumbles darkly.

“Nah. Not going to happen.”

“I don’t even know where I’m going to live,” Jackson adds. “Where I’m going to stay tonight.”

“You’re obviously going to stay here tonight,” Mulder insists. “After that, we’ll figure it out.”

The lightning-fast image of a school building with a sign— Farrs Corner High School—and then another fast image, the two of them, Mulder and Jackson, running side by side on a country road, a road that looks a lot like the road right outside the farmhouse. Then almost instantly, more scolding in Mulder’s mind: Way ahead of yourself. Stop it. Haven’t even told Scully. Need to confirm.

“How will we confirm?” Jackson asks quickly. “What does that mean?”

Mulder’s eyebrows shoot up. “That’s going to take some getting used to.”

“Sorry,” Jackson says. “That was kind of rude of me, probably.”

“I have to remind myself you’re listening,” Mulder says with a small smile.

“I normally try to hide it more,” Jackson says. He stands up, stepping around the books to sit next to Mulder on the couch. “But I mean … what’s the point if you already know, right?”

“I was just thinking that before we introduce you to Scully, we should run DNA,” Mulder says. “Yours against mine. To confirm it.”

“Why?” Jackson says, frowning. “You don’t believe me?”

“Can’t you tell that I believe you?”

Jackson sighs. “Yeah, I think you do.” He kicks out his long legs and leans his head back against the back of the couch. “But like I said, you’re not the easiest.”

“The people that Scully and I used to be involved with,” Mulder says, “were the kind of people who would go to extremes. Even extremes like convincing a kid his birth mother was someone she wasn’t. Like planting ideas into people’s heads. I don’t think you’re lying, but I think it would be smart to know for sure.”

Jackson swings his head to look at Mulder. “Who were these people?”

Mulder regards him with a troubled expression. “I’ll answer that, Jackson. But I think you need to answer this, too: who drove you here? To Virginia?”

“I told you,” Jackson says, folding his arms defensively, “I can’t tell you that.”

“Why?” Mulder’s eyebrows draw together in concern. “It worries me a little. Did the person who drove you ask you not to tell me?”

“Yeah, they did,” Jackson admits. “But I don’t think they’re one of these bad people you’re talking about. They were just trying to help me.”

“But Jackson,” Mulder says urgently, “you need to understand that—”

“You’re just going to have to trust me,” Jackson insists, and his voice sounds younger than he intends. “Please. Just trust me.”

Mulder rubs his temple with one finger. “Okay,” he says simply. “I can do trust.” He leans forward on his forearms. “But still, Jackson, I think we gotta do the DNA test. If you’re not … the person we think you are—and who Scully thinks you are, it would be too hard for her.”

“She’s been wanting to see me that bad?”

Mulder is surprised. “Of course she has. Of course.”

“But it was a closed adoption. Her choice.”

Mulder opens and closes his mouth, again seeming not to know what to say. “Since the second she let you go,” he says, his voice strained, “she’s been wanting to see you again.”

Jackson’s shine pulls in an image then of a baby in a crib, crying, and then the woman Mulder calls Scully, younger, crying and crying, inconsolable.

It’s all too sad, and Jackson is sad already.

“Okay. DNA test tomorrow then,” Jackson says, shrugging. “No big deal.”

“Great,” Mulder says, standing up. “Now I thought I’d show you where you’ll be sleeping if you want. I’ll have to put sheets on the guest bed first. Maybe you can help me. This place used to be a little more organized when Scully lived here.”

“You have a guest room, huh?” Jackson says. “Fancy.”

“Yeah,” Mulder says in a strange voice. “It’s just an extra bedroom. Small. Not too fancy.”

It was supposed to be your room. In case we got you back somehow. Mulder’s thoughts are suddenly and unexpectedly clear.

“Then I guess I better sleep in it,” Jackson responds flatly, following along behind him.

***

[ahgasegotarmy116]

Still With You | A Jeon Jungkook Series | Chapter 4

Summary: You go out with Jimin to a cute cafe called Bora before you meet up with Jungkook Pairing: Luna (reader) x Jungkook and Jimin, f2l love triangle Word Count: 4.4k~ a/n: I haven't updated this story in a while and idk why lol I've had it finished for a while but I guess here you go lmao. Hope you enjoy! Start from the beginning

Today has been nothing short of exhausting, both mentally and physically. Grey is coming in later today and Sunghoon had to leave early so I've been on my own for most of the day.

Unfortunately my uncle has left me with the task of deep cleaning the store tonight so that alone has been keeping me busy as well as the heavier than usual traffic that's been coming through today. 

Grey should be here in an hour though so I just need to pull through until then. I haven't been able to take a break yet today so I'm definitely gonna take a longer one when she finally shows up. The customers today haven't been too bad but just their existence is putting me in a bad mood, worse than most days and I'm not exactly sure why.

"I really need to get a new job" I say under my breath. "What kind of job are you looking for Noona?" I hear right behind me. I jump at the unexpected response and turn around to figure out who the voice belongs to. "Jimin you scared me!" I say while punching him in the shoulder not realizing I had done so until I see his reaction. 

"Oh my gosh I'm sorry I didn't mean to!" I say with a slightly panicked expression. "It's okay Noona I deserved it" he responds while rubbing his shoulder at the point of contact. "Are you sure you're okay? It was kind of an automatic response" I say giving him a once over. "I'm fine don't worry about it" he responds while getting ahold of my hand. 

I jolt slightly at the unexpected contact and look up at him with a questioning gaze. "Just make it up to me when we hang out later tonight okay?" he says with a slightly flirtatious tone. "Oh um okay? How should I do that?" I ask, curious as to what he might be implying. "I'm sure you'll figure something out" he says while letting go of my hand.

"So um" I pause clearing my throat, getting rid of the slightly flustered tone to my whole demeanor. "What are you doing here?" I question while walking back behind the counter.

"I just wanted to check in again and make sure that we are still on for tonight" he says following me to the opposite side. "Oh tonight, yeah I should be fine to hang out tonight" I respond trying to get the words out before I get a chance to trip over them. 

"Okay great! So is eight thirty still okay?" he questions. "Yes eight thirty should be fine" I confirm. "So I'll see you then!" he says excitement clearly written all over his face. "Yeah but, did you need anything else?" I question trying to figure out the reason behind his extra visit today. "Nope I just wanted to confirm our plans for tonight" he says leaning his body up against the counter. 

"You could've just texted me" I say shaking my head at his eagerness. "I know but I just wanted to see you before then" he says with a slight pout. "Okay well you've seen me, but I really have to get back to work now. I'll see you tonight okay?" I say hoping he'll take a hint and start to head out. "Okay Noona see you tonight" he says and makes his way out with a slight smile.

Just as he's leaving Grey finally makes her way into the store as well. "Wasn't that Jimin?" she questions immediately after walking up to the counter. "Nice to see you too Grey" I say rolling my eyes at her. "Yeah yeah whatever now can you please tell me what he was doing here? I thought he wasn't supposed to come until later on tonight" she says slightly confused. 

"I guess he just wanted to come by and confirm our plans in person" I say while waving it off hoping to change the subject. "He could've just texted you" she responds. "That's exactly what I said but he just said that he wanted to see me before then" I say still trying to make sense of it all. 

"He just seems oddly clingy already and I'm not exactly sure how I feel about it" I respond honestly. "Well I'm glad we're on the same page. I just hope tonight you can set some boundaries with him. Even Jungkook doesn't show up everyday and he's your best friend" she says making sense of the steps I should take.

"Okay but what am I supposed to say? 'Hey it's nice of you to come by to see me but I don't really want you to do it all the time.' Isn't that a bit harsh?" I question trying to figure out what I should say. "I mean not really, you've gotta protect yourself you know. You don't want this to turn into something unhealthy" she warns. 

"You mean like a stalker? I don't think he's like that" I say hoping to throw away her doubts about him along with mine. "Yeah maybe you're right, but just be careful alright? I don't want to have to call the police and have them looking for you because you never came back tonight" she warns. 

"Okay I got it. I'll make sure to bring my pepper spray with me and stay somewhere well lit. Will that make you happy?" I say hoping to switch topics.

"Yeah I guess, just don't get murdered. Lord knows your uncle would have my head if something were to happen to you" she says while heading back into the break room to put her stuff away and grab her vest and name tag.

Once she comes back I get up to switch places with her so I can take my well earned breaks. "Where are you going?" she asks as she watches me take off my vest.

"Sunghoon had to leave early so I haven't had a chance to take a break yet. I'm gonna take my first and second break together okay? I'll stay back there in case you need me, but try not to need me" I say waving as I head off. 

"Yeah whatever" is all I hear in response as the back door cuts off anything else she might've said. Laying down on the sofa we have back there I stretch out my whole body already feeling the soreness in my back from going between helping customers and cleaning the shelves.

I check my phone for the first time in a few hours and see that I have a few messages from Jungkook.

Hey Luna Noona I can't wait for tonight!

I still have no idea what you're planning but I'm expecting something epic!

Your shift ends at ten right? Or was it ten thirty? I don't remember.

Either way I'll be there at ten!  he finishes.

My shift ends at ten thirty so you can just come then. No need to come early I respond smiling at his excitement. Why are people suddenly so excited to spend time with me?

And don't call me that! I add in protest.

See you at ten Luna Noona ;)  he ends, responding right away.

I roll my eyes in response and lock my phone. I still haven't totally processed everything that happed between Jungkook and I the other night. Well more like avoided the topic all together, filling my days and nights since then with nonsensical topics. 

Avoidance is my first line of defense and although it's not the best way to deal with things, it really is the only way I can keep myself together these days.

I hope things go well tonight with both Jungkook and Jimin, I've just gotta remember to not overthink it. Just take a deep breath and be my normal chill carefree self and things will be fine. 

I scroll through my social media and see that I have a follow request from none other than Jimin. I guess I'll accept it before I meet up with him. I don't want to give him something to pout over.

After accepting the request and following him back I see that he immediately accepts my request as well as goes to like some of my recent posts, clearly showing me that he's going through my account.

'You look so cute Noona' he comments on my most recent one of a picture of Grey and I.

I like his comment and lock my phone ignoring the rest of his efforts to contact me. I need to show him that I've got stuff to take care of and I can't talk to him all day. Hopefully if I ignore him until my next break he'll back off a bit. Then again I still don't know him so who knows. 

I close my eyes for what I think is a few minutes and am suddenly woken up by my alarm signaling the end of my breaks. I sigh and straighten myself out and make moves to head back into the store and to my delight it is completely empty. 

"How is it when I'm by myself there are a shit ton of customers but once you get there they magically disappear?" I complain after casing the joint. "Don't know don't care" she says, continuing to scroll through her phone. 

"Lover boy requested to follow me" she says nonchalantly still engrossed in whatever she's looking at. "Really?" I say in confusion. "But he hasn't ever spoken to you before right?" I question. "Well yes and no" she says putting down her phone. 

"Meaning?" I question, intrigued as to what sort of interaction they've had. "Well he came around the other day when you had the day off asking for you" she says resting her arm on the counter and propping her head on top of her hand. 

"Why didn't you tell me?" I ask. "Well he told me he would text you or something, but guessing by your reaction he didn't" she says starting to get tired of the conversation. "Yeah well I guess he forgot. Next time tell me if he shows up okay?" I implore starting to get a weird feeling about all of this.

~~~~

As the day slowly turns to night I get a text from Jimin letting me know he's on his way. "Do I look okay?" I ask starting to get a bit anxious. "Yeah you look fine" she says not even bothering to look up from her phone. 

"Grey you didn't even look at me" I say rolling my eyes at her. "Dude I've been with you for hours, I know what you look like" she says looking up at me for a second. "Although you might wanna go look in the mirror and brush your hair or something" she says going back to what she was doing before. 

"Why didn't you tell me that before?" I question, running into the back to freshen up my appearance a bit more. "You didn't ask until now" she yells after me.

I quickly brush my hair like she said and put on a fresh layer of lip gloss and a light sprits of perfume before I head back out and in the process I hear the door open signaling a new customer coming in. 

"Welcome" she greets, uninterested in the newcomer. "Hi um is Luna here?" I hear Jimin ask, sounding a bit shy. "Yeah she's in the back but she should be coming out soon if you wanna wait" she informs him. "Okay thanks, just let her know I'll be waiting outside" he says and I hear his voice fade and hear the bell again signaling his departure.

I peek out from behind the door and motion to Grey nonverbally asking about my appearance yet again. She nods her head and I stand up straight and head out only to hear her say "See you at nine alright, I've still gotta take my last break too". I simply make an okay sign with my hands and walk out. 

I'm greeted with the sight of Jimin taking in the surrounding stores and people that are passing through the area, clearly lost in thought still not aware of my presence. "Sorry I kept you waiting" is all I say to catch his attention. "Noona! Ready to go?" he says while holding his hand out to me, which I in turn take it and let him lead the way.

"So where are we going?" I ask curious as to what he has in mind. "It's this new café called 'Bora' the interior is purple and they have a lot of cute purple themed drinks! I thought it might be a cool place to hang out together. Plus the vibes there are really chill and you seem to radiate chill energy" he says looking over to me and slightly swinging our interlocked hands. 

"Purple is actually my favorite color" I say surprised that I haven't heard about it yet. "I was hoping you would say that! I remember the first day that I met you you were wearing a cute purple shirt with two different purple earrings" he says laughing to himself while recalling the memory. 

"Wait really? Why didn't you tell me?" I say slightly embarrassed at my slip up. "Well I wan't sure if you had done it on purpose, plus it looked really good on you!" he says smiling at me while starting to take smaller strides. Realizing that he might be dragging me along since our height difference is very apparent and in turn makes my legs a lot shorter than his. Once we fall into step we walk in comfortable silence until we reach Bora.

Opening the door we're met by a dark purple interior that is accompanied by a brilliant neon sign spelling out the location's namesake in an equally stunning shade of purple. 

"This place is amazing! How did you find it?" I say scanning the room and taking everything in. "I saw that it just opened a few weeks ago on SNS and I forgot about it until I started to wrack my brain for places you might like to go" he says while shyly rubbing the back of his neck. He's actually quite adorable now that I think about it, with those lips that seem to be in a constant pout supporting my observation. 

"Did you wanna go up and order or should I pick something out for you while you find us a seat?" he questions making eye contact with me for the first time since we set foot inside. Seeing his face in this lighting I can't help but notice his more chiseled features and I again am reminded of our height difference since I'm having to look up at him. 

Breathe Luna it's okay it's just Jimin, just be yourself. "Surprise me" I say while settling on giving him a slight smile. "Okay I'll be right back why don't you go look over in that section and I'll meet you there" he says while pointing me towards the seating area and gently ghosting his hand on the small of my back and quickly makes his way further into the building to what I assume is the counter to order.

Shaking off the slight chill I got from the unexpected contact I make my way over to a booth near a window so we can enjoy the city lights. Even though this might not be the best part of town the lights at night are still beautiful. I get lost in thought and start humming along to the music that's playing in the background. 

"Boo" I hear right next to my ear making my whole body tense up. "Don't DO that!" I scold turning towards him seeing a huge smile on his face. "I'm sorry Noona I couldn't help it" he admits trying to hold back his laughter. 

"Well please refrain from doing that, my heart can only take so much" I say clutching my chest in a teasing manner. "Okay okay I promise I won't do that again...tonight" he says, teasing me right back. "I swear I can never catch a break these days. Now are you gonna tell me what kind of drinks you got or are you just gonna let them melt" I say nodding towards the tray he just placed down. 

"Oh yeah my bad. This one is called 'Bora' after the café itself and its a purple slush with passion fruit, dragon fruit, and blue raspberry flavoring. While this one is called 'Nabi' which is iced butterfly pea flower tea with raspberry and pomegranate. I wasn't sure if you were the coffee or tea type of person but I figured you might not want to drink something with caffeine this late at night" he explains cutely hoping he picked out at least one item I might enjoy. 

"They both look amazing! Do you think I could take the slush? It looks so good!" I implore. "Sure go right ahead, I also got us a slice of Purple Ube cake to share. I hope you don't mind" he says nervously again.

He's really trying to not mess this up, it's so endearing seeing how much effort he's putting into this. "That's perfect, thank you!" I say while grabbing a fork and taking the first bite.

"Mmm this is amazing!" I say savoring the mild but sweet flavors. I look up at him and see that he's just looking at me with puppy eyes clearly enjoying my reactions. "What?" I laugh nervously while grabbing a napkin and wiping off the corners of my mouth hoping I don't have anything on my face. 

"Nothing, you're just really cute Noona" he says and picks up his fork and takes a bite of the cake right after I do. I clear my throat moving past the compliment trying not to acknowledge it. 

"So back in the store earlier you said you needed to get a new job. Do you have something in mind?" he says clearly understanding the need to change the subject. "Oh um not really I've just been pretty sick of my job honestly since I first started but I can seem to find anything better to do and I hate being the new girl" I say feeling defeated. 

"That's understandable, it can be nerve racking breaking into a new industry especially when you've become almost comfortable in your current job" he responds. "Well it's not so much that. It's more like the irritating feeling being a helpless idiot until I finally get used to everything. I hate asking for help" I admit honestly. 

"Yeah I can tell, you seem very independent so I can see why that could make you uncomfortable. I assure you though that if you find a company that values their employees then I'm sure that you coworkers would be more than happy to help you learn the ropes. Everyone is new at some point in their lives" he responds with a warm smile.

I feel almost lighter after talking about some of the things that have been weighing on my mind that I almost forget that I have to go back to work. 

We're startled out of our conversation by my alarm and I can't help but feel a bit disappointed that we have to wrap this up so soon. "Well that's my alarm reminding me to start walking back. Thank you so much! I had a really good time" I say with a genuine smile on my face. 

"I did too! Thanks for giving me a chance to get to know you better. Here let me walk you back to the store" he says getting up and stretching his hand out towards me. "Thank you, I would really appreciate it" I respond while hesitantly accepting his outstretched hand. 

"Of course, what kind of man would I be if I didn't make sure you got back alright. Plus this gives us a chance to spend a little more time together" he says while leading us though the café to the exit. Once we're outside we're hit with a sudden breeze and I bring my hands up and hug myself as a pitiful excuse for generating warmth.

I suddenly feel myself being wrapped in a blanket of warmth and realize that he's draped his jacket over my shoulders. 

"You don't have to do that, it's my fault for not bringing a coat. Here take it back you're gonna get cold too" I say while trying to take the jacket off my shoulders but am soon stopped by him placing both hands on my shoulders trapping the jacket underneath his hands to make sure I can't remove it. 

"It's alright Noona I really don't mind, plus I'm wearing a hoodie as well so I don't really feel cold at the moment. It's not too long of a walk anyways so go ahead and use it for now" he says and goes back to stand next to me and entwines our fingers together and leads me back to the store. 

Once we get closer he stops just short of it which in turn stops me as well. "What is it?" I ask giving him a questioning look. "I just wanted to let you know that I had a really nice time tonight and I would love to do it again. Maybe we could spend some time together on one of your days off?" he asks hopeful for my acceptance of his proposition.

"Sure I'd love that!" I say looking up at him. I see him glance down at my lips and back to my eyes before slowly leaning in. I stop him tentatively with a gentle hand placed on his chest.

"Jimin" I say, feeling breathless at the change in atmosphere. "Yes Noona?" he questions resting his forehead against mine. "I don't think this is a good idea" I say wracking my brain for the best way to go about shutting this down. 

"Oh, okay" he says while leaning back and resuming his previous up right posture. "It's just that, I really think we should get to know each other better" I say hoping he won't take it in the wrong way. "It's okay I understand, I agree let's take things slow" he says with an understanding smile. "I'll text you tomorrow?" he suggests. I nod my head in approval and give him a quick hug goodbye. 

I turn around and cross the street and head back inside seeing Grey in the same position I had left her in, uninterested with the world around her and scrolling through her phone. "I'm back!" I say alerting her to my presence so she doesn't think I'm just another customer. 

"Oh hey" she says looking up from her phone briefly, "How did it go?". I go to respond but she stops me before I can even continue, "The short version Luna" she says aware of my tendency to ramble. "Alright the short version, let me just put my stuff away" I say making my way to the back room.

"Whose jacket is that?" she asks but clearly knows the answer. "Oh shit! It's Jimin's, he let me borrow it on our way back since it's pretty cold out there. Do you think he's still out there?" I question rushing towards the front door before I can hear her answer. 

I look around up and down the street trying to see if I can spot him but unfortunately it looks like he's left already. I walk back into the store defeated but knowing that he'll probably just use this as another excuse to come see me again, which I can't help but smile at. 

"I guess I'll just text him in the morning" I say shrugging my shoulders putting it back in my locker and putting on some perfume. "Why did you take it off?" she questions raising an eyebrow at me. "Well I'm hanging out with Jungkook tonight and you know how he gets when other guys are around me" is say feeling a bit conflicted. 

"That's true. He would probably give you his hoodie and hug you until the other guy's sent is gone" she says laughing at Jungkook's clingy side. "Exactly so I don't want to give him something to pout about. Plus the possibility of another guy in my life is not something I would like to discuss tonight" I finish. "Sounds like a good idea" she says and asks me again to tell her what happened between Yeonjun and I.

I give her the short version like she had asked for and I am a bit confused at her reaction or lack there of. "Hey! Why are you acting like that? I thought you would be teasing me and telling me how stupid I was or something like that" I pout clearly not satisfied while her stoic attitude. 

"Oh sorry I was just expecting it to go horribly so I'm just surprised that's all. I'm happy for you, it sounds like you had fun" she says and goes back to her phone. "Why did you think it was gonna be bad?" I question even more confused. 

"Well he was just giving off kinda weird vibes from the beginning but I'm glad we just misjudged him. He sounds like a nice guy. Now can we change the subject? Or better yet why don't you go restock the fridge" she says and then turns around to refill the items behind the counter even though they're fully stocked for the most part. 

Confused by her sudden change I decide to just go and do as she had suggested and head back into the big fridge and after restocking everything in there I start to go up and down the aisles cleaning up the shelves and making sure everything looks perfect. I check my phone and start counting down the minutes until Jungkook gets here, eager to escape from this sudden weirdness that has settled between Grey and I.

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[titichan]

The Taste of Betrayal

Chapter- 4

Tags: Vampire!Au, Vampire-Hunter dynamics, Bottom!Yuuji, Top!Gojo, Top!Sukuna, Threesome, M/M/M, Sex toys, Bondage, Slight bdsm, Rough sex, A little bit of gore, porn with Plot, Slight mentions of Meimei and Nanami, Author is Sukuna's bitch, Other tags will be added as I commence

Itadori was submerged in doing whatever work was assigned to him, when a sudden 'ping' of his phone snapped him back.  

It was Meimei 

 -Meimei 

'Hey, Yujii-kun. Got a minute?' 

That perked up Itadori's curiosity. Why was she texting him so suddenly? Unless it's some big news... 

-Yujii 

'Yeah? I am at work, so be quick' 

-Meimei 

'Right, soo- I received an invitation of Rivera's grand party like you know. But this is the official one and THE golden chance- where you can get closer to the mafia boss "Sukuna Ryomen". You can also find the host- the CEO I mean. But that's not the main point, yk' 

That message filled his mind with questions. Thousands of questions. Still, he somehow managed to type a simple message- excluding all the necessary details. 

-Yujii 

'I see...When will it be held?' 

-Meimei 

'Today, 8 pm. Did you forget? LOL. Anyways, you better get off from work fast.  

-Yujii 

'Ok. Thanks for telling me.' 

He put down his phone slowly, a train of thoughts trailing his mind. However, he tried to get back to work anyway. 

- 

It was almost 8. 

The pink-haired had decided not to wear the wig, just in case. But what bothered him the most was, the extravagant suit Meimei forced him to wear. Although he wasn't a fan of such kind of 'elegant-grandiose' fashion, he had to wear it anyway.  

- 

It was loud. Like, ear-damaging loud. The noisy atmosphere didn't quite well suit the hunter. He looked around and inspected each and every corner of the grand and luxurious hotel. Many celebrities had gathered over there, all laughing and chattering.  

He cautiously moved towards the bar counter, his eyes searching for the Mafia boss. No avail. 

As he sat down near the counter, a blonde lady- pretty much in a revealing red dress came near him. 

"Oh my, what a cutie you are~" She smirked at him, her red lips tugging to form a seductive grin. 

Yujii deliberately ignored her, still looking here and there. 

"Aww~ cutie boy isn't interested? How sad..." She faked a pout. An annoying one indeed.   

She waved her hand, signalling the bartender. 

"Two glasses of whiskey, please" 

On hearing that, Yujii finally glanced at her- his eyes widened in awe.  

He seemed to notice that she was practically clinging onto him, which made him quite uncomfortable.  

In the meantime, the bartender had put down two crystalline glasses filled with whiskey to the brim.  

Yujii, nevertheless, was a light drinker. For, just finishing off only one glass had made him tipsy.  

He groaned, face having a reddened complexion, as he pressed his forehead against his palm. 

"Ugh...I guess...I drank too much..." 

He muttered slightly. 

But he suddenly felt like taking another one. And as the time passed, he was already drinking the seventh glass of whiskey. 

Already in a drunken state, he somehow struggled to hold the glass. 

 When, out of a sudden, the glass got knocked off and the entire contents spilled, spoiling the shirt of a certain somebody... 

He looked at the person, blinking cluelessly.  

Yujii could feel that he was going to faint any moment, not to mention, he did have a headache. 

Just as his eyes were about to close, he caught a glimpse of tattoos on the arm of the person. 

"...that looks familiar..."He mumbled.  

His big hands caught Yujii by the small of his back. The tattooed man towered over the pink-haired, pissed off. 

People stared at them, exchanging scared glances. Some started to whisper.  

Holding Yujii by his arm, he glared knives at the people. On seeing him like that, the critiques hastily shuffled away. 

"Mmph...you...let go of me..." 

 Yujii's faint struggles against Sukuna's sturdy grip made the black-haired man shift his gaze towards the drunken and whimpering man, whose shoulder he had been gripping on to for so long. 

He looked at him, loosening his grip in his shoulder. A sudden sly smirk tugged the corner of his lips. 

But that didn't quite conceal his annoyance on the fact that his favourite shirt got spoiled. 

The pink-haired somehow opened his eyes, wobbling as Sukuna had let his grip loose. 

Yujii stared at him, dazed. As both of their eyes locked, Sukuna prompted in a dangerously low voice.  

"You drunk twerp; do you know what you've done? You just spoiled my shirt. Now you'll have to pay for it." 

Yujii couldn't think clearly or understand what the bigger man was saying. 

"I... I'll still pay you..." He mumbled slightly. 

On hearing his meek response, Sukuna chuckled. "And you think- you can pay? And how would you do that?" 

The pink-haired clung to the coat of the tattooed man, as he looked up at him. 

"I'll...pay..you with my...body..." 

And that reply was enough to send electric sparks throughout the vampire's body. His grip on the hunter tightened, as his pupils changed into ruby red from black. 

He sighed. "Haah...you're playing with fire..." But as his vampiric eyes settled on the hunter, he was already unconscious. 

Lifting him up in bridal style, he walked towards the elevator. Looking at the unconscious person in his arms, he muttered, 

 "Today's gonna be a long night..." 

[buildarocketboys]

7 8 14 18 🥰 (I’ll know the answers in part for some of these but I like to ask the qs haha)

Thanks babe!!

7. How many ideas for fics do you have right now?

ONLY counting fics on my fic ideas list that aren't already WIPs, it's, uh, 23. Yeah.

8. What project(s) are you currently working on?

Tangled AU (which I'm really hoping to finish today 🤞🤞🤞) and kinda my other multi-chapter WIPs I guess, but I can't blame you for sure and kind of the Pete keeps trying to come out to Patrick 4+1 thing, though I really need to write the third chapter for that.

14. If you could see one of your fics adapted into a visual medium, such as comic or film, which fan fic would you pick?

I would loooooove more bunnytrick art, just saying (hint hint). Soooooooo many talented artists in this fandom but the ones I can think of off the top of my head who I love are sprout @aarlert and @fobnsfwdoodlesbackup

18. What’s one of your favorite lines you’ve written in a fic?

I'm gonna chicken out and say already answered for this, since I gave two different lines I liked yesterday and I find this question so hard (I don't remember! Also I'm not someone who writes really beautiful or clever prose haha)

[ollieofthebeholder]

And If Thou Wilt, Forget: a TMA fanfic

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] || Also on AO3 and my personal website

Chapter 9: And what you spurn, I'll wear

The weather for the week was bitterly cold, but mostly clear. Once Gerry had a day to recover, they ventured out into the streets of Chicago to see the sights. Gerry had never done the tourist thing—even when he’d gone to Italy to get out of the country for a bit after getting out of prison, he’d been trying to avoid people and therefore hadn’t done much more than hide in out of the way cafés and bookstores, and most of the time when he traveled it was with a purpose. Tim, the veteran of dozens of family vacations and solo trips, was determined to give him the full experience, even if it did have the specter of the upcoming appointment looming over it. He didn’t exactly plan it down to the minute, but he had a few destinations in mind, and he was determined they would hit as many as they could.

Gerry went along willingly. His breakdown in the shower seemed to have done him some good—which was more or less what Tim had expected, God knew he needed to let himself have emotions sometimes—and he seemed calmer, lighter even, as they walked or taxied around the city to various can’t-miss destinations. They visited the Art Institute of Chicago, where Gerry gave Tim the history of almost every single painting and waxed surprisingly poetic about the artistic techniques and Tim surprised him by quietly singing a song from a musical that was loosely inspired by one of them, and the Field Museum, where they had a lighthearted debate over whether SUE could have been an avatar of one of the Fears in life. They strolled the Riverwalk, visited a jazz club that was apparently world-famous, and dined at restaurants Tim had solicited recommendations to from the staff, stressing as he did so that they wanted to try where the locals ate, not where the tourists went. They even managed—somehow—to get tickets to a game played between the local team and a team called the Buccaneers, and while neither of them understood the rules to American football, they agreed it had been worth the visit, if only for the experience. An usher, overhearing their conversation, had suggested they come back in the spring to see a baseball game, and they’d politely agreed to try, even though both of them doubted they would make it.

The stress had returned the morning of Gerry’s follow-up appointment, and Tim had simply held his hand on the taxi ride to the hospital, but in the end there was nothing to worry about. Dr. Greene removed the stitches and declared that Gerry was healing remarkably well. He asked a few questions about Gerry’s pain level, decided he could finish up the current round of medications and not need to renew them, and released him with a reminder to follow up with “your regular doctor” when he got back to London. Another admonition from Debbie—who had, as she promised, popped in to say hello—about staying away from the cigarettes, and they were free to go.

“So I guess we’re heading to—what’s it called—O’Hare, then?” Gerry asked as they stepped out of the front doors into the biting cold. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, releasing a puff of steam. “Heigh-ho and off for home?”

Tim was reaching for his phone when a nearby church tower began chiming, tolling the hour. He counted the strokes, then shook his head. “Well, we missed checkout for today, anyway, so I guess we’re leaving tomorrow. And no, we’re heading to Union Station.”

“Why? You’re still on about me not flying for a bit?”

“For another five weeks, yeah. So not until after Christmas at the earliest. And anyway…” Tim hesitated. They hadn’t actually discussed what came next. “Come on. I was saving this one for today because I thought we’d need a bit more time. We can talk there.”

Gerry sighed tolerantly, but followed along without argument. Tim knew that the only reason he was getting away with this was that Gerry trusted him absolutely—that he knew Tim would explain everything, and that if he wasn’t saying it now, it was for a very good reason. And it was—primarily that standing in front of the hospital wasn’t the place to talk about things like this, but also that he wanted to get at least a start on a good day before they discussed it.

Their destination was the Navy Pier, which, according to the concierge at the hotel, was just one of those places you had to visit when you went to Chicago. Tim had picked up a brochure from the lobby, but he hadn’t done much more than skim it, so he wasn’t entirely sure what to expect other than water of some kind. It turned out to not be that different from Brighton Pier, save that Tim couldn’t see an arcade of any kind. Still, there were a number of rides, including a giant wheel looming over the space, plus shops and restaurants, the tantalizing odors mingling pleasantly in the air. Even as cold as it was, and even though it was the middle of the day on a Monday, the place was still bustling. Beyond the crowd they could just make out the masts of a tall ship, probably some kind of reenactment or museum, as well as a more modern boat steaming back to dock. Past that was a vast, sparkling world of water.

“Huh,” Gerry said, his nostrils flaring as he sniffed the air. “I can’t smell the sea from here.” He paused, then added, “Actually, I thought Illinois was landlocked.”

“That’s not the sea. It’s Lake Michigan,” Tim told him. “It’s one of the Great Lakes, and the only one that’s fully in the United States instead of being shared with Canada. Second-largest by volume, third-largest by surface area. Anyway, it’s a freshwater lake, so you wouldn’t smell any salt.”

“Seriously, how do you know that?”

“It’s in all those tourist guides in the hotel lobby. I had to do something to keep myself sane when they kicked me out of your hospital room, and I didn’t bring any books with me.” Tim looped his arm through Gerry’s. “Where do you want to start? We’ve got all day.”

Gerry gazed up thoughtfully at the wheel. “Think that’s too high for my cracked brain to handle?”

Tim grinned. Perfect. “Please. Our hotel room is probably further up than that. C’mon.”

They took their time getting to the wheel, which they really didn’t have much of a choice about; a large horde of children, evidently a school group of some kind, got in their way and they had to work to avoid them—and avoid getting trampled by them. At last, however, they made it to the ticket booth, joined the queue, waited patiently, and eventually climbed into a bucket. The attendant lowered the bar onto their lap, and they were off.

To his credit, Gerry waited until they had risen slightly and the car had stopped briefly, presumably to let the next set of riders on, before he turned to Tim. “So. What’s the plan? I assume you have one. We can’t exactly get to London without flying.”

“We’re not going to London.” Tim patted his coat and hoped Gerry could hear the muffled thunk as he hit the folio Gertrude had given him. He was afraid to leave it in the hotel room. Maybe Gertrude’s paranoia was rubbing off on him a bit. “Not for a while yet, anyway. Gertrude told me before she left that she wants us to keep looking for those answers you two were after. We’re going to Pittsburgh. She left me her notes on what she was planning to do when she got there, and she’s gone back to London herself. We’re going to pick up where she—where you—left off, and…go from there.”

Gerry blinked, then clutched at the bar as the car got moving again. “She trusts us that much?”

“Yeah. She does. Not just to continue the work, but to figure out where to go after, which tells me she doesn’t think we’ll be coming back to London any time soon. I can’t imagine this will take that much longer, you guys had already been gone five months when she called me out here, but I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”

“I guess so.” Gerry slid his arm around Tim’s shoulders. “Just…it’s been two weeks. I’m worried that whatever we’re supposed to be finding…what if the trail’s gone cold? What if we’ve lost the chance?”

Tim shrugged and leaned into Gerry’s side. “Gertrude’s not stupid. She had to have known we’d be stuck here a bit. Even said I would ‘officially be on leave’ until we set off for Pittsburgh. If it was really time-sensitive, I don’t think she’d have told us it could wait. She’d have kept going, waited until I called to say we were ready to leave Chicago, and told us where to either meet her or pick up the trail, and then gone back to London.”

“Good point, as always,” Gerry admitted. “Okay. If you’re sure…”

“I’m sure.”

“Then I guess it’s on to Pittsburgh tomorrow night.”

The whole trip on the wheel, including a spectacular view of the city and lake when they stopped for a few moments at the apex, lasted about seven minutes, and the sparkle in Gerry’s eyes told Tim he’d enjoyed himself. They walked the Pier hand in hand, trying a few more of the rides that appealed to them and browsing the shops. The river cruises had apparently stopped for the winter, but they got drinks, sat on the end of the pier, and watched the sunset together. Once the lights came on around them, they made their way off the pier in search of dinner, then went back to the hotel. Gerry, who was after all still recovering, fell asleep almost immediately with one arm flung across Tim, but Tim stayed up a bit longer with his laptop. He booked two train tickets to Pittsburgh, found another extended stay hotel in the same chain as the one they were in now—since it was a national chain, he’d signed up for a rewards membership, figuring it would probably help in the long run if they were in the country for a while—and reserved their room, then forwarded the information to Gertrude.

Somehow, even though it was well past midnight in London, he wasn’t surprised when he got an email from her almost immediately, welcoming him back to work and telling him to be careful.

They checked out the next morning. As they stepped out into the sunlight, Tim turned to Gerry. “We don’t have to be to the station until after five. There’s only one train out of Chicago and it doesn’t leave until five after six. How do you want to spend the day?”

Gerry actually smiled mischievously. “Funny you should mention that. There is one thing I’d really like to do.” He took Tim’s hand. “Come on. We can stop at the station on the way and check our bags for the day so we don’t have to carry them around.”

Tim was thrilled to see Gerry looking so…normal. He’d have done anything he asked at that point.

They duly paid twenty dollars to have their bags stored, and then Gerry led Tim out into the streets. He’d evidently gotten directions from somewhere to…wherever they were going…or else he was making a pretty damn good guess. Either way, they stopped along the way for breakfast, then took a leisurely stroll along the streets until they reached an open park in the middle of the city, labeled Millennium Park.

“I can get behind this,” Tim said, smiling at the sign. “Love a good bit of green space. Even if it’s mostly white now.” It had evidently snowed in the night; the grass sparkled, even in the low light from the overcast sky, with an icy crust.

“Just wait,” Gerry promised. “There’s something here I really think you’ll like.” He paused, then added thoughtfully, “Not sure why. It just seems like your thing.”

“Okay, now I’m intrigued.”

They ambled through the park. A lot of people seemed to be heading in one particular direction. Tim found out why when they emerged on a large plaza and discovered an enormous sculpture that could only be described as a mirrored bean. He blinked. “What the hell is that?”

“You don’t know?” Gerry said. His tone was incredulous, but there was a teasing grin tugging at one corner of his mouth.

“I don’t know everything in the world. Just the important stuff,” Tim shot back, making Gerry laugh. “Hang on, there’s a sign.”

The sculpture turned out to be called Cloud Gate. Tim had never heard of it before, but he was surprised that he recognized the artist, Anish Kapoor. He turned to point this out to Gerry, then noticed the look on his face as he stared at the artwork. Instantly on edge, he asked, “What? What is it?”

“Just…look at it,” Gerry murmured, tearing his eyes away and staring at the ground. “Tell me if I’m imagining things.”

Tim looked. Cloud Gate’s reflective surface was mostly flat matte clouds, the day being so overcast, although the vague impressions of the various tourists and visitors clustered under it taking pictures were much in evidence. He was about to ask for clarification when he found his gaze drawn to the inner arch of the shape. Two reflections seemed to cross, and for just a moment, he felt disorientated and…sideways. As though Cloud Gate was showing him the real world and he was the reflection.

A reflection turned, and seemed to make eye contact with him. Tim quickly cut his eyes away and stared at his and Gerry’s joined hands until the weird almost vertigo and headache dissipated. He slowly loosened his grip; he was squeezing so hard that his finger had puffed up and was straining at the ring beneath the gloves, so he had to be hurting Gerry.

“No,” he told him. “I don’t think you’re imagining things. I should’ve guessed from Kapoor’s other works that he’s at least seen the Spiral.”

“Yeah.” Gerry took a deep breath and tightened his hand around Tim’s, then tugged. “Come on. This isn’t what I wanted to bring you here for anyway.”

Tim followed without too much complaint. The sculpture wasn’t super involved with the Spiral; it was just that Kapoor had obviously been Marked by it, and he’d just as obviously put a bit of it into his work—wasn’t it said that all great artists put a bit of themselves into their art? Still, he made a mental note to mention it to Gertrude. If it was going to be used in a ritual, she’d probably like to be aware of it.

His mood lifted the further they got from the plaza where the sculpture was, and from the way Gerry straightened, his obviously had as well. They continued ambling through the park for a while, and then Gerry let out a soft, satisfied-sounding ah and quickened his steps. “There it is. Come on.”

Laughing, Tim picked up the pace, letting Gerry drag him forward. He laughed even harder when he realized what Gerry wanted him to see. A low fence with clear plastic set in the gaps of the frame surrounded a large, flat area that had been turned into an ice skating rink. A booth off to one side proclaimed that skates were available for rent.

“You want to go ice skating?” he asked, unexpectedly delighted.

“Mostly I want to see you ice skating, but yeah, I’ll get out there with you.” Gerry grinned at him. “So you do like the idea?”

“I love it.” Tim tugged Gerry around and kissed him.

It turned out that while the rink was free, they were supposed to reserve a time, and the first skate was completely booked. Tim pulled out his phone and booked them both for one o’clock, and they found a bench where they could sit and watch the skaters. It proved to be a pretty good mix of what Tim took to be university students, older folks who were probably past retirement age, and parents with small children likely too young for school. Some of the littlest ones were leaning on props shaped like penguins to keep themselves from falling face-first on the ice. Tim couldn’t help but grin as he watched them stumble around the ice.

“Too bad they don’t have those in adult sizes,” Gerry said dryly, watching a tiny child of indeterminate gender that seemed to be mostly comprised of snowsuit and hat. “I am definitely going to be terrible at this.”

“Hey, don’t sell yourself short. You might be surprised.” Tim nudged him. “Also, this might be a good time to tell you I’ve never done this either.”

“What, never?” Gerry’s eyebrows shot up.

“No, never. Been skiing a few times, snowshoeing once or twice, and one year Danny talked me into trying snowboarding, but I’ve never done ice skating.”

“Well, that’s more than I’ve done, so you’re up on me there.”

“Good. Then we can look like idiots together.” Tim dodged Gerry’s playful swipe and put his arm around his shoulders. “It’ll be fun. You’ll see.”

“I know.” Gerry leaned his head on Tim’s shoulder.

They got up when the rink stewards ordered the current crowd off the ice, went over to the booth, and rented their skates. It probably should have been at least a little embarrassing for the pack of schoolchildren on some kind of field trip to almost literally skate circles around them, but Tim was too busy laughing and holding onto Gerry to keep himself from falling over while Gerry did the same thing with him to care. Somehow, they managed to keep from actually tumbling to the ground. His legs were aching well before their hour was up, but he didn’t want to stop, not while Gerry was still going strong. He kept powering his way around the rink, but silently, he thanked God that they would have at least three or four hours to make it to the train station from here. It might have only been about a twenty-minute walk, but he was probably going to need at least a short rest first.

Finally, the rink stewards called that time was up. The two of them stumbled off the ice, nearly fell when they hit solid ground, and wobbled over to the bench where they’d left their shoes to get the skates off.

Gerry groaned, rubbing at his calves. “You’re a machine, you know that? I was having a hell of a time keeping up with you.”

“What? Oh, no.” Tim started giggling. He couldn’t help it. “I thought I was keeping up with you!”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Gerry threw his head back and laughed, too.

It did, at least, give them time to recover, so they were a bit steadier on their feet when they finally got their boots laced back up and returned the skates. Still, they took their time getting back to Union Station. Retrieving their bags was easy, and they still had time to grab a bite to eat before heading to the platform. Once there, Gerry hesitated for just a minute, then led Tim purposefully over to one of the benches.

“Strategic view of the incoming train?” Tim asked lightly. He glanced at the arrival board. They still had close to an hour before their train pulled in.

“Something like that.” Gerry pointed to the bench on the extreme opposite end of the platform. “Did Gertrude tell you we’d made it all the way to the station before she took me to the hospital?”

“No.” Tim’s stomach flipped. “You didn’t tell her you weren’t feeling well?”

“They were just headaches. Never really thought anything of it. And it didn’t occur to me that I was having seizures with them—”

“Gerry!”

“It didn’t! I just…thought the pain was so bad I was twitching to make it stop.” Gerry sighed. “Anyway, I’m not sure Gertrude really noticed at first either, but something suddenly made her pay more attention, and the next thing I knew we were on our way to the hospital.”

“There was some supposedly inspiring news story going around about a basketball game that got moved up because one of the players is dying of brain cancer and really wanted to play before she died,” Tim said quietly. “It got her worrying. Which, you know Gertrude, just irritated her.”

“Yeah, God forbid anyone knows she cares.” Gerry sighed. “Still. I’m glad she did. And I’m really glad she called you, mate. I couldn’t have got through this without you.”

Tim put his arm around Gerry’s shoulders, then took his hand with the other and kissed his knuckles. “I’m glad she called me, too. There’s nowhere else I’d want to be.”

Gerry leaned his head on Tim’s shoulder, and they sat in silence, listening to the bustle of the station around them. Tim was peripherally aware of a woman glaring disapprovingly at them from further along the platform, but he ignored her. He’d been out and proud as bisexual since he was thirteen and he had the scars to prove it, and if he was likely to let the opinions of others bother him he wouldn’t have lasted this long. Besides, he’d just come damn close to losing Gerry. However they defined their relationship, he was the most important person in Tim’s life, and he wanted as much reassurance as he could get that he was alive and here. Other people could fucking deal with that.

Finally, Gerry spoke quietly. “What’s the plan when we get to Pittsburgh?”

“There’s something Gertrude wants us to check in the Hall of Records.” Tim patted his coat again. “It’s all in here. We can go over it on the train.”

“You don’t want to wait until we get there?”

“Train gets in at five in the morning. We can’t get into the hotel until the afternoon. And Thursday is some kind of government holiday, apparently, so everything will be closed until Monday, and they might close early tomorrow. Rather at least get started than hit a brick wall and get delayed entirely another week.”

“Fair enough,” Gerry admitted. “Leave it to the Americans to decide to add a holiday in the middle of November for no damn reason. What is it, anyway?”

Tim snorted. “They call it Thanksgiving. It’s a whole day to celebrate turkey and football.”

“Oh, joy. I suppose there’s a football team where we’re going? Seems like everyone has a football team.”

“Yeah, the Steelers, I think. But they’re not playing until Sunday.” Tim smirked down at Gerry. “And I’m not particularly interested in going to another game.”

“Good,” Gerry replied. “So we’ll get what answers we can tomorrow, hang around until Monday if we need to, and get out of town as soon as possible?”

“That’s the plan.” A low whistle sounded in the distance, and Tim glanced down the track. “Aha, our chariot approaches. Come, my prince, let us fly.”

“If this train starts flying, I’m setting it on fire.” Gerry bent to retrieve his bag.

“Nah, the Heartland Flyer operates in Texas.” Tim dodged Gerry’s halfhearted swipe and caught his hand, laughing. “C’mon. Maybe boarding first won’t get us to Pittsburgh any faster, but at least we’ve got a better chance of getting good seats. God only knows how many people are going to be taking this trip home for the holidays. And then once we’re settled, we can look at this damn notebook and figure out what’s what.”

“Sounds good.” Gerry squeezed Tim’s hand. “Let’s get going, then.”

[spoopydooblr]

My King Will Be Kind Chapter 4 / Kendall Roy x OC

an: another chapter!! enjoy!!

tw: cursing

Stella expected Kendall to suggest that she go home, but he did the opposite.  They laid on the bed, almost-naked and in each other's arms.    

"You know you can uh, stay over."  He said, and she swore he was being a little shy.

She had just met this guy, who she assumed was just a fun story to tell her friends, and now he's asking her to stay over?

"Are you being serious?"  Stella sat up, suddenly feeling naked in his discarded Tom Ford shirt.  She didn't know how else to respond to his question.

"Yeah I'm fucking serious."

"Tomorrow is like, Monday."  She had a somewhat important meeting the next morning to talk scripts.  

"Then we'll set an alarm."  He said it like it was obvious.  

The pictures of Kendall with supermodels and strippers flashed in her head.  He was probably just being nice.  What the fuck was he doing with someone like her?

"Look, Kendall--"

"I get it.  But I'm not that guy anymore."  He seemed to have read her mind.  "I like you."

What the fuck?!

"You just met me."  Stella knew she was famous, sure, she hit one million followers on Instagram last month.  This life wasn't foreign to her.  But the Roy's were different.  They were the bosses of her boss's boss.  "No offense, but like, what do you want from me?"

He laughed.  "Nothing."  Kendall started, his lips curving into a smile.  "Well, I guess I'd love to fuck you again."

She had to laugh.  "No, but, why me?"

"Because you're smart.  And you're like, fuckin talented."

"Bit of fan behavior, ah Ken?"

"When I saw you at the club I knew I had to talk to you."

She blushed.  "You could have anyone you wanted--"

"And you couldn't?"  He was wrong, but she wasn't about to tell him the late nights she spent, longing for men who just wanted a quick fuck.  Everyone in Hollywood was the same.  

"You'd be surprised..."

"What man..."  He pulled her down by the collar of his dress shirt she was wearing, flipping them over so he was on top.  "Wouldn't want you?"  he kissed the exposed skin on her neck.  Stella ran her hand through his hair.  His tongue danced along her collarbone.  

"And you in my fucking shirt."  He moved his hands underneath the hem.  "What do you think, Stella girl?"  His fingers brushed her nipples under the oversized garment.  "You like me too?"

Fuck.  Was she really about to do this?

It slipped out of her mouth before she could stop.  "I mean, yeah."

"Good."  He said, moving his mouth to hers.  "Then stay."

She broke the kiss, looking into his hazel eyes.  There was this Bassett Hound quality about them.  "Okay."

Kendall woke up before her, tying his tie in the mirror as she opened her eyes.  He was wearing a plain black designer suit with a perfect fit.  

Stella immediately panicked, had she missed her alarm?

"Oh, shit.  What time is it?"

"Five-thirty, you have another hour."

She breathed a sigh of relief, but questioned, "Why are you up, Ken?"  It was suddenly cold next to her.  "Come back to bed."

"I have this uh, stupid fucking meeting today with the sibs."  He checked himself out in the mirror.  "The pj leaves at 7."

"Oh, poor you, business meetings and pjs."  Stella teased.  She flew semi-private with the Delirium cast last year, but a regular private jet was different.  He probably flew private every month.  Maybe every week.  

Kendall smirked, finishing with his tie.  "Breakfast should be here soon.  I had Jess order like, every kind of bagel, so hopefully that's something you're into."

Stella didn't know who Jess was or why she was on bagel duty, but she nodded.  "Bagels sound delicious."  It was a bit of a lie, as her breakfast usually consisted of an iced latte and a piece of gum, but after last night, she was famished.

"Good."  He walked over to the bed and kissed her softly.  "I had fun last night."

"Me too, Ken."

"Good.  Because we're like, fucking, fuck Gods, I swear."

Stella stifled a laugh.  He truly spoke in a manner that she had never heard before.  

"When can I see you again?  What's the schedule like for an up and coming genius writer like yourself?"

Here he was, calling her a genius without reading a single word of hers.

"Um, I'm not sure honestly.  I have like, meetings and shit, but I can make time.  I think you're probably a little busier than me, though."

"Fuck, you're right.  Roman's like, been up my ass for this deal, and Shiv, God, she's like on some other level recently.  And Con...fuck, he's getting married next week."

"Who?"

"Oh, my other brother, Connor.  He's, uh,"  Kendall looked for the words.  "He's running for president."

Stella immediately knew what he was talking about.  She recalled the various twitter rants that Kendall's brother went on throughout his campaign.  He wasn't quite neonazi level, but there was much to be desired in the intelligence department.

Lost in her thoughts, Stella didn't notice Kendall take out his phone and make a call.

"Jess, hey, what's the uh, eta on the bagels?"  He paused.  "Okay, great."  Kendall looked up at Stella and mouthed 'latte?' She eagerly nodded.  "And two lattes, regular milk, none of that liberal milk, okay?  You're the best.  Thanks."

"Liberal milk?"

"Like, you know, the oat and cashew shit, all that."

"You're insane."

Kendall grinned.  "Speaking of my brother's wedding."  He sat down next to her on the bed.  "What would you say about being my date?  Rava and the kids aren't going so you don't have to worry about that if it's an issue."

Uh oh.  This is what she feared the most: a public outing with Kendall.  Stella was sure there would be a million cameras there, capturing the most recent Roy wedding.  She had a reputation to uphold, and being on Kendall Roy's arm was not a part of that.  The kids and ex wife were the least of her worries.

"Kendall--"

"I know.  You're a fuckin feminist icon.  Roy-a-palooza isn't really good for the optics."

It was true, her fans depended on her to stay true to her beliefs.  "Yeah."

"Just think about it, okay?  I promise it'll be fun."

Stella nodded.  She would definitely think about it.  The thought of attending a public event with Kendall made her stomach turn, but not necessarily in the bad way she thought it would.  Kendall wasn't attached to ATN like he used to be, and judging by last year's feminist rants on Twitter, he seemed to be turning to the 'liberal mob' that his family feared so much.

Before she could say anything else, her ears perked up as the front door of the apartment opened.

"Bagels."  Kendall smiled and got up from the bed.  As he reached the threshold he turned, "and I left some clothes out for you.  If you don't mind wearing my sweats."

She definitely did not mind.

He left the room, closing the door behind him.  It was small gestures like that in which he showed he cared, and Stella could feel it.  She walked to the bathroom, pulling the Tom Ford shirt closer to her body.  

On the bathroom counter were gray sweatpants and a worn, navy Harvard sweatshirt.  She recalled from her online stalking that he graduated from Harvard Business School in the 90's.  It was easy to feel his personality through everything he did.  He could've left her naked or just in his shirt, but he didn't.  The sweatshirt seemed to say 'you're mine now'.  

Stella changed and tried her best to freshen up.  Her makeup from the night before was smudged across her face, and she was definitely the poster child for sex hair.  She walked out of the bathroom and looked for her purse, needing a hair tie, but realized it was in the kitchen.  Sex hair it is.  

"Hey."  She said, turning the corner to the expansive, all-white kitchen.  

"Hey."  Kendall smiled at her, spreading cream cheese on a blueberry bagel.  Interesting choice.  "Latte."  He said, handing her a plastic to-go cup filled with coffee and ice.  She gladly took it.

"How did you know I wanted iced?"

"Because, uh, you're fuckin twenty-six."

"Offended.  But, um, true."  She blushed, sipping her coffee out of the plastic-free compostable straw.  

"I'm sorry, but I really have to get going."  He said, genuinely disappointed.  "Fikret can come back to pick you up after he drops me at the airfield."

"Kendall."  Stella said, a serious look on her face.  "I'm not using your driver."

"I won't let you take the subway."

Stella scoffed.  "I'm gonna do it just because you said that."

Kendall shakes his head.  "Fine.  Enjoy the rats."  He stepped towards her, wrapping one arm around her waist and pulling her into him.  "I'll miss you, Stell."

She bites her lip.  "I'll see you soon, I promise."

He kissed her, soft and slow, like he's trying to savor the moment.  

"Good luck."  She grasped his hand one last time.  

"Wait, so you go out without me ONE night and now you're fucking a billionaire?!"  A female voice yelled from the other end of the phone.  Stella was sitting on her tiny couch in her tiny apartment, trying to process the events that just happened to her.  The minute she got home she called her best friend, Lauren.  Lauren and Stella had been through it all together, first meeting three years ago on the set of Delirium.

"Yeah, I guess?"  She said.

"I can't believe it.  He's the literal L to the OG guy."

"I know.  I almost asked for a private concert."

Lauren started singing the song, and Stella followed.  "A N he playin..."

"Playin like a pro!"  They laughed.  

"Was that for his like, Dad's birthday or something?"

"50th anniversary of Waystar RoyCo, actually."

"God, you're whipped.  Please tell me you're seeing him again."

"Well...it's complicated.  He invited me to his brother's wedding this weekend, but I don't know-"

"Oh, you're so going."

"I know, I know, but what about the optics?"  Stella cringed.  She hated worrying about what people thought of her, but she had to.

"Who cares?  Sure, his dad is like the worst, but isn't Kendall like, out of the company now?"

"I guess..."  Stella was about to protest, but her doorbell rang.  "Hold up, Laur, someone's at the door."

"Is it Kendall?"

"I don't think so.  He's on a private jet right now."  She didn't mean to brag, but it kind of came out that way.

"Of course he is."

Stella opened the door, careful to not let her dog out.  A man holding a giant bouquet of flowers stood before her.  

"Stella Allen?"  he said.  She could barely see his face because of how massive the flowers were.  

"Um, yeah?"

"From Mr. Roy."  He said, handing her the vase.  

"Oh...thanks?"

The man nodded and walked away.  She closed the door behind her.

"So Kendall just sent me a giant bouquet..."

"No fucking way!"  Lauren screamed from the phone speaker.

Stella put the flowers down on her kitchen counter.  "They're fucking massive, I don't even know what to do."

It was true, she really had no idea what she was going to do.

[taomyou]

The Romance of Reimbursements - Chapter 4

Pairing: Levi Ackerman x Reader Status: COMPLETED Summary: There’s a guy you see every Friday on bus 143, and you think he’s pretty hot. It wouldn't hurt to tell your best friend about him, would it? or, you and Levi take the same bus home from work every Friday, and you fall in love slowly, clumsily, and with all the time in the world to fold as many paper stars as your heart desires. Word Count: 4.6k Tags: slow burn, friends to lovers, modern au, office au, fluff, romance, meet-cute, matchmaking

(A/N: this fic is entirely available on ao3 here if you would like to read it there instead!)

Chapter Navigation Accompanying Playlist

sixty eggs

"Huh? What're you still doing here?"

At the sound of your friend's voice, you turn around and nearly trip. Petra thankfully catches hold of you before your heel can collapse onto itself and injure you. You look at her sheepishly.

"Thanks. And what do you mean?"

"Aren't you supposed to be on your way home now?"

Checking the time on your phone, your expression drops. 3:02 PM.

"I should be."

When Erwin first gave you that thick stack of paperwork on Monday, you thought nothing of it. You stayed an hour later than usual, and Armin dropped you off after you and them all went to dinner together. You figured staying later just meant too much of your afternoon was consumed with Levi and Erwin's abrupt stay in your office.

Then, the same thing happened on Tuesday, only without Levi: Erwin greeted you, handed you your papers, and checked in periodically. You ended up taking the bus an hour later than you usually did.

Then, it happened on Wednesday. That day, the bus stopped running after 8 so you had to get a ride from Petra.

Then, on Thursday, you had to take the bus two hours later than usual, just barely making it onto the last one of the day.

Then, today, you just finished dropping off some papers for one of your coworkers down the hall; normally on Friday, you're out of the building by 2:55 PM to make it to the bus stop with a few minutes to spare.

On Wednesday, somewhere in between all the chaos at work, Hange texted you telling asking you to come over to their apartment on Friday around 5.

For what reason? You had no idea, but anything they had planned surely would've done the trick in helping you unwind after the long week you've had. You'd already been avoiding them over the course of the week to save them the trouble of worrying about how late you've been working, so you'd probably have to deal with some questioning, but that's nothing out of the ordinary for you and Hange.

Petra smiles at you gently, giving you a firm squeeze on your shoulder. "Get home safe, yeah? You've had a rough week."

"I will. Thanks."

You nod at her, returning her smile and then going back to your office to get ready to leave. When the door behind you closes, however, you let that smile drop. Mikasa's on another floor right now, so you're alone while you pack up your briefcase. You check to make sure you don't leave anything important in your office before you're off, and, just like that, you're standing quietly in the elevator waiting for it to reach the lobby. Once you're there, you say a quick farewell to the receptionist before you exit the building and start heading over to the bus station.

Even though it's Friday, you can't help feeling down. Just last week, you were swinging your arms as you walked and spent your week waiting for Friday to catch just a glimpse of that stranger from the bus. Even if you did feel such extreme misplaced excitement/anguish, it was something you looked forward to every week. At least you'll be able to relax a bit during the ride back to your place.

Checking your phone, you frown again. 3:15 PM. The bus you normally take (and the one Levi's on) usually arrives at 3:02, give or take a minute, so you guess you'll just have to take the next one. Looking at the street, you see that traffic's gotten pretty bad, with the noise of cars starting and stopping filling your ears. If your usual bus already came and went, this next one would take forever to arrive.

Before you can check the timesheet to see when the next bus is coming, though, you hear the familiar sound of screeching tires and doors opening. You hurriedly put your phone into your pocket and get your bus fare card from your wallet before stepping on. You say a quick "thank you" to the bus driver after your fare is verified, and turn to look for a seat.

Well, that's a bit awkward.

The entire cart is filled with who you assume are college students, some of whom are already standing and holding onto the upper handles, and you can't see any open seats from where you're standing.

So much for relaxing during the ride.

Sighing, you step a bit further in and out of the center walkway to grab hold onto one of the handles, but before you can do that, you hear your name called out from the back of the bus. You ignore it the first time, thinking it's someone saying something else, but when you hear it the second time, you crane your neck to where the voice is coming from.

Just barely, you can see Levi motioning for you to come towards him. You let a small smile find its way onto your face and rush past the other people on the cart to get to him, apologizing as you pass them. You see him take his backpack from off the seat next to him and put it onto his lap, and he looks at you expectantly.

"Did you save a seat for me?" You ask, pointing at the space next to him. He nods.

If you weren't so exhausted from work, you surely would've burst into flames.

For now, though, you can just tiredly smile in response. Before you can sit, however, the bus starts moving again, and you're taken off balance. "Woah!"

Thankfully, you already had your back turned towards the seat so you didn't bump into anyone, but you stiffen up to brace for the impact of abruptly sitting. You expect to feel a hit to your head when it's meant to inevitably hit the glass behind you, but you're surprised to feel Levi's hand instead.

At the contact, your ears start to heat up. You say your thanks, subconsciously tucking a strand of hair behind your ear before putting your briefcase onto your lap. He takes his hand away from the window just as quickly, only nodding in response to your gratitude, and you fish your phone out of your pocket to make yourself busy, too shy to look at him next to you.

Your shoulders are forced to touch, given the fact that there's definitely way too many people on the bus in the first place, and even with your lack of energy, you can feel the heat coming off of his body. The bus stops more frequently than normal, probably due to traffic, so you end up getting pushed closer every time that happens.

You try your best to ignore it, but the red on your face comes back like it does every time. You get a text from Hange before you can dwell on that, so you silently thank them before clicking on the notification.

Hange - 3:21 PM

Heyyy still coming?

You - 3:21 PM

you didn't really give me a choice but yes

Hange 3:22 PM

Awesome!!!! Can you pick up something from the store on Rose? I forgot to get eggs and butter

You - 3:22 PM

i can just bring some from my place but sure

Hange 3:22 PM

Nope, no need for your fancy ingredients I do need a lot of eggs tho!! Get the 60 pack

You - 3:23 PM

what do you need 60 eggs for?

Hange 3:25 PM

You will find out in time Bring Levi with you to the store too ;)

You look over at the man next to you, wondering if you should bring him along with you; if you remember correctly, the store Hange's talking about is at the same stop Levi gets off at. He seems pretty concentrated on whatever he's doing on his phone, but if Hange said to bring him with you, maybe he's coming over to their place too? He apparently senses your eyes on him because he looks back at you, a neutral expression on his face.

You choose to not say anything to save yourself the embarrassment of stumbling over your words and instead look down and move your phone towards him so he can see what Hange just messaged you.

You're grateful that he gets the cue right away and reads the texts on your phone, and you can just barely hear him hum over the noises of other passengers talking amongst themselves. You see his hand stretched out slightly, almost as if to grab onto your phone, so you hand it to him thinking he's going to get a closer look at the screen. You don't want to look as he does, scared of his reaction if he thinks anything serious about the winky face Hange sent you, but he hands the device to you after a few moments and looks back at his own.

You see that he's opened up a new contact for himself, with what you assume to be his number at the top of the screen. The realization that, yes, the most handsome man you've ever laid eyes on gave you his number, makes your brain short circuit for a second before you realize that he's probably wanting you to text him.

Calm down, he probably only gave it to you out of convenience. You quickly add him as "Levi" and shoot him a message, trying to swat away any bubbling thoughts about him.

You - 3:28 PM

hi

You see him start to type from the corner of your eye.

Levi - 3:28 PM

Hello I don't think I'd be able to hear you over the people around us

You - 3:28 PM

me neither

Your heart relaxes a bit, now with the knowledge that he really did only give you his number to avoid having to talk over everyone else.

You - 3:29 PM

do you know why there's so many people on the bus today? it's normally never this crowded

Levi - 3:27 PM

There's a concert across town Did you want me to come with you to the store?

You lean back a bit into your seat, the hand keeping your briefcase in your lap holding on just a bit tighter. You take a look over at him before answering.

You - 3:28 PM

you don't have to

Levi - 3:28 PM

I have to go to Hange's too, so might as well

You - 3:29 PM

i wouldn't mind the company then

When the three dots don't appear after you hit send, you figure that conversation's over.

You try your best to not make too much contact with Levi, but the bus has remained as turbulent as it did when you first got on, so that's not really possible. You decide that leaning forward and resting on your arms atop your briefcase is the best thing you can do to both hide your face and get some much-needed rest. It also helps that now, your shoulders aren't touching Levi's anymore.

After some amount of time, your breathing evens itself out, your face cools, and you're able to relax yourself a bit. Your shoulders loosen up, no longer as tense from anxiety over work. The bus stops periodically with more and more people getting on, until eventually practically all of them get off at the final stop in the downtown area. The person on your other side has gotten up to leave, too, so you stretch your arms above your head and yawn, thankful for the space.

Even though the seat next to you is empty, though, you can't really bring yourself to move away further from Levi. If you need to, you can deal with the nervousness and jitters after your day is over and you're alone in your apartment to scream to your heart's content.

Now that the bus has made it out of downtown, it's been moving much more quickly on its route. There's no longer as many other people on the bus, so you can see the scenery from the window across from you much more clearly. You usually sat at the other side, opposite of where you and Levi are currently, so you've never been able to really see what the terrain on that side of the road looks like. It's not all that different, really. It's the same buildings, more or less, the same highway, the same turns, but you still feel a bit lost staring at everything.

You hear Levi start to shuffle around, getting ready to stand, so you do the same and prepare to get off. The two of you exit, with you saying "thank you" to the driver before you're out the door, and you're off to go and have a fun little grocery store adventure. Or, more likely, you'd be walking around together silently, but that's fun in its own right.

"Just the butter and eggs, right?" He asks, looking over at you. You nod, and he starts guiding you in the direction of the grocery store. Even though you feel like you're walking pretty sluggishly, he doesn't make any issue of it and matches your pace.

You end up in front of the store relatively quickly, it not being too far from the bus stop at all. You wait by the automatic doors as Levi goes over to get a cart, which you're confused about until you see him put his backpack in it to avoid carrying it around. You sheepishly sneak your briefcase in too once he's close enough, grateful that he thought to take a cart.

You don't really get the chance to come here often, so you don't quite have a good grasp of where everything is, but thankfully Levi seems to and zooms by quickly to get what Hange needs. Neither of you make any effort to talk, but you do feel a bit awkward with the silence. When the two of you reach the self-checkout area, you decide to try and fill it.

"Do you know what Hange has planned for us at their place?" You ask. He glances over at you and shakes his head.

"Not really, they just said it'd be us and Erwin. Moblit and Mike are busy."

You nod awkwardly, not really sure how to keep any conversation going. The mention of Erwin being there unnerves you slightly. You've been fighting off the urge to ask him why you've been getting so much more work than usual, and being so tired at work made it significantly easier than it would otherwise. You know you won't bring anything up at Hange's, but you can't help but feel a tiny bit of betrayal that someone you're apparently closer with now has been consistently dumping you with excessive work.

You hand Levi the eggs and the box of butter, which he scans both of. You go to your pocket to get your wallet, but as you're taking out your card to pay, you look over to see Levi doing the same. Before he can say anything, you speak up.

"Hange asked me to get it, so I'm paying."

He hesitates at that but puts his wallet away. "Fair enough."

You tap your card, press a few buttons to verify your payment, and grab your receipt once that's all sorted out. You figure you can just carry the eggs and butter on you, so you put them back into the cart before wheeling out with Levi next to you.

"Do you know when the next bus comes?' You ask.

"I park here in the mornings before taking the bus, so you can come with me," he replies. "Let me take the cart."

"How do I know you aren't going to kidnap me?"

He looks over at you, completely deadpan. "And what am I going to do? Force you to draft a prenup for me?"

You laugh at that, looking away in embarrassment. "Yeah, sure."

You let go of the handle, letting him guide it now, and he directs you both to a sleek black car parked in front of a floral shop adjacent to the grocery store: Magnolia Floral Company. Your eyes linger a bit at the small shop—it's quite cute, with very classic windows and flowers decorating the front display shelves. Ironically, none of them seem to be magnolias. Checking your time, you see that it's 4:19 PM. Surely, there's enough time before you have to meet at Hange's, and it couldn't hurt to take a small peek before leaving.

"Could I take a look inside?" You ask, pointing over to the shop.

You can hear him reach into his pocket for his keys, the beep from unlocking his car, and you see him open the trunk to put away the eggs and butter. He puts his backpack in too, and hands you your briefcase before starting to head towards somewhere he can return the cart.

"Sure."

You smile over at him before quickly making your way inside the small shop, hearing a small jingle from the bell attached to the door.

"Hi! Welcome!" A girl from behind the counter near the back of the store greets you. She looks a decent bit younger than you—maybe 21, 22—but she seems to be the only one working. She's quite cute, with pigtails and what looks like overalls on. She reminds you a bit of your younger brother. You smile and wave at her in return.

"Hello."

"Let me know if you need anything!" She beams, grinning at you.

"I will, thank you." You nod at her, then turning to look around. You don't really know that much about flowers, aside from the basics like roses and such, but they're still nice to look at every now and again. Walking around, you see that all the floral arrangements look very well-thought-out, with the colors matching and the shapes in them contrasting just the right amount. You crouch down every so often to take a closer look at the ones in colors you especially liked, and everything is just so pretty you can't help but smile a bit. The smell is a bit overwhelming, but that's to be expected with so many different flowers in one place.

You hear another jingle from the bell at the door, and you see Levi come in. Before you can signal him to where you are, though, the girl from the counter speaks up.

"Hey, Levi!" She greets, frantically waving her arms at him. He stays at the front of the shop, but nods in her direction. He finds you quickly enough, tilting his head towards the door.

"Ready to leave?" He asks.

You nod, scurrying over to where he is before smiling and waving "goodbye" to the girl at the counter.

"It was nice meeting you! Come again soon!" She shouts after you.

You and Levi wordlessly get into his car, and you put on your seatbelt before resting your briefcase on your lap.

"Who was that, if you don't mind me asking?"

He starts the car and puts his arm on the back of your seat, reversing out of the parking space. "Isabel's a childhood friend of mine."

You hum in acknowledgement and take the receipt out of your pocket to fiddle with. "She's nice. Maybe I'll come back to get something for my intern's birthday next month."

You spend the rest of the ride in silence, but by the time you reach Hange's apartment, you've made 3 stars from the receipt. You hold them out to Levi, whose hand is on the gear change, and he takes them, silently reaching over you to put them in his glovebox.

You carry the butter and your briefcase while Levi carries the eggs, and you both bump into Hange at the front of their apartment unit.

"Fancy seeing you here!" They jest.

Levi groans. "Can it, Four Eyes."

Laughing, they thrust their keys into your hand. Well, more like their keys were looped on their pinky finger while they carried a huge box, and they awkwardly shimmied their upper body to bring attention to their keys. "Please! My arms are killing me!" They beg. You laugh at them, teasingly "missing" the keyhole to prolong their suffering. You do eventually open the door, and Hange breathes a huge sigh of relief once they're inside and can put the box down next to the door. "Thank you!"

"So, what exactly did you need all these eggs for?" You ask Hange, holding open the door for Levi to come in with his arms full.

"Just wait!" They say, taking the butter and eggs from you and Levi to put on their counter. "Erwin is on his way!"

Almost as if on cue, Erwin walks straight in, your arm still keeping the door open. "I heard my name?" He nods in thanks to you, and you give him a tight-lipped smile in return.

Not now. Maybe on Monday, you can ask him.

Hange claps their hands together. "Perfect! Now we're all here!"

They motion you all over to the kitchen area, where they start setting up a bunch of miscellaneous ingredients. Flour, salt, baking soda—any general baking item you could think of was now on their counter.

"Are you finally going to tell us why the fuck you needed us to buy 60 eggs?" Levi quips. They shush him, continuing to put random bowls and such out, before standing in a power pose in front of you.

"Well, since Astraea's offered to teach me to make random desserts before, I thought I'd return the favor! And I think you've all ordered egg tarts before at some point or another, so I'm gonna teach all of you how to make them!" They declare. "Also, I have a company potluck to attend tomorrow, and I thought it'd be fun for us to make these all together!"

You, Erwin, and Levi all look at one another, then at Hange.

"Do you know how to make an egg tart yourself, Hange?" Erwin asks.

"Nope!"

"Do tell, Four Eyes, how we're supposed to learn from you then?"

"I watched a YouTube video at work on Tuesday! I'm sure I got this figured out!"

✰

Hange very much did not have it figured out.

You, Levi, and Erwin followed along as well as you could with Hange, who very much does not know what they're doing. You're earnestly surprised that any of you three agreed to go through with this, but the need to distract from work is stronger than any sort of embarrassment you could possibly feel from messing this up. That and the fact you already knew how to make egg tarts, so you only followed along when they gave a correct instruction. After about an hour of intense bickering between Hange and any one of the rest of you three, you decided to gently push for Hange to let you teach the steps instead. They surprisingly didn't put up any fight and happily took a seat next to Erwin.

You tried your best to pick up off where Hange left off in their... for lack of a better word, "teaching," and the tarts didn't end up all that bad. You got them into the oven and baked well enough, and even though they were mostly misshapen because Erwin, Hange, and Levi aren't all that experienced in baking, they end up being fine to eat. Levi forced Erwin and Hange to clean the kitchen, save for the small area you needed to keep making tarts to have enough for Hange to actually take with them to their party.

Erwin insists that he doesn't need any to take home, but Hange still shoves a decently large tupperware container into his hands and pushes him out the door before he can refuse the gesture.

"Take some for Furlan and Isabel! I'm out of tupperware, so Astraea can wrap them up for you!" Hange says, now pushing you and Levi out the door, him holding a tray of tarts you and him made and you holding your briefcase.

You and Levi both look at each other before you start walking towards your apartment, Levi then following behind you. You reach into your pocket to get your keys and unlock your door. You step in and take off your shoes, and Levi does the same, closing the door behind him. You walk over to your general kitchen space, pulling out a chair at the dining table for Levi to sit at while he waits for you to wrap up his tarts.

"Sorry I was a bit quiet earlier," you say, reaching for the cellophane and tags from one of your drawers. "It was probably awkward."

He hums. "It's okay. Figured you had a rough week."

"What made you think that?" You start digging through another drawer to find some star tags.

"Erwin complained about some management issue at your firm on Monday during lunch."

God, you hope that it's just a one-off mistake, because you cannot keep doing this.

You move the tray over to where your wrapping things are, and you wrap Levi's half without the star tags and your own with them. You neatly place them all into a plastic bag, and afterwards go over to Levi to give them to him.

"Here you are."

Looking between you and the tarts, he hesitates. "Aren't these the ones you made too?"

You bring your hand up to nervously rub the back of your neck, looking away from him. "If they're for your friends, might as well gift them the nice ones too," you start. Realizing your mistake, your ears heat up in embarrassment. "Not that yours weren't nice!"

You aren't looking at him, but if you were to guess, his mouth is in a sort of half-smile as he lets out what you assume to be a laugh.

"Thank you."

Just like on Monday, the two of you don't bother saying "goodbye" to each other, only exchanging nods as you open the door for him to go. Before he's completely out the door, though, you tap his shoulder to get his attention.

"Yeah?"

You can't really bring yourself to look at him, so instead you keep your eyes on your hand that's keeping the door open.

"Thanks for saving me a seat today. On the bus, I mean. I probably would've lost it if I had to stand."

He clears his throat before replying. "Don't worry about it."

"Good morning!" Isabel greets, waving at him from the dining table her and Furlan are already seated at. Before he sits, Levi grabs a plastic bag from the fridge and takes two of the many bagged-up egg tarts out from it to place on the table. The ones there are tied up with an iridescent twist tie looped through a small star tag.

✰

"Good morning," he grumbles.

"These are so cute! Where'd you get them?" Isabel asks, eyes sparkling as she looks at the treat in front of her. Levi doesn't answer her question, instead going over to the kettle to start brewing a pot of dandelion root tea.

"Doesn't matter. Just try them."

Isabel and Furlan look to each other, but shrug and open up the cellophane. Furlan's the first to take a bite, but once he does, his eyes light up. He hums into the treat, melting into his seat. Isabel does too and has near the same reaction.

"Levi! Where'd you get this? It's so good," says Furlan, dreamily closing his eyes. Isabel gets up from the table to the fridge to get another one, but Levi swats her away.

"You eat too much sugar. I'm only giving you one," he says. She groans, dragging her hands down on her face.

"Why do you have so many of them then?!"

He rolls his eyes before replying. "Don't worry about it."

✰

Next Chapter

[strbymacaroon]

❀ After Last Night. (I Think I’m in Love With You.) ❀

❀ Armin Arlert x Reader ❀

Master-list: Here.

Previous Chapter (1): Me, Myself, and I… and Fine, Maybe, a Flower.

Current Chapter (2): My Bitchy Attitude, And Your Calm Understanding One.

❀ Sypnosis:

You loved your line of work… enough. That is if you could even call it a line of work.

It paid good, and you had your best friend Connie by your side. It could be worse. And now, you had another thing to worry about… Hiding this not-so approving line of work from your new roommate, Armin. A boy who rivals your own major, more than two academic weapons.

Tensions are high, and you are always one second away from clawing out his throat. And, for some reason, the way he's so patient with you, only furthers this emotion. To say this situation was less than ideal was to put it lightly. And, unfortunately, it wasn’t in the sexy way your classmate, Historia, romanized it to be.

But, you can’t shake the thought—why the hell does he look so familiar?

❀ Genre:

Alternate Universe - College/University, Questionable Job Choices, Double Life, enemies to lovers??

❀ Content Warning:

Gun Violence, Deception, Past Sexual Abuse, Psychological Trauma, Sexual Tension, Eventual Smut

❀ Word count:

7.6K Words.

A soft groan left you, the sun softly illuminating your face. Your legs felt heavy, while you reached over, who you addressed as, ‘Client 4,’ grabbing at your phone and turning it on, trying to get a glance at the time. Due to the morning blindness you couldn’t really see. 

If anything, you didn’t even want to see the time. You were too tired to function. The massive bed you were resting on was impossibly soft, sucking you into the sheets of internal sleep. If this is what death felt like, today would be your last day alive. Then again, your goal was to finish college, so death wasn’t acceptable as of right now. 

Client four grabbed your waist bringing you in closer to his body, his lips ghosting over the cleavage of your breast. A small shiver went down your spine as you wrapped your arms around his head, running your fingers through his messy hair. Planting a kiss on his forehead, “C’mon, babe, I have to go. I’ve overstayed my welcome.” You technically weren’t on the clock anymore. 

Client four groaned, making you roll your eye’s. He pointed to the corner of the room, saying something— but, it came out more like a jumble of words. Your guess was the bag contained the money he owed you. You gave him a final kiss, one where he kept you close. 

You pushed your legs off the bed, letting them hang off the side. The thick blanket sliding off your shoulders, making your skin prickle with goosebumps. Eyes sucking in the state of your thighs. Littered in various hues of red, and purple, all varying in size. 

You grimaced. 

Your body was decorated with a light purple lingerie set, with some black stockings to compliment the look. Your hair is messy from sleep, wavy and long around your body. I should really cut it. 

You pushed yourself off the bed, pushing your hair out of your face. Collecting it over your shoulder, being careful not to step on the assortment of fire-arms resting on the floor. It was something that made you cower inside. 

You grabbed your skirt, slipping it over your legs then to the center of your waist, zipping it up. You walked over to the bag, picking it up and looking at the context inside. 

Money. Your money. 

A stack of cash caught your attention, seeing it was stained with a single spot of dark red. You pressed your lips together, eyes softening every so slightly. How did this person get this money? 

You looked back to Client four, seeing him groggily wake up. He smiled, tilting his head. “You can keep the bag, just toss me your panties. Take care of your sugar daddy, yeah?” 

Pervert. You narrowed your eyes at him, suppressing a laugh. “Like hell, I did more than enough for you last night.” Both in bed, and in your actual profession. “You’re lucky I’m still here.” 

Client four raised his hand defensively, “Hey, just an offer.” He lowered his hands, resting them on the bed. Tapping the sheets, “You can keep the bag, since you did such a good job keeping me company last night, sugar baby.” 

You hated when he called you that, in fact, you hated when anyone called you that. Sure, it’s what people called what you did, but you didn’t think of it like that, at all. “If that’s what you want to call it, sure.” You responded coldly. 

Sure, it wasn’t good to be this rude towards Client four. But, you didn’t care, or, better yet, he didn’t care. He liked this side of you, and liked messing with you. Which you would do in return. It reminds him that you don’t see him as one of your clients, one where you need to project your fake persona to. Client four was just a friend, under weird circumstances. 

In retrospect… the two of you adored each other.

You hated to admit it, but it was true. 

Client four smiled at you, his perfect dimples denting into his skin. “C’mon, don’t be like that, babe.” He cooed, “Come give me a goodbye kiss before you go.” 

You couldn’t stop the very subtle smile on your lips, “You wish..” 

Client four noticed your smile, and could feel his heart flutter with pride. He managed to get you, the almighty, stone-cold bitch, to smile. That was an achievement that should be written in the Bible. The best part was, he was the only one to see it. “I do.” 

You looked around for your shirt, he pointed to the floor while sitting on the bed. “Thanks.” You walked to it glancing at the calendar, “You still keep a calendar, gross. Are you an old man, or something?” Your eyes skimmed over the weeks, landing on the date. You could feel your entire body freeze. 

You blinked a few times, “Hey.. what time is it?” 

Client four glanced at the clock. “Five, fifty six.”

You snapped your head to the clock, panicking. You quickly grabbed your shirt and slipped it on, shit— today was the day your roommate was moving in. You needed to be home to meet your roommate, and— let him into the damn house! You were a good forty minutes away from home as well. 

You looked down at your outfit, cringing. Of course, this had to be his first interaction with you. A girl who was wearing a short skirt, stocking, and a tight shirt that had a triangle cut to show off her boobs. You looked like a… 

The worst part of it was— you were littered in… marks. You didn’t even pass Client four a glance, just quickly made your way out of the massive house. Running into your car, and unlocking it as you threw your items in, turning it on and speeding down the driveway. You took another glance at the time. 

‘6:04’ 

Fuck. 

Your car sped down the freeway, while you tried to remove the jewelry, along with messed up makeup. You threw in a minty gum in your mouth, slowing down your car for a mere moment to get your real bag. The car’s GPS telling you how far you were from your location. Another glance at the time made you start to enhance your speed. 

‘6:23’ 

You quickly parked your car, while trying to grab at your bag, noticing a moving van. You took another glance in and noticed some more people. Your heart sank— “Please don’t tell me he brought his friends...” 

Another look at your outfit made a strangulated groan leave your mouth, as you slapped the car horn. You rubbed your face, grabbing your bag and getting out of the car. Putting your hair up in a messy ponytail as you did so. 

You let your head fall as you noticed that— your shoes. They were currently at Client Four's house instead of on your feet. Perfect. 

You slammed your car door shut. Making your way to the moving van, noticing three people, they consisted of two boys and one girl. The girl took a quick glance at you and smiled, then quickly went back to communicating. 

You walked closer to the van, catching the girl's attention again. You tilted your head at her complexion, it’s not everyday you get to see someone so pretty. 

Mikasa was slightly intrigued by your appearance, a hot girl that looked fed up. To Mikasa, when a person looked pissed, it made them even hotter. Despite that, a small voice was ringing in the back of her head, why did you look so familiar?

You on the other hand were mad, and embarrassed. You deep down were praying that, maybe— just maybe, this wasn’t your roommate. Maybe, these people happened to be random college students moving into this very rich area.

Mikasa rolled down the window, and smiled at you. You tried to return it, and started to speak. “Hi.” You placed a hand over your boobs, trying to hide the marks littered among them. You noticed you grabbed the attention of the two guys in the van. “Uh..” You could feel your eyebrows furrow, “So, are any of you?—“ You softly sighed, letting your hands drop to your side. The guys immediately looked at the newly exposed skin. “Armin Arlert?..” 

A small snicker came from one of the boys, as he slapped someone’s back. The door on the opposite side opened then shut, as someone walked to you. You could feel your eye twitch, forcing a weak wave. 

He waved back. 

So, this was Armin Arlert. 

You took a second to take in his appearance. He was tall, and had short blonde hair, with a few strands falling in front of his eyes. Then, there were his eyes, they were beautiful. Looked like a shade of painted-ocean blue. His shoulders were broad, arms and hands equally as large to match. His chest wide and long, this guy definitely works out. A button up shirt, with the sleeves rolled up his arms, revealing his forearms. Some plain gray pants, and nice simple shoes. It was his face that made you think, it looked sweet, almost innocent. 

You narrowed your eyes for a second, your brain running in laps. You've… seen this man before. His eyes are uniquely a different color from what you're used to, something you wouldn't easily forget. And, he wasn’t a past client, if he was, he would’ve been someone who you were currently with. Armin was more than you type.  

Some people are too hot to pass up. 

You reached out your hand, firmly grasping his hand, while he gently shook yours– immediately you noticed the size difference between the two. He was significantly bigger than you. 

You pulled your hand back, taking a step backwards. “Let– I’ll just show you to your room.” You led Armin into the building, looking back to see if he was following you. You gave another small wave as your eyes met again.

While you were silently cursing yourself out, Armin was taking in your figure. Not in a degrading way, but it was more genuine curiosity. He wanted to ask questions about what looked like a fun night. But, felt like saying such wouldn’t leave a good first impression. 

To Armin, first impressions are the most important when meeting someone. And, Armin can confidently say, you didn’t at all leave a very good impression. You were extremely late, and that left a bad taste in his mouth. It was mostly because Armin valued punctuality over anything. 

You placed your hand behind your back, “This was not the way I wanted to meet you.” Your voice was oddly still, almost bored. 

Armin laughed kindly, “I mean, at least you had fun with your boyfriend.” Armin’s eyes lingered to your neck, but looked away. A small voice was ringing in the back of her head, why did you look so familiar? Mikasa and Armin were weirdly psychic when it came to meeting new people.

You scoffed, a small pathetic laugh coming from you. “Yeah, right.” You seethed, only to shock yourself with your tone. Yet, you didn’t have the energy to correct it, more or less, cared to correct it. 

Armin’s eyebrows came together for a second, almost in shock and distaste. Huh. That bittersweet taste became stronger. 

“Oh.” You awkwardly laughed, toying with your neck. “I just got into a relationship, I’m not used to saying– you know, shit like that.” You stopped in front of a big door, glancing at the address number. 

Armin hummed, leaning at the wall while you dug into your purse for your keys. His eyes landed on your purse, a designer brand he knew he would never buy. Especially because of the price. Armin could feel his eyebrows furrow, maybe his mind was playing tricks on him, but Armin could’ve sworn he saw a stack of money. 

You unlocked the door and pushed it open, walking inside. You flipped on the lights, illuminating the entrance with light. You removed your stockings, tossed them to the side, and slipped on some slippers. “I can give you a house tour, or I can just hand you the keys. So, you and your friends can start moving your stuff in.” 

“I’ll just take the keys, I have something to do in a few hours.” Armin said, flashing you a kind smile.

You nodded your head. Internally rolling your eyes at his statement, it’s literally seven, you have to do something at twelve at night? Bullshit. “Sure, let me grab the spare for you.” You walked into the kitchen, pulling open a drawer and throwing the key at him. Something he caught with surprising ease. “I’ll just stay in my room while you pack, door’s unlocked if you need anything. Just knock.” You gave a quick wave, descending into your room, leaving Armin to himself. 

Armin made a call to Eren, walking back to the small moving van parked outside. Listening to the phone ring a few times, tapping his fingers against his thigh as he did so. The phone line picked up, “Hey, want us to start coming up?” 

Armin nodded, “Yeah, just open up the trunk for me.” He hung up. When Eren gave him the flier for a new place, he didn’t think it would be this. It was cheap, affordable, and allowed pets. Something he found a huge struggle when searching for houses. 

Armin couldn’t help, but wonder… How could you even afford a place like this? How rich were your parents? Sure, Armin had more than enough money to deal with, but he never considered spending more than he needed to. Most of the time, he spent more money on friends, and family, much rather than himself. 

Armin couldn't help but feel off thinking about how money you could be sending. Hopefully you weren't like his last roommate. Annoying. In all honesty, as long as you didn’t bother him everything would be good. Mikasa was leaning on the car door, scolding Eren for something she did when Armin tapped on her shoulder. “C'mon, let's just take my stuff up.“ 

Eren nodded, swiftly jumping out of the truck. Opening the first small box he could carry. He grabbed the stuffed animal, slightly glaring at Armin. “You’re going to have to let this go.” Eren lightly scolded. It was a gift from his ex. 

Armin grabbed it, stuffing it in his back pocket. “Try not to go looking through my stuff, I brought you here to help. Not snoop.” 

Eren playfully rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Just trying to help you.” He aspirated, before wrapping an arm around Armin’s neck. “Anyways. You’ve met your roommate, how is she?” Armin blinked a few times, bashfully looking away.

“She’s hot, but, besides that.” Mikasa added. 

Eren nodded in agreement, “You should give me her number, or introduce me.” Sure, he didn’t see your face, but he saw your backside, which was more than enough. Eren smiled, while Mikasa joined Armin’s side. “Me too, me too!”

Armin smiled kindly, shrugging off his friend's arms. “I don’t even know her, she could be like a– secret agent trying to out college students for doing drugs.” Armin laughed to himself, surprised by his ridiculous mindset. But, it was a real concern for him.

Mikasa smiled, “That’s a risk I’m more than willing to take.” She smiled, picked up a massive amount of boxes.

“Even then, she didn’t leave the best impression on me. Maybe, she’s having an off day, which correlated to her being bitchy to me.” Armin sighed, “But still, first impressions are important to me.”

“Bitchy?” Mikasa asked, placing a hand on her hip, while Eren wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

Armin shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets. “I don’t know.. That’s what I got from her though.”

Eren grabbed a few boxes, stacking them on top of eachother. “Did she at least apologize? You know, for being late.” He narrowed his eyes, “It’s the least she could do for making us wait.” He mumbled.

Armin thought back, not once recalling an apology leaving your lips. It made him swirl with disdain. Despite how Armin felt about you, he almost felt bad just thinking about it. You seemed so tense, and frustrated. It almost bothered him, and because of this, his friends weren’t going to like you. Armin looked to the side, placing a hand to his neck, and smiling slightly. “Yeah. She did, don’t worry about it.” 

Eren shrugged, picking up the box, bumping his hip into Armin. “Then, I guess she’s not that bad.” He smiled again, walking towards the house. Mikasa picked up her large amount of boxes, starting to skip next to Eren. 

Armin honestly didn’t know why he lied for your sake. He just– did. Maybe, it was his thanks for allowing him to live with you. Who knows. 

Mikasa beamed, “C’mon! I want to see what we’re dealing with. The house looks amazing from the front.” She admired the scenery.

Armin sighed, but couldn’t help the smile from building on his lips. Picking up a few boxes, and leading his two friends to the house. 

  ‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿

Eren groaned, laying down on Armin’s bed, wrapping himself with Armin’s sheets. They had managed to get all of his belongings into Armin’s room. Which, due to the large size, looked as if Armin didn’t have enough stuff to decorate it. The room was massive. Eren let out a soft, “Damn, her place is huge.” 

Armin shook his head, replying with a swift, “I know.” As he continued to text someone on his phone. 

Eren looked out the window, his head tilted back. Armin’s cat laying against his face, sighing comfortably. “The view’s nice, definitely better than your last place.” 

Armin laughed, taking a seat next to the window. “Yeah, one hundred percent.” 

Eren pointed to himself, grinning at Armin. “See, if I didn’t give you that flier you’d still be cooped up in that small apartment with your ex.” He laughed, petting Armin’s white cat. 

Mikasa scoffed, “Yeah. That was horrible, the times we stayed over she was practically screaming at you to do something.” She shuddered, “I hated how she treated you.”

“She was just going through some things, she can’t help it..” Armin defended, “You guys get crazy when interacting with law students.” 

Eren rolled his eyes, “Because law students suck, especially that one from a few weeks ago.” Eren sat up in Armin’s bed, “Did you hear what she said to me?” 

Armin narrowed his eyes at Eren, “Eren, you bumped into her. Then, proceeded to insult her. She only retaliated.” He sat down on his bed, sinking into the soft bedding. Armin was going to need to get bigger bed sheets. Eren flashed Armin a look, which made him continue. “Still, I think she went too far.” 

Eren nodded his head in approval. 

Everyone heard a distant click, making the room go silent. Footsteps echoed through the house, before the front door opened. There were a few more sounds followed, but they were hard to make out from the distance from Armin’s room to the front door. Making everyone curious. 

Eren wanted to get a better look at you. 

Armin and Mikasa wanted to know why you looked so familiar. 

It was oddly silent. Making Eren speak up, “You think she got murdered.” 

Mikasa rolled her eyes, “No, of course she didn’t get murdered. How did you even come to that conclusion?” She said, almost amazed by Eren's thought process.

Eren pouted, looking at Armin. “Go check what she’s doing.” 

Armin rubbed his temples, answering her question. “Stop being so nosey, if you’re really curious, pretend to go to the restroom, and take a look.” 

Eren shook her head, “Naw, I’m too anxious for that.” He leaned on the palms of his hands, “Besides, if what you said about her is true, I don’t want to deal with someone who’s bitchy.” 

Armin rolled his eyes, slightly annoyed that Eren was constantly nitpicking at his words. “I thought you said she was hot.” He questioned. 

“Yeah, but there’s got to be some sort of balance.” Eren defended. “Which I don’t think any amount of ass if ever going to make up for bitchiness–”

A knock echoed through the room, making Eren fall silent. He blinked a few times, glancing at his friends, “Do you think she heard me?”

“I did.” You said from behind the door, “The walls here are surprisingly thin.” You added. 

Armin looked at Eren, and Eren looked at Mikasa. All giving him a silent look of, “Well now’s your chance.” Eren pushed himself off the bed, removing Armin’s cat from him, and walking towards the door. 

Eren stayed to the side, so when he opened the door, his friends would be able to see you. Despite them already getting to. He opened the door. 

Suddenly, his eyebrows furrowed, “You.” 

Your eyes landed on Eren, and they instantly hardened. You scoffed, “Dick.” You replied. 

Eren smiled, leaning on the door frame. “Miss public defender, good to see you.” He cooed, leaning down to your face. Suddenly, Armin and Mikasa knew why you looked so familiar. 

You blinked a few times, a scoffing laugh leaving your lips. “The dick who can’t save lives, you have the video for me?” You responded, narrowing your eyes at him. Naturally, you looked into the room, peering at the other two people inside. 

When it hit you like a shotgun to the heart, that’s why he looked so familiar. Armin was the friend laughing at you, while the boy in front of you was the one who rudely bumped into you, making you spill all your papers. Oh, fuck them. Of course a medical student had to be your roommate, and one who happened to be friends with a huge dick. 

You looked to the side, mumbling, “I can’t believe I’m roommates with a gunner.” 

“And, I can’t believe Armin’s forced to deal with a bitchy roommate.” He shot back. Armin quickly got up from the bed, silently scolding Eren for his tone. 

You scoffed, eyes averting to the side. Looking away from the three friends, “I bought three boxes of pizza. They're all pepperoni, I thought it’d be nice.” You added. 

“We don’t want it.” Eren rebutted, slamming the door in your face. “I can’t believe you’re going to have to deal with that bitch. Sorry, man.” 

Armin shook his head, “No, it’s okay. She’s probably going through something, she’ll lighten up to me.” But, Armin couldn't help but feel a bit of distaste for the situation he was in. Of course, his roommate had to be a law student. God really did punish him for all his horrible actions. 

You rolled your eyes, and picked up Fluff, rubbing her tummy. “And, they say I’m the bitchy one.” You lightly scrunched your nose, cooing at your small dog. You rolled your eyes looking back to the boxes in the kitchens. You lightly sucked on your bottom lip, feeling your mood become sour. 

You didn’t like your roommate. He was too full of himself. And, a gunner. Would that be hypocritical to say? Considering how you were? Probably. But, you didn’t care.

A soft whimper came from you, as you picked up your phone, dialing Connie. Shutting the door behind you, flopping on your bed. 

“Hey muchacho, what’s–“

“Let’s hang out, right now.” You sighed into your bed, “Please.”

An amused laugh left him, “That's the first time you’ve said that in a long while.”

“Connie.” You said, flipping over to your back. “Just— hurry up. Please.” 

Connie scoffed, laughing. “Yeah, I’ll be there— let me just finish some things up. I’ll buy some snacks as well.” 

You nodded, hanging up the phone.

You honestly didn’t know why being called a bitchy got under your skin so much, you been called much worse. Especially back in highschool. You also didn’t care if men catcalled you either, of course it made you uncomfortable. But, it wasn’t something that got under your skin. 

Heaven forbid them If they ever tried to approach you, you’d just tase them with your taser. It’s happened before, easily one of the scariest moments of your life. Not. 

So, why’d it bother you so much? Was it because it happened to be a group of people? Maybe, it was the fact that it was someone hot called you that. Even then, it didn’t make sense. 

Someone knocked on your door, making you push yourself off your bed and open it. You blinked at him, “Hey—“

Connie pushed you in, closing it behind you. He looked panicked, “Why didn’t you tell me your roommates' friends were here?!” He whisper-shouted.

Your eyebrows furrowed, looking to the side. “When did you get here? I didn’t even hear you walk in?”

Connie slapped your shoulder, shaking you lightly. “Answer the question.” 

You shook your head offendly, “That's why I asked for you to come. And what's wrong?—“ You looked him up and down. “You look fine.” 

“That's the point.” Connie emphasized, “I just look fine.” You laughed, shrugging off his hands. 

“Calm down, I doubt they think badly of you. If anything, they hate you because you’re friends with me.” You tapped his shoulder, “Besides, you look good.” Not. 

Connie's mood lighted instantaneously, as he let out a soft— “Really?” 

You nodded your head, “Anything to calm your nerves.” You sat back down on your bed, “Now that you’ve seen them, do you know who they are?”

Connie sat down with you, “I know who Eren is.” He tapped his fingers against the bedding. “He’s known for his multiple affairs with college campus girls.” 

“Don’t talk like that.” You looked to the side, a finger lifting to your bottom lip in thought. “Eren’s the brunette, right?” 

Connie nodded, “I’ve even heard he’s slept with a teacher for a good grade. Don’t know if it’s true, though.” 

You rolled your eyes, “Just tell me the shit you do know. I’m not for that rumor bullshit.” You slightly scolded. 

Connie nodded, “Alright, alright.” 

“What about Armin?” 

“I think he falls into the same crowd, heard his name from a few of my girl-friends.” Connie pulled up his phone. “From what I remember, I think he’s worse. I’ve seen more girls cry over him, than Eren.” 

Your eyes widened, “Really? But, he looks so sweet.” 

“Who knows.” Connie shrugged, “Again, I’m not completely sure. Could be some girls having a hard day, or something.” 

You nodded, “I told you to tell me the stuff you do know.” You shook your head, “Whatever.” You walked towards your drawer, pulling out a board game. “Now, time for Monopoly.” 

Connie smiled, “I’m so ready to beat your ass.”

 ‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿

“I just don’t want things to be horrible for however long he’s going to be here.” You sighed, taking the dice. “Maybe, I should evict him.”

Connie laughed, “Naw, you just gotta’ be polite for the time being, he’ll leave eventually. You don’t wanna’ live with someone you can’t stand.” He leaned his cheek in his hand

Another roll of the dice had you moving seven spaces on the board, landing on one of the free spaces. “I’ll buy it.” You handed Connie the money, to which he took it and grabbed a house. “I don’t know, after how he treated me. I think the best Armin’s going to get from me is a fake ass-smile.” Maybe even a small shank to the side. 

Connie nodded, “And, that’s fair.” He reached his hand out, “My turn, pass me the dice.” You handed it to him, leaning on your hand. 

Thinking to yourself for a split second. “Be polite?” You scoffed, turning your head. “Last time I was polite, I got exposed.” 

Connie scoffed, moving his character conveniently on the new property you just bought. “Damn, how much?” 

A quick glance at the card gave you the answer. “Eight hundred.” 

Connie’s eyes widened slightly as he handed you the money. You took the dice rolling it yourself. “Y/n, you know what I mean. Like, at least try to be likable.” He watched as you tossed the die.

You looked up to him, slightly scoffing. “I am likable.” 

Connie looked to the side, giving a ‘weeell,’ face. “You’re a very hard person to get along with, Y/n. Do you know what people call you on campus?” 

You shrugged your shoulders, taking your eyes off the board. “I don’t know, I don’t really talk to people.” 

“People call you the ice princess.” Connie laughed, “It's so funny, I’m surprised you haven’t heard it.” He watched as you moved your character three times. Landing on a chance card. “But, do you know why that’s your nickname?”

“No.” You picked a chance card, nodding to yourself, and pushing your character to the ‘go’ space. Handing the dice to Connie, watching as he rolled it, and moved spaces. Handing the dice back to you.

Connie tilted his head at you, “It’s because everyone thinks you’re an ice-cold bitch. No emotions, nothing. A rich girl and stuff.” He thought to himself for a moment. “In the most respectful way possible, and again. You still have your amazing moments.” 

You readjusted your sitting position, taking in the information. “Is that how people see me?” You almost felt bad. You never really wanted to come off as hostile to others, but you just couldn’t necessarily be ‘buddy buddy’ with just anyone. “Good to know people in my own department hate me.” 

Connie sighed, “I mean, nobody hates you. There’s just small talk— but nothing big. It’s just, you’re more reserved, is how I should put it, hard to approach, almost.” His face softened, seeing you slightly grab at yourself. “But, that’s not the point here.” He breathed out, trying to turn away from the subject. “What I’m trying to say is, you can’t just assume everyone’s gonna to be against you just because of what happened back in highschool.” 

You moved spaces, “But—“

Connie continued, “What happened, happened. And, you shouldn’t let that bother you now. Remember whatever happens, I’ll always have your back.” 

You nodded weakling, looking at the property and thinking for a mere moment. “I’ll buy it, how much is the rent?” 

Connie looked at the price, “Nine hundred.” 

Your eyes widened, and you grabbed some money. “Jesus, this place is dying to make me go broke.” 

Connie shook his head, “You have a lot of property, are you sure you need more?” His tone was condescending, making you overthink. Did you need this property? Wait, wasn’t that the whole purpose of the game, to get properly? Then again, did you really need that property?

You nodded your head, handing him the dice. “You're right, I don’t need it.” You said matter-of-faculty. 

Connie smiled, shaking the dice, landing the exact square you did. “One of the most expensive squares to land on for rent, now sold to me.” Connie smiled, cashing out the small red house. 

Your jaw dropped, looking at the rent of the place. Seeing the prices only skyrocket once you bought a hotel. You should’ve just bought it, wait— “Did you-“ 

Connie smiled, looking straight at you. “One must do what one must to succeed. You just happen to fall into my trap.” You were beyond shocked, this little fucker just finessed you. You scoffed, licking your teeth. “’I’ll always have your back, my ass.” 

Connie shrugged, handing you the dice. “Anything to win monopoly.” Despite that tiny drawback, the tears, and the begging, you won. 

 ‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿

Another glance at the time had you moaning in regret. You were half sprawled over Connie as he drooled onto your pillow.

A quick glance at the clock made you sigh.

‘4:46 AM.’

At least you got up a little early, you could at least shower since you didn’t get to yesterday. You fixed your tank top, with your boobs somehow finding a way to spill out of them, and fixed your shorts. 

Having class in the morning was a blessing and a curse, usually no one was on campus around this time so you could grab breakfast and go. 

You walked to your closet, pulling out a sweater, some underwear, and some shorts. You took a moment to think— Does this mean I don’t get to blast my music anymore, because of my roommate? 

You quickly opened your door and silently closed it behind you, walking to the restroom. All the lights were off, making the atmosphere eerie. The only thing that illuminated the house was the crack of light splitting from underneath the restroom door. 

Goddamn it. You really didn’t want to deal with social interaction right now. You lightly knocked on the door, hearing some shuffling on the other side. You backed away, giving the person a good amount of space.

Were Armin’s friends still over? Hopefully, the fuck not. 

The door was slightly pulled open, where Armin stuck out his head. It surprised you. A smell of vanilla, and cedarwood hitting your nose. It smelled surprisingly good. His hair was damp, and messily draped over his eyes. 

You narrowed your eyes at him, concealing a grimace building on your lips. You ended up saying the first thing that came to your mind. “Why the hell are you up?” It might have come off a little more hostile, but you didn’t care. In fact, good. No, not good. You needed to be polite, you’re going to be living with him for god knows how long. It’s not good to create unnecessary attention. 

Armin furrowed his eyebrows. “Uhm. Getting ready for class?” He had this tone that pissed you off, almost a— are you dumb, tone. 

“Oh.“ You blinked a few times, “Well, hurry up. I need to get ready for class too.” You needed to be polite. Which was surprisingly hard for you. Harder that you’d thought it would be. 

Armin’s grip around the door knob tightened, he gave you a small laugh. His eye twitching, “If you need to use the restroom that bad, c’mon in.” 

You looked him up and down, your nose wrinkling in distaste. “No..” You were going to leave it at that, when you added, “Thank you..”

Armin’s eyes looked down at your hands, before looking at your face again. “Are you sure?” 

You nodded your head.

Armin smiled, leaning his shoulder on the door frame. “But, you have a towel?” He pointed at the few items in your hands, an eyebrow raising. “And, a change of clothes.”

You looked at the towel in your hand, “It’s for decoration.” I guess Connie was right about Armin being a ‘scandalous’ man. 

Armin felt a gust of air escape his lips, turning his face away, while his hand cupped his mouth. Trying not to laugh. “Right.” He mumbled, “I’ll be out in a few, give me a moment.” 

You nodded your head, watching as he shut the door. Your eyes immediately hardened, flipping the door off, muttering a small, “Gunner.” 

Armin kept his back to the door, rolling his eyes. “Bitch.” Unfortunately, the walls were thin, and the two of you heard each other's insults. Armin shook his head, a small smile forming on his lips. 

So fiesty. 

By the time Armin opened the door, you were gone. Some noise coming from the kitchen, were you making something?

You slicked back your hair, and sighed. Closing the fridge door after you grabbed a Capri-Sun. You tugged your short skirt down, smoothing it down your thighs. 

Be more ‘likable.’ You were likable, right? Connie thinks so. You rolled your eyes, leaning on the counter, checking the time again. Luckily, you still had more than enough time to drive to school, and pick up breakfast. 

Armin rounded the corner, peeking at you. His eyes drinking in your body, and outfit. A short skirt, and a tight zip-up sweater. Your hair was messy, but voluminous. He never really thought about it, but you were extremely attractive. 

Your eyes flickered up from your drink, “What do you want?” You coughed, picking up on the small shocked expression he made. Along with your tone you didn’t intend to be rude. You’re trying, okay?  

Armin didn’t really think much off it, but your tone definitely caught him off guard. But, it amused him further. 

You took another sip of your drink, “Uh, what’s up?” You tried fixing your tone, but this time you sounded impatient. 

Armin nodded his head, placing his hands together. “Right, could you give me the key?” He tilted his head, smiling slightly. 

You mimicked his stance unintentionally, “Yeah, let me go get it. It’s in my room.” You pushed yourself off the counter, passing Armin. 

Instantly, your perfume blinded him. An expensive vanilla scent, decorated with a hit of sweet fruit. Suddenly, Armin had a favorite scent for women. 

You quickly came back into the kitchen, tossing the key to Armin’s back. Watching as in less then a second, his hand came behind his back, catching the key perfectly. Armin finally turned his head over his shoulder, peering at you. 

Your eyes flickered to his hand, then to his face. You furrowed your eyebrows, “How did you do that?” 

Armin shoved the key into his pocket, twisting his body to you. A smile on his lips, “Would you believe me if I said, lucky guess?” 

You shook your head, “No.” 

Armin smiled, “Force sensitive.” 

You raised an eyebrow, before shaking your head. “You know what, I don’t care.” You walked away, “If my friend comes out, don’t mind him.” You pulled open the door, a gust of wind blowing your hair out of your face. “Just, don’t talk to him.” 

“Alright then, see you after class.” He waved goodbye, his kind smile never leaving. You rolled your eyes, walking out of the house. Armin’s smile immediately dropped, while he bit the inside of his cheek, looking at the side. 

“Hm.” Armin shook his head, “It’s fine, we’re just warming up to one another.” 

Connie strolled in behind him, arms stretching over his head, while he obnoxiously yawned. “She’ll warm up to you, it’ll just take time.” 

“Until then?” 

Connie laughed, scratching the back of his head. “Trying to avoid getting killed by her.” He walked up the fridge, opening it up and grabbing an apple. “Y/n’s the type of person to hold grudges, but she’ll get over them.”

Armin smiled, leaned his back on the counter. “That’s fair, we didn’t necessarily have the best first impression.” He tapped his finger on the counter. 

Twice. Once. Twice. Thrice. 

Connie looked at Armin’s hand for a moment, before nodding in agreement. “That’s fair.” He pushed himself away from the fridge, shutting it and taking a bite of his green apple. “Anyways, I’ll see you on campus, dude.” Connie smiled, and waved to Armin. 

Right when he reached the door, he paused. Snapping his fingers a few times, before turning back to Armin, “Oh, and, try to be more discreet about your hatred towards Y/n.” Connie took another bite of his apple, speaking with his mouth full. “She’s not the best when reading people, but she’s got a good intuition. She’ll take it to heart, then Y/n will never warm up to you.” Connie waved for a final time, then left. 

A small laugh escaped Armin’s lips, running a hand through his hair. “Damn.” Sure, Armin wasn't too fond of you, and that was fair. But, you were supposed to like him. That’s how it always is, that’s what Armin’s used to. Then again, he wasn’t too worried, you’ll warm up to him, eventually. Hopefully. 

And, Connie was wrong, Armin didn’t hate you. So, there was nothing to worry about. 

You rolled out of your driveway, glancing at the house one more time. Armin didn't sit right with you. Sure, he was a cute boy, with an amazing body. But, something was throwing you off. 

Maybe, it was the way you were being a bitch when Armin hadn’t done anything, but been polite to you. Or, it could be your intuition telling you something about him.

Then again, it’s not like you had to communicate with him. Maybe that was the win-win scenario, just two people that happened to live together that didn’t talk to one another. 

What a good idea! 

Historia snorted, placing a hand to her stomach. “What a stupid idea, Y/n! Not communicating with each other?” She laughed, wiping away a tear, “You’re too funny sometimes.” 

You hushed her, turning away, “I’m being serious.” You slammed your computer shut, “I seriously don’t like him, so why would I talk to him.” 

Historia slowly stopped laughing, giving you a weird look. “What are you going to do? Ignore him?” You nodded your head. She furrowed her eyebrows, “Y/n, do you know how stupid you sound? You can’t ignore someone that lives with you.” 

You placed your head to the desk, feeling the cold sensation against your cheek. “I know, but it’s this, staying out of his way, or, I evict him.” 

Historia scoffed, “And, how will that make things better?” 

You sighed, “I heard that I’m unapproachable. Maybe, if I stay out of his way, he’ll get bored and leave.”

“Settle his nerves?” Historia sighed, “Y/n he’s not a child, I doubt he's scared of you.” She placed her elbow to the desk, propping a hand to her cheek. “If anything, you should be scared. You’re the girl in this situation.” 

You looked at her, almost as if the statement didn’t process. “Me? Scared?”

“Hmp.” Historia nodded in agreement. 

You shook your head, “No, I doubt it.” You slowly skimmed your fingers over the table, “I’ve dealt with men far scarier than Armin.” You grabbed something from your bag, showing it to Historia. “And, if things come down to it, I have this thing.” 

Historia huffed, shaking her head. “No believe, I know you’re more than capable of protecting yourself, I’m just reminding yo—” She paused, “Wait, did you just say Armin?” 

You nodded, “Yeah, I’m pretty sure you were there when I opened the email.” You tilted your head, “Why?”

Historia practically jumped out her chair with excitement, “Oh my gosh! I love Armin, he tutored me back in my medical school days.” She pressed her hand to her cheek, “Sweetest boy I ever met.” 

You raised an eyebrow at her, “Did you sleep with him.” 

“I’m a lesbian.”

“Oh yeah.” You shrugged at her glare, “Just making sure your opinion is unbiased.” 

Historia looked at the side, “You’re acting weird, Y/n.”

This is one of the first times Historia’s ever seen you so annoyed by a person. If anything she was shocked by how you’ve been acting, it was sort of out of character for you. Speaking from experience, you’re not the very approachable type, let alone the type to display full on hatred. Sure, when something shitty happened to you, that was a different story, but most of the time you were collected and indifferent. 

What the hell did Armin do to get this far under your skin? 

Historia was worried, and she wanted to express that, “Why do you hate Armin so much?” 

A scoff came from you, as you smiled. “He was one of the gunners who laughed at me, and he called me bitchy.” Your voice was almost toneless. 

Historia looked to the side, “Well, you must’ve done something to earn that title.” Historia’s laughed.

You shrugged, leaning on the palm of your hand. “Maybe.” 

Historia smiled, “You guys have only been roommates with this guy for like what a day? You’re probably just overthinking it, I doubt it’s as bad as you think.” 

You looked away, sucking on your bottom lip. “I don’t know, I just get that vibe from him.” You paused for a second. Looking back to Historia. “I'm pretty sure he thinks I’m a bitchy.” 

A small laugh came from her. “And, how do you know that?” 

You raised an eyebrow, “He called me bitchy.” 

Historia's eyes widened as she hummed out, slightly laughing. Very blunt on his end, but she still stuck to her words. “Well, I don’t think you should avoid him. Maybe, give it a few more weeks.” You nodded your head, looking at her computer. 

Historia leaned her head on your shoulder, smiling brightly. “And, who knows. Maybe you two will fall in love.” 

“You, and your fanfics.”

Once you arrived home from class, you tossed your things on the counter. You heard a small sound, making your head snap in the direction. Only to see Armin sitting on the couch, watching some random show. 

You honestly didn’t know whether to approach him, or leave him be. Considering he looked rather peaceful sitting on the couch. You leaned on the counter, taking a look at what he was watching. Then, quickly back to him.

You couldn’t shake that thought, he looked so familiar. You thought it was because of seeing him with Eren, but you could’ve sworn you’ve seen him before that. You just  don’t know where. 

You’re slowly losing your mind over this stupid gunner. 

You hung all your things near the door, walking towards your room. Quickly gaining the attention from Armin, he smiled at you, “Welcome back.” 

You passed him a weak wave. One that seemed satisfying enough for Armin. 

You hated to admit it, but you were almost interested in Armin. You wanted to figure out why he set off the alarm in your head, why he seems so familiar. Why Connie didn’t think so well of him, and why Historia thought the complete opposite. Your interest was clearly justified. 

You pressed you back to the door, thinking about Historia. 

Just talk to him, Y/n, you thought to yourself. Your heart stung recalling Armin’s and his friends' words. Maybe, another day. 

You locked your door.

Next Chapter: .....

[sly-s-n0nfusion]

13, 10, and 4 for the Salt Shaker list?

Thank you viri! In today’s episode of sly is brutally honest (I will answer for both ot1 and 2)

10. Most disliked arc? Why?

If we count traveler stories as “arcs”, I will now be very predictable and say it’s Tressa’s story from OT1 and Agnea’s from OT2. Yes I’m not a big enjoyer of the lighthearted story/coming of age arcs and I know it’s probably a me problem lmao but I got bored to death playing both. At least Tressa is a bit of a hot headed character so that kinda saves the day in her story a few times, Agnea is just meh both as a character and as a story. I literally do not care about her lmao, believe me when I say I still have to finish OT2 because I need to play her chapter 4 and my god I cannot bring myself to turn on the Nintendo switch and play it because I know it’s gonna be a whole playing session of me just not caring at all but good to all the people who can enjoy this type of stories!

4. Do you have a notp in your fandom? Are they a popular otp?

Wowieeeeee The Question y’all were waiting for lmao

Yes I do dislike Olberic x Erhardt quite a lot because of. Literally too many reasons to write here but it mainly has to do with the fact that I tend to like wholesome ships more than angsty ones and also the fact that their dynamic awakens in me the memory of so many relationship red flags I have encountered in my life (not necessarily romantically speaking lol) so yeah they’re just a huge no for me!

Yes they’re pretty popular in the western fandom, unsurprisingly I’d say since many love the charm of toxic doomed yaoi, though not so much within the jp fandom

As for OT2, I don’t really have strong opinions on ships as much as I do for ot1… I guess I can’t really see Osvald with anyone after what happened to Rita. I haven’t seen many Osvald ships out there that can be considered popular tho lol

13. Unpopular opinion about XXX character?

I want to end this ask post with a positive note talking about Ophilia! I’ve seen many people describing her as bland and uninteresting but if you think about her character and her late story and her relationship with her sister and the archbishop Josef for a bit you’ll actually find out she has many interesting points. Her relationship with love, family, faith are not that bland actually :)

[realnightmares-fanfictionstories]

Hey, everybody, it's nightmare, and welcome back to another chapter of Angelica’s sensation before we get started with today's chapter, I wanna personally thank you for the amazing support this series getting. I thought it wasn’t a good enough series, but I guess wrong anyway without further ado, here is the next chapter.

Chapter 4 vendetta

Friday morning at the pickles house. Tommy and Dil were going themselves ready for school while Chuckie, Phil, Lil, and Kimi were downstairs waiting in the living room, for two boys.

‘So, anybody else excited about next month's Halloween dance on the 30th says, Phil. Looking at the others to reply to his Question.

‘ most differently, says Chuckie with a bit of sarcasm. The last thing we need is another embarrassment after what happened last year’s Halloween dance.

His step-sister Kimi turns to face her brother with a confused look on her face.

‘You're overreacting, about last year's incident Wasn't bad enough for the other students who cheated or sneak into the dance without a ticket is no big deal Chuckie his step-sister comments. Besides, I overheard that a costume contest is being held on the night of the dance, and the grand prize is better than you can imagine Kimi added before finishing up.

Chuckie looks back at his step-sister And replies. ‘Yes, I'm overreacting about last year’s incident. It’s bad enough for someone who could’ve just gotten a date with Nicole Boscarelli, but I have no excuses or an explanation. Plus what do you mean by the grand prize being better than we could ever imagine how much information you know? He questioned Kimi.

‘ could've, Chuckie we assumed that you had already decided to take Nicole to the Halloween dance and you’re saying you don't have a real explanation seriously doubt that, but yeah Chuckie’s right how could this year's Halloween dance be better than the last one says, Phil.

‘Simply said, Kimi. Yesterday after school I've spoken with the Halloween crew members who were responsible for last year's Halloween dance. It turns out that the grand prize winners get special things.

Look, dude said Lil. Facing Chuckie. We understand where you're coming from, which was unexpected, but look at it this way if you can't find a single date by the time the Halloween dance comes around I’ll be happy to be your Halloween date how's that sound says, Lil, waiting for his reply.

Doesn't sound too bad, but I'll take your offer if I can't convince Nicole to go with me to the Halloween dance said Chuckie.

While the conversation with the others continued, Tommy and Dil started walking downstairs with their book bags and a sweater. Both the boys hear the commotion coming from their living room and spotted the others while entering.

‘Hey, guys sorry for the hold-up Dil and I thought we had everything we needed before our afternoon classes. Anyway, y'all ready to go asked Tommy while looking at the others.

About time you and dil show up said, Phil. We were just talking about the upcoming Halloween dance within a few more weeks and Kimi conversed with crew members who were responsible for last year's Halloween dance last year he said. ‘ yeah, what about them dil replied, will say, Phil. This year's grand prize winners get a special better than last year's grand prize he replied to dil.

‘Awesome, says Tommy. I think it’s worth the risk of winning that contest, but it looks like we have to go bus is almost here and we don’t want to be last for school he added.

Before they were about to leave the house their mother Didi walked from the kitchen and stopped them before leaving the house.

Hold on kids before she says. Before everyone leaves. Tommy and Dil, you're cousin Angelica will be staying with us for Thanksgiving dinner and winter break. Phil, Lil, Kimi, and Chuckie you're parents have already confirmed your beheading back to our house after school correct she asked them.

Phil, Lil, Kimi, and Chuckie nodded their heads in agreement that their parents had already known ahead of time. Tommy and Dil also nodded as well.

‘Wonderful, your kids have a great time at school and be safe she added watching them walk out the door and head into the bus.

Later on in the afternoon at Jim class. Tommy and Phil, we're busy playing basketball along with the other classmates. While Mr. Pangborn was keeping track of all the students during the basketball routines.

‘So, it’s clear that you and the others including dil understand why you guys are staying over said Tommy while following along with the other students. ‘ yeah, Phil responded. We’ve been wondering what exactly happened between y’all and Angelica. But to answer your question from earlier. Chuckie stated he’s been having difficulties asking Nicole to the Halloween dance, we thought he'll ask her asked by now, but we guess wrong without a doubt he should have everything under control.

Tommy nodded and the two boys continue they were Jim's class once it was over.

‘Later on, at the pickle's house. Chuckie, Phil, Lil, and Kimi were upstairs inside Tommy and DIL's bedroom to discuss the issue of the Thanksgiving incident with their cousin Angelica.

‘So, what's with angelica circumventing half of the school students say’s, Kimi? I'm starting to suspect Angelica is either concealment or she's overwhelmed by anxiety Kimi added waiting for Tommy or dil to respond as she was sitting on DIL's bed along with Lil sitting next to her on the left side of the bed.

‘Will said Dil. The reason Angelica is circumventing half the school is completely unknown to us, but the whole reason why she's circumventing, Tommy and me are that we don't truly believe or comprehend what she's dealing with at home and school.

So have you and Tommy asked around the school if they had any leads and what about her friends Kimi Question them.

Tommy and dil look at each other and back at each other. ‘ we tried asking around the school including her friends Tommy stated. Nobody, not even her teachers. This all started around the 15 of November 2014 one week before Thanksgiving.

Flashback one week after Thanksgiving.

On November 15 Tommy and Dil made their way to the house after a long day of school. while entering their mother and father could be heard inside the kitchen having a conversation about Thanksgiving dinner. Hi, mom and dad were home from school says, Tommy, who entered the kitchen along with his young brother dil followed behind him.

Hi, kids how was school today their father asked while reading the newspaper at the table. School was alright replied Tommy. dispensing that we don't win the Halloween contests, but theirs next year he added before finishing. ‘ yeah hopefully next year is better than the last dil comments. Tommy’s right said their father putting the newspaper down. There’s always next year any way your mother and I have something momentous for you boys he says.

Tommy and Dil became curious about what they were about to get told but their parents.

their mother turned around to face them and replay. You're cousin Angelica will be staying over for Thanksgiving dinner. We understand that you boys don't get along with Angelica but promise to not start with her or cause problems says their mother. That’s the problem Tommy says to his mom. She's always blaming us for things that don't involve the problems she's facing and she's been taking her irritation out on us for the past couple of weeks. ‘ yeah, we understand we don't get along with her, but it's becoming completely difficult to get this situation under control known talking won't be useful. He said before finishing up their side of the story.

Look spot their father said. Sometimes it's normal for family and friends to agree and disagree with each other it's part of life, but you stated that she's taking her irrigation on y'all for the past couple of weeks is unhealthy. Sooner or later you and dil along with Angelica gonna have to talk about it eventually when the time is right their dad added. Dad’s correct Tommy said dil. Eventually, the conversation with us both is much needed whenever it comes to pass.

Tommy nodded in agreement with dil about having a good exchange with angelica. after the boys had a conversation with their parents Tommy and Dil headed upside toward their bedroom. Meanwhile, while the boys were upstairs in their bedroom Angelica's mother had dropped her off at her house as punishment for the next few weeks.

angelica and her mother exited the car parked on the right-hand side of the house. She grabbed her blue and purple duffel bag from the front set while she closed the door behind her. It doesn't matter since I have to spend Thanksgiving weekend with those two always get on my nerves it's a good thing that I spend a lot of time updating and expanding the map layout of the house itself located inside my duffel bag hidden within my clothes underneath she whispered while walking towards the house and knocking on the door.

Before Grandpa could set down on the couch chair located in the leveling room he overhead knocked on the door and wonder how could be at the door. I’ll answer it said, grandpa Lou getting up from the chair and walking towards the door, and opening it to see Angelica and her mother. Hello, grandpa says, Angelica, walking inside the house. Hello, Angelica, it's been a while since I last saw you're grown more mature since you were a child he said.

She smiled at her grandpa knowing he was the only person who understand. Honestly, it doesn't seem to be I've grown more mature enough but hearing about how much I've grown is wholesome enough I might be going places. She comments. Well, kiddo Your most different earned the right to get compliments for the hard work you make he said rubbing her head with his right hand. Anyway, you run along up and start with your belongings Tommy and dil should be upstairs don’t forget to get say hello to them before heading towards the guest room replay grandpa.

Angelica nodded only to turn around while closing her eyes. taking a deep breath and slowly releasing from her nose knowing she was about to be a more paranoid haven to deal with her cousins. She started healing upstairs while carrying her duffel bag on her right shoulder. While she was heading upstairs Tommy and Dil could hear Angelica walking toward their bedroom. She noted that her cousins were talking about other things that didn't interest her while she passed the bedroom.

After a few minutes, she entered the guest bedroom located on the left side of the house. It's been a while since I've seen this room surprising that nobody knows that I have a complete layout of the house itself including the bottom and top floors. She said putting her

duffel bag on top of the bed opening it only to reach inside to grab the layout of the house.

Can't believe that I upgraded the map fitting for me most of the areas where the changes that were needed for my escape tonight.she said opening up the map and looking over the details of her escape. If memory serves me correctly the only changes that were make where the gust bedroom leaving from the window was risky enough for having the right amount of blinds we’re I’m at right now, my uncle and aunt bedroom is behind difficult if not done properly and as for Tommy and dil there simply enough with come ease she says moving her eyes down to the lower map of the house .

That just leaves the front door and the backyard, it would be easier to leave through the front door if it wasn’t so noisy that's out the window so my only possibility of escape is through the backyard leaving me with no other option she said before putting the map layout back into her Duffel bag.

While Angelica was putting her map layout of the house away inside her duffel bag her cousins Tommy and dil decide to head towards the guest bedroom she was located. You understand that we have to talk about how you just walked access our room without saying something, and what is the problem with said, Tommy, standing near the doorway with dil. Why would you two bother me to ask such a quesquestion when I simply don't have to answer you're annoying stupid question especially if the situation is none of your business, it's always a good idea to annoy Angelica or simply dig into my personal problems when everyone is always questioning me making a nuisance out of myself nobody appreciates anything I work hard for getting blame Angelica's comments before the three of them started whispering and arguing with each other.

After the argument that the three had Angelica started crying over the argument, she just had. I don't understand why I get myself into so many problems with them it never-ending cycle getting blamed for unnecessary drama involving not working hard enough around the house and always coming back and forth between home and work. I'm exhausted from this unhealthy situation, my mother doesn't seem to understand that I'm sick and tired of her being an ungrateful mother we argue with each other, and can't get along she said while letting her frustration out.

A few hours later around nighttime, Angelica's phone started vibrating from a text message from Susie saying she and her sister are a few minutes away from the house and should be arriving in less than two minutes. She started grabbing her phone which was located on the nightstand on the right side of the window including her contract ticket along with her sweatshirts for her and Susie she bought online from the concert website.before she left the guest bedroom Angelica fixing the bedsheets along with the pillows , she took one of the pillows from the middle of the bed and placing both the pillows on top of each other and making it look like she never left the room.

Angelica carefully walked out the guest bedroom into the hallway while putting on her sneakers. Once She finished putting on her sneakers ahead where her aunt and uncle's bedroom carefully sneaking passed their bedroom along with her cousins. After making it halfway through the house now downstairs she quickly turned her head right to face the empty kitchen with nobody else in plain sight just before she thought it was clear to proceed grandpa could be spotted entering the house from the backyard door. Angelica continue walking slowly until both grandpa and Angelica spotted each other.

Angelica said, grandpa what are you doing up this time of night he said whipping with a curious look on his face waiting for her reply. Angelica took a deep breath and replied. ‘ the truth is grandpa. ‘I'm currently sneaking out of the house for a concert that I'd been planning on taking Susie for her birthday today, but mother and I started disagreeing with each other after she had allowed me to buy concert tickets but randomly change her mind and said that I couldn't go after working hours at work grounded me for arguing with her she comments. Please grandpa I've been waiting for this one special event she adds pleading.

Grandpa sighed in relief knowing her mother was in the wrong. The good news is that you are honest and told the truth about your mother not allowing you to this concert, fitting that you're technically grounded for arguing with her, and I understand that your dealing with problems with your Mother is unhealthy but just between the two you're free to go with Susie have fun and be safe and remember to be careful when entering back into the house through the backyard grandpa whipped before heading upstairs and allowing Angelica through.

Thanks, grandpa you're the best, and I promise don't worry she whispered with a smile on her face before leaving the house through the background and closing the door slowly before taking off.

End of flashback.

After Tommy and dil had finished their side of the story, Phil, Lil, Kimi, and Chuckie were dumbfounded by learning about their situation with Angelica.

For the past couple of weeks, she's been taking her irrigation on y'all hell might as well be all of all said Kimi. I'm frustrated with the fact that nobody else is doing anything to stop this she added before Lil chimed in. More importantly, ‘I have a feeling that she's either hiding something from us or someone is keeping the information from coming out Lil said with a curious look on her face. Yeah, I agree with your dad eventually this situation will be talked about sooner or later fitting that Susie’s bound to question us before long Lil comments.

What do you mean by might as well be all of us Tommy asked Kimi raising an eyebrow. What she means is that Angelica has been given the same amount of problems that she’s been given yall but worse said, Lil. It's been happening since the beginning of the sophomore year one minute she’s friendly and the next minute she’s acting like we destroy her life or mentaling into a situation where you barely even have control over comments Lil.

Since the beginning of the sophomore year replay Tommy. Seems like we're going to have a long conversation with Angelica and Susie which I'm not ready for. Don't blame dude said, Phil. Anyway, we should get ready for bed but let's just say that Angelica was hitting information that could have made this situation problematic who could be that intelligent enough to make it this fair Phil question them. Well said Lil. Have a few suspects that is involved or who I think is involved with this situation more on that on a later conversation she relayed to her bother.

Once the conversation with Tommy, Phil, Lil, Kimi, Chuckie, and dil the whole gang started getting ready for bed once everyone else settled Tommy turned out the lights and fail to sleep.

End of chapter!?! Four

Hello, my amazing reader's nightmare here hope y'all doing fantastic during the holiday season, sorry for taking the time to publish the chapter sooner or later been busy lately fitting it's holiday season and all. Anyway, thank you for your patience appreciate it without further ado see y'all in chapter five the Halloween dance part 1 see you guys then!?!

[lesfeldickbiblestudy]

  Through the Bible with Les Feldick LESSON 2 * PART 1 * BOOK 69 KINSMAN REDEEMER – PART 1 Revelation 5; Ruth; I Corinthians 15:1-4 It is good to see everybody in again this afternoon.  We’ve got folks from Minnesota, California, and Alabama. Did I miss anybody?  Florida? Yeah, Jim right here is from Florida. Okay, for those of you out in television, in case you’re a new listener, we’re an informal Bible study. We try not to get preachy. I don’t want to get theological, per se, but we just want to teach the Book verse by verse, line upon line, and precept upon precept.  And we have been blessed!  My, we are getting so many people that are seeing things they have never seen before! My goodness, you know, I see things that I never, never heard 30-40 years ago.  That’s the whole idea. So, those of you joining us we again thank you for your prayers.  That’s most of all.  We thank you for your kind letters, and then we thank you for your financial help.  After all these things do have to be paid for, and you’ve been picking up the bill every month.  We thank you from the depths of our heart.  Okay, we’re going to continue on with the redemption of the planet from the last taping. Now, we talked about the redemption that God promised back in Genesis chapter 3 when Adam and Eve were first out of the Garden.  Then we spoke of some other times of redemption, like Israel coming out of Egypt.  That was an act of redemption.  Then we looked at the work of the cross, how that in itself is the work of redemption for the whole human race.  And it can be appropriated only by faith. Now we have to make that clear, because I had the question come in again the other day.  Since God performed the work of the cross, which was sufficient for every human being, does that mean that sooner or later everybody’s going to get to Heaven?  Don’t you ever think it!  It is only those who appropriate this finished work by faith. I’m always giving the illustration that Congress can appropriate billions and billions of dollars for a particular purpose. We’ll say for highways.  But the states have to make application. They have to appropriate that which Congress has set aside.  Otherwise, it just stays there.  Well, now that’s the work of salvation.  God has finished it.  It’s satisfactory for every human being that’s on the planet to personally appropriate it – by faith.  That’s what we keep emphasizing.  If I’ve got time this afternoon, I’m hoping to get into one of my favorite Gospel passages – I Corinthians 15:1-4.  I just can’t imagine why it’s not used more often, but it isn’t.  But we’re going to if I have time.  So anyway, then we looked at redemption, I think as Paul perceived it in Galatians when he said, “He came to redeem them who were under the Law.” Now, we’re looking at the redemption of the planet.  We’re going to have to go to the Book of Ruth after a bit, because when we come down to the redemption of the planet, we have to understand that when Adam fell and he lost that dominion…now, I guess we’d better look at that.  I know I’ve got everybody in Revelation 5, don’t I?  Well, let’s go back to chapter 1 of Genesis.  Keep your hand in Revelation.  I’ll be right back. I remember years ago when we were still in the original studio and a gentleman and his wife, who have now moved to Phoenix. They aren’t on the program any more, but Monty and Helen always used to sit on the front row.  And I would do just like I did today – okay, I’m going to be starting out in such and such chapter and such and such a verse, and Monty would look up and say, “You want to bet on it?”  But, that’s the way I teach.  I can’t help it.   Okay, back to Genesis chapter 1 when God is now making the promises to Adam in chapter 1 verse 28. Genesis 1:28a “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth (or fill it up), and subdue it: (Now, look at the next statement.  This is to Adam.) and have dominion over…” The Garden of

Eden?  Is that what your Bible says?  No!  That’s what everybody’s idea is, that the only place that Adam had any authority was in the Garden.  No!  He had the whole planet.  That was his dominion. Genesis 1:28b “…and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”  Was all that in Eden?  Well, of course not!    So, what does that tell you?  Adam’s dominion was the whole planet.  It was all his to have control of, under God of course.  All right, but when Adam sinned, when he disobeyed God by the simple act of eating of the tree, what happened to that dominion?  He lost it!  Who picked it up?  Satan!  Never forget that.  Adam dropped the ball, and just that quick Satan picked it up.  So consequently, for the last 6,000 years, who’s been the god of this world?  Satan!  Oh, under God’s Sovereignty.  We don’t take anything away from that, but Satan has been the god of this world for the last 6,000 years. Now, somebody is going to say, now where do you find that in Scripture?  Well, there are several places.  Let’s stop first at one in Matthew chapter 4, because I want to establish with my whole television and radio and internet audience that Satan has been the god of this world for the last 6,000 years.  And the only way that God can wrest control from him is to redeem it.  He’s going to pay the price. All right, Matthew chapter 4 and this is when the Lord is being tempted by Satan. But we’ll just look at one of them, verse 8.  Matthew 4 verse 8 and as you look at these different Scriptures, don’t forget what we’re talking about. We’re going to show that Satan is in control of this world.  This is in Christ’s earthly ministry. Matthew 4:8a “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain,…”  Now, as I was mulling this over the last few days, how many of you have seen a picture of the globe from outer space?  I’m sure you all have - that beautiful, round blue and white globe. Well, I like to think that whatever this high mountain was, it was high enough that Jesus, in His human form with Satan, could see the whole planet.  Now, that’s just my own idea.  But, whatever – he takes him up to an exceeding high mountain and shows him all.  See, that’s why I have to think that it had to be from a tremendously high vantage point. Matthew 4:8b “…and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;” Now, that means what it says and it says what it means.  He saw them all.  Since they were both eternal creatures, Satan as well as the Lord Himself, I think Satan took Him, mentally at least, all the way past the empire of Rome which was now on the scene, and back through the Greek Empire, the Mede Empire, and the Babylonians, all of the beauty of that.  I also think he projected into the future.  So, he gives the Lord Jesus this whole view of planet earth in all of its empires. Now, look what this creature says. I was just about to say something that wouldn’t have been kind.  But Satan is a rascal.  Look what he says! Matthew 4:9 “And saith unto him, All these things (Everything pertaining to the planet and the empires and the cities and the parks and you name it.) I will give thee, (Now remember who’s talking?  Satan!  He’s telling Jesus that all these things that they’ve been viewing of planet earth he says, I will give them to you.) if thou wilt fall down and worship me.”  Well, now you’ve heard me ask the question more than once.  Were they Satan’s to give?  Well, of course!   He’s the god of this world.  But you see, the Lord could very well have said, that’s fine, Satan, I’m going to have them some day without you.  But He didn’t. Now let’s move ahead a little bit to Corinthians.  Go to II Corinthians chapter 4 verses 3 and 4.   Now, this is what the Book says!  Whenever I put out something that I think, it’s my own idea, I’m always hopeful anyway that I express it that way.  But when the Book says it, I want you to know it’s what the Book says.

II Corinthians 4:3-4a “But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: (Why?  Next verse--) 4. In whom (lost people of this world) the god of this world (Who’s he talking about?  Satan!    The Devil) hath blinded the minds of them who believe not,…”  Has he got the power to do it?  Absolutely!  That’s why we’re always emphasizing that it takes the work of the Holy Spirit to come through and open the understanding of the lost person, because Satan’s power is going to do everything he can to keep them from it. And it is the same way when I’m always exclaiming the power of the resurrection.  Why do I put so much on the power of the resurrection?  Because Christ had to break through all the powers of the Satanic forces in order to overcome and become victorious.  Well, the same way here.  The lost of this world are literally encompassed with the power of Satan. He’s going to keep them there if he possibly can.  But the Spirit is still above the powers of Satan. The Spirit can still break through and open the hearts and minds to bring people to a knowledge, or at least have the opportunity to have the knowledge of, salvation. All right, so always remember that when Adam dropped the ball, when he sinned and lost dominion over the planet earth, Satan picked it up.  And he’s been enjoying that now for 6,000 years.  But the day is coming, and we think we’re getting closer and closer, when Christ is going to pay off that mortgage that Satan has been holding on the planet. That’s what the Scripture is picturing here.  He’s holding his control of the planet just like a mortgage.  And the reason is that it was something that was God’s and He handed over to Adam and what happened?  They lost it!  Satan picked it up. Now, you know I’m always giving the simple illustration of losing control of something that you’ve owned.  That is – if you take it to a hock shop and you take whatever they’ll give you for it.  But the understanding is that you’ll someday be able to come back and redeem it by buying it back, by paying the price.  Well, that’s the perfect picture of redemption all through Scripture. Something that was fully owned is lost and now has to be redeemed.  Now, is that so hard to understand?  All right, the planet was God’s.  He gave it to Adam.  They lost it.  Satan picks it up.  Now God is going to pay the price to redeem it. Now, we’re going to have to go to the Book of Ruth after a bit, because that explains what chapter 5 is talking about.  Without the Book of Ruth it would be pretty hard to define what we’re talking about in Revelation 5.  But we’re going to stay in Revelation 5 first. So don’t go back to Ruth just yet.   Okay, Revelation chapter 5 verse 1.  And John writes: Revelation 5:1a “And I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne…”  Now, there again I have to stop, because of all the questions I get of what people are saying.  Christ is not sitting on the throne in Glory.  Who is?  Figuratively speaking now, I’m sure that you don’t have a literal throne chair and God the Father is sitting there over all the ends of time and then a smaller chair here on which Christ is sitting.  But the analogy is that God the Father is seated on the throne in Glory and God the Son is beside him. “Sitting at the right hand of the Majesty on High,” that’s the way the Scripture puts it. Okay, let’s just jump in at verse 7, where we have God the Son going to approach God the Father with the idea in mind of taking the scroll and paying it off.  But first let’s jump back to Daniel and pick up pretty much the same kind of a scene in Heaven, which many commentators call identical, but I don’t.  I just can’t see that it’s the same one, because this taking of the scroll in Revelation is at the beginning of the Tribulation getting ready for the horrors that are going to follow.  In Daniel it seems like the same thing, but it can’t be, because Daniel’s vision is now ready for him to take up the Kingdom which comes immediately after the Tribulation.

  So, let’s go back to Daniel chapter 7 to pick up the scene in Heaven, how that God the Son comes before God the Father.  I guess I should go up to verse 13. Daniel 7:13-14 “I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man (That’s the Son of God, that’s Jesus the Christ.) came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought him (God the Son) near before him (God the Father). 14. And there was given him (the Son) dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” Now that’s obvious He’s now ready to take over the Kingdom. Well, back here in Revelation, even though it seems like the same, and some commentaries will say it is, it can’t be, because in Revelation He’s getting ready to introduce the paying off of the mortgage, which is in reality the Tribulation, as we’re going to see.   Okay, so come back with me to Revelation chapter 5 and repeat verse 7. Revelation 5:7-8 “And he came (God the Son comes before God the Father) and took the book out of the right hand of him who sat upon the throne. 8. And when he had taken the book, (this mortgage) the four creatures and the four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odors (the incense you know) which are the prayers of the saints.    Revelation 5:9a. “And they sang a new song, saying, (Now watch this!) Thou (speaking of God the Son) art worthy to take the book, (the mortgage) and to open the seals thereof: (And here’s the reason He’s worthy.) for thou wast slain, (The death of the cross) and hast redeemed us (These are some of the believers here gathered around the throne. So they’ve already experienced the redemption.) to God by thy blood…” You remember in our last programs, in the last taping anyway, that was one of the redemptions we looked at - the price of redemption which was the blood of the Lamb.  All right, reading on. Revelation 5:9b “…for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;” See, that doesn’t confine it here to the Jew.  This has already reached out to the whole human race in redemption. All right, now just for the sake of interest let’s turn the page, at least in my Bible, and go on into chapter 6 for a moment.  I’m not going to make another study of the seals, but I want you to see that this is the mortgage that Satan is holding on planet earth and Christ is going to pay it off with the horrors of the Tribulation.  Now, I know that’s probably hard on the surface to explain, but just think. For 6,000 years what has Satan promoted on planet earth?  Misery.  And turmoil.  And heartache.  And death.  And destruction.  That’s Satan’s bag.  Now, in so many words, what’s God going to tell him?  I’m going to pay you back in full.  You’re going to get paid back with more misery than you could ever dream of.  You’re going to get paid back with more death and destruction than you ever dreamed of.  That’s what the Tribulation is going to do. All right, so in chapter 6 this is the first seal taken off of that mortgage.  Now, you can’t look at the details of the mortgage until you take the seals off.  So the first thing that happens in response to taking off the seal is the introduction of the antichrist. There again, that’s why I feel people are totally wrong when they think this is the real Christ.  It can’t be.  This is the counterfeit.  This is the antichrist.  I’m always emphasizing that the word “anti” throws a curve at people.  They just think it’s against Christ.  No, the word “anti” is best defined as the false, or the counterfeit, Christ.  And look how he does it. Revelation 6:1 “And I saw when the Lamb (Christ) opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four creatures saying, Come and see.

”  Now, this is the first opening event of the Tribulation.  And what is it?  The appearance of the antichrist. Revelation 6:2a “And I saw, and behold a white horse:…”  A counterfeit.  The true Christ is going to come on a white horse, absolutely He is.  At least symbolically in Revelation 20, so the antichrist is going to be a counterfeit, so he does the same thing.  He makes his appearance on a white horse. Revelation 6:2b “…and he that sat on him (that is on the horse) had a bow; and a crown was given unto him; (He’s going to have great authority.) and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.” Well, that’s the first seal, the opening part of the Tribulation.  Well, that leads into the second seal.  We’ll just take a couple of these, and then we’ve got to get back into--no, only six minutes left.  All right, so now you take the second seal. Revelation 6:3-4a “And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second creature say, Come and see.  4. And there went out another horse (Another event in this seven year period of horror) that was red:  (The first one was white, speaking of the counterfeit.  But now here comes the red horse.) and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth,…”  Well, what’s the opposite of peace?  War!  So, even though we just signed a seven-year peace treaty, seemingly, up in verse 2, this next event is the absence of peace.  It’s going to have to be war. Well, those of you who have heard me teach over the years, I feel that this is the great northern invasion of Ezekiel 38 and 39.  It’s going to be headed up by Russia, and, I think, now as we see everything coming together so fast there in the Middle East, I think it will be Russia and the Muslim world. They’re going to come together according to Ezekiel 38 and 39 and they’re going to invade Israel.  But there’s an interesting little tidbit back there in Ezekiel 38.  And that is that of all the Muslim nations that are listed as coming in with Russia, there is one that is glaringly absent.  And who is it?  Iraq.  Babylon.  They’re not in there.  All the rest of them are.  That’s why I’ve been saying now for the last year, this may not be Bush’s war after all.  This is God’s war, because we have to get Iraq ready for--“Babylon, Babylon is fallen, that great city.” Well, now what did that all depict back in the Book of Revelation here?  That Babylon would be the great commercial center, not just one like a New York, but it’ll be the great commercial center.  It’ll be a city so beautiful it’d knock your eyes out.  But in the final hours of these seven years, it too is going to fall.  And that’s what Revelation 18 says, “Babylon, Babylon is fallen, that great city.”  And the sailors, I think they’re out on the Persian Gulf, will be able to see the smoke of its burning.  And, oh, it’s coming so fast. Now, you’ve got to stop and use some common sense.  If all this begins to gel and we get peace in Iraq, they’ve got the second largest reserve of oil in the whole world.  Now, if oil goes up to $70-$80-$90-$100 a barrel, can you imagine the wealth that will be flowing into Baghdad?  It’s beyond human comprehension.  Well you see, with that kind of money to play with, they’ll be able to build a city like mankind has never built before, and they’ll do it in probably less than a year.  That’s what I’m looking for.  I’m looking for this ancient city of Babylon to suddenly just blossom out there in the desert. Old Saddam Hussein already had a pretty good start, you know, on some of his palaces out there.  With all the oil money flowing into it, you just wait and see.  Now, that’s my own idea.  See, there’s one of those things.  I don’t set that in concrete and say, this is what the Bible says. But I think I’m on the right track that this great war here in the “red horse” and in Ezekiel 38 and 39 will be that invasion of the Russians and the Muslim world.  God will destroy them, of course, on the mountains of Israel. Well, we’ll just take one or two more of these and then this half-hour is gone.

  Move on down to verse 5, the third seal.  It, too, is a horse. Revelation 6:5-6 “And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third creature say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 6. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four creatures say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.” Bible scholars tell us that these bits of income are enough for a workingman to survive for one day.  But there’s going to be tremendous shortage of food or food grain – feed grains we call it.  Because, I feel, of the results of this great Russian invasion, there will be a worldwide calamity on particularly the food production areas of the world - our Midwest, the Russian Ukraine, and The Steppes and so forth. All of a sudden the great food production areas of the world are decimated, which I think will now be the advent of nuclear power.  The world is now destitute of food.  The big food producing areas are wiped out.  Now you find that you have a pair of balances, which indicate food rationing.  The multitudes of people that have already been killed will be in the major food producing areas.  The rest of the world will enter into a time of shortage. Well, then I would like to move on down with the few seconds I have left to the fourth one. When people think that the first part of the Tribulation is going to be a Sunday school picnic, they’d better think again.  Look what the Scripture says.  After this next horse has run its course, it takes us pretty much up into the seven years. Revelation 6:8 “And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him.  And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.” One fourth of the world’s population is going to get wiped out in the first half of the Tribulation.  So don’t ever think it’s going to be something rosy.

[nightmarefanfiction190]

Hey, everybody, it's nightmare, and welcome back to another chapter of Angelica’s sensation before we get started with today's chapter, I wanna personally thank you for the amazing support this series getting. I thought it wasn’t a good enough series, but I guess wrong anyway without further ado, here is the next chapter.

Chapter 4 vendetta

Friday morning at the pickles house. Tommy and Dil were going themselves ready for school while Chuckie, Phil, Lil, and Kimi were downstairs waiting in the living room, for two boys.

‘So, anybody else excited about next month's Halloween dance on the 30th says, Phil. Looking at the others to reply to his Question.

‘ most differently, says Chuckie with a bit of sarcasm. The last thing we need is another embarrassment after what happened last year’s Halloween dance.

His step-sister Kimi turns to face her brother with a confused look on her face.

‘You're overreacting, about last year's incident Wasn't bad enough for the other students who cheated or sneak into the dance without a ticket is no big deal Chuckie his step-sister comments. Besides, I overheard that a costume contest is being held on the night of the dance, and the grand prize is better than you can imagine Kimi added before finishing up.

Chuckie looks back at his step-sister And replies. ‘Yes, I'm overreacting about last year’s incident. It’s bad enough for someone who could’ve just gotten a date with Nicole Boscarelli, but I have no excuses or an explanation. Plus what do you mean by the grand prize being better than we could ever imagine how much information you know? He questioned Kimi.

‘ could've, Chuckie we assumed that you had already decided to take Nicole to the Halloween dance and you’re saying you don't have a real explanation seriously doubt that, but yeah Chuckie’s right how could this year's Halloween dance be better than the last one says, Phil.

‘Simply said, Kimi. Yesterday after school I've spoken with the Halloween crew members who were responsible for last year's Halloween dance. It turns out that the grand prize winners get special things.

Look, dude said Lil. Facing Chuckie. We understand where you're coming from, which was unexpected, but look at it this way if you can't find a single date by the time the Halloween dance comes around I’ll be happy to be your Halloween date how's that sound says, Lil, waiting for his reply.

Doesn't sound too bad, but I'll take your offer if I can't convince Nicole to go with me to the Halloween dance said Chuckie.

While the conversation with the others continued, Tommy and Dil started walking downstairs with their book bags and a sweater. Both the boys hear the commotion coming from their living room and spotted the others while entering.

‘Hey, guys sorry for the hold-up Dil and I thought we had everything we needed before our afternoon classes. Anyway, y'all ready to go asked Tommy while looking at the others.

About time you and dil show up said, Phil. We were just talking about the upcoming Halloween dance within a few more weeks and Kimi conversed with crew members who were responsible for last year's Halloween dance last year he said. ‘ yeah, what about them dil replied, will say, Phil. This year's grand prize winners get a special better than last year's grand prize he replied to dil.

‘Awesome, says Tommy. I think it’s worth the risk of winning that contest, but it looks like we have to go bus is almost here and we don’t want to be last for school he added.

Before they were about to leave the house their mother Didi walked from the kitchen and stopped them before leaving the house.

Hold on kids before she says. Before everyone leaves. Tommy and Dil, you're cousin Angelica will be staying with us for Thanksgiving dinner and winter break. Phil, Lil, Kimi, and Chuckie you're parents have already confirmed your beheading back to our house after school correct she asked them.

Phil, Lil, Kimi, and Chuckie nodded their heads in agreement that their parents had already known ahead of time. Tommy and Dil also nodded as well.

‘Wonderful, your kids have a great time at school and be safe she added watching them walk out the door and head into the bus.

Later on in the afternoon at Jim class. Tommy and Phil, we're busy playing basketball along with the other classmates. While Mr. Pangborn was keeping track of all the students during the basketball routines.

‘So, it’s clear that you and the others including dil understand why you guys are staying over said Tommy while following along with the other students. ‘ yeah, Phil responded. We’ve been wondering what exactly happened between y’all and Angelica. But to answer your question from earlier. Chuckie stated he’s been having difficulties asking Nicole to the Halloween dance, we thought he'll ask her asked by now, but we guess wrong without a doubt he should have everything under control.

Tommy nodded and the two boys continue they were Jim's class once it was over.

‘Later on, at the pickle's house. Chuckie, Phil, Lil, and Kimi were upstairs inside Tommy and DIL's bedroom to discuss the issue of the Thanksgiving incident with their cousin Angelica.

‘So, what's with angelica circumventing half of the school students say’s, Kimi? I'm starting to suspect Angelica is either concealment or she's overwhelmed by anxiety Kimi added waiting for Tommy or dil to respond as she was sitting on DIL's bed along with Lil sitting next to her on the left side of the bed.

‘Will said Dil. The reason Angelica is circumventing half the school is completely unknown to us, but the whole reason why she's circumventing, Tommy and me are that we don't truly believe or comprehend what she's dealing with at home and school.

So have you and Tommy asked around the school if they had any leads and what about her friends Kimi Question them.

Tommy and dil look at each other and back at each other. ‘ we tried asking around the school including her friends Tommy stated. Nobody, not even her teachers. This all started around the 15 of November 2014 one week before Thanksgiving.

Flashback one week after Thanksgiving.

On November 15 Tommy and Dil made their way to the house after a long day of school. while entering their mother and father could be heard inside the kitchen having a conversation about Thanksgiving dinner. Hi, mom and dad were home from school says, Tommy, who entered the kitchen along with his young brother dil followed behind him.

Hi, kids how was school today their father asked while reading the newspaper at the table. School was alright replied Tommy. dispensing that we don't win the Halloween contests, but theirs next year he added before finishing. ‘ yeah hopefully next year is better than the last dil comments. Tommy’s right said their father putting the newspaper down. There’s always next year any way your mother and I have something momentous for you boys he says.

Tommy and Dil became curious about what they were about to get told but their parents.

their mother turned around to face them and replay. You're cousin Angelica will be staying over for Thanksgiving dinner. We understand that you boys don't get along with Angelica but promise to not start with her or cause problems says their mother. That’s the problem Tommy says to his mom. She's always blaming us for things that don't involve the problems she's facing and she's been taking her irritation out on us for the past couple of weeks. ‘ yeah, we understand we don't get along with her, but it's becoming completely difficult to get this situation under control known talking won't be useful. He said before finishing up their side of the story.

Look spot their father said. Sometimes it's normal for family and friends to agree and disagree with each other it's part of life, but you stated that she's taking her irrigation on y'all for the past couple of weeks is unhealthy. Sooner or later you and dil along with Angelica gonna have to talk about it eventually when the time is right their dad added. Dad’s correct Tommy said dil. Eventually, the conversation with us both is much needed whenever it comes to pass.

Tommy nodded in agreement with dil about having a good exchange with angelica. after the boys had a conversation with their parents Tommy and Dil headed upside toward their bedroom. Meanwhile, while the boys were upstairs in their bedroom Angelica's mother had dropped her off at her house as punishment for the next few weeks.

angelica and her mother exited the car parked on the right-hand side of the house. She grabbed her blue and purple duffel bag from the front set while she closed the door behind her. It doesn't matter since I have to spend Thanksgiving weekend with those two always get on my nerves it's a good thing that I spend a lot of time updating and expanding the map layout of the house itself located inside my duffel bag hidden within my clothes underneath she whispered while walking towards the house and knocking on the door.

Before Grandpa could set down on the couch chair located in the leveling room he overhead knocked on the door and wonder how could be at the door. I’ll answer it said, grandpa Lou getting up from the chair and walking towards the door, and opening it to see Angelica and her mother. Hello, grandpa says, Angelica, walking inside the house. Hello, Angelica, it's been a while since I last saw you're grown more mature since you were a child he said.

She smiled at her grandpa knowing he was the only person who understand. Honestly, it doesn't seem to be I've grown more mature enough but hearing about how much I've grown is wholesome enough I might be going places. She comments. Well, kiddo Your most different earned the right to get compliments for the hard work you make he said rubbing her head with his right hand. Anyway, you run along up and start with your belongings Tommy and dil should be upstairs don’t forget to get say hello to them before heading towards the guest room replay grandpa.

Angelica nodded only to turn around while closing her eyes. taking a deep breath and slowly releasing from her nose knowing she was about to be a more paranoid haven to deal with her cousins. She started healing upstairs while carrying her duffel bag on her right shoulder. While she was heading upstairs Tommy and Dil could hear Angelica walking toward their bedroom. She noted that her cousins were talking about other things that didn't interest her while she passed the bedroom.

After a few minutes, she entered the guest bedroom located on the left side of the house. It's been a while since I've seen this room surprising that nobody knows that I have a complete layout of the house itself including the bottom and top floors. She said putting her

duffel bag on top of the bed opening it only to reach inside to grab the layout of the house.

Can't believe that I upgraded the map fitting for me most of the areas where the changes that were needed for my escape tonight.she said opening up the map and looking over the details of her escape. If memory serves me correctly the only changes that were make where the gust bedroom leaving from the window was risky enough for having the right amount of blinds we’re I’m at right now, my uncle and aunt bedroom is behind difficult if not done properly and as for Tommy and dil there simply enough with come ease she says moving her eyes down to the lower map of the house .

That just leaves the front door and the backyard, it would be easier to leave through the front door if it wasn’t so noisy that's out the window so my only possibility of escape is through the backyard leaving me with no other option she said before putting the map layout back into her Duffel bag.

While Angelica was putting her map layout of the house away inside her duffel bag her cousins Tommy and dil decide to head towards the guest bedroom she was located. You understand that we have to talk about how you just walked access our room without saying something, and what is the problem with said, Tommy, standing near the doorway with dil. Why would you two bother me to ask such a quesquestion when I simply don't have to answer you're annoying stupid question especially if the situation is none of your business, it's always a good idea to annoy Angelica or simply dig into my personal problems when everyone is always questioning me making a nuisance out of myself nobody appreciates anything I work hard for getting blame Angelica's comments before the three of them started whispering and arguing with each other.

After the argument that the three had Angelica started crying over the argument, she just had. I don't understand why I get myself into so many problems with them it never-ending cycle getting blamed for unnecessary drama involving not working hard enough around the house and always coming back and forth between home and work. I'm exhausted from this unhealthy situation, my mother doesn't seem to understand that I'm sick and tired of her being an ungrateful mother we argue with each other, and can't get along she said while letting her frustration out.

A few hours later around nighttime, Angelica's phone started vibrating from a text message from Susie saying she and her sister are a few minutes away from the house and should be arriving in less than two minutes. She started grabbing her phone which was located on the nightstand on the right side of the window including her contract ticket along with her sweatshirts for her and Susie she bought online from the concert website.before she left the guest bedroom Angelica fixing the bedsheets along with the pillows , she took one of the pillows from the middle of the bed and placing both the pillows on top of each other and making it look like she never left the room.

Angelica carefully walked out the guest bedroom into the hallway while putting on her sneakers. Once She finished putting on her sneakers ahead where her aunt and uncle's bedroom carefully sneaking passed their bedroom along with her cousins. After making it halfway through the house now downstairs she quickly turned her head right to face the empty kitchen with nobody else in plain sight just before she thought it was clear to proceed grandpa could be spotted entering the house from the backyard door. Angelica continue walking slowly until both grandpa and Angelica spotted each other.

Angelica said, grandpa what are you doing up this time of night he said whipping with a curious look on his face waiting for her reply. Angelica took a deep breath and replied. ‘ the truth is grandpa. ‘I'm currently sneaking out of the house for a concert that I'd been planning on taking Susie for her birthday today, but mother and I started disagreeing with each other after she had allowed me to buy concert tickets but randomly change her mind and said that I couldn't go after working hours at work grounded me for arguing with her she comments. Please grandpa I've been waiting for this one special event she adds pleading.

Grandpa sighed in relief knowing her mother was in the wrong. The good news is that you are honest and told the truth about your mother not allowing you to this concert, fitting that you're technically grounded for arguing with her, and I understand that your dealing with problems with your Mother is unhealthy but just between the two you're free to go with Susie have fun and be safe and remember to be careful when entering back into the house through the backyard grandpa whipped before heading upstairs and allowing Angelica through.

Thanks, grandpa you're the best, and I promise don't worry she whispered with a smile on her face before leaving the house through the background and closing the door slowly before taking off.

End of flashback.

After Tommy and dil had finished their side of the story, Phil, Lil, Kimi, and Chuckie were dumbfounded by learning about their situation with Angelica.

For the past couple of weeks, she's been taking her irrigation on y'all hell might as well be all of all said Kimi. I'm frustrated with the fact that nobody else is doing anything to stop this she added before Lil chimed in. More importantly, ‘I have a feeling that she's either hiding something from us or someone is keeping the information from coming out Lil said with a curious look on her face. Yeah, I agree with your dad eventually this situation will be talked about sooner or later fitting that Susie’s bound to question us before long Lil comments.

What do you mean by might as well be all of us Tommy asked Kimi raising an eyebrow. What she means is that Angelica has been given the same amount of problems that she’s been given yall but worse said, Lil. It's been happening since the beginning of the sophomore year one minute she’s friendly and the next minute she’s acting like we destroy her life or mentaling into a situation where you barely even have control over comments Lil.

Since the beginning of the sophomore year replay Tommy. Seems like we're going to have a long conversation with Angelica and Susie which I'm not ready for. Don't blame dude said, Phil. Anyway, we should get ready for bed but let's just say that Angelica was hitting information that could have made this situation problematic who could be that intelligent enough to make it this fair Phil question them. Well said Lil. Have a few suspects that is involved or who I think is involved with this situation more on that on a later conversation she relayed to her bother.

Once the conversation with Tommy, Phil, Lil, Kimi, Chuckie, and dil the whole gang started getting ready for bed once everyone else settled Tommy turned out the lights and fail to sleep.

End of chapter!?! Four

Hello, my amazing reader's nightmare here hope y'all doing fantastic during the holiday season, sorry for taking the time to publish the chapter sooner or later been busy lately fitting it's holiday season and all. Anyway, thank you for your patience appreciate it without further ado see y'all in chapter five the Halloween dance part 1 see you guys then!?!

[adore-gregor]

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[salami2]

Ch. 5 - The Nina Project

Eddie Munson x fem!reader

Summary - Jason has finally found you and Eddie’s hiding spot. You barely manage to escape, but end up witnessing something horrible in the process. Other then that, Eddie has been acting strange with you…

w/c - 2k a:n - after the tragic event we’ve all lived through, i decided to keep going and write a happy ending instead!

Warning(s) - spoilers for ep.5, obviously, a small description of getting ‘vecna’d, blood, water and swimming, fire, mentions of drinking, eating, sneaking around, eddie and reader being suuuper insecure, reader is described as underage to drink but over 18!

Chapter List - Ch.1 , Ch.2 , Ch.3 , Ch.4 , Ch.6

Tag List - @lokigirlszendaya @httpjiikook @castiels-gracex @notxmoo @lily-sinclair-2006

By this point, your arms felt like they were on fire. As you used your power like- no, as your life depended on it. Eddie tried to flick the engine on, with pure desperation.

Eddie spit the hair out of his mouth, exhausted. “C’mon! Why wont this piece of shit work!?”

His and yours eyes laid on Jason and Patrick, who were inching closer to you with every kick and stroke.

Contemplating on whether you have enough time to use your powers, the poor basketball player’s body started lifting up into the air. Making you really wonder:

‘How the fuck did we get here?’

From what happened today, you remember slamming doors and a frustrated Eddie.

In a short span of time, you became better at your telekinesis and mind reading. Almost effortlessly lifting things off the floor while checking your nose. Yep, a smidge of blood left your body.

Eddie tapped your shoulder, handing you a bowl of spaghetti-o’s.

“Thanks!” he simply nodded, walking away with the walkie.

Now, ladies and gentlemen, Eddie Munson had a problem.

His problem: Having a crush on the most beautiful woman he’s ever met in his life. And this woman was, wait for it- You!

The poor boy has never felt this way before about anybody. At one point, maybe Chrissy, but the way he felt about you was different. Too different.

As much of a confident persona Eddie puts out there, he knows who he is deep down. A metalhead, un-graduated adult man who was a freak. A freak that nobody could ever love.

His insecurity will be his downfall. He’s not as strong and fearless as you, he thought.

You, on the other hand, have been questioning why your new favourite brunette was avoiding talking or touching you. It was hard to figure out, so your mind went to the most logical answer.

He thought you were a monster.

I mean, just looking at the powers you have. You can read people's minds, make things levitate. You’re an abomination!

“Wheeler! Hey! Uhm, I’m gonna need a food delivery, like, real soon.” “But, didn’t Y/N get you some food?” Nancy asked, confused.

“Yeah, yeah she did. But she couldn’t pick me up any because she’s ‘underage’,” He quoted. “I am! It’s illegal!” You perked up, causing him to roll his eyes.

“I know it’s shit drinking right now but uh, I really-“

He was cut off, a smile forming on his face. He put down the walkie and munched on his spaghetti-o’s in bliss. Guess Nance said yes. You snatched it from him.

“Nancy! How have you guys been? I’ve been worried sick!”

You could imagine her rubbing the space between her brows, like she always does. “We’ve been peachy. Max almost died and Dustin and Steve have been acting like complete children. On the bright side, we do have a lead.”

Well, at least that brought some joy to you.

“So far, things over here’s been fine. No sudden attacks at all. Eddie’s been acting funny, though.”

“I bet he’s not used to being surrounded by a pretty girl. You just protect your new boyfriend and we’ll get back to you when we’re finished,” Robin interjected.

A light blush formed on your face. You pouted, scoffing at your friends' antics.

“Nice to hear from you too, Robin. How’s Steve?”

She chuckled. “Worried. Did you and Munson do anything? Y’know, just to make Steve worry a little less than he already is.”

You couldn't believe her! If you weren't dramatically red as a tomato, you would march down there and knock some sense into her.

“We didn’t do anything!” Your whining voice echoed, making her burst out in laughter,

“Alright, alright. We’ll be there soon. I’ll pick up your favourite snack, ok?” She proposed, making you a little better. “Ok.” You defeated, “Bye! Tell Steve and Dustin I miss them!”

And with that, you put the walkie down. Running a hand through your hair. Wondering how you got stuck with a bunch of dumbass friends (which you love very much, but still!)

You sighed, stepping into the kitchen and opening the fridge. Pulling out some fresh ingredients to make a fine dish for you and Ed.

“Hey, Eddie! What do you want to eat?” You called out. To no avail, since he did not respond.

“Ok, I’ll just choose…” You mumble under your breath. A tone of annoyance.

As you get everything ready, a very frantic Eddie comes rushing over to you. Spinning around after having him shake your shoulders. A look of serious distraught on his face.

You were confused and worried. “Eddie, what’s-“

“We gotta hide! NOW!”

It was quiet. Desolate. The sheer sound of flies buzzing around and your hitched breaths was still enough to make the both of you fidgety and scared.

Currently, Jason and his posey were searching the house. Trying to find the suspected perpetrator: the man sitting right next to you. Scared shitless and trying to reach out to Dustin- or anybody.

You, on the other hand, were trying to devise a way to distract Jason enough to get a successful getaway.

But a sudden headache interfered with that.

Eddie stared solemnly at you, noticing something was up. “Hey, are you feeling ok?” he asked.

You nodded your head.

This headache felt not like the ones you got while practicing or regular ones. It felt like someone was rattling around in your head.

Like there was something… ominous nearby.

But, you shook it off. Right now, it was Eddie’s and yours lives on the line.

“Ok… calm down. There’s a boat here, and if we’re sneaky enough, we can make a quiet escape.”

Eddie sunk into the floor. By his posture it was clear he felt meek. Frightened. He his his face in a ball he formed with his body. Squeezing his knees closer towards himself.

“Eddie?” You called out. “Please, I need your help for this to work. I can make a distraction while you pull the boat into the water. Together, we can find those knuckleheads and give them a piece of our minds.”

He didn’t say anything. Only keeping dead silent.

“Alright, uhm, I’ll go do the.. thing- yeah.”

You sighed, pulling yourself up and rolling up your sleeves. If he wasn't going to help you, you were going to have to girl-boss this shit by yourself. As annoyed as you were, you couldn't blame him.

He’s scared for his life. And you’ve got his back.

Slowly sneaking out of the boathouse, you make your way to the back of Reefer Ricks shack. Not before grabing a couple rocks. Slipping into the kitchen like a mouse.

Quickly, you chucked a rock near the living room. A lamp shattered and the boys immediately went over to see the damage.

You crawl up the stairs and close a door behind you.

There was no plan you could form. Having to go off what’s in the room. Searching through the drawers to get an idea, maybe.

That’s when you saw your plan; a lighter.

You wasted no time tying it together. Pulling together tight knots and making a rope.

Fire was always a distraction. If you maybe scared them off with a fire so you and Eddie could escape, then everything could come together. Smoke could distract them while you escaped.

Opening the door, you carefully light it on fire and hide in a closet in the hallway.

“What the fuck? I smell smoke! Guys, upstairs!”

You hear one of them come upstairs, all clamouring into the room. Before you could, you grabbed your backpack of stuff. Your gun, supplies and such.

You snuck out sprinting to Eddie in the shack. Heart as fast as a scared bunny. Breath staggering to keep up.

To your surprise, Eddie was there. Boat in the water and trying to start the engine.

A smile krept onto your face, laughing a little. Guess he was listening to you.

You take off your skates and dive in. Catching up to him and hopping in.

“I started a fire. That should distract them long enough!” You gleefully told him. Hoping and praying it worked.

He nodded affirmatively. “Great. Now we just need this-“ he slaps the motar hard, “piece of shit to work.”

“Don’t worry. Maybe I can make it work with my powers.” You say, kneeling down to it.

Before you could do anything, you glance at something in the distance. Quickly becoming fearful.

There was Jason and his other friend, discovering the two of you on the boat. The distraction may have worked on the others, but supposedly Jason wasn’t as stupid. Still is for going after a falsely accused man.

“Shit!” Eddie cursed, pulling with all his strength on the motar boat.

You started to take the rows and rowed like your life depended on it. Well, it did. Taking looks back at the slowly- but steadily- approaching Jason. Almost invisible in the darkness of night.

He was close. You didn’t want to have to rely on your powers, might it have to come down to it.

Steadying your hands, you concentrate on Jason and Patrick.

“What the fuck are you doing!?” Eddie called out, noticing the boat not moving.

You didn’t say anything to him, only directing your energy on the enemy. In seconds, Jason's body started floating. He stumbled in the air. “What the-'' he said, confused, wondering why his body was being lifted into the air and going backwards.

Before you could triumphantly get him to the shore, something happened.

Patrick.

His body floated. Not taking control from you.

His bones snapped. Body contorting backwards. Eyes falling into the back of his head as the big finale. It was just as gruesome as Eddie showed you. And the effect on the people watching…

Really did start to make sense.

Without even realizing it, Ed knocked you and himself into the water. Fear glazing his brown eyes. He pulled you closer to him and started kicking away.

“Eddie…” You called out, still mortified, “Eddie, we gotta go!”

You started to swim away with Eddie in tow.

As you made it to the land, you tried to get the haunting image out of your head. You and Eddie running away into the deep, wooded thicket.

The sun peeked through the trees above. Trudging steps, both ghosts quiet as you move through the forest.

Thankfully, the sun's heat started to dry both of your soaking bodies.

Your arms were crossed together. “Uhm, Eddie?” You called out. He stopped in his tracks and turned to you, waiting for you to catch up.

“I just wanted to say… I’m sorry.”

Your cracking tone said it all. Trying to hold back escaping tears. His eyes softened to your face, almost breaking down. Eddie shook his head.

“Shouldn’t be sorry. If anything, I should thank you.” He replied.

You both continued to move. “No, I meant with what we saw back there. It was mortifying.”

“Listen,” you expressed, “You shouldn’t have been a part of this. All this… should not have happened to you. All that shit I’ve just seen was horrible, and I can’t imagine going through it twice. You’re completely innocent in this and this should've been handled by me and my friends. We’ve been through this shit enough to be prepared.”

His eyes glossed. You meant everything you said, and he knew it. This whole situation was pure bullshit. And you wanted him to know-

“So, I’m sorry, Eddie. I know all you wanted was to graduate…”

And with that, you walked past him. Keeping those arms firmly crossed together.

There was nothing more that Eddie wanted to do then to hug you. Let his emotions cry into your shoulder.

But he didn’t want to do that to you. Again, his insecurities push those hopes deep down inside him. Your voice perking up in front of him.

“By the way, where are we going?”

He pauses for a second.

“The plan is to find another walkie, and then, heading to Skull Rock.”

You and Eddie started to once again trudge through the woods. Wondering what’s going to happen next, if everyone would be ok.

But most importantly: if you and Eddie would make this out alive.

@salami2 , pls like & reblog