#anyway all this to say that yeah next friday the 19th is looking like the chapter 1 release date

[burning-academia-if]

All choice indicators are in, I just need to finish the stat pages and then I can release Chapter 1-

[jcbbby]

A Chance Meeting pt.3.

Y'all. Y'ALL. Get ready. This is your warning. This is a doozy, both in content and in length. The 3rd and final part to this saga. I truly have been so overwhelmed with the love on the first two parts. I threw the first installment up on a whim, my first bit of writing on here ever, and it's been so great to have such wonderful feedback on it. Thank you for sticking with me! Also lmao, the "song" that appears in this...listen, I pulled those lyrics out of my ass. They're not a song I've or anyone else has ever written. They're corny, I know. Ignore that lol....anyway...

Synopsis: By chance, you meet the person you've admired most from afar, Jamie Campbell Bower. By luck, a friendship blossoms. Or perhaps...more? Over the course of a whirlwind week, your wildest dreams start to become reality.

Pt. 1 here. Pt. 2 here.

Warnings: Swears, alcohol, unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it in real life, kids).

-11:15pm. Friday.-

You and Jamie sat next to the other at the hotel bar, elbows propped up on the flat countertop, facing each other. You sipped your glass of wine in between laughs and upbeat conversation. You felt an ease you hadn't felt in so long, like everything in your life thus far had simply been leading up to this innocuous moment in time. Jamie glanced at your empty glass in front of you.

"Would you like another? On me, of course." Jamie asked, pushing his hair back with one hand. You looked down at the glass and back at him. "If you want, I mean. No pressure. Again, not trying to get you drunk..." He put his hands up in front of him and leaned back slightly, smiling.

You laughed and lightly smacked your hand down on the bar. "You know what, why not. It's Friday night, and I played a damn good show, I earned it." You smirked.

"Absolutely!" He exclaimed, raising a hand to get the attention of the bartender. "Could we get another glass, please? Cheers, mate. Thanks." The bartender nodded and grabbed a bottle to pour into your glass.

"I know I keep saying it Jamie, but really, thank you so much for coming to the show. I mean, you've truly been such a huge inspiration for me, and I've been a fan of your music for years. It's just so mind-blowing to think you've heard music I've written." You looked down as you took a sip of your fresh glass of wine.

"Aw, Y/N...you wonderful girl." he tilted his head, with a smile that reached his eyes. "That means so much, love. I'm so honored to have been even a sliver of inspiration to music as great as yours. Thank you. And you know, you're going places, I'm sure of it." He smiled and placed his hand over yours on the counter.

You glanced down at his hand on yours, and then up to meet his gaze. Your heart raced and you felt your face flush as you smiled, your eyes tilting slightly downward as you nearly let tears well up. Before this week, you never saw yourself getting out of your current station in life. It was hard to believe in yourself, and believe you were talented enough to achieve what you wanted. But sitting here, as Jamie of all people told you he believed in you, it felt like a dream. For even just a moment, you believed in yourself too.

"Thank you, Jamie. I just...I can't thank you enough." You shook your head, still unsure if this had all just been a very long dream. You took another sip from your glass.

"You know, I've actually started writing a new song since I've been here. It's not finished yet, but perhaps you'd like to hear it? I mean, you've so generously shared your music with me, it's only fair I do the same, right?" He smirked.

Your eyes widened as your lips parted into a toothy smile. "Are you kidding?! Oh my god, yeah I'd love to hear it!"

He chuckled. "Alright, grab your drink, love. Let's go up to my room, I've got my guitar with me."

You nodded and obliged, picking up your glass and scooting yourself off the bar seat. You followed him toward the elevator, wondering what you were about to hear. Riding up to the 19th floor of the hotel, he held his arm in front of him as the doors opened, allowing you to step out first. He then took the lead down the hall, halting outside a door. He rummaged around his pockets for a few seconds, before pulling out a key and tapping it to the door, it making the door click unlocked. He opened and held the door for you as you entered the large suite.

"Wow, they really put you up well, huh?" You glanced around. Items of clothing and bags were scattered throughout the room. Not a mess, but enough to make the room look lived in for several days.

Jamie chuckled. "Oh, yeah... Accommodations are often a surprise when they're booked by PR team. Sometimes they're tiny little rooms, other times they're like a castle. I'm always happiest with something in between, like this." He bent down to open his guitar case.

You sat on the end of the bed, watching him remove the beautiful light amber acoustic guitar from it's case. He turned to sit on the armrest of the sofa, across from you, with one leg up on the sofa cushion to rest the guitar on his thigh, as the other leg remained stretched out down to the floor. Sliding a guitar pick off the coffee table and into his hand, he quickly tuned the instrument. You watched him thinking to yourself how good he looked holding that guitar, his hair falling into his face, his long fingers over the strings.

"Okay..." He shifted himself slightly, pushing the hair behind his ear, and cleared his throat. "Like I said, it's not finished yet. So don't judge too harshly." He smirked.

He began playing, plucking a sweet and simple tune. You instinctively smiled as he started singing. His voice soft and deep, warm and passionate. He sang with a controlled, quiet intensity, his eyes looking down at the guitar, as his fingers slow danced across the fretboard. You listened to the lyrics he crooned, trying to get a feel for what the song was about. As you listened, your eyes welled up slightly, feeling goosebumps ripple across your skin.

"She longs for more in life But if she could only see She's got the whole world in her eyes And she amazes me Each time she smiles Or glances over at me I can hear the heavens cry And I just want to make her mine"

He went on for a bit longer, before he started to trail off. He looked up at you, for the first time since he started the song.

"That's all I've got so far..." he smiled sheepishly.

"Jamie, that...was beautiful. I loved it." You brought your hands up, placing them against your chest, over your heart.

"Thank you, love." He held his shy smile.

He got up off the sofa and bent down to lay the guitar back into it's case. Closing the top of the case, he came to sit next to you on the bed. There was a few seconds of a heavy feeling silence before you turned and opened your mouth to speak.

"I um...I really wish you didn't have to leave tomorrow." You placed a hand on his leg, not even realizing.

"I know, darling. I would love to stay even just a day longer. It's been great here." He looked into your eyes.

"I've just, had the best time of my life getting to know you. I feel so lucky." You let out a breathy laugh.

Jamie smiled and placed his hand on top of yours, both resting on his thigh. "I've felt so lucky getting to know you as well, Y/N." He paused for just a beat. "You know...if I'm being honest, that song was largely inspired by you." His thumb began ever so slightly caressing the top of your hand.

You blushed, your heart beginning to race, a surge of electricity running through your blood. "Me? Oh, Jamie...you sweetheart, I don't know what to say." you held his gaze, biting your bottom lip slightly as you smiled.

"I really like you, Y/N." Jamie said, as both of you started to lean in slightly.

You felt like you could combust at any moment. Is this really happening right now? You thought.

"I- I really...like you too." You stuttered, trying to comprehend what was happening.

Jamie broke eye contact, looking down to take both of your hands in his. You looked down as well, following his hands with your eyes as they enveloped yours. You both looked back up at each other. You hoped he couldn't feel how fast your pulse was going.

"Y/N...can I kiss you?" Jamie asked, his eyes full of longing.

You blinked a few times and swallowed, trying to not let the surge or energy you felt building in your body come out from your mouth in whatever way it was trying to escape. You bring your eyes back to center, looking into his and nod. "...yes."

He gave a slight smile as his eyes diverted downward towards your mouth. He brought a hand up to cup your cheek. Slowly, he leaned into you, his lips softly pressing into yours. The kiss was quick, breaking after a few seconds. He leaned his forehead against yours. You felt an energy building between the two of you, almost like a magnetic pull. You breathed a few times, feeling that energy begin to pulsate, and before either of you could say anything, you found yourself crashed against each other's lips again. This time, a raw hunger seemed to engulf the both of you. His lips parted, his tongue asking for entrance, which you allowed. Your arms reached to him, and his to you, hands grabbing at the other's bodies, trying to pull them closer.

Jamie began pushing your jacket up over your shoulders, revealing the tank top you were wearing beneath it. He moved his head down after letting the jacket fall to the floor, leaving love bites on your neck and on your collarbone. You moaned sweetly as his teeth and lips moved over your skin, your hand traveling up his back and into his blonde locks. Jamie's hand began to make it's way under your tank top, caressing your waist, inching closer to your breasts. He stopped just before taking your left breast in his hand.

"Is this okay?" He asked against your neck, placing a kiss just under your ear.

"Yes...I want you, Jamie..." You breathed out, as his hand moved up under your bra and began massaging. His mouth ventured back up to yours as he started making circles with his thumb around your nipple. You moaned slightly against his kiss, breaking it for just a few seconds as you quickly removed the tank top. Your lips met again, Jamie's hands wrapping around your back to unclasp your bra. You then began inching his shirt up, asking without words to remove it. He leaned away to allow you to bring the shirt over his head, revealing his tattoos, and toss it to the side.

He took you in his arms, laying you down on your back. He laid against you, pressing your shirtless top halves against each other, skin to skin. He went back to your breasts, beginning to suck on one nipple while his thumb moved back and forth across the other, then switching, making sure to give ample and equal attention to each.

Once he felt satisfied with his work, he reached for the button of your jeans, looking up at you for assurance. You nodded as he looked back down, undoing the button and zipper, continuing to plant kisses down your thigh as he slid your jeans over them. Letting them fall to the floor, he leaned back in, kissing and gently biting your thigh as he played with the hem of your panties. Twisting his pointer fingers around either side of the fabric, he began sliding them down, revealing your whole body now to him.

"You're so fucking stunning." He said breathlessly, taking a moment to take every part of you in, before leaning over, planting kisses from just under your chest, back down to your thigh.

He glanced up at you, eyes full of admiration, before bring his hands to your thighs. He gently parted them, bringing his mouth to your heat. Your breath hitched, as you felt his tongue working on you, working some kind of magic. You let out a moan, as he smiled against you.

"Jamie..." you breathed, and tried to stifle another moan, suddenly acutely aware of being in a hotel and having neighbors in nearby rooms.

Jamie looked up suddenly. "No, you let it out babe. I want to hear you." He smirked.

He took this opportunity to slip a finger inside, bringing his tongue back against you, immediately doing the come hither motion with his finger. Your hips began to buck against him, and your hands quickly buried themselves in his hair as your head flew backward against the pillows. Your moans grew louder as he slipped in another finger and began pumping. You felt your pleasure building up in your stomach as Jamie continued. Before you could let yourself come undone, your hands brought Jamie's face back up to yours, as you pushed your lips against his, his face moistened by you.

You reached down and began fumbling with his belt. He smiled against your lips, before leaning back on to his knees to assist you in removing his trousers. He rolled over on to his back to kick them and his boxers off, before rolling back on top of you. He hovered briefly, forehead pressed against yours, before lining himself up and slowly pushing inside of you. You both moaned as he let you adjust to his length. He sighed as he leaned back in, wasting no time pushing his tongue into your mouth, as he began to thrust.

Like he had asked of you, you were not shy in verbally encouraging him. You probably wouldn't have been able to if you tried to keep quiet, the man sure knew what he was doing.

"Fuck...oh fuck...you feel so good baby." Jamie breathed in your ear as he picked up his pace.

In a quick shuffle, he propped himself on his knees, lifting your legs up, holding them at a 90 degree angle in his arms to give him leverage, as he continued. This position allowed him to hit exactly where you needed it to.

"Oh shit...fuck..." Your back arched as you gripped the sheets. "Just like that...mmm..."

You could feel yourself tensing around him as he kept going. He would change up the pace, going from hard and fast, to slow and deep, and it was driving you wild. You felt your pleasure reaching it's peak. "Fuck...Jamie, I...oh god..." You moaned as your legs began to shake.

"Hold on, darling..." Jamie whispered, between grunts. "I want to look at you."

He lowered your legs to either side of him, bringing his hands behind your back, and lifted you up toward him. His legs stretched out under you, so that you were facing each other, his hands supporting your lower back as you both continued to rock your hips in rhythm with the other. Your arms rested on his shoulders as you both looked into each other's eyes. With a couple more thrusts, you felt yourself come undone, seeing white as you threw your head back in ecstasy.

"That's it, baby..." Jamie moaned, loving the show you were giving him.

You fell forward into him as your arms wrapped tighter around his neck, riding out your high. Within seconds he also reached his release, tightly wrapping his arms around your waist, moaning next to your ear. The two of you were left clinging to the other as your movements slowed down, leaving you both breathing heavily, in a haze of bliss. You smiled into his neck, gently placing a soft kiss. Jamie carefully laid the both you back on the bed, taking you in his arms and holding you against his chest, caressing your shoulder. He took in a deep breath and let it out with a content sigh, before kissing the top of your head.

"You're amazing." Jamie said, leaning his head against yours.

You smiled as you began tracing his skull tattoo. "You're not too bad yourself." You smirked.

You laid together, intertwined for a few moments. You were tired, but at the same time, the most awake you've ever been. Slightly zoned out, blissed out, still letting your finger explore the lines of his chest art, Jamie spoke and brought you back down to earth.

"You should come see me in LA soon." He smiled, softly playing with your fingers.

You smiled back. "I think I would love that." You paused, your smile fading just slightly. "Jamie...this isn't just going to be some hook up thing, is it?" You looked into his eyes, slight concern taking over your face.

Jamie now took your hand firmly in his and brought it to his lips, kissing it, before squeezing you tighter against him, placing his head in the crook of your neck.

"No, darling. No, I have a feeling this is the start of something truly beautiful." He whispered.

*************************************************

THE END. The rest is up for your imagination. :)

Thank you SO MUCH for sticking around and for all the overwhelming love on this. I hope this final part was sufficient for you! I appreciate every single person who liked, reblogged, interacted with any of these posts. I wish the world for you. <3

People who asked to be tagged: @nyleen @nograce-nomercy @dark-academia-slut

[floof-writes]

also. not to request two prompts. but i just read your tag on the post so i want to give you something to live vicariously through: the chain playing d&d together

I had a very in character moment and wrote a thousand or more words for all the requests I've gotten so far. Instead of living vicariously this turned into torturing Four with my own pain. Do note that I do these in whatever order I want and other asks are on their way.

Title: To Kill A God

Words: 998

“Hey, just checking, you’re still good for Dnd on the fifth, right?” Four asked, their fingers and all but Legend’s name crossed. He’d resorted to actually calling people at this point so they’d respond.

“Wait, that’s on the fifth? I can’t, Ravio and I are going antiquing that night.” 

One of the colors wouldn’t stop thinking ‘f’ and instead of letting Blue’s obscenities come out Four took a very deep breath. “Antiquing,” he repeated. “On Dnd night.” 

“Yeah sorry, he’s only in town for so long,” Legend said, but he didn’t sound sorry at all. Four couldn’t believe it. This was like, the fourth time in a row they’d canceled, and it was because of antiquing? It was like nobody even cared what happened to the lich king!

“Plan on the twelfth then,” Four managed before hanging up. He chucked his phone at his bedspread and crumpled up the list.

***

“Hey Warriors, when did you say your leadership retreat was again?” 

“Starts the Friday after next. The twelfth, I think?”  

Four’s face dropped. “I hate you,” Blue said, but Red thought that was too mean and backtracked. “But like, not actually. I love you.” They frowned. “I just hate you right now,” Vio clarified. 

“Sorry,” Warriors said, wincing. 

***

8 People Who Pay Income Taxes + Wind Play Pretend Every Friday

Oct 3, 7:03

God

Next session is on the 19th. Be there or be square. 😡:)

Monsterfuck-ling 

Don’t hate me…

God

Warriors, don’t do this

Monsterfuck-ling

I don’t get back until like 1 am on the 19th 

Four demonstrated extreme maturity and did not rip up their session notes, but it was a very close thing. 

***

“That’s okay, Sky, it would suck to lose your scholarship, you should definitely study,” Four said very very nicely, even though his insides were turning into lava. “How about the thirty first?” he said tightly.

“Isn’t that Sadie Hawkins?” Time said, and why Time knew that but not the correct way to eat cereal was beyond Four. 

“School dances are the worst, Time,” Four said, gagging. “We have Dnd.” 

“Wind’s totally gonna get asked though,” Legend said with a snicker, carting his brand new antique clock through his and Sky’s dorm room. “And he won’t say no.”  

Four flipped him off.

***

Mom said it’s my turn on the valid

Oct 17 9:17

Rainbow

Did anybody get asked to Sadies?

*looks Titania in the eyes while eating all her apples*

No lol

Mi patria es la mar 

Nope!

Punishing me for wondering what rocks taste like is thought crime

Nop

Ha. Suck it, Legend. 

***

“Finally, Dnd tonight!” Four shouted, practically bouncing down the school hallway with Wild on his heels. “You’re in charge of bringing food by the way.” 

“Obviously,” Wild scoffed, rolling his eyes. Then he stopped. “Wait, tonight?” 

Four’s gut went cold. “Yes tonight, where’ve you been?” 

“But tonight’s Sadies!” 

“And nobody is going! I asked, remember?” 

“No, you asked if anybody got asked! Four, I did the asking!”

“It’s a girl’s choice, dipshit!” 

“Well it’s not like a girl was gonna ask him!” Wild shouted back. His face went red and he added more quietly, “And maybe I was having more of a girl day anyway.” 

Oh for Hylia’s sake, Four suddenly felt like a very strong competitor for Wild’s idiot title. Sure, Wild had been questioning for awhile, but this was the first time he’d said anything definitive about it. But couldn’t Wild have his highschool romance on a night that wasn’t dnd night? Four hid his face behind his AP Stats textbook and walked away. 

“Hey, you can’t get mad at me for rebelling against gender norms, Four!” Wild called after him. “Gender is a social construct!” 

***

Even God can’t hear us here

Nov 3, 7:13

Wild stop changing my name to ‘real life furry’

Okay real talk for a second, I think Four might implode if we don’t play soon 

Wild Child 💛🤍💜🖤

Real talk: he bought me a calendar last week

Swashfuckle

Oh! Muppets right?

Wild Child 💛🤍💜🖤

Nah mine was pride themed?

Monsterfuck-ling

Guilt motivated?

Wild Child 💛🤍💜🖤

Oh no doubt

*and you all thought I couldn’t RP a barbarian*

I think he’s just given up at this point

Clock

Can we all commit to next Friday, November 10th, 6 O’clock? 

Four glared at the screenshot Legend had sent them, but beneath Time’s question was six whole ‘yes’s’ so he would take it. 

8 Flaky Whores + Four Play Pretend Every Friday

God

Be there or somebody’s body is gonna get harmed

Swashfuckle

Yessir!

Nov 10, 5:24

Wild Child 💛🤍💜🖤

[A selfie of Wild, who has a butterfly bandage on their temple and scratched up arms and hands. Behind them, Hyrule is in a hospital bed, looking ridiculously banged up but offering a thumbs up to the camera anyway. Wind is giving him bunny ears and Twilight has his head in his hands.]

Wild Child 💛🤍💜🖤

Hiking accident beat you to it Four

*and you all thought I couldn’t RP a barbarian*

[A picture of Four with his face resting on a pillow of crumpled up character sheets and dice. His DM screen has half-fallen on his head. Warriors looks on in distaste and concern.]

*and you all thought I couldn’t RP a barbarian*

He’s been like this for twenty minutes

Wild Child 💛🤍💜🖤

Hyrule says he’s sorry but also he has a Grade 2 concussion so like take it with a grain of salt

God is Dead 🌈

The Lich King kills all of you 

God is Dead 🌈

Except Hyrule’s sorcerer because he’s too high to understand his sins

God is Dead 🌈

The end

Wild Child 💛🤍💜🖤

What about me? 

God is Dead 🌈

You specifically go to hell

Wild Child 💛🤍💜🖤

Homophobia

God is Dead 🌈

BITCH I’M GAY

Swashfuckle

Homophobia

Dragon Hoard

Homophobia

Monsterfuck-ling

Homophobia

Clock

Homophobia

God is Dead 🌈

I hate all of you

Wild stop changing my name to ‘real life furry’

So… next Friday?

[negasonicimagines]

Tell Me I'm Not Funny

Request: darkandmysteriousbutheartofgold!ellie and wholesomeanddoesn'tunderstandwhyelliedoesn'tlikeher!reader where they're both part of the friend group but ellie just thinks reader is straight and messing with her pls

Notes: I don’t usually write MCU!Peter, so if he comes up in any future fics (like as the reader’s stepdad 👀 I’ve loved spideypool longer than I’ve loved Negasonic) you can safely assume it’s Andrew Garfield. But, for this time, this is MCU!Peter. Everyone in the friend group is 18-20, just to be clear.

This really isn't my best work, but it's a fun little slice of life piece. A lot of my ideas are pretty cinematic, I can picture them in my head but sometimes those pictures don't really translate into words. I may revisit this one day.

Warnings: D-slur (reclaimed by Ellie in one line), allusions to prior assault (an unwanted kiss that could've been more had another character not stepped in), and that's about it. Oh, and a little swearing, but this is an imagine for a character from Deadpool. If you can't handle swearing, you're on the wrong blog.

Synopsis: You’re into Ellie, but she’s with your good friend Peter. She treats you like you don’t even exist, and in the few instances she does acknowledge you, it’s usually just to make some sarcastic remark. You’re head-over-heels, though, and decide to deal with your unrequited love by writing her a song she’ll never hear.

“Fuck, that movie was terrible,” Michelle groans. “I’m just glad it was a matinee show and we didn’t have to pay as much to see it.”

“The special effects were good, but can’t Disney just leave stuff alone?” Peter agrees.

“Next thing you know they’ll be making a live action Toy Story, as if the original wasn’t traumatizing enough. I don’t want to imagine Watermelon as a sentient being. She’s seen some shit,” you snicker.

“Who’s Watermelon?” Ellie asks with a dark chuckle, and you clam up. How had you forgotten she was here?

“Oh, uh, nobody.”

“Don’t tell me you still sleep with a stuffed animal,” she snarks. “You really do need to grow up.”

“Don’t be mean, Ellie,” Peter protests.

“Watermelon is cute, everybody likes cute things!” Yukio adds.

“I think a live-action Toy Story could be cool,” Ned says. “It’d look really good if they did stop-motion animation.”

“Oh, you’re right!” you chirp. “It’d be quite the undertaking, but it would look badass.”

“I think you’re using that term a little loosely,” Ellie grumbles, and you have to stop yourself from frowning, instead you laugh it off. Why does she always pick on you? Sure, she’s got a witty remark for everybody, but she’s way harder on you. It hurts, she really is so gorgeous and funny and mysterious and everything you want in a woman, but she acts like she can’t stand you.

Ellie and Peter head off together, Peter still hasn’t gotten around to getting his license and Ellie seems happy to give him a ride. You really don’t stand a chance.

You and the others pile up in MJ’s SUV for some late-night band practice.

“I don’t know if I can do it,” you admit to Yukio in the furthest row back.

“You can,” she insists. “You’re a way better singer than Lola, anyways.”

“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean to give her the wrong impression, I-”

“For the millionth time, Y/N, you didn’t. If she hadn’t left the band, we would’ve kicked her out. Not just for cheating on me, but for hurting you.”

“I guess,” you sigh. “Why can’t you sing instead?”

“Because I’m flat.”

“Yukio, breast size doesn’t have anything to do with singing ability, you’ve just gotta practice,” you joke.

“Shut up!” she giggles, punching you in the arm. “Plus, when you sing, the songs are being sung as they were written. We’re getting the real feelings.”

“Speaking of… I have something new I’m thinking about sharing tonight. Do you mind if I text you the demo?”

“Ooh, a first look! Hell yes!”

You text her the audio file and she puts in a wireless earbud, nodding along. Her smile gets wider and wider as she listens, and when she’s done, her assessment shocks you.

“Oh my gosh. You’re into Ellie.”

“What?!” you squeak. “No way!”

“You are! But, uh-”

“Don’t even say it. I know I don’t have a chance in hell. She only tolerates me for the sake of you and Peter.” Despite the gloominess of your tone, Yukio gets a mischievous glint in her eye, it confuses you. But, that’s just Yukio. Her thoughts are all over the place; she and Ellie balance each other out that way. They dated a couple of years ago, but it didn’t work out. They decided they were better off as friends.

“Screw that other song, we’re using this as the lead single. Everybody’s gonna love it, do you have the sheet music?”

“Yeah, uh, it’s in my bag.”

“Awesome.” Yukio’s grinning like she’s won something. Is the song that good? “We’ll have to practice this one a lot, we definitely need to have it ready by the concert this Friday.”

Right. Liz’s 19th birthday party. Apparently Peter had convinced her to let the band play, it’d be cheaper than hiring a more established artist.

“Our first paying gig? I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” you remind her. She scoffs and rolls her eyes.

“We’re mostly gonna be playing covers of Liz’s favorite songs, and she only has so many. We’ve gotta beef up the setlist with originals, and this is perfect! Has that pop-y fun vibe, it’ll fit right in.”

“Yeah, but if it’s that obvious how I feel about her after one listen-”

“Only because I already had a hunch after Daft Pretty Boys,” Yukio clarifies cheerily, and you sigh.

“Fair enough.”

The gang makes it to Michelle’s house, travelling down to the side door and going into the basement from there. MJ’s parents have encouraged her creativity from day one, and were ecstatic when the band was formed. You speculate that they’re mostly happy that she’s made friends. Writing and photography can be lonely hobbies.

“Y/N has something new for us!” Yukio chirps.

“That fast?” Ned’s surprised as you hand him the sheet music. He skims it. “Holy shit, this is a wicked solo! Thanks, Y/N!”

“Well, I’m hoping highlighting everybody else’s talent will disguise my lack thereof,” you chuckle.

“Don’t be stupid, we’ve all heard you sing backup,” MJ says. “You’re Ryan Ross, she’s Brendon Urie. I’m just glad we booted her out before she decided she was gonna be the only pangolin in The Pangolins.”

Everyone laughs at that.

“Let’s try it,” Michelle continues, and everybody agrees. After a sound check and a few runs of the song, it’s still clumsy, especially on your part. You’re not really used to playing and singing at the same time, outside of backup vocals, which require far less focus.

“I suck,” you mumble, but it happens to be into the microphone.

“You don’t!” Ned insists.

“With that attitude, we’re not going anywhere,” Yukio says. You hate it when she gets to the tough love stage of her support. You wish she’d stay in the shallow reassurances stage, it’s easier to brush off. “You wouldn’t be the lead singer if we all thought you sucked. We would’ve just put an ad in the paper. You’re awesome, get over it!”

You sigh.

“Fine. Thank you.”

“Say it,” she insists.

“I’m awesome,” you huff, it’s hard not to smile when Yukio tries to look serious.

“Damn straight,” Yukio says. “Or, I guess not, considering that was about Ellie.”

“Yukio!” you squeal.

“That’s about Ellie?!” Ned exclaims.

“Obviously,” MJ scoffs, fiddling with her tuners.

“Is it that obvious?!” You can’t help but feel embarrassed. Ellie probably knows exactly how you feel, maybe that’s why she dislikes you so much. Her boyfriend’s stupid friend has a crush.

“Wait, but at the beginning…” Ned trails off, before laughing. “Oh my gosh, I get it.”

“Get what? Oh… Y/N, have I ever told you how much I love you?” MJ asks.

“I- I love you, too?” You’re puzzled by their words, but you’ve got enough on your plate.

“Let’s go ahead and practice some of Liz’s favorites while we’re here,” Yukio suggests. “It’s a pretty big set list.”

You practice until dinner, getting a pizza and deciding to make a night of it since it was a little late for Michelle to be dropping you all off at your assorted residences.

You all sleep on a pallet in the basement, and despite your worries, you manage to get some rest.

Over the next few days, The Pangolins practice at every free moment, until it’s finally time for the party.

“So, just pictures of everything?” Oh, shit. She’s not supposed to be here. How are you supposed to sing that song with her here?

“Yeah! I know with how many people are coming, I’m probably not going to get as much time as I want with everyone, so pictures will be a good way to remember the night.”

“Why not just invite less people?” Ellie wonders.

“I want all my friends to be here,” Liz explains. “How’s the sound check going, Y/N?”

“It’s going great,” you say into the microphone, demonstrating the quality and volume with a smile. “Thanks for letting us play here tonight.”

“Well, Peter said you guys are great. Are you really gonna debut your best song so far tonight?”

“Oh, um,” you stutter, stepping away from the microphone. “Maybe not.”

“What? Oh, come on, please, it’ll make the night even more special! You’re playing covers of all my old favorites, sing me my new favorite!” Liz presses, but she’s not being demanding or bratty, she seems genuinely excited.

“If the birthday girl says so, who am I to say no?” you concede. Hopefully Ellie will be too distracted taking pictures. “You have way too much faith in me.”

“If you don’t quit with the self-deprecation, I’m gonna duct tape your mouth shut,” MJ interjects.

“But, Daddy, how will I say my safe word?” you tease, giggling at your own joke with the rest of the group. Yukio’s laugh seems the loudest. Ellie glares.

“We should practice a song!” Ned suggests.

“Ooh, a private show!” Liz seems excited.

“Any requests?” you ask her. Ellie’s resting scowl intensifies. If she’s more pissed off the more you open your mouth, you’re not sure how she’s gonna survive a night of you singing without going nuclear.

“Oh, oh, Girlfriend by Avril Lavigne, please?”

“You’ve got it,” you agree.

The song goes smoothly.

“What happened to the old singer?” Ellie asks, clearly unimpressed.

“You didn’t tell her?” you ask Yukio, grateful for the excuse to turn away from the sharp-tongued girl you adore.

“Didn’t want her to get the wrong impression,” Yukio explains. “She already makes enough rude comments towards you.” Yukio leans over her drum kit to give Ellie a pointed look.

“Oh, wait, shit, I didn’t mean it like that. You, uh, sound good, Y/N.”

You can’t help but whip your head back to look at her with a flabbergasted expression.

“What?! It’s true,” Ellie defends herself.

“Uh, yeah, but you just said something nice. About me. Liz, do you mind checking her for a fever?”

Liz obliges for the sake of going along with the joke before quickly withdrawing her hand.

“Jeez! I know you were kidding, but she’s burning up,” Liz declares.

“My internal temperature is higher due to my mutation,” Ellie quickly explains, looking a bit bashful. “Besides, I say nice shit about Y/N all the time.”

“No, you don’t,” the whole band says in unison, including you.

“Well, clearly I shouldn’t if everyone’s gonna make a big fucking deal about it,” she retorts, rolling her eyes. “I’m gonna go get some pictures of the decorations before there’s a bunch of fucking people here to block them.”

She stomps off in her heavy boots, and The Pangolins get back to work, putting on the final touches and making sure all the blocking looks right.

Soon enough, guests start flooding in, and Liz zips around to greet them, eventually meeting up with Peter and keeping him with her. He and Liz eventually pull Ellie away from her picture-taking, confident she’s done enough and needs to just relax and enjoy the party.

So much for distracting herself with work, she thinks.

They sit on the couch and eat, the dining room was monopolized by The Pangolins due to its elevation and space.

Ellie’s mesmerized by the way your fingers move until she hears Peter talking to Liz. They really are a cute couple.

“You really do need to hang out with us. Yukio told me Y/N thinks Ellie and I are a thing,” he says.

“Gross, you’re like my annoying little brother,” Ellie remarks.

“And you’re like my bitchy older sister,” Peter retorts with a shit-eating grin.

“Both of you, quiet! They’re about to play the new song. You’re in for a real treat, Ellie.”

“What does it have to do with me?”

Liz gives Peter a confused and slightly irritated look.

“I haven’t said anything to her, I didn’t know how,” Peter squeaks, blushing a little at the look in his girlfriend’s eyes.

“Explain, quickly,” Ellie demands.

But, then you start to sing again.

“Y/N-” Peter starts.

“Shut up.”

“But you asked-”

“I said, shut up,” Ellie insists.

“You know me as your boyfriend's goofy friend. I seem to have this effect on women, and your friends aren't as goofy as I am. I try my best to keep you entertained, always laughing at the jokes you are saying. I nod my head when you make a point, oh oh…

“Kiss me, kiss me with your eyes closed! Whisper that your heart shows all I want is you, yeah, you… Hold me, hold me I'm your bunny! Tell me I'm not funny, tell me I’m legit! ‘Cause I feel weak, in your hands and your feet… A precious end, I’ll never feel your touch…”

Ellie continues to listen to the song, all expression drained from her face. All the yearning in the words and your voice, all you want is…

Ellie looks at Peter, who’s looking at her with a triumphant smile.

“I told you.”

Ellie feels like she’s about to faint. She notices you’re talking to Liz— when did she leave? —your hand over your mic. Despite the knowledge that Liz is taken, Ellie gets jealous. You look so happy to be talking to Liz, to just about any girl you talk to.

She wishes you’d smile at her that way.

You nod at whatever Liz said, and the band starts packing away their instruments. Liz sets up her phone on some Bluetooth speakers, and songs that sounded so much better when you were singing them start to play.

No! Ellie internally protests. Sing for me again, please, sing that stupid song about how you think I don’t like you.

Yukio’s dragging you somewhere. Gosh, Ellie wishes it was her holding your hand.

Suddenly, though, you and Yukio are approaching her. She knows what she has to do.

“So, what’d you think of our- Eek! Finally!”

Ellie parts from the kiss to tell her to fuck off and not ruin the moment before kissing you again.

“Holy fucking shit,” you breathe. “Uh, I thought you were-“

“Dating Peter?! Seriously?! Do I need to write ‘dyke’ on my fucking forehead? I practically already have with the way I dress and act and-”

“I, uh, I try not to make assumptions,” you mumble, fingers touching your lips.

“I’m, uh, sorry for not asking.”

“No, it’s- It was good. I’ve wanted you to do that for a while. It’s just that that was the first time somebody’s kissed me, since, uh…” Your eyes dart to Yukio, who’s ruffling Ned’s hair and laughing.

“Yukio?!” Orange flickers in Ellie’s eyes for a moment, but she keeps it under control.

“No, no, of course not, uh… The old singer, Lola. She and Yukio were dating, but apparently I was the one she really had her sights on, and… She was entitled. Thought that because she wanted me, I must want her. That wasn’t really the case, I was already pining over you. Didn’t stop her from forcing a few kisses on me and trying to go further. If Yukio hadn't shown up early with cupcakes, I don’t know what would’ve happened.”

“I am such an asshole,” Ellie says softly. “Can I kiss you again? The right way.”

“I’d say what you did before was pretty right, but sure,” you consent.

Her kiss before had been rough, needy, and impatient. Just the way you like it. This, though, this is gentle, soft, and exploratory. You tangle your hands in her hair and kiss her harder. She moans into the kiss before pulling away, bewildered.

“That was…” Ellie trails off, trying to find a positive adjective that won’t sound to frilly or lovesick.

“A mistake, wasn’t it?”

“Oh, fuck, no. I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time,” she corrects you. “Just- Didn’t really know how. Even when you were kinda flirting with me at first, I just thought you were messing with me, so I- I am so stupid.”

“So am I,” you scoff. “I thought you were dating Peter.”

“I was spending a lot of time with him, but… I was just using him as an excuse to avoid you so I wouldn’t embarrass myself anymore. And I was asking him for advice. I figured if he could land somebody as far out of his league as Liz, maybe I stood the slightest bit of a chance with you. But I kept fucking it up. I’d just get so nervous, all of my compliments would turn into insults, all of my teasing turned into straight-up cruelty. I don’t know how you actually like me.”

“I’m a little bit of a masochist, I’ll admit,” you tell her. “I’m really glad you don’t hate me.”

“I’m really glad you don’t hate me,” Ellie replies, but she can’t help but think that what she‘s really saying is ‘I love you, too.’

She takes your hand, and you two rejoin your friends, swept up in a group hug. They wanted this to happen almost as much as you two did.

[cvtqr]

we only have 15 minutes, sugar

pairings; eren jaeger x reader

content warning; mentions of past jean x reader, oral sex, masturbation, recording, manhandling?

february 19th

you always found eren jaeger attractive, especially tonight at this party. his long hair thrown up into a messy bun, his white shirt with water split on it - making it see through. god you were about to start counting his abs. but who you were really here for? jean. you guys weren’t in a relationship or anything, just friends who liked to help eachother. it started off when you guys would go to eachother for advice or he would find himself in your dorm room ranting to you. just helping eachother with little problems of course. that doesn’t mean sucking his dick was that much of a stretch from it, right?

anyways jean was in a frat house, along side eren. they were throwing a party, and somehow jean convinced you to stop by. you didn’t know if you were regretting it or not. jean was no where to be seen so you just sat yourself on the kitchen counter drinking some punch you found in a bowl. you were admiring eren from a far, remembering all the bad things jean had said about him. how he just annoys the living shit out of him. but god, how attractive he was. you could’ve sworn you looked down at your phone for not even a minute when you heard someone clear their voice right in front of you. you looked up to be met with eren.

“uh hi?”

“hey hey! erm- y/n. we had physics last semester together. eren, eren yeager.”

yeah, i already know your name

“oh hi!”

“my friend reiner over there says he knows ‘ya too. wanna come play truth or dare with us in the backyard hm?”

slipping your phone into the pocket of your shorts, you jumped off the counter, centimeters away from eren.

he let out a low chuckle, placing his hands on the counter, trapping you inbetween the granite and himself. he looked you right in the eye before reaching one of his hands back to grab a chip in the bowl behind where you were sitting. your breathing shakened a bit and you rolled your eyes at him, looking down.

he let out another chuckle before grabbing your chin and tilting it up, forcing you to look at him. “no need to roll your eyes sugar. if you were expectin-wanting something else, just say it. i’m not a mind reader baby.” he gave you a little wink before letting you go and backing up.

“i erm- i gotta pee i’ll meet you guys outside.”

he gave you a small head pat before running towards the back door.

right when you turned around to head to the bathroom you crashed right into jean, stumbling back a bit.

“oh hey jean!”

he sent you a blunt hey and started walking to the back door with an annoyed look on his face.

tch, what’s his problem.

your little bathroom excuse wasn’t actually an exuse, the amount of punch you were drinking finally caught up to you. right after you sat down your two best friends since birth, sasha and connie came bursting through the door, hysterically cracking up.

“YOO IM TRYING TO PISS.”

ignoring your comment they both collapsed onto the counter laughing their asses off.

you lightly smacked sasha on the back of her head, since she was the laughing the closest to you. “i swear if one of you idiots don’t tell me what the problem is-”

“YOUR BOYFRIENDS ARE OUTSITE FIGHTING OVER YOU-” connie said between laughs practically screaming.

“my who?”

“JEAN AND EREN. I-I ASKED FLOCH WHY THEY WERE FIGHTING AND THEY SAID IT WAS BECAUSE OF YOU AND HOW JEAN IS ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT HOW YOU ARE SO GOOD AT SU-”

“GOD SASHA YOU DONT HAVE TO TELL HER THAT PART”

“CAN YOU GUYS STOP SCREAMING!”

“SORRY, sorry y/n. apparently jean saw you and eren in the kitchen and well, tried beating eren up.”

letting out a sigh you pulled up your pants and ran out of the bathroom.

running outside you found jean knocked out in the arms of marco and eren standing up, wiping some blood out of the corner of his mouth while winking at you. walking right up to him you slapped him right across the face.

he let out a deep, long chuckle.

“i need to talk to you.”

“lead the way sugar.”

you grabbed his arm and pulled him inside while feeling every single pair of eyes on you.

“where’s your room.”

“if you wanted to get me in bed you could’ve just asked baby.”

god can anyone be that full of themselves

“no - no. i don-”

“i’m just joking sugar. follow me.”

he grabbed your hand and led you up into his room, closing the door behind him.

“what the hell was that all about.”

“for the record he started it. he got jealous for no reason and i wasn’t going to let him use me and his rag doll. and you shouldn’t be with someone like jean anyway. you should hear the way he brags about you being his bitch whenever the house is hanging out.” eren plopped down onto his bed

with that you didn’t know who to be mad at this point. he patted his lap signaling you to come over and sit on it. ignoring him you rolled your eyes and sat down next to him, causing him to chuckle again.

“you should clean your wounds that looks pretty deep on your cheek. and take a shower you smell like dirt and grass.”

he got up and headed over to his bathroom door. leaning on the door frame he turned back around.

“only if you stay.”

“hmph, i’ll think about it.”

15 minutes later eren walked out of the bathroom. you were no where to be found. he did know that he’d get back to you one day, considering you left your phone number on a gum wrapper in place of where you were sitting.

february 26

friday strolled around as quick as ever. this week you talked to eren a few times. he texted you on sunday night to have a good week. sicne he was being nice you replied with a “you too:’)”

after that he texted you yesterday afternoon asking if you wanted to come to another party. you never responded, and now it’s friday, 2:05. you just finished all your classes, and you’d be lying if you said you had anything else to do. well except for the pile of homework you usually wait until sunday to do.

sighing you texted him back saying you already had plans and wouldn’t be able to make it. after that you decided to take a short nap. what you thought would be a short nap turned into you sleeping until 6:30. you figured you should get up and get some dinner. you decided to grub hub some taco bell and eat it in the dinning hall. after getting your food you sat down in the corner of the room. it was pretty empty since it was pretty late for dinner.

“ouch, i’m offended.”

you turned around at the familiar voice

“even jean could convince you to come out but i get some lame exuse.”

“it, it wasn’t an exuse. i do have plans.”

“yeah with yourself.” he pulled over a nearby chair and sat next to you.

“i ditched the party, it was pretty boring.”

“so you came to bother me?” you said while still stuffing your face with your food

“yeah pretty much, you wanna hangout?”

“i mean do i really have a choice?”

he leaned over and grabbed one of your nachos, shoving it in his face.

“no not really sugar.”

rolling your eyes you threw out your garbage and led him to your dorm room. since it wasn't that far of a walk, neither of you said anything on the way there. he just simply followed you. 

once you got into your room you shut the door behind you. 

“if you’re sitting on my bed then shoes off.”

“demanding” he said while slipping his shoes off and plopping onto your bed

“soo..” he said as you sat down next to him.

“wanna watch a movie or something? i see you have a tv in here.”

“sure, let me just fix my blankets so get up.”

he nodded and chuckled, getting up. you pulled down your comforter so there was room to get in, and threw all your blankets into the corner before grabbing your remote and slipping into your bed.

“is this an invitation to come lay with you under your blankets.”

“shut the light.” you said while pressing power on the remote. 

the last thing you remember from that night was cracking up with eren over some stupid movie the two of you put on. before you knew it you woke up with a tight grip around your waist. you look over to see eren, still sound asleep. he was so pretty. you figured the two of you just fell asleep while watching movies yesterday. moments like these you were grateful your roommate was on back at home for family issues.

you tried slipping out of his grip before he pulled you back in and groaned. he was still sleeping so you figured you weren't getting up anytime soon, so you closed your eyes and drifted off back to sleep. you woke up about two hours later to find no eren, but a note.

forgot i have to work on a project with floch. i had fun last night, lets do it again soon :)

you were in a good mood the rest of the day. 

may 15 

its almost been four months since you've met eren. you also cut off your contact with jean. he was a good fuck while it lasted. over the last four months you and eren got closer than ever. hanging out almost everyday, going to parties together, falling asleep cuddling every weekend, you name it. yet again, friday came around. instead of cuddling, you and eren decided to go to a party at some sorority house. 

three hours later you were sitting in a circle with a bunch of people you recognized / were friends with. you were all playing a game of truth or dare, cracking up at each other. everyone’s secrets were coming out and people were doing some crazy things. and the list of things we had to do on campus was piling up. for example, connie has to pull a prank on professor ackerman during class on monday. until it was sasha’s time to ask you.

“hmmm. OH Y?N! truth or dare babes!”

you really had to think this one over. sasha had the power of exposing every single one of your secrets if you picked truth, but she's also kind of crazy so who knows what she would dare you to do. after a small debate in your head you went with dare.

“i pick dare.”

“alright! hmmMMM. i dare you to go into an empty room with eren for 15 minutes.”

you felt the heat rush up to your cheeks when you stood up and stretched your arm out for eren to grab. 

you both left the living room and headed up to a room while hearing the small, faint giggles from your friends.

entering the room eren shut and locked the door behind the two of you.

“so.. what do you wanna do?”

“hmm. we only have 15 minutes, sugar.”

this is it. the moment you've been waiting for. you had eren right in front of you. just go up and kiss him already! 

as you slowly walked up closer to him. he flipped the both of you, pinning you up against the wall. 

“let me see if you taste as sweet as I've imagined, sugar. pleaseee you don't even want to know the amount of times I've fisted myself to the mere thought of it.”

you gave him a nod and that was all he needed to pull you off the wall and push you down onto the bed. pulling up your skirt and pulling down your panties, he grimly smirked. 

“don't you dare cum without my permission.” was all he said before going between your legs and flicking his tongue onto your clit. your breathing quickly became heavy and irregular before he shoved two fingers, palm deep into your cunt. 

“ahh~ f-fuck eren-” you blurted out while starting to move under his touch, slightly bucking your hips up. 

that was until you felt a strong pair of hands hold your hips down. 

“stop moving or i’ll stop.” he hissed out before going back down on you, eating you out more forcefully than before, brining you right to your climax.

“f-fuck eren i need to cum- please let me cum. pleaseee~”

“no.” he said while pulling his fingers out of you.

“the only place you’re cummin’ is on my cock. you hear me?”

you wiped away the slight tears forming in the corners of your eye while nodding.

“that's a good little girl.” eren said while smirking

he swiftly grabbed you and flipped you over onto all fours, while shoving your face into the mattress. your first reaction was to perk your ass up for him.

“well someones eager aren't they.” was all he said before pulling down his pants just enough for his fully hard cock to spring out. he could've came just to the feeling of eating you out. 

he leaned down into your ear while whispering, “as sweet as sugar.” he started jacking off while still leaning down, before quickly cumming all over your ass. 

did he just?

he pulled up his pants before getting up and heading up towards the door. 

“well sugar, looks like our time is almost up. we should get back to the ga-” he was cut off by you running up to him and clinging right onto his shirt. practically crying you were blurting out small no’s.

“f-fuck the game, er - eren please just fuck me.” you were so desperate to the point where you were choking on your words. 

“aw, i’m sorry baby i didn't mean to make you cry.” he said while stroking your hair and patting your head. “come suck me off in my car and maybe if you do a good job i'll take ya home and fuck you, yeah?

may 18

sitting in your first class of the morning you were bored out of your mind. getting some lecture from professor ackerman after connie drew all over his desk.

that was until you got a snapchat notification from eren. opening it you were oh so grateful you had your headphones in. it was a video of eren cumming all over his laptop with a video of him shoving his cock oh so deep into your pretty little cunt. 

with the caption of missin’ the taste, sugar :’(

you’d be sure to pay him a visit during your lunch break.

[nsheetee]

Requested: 

Yangyang x Reader + Strangers to Friends to Lovers + Fluff

Summary: In which a very unhappy Yangyang is forced to pick up his little sister from daycare everyday, and you’re her daycare teacher

yangyang loves his little sister to bits and pieces

from the moment she was born and given to yangyang to hold in his tiny 11 year old arms

her little tufts of black hair sticking up and big doll eyes looking up at her older brother

he knew: he would probably do anything for this little angel

but now, 8 years later...

8 years of crying, nagging, hair-pulling, tattle tailing, and name calling

he thought he would finally be done

he thought his parents would lay off on all the responsibilities they’ve pushed onto him for the past 8 years due to the little angel that they named “joy”

he thought that once he started college, his parents would see how busy he is and finally relax off of him

but alas, yangyang was rewarded with a car of his own for his 19th birthday only under one condition: 

pick up joy from daycare at 4pm every weekday

so, a mildly irritated yangyang with a new set of wheels and just one more responsibility on his plate set out to his first day of college in his brand new chapter of life

you had a lot less to worry about, at least compared to yangyang

all you had to do was maintain a high GPA to keep your scholarship and a lot of your money problems were solved

but you still needed extra cash for yourself

which is why you got a job at a daycare

you would be in charge of a small group of 8 year old for around an hour every afternoon 

what you did with them for the hour was almost always up to you

so on the first day, your little group of five 8 year olds came into your daycare classroom- the first thing you did was go outside

the kids LOVE you

they boasted about being able to play on the playground when no one else got to- claiming they had “the awesome-est teacher EVER”

and when they got rid of all of their pent up energy from sitting on hard plastic seats at school for several hours, you managed to get them to introduce themselves to you and to one another

soon, the first day of daycare came to a close

parents arrived and greeted you, taking their kids and all their belongings with them as you wave good bye

only one girl from your group was left: joy

she sat under a shady tree, slouching as she picked at the grass next to her legs

“hey, joy. what’s up?” you ask and sit down next to her

“sorry my brother is late.” she looks guilty as she continues to pick at the grass

“it’s okay, joy. I’ll wait with you for however long it takes.” she nods, but you could tell she’s still apologetic.

“do you wanna make a flower crown?” you ask, trying to get the situation off her mind

“I don’t know how” 

“well, I'll teach you”

joy’s furrowed eyebrows slowly melts away as you hunt for flowers and a small smile blooms on her cheeks when she finally finishes her crown, gifting it to you

it was 4:47 when yangyang pulls up to the daycare, new wheels crunching on the gravel road and he pants as he gets out of the car

“yangie!” joy shrieks, running to her brother and encircling her tiny arms around his waist

“joy! I'm so sorry I'm late.” 

“I'm not the one who needs to hear that.” joy speaks matter of factly, and you don’t think you’ve ever heard an 8 year old sound more mature

as joy walks to the car, her older brother turns to you

you slowly take off the flower crown, eyebrows raised while waiting for the boy in front of you to say something

he’s so boyish it makes your heart melt

with curly hair that falls over his eyes and a smile that you know hides a lot of jokes and pranks for the future

you can’t help but feel a bit giddy at the sight of him

“I'm so sorry about this. I swear it won’t happen again.” he looks down apologetically and it reminds you of an older, boy version of joy

maybe it’s because you think he’s cute or maybe because his little sister is really fun

but you wave a dismissive hand

“it’s alright. joy is a pleasure to be around. I didn’t mind.”

he raises his head to see the sincerity in your eyes and relaxes 

“I’m yangyang, joy’s brother.” he finally introduces himself

“I'm y/n, joy’s daycare teacher” you reach forward to shake his hand

“aren’t you too young to be a teacher?” he asks

“I can give CPR and kids don’t hate me, that was enough for them to hire me” you shrug, “I go to the college” you wave your hand in the general direction of your school

“oh,” he looks surprised, “me too. maybe I'll see you around? o-or we can study.” yangyang curses himself at his stutter and feels heat crawl up his cheeks 

why is he blushing over an invitation to study?

maybe because he’s never been this straight forward with anyone else before

“yeah, sure” you don’t look affected and it makes yangyang more nervous

“yangie!” joy shouts from his car, looking annoyed and yangyang sighs

“right, we have to go home. I’ll see you... later.”

and you do see him later

he arrives to pick up joy (on time) every weekday

he would gather up joy’s backpack and jacket while intently looking at you as you explain what joy did at daycare that day

and after your spiel, yangyang would ask you how your day went and how your classes are going

yangyang enjoyed your small daily conversations so much that he started coming 5 minutes early to pick up joy to have some extra time to speak to you

and then he started coming 10 minutes earlier 

and then 15

and then 20

and then you just decided to invite yangyang to join your class

“w-what?” he laughed nervously when you asked

he thought you were just kidding

why would you want him to join your class of 8 year olds?

“well you’re here for almost half of the time anyway. just join us tomorrow!”

yangyang wasn’t going to- he would tell you that he had other plans:

he needed to study, he had to get his car washed, he had to walk his dog

literally ANY excuse he could think of

but he knew he couldn’t lie to that sweet smile you always gave him when you see him

so that’s how yangyang ended up sitting criss-cross apple sauce in the circle of your group of kids at daycare the next day

he had that light dusting of pink on his cheeks as he tried to fit between joy and another boy in the group on the carpeted floor

but when you introduced him and all the little kids said “hi, yangyang” in unison

he felt more comfortable

having yangyang with the group of kids was fun... really fun

one day he showed the kids his mad soccer skills

another day he played the piano to lull them into nap-time

you think he might steal your position of being “the awesom-est teacher EVER”

and of course, joy had to tell her parents one night over dinner about what was happening at daycare

“yangyang is part of my daycare group now” joy said during a lull in conversation 

yangyang kicked her chair under the table and sent her a pointed glare

“yangyang, we asked you to pick up joy from daycare. not join her at daycare” his mother sighs and puts her fork down

“oh no, mom. it’s a lot of fun with yangyang and y/n” joy defends

“y/n...” yangyang’s father ponders, “you know, we should invite them over for dinner.” 

“YEAH!”

“absolutely not”

joy and yangyang glare at each other from across the dinner table at each other’s opposing answers

“kids...” their mother warns and looks back at her husband, “I think that’s a good idea. we hear so much about them, why not invite them over?”

and that’s how you end up ringing the Liu’s doorbell promptly at 6pm the next Friday night

you made a batch of cookies to share (you refuse to show up empty handed, especially since it’s yangyang’s parents that you’re meeting) and you wear your nice clothes that you usually keep stored away in the back of your closet

yangyang opens the door and he immediately becomes 1000x more nervous

that smile hits him again, the kind smile that he doesn’t see you give to anyone else but him

it makes his heartbeat speed up and his cheeks tinge with pink no matter how hard he grips the door frame

“y/n, hi”

“hi,” you both stand in your spots, not moving or speaking... just looking at each other, “can I come in or...?”

“right, right. sorry” yangyang moves awkwardly to let you slide past him through the doorway

the smell of your fabric softener is so familiar that yangyang almost calms down in this situation

he’s been stressed this entire week leading up to this dinner

not only are you about to meet his parents, you’re about to witness what his family is actually like

and yangyang is scared that even if you had a small part of you that liked him

it’ll be non-existent by the end of this dinner

but surprisingly

dinner goes better than he expected

it seemed like you fit in perfectly, a fifth chair pulled up to the table made the atmosphere more cozy and your laughter mixing in with the rest of his family’s was something yangyang didn’t know he needed

he had a moment where he had to sit back and wonder when you got to be such an important part of his life

maybe it’s because joy already likes you so much

and yangyang knows that no matter how many times joy tattle tales, nags, or cries at yangyang

he’ll always be her big brother 

and it seems just a little too perfect for you to be an element that was added into the mixture that is his crazy life

but yangyang, despite his doubts, decides he’ll take this small but perfect thing that life handed to him and run with it

so after dinner, he walks you to your car in the driveway

the sun has just set and the leftover rays cast a purple hue over the sky and over your skin, making Yangyang fall just a little deeper into his feelings

when you say good night, you really hope he stops you 

you really hope he doesn’t let you get into your car

you really hope he doesn’t let you close the door

but he does, and you think you may be receiving mixed signals from him for the past few weeks 

until he knocks on the window of your car

you roll it down, confusion apparent on your face

“yangyang, what’s wrong?”

“uh, n-nothing just... don’t move” he says

he grips the frame of the car with all his might to steady himself, physically and mentally, and leans down through the window 

he places a gentle kiss on your cheek and pulls back to see your reaction

you’re a bit surprised but you quickly bite your lip to keep yourself from smiling too hard

and you signal at him to come back to you

you return a kiss on his rosy cheek, mumbling a shy goodnight before rolling up your window and driving away

he touches the small part of his cheek where your lips just were, smiling dumbly as he walks back into the house

he’ll have to thank joy for bringing you to him later

[memxntomxri]

ｏｎｅ ｄａｙ

ꜱᴇʀɪᴇꜱ ᴍᴀꜱᴛᴇʀʟɪꜱᴛ | ᴍᴀꜱᴛᴇʀʟɪꜱᴛ | ʜᴏᴍᴇ

𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 - kuroo tetsurou x kozume kenma

𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘳𝘦 - angst

𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘤 -

dear tetsurou, i wish i had the courage to kiss you that night on the dorm roof, you know? or, kuroo wants to love kenma, but kenma won't let him because he knows he's leaving kuroo behind

written for kuroken week 2021 - day 1: domestic/college au/"sorry i didn't kiss you" - bubble gum by clairo

𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵 - 1.5k

𝘵𝘸 - su!cide, depression, anxiety attacks, generally horrible mental health, h0mophobia, one slightly gory scene (they’re watching horror), really bad anime references

𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴 - straight up angst, also REALLY dark. DO NOT READ IF YOU CAN'T HANDLE STRAIGHT ANGST

｡o°✥✤✣ 　　 ✣✤✥°o｡

Dear Kuroo,

If you’re reading this, I’ll be gone, and I’ll be finally fulfilling your wish for me to use your first name

I wish I had kissed you that night on the dorm roof, you know?

The wind whipped around the two of them, biting into their coats and making Tetsurou’s hair even messier, if the bedhead gods would even allow that. Kenma wheezed like a broken record as he trudged up the last few steps, groaning as he collapsed next to Tetsurou on the ice-cold concrete, breath coming out in short, panting puffs.

“Why are we here, Kuroo?” he asked tiredly.

“Kenma, look! We can see the entire city from here! I come up here to think sometimes, or when I can’t sleep.” Tetsurou exclaimed.

As Kenma sat up from his prone position on the floor, he caught sight of the twinkling lights of Tokyo. It truly was beautiful, like jewels spilling out of a child’s toy box and catching on an ethereal light millions of kilometers away.

Tetsurou turned to look at Kenma, and the slight movement caused a bit of air to breeze through Kenma’s hair. He realized that they were oh-so-close, close enough that he thought he could count the individual eyelashes, as numerous as the stars, close enough that he could lean in and…

Kenma turned away, and for a moment, Tetsurou’s heart dropped. But then, Kenma’s soft voice filled the air.

“Not like this, Kuroo.”

Tetsurou backed up. For Kenma, he would wait forever.

He didn’t know how literal that would become.

I’m sorry I’m so selfish. I wish I could’ve let you go, let you move on, but I have so many things I wish I could’ve said to you.

Do you know that the day I knew I was in love with you,  it wasn’t anything special? I know that I always say that I want something “interesting” and that boring isn’t for me, but that day, we were doing the most mundane things.

It was the time we binged the horror movies and you were screaming the entire time. Do you remember? Do you remember how I held your hand, even though I was tired? Do you remember how I ignored my parent’s calls?

Do you remember how you smiled at me?

Tetsurou plopped down on the couch. “KYANMAAAAAA!” he called into the kitchen, where the bleached-hair male was making popcorn for their horror movie night. “It’s about to start, come on!”

From the other room, Kenma sighed. “Kuroo, you’re the one who insisted that we ‘had to have’ popcorn for horror movie night,” he said as he walked into the room carrying an overflowing bowl of said snack.

Without replying, Tetsurou grabbed an overflowing handful of popcorn and stuffed it into his mouth. Kenma sniffed. “Have some manners and stop eating like a 19th century barbarian, won’t you?”

Tetsurou rolled his eyes and patted the spot next to him. “Come on, Kenma! I even got your favorite blanket.” Kenma reluctantly sat down next to him, closer than he probably should have if he had wanted to keep his distance.

As the movie progressed, Tetsurou got increasingly louder and closer to Kenma, ending up clutching Kenma’s arm as a clown jumped out of nowhere and blood sprayed all over the screen. Suddenly, the suspenseful atmosphere was broken by the insistent ringing of Kenma’s phone. Kenma glanced at the screen, then put it on silent.

Tetsurou peeked at the device. “Hey, aren’t those your parents? Don’t you have to pick it up?”

“Nah.” Kenma replied shortly.

Tetsurou’s face broke out in a radiant smile, one that was genuine and looked like warm honey and bright days laying in sunflower fields.

“You know you looooove me, Kenma!”

He hoped there was some truth behind those words.

I’m grateful to the universe for pulling us together, even though sometimes I wish they hadn’t.

If we had never met that day in lab, I wouldn’t have stayed so long and let myself be broken more.

And you wouldn’t be hurting now.

I’m sorry, Tetsurou.

Tetsurou’s ears perked up as he heard an emphatic curse word filled his ears. Oya? What was this? He glanced over and caught sight of a boy with bleached hair and dark roots growing out shaking his hand. Oh wow, cute. Wait, what?

Tetsurou knew he was bisexual, but he’d never had this reaction so soon after just seeing someone for the first time. Whatever. The boy probably needed help anyways, and Tetsurou was just this kind.

He sidled up next to him. “Need some help?” he asked.

The boy glanced up at him in shock and actually hissed. “I’m doing fine just the way I am.”

Tetsurou put his hands up in a gesture of surrender, “Hey, just offering. Also, that isn't sodium. Kuroo Tetsurou, by the way.”

In the end, Tetsurou ended up helping Kenma the entire class, even through the smaller boy’s (half-hearted) protests.

He also figured out why Kenma intrigued him so much.

Hey, don’t beat yourself up for this, okay? It was inevitable.

You helped me so much, Tetsurou. Even though it hurt to stay for so long, I also saw so many beautiful things with you. Thanks to you, I was happy before I had to leave.

If you’re still not convinced, do you remember that day when Akane wouldn’t stop trying to touch me?

That was just one of so many times you saved me, Tetsurou.

Tetsurou ran after Kenma, calling his name (softly, he knew Kenma could be set off by noises sometimes). There was a girl in Kenma’s group in Business Management class, and she couldn’t seem to take a hint, always trying to toss an arm around his shoulders or tug him somewhere.

(Tetsurou did all that, but he knew that if Kenma actually didn’t want him to, he’d know by now.)

He found the smaller boy crouched in an empty classroom, arms over his head. “Hey, hey, Kenma. It’s okay. She’s gone now.” he said gently, kneeling down next to him.

“Can I touch you?” Tetsurou asked tentatively.

When he got no response, just a blank stare and tears running down Kenma’s face, Tetsurou sat down next to him, leaving a careful distance between the two of them.

“You know, I saw this new game at the electronics store the other day.” he said, trying to distract Kenma. “I think it’s the newest version of Mario Kart? If you want to, we can go pick it up this Friday then spend the entire Saturday playing.”

Still no response. Kuroo tried another tactic.

“I’ll buy you apple pie…” he attempted bribing.

“K-Kuroo?” came a muffled, broken voice next to him.

“Yes, kitten?” Kuroo asked, immediately attentive.

“Can you just… hold me?”

“Of course.”

That day, Tetsurou resolved to never let Kenma face anything alone again.

I told my parents about you. We both know how well that went. There’s a box of things from my childhood that I want you to have. They’ll mail it to your dorm.

There are so many things I wish that we could have done together that we never will. The first of those is that I wish I could have brought you home to my parents, but that’s not possible.

Did I ever tell you what they said that day?

Tetsurou paused outside of Kenma’s dorm room, apple pie in hand. He hadn’t dropped by in a week - finals were a bitch - and had planned to surprise Kenma with some of his favorite dessert as an apology for flaking on their weekly horror movie night.

The sound of his name paused Tetsurou in his tracks.

“Mom, I swear, Kuroo-san isn’t like that - and even if it was, it’s got nothing to do with you.”

“M- Oh, Dad. Dad ! Uh-huh.”

“I’ve told you before, hanging out with a bisexual person who I might like will not turn me any gayer.”

“Mom, please, you’ll like him, he’s nice, has a great sense of humor - he’ll talk volleyball with Dad, Mom, can you please just try to listen?”

The sound of a phone hitting a wall.

Even though we never got to be together, thank you for the memories, Tetsu.

I hope you didn’t have to see me in the end.

Cold, so cold.

Why was his hand so cold?

Deft, agile, flying across a screen-

Alone.

Left alone, both searching for a way to pick the broken pieces up.

Why, why, why?

Why didn’t you tell me?

Why didn’t you let me help?

Why now?

Why, why, why?

Why wasn’t I enough?

Because I love you, so much that I know that you deserve someone who can give you all of themself, not the jagged edges and fragmented pieces that I would’ve handed over without a second thought if I had stayed.

One day, I hope we can meet again when I’m good enough for you.

I love you, Kuroo Tetsurou.

Kenma.

The two of them laid in a field of flowers, heads turned toward each other and bodies curled so that they looked like two sides of a heart, reaching for each other, yet with a gap that felt like a million light years separating them.

“Hey, Kuroo…”

“Yeah?”

“Nothing.”

I really tried.

｡o°✥✤✣ 　　 ✣✤✥°o｡

© ʙᴇᴛʜᴇʏᴅᴏᴄʀɪᴍᴇᴡʀɪᴛᴇꜱ 2021 - ᴘʟᴇᴀꜱᴇ ᴅᴏ ɴᴏᴛ ᴄᴏᴘʏ ᴏʀ ʀᴇᴘᴏꜱᴛ ᴡɪᴛʜᴏᴜᴛ ᴄʀᴇᴅɪᴛ

[assomoir]

the sky might be falling; but the stars look good on you

Fandom: Ikemen Vampire

Pairing: Theodorus van Gogh x MC

Summary: A peek into a day of Theo’s life [and a reminder that she had her insecurities sometimes].

Note: Written for the @ikevamp-holiday-exchange​​ ! Hello @ceet​ , I enjoyed writing this (although writing non-smut was a challenge for me), so I really hope you’d like this too :) I saw your tags, so here’s to the both of us being fools for this man.

Title taken from the music of Ólafur Arnalds’ biography.

She slept in his room more often than not these days, and Theo’s morning routine shifted to accommodate her presence.

Between the two of them, he would wake up first. It’s a hard-formed habit carried over from the years before his death; one he sustained for many reasons, but also because she looked softer in the pale gray of dawn. Lights from his chandelier fell on her sleeping form, and he propped himself up as his eyes were inexorably drawn to the way the sheets shaped themselves over her waist, the drape of hair over her breasts, the trail of hickeys blossoming along her body—

She stirred under his gaze, and blinked her eyes open with a yawn.

“Theo..?”

“Yeah.” He leaned back on the pillows, enjoying the way her languid stretches shifted the covers and exposed more skin. “Good morning.”

The patches of red scattered on her neck seemed to call for his touch, because he knew they matched the curve of his teeth – remembered how she tasted on his tongue. When he reached out to touch them, she pressed a string of open-mouthed kisses on his palm, a pleased smile forming on her lips, the echo of flame dancing in her eyes.

(There’s something about her that, when seen in these quiet, intimate twilight hours, felt like something really close to perfection. He’d seen it in the way she lowered her lashes as she bent down for a kiss, or in the way her back arched as he drove her over that maddening edge for the umpteenth time in a night.)

(It still left him breathless every time.)

“…hey,” he half-heartedly asked— no, warned her, if she really wanted to rouse him so early in the morning, when the rasp in her voice is still so clearly audible and the marks she left on his back still tingled.

(He absently looked down to find that her trimmed fingernails had grown longer, and thought about how he would know about it; for he wore the shape of them in various parts across his own body.)

“Sorry, sorry,” she chuckled, “but ten more minutes, please?”

Theo hummed in assent, suppressing his smile. Kissed the top of her head and quietly let the fire, simmering low in his stomach, burn.

Most days, they work together. This cloudy Friday was one of those days.

Their only client that noon was an elderly nobleman in his late 50s, a Marquis Theo adored due to his kind disposition and shared appreciation toward the impressionist movement. Negotiations involving two of Vincent's paintings had gone swimmingly well, and as they stepped out of the gates, just before he hailed a carriage to take them home, she grabbed his sleeve and shyly asked if they could, perhaps, go for a stroll around the city? If he would like to have a little date before going back, because she had dressed up in a dress that matched his new suit, which would be wasted if they weren’t paraded around town for a bit, especially since the weather was nice albeit a little cold, and it would do him no harm to slow down because he had always been working hard, and—

"Sure," he said, effectively cutting her off, yet the fond amusement was plain to hear even for himself.

It's going to rain, he thought, glancing up at the sky overhead. We can go tomorrow instead, on our day off. But he went along with her plans anyway, mostly because Theo had stopped trying to tell himself that he still had any semblance of self-control around her months ago.

(That, and something about her had seemed a little sad this morning. It upset him in a way he couldn’t quite understand.)

So she took him to the Louvre, where everything began – saying that despite having visited the place many times over, he still owed her a proper tour of the museum. They ventured into the Assyrian Gallery, walking among creatures of black marbles and gray stones that left them more than a little amused. In the French Gallery, Géricault's Raft of the Medusa stole her attention at once – but when he explained the event depicted behind the painting, she had this extremely sad expression on her face – such that he had to practically drag her into the next gallery, half-panicked, so she wouldn't cry. It worked, though, because the mirror-like floor and gilded ceiling in the Gallery of Apollo fascinated her. They spent the rest of their visit admiring the artworks in Salon Carré: him explaining the Wedding at Cana, Pardo Venus, Soult's Virgin, Titian's Mistress, and them snickering in front of Mona Lisa and la Belle Ferronnieré.

By the time they stepped out of the Louvre, it was already half past three in the afternoon. The chilly November air had gotten even colder; the sky considerably darker.

(But her smile got a little wider, too.)

Expecting the rain to come any time now, he took her to this quaint café-slash-bookstore tucked in the corner of the 1st arrondissement. True enough, the storm started in the middle of their late-afternoon meal – and they watched the passerby bursting into a hurried frenzy all at once. After a little less than an hour it turned into nothing more than a light drizzle, but the streets had turned muddy and her skirt must be hiked up high when crossing Place Vendôme. The rain had not dampened her mood at all, though, for she kept humming happily as they passed through the high column overlooking the square.

“I assume you're no longer sad?”

She blinked at him. Once, twice, before timidly grinned. “I wasn't sad though. Things went smoothly at work, and you’ve been very indulgent today."

"...Has it ever occurred to you that those two things are probably related?"

The tinkle of her laugh filled the air, alongside the scent of petrichor as the shower ceased to an end. Rain had always lent the city some sort of a gloomy mood, but for the first time, Theo took a deep breath and let himself bask in it.

Maybe because somehow, the amber glow of streetlights looked a bit more somber than usual, and it bathed the city in a warm luster despite the crisp atmosphere. Seine was flowing by, where from this distance, they could see the turbulent waters moving below Pont Royal. The hustle of shops lined up on the other side of the street and busy traffic rumbled the sidewalk they were walking on, giving that distinct, noisy bustle he had grown to associate with the city.

She took his arm as they continued walking along the cobblestone, and he was struck quiet by the strange thought of how at home she looked like. As if she belonged right here, in 19th century Paris, all along—

"It's just— I was thinking," she suddenly murmured, "that I've been here for almost a year. Time flew really quickly. I'm still very happy, though."

It was almost imperceptible, the way she turned her head to glance at him – like she did whenever she was unsure about asking him something – but enough for him to press an encouraging kiss on her temple. Go on, he conveyed. I'm listening.

"...I hope you're still happy too, Theo."

Ah.

The faint kaleidoscope on the river was reflected on her eyes not unlike the starlight, and when the following silence stretched for a second too long, his next words slipped out without permission.

"I can promise you, I've never been happier in all my life."

A burst of giggle escaped her. His brain, half-relieved and half-caught off-guard, scrambled for a response, and ended up blurting the first thing that came to mind.

"Don't laugh! I'm serious."

"I know, I know, but it's adorable. You indulged all my wishes because you thought I was sad?"

"...It's because you did great today. That calls for some treats, no?"

She quickly recovered and playfully smacked his shoulder, but he inwardly cringed because it actually hurt. He deserved it, though. "Again! I'm not your puppy."

"Really? But puppies are cute, I love them."

"I'm cuter."

"Well yeah, you are."

She was clearly taken aback by this, and he couldn't help but snort at her flabbergasted expression.

"Theo!"

That evening, he kissed her hard and rough, tangling his fingers in the strands of her hair. I haven’t had dinner, he teased, voice low and tempting, his breath hot on her lips. May I? She couldn’t help but moan then, a hand fisted in the fabric of his shirt, the other pushing his head to her neck. Heat consumed them as he carried her to the bed, prompting him to strip her down and let his body do the talking for the next few hours.

Later, when the high had worn down, he pulled her into his arms – freshly bathed, smelling like roses – and she grew quiet, lulled by the distant thunder and the sound of raindrops. He watched the light playing tricks on her hair, heart softer than the spun silk of her nightgown, and thought—

If I could spend eternity like this—

“Theo, sleep.”

He smirked. “Why is the dog telling me what to do?”

“Because you’re thinking too loudly,” she smiled knowingly, and his own softened. “I love you, you know that?”

Sometimes Theo forgot just how easily she unraveled him in all the ways that counted, leaving him a flustered mess wrapped around her little finger. “…Cheeky hondje. I love you too.”

If he was any lesser man, he’d probably skip all those elaborate, carefully-crafted plan about proposing and just drop on one knee right there and then; the lack of ring be damned. But since he liked to think he still had a teeny bit of restraint (however small) a peck on her forehead was deemed enough, followed by drawing the cover higher over their bodies.

She’s here, he mused before drifting off to sleep. 

For as long as they had each other, he existed only in bliss.

[purplesurveys]

1084

survey by trixie11

Yesterday

What time did you wake up? I woke up at 9:30 AM, extremely parched and hungover from the night before. Though I dunno if I should say the night before, since I was in a video call with my college friends from 9 PM to 5 AM, lol. But anyway, we drank a lot and talked a lot and it was SO much fun. I can’t believe it took us 10 months to do this.

Where were you sleeping at? I slept in my own bed, as always.

What was for breakfast? My dad made pancit with pork and vegetables. He also made a bowl of lugaw meant for both my mom (who’s currently on a diet) and for me (since he saw I looked wrecked, and lugaw is a popular hangover food).

What did you wear? I was wearing a black halter top and shorts during the day, but I took a shower in the afternoon and changed into a striped tank top and a new pair of shorts.

Did you go to school? Nope. I did visit UP with Andi last Friday and it felt so uhfjfdlsfsdfh being there. It was such a range of emotions, knowing I haven’t been there since March, I never got a proper senior year experience, seeing all the barriers blocking the streets that lead to the buildings that now double as COVID isolation facilities; and, of course, knowing that this was the place I shared with Gabie for four years and now she isn’t even a part of my life anymore in any way.

Did you go to work? No, it was a Sunday.

What was for lunch? My family always has breakfast really late, so it already doubles as our lunch. I think we were all in the living room to watch a mass livestream during noon.

What was for dinner? My mom made some kind of creamy pasta with toasted bread on the side.

Where else did you go? I stayed home yesterday since I had already gone out last Friday night with Andi and to recharge from my 7-hour call with friends last Saturday. Plus, going out would just tempt me to spend when I have barely anything left from my last paycheck, hahaha. 

What did you do there? I just had a Worth It marathon all day. I also finally got up to speed on the independent channel of BuzzFeed people Shane Madej, Ryan Bergara, and Steven Lim called Watcher. I remember subscribing as soon as they launched the channel a year ago but never had time to watch their any of their series. But I finally did, and it turns out I was missing out so bad; their content is pretty great.

Who did you talk to? Well I was up until 5 AM from the night before, and in that call were Blanch, Lui, Jo, JM, Kate, and Laurice. The day after, I talked to my dad, mom, Nina, Andi, and Angela.

Who did you hang out with? Just myself. Me time is super important to me, especially on Sundays.

Who did you text? My phone remained off for most of yesterday.

Who did you call? Didn’t need to call anyone, either.

Anything else about yesterday? By 5 AM only Kate, Laurice, Jo, and I were left in the call since the others got sleepy; we ended up talking about Nacho and thinking back to the time he passed away and sharing our own stories. That was sad, but also therapeutic. Andi also shared photos of them wearing the skirt I gave them for Christmas and I was super happy to see them feel confident in it.

Today

What time did you wake up? I first woke up at around 6:45 AM, but I went back to sleep and woke up again at 7:30. I usually get up to start work at 8, so I spent the next half hour trying to wake myself up and shake off the anxiety I was feeling.

Where'd you wake up at? Again, my bed.

What's for breakfast? Skipped it. It’s my lunch break now and my stomach’s been growling like crazy all morning, so after this survey I might go downstairs and find something to munch on.

School today? No school for me. In general, I think law school is off the table for good. JM told a lot of horror stories covering the toxic culture in law schools all over the country and it’s just...I just don’t think it’s worth it to go through the things he touched on just to get a law degree, especially since I’m not even passionate about being a lawyer. I just thought it could be an option since I like memorizing stuff, lol.

How about work? Yeah, I have work but it’s 12:10 so we’re on lunch break.

What's for lunch? I still have to see.

Dinner? Not sure. My dad usually makes delicious dinner though so I don’t think too hard about this.

Who did you talk to today? I’ve talked to some of my colleagues at work - Ysa, Bea, Denise, Danielle, Pia, and our newest associate Aimee, who starts today and who I already know since we went to college together and took up journalism - and I’ve also talked to Nina, Angela, and Kate.

Who'd you text? Nobody; I don’t really text anymore unless it’s for work. My weekly promo actually expired yesterday so I wouldn’t be able to text unless I redeem that promo again.

Who'd you call? I was in a video call with my work team this morning for our weekly check-in. Then I have three more work-related calls lined up this afternoon.

Anywhere else you're going? I plan to be at home for the rest of my shift and to stay home in the evening so that I have enough time to recharge before tomorrow morning.

What are you doing there? ^ Oop, already touched on that.

What did you wear today? I’m still wearing the same striped tank top + shorts combo from yesterday.

Anything else about today? I hate how anxious I get every Sunday evening/Monday morning before work when things have always ended up being more than okay 10 times out of 10. I don’t know where the nerves come from when I do my tasks correctly and on time, anyway. What matters is I’m settled now at work and I’m just looking forward to finish my shift.

Tomorrow

What time are you waking up? Same time, since I have the same routine every weekday. Sigh, I miss the variety that college life gave me - even things like having my first classes at different hours of the day every weekday already provided a lot of excitement. The 9-6 set-up + WFH can feel so lonely sometimes.

Where will you be waking up? I sleep in my bed like 98% of the time but I also end up passing out on the living room couch sometimes. I can never tell, so this is a question mark for now.

What are you going to eat for breakfast? I will probably skip breakfast as always. If not, I imagine having scrambled eggs, hotdogs, and a couple slices of white bread.

What are you going to wear? I’ll just pick out housewear items from my drawer.

Are you going to school? No.

Are you going to work? You know it.

What are you going to eat for lunch? I don’t plan this far ahead.

What are you going to eat for dinner? No clue but again, my dad will 100% whip up something delicious as he always does for dinner.

Where else are you going? I’m only staying at home since I will need a strong, consistent internet connection to be able to work. This goes for every weekday too.

Who will you talk to? The people I’ll surely talk to are Ysa, Bea, Pia, Danielle, and Aimee since I work with them daily. My parents and sister, too.

Who will you text? I still can’t tell, but probably no one.

Who will you call? I have one Google Meet call scheduled for tomorrow, but we’re 26 in the group and I’m not in the mood to list everyone’s names down.

Who will you hang out with? I’ll only be with myself. My friends are busy with their own stuff on weekdays too, so it’s okay.

Anything else about tomorrow? It’s one day closer to the weekend so it’s something to look forward to.

In conclusion...

What day of the week was yesterday? Yesterday was Sunday.

Today? Monday.

Tomorrow? Tuesday.

What was the date yesterday? January 17th.

Today? 18th.

Tomorrow? It’ll be the 19th.

Which of the three days do you think will be the best? Sunday was obviously the best.

Why? It was the weekend andddd I got to sleep in.

Which one do you talk to more people? Monday is usually the busiest day at work, so I think it would be safe to assume I’ll be talking to more people today compared to yesterday and tomorrow.

Call more people? My Monday schedules will occsionally be flooded with scheduled work-related video calls. I have four for today alone, but I’m already done with three; the last one isn’t until 4 PM.

Text more people? It always differs.

[marvinswriting]

Northshore's couples, written by anonymous, about anonymous.

a crack idea bear and I had that I took seriously

g/t mean girls

November, 12th

Ifykyk.

Hey, Northshore! Welcome to a new section of the school newspaper. I've been fighting for a gossip blog for a hot minute now, and since the paper is dying down, Northshore is finally allowing it. 

But this isn't just any gossip blog.

This is the place where I'm gonna -try- to answer your most burning questions about Northshore couples in question.

All through anonymity and observation.

To start, let's meet the students. All names have been changed so identities can stay hidden. In the tinies we've got: J, A, and R. Then in the giants there is: D, C, G, K, and S.

Who's with who? Who hates who? Who's got some secrets under the surface? Come back next week.

"Full offense to Northshore, this sounds stupid as fuck." Janis huffed, tossing down the newspaper, letting it fall to the table. 

Karen looked at the small girl of Damian's shoulder.

"Why do you think?"

"Gossip blogs are unoriginal and boring. The school newspaper is grasping at straws."

"They can be fun when done right." Regina points out. "I say we check in next week and find out more about the students it's about."

"Whats-" Cady frowned. "What's a gossip blog?"

"Aww, baby's first gossip blog! We have to keep up with this one. Just for Cady." Damian said.

Karen watched with amusement as her friends discussed gossip blogs and if they were any good.

This will be fun. 

November 19th

Love the feedback from last week guys! You're all as hyped as I am. And no. I won't confirm who your suspicions are. Stop slipping notes under the computer lab door.

This week J and D were seen together. (It's not uncommon.) 

A was seen kissing C when they thought nobody was looking. But don't be fooled, somebody is always looking.

Not to be creepy or anything.

Just- we saw that, A. 

You won't spot R without K or G anywhere near them, don't know if any of them are dating though.

Development into J and D's relationship as D is seen defending J from S. Sources couldn't hear what they were saying but it sounded pretty hostile. Is it just caring friends or something a little more? 

This blog is focused around uncovering Northshore's couples once and for all. Have any tips? There's been a box placed by the computer lab door. Got any other people you want to see covered? Let me know!

Until next week, the anon who writes about anons. Xx!

"So," Cady looked down at her newspaper. "A gossip blog, is just talking about people?"

"Hence, the gossip part." Janis folder her own tiny newspaper, tossing it onto the cafeteria table from Damian's pocket. "And it's stupid."

"I wonder who it's about?" Gretchen said. "I know everything about everybody. But all this info? This is news to me."

"It's obviously about-" Karen paused. Was she the only one to figure it out?

Wasn't she the dumb one?

"Never mind. I dunno who it's about either."

"I don't understand why you care so much." Janis huffed.

"Because its fun to be nosey about lives that aren't ours. Duh." Regina said.

November, 26th

Happy Friday, Northshore!

Wow, lots of you sent in info about J and D. Whether you've cracked the code on who they are or maybe you're just observant of two fellow students- there is no denying they're pretty affectionate.

Since we're on the topic, let's start with J and D.

Kisses. Lots of them.

Romantic, or just friends? The duo themselves give pretty mixed answers so we must take matters into our own hands and draw our own conclusions. J was seen skipping class on multiple occasions and hiding with D. I hope J has a good tutor. I could never miss that much info.

R and G are seen together. K seems like they're third-wheeling. Somebody get them out of there. K, if you need a sos, slip a note in the box bby. We've got you.

If you want to talk about PDA, look no further than A and C. Wow! A hello kiss, a kiss kiss, a GOODBYE KISS? They may not say it themselves but those two are definitely a fairytale couple.

No updates to S. #singleforlife.

Sorry, S. If you're reading this.

"Well, A and C just sound gross." Janis frowns.

"Don't be negative, Jan." Damian shakes his head at the girl on the table. "They sound cute."

"Overly cute." Cady says.

"I'm glad somebody agrees." Janis huffed.

"Poor K. Thridwheeling a couple is awful." Gretchen sympathizes.

"We don't know if R and G are dating." Aaron points out. "We don't know if any of these people are dating. I'm kinda hooked."

"Well, third-wheeling best friends is even worse." Cady sighs, glancing at Damian and Janis. 

Karen looked at the newspaper in her hands with a soft smile. She had a note to drop off.

December 3rd

Happppppy Friday! I have a big announcement right off the bat!

It is I, the writer, formally known as Anon. But now there's two of us! Me, the writer, and another student- the spy. Between the two of us (and your help from the box!) we're gonna crack these relationships open in no time!

This week's rundown!

R was with G the whole week. There was not one time they were separated. 

A, J, and R were seen in the tiny halls together where  A was overheard talking fondly about C.

Is there a fight for J?

D and S seem to never want to leave J alone.

Although, if you asked the writer, I'm totally team JD. Message for S? This isn't middle school anymore. Being mean to somebody isn't a good way to show your emotions. Message for D? You're doing fabulous, I'm rooting for you. Message for J? Pick fucking wisely. 

I'm a bit biased but my info is not. 

Don't you worry.

Until next week, you know where the box is! Xx.

"Aw, J and D sound like a cute couple." Regina cooes.

"A and C don't." Janis shook her head. "To sappy."

"Is Jan warming up to the gossip blog? And forming opinions?" Damian teased.

Karen shook her head in disbelief. The fact that her friends were yet to catch on-

-they were dense. Not idiots, just dense.

"S sounds like an asshole." Gretchen shook her head. "Bet its a boy. Yknow when a boy would pull your hair in elementary school and you'd get told, oh boys will be boys. He just likes you! Yeah. S is a dude for sure."

"Not every boy was like that. I wasn't." Damian said.

"You're gay." Janis rolled her eyes. 

December 10th

Heyo Northshore! It's the writer. Might I say, you look wonderful today? 

I don't see you but I'm sure you're just stunning.

A must be p r e t t y stupid because they were seen all this week studying with C. A kiss for every problem right? Hey, it's not a bad deal.

R was seen primarily with K this week, throwing off all previous theories.

Must have been a rough week for J. I'd imagine you've got to be stressed as hell to just break down randomly but guess what- they did. Lack of sleep? Hunger? S? Who knows what the culprit was.

But don't you worry, D was quick to whisk them off to someplace quiet.

Love to see it, I want a significant other like that.

The day they confirm their relationship is the day I expect a wedding invite.

See you next week! Xx.

"Wow! Looks like Jan isn't the only one in Northshore who needs to learn when to take a break before the break takes them." Damian deadpanned, lowing his newspaper.

Karen blinked. Are you kidding me?

"I was just tired." Janis huffed. "I needed a nap."

"I dunno man. A and C sound cheesy as fuck." Gretchen shook her head.

"They do. Now J and D though? That couple goals." Janis said.

Karen's hand shot to her mouth as she covered a laugh with a forced cough. "Couple? You think they're together?"

"For sure. They sound made to be!"

Oh dear.

December 17th

Winter break next week! Who's excited? We get full two weeks off this year and I'm so ready for a break.

I'll miss our resident couples in question though.

Not to throw everyone off but-

J spent the week with G. R spent the week with C. And A was with D?

Now granted by the time you're reading this print, this is two-week-old information- but why?

Did you get bored and just s w a p?

Anyway, I guess S wanted into the mix too? Because they took advantage of no D to try and get to J. It didn't work. G was there to protect our favorite JD ship. I'm not saying they're a cockblocker bc I don't wanna imply anything, but S is d e f i n it l y trying to get something out of J. Motive unclear but hey, we can assume :/

Gross.

Anyway, there were multiple fights that broke out that day so idk what yall were on but jesus christ calm down. Not relationship-related but be fucking nice to tineis.

Ugh.

K had no part in this swap of s/o but hey, they weren't third-wheeling anymore. 

Xx!

"Be fucking nice to tinies!" Regina cheers.

"J and G?" Janis frowned at the tiny newspaper in her hands. "Sorry, only know about J and D."

"Janis went from, ew gossip, to I'd die to have JD confirmed, real fast." Aaron pointed out.

"As she should." Gretchen pointed out. "They sound cute as fuck.

"Hands down they're lesbians." Regina said.

Karen shook her head, totally dumbfounded.

January, 7th

Did you miss me! I missed you. Mwah.

Right off the bat-

Uh. The box has been filled with messages from S saying, they do not like J. 

So I guess they're just an asshole.

Hey, just means team JD is gonna win.

Speaking of-

When J was asked directly they said that, I quote "D is the love of my life." But when asking D, I was told: "[J is] just a good friend". Sort your story idiots. The school wants to know!

While S may be out of the running, many sources say JC is a rising ship? Between A and C and J and C, I can't help but wonder, is there a behind the scenes JCA?

Fellow tiny students report A and J not being very close in the tiny hallways though. Now J and R tho-

J is just one lucky mate.

Who's your favorite? Let me know in the box! Xx.

"J and D." Janis says from her perch on Damian's shoulder. 

Karen just looked at her phone.

"You think there's a threesome going on in school?" Gretchen asked.

"Unlikely. I don't even this A and C sound cute. Why add another." Aaron rolled his eyes.

You don't think-

Karen sighed.

She really should tell them but- it was so much funnier this was.

Janis stood up on Damian's shoulder, pressing a quick kiss to his jaw without motive. 

Karen turned back to her phone, unsurprised if that would pop up in next week's article. 

January 14th

I love you- signed the writer.

Glad we got that out of the way.

NOW.

This was quite the week for our "couples".

First off, D and J? PDA through the roof.

Idk, maybe it's a special week, or maybe we're paying more attention and they've always been like that.

Those tiny kisses aren't lost on me, J. I see all.

Ugh, so cute.

A and C are-

"Skip this passage," Janis whined. "Nobody cares about them."

Everyone around the lunch table nodded as Karen began to read out loud again.

G kissed R?! R might have given a scowl but bystanders didn't miss the blush. Platonic or something more? That's the big question of this article but hey- this is a big step for all you GR shippers. Sorry to whoever wrote that long letter in the box passionately explaining how JR was peak friends to enemies to lovers. 

Shame.

#JD, anyway, you know where the box is! Xx.

"Fuck A and C. All my homies hate A and C." Janis grinned.

Cady nodded. "They're too cliche. It's annoying and I don't even know who they are."

Karen placed her head on the table with a groan.

She may not be smart, but these people were flat out idiots.

She felt a tug on her hair and looked up, resting her chin on the table.

"You okay, Karen?" Janis stood in front of her, Newspaper held at her side.

"Yeah, just dying on the inside a bit. Yknow, leaf emoji."

Janis made a face. "I don't but uh-" She leaned in, pressing a quick kiss to Karen's nose. "Don't leaf emoji. We like you here, alive on the inside."

Karen smiles. "Thanks, Janis." 

January 21st

Just when you think it's all figured out- J kisses K. 

In front of D.

At this point- they're all together. One big happy family. 

I'm still clinging onto my JD dream. 

Speaking off-

S is back. Did you miss them? Me neither.

They just grabbed J like nothing? Anyway, D was there to save the day obviously.

Our great big hero got a pretty precious nose kiss from J.  

I could make their own newspaper section about how cute they are. There is no way you can be that cute and n o t already engaged.

On another J note, if JD doesn't happen, I'd be pretty content with some CJ. C was seen giving J "a nice-sized smooch" (somebody from the box).

No development in the R and G category, just their usual cuteness.

Leave any tips in the box! You know where it is. Xx.

"Uh uh. JD over CJ." Janis shook her head.

Karen just placed the newspaper in her bag. Janis and Damian were quick to become J and D's biggest shippers. They were so good at confusing the school about their relationship status that they had themselves fooled.

Cady and Aaron, who were dating and just won't confirm it, hated C and A's relationship. Calling it cheesy and artificially sweet.

And Regina though R sounded like a bitch and G deserved somebody better.

The whole thing was just crazy. 

"I gotta go talk to a teacher this period. It was fun reading the paper together though." Karen said getting up.

There was a chorus of 'bye Karen's as she walked away.

The newspaper holder in the hallways was empty. Northshore's 'couples' was quick to catch on and save the newspaper program. 

Karen pushed the door open to the computer lab, making her way over to the tiny end.

"Hey, Glen."

Glen Coco looked up at her with a grin. "Got anything for me, spy?"

@realmisspolarbear @smallsoysauce @musicallygt

[jsteneil]

Neil Josten’s Birthday Bash

in which the foxes don’t get anything done, ever

 *

Nicky added Dan, Kevin, Aaron and three others to “Neil Josten's Birthday Bash Organization Committee”.

Nicky: can't add Andrew because he still owns a FLIP PHONE but here we go

Dan: hell yeah B-)

Nicky: kevin can fill him in with the details anyway

Kevin: why me?

Allison: because you live with him?

Matt: you're practically attached at the hip

Dan: omg ur roomm8s

Matt: ^^^ what allison said

Dan: yeah

Nicky: OR aaron can do it on wednesdays so that there's no chance of neil finding out :D

Aaron: no.

Aaron left the chat.

Nicky: what

Nicky: the

Kevin: just add him back

Nicky: fuck

Kevin: ffs

Kevin: some ppl are in class

Nicky added Aaron to the chat.

Aaron: im muting you all

Allison: just embrace the fact that you've lived in SC for years and say y'all

Nicky: y'all!!!

Nicky: yeah

Matt: dude don't how are u gonna know when to buy your coordinated outfit and rehearse the choreography if you mute us

Dan: Aaron?

Renee: I do think he muted us

Allison: fuck a crybaby

Nicky: hey

Allison: what's he gonna do? Unmute us?

Dan: asdhskfjdl ALLI

Matt: lmfao

Nicky: moving ON

Nicky: the important thing here is my boy neil's birthday

Kevin: and you wonder why Aaron left

Nicky: what?

Kevin: maybe Neil doesn't want to celebrate his bday

Nicky: no that's too sad

Nicky: next person?

Allison: not to be that bitch

Matt: oh?

Allison: but do we even know when his birthday is?

Allison: fuck you matthew donovan boyd

Matt: sorry i love you

Dan: it was easy

Dan: matt ur easy

Matt: ily babe

Dan: <3

Kevin: jan 19th

Renee: March 31st?

Allison: wait

Dan: uhhhh

Matt: Neil Josten deserves 2 bdayz

Kevin: no jan 19th

Renee: oh i thought we were using the one he chose for himself

Matt: Renee add a smiley face

Renee: :)

Renee: ?

Dan: babe ur mind,,,, im crying

Matt: ikr

Allison: stop using mygf so

Kevin: is it me or does it sound really passive aggressive bitchy with a smiley face

Dan: ye that's the point

Renee: I really wasn't trying to be

Matt: oh no we know, sorry

Matt: i feel bad now

Matt: it was just funny

Matt: sorry

Dan: :(

Renee: It's okay, don’t worry

Renee: :)

Dan: renee STOP i feel like ur going 2 murder me in my sleep

Renee: I could, but I won't

Nicky: im shaking and im not even in your dorm

Allison: and we daily thank god for that

Nicky: hey im an excellent roommate

Nicky: i always leave so cap and matt can have sexy times

Dan: yeah but then u call it sexy time

Allison: ive seen the bathroom nicky

Nicky: that's aaron

Matt: l o l

Kevin: aaron's a neat freak

Allison: exposed

Nicky: erik come get me the people here are mean

Renee: So when's Neil's actual birthday?

Kevin: jan 19th

Nicky: who's gonna ask andrew?

Kevin: HE HAS REAL PAPERS NOW

Kevin: JUST GO CHECK AND LET ME BE IN CLASS IN PEACE

Allison: well okay drama queen

Dan: kevin: *is on the chat as much as us*

Dan: also kevin: guys why r u dragging me here

Matt: it's okay kevin we can talk about it during practice

Renee: Don't goad him, Matt

Dan: lmfao babe u thought

Matt: uh oh

Allison: lol

Dan: we need 2 trounce the ravens nxt wk

Nicky: do we have to

Dan: y'all r hauling ass @ practice or god help me

Nicky: id settle for a close victory

Matt: nicky if you don't help us close the goal next friday im telling neil about his surprise

Nicky: noooooo :'(

Allison: ye renee has enough to do without having to face stuff y'all should have blocked

Renee: Andrew is also a goalkeeper

Allison: yeah but he doesn't give a fuck

Renee: That's neither true nor fair

Dan: i want bragging rights over this vctry, end of the question

Matt: are we just gonna ignore the fact that the fbi chose neil's old bday

Matt: even tho they made him a new identity

Allison: wonder how this conversation went

Nicky: are we ignoring the fact that neil is a goddamn CAPRICORN

Allison: "in my left hand is your birthday date. In my right hand is your other birthday" *shuffles behind his back*

Matt: idk about astrology but I checked and he tried to pass for an aries so what does that tell us?

Dan: shut up adfhskdjs

Nicky: im dying

Kevin: [attached picture]

Matt: did u steal neil's ID

Allison: i thought you were in class

Kevin: he sent it to me

Nicky: his phone can take pics??

Dan: RLY crappy 1s but yeah

Nicky: so all those times andrew refused to send me pics of his Eden’s Twilight's outfits so i could coordinate neil's…

Matt: :/

Kevin: he just doesn't like you

Allison: i would have laughed but you two have been fighting the good fight since last year, dressing neil up

Nicky: hey

Renee: Kevin, that was mean

Nicky: but thanx allison, I think so too

Kevin: sorry

Kevin: he's just difficult?

Nicky: yeah :(

Dan: omg u guys rmr when neil was on k ferdinand's show n he looked like a bite-sized snack in that shirt

Kevin: not exactly what I remember from this interview

Dan: u were pretty 2 <3

Kevin: oh my god

Renee: Didn't Neil keep the clothes?

Nicky: i've never seen him wear them again

Nicky: maybe he STUFFED THEM DOWN THE TOILET

Matt: uh okay

Allison: weird emphasis

Kevin: are you still stuck on that

Dan: what

Kevin: it's what happened with the clothes he wore the first time we went to columbia

Nicky: do you know how expensive that plumber was?

Matt: just a thought but maybe that wouldn't have happened if you didn't force him to come with you and drugged him against his will

Allison: don't tell me someone actually peed on them and tried to flush

Nicky: take it up with andrew

Matt: you literally drove the car

Kevin: what happened in columbia stays in columbia

Allison: omg oh my god

Dan: IM SCREAMING

Nicky: what was i supposed to do, get knifed?

Nicky: also ^^^^ yeah.

Nicky: ANYWAY

Nicky: now that Kevin got us proof that the FBI officially made neil a capricorn again,,

Dan: the fbi be like "oh u thought u could escape ur traumatic past? That's nice buddy

Matt: yeah I don't think beating last year's party is gonna be hard

Dan: here's ur bday n trauma back"

Nicky: HAPPY THOUGHTS

Nicky: :(

Nicky: anyway it's the big 21st, so the first thing in order is BOOZE

Kevin: uh nicky

Renee: He's turning 20?

Matt: what???

Kevin: yeah he aged himself up on his fake papers

Matt: oh my god

Dan: lmfao only neil

Nicky: he is baby

Matt: does. Does he know though. Like did he check when they made him the papers.

Kevin: I'm guessing so

Matt: imagine filling a form or smth and you get the day right but not the year

Renee: Wait Kevin, how did you get neil to send you the pic without telling him about the surprise party?

Nicky: DON'T YOU DARE HAVE TOLD HIM ABOUT THE NJBB

Allison: njbb?

Dan: neil josten's bday bash, im guessing

Nicky: Neil Josten's

Nicky: BIRTHDAY BASH

Nicky: yes

Allison: it doesn’t sound right

Allison: like, something’s missing in the name

Matt: alli we play a sport named after what you get when you take the s from sexy

Dan: 10 bux kevin wishes he didn't have such a stick up his butt so he could reply with exy is sexy

Allison: im not taking that

Kevin: i actually don't know why she named it that

Kevin: she never told the press and she didn't write it anywhere so

Nicky: :(

Allison: oh

Dan: sorry :(

Renee: Maybe coach knows?

Matt: maybe each letter has a meaning

Kevin: how?

Allison: endangering xylophones yearly?

Matt: EXceptional daY

Matt: and then, boom, it's about your name

Renee: Matt, I like that idea!

Dan: allison, no

Kevin: I'll have to ask coach, renee

Kevin: anyway it was always going to be her name, she invented it

Nicky: someone bring neil in so he can say something super serious about how kevin is a legendary striker whose name is already associated with exy and make us choke with emotion

Kevin: nicky….

Nicky: look it's working and he's not even there

Allison: it's the josten effect

Dan: changing your entire life's beliefs one extremely tragic remark at a time

Matt:...

Matt: someone change the subject im sad

Nicky: BIRTHDAY BASH

Kevin: oh yeah nicky asked me how i got neil's ID

Allison: and?

Kevin: i told him i signed him up for his own exynews account so he could stop hogging mine for streaming

Kevin: so i needed his name and birthday

Kevin: and then we got into an argument about date formats

Nicky: dd/mm/yy 4ever

Allison: eww

Kevin: so he sent me a pic instead of writing the date

Dan: it's the european propaganda getting to him

Kevin: i guess i really have to get him an account now

Dan: kevin i know you're entirely serious but that's so funny

Nicky: THE REST OF THE WORLD USES IT

Matt: admit it, you can't wait to go back to Germany because you secretly like the metric system

Nicky: yeah dicks sound bigger if you use centimeters

Dan: didn't need 2 know that

Nicky: not that erik needs that :)

Dan: I DON'T WANNA KNOW

Renee: ….

Matt: honestly im glad i don't understand german or i would never live down all the skyping

Dan: renee's like "can't relate" lmfao

Renee: No indeed

Allison: hell yeah that's my girlfriend

Renee: <3

Allison: hey minyard if you're secretly lurking now is the time to leave

Allison: …

Renee: No, he truly muted us earlier

Dan: are we surprised?

Renee: we'll catch him up on what we decide to do later

Renee: Nicky?

Nicky: oh, yeah!!!

Nicky: BIRTHDAY BASH

Matt: here we go again

Dan: mamma mia

[painandpleasure86]

Sequel of Lazing of a Sunday Afternoon: News of our World

Hiii people!! Sorry if where u live its 20 already. I have a problems to publish before. But, i hope that you enjoy my story anyways!Prequel it's here:

https://painandpleasure86.tumblr.com/post/185954894848/im-continuing-the-story-that-kate-aka

Words: +2.1K

Warning: My inexperience and my broken English lol. Oh and its fluff af.

Pairing: John x Fem!Reader

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

Part 1

It's been a few weeks since you told him. It's still too early to tell about this to the rest, even if it's your parents.

In order not to get excited, they have agreed that the best thing to do is to have a blood test, in case there is really a pregnancy.

Your gynecologist must give you the order for this. So, you have an appointment on August 15.

It’s a beautiful morning, the sun shines. Spring feels closer and closer. This morning you have your children at home, Miguel is recovering from a flu-like illness and Rodrigo simply didn't want to go to the school. They don't usually let him decide that kind of thing, but that day they let him. He's six years old now. When you go to the kitchen, already dressed, you can't help but think "how big Rodri is. It seems like yesterday when he came in my arms and it was a little bean, hehe".

You arrive at the kitchen, your children having their chocolate with oatmeal cookies, your husband with his scrambled eggs, toast and a tea with milk. You go to the fridge and take out the jug of water. You serve yourself a glass full of water. Your babies see you and say "why don't you have breakfast with us mommy?" "Mommy has to have some medical check-ups and can't eat anything." He looks at you with a smile. You answer his smile with a bigger one. You go to him and hold him tight. "I love you, huh?", "Me too" he answers in your ear. They give each other a little kiss. Your older baby says "what's going on? Is there going to be a little sibling?"

You look at him surprised, because you don't know why Rodrigo says that... but your husband, seeing your puzzled face, says "I told him yesterday a little about you know what. And I think that whenever he sees us kissing, he's going to say that. Get ready," he says with smiles. That smile...

"Well, I gotta go. They will stay with Daddy. I promise I'll be back soon," you tell them. You get your handbag and your keys. You go to the door. The three of them go to you and hug you. He gives you many little kisses on the cheek. Your little ones hold your legs tightly. "Well guys, I'm not leaving forever," you say with a smile. "Well..." and they let you go unwillingly. Of course it hurts to leave Rodrigo and Miguel, but they're not alone. You close the door and behind you you hear. He says “Well... Men’s time.  How about... a lot of music to dance to?" "YAAAAAAAAAAY" your kiddos say. Then you hear him play his favorite song, but you can't hear his words anymore, because you're in your car...

Before you start the car, you check the time.  You're on time. Turn on the car, also the bluetooth of your car to go listening to music.  You select the entire library of your cell phone and press shuffle.  Dancing Queen sounds.  Your smile is immense.  With that joy, and the memory lived of your husband dancing on stage, backtrack and start your journey.

There is normal traffic, no traffic jams.  It's 9 o'clock in the morning, so everything is quieter.

Fifteen minutes of driving, you arrive at the office.  You park the car, you take the cell phone that was playing a song, you get off.  You go to the corresponding waiting room, waiting to be called by your doctor...

Almost ten minutes after the agreed time on the shift, he calls you.  You walk into the office.

After filling out the paperwork, he says, "Madam, the results of your annual check-up gave normal values, what happened?"  You say "I think that i’m pregnant".  He looks at you and says "I always told you to use the condom from the beginning" in a tone that simulates anger.  He writes your order.  You laugh at the discomfort and says "the thing is that I forgot... one thing led to another". He, extending the order to you, continues simulating his anger and says "later please, don't say the baby came by accident, eh!" and smiles. When you have the results, mark an appointment with me; if it's positive I'll refer you to the obstetrician".  You nod and say, "Thank you doctor, see you later.”

You're very anxious to know that you're ready for testing.

As soon as you leave the office, you go to the laboratory, which is half a block from there  You go into the center, withdraw a shift number.  You wait a few minutes.  They call you.

"Good morning", says her. You respond "Good morning" and you give her the order.

It's 10:15 in the morning. The laboratory is open until and 30. "Well, ma'am, it's still lab hours. If you have the 8-hour fast, you can wait and do it right now." Nod. After the paperwork of the health insurance, the receptionist gives you your turn and you wait for a call. Not even five minutes after you've sat down that the receptionist calls you. You enter the cubicle, you sit down. The professional would be on the side of your right arm. He asks you routine questions before a pregnancy sample (last intercourse, if you take pills, last menstrual period). Then he asks you to put your arm in the right place so he can do the extraction. Tie a rubber band over your elbow cavity. He asks you to clench your fist and squeeze hard. You do it. You look away, you're impressed to see a needle. You feel it inside you, annoying but tolerable. Moments later he says "Ready, you can open your hand..." and you turn your head in his direction again. He says "the results will be available from this afternoon, come with this order". Assentis, greet him and return home, having that cotton of your arm very strong.

You starve. So, it’s time to go home. You send a message to your husband "I'm going home! I love to everyone.😘❤️". You go to your car, get in, and put the music back in random. Don't let me down sounds, a song you once dedicated to your husband (but it's another story). You smile because of the nostalgia it gives you. And with that vibe, you start driving home.

You arrive. Your men hold you tight. "We miss you sweetie," he said, kissing you. Miguel looked with a disgusted face. And Rodrigo began to ask, "Is Mommy okay? You smile and say "yeah my love, I'm fine..."

It's nap time and you make your kids sleep, though reluctantly. It's a chance to talk to him about what happened without being suspected.

They are both sitting on one side of the bed. He looks at you, hugs you with his right arm and says "how are you?" You say to him, with his head a little low and without looking at him "I've already done the tests, I sincerely can't wait to go and get them... this is consuming me, hehehe", you say with a certain amount of anxiety. He lifts your face with the other hand so that you can see your eyes. He tells you, even having his hand on your chin, "don't get nervous. You're going to hurt the baby”. He laughs a little and continues "that home analysis for me didn't fail in this case... so, just pretend that there's a little living being among us".

You smile, with tears in your eyes "well, all right, I'll calm down... it's just that this has happened so many times, but I still can't help but get nervous. He caresses your cheek, smiling in the sweetest way. "That's my girl," he says and kisses you on the forehead. Then he hugs you, while you lay your head on his shoulder. You hug him too, very tight. “I love you, huh? You know that my feelings are truth...". He kisses your head, saying "I know it honey, I know it..." without enduring tears falling down his cheeks. Tears of happiness, not pain. Tears of feeling at home with you another day.

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

Part 2

The fate wanted that until the next day you couldn’t go to withdraw the result before. You went last minute on Friday.

You arrive hurriedly to the laboratory to remove it, the receptionist sees you with a strange face. "I've come to pick up some results. She still looks at you in surprise and says "in the name of...". You tell her your name and she looks for you in a pile of results. He finds it. She puts it in an envelope and extends it to you. "Thank you" you say a little nervous and smiling. "You're welcome, have a good night. You almost ran to the door.

When you leave the lab, you’re so eager; so you take out the paper with the result. Positive. And you have a two months pregnancy. Your husband was right.

You get home. All three receive you. "Mommy's okay?" asks Rodrigo. "Yes, my love... very well," you say, looking at your husband and smiling. Then he hugs you much harder than usual. He says in your ear "I told you so, baby...". They both endure the crying. Miguel then says "they seem very happy. I like see a happy mommy and daddy" and he hugs you even stronger. But Rodrigo suspects that there is something strange...

August 19th. The big day.

He's still sleeping in bed, very deeply. You and your children approached him very slowly. You sat on the edge of the bed, trying to be stealthy. But your children jumped energetically towards him, shouting "Happy birthday daddyyyyyyy!" You can't help but smile. He wakes up surprised, he doesn't understand the situation for a few moments. Then, hug your babies "thank you little children", as he smiles and a few tears slip out of his eyes. He looks at you and you say "Happy birthday my love" with a big smile.

After a warm family time, he says "well, I have to get up". Your babies get a little sad out of bed.

It was time to make preparations. Many of your husband's friends will come to celebrate his birthday, so you ask the three of them for help to speed up the work.

After two hours leaving everything in order, they were ready to receive the guests. Catering came on time, you didn't want your husband to cooking on his birthday. There were options for all tastes, including vegetarian snacks for that friend of your husband's with whom he always discuss.

The music began to play from that very loud moment.  Both your husband and your kids started to dance with Super Freak.

The guests start to came. Your house its full of joy, music and the smell of food.

Rodrigo and his little friends were playing hide-and-seek. He can't think of a better place to hide in your study, where your analysis results were over the desk. See that strange paper for him and he runs towards you.  He forgets the game. This was more important.

"Mommy! Mommy!  Mommy! What does it say on this paper? Come on, tell me!

After five minutes of insisting, you take him aside with your husband and say "you're going to have a little brother or sister soon." You didn't finish telling him, that Rodrigo begins to shout very loudly "my mommy is going to have a baby!"

Silence. Your guests saying "is it true?"

"Mommy, Daddy. Tell them," insists the boy.

You didn't want to tell them before because you've already lost a pregnancy, before Rodrigo. And that made you very bad. They preferred to wait until the fourth month was up.

But apparently things happened in a way that had to cut the tradition.

Your husbands look at you with an immense smile, hug you with one arm and with the other he goes to your belly. With that hand he touches the belly and says to everyone "Rodri is right. We didn't want to tell you yet... but good. This is the best birthday present I can have." Look at the guests. "As much the presence of all of you as that of my children, my wife and this little one who comes to change our routine," he says, looking towards your belly and caressing it gently.

After the hubbub and everyone's congratulations, the birthday then passes with great normality, with lots of loud music, screams of children playing and adults smiling. Obviously, it was not perfect... James, Rodrigo's little friend, threw soda on the floor. And Felix stained the carpet with cake. Things happen.

It gets dark and the guests start to leave.

After making your children bathe and sleep with your husband, you take showers. The shower has relaxed you a lot. Honestly you just want to sleep.

But when you get to the room, there is the light on the bedside table. He was sitting with a soft pillow on his back, against which he was leaning. He was reading a book. When he hears the door, he looks up and puts a bookmark in the book.

"Oh I was waiting for you... my beautiful girl", as I closed the book and left it on the bedside table. All without stopping looking at you.

"Yes, of course, you say that because I don't have a belly yet," you say smiling.

"You're always going to be for me," he says, with a warm smile.

You lie down. He then turns off the light and accommodates your side. "Come" he says to you softly. You lie your head on his chest, while he hugs you. He looks up at the ceiling and says "the best birthday I've ever had, thank you for taking care of everything... although Rodrigo ruined our surprise about the pregnancy," he smiles. "You close your eyes and say "maybe that's how my love had to pass. And of nothing, you know that I do it for you", you say hugging him strongly. He kisses you on the head and caresses your hair. You fall asleep. And he, too, after a few minutes.That night would be one of the last to sleep well in a long time. And internally both knew it. But, it doesn't matter... Christine is worth it.

Tags: @warriorteam1924 (bc you asked for this) @theworksgaga (bc you read the prequel recently and u loved it) @sweetgcreature (with this one I'm being risky lol)

PLEASE reblog if you like it!

[andtheniwrotemarvel]

Trust

dad!Phil Coulson x Reader Assumed female reader Word Count: 1440 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-O2Lbmwuyyc

I love realizing that I'm not the only one that absolutely loves Baby Coulson so huge thanks to all y'all out there that love her with me. This one goes out to Wattpad user berryninjago who introduced me to the song Agent Coulson by the Doubleclicks and like?? Guys. We all need that song.

Also! I'm going to be at FanX in Salt Lake City on Friday, April 19th. If anyone else will be there that day, please say hi! You can DM me for details if you want. I'd love to meet y'all!

"You're doing that thing again, Coulson," Fury said, snapping you out of your thoughts.

"That thing?" you asked. "Do clarify."

"The exact same thing you did after New York."

"And that is?"

"Don't play dumb when it comes to ignoring your mental health," Maria chastized you. "You're not subtle about it."

"Well, I'm sorry that I have resting depression face," you scoffed.

"You didn't have resting depression face before you were depressed," Fury said pointedly.

You stared him down, and he stared right back, his eyebrows raised.

"I may very well regret telling you this, but you, (Y/N) Coulson, are one of the few people that I trust," Fury admitted. "It'd certainly be nice if you'd do the same."

"You know, funny thing—I did trust you, and then you died, too," you snapped.

"Too?" Maria pressed.

"Everyone I care about always ends up leaving. They die, or almost die and come back different and distant and cold. I'm just sick of this, and I can't deal with it anymore," you vented. "I'm done losing people."

"Aren't we all?" she chuckled sadly. "It wasn't like this before, losing friends left and right."

"Either to death or betrayal," you added bitterly. "I don't feel like I can trust anyone anymore, not after all of this 'Real SHIELD' crap Bobbi and Mack are pulling."

"Really can't even trust us?" Fury asked, a solemn and humble air to his voice.

You looked back and forth between him and Maria before taking a breath and giving your answer. "I want to, but I can never tell what else you're hiding from me."

"You used to be okay with that," he said.

"That was when SHIELD's secrets were still affordable," you shot back. "I don't know exactly how separated you two are from SHIELD, but secrets are tearing us apart right now."

"I realize it was idealistic of me to think that SHIELD could recover from this," he sighed.

"I thought it could, too," you admitted. "But this is coming from a twenty-two-year-old girl that's spent her whole life with SHIELD. I don't think I can imagine my world going on without it, and that's my problem."

"Does your father know that you feel like this?" Maria inquired.

You stared down at your boots, hating yourself for the answer you were about to give.

"No."

Neither Fury nor Maria had a reply. Phil and (Y/N) Coulson were the father-daughter duo that they knew for their honesty and near inability to keep anything from the other. For you to keep your depression and borderline identity crisis from him, you couldn't have been in anywhere close to your right mind.

"I feel like I can't tell anyone anything anymore," you said, choking on your words. "Everyone else is going through so much right now, and I shouldn't burden them with my feelings, too."

"Don't lie to yourself. Your feelings are just as important as theirs," Maria stated with conviction. "If they confide in you, then you can confide in them."

"But they don't confide in me! They haven't done that since my boyfriend died. They keep saying that I can talk to them, but I just can't do that. I have this stupid, ridiculous sense of pride that I have to keep up for no reason, and I can't even drop it around my own father anymore!"

You felt tears starting to sting your eyes after you finally admitted what you'd been keeping inside for so long. In an attempt to keep them from spilling over, you laughed.

"Who knew that Nick Fury and Maria Hill would just end up trying to help a kid with her mental health?" you chuckled, a bitter edge to your voice. "I know for a fact that you both have better things to do."

"Not when that kid is one of Earth's strongest defenders. I have nothing better to do," Fury countered. "You're an Avenger, (Y/N) Coulson. You're the only SHIELD agent that can still say that."

"When we get to Sokovia, your voice might the only real voice of hope they've heard during this whole ordeal," Maria added.

"Who, the citizens?"

"The Avengers."

--

You noticed the Maximoff girl sitting by herself on the trip down to safety. No tears trailed down her cheeks, but you could see the pain she was feeling in both her face and her posture. She sat with her legs drawn up to her chest, her face resting on her knees.  The body of her brother rested a few feet away from her, but no one could bring themselves to look at him.

You recognized her posture as your own. She was lost, and she saw no one that could guide her.

"I wish I knew how to help her, too," a sudden voice came from next to you, disturbing your thoughts.

"Everything I can think to say sounds like everything I hated people telling me when I lost my father," you said, not bothering to turn to face the man belonging to the voice, instead favoring your boots. "I'm not exactly the poster-child for grieving, though."

"How would you define a poster-child for grieving?" he asked with a hint of amusement.

"Probably as someone that doesn't get stuck between anger and depression for years."

You finally turned to look up at Steve Rogers to find his piercing blue gaze meeting yours unwaveringly. Despite the dirt and sweat on his face, his expression was soft and open, ready to listen. His arms rested on his knees, and he really just looked like a concerned mom.

Despite yourself, you smiled and looked back down at your boots. "You don't look like you've had the best day, Cap," you jived.

"Really? Imagine that," he wondered sarcastically. "You'd think I'd look just fine after punching murderbots all day."

"Oh, you still look plenty fine," you teased him with a sly smirk. "Tired and done? Kinda dirty and gross? Undoubtedly. But you're still pretty easy on the eyes."

"I could say the same thing about you. Funny, though—you were only punching murderbots for five minutes and you look about the same as I do."

You raised your eyebrows. "So that's how it is, huh?"

"Oh, that's how it is."

"And I thought you were supposed to be made of chivalry or something like that."

"What do you call catching you when the city started falling?"

"Common sense?" you answered, a little bewildered. "I would have done the same for you, no chivalry necessary."

"Even though my weight would have pulled you down with me?"

"Wouldn't have even run through my mind," you admitted, shrugging. "Next thing I'd have known, I'd have been falling right above you without the slightest clue as to why."

"I'm glad that's not the way it happened, then," he laughed. "Can you even imagine what your father would say about that if that's how we died?"

You let out a real laugh for the first time since you'd lost Trip. "I honestly have no idea. I'll have to ask him," you chuckled. You caught your slip immediately and recovered before Steve noticed. "Add that to the list of things to ask my dad when I die."

"Not if I don't get to ask him first," he challenged you, relaxing in his seat.

"You're not seriously initiating a race to see who dies first, are you?"

"With all of the crazy stuff we get into, it might as well be, right?"

As he smiled at you, you finally felt like the world was stable for a second. You could ignore your problems and enjoy the moment with him. It was just you and Steve.

And Clint Barton.

"Hey, Cap, instead of flirting with the hired help, how about you help me over here?" Clint called to Steve.

"Hired help?" you scoffed. "Flirting?"

"Yeah, don't mind him," Steve said. "He's weird."

"You act like I haven't known him practically my whole life," you responded. "Weird is an understatement."

"And how about nosy?"

"Not usually," you remarked. "Maybe he's jealous that you might be getting action and he's not?"

He guffawed as he stood up. "You know he's married, right?"

"I'm sorry, he's what now?" you inquired, mildly offended. "Barton, how come I've never met the missus?"

"None of your business," he answered tartly.

"I'll give him that," you acknowledged to yourself. That's still kinda lame, though, you thought.

There was another secret someone was keeping from you. You scowled to yourself and told yourself not to think about it that way, but it was hard not to. It seemed that all your life was now was finding out retroactively about secrets that had been kept from you.

There were always more secrets.

More lies.

More betrayals.

Trust no one.

It's not like anyone trusts you anyway.

Tag List:  @shamvictoria11 @cookies186 @sweeneytoddler @shuriwithparker

[the-coconut-asado]

Crazy for Kiwi Crickets

When it comes to eating out in Fiji, you are only as good as your last success.

 Consistently get it right and the punters will flock. Anything less than excellent and it’s ‘Maaan that place has gone downhill – but the duck soup at Harbour Centre is the Bomb!’ You can’t actually get duck soup at Harbour Centre, but anything with duck in Suva is a sure-fire winner as they are in constant short supply.

 Fiji is always in pursuit of the New Big Thing. That duck soup place I mentioned was actually the New Big Thing once, so was The Guava Café (doorstep griddled toast and Land of the Giant-sized portions); Singh’s burn-your-ring curry house and the Chinese restaurant at Samabula where you got a decent takeaway and a ringside seat at a sailors’ punch up.

 There are some classics that never go out of fashion. The cream buns at Hot Bread Kitchen – the ‘cream’ is actually buttercream and they sell them in sets of six like monkey bread so yeah, good luck with just eating one; Cardo’s Steakhouse in Denarau – they claim their cattle are descendants of Argentine castaways from the 19th century (kind of yarn that could spark a punch up in that Samabula Chinese restaurant, but the steaks ARE consistently good); Friday seafood lunch at Suva Bowling Club (you may not recognise half the seafood on your plate, and that’s a good thing); And, sadly closed now, The Cottage – tucked behind the main drag in Suva, serving the best local Fiji food and only open at lunchtime. And didn’t we all wail when the owner retired and shut up shop after decades of top-quality chow.

Anyway, it’s quite something when the New Big Thing is your sister-in-law’s café. Weta (Coffee) Fiji, the fifth child of Mue and her husband Darran, opened its doors in March this year. 

The café gets its name from a gerbil-sized cricket native to New Zealand. A quick google search and you can watch a film of a weta fighting a foraging pig, so maybe not exotic pet material. 

While the lion’s share of daily sales will always be the coffee (and we returned with bags of beans to London, it’s that good), it’s the food at Weta that’s getting the lion’s share of hype. World Health Organisation apparatchiks would probably advise not have more than one Honey Butter Waffle a month, yet people are spectacularly carb-loading these Weta signature goodies daily on their way to work. Take a look at the picture below and you could so easily join them.

Aside from the waffle-fest, Mue and cousin Cherie (whose aunt founded that other Fiji café classic Bulaccino) have entered into a kind of foodie face-off with each other, competing to see who can come up with the most mouth-watering innovations. The Honey Butter Waffles already give 1-0 to Mue; but ever thought of combining crispy nuggets of bacon with a rich mayonnaise, slathering it on a chicken schnitzel and sandwiching it all in a toasted mini baguette? Then check out their Chicken Baconnaise Panini and Cherie evens the score. How about a teal-green smoothie that tastes fruity and delicious but you don’t know why? Place your order for their Ugly Green Juice  - a joint invention so let’s call it a draw. I assiduously worked my way through most of their menu over two weeks and couldn’t find much that was less than evil genius.

Because this is a family concern, and Mue does a lot of her experimenting in her own kitchen, I got caught up in the whole entrepreneurial swirl when we were there this summer. Watching while Mue, with apparent carelessness cloaking a keen cook’s eye, tossed ingredients for her Marsala Chai muffins into the food processor at 5 in the morning while simultaneously whipping up a vegan version of her waffle mix. Slavishly watching her EPOS app to see if the sales dial had moved to kerching! levels ��� in short, generally starting to catch the fever of the hospitality business owner. Is Suva ready for Kava Hot Chocolate? (Kava is the ceremonial drink of Fiji with delicate overtones of mud). Apparently yes, and at least 10 people on the first day of sales had a dreamless sleep that night. Another invention marked up to Mue and another profit stream.

Having eaten our body weight in tropical breakfast patisserie, we left Suva for a few days to head to our own New Big Thing on Fiji’s Other Big Island.   

Savusavu is a picturesque town with a bay big enough to host a fistful of yachts and a marina to moor them. Even though it’s popular, the road to Savusavu – which nestled on the South coast of Vanua Levu - is one less travelled compared to the resort islands of Western Viti Levu. It has a reputation as a millionaire’s playground and we were told ‘be careful, you won’t want to come back’ (do people wrongly assume that we are at home in the company of dicks with yachts?). Anyway, they weren’t wrong about the beauty of the place, and I can now tell them a few tales about some unexpected food epiphanies.

The first was thanks to Sarah, the owner of the Gecko Guesthouse. It said in our Airbnb blurb that she would throw in a cooking lesson if we asked nicely. Which we did, and she obliged, if a little reluctantly at first. We spent one chilled-out evening learning her techniques for snake bean and bitter gourd curries (be sparing rather than slavish with your spices), a-ma-zing fish madras (although we can’t get fresh walu in the West, swordfish would be a decent substitute) and clever hack for cooking rice (err, use an electric rice maker).

However, the piece de resistance of Savusavu is a ‘dive’ (my friend Ije’s word when he saw the Insta post) called Arun’s Hidden Taste of Paradise. 

The name felt a bit at odds with its appearance, which is a little grubby and dishevelled, but don’t be fooled. The clue is in the word ‘hidden’ because if you make it through their mesh-covered door you will taste cassava chips which are meltingly creamy on the inside and quadruple-cooked crispy on the outside and, hands down, the best butter chicken I have eaten in my life. The eponymous Arun, both owner and cook, seemed frankly scared when I asked for a photo, so I didn’t push on asking for the recipe – but kept the flavour profile running around in my head for the rest of the trip.

Obsessed as I was, I hunted down ingredients lists for butter chicken on my bookshelves and I think I have found a pretty good match in Vivek Singh, who based his Cinnamon Club classic on a 1950’s recipe from the Moti Mahal in Old Delhi. But then I saw a recipe for a curry pie in last month’s Delicious Magazine and had the brainwave to make this pie with the butter chicken. And while you might have to make the trip to Suva to get Mue’s original and best Honey Butter Waffles TM, I have slightly adapted her Chai Latte and Choc Chip Muffins  and Ugly Green juice here.

So raise your Ugly-Green juice-filled glass to New Big Things. And watch out for the next one - the launch of Mue and Darran’s Writers Lodge guesthouse with Kava Bar and Weta Café later this Autumn.

You can follow them on @wetafiji. 

 Butter Chicken Pie

You can just make this butter chicken straight with pilau rice and all the trimmings, but turning it into a pie takes it to the next level. This pastry is super short and crispy, thanks to a mix of butter and lard. Don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients or the processes. It’s dead easy over a lazy Sunday and the flavours are so worth it. Serves 4.

 Ingredients:

For the butter chicken:

800g boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces

One red chilli and some coriander leaves

1 large red pepper, seeded and cut into strips

For the marinade: 

120g Greek yoghurt

5 garlic cloves, grated or crushed

1 inch piece  of ginger, peeled and grated

1 tbsp sunflower oil

Juice of 1 large lemon

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

3 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp ground cumin

½ tsp garam masala

½ tsp turmeric

For the sauce:

8-10 tomatoes

1 in piece of ginger, half grated and half chopped finely

4 garlic cloves, grated or crushed

4 green cardamom pods, 2 cloves, 1 bay leaf

2 tsp chilli powder

80g salted butter, diced

2 green chillies, split lengthwise but still joined at the stem

80ml single cream

A few dried fenugreek leaves

1tsp garam masala

1 tbsp. sugar

For the spiced butter:

1 Tbsp. ghee

1 tsp black mustard seeds

1 tsp. crushed chillies

For the pastry:

230g plain flour

1 tsp kosher salt

65g salted butter, and 50g lard, both chilled and cubed

4tsp. soured cream

1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar( or use white wine vinegar as a substitute)

4 tsp. water

1 egg., beaten

3 tbsp. lime pickle (I like Pataks)

2 tbsp. sugar

How to make:

First marinate the chicken. Mix all marinade ingredients, stir in the chicken, cover and pop in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or preferably overnight.

 Heat the oven to 220C/ Gas 9. Spread the chicken pieces out in one layer on a large baking tray, leaving a margin on the side to say out the strips of red pepper, tossed in a tsp. olive oil. Cook for 15-20 mins, turning the pieces halfway through so that they cook evenly. Remove from the oven and set aside while you make the sauce.

 Slice the tomatoes in half and put in a large saute pan with 125 ml water, grated ginger, garlic, cardamom, cloves and bay leaf. Simmer, covered for about 25 mins until the tomatoes are mushy (the aroma from this simmer will already be driving you wild with desire). Remove the whole spices, add the chilli powder and simmer for a further 10 mins (Vivek likes to push the tomatoes through a sieve and just use the resultant puree, but I prefer my sauce to be a bit more rugged, a little less refined).

 Add the chicken pieces and the red pepper slices and all their juices and give it a good stir. Slowly stir in the butter, a couple of cubes at a time, and simmer for about 8 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Add the chopped ginger, chillies and cream and simmer for a minute or two longer. Stir in 1 tsp.kosher salt, crumble in the fenugreek leaves and the garam masala. Adjust the seasoning if necessary then add the sugar.

 In a separate small pan, warm up all the ingredients for the spiced butter until the seeds start to pop. At this stage you can serve the Butter Chicken with the spiced butter spooned over the top, but if progressing with the pie (which I urge you to do) , then set both the chicken and the spiced butter to one side.

Now make the pastry (you can also make this ahead and chill, just bring back to room temperature before rolling out). Combine the flour , salt and a generous grind of black pepper in a food processor. Add the butter and lard and blitz until it has the texture of fine breadcrumbs. In a separate bowl, mix the soured cream, vinegar and water then add to the flour and butter mix and just blitz until the mixture starts to come together (don’t overwork it). Turn out onto a floured surface and bring together into a smooth ball. Wrap in cling film then chill for at least 30 mins.

Heat the oven to 200C/ Gas 6. Brush the rim of your pie dish with the beaten egg, then fill the dish with the butter chicken and drizzle the spiced butter all over the surface. Roll out the pastry in a circle big enough to cover the pie dish, then lay over the top of the dish, crimping the edges to seal and trim off any surplus pastry to neaten the edges. Cut a small cross in the middle to let the steam out during cooking and make some pastry leaves with any pastry offcuts.

Brush all over with the rest of the egg glaze then pop in the fridge for 10 minutes.During that 10 minutes, make the lime pickle glaze by mixing the pickle with 2 tbsp. boiling water and the sugar. Set aside.

Bake the pie for 40 mins then brush all over with the lime pickle glaze and bake for 15 mins more. Serve garnished with the chilli (dipped in a little oil to make it glisten) and a few coriander leaves.

 Mue’s Chai Latte Choc Chip Muffins (and some variations)

When I asked Mue for the recipe she had to quantify her instincts on ingredients, (and thanks for leaving out the eggs first time round missus) but the results were judged by those who ate them as ‘the best they have ever had’. I have slightly adjusted the recipe, using chai latte mix instead of masala chai and used my favourite buttermilk instead of sour cream. (makes 12 generous muffins)

Ingredients:

3.5 cups flour (about 350g) plain flour

3 tbsp. baking powder

1 tbsp chai latte powder

Pinch kosher salt

125g butter, melted

200g sugar

2 tbsp. Coconut oil, melted

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups buttermilk and maybe a tbsp of milk

2 eggs

1 50g packet of chocolate chips plus a few extra for serving

For the streusel topping: 

20g plain flour

10g sugar

10g butter

1 tsp. Chai latte powder

How to make

Heat the oven to 220C/ Gas 7-8. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with muffin holders (I like the tulip-shaped ones in the photo). 

In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, sugar, chai latte powder and salt. In separate bowl mix the melted, cooled butter and coconut oil with the beaten eggs, Buttermilk, splash of milk (1 tbsp) and the vanilla paste. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon until a thick, gloopy consistency. Add a little more milk if the mix is too stiff. You want it not quite falling off your spoon. Then fold in the chocolate chips. 

In a third bowl, rub the butter into the flour until you have fine breadcrumbs then mix in the sugar and chai latte. 

Fill the muffin cups evenly (about 2 tbsp. Mix per cup), then top with the streusel and pop in the oven, turning the heat down immediately to 180C/ Gas 5. Bake for 30 mins until a skewer comes out clean from the centre, then remove from the oven and dot each muffin with a few more chocolate chips cool and serve. 

Variations

For Blueberry muffins, omit the chai latte powder and choc chips and stir in 3 oz fresh blueberries into the muffin mix. Bake as before. 

For Apple, Pecan and Golden Syrup muffins. Melt 2 tbsp golden syrup with the butter and coconut oil, then add all the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients as before. Fold in 1 grated apple and 50g coarsely chopped pecans into the muffin mix then bake as before. Dot each muffin with a few more chopped pecans when out of the oven and before they cool. 

Mue and Cherie’s Ugly Green Juice

This is the colour of verdigris but tastes delightful. Just shut your eyes and drink (or colour match with your nail polish, like here). 

Ingredients: 

½ cup frozen strawberries

2 tsp acai berry powder or lingonberry powder

2 tsp Splenda or Stevia sweetener

4 tsp. Spirulina

1-2 Cups nut milk (try to get a nice think consistency, so start with 1 cup and add more to taste

How to Make

Put all your ingredients into a blender, blitz till smooth and serve. 

It’s that simple.

[ionlyreadfivebookslastweek]

Bless the Broken Road - 14

After the briefing, Jane and Spencer headed to the jet. On the way there, he asked her what Garcia needed help with.

“She was interrogating me about our relationship. Heads up, she plans on doing the same to you,” she told him.

Spencer chuckled. “Alright.”

When they had gotten settled on the plane, Jane’s phone went off.

“Hey Jack,” she greeted her little brother.

“Hey Jane, how are you doing?” he replied.

“I’m good. We just got on the jet to head to a new case. How are you?”

“I’m great. I wanted to tell you that I might be getting a promotion at work!”

“Jack, that’s awesome!”

“I might be. It’s not for sure yet.”

“Well still, it’s an honor to be considered,” she reminded him.

"If I get it, I’ll also get a raise. I’m thinking that with the extra money I can look into buying a house! I don’t need that much space or anything, but I would like to own a place instead of renting, you know?”

“That’s great!”

“So when do you want to visit again?” Jack asked, changing the subject. “What about this coming weekend?”

“This weekend’s no good. It’s Halloween and Spence is extremely obsessed with the holiday,” she explained, looking at Spencer sitting next to her.

"Even more than you are with Harry Potter?”

“If I were obsessed, but I’m not so actually he’s super obsessed and I’m sure he’ll want to celebrate all weekend.”

Spencer nudged her arm, causing her to shout.

“What was that?” Jack asked.

“Oh, nothing, Spencer just nudged me. Anyway, maybe the following weekend? I’ll let you know.”

“Alright. I have to go back to work. My break is almost over.”

“OK, I love you. Bye.”

Jane put her phone in her bag before sharing the potential good news.

“Jack says he might be up for a promotion and if he gets it, he’s buying a house!” she said.

“That’s great!” Spencer cheered.

“You’ll have to let me know if he does look into buying a house. I can help Jack pick out a nice one. I renovate properties and I’ll have a good idea what to look for,” Morgan spoke from his seat across from her.

~~~

By Friday, the team was back working in the office. Jane was at her desk filling out some paperwork when Spencer snuck up behind her, wearing a mask.

“Raaaaaaawr!” he yelled, causing her to scream.

“Spencer! Why’d you scare me like that?!”

"Cause it's almost Halloween!” he cheered, laughing as he took off the mask. “There are tons of options for celebrating this weekend. The drive-in is doing movies tonight and tomorrow night, there’s a bunch of haunted houses, Fall Festival has loads of fall treats and activities and at night they do a reenactment of the 19th-century phantasmagoria.”

“Phantasmagoria?” she questioned.

"Phantasmagorias are these amazing pre-cinema projected ghost shows invented in France, where the showman attempted to spook the audience using science magic."

Jane laughed at his excitement. “Well, I’m up for anything. What do you think we should do?”

He paused a moment in thought. “What if we do haunted houses tonight and then the fall festival and phantasmagoria tomorrow on actual Halloween?”

"Alright,” she agreed.

“Really?”

“Yeah...” Jane trailed off, confused by his confusion.

“it's just that no one ever is interested in going to the phantasmagoria with me,” he admitted.

“Well it sounds interesting, and if you want to see it then I'm fine with that.”

Spencer knelt down and hugged her in appreciation. “Thank you for putting up with my nerdy fascinations!” he told her. She laughed. “We should both hurry and get our work done so we can leave early.”

Jane agreed. “Sounds like a great idea, but I need to use the bathroom first.”

Spencer nodded and returned to his own desk while she made her way to the bathroom.

While in the bathroom, Jane ran into Penelope, who was all decked out in orange and black.

“Oh, I see someone else is in a Halloweeny mood as well!” Jane commented.

“Yes, well, no one can be as obsessed as Reid.”

“You’re not wrong,” Jane laughed. “Tonight we’re going to haunted houses and tomorrow he’s taking me to the Fall Festival to see the phantasmagoria.”

“Aww. You two are so nerdy and cute!”

“Well, if it makes him happy, then I’m happy,” Jane replied.

~

That night, Jane and Spencer headed out to go through some haunted houses.

“Spence?” Jane spoke as she stopped walking towards the house.

“Yeah?” Spencer stopped a few feet ahead and looked back at her.

“I’m not so sure about this. I didn’t handle the horror movie we watched that one time all that well,” she confessed.

“Jane,” he walked back to her and took her hands. “We handle the real monsters every day. Just remember that none of it is real. Okay?”

Jane sighed and looked up at him. “OK. Let’s go.”

Spencer smiled and kissed her forehead before leading her up to the house.

After going through the haunted house, Spencer took her to another one. Once they had gone through that one too, Spencer said, “Just one more!”

“Fine,” Jane agreed. “But only because I love how happy you are.”

They headed to the final house and got in line. When it was their turn to go through, she clung onto him as best she could.

A spider dropped down from the ceiling and Jane screamed. Spencer shouted in surprise but then laughed, enjoying her fear.

As the pair continued through the house, the pathway narrowed and they were forced to go single-file.

Jane opted to go first, holding Spencer’s hand behind her.

A series of scares jumped out at them in rapid succession. During the chaos, Spencer’s hand slipped out of hers. She turned around to see that he had disappeared.

“Spencer? Spencer!” she called out, looking around.

Another man jumped out and she screamed again.

Jane was forced to continue down the pathway until she finally made it outside. She spun around, trying to locate Spencer. Unable to find him, she began hyperventilating and fell to her knees, terrified.

“Jane!” Spencer called, seeing her on the ground once he made it out of the exit. He ran over and knelt down beside her, throwing his arms around her.

“I couldn’t find you!” she cried.

“I know. I’m here now. I’m sorry, we can head home now, alright?”

“Alright.”

He helped her to her feet and led her back to the car.

On the way back to her apartment, Spencer apologized again. “We should’ve been done after the 2nd house.”

“It’s not your fault,” Jane assured him. “You said we could be done whenever I wanted but I saw how happy it made you and I didn’t want to disappoint you. I chose your happiness over my own fears.”

Spencer pulled into a parking spot at the apartment complex. Once the car was in park, he reached over and hugged her and kissed her.

“I love you. You know that, right?” Spencer told her.

“I love you too,” she repeated back.

Jane grabbed her purse and exited the vehicle, bidding him goodnight.

~

The next day was officially Halloween. Jane and Spencer spent the day at Fall Festival. When the sun went down, they headed over to the place where they would put on the phantasmagoria.

Spencer’s face lit up at the sight, but Jane’s focus was on watching him, enjoying how excited and happy he was. Jane snuck a picture of him and sent it to Garcia, telling her how adorable he was.

On the way back to the car, Spencer grinned at her and leaned down, kissing her cheek.

“What was that for?” Jane asked.

“I’m just so grateful for you putting up with me this weekend,” Spencer laughed. “I know I can go a little hardcore this time of year.”

“Well, I like Halloween as well. And I love seeing how happy it makes you,” Jane told him.

They headed to Reid’s apartment and changed into pajamas before settling in on the couch to watch Halloween movies, which Jane picked out. First, they watched Hocus Pocus and then The Nightmare Before Christmas.

”We already watched that one though,” Spencer argued when she put in Nightmare.

”But it’s sooooo good!” Jane insisted.

Towards the end of the movie, Jane felt her eyelids grow heavy. She gave in to the temptation and fell asleep on the couch.

~

Jane opened her eyes to find herself lying in bed next to Spencer. He was already awake, staring back at her.

“Good morning,” he spoke softly.

“Morning,” she mumbled back. “Didn’t I fall asleep on the couch?”

“Yeah, you did.” He moved to sit up on his elbow. “I carried you to the bed. I figured it’d be more comfortable,” he explained.

“That’s so sweet.” Jane reached up and ran a hand through his hair before caressing his cheek. “I love you,” she told him.

Spencer smiled and leaned down to kiss her, telling her between kisses, “I love you, too.” He rolled to be on top of her and began trailing kisses down her neck.

Before things could go any further, both of their phones began to go off with texts from Garcia.

Spencer rolled back off of her with a groan, causing her to giggle.

He reached for both of their phones, handing Jane hers, and read the text message.

I hope you all enjoyed your Halloween cause now it’s November and we have a case. ~Garcia

“I guess we have to go,” Jane stated, moving to get ready.

When the team was all gathered in the briefing room, Garcia flashed images up on the screen and began to share information on the case.

“Three people have been found dead at a haunted house. All of them had different TODs: 10, 10:30, and midnight. The only one who someone noticed was missing was the 3rd victim, Maisy Gibson.”

“Who reported her missing?” Hotch asked.

“See sir, technically, she wasn’t officially reported missing. Her friend says she got separated in the haunted house and she couldn’t find her so she alerted the staff supervisor. It was around closing time so they were able to go search for her. That’s when they found her body along with the two male victims. All of them were stabbed to death and all had this painted on their face.”

Garcia pointed her clicker at the screen and pictures of the bodies popped up, the sign of satan on each of their faces in red paint.

Morgan looked over at Reid and Addison and noticed the look they exchanged.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Jane and I went to that haunted house last night,” Spencer shared with the group.

“Two-thirds of the way through, they make you separate and you’re on your own until the end,” Jane informed them.“It’s possible that the UNSUB was in the house along the divided path.”

“He could grab people when no one else is around and when people do come while he’s killing, people think it’s all an act and don’t realize they’re witnessing an actual murder,” JJ contributed.

“Was there anyone there with the first two victims?” Rossi asked.

“They were actually there with each other, judging by their posts on social media,” Garcia told them.

“They must have been put into separate groups when they went through,” Spencer thought aloud.

“Addison and Reid, I want you to head to the crime scene,” Hotch ordered. “Morgan, Rossi, and I will talk to the friend and families of the victims. JJ, I want you to cover the press. We don’t want the signs of devil worship to get out. Garcia, find a way to figure out any witnesses that we could possibly talk to. See who posted about being at the house.”

The team mobilized immediately.

Around fifteen minutes later, Jane and Reid met the owner of the haunted house at the entrance area. From there, he led the pair back to the crime scene.

“Do you know which of your actors were assigned to this area?” Jane asked the man.

“I give them the freedom to improvise, but no one was specifically assigned to this area,” he explained.

Jane nodded in understanding.

“We’re going to need a list of all employees sent to our technical analyst.”

“I can get that for you.”

Jane pulled out a card. “Please send the file to this address.”

“Got it.” He took the card. “I’ll get that sent off right away. If you need anything, I’ll be up front.”

Spencer thanked him before turning to help Jane examine the crime scene.

“So how’d this play out?” he asked.

“So the victim is going through the house. They get distracted by something jumping out or a noise or something.” She turned around and bent over, slipping a glove on before picking up a chain connected to the wall. “The UNSUB grabs them from behind and chains them to the wall.”

“He then stabs them and paints the sign on their face,” Reid continued.

“The UNSUB had to know the victims would be alone. The first two were friends but no one else was with them so nobody would know that they didn’t come out. But how’d he do it? He couldn’t be in two places at once,” Jane questioned.

“The first two victims went through with strangers who didn’t care to notice they never exited the house with them.”

Jane thought for a moment. “He must have seen Maisy alone in line while her friend was in the bathroom or something. He assumed she was alone when she wasn’t.”

“The mistake that got him caught,” Spencer confirmed.

Jane took a deep breath and looked around, trying to avoid looking at Spencer.

“Something’s bothering you. What is it?” he asked bluntly.

Jane wheeled around to look at him. Her eyes widened in surprise at how fast he picked up on her emotions. She opened and closed her mouth several times before finally speaking. “It could’ve been one of us, Spencer.”

He shook his head. “The UNSUB was there last night, not the night we went,” he argued.

“Well, you don’t know that. He could’ve been! He clearly knew what he was doing. It’s likely he’s done it before. What if he killed you or me?”

Spencer stepped forward and embraced her, giving the top of her head a kiss. “He didn’t though. Don’t focus on what could’ve happened,” he told her.

“Yeah, you’re right,” she agreed, stepping out of his arms. “Let’s head back to headquarters. I’ll call Garcia and let her know the list is coming her way.”

They headed back out to the front and thanked the owner before driving back. On the way there, Jane called Garcia about the list of employees. “Also check missing person reports for people who went missing around the hours of operation for the haunted house. If any of the reports say they last saw them before they left to go to the house, it could be more victims,” she informed her.

The team gathered back in the briefing room to discuss new information they’d found.

A few minutes into discussions, Garcia entered the room.

“I talked to potential witnesses who described the man as tall and stocky. He was wearing a mask so I couldn’t get any facial features. There are 15 men in the staff and 7 fit that description.”

“Where are you at with the missing person reports?” Reid asked.

“Right, that. I’ve found 13 matches.”

“13 other victims?” Morgan questioned.

“Unfortunately, it seems so,” Garcia confirmed.

“He started killing before last night,” JJ stated.

“And he’s gotten away with it up until now,” Jane added.

“He must have been able to discard the bodies at the end of the night without being noticed,” Rossi thought.

“If he has a message, those bodies will show up soon with the same paint on their faces,” Morgan spoke.

“Let’s have someone go back to talk to the owner again about our possible UNSUBS,” Hotch suggested.

Jane stood up. “Spencer and I’ll go back,” she volunteered, grabbing the keys to the SUV.

Hotch nodded in approval and she sped out the door. She beat Reid to the elevator and he had to hurry to catch up before it closed.

~~~~~~~~~~

Bless The Broken Road Masterlist

~~~~~~~~~~

Tag List:

@cynbx @neon-deanmon @drw0301bieber @notsosmartbutcute

[weartirondad]

Let In Light (At Christmas Time) 7/12

FF.net I ao3 I masterpost

Featuring Rhodey ‘cause there’s no Tones without Rhodey, tbqfh

Wednesday, December 19th: buying/ hiding gifts

“Hey Tones, I was wondering when you were planning on picking up –“

Rhodey breaks off and stops walking halfway through stepping into his best friend’s sanctum and workshop. His feet is hovering over the floor, leg braces whirring softly at the oddly timed halt.

“What the fuck,” he whispers softly when he can’t see past the first few meters of the lab because of the mess it is in and finally sets his foot down. “What the hell, Tony?”

And, James Rhodes knows messy. He’s known Tony for decades now and he’s familiar with the special kind of Tony Stark messes, but this? This is something else. What he is looking at right now puts messiness on a whole new level. Hell, it probably redefines the meaning of the word.

“Over here, honey bear!”

His best friend’s voice comes from the far end of the room, hidden behind various long pipes and piles of what looks like junk to a regular bystander and – is that glowing paint?

“Would you mind shutting the door and F.R.I.D.A.Y. put us into stealth mode again, please?”

Rhodey feels like an idiot but he can’t help staring at the messy shock of dark hair that’s peeking out from somewhere behind the – debris? That’s really the only word he can think of for this. “Stealth mode? What the fuck is going on here, Tony? Are you trying to blow yourself up again?”

“Language, platypus.”

He blinks. Then rubs his hand over his face in exhaustion because – what in the hell is he supposed to make of that? Has Tony been freaky-fridayed without telling anyone? (He probably shouldn’t be considering the option quite as seriously as he currently is.)

“Can you please come out of your cave and enlighten me what’s going on here?”

“Yeah, yeah,” he hears him mutter and shuffle through his materials, “give me a second. What are you here for anyway? Did you see the Christmas tree we put up? Pretty cool, right?”

That – that just stops him dead in his tracks for good like the final straw of sanity he has managed to hold on to through years of dealing with the man.

It’s not that putting up a Christmas tree is weird or unheard of. Just – that it kind of is.

In the all the years Rhodey has known Tony for, he has never been this excited about Christmas. Hell, he has never been excited about Christmas. Period.

When his parents were still alive, he used to hate all the public functions they would have to attend with Howard and not even his mum and Jarvis could really make up for how much Tony despised being put in the spotlights, especially during a time that was supposed to be quiet and peaceful. Christmas used to stress him out in his teenage years, would make him so anxious that he tried to hang out with Rhodey and his family whenever his father would allow.

Then came The Time After The Accident.

He’s not sure Tony has much recollection of the Christmas in 1991 but Rhodey does and it’s done enough of an impression on him to never let his best friend alone over Christmas again.

It didn’t matter whether there was a SI thing going on, some party or board meeting or whatever the heck could come up – Rhodey was either there with Tony or Tony wasn’t allowed to go at all.

For years he tried to hold on that much tighter around Christmas to not let him slip through his fingers again. He never wanted to see him that broken, that lost, that horribly gone ever again.

It got easier when Pepper came into the picture, especially when they started dating, but there’s still a big part of Rhodey that goes on high alert as soon as the holidays roll around. The unease to let Tony go on his merry way never really left and albeit he knows that the man is in a much better place now than he was before, he can’t help but worry.

It’s instinctual, so deeply ingrained that it has become second nature to him.

That usually means checking up every other day and this year that has mostly been limited to calls. Apparently, though, someone else has been looking after his friend and he has a pretty good guess that someone is also the one behind the whole Christmas Tree Miracle.

“You put up a Christmas tree?” he asks him when Tony has dug himself out of his own mess, oil-stained towel tucked into the back pocket of his jeans, Black-Sabbath- shirt hitched up to his elbows and a huge dorky grin on his face.

For a brief moment Rhodey wonders who that person is and what he has done with his best friend. Never, in a million years, would he have thought the man would smile so close to the 16th like he is now. It makes an anxious part of his heart settle for the first time in literal decades.

“We did,” the disaster on legs in front of him confirms, plopping down on the couch and motioning for Rhodey to join him which he does without hesitation, albeit more slowly. “Peter and I picked it up yesterday and, you know how much I hate patting myself on the back, but I think we did a pretty fantastic job. You should take a look before you head out again.”

The other man lets out a laugh, leaning back into the soft pillows and he slowly relaxes into the conversation. “I can’t even begin to imagine how much it must’ve hurt you to make that statement,” he jokes, “But what on earth have you been doing back there?”

“Uh,” Tony rubs his ear, smearing some of the dirt still on his hands into his temple and he looks downright sheepish. “Well, I’ve been working on Christmas presents. For Peter mostly,” he adds as if there has been any doubt in Rhodey’s mind about that at all.

“I have no clue what to get him, Rhodey,” he whines when he’s only met with a chuckle, “I’ve been working on a smart watch with panic button, integrated A.I. and all that jazz and I’ve been thinking about a car, obviously, or maybe upgrades for his suit? But he’s getting those anyway! Or what about –“

“Tony, Tones,” Rhodey breaks off his rambling, “Breathe, alright? Just. Breathe.”

Of course he doesn’t listen. When has Tony Stark ever been able to listen to anyone?

“The thing is – I’d be giving him this stuff anyway! He’s just – What am I supposed to get him that is special? I’m awful at this.”

“I honestly think you’re overthinking this,” he tells him quietly, hand coming out to rest on Tony’s knee to make him look at him and to ground him before he hyperventilates. “You know Peter and you know he doesn’t really want any of that –“ He shushes him with a raise of his hand before he can argue, “Of course he’d be over the moon if you got him any of that stuff but think about something that would make him really happy, Tony. He likes your tech good enough but do you know what he really loves?”

God bless this mess of a human being who just gives a halfhearted clueless shrug.

“You, Tony. That kid adores you and if you want my advice, I’d say get him something personal, something only you will ever be able to give him. No matter how small it might be, it’s going to be the biggest fucking gesture you can make. It’s going to mean the world to him.”

“Language.”

Rhodey laughs at him but Tony’s not even in the same room with him anymore. He’s jumped up and has started bustling about the room, pulling out papers and blue prints and sending them flying to the floor again, all the while muttering to himself like a maniac.

“Will you be okay?”

“What? Yeah, yeah, I’m good. Thanks a lot. Oh and don’t forget to look at that tree! Gotta get back to work! Love you, bye!”

He leaves him to his work after that, still reveling in the fact that his best friend seems fine. Genuinely, legitimately fine.  

For the first time in years he doesn’t have a lump in his throat when he’s leaving him to his own devices because he’s working on something fundamentally good, a Christmas present for his sort-of-son. He’s not biding his time until the next panic attack hits or riding out his anxiety by coming up with new blueprints for some fancy new tech. It’s a long way from where he’s been. It’s progress.

Making his way upstairs to the penthouse Rhodey briefly considers warning Pepper about the changes in her fiancé but ultimately thinks better of it, a little smile tugging on his lips when he tries to imagine the baffled look in her eyes when she realizes what a sap he has become over the week she’s been making deals on the other side of the Earth.

Although, come to think of it, Pepper probably knows already. She’s ridiculously intuitive in handling Tony and foreseeing his mood swings, it’s downright scary sometimes. She’s truly a –

“Woah.”

Yet again his train of thoughts gets interrupted and he’s left speechless at the sight of the huge ass Christmas tree that’s shining with what looks like at least a thousand fairy lights, topped off with tinsel and a finishing touch of wooden hangers.

It’s not just the tree, though, the whole living room has been turned into the epitome of Christmas. There are glowing stars and corny stockings, an expensive-looking wooden pyramid turning ever so slowly and a nutcracker next to a bowl of walnuts and mandarins and candles, so many candles in all sizes, colors and forms.

Most importantly, though, and almost a part of the scene is the teenager crouched down in front of it, looking completely at home right where he is, albeit a little jittery with a neatly wrapped parcel in his arms.

He’s about to make his presence known when the boy turns around with a small wave of his hand.

Right, enhanced teenage superhero, he forgets that sometimes.

“What are you up to?” Rhodey asks him closing the distance until he’s standing beside him and then, because it feels weird to just tower over the much smaller kid, goes to take a seat next to him – carefully situating himself, mindful of his legs.

When he hears the soft whirring of the prosthetics, Peter scrambles to help him adjust, almost dropping the present he has been holding onto in the process. Only when the older man is comfortable, does he answer.

He looks sheepish, mirroring Tony’s expression from just minutes earlier to a tee.

“I, uh, I wanted to be the first one to put a present underneath the tree. And, uh, I,” he meets his eyes conspirationally, “I think Mister Stark is already working on his gift and, uh, it’s probably going to be something super fancy and if I get more time to think about it I’ll probably just throw it away because I’ll realize that it can never be good enough but right now I still feel pretty good about it, so basically I’m forcing myself not to back out by already putting it here where everyone can see it.”

To Rhodey’s delight he takes in a deep breath after finishing, seeing as he has completely forgotten to stock up on air while talking. Really, he gets why Tony loves this kid so much. They’re basically the same person.

“That sounds like a good plan,” he tells him, “And I’m sure Tony’s going to love it.” He loves you, kid. He really does. I hope it tells you that, too.

Peter smiles a little at that, fingers drumming on the package in an irregular pattern, “I think so, too. At least, I hope so. Anyway, what are you doing here, Mister Rhodes? Do you need anything?”

“I went to check up on Tony and when he mentioned a Christmas tree I just had to see it for myself,” he tells him with a grin and points to the huge thing with his thumb, “Gotta say I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”

“It’s amazing,” the teenager agrees, smile spreading until his whole face is alight with joy and his eyes sparkle with the Christmas lights they’re reflecting.

“Also,” Rhodey adds because suddenly he feels like he needs to say this at least once and who knows when he’ll next meet the kid without his hovering mentor. “I wanted to thank you.”

Peter frowns, genuine confusion evident in his eyes. “What for?”

“Just,” the older man sighs and meets his gaze, trying to convey how much he means his next words with his eyes alone, “Just for being you and for being here. I have never seen Tony this happy on Christmas and you’re a big part of the reason why. So, thank you for giving him something to celebrate this year.”

As if just realizing what a major role he’s playing in his mentor’s life Peter’s expression morphs from surprise to determination. Rhodey watches in awe how he shoulders the responsibility that comes with it without missing a beat and straightens his posture, truly looking like the superhero he is and a lot more mature than most adults he knows.

“Mister Stark deserves happiness, especially on Christmas,” he declares seriously, “It’s the least I can do, after,” he waves his hand in the air, “after everything he did for me.”

“Still, thank you,” Rhodey repeats earnestly, gratefully and then, because this is getting too serious for such a joyous occasion asks, “So. What did you get him?”

Peter’s eyes go wide in excitement. “But you have to swear not to tell anyone.”

What do you think Peter’s getting Tony? And what is Tony going to end up making for his kid? I’d love to hear your thoughts!