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miscretis · 17 days ago

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Vampire!Ronin x Vampire Hunter!Reader(g.n) [PART 1]

WRITER'S NOTE

I've decided to start this AU due to my love of vampires. This AU is also a bit based on the misunderstood vocaloid song, Romeo and Cinderella! This is my first ever serious fanfiction project and I hope you guys will enjoy!

TW:

- Blood

- Murder

- Loss of loved ones

- Coarse language

- Vampires blah blah blah!

Wails of siren sounded outside of the alleyway. Thick red splattered and stained all over the ground, the bodies stinking up the whole place.

Huff…puff…

Aspirated gasps were let out from your system, a symbol of desperation. You ran until you were stopped by caution tape and police. Your eyes widen and your pupils shrunk. Your heart quickened as if you were going to explode. What laid before you were familiar bodies. Bodies of people who used to cherish you, people who were always by your side.

You would expect one or two bodies being slaughtered in the notorious alley; Purgatory, where the vampire, Devil’s Butcher, gets his hands dirty. However, the last of your remaining family were the last thing you expected to be lying before you, petrified in time.

“No…nononononono! This…this can't be!”

You tried scrambling past the caution tape however strong arms held you back.

“Sorry but you can't pass the caution tape!”

“Those are my parents!” You screamed, dropping to your knees while you begged for this to be a dream.

Hot tears rolled down your cheeks, everything felt surreal. Like a hellscape.

————————————❣️————————————

“Breaking news: On 19th July 2023, two bodies were found dead at Purgatory alleyway. Vampires are going rampant nowadays, so please do not stay out late. This is Kelly Smith, signing out.”

You laid on your couch, still trying to process your trauma. Your parents, gone in cold blood. You were nothing more than a hollow vessel, too tired to even shed tears any longer. They were now no more than cherished memories, reminiscent of your life the past 2 decades.

However, you cannot be depressed for long…

Vampires…those beings who relish in others suffering. They're evil beings.

You quickly rose from the couch, wiping your face with your hands. Vampires, vampires, vampires. Why do they have to take away your only loved ones? Your fists balled up, you clenched your teeth.

Those vermin, I must do something about them…!

However, you were just a normal human being. What even can you do against blood sucking superbeings anyways? You couldn't win against them…

The next day, you decided to head down from your apartment to the park near your childhood home, where you spent most of your past time as a kid with your parents. While walking down the street, you walked past a church. There was an advertisement that read…

Recruiting vampire hunters!

Part time:

$1800 per month

Full time:

$4000 per month

Please contact Raymond Ng on ————————— for more details!

The advertisement piqued your interest. No, not because of the pay. It was because of the great good. Just imagine having your loved ones taken away by one of those vermin. You wouldn't want that happening to other people too, would you?

So, when you got back home after the visit. You dropped on your bed and started to text the number.

You: Good evening, I am ——————. I am texting you because I wanted to apply for the position of part time Vampire Hunter for $1800 per month.

Raymond: Okay, please show me your resume.

You: https://bit.ly.com/Users-full-name

Raymond: Thank you. We’ll contact you back if you're eligible for an interview.

You put down your phone and turned your body to your right, letting out a sigh.

Mom, Dad. I'll avenge your deaths and help prevent the deaths of many others.

————————————❣️————————————

The next week, the church emailed you. They have informed you that you'll be called in for an interview. Upon hearing this news, happiness filled up your heart, replacing the feeling of depression for a quick minute.

That's not something worth being excited for…yet. I still need to pass the interview then it'll be worth celebrating.

Another week passed by and you sat for the interview…

“ Y/N, please take a seat,” said the interviewer

“ Thanks.” You complied with their orders.

”First question, why did you apply for this position?”

“I wanted to create a better world, the greater good for us, humans. The world has been terrorised by vermin, the vampires. It has been turned upside down, into a hellscape for us humans to live in.”

The interviewer simply nodded his head in response, “ Ok, next question, describe yourself in two ways.”

Your eyes widened a little, your mouth slightly agape, cold sweat started to slowly drip from your forehead.

“Well…uhm…”

Fuckfuckfuck, don’t you dare fuck this up…I swear if I fuck this up I’m going to jump.

“I’m very resilient and I give back to the community. When faced with challenges, I’ll take a step back and think. From there I’ll apply problem solving strategies such as: identifying the problem, thinking of possible solutions, and execution. All based on the level of achievability and impact.” I took another deep breath, “ I also would usually participate in volunteering work as you could see in my resumé, I’ve volunteered for police work before. Other than that, I also led in clean and green work such as the beach clean up, and upcycling plastic bottles into plant pots to give out to the neighbourhood elderly.”

The interviewer smirked, and nodded his head, “last question, are you faint hearted?”

What kind of question is that?

“Uhm…no.”

“Great! We'll call you back when you're selected.”

————————————❣️————————————

When you got back home, you quickly emailed the church to thank them for their time. Afterwards, you received a strange link from an unknown number.

UNKNOWN: https://discord.com/blahblahblahimgonnasuckyourblood

You were kind of giggling at the server name. Hotel Transylvania, isn't it? However this situation is far too suspicious. So, you blocked the number and cleared the chat content.

…

UNKNOWN: https://discord.com/blahblahblahimgonnasuckyourblood

Huh? I thought I blocked the number?

UNKNOWN: darling, Don't Keep The Devil Waiting. join the hellscape.

You blocked the number and cleared the chat content again.

UNKNOWN: https://discord.com/blahblahblahimgonnasuckyourblood

UNKNOWN: i Know where you Live, join or else.

At this point of time, the situation wasn't just suspicious but very frightening. You quickly clicked on the link and joined the server…

<goreboy> Welcome to the hellscape @/user

<hitmeuppp> Omg omg omg! A new fellow vampire!!!

<Angelic> welcome!

<felicite> Hello! It's so nice to meet you!

<LUCA_IS_SO_COOL> YAYY!!! A new vampire mate!!

…

A vampire server? Is this real? If so, it's a jackpot.

<goreboy> Please Do Check the rules at #rules and Choose your Roles at #roles

You clicked on the channel.

<goreboy> be a vampire. First rule of the Fight Club. tbh I don't Really Care lmfao. just don't be Racist or Transphobic and be nice to Everyone or else Angel will snipe you :\

<Angelic> it's not a threat it's a promise.

You went to check out the roles of the server. There were unique vampire roles up for choice..

Bot: what do you take pride in for being a vampire? Please react to get a role!

Blood! 🩸(5)

I dunno, fun? ‼️(2)

Superpowers! 💪(3)

Ego 😈 (2)

There's not really anything to be proud of 😔 (1)

What the fuck? Ego???? Fun??? Who the hell reacted to these

You checked the list of reactions, one user in particular caught your eye.

goreboy, the server owner. When I get into that job position, you're my first victim.

Bot: How do you prey on your victims?

Sharp objects 🔪 (3)

Guns and magazines 🔫(2)

Kidnapping 🥷 (1)

The good ol’ vampire style 😜 (7)

You went on to react to your favourite roles.

ding! A new notification from #main

You went to check on the main channel.

<goreboy> @/user why don't you Introduce Yourself in #introductions ? that would help us to Get to Know You better.

You went to introduce yourself in the introductions channel. Afterwards you decided to go on a server tour with the user <Angelic> to get to know the server layout better.

<Angelic> so this is #vampire-cave. This is where we post our gruesome murders.

<hitmeuppp> ooo! You're being exposed @/goreboy !

<goreboy> it's Yours Truly.

You laid back in bed. 7 vampires in the server and 1 human. Is this a possible road for vengeance? All you could know is that the “vampires” in the server could be edgy teenagers roleplaying. However you couldn't brush off your suspicions that they're actually vampires. Especially for the user, goreboy. He gives off really, really bad vibes. Dangerous too, telling from his reaction to the roles.

————————————❣️————————————

The next day, the church emailed you.

Wow, that's fast.

You checked your Gmail inbox and checked on the email.

Dear ————,

Congratulations on being selected for part time Vampire Hunter for $1800 per month! You'll start work by this Saturday.

Link to details: —————

PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND TO THIS EMAIL. IF YOU THINK THERE'S AN ERROR, PLEASE CONTACT RAYMOND NG ON [email protected]

You jumped out of your bed, your eyes almost popped out from your sockets. You started to jump around and screamed, “Yessss!!!! I got the position!”

“Hmm…”

“<User>....huh…”

TO BE CONTINUED

#killer chat #ronin killer chat #gender neutral reader #gender neutral y/n #gender neutral post #lgbtqia #vampires #vampire hunter x vampire #fanfic #fanfiction #discord chat #discord server

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ageofbajabule · 7 months ago

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Dawn of Love | Chapter 5

Josh Kiszka x Female Reader

Word Count: 6.7k

Warnings: Fluff, Talks of Death, Talks of Cancer/Cancer treatment, Angst, Oral Sex (M! Receiving), Fingering (F! Receiving), Car Sex, Unprotected Sex, Arguing, Crying, Talks of Doubt, Talks of Abandonment, Death, Sad!Josh (I apologize in advance), Heartbreak.

Author’s Note: We have officially entered frat boy era Josh🤩 And I’m sad to say this will be the only chapter of Frat boy/rat tail Josh :( But trust the process and the vision I have for this series. We’re halfway through it🥹

May 2016

Sophomore year of college was completed, you somehow managed to maintain your GPA. Even after finding out everything last fall. Josh was really your rock through it all, he helped push you through the year. You were absolutely terrified that you would flunk out from the assignments you had missed out on, but Josh was more than helpful to assist you in getting them done.

The guys had managed to start playing more bars, they even were starting to work on an EP with a label. They were more than thrilled as you were. Josh had assured you over the last few months that he was happy about his decision and that it wasn’t because of Jake. He wanted to do it too.

Your father’s treatments were going well, or at least better for most. Your relationship had gotten better, it was sad how the idea of death brought the two of you together. But it was better now than never. Your weeks consisted of photo clientele, and making your dad’s treatment appointments. He kept telling you that you didn’t have to go, but you insisted on being there every step of the way to fight it with him.

Josh and your dad had even gotten closer themselves, which you were thrilled about. You wanted them to have a good relationship, considering you saw a future with Josh. The two of them would go fishing together with Jake and Kelly, to help get your dad’s mind off of things for a while.

Your sister Oliva and yourself dedicated every Sunday to be a spa day for the two of you to debrief and relax after a long week. It was much needed for the two of you, your sister was going into her senior year now and preparing to send applications to college’s. Her and Sam had even been spending more time together, a little more than usual. But you and Josh had encouraged them to be with one another. Although your sister kept on telling you that it wasn’t like that… But you knew it was exactly that.

Even with all of that going on, Josh made sure after every practice the guys had or anytime they went to record at the studio that he would spend much needed time with you. He prioritized your relationship just as much as he did his and his brother’s career. You were excited for them, especially being able to hear the raw uncut work before it’s finalized.

You had gotten offered a great program to jumpstart your filming and directing career especially only going into your junior year. You had been working on extra side projects to earn this program, and finally got accepted into to hopefully graduate a year earlier.

“Sunny.” Josh called out to you.

“What’s up?” You smiled softly.

“So, the guys and I have to go to Nashville in July for some recording sessions…”

“That’s awesome.” You smiled weakly.

“I was kind of hoping you would join us. Well me at least anyways.” He scratched the back of his head. His freshly cut hair, he let go of the length and went short. With an undercut. He looked absolutely hot.

“You want me to come along?”

“I mean of course. It's going to be a week-long trip, and I figured you would like to tag along.” He smiled sitting beside you.

“I’d love to come. Will the guys be okay with it?” You worried about crashing the trip.

“Jake actually suggested you join. To make sure we didn’t drive each other insane.” He chuckled.

You laughed softly, nodding in agreement with him. “Yeah, you guys can get pretty heated.”

“I also figured you needed a break too though. From everything you’ve been going through.” He sat beside you, holding your hand.

“They say he’s getting better, but he looks worse now than he did before…” You felt tears threatening your eyes thinking about your father’s current state. “What if he doesn’t make it Josh? What am I supposed to do?”

“Sunny…” His voice softened, “Your dad is strong. I believe he’ll win this battle. He’s got a great team of doctors and an amazing support system.” He rubbed your shoulders. “If something were to happen, and I hope nothing does… You just remember him. Remember him healthy, remember the good times, remember him happy.”

Tears started to stream down your face. “I’m so scared Josh… I don’t want him to go…” You wrapped your arms around him sobbing into his chest.

“I know baby… I know.” He consoled you, rubbing your back as he hugged you tightly.

“If something were to happen, you’ll be there, right?” You sniffled looking at him.

“Of course, Y/N. You call me and I will be right there.” He cupped your cheek in his hands, kissing your lips softly.

“I love you.” He smiled resting his forehead against yours.

“I love you too.” You sighed softly as you felt yourself calm down.

After sitting there in a moment of silence you finally gathered yourself, becoming excited about joining them on their trip to Nashville.

“Sooo, do you have anything fun planned for us when we go down?” You smiled softly.

“I might have a few things up my sleeve…” He smirked softly.

“Not even a hint?” You tried your best puppy dog look.

“Nope. You’ll just have to wait and see.” He kissed your cheek.

You groaned getting up from your bed. “You’re no fun.”

“I can’t ruin any surprises!” He argued back jokingly.

July 2016

The guys and yourself flew into Nashville, the flight wasn’t that long which you were grateful for. The entire flight Sam kept talking about your sister Olivia. Which made you realize just how much the two of them liked each other. Although your sister would deny such a thing.

The guys had managed to get a nice cabin, a few miles out from the city. They felt it would be a nice change than staying in the busy city. And Josh always loves taking advantage of nature when he can. He loved being outdoors, just as much as Sammy did.

That was your first stop of the day, settling into your cabin. Josh and yourself found a room that had a nice view of the mountains, it was also the master suite. The guys made their jokes of course about the two of you which you just ignored as Josh lectured them all.

“When do you guys head to the studio?” You unpacked your bag as Josh does.

“We have to be there for 3. It's probably going to be a long night…” He gave a half smile.

“It’s only the first day. It’s okay, we have the rest of the week to do whatever you have planned.” You smiled at him softly.

“It’s just we have to try and get this EP done. Especially since they want to release our first single soon. Which we still haven’t even perfected.” He sighed softly.

“Hey, that’s why you guys have been coming down here. It will work out, don’t stress about it. I believe in you.” You cupped his face in your hands.

“It’s just. This is Jake’s dream… And I want to help him every step of the way.”

“You are helping him. I mean look at you guys… These past two years that I’ve known you. You’ve shown me how much you have helped him. You guys are literally here. Recording your first ever EP!” You kissed his lips softly.

He kissed you back softly. “Yeah… You’re right. I don’t know why I’m freaking.” He chuckled nervously.

“Well, it's not exactly an easy thing you guys are doing. You’re putting your heart and soul into this. All bands have to start out somewhere… But you guys, you have something that no other band has.” You caressed his cheek.

He smiled at you lovingly, “What would that be?”

“The love you have for one another. You guys are brothers. And there is no stronger bond than that, I mean Danny fits right in. He was the perfect puzzle piece for you all.”

“Yeah… I honestly don’t know how we would’ve made it this far.” He smiled softly. “Thank you for believing in me, believing in us Sunny.”

“Always and forever Josh.” You kissed his cheek softly.

“Are you guys almost finished unpacking? We want to head to some restaurant not too far from the studio before we’re there all night.” Sam yelled up.

“Jesus Samuel, give us 5 minutes!” Josh rolled his eyes, causing you to giggle.

“Come on, let’s finish and get out of here before they barge in here thinking we’re up to no good.”

“So what if we’re up to no good…” He smirks at you.

“Absolutely not, not right now Joshua.” You give him a stern look.

“Ouch. Joshua… Really Y/N.”

“I’m serious, let’s finish up and go.” You patted his chest continuing to finish unpacking.

The restaurant was really only two blocks away from their recording studio. Which was a nice advantage, the food was delicious and the portions were massive leaving mostly everyone with some sort of leftover.

Once arriving at the studio the guys started setting up some of their own gear while the studio had extra gear for them to use as well. You smiled softly as you watched Jake be completely mesmerized by the studio. This studio was a whole lot different than the one back in Michigan.

Josh was checking out the recording booth for himself to see what space he was working with. It wasn’t as small as the one back home. The rest of the guys got settled in and started to tune their instruments, while Danny tested the drum kit out.

You’ve heard some of their unrecorded songs, while there were many. They only were brought down to 4 choices. You absolutely loved ‘Flower Power’ although that was Jake’s song he had written for a certain someone that he wouldn’t disclose, so you never bothered him about it.

You had a feeling deep down their biggest hit would be ‘Highway Tune’. It was definitely a song that would reach a big crowd with Jake’s riff, Josh’s vocals, Danny’s drum skills and Sam’s bass skills. Honestly any song from the EP will blow people away.

“Sunny, they’re calling me into the booth.” Josh came over kissing your lips softly.

“Go kill it, rockstar.” You giggled softly, as you watched him go off into the booth. They played a backtrack from ‘Black Smoke Rising’ which the guys had been working on for Josh to sing.

You sat on the couch there, watching him sing his heart out in the booth smiling big as you were amazed by his vocal range only knowing it was going to be even better as the years went by.

After about two hours they were pretty much finished with the samples they needed from Josh for the day. While the rest of the guys recorded their samples for the rest of the night until they had to return back tomorrow.

Josh came sitting by you on the couch, wrapping an arm around your shoulder pulling you close to him. In which you snuggled into him.

“Are you feeling alright?” He spoke softly.

“A little tired, but it’s worth it.” You smiled softly.

“Me too, mama. I’m beat after today. I’m sure they are too, but luckily on Wednesday we’re going to the lake.” He kissed your cheek.

“Really?” You smiled softly.

“Mhm, just the two of us. A nice picnic with my beautiful girl.” He caressed your cheek kissing your forehead.

“God, can you two ever get a room?” Sam made a gagging noise.

“Sammy boy… You act as if you haven’t been affectionate with a lady before.” You gave him a questioning look.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” His face was a little red.

“Oh but I think you do…” You giggled softly, knowing your sister and him have definitely been seeing each other more.

“Yeah, Sam… Smooching all up with Olivia…” Josh chimed in.

“Seriously guys.” He groaned walking away to finish up recording, as the two of you sat there laughing.

“I think it's cute. I’m glad they have one another.” You smiled at Josh.

“Yeah, it's kind of ironic though.” He chuckled.

“Honestly, I would've thought my sister would pick a jock over a musician. But she surprised me…” You giggle softly.

“I didn’t think you would fall for a theater kid.” Josh smiled at you.

“With my love for film… I’m glad I fell for a theater kid.”

Wednesday came quicker than expected, you guys had been in Nashville since Sunday and would be heading back home early Sunday morning. The last few days had been filled with exploring downtown Nashville while also going to the recording studio with the guys. They would have to come back down a few more times this year before they could actually wrap up the EP. As it still “needed word” as the label stated.

But today was a day off from the studio leaving you and Josh to go to the lake as planned, while the rest of the guys went kayaking.

You put on your favorite swim piece that you knew drove Josh crazy. Wearing your overalls over the top of it. You smiled to yourself as you slipped your sandals on and grabbed your bag with towels, blankets and sunscreen. While Josh had the cooler in his hand. The two of you took a short drive to where the lake was, as it wasn’t far from the cabin you were staying at.

“God it’s beautiful down here.” You sighed contently taking in the scenery

“Yeah, it is.” Josh smiles softly, looking over to you.

“I wouldn’t mind moving down here… In the future of course.” You giggled softly.

“Really?”

“I mean yeah. Winter’s aren’t as bad as Michigan. And the summer is obviously nice as well.” You started to walk toward the lake.

“Yeah, you’re not wrong.” He rubbed your back following behind you.

Once you found a spot the two of you placed the blanket down. While Josh set up the picnic he had for the two of you. You smiled sitting down on the blanket after helping him, then he sat next to you.

“Do you- god this is probably stupid…” Josh chuckled nervously.

“What is it?” You smiled pulling a water bottle out.

“Do you think we’ll get a home together one day?” He scratched the back of his neck.

You felt your cheeks flush, “Yeah… I think one day we will.”

He smiled brightly, setting up the little picnic of sandwiches, fruit and chips. As well as a bottle of wine.

“Trying to get me wine drunk in the daylight, Joshy?” You giggled softly.

“Maybe I am, maybe I’m not.” He raised an eyebrow laughing softly, as he pulled out solo cups to pour the wine into.

The two of you sat there talking about everything that was coming up later in the year. How the guys would have a few promotional things coming up, and. your projects you had with school coming up as well.

The weather was beautiful out, it wasn’t so hot out that it was unbearable. It was the perfect weather you could ask for. As you ate, you watched over the lake seeing the birds fly over, chirping away. You felt home, and free with Josh. The most at peace you’ve felt in a while.

After finishing up eating the two of you decided to swim in the lake, as the heat picked up a bit since you got there. But the water was perfect, the two of you swam for a while. Then decided to head back to the cabin to prepare dinner for the guys and yourselves.

Pulling up to the cabin you noticed the guys arrived not too long ago from their day out kayaking. Jake and Josh both shared a similar sun-kissed face from the long day out. Sam’s back was as red as a lobster causing you to giggle softly.

“Jeez Sammy, did you forget to reapply?”

“Daniel was supposed to remind me…” He winced in pain.

“Listen man, I was zoned out and totally blanked.” Danny tried defending himself.

Shaking your head laughing softly, you all tredge inside. “Sam there should be some Aloe in the bathroom upstairs. Danny can help you apply it, while Josh and I get dinner ready for everyone.”

Danny nods his head and runs upstairs grabbing that for Sam to help relieve the pain and reduce his skin from peeling.

Josh insisted on making pasta, with his signature sauce. In which you couldn’t argue as he was a good cook. You helped make a side of salad for everyone, while baking some garlic bread.

After finishing up making everything, you brought it to the dining table, calling everyone to eat. In which all the guys pretty much rushed in, Sam now a little more relaxed after Danny had helped apply aloe on his back. Jake couldn’t help but pile his plate with food right away.

“Thanks for letting me come along on this trip guys… I really needed it.” You smiled softly as you made your plate up.

“Of course! You’re always welcome to come and tag along.” Sam chimed in, as well as the other guys.

“Honestly Y/N, I think if you didn’t come we wouldn’t have lasted the whole week here.” Jake chuckled softly.

“Yeah, cause at least at home. Their mom is able to break up the fights.” Danny laughed softly, while the twins shook their heads.

“I’m really glad you joined us too for this… Whenever we tour the world… I want you to be there. Every step of the way.” Josh smiled rubbing his thumb over your cheek. As he plants a soft kiss to your lips. Earning groans and gagging noises from the rest.

“Oh shut up, just cause you don’t have girlfriends or your girlfriends aren’t here doesn’t mean I can’t show some PDA.” Josh argued with them.

“Alright, alright let’s just eat. Okay?” You giggled softly looking at everyone.

They all just nodded, and began to eat whatever was on the table for dinner. There were no complaints, just compliments and discussions of what was to come, and talking about childhood memories.

But, Josh truly did brighten your days, even after all the dark that has happened within the last year. And you couldn’t be more grateful to have him a part of your life, as well as the rest of the guys. They were your family, and you wouldn’t trade them for the world.

April 2017

The guys have officially released their EP this month, and you couldn’t be any more proud of them. Karen hosted a small gathering at their house with Danny’s family to join as well.

All of you were sitting in the basement, you were sitting on Josh’s lap. While your sister had been cozying up with Sam. They finally became official right around Christmas after the months of everyone piecing it together that were in fact together.

Danny and Jake strummed on their guitars as Jake has been teaching Danny more on how to play. You smiled to yourself knowing that these were your people, and you wouldn’t trade it for the world.

“So what’s the plan now? A tour I’d presume?” You smiled at them.

“Some shows around cities. I think they have a few festivals lined up for us, which surprised us. And then we’re releasing a double-EP later this year.” Jake smiled softly.

“That’s exciting! I’m so happy for you guys, it’s all happening.”

“Couldn’t have done it without everyone.” Jake smiled softly.

You smiled softly, eventually getting up from Josh’s lap stretching your legs out. You put your hand out for him. “Come on.” You smiled softly.

“Where are we going?” He chuckled softly.

“For a drive.” You giggled softly, pulling him with you as you left the house getting into your Jeep that you got for yourself after your car practically died on you.

“Where are we going, Sunny?” He tried to pry it out of you.

“You’ll know once we get there.” You giggled softly.

You were taking him to the abandoned cabin he had taken you too, a few years ago. It had been awhile since the two of you have sat there to relax and clear your minds. It always brought you a sense of comfort when visiting there.

Surprisingly no one has bought it yet, you figured it was destiny’s way of telling you the two of you would own it one day.

After driving for a little while, you pulled up seeing Josh smiling softly out of your peripheral vision. You parked the car, opening the trunk to the back of the Jeep to sit in with Josh.

“We haven’t been here in a while…” He chuckled softly, wrapping an arm around your shoulder.

“I figured we needed a well deserved trip here.” You smiled taking in the view of the acres that swallowed the cabin. It was more than likely a very beautiful home years ago, but after being vacated it wasn’t taken care of and left to rot basically.

“You just wait… One day, I’m gonna buy this.” He kissed your cheek softly.

“Not if I beat you to it.” You giggled softly.

“You’re gonna be an amazing film director.” He rubbed your shoulder. “It’s crazy that you’re going to be graduating next year already… And I’m going to be touring and producing more music…”

“I couldn’t be more proud of you, Josh.”

“I’m undeniably more proud of you, Y/N.” He kissed your lips softly.

You smiled into the kiss, placing your hand on his chest softly.

Josh cupped your face with his one hand, deepening the kiss. Causing a quiet moan to tumble from your lips. He smirked against your lips, trailing kisses down your neck softly.

A breathy moan came from you, as you slid your hand over to his crotch, feeling him harden beneath your hand. You smiled softly as you palmed him slowly, earning a groan from him as he left wet kisses.

Luckily you were practically out in the middle of nowhere, so no one would catch the two of you like this. Taking matters into your hands, you gently pulled away and began to unbutton his pants.

“Come on… Let me be nice to her.” He mumbled.

“Ah, this is about you right now.” You shushed him as you kissed his lips softly, continuing to unbutton his pants and shift them down along with his boxers springing his hard cock free.

You wrapped your hand around the base pumping him slowly as you see the tip is flushed and leaking with pre cum, taking your tongue you lick the tip gently earning a groan from him.

He pulled your hair back with his hand, making a makeshift ponytail. You smiled softly, as your mouth sinks down over him. Using your hand to pump as you try to fit all of him into your mouth, relaxing your throat to not gag.

His grip on your hair tightens as he moans and praises you. Feeling the heat grow between your legs, you keep your pace up, not breaking it to keep him where you want him. Using your other hand you massage his balls, as he bucks his hips making you gag slightly.

“Fuck, Y/N…”

You hummed along his length, making him buck his hips again. You pulled your mouth off of him, pumping him still as he took your face kissing your lips roughly as your teeth clashed together.

You began to remove your leggings, as Josh dipped his hand past your lace panties, feeling how wet you were for him.

“You’re gonna be the death of me…” He chuckled softly, kissing your neck, as he slipped two fingers into you pumping them slowly curling them as he hit your spot.

Whining quietly, you kiss his neck softly while trailing behind marks.

“There’s no one out here baby. S’just us.” He smiles softly, as he continues to work his fingers. You let your moans slip more frequently as you were nearing your end.

“Josh, I-“

“I know mama, let go.” He worked you through your first orgasm as it washed over you, you tilted your head back as you saw stars.

Pulling his fingers, he sucks on them making sure to get every drop of you as he hums contently. He then removes your panties, as he places his hands on your waist letting you hover over his lap. You kissed his lips softly, as he fumbled around his pants pockets.

“Shit…” He groans quietly.

“What’s wrong?” You caress his face.

“I don’t have a condom with me…”

“If you want to continue, I’m on birth control. It’s only one time…” You smile softly, as you and Josh had always used protection just for the sake of avoiding the chances of a pregnancy scare.

“Are you sure? I don’t want to pressure you…” He grabbed your face gently.

You nodded, “I’m more than sure. It’s okay, I trust you.” You smiled, kissing his lips softly, feeling him line himself up with you.

Slowly you sink down, feeling him stretch you out. As the two of you gasp feeling each other for the very first time without a layer of latex. It felt different and so much better, but you knew this would be the only time for a while.

“God… I’m not sure I’ll last.” He moans underneath you, holding your waist firmly.

“Look at me…” You grabbed his face gently, as he locked eyes with you. “I know this feels different than normal, but we’ll make it last.” You kissed his lips softly as you kept a slow pace on rolling your hips.

Kissing you back, he moaned into your mouth as the two of you got lost in each other. He gripped your hips some more, before moving his hands down to your ass gripping firmly as he spread your cheeks earning moans from you as you continued to ride him.

After riding at a slow pace, you decided to pick the pace up a bit. Bouncing on his cock, earning a groan from him as he smacks your ass. Earning a yelp from you, placing your hands on his chest to help hold yourself. He grabbed your face, kissing you roughly.

After a few more rolls of your hips, he was thrusting up to meet your hips. He was starting to falter a bit, signaling he was closer than he thought.

“Baby, I… Where?” His hair was sticking to his forehead as sweat was beating down his face.

“Inside…” You whined, throwing your head back.

He held you close to him as he took over, using his feet to thrust into you using his free hand to rub circles onto your clit to bring you to your last orgasm.

“Fuck…” You felt your body go into overdrive as you orgasm crashed like a wave. And he wasn’t too far as he groaned thrusting two more times after he finally stilled inside of you, coating you inside with his release.

You rest your forehead against his, panting with him as he smiles softly kissing your lips. You kissed him back giggling softly, as he slipped out of you carefully, grabbing napkins to clean up your mess.

After cleaning yourselves up, you put your pants back on, deciding on sitting and watching the stars for the rest of the evening together.

June 2018

The guys released their double-EP back in November. They even toured in Europe for the Spring while doing some shows here in the states during the summer.

You graduated just a month ago, giving you the free time to go on the small leg of the tour with the guys, it was fun being on the road with them. But sharing a small van with 4 guys could be a bit much.

Josh and yourself had started considering getting an apartment in the city somewhere, or waiting to rent a home until the two of you could afford to buy a home. As your relationship was getting more serious. But you also weren’t sure if you wanted to stay in Michigan to pursue your film and photography career.

While being on the road with them, you always called home to check in on your dad. You felt a little guilty for not being there with him, but he assured you that it would be better if you went out and saw a little bit of the world with the guys.

On your way back home, Josh and yourself decided that he would stay over for the weekend while you guys looked over more listings and figured out where you wanted to live. As you had to get a head start on diving into your career.

After being dropped off, you guys said your goodbyes to the rest of the guys walking into your very empty and quiet house. Which threw you off guard, but you figured maybe your family went out to the lake for the day. And ventured upstairs to your bedroom with Josh.

“So I did get an offer for Nashville.” You smiled softly as you set your bags down.

“That’s amazing!” Josh smiles, kissing your cheek.

“It’s just, with everything with my dad… I don’t know if moving to Nashville is too sudden or selfish of me.” You sighed sitting on your bed.

“Sunny, it’s not selfish. I think it's great if you want to move to Nashville. The scene down there… I mean you saw it. It’s always busy, and I’m sure you would fit right in.” He rubbed your hand gently.

“And the guys and I have been talking about moving down there ourselves… With working on our first full album, we’re going to be traveling a lot there. And figured we would save ourselves.” He chuckled softly.

“It wouldn’t hurt I guess…” You smiled shyly. Then your phone started ringing, seeing your mom’s contact appear.

“Mom. Wait, I can barely understand you… I, it’s DAD! I’ll be there, just wait.” You hung up with her, looking at Josh frantically.

“We have to go, it's my dad.” You scattered around your room finding your car keys, as tears filled your eyes.

“Sunny, woah! Let me drive, you’re in no shape.” He grabbed the keys from you, helping you out of the car, opening the door for you. He hopped in the driver's side starting the car up and heading over to the hospital.

On the way over it felt like forever although Josh was practically blowing almost every stop sign to get you there as quickly as possible. You were crying and fidgeting your hands nervously not knowing what’s going on.

After a few minutes Josh snapped you out of your daze, and helped you rush inside the hospital asking the receptionist where he was located and immediately you were taken back with Josh following right behind you. When finding the room you walk in to see your mom sitting beside your father crying at his hand, while your sister sat in the corner crying.

This was it�� His time has come. And there was no way of turning back…

“Hey… pumpkin.” He spoke softly, but tried to sound enthusiastic as he smiled weakly.

“Dad…” You rushed over to his other side, grabbing his hand kissing it softly as tears kept coming down your face.

“Hey now… No crying. We prepared for this.” He used his one hand to rub your cheek, you moved your hand on top of his.

“I’m not ready Dad…” You cried into his touch, as he kept rubbing your cheek.

“Yes you are Y/N. You’ve been ready… It’s time to make something of yourself and to make me proud.”

“I’m scared.” You whispered as you choked back tears.

“There’s no need, I’ll always be with you… And you have your mom, sister and Josh. Come on over here son…” He choked up.

Josh rushed over to your side, placing a hand on your shoulder rubbing circles reassuringly.

“Hi Sir…” He smiled weakly as tears filled his eyes.

“Treat her right, just like you always have… And whenever the time may come or be.” A few tears slipped from your dads eyes. “You have my blessing.”

Josh smiled softly, as a few tears slipped. “I’ll make sure she is always taken care of. You won’t ever have to worry.” He chuckled softly, as your dad nodded in agreement.

“Dad, I love you so so much…” You stifled back a sob.

“And I love you pumpkin, more than you’ll ever know. Come here.” He motioned for you, and you embraced him as best as you could hugging him tightly and he hugged you back as tight as his body would let him.

You pulled away, standing beside Josh while your sister came over to your mom, as you all stayed beside your dad for the last few minutes of his life.

After moments had passed and your father shared his last breath. You stood there in silence as your mother’s sobs soared the room as well as your sisters. Whereas you stood silent taking in everything. Feeling yourself close off, you backed away slowly feeling completely numb.

Josh’s grip on your hand stayed as he followed you out of the room. “Sunny…” He called to you, shaking your head slightly and you felt tears threatening again.

“No… This isn’t supposed to… It isn’t real.” You broke out, sliding down against the wall in the hallway.

“Baby…” He kneeled down to you, trying to pick you up as you pushed his hands away.

“This isn’t fair Josh! He deserved more.” You cried looking up at him. “He needed more time!”

Josh nodded, picking you up engulfing you in a hug as you wrapped yourself around him, crying into his chest.

“I’m here, let it out.” He rubbed your back softly. And you did, you stood there letting it all out, accepting your father was gone.

One Month Later

A week after your father’s passing your family held a funeral service and a burial. It was beautiful and the outcome was nice, seeing family from Florida and childhood friends from there too for support in these hard times.

Josh had been helping you through it, completely being by your side while attending to his duties with the band. You were grateful, but felt bad for taking him away from his responsibilities. You had been trying to get yourself busy with work, getting clients for photoshoots before making a decision on where you’ll be taking your career off.

Although Josh and yourself haven’t decided on where you would move too. In fact the conversation hasn’t been brought up since the night of your father’s death. You didn’t want your decision to depend on Josh, but you didn’t want to wait around much longer either and ruin your chances at jumpstarting your opportunity.

You were pretty set to move to Nashville especially with an offer you were given. There was a really nice apartment that you had set a deposit on, although there were other potential tenants that could beat you to it. But you were hopeful.

Lately you’ve felt a little out of place, with everything. You haven’t felt like the best partner to Josh lately, and have felt like you’ve been lacking at what you love to do. And a tour was coming up again for him in another few months. You had already started packing up most things in your room to prepare for whenever the day would come to pack up and go.

“Sunny! We are so freaking lucky for this next small tour! You get to come with us.” He smiled brightly, embracing you tightly.

You hugged him back, smiling weakly to yourself. Feeling a little nervous with what you’re about to say.

“Josh…”

“I know what you’re thinking, ‘I don’t want to intrude on your guys' time.’ And you wouldn’t be!” He pulled away smiling at you still.

“Josh it’s not that…” You chewed on your lip nervously.

“What’s the matter?” He looked at you concerned.

“I accepted an offer…”

“I thought you were going to take the year off?” He questioned.

“Josh I can’t just take a year off!” You sighed, running a hand through your hair. “I have to jumpstart my career, while I can. If I don’t start now, I never will… And I don’t want to be stuck here…”

“But you can come and be our personal photographer… And, what’s so bad about here?” He tried to reason with you.

“I could never bloom with my career here… There’s just no way, and I can’t be your personal photographer… Sure it would be nice. But I have to do this for myself Josh. You guys can’t always be the ones to help me out.” You smiled weakly, placing your hand on his cheek.

“I just don’t understand… We can work through it and get your career going.”

“Because I have to do this on my own!” You yelled, a little louder than you’d like to admit.

He stood back a bit, looking at you. “So what are we supposed to do?”

“I thought you would support me, and tell me to go. And hopefully you would move in with me so that you can be home when you’re not touring the world.” You looked at him with tears building in your eyes.

“I can’t just pack my things up and move Y/N… The band. And we just aren’t entirely ready to move to Nashville just yet…” He looked at you, with a look that was breaking your heart.

“So… You’ve just been lying to me for months…”

“It’s not like that Sunny!” He sounded frustrated, “It’s far from that. I love you so much. But I mean I can’t just pack up and go with where we are in our career with the band…”

“And you expected me to give up mine?” You felt the tears start to fall. “I thought we were, I thought this was…”

“This doesn’t have to end… You’re still my girl, and my love has never changed for you.” He caressed your cheek, wiping away the tears.

“No… Because I’m just going to hold you back… and we’re at completely different points of our life right now. It would just make things difficult.” You looked up at him, your heart breaking as you spoke.

“You wouldn’t hold me back.” He chuckled softly.

You pulled away, “Yes I would, and I already have… After my dad died, you’ve been making sure to be there for me all the time. Sometimes calling things off with the band, you can’t jeopardize your career for me.”

“I can manage how I handle things… Y/N don’t do this.” He looked to you with pleading eyes, tears building up as they began to fall.

“No. I can’t hold you back. I have to let you go and be you…” You choked on your words, caressing his cheek.

“This was supposed to be forever…” His voice broke, as he looked down at you. He ran his thumb over your lips.

“I just think with everything going on… We’re at completely different places in our lives right now. And it’s not fair to either one of us Josh.” You breathed through your broken sobs.

“I’m never going to stop loving you, you know that right?” He held your face in his hands.

You nodded looking at him, “I’ll never stop loving you…” You smiled softly, leaning in to kiss him one last time. His lips connected with yours as the two of you shared your last kiss together.

After pulling apart from one another you gave him a look. “Just don’t hold back because of me. If later on you find someone… Don’t be afraid to move on.” You gave him a half smile caressing his cheek.

“Don’t even go there… There won’t be anyone else. I’ll wait. Till you are ready.” He smiled softly, capturing you one final time.

To be continued

Taglist-

@fkfearandliveyourlegend @hi-hi-hello11 @gretnavannfleet @gvfmuse @meetingthestardust @myleftsock @twistedmelodies @thunderstomp-and-tequila @devilat-thedoor @vanillabear27 @dharma-divine33 @holybananafuck @thecoldwind @gretavanmoon @maren-gvf @itsafullmoon @gretasfallingsky @wagnerbrainrot @piratejakesgf @wetkleenex-gvf

(if you’re not tagged it’s because your tag didn’t work so i’m sorry in advance)

#greta van fleet #gvf #josh kiszka #josh gvf #josh kiszka x reader #greta van smut #gvf smut #josh kiszka series #josh greta van fleet #joshua kiszka #josh kiszka greta van fleet #josh kiszka fic #dawn of love josh #greta van fleet fluff #greta van fic #greta van fleet fan fiction

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mortallyandrogynoussheep · 4 months ago

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another few days update

you would think i would get my stuff together for the one week time mark, but no, lol. i didn't like wednesday at all, i had bad pains and again didn't do that much productivity wise. so, let's get to summarizing.

7/100 days of getting my life back together

Tuesday, July 9, 2024

didn't study that much overall. my stomach decided to completely obliterate me, so i just gave up. i tried waking up early, but i think i ended up sleeping in. again

16:25 - 17:00 18:34 - 19:10 then i cleaned until 20:05 23:25 - 00:22

8/100 days of getting my life back together

Wednesday, July 10, 2024

really unproductive day, but hold on tight to your pants. it gets worse tomorrow. i did some exercises, that will be the first task on the exam, it went mostly quite good, actually, but i do want to do more of those and i still have some gaps in this area. other than that - not much else. did some notes at the end and that was it. what hapenned?

15:14 - 16:36 16:51 - 17:15

that day I think i also had the first since months time, when i couldn't fall asleep immediately, because i started to have panic attack/mental breakdown. it used to be almost daily few months ago, but kind of stopped eventually, and on that day it happened again. i had visuals of my old home and the home of my godmother, where i sometimes would stay for weeks, and started crying uncontrollably. anyways :D the day was over.

youtube

i watched the video about dinosaurs and it made me want to draw some dinosaurs. so, here's that, lol. watch the video, by the way, if the topic sounds interesting to you, the guy is really funny.

9/100 days of getting my life back together

Thursday, July 11, 2024

~It got worse~

I slept the whole days, fellas. I managed (mostly because of my incredibly helpful boyfriend trying to support me :')) to wake up at about 11, stayed awake for maybe half an hour to an hour, and then just fell asleep. and slept the whole day, basically. i think i ended waking up at about 7 pm, did some miscellaneous things, had a long ass mental breakdown, crying more than my pride could take, and then went to bed.

L + ratio + skill issue

10/100 days of getting my life back together

Friday, July 12, 2024

But you know what? I feel quite hopeful for today. I woke up fully at about 9:30, had my coffee and cigarette (kids do NOT smoke), cleaned up my studying space, which took a lot MORE than i expected, but now I'm ready to study. i am quite sleepy, but I have to just get myself together and do it. you know, maybe all those failures are okay, because at least i keep trying. eventually one of those tries does succeed in one way or another.

10:50 - 12:42 pages 20-56 in DB5 13:15 - 15:36 finished SE4, 56-82 DB5 then i cooked some food, took a shower and rested for a bit 17:30 - 18:20 FINALLY done with DB5

18:50 - 20:00 finished SE5

I cannot express how happy I am to be finally done with this DB 5 lecture. i also calculated the overall amount of slides i should go over, it came up to 374 of them, which comes to about 30 slides a day if i want to finish everything like one day before the exam lol. anyway. tummy hurty but we must persist

#100 days of productivity #studying #studyblr #study blog #university #student life #university student #Youtube

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joels6string · 2 years ago

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More Than My Father’s Son Chapter 1 Preview

No one wants it but imma give it to you anyway! 😂 I’m really happy writing this story even though it’s hard. I hope that’s a good sign, it’s been a rough month.

“C’mon, fox bandit, we’re all hungry and tired and sweatin’. And I know your leg hurts even if you won’t admit it.”

The fact that he was right paired with the continuation of today’s teasing nickname replaced some of your anxiety with anger, and he knew it, too. It’s why he’d said it. Traveling with you for two months had forced him to learn your tells and quirks, although he’d tried his damndest to resist it.

But oh well, he’d fucked this up from the start.

He should have left you back at the camp last week. That was the arrangement, the promise, the end of the line. There was nothing wrong with those people, you’d have been fine. Hell, from the looks of it on the 4th of July you’d already started to assimilate as you skipped around with that little guy who couldn’t shoot for shit. He’d spent days pondering over what had changed, where it had all gone downhill, the reasons he was still watching you limp along like everything was fine when he knew damn well it wasn’t.

Ellie was where he’d landed first. She liked you. Wasn’t hard to tell. Plus, she deserved to have a woman around and help her with all that, he couldn’t. Nor did he want to. But she’d have Maria as soon as she crossed the gates that lay a half a mile ahead, so maybe that wasn’t it, not entirely anyway.

“All right,” you chimed, shaking him from his thoughts and back to the reality where your hand was still in his, “Let’s go, Texas. Get it over with.”

Texas. Sometimes it still stung when you called him that, but he never asked you to stop. Tess would have loved you. All fire and proficiency with a sharp tongue and a deadly skill that you had no qualms over using. Sometimes he got a headache just thinking about the heckling he’d have endured between the two of you, three, actually. Ellie was no choir girl, either.

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bzedan · 1 year ago

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Ah, July. Not the hottest month (that is August or September), but it is very a Summer Month. June is mostly (and technically is like two thirds?) a Late Spring Month, but in July summer has arrived and they are decked out in sparkles and sweating everywhere triumphantly.

So I wanted songs about water and outer space and agitation between chill summer vibes and snappy summer bops. There's some new music on there, including the single from CRJ's latest, which I ADORE. More neo-disco please! OH also enjoy the best possible cover of Duran Duran's "Hungry Like the Wolf," it's jazz. This is very a playlist to half-ignore while lazing about something else, it's all vibes, can be put on shuffle, and some of the songs'll grab ya, but who knows which on which playthrough.

Related media to some of the songs:

Just listening to Masstor's "Self Control" you might not realise that it's being sung by a giant blue orc? monster? guy in the most amazing creature/costume build (he's got so much available movement! it looks like Not A Bitch to get in and out of!), but here's the music video so you can experience the entirety of the vibes.

Janelle Monáe's The Age of Pleasure is such a killer summer album, the vibes in the "Waterslide" music video are fabulous, and please do check out the other videos for this album, it feels like they just rented a sick house for a weekend and knocked all the videos out while cavorting poolside.

Jim Sullivan's U.F.O. is a household favourite, and his story is a sad and semi-mysterious one. It's one of those "you hope it was a miracle... but probably not" situations.

There are multiple Bart Graft tracks on here, big recommend as background music for working, it's dance stuff but often chill. It's all vibes, I love it.

Anyway here's a link to July's playlist on Spotify, with the track list below the cut.

And embedded if you like that sort of thing:

'The Swimming Song' - Loudon Wainwright III

'Pool Party' - Rudy Willingham

'Spaceship' - Kesha

'Give Us the Wind' - Future Islands

'U.F.O.' - Jim Sullivan

'Under the Boardwalk' - The Drifters

'Turn Off the Lights' - LEN

'The Visitors' - ABBA

'Shy Boy' - Carly Rae Jepsen

'Only Love Can Save Us Now' - Kesha

'Season in Hell' - Dum Dum Girls

'Self Control' - MASSTOR

'Kokomo' - The Beach Boys

'Orinoco Flow (Sail Away) - Single Version' - Enya

'Good Vibrations' - Brian Wilson

'Like Whiskey' - Dixon Dallas

'Is It Cold In The Water?' - SOPHIE

'Water Slide' - Janelle Monáe

'Waterpark Inmersion' - El Guincho

'Under the Water Fountain' - Bart Graft

'Worship' - Ari Abdul

'On the Water' - Future Islands

'Gespaard's Poolside' - Bart Graft

'Carry On, Turn Me On' - Space

'As We Go Up, We Go Down' - Guided By Voices

'Heroes and Villains' - Brian Wilson

'Sunshine' - Oliver Tree

'Vitamin C - 2004 Remastered Version' - CAN

'Beam Me Up' - Midnight Magic

'If You Love Me - Si Me Quieres' - Tito & Tarantula

'Happy - Live Acoustic From Space' - Kesha

'In My Blood' - Vitamin String Quartet

'Brand New Key' - Melanie

'Mellow Yellow' - Donovan

'Hungry Like the Wolf' - Dinah Eastwood

'I'm in Great Shape / I Wanna Be Around / Workshop' - Brian Wilson

'Let's Go Swimming' - Arthur Russell

'Grease' - Future Islands

'Sliver Of Ice' - ANOHNI

'Temba, Tumba Y Timba' - Los Van Van

'Motivate Ya (feat. Kelly Price)' - Big Freedia

'In the Summertime' - Mungo Jerry

'Underwater' - Sun's Signature

'Steal My Sunshine' - LEN

'Good Lookin'' - Dixon Dallas

'Come For Me' - Sunflower Bean

'Summer's Cauldron - Remastered 2001' - XTC

'The Girl from Ipanema' - Astrud Gilberto

'I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire - From "A Small Light: Episode 3"' - Sharon Van Etten

'Moon Journey' - Mort Garson

'The Night Terrors - Saint Etienne Mix' - Matt Berry

'Under Pressure' - Queen

'Welcome To My Island' - Caroline Polachek

'Down By the Sea' - Men At Work

'One & Only' - Oliver Tree

#meche makes playlists #syndicated from subscription sites #playlists #Spotify #how many times do i say vibes here #a lot!#it’s all I got for july is vibes

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atozphantomsquadron · 2 years ago

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Chapter 12: The Long Road

July 4th, continued

It doesn’t take us long to pack … all of us have been living on the go, so to speak, for months, so we have our own “go-kits” … but we’re not leaving until tomorrow morning anyway. The Salems insisted that we stay through the night, for my sake.

I have my overnight bag assembled, ready to go. I set it just outside my room, allowing a stuffed hawk to guard it, eternally in descent toward prey that has long since disappeared. Surprisingly, there’s not a lot of people mulling about. I can’t even find William, as prone as he is to clinging to me like a loyal puppy.

“Anyone here? Michi? William?”

No one. I’m on guard, and my hand is on the Sword, when I venture down the hallway toward the dining room. My stomach’s growling: dinner will feel good, then I can resume searching for my friends.

William suddenly appears in my path. Much to my surprise, he picks me up and carries me in his arms, walking through the doorway into the dimly-lit dining room.

“William, what’s up? What are you doing?” I’m laughing, but at the same time I’m a little worried.

“You’ll see.” He simply grins. The ride in his arms only lasts until he can carry me to the center of the room. Once my feet hit the floor, the lights are thrown on at full power.

Dear God in Heaven, it’s a surprise party! Amidst the bellows of “SURPRISE!” and the singing of “Happy Birthday,” I try to locate all of my friends. Fortunately, it doesn’t take long: Michi and her parents are parting the crowd, carrying a large sword-shaped sheet cake, with Fahaian and Grandmother behind them. William still stands behind me, gently urging me forward.

Sixteen candles. Fahaian flicks his lighter, and the candles instantly start glowing, all at once. Everyone around us cheers this trick.

William’s face is right by my ear. He warmly whispers, “make a wish, Alanna.”

I take a deep breath and close my eyes. What should I wish for?

I wish my family will be back together soon.

The air I’ve been holding in my lungs gets a quick journey out, extinguishing all sixteen candles in one puff. Another cheer. More smiling faces. A gentle hug from behind by William.

You’d think we were normal people.

The party goes on for a long while, right up to midnight. During the festivities, I learn a lot about many of the refuge’s supernaturals, many of whom already know me. Some of them seem to have utterly useless powers, such as the man who was able to talk to amphibians (“Call me Frog-Boy, everybody else does”), or the woman who lays eggs that contain various vintages of wine (“I used to be really popular at parties, believe me”). Others, I can understand why the New Empire might be afraid of them, since they have useful, offensive powers, ranging from explosive long-distance flatulence (“Just don’t stand behind me after I eat a bowl of baked beans”) to the Olympic javelin-thrower with a rubberized arm (“They could’a let me keep my gold medal, y’know, because it’s not my fault I’m a human slingshot”).

I mentally catalog every person’s power. Later tonight, I’ll write down the whole list before I go to bed, that way I won’t forget. I’ll need as many soldiers as I can get when the time comes.

When the blueshirts fall.

The party’s winding down, as many of the revelers are heading to bed. A few of them are actually going through the Avalon portal tonight, so this doubles as their farewell party. Michi comes over to my side, as I sit down to my third piece of birthday cake.

“Hey girl, I hope this is good enough of a party for you. Sorry we don’t have any gifts …”

I shake Michi’s shoulder. “Being with you guys �� having you guys do this for me is the greatest gift I could get this year.” I hug her gently.

William, in the corner of the room, has his guitar again and is playing, something lively. Fahaian, looking nervous as hell, walks up to us and holds his hand out …

… to Michi.

“Would you care to have this dance, my lady?” He has that charming smile on his face again, but it doesn’t hide his nerves, because I can see those in his eyes.

Michi looks over at me, like she’s asking permission. Not like it really matters that much to me. I simply nod quietly.

She looks up at Fahaian and gives him probably the warmest grin she’s given him since the night they first met. “What the hell, sure.” She takes his offered hand. He helps her to her feet and leads her to the open space on the floor, where they begin dancing. William, still playing, smiles at the two of them, much the same way I am I suspect.

Their dance is humorous, but also cute. It’s obvious that Michi’s not much of a dancer, because she keeps stepping on Fahaian’s feet. For his part, the prince is very patient with her, twirling her around, making her giggle.

Michi never giggles, unless she’s doing something violent.

I watch them for a while, and my focus shifts between the two of them dancing and William playing his guitar. I could just grab him and dance with him right now …

I think that’s what this birthday girl’s going to do. I stand up and cross the floor, coming up to right in front of William. I hold out both of my hands to him.

“Let’s dance!”

He looks up, grins widely, and sets down the six-string. By now, other people who can play are around him, their own instruments improvising a cheerful dance number. I think William’s relieved by this, as he stands up and takes me in his arms again. Before long, we’re dancing right alongside Michi and Fahaian.

There’s a lot of happiness in the air right now. Desperate happiness.

After a few dances, the party finally breaks up. Some of the musicians remain in the room, having an impromptu jam session, while the others make their way either out of the Ranch house or back to their respective rooms. William escorts me down the hallway, and I sneak a look back to see Michi and Fahaian.

They’re holding hands. She has her head on Fahaian’s shoulder, very familiarly. Quite a difference from the first few months he was here.

“They’re cute, aren’t they?” William’s question snaps me out of my reverie.

“Oh yeah. Opposites attract, right? They used to be at each other’s throats all the time … now look at them.”

There’s a wide smile on William’s face. “I can understand how he feels. How they feel.”

Now my attention is fully on William. Reality is starting to settle into my mind. “You know, when we leave here, that’s it. We’re on our own. Our friends won’t be able to help us, unless we can get back here.”

He nods gently. “That’s why I wanted to do this for you.”

Now my eyebrows are raising. “The party was your idea?”

“Michi and Kitty told me about what your birthdays used to be like on the rez. So I improvised one for you.”

My face feels hot.

“Happy birthday, Alanna.” He lowers his face and places the gentlest, most loving kiss I’ve ever had on my lips. Soon my arms are around his shoulders, because my heart is wishing this moment can last forever.

~~~~

July 5th

I’m glad we had the party last night, because thus far the trip’s been utter hell.

We left early this morning, with a lot of cheering from everyone around the refuge. Michi had a cursory once-over from her dad before she climbed into the truck. As usual, Gabe’s at the wheel, but the truck’s a little overstuffed, now that our travelling party has nearly doubled.

One thing that surprised me before we left was that Grandmother asked to talk to me privately. When I consented and we moved away from the group, she handed me a small card.

“Keep this with you, Alanna, and think of us. You’ll always be home and in the heart of love when you do.” And then she hugged me, with tears in her eyes again.

Who is her daughter, and why am I a reminder of her?

I have the card in my pocket. Every so often, when we have a peaceful moment, I’ve been pulling it out and reading it. It has a short, beautiful prayer printed on it:

-Lord in Heaven, Creator of Earth

-Remind me what in life has worth

-Family, friends, all those I love

-My shelter ‘til I meet You above

-And keep me safe ‘til the day when

-I see them again, in Your name, Amen.

Peaceful moments, though, have been very few and far between in the first six hours of the trip. We’ve already had to fight our way through three blueshirt checkpoints, and it’s pretty much guaranteed that we’re going to encounter way more, as word reaches the others that we’re out here.

Speak of the devil … there’s another line of blueshirt cars blocking the road. Chimney Rock rises behind them, taunting us. My hand’s on the Sword already.

“Play it cool, Alanna,” Gabe admonishes. “We don’t know if they know we’re us.”

“And the other checkpoints wouldn’t describe our car?” Michi angrily demands.

“Point taken. Let’s just play it cool for now, let’s see what happens.”

It doesn’t take long to find out what happens. As soon as they have us in their sights, the blueshirts open fire. Hopefully we won’t need to take too long to clear these people out … and hopefully no supernaturals will be in the mix. We all pile out of Gabe’s truck, hiding behind the doors and letting them take the brunt of the gunfire aimed at us.

Michi is powering a spell behind me: I can feel the glow against my back. Behind her, I hear the growling that comes with William’s transformation.

Better give them some cover.

When the gunfire slows down … probably for reloading … I peek my head around the corner. The churning starts in my stomach, the churning I’ve been learning to control. It eventually erupts. I firecast toward the blueshirts, and watch them scatter.

Next thing I see is Fahaian, emerging from my fire stream and getting his martial arts kicks on. Several of the blueshirts fall away from him. Others are running … running for their cars, to run him over.

Michi stops that with a spell launched over my shoulder. The blueshirt car with the revving engine has a catastrophic failure, exploding before it can even get moving. Fahaian looks back over at us and flashes a thumb’s-up.

William’s turn, now. More blueshirts are starting to approach, and another three cars’ worth of backup has arrived. The wendigo is completely loosed, stampeding toward the massing forces. I’m right behind him, getting ready to pull out the Sword. The hilt’s in my hand …

A stabbing pain hits me in the small of my back. My legs lose any and all strength, and I collapse under my own weight. The Sword remains in its scabbard as I catch a mouthful of dirt. I’m not so concerned about that right now, though.

I’ve been shot. Again.

After the initial shock of the strike, though, I’m finding that my legs are coming back to me. I can still move them: after slapping my thigh I realize I still have feeling. Michi and Gabe run up behind me: as Michi provides a shield for him, Gabe reaches me and places both hands on my back.

“What is it? What happened to me?”

I feel a different pain, a stinging pain. Then Gabe comes around to where I can see him. “I don’t know if this is a joke or not, but …”

He’s holding a tranquilizer dart. “Who shot me?!”

“I don’t know. I’ll check this out later, for now let’s get you out of the line of fire.”

“Gabe, I’m fine. I don’t feel like I’m getting knocked out, just a little shocked. I’m going in!”

Gabe tries to stop me, but I’m too fast for him. I’m running up to cover William’s back, Sword and wings out. Once the Guardswoman is present, I flap my wings to lift off and speed toward the battle. The weapon swings freely through the assembled blueshirt forces, cutting up cars and just missing the men in the uniforms.

Something’s different this time …

I still have control over the Guardswoman: the power is remaining under rein. Thank you, Durga! But something else is weird. I feel like I have too much energy.

Aren’t tranquilizers supposed to knock you out?

My excess energy is translating into the Guardswoman, fighting more fiercely … more mercilessly. It’s not long before the Sword tastes blueshirt blood.

Not the pawns! They’re not worth it!

I’m quickly losing control again. Before the Guardswoman takes another life, I force her to sheathe the Sword. I’m back to myself, but I still have the bloodlust. I grab a blueshirt and throw him … literally … over the top of his car.

William notices my anger, despite the wendigo, and rushes over to help me (stop me?). I don’t seem to want to be stopped, though, and I keep tearing through the blueshirt lines, flapping to hover over them, firecasting with abandon.

There’s a taloned hand grabbing my ankle and yanking me down to the ground. I look and see the wendigo. Even without William’s eyes, the beast looks concerned.

“What’s … wrong … Alanna?”

I can’t tell him. I can’t articulate what’s going on, although I can tell it’s taking all of William’s concentration to make the wendigo talk. As this conversation goes on, though, an older blueshirt approaches us, weapon raised.

“Freeze right there! Hands up!”

We see him, white hair in a ponytail behind his blue collar, blue eyes set in stone, his weapon leveled at us. He can’t hold it too steadily, and the end of the barrel jiggles around at random. Just as suddenly as he corners us, though, his face gets this unusual look.

He’s looking at me. At my chest. I feel really self-conscious about this pervert checking me out. His mouth opens, and his words change my mind about him.

“Vibria?”

He spotted Mom’s maiden name on the shirt. Who is this guy?

Some more blueshirts are coming our way. We don’t have time to discuss things, but I need answers. I grab the older blueshirt’s wrist and drag him down to face level with me. “You’re coming with us, buddy. Any complaints, take it up with him.”

He looks over at William, then back at me. My nose is smoking. I think we have compliance. I stand up and drag him back to Gabe’s truck, with William, coming out of his wendigo form and gnawing on more moose jerky, behind us.

Gabe has a quizzical look on his face as we approach and throw the guy into the back with Michi and Fahaian, who clutch him tight as William climbs in.

“I didn’t realize we’re taking prisoners now.”

I shoot a sharp glare at Gabe. “This one’s different. I want some answers. Just drive, I’ll take care of him.”

Gabe shrugs and starts the truck up, continuing on the road to Wisconsin. I’m not quite concerned about the driving right now, as I turn around and confront the blueshirt.

“All right, start talking. Who are you?”

The blueshirt is ever defiant. He glares at me. “What are you doing with that name on your clothes?”

“That’s irrelevant!”

He grits his teeth. “Then I’m not telling you shit, lady.”

My nostrils are smoking again. I growl audibly. “If you must know … it’s my mother’s maiden name.”

His eyes widen. I hear a quiet whisper. “Shanee …”

My eyes narrow. “No. Ariel.” I have a sneaking suspicion …

The blueshirt’s face softens considerably. I think he’s about to cry. He’s starting to make me sympathize with him, and then he unloads the coup de grace.

“All these years … I thought I would never have any knowledge of that time again, never see any sign of it.” His voice quavers. “My name is Julian Vibria. I think I’m your grandfather.”

#phantom squadron #insurgent's journal

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blueheartwasteland · 2 years ago

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that year was a rollercoaster

so first of all my dear future self I'm glad u ended up the year being happy I mean not hat bother anymore of what just happened. i know its been a rollercoaster to u that 2022 it was fun and blue at the same time , I can feel that u slowly leeting him go and u don't feel sad about it anymore about that thought letting him go. so yeah u made a lot of friends that year and u are grateful to it, u learned a lot with that year, u achieved things that u deserved, u had fun , u turned 18 , u had ur 18 rosses and dance , u star to feel independent that your younger self was scared of/ u can now buy food that u want to eat aswell as things , u had ur headphones and its just ur inner child is happy u know urself how obssed u are with music and its sad that u don't even know how to download one to add insult to injury u dont have an earphone now u know how to download songs and u have ur headphones i can feel that ur inner child so much happy rn so yeah where was I yeah u just graduated junior high in ernh (school that changed ur life ) then u enrolled in sakya a Chinese school and ur happy that u know how to speak chinese even writing the chareacters i know how u love lwarning language ur younger self is happy with that because your language is improving from saring to sapnidh to chinese and now ur learnihng japanese withurself so far u know thai, Spanish, Chinese and Japanese, that year stranger things released in the month of may until in the month of July then alice in borderland relsead their s2 as well their so may things that happened that year that I just cant recall all I know u had a great year that u agree with urself that 2022 was ur fav year so far its because of them , the movies, food , friends , music yeah I almost forgot taylor swift just released her new album called midnights month of October , ur close friend that u made with it is cadalo my buddy and yeah u and ur hca squad still together I miss them rn yeas he frienship u guys have like almost 6 years I'm also happ they are my friends lol, till now its just I'm over the moon with the experience I have the lessons that I now will mold me in th future and im totally grown up!! still i need to enjoy my last years of being a teen lol. and yeah I still misses him in a way of its not hurting me anymore in a way of it doesnt make me cry anymore and u know hy this year became memrable? its because of him these things that I have said will just be nothing to me but because of himm he made it very special that year 2022 . till now im inlove with him i hope he sees it ilove u badii te amo i hope ur okay rn and doing good ake care always and i miss u evryday every night.. 2022 was such a year I'm just happy that ending that year being myslef not wrecked anyways thank u badii ily my mikenybuhayko and my kingofmyheart

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1ddiscourseoftheday · 3 years ago

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Wed 2 June ‘21

Louis sent a message to a fan looking for a hello after a major surgery-- “Get well soon mate. Sending you loads of love x”- and added that he hopes ALL of us are doing alright; I never doubted it Louis! Niall got a little more specific with his really lovely message today- “HAPPY PRIDE MONTH, BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE. It’s your life, LOVE who you want to LOVE,” he tweeted! THANKS GUYS.

Liam though, Liam was all over today! He checked in on his way to play golf, on his way back from playing golf (with videographer Conor!), posted comments on discord, joined a new chat platform (Telegram; 5 minutes into Telegram and chill Liam was like OKAY it looks like we may need some moderators for this app lol YOU THINK?), he did a whole 25 min live, AND checked in even later to say he’d just had a shower and was about to play a new video game! New news of the day-- he is going to host a Veeps show showcasing new artists in July!! NEAT! His post about how his team forgot to turn off notifications on the phone they set it all up on for him on is really funny, YIKES; “this used to be an iphone now it’s just a bell” he joked, with video of the phone frantically chiming nonstop (“the power of you guys still blows my mind to this day”.) Also he said that he was very busy getting ready for June 15. Why, you ask, what is on June 15? UH? IDK?? He has so many things coming up? But that’s the NFT I think, which I KNOW a lot of people are mostly not that excited about but I will say that while I don’t care about the technology, I am excited to see Liam’s artwork he’s working on for it (which hopefully the purchaser will share with us), and Liam is truly so excited about the platform, he’s really trying to talk us into it. More on that in a sec...

But let’s get to the other parts of Liam’s live first. He has that new song coming, about which he said “it’s one that I’ve written the most on so far actually, as a single, I’m excited to say my own stuff for once a little”, love that. He’s still coughing but says he’s tested repeatedly and it isn’t COVID, and that he’s gone vegetarian recently, and he says the chat channels were inspired by seeing people using the veeps chat rooms even after the show ended, not wanting to leave. And he talks about 1D- about the notifs mishap he said “back in the band we used to wait for people we didn’t like to leave their notifications on and then we would like- oh make sure you follow this person on twitter! And then their phone would break for days- if someone did something that annoyed you.” HAHAHA where’s my masterpost of people who annoyed them 1D told us to follow, PLEASE? And also “it’s hard sometimes you’re watching people stories from afar that you used to know so well and that can be difficult… we’ve all felt this at different times me and the boys… it’s almost like missing a very dear friend a lot of the time but everyone’s so busy… I’d love to get us all in a room somewhere sometime” aww. But also he said he talked to Harry recently, “really a lovely call, he has a sixth sense for if I'm struggling or if one of us is in trouble, I spoke to him and it was a really lovely catch up. I have a lot of love for the man, he's really, really great"; well I wish Liam wasn’t stuggling but that’s lovely. And Louis too! "I spoke to Louis, I wanna say yesterday. We speak a lot, there's just a lot of laughing about random crap," he said, plus some Louis memories- “I can just hear his laugh in the back of my mind. We once broke into one of the stadiums in America and got chased by a woman… on one of those cop type things, a mall cop thing, and that was quite crazy. He also left me on my own while I was being arrested nearly by a French policemen that I had to push over… which that still scares me to this day. [laughing] That’s what friends are for! I helped him over the fence to get in somewhere, he left me with the policeman, who didn’t have a clue who I was and tried to arrest me even though I was just trying to go into my hotel.” UMM sorry I can’t hear anything past LIAM PUSHED OVER A COP?? Go ahead, make a list of ‘1D members most likely to fight a cop’ and if Liam isn’t DEAD LAST you’re just wrong and yet HERE WE ARE!! WHAT A DAY.

But alas rather than fighting cops now Liam is partnering with an entrepreneur (which I have had to type so many times in the last two days thanks to Liam that I guess I know how to spell it now they just keep SAYING it SO MUCH). Steve Bartlett said “the secret” is out, he recorded a podcast with Liam yesterday-- I’d call secret a bit strong, we had actually got that mate, but okay; he called Liam an entrepreneur and said “yesterday I recorded one of the most powerful, honest, REAL conversations on my podcast to date” and “if you love Liam you’ll love this.” I can absolutely guarantee you that is not true, I love Liam and already hate everything about this collab, but his wording does make me think we’ll get a bit of Liam’s trademark emotional spillage which I suppose I might appreciate despite this self help CEO guy being there too. Liam does have one thing to say that could sway me in this guy’s favor though- “he has the cutest dog ever” apparently! Anyway I may as well get used to him he’s suddenly everywhere-- Liam also patched him into his live to try yet again to convince us that NFTs are good by awkwardly relating it to “fans of boybands” by saying you know this could eliminate like fake tickets and such… Sure Steve sure but anyway he also says of Liam, “the guy you see on camera is the exact same guy off camera”.

Harry and Olivia were seen together in London (well, a grainy ass video of their backs was seen anyway), walking, with some people who look to be her parents and Harry’s PA (so romantic! Not at all work related!) I was initially skeptical of the claim that it was her parents since this fandom is obsessed with saying everyone is so and so’s parents (we’ll NEVER top the time the fandom was sure Harry was seen having lunch with Eleanor’s father though) but it actually seems like maybe it was. More for Harry to add to his collection, that man truly loves an extended family! I mean the whole thing is sketchy as hell, from the assurance that that’s DEFINITELY actually Olivia in the grainy video, FOR SURE, to the confirmation that that’s her mom with them which came when a blank insta page produced a random old picture of her mom in the same skirt, but like is it them, sure I imagine so, and people making sure we get the story anytime they’re together isn’t exactly new. In other news, Dave Meyers, director of the Adore You music video, says he originally pitched the Eroda story idea (“I have this idea, of you love- liking a fish”) to Katy Perry and the Black Eyed Peas, ASJKJASKL CAN YOU IMAGINE?

#Liam payne #holivia #harry styles #niall horan #louis tomlinson #2 jun 21 #the day we learned Liam fought a cop #HAPPY PRIDE INDEED #conor butler #liam has ALWAYS just spoken to louis yesterday but I totally belive him look at them doing all the same stuff #new artist showcase! this is totally them talking about this stuff #and he's totally the one that got Louis on the NFT thing #that's cute you guys now write some songs together again why don't you #I guess Harry could be tie for least likely to fight a cop #but like he wouldn't be out there talking about how great cops are which Liam definitely would #Liam is of course Most likely to be wasted enough for something like that to happen anyway #which I assume is what was the case

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sunlightwoo · 4 years ago

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Come Back Home

☀︎ pairing: hidden king!Sunwoo x queen!fem.reader

☀︎ genre: there’s fluff for a small part of this, but there is more angst because of the inspo that I got this idea from hehee. WARNING: there are mentions of blood, wounds, and killing in terms of it being a war and a major character death will happen in this.

☀︎ wc: 4.7k

☀︎ plot: The king that the people see in the kingdom that is ruled by him is not the true king, but rather someone else. However, when the life of the king that has been playing the role for his friend’s life is endangered at the stake of a war, what will Sunwoo choose when he knows that he’d have to come back home to you unscathed somehow?

☀︎ a/n: i’ve had this idea back when the music video dropped for Come Back Home by Oneus last july, and loved it as this plot has been collecting dust since then from the switching and changing characters to stopping the kingdom come series that this originally would’ve been for. however after watching the road to kingdom stages i thought that this was fitting after their mama stage too and decided to post it for Sunwoo. anyways happy sunwoo day and hope you guys enjoy this one!!

[ gina is listening to: Come Back Home - Oneus ] [ the spinoff ]

Here comes the king!, the familiar four words that he was used to hearing all the time when he looks over to the man that was walking towards the throne that was on the other side of the ballroom. He watches from a balcony up above, watching the grand man closely as he waited for today’s round of laws to pass by for today.

As though, he was the true king after all hiding in disguise.

His eyes are cast upon his companion, Juyeon who regally sits on his throne for him and connects a short gaze as he goes on with his day helping him out with more laws to go through and be signed. The reason for it; his own safety from the general public.

Ever since the early days of the previous king and queen’s announcement of the regal heir that was yet to take over their place when they passed, nobody knew who the individual was as it was kept a secret in fear that the enemies would use him as a leverage. It was up until he had turned the age of 18, a month after a war that his parents bravely fought in and died in honor of the kingdom that he had to step up and play the role of the king.

However, he couldn’t risk his own identity just yet because he knew that there were enemy lines speculating his friend’s true identity. Hence why he had never revealed his true identity as the king with the royal bloodline that ran in his name, nor had he acted like he was the king whenever he was in the castle since he disguised himself as the royal guard to keep an eye out on the front lines of the kingdom.

Until he had met you.

It was quite coincidental that you, the adopted sibling sister of a friend of Juyeon’s, had walked into the office one day to overhear their plans of making Juyeon play the role as the king until his time was done and you were the least to say shocked. Your reaction to finding your brother negotiating with the true king, Sunwoo, was rather confusing considering you had no other input towards the matter after being in the same room as the man that you had thought to be the royal guard.

Truth be told, you had always thought of him very highly from afar as you thought that for a person that had such high standards and sight in the kingdom, he was rather playful and had lots of charisma for someone that was raised as a king in secret. It took him three months since then to finally court you and eventually marry after having to somehow find a way to have you be Juyeon’s fake queen for the kingdom to rely on when they needed one.

All of the plans were perfectly planned to the brim and executed well, where Sunwoo was rather happy with where he was in the present today, even if he had to hide in secret like he was at the moment on a balcony. It wasn’t until hours later when Juyeon finishes that he looks out the window, noticing how the sun was already on the brink of sundown that he remembers today’s plans with you as he rushes to your bedroom almost immediately.

He makes it into your bedroom after knocking first, hearing a soft hum to allow him inside while he enters to see you sitting on your balcony with a smile on your face as you look at him. Sunwoo lets out a soft chuckle at your idea of a date for this evening as he walks over to where you were sitting on top of a blanket that you had prepared, a quiet picnic just for you two to enjoy.

“You seemed to have remembered about our date this time.” You say as he playfully rolls his eyes at your words and the raised eyebrow look that you were currently giving him.

The golden yellow hues of the sun setting were perfectly reflecting against Sunwoo’s skin, you thought to yourself, as you admired how he looked at this hour. You weren’t sure how you had gotten lucky with having to marry the king, as you were once a noble woman that came from a family that wasn’t as well off as the other ones that you had known of. However you could recall that night when he was supposed to pick who he had wanted his queen to be, as though the flower festival of the week for him to get to know all the other women had been tossed to the side as he chose you that night.

“I was helping Juyeon wrap up the last of the laws that had to be seen out tonight. Have I kept you waiting long?” He asks sitting as you shook your head in response, smiling as he already found purchase in laying his head into your lap, curling his body up into a ball as you were finding yourself playing with his hair out of habit.

“Long enough for my stomach to grumble because I wanted to be nice and wait for you,” You grin and look down at him as he was already staring back up at you with a soft smile on his face, “But I guess I can make some exceptions for you, your majesty.”

For whatever reason it may be, whether it was the stars and fate or even the coincidences that you both were given, Sunwoo felt as though everything was perfect even if it may be a bit misfortunate on his end. Although he could not properly tell the world that you were his, he knew that he was still yours in moments like these when it was just you two and the golden hues of the sun that were setting on you both.

“I love you.”

His random confession of love takes you off guard while heat is already rushing to your cheeks as you look at him, looking into his lovestruck eyes that were boring right into your very own gently but deeply. You think that this must be what it was like to fall in love with your soulmate, feeling happy that Sunwoo was the one person that you could only want in this life and the next. However, it had caught you off guard because he was rather someone that showed his love language through touch instead of words of affirmation, which made you confused at the sudden confession.

“I love you too, my love. Why the sudden confession?” You say to him teasingly with an undertone of confusion, continuing to play with his hair as he lets out a soft breath while holding your hands that were now no longer playing with it.

“Moments like today makes me really want to tell you, rather than just showing you that I do since I don’t say it enough. I love you, Y/N, and I’d rearrange the stars and the universe into your eyes and heart if I could to show you that I do.” He says, leaving small kisses right on your knuckles until he reaches your ring finger and leaves a soft, but lingering kiss right on the ring that he had proposed to you with just about a year or two ago.

There was a warm feeling in your chest as his hand was still holding onto yours, as if you were to leave at any moment now but you felt like you were at home. With him you felt like you were continuously falling in love with him more than the last sunset, and with the warm golden hues that the sun was giving off at this time, you wouldn’t want to be anywhere else if it wasn’t with him by your side.

“Cheesy.” You mumbled jokingly and suddenly felt your weight being shifted to where you were now sitting in his lap, his arms wrapping around your waist securely as he rests his head on top of your shoulder so that you wouldn’t go anywhere.

“That may be true, but you love it anyways,” He says while grinning widely and you turned your head to give him the same look that you always gave him when he started to get greasy, up until he suddenly steals a kiss from your lips that made you blink from the spontaneous act.

“Come on, let’s finish up the food before it gets too cold and the sun leaves us alone in the dark.”

He was the gift that you never expected to receive in your life.

Today you felt as though there was a heavy feeling on your chest. You were currently sitting at the throne next to Juyeon, listening to your scribe explain to you what has been going on with the surrounding kingdoms around you both from the last few weeks and you could’ve sworn that you were going to give out from boredom right in that moment.

It was one of the rare occasions that you had to be seen with Juyeon, considering you had finished up your financial affairs with the ambassadors that came from those foreign kingdoms days ago after your picnic date with Sunwoo. However you weren’t sure what this could mean for the future of your own kingdom, considering the events of then did not exactly end up on completely good terms.

“Your majesties!”

The sound of the door being barged open to the chambers echoed as the person who had interrupted your meeting, not that you had minded, came in rushing in with hurried feet. You notice Juyeon rise to his feet with a stern look on his face and grabbed his wrist as it made him turn to look at you with a confused look, however you made a small notion for him to leave it as a gesture of boredom was passed onto him from the thoughts that were forming in your head.

Your eyes turn back to the individual rushing in and you noticed that it was one of your generals and good friends, Changmin, and you knew that he wouldn’t have arrived frantically if it weren’t an emergency. His eyes screamed urgency as he attempted to catch his breath and you were almost concerned for how crazed he had seemed, which meant that this was bad.

“King Hyunjin has declared war on us.” He breathes out and there was silence as your stomach churned at the words he had mentioned.

War.

You were almost certain that you had been allies with the kingdom that King Hyunjin had ruled, knowing that he had been a good friend of yours with the rest of the Hwang family. However, an unexpected war seemed almost conspired as you turned to look at Juyeon with a scared look on your face. He seems almost taken aback had he not composed himself from the sudden news, eyes looking off to a distance that you knew was a hidden balcony for Sunwoo to sit in and listen.

But there was no telling what the two could think of, because it was all so sudden.

“Did he say why, or have sent for someone that he wants to declare a war?” You say while standing up from where you were sitting, not caring about how improper you might’ve seen at the moment because of how fast your mind was already racing at the speed of light.

It wasn’t until he motions for you to go with him that you realize it must’ve been even more serious, and you could only assume the worst from the situation. Bidding a muttered excuse from Juyeon and the scribe, you head out of the royal chambers to head out and walk with Changmin towards your office quarters knowing that you could only get privacy there, even with the rambling inevitables that were making you spiral from how anxious you were progressively getting.

With the door shut behind you, you noticed that Sunwoo had already met you there as he stood in front of the chairs that were in front of your desk with his arms crossed in front of his chest. Both of you looked over towards where Changmin was still looking distressed and it wasn’t until he locked eyes with you that you knew why.

“He knows about Sunwoo’s true status, doesn’t he?” You whisper quietly and he nods in response, nervously looking between you both with so much stress that you could’ve sworn he would’ve exploded right then and there in front of you.

“He wants the war to happen in a week’s time.” Changmin whispered, and that was when the atmosphere fell into a deadly silent room, if it were even possible from how much tension that was also being put into it.

Sunwoo’s identity wasn’t meant to be exposed, which was why you felt a wave of emotions that included fear and betrayal from how someone would stoop so low that they would risk a king’s life for their own. You knew that, and there was also the acknowledgement of Sunwoo having the urge to leave as well knowing that his pride wouldn’t let him just sit back and let the war happen because of him.

However you had your reasons this time around for him to not leave, and you were adament on him not leaving, especially after Changmin mumbles to himself that he was going to dismiss himself after the loud silence engulfing the atmosphere.

“Sunwoo, you can’t go out there into the war, no matter how serious it may be.” You say, sternly looking at him the moment that Changmin shuts the door behind him while crossing your arms in front of your chest assertively.

“Y/N, I know you’re scared-”

“No, I mean it this time, Kim Sunwoo. At all costs, I’m not going to let you go out there and risk your life dying, when you could be safer here. What if going out there is a trap to get you to get into your coffin?” You retort and you could tell that he was thinking about it from how quiet he was being.

The war was due in a week’s time, and only time could tell what could happen in a span of a week because of everything. You blink for a second to realize that Sunwoo is walking up to you with a heavy heart in his hand, the same hand that cups your face momentarily before stroking your cheek for a moment and it took everything in you to not give into his warm and gentle touch. No matter how much you loved him, you still had to stand your ground and be selfish by telling him to not go.

“I won’t go, only because I love you.” He concludes, making your heart feel a bit at ease in the moment as you looked into his eyes for that clarity that he had meant it.

However it was in the time that he kisses you with the same amount of love and passionate that you were so used to feeling everyday that surpassed all the negative thoughts and placed them onto a shelf. He was here now, the kiss seemed to express, and you wanted to hold onto that grain of hope that was filling into your thoughts, but you could only wish that it were true until then.

“I love you too, idiot. Just stay here a little longer… with me.”

“Do you think she’d actually let me go?”

Sunwoo looks over to Changmin with a pained look on his face, one that expressed how dangerous the plan that they had in mind was going to be, but it had to be done. It had been three days into the war that King Hyunjin had declared onto your kingdom and it wasn’t until one of the soldiers that was a close friend of theirs, Jacob, had come back scathed to tell that Juyeon had been killed off after being ambushed during the first night full of snow.

“I don’t think we have a choice… He won’t stop killing our numbers, unless you’re there.” Changmin says as the written paper that was in Sunwoo’s hand felt heavier than earlier.

The written note that he recognized to be Hyunjin’s handwriting demanded that he should show up, along with the additional information that had passed on by Changmin that he had Juyeon at hostage in the snow. The thought of his friends’ lives being put on the line of life and death made him sick and guilty, knowing that this war was specifically targeted towards him and that he wouldn’t be able to do anything if he were to stay back and watched it all happen from the sidelines as he usually would.

“Give me an hour and I’ll meet you outside with my gear.” Sunwoo mumbles almost inaudibly, avoiding the eyes of his best friend with his head in his hands as he could hear him let out a hum in response, feet heading towards the door of Sunwoo’s office while leaving.

In that moment, he felt as though he had just been set up for inevitable death. There were hundreds of thoughts as to how betrayed he had felt about the fact that the war was happening, along with the mourning emotions that filled his heart because he knew that Juyeon might die because of him. However there was still you, who was still waiting for him to fall asleep with you in bed because it was nearly three in the morning.

He was fearful, scared of the fact that he would lose you in the end of all this.

He knew that you didn’t want him to go because he would leave you alone with a king to rule by your side, and that wasn’t seen to be fit for any kingdom whatsoever considering it would be considered unruly. Yet he also felt as though he had to go off and stop the war once and for all against Hyunjin, to find the real answer as to why he was so insistent on exposing Sunwoo’s status to the rest of the kingdom as it was.

The stuff that Sunwoo would’ve needed was just in the room next to his office with a letter that was ready to be addressed to you, everything already having been packed since the first day of war in case Juyeon had died, and he felt his chest grow heavy at the thought of it. He gets up from where he sits in his office to head over towards the room when he flickers on the light to see you standing next to all of his packed gear with the letter opened in your hand.

“You almost forgot something.” You mumbled quietly and tossed him a small item that was in your hand over towards him, and it was the sight of it that made his heart drop into his stomach as you were already on your way to leave the room.

“Love, wait-”

“When were you going to tell me that you were leaving, Sunwoo? Before or after I had found out that you took off the ring and left without another word?”

The ring that was in his hand was accompanied by the one that he had once placed on your hand, both small objects having such a large impact on how everything was going downhill from here and it was like he was caught red handed. You were beyond livid at the fact that he had taken off the ring in the first place when you had gotten up to get a drink of water, seeing as though a letter of his writing saying that he had to make things right had accompanied it, and you felt it get worse as your thoughts were everywhere because of the anger and hurt that you were ready to unleash onto him.

“I thought we trusted each other enough to the point where we could tell anything, Sunwoo, but you lied to me. You said you weren’t even going to leave, but here you are getting ready to go ahead and hurt yourself because you’re scared-”

“I’m not scared of anything-”

“Then let’s just skip our excuses and divorce, if you’re willing to give up your ring so fast.”

Tears had already been glossing in your eyes as the evident twisted pain in your heart was pounding loudly in your chest, your breath not even wavering in the slightest as you looked at him. In his eyes, he felt as though he had already been stabbed in the heart because of those three simple words, because he never would’ve thought that you would actually want to divorce him after everything that the two of you had gone through.

“You wouldn’t-”

“Then don’t leave me here alone without you,” Your voice cracked, tears finally streaming down your face as you could already feel yourself slowly breaking away from the fact that he was going to go anyways.

“If you leave right now, then don’t bother coming back home if you lived to see the light of day.”

Sunwoo wants to reach out to you, to wipe away the tears that were falling down the apples of your cheeks because of the pain that he had caused. He wants to tell you that he was going to make it home safely and that he promises to come home, but he couldn’t find it within himself to hold such an empty promise as he moves almost past you to hoist his bag over his shoulder and turns to look at you with a heartbroken expression on his face.

He takes in every inch of your face one last time, every curvature that he has kissed once in this lifetime and the eyes that he came to love every time that they looked at him with such love, outlasting the entire galaxy and universes that could possibly shine brighter than yours. With a heavy breath that brushes past his lips, he walks over to you with a shaky movement of his hands holding your cheeks with fragility, fear as he is scared for himself.

He knew was going to lose you to the universe in this life, and he doesn’t want you to be taken away from him.

With a final kiss against your lips, he lets out a final breath as he leaves while placing both rings into your hands as he closes the door behind him, blocking out the sobs that he was able to hear from you in the closed room that he just left. He meets with Changmin outside on his own stallion and leaves with him as the two went off into the wintery night to where the war was yet to be finished in this night of time.

He didn’t even say ‘I love you’, when he had left for good.

“Y/N, we need you to make an announcement today.” You hear Chanhee, one of your close friends say from behind you and there was a beat of silence as you were staring off past your window to look at the crowd of people gathered in front of the palace.

“He’s going to come home soon, I know it.” You muttered back, more toned to convince yourself that he was actually coming back as you hugged your stomach closely to yourself.

A week has gone by since he had left, you noted to yourself since then as you had been awake for endless nights waiting for the soldiers to come back home; at least someone to make sure that they were alive. You grew anxious as you fumbled with the necklace that was around your neck, a simple string with a wedding band attached to it as the growing fear of him actually not making it back home continued to settle in your stomach.

It was over, you remember hearing as the scribes from Hyunjin’s kingdom had come to say as you were on the edge waiting for any sign of life. However, nobody has come home as you could feel the tears prick at the corners of your eyes. He had to be alive, you tried to convince yourself as you turned to look at Chanhee, who had been giving you a solemn expression on his face with something in his hand.

“Y/N…”

The feeling of dread suddenly fills your heart as you noticed that the letter in his hand was addressed to you in a familiar handwriting, one that you never wanted to see once again. There was a sharp intake of a breath that you made, realizing what it must’ve been considering there were blood stains on it as you looked up at the latter with teary eyes.

“Changmin was the only survivor… He came back home last night when you slept, and wanted me to give you this.” Chanhee says, walking over towards you with caution as you glanced between both him and the letter.

He leaves you alone in the room with the letter in your hand, your own instincts debating on whether or not you should open it as you knew what this had meant. Your hands were shaky as the weight of the light parchment felt heavy in your own possession, not wanting to open the blood stained letter that can only mean one thing.

Sunwoo’s last words.

The moment that he had written them was one of the most unforgettable memories that he would definitely remember in his next life. The night that he had faced Hyunjin in the snow, the strength that he gathered from the anger of seeing his friends and soldier’s brave deaths because of him, he went down in pride and in pain knowing that he had used you as a way to unleash the last few moments of life and death between the war.

“It’s a shame that you won’t be able to see your beloved queen again, Kim. Maybe she’d be better if she were with me, wouldn’t it?” Hyunjin’s words taunt him just as Sunwoo finally paints his blood onto the snow, his breaths uneven as he finishes him off and looks at his lifeless eyes staring back at him.

“Never in a million years, will I ever lose to you again, Hwang.”

Sunwoo stumbles back to his tent, seeing Changmin already there healing and his friend was ready to treat his injuries when he shakes his head in response. Both Changmin and Sunwoo share a glance of unspoken words that were exchanged, until Sunwoo grabs a sheet of parchment and ink to write down everything that he had been meaning to say to you even if he was bleeding out on that winter morning.

“Sunwoo, you have to save your energy and let me-”

“I’m bleeding out too much, Changmin… Just let me do this and die in peace,” Sunwoo murmurs, already feeling his life being taken away from him as he grew weaker while ending his letter that was supposed to be addressed to you.

“Just make sure that she gets this.”

To you who has always been the golden highlight of my life, the hues of love and adoration in the confinements of the yellow sun to my dark shades of the moon…

I knew what I had forgotten that night., and I should’ve said it before leaving.

I’m not coming back home, my love… and I’m sorry.

We won, and I know that if I were to see light of day tomorrow, you would still let me in despite the fact that you probably hate me at the moment. But you have my ring and that’s all that matters, because only Changmin will come home, and I made him promise that he would take care of you no matter what.

You don’t need a king to prove that you are strong, Y/N, and I know that you are the greatest queen that this kingdom will be ruled under, because you are the strongest person that I’ve ever met in my life.

I don’t regret loving you, marrying you, spending all of our picnics in the hues of the golden sunset in secret, because I knew that I was yours, just like you knew that you were mine.

But don't miss me too much, please. For us.

And I knew what I forgot to say,

I love you.

We will meet again.

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undyingskies · 4 years ago

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Jealous

Hello everyone, I am back yet again with another Charlie fic! I really enjoyed writing this one, it was a lot of fun! Also it’s long about 3,000+ words, I read over it and edited it as much as I could, so I really hope I caught all the mistakes! As usual I am happy to take requests, especially because I am starting to run low on ideas! Anyways, hope you enjoy! xoxo

Warnings: None really, there is a little make out sesh but it’s not long!

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Season 2 came before you knew it, even though it felt like the renewal of Julie and The Phantoms took forever. But the minute it got renewed to now felt like a whirlwind of activities that happened before you could even take a breath in.

Now it’s two months into filming and this is the first time you’ve been able to visit your boyfriend Charlie since the start of it. You had to finish your semester of school before you could come visit him, knowing that you’d never get any schoolwork done if you came to visit during the semester.

It was a long two months and you truly could not be happier to be sitting smushed between Charlie and Owen in the car heading to set at 6 am. Any other time you would have dreaded being up so early but it didn’t seem so bad with your boyfriend’s hand resting on your thigh and the bickering of the two boys.

“You guys have been up for maybe an hour and you seriously haven’t stopped to take a breath from whatever you guys are arguing about this time.” You laugh, while pointing it out, because seriously it started the minute they woke up this morning and hasn’t stopped.

“Y/N, I feel like you’ve forgotten the dynamic that goes on between these two and their early mornings. We have sleep beauty number 1 and 2 here!” Jeremy laughs from the front seat.

You know he’s right; these two boys bicker non-stop anyways but especially on early mornings since they both love their sleep.

“Thanks for coming to set today baby, I know you got in yesterday but I don’t think I would have been able to get much done today knowing you’re sitting at the apartment waiting for me.” Charlie whispers into your ear sending chills down your spine and butterflies to erupt in your stomach at his early morning voice.

“Of course, you know I wouldn’t miss it for a thing besides I miss the rest of the cast! I’m excited to see them!”

A smile takes its place on Charlie’s face and he leaves a small kiss on your neck before turning back to look at his phone.

You originally met Charlie on the set of Julie and the Phantoms season 1. You never wanted to be on the big screen or some big actor but the industry always intrigued you so you signed up with a local company to be an extra for sets. It let you travel, see the business, and put money in your pocket when you weren’t doing school.

You were an extra for the crowd scenes, so basically any time the band played you were there watching. One day before they started filming, you were watching Dirty Candy perform and without thinking you started doing the choreography with them. You had been a dancer for about 12 years but a bad knee injury took you out of the game. Your love for dance never stopped though so you really enjoyed watching them perform.

I guess the girls had noticed you doing the choreography so they approached you asking if you were a new dancer on set. Embarrassed that they caught you dancing, you let them know you weren’t, you just watched them so many times you had memorized it by accident.

The girls were really nice and you quickly took a liking to Savannah and Tori, they would ask you to hang out while they practiced because you could pick out little details to fix or make better. From there it turned into a beautiful friendship, they started inviting you to hang out off set and to all the hang outs with the rest of the cast. Then before you knew it, you were a part of the group and always attached to their sides.

When you first met Charlie, of course he got your attention, his cute smile and energy would grab anyone’s. You never really thought much of it after though, but you always did notice that he would always look at you and for a little extra longer, he paid a little more attention to you when everyone was talking as well as you, and he always seemed to smile just a little bigger when he’d pull you into a hug to say hello.

Then one day he asked you out, just like that. Savannah and Tori mentioned that they thought he was going too but you didn’t think he would. Nothing ever really happened between you two, it was just a friendship where you flirted sometimes, but like you said before you noticed those small things but didn’t think much of it.

Of course you said yes though, he looked so nervous and cute that you felt yourself fall almost immediately after that. Which pretty much happened, after your first date there was another and then another, and then you guys were in a relationship and pretty much inseparable.

A tug to your hand pulls you out of your thoughts, you guys had arrived on set and Charlie was tugging you out of the car. Sometimes the boy forgets his own strength and he has you tripping out of the car. He laughs and stabilizes you by grabbing onto your hips. He looks down at you, placing a sweet kiss to your lips that was quickly interrupted.

“Is that Y/N we see?” You hear Tori squeal followed by a “Yes that sure is.” from Savannah. Then they’re both next to you pulling you apart from Charlie and engulfing you in a group hug between the two girls.

It does feel good to be back with them, they quickly became two of your closest friends during your time as an extra on the show and you never lost touch with them either.

“Charlie, they need you in costume quick, they want to start as soon as they can to-Y/N!!” You hear your name yelled and arms wrap around your waist.

You turn to see the one and only Madison Reyes, you’re quick to wrap your arms around her as well. You loved the girl and she felt like a younger sister to you, she always came to you to talk and tell you secrets. You had really missed her even though she did facetime you about once a day.

“Mads it’s good to see you, I’ve missed you girly!”

“I’ve missed you too ya know, those facetime calls just don’t always cut it.” She laughs. “Anyways they do need us, they want to start filming as fast as they can today.” She says turning to Charlie and letting you go.

“Well you wouldn’t mind if we stole your girlfriend then would you Charlie since you’re busy?” Tori asks. “Besides you had her all yesterday, it’s our turn now.” You laugh at the girl’s words and turn to your boyfriend.

“I guess it’s alright, I’ll see you on set then? You said you’d watch our performance today.” Charlie says while pulling you in for one last hug before you depart.

“Of course, you know I wouldn’t miss that!” He places a kiss on your lips before he leaves with Madi and you with the girls. Who are both staring at you almost two excitedly.

“You two scare me sometimes, so much energy so early in the morning.” All of you laughing at your words. You follow them to the area where they will be filming but they have chairs and breakfast set up as well. You’re sitting with the girls, just drinking some coffee for the time being.

“So how has it been Y/N, does it feel good to be back around this craziness?” Savannah asks you.

“It’s been good, as far as life goes not much has changed since we all last talked! I finished the semester strong and only have two semesters left which is a relief. I hope when I’m done that means I will get to be around more and to travel with Charlie. And of course if feels good to be back! I’ve missed it and everyone really. I was bummed not to be able to re-sign to do extra work but I had to focus on school.” You tell the girls.

“Oh of course, we get that. Everyone here just misses you so much especially Charlie! As much as I am glad, you’re here so we can see you, I may be more glad because now we don’t have to hear him complain about how much he misses you.” You laugh at Tori’s words. The girls decided to actually send you quotes of the day that Charlie said about how much he missed you, that boy was quite dramatic but the quotes did end up being the highlight of your day more often than not.

You’re engulfed in conversation with the girls and don’t even realize the time flying by. They talk about the new season how it’s going, the new dances that they’re doing, your relationship and any other topic you could really think of.

A flash of orange catches your attention, you know that orange beanie like that back of your hand and you’re glad to see that it’s making its appearance in season 2. You follow the hat as it’s weaving through people and see it stop in front of the cameras.

Charlie’s eyes catching yours, he gives you his dazzling smile and wave in your direction before Kenny pulls his attention back to him but not before Kenny throws a wave in your direction as well.

“Well we got to go, we’re all in this scene but we’ll see you after!” Savannah says pulling you into a hug, Tori quickly following her movements.

Now you’re left alone, to watch the scene unfold in front of you. It really is so much fun to watch them all interact with each other on and off the screen. It’s such a wonderful dynamic they all have going on.

This scene is some scene at school, where Dirty Candy confronts Julie. Julie has the boys behind her giving her comebacks to all the jabs thrown her way from Carrie. It’s actually a funny scene watching the boys yell the things at Julie.

Take one, take two, take three, take four, and then a large grumble erupts from your stomach pulling your thoughts away from the scene before you.

You look down at your watch to check the time, it has been about two hours and you’ve been so distracted by everything that you forgot to eat. The moment of realization makes your hunger grow about ten times more. You quickly make your way over to the food table.

There’s donuts, brownies, cookies, some croissants, an assortment of chips, and some breakfast sandwiches. Honestly it all looked so good, and your stomach was telling you to get a bit of everything. The donuts and croissants calling your name the most, and maybe one chocolate chip cookie as well. You’re finishing up putting together your plate and grabbing a water when a voice startles you.

“I’ve never seen you before, are you new here?” You turn to see a boy, probably about your age, dressed in the schools letterman jacket.

“Oh no, not really.” You say with a smile, turning back to grab your water and food, to walk back to where you were sitting.

“Oh really? I guess I’ve missed you around here then, what’s your name?” He asks, following your lead and sitting in the chair across from you. Guess this conversation isn’t over, you think.

“Ya, I’m actually just visiting. I was an extra for the first season. It’s Y/N.” You say hoping that was the end, but nope.

“Oh cool, I’m Josh.” He says leaning in, reaching out his hand for a handshake while scooting closer to you. Almost too close and beginning to ask more questions.

Little did you know, that someone’s eyes were on you watching the whole situation. The longer Charlie watched the more he could feel the pit in his stomach growing. He didn’t like how close that guy was sitting next to you or the way every time you said something he would just lean that much closer.

The look in that guys eyes could have made Charlie stop in the middle of the scene and yell something, but he’s too professional for that. But that look, he knows what that looks means, that guy liked you and he didn’t understand why you weren’t stopping the conversation. The pit in his stomach now a giant hole and his ears and face on fire from anger or is it jealousy he thought.

“And cut. That’s the last take for this one, great job guys!” He hears Kenny yell and before anyone could talk to him, he’s got his eyes locked on you and walking straight towards you.

A pair of arms wrapped around your shoulder and a kiss to your neck scares you, pulling you out of the conversation that never felt like it was gonna end. You can see Josh’s eyes widen at the action that just unfolded in front of him and before he could say anything you hear Charlie pipe up from behind you.

“Hi baby, who’s this?” You can hear him ask in a tone you never heard before; he sounds upset?

“Oh um this is Josh; he was just telling me about the role he’s playing this season.”

Charlie reached his hand out to shake Josh’s hand.

“Well it’s nice to meet you Josh, it’s weird that I’ve never seen you before. I appreciate you keeping my girlfriend company while I was just a little busy.” You can practically hear the jealousy coming from his voice and you don’t miss how Charlie emphases the world girlfriend.

Josh visibly gets uncomfortable by his words.

“Oh ya man, sure. Sorry, she didn’t mention she was here for her boyfriend, just said she was visiting.” He says giving an excuse to why he’s so close to one of the stars of the show girlfriend.

“Oh she didn’t, interesting...” Charlie says trailing off and giving you a look you don’t think you’d ever want to see again.

“As much as I would have loved to bring up the fact, I had a boyfriend there wasn’t much of a moment for me to mention it between Josh’s story telling.” You say getting upset at Josh and Charlie’s actions. Sass and frustration evident in your voice.

You can see Josh’s cheeks get slightly red. Charlie is quick to grab your hand and start to pull you away with a quick,

“Well nice to meet you bud. We’ve got to be going now.” He says while still pulling you away.

The minute you’re out of sight and hidden behind a wall Charlie has you pinned against the wall and his lips on yours.

He doesn’t even give you a chance to catch up before he has his tongue swiping your bottom lip to get in. He’s quick to bite down on your bottom lip, a moan escaping you.

Your hands entangle in his hair pulling him closer, his hands gripping your hips pulling you up to have your legs wrap around his waist. Charlie moves his hands down to cup your butt giving it a slap as he starts to attack your neck with his lips.

You can’t help but lean your neck to the side giving your boy all the access he wants, basking in the feeling of his lips on your skin.

You’re pulled out of your little world when you hear voices and they sound like they’re getting closer.

“Char...Charlie, stop, someone... there is someone coming.” You struggle to get out as he keeps kissing your neck, you place your hands on his chest to give him a little push away. You’re able to get him to detach himself from your neck and place you back on your feet.

Two people walk past you guys giving you small awkward smiles, definitely knowing what was happening due how close you guys were standing, the mess that Charlie’s hair now is, and what you can only imagine is two pairs of swollen lips.

When they leave, he’s quick to attach his lips back to yours. But you place your hands on his chest pushing you away a little bit, even though it took everything in you to do so because man is that boys mouth magic.

“Baby, what’s going on? As much as I know you and your love for what’s happening, it’s never this public.” You ask, slightly concerned at your boyfriends behavior.

He shakes his head a little and moves his hand to rub the back of his neck, a pink tint appearing on his cheeks.

“I just, I don’t know thought it’d be fun.” He says not making eye contact.

“Oh that’s some BS Gillespie, what’s up?” You knew your boyfriend too well and that was a cop out answer.

“I just, I didn’t like how that guy was looking at you, or sitting so close to you and then he brought up how you didn’t say you were here for me and I just I don’t know...” He trails off still looking away sheepishly.

A small smile does form on your face as his words, you’ve never seen Charlie get jealous and truthfully it was a little cute.

“Oh so someone was jealous?” You ask with a little laugh.

“What me? Jealous? No, never!” Again, he’s trying to brush it off; but with the lift of your eyebrows he knows you’re not buying it.

“Fine, I was jealous okay? I know it’s bad to be jealous but whatever...”

“Actually, I think it’s pretty cute.” You say with a little laugh, grabbing onto his arm to pull him closer to you.

“Really?” He asks with his signature smirk and that tone of cockiness he just always seems to sport just a little. He now has his arms wrapped around your waist pulling you just that much closer, if it’s even possible.

You give him a nod and lead his lips back down to yours to interlock them again. This time he pulls away but leaves his forehead leaning on yours.

“I love having you here, even if it means you get hit on by gross extras.” You laugh at his words and the fact that his insult is what a twelve-year-old would come up with.

“I love being here, you know that. I really did miss you.”

“I missed you too sweet stuff, just don’t forget you’re here to see your very handsome boyfriend.” You both laugh together at his words.

“How could I ever forget? Plus it seems like if he thinks so he gets a little jealous and I don’t mind the outcome of it.”

“Oh shut up, you’re my girlfriend just gotta make sure everyone knows.” You roll your eyes at his words and he leans down again to place another kiss on your lips.

“Yep, your girlfriend and don’t you forget it.”

You both laugh again as you pull him in for another kiss. Your boyfriend may be a little crazy but you wouldn’t change it for the world because nothing feels better than being able to be back in his arms and laughing in between sweet kisses.

#charlie gillespie #charlie gillespie imagine #charlie x reader #charlie gillespie x oc #charlie gillespie x reader #charliegillespieimagines #charlie gillespie fic #charlie gillespie fanfiction #julie and the phantoms #luke jatp #jatp

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har-rison-s · 2 years ago

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your good will: 35

the big wait

a/n: what's up guys. I'm stressed and exhausted out of my mind rn from school and work, even though so little is left of both. I've come so far and yet these last few stretches are the very hardest. I just want to lay in my bed all day and write this series or watch shows and movies…. I'm so exhausted from life. Anyways, here comes the liveaid chapter. Maybe i'll split it into two, i'll see how long it'll turn out to be. I'm so excited about this chapter, it's nearly the same excitement as if i was going to a concert or going to actual liveaid (god knows i want nothing more than that. Where's my time machine??). So i hope i write it good, i hope i justify my hopes for writing liveaid with the party and steve and such. Happy reading :) let us have a quick wait for volume 2. enjoy!

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word count: 5.4k

warnings: none !

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The rest of Steve's Thursday the 11th of July is as busy as he expected it to be. He goes round to Dustin's, where he meets not only Dustin himself, his make-shift little brother, but also Mike and Lucas. Steve tells them about LiveAid, realizing only then that he already threw the idea at Dustin before, but he's glad the rest of the guys get to hear the invitation vocally, too.

He's glad to see the kids sort-of back in their usual moods and spirits. They're hanging out again, though now without Will, and they seem cheerful and annoying (as teenagers are) as they usually are. Steve soon feels out of place because he doesn't play DnD and only knows so little of all the guys' mythology–within the came and beyond its borders. So after he has lunch that Dustin's mom made and insisted Steve to stay for, just a little longer–one meal won't hurt the boy who's protected her son, right?–Steve drives away from Dustin's and instead heads towards Robin's house.

It's around the same area in Hawkins as Max's house, though the two girls are far from being neighbors. Steve drives up around to the back of the house, where Robin's window faces outwards, and he honks a couple times in hopes of making Robin appear in the window that way. And after a few more honks, she does. She looks asleep and messy as anyone, as she did all those mornings Steve would pick her up before work at Scoops, and he laughs at that. Two pm during the day and she was still–or already–asleep as a log.

Steve sits in the car, waiting for Robin, and lets his favorite radio station play as he does so. His thoughts drift away much like the leaves blowing on the grass and pavement due to the soft summer breeze. They drift away towards the past–the good and the bad–, and the future–also the good and the bad. He thinks of Maggie, as he always eventually does. He thinks of her past, he thinks of their shared past together. These seven months… He couldn't imagine them without her.

And he thinks of her future. And of their future, which hers undoubtedly impacts. Her moving away with her family to Maine… Her leaving Hawkins. Her home, her boyfriend, her friends, her life. The thought of her not being here, not being around, of her not being a drive away from him, suddenly hits his heart very painfully. And it nearly drives him to tears. His breath stops and he just rests his face hard in his hand as he looks out at the empty road ahead. She's gonna be far, far away from him.

Can he survive it?

“What is it now, Dingus?” The smash of his car door closing and Robin's raspy voice disrupts Steve's painful train of thought, and he gasps in slight fear. He turns in his seat immediately to her and rests a hand over his chest once he realizes it's just Robin. “Oh, no, did I interrupt something really… emotional?” She asks in an inquiring and nervous voice.

Steve has to take one or two moments to collect himself, his eyelids flutter and he tries to find words to say. Then somehow everything clicks into place and he revs his car engine again. “N-No, not at all,” he says dismissively, “sorry. And hey,” he shoots Robin a quick smile as he adjusts the window cleaners on the front panel, “hope I didn't steal your beauty sleep. Oh, wait… you don't have any of that left.” Steve teases with a deadpan face.

Robin gives him a sarcastic, fake smile and shakes her head. “Nice to see you, too,” she says, “so. What's the occasion? You taking me to daydrink with you?”

Steve scoffs, “of course.” He responds and makes a turn onto one of the main streets in town. Robin's curiously glancing around herself, alert. “I… am going to make us rich. For a while, at least.”

“Oh?” Robin raises her eyebrows. “How so? You find a green leprechaun and his golden bucket?”

“Yeah, on my Lucky Charms cardboard box,” Steve says, “a really smart woman I know told me we can get some money from our… higher-ups at Scoops because we lost our jobs to a third-party, and nearly lost our lives, as well. It's actually crucial that we include that.”

“A really smart woman–who? Your mother?” Robin chuckles and Steve gives her a certain look with those brown eyes. It hits Robin. “Oh, the other smart woman you know.”

“Are you keeping count?” Steve asks. Robin shrugs her shoulders, a faint smile on her dark lips.

“Just to remind you how lucky you are to have them in your life.” She says. Steve makes a sonder smile at that, a nostalgic expression crossing his face as he looks out onto the road. He is lucky to have Maggie, and Robin, and Nancy, and his mom in his life, he is, that's true. Robin notices, and she's alert again. He hasn't looked quite… present these three minutes that he's driven her and himself to the town center. “What are you thinking in that big-nested head of yours?” Robin asks, curious about his slightly sour mood, and she even pokes Steve's shoulder with her finger.

He gives her a momentary glance, but his eyes are back on the road soon enough again. “Just the, uh, women I'm lucky to have in my life,” Steve answers truthfully, breathing out a heavy huff with his words. They and the thoughts behind them feel heavy on his chest, almost straining his lungs. As if he subconsciously doesn't want to tell Robin how he feels. She blinks as she keeps watching him, waiting for his response, “one of them will be leaving soon.”

“Your mom got a better job somewhere?” Asks clueless Robin. Steve laughs at that proposition, since that'd be quite the delight. Maybe he could move away with mom to some other town… Sounds like quite the piece of cake.

“Yeah, I wish,” he says quietly and now pulls his car to a stop in front of a corporate building, killing the engine. A place he and Robin both remember–it was where their job interview for Scoops Ahoy was held. Steve looks down at his hands in his lap, the car keys jangling quietly between them, “for clarification, I'm sure she would have told you this herself, but since you asked, and since I don't think it's any easier for her to tell you than it was to tell me, I'm just… gonna say it.” Wow, that's a lot of words, and a complicated sentence structure. Steve's really bummed out about this, whatever it is. Robin watches him breathe a heavy huff through his bird-like nose, and waits for Steve to say more. “Maggie's… gonna be moving away from Hawkins. With her whole family.” Steve finally says in a quiet, hurt voice, and gives Robin a glance to just register her reaction. See what this news means to her.

“Ohhh,” she simply says. She slowly takes in what that type of circumstance means to Steve. She's known Maggie and Steve were a thing since their very beginning, practically. Maggie's in one year at school with Robin, they share some classes together, and occasionally talked while at school. Robin would like to say they've gotten closer since this whole… interdimensional monster ordeal, closer than they were before. She likes Maggie, and she's seen how happy she is with Steve. And not only at school. Steve's actually much more bearable since he's been with Maggie, to Robin, at least. Her moving away is going to be hard, “do you know when?” Robin can't think of anything else to ask.

Steve shakes his head, his lips pursed. When doesn't really matter when just the fact of leaving is strict and certain. “She doesn't like it either, and, uh…” Steve sighs deeply, “that birthday party of mine you'll be planning together is gonna be the first and last for quite some while,” he breathes a lifeless chuckle. Robin can see clearly how upset Steve is with this news. “Because I don't know when she'll be leaving–and she doesn't, either–I just want to spend as much time with her as possible. But also… with everything that's happened, I don't want to keep her all to myself, either, you know?” Steve shakes his head. “I'm probably not making any sense.”

“No, no, I can understand,” Robin denies with sure nods of her head. Steve gives her a look of slight and humored disbelief, “you wanna savor all of her up until she leaves, so it wouldn't be… as hurtful and… lonely, too?” She guesses.

Steve makes a funny face at her assumption. “Okay, the way you worded that is… a little uncomfortable,” he says, “but for the most part, you're right, yeah.” He assures Robin, and she nods with a smile on her face now. He sighs. “It's probably selfish, but what do I know?” He chuckles airily once again. “But uh…” Steve starts to say, and clears his throat so he'd be or at least seem a little sobered-up, “I don't know, maybe don't… tell anyone now? Her brothers don't even know yet.” Steve requests, his eyes looking into Robin's wishfully. “Can you keep that secret?” He asks, just for confirmation.

Robin's face breaks out into a wide grin. “What do you think?” She teases, her eyes looking into Steve's. She sort-of searches them for connection, for realization of what she means. And after a few seconds of looking back into her eyes, he does. He cracks into a real chuckle at his own forgetting their faithful conversation in the cinema toilets that one night, and he shakes his head.

“Sorry,” he says after chuckling. Robin's cheeks rise as she grins wider.

“Wasn't sure you could keep my secret, but here you go forgetting it,” she says with a shake of her head, “you're unbelievable, Harrington. And you're gonna be even more unbearable once Maggie leaves.” Robin remembers the time before Steve was with Maggie. It's like he was a completely different person.

Steve's head raises quizzically at that statement. “Thanks?” He says and makes an amused scoff afterwards, at least that's what the sound is closest to. Robin fails to read the subtle expression of hurt on Steve's face as she watches him turn away and then open the car door. The conversation has clearly been put to an end. “Let's go get our money.” Steve simply says before he exits the car, leaving Robin in it for the next few seconds. She contemplates what she said and suddenly feels like it was the wrong thing to say. Was it? Did she sound mean or hurtful to him?

She has the rest of their money-acquiring ordeal to think that over thoroughly. But Steve doesn't seem to linger on it as much as she is. Maybe she's just over-thinking too much and reading his expressions wrong again. He's not as talkative as before, that's for sure–and maybe it's a sign–but maybe the news of Maggie leaving has really hurt him, and that's why he's not talking as much and as lively as usual. Robin can't decide, but her mind also can't rest.

Maggie's Thursday and Friday go by pleasantly, not too slowly, not too quickly. She's pretty excited for Saturday and LiveAid and seeing everyone in a much more relaxed and every-day setting. She also spends Friday evening baking the kitchen full of things to eat, both for her family and for the kids and Robin tomorrow. She's made a brownie, a cheesecake and lasagna. The lasagna she purposefully made more than Joyce usually would, so that it would last at least a week in the house with everyone taking a bite once in a while. But now she turns out to have made much more than she anticipated. Kids will be happy, though. Will loves her lasagna, and so does mom–they've told her multiple times already.

And when Eleven comes into the kitchen in her pajamas already and looks at the sight of Maggie rushing about, a smile creeps onto her soft face. El just inspects her make-shift older sister before she makes her way over to where she stands. Pots and pans and bowls everywhere–empty as well as filled and dirtied–music playing from the small radio apparatus on the window sill, the kitchen filled with light smoke and the smell of multiple meals. Maggie has on a baseball shirt that looks a little bigger than her own size–probably Steve's, and she's wearing shorts. Atop all that she has an apron on, the strings tied around her waist and on the back of her neck. Her hair is falling here and there from the up-do she put it in, it's defying her wishes of being tamed very much.

Eleven slowly comes up to Maggie and leans in close to what she's working on, her face close to hers. It nearly spooks Maggie, but she notices Eleven before that can happen, and only smiles in relief at the girl. “Hey,” she greets her as she continues her finishing touches on the lasagna.

“What are you making?” Eleven asks, and leans against the kitchen counter to face Maggie and also see what she's doing at the same time. It's something so distinctly hers about the way she always has to see the face of the person she's talking to. Maggie wonders what's behind that.

“Lasagna,” Maggie answers, going over the last layer of noodles with her tomato sauce spoon, “made much more than I'd planned to, actually,” she admits with a chuckle, “have you ever tried it before?” She gives El a side glance. Eleven shakes her head. She's seeing this wonderful meal that looks very yummy for the first time in her life, and her eyes are widening with every second that she takes the sight of it in. “Let me put this in the oven and I'll give you a piece of one of the finished ones, okay?”

Eleven nods at her question as she looks into Maggie's eyes. She watches the older girl smear tomato sauce, beef on the lighter-colored layer, and then sprinkle the very top with short cheese strands.

“I'm not surprised you haven't had lasagna before,” Maggie admits, “Hopper never was good at lasagnas or similar meals.” She then states, and it takes El's mind away from the kitchen filled with dirty dishes and half-empty bowls of all different kinds of things. “He was always better at deserts.” Maggie chuckles and makes a sigh of effort as she slides the lasagna tray into the oven and closes it. She presses the right buttons and stands up straight again. El sees her apron for how it is – totally dirty and probably ruined. There's chocolate, cream and tomato sauce all over it. She chuckles as her eyes meet Maggie's. Eleven knows about how Maggie knew Hopper so well, they both have told her a lot of stories over these last nearly two years. Yet there's still gaps left to fill. “You probably know the Eggo Extravaganza very well, that he made.” Maggie says with a smile. Eleven nods. “Yeah, well, I didn't.” She sighs out and leans her body against the counter as the oven begins working again, baking the third lasagna now. “We made plans so he'd teach me how to make it, but…” Maggie shakes her head with an empty look in her eyes. Eleven doesn't need to hear the rest of the sentence, because she knows what's there to say. Something neither of them want to really open up about, even though they trust each other a lot. It's a wound they'd rather let heal than rip open again and again all the time.

“I can… show you,” Eleven proposes. That suggestion makes Maggie turn her head to look at El, “it's not… complicated. If I can do it, so can you.” The younger girl says, a nice little smile etching into her lips. Maggie smiles wide and brushes El's cheek momentarily with her thumb, like El has seen mothers do to daughters on TV, and in real life. That gesture makes her smile.

“Sure thing,” Maggie says, “we can do it sometime next week. Now, about that lasagna…” Maggie looks over the mess that is the kitchen counter, and then the continuous mess that is the kitchen table. El follows her eyes, and now nearly feels out of place for seeing all this. She feels strange because she feels Maggie doesn't want her to see the kitchen this way, especially if it's her doing to make it so messy. Maybe El shouldn't have come in at all.

But another thought crosses her mind. “I can… help you. Clean up,” Eleven suggests, which again makes Maggie look into her eyes.

“That's nice of you,” she says, “Will or Jonathan never want to, and mom would just tell me to clean up the mess I've made myself, so okay.”

Eleven smiles. “You can tell me what to do.” She says, and Maggie nods. It starts out a little awkward, like most things that you do for the first time in your life start out, but the girls workshop around it pretty well. Maggie teaches El how to do the dishes, how to properly dry all the cutlery and ceramics, and where they store each category in the Byers house. Eleven seems willing to learn, and she does learn very well, pretty fast. It might sound silly, but Maggie's proud of her for that.

Maggie doesn't know what the exact plan of either of their lives is, even for the next year, so she doesn't know what might come in handy for El. Learning everyday things like the dishes, making food, cleaning the house can never hurt, though, so it's good practice that Maggie helps her learn everything now. With El's powers gone and all of them moving away from Hawkins, who knows what's in store now?

The dishes and cutlery sit clean in their assigned places, and Maggie and El finally sit down at the kitchen table to try that lasagna she promised. “Here you go,” Maggie hands El a plate, a small cube of lasagna on it, and a fork at the side. She glances at the one in the oven, and deems it's not ready yet. Eleven looks over the piece and feels her stomach grumbling. Because Maggie's and her eyes connect, she realizes Maggie heard her tummy, too. And both the girls have a warm laugh over it, “you ate lunch! What's the matter?”

El shakes her head and delves into the lasagna piece. She chews and swallows the first bite before she speaks, “I think… I'm more hungry because… I lost my powers.” She admits, and shoots Maggie a troubled look. The older girl nods.

“Maybe,” she says, “I don't know what it's like for you, but… that could be an explanation.” She nods again. “But hey, maybe they're not completely gone.” Maggie suggests with a shrug. “Maybe you can get them back. Somehow.”

Eleven's eyes fall to her hands. “Something's… wrong. I can't… feel them anymore.” She says. “I tried.” She looks at Maggie again. She nods again, understanding the girl's peril.

“Well, even if they are gone forever,” she starts to say, “there's more to you than your powers.” Maggie gives El a smile, and lays a kind hand on her shoulder. El nods with a shy smile, her mouth full of delicious lasagna.

“Max said… there's more to life than stupid boys,” El says as she remembers it. Maggie makes a whole-hearted laugh at that, and the expression and genuinity of her laugh make El smile wider, lasagna nearly spills past her lips at that.

“That's also true,” Maggie confirms. Her thoughts tilt towards where that could have come from. Mike and El broke up, and Max was there to comfort her and teach her a few things. Maggie gives El a side-eye while a smile sits on her lips, “you think you'll be coming tomorrow? To watch the concert?”

Eleven shrugs. “Sounds fun,” she admits and pushes her plate a bit forward, signaling that she's done. She ate the piece and feels pretty well. Though she could eat more, she feels that, “will Mike… be there?”

Maggie gives her a nod in confirmation. El grows visibly anxious, even if just a little bit. “But you don't have to talk to him, or… or sit with him. You can… sit next to me.” She suggests with another shrug. Eleven looks at Maggie, a slight smile on her features.

“You'll be with Steve,” she says to Maggie, her voice sounding like there's no other way around this.

“Yeah, but… all of us are gonna be there. I won't be only with him. You're all my friends, too,” Maggie gives El a playful smile. Eleven nods, “it's a party, so I'm gonna be with everybody. So what do you say?” She pauses. “We're gonna have to wake up early, but it'll be okay. There will be some slower songs playing on the stage, so we'll be able to sleep later if we'll have to.” Maggie shrugs.

Eleven looks at Maggie as she contemplates the choice. She doesn't want to see Mike because of everything that happened. But she also misses him, and she misses all her friends. And she wants to spend time with Maggie, because she's very kind, and she feels like a sister to her, almost. Someone very protective and loving, and she understands a lot of things that others don't. She might not be able to understand El completely and utterly in all aspects, because it's hard to.

El is just too different for anyone to understand her to the deepest parts, but there are people who have come close enough. Maggie. Hopper. Even Mike. And Will. And they each understand different parts of her, which kind of makes her feel like the people closest to her make her whole. And that's not particularly a bad deduction to come to.

“Yes,” Eleven finally says, “I'll come, too.” She says with a nod, and Maggie smiles wide. “Will Steve… come to get us?”

Maggie makes a dismissive motion with her hand. “Eh, no,” she says, “we'll just walk, and take all of this food with us.” Eleven gives her a certain look. Can we take all of this? “It's not that heavy. And Will's coming, too.”

El raises her eyebrows, pleasantly surprised, and nods. Will's sort-of growing to be her brother now. He's taught her D&D, he talks to her more than before, even if he's still kind-of distant. El likes Will, and she hopes they can be better friends, and actual sister and brother with each other. Maybe it's weird to hope that, but she can't help that silent hope. Maggie and her entire family have been so kind to El, and she thinks they're all very cool in each their own ways.

That's why next morning Eleven is not at all irritated to have to wake up early and go over to Steve's house. Maggie helps her pick out some clothes she could wear for LiveAid the night before, and so El happily wears them. Even though Maggie is older than Eleven by a couple years, their sizes are surprisingly pretty similar, and so Maggie's shirt fits El quite nicely. It's a shirt with a psychedelic Lord of the Rings design, one of Maggie's favorites.

And it earns Eleven a compliment from Will when they start their morning walk towards Steve's house, which makes Eleven smile. She didn't know Will liked the book series Maggie told her about, too. She has yet to read the books herself, though, and because they sound very interesting, she kind of can't wait to read them. She's not the best at reading by herself quite yet, so she also hopes that Maggie can read the books to her at the beginning, at least.

All three of them, the Byers siblings you might say, love how quiet and deserted Hawkins is on this Saturday morning. Barely any people in their path, except for the rare dog-walker and morning runner, and Earl, who's always up at whatever hour of the night or morning to water his garden out front. He gives the kids a wave, who wave back, and then he furrows his eyebrows at what they could be doing this early in the day together. With wrapped packages in their hands, too. He swears no kid is up to any good nowadays.

Though they may be sweating, Maggie, Will and Eleven finally reach their destination in one piece and happy. Two thirds of them are very excited for today, and so that keeps them happy enough. And, of course, it's Steve who opens the door to his house, to which Maggie smiles wide. It's hardly been two days, and yet she's still grown to miss him all the same. Steve cracks into a wide smile and invites all of them in. He pulls Maggie to his side for just a quick second, kissing her lips briefly as a greeting.

She smiles against his lips. “Hey,” she greets him properly and pulls away. She knows how awkward Will feels around her and Steve, and how El probably isn't feeling the least awkward, either.

“Hey,” Steve tells Maggie quietly, privately, and then looks to her siblings, “hey, guys.” Will and El mutter their own hellos at him. “Whatchu got there?” Steve points at the wrapped… things–they look like large plates?–in their hands.

Eleven makes a smile. “Maggie made lasagna,” she says and pulls back part of the cloth covering the lasagna dish in her hands. Steve's face lights up happily.

“And a cheesecake, and a brownie, too,” Maggie adds.

“She was in the kitchen all afternoon,” Will says with a grin and shake of his head, to which Maggie just gives him a look and chuckles. Steve's excited face doesn't drop.

“You are the best,” Steve gives her head another affectionate kiss and then rushes deeper into his house–for whatever reason… “you guys, Maggie made lasagna!” The three of them her Steve announcing to someone then, and they follow him quickly into his house. They stop beside him in a doorway, which reveals the Harrington house lounge area, where there's more guests. Lucas, Max, Mike, Dustin and Robin! Are all seated on and around the couch comfortably, their faces looking fresh as cherries. It is the morning, after all.

Maggie cracks into a wide smile at them all, and how they wave at the new arrivals with wide smiles and excited faces. She waves back. “Uh-oh, the final babysitter has arrived,” Mike jokes, and everyone laughs at that. It's funny, and it's true.

“How nice to see you all here,” Maggie says as she sets her bag down in the corner, still holding the other lasagna and the cheesecake in her hands. She glances at the TV in front of the kids and Robin, and sees a white stage and a sea of people in front of it, some band already performing for them.

“I already put the show on,” Steve tells her, “we've got about… thirty minutes until our one and only step onto the stage, so…” He looks hopefully at Maggie.

“Help me out in the kitchen?” She offers, a grin on her lips, and Steve nods. He's up for anything that isn't baby-sitting, because it's tiring work, honestly. But he never needs an excuse to spend time with his favorite person of all time, Maggie. So she tells Will and El to give Steve the rest of the dishes, and for them two to join their friends in the lounge while she and Steve gather everything up. “The party can start.” Maggie says to Steve as they both make their way back to the kitchen.

Steve laughs. “Well, it just about started when Dustin burst through my door singing We Are The Champions, but you always bring the party around, baby,” he tells Maggie. She chuckles.

“He did that?” She asks. “That kid,” she shakes her head as she sets the two dishes down on the island. And she notices everything else already on the table, “oh wow, you really did go shopping.” She says and traces her hand over the salad and vegetable packages. Of course, there's Cheetos and Lay's, too. Maggie shakes her head.

“Told you I would,” Steve says, “plus, I got the money from mom and also–me and Robin went to the office and got our… third-party-caused-loss-of-work compensation money.” He says as he starts opening all the packages. Maggie laughs at the naming of the money.

“Wow, you're a rich man now, Steve,” Maggie jokes, and that makes Steve laugh again. His cheeks blush up, too, so much so that she can't look away from him for a while. But she gets to unwrapping her dishes in a sec, “come to think of it, you and me haven't been to a party together. Ever.” She realizes. Steve raises his head out of what he's doing and looks at Maggie with furrowed eyebrows. They can both hear occasional laughter from the lounge, and they're glad the kids are getting along like they always have, at least.

“Really, we haven't? But–” he thinks back on these seven months with her.

“The roller rink doesn't count,” Maggie says, “and all those times we've danced to the radio don't count, either. I'm talking real parties, like the one, uh, whoever was hosting last Halloween.”

Hell, Steve remembers that party. He remembers it with a heavy heart, and would actually rather forget it. That was a real party, true. But he didn't attend it with Maggie. “Oh yeah…” he nods along and gets back to making himself busy with all the snacks. Partly to get something done together with Maggie, cause they know there's lots of mouths to feed, and partly to avoid thinking about that sad night, “so my birthday party's gonna be the first that we attend together… Although we're not really attending, we're hosting it, right?” Maggie nods. “Well, anyways. Our first real party together.” He says, a warmer expression on his face, and Maggie nods again. “Why haven't we gone to one before?”

She shrugs. “Dunno,” she slices a knife through the lasagna, “well, okay. I was kind of scared to go to one, and I was helping you study, anyway, this last semester.”

“Oh, right,” Steve nods and scratches behind his ear, “why were you scared? You never told me that.”

Maggie shakes her head softly and breathes a quiet sigh. She has the words she wants to say, but somehow they make her windpipe tighten up suddenly, as if they're hard to say. “I didn't want you to, like, think I was a goody-two shoes, that's why I never said anything. But you know… teenagers drunk at parties can be quite… dangerous and scary. And though I like the loud music, and I'm not afraid to drink, they've just always seemed so… dull.” She shrugs and places slice after slice of lasagna on plates. “Maybe this one will be better.”

“Because it'll be planned by you and Robin?” Steve suggests, a sneaky grin on his face. Maggie chuckles, but gives him a nod. That's exactly why. “Yeah, I think hardly any of those parties you and me were invited to had actual schedules or whatever,” he admits, “so this will be the best one.”

“Because I'm planning it?” Maggie looks up at Steve as he's now come up close to her, and he nods at her with a dopey smile on his face. She breaks into a blush, bowing her head down, and Steve takes that opportunity to pull her close again and lay a kiss on her head.

“You're the best, Mags,” he tells her, “I'll keep telling you that until… I don't know, it's not true anymore, but that could be about… Never.” Maggie laughs again. “Love you.” He lays another kiss on her head.

“Love you, too,” she says, “but we have about twenty minutes until REO now, so let's hurry up with the snacks.” Maggie pulls him down to reality, leveling him down from their wonderful moment together. Steve follows her suggestion, though he does it distractingly for Maggie and himself. He's just head-over-heels, neither of them can expect anything more.

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spine-buster · 4 years ago

Text

peaceful easy feeling ft. b.boeser | one

A/N: Here’s the beginning of my new mini-series! I hope you all enjoy it. It will definitely be a bit of an emotional rollercoaster, so be prepared! There will be five parts!

SUPPORT MY WRITING HERE: https://ko-fi.com/spine_buster

CONTENT WARNING: parents with disease/sickness (Parkinson’s); swearing; sex; alcohol use; lots of emotions.

* * * * *

Brock Boeser felt like he was at some sort of Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, with everybody around the circle introducing themselves and their similar predicaments. The group was in a big meeting room at the local community centre, and when he walked in, he saw a group of dads playing basketball in the gym. He sort of wanted to join them instead of being here, in this room, with all these people that he didn’t know talking about what they were going to talk about, but he’d done this back in Minnesota, at his mother’s behest with his siblings, and he was going to do it here, too, in Vancouver, to make her happy and ease her mind and to make sure that he was easing his own mind.

“Um, hello everyone. My name is Brock Boeser. I’m from Minnesota, but I’m living in Vancouver. And um, I’m here with you all because my dad was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.”

“Hello Brock,” everyone smiled at him, and he smiled and nodded back.

“So it was your dad that was diagnosed,” the leader, a kind, older woman named Esther who had greeted him at the door and stuck with him until everybody sat down, egged on a conversation. He knew she was doing it because he was new; everybody in this room probably already knew each other. A part of him actually wondered if anybody knew who he was. “When?”

“Um, he—he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2010,” Brock revealed, stuttering it out. He knew he’d have to be open at these things – open so people could empathize with him, open so he could empathize with others – but it was still tough for him to do so. “But he—it’s—it’s not just Parkinson’s. Two years after he was diagnosed, he was in a car accident and suffered a traumatic brain injury. In 2017, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. He beat it but then in June it returned to his liver and chest. In July, he had a heart attack and his heart stopped beating for 15 minutes. I was with him and—I—it’s—it’s a lot, as you can imagine,” he tried not to start crying right then and there. Imagine that – first meeting with a Parkinson’s Society of BC support group and he’d bawl like a baby.

“Goodness me, Brock,” Esther said. “He has support at home?”

“Um, well, money isn’t an issue now, but when I was growing up my mom worked three jobs to make sure we were all taken care of,” he revealed. “I’d pitch in too wherever I could, obviously.”

“But it’s been tough for a number of years.”

Brock paused. It had been tough for a number of years. It had been really tough for a number of years. He nodded his head. “Yes ma’am. I try to take it day by day.”

Esther nodded as well. “I don’t know if you pray, Brock, but I know a couple of members around the circle do, and, well – you’ll be kept in all our prayers.”

Brock saw a few people nod their head. Another older woman, probably his mom’s age, clutching a rosary; a Sikh man dressed in a casual suit; a younger woman, probably in her thirties, with short blonde hair. He appreciated the sentiment. He knew that people took prayer very seriously – that people suffering took prayer very seriously. It was, realistically, one of the kindest things somebody could ever say to you: “I’m praying for you.” “Thank you very much,” he said, nodding his head once.

***

There was an arrangement of cookies at the end of the meeting. Even after the 90 minutes of everybody talking about their experiences and emotions, they apparently liked to stick around afterwards as well just to mingle. It didn’t all have to be doom and gloom, he thought. It didn’t all have to be about Parkinson’s or about sick people or losing your loved ones all the time. Maybe some people just wanted to talk about the news. Maybe some people just wanted to talk about sports. The weather. Anything. Anything to make a connection with someone beyond something so tragic.

After stuffing an entire Fudge-O cookie into his mouth, he looked up to see a young woman staring at him, holding her trenchcoat in her arms. She was smiling to let him know she was friendly. He was embarrassed because he knew she just saw him stuff an entire Fudge-O into his mouth. “Hi,” he said, his mouth still full of cookie, the sound of his voice reflecting that fact.

“You’re Brock Boeser, right?” she asked sweetly. “You play for the Vancouver Canucks?”

“Yeah,” Brock couldn’t help but smile. He swallowed the rest of the cookie even though he didn’t really finish chewing it. “That’s me. Are you a fan?”

“My step-brothers are more so than I am,” she said. “But I’m a fan of the team, yeah. I’m Grace Gillespie,” she extended her hand to shake his. “God, they’re not gonna believe me when I say I met you. They’re gonna freak.”

Brock couldn’t help but chuckle slightly. “Do you—I mean, do you want a picture? I don’t mind at all. I’ll sign an autograph on a napkin if you want me to.”

“Well…it’s a bit awkward to ask you at a Parkinson’s Society of BC meeting, but we could go to the Starbucks down the street and I could buy you a coffee.”

Brock was slightly taken aback at her forwardness. He shouldn’t have been. Girls came up to him all the time. All the time. And they were most definitely not shy. But he wasn’t exactly expecting it to happen here, of all places. A bar, sure. Out with Petey or any of the other guys, absolutely. But not here. “Yeah…yeah sure,” he stuttered out.

“Then we should go,” Grace smiled. She turned to look behind her. Brock saw Esther picking up a few Oreos. “Thank you for leading another great session, Esther,” Grace said.

“Oh you are most welcome Miss Gillespie. How is Hamish these days? You didn’t speak much today.”

“He’s been doing fine lately. His caregivers have been working around the clock for him. They just work wonders, don’t they?”

Esther nodded. “They are angels on Earth. Anyways – we’ll catch up next week,” she said, leaning slightly on her leg to look beyond Grace and to Brock. “I hope to see you here again next week, Brock.”

“Thank you, Esther. See you next week,” he said, realizing he made the commitment before he could even realize what he was saying.

***

“I take that was your first meeting?” Grace asked as she set down the two lattes on the table against the window where Brock was waiting.

“Was it really obvious?” Brock asked.

Grace shrugged her shoulders. She didn’t want to make him feel self-conscious. “It was the stuttering that gave it away, at least to me. I know I stuttered a lot the first few times I came to these meetings. I wasn’t the most comfortable talking about my dad’s condition to a room full of virtual strangers. But within just a few months I realized the people in that room are the kindest, most empathetic, most amazing people that I’ve ever interacted with. So I became a lot more open.”

Brock was transfixed by every word that Grace was saying. “So you’ve been coming here a long time,” he said.

Grace nodded. “My dad got diagnosed with Parkinson’s when I was fourteen. I didn’t start coming here until I was about eighteen, though.”

Brock knew he shouldn’t ask. He knew he shouldn’t. But his brain had ulterior motives, and his mouth – well, his mouth listened to his brain, because it apparently needed to know. “Is your—is your dad like my dad?” he asked. “Does he have, like, other problems complicating things?”

Grace shook her head. “No,” she said softly. “But the Parkinson’s is enough for him. I mean he was diagnosed just short of ten years ago and he’s already on puréed foods. It’s not—I mean, you know as well as I do that it doesn’t regularly develop that fast. But that’s…I don’t know how you do it.”

Brock didn’t know either. Some days he didn’t. “I just take it day by day,” he said simply, just like he said in the meeting. “If I think about it too much…that’s when it’s bad.”

“I hear ya,” Grace said, taking a sip of her coffee. “But let’s…not talk about this for too long. Do you like Vancouver? Do you find it nice?”

Brock appreciated the change in topic. “I love it here,” he nodded his head, smiling. “The city’s great. The fans are great. My teammates – I mean they’re amazing. What do you do?”

“I’m a dance teacher at Goh Ballet – little kids and teens, mostly.”

He wasn’t expecting that. She was drop dead gorgeous, sure – Brock wasn’t blind – but he wasn’t expecting to hear she was a dancer. “Do you, like, dance in the real ballet?”

Grace snorted slightly at his phrasing of ‘real ballet’. “No. I pursued it only up until a certain point. I was good, but uh, I stopped when my dad got diagnosed.”

“Why? Don’t they always tell people like us to have, like, an outlet or whatever?”

“They do. But I loved my dad more than I loved dance. And I would have rather spent the time that I was spending on dance with him instead.”

He understood where she was coming from, and he wasn’t there to judge her. “And your brothers you mentioned, did they help too?”

“Oh no no no. Sorry – I should have specified. I’m an only child. Like, the only child between my parents. But they divorced when I was six and when my mom re-married I gained two step-brothers, Jasper and Theo.”

“How was the divorce?” Brock found himself asking.

“You ever see footage of a nuclear bomb exploding?” Grace giggled as she asked the question. It caused Brock to laugh too even though the analogy she was making was dreadful. “It was awful. The type of divorce nobody deserves, you know? I became a pawn, basically, and my parents would only speak to each other through lawyers. Even stuff concerning me. It was bad.”

“That sounds horrible.”

“It was. But it’s the only life I know,” she said. “He was lucky my mom ended up marrying another rich guy. I mean, my mom only marries rich men,” she giggled slightly again. “That’s how Jasper and Theo became my step-brothers.”

“So your family has money?” Brock clarified. “What’s it from? Dad a lawyer or something?”

“Not exactly,” Grace said. “My dad and his brothers own a private equity firm that started like this,” she pinched her fingers together, “and went like…” she continued, spreading her fingers and moving her hands around her like a bomb explosion. “Gillespie Brothers Investments. I’m sure as a Vancouver Canuck you’ve heard of them. I mean they wanted to buy the Canucks before the Aquilinis.”

Brock hadn’t heard of them, but he now knew he’d have to do some snooping when he got home. “I haven’t heard of them. But I mean – sounds like they were successful.”

“Three billion dollars is pretty successful to me,” Grace quipped.

“B—Billion,” Brock sputtered out. “With a B.”

“With a B,” Grace nodded. Brock had no idea he was sitting across from the daughter of a billionaire. She didn’t act like a billionaire. Not like Brock knew what billionaires acted like. He’d never met one before in his life. Well, besides Francesco. “But tell me more about what you like about Vancouver. What about the nature? I always kind of fine a good long walk along the Seawall or through Stanley Park really clears my mind from all…this. What about you?”

Brock smiled. “I find the white noise of downtown clears my mind.”

***

“You want my number,” Grace said as a statement rather than a question as she and Brock exited the Starbucks. They were kicked out. They’d been there for so long that they’d been kicked out because they were closing. Their coffees had gotten cold. They hadn’t ordered new ones. And now they found themselves on the deserted sidewalk, jackets put on hastily, and Grace came up with that.

Brock looked down at her. They’d been able to look into each other’s soul for the past few hours. “Of course I want your number,” he said. There was no reason to hide it. No reason to deny it. No reason to have to wait until next week to see her again as they sat around in a circle in a community centre talking about their parents.

He took out his phone. She gave him her number. He texted his name to hers so she’d have his. When that dance was done, she looked up at him. “I’m really glad I met you tonight,” she said, her voice sincere.

Brock nodded. “I’m glad I met you too. I—I really enjoyed this. And I mean—I needed it.”

Grace smiled, nodding her head. “I needed it too.”

“D’you—” Brock stopped, trying not to get too far ahead of himself. “D’you need a ride home?”

“Oh no no, my driver is right there,” she motioned her head towards a black Mercedes waiting by the curb.

Brock hadn’t noticed the car until now. “Chauffeur?”

“Billionaire dad,” she winked. Brock understood. She took a few steps back before smiling one more time. “Call me,” she said, before flipping her hair over her shoulder and walking towards the Mercedes and getting into the backseat. Brock watched as it drove off, making a right at the end of the street.

He would definitely be calling.

335 notes · View notes

burberryharold · 4 years ago

Text

hey, lovies! i’ve been so excited to post this fic because i am in love with Harry and Jules and i hope you will be too (and excuse the lousy banner i just wanted to have something lol)! this is a part of @1dffchallenges’s valentine’s day challenge, so i hope you enjoy reading it and happy valentine’s day, it’s all about spreading love around so here is some love from me to all of you ❤️

a special thank you to @fireproofrry @bodejacketharry @strawberryystyles for beta reading and giving feedback, you are absolute angels <3

word count: 7.7k

warnings: none!

challenge prompt and dialogue: strangers alone on valentine’s day + “I’m allergic to chocolate. And roses.”

It’s official, valentine’s day is the worst.

At least that’s what Jules thought as she adjusted herself on the bar stool, trying to get into a comfortable position while she waited for her drink to be served.

It wasn’t in Jules’ agenda to spend what was supposed to be the most romantic day of the year alone at a bar ten minutes away from her apartment. If she was still with Leon, they would have been having a nice dinner somewhere, laughing over whatever funny story one of them had to share about their day at the company.

But alas, Leon was someone else’s now and Jules was only left with her own company.

Truth be told, though, Jules never minded being alone, in fact, she enjoyed being by herself because people were simply exhausting.

But being alone and being lonely were too completely different things, and Jules hated feeling lonely.

And valentine’s day only made that worse. Seeing loved up couples around her, flashes of red and pink everywhere she glanced, hearing cheesy love songs blasting through the speakers of the shops she passed by. Everything about valentine’s day just seemed to remind her of her lonely status.

Instead of staying at her apartment all night long doing nothing but watching rom coms and feeling sorry for herself, Jules thought of a better alternative, which was to get pissed drunk. So when she got up in the morning to go to work (because even on valentine’s day duty calls), she put on her favourite black dress, one that was sleeveless and had a deep v-neckline, and put on enough makeup to feel confident in the way she looked before pulling on her coat and venturing into the cold streets of London.

If she was going to get pathetically drunk by herself at a bar after work whilst everyone else was being all lovey dovey, then she would look hot doing it.

The sound of a glass coming in contact with the wooden surface broke her out of her reverie and she glanced up, finding that the bartender had placed her drink in front of her and he was beaming at her. “There you go, love, happy valentine’s day.”

After squinting at the name tag (she’s never seen him here before, he must be new), Jules forced herself to return his smile and lifted her glass. “Cheers, Jonah.”

Poor guy must have thought she was waiting for a date or something. Too bad, no one was going to be joining Jules on this fine evening. Just me, myself, and I.

Setting her glass back on the counter after taking a big gulp, Jules scowled as she was reminded of the items she had received earlier in the day. For some reason, Leon thought it was a good idea to give her a box of chocolates and a rose, even though they were no longer together and he had another woman by his side.

She appreciated the thought behind it, he probably just wanted to be nice or maybe he felt guilty, but his gift was staring at her, almost laughing at her misery and she wasn’t having it.

That is why she instantly asked Jonah for a fork, which caused him to send her a confused look but he complied nonetheless, and she proceeded to stab the pieces of chocolate placed perfectly in the box, taking out her frustration on the sweets.

Once satisfied, she dropped the fork with a clunk and heaved out a sigh, lazily resting her chin in her right hand before looking back at Jonah. He was staring at her with wide eyes as he dried off some shot glasses, surely thinking that she was a lunatic, but Jules just flashed him a sweet smile and shifted her eyes back to the chocolates she had just assaulted.

Poor chocolate, but oh well.

“Are you alright there?”

“What the fuc-“ The sudden voice caused her to jump in her seat and she almost fell off the bar stool if it weren’t for the hand that magically materialised behind her, holding her steady.

Before she had a chance to slap the hand off her back, the stranger retracted it and returned to his seat and she had the chance to take a proper look at him.

The man stared back at her with concerned eyes, a stool separating the two of them, but he was still not that far away from her. Jules wondered when he had gotten there because she certainly didn’t feel him arrive. Perhaps it was during her chocolate rampage.

What really surprised her though, more than his sudden appearance, was the fact that she knew who he was. In fact, she believed everyone knew the man sitting beside her because it was none other than Harry Styles.

Many questions ran through Jules’ head, the most important being what on earth was a guy like him doing at this bar on valentine’s day? Jules never believed in the image the media painted of him, but surely he has something better to do than be here, all by himself it seems?

As big of a fan as she was, the fact that he was right before her didn’t faze Jules all that much, her mind was more preoccupied by other matters. So, she ended up doing what she would’ve done if it was any other person: she glared at him and wordlessly turned back in her seat, pretending as if he wasn’t there.

He didn’t seem to take the hint.

“You were quite aggressive with the chocolate there.” His deep voice floated in the empty bar as he pointed at the box in front of her.

Jules inhaled deeply before responding in a flat tone. “I’m allergic to chocolate.” Glaring at the single rose lying beside the box, she grabbed it and tossed it on the floor beneath her, silently cursing Leon once more. “And roses.”

She felt guilty for littering, but she’d pick it up when she leaves. Eventually.

“Are you really?” The man beside her questioned, leaning forward in his seat, his body completely turned towards her at this point. She could tell from her tone that he was skeptical of her supposed allergies and she honestly couldn’t blame him.

“No,” she found herself shaking her head, signalling for Jonah to get her another drink, still keeping her body facing forward and only glancing at him from her peripheral vision, “I’m just fucking with you.”

To her surprise, he let out a small laugh, not seeming to be upset. Jules couldn’t help but turn her head a bit to look at him, finding a dimpled smile on his and she wondered what was wrong with this guy.

“May I ask why you were stabbing the poor sweets then?”

Figuring she should just put him out of his misery and answer his question, Jules huffed and crossed her legs, not missing the way his gaze flickered down for a split second before returning to her face. She ignored it and sighed, “Well if you must know, my ex gave them to me this morning.”

“Trying to get you to take him back?”

“Oh god no,” Jules laughed at the notion, her hand waving off his wrong assumption, “he’s as happy as can be with his new girlfriend.”

The blatant confusion on his face prompted her to provide more explanation.

“We broke up a couple of months ago, he left me for someone else. So he probably just felt guilty.”

“He left you for someone else? And before the holidays?” When she nodded in confirmation, he shook his head with a frown. “Bastard.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Valentine’s day just sucks, it’s just a reminder of how lonely you are,” she muttered with bitterness, “Of how lonely I am.”

“Well if it’s any consolation,” Harry said, pausing to ask the bartender for another drink, “I’m lonely tonight too.”

“Well, obviously, otherwise you wouldn’t be here getting drunk on your own.” With a few drinks already in her system, Jules practically had no filter whatsoever (not that she really had one in the first place).

“Touch��,” he clicked his tongue, then leaned back to chug down the rest of his glass. Jules was almost concerned by how quickly he downed his drink, but she’s not in a position to talk, after all, she’d been doing the same. “But I’m not getting drunk on my own now, am I? You’re right here.”

She scoffed, eyebrows raising at his words. “Who said I’m keeping you company? Or that I’m not leaving any second now?”

“I don’t think you are.” He responded with much conviction that it almost threw Jules off.

“You think too confidently about a stranger you just met.”

“Let’s fix the strangers part then, shall we? I’m Harry.” He extended his ring-clad hand and Jules noticed a coat of red nail polish on his fingers. How ironic.

She sighed before deciding to entertain him, grabbing a firm hold of his surprisingly warm hand. Maybe she’ll allow him to keep her company tonight. It doesn’t seem like he’s going to leave her alone anyway.

“Jules.” She simply responded before turning back to her drink, swirling the pink straw around. She made a mental note to thank Jonah later for the cute straw.

“Jules” Harry repeated, as if testing the name on his lips and Jules would be lying if she said that she didn’t like the way it rolled off his tongue. “Is that a nickname for Julie? Julia? Short for Juliann-“

“Juliet. It’s Juliet.” She interrupted his ridiculous ramble. He surely was inquisitive. And did she really look like a Julianne?

“Huh,” he hummed, gliding a finger over the rim of his glass, staying silent for a few seconds and Jules thought he was maybe done for the night.

She thought wrong, it seems.

“Oh, Juliet, oh, Juliet, where art thou, Juliet?” He dramatically recited, voice going deeper as he stared upwards at a spot over the bar. Simply put, Jules thought he looked ridiculous.

She could hear Jonah snickering in the background.

“It’s where art thou, Romeo, but nice try.” She rolled her eyes in response to his theatrics. Almost everyone she’s ever encountered has commented on her name and made a reference to the infamous Shakespearean tragedy that she’s never been too fond of. It’s why she mostly went by Jules.

No one’s ever recited that line though, however wrong it was. That was a first.

“I knew that,” the curly-haired man mumbled beside her, swirling his glass and watching the ice cubes swim around, “was just joking, geez, tough crowd.”

Jules couldn’t help but roll her eyes again in response. That joke got old a long time ago.

She’s beginning to regret coming to this bar tonight. Maybe she should’ve just headed straight home and cuddled into her blankets.

“It’s pretty, though,” he added a few moments later, “beautiful name for a beautiful woman”

No way. She huffed, spinning in her seat to face him once again. “That’s your line? Tell me, Mr. Rockstar, has that really worked on anyone before?”

She could tell he was a bit surprised but tried to hide it; unluckily for him, Jules was a very observant person, hardly anything passed her.

“I-I didn’t mean it like that-“

She interrupted him again and leaned in closer, resting her elbow on the countertop and raised an eyebrow. His eyes flickered for a fleeting second to the charm bracelet adorning her wrist. “So you don’t think my name’s beautiful? Or that I’m beautiful? Sheesh, Harry, you’re not looking good here.”

Harry spluttered, staring at her with eyes blown wide in panic and Jules almost felt bad for messing with him; it was just hard not to, she was lonely and he was right there annoying her with his lousy jokes, so he has the unfortunate fate of being her victim tonight (and truthfully, he brought it on himself). And if she was being honest, messing with Harry Styles was just too entertaining of an opportunity for her to pass on.

To be fair, she was a little annoyed by his presence in the beginning, having originally planned to wallow in her misery all by herself, but now she’s having fun. She might just enjoy her time with him.

“No- no of course I think you’re beautiful, y-your name too,” he responded in clear panic, seemingly trying to figure out how he can redeem himself. Jules’ attention was momentarily caught by the way his rings glimmered under the light as he flexed his fingers, still fumbling for a response. “I was just-“

“Styles,” she interrupted him, yet again, with a light-hearted laugh and shook her head, hair falling forward on her shoulders, “Relax, was just messing with you.”

His shoulders visibly relaxed and he heaved out a sigh of relief; his eyes then narrowed and he lifted his hand, pointer finger wagging in her direction. “You really like messing with people, huh? Not very nice of you.”

“Made you sweat, no? Was just having fun. I can now say that I’ve made the infamous Harry Styles stumble over his words. How much do you think they’ll pay me for that hot gossip? Reckon it would be a lot.” She said as she turned back in her seat, now facing the bar once again, but she knew he caught the smirk on her face and the teasing lilt in her tone.

Coming to the bar was definitely a good decision.

Harry felt like a proper idiot.

Here he was, sitting at a pub with a lovely woman that clearly didn’t want to be bothered, yet he had to fuck things up and be a git.

And the Juliet bit? Harry had never been more embarrassed, he didn’t know what he was thinking, or if he was thinking at all. He made sure to remind himself that he wasn’t that funny and should just stop trying to be. You’re making a fucking fool of yourself.

In spite of his rather embarrassing advances, Harry found himself enjoying Jules’ company immensely, even if she had barely looked his way when he had arrived at his spot.

She might’ve looked irritated by his insistent attempts to start a conversation with her in the beginning, but from the way her body has been facing him for the past half an hour and the smile or two she’d thrown his way, Harry had a feeling she was warming up to him.

He discovered that she was an accountant, which thoroughly surprised him because she didn’t seem like one. Harry doesn’t like to judge a book by its cover, but Jules definitely didn’t scream accountant, more like a Greek goddess or something. Her black dress hugged her body in a way that almost made Harry dizzy; he had noticed her the second he walked into the nearly empty pub – and before he could even think about it, he found his legs carrying him in her direction (he was already headed to the bar anyway, or so he told himself).

Admittedly, the way she was stabbing the chocolates had him fearing for his life for a split second, but Harry brushed it off and figured she just wasn’t a fan of valentine’s day, if her apparent disdain for the sweets and the rose before her was any indication.

He was also surprised to learn that she’d moved here from America about five years ago and this pub was one she often frequented, yet Harry had never run into her somehow despite coming here a lot and living not too far himself.

He’s glad their paths have finally crossed tonight, though.

That being said, Jules was definitely keeping him on his toes. He never knew what she was going to say next, and she certainly did not hold back from saying exactly what was on her mind.

Harry found himself liking that about her, even if her forwardness came at his expense sometimes (he couldn’t say he didn’t deserve it). Oftentimes, people acted cautious around him and treated him differently just because of his status. Not Jules, though.

But now he could tell that she had something on her mind, from the way she looked at him then shifted her eyes elsewhere a second later.

“What is it?” He questioned, deciding to put her out of her fidgety state. He wasn’t sure what was holding her back, she certainly had no problem handing his ass to him earlier.

“It’s just,” she started, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, the movement catching Harry attention for a second before he reminded himself to be respectful, “what are you doing here by yourself tonight? I find it hard to believe that someone like you doesn’t have anyone to hang around on a day like this.”

Someone like him? Harry furrowed his eyebrows, not sure what she was implying with her words but he didn’t believe she meant it in a negative manner necessarily.

“That came out wrong, I didn’t mean anything like that,” she quickly defended, face becoming redder by the second and Harry was a little endeared by the sight. The woman before him was confident all throughout their conversation, having no fear in expressing her thoughts, yet now she was the flustered one. And Harry couldn’t help but enjoy it.

Time to give her a taste of her own medicine.

“What, thought someone like me had a flock of women at their beck and call and that I’d be off with one or some of them tonight?”

He gave her a blank look afterwards, pretending that he found offence in her words and he almost blew his cover at the way her face visibly fell.

“N-no!” she exclaimed, voice rising a few octaves and Harry could see the bartender, Jonah, suddenly flinch behind her from the sound. He pressed his lips together to silence the chuckle that threatened to escape and continued to stare Jules down.

“Of course I didn’t mean it like that,” she added in a much calmer tone, though Harry could detect that panic lacing her voice and he was starting to feel guilty. “I never believed that you were like that, I just,” she paused, averting her gaze away and staring at the lights above them instead, “never mind, just ignore me.”

Harry figured that she already knew of who he was and his status, and despite having just met her, the fact that she just said she doesn’t believe the rumours about him filled him with inexplicable warmth and he had to remind himself again that he’d only just met this woman. He shouldn’t feel anything of the sort towards her.

He could tell by the way her eyebrows were furrowed that she felt bad about what she’d said, so Harry called out her name and waited for her to look at him again.

When she did, her face holding an apprehensive look, he smiled at her and leaned a bit closer, which made little difference because there was still some space separating them.

“I was just messing with you, Jules,” he reached forward and flicked her nose, causing her to instinctively scrunch her face in a cute manner that had Harry’s stomach fluttering. “Doesn’t feel that nice now, does it?”

Jules chuckled in disbelief, wide eyes staring back at him and a smile was slowly stretching on her lips. “Touché. I see how it is then.”

Harry just shrugged, his own lips twitching as another smile threatened to appear. “Just having some fun, eh?”

Jules was now beaming at him and if Harry was standing, he was certain that his knees would’ve buckled at the sight. He already knew that Jules was gorgeous, and he was sure anyone would agree with him, but when as she smiled at him like that, eyes shining bright under the warm orange lights, brown hair cascading loosely yet somehow perfectly on her shoulders, there was no doubt in Harry’s mind that there was an angel sitting before him.

“Truce then?”

Her voice brought him back to earth and Harry chuckled before he shook her outstretched hand, marvelling for a moment at the way it felt enveloped in his. “Truce.”

“But to answer your question,” Harry said after a few beats of silence, glancing at her to find her eyes already set on him. “I didn’t have anything planned, haven’t been on many dates recently to be honest, so I just figured I’d come here and spend time with my good friend,” he lifted his drink with a wide grin on his face, “alcohol, the one thing that never let me down.”

Jules threw her head back in a laugh, the sound being music to Harry’s ears and he wished he could record it just to hear it again and again. “Amen to that.”

The two clinked their glasses together, laughing stupidly for no reason, before they threw their heads back to drink.

“Another round, then?”

Jonah suddenly appeared in front of them, startling Harry a bit. Sometimes he forgot that the man was lingering around behind the bar.

Jules took the liberty to respond for the both of them, exclaiming a “hell yeah, buddy!” that had the two men laughing, and soon enough their glasses were refilled.

After taking a sip, Harry leaned his head on the palm of his hand and set his eyes on Jules again, “So, are you a fan? Of me or of the band?”

He had to ask, he couldn’t help but wonder. If she was indeed a fan, she certainly didn’t show it.

Jules shrugged, playing nonchalant it seemed, but it didn’t escape him the way her cheeks seemed to redden. “Eh, I dabble. You’re alright.”

Her response made him chuckle. “Good to know.” Call him a narcissist, but he really wanted to know whether or not she liked his music. Perhaps he’ll inquire further later.

Because Harry knows that there’s no way he’s letting Jules go anytime soon.

Getting to know Harry was fun.

Sometime during the night, Harry had migrated from his seat onto the bar stool beside her, their thighs brushing against each other every now and then.

Tapping his fingers around his glass, Harry’s rings clinked against it and Jules couldn’t help but be slightly captivated by the action. She wasn’t one to stare at anyone’s hands, but she had to admit that Harry’s were fascinating to look at; his long and slender fingers, adorned by a number of his infamous rings, were truly a sight to see.

She took the chance to also admire his outfit, something she was too busy to do earlier on. His coat was long discarded on the stool beside him, which allowed her eyes to run over his figure. His upper body was covered by a plain white t-shirt with the word “Sex” displayed on his chest, a pair of pair of wide-legged black pants covering his long limbs; it was a simple fit yet it made it difficult for Jules to take her eyes off him. And his hair just looked so soft that her fingers were begging her to touch the fallen strands on his forehead.

Hearing Harry clear his throat broke her out of her trance and Jules realised from the smirk that stretched on his lips that she’d been caught in the act.

She tried playing it off, as if she hadn’t been shamelessly checking him out for the last couple of minutes and smoothed her hands down her dress, adjusting in her seat because honestly, her butt was starting to ache.

But she didn’t want to leave just yet.

Seeming to notice her discomfort, however, Harry downed the last bit of his drink before setting his glass down with a smack, causing Jonah, who was still lingering around them, to shoot Harry a warning glance and a low “careful!”, to which Harry smiled sheepishly before turning to face her again.

“Want to get out of here?”

Jules’ eyebrows shot upwards in surprise, having not expected him to want to continue spending the night with her.

“Sure there’s nothing else you’d rather be doing?” She couldn’t help but question, still struggling to grasp the fact that he still wanted to be around her. Her hands were fidgeting with the hem of her dress, eyes staring into his emerald ones as she waited to hear his response.

Truth be told, she was enjoying his company far much more than she had anticipated and she didn’t want to part from him just yet.

To her relief, a dimpled smile adorned Harry’s face as he took in her words before he shook his head, “Trust me, Jules, there’s no one else I’d rather be with tonight.”

She’d be lying if she said her heart didn’t skip a beat at that.

The two got up from their seats after thanking Jonah and fighting over who’s paying because Harry insisted on paying for her drinks. As she was gathering her things, she felt Harry’s presence behind her and she realised, after looking at him over her shoulders, that he was holding her coat up for her.

Heat rushed into her cheeks at the gesture, finding it sweet that he was helping her when he didn’t really have to. “Thank you,” she whispered, turning to him with a smile after feeling him adjust her hair.

His only response was a faint “No need” and he quickly turned to shrug on his own coat, the bashful smile on his lips not going unnoticed by her.

Flashing Jonah another smile, Harry extended his arm towards her and nodded his head towards the exit. “Shall we?”

“We shall.”

The two stepped into the night, the biting London air hitting Jules’ cheeks immediately and she was positive her nose was already red from the cold.

Jules reached into her pocket to grab her phone, realising that she hasn’t checked the device since she walked into the bar. There weren’t any notifications that she missed, which wasn’t surprising since her friends (all four of them) were out on dates or staying at home with their partners, so she was sure no one was thinking of her at the moment.

Noticing that it was already 8 in the evening and they were aimlessly walking down the street, Jules turned to Harry with a questioning gaze. “Where are we going?”

Leaning his head down to look at her (or perhaps to be closer, Jules wasn’t sure), he paused, seeming to think, before shrugging his shoulders. “Dunno if I’m quite honest.”

Jules found herself chuckling at him. How did her day end with her walking around with no purpose with a man she’d just met?

She looked at the sign closest to them before she turned to him and did something she rarely ever did. She found herself inviting him to her apartment because they were quite close.

A smirk found its way onto Harry’s lips and she started to regret her decision. “Already trying to get me into your bed, Juliet?”

She mentally cursed at the way her heart leaped upon hearing her name roll off his tongue. Almost no one called her Juliet anymore, except for her parents when they were being serious, but she found herself wanting to hear him say her name over and over again.

Shaking her head at the thought, Jules reached her arm out and lightly slapped his shoulder. “Oh come off it, you idiot. You can just go ahead and cry alone in your mansion if you want.”

Harry raised his hands in surrender and muttered an apology, although the smile lingered on his lips and Jules tried to ignore the fluttering feeling in her chest.

“Lead the way, then.”

“Make yourself at home, I’ll get us something to drink.”

The walk to her apartment was full of smiles and laughter. She’s come to the conclusion that Harry loves making people laugh, even if his jokes were actually awful, but she found it endearing; he was like a ray of sunshine bringing joy to those around him.

She was glad that she had cleaned up the place a couple of days ago, it would’ve been embarrassing to have someone over to see pyjamas and junk strewn over her furniture. Suffice to say, Jules was a bit of a mess around the house.

After hanging up her coat and Harry’s, she made her way into her kitchen and looked for the good wine she reserved for special occasions. She easily grabbed it, along with two glasses, but then Jules found herself lingering by the kitchen island.

It dawned on her that there was a man in her living room, and he wasn’t just anyone. This was Harry Styles, someone she’d long admired and holy shit was this really happening?

And as sad as it may sound, she’s never felt this connection with anyone before, never felt like the person before her got her and could keep up with her. Yet with Harry, it felt different, and that scared her because she’d only just met him a couple of hours ago.

And he was bound to forget all about her after tonight. He’s just looking for some company, and Jules didn’t think she was that special. Eventually, he’s going to leave. Just like everyone else.

Feeling like the black marble of the island was starting to swirl in her vision, Jules snapped out of her thoughts and sucked in a deep breath before moving back towards the living room.

Harry had his hands interlocked behind his back, perusing through her record collection and it made her inadvertently smile. She was proud of her vast collection of vinyl records, a good portion of them handed down to her by her father; they both had a deep appreciation for records that her mum often made fun of them for.

“Found anything you like?” He jolted at her voice, not having noticed her presence behind him, but then his shoulders immediately relaxed.

Turning towards her with a wide grin, Harry gestured to the shelf behind him. Jules liked the way he seemed to glow underneath the dim lights and she wished she could take a picture of this moment as a keepsake. “This is amazing, there are records here that I couldn’t even find.”

“You can thank my dad for that,” she told him, making herself comfortable on the couch but not breaking eye contact once, “he’s been collecting them for decades and I’m so glad he let me have some, like you should see his collection back home, it’s even more impressive.”

“Hope I’ll get to someday.”

His response caught her off-guard. Before Jules could react, Harry’s teasing voice carried through the room.

“You dabble, you said?” He smirked, turning the Fine Line record in hand to show her and also nodding to the space that held One Direction records. Jules groaned out loud and flopped against the back of the couch.

“A little yeah. Sue me.”

She blushed under his amused gaze, a little embarrassed that he’d found her collection of the band’s records and his own solo music.

“It’s okay,” he assured her, dimples adorning his cheeks, “think it’s cute that you’re a big fan.”

“Don’t know why that makes me cute but okay if you say so.” She mumbled under her breath, realising that he heard her when he chuckled.

“Mind if I put on something then?”

Jules shook her head, signalling for him to go ahead while she poured their drinks. Soon afterwards Stevie Nicks’ voice filled the silence and her lips tugged up at the choice.

The couch dipped beside her when Harry sat down, the scent of his cologne invading her senses. Jules doesn’t think anyone has ever smelled as good as him, but she chose to keep that thought to herself and instead handed him his drink.

A few moments of silence passed after he quietly thanked her, Stevie’s voice the only thing that can be heard.

“So,” he started, throwing an arm on the back of the couch, a shit-eating grin on his handsome face, “would I find any 1D posters if I went into your room?”

“Oh fuck you.” She threw one of the cushions at him, smiling at the way he threw his head back in laughter.

Jules did not mind his company at all.

“Hold on a minute,” Harry straightened up from his previously relaxed position on the couch, “you all work together and you see him and his new girlfriend every day?”

“Yup, you can imagine how fun that is.” She loved her job as an accountant, having always been fascinated with numbers, but she hated having to see him every day in the office across from hers.

It’s not like she hated him, they actually ended on good terms, all things considered. Leon wasn’t bad, he never cheated on her, but the feelings between them just died out, a flicker of something that dwindled into nothing. So, they were friendly with each other and that’s probably the reason why he brought her a box of chocolate and a rose.

But Juliet just didn’t like the daily reminder that she was in fact much lonelier than he was; it’s like rubbing salt in the wound.

“Shit, Jules, that must be hard,” he frowns, leaning forward to pat her hand, “I’m sorry you have to go through that.”

“It’s not that serious,” she mumbles, feeling heat rushing to her cheeks at the simple touch and she mentally cursed herself. She had sworn off men for the unforeseeable future. “I’m over him. You know, I actually think I was never really in love with him to begin with.”

“Why’d you think that?” He questions, his thumb still softly caressing her hand; Jules wasn’t sure if he was aware of that or was absentmindedly doing it. Either way, the touch warmed her.

“I think,” she started, setting her glass of wine on the coffee table so she could sink in further into the couch, the move unintentionally bringing her body closer to Harry’s. “I think I was just happy to have someone around, someone to spend time with. I’ve spent a lot of my life alone and I think I just clung onto him because he kept me company.”

A few beats of silence passed before she continued. “That makes me sound horrible, no, it’s not like I used him, I did enjoy his company and we had a lot of fun together, but I think I was just in love with the idea of him, not him.”

Harry nodded his head, leaning back and mirroring her position, “I understand. That’s how I felt in most of my relationships actually. I longed to have someone around so I wouldn’t be lonely, but I’ve learned over the years that having company doesn’t mean that you won’t feel lonely.”

“You sounded pretty heartbroken on your last record though.” If she wasn’t as inebriated as she was, Jules would have probably had some filter and wouldn’t have said that.

Luckily, Harry chuckled in response and relaxed further into the couch, retracting his hand from hers (she instantly missed the warmth), but he didn’t seem upset. “I was. I would say that I was actually falling in love with her, so I was a bit of a mess when she left me.”

His words made her frown. “I’m sorry about that.”

“Don’t know how anyone could leave you.” She muttered under her breath, forgetting that she was usually louder than normal after she’s had a few drinks.

“Could say the same thing about you.”

With her cheeks flushed, Jules forced herself to look him in the eye again. “You don’t even know me.”

“But I’d like to get to know you.” He almost instantly shot back, resting his chin on his hand and his dimples made an appearance, “I think you’re very interesting.”

“Pfft, me? Interesting?” She laughed, waving him off with her hand. “I am anything but.”

“That’s not true!” Harry vehemently denied, sounding almost offended at the thought, which admittedly made Jules’ heart skip a beat. Just a little.

“I’ve spent a few hours with you now and I can already confidently say that you’re one of the most interesting people I’ve ever met,” his eyes shone bright as she stared into them and she could somehow tell he was being sincere, “and trust me, I’ve met a lot of people.”

Dramatically placing a hand over her heart, Jules flashed him her biggest smile. “Oh how special that makes me feel, I can just die happily now.”

Even though she was being melodramatic, his words did cause Jules’ heart to flutter. In the past, some people told her she was annoying, or brash, and some others would make her feel invisible and undeserving of attention.

Harry, though, was unlike anyone she had ever known. From the moment they met, Harry made her feel like the centre of his attention, never once ignored her or brushed her off, even when she was taking the piss; his emerald eyes were always set on her, giving her his undivided attention as he listened to every word that came out of her mouth.

Jules was definitely not used to that.

Harry threw his head back in laughter, a sound that Jules found to be a beautiful melody, and gazed at her with those bright eyes. “Oh you’re insufferable, I take it back.”

She gasped in feigned shock, crossing her arms with force. “No backsies.”

Another melodic laugh left Harry’s mouth and she couldn’t stop the smile forming on her lips; right then and there, Jules decided that his laugh was one of her favourite sounds.

“Backsies?” He echoed, his tone still laced with laughter, “what are you, five?”

“Shut your pretty mouth.”

“Oh so you think I have a pretty mouth?” His smirk caused his skin to flush and she cursed herself for saying those words. She really needed to think before she spoke, something her parents always reminded her of.

She recovered quickly, bringing her glass closer to her mouth. “I mean, it’s fine, your lips are a little on the thin side but-“

“Heyyy now,” he protested, pink lips forming a pout and Jules definitely thought about kissing them at that moment. “That’s not nice.”

“Never claimed I was nice now, did I?” Jules smirked, feeling a sudden surge of confidence as she took another sip from her drink.

Jules did not miss the way Harry’s eyes seemed to darken just a little, his jaw tensing as she continued to stare him down. Harry leaned forward, mouth opening to respond when suddenly a shrill tone burst their bubble.

Patting the couch cushions, Jules was trying her hardest to forget the look on Harry’s face as she searched for her phone. Stop it, Jules, he’s an international rockstar and he won’t even remember you after tonight.

She sighed in relief when her hand made contact with the device, but that quickly turned into a groan upon seeing who the caller was. Looking back at Harry, who was leaning against the armrest simply staring at her, she shot him an apologetic look before she answered the call.

“Hey, mama” she closed her eyes, fingers pinching the bridge of her nose. Not that she was expecting anything to happen between her and Harry, but the mood was definitely ruined now.

“Hello, honey, how are you? Are you home yet?” Her mother’s calming voice sounded from the other side of the line, making her smile a bit despite the interruption. Ever since the breakup, her mom made sure to call her frequently to check up on her, even though Jules insisted that she didn’t have to.

“I am home, mom, yes,” she responded, shifting her gaze back to Harry who was now leaning his head against the back of the sofa with his eyes closed.

“Good, good. Just checking on you, cariña, how was your night then?”

“It was fine,” she paused for a second, not sure if she should mention meeting Harry now, but she decided it was best not to, “had a few drinks then went straight home. Think I’m gonna go to bed in a few actually.”

She could tell by the way Harry’s lips twitched that he was awake and listening.

“I won’t keep you up then,” some noise was in the background and she heard her mother whisper to someone, “okay, honey, good night! And your dad says good night too.”

“Good night, mama,” Jules smiled, finding herself suddenly missing her family that she hasn’t seen since the holiday season. “Tell dad I said good night too, and that he better spoil you today.”

Her mother’s laugh ringed loud on the other side, “We’re going to dinner tonight, cariña, and he even got me a large bouquet of my favourite roses! Joseph shh- Alright then, bye bye, sweets, love you!”

“Bye, mama, love you too.”

A few seconds passed after she ended the call before Harry spoke up, head tilted to the side. “That sounded sweet. Does she check up on you often?”

Jules hummed in response, resting her head sideways on the sofa so was mirroring his position. “Especially after the breakup. She just worries too much about me.”

“I don’t think she needs to,” he shot her a gentle smile, one that made her want to wrap her arms around him and bask in his warmth, “her daughter’s a very strong woman.”

Not finding any words to say in response, Jules continued tracing Harry’s features, lazily admiring the slope of his nose, the curve of his brows, the sharpness of his jawline; everything about the man before her was mesmerising.

Turning her gaze back to his eyes, Harry flashed her another smile before sitting up straight, the smile slowly dropping. “I should probably go now, it’s getting late.”

Jules immediately wanted to shout “no!” and ask him to stay, but the rational part of her mind told her that she shouldn’t, that she would only set herself up for heartbreak when he finally leaves her.

So the only thing she could say was a faint “Okay.”

As they stood up, it seemed like Harry was holding back from saying something, but she didn’t know if she was just reading too much into things. It was probably just her hazy mind (though she’d argue her head has never been clearer)

They silently made their way to her door, Jules feeling deflated at the prospect of his departure. Would they keep in touch? Would she just become a distant memory, a miserable woman he spent a lonely valentine’s day with?

“Can I-“ Harry abruptly stopped in his tracks, causing Jules to almost run into his back because she was trailing behind him. His demeanour was suddenly all shy when he turned to face her, cheeks flushed crimson.

Jules waited with bated breath and wide eyes for him to continue, heart beating loudly in her chest.

“Can I have your number?”

Relief washed over Jules and Harry visibly relaxed at the bashful smile on her lips. Jules didn’t know why he was so nervous, but the sight was so endearing to her.

She added her number after he handed her the device, secretly smiling at her contact name Juliet x. She already earned herself an x after her name after a few hours? Jules’ heart was beating so loudly she feared Harry would hear its calls for him.

Jules watched him put his shoes on, wishing the night wouldn’t end so soon and wondering if it would be too forward to ask him to stay longer.

Deep in her thoughts, Jules didn’t register that Harry was standing in front of her, bodies close enough that the scent of his cologne engulfed her senses once more.

“I should go now.” Harry whispered, leaning down and wrapping his arms around her and Jules had never felt so whole. She’s heard about Harry’s incredible hugs and now that she’s experiencing it, she never wanted to let go of his warmth.

Harry broke their embrace much too soon for her liking, but not before peppering a gentle kiss on the side of her head. “Good night, Juliet.”

Say something. Don’t let him leave. “Good night, H.”

And then he was gone and Jules was left on her own once more.

After staring longingly at the closed door, as if he would suddenly appear behind it, Jules sighed and made her way back to the living room, slumping against the couch cushions and wishing Harry’s arms were around her again.

Her phone dinged on the coffee table, signalling the arrival of a text. A simple “Hey. I really enjoyed tonight. H” was staring back at her.

Jules contemplated for a few seconds, heartbeats picking up their speed again, before she whispered “fuck it” and clicked on his number.

“Juliet?”

Deciding to go after what her heart wants for once, Jules didn’t hesitate to respond, “Do you want to-“

But an insistent knock interrupted her and Jules wanted to scream at the intrusion. Who on earth would be knocking at her door at this hour?

“Harry, hold on just-“

She takes frustrated strides to the door, ready to yell, but the sight behind it made her anger immediately evaporate.

“H-Harry? What are you doin-“

“What were you going to ask me?” He interrupted, sounding a little out of breath and she wondered if he ran all the way back to her apartment.

Feeling emboldened by his return, Jules took a few steps towards him and wrapped her arms around his neck, his hands immediately grabbing her face and pulling her closer, their lips joining together in a gentle yet eager kiss.

Jules felt her body melt in his hold. Their kiss only lasted for a few seconds before they pulled apart, still lingering so close that she could taste his wine-stained lips.

“Stay?” Jules asked, rubbing her nose against his, her heart thudding in her chest as she waited for his answer. Her words carried more weight than she had intended them to and she hoped they wouldn’t scare him off. But her worries vanished when she felt him smile widely against her lips.

“For as long as you’ll have me.”

Maybe valentine’s day isn’t so bad after all.

thank you for reading! i hope you enjoyed it and please come talk to me about Harry and Jules and tell me your thoughts!

#1dffvalentine #harry styles #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles one shot #harry styles writing #harry styles fluff #harry styles x ofc #harry styles imagines #harry styles fanfic

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boldlyanxious · 3 years ago

Text

Still Trusting

Jasonette July 17: crime boss

Follow up to Tenuous Trust

My masterlist

Jason saw her not long after he entered. He had been invited as an olive branch after he gave up his plans of vengeance. He didn't know she would be here but the idea of seeing her would have helped him make his decision on whether or not to show up. Probably not the best reasoning for decision making but he wasn't exactly known for his good choices.

He didn't approach her though. To most she would seem carefree and happy but he could see her stance was tense and her eyes constantly checked for ways to escape. Instead he headed towards the drink table to get himself something to make the night easier. He wasn't ready to approach his family yet. It was probably the night he met her that gave his family hope that the Jason they once loved was still in there somewhere.

He wasn't ready to decide if that was true. It had been a long road from his days when he thought becoming Robin was the best day of his life. His thoughts on that varied. He was better off than he would have been on the street but the cost had been paid on his own blood. He was already committing pretty theft and then some before he met Batman but now he had been the man in charge. He spotted Tim first but neither of them were ready for that meeting so Jason turned and walked away while Tim glaced around for anyone else to greet.

Jason hadn't meant to approach Marinette but there she was nervously adjusting the straw in her drink while a man in a suit proved he wasn't as slick as he thought he was. She stepped back away from his hand reaching out for her arm. Jason couldn't hear her words from where he was but her polite rejection was clear as Jason continued approaching.

"Come on Sweetheart. Just one dance." He heard.

Marinette didn't quite step back quick enough to avoid his hand on her forearm. The man stepped between her and the rest of the crowd. Jason sped up when he saw her wild eyes, clearly darting around trying to find a way out of the situation. Jason arrived and addressed Marinette as if they already knew each other. They did in a sense, but she wouldn’t know that and he didn’t want to bring up their meeting. He took her hand and tugged it away from the grip of the other man.

“There you are; wait until you see who is here,” he said loud enough for others to hear before dropping his voice to a volume only loud enough for her. “Which way do you need to go? Is there someone you trust who could help you calm down?”

Marinette looked back up at him in shock. He let go of her hand as soon as she was walking with him and she used it to point in the direction he had seen Tim go. He might be seeing his little brother sooner than either of them had planned. It would be okay in public though. Tim would not want to cause a scene and Jason didn’t want that either. He was accepting the offer of peace but he didn’t know if he was ready to be a part of the family again so soon.

He wasn’t surprised when they arrived at the other side of the room and Dick and Tim were there already trying to talk about the boring things society people were bound to talk about at such events. Jason managed to keep his groan internal but he looked around for the best way to acquire another drink. Dick saw him first.

“Jason! And Marinette!” His eyebrows shot up along with his voice’s inquisitive tone. “Did you guys just get here?”

“I got here a few minutes ago. But I ended up talking to someone over by the drink table before this man offered to help me find you,” Marinette said.

Jason wasn’t sure whether he should mention the other man’s behavior. She seemed to be more worried about causing a scene than her own comfort. But if anyone would understand why she was on edge it would be the people right here and Bruce and Alfred, possibly a few others if she had talked about her experiences.

“He seemed like he was a little too insistent for your boundaries. I was happy to help and removing you from the situation seemed more helpful than hitting him.” Jason said. “I’ll leave you to it.”

“You haven’t even had an actual conversation yet. Don’t run off.” Dick said, then pointed. “Look, there is a drink tray. That is probably what you were leaving for anyway.”

Jason conceded with a nod. Dick turned around and officially introduced Marinette. They spent a few moments talking about her recent work with Wayne Enterprises and their plans for continued work together. Jason had intended most of the night to be him forcing himself to appear interested, but he suddenly found the need to try not to appear overly interested in everything about Marinette.

He couldn’t deny he was very interested in her but he doubted that they could be involved without it getting very complicated. He already knew about a dark period in her life that she likely rarely talked about and he should keep his past hidden from her. He watched her try to cover her blushing face when Dick and Tim continued to sing her praises. There is no way she would be interested in a crime boss or a reformed one after what she had been through..

Jason looked up as Bruce walked up. Dick and Tim had turned back to their earlier conversations and Marinette turned to greet Bruce. Jason really couldn’t get away without the awkward interaction that was about to happen, it felt oddly reminiscent of that night on the rooftop with the 3 of them. He wondered if Bruce felt the same way. Whatever he felt was quickly covered by his public mask. Jason was happy to see that Marinette seemed to have calmed down after her interaction. He shocked himself and everyone else at the next break in conversation by asking her to dance.

He hadn’t danced in many years but he always had some skill. He wouldn’t be able to tell her that his most recent experience was from the League of Assassins as a necessary deception and reconnaissance skill but she still seemed to be enjoying herself. He should be talking but he couldn’t think of what to say. He could feel her pressed against him and moving to the music and he lost all ability to make conversation. She didn’t seem to mind. Her face was completely serene and she didn’t seem to even realize he nor anyone else was there so he just let her have her moment.

After returning her to the group, he excused himself. It had been several years since he had been inside Wayne Manor. He couldn’t bring himself to wander through all the rooms he had known growing up. He might like to see Alfred in the kitchen but he would prefer not to pass by all the memories that haunted him. He chose instead to go to the garden. The air was much cooler out here than the warmth in the ballroom and there was a pleasant breeze. He passed by the benches and found a tree that he used to climb.

It had changed and was taller and wider now, much like him. He found some comfort in that. He sat and leaned against it and sighed as he closed his eyes. It was a few minutes before he heard someone approaching. He had expected someone to follow him out but he was surprised when she spoke after standing silent for a few minutes. He would have guessed Dick or that Bruce would send Alfred. He wondered if she had come to find him or if she had been sent as an emissary.

“It’s a nice night.” she said softly.

“It is. Shame the event is indoors.”

“I’m not sure it would be as nice if everyone was out here. I like the quiet.”

“True. Did you enjoy the party anyway?”

“Mostly. I don’t seem to have as much energy to be social for the whole night.”

“I feel the same. I always like to take a break and go back when everyone has enjoyed the party too much so I can laugh at them.”

He loved her laugh and that she felt relaxed enough to laugh.

“I’ve not seen you at any of the other events. I’ve been to several over the past few months.”

“I missed a few. But I think I might be at more of them in the future.”

“Since you’re not busy being a crime boss anymore.”

He looked up at her and she met his eyes and held his gaze. When he looked down she sat down against a different tree facing him.

“Did someone tell you or were you able to figure it out.”

“No one told me. ‘Jason’ was always talked about in hushed tones and there was always a long story that no one wanted to tell. But I recognized you. It took time for the things to connect. The look you had on your face when you helped me get away from the man earlier. But mostly I recognized your voice.”

“Usually that would be distorted. I wonder if Batman has that problem.”

“He would never admit it. But I wouldn’t do anything to give you or him away. You saved my life and he helped me stay safe after. I saw enough to know that the threats were very real.”

“They are both dead now and not a threat to you.”

She nodded rather than responding and then they sat in silence again for several minutes before she spoke again.

“How did it happen?” she asked. “The story no one wants to tell. Will you tell me?”

He paused before responding. But then he started from the beginning and told her the whole story from his initial meeting with Batman as a child to his death and resurrection and finally his time as a crime boss. She listened mostly in silence except for a few reactions and utterances to help him. He hadn’t even realized she had moved so close to him. She was holding his hand when he finished. He looked back into her eyes and she was looking at him with such understanding. He used his other hand to brush her wisps of hair away from her temple. He was surprised when she responded by leaning forward and kissing him.

He didn’t want to question whether that was the right response or why she had done it. He just leaned into her and enjoyed it when she didn’t stop with the simple brush of their lips. He hoped she wouldn't regret the impulse and wished it could continue longer but they could hear someone approaching so they pulled away. Jason stood and held out his hand to help her to her feet and he was surprised she didn’t immediately pull her hand back. So they walked back into the ballroom with Dick and got their opportunity to laugh at all the people who had dissolved their inhibitions with too much champagne. She was laughing beside him and he was happy that it was with him.

Taglist

#jasonette july 2021 #maribat #jasonette #meet cute #boldlyanxious

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