#anyway happy belated holidays i guess | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

lightlycareless · 1 year ago

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happy new year y'all and belated xmas I guess due to the theme of this oneshot lmao. I never get inspiration for these things unless on the actual day; can you believe that?

anyways, I hope you will still be able to enjoy this little thing i wrote :> I call it "Naomi's first xmas" (a.k.a your daughter with Naoya).

Warnings: none. fluff. your dad being a goofball.

Enjoy!

“I don’t think many people are going to come.”

“Who did you invite?”

“You know, the usual, but I doubt he’s going to show up, as always.”

“Then I won’t make more.”

“… well, do a bit more, a tiny bit, just in case.”

Coming from the kitchen, you heard your siblings, Hinata and Ren, discuss the last preparations for Christmas Eve dinner.

Every year, planning around these holidays would go down the same way: Ren was designated to be the leader of sorts, making the decisions that ranged from what kind of decoration would be used around the house to what they’d have for dinner.

Back in the day it would be your parents, (and then just Eiichi, of course), the one in charge of all that; but as of recent years Ren decided to take on that responsibility simply for the sense of comfort this familiarity brought him; and because he genuinely enjoyed doing so—also, because he’d spent last Christmas’ with his wife, Kanon, and felt like he needed to something to make up for those holidays he spent apart from his family.

From there, Hinata. She… Well, she’d try her best to be around the holidays to begin with, since work was always hectic for an accomplished sorceress around this time. Now add to that that she’s also an heiress of a somewhat important clan! And that’s just all year round.

Yet, she’d always manage, either through overworking herself days prior, or because she has excellent time management skills—thus, when she does find herself back home, she’d be the one to send out invitations and general holiday greetings.

And lastly, you. Alongside your father, you’d be the one to set up the decorations and buy gifts. It was your favorite activity to do during the holiday season, after spending time with your family of course. Something about seeing what new seasonal merchandise stores had always filled you with excitement, as well as an urge to get everything before it sold out!

But this year, you’d impose a limit on yourself; and not because you came to the realization that this might’ve been getting a bit out of control, but rather, because your attention now dwelled on something more important.

It’s what made this year’s holidays all too special compared to the rest: it was your daughter’s first Christmas.

It was safe to say that everyone held the same excitement as you and Naoya had when it came to seeing her reaction to everything Christmas.

She already had her first Halloween, which had been a total success as seen by her toothy grin while wearing that adorable costume you got her—something you’ll forever remember thanks to the endless pictures you took, the same ones your father and siblings demanded you’d share, quickly becoming everyone’s phone wallpaper.

In other words, the anticipation to see what Naomi will be wearing/doing for the holidays was much greater than that of the actual presents—although for you and Naoya, getting to spend time together as a family was more than enough.

“Do you need help with anything?” you’d ask, looking over Hinata’s shoulder; Ren had been earnestly debating whether to prepare more food, or not, for those yet-to-confirm guests. He didn’t mind having to do more, he just didn’t like the notion that it might go to waste.

But even then, he knew that between Hinata, you, and him, that wouldn’t be an issue.

“Yes—bring Naomi-chan!” Hinata says, swiftly turning around while grinning.

“I meant, with dinner.” You chuckle.

“Aw, then why you’d ask?” your sister frowns.

“She’s asleep right now, Hinata. Why would you even ask something so selfish?” Ren teases.

“I just want to see my adorable niece.” Hinata whines. “It’s all I want for Christmas!”

“Get in line, then.” Ren smirks, moving from one side of the counter to the other before placing a tray into the oven. “Do you plan to dress her up this time?”

“Not in a costume per say, but yes! Got everything set up already; but I’ll change her after Naoya and dad are back.” You respond.

“Oh, can we at least get a sneak peek?!” Hinata begs, you shake your head.

“It’s a surprise.” You smile, Hinata groans.

“Aghhhhh, then they better hurry up!”

Normally, everyone would’ve remained at the house by that point, with the occasional exception of going to the store to buy some last-minute things, but even then, it was still very rare since Ren diligently accounted for everything the moment he set his mind to it.

However, this Christmas would continue to prove itself different by a landslide, starting with the absence of your father and Naoya.

Circling back to the fact that this was to be Naomi’s first Christmas, Naoya promised himself to do everything in his power to make it extra special.

Such as by getting her all the presents in the world: toys, dolls, plushies, or anything that pertained to her favorite character—and even though some of them weren’t really suitable for her young age, Naoya brushed off any doubts by saying:

“What if it’s a limited-edition item and by the time she’s older it’s no longer available? Yeah, no, I’m not risking my little princess being upset because of my insolence. I’m buying it.”

The same excuse he’d when also getting her things that simply caught her interest; just to be sure she had them whenever she eventually began to like them.

But as happy as you were to see Naoya happily indulging your baby, there were moments where the thought of him perhaps going a bit overboard with the presents crossed your mind…

Yet, as always, he’d reassure you with the following:

“This is only the bare minimum for Naomi—and even then, it is not enough!”

And with that, you’d only chuckle, understanding that even if you asked him to control himself a bit, he would just proceed to spoil her again.

Looks like there’s no definite way to beat a father’s determination when it comes to making his daughter happy…

And talking about fathers…

Because Naomi was Eiichi’s first grandchild + her first Christmas, it was only natural that just like Naoya, he’d want to make this celebration as special as it could be—just as he always did year round.

However, one thing would still manage to surprise you out of all this, and it wasn’t their unconditional adoration towards Naomi, (which you were eternally grateful for) but rather… the unspoken competition that sparked between your husband and father to show said affection.

For example, whatever Naoya bought for Naomi, your father would get two, even in different colors, in case one of them broke down or got lost, or something between the two

“Just in case” Eiichi would say when confronted if this was really necessary.

It definitely irked your husband much more than he would like to admit, a consequence of his highly competitive and overprotective nature…

Yet, Naoya knew very well that there was no true maliciousness behind his actions, for your father was only being affectionate and caring—if anything, he was glad that she had a loving family to endlessly dote on her; a contrasting difference to how the Zen’in normally behaved.

But going back to the reason for their absence, in their excessive purchase of presents they had failed to realize that shipped items may face a delay due to the high amount of work the postal service is put under throughout this season.

The shock on their faces when finding out that Naomi might not be able to open all her presents on Christmas day is one that you’ll never forget—although it amused you more than anything else.

This issue would just remind you how resourceful they were, because by some strange, unknown efforts, they were able to get her presents just in time—like, on the very day of Christmas eve, which is why they were out, scampering to the postal office to pick up her things, subsequently wrapping them and placing them underneath the Christmas tree; and all before Naomi could notice they weren’t even there to begin with.

“Realistically, I don’t think she’s going to notice.” You say upon noticing their stress, an attempt to alleviate some of their burdens.

“But still—we can’t have her believe Santa likes others better!” Eiichi countered, and Naoya silently agreed. “Y/N, do you think—"

“Already ahead of you.” You smile, willing to go along. “She’ll probably be taking a nap either way, so don’t worry. Naomi won’t see a thing!”

… But will they be back soon?

[Naoya: We’re almost there, just finished wrapping the presents.]

[Y/N: Oh, that’s good. I was beginning to worry that something happened! Anyways, the food is almost done, all that’s missing is you and dad. Please come back quickly, baby ☹ Naomi and I miss you.]

[Naoya: I’m almost there, my love. However… there’s something I need to tell you first.]

[Y/N: What is it? Is everything ok?]

[Naoya: Yes, but it's about your dad.]

[Y/N: … What about him?]

[Naoya: Your dad is coming back later.]

[Y/N: Huh? What do you mean he's coming back later? What happened to my dad?]

[Naoya: Nothing bad, I swear, I know how this sounds but don’t worry about it. Just… well, you'll know what I mean.]

And a few minutes later, Naoya finally arrives, bringing along a huge bag filled with what you imagined to be (largely) Naomi’s presents, colorfully wrapped boxes of all sizes which he scurried to organize underneath the tree before anything else—He didn’t mean to walk past you without even acknowledging you, of course not, but he had to make haste of the fact that Naomi was still asleep.

But once that was set, he was finally able to greet you as his heart desired, swiftly walking over to your side as he took you into his arms, leaning down to sweetly peck your lips.

“Welcome back, dear.” You smile, placing your hands on the sides of his face and pulling him closer to you before helping him out his coat. “How was the trip? Chaotic?”

“Yes, last minute-shoppers.” He sighs, resting his face against the crook of your neck once free of his coat before groaning. “Don’t know why people tend to leave everything to the end, it’s—annoying. And to think they almost cost my daughter her first Christmas!”

You chuckle, kissing the top of his head while rubbing his back.

“Well, you won’t have to deal with them anymore—Or anyone else but us for the next few days.” you say, reminding him of his small break from work. Truly, a Christmas miracle.

From that day forward, until he has to go back of course, it’s just him, Naomi, and you.

“That sounds like a dream.” He admits, leaning back to get a good look at you and smiling. “Naomi is still asleep, right?”

“Yes, she is—napping in the bedroom.” You grab his hand, intertwining your fingers with his. Then, you look over his shoulder, noticing a peculiar absence. “By the way… I’m assuming dad is not here because of the thing you told me?”

Naoya nods.

“What happened?”

He presses his lips together.

“… he told me he needed to do something else before returning.” Naoya begins, in such a suspicious way that obviously makes your anxiety rise even higher.

Your husband is quick to catch your reaction, but he's even quicker to reassure you.

“I wish I could tell you more, mochi, but he told me to keep it a secret. It’s nothing bad, just… play along, ok?” Naoya says, kissing your cheek.

Well, you know it could never be anything bad if it came from either your father or husband.

But if so, why such secrecy? It really unnerved you, especially for the time this was taking place in…

“Will I get to know eventually?” is all that you ask, he nods.

“Very soon.”

But if it was of utmost importance they keep this a secret, then you’ll trust them. And soon, you leave it at that.

“Do you think they’ll like our little surprise?” Naoya asks, changing the subject.

“Of course.” You grin, excitement beaming through your words. “Kept it a secret until now so no one suspects a thing!”

“I still can’t believe.” Naoya smiles, kissing your lips once more. “It's really happening.”

“I just hope my dad will be here to see it…”

“Why is dad still not back home?” Hinata asks upon noticing the elephant in the room: Ren had just taken out the last tray from the oven, began to prepare the food to be served, yet Eiichi was nowhere to be found.

Certainly uncommon from someone who treasures family above anything else.

“I thought he was only going to pick up some things.” she adds.

“Right, Naoya?” Ren says, with an accusatory tone that immediately makes your husband nervous.

“Ye—yeah…” he murmurs, eyes darting around the room for your support, only to panic when realizing you also have yet to come back from Naomi, away readying her for the evening now that she woke up. “He said he’ll be back soon.”

“Heard anything from him yet?” Hinata asks for the nth time at that moment. He shakes his head.

“Just that he’s almost done.” Naoya responds, trying his best to not feel intimidated by them. Even after years of being married to you, and now father of your child, your siblings always found ways to tease him; all in a playful nature, of course. “Anyways, Naomi should be ready soon…”

“Oh, that’s true! Y/N’s getting baby Naomi ready, isn’t she?” Hinata gushes, completely discarding the dilemma with her father out the window and focusing on what she considers the highlight of the day, no, year! “I wonder what adorable outfit she’ll wear today! Can you give us a hint at least, Naoya??”

The ball is on his court this time, and Naoya plans to take advantage of that.

“No can do.” He says, a smile on his face. Revenge is served when Hinata groans. “Not even I know what she’s planning.”

“How… mysterious” Ren murmurs. “First dad, and now Y/N… if I didn’t know any better, it seems like they’re plotting something together.”

“No, that can’t be.” Naoya immediately says, and as if his behavior wasn’t suspicious already, Ren and Hinata are now completely convinced that your husband is hiding something. “I mean, Y/N doesn’t know what’s going on either so….”

“Well, I’m sure we’ll figure it out soon enough.” You suddenly say, having arrived just a few seconds ago as you stand by the entrance; with a big grin on your face and the perception of hiding something behind you. “Is the food ready?”

“Y/N.” Naoya breathes; hopeful at the sight of his salvation. At least he’ll be away from being further interrogated by your siblings and jeopardizing the mission.

He wishes to walk over to you, but knowing the intention behind your approach, as well as noticing the eager look on your face, he stays still.

“It is… but only for those that bring Naomi-chan!” Hinata exclaims as she tries to look over your shoulder, you moving along her eyes. “Where is she? Still asleep?”

“Not quite.” You say, giving your husband one last glance, a tight smile that tells him just how excited you were, a sentiment he also shared, which he responds with a reassuring nod.

So, gathering all your courage, you clear your throat, take a deep breath, and then, address your siblings.

“Naoya and I wanted to keep this a surprise for today, since we thought it was quite fitting.” You begin. “I was hoping for everyone to be here, but if I don't do it now, I fear it might spoil itself.”

“What surprise?” Ren asks, and with that, you move to the side, letting your small surprise step into the picture.

Dressed in a green and red linen romper over a long sleeved white collared shirt, with a bow of the same fabric decorating her dark hair, your daughter Naomi tightly held onto your leg as she walked beside you.

Her legs were a bit wobbly, with one of her arms occasionally stretching out as to keep balance, while the other tightly held onto your hand for safety—Yet her determination to continue forward remained unwavering, as well as the excitement of your family when seeing their beloved niece finally taking her first steps!

Kind of.

“She can—she can walk already?!” Hinata is the first to exclaim, crying at the adorable way Naomi tried to follow your lead. “When—when did this happen???”

“She can.” You say, trying your best to not pick her up, hug her, and kiss her all over her soft cheeks! After all, Naomi was very determined to keep walking once she discovered she could, a fact that made her advancement impossible to hide from the rest of the world since she wanted to do nothing but explore her new skill!

There's no doubt in your mind that if she keeps up like this, she'll be able to run in no time! And from there…

Oh, can't she stay a baby forever?

“Naomi only started walking a few weeks ago.” Naoya says as he walks over to the two, solely intending to accompany both and be there if Naomi were to fall, but he ends up leaning down to grab her hand instead, for as soon as he was near, she reached out for him.

A sight that almost made everyone's heart burst out of their chest at the sheer adorableness of it.

“Ho—how?” Hinata asks, still not believing her eyes.

“She just… pulled herself up one day, kept trying until she was able to do it, and the rest is history!” You happily recount her efforts, as well as the adorable pout she’d make when trying. “Whenever we tried to help her though, she always rejected us, guess she wanted to do it herself— she takes after her papa in that matter.”

Naoya chuckles; he won’t deny his stubbornness.

“Owww, I can’t help it, I need to hug her!!” Hinata cries, swiftly running over to Naomi and unwittingly startling Naomi, who cowered behind her dad soon after. A sight that effectively snaps Hinata out of trance, kneeling to her level to softly hug her and utter endless endless apologies. “I’m so sorry, Naomi-chan, I didn’t mean to scare you, please forgive me!”

She begs while kissing her cheeks, which at first confuses Naomi, enough to attempt to push Hinata away… until her gestures begin to tickle her, making her stop and giggle in turn, seemingly leaving all misunderstandings behind.

“I can’t believe she’s growing so fast…” Ren says, walking over to the rest and carefully pinching Naomi’s cheeks once Hinata frees her; this makes her giggle too. “It seems like only yesterday we were getting you ready to go to the hospital.”

“And now, she’s almost a year old.” Naoya concurrs, looking at you.

He too can’t believe that almost a year has passed since she arrived in this world, since she made their life happier—better. Truly, it almost seemed like a dream, however, the truth would prove much, much better this time around.

This wasn’t a figment of his imagination: this was his life. And he wouldn’t want it any other way.

“We need to prepare everything for her birthday!” Hinata declared. “I can already think of a few places we can do her party! How about it, Y/N? Picture this—”

“Let’s do a celebration at a time, Hinata.” Ren chuckles, you doing the same soon after, finding her enthusiasm amusing. “We’re still not even done with Christmas, let alone New year… Which makes me ask, where’s dad? Are we to eat without him? This is the first time he’s ever been this late…”

The look of concern you and your siblings direct at Naoya is what finally pushes him to disclose what he and Eiichi agreed to keep a secret.

“I wasn’t supposed to tell, but the reason why Eiichi-san is late is because he—”

“Ho, ho, ho!!”

A loud voice, followed by heavy footsteps making their way through the entrance are heard, followed by a soft thud and another cheer.

“Merry Christmas!!”

Everyone’s head swirls into its direction, expectantly hoping to see the one behind these unanticipated actions.

Yet, it’s only you who manages to recognize who it was, as well as the nature of their actions.

And boy, was it a surprise when the truth finally settled in.

“Oh my god…” it’s all you could muster in reaction as the guest continues on with their rally.

“I heard that here lived an adorable baby girl that behaved very well this year!” Santa Claus would continue to say, grinning as he took some presents out of the large bag he carried along and placed them underneath the tree, before turning around towards the intrigued, if not slightly embarrassed, family staring at him, searching for said girl. “And because she was such a good girl, I wanted to personally come here and give her her pres—”

But when his eyes finally fall onto Naomi, Santa Claus immediately goes silent, intently staring at her for a few seconds before coming to the same conclusion that had everyone in shock, eyes widening as he shrieks.

“SHE CAN WALK!???”

Any suspicions that the man dressed up as Santa Claus was in fact, your father, are quickly verified by his reaction, further cemented when he rushes over to her, swiftly picking her up in a hug to coo at Naomi’s advancements.

“Oh, Naomi-chan!! When did you begin to walk?!” He’d ask, feeling a combination of happiness, nostalgia, and even heartache—for he was both glad and sad that his grandbaby was growing up. “Had I known, I would’ve gotten you more presents!!”

Everyone knew that the man behind this amusing spectacle was none other than your dad, per usual goofy Eiichi nature, by this point. However, there was still one person that remained in doubt, and that would be none other than Naomi herself.

Even if she was an impressionable young child, there were still a handful of things that didn’t necessarily catch her attention; unless it pertained to those of her favorite characters, of course.

But returning to her distaste, the most noticeable icon of this festive season fell into that list; she just… didn’t like him. Ignored him whenever possible; yet, there was still a catch: if her favorite mascot was dressed as Santa Claus, then Naomi couldn’t have enough of him!

Neither you nor Naoya knew why she did so, but it just happened, and the two grew to accept that fact, just as everything else.

Unfortunately, it seems that both had forgotten to tell your father about this small detail, and what Eiichi hoped to be a heartwarming experience for his beloved granddaughter, soon turned sour, specially when her big round golden eyes began to water after noticing that no matter how much she tugs, this stranger was not letting her go.

“Oh, little pumpkin, no!” Eiichi gasps, feeling like absolute garbage when Naomi continues attempting to push him away. “It’s me! It’s grandpa!”

“There’s no way for her to know that—take the beard off!” Ren exclaims, and in one swift movement, Eiichi strips the white beard off his face, discarding it to the side and revealing his face for Naomi to see.

“See, little pumpkin? It’s me!” he repeats whilst frantically hoping that he hadn’t irrevocably messed up. “It’s me! Granpa!”

And as if she understood what he meant, Naomi finally glances back at him, staring at him for a few moments in what many considered both curiosity and fear… which slowly shifted into adoration once finally recognizing her beloved grandpa, and subsequently hugging him.

“Yes! I knew you’d recognize me!” Eiichi softly cries as he leans down to kiss the top of her head, making her giggle in response. Your heart melts at the sight of Naomi warming up to your father, while Naoya sighs, relieved that this didn’t escalate any further.

“Without the beard, it would be almost impossible not to.” Hinata teases, and your dad frowns, trying to understand what your sister meant—she and Ren only laugh.

“Ah, but my sweet adorable little pumpkin, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you.” Eiichi would continue to say, feeling very, very regretful for his actions. However, it seemed that Naomi no longer paid mind to that, giving the understanding that she knew it wasn’t intentional, or cared more to be with her favorite grandpa.

And while that went down, you look over to Naoya, moving closer to his ear to whisper:

“Is this what you were referring to?”

Naoya hums, nodding. You chuckle.

“I should’ve told him.” He says, and you give him a soft smile, squeezing his hand.

There was no way he could’ve known, but after this happened, alongside Naoya’s growing guilt, he began to believe that maybe he should’ve…

But truth to be told, Naoya didn’t have the heart to ruin Eiichi’s enthusiasm, after all, no one from the Zen’in clan bothered to care about anything but the bare minimum when it came to Naomi, while your father consistently went above and beyond for his family.

So because of that, when Eiichi told him of the little surprise he was preparing for his daughter, with such excitement that told your husband how much he wanted to do this … Naoya allowed him to go through with it.

Because at the end of the day, anyone that has your and Naomi’s happiness and safety in mind, he’ll always welcome—and he’s long come to see that your family wants nothing but that for the three.

“Does she not like Santa?” Ren asks now that the situation has calmed down.

“It seems so—it’s why we haven’t been able to get a picture of the two.” You explain, reminiscing how you’d have to cancel a photo appointment because Naomi didn’t want to be near Santa Claus, not even when you and Naoya were there.

“Ah, well, Santa is overrated anyways!” Eiichi says, more than ready to discard this silly costume if it meant baby Naomi would no longer be afraid of him.

“How… ironic of you to say that.” Ren adds with a chuckle.

“Unless you’re dressed as—“ you begin.

“Hello kitty.” You and Naoya speak in unison.

“Naomi really likes Hello Kitty.” Naoya finishes.

At the revelation, Hinata grins.

“You like cats too?” Your sister asks, lightly tickling Naomi, she giggles in response. “When you’re old enough, I’ll give you a cat—how about that, hm?”

“Ehh, I’ll hold that thought for now.” You intervene before Hinata could continue on with her promises. While you would’ve loved for your sister to spoil your daughter, two particular reasons pushed you to stop: first, this was a decision that should be previously consulted with the parents, and secondly, Naoya already planned to gift Naomi a kitty himself—one that would resemble the character as closely as possible—when she was old enough to take care of it.

“You’re getting ahead of yourself again, Hinata. There’s still gifts to open.” Ren says, gesturing over to the boxes underneath the tree, and those still inside Eiichi’s bag.

“Yes! I want my adorable granddaughter to open all of them first!” Eiichi would say, handing Naomi over to her father once she began to gesture her desire to be carried by him. The way she rests her head over his shoulder makes Naoya smile.

“But first, let’s eat dinner—I didn’t spend all this time preparing food for no one to take a bite!” Ren says, the group agrees, and soon, preparations for dinner begin.

Hinata would help you set up Naomi’s chair, placing it just between Naoya and you, while you went ahead to get your daughter’s food—the slow transition of feeding her with a cup instead of a bottle had just begun a few weeks ago, and with great feedback, you just hope it continued on steadily.

Eiichi, on the other hand, rushed to his bedroom to quickly change out of his costume and adequately help Ren serve dinner.

Once everyone was seated and with their respective plates, dinner finally began.

The evening would go on wonderfully, with everyone relishing on the delicious delicacy Ren had prepared, as expected, while sharing anecdotes that made you both laugh or fluster, depending on who was the one telling them: how your dad always managed to make everyone embarrassed is something that you’ll never figure out—certainly, a talent of his own—before moving onto comparing the similarities between Naomi and her parents once she does a particular gesture that Eiichi had to point out.

“Well, I didn’t want to say anything, but I think Naomi is starting to take more after you in that aspect.” Naoya would tease.

“No, she does not!” you gasp, referring to the habit Naomi had of pouting when things didn’t go her way. Sure, you might’ve done it once or twice when you were younger, but…

No, surely not.

Unless…?

“Or does she…?”

“A bit. She has to take after you. I was never that cute when I was a kid.” He reiterated; you smile, trying to hide your blush.

“Really? I always thought she looked more like you.” You confess. Always hoped that she would…

“She looks just like the two, actually.” Eiichi added. “But I do have to say, that out of the two, Naomi looks a bit more like—”

“Naoya” an unaccounted voice coming from the entrance was heard, making those at the table quickly turn around to see who it was, even little Naomi, as if she knew that no one was expecting anyone else to show up —especially the one that after years and years of being invited, never attended.

“Satoru!” Hinata gasps, perhaps the most perplexed one out of the group; at one point she even felt as if had hallucinated seeing him there. “I didn’t think you—what are you doing here?”

“I’m visiting my other family! I know we’re not together anymore, but I still hold everyone dear, you know?” He jests and Hinata sighs. Seems that not even during Christmas time would the god’s honor your sister’s request of making Satoru a bit less annoying. Not that much, just… a little.

Truly, she was better off asking for literally anything else but a miracle.

“We weren’t even married…” Hinata murmurs, not that it mattered at that point anyways, less when Satoru moved on to greet Eiichi and Ren (who were rather amicable to say the least, still speechless for seeing him show up after years of absence) before stopping by you, Naoya, and Naomi—lips parting onto a grin when seeing the new family.

“And who is this? Chibi Y/N?? Wow, look at how much she’s grown! I still remember her when she was nothing but a little baby! How old is she now?”

“You’d know if you’d respond to my messages.” You respond, a smirk on your face as Satoru pouts. “Or come to the party I threw for her 6th month birthday…”

“Hey, I got her a gift! That’s bound to mean something, right?” Satoru pinches Naomi’s left cheek, causing her to frown and whine. “Ah, you’re just as moody as Naoya; Thank God she looks more like you, Y/N. Imagine if we’ve gotten two Naoya instead of you? The Zen’in would go insane!”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Naoya frowns.

“Didn’t you just say she looked more like him?” you raise an eyebrow, Satoru shrugs.

“Huh, did I?” He feigns ignorance, you roll your eyes. “Must’ve slipped my mind… anyways, I got everyone presents!”

You now notice the bag he was carrying; didn’t seem that big, but it did look like it was full.

“Especially for chibi Y/N” Satoru hands you over the bag, which Naoya takes soon after standing up—your theories of the bag being full are proved right when your husband notices how heavy it was.

You sigh.

Even if Satoru is what many considered imprudent, he was still goodhearted. And so, you motion Naoya to take the presents to the tree.

“Thank you, Satoru. I’m sure Naomi will appreciate your gift.” You say, a smile on your face.

“If you didn’t get her anything weird, of course.” Ren adds. At the noise of his voice, Satoru can’t help but unintentionally tense up—your brother always had an effect on him that made him feel like a cornered kid. In that sense, everyone was relieved that there was one person that could ground Satoru to reality. “Unless…”

“No, of course not.” Satoru quickly says, laughing nervously. “Who do you think I am??”

Everyone remains quiet as they silently judge him—even little Naomi, who couldn’t possibly know what he was referring to, joined in on the bewildering scrutinizing crusade against him; there’s no doubt in his mind now that she is a L/N.

“Have you eaten anything?” You’d move on. “The food is still warm if you want some.”

“Sit down, I’ll serve you some.” Ren would say before Satoru could even answer, which prompted the Gojo heir to finally accept his offer and take the last available seat, the one besides your father.

Once getting his food, dinner would go as it went before, prompting more stories now that Satoru joined in, with the slight difference that Hinata was now the center of attention.

You undoubtedly knew that your sister was much more than she was letting on, but these anecdotes from when she was a student at jujutsu high were far better than you ever imagined; she sure had everyone fooled with the responsible and dedicated image she made for herself!

But even then, they’d have nothing on your father when he began to tell his own stories: who would’ve known that the goofy, lovable man that your father was had actually lived through his fair share of mischief? Seems that even after years of knowing him, there were still many things to discover about him!

It made you and Naoya wonder what kind of reaction Naomi would have once she learned of your own adventures; the thought that either of you (Or maybe even the two) could become the uncool parent makes you chuckle.

Maybe your dad was right, maybe this was some kind of rite of passage one must go through when becoming a parent.

After sharing enough anecdotes, now began the most exciting part of the night—opening the presents.

Tensions were already high when it came to the silent competition going on between your father and your husband, but with the unexpected addition of Satoru, this just raised the stakes: they all wanted Naomi to open their presents first.

Luckily, they were still able to listen to reason when you suggested that the best way to solve this was to let Naomi choose by herself, nothing of persuading her to choose theirs or anything of the sorts—simply letting her walk towards the box she found most interesting and let everything else fall into place.

It was endearing to see how happily she reacted to the fact that (mostly) all the presents underneath the tree were there for her, as well as the cheerful way she began to open them, alongside the help of her papa, of course, for she still wasn’t strong enough to do it herself.

You once considered your dad and mom to be a bit… well, exaggerated whenever they’d take endless pictures of you and your siblings when doing anything—but now that you and Naoya had Naomi in your life… their actions no longer seemed overstated as they once did. If anything, you grew to understand why they’d done so and if anything, it inspired you to do the same!

To see her chubby face beam whenever seeing her new toys and plushies was one you’d never replace for anything, more so when she got to see all of the presents her daddy got her.

No one knew Naomi better than her own father, thus every single thing Naoya got for her was to be Hello Kitty themed: from socks, to shirts, plushies and even accessories—anything that his baby wanted, he’d get. In all the possible variations of her favorite Sanrio character.

Which made Ren, Hinata, and your dad a bit nervous, for it seemed that Naoya had the gift department well covered, making it almost impossible to compete…

But you’d reassure them that Naomi, alongside you and Naoya, were wholeheartedly grateful for their attention and gestures, and that she’d love them all the same.

But outside of that, the thing that perhaps intrigued everyone the most was Satoru’s present. As previously stated, he had a tendency of gifting… Well, odd things, and that was the easy way to put it.

From objects that you have yet to find a use to, to things that you would rather die than to be seen in public with them, Satoru was unpredictable as unpredictable as he could be.

Thus, everyone understood why Naoya took it upon himself to open Satoru’s present, even if it made Naomi whine in response.

“I just gotta make sure there’s nothing wrong with it, little princess.” Naoya explains, hoping that this would ease Naomi’s rising irritation—it kind of did, but she’d only calm down when Satoru’s gift was eventually revealed:

A Digimon plushie, from the character known as koromon, to be precise.

“Huh, I guess you are capable of doing normal things.” Hinata would say, Satoru scoffs.

“Don’t you mean better things, Hinata?” He teases back, Hinata rolls her eyes.

“Thank you, Satoru.” You say, looking at him. “But you know that in this household we only like Pokémon.”

“Not if I influence her early on!” Satoru grins—but really, he was just happy to see Naomi wholeheartedly enjoying his gift, which she latched onto as soon as Naoya handed it to her.

“As if I’d let you do that.” Naoya says. “Maybe if you had good taste in anime…”

Ren laughs. “Can’t argue with that.”

“Ah, stop it all of you… it was a nice gift.” Eiichi would intervene, making Satoru pout and cry, before rushing over to hug him.

“Oh, thank you so much!” he’d dramatically gasp, tightly holding onto your father. “I knew someone would appreciate my efforts!”

Eiichi presses his lips together before sighing. He’s long come to understand that it was better to not fight it than to do so, because whenever your dad managed to push Satoru away, he’d always come back, and stronger too.

But even with this, Eiichi was happy to have his family back together, reunited and having a good time: the one thing he always wanted for Christmas.

Everyone would continue on opening the rest of the presents, that is, until Naomi began to feel tired as seen by the way her eyes slowly blinked, yawning every so often, before leaning her head onto Naoya’s chest, breathing softly until she finally fell asleep.

At the sight everyone couldn’t help themselves from cooing, (albeit not too loud in fear of waking her up) as well as take it as a sign to call it a day; everyone had been up since early to get everything done, so it was only normal that they’d begin to feel a bit tired too, Naomi’s yawns were only there to make it more obvious.

“We can continue tomorrow.” Your father would say, referring to the left-over presents still underneath the tree. “It is kind of late.”

“And I still have to call Kanon.” Ren said, looking over to his clock—still a bit of time before she heads to sleep. “Think you can help me pick up, Hinata?”

“Yeah.” she nods, standing up.

“Let me help too.” You offer, standing up as well, he shakes his head.

“No, I’d rather not keep you away from Naomi.” He says. You frown, feeling as if you’ve barely done anything this year… “You can repay me tomorrow.”

“Alright, then.” you smile before sighing, looking over to Naoya carrying a deeply asleep Naomi. “Guess we’re off to bed.”

“Goodnight Naomi-chan!” Hinata whispers with a grin.

“Goodnight, Y/N, Naoya.” Ren adds.

“Goodnight!” Satoru waves, you way back before making your way over to your dad.

“Goodnight, dad. See you tomorrow.” you say, hugging him. “Thank you for what you did for Naomi, even though she got a bit upset. I’m sure when she’s a bit older she’ll come to appreciate it better.”

“Thank you, pumpkin. And I didn’t mean to scare her.”

“I know, and she knows that too.”

Naoya and you would then head back to the living quarters and into Naomi’s room, the one your father had prepared as soon as your pregnancy was announced, just in case it was ever needed—it didn’t take long for you to decorate it either— to get her changed into her pajamas and into her crib, underneath the warm blankets alongside her favorite plushies, before leaning down to kiss her head and wishing her a goodnight.

Naomi doesn’t respond, outside of a deep sigh and those soft snores that always make your and Naoya’s heart squeeze with adoration whenever hearing them; evidence that she had a tiring, yet fun day.

And as both continue to admire her, a feeling comparable to nostalgia begins to settle in both your hearts, with you being the first one to acknowledge it.

“Can you believe it?” you whisper, still looking at Naomi.

“What?” Naoya asks, leaning closer to you.

“That she's almost a year old.” You go on. “It’s been almost a year since she arrived in our lives… and now…”

“She can walk.” Naoya finishes. “... it almost feels… surreal, doesn’t it? I can still remember the day she was born like it was yesterday.”

As if it was only yesterday he was that lonely, sorrowful man seemingly destined to live out the same way the rest of his life… and now, he has a family.

“When did time go by so fast?” you ask.

“I don’t know.” He admits, taking your hands and intertwining it with his fingers. “I stopped caring after I met you.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” you chuckle, looking at him.

“What reason do I have to count days, when I know I want to spend the rest of my life with you?”

“Naoya…” you murmur, blushing. “I… I guess to keep important dates…. Or something.”

Naoya was glad that the moonlight coming through the window wasn’t strong enough to show how flustered he truly was.

Taking a deep breath, he now looks at you.

“I still can’t believe I got to meet you, fall in love with you, marry you and now… have a family with you.” he starts. “I got to experience something I never thought I would; and in a way, I still can’t wrap my head around it. There are still moments where I want to pinch myself to see if this is all a dream, if you can believe that; But when I see you and our daughter and I know it’s not my imagination; because you and Naomi are far more beautiful than anything I could’ve ever imagined.

And today… just reminded me of how lucky and grateful I am to have both of you in my life and to have spent another holiday with you.”

It wasn’t your or Naoya’s first Christmas together—not the first one you’ve spent with your dad, or the Zen’in for that matter.

But it was certainly the first one both had spent as a family, enough reason to make it as special as possible.

However, that wasn’t the only reason why you allowed Naoya to do whatever he wanted this year, or why you asked him to spend Christmas with your family.

More than making this celebration special for Naomi… you intended to do it for him.

Even now, you could still hear it in Naoya’s words—the slightest hesitation that reveals he didn’t believe he’s received all these blessings; and not because he thought them incapable of occurring, but rather because…

He didn’t think himself deserving of them.

Naoya always foresaw that his life would continue on rather… uneventfully, going through the same vicious cycle of people that couldn’t really care less for him, or anything pertaining to him, and him believing the same of himself.

Until you’d come along—to show him that he too was deserving of love, and not only that, but that he was also capable of loving.

And creating something out of love.

A daughter, a baby girl: the biggest blessing he never thought he’d receive. One that while it saddened him to realize she’s growing up, he still couldn’t wait to see the kind of person she’d become, guide her to the greatness he just knows she’s destined to be, as well as be there in the moment she ever finds herself falling and catching her.

One that slowly began to teach him just how much love he was capable of harboring for others, as well as the limits he’ll go beyond just to ensure their happiness.

All the things he’s done, and will do for her, are nothing but the bare minimum; nothing but his way of protecting her, giving her a life vastly different from his so that she’d never have to suffer the same way he did.

But he knows that she will never go through the same things, because she has you as her mother.

And that is something he’ll never, ever be able to thank you enough for.

“I love you, Y/N.” Naoya would say. “And… Thank you for loving me. Enough to have a family with me.”

“Naoya… you never, ever have to doubt yourself deserving of this.” You say, gently placing your hands on each side of his face and resting your forehead against his. “You deserve all this, and more. You are a loving husband and the greatest father any child could ask for, and today you proved it—Even if you went a bit overboard with the presents.”

Naoya chuckles.

“Do you think we’re spoiling our daughter too much?” he asks.

“Undoubtedly. What are we even going to get her on her birthday?” you wonder.

“I can start with the moon.”

“Then I’ll see if I can get the stars.”

The two laugh together for a few moments before quieting down.

And in the silence of the night, their hearts reveal their deep feelings for one another.

“I love you, Naoya.” You begin, gently kissing his lips. “All that I want is the opportunity to spend this Christmas, and those to come, with you and our baby.”

“I love you too, Y/N.” He pecks your lips once more. “You two are the best thing that has ever happened in my life, and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.”

“I know. Thank you for everything, Naoya…” you say, hugging him before gasping. “Oh! And merry Christmas! Can’t forget about that one, can I?”

Naoya chuckles as he pulls you into a tight hug, giving the top of your head a kiss before leaning down to rest the crook of your neck and melting against your warm embrace and scent.

It was his way to silently vow to never let you go; no matter what happens, no matter what is to come… He’ll never, ever let you, or his daughter, go.

Never.

A promise that would continue for the rest of his life underneath the wish of a prosperous holiday.

“Merry Christmas.”

the two got emotional at the end 🥺 nnghhhhh Naoya just can't believe he's spending an actual christmas with his family, happily you know?? aaaaaaaaaaaa man, i really got it bad for him.

anyways, I originally intended to end this with Naoya gifting Y/N a house because he felt like Y/N and Naomi would be better away from the Zen'in clan... but then Y/N would just go on saying that it would be too much of a hassle because of his duties as the heir, and because she'll miss her friends there (we're going with the notion that the Zen'in aren't as big a*holes as they are, maybe because Naoya managed to scare control them)

Outside of that, for their fellow presents Y/N got Naoya an Asuka figure to fuel his anime tendencies; while he got her some things he saw her ponder about days prior, alongside some special edition gengar they both had to keep hidden from Naomi lol.

🥺 I hope you all enjoyed this little thing I wrote. I shall continue writing more things, request to be precise, before heading back to my main fic :>

Thank you so much for your support ❤️❤️❤️

#naoya zenin #naoya zen'in #naoya x reader #naoya zenin x reader #naoya zenin x you #jjk naoya #naoya zen'in x reader #jjk x reader #jjk fluff #jjk x you #prompt series: jujutsu kaisen

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anglophiletraveler · 11 months ago

Text

Chapter 35

Happy Valentine's Day!

This is a little something that I had worked on last year for Valentine's Day and didn't finish it in time to post. Guess I missed the holiday for this year as well. Anyway, Happy Belated Valentine's Day!

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

This is a little Valentine thing that I tried to have finished in time for Valentine’s Day last year. As you can see, I didn’t have it ready in time for this year as well, but oh well, might as well share it! I hope you had a nice Valentine’s Day! It has not been seen by a beta, so I could hurry up and get it out to you! So if you find a mistake, don’t blame Karen Bockius! lol

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

Ross was so engulfed with work on his desk that he didn’t hear Jenny talking to him. His desk had papers strewn about and he was obviously looking for something. Jenny just stood there and he finally looked up at her.

“Hmmm? Did you say something?”

“Yes, I did. I asked if you have Valentine’s Day plans for Demelza yet?”

Ross furrowed his eyebrows at Jenny, “What? Jenny, that's a month away! I have plenty of time to figure something out.”

Jenny gave a chuckle and shook her head, “Ross it’s already January 30! Valentine’s Day will be here before you know it. This is your first Valentine’s Day together so you need to start planning.”

“Planning? What’s there to plan? I’ll get her some flowers and take her out for a nice dinner somewhere.”

“Really Ross? I’m so disappointed in you! That’s so boring and typical of a man. I thought for sure you would be planning something really nice for her.” Jenny was disgusted with her boss and walked out of his office.

Ross, thinking that she was out of an ear’s reach, gave her a dirty look and imitated her, “Mehh that’s so boooring Ross. I’m soooo disappointed in you Ross.”

“I heard that!” Jenny yelled back at her boss.

Ross rolled his eyes and threw his pen. He yelled back, “You know I am trying to work in here!”

********

By lunchtime, Ross was checking out what day of the week Valentine’s Day fell on, and how Demelza’s performance schedule fell with it. Valentine’s Day was a Tuesday, which was good because Demelza didn’t normally perform on a Tuesday. He looked up her schedule that she had emailed him for the months of January, February and March, and he was indeed correct and Demelza didn’t have a concert the evening of February 14. So now he just had to come up with something special. As much as he hated to admit it, Jenny was right and he needed to plan something more than just the typical flowers and dinner out.

Ross was staring out the window when he heard Dwight yelling his name. “Ross! Wake up wanker!”

Jenny heard Dwight trying to get Ross’s attention. “Good luck with that one! He’s had his head up his arse all morning!”

Ross swivelled around in his chair, “Dwight, what are you doing here?”

Dwight crossed his arms across his chest, “Well that’s a fine how do you do! We’re supposed to go to lunch today!”

“Is that today?” Ross asked.

Jenny laughed, “See what I mean!”

“Ross, yes, it’s today. You even put it in your phone! Don’t tell me you forgot!”

Ross rolled his eyes for the second time that day, “Of course I didn’t forget! Where do you wanna go?”

Dwight chuckled, “You are so transparent! You forgot! Can you still go?”

“Yes, of course I can. Just give me a minute to make sure everything is saved.” He proceeded to click his mouse a few times, and then closed his computer and straightened up the papers on his desk. He got up and went to reach for his coat, “So where do you wanna go?”

“I’m in the mood for wings,” Dwight said.

“Okay, sounds good. Jenny, I'm going out. Do you want me to bring you something back?”

“No thanks, I packed today.”

“Right. Cheers.”

***********

Dwight and Ross had ordered their wings and chips and were enjoying a pint while waiting for their food.

“So Jenny said that you’ve had your head up your arse all day. What’s up with that? And please don’t tell me there is trouble at home with Demelza.”

“No, just the opposite. Things are great with Demelza. Jenny had brought to my attention that Valentine’s Day is just a few weeks away, so I need to start thinking of what to do. Of course my initial reaction was a nice dinner and flowers…”

“Oh Ross, please don’t even think of doing that.”

“Hey, I said it was my initial reaction so just caalm down! So now I’m trying to think of something else. So if you’re such a perfect, romantic Valentine’s Day date, what are you planning for Caroline?”

Dwight sighed, “I have no idea. Caroline appreciates the finer things and grander gestures. But she also enjoys the smaller, meaningful things. So I’m at a loss at the moment. I’ve thought about jewellery, but I don’t want her to think that I’m getting ready to propose.”

Ross shook his head, “So you’re not there yet.”

“No, at least I’m not. After Christmas and New Year’s at her uncle’s in Cornwall, I realise just how wealthy her family is and the things that she is used to. I’m not sure if I can compete with that.”

The waitress brought their food, and they tucked in.

Ross wiped his mouth, “Now look who is being the wanker. I can’t believe that you just said that about Caroline. She doesn’t strike me to be the type of woman who wants to be a kept woman or a trophy wife. If she wanted that she never would have gone to uni AND she wouldn’t be dating the likes of you, mate! Do you have Valentine’s Day off?”

Dwight took a pull of his pint. “Mmm yes, I have it off, which only puts more pressure on me to come up with something. Well, this certainly has turned into a depressing lunch! Thanks a lot Ross!”

Ross chuckled at his friend, “Anytime mate, anytime.”

********

Ross and Dwight were near the end of their lunch. The conversation had slowed while each man was deep in thought about what to do for Valentine’s Day.

“Dwight!” Ross yelled.

Dwight choked on his last swallow of beer from Ross yelling at him. “What the hell, Ross!”

“I’ve got it!”

“Got what?”

“What we can do for Valentine’s Day for the girls! And it’s definitely not typical!”

“Okayyy, what do you have in mind?”

“Bowling!” Ross’s eyes were twinkling like he’d just discovered the lost Arc!

“Bowling? Ross, are you daft? You can’t take your girlfriend bowling on Valentine’s Day! Bloody hell! Are you trying to piss them off!”

“No! Think about it! They’ll never expect it!”

“Oh that’s for sure.” Dwight snorted.

“When was the last time you took Caroline bowling?” Ross asked.

“Uh never! She doesn’t exactly seem like the type who is just dying to wear a stinky pair of shoes that 20,000 other women have worn.”

“That’s perfect Dwight. You can buy her a pair of bowling shoes as one of her Valentine’s gifts! Oh hang on, I just got another idea…this just gets better and better! We can get the girls bowling shirts too!”

“Ross, I’m beginning to think I need to have you evaluated for the psych ward! Bowling shoes and bowling shirts!!”

“Yes! We can get matching bowling shirts. Like ya know, me and Dem against you and Caroline. Team Poldark versus Team Enys! It’s a brilliant idea!”

Dwight was starting to warm up to the idea, “Well knowing the girls, they will insist on Team Carne versus Team Penvenan! You know this might just work. Poldark, you might have actually come up with a good idea for a change.”

***********

Caroline gave Demelza a call before Valentine’s Day.

“Hello darling, how are you?”

“Caroline, hiya! I’m fine. What are you up to?”

“Trying to find out what Dwight has planned for Valentine’s Day tomorrow! He’s keeping pretty tight lipped about the whole thing and it’s driving me barmy. He won’t tell me if we’re going out or if we’re staying in, or what I should wear.”

Demelza was laughing at her friend. “Oh I bet this really is driving you barmy. He won’t give you a clue at all?”

“No! The twat! What about you? What are you and Ross doing tomorrow night?”

“Um, I have no clue really. We really haven’t talked about it much. I’ve been trying to think about what to get him. I mean, do guys even want something for Valentine’s Day? Did you get Dwight anything?”

“Yes, I bought him a bottle of cologne. Did you find something for Ross?”

“No not yet. I’m off tomorrow so I still have tomorrow to look around.”

“Well, if you hear of any hint from Ross tonight as to what Dwight has planned for us tomorrow night, please let me know.”

“Alright will do. Cheers!” Demelza got a kick out of Caroline’s curiosity. She was as bad as a child at Christmas!

***********

Seamus heard the garage door open and started barking like mad. Demelza stopped playing the cello and looked at her watch. “What the hell? It’s 4:00?” She got up and looked at Seamus, “What’s daddy doing home from work so early?”

Just then the back door opened, and Ross bellowed, “Honey, I’m hoooome!”

Demelza walked over to him with a smile, “Hiya, what brings you home so early today?”

Ross gave her a quick peck on the cheek, “Well, Happy Valentine’s Day to you too!” He set a bag down that he’d been carrying so he could take his coat off and hang it up.

“Ross, we wished each other Happy Valentine’s Day this morning before you left for work. What’s in this bag?” She tried to take a peek, but Ross grabbed it from her before she could take a look.

“No peeking! Aren’t you the one who always complains about me trying to take a peek at my gifts?”

“Which you do all the time. So, I’m waiting for an answer to my question.”

Ross smiled and gave her a quirky grin, “What question might that be?”

“You know very well what question Ross… why are you home from work so early?”

“Am I early?” He looks at his watch. “Oh look at that, I guess I am a little early.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in for a nuzzle on her neck with his now full beard. Demelza started giggling at the feeling that she was beginning to have. Ross pulled back, “I’m sorry, are you laughing at me when I’m trying to be amorous towards my beautiful fiance?”

“Mmmmaybe! But that doesn’t mean you have to stop what you’re doing.”

“Oh really? Do you like it when I kiss you there? How about here? Hmmm?”

Demelza had laid her head to one side to give Ross more access to explore her neck and other ticklish places. “Mmmm I do, I do.” All of a sudden Ross completely stopped kissing her. “Hey, why did you stop nuzzling my neck!”

“I thought you wanted me to tell you why I came home early?” Ross couldn’t stop grinning at her.

Demelza sighed. “Oh that. Alright, why did you come home early?”

Ross grabbed the bag and pulled her to sit down on the sofa. “Come here, love!” He pulled out a box elegantly wrapped in white paper with a beautiful red ribbon and bow on it and handed it to her. He had the biggest smile on his face. “Happy First Valentine’s Day, my love! I came home early to give you this and to get this evening started. Go ahead and open it. You’ll never guess in a million years what it is!!”

Demelza shook the box, it wasn’t too heavy but she could hear something slide around in it. “Hmmm interesting. Well the box is way too big for jewellery.” She put it up to her ear to see if anything was ticking.

“What are you doing? Dem, I didn’t give you a bomb, just open it! Please, the suspense is killing me!”

“Okay, okay. Let’s see what this is…. Oh, it’s a shirt? Oh and another shirt, two matching purple and white shirts?”

Ross pulled another wrapped box out of the bag and handed it to her. “Not just any ol’ shirts. Look at them closer.”

“Oh look, our names are embroidered on them!! How cute!” Ross took one of the shirts and flipped it around so that she could see the back. Demelza gasped, “Team Carne? Ross what’s going on?”

“Melza, open the other box.”

“Oh my gosh, it’s… bowling shoes? How sweet, I think? Well, you were right about one thing, I never would have guessed that you gave me bowling shoes and a shirt for Valentine’s Day! But thank you, I think.”

“Yes! A shirt for you and one for me. I didn’t buy myself bowling shoes, because I don’t mind renting them at the bowling alley.”

“So we’re going bowling tonight?”

“Yes, we’re meeting them at the bowling alley at 6:00, so I’m going to go take a quick shower and change before we go.”

“Ross, wait! Who are we meeting at 6:00?”

“Dwight and Caroline. Didn’t I tell you?”

“No you did not. Sooo, we’re going bowling tonight, in my new bowling shoes…

“And our new matching bowling shirts, Go Team Carne!”

“With Dwight and Caroline…”

“YES!!! It’s going to be so much fun!! And at this very moment, Caroline is opening up her two boxes…

“With matching bowling shirts and bowling shoes?”

“YES!!! Except their shirts are pink and white and say Team Penvenan on the back. We are going to have sooo much fun!! Do you want to join me in the shower?”

“Wait!!! You honestly think Caroline is going to go bowling tonight, on Valentine’s Day?”

“Of course she will, because she has brand new bowling shoes, and because we’re going as well! It’ll work. Trust me.” He pulled Demelza up off the sofa. “Now my love, come join me in the shower and I promise to nuzzle your neck some more!”

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

Ross never stopped grinning from the time they left the house. Demelza was grinning too, but her smile was more from anticipation of what Caroline is going to say when they meet up at the bowling alley.

Ross pulled up to the Tenpin Bowling Alley and parked. “Well here we are! This place has everything! Bowling, music, pool tables, food, drinks!! Why are you looking at me like that?”

Demelza said, “Because you are one mad nutter Ross Poldark! But you do look rather cute in your purple bowling shirt!”

Ross grabbed her hand and kissed it. “And you look very cute in your shirt as well, especially with your cute ponytail!” Demelza shook her head so that her high ponytail swayed.

Just then Team Penvenan pulled up in the parking spot next to them. Demelza was trying to see the expression on Caroline’s face. To her surprise, Caroline hadn’t texted her once since Ross had come home, so she really wasn’t sure what to expect. Dwight’s facial expressions rarely changed with his moods. He always seemed to have a smile even when he wasn’t happy about something. The foursome got out of their cars and greeted each other.

Demelza couldn’t help but squeal at Caroline and Dwight in their pink bowling shirts, plus Caroline had her hair up in a high ponytail as well! “Hiya you two!!! You both look adorable in your pink shirts!” She gave Dwight a big kiss on his cheek leaving a set of red lips behind.

Caroline had a smirk on her face, “Ross Poldark, I hear that I have you to thank for this idea for a romantic Valentine’s Day.”

Ross gave Caroline a big, enthusiastic hug, “You are quite welcome Caroline!! Happy Valentine’s Day. You look very cute in your pink bowling shirt, you as well Enys, although I don’t think Pink is quite your colour Dwight.”

“Only real men wear pink, Ross. Shall we go in?”

Demelza grabbed Caroline’s arm and walked in with, “So what do you think about bowling? I’ve been dying to hear from you because I’m sure that it’s not your thing.”

Caroline rolled her eyes at her friend, “Well I didn’t have much choice did I. I can’t remember the last time I’ve gone bowling. It will be fine, I’ll survive. At least it’s better than sitting home alone.”

Demelza shook her friend’s arm a little, “Oh we’ll make it fun Caroline, it’ll be okay. Ross is out of his head with excitement for it. He even knocked off work early to get ready!” The girls both laughed at the situation.

***********

Tenpin Bowling was filled with various activities such as an arcade, karaoke, a sports bar and a restaurant. Ross was more than happy to find the pool tables. The bowling lanes were glowing with various LED lighting effects, music in the background, with large screens at the ceiling showing the participants bowling scores.

The friends found the front desk that had employees helping other bowlers. Ross stepped up to check them in.

A very enthusiastic young woman introduced herself. “Hiya! Welcome to Tenpin Bowling where fun and excitement is around every corner! My name is Tiffany, how can I help you?”

Ross gave a brief look at Dwight, and stepped up and cleared his throat. “Hello Tiffany, I have made a reservation for four, under the name Poldark.”

“Well hello Mr. Poldark! I am happy to serve you. Let me check for your reservation on the computer. Yep, your party will be on lanes six and seven. Will you be needing to rent bowling shoes tonight?”

“Uh two of us will be renting shoes, our girlfriends have their own bowling shoes.”

“Great! I’ll include the price of the shoe rental in your account.” Tiffany leaned over the counter towards Ross, twirling a piece of her bleached hair around. “Now Mr. Poldark, is this your first time bowling with us?”

“Yes, yes it is.”

“Fabulous! Now, Mr. Poldark, as you can see, there are various bowling balls on racks of which you can find one to your liking. The lighter weight balls are usually on the bottom racks, and the heavier balls are usually on the top racks. But I’m sure Mr. Poldark, that you’ll have no problem with the heavy balls. There are instructions on the table at each lane on how to enter the names of your party into the electric scorecard. The electric scorecard will automatically keep score for you so you don’t have to worry about that. You can bowl as many games as you like, and then when you’re done just come back to this desk with your shoes and we will settle up your account at that time. Will you be using the credit card that you put on the reservation Mr. Poldark? “

Ross was becoming more annoyed with Tiffany every time she called him Mr. Poldark, “Yes, that’s fine.”

“Wonderful. If you and your friend want to give me your shoes and your shoe size, I will get your freshly sanitised bowling shoes.”

Ross and Dwight handed over their shoes to Tiffany and she disappeared into the racks of bowling shoes - freshly sanitised bowling shoes. Caroline and Demelza were getting a kick at Tiffany’s ‘enthusiasm’ towards Mr. Poldark. “Good Lord Demelza, can her shirt be any lower cut?” remarked Caroline. They stopped laughing when they saw Tiffany come back with Ross and Dwight’s shoes.

“Now, Mr. Poldark, if you need any help getting things set up in the computer at your bowling desk, just press the ‘help’ button and I’ll be there in a tick.”

“Thank you Tiffany, I’m sure us old folks can figure it out.”

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

Ross was putting all of their names into the computer for scores, while Dwight and Demelza were getting their bowling shoes on. The three of them were watching Caroline lifting up all of the bowling balls to find one that she liked. She had already gone through two racks of them.

Ross spoke up, “Caroline seems to be taking her ball choice seriously. Did you find one okay, Dem?”

“Aye, I didn’t have a problem. I just wanted one that was light enough that I wouldn’t break my wrist throwing it. That’s the last thing a cellist needs.”

Ross felt guilty now. “Oh shite! I never thought about that love, I’m so sorry. You don’t have to bowl if you don’t want to.”

“No, I’ll just be careful. I found a really light ball. Oh it looks like she found one.” Caroline came back carrying a purple bowling ball.

Dwight went over to Caroline, “Can I take that for you while you get your shoes on?”

“Certainly Dr. Enys. I won’t be long.” She gave him a slight devious smirk.

“Okay, apparently we have two frames to warm up with and then the computer will start taking scores. Dwight you go first, then Caroline, then myself, then Demelza.” Ross informed everyone.

Dwight put Caroline’s ball in the circle in front of the score table where their balls go, “I’m glad that we don’t have to keep score ourselves. It’s been so long that I don’t remember how to figure out spares and strikes.” He proceeded to take his first practice turn, and turned around and gave Caroline a kiss before she took her turn. Demelza was watching Caroline. She knew that bowling really wasn’t her friend’s idea of fun, but she was acting strange, really quiet, which was totally not like Caroline. Even when Caroline isn’t happy about something she’s talkative about what’s going on, but she hardly said a word. Caroline threw her practice frame and was looking at her hand that she threw the ball with like she broke a nail or something. Demelza noticed that she went to her purse and grabbed something out and slipped it on.

“Demelza would you like to borrow this when it’s your turn to bowl? It’s a wrist guard. It might keep you from hurting your wrist.” Caroline told her friend.

“Oh, maybe. I’ll see how it feels after I bowl a few frames.” Demelza responded.

“Alright, just let me know,” Caroline told her. Demelza was wondering why Caroline had a wrist guard. She’d never seen her use it for anything. Interesting.

***********

It was about the sixth frame before anyone started to notice how great of a bowler Caroline was! Everyone else was doing alright. Demelza threw gutter balls frequently but it was all for fun and she didn’t care much anyway. But Dwight and Ross were starting to take things more seriously. Ross threw a spare every once in a while, Dwight was trying hard to stay out of the gutters, but they noticed that Caroline hadn’t thrown a gutter ball since the practice frames. In fact, she had thrown a couple of spares and a strike already! Dwight and Ross were sitting next to each other watching Caroline bowl in her seventh frame.

“Soo, uh, Dwight. Is your girlfriend a ringer?” asked Ross.

“Bloody hell if I know,” said Dwight, and just then Caroline bowled another strike.

Dwight and Ross looked at each other, “Fuck” they both said!

Caroline came walking off the lane looking at the guys staring at her. “What?”

Dwight smiled at Caroline, “Love, just how much have you bowled before?”

“Oh, not that much. I used to go with Uncle Ray every once in a while…”

Ross spoke up, “and that’s it? Just every once in a while with your uncle?”

Caroline got a smirk on her face, “Well, I was in a league for five years before Uni.”

Dwight and Ross both gasped, “What!!!” Demelza started laughing at their reactions. Ross turned to Demelza, “Did you know about this?”

“No Ross, I had no idea! But I do think it’s pretty fucking funny!” Demelza couldn’t help but giggle some more.

Ross then looked at Caroline again, “Why didn’t you tell us you were a bloody ringer?”

Caroline’s smile got bigger, “You didn’t ask!”

Dwight was smiling and shaking his head and put his arms around Caroline’s waist, “I bloody love you, Caroline Penvenan!”

“I love you too Dr. Enys!”

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

After bowling two games, and Team Penvenan absolutely slaughtering Team Carne thanks to Caroline’s bowling prowess, the two couples decided that it was time to get something to eat. The ladies went to find a table in the restaurant in the bowling alley, while the guys went to settle up with Tiffany.

“Honestly, Caroline, that was the funniest thing that I have seen in ages! The looks on their faces when you told them that you used to be on a bowling team was priceless! I wish that I would’ve taken a picture of them!”

“It was rather priceless wasn’t it? I did get a kick out of watching them trying to figure out everything before they finally asked me. I had a rather hard time keeping a straight face when Dwight gave me the boxes with shoes and a shirt. I still have my bowling shoes and my own ball from when I used to bowl in a league! But they’re at Killewaren,” Caroline’s eyes were gleaming when she was explaining every detail.

The guys finally made it over with four pints. Dwight handed out menus for everyone to look at, “So we can order off the menus or order a pizza. Whatever you ladies prefer.”

Demelza was looking at the menu, “Caroline what are you in the mood for? Pizza or burgers?”

“Mmm well I vote for pizza, and oh some garlic bread. Sound yummy to you Demelza?”

Demelza folded up her menu, and smiled at Ross, “Sounds good. Ross, do you want to put the order in?”

“Yes, my love.

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

The four friends laughed and joked over their pizza and beer until it was almost time to go home.

Dwight looked at Caroline and Demelza, “So have you ladies enjoyed your Valentine’s Day?”

Caroline sat up and looked at Dwight, “Well, I do have to say that it was the most unusual Valentine’s Day that I’ve ever had. But I guess it is nice to have a new pair of bowling shoes. And the shirt is very stylish.”

Dwight and Ross gave each other a grin. Dwight cleared his throat, “Well, I’m really glad that you like the shirt and shoes, but we got you something else for Valentine’s Day.” Dwight and Ross dug into their pockets and each pulled out a small box wrapped in red with a white bow, and gave them to Demelza and Caroline. Both ladies gasped at the same time when they were given the boxes.

They unwrapped the boxes and opened them to find a silver necklace with a bowling pin hanging from the middle of the chain. The stripes on the pin were made of garnets. The girls both giggled when they saw the necklaces.

“Oh Ross, I love it! It’s perfect! Please put it on me,” Demelza was glowing from the gift. She reached up and gave Ross a kiss.

Dwight was shocked at the big smile that Caroline had on her face, “Do you like it Caroline?”

“Oh I love it Dwight, it’s perfect! Thank you!” Caroline told him.

“Really? I was afraid that you might think it was cheesy or …” Caroline cut Dwight off

“No! I really do love it. It’s perfect. I’ll cherish it forever,” Caroline leaned over and planted some red lipstick on Dr. Enys.

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

Ross and Demelza were climbing into bed that evening after their fun Valentine’s date. Demelza was wearing a new pink baby doll set of lingerie for the occasion. Ross noticed what she was wearing right away.

“Well Demelza, you look almost good enough to eat,” he chuckled.

She smiled at her boyfriend, “I thought you might like this. I bought it just for tonight.”

Ross leaned in to kiss her, “I like it very much Demelza.” He kissed her lips gently, then moved on to kiss her cheek, and going further down her neck. She was enjoying the attention when she pulled back all of a sudden.

“What’s wrong Demelza?”

“I forgot something downstairs. I’ll be right back,” Demelza jumped out of bed leaving a confused Ross behind in bed with cold lips.

She ran back upstairs with a wrapped box in her hand and got back in bed. She handed it to Ross, “Here, Happy Valentine’s Day Ross.”

“Demelza, you didn’t have to get me anything. But thank you. What is it?” Ross asked.

Demelza laughed, “Well open it and find out, silly!”

He smiled at her and shook the box a little bit. He went ahead and ripped off the dark purple wrapping paper. Inside was something wrapped up in white tissue paper. He pulled it off and found the back of a picture frame. He flipped it over and found a 5x7 silver picture frame containing a black and white picture of himself with his brother Claude Anthony. The two brothers looked like they had been laughing and Ross had his arm wrapped around his brother’s neck. Ross gasped when he saw it. He ran a finger softly over it as if he could touch his brother. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen this picture before. I’m trying to figure out where it is from. Good Lord. It almost looks like it’s from…” Ross now had a few tears rolling down his cheeks.

Demelza continued Ross’s thoughts, “like it’s from the day you were celebrating your college acceptance? The day that he died?”

Ross was still mesmerised, “Yes. Where did you get this from?”

“Your mother sent it to me. She said that she never had the guts to show it to you, but she thought that you were ready now. She sent me a colour version, but I had it made into a black and white photo. I really like it in black and white, you know, with the frame, and everything. The colour original is behind it in the frame so that it doesn’t get lost…. Ross?” He kept staring at it and didn’t say a word. “Ross, is this okay? I thought you could use it for your desk, but if it bothers you, we can put it away in the box, for now.” Demelza was really worried now that Ross was upset about it.

Ross finally came alive again, “No, Demelza, it’s beautiful. Thank you so much. It just kind of threw me since I had never seen this photo before.” He looked up at Demelza and put his hand behind her head and pulled her in for a strong kiss. “Thank you Demelza, it’s lovely and perfect. I wish that he was here to be my best man.”

Demelza wiped away Ross’s tears with her thumb, “I’m sure that he will be on your mind that day.”

“Yes, yes he will. Demelza, you always know just the right thing to say or do. You are amazing, and I’ll love you forever.”

“Oh Ross, I’ll love you forever.”

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

#aidan turner #modernpoldark #ross poldark #poldark #six sentence sunday #work in progress #eleanor tomlinson #demelza carne

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radioisnotdead · 8 months ago

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So does hell have any holidays down there?

I ask since we kinda just celebrated mother's days in the USA so I'm curious....... On second thoughts I probably shouldn't be talking about mothers day with you guys since well none of your mom's are probably down here my bad..oops

(happy belated mothers day to all anyone in the USA!)

YEOWCH.

Hm, I quite agree.

Wait do I even have a mother

Mine was down here but I beat the shit outta her a while ago so.. maybe she's here, maybe not? Depends on if anyone found her I guess. I mean at least she's not in heaven.

STOP THAT

This would be somewhat amusing if he wasn't also referring to me...

I have a sister in heaven does that count

You're not a part of this conversation.

okay well fuck you too???

ANYWAY SHUT UP ALASTOR BACK TO THE ORIGINAL ASK. There aren't really holidays? There are traditions that some sinners learn from Earth and still follow in Hell, but not many do. Doesn't get them outta their jobs, so why should they care? Up till the whole war, the extermination was kinda like a holiday, but everyone was in a shit ton of danger so it wasn't really treated like one. Technically when I was created and when I made Hell is treated as Christmas and Thanksgiving, but no one really gives a fuck about it.

we're changing that with the hotel though! candy apples everywhere for dads birthday :D

awhwwe thats so sweetttttt thanks char <3

#hazbin hotel #ask blog #asks open #send asks #send anons #hazbin alastor #hazbin charlie #hazbin lucifer #hazbin vox #anon ask

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veronicaleighauthor · 9 days ago

Text

Black Cat Weekly #174

A Belated Merry Christmas!

Happy Hanukkah!

Happy Kwanza!

And Happy…

I guess I should just stick with Happy Holidays!

Anyway, good news! Black Cat Weekly #174 released yesterday and it includes my story, “Baby New Year,” and it’s also the cover feature! ::throws confetti::

“Baby New Year” is the fifth story in the Lady Sheriff Series. If you’d like to buy a copy of the issue, you can do so here.

Sometime this next week, I’m going to do a Fun Facts post about my story.

Until next time!

#black cat weekly 174 #black cat weekly #baby new year #historical fiction #christian fiction #cozy mystery #mystery fiction #short stories #lady sheriff series

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filzmonster · 6 years ago

Text

» the hero doesn’t die in this one

Hello @whatevsbla !! I’m your (backup) secret santa for the @pandoraheartssecretsanta event :) I hope you like it !!

Summary: » He doesn’t think it’s that strange at first �� and really, he’s used to weird dreams by now (in which the world crumbles and falls, in which he walks down bloodied hallways, in which golden lights rain down from the sky, in which he falls to his knees and does not get up again), he’s had them a couple of times a month ever since he can remember and he’s dealt with them how he’s dealt with everything else in his life: he’s gone to the library and read a couple of books on the matter, and then he’s read more books and then he’s gone back and started re-reading them all until he felt that he adequately understood the topic. It was enough information to figure out that every psychoanalyst would have a field day with his dreams. It was enough to start a dream journal, just for his own personal amusement.

Read it on AO3

» we all are living in a dream, but life ain’t what it seems, oh, everything’s a mess. » and all these sorrows I have seen, they lead me to believe that everything’s a mess. » but I wanna dream, I wanna dream, leave me to dream.

(the hero doesn’t die in this one.)

The dream starts with his sixteenth birthday.

He doesn’t think it’s that strange at first – and really, he’s used to weird dreams by now (in which the world crumbles and falls, in which he walks down bloodied hallways, in which golden lights rain down from the sky, in which he falls to his knees and does not get up again), he’s had them a couple of times a month ever since he can remember and he’s dealt with them how he’s dealt with everything else in his life: he’s gone to the library and read a couple of books on the matter, and then he’s read more books and then he’s gone back and started re-reading them all until he felt that he adequately understood the topic. It was enough information to figure out that every psychoanalyst would have a field day with his dreams. It was enough to start a dream journal, just for his own personal amusement.

The journal is how he figures out just how weird his dreams have gotten over the years. Specifically, one particular dream.

It’s not a strange dream per se, it’s just that he has the same one in various lengths over and over again, right down to the words he uses to describe it in his diary, like his brain can’t even think of different expressions to write about something that is so thoroughly identical. He’s read about this phenomenon and apparently it’s not that unusual to have reoccurring dreams. It is, however, unusual to have them more and more frequently over the span of a couple of months. What started out as a monthly nightmare turned into a bi-weekly nightmare turned into a weekly nightmare turned into an ‘almost every night’ nightmare.

And then it starts creeping into his days, like reality slipping away into the dream, lose threads entangling with something he can’t really touch or see or explain to anyone except himself. It’s the first time he becomes really, actually scared.

He catches the face looking back at him from blank surfaces – his bathroom mirror in the morning, a window at school he’s passing by, even the stillness of the lake behind the dorm rooms. His face, or what his face would be with a sharp haircut and without his glasses. He lets his hair grow extra messy, just out of spite.

(It may be a nice addition that Elliot likes his hair long and messy, and that he sometimes plays with the dark strands when he’s tired or nervous or concentrating or distracted or –)

(Another nice addition is that Oz would sometimes ask if he can bride his hair – simply as practice for when he sees his sister again during school break, of course.)

The face brings a warning with it that he doesn’t really understand., but he doesn’t have to understand to know that it’s something he should pay attention to – the books have taught him that. And if not the books, then the look in the face’s eyes – his own eyes, not hidden away behind big glasses and thick bangs – that utter desperation, dark and deep and endless. Whatever that face has seen, Leo will make sure that he himself will not have to see it. Never.

(he doesn’t have to.)

The dream is this: he’s standing in some kind of cave, surrounded by darkness and gravel and dirt. There’s a figure in a red cloak standing in front of him, motionless, like the shadow of a statue, still and unmoving and radiating some kind of dark power that makes Leo shiver. The longer the dream lasts (sometimes he wakes after the first few scenes), the darker it gets around him and the figure, but in the darkness, more figures appear until he is standing in an endless sea of statues and shadows and so much power it feels like something is going to shatter under the physical strain it has on this dreamed up world. If the dream lasts this long, the figure steps forward with one elegant motion, almost as if not moving at all but just disappearing and reappearing. And then the figure pulls back their hood and Leo’s own face is looking back at him with those lost and empty eyes. His hair is shorter, framing his face instead of hiding it away and he’s not wearing his glasses. It’s weird how vibrant the purple colour of his eyes is in the darkness, and a part of Leo knows that it’s there where that disturbing power is coming from – somehow it’s connected to his eyes.

Everything comes down to his eyes in the dream. They are what is haunting him when he wakes up, because they are beautiful and terrifying, so sad and lonely and yet so filled with more of the world than Leo will ever see (or at least he hopes so).

The figure only ever says to sentences: “They are watching you.”

And: “Keep him safe.”

That’s where the dream always stops. This is also where it starts bleeding into his reality. The face is watching him, following him around, as if to make sure that he’s listening, that he’s following these orders, that he does keep him safe. (Leo does not have to ask who this he is supposed to be.)

No matter where he looks, it always seems to be looking back at him. He is truly haunted and a part of him – the part that isn’t scared, isn’t worried, isn’t freaking out – is a little thankful for this constant reminder. As long as the face keeps staring back at him, like it’s doing right now, it’s not too late. He can still keep him safe. Leo just wishes he would know what to keep him safe from. What could happen that would turn his eyes into such a deep and troubled stretch of water, filled to the rim with despair? He doesn’t want to think about it, but he can’t help himself whenever –

“Leo? Hey, Leo!” Elliot’s voice draws him away from the his own reflection, glittering on the surface of the still lake behind their dorm rooms. It’s not the face, but he’s been waiting for it ever since they sat down in the soft grass, the mild April sun warm on their skin.

“What?”, he mumbles a little more annoyed than he really is, but it’s just so irritating. Staying on the path between reality and dream is an act of balance that is becoming harder and harder with every day, and Leo doesn’t know how much longer he can keep his slowly decreasing sanity a secret from Elliot.

“I asked you a question”, Elliot shoots back, matching his irritation instantly. “But apparently you got distracted by your own good looks. I didn’t know you were so vain.”

Leo takes a breath to prepare for the oncoming shouting match – or maybe just to push back his fear – but Oz already breaks up the fight before it could develop, as smoothly as ever.

“Where do you think we should go from here?”, he asks, and this boy is a genius when it comes to diplomacy. He takes one of the papers they’ve been scribbling on for the past hour or so and practically throws it at Leo’s face – excitement rolling off him in big waves.

This is exactly how Leo has pictured this school project to be when he and Elliot got grouped up with Oz Vessalius of all people. Of course Elliot immediately complained about having to work with Oz Vessalius because he still doesn’t want to admit that he likes him. He still has to admit that Oz is pretty smart and hard working and therefore a good partner when it comes to school projects. He’s also pretty good at mediating and stopping fights before they escalate (he’s pretty useless once they’ve started though), which is also helpful.

For the project, they have to write a fairytale. It’s ridiculous, really, but it’s an easily achieved good grade and the weather is nice and Leo doesn’t mind spending a little bit more time with Oz. If only because it’s fun to watch him and Elliot dance around their awkward rivalry-slash-friendship.

They are almost done with the fairytale by now, Leo realizes as he skims over the last couple of notes, written in Oz’ neat handwriting.

What they have so far is a knight, happily questing his way through his kingdom, along with his servant and a young magician in training. They are doing all kinds of heroic things: slaying dragons, rescuing people from bandits, helping to rebuild destroyed villages. What they need now is the climax, and the ending.

“So he is stepping into the tower, the only part of the cursed castle that is not completely in ruins”, Leo repeats the last thing they’ve written down. “What are the options now?”

Elliot huffs. “Shorty here wants him to meet a princess and then be cured by true love’s kiss or something.” He rolls his eyes in obvious disdain. It’s adorable how hard he tries to hide how committed he is to the story by now.

Oz rolls his eyes. “It’s a fairytale. Love is supposed to be the final solution!”, he insists.

“That’s not the point of a fairytale at all!”, Elliot rebuffs immediately. “This is not a romance novel. A fairytale is supposed to be dark and … cruel. Almost brutal. And in the end is teaches a valuable lesson. See? No need for romance. At all.”

Leo sighs. Elliot is kinda right, but he doesn’t say that out loud. (He doesn’t have to, Oz is smart enough to figure that out himself. Oz is also smart enough to have figured out what Leo already knows, too. The way they’ve set up all the pieces and parts … there’s only one way for the story to progress now. And apparently Elliot still hasn’t picked up on that yet. That what Oz is trying to do with his silly romance plot is to –)

“Ah, crap!”, Elliot shouts in frustration. “We have to kill him, don’t we?”

(– save the knight.)

Leo came up with the idea pretty early on. It’s what actually sent the knight and his servant on their quest (because responsible knights don’t just abandon their family and political position for a little bit of fun): the knight got cursed. Or rather, the knight got injured and the servant tried to save his life by making a deal with an enchantress who then cursed the knight in the process of saving him. He would die in a year’s time and bring great destruction with his death. To prevent this from happening, the knight and the servant set out to find a way to break the curse. They picked up the magician along the way, who told them about the castle and that there’s supposed to be a means to end every curse ever in its ruins.

Oz nods slowly. “I mean – the problem with breaking the knight’s curse is that it would also mean that his sealed wound would kill him after all. That’s what the magician established when they first met, it’s why he didn’t break the curse himself. I don’t see how that rule should change just because they found something shiny in an old castle. But at least if they use the thing to break the curse, the knight’s death won’t bring eternal destruction over his kingdom?” He winces. “I’m sorry, Elliot.”

For a moment, Elliot only stares at their notes, every pretence of him not being deeply invested into their own characters gone, then he sighs. “It can’t be helped”, he says and shrugs if off. “It’s the only thing that makes sense at this point and I really don’t feel like going back and changing almost everything. Also, like this the magician won’t have to secondhand-kill the knight to prevent the eternal destruction.”

Oz pats him on the back and starts scribbling it down.

Leo chews on his lips. He’s staring at the face, it’s staring back from the surface of Elliot’s metal pencil case.

“Maybe …”, he starts, his mind spiralling down into the violet darkness, “… they could find something to turn back time? Go back to the moment when the knight was injured in the first place and prevent it from ever happening? The lesson would be that it’s never too late to fix your mistakes.”

Oz looks up from his notes and blinks at Leo, something like hope spreading in his green eyes. The emotion suits him.

It’s Elliot who shakes his head and then stretches his arms over his head. “But that would also undo all the knight’s heroic deeds – all the people he’s saved and helped. Even the magician, they only met him because they were on their quest. The knight wouldn’t be the same knight anymore, and he wouldn’t have the same friendships.” He’s very casual about it but Leo knows him well enough to pick up on the stern idealism behind his words. For some reason, it sends Leo’s heart into a thrumming sprint.

“So, what’s the lesson gonna be then?”, Oz asks curiously, watching Elliot with that eager expression that reveals just how bad his case of hero-worshipping is.

Elliot looks back at him with a faint blush on his cheeks. “That sometimes all you can do is make the most of the time you have and use it to do good. That’s the lesson for the knight, at least. For his friends it’s probably something like, they keep questing in honour of the knight’s sacrifice? Sometimes you lose a friend but their effect on your life will never disappear again? It’s all very cheesy, isn’t it?”, he asks, suddenly a little bit shy.

Oz coughs and grins, shaking his head. “Nope, I like it. It fits the general theme of honour and meaning we’ve been going on.”

Leo nods. “The knight dying and his friends carrying on his honourable quest – it’s a fitting end”, he says and means it. But when he looks back at the face, the purple eyes look up at him with an even darker shade of sadness than ever before. Then the face turns away and vanishes.

Somehow, Leo feels like he’s failed his task.

That night, he wakes up from the dream in the middle of the night, soaked in cold sweat and terror clutching his heart in its icy hands. He hates it when that happens. He’s supposed to be stronger than that.

He sits up with a muffled sigh, pushing his bangs out of his face and rubbing his eyes. It takes a moment for his sight to adjust to the darkness around him (normal, powerless darkness, not filled with hovering and ominous figures and warnings and foretold loneliness). He doesn’t notice the figure sitting on the windowsill at first, and it takes him another glance to figure out that it’s Oz. He’s crouched against the pane of glass, his face turned to look outside and his arms hugging his knees to his chest.

Something has always been a bit off about Oz Vessalius. It’s what makes him fit in so well with Elliot and Leo. He’s surrounded by a thin layer of chaos, like he’s pulling a tear in the fabric of reality behind himself. It used to be quite unnerving but then Leo’s own reality has started to splinter and fray around the edges and he’d started to wonder if that would be visible for other people, too. If Oz would look at him and see the same tear drifting around him.

Oz tilts his head and meets Leo’s gaze over the reflection in the window – his eyes are blood red in the dark.

“You get the warnings too, don’t you?”, he asks softly, quietly.

He swallows. “Yes.”

Oz turns around and looks at him, red meets purple and power spreads and – then it’s gone. “What are we gonna do now?”

Leo turns to Elliot, who is still sleeping in his own bed, safe and sound. “We listen”, he says.

Oz simply nods. Reality knits itself back together around him and after he blinks slowly, his eyes are green again. The next morning, Leo wonders if he’s simply imagined the whole thing, but he never dreams the dream again.

(he already died in someone else’s dream.)

#phsecretsanta2018 #pandoraheartssecretsanta #whatevsbla #my writing #pandora hearts #elliot nightray #leo baskerville #oz vessalius #aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh sorry this is so late #i filled in as your backup on relatively short notice #and then this escalated #(pretends to be surprised)#anyway i hope you like it !!!#happy belated holidays #i guess ??#happy new year ??#i d k happy third week of january ?#:D

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under-the-spectral-gaze · 2 years ago

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I know I missed Seb’s birthday by a week, but the holidays tend to be real busy and whacked. I haven’t drawn Seb in ages, but I’m still around. Just lurking mostly. You can guess which took the most time to draw... Anyway happy belated birthday frog boy.

#sdv #sdv sebastian #stardew valley sebastian #birthdays #stardew valley fanart #sebastian fanart #sebastian sdv #stardew bachelors #myart #flowers are hard to draw...

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marjansmarwani · 2 years ago

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where the love light gleans

Chapter 2 || ao3

(Chapter 1)

Stranded and facing a holiday stuck in an airport, TK and Carlos find an alternate mode of transportation.

Another belated happy holidays to @bonheur-cafe as I continue to post your tarlos secret santa fic. Hope you’re still enjoying! Many thanks to @moviegeek03 for helping me with plot points and to @justaswampdemon letting me ramble about it while drinking. You’re both incredible.

-----

If holiday travel was hell, interrupted holiday travel was an even deeper circle that Dante had neglected to mention.

“It’s not even that much snow!” TK objected to the harried agent at the desk after an eternity of waiting in line. “Are you really telling me I’m going to be stuck in this airport over Christmas for a dusting?”

“I’m sorry sir, I really don’t have a say in that.”

TK closed his eyes for a moment and took a breath. “No, of course you don’t, I’m sorry.”

The man at the counter gave him a small smile, “I understand that this is frustrating, sir.”

“That still doesn’t excuse me taking it out on you,” TK replied. “Is there any chance I can at least get a place to stay tonight until I can figure this out?”

“Of course.” The man — Gerry, according to his name tag — looked down at his computer and began typing as TK swallowed down another sigh and settled for lightly tapping his fingers against the counter. He watched the other man and when he saw him grimace, he groaned.

“Let me guess, that’s a no.”

“It appears,” Gerry began evenly, “that the last room reserved for the airline was just booked. You can call and see if they have any more available...”

“But they probably don’t.”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

TK sighed and dropped his head forward into his hands. He took a measured breath before he looked up again at Gerry. “What about a second flight? Anything I can schedule since I will apparently be sleeping here anyways?”

Gerry grimaced again and TK let out a sigh of frustration before the man could even speak, “I’m assuming that’s a no too.”

[continue reading on ao3]

#911 lone star #tarlos #911ls fic #tk strand #carlos reyes #my writing #userkimmy #userbones #tuserpaige #tusersilence #tusersonia #jazzyjess #usernicolo #kirassunshine #userthai #userink

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libraryofloveletters · 4 years ago

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Love Delivered To Your Doorstep

Evan Buckley x Reader

Warnings: fem!reader, mentions of cheating, break ups and killing/serial killers. (<in a joking context)

Category: fluff for the most part.

Word Count: 3.9k

Author’s Note: Doesn’t follow canon, it has a little of buck begins in there but it doesn't follow a strict timeline. It also is written like Buck moves to LA and has his apartment from the moment he moves there while trying to figure out what he wants to do.

-----

Texting and calling was never your choice method of communication.

Letters had always been more of your thing.

Truthfully, they hadn't been your thing until your boyfriend moved halfway across the country for university. The two of you met in high school, freshman year and became inseparable since. Growing together and promising to always love each other no matter what -you always knew that couldn't be true but it never stopped you from telling him.

When he told you that he was going to be applying to UCLA during your senior year of high school, it came as a bit of a shock to you. The plan was always going to college together, get engaged when you were done school and then married with a house by 30.

You held out the hope of that being possible until the day he showed you his acceptance letter.

You were incredibly proud of him but it was real now, he was leaving.

You watched him pack up his entire life and uproot himself from New York and moved across the country. You sent the first letter to him at what was supposed to be his apartment.

September 30th.

‘Hi baby!

Just writing to see how you're settling in. How’s UCLA ? Have you gotten a chance to go around and get to see the place ? I know you’re there for school but you've got to live a little too. Hope your neighbours are sweet, your mom told me it’s a pretty nice place and it’s got a good view, sounds like your type of place. Hopefully I can come visit you soon.

I started my classes last week. My chem professor is a pain in my ass already, he expects us to read an entire textbook in a week - well not exactly an entire textbook but you get the point. My biology professor is a sweetheart, she showed us pictures of her kids and talked about them for an hour, I didn't realize being a mother was so interesting but she was cool. Also showed us a video of an appendectomy that one of her colleagues performed last week. How are your classes and professors ?

Did I mention I bumped into Sam at the grocery store ? Yeah, he’s back and he’s not fine to tell you the truth. He seemed like he was ready to snap but that might just be my judgment. He said to tell you hello if I spoke to you so- hello :)

I’m going to sign off here, I know this one is short but I don’t have much to update you on. Life’s been pretty dull without you. Hope you’re having fun out there, soaking up the sun for me.

Write me back soon, I love you.

Yours always, y/n’

You mailed the letter the next day, a few weeks had passed before you received a letter back. Except this letter had a different sender name but the same address.

October 22nd.

‘Hi y/n,

This isn't your boyfriend. (I'm assuming that’s who you're writing too based on the context of the letter) I’m Evan, I live in the apartment you thought belonged to your boyfriend or maybe you got the address wrong, I’m not sure. I know you were waiting for an update on all these exciting things that are happening at UCLA. I do not go to UCLA nor can I update you in anything exciting that’s happening there, sorry.

Anyways, the reason I'm writing you back is because I figured you’d want to know that this isn't the correct address and the person you were looking for isn't here before you send another letter and get no response. I was debating if I should have even written you back, but here I am, writing you back.

Your professor for chem seems like an ass to be honest (hope that’s not rude) and your biology professor sounds great, is she hot by the way ? because bonus points for that. Anyways, are you studying medicine ? I'm guessing yes because of the classes you're taking. I'm thinking of signing up to become a first responder but I haven’t decided yet on what yet or if I'm actually going to do it. Anyways, good luck on your classes and the shitty chem professor.

Hope you find your boyfriend (again, assuming)

Peace out,

Evan.’

To say you were shocked would be an understatement. How could the letter you sent to your boyfriend’s apartment belong to someone else ? Why was there someone else living in his apartment ? You dug through your apartment, searching for the paper he left you with the address, you finally found it buried in a drawer.

The address on the paper was identical to the one that Evan sent to you and to the one you sent prior to that. Either your boyfriend was lying or you were losing your mind.

November 4th.

‘Dear Evan,

I'm sorry that I sent the first letter to you and as you guessed, I was looking for my boyfriend who seems to be a bit MIA right now. His mother says that’s the right address and the place that she helped him move into. So I'm not really sure what’s happening there. Anyways, sorry for unloading all of that on you.

To answer your question, yes, I am studying medicine and no, she isn't hot. My bio professor is a 65 year old woman who loves her college aged kids very much. If that’s your definition of hot, then yes - she's got milf status

Have you decided yet if you’re going to sign up to be a first responder ? That’d be pretty cool. Imagine all the girls swoon over you and how many girls you’d pick up just for being a paramedic or a firefighter.

Wait, are you into girls ? Or guys ? You know, whoever you're into, just imagine how many of them you’d pick up.

Also, you’re not a murderer or anything right ? because I rather not answer questions when the police come asking about why I've been sending letters to a serial killer.

Anyways, signing off for now.

Yours always, y/n.

ps. if you do end up bumping into or meeting a guy that looks like my boyfriend, (tall, brown hair, brown eyes. he’s got a pierced ear and a little butterfly tattoo by his collarbone- though not sure why or how you'd see his collarbone) let me know or tell him that his girlfriend is looking for him.

Double ps, what size shirt do you wear ?’

Buck laughed at your absurd question. A person he didn’t even know was asking what size shirt he wore. The letter was set on the coffee table with the rest of the mail, getting buried under all of the stuff he had on there. It was almost the end of December when he realized that he hadn't written you back yet.

December 21st.

‘Hey y/n,

Sorry I've taken so long to get back to you. Things have been hectic over here. I’ve been doing some ‘soul-searching’ - I guess you could call it that and honestly, I don’t think if this whole first responders thing is for me.

I tried out bartending or well, the technical term is mixologist and I’m liking it so far, I think i’m going to stick with it for now.

How have you been ? How’s school ? Surely, you’re on break for the holidays right about now or at least when you get this letter. I hope that you're spending the break doing something fun.

I’m not going to make this very long, I’m sure you’ve been busy with whatever you’re doing right now.

Also, I’ve been meaning to ask. Have you located the mysteriously disappearing boyfriend yet ? I haven't seen anyone that fit your description.

well, that’s not true- I did and just to be sure I asked to see his collarbone, he looked at me like I was a mad man so I guess it wasn't him ?

Anyways, I hope you have a good holiday and you're probably gonna get this sometime between holidays, so merry belated (?) Christmas and happy New Years y/n.

Peace out,

Evan.

ps. medium or large, depending on what it is. Hopefully that answers your question weirdo.’

January 13th.

The morning of the 13th, he went down to check his mail. A box was there with his name on it, the return address was one he had only seen on an envelope. The box returned upstairs with him, setting it on the counter before opening it.

Upon opening it, there was a letter and some colourful tissue paper with what seemed like a sweater under it. He opened the letter first.

‘Dear Evan,

Happy New Years! How was your holiday going ? Did you do anything fun ?

I’ve been good and school is good too, I'm almost done my first year, isn't that crazy ? Just a few more months to go.

How’s your job as mr. mixologist going ? I'm sure you’ve met some wild people and heard some interesting stories.

As for the boyfriend situation, that's over. I’m not surprised to tell you the truth but it still kinda sucks. Anyways, so what happened was that his older brother had come home from college last year and brought a friend with him. She went to the same school as his brother but transferred to UCLA- anyways long story short, they hooked up while he and I were still together and he moved in with her after his mom helped him move into the apartment I thought he had.

But! I’m single and chilling now so it’s all good. (bonus, she cheated on him and left him so yeah)

I got you a little something for Christmas and as a “sorry for unloading all my boyfriend drama on you” present. I was in the gift shop and it made me think of you. Do you celebrate Christmas? I forgot to check oops. If you don't, count it as a just a “sorry for unloading all my boyfriend drama on you” present?

I got a large because I wasn't sure if it would fit. I hope you like it. That’s all for now.

Yours always, y/n.’

He unwrapped the tissue paper to see a blue sweater with the letters NYU on it. He smiled, he assumed that’s where you went. It was sweet that you took the time to get him something, even if it was a by the way thing. Not a lot of people would send something to a person they had been talking to via letters and halfway across the country.

February 12th.

2 days before Valentine's Day, your least favourite holiday of the year. You weren't looking forward to watching all your friends going on with their boyfriends and girlfriends. The mail had arrived while you were out, you picked it up and headed in. There were two envelopes with your name on it, a plain white one and a red one. The red envelope was more squared than rectangular, you assumed it was a card- both had the same sender name.

‘Hey y/n!

Thank you for the sweater, it was nice of you to think of me and get me something. I didn’t know we were doing gifts or I would have sent you something as well and yes, I do celebrate Christmas.

My job as ‘mr. mixologist’ was going well until I quit. It just didn’t feel like the right fit for me you know ? I'm going to see what else is out there for me.

Sorry to hear about your boyfriend, he seems like a douche. Who would cheat on you ? You seem great I mean at least you are on paper (did you get my joke, it’s hard to tell)

Also, remember how I was thinking I might actually give that first responder thing a try? Imagine me as a firefighter, that’s pretty cool right ?

So I kinda did a thing and signed up and then I got in. I started two weeks ago and it was kicking my ass at first but I've gotten a hang of it and things are going pretty well. There's three other Evans in my class so everyone calls me Buck-I kind of like it.

The other envelope, hopefully you opened this one first, is a little something for you for valentines. Hope you like it.

Peace out,

Buck’

The red envelope was on your lap, you pulled the edges carefully not wanting to rip it. Inside was a plain white card with bright red letters that made you laugh. The cover read ‘I’m not sick of you yet!” Opening the card, a $20 fell onto your lap. There was a little message inside that went along with the cash.

‘Since we aren't together and can’t spend valentines together, there’s some cash to get yourself a box of chocolates and a teddy bear. Happy Valentines Day y/n

Love, Buck.’

You smile, this was the first time that Buck had signed with ‘love, buck’ it had always been ‘peace out, buck.’ You tucked the card into the drawer, one you didn’t use very often so you knew it’d be safe there.

*4 years later*

A few weeks had passed since Buck had last heard from y/n. His last letter to her was at the end of June, telling her all about the day he had spent at Hen and Karen’s. He always described every little detail so vividly that it made her feel like she was there with him- but it was now July, end of actually and moving into August.

4 years had blown like nothing.

It felt like just yesterday he got the first letter in the mail. 4 years and they still had no idea what each other looked like but they knew every intricate and intimate detail about each other, their lives and the people in it.

Y/n and Buck had grown rather close over the last few months- more than they already were. Y/n just went through a pretty shitty break up and Buck wasn't exactly big on relationships as of right now.

He had just gotten home from work, his keys set on the counter when he realized that he forgot to check his mail. Stepping back out, there was a woman in the hallway and boxes scattered across her, leading into the apartment down the hall.

She must be his new neighbour.

He wanted to go over and introduce himself but she was busy telling the movers where to set her couch so he decided that he would check the mail and then introduce himself when he returned so he did just that.

Except, she was still busy.

She leaned against the wall, watching the movers move what looked like a coffee table. She glanced up to see Buck walking by, she smiled and he returned the smile.

Buck reaches his apartment, the mail in hand and steps in. He sorts through the pile, bills, ads, coupons and no letter from y/n.

---

Your new apartment was a mess. You decided it was time for a change. You applied to a few hospitals after your break up and the one in LA hired you. So you dropped everything and moved- no family, no ties.

A fresh start.

It was a nice neighbourhood and the building was quiet. The neighbours you met were pleasant and welcoming. When you were having the furniture moved in, there was a blonde man who smiled at you and you assumed he lived in the unit down the hall because that’s where he stepped into.

It was almost 11pm when you finally sat down. You had been on your feet all day and just wanted to eat something. The box with the dishes was beside the couch, you pulled the tape off and opened it. There was an envelope sitting on top of the stack of plates.

Buck’s last letter to you.

You must have tossed it into the boxes while packing and you forgot to write him back. Tumbling through the boxes, you find a sheet of paper and a pen from your bag. Sitting on the floor, the paper resting on an unopened box, you begin writing.

‘Dear Buck,

I’m sorry I've taken so long to get back to you. I quit my job, and uprooted my entire life. The break up sucked major ass as you know, so I decided it was time for a change.

Guess where I decided to go ?

Did you guess yet?

No, not Canada, why would you guess Canada ?

LA!

Yeah, isn't that crazy that I ended up here of all places? Maybe we could get together one day (if you haven’t turned into a crazy serial killer that is.)

Anyways, that’s why I've taken so long to write. I was packing when I got your letter and I tossed it in a box and just found it again. Anyways, I hope you’ve been good, how have things been at the station ?

I promise I'll write again with more details soon, I just have to get settled in first.

Yours always, y/n.’

Folding the paper, you slipped into an envelope. The address being scribbled into the back of the envelope. You were about to seal it when the building number caught your eye.

It was the same number as the place you moved into. The same address, the building number, the same floor.

The unit number was the only difference.

There was no way you moved into the building that Buck lived in.

You knew the address felt familiar when you saw the listing but you didn’t think anything of it nor did it occur to you that you knew the address.

Stepping out of your apartment, looking at the number on the room and back down at the envelope in your hand. Buck’s apartment was down the hall.

Part of you just wanted to mail it and keep things as it was but another part of you wanted to meet him, to see what he was really like in person. So there you were walking down the hallway at a quarter past 11 in the dead of the night to meet a man you had been sending letters to for the last 4 years.

The end of the hallway, you stared at the black wooden door in front of you. Your brain weighing the options right now: he’s a sweetheart and welcoming and makes you feel comfortable or he’s a weird guy who’s been lying to you this whole time and you told him everything about you and now he’s going to kill you.

Before you could register what you were doing, you knocked on the door.

Glancing down at yourself, you were wearing a pair of old shorts and a t-shirt from high school that you found in a drawer while packing. Not an ideal outfit, maybe he’s sleeping and you can go home and change- the door opened, a man wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt stood there. He looked like he had just woken up.

“Sorry, did I wake you?”

“It's alright,” he yawned, his hand covering his mouth as he blinked away a few tears. “What can I do for you ?” he leaned against the door.

“Um, this is an odd question-” you shifted, glancing down at the envelope in your hand. “Are you Buck ?”

“I am, who are you ?”

“Y/n.”

You had never seen a man wake up that fast, he seemed surprised, confused and concerned all in one. “How- uh, are you- What ?” he mumbled.

“I found your letter in the box after I moved, I moved into the apartment down the hall” you point to your left, Buck sticks his head out of the doorway and looks at the door you were pointing to. You were the woman in the hallway that he saw earlier, he knew you looked familiar.

“I just wrote your letter and I noticed that the addresses were the same, just a different unit number so I decided to come check. Sorry if I bothered you, we can talk another day- it’s late and you probably have work” “Would you like to come in?” he opens the door a bit more, looking to you for an answer.

“Um, okay sure.” stepping in, you can’t help but glance around. The apartment was similar to yours, the layout was a bit different though. “Can I get you something to drink ? Coffee, water ? A beer ?” he rounded the kitchen counter, you took a seat on one of the chairs by the counter.

“Water’s fine, thanks”

He reached for a bottle from the fridge, sliding it over to you. You gave him a smile, he leaned against the counter and was now looking- studying you.

“I know we’ve talked to each other for 4 years but this is kinda strange” you chuckled awkwardly, Buck can't help but smile.

“Yeah, it is, isn't it? but can I ask why you moved to LA?”

“Well all of that was in the letter” you slide the envelope across the counter and he picks it up, opening it. Giving him a few moments to read, you watch his expression like you were hoping for some insight as to how he was feeling or what he was thinking. He let out a laugh, “how’d you know I'd guess Canada ?” you smiled at him, a small wave of relief washing over you for some reason. “Lucky guess I suppose”

“Do you-” “What are-” the sentences cutting each other off, the two of you awkwardly smiling at each other. “You first” looking at him, he hums.

“Do you have work tomorrow or are you busy ?” His eyes meet yours, you found yourself leaning forwards towards the counter- towards him. He made you feel comfortable, you’d go as far as to say safe, in a way you’ve never felt before.

“No, I don't start until the 21st. Why ?”

“I was thinking - if you're not busy and if you want to, of course. Maybe I could take you out for breakfast and I could show you around ? Or lunch or dinner ? Whatever works for you actually” he rambles, fiddling with his fingers to avoid eye contact.

A small laugh slips past your lips causing him to look up, his brows furrowed as he studies your face, looking for an answer.

“Breakfast sounds good, what time should I be ready for ?”

“Uh, is 10 okay ?” he asks, you nod. “I’ll be ready for 10 then.”

“Okay, I'll pick you up” he smiles.

“Buck, we live in the same building.”

“Oh right,” he chuckles, “well I'll be by yours at 10 then” the two of you smiling at each other.

“Okay.”

----

taglist: @advicefromnixxxx @dralexreid @keenmarvellover @beth-winchester21 @fernandaweasley2 @yikesyikesyikes95 @hotchsdarling @duhbar1975 @hailsstormthings @averyhotchner @captainxholmes @venusrosepetal @luke-alvez @looney-literature @caitsymichelle13 @artemishunter18 @anxiousblanketqueen

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soul-wanderer · 2 years ago

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The Noel Diary (a brief and belated review) (okay, we all know this won’t be brief, because these reviews are not ever brief)

The Good:

- Barrett being her usual cute self and a literal light in the darkness of this season

- Barrett singing, incredible as usual

- A cute dog, can’t ever go wrong with that

- Small town christmas vibes, kinda cute, even if it’s also kitschy

- The neighbour lady and her date/boyfriend, 10/10 would ship it again

- “If you said there was only one room left, this would be like a rom-com” was, again, kitschy, but given the tone of this movie I’ll allow it and give it a brief chuckle

- For half of this movie, Barrett’s (aka Rachel’s) outfits and hair were on point (you guess where you will find the other half of the movie)

- The overall somewhat diversity in this movie. I say that in direct comparison to Hallmark movies, because this movie definitely fits the Hallmark stereotype, even though it’s produced by Netflix, hence the attempt at diversity (hello menorah in the hospital and random gay folks and PoC)

The Not So Good:

- Why did he get the fireplace started that probably hasn’t been cleaned in forever

- How was that piano sounding so good? Mum was a hoarder and I assure you that piano hasn’t been professionally tuned in what? 20 years? Yeah, there’s no way that piano still played a single straight note

- I cannot officially criticise the stereotypes/clichés in a Netflix Hallmark movies, but if I could: goddamnit, they really shoved a lot of those down their viewer’s throats (white shirt in the rain, impromptu jam session, woman choosing the wrong guy, lonely writer, suddenly being alone at a public event, only one bedroom left, father and son reconnecting in an awkward manner, dude randomly showing up at her house and looking up at the window, and so on)

- Dude really needs a leash for his dog

- Why did Dude and father leave Rachel waiting in the cold car for so long? And how did they survive sleeping in a cold af car?

- Who messed up Barrett’s hair and outfits in the second half of the movie?! Choices were made and they were not good choices, at all

The Bad:

- His weird stalking when she accidentally left the connecting door of their hotel rooms ajar. Seriously, wtf

- Dude looking for/meeting up with Rachel’s biological mother?! That looked a lot like overstepping boundaries, what was he trying to achieve anyway?

- We see him meeting her bio mum but not her?! Which makes this extra strange

- I don’t want to make assumptions here, but I feel like the bio mum was miscast looks wise (not acting wise, the acting was great) and I have a thought or two about the process

- Dude showing up at her house on christmas day/eve, despite fucking knowing that she’s still engaged. It might have been cute if she had been single, but she wasn’t. What was he trying to achieve there? Yeah, she cheated on her fiance and they were obviously trying to reconcile, but even if she chose the safe option over the “being happy” option, it wasn’t his place to insert himself into their relationship like that. That’s not cool, guys (gender neutral), so please don’t ever do that. Write a letter, for what it’s worth, but don’t basically stalk an engaged person

- The final parts seemed rushed, mostly because they spent too much time fulfilling clichés, but I wasn’t expecting a cinematic masterpiece anyway

In Conclusion:

It’s a Hallmark movie, only it is not because it’s produced by Netflix. But don’t be fooled, it’s still very much a Hallmark movie. Watch it if you generally like Hallmark movies but are fed up with the overall whiteness and lack of diversity of Hallmark movies. Or watch it if you generally hate Hallmark movies but are willing to watch some kitsch for the holidays (or any other day of the year). Don’t expect too much plot wise but other than that it does have it’s sweet/cute/funny moments and Barrett’s performance is a solid 9/10, but that’s due to the fact that no one can genuinely portray that many clichés without it looking a little, well, cliché. Overall it’s an easy watch and despite hating Christmas and Hallmark movies (I know, I know), I did not have a terrible time watching this, so that probably speaks for itself

#The Noel Diary #Barrett Doss #review #Netflix

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stranger-nightmare · 3 years ago

Note

hi there!! not sure if you remember me, but i'm the uh.. dark!druig-plot-twist-on-sex-pollen-fic anon? i only came by that one time, so i totally understand if i didn't make quite the impression! lol

anyways! i came by to say merry (belated) christmas, if you're celebrating! if you're not, happy holidays and happy-rest-of-2021 as well as happy early new year, i guess????? 😀❓

have a nice day! <3 :D

p. s. can't wait for your upcoming works, especially the ones with dark! druig ehe :D

Hi precious!!

I absolutely do remember you, I could never forget your incredible plot twist!!😁

Thank you so so much!! Happy holidays to you too🥰 I hope you have a lovely New Years and a wonderful 2022!🖤✨

Have a nice day yourself my love🥺🖤

- Hope🐝

P.S. thank you so much, I really appreciate your support🥺I’m also super pumped for the new stuff coming next year, I already have so many ideas brewing, and definitely Dark!Druig will be making many more appearances😏

#waspswidows #wasp answers #druig smut #druig #druig x reader #druig x you #druig x y/n

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moldisgoodforyou · 4 years ago

Text

valentine’s day

warnings: cursing as per usual. also. angsty!!! blame the anon tho not me I accept zero responsibility for anything here. it’s about the GROWTH people

wordcount: 2.2k

source: @obi-kin

Rafe called Sophie at 5pm on Valentine’s Day, his tone unusually bright. Sophie had been in the architecture studio all week and they hadn’t seen each other in a few days, so he was especially eager to take her out. He wouldn’t admit it, but he was a sucker for romance. His last long-term girlfriend hadn’t really entertained it, and made fun of him often for trying too hard. While Sophie might have occasionally ribbed him for his gestures, she made a point to show him she appreciated it, which always made him more eager to please.

“Hey! Will you be ready soon? I’ll pick you up,” Rafe greeted when she answered.

“Ready?” Sophie sounded distant, with her phone on speaker lying on the desk next to her work.

“...Yes? That’s what I said, are you ready?” He cocked his head with the phone pressed to his ear, thinking he might have had bad reception.

She furrowed her brow, trying to think if she had forgotten something. She was usually meticulous about her plans, marking everything down in her calendar no matter what. “Ready for what?”

From his voice, she could tell he was becoming more and more deflated, but couldn’t quite place why.

“Soph, you’re serious?”

She wrinkled her nose a little at the question. “Yes, I’m serious. What am I missing here?”

“Ready for dinner. Downtown.” Rafe didn’t give her anything more, hoping she’d remember, hoping she didn’t completely forget something he’d been looking forward to for the past week. He ran his hand through his hair impatiently as he waited for her response.

She bit the inside of her cheek, trying to remember. “Rafe, I can’t go to dinner tonight, I have to work on my project due Friday. I got caught up with helping some of my students earlier.”

To him, she didn’t sound the least bit apologetic, just factual. He was silent, almost in disbelief for a moment. “Right. I forgot school comes first.”

His tone was more bitter than he intended, and she almost flinched just hearing it over the phone, her own voice growing apologetic. “Well, yeah, I have to -”

“S’whatever.” He cut her off abruptly. “I have to go. Have fun with your project.”

“Rafe...” she tried, unsuccessful as he hung up. Feeling uneasy, she briefly debated calling him back to figure out what was up, but another student knocked on the studio door and she got distracted helping them try to find spare supplies. After a while, she decided to just push it off and ignore it, chalking it up to a bad day on his end.

A few hours later, when it was nearing midnight, Rafe shot her a text - a simple ‘How much longer? I’ll come drive you home.’ He had cancelled their dinner reservation and got Mexican with the boys instead, but resisted from indulging in the drink specials, knowing he still wanted to see Sophie despite her forgetting their plans.

Still a little stung from his comments (and completely unaware of what she did), she shot back her text right away - ‘I’m fine, I’ll walk.’ She was packing up her things when he texted, planning on leaving soon anyways, but wasn’t about to give him the satisfaction of seeing her after his demeanor on the phone.

Always loyal, Rafe was already waiting out front in his car when she walked out a few minutes later. She scowled at his stubbornness that rivaled hers but strolled up to the car anyways and opened the door, but didn’t get in just yet. “Are you still mad at me?”

He paused for a moment, considering his response. “I’m not really happy with you right now, no. But get in. I don’t want you walking home alone.”

She sighed but climbed in, setting her backpack at her feet, and crossed her arms across her chest with a little huff. “Look, Rafe, I don’t know what I did to make you all pissed off, but -”

Rafe leaned back and pulled out a bouquet of flowers from the backseat, setting it in her lap. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Dead silence.

Her jaw dropped and she glanced at her phone for the date, just to confirm how badly she’d screwed up. “I...fuck,” she whispered, swallowing hard.

“I was hoping you wouldn’t forget. Tried giving you the benefit of the doubt, you know.” His voice softened a little but he kept his eyes trained on the road, tapping his thumb on the steering wheel.

Sophie looked like she was about to cry, shrinking back into her seat as her cheeks grew hot. “I’m so, so sorry, Rafe. I guess I thought it was next week or something. I know this was important to you.”

He exhaled at her apology, glancing over with concern when he saw her wobbling lip and teary eyes. “It’s fine, Soph, it’s nothing to cry over.”

“No, I - you’ve been so sweet, and so supportive, and I was being totally selfish,” she started rambling, reaching out for him and only stopping once he took her hand and squeezed gently. He only wanted to make her realize how he felt for a moment, not to make her truly upset.

It was like all the stress from the past week had all piled up on her at once and this was the tipping point, something she could have controlled. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment to compose herself. “I’m going to make it up to you. Saturday. I mean it.”

He turned to her at the stoplight and ran his thumb over her cheekbone, trying to calm her down. “What if I have homework?”

“Oh.” Sophie’s face fell. “Right, never mind -”

Rafe laughed a little, shaking his head quickly. “No, no, I’m sorry, that was mean. Saturday, then?”

“Yes.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “Saturday, belated Valentine’s Day. I won’t be a terrible girlfriend.”

“You’re not a terrible girlfriend.” He hesitated before continuing, pulling up on the street outside her sorority house and turning off the car so he could walk her to the door like always. “Just, um.” After a few seconds, he shook his head. “Never mind.”

“No, tell me.” She reached out and took his hand again, brows knitting together in concern.

He spoke quickly, only making eye contact once he got it all out. “Sometimes I feel like second place to your schoolwork.” After a moment’s pause, he added quickly, “and it’s not a big deal, I really admire how hard you work and I know it’s important to you. But.” He shrugged. “It just felt like something I should tell you.”

“Rafe, baby...” She frowned, squeezing his hand in reassurance upon hearing his confession. “I love you so damn much, you know that?”

He nodded and leaned over to kiss her, hating the way her eyes started welling up with tears again. “I know. I love you too. We don’t have to talk about it, it doesn’t really matter.”

“It does matter.” She shook her head and threaded her fingers through his hair, pulling him closer. “I fucked up, and I’ve been getting way too caught up with school. That’s not fair to you.”

“I know you’re busy.” He mumbled, pressing his head into her touch. “S’okay. I’m being needy, or whatever.”

“You’re not.” She crawled over the center console without a second thought, albeit a little awkwardly, and threw her arms around him once she sat on his lap, holding him close. “That thought hasn’t occurred to me once. Ever.”

He let his head rest against her shoulder, nuzzling into her. “You’re sure? Because my ex -”

“Rafe.” She frowned as she cut him off. “I’m sure.” She told him confidently, rubbing small little circles against his back. “I’ve missed you, I’ve been way too busy. And I’m so sorry I fucked up Valentine’s Day for you, I know you’d been looking forward to it.”

He hummed in acknowledgment against her neck, relaxing more at her touch. “Do I get you the whole day Saturday?”

“The whole weekend, even.” She smiled, pressing a kiss to the top of his head.

He laughed and lifted his head, giving her a sweet kiss. “Two whole days with just you might be too much to handle.”

She blushed and poked his stomach, holding back a grin. “Stop it, you love me.”

“I do. My favorite.” He grinned and kissed her again, then nodded toward her sorority house. “Any chance I could come up with you?”

“Depends, do you want to watch Gone Girl with my roommates?”

Rafe furrowed his brow in concern. “Gone Girl? On Valentine’s Day?”

“Yes.” She nodded once. “We’ve all been single on the holiday for the last two years, it’s tradition.”

“Can’t partake in tradition if you’re locked down.” He teased. “Unfortunately the boys are home tonight too, so. Looks like we’re both going home to empty beds.”

Sophie scowled and leaned forward, bumping their noses together then resting her forehead on his. “Three more months and then we’ll have our own rooms in senior houses to have all the sleepovers we want.”

“Ah, not quite. Three more months and then you’re leaving me for a whole more three months.” Rafe corrected, resting his hands on her hips and rubbing gentle circles with his thumbs.

“Don’t remind me, that’s the worst part.” She groaned, dropping her head down to his shoulder. “I’m gonna pack you in my suitcase, you think you can make the flight in cargo?”

“Nah, you’d miss out on the clothing space.” He nudged her with his shoulder. “Hey.”

“Hey.” She mumbled against his neck, not wanting to let him go.

“As comfortable as this is, can we move to the backseat if we’re stuck here for a second? I want to give you your gift.”

She lifted her head and nodded, then crawled into the backseat, Rafe laughing as he got out then slid in the back with her. Sophie grabbed her backpack from the front seat. “Wait, me first. Close your eyes. It’s not wrapped yet, because I wasn’t ready - well, um. Just close your eyes.” She tripped over her words, cheeks feeling hot again as she thought again about how poorly she handled the day.

He reached out and squeezed her shoulders quickly. “It’s alright, Soph.”

“It’s not. But just close your eyes.”

Rafe nodded dutifully and shut his eyes, holding out an expectant hand. She placed a small wooden jewelry box in it, unwrapped, with dark red felt lining and a little grid organizer inside. He opened his eyes and furrowed his brow for a moment, running his thumb over the stained wood with his engraved initials on top. “It’s a box?”

She laughed. “Open it.”

He undid the latch and grinned once he realized what it was, with one of his rings she had ‘borrowed’ nestled inside. “How’d you know I needed one of these?”

“Because you’re always putting them in terrible spots. I took that one from the cupholder in your car last week.” She bit the inside of her cheek. “I made it, is it okay? Do you like it?”

“It’s awesome, Soph.” He leaned forward and kissed her quickly once he noticed her nerves. “I can’t believe you can make this kind of stuff, it’s fucking cool.”

She smiled, relaxing a little. “It’s not much, but I think it could be useful. Better than just setting your rings on your counter, anyways.”

“I love it.” He smiled back, then reached down and pulled out a gift bag from under the seat, handing it to her. “This is kind of...well, I don’t know, it’s not really a romantic gift. So maybe lower your expectations.” He warned.

Sophie raised her eyebrows, confused, until she unwrapped the gift and pulled out a big set of nice drawing markers, meant for architecture. Her meager eight pack had been steadily drying out over the semester, bought second hand from an older student, and were barely getting her by. She hadn’t realized he noticed from his time just hanging out in the studio with her.

“Wow.” She breathed out, unzipping the case and running her fingers over the markers all lined up.

“Is it okay? That’s the brand you use, right? And the colors are okay?” His eyes flitted over her face with brief concern.

She nodded quickly and set them aside, pulling him into a hug. “It’s perfect, Rafe, I don’t think you know how much I needed those.” She took a deep breath, a little shaky.

“You’re welcome, baby.” He ran his hands up and down her back, pulling her into his lap. “Hey. No crying.”

She sniffled a little, mumbling into his shirt. “M’not crying.”

“You are too, I can hear it.” He pressed a kiss to her temple and she lifted her head to kiss his lips. “I don’t like it when you cry.”

“I don’t like crying when I’m with you.” She gave herself a moment to compose herself. “Thank you, Rafe, so much. You’re too good to me.”

“No such thing.” He kissed her long and slow, cupping his hand against her cheek. “I love you Soph, no matter what.”

“Love you too. I promise, I’ll make Valentine’s Day up to you this weekend. You can hold this over me forever.” She teased, tugging gently on the ends of his hair.

He laughed, shaking his head. “Forever’s a long time.”

“Yeah, well, you’ll need it if you’re gonna put up with me for that long.” She grinned and kissed him quickly, not giving him a second to think about her words before crawling off his lap and grabbing the flowers and her gift. “I love you. You’re my favorite, I mean it.”

“Mine too.” He took the hint and helped her out of the car, then walked her to the door. “Sweet dreams, angel.”

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peaceoutofthepieces · 4 years ago

Text

Tracing Time

Disclaimer that I am not a therapist nor bipolar but I have had a therapist so I’m hoping it’s not too awful of a depiction. Also want to add a minor content warning for the ending scene for homophobia, nothing explicit or even verbal, just a woman with an icky vibe.

Wednesday, 16:04

Song: Haux - Youth

Sander tips his head against the back of the couch and stares at the fan in the corner. It drones in slow circles, doing little more than disturbing the air right in front of it. It still makes the air in the room chilly enough that Sander is glad he’s wearing a sweater, though.

Between it and the window is an ‘abstract’ painting of the brain. Abstract in that the supposed organ is actually scattered in pieces throughout the canvas, all in various states of destruction. One has trees growing out of it, for example. Another is on fire; it’s Sander’s favourite.

He’d stared at it with an absurd sort of fascination in his first session, almost two years ago now, and his therapist, Agathe, had simply smiled at him and asked if he liked art. It was a sneaky way in, but he supposed that was the point. These meetings have gotten fewer and farther apart over that time, now that he can supposedly manage himself to a high enough standard on his own. Well, not quite enough, he supposes, or he probably wouldn’t be here at all. He can practically hear Agathe’s rebuke that they are just ‘casual check-ins’, and Sander is free to go whenever he pleases.

At every one of those reminders, Sander debates doing exactly that—getting up and going. Instead, he usually ends up slumping sullenly for a few minutes before Agathe prods her way back in.

They haven’t been mandatory in a long time, these sessions, but now there’s just something...reassuring. There are still times he doesn’t bother making an appointment, but knowing he can, and knowing that someone with the right knowledge doesn’t see any reason to worry about him, leaves a pretty damn good sense of relief.

And he did have a bit of a blip, at the start of the year. A few days in which he had to be prodded and coerced into just taking a drink of water, and had spent the majority of in his room. It had overlapped the holidays, so he’d let Robbe come and cocoon himself with him for a good chunk of the time.

It hadn’t made him better. But it made him...safe, or something similar, and that was the most he could hope for.

It was the coming-out-of-nowhere aspect that had shaken him a bit. He’d felt better, just keeping up his sessions then, being sure that he was at least doing alright with his medication. It’s working okay, the sitting and talking, so he shows up and just lets Agathe keep making sure.

The door cracks open now and she slips back in, dropping into the couch across from Sander and shooting him her usual calm, too-happy smile through light lipstick. It brings out her dimples. She’s not yet marred by wrinkles, but there’s something soft and aging about her face, anyway. Maybe it’s the graying roots. “Sorry about that, I forget this thing way too often.” She holds up the clipboard she’d carried in with an exasperated sigh, murmuring under her breath as she flicks through it and gets settled.

It’s all painfully familiar. It makes Sander smile.

He does like her. He’s never bothered denying that.

“So, how are we today?” It’s the same way she always starts, though it’s usually accompanied by—ah, there we go—clasped hands and another smile.

“Good,” Sander says. It’s automatic, but he also means it. Today is fine. It’s good.

She raises her brow when he doesn’t offer anything else. “Alright, good. Belated birthday wishes are in order, I believe?”

“Yeah, thank you. Just yesterday.”

She nods, and Sander does not think about how that was dumb when she obviously already knows. But she just settles back and crosses her legs. “Did you do anything to celebrate?”

Sander’s lips finally stretch in a smile of his own. He thinks it’s probably a little dopey, a little lovestruck, and she probably knows exactly what he’s going to say before he opens his mouth. “I had breakfast with my parents because Robbe took me out for dinner. Then he had a surprise party planned at our friends’ flat.”

“A party on a school night?” Agathe’s brows raise, and she shakes her head with a small laugh. “How do they deal with that today?”

“No clue,” Sander breathes out a huff of his own, trying not to feel overly amused by how Gilles had been in the class they shared with Sander earlier in the day. For once, they hadn’t said a word, just sat with their head down for the entire lecture, wincing every now and then when Sander laughed. He hadn’t even heard from any of the others, but Robbe had looked dead on his feet this morning, as well. He’d sent Sander a slightly sunnier selfie about half an hour ago, though, so he’s probably fine. “Not very well, I imagine.”

She tilts her head. “You seem well enough.”

“Well, I wasn’t drinking,” Sander shrugs.

At this, her serene little smile returns and her nod seems approving, and even though Sander hadn’t been looking for it, he grudgingly admits that it feels good. “I know that can be a difficult choice, and I’d rarely be able to make it myself,” she laughs again. “It’s great that you feel strong and comfortable enough in that group to do your own thing.”

Sander can’t help a little snort. “Are you kidding? It was one of them that had me drinking mocktails.”

“Really?” Agathe grins.

“Yeah, but then he got kinda drunk, and the last couple he made me were just disgusting because he thought these awful mixtures would be a really good idea.”

She laughs gently. “Well, it seems like it’s not the worst. ‘He’ isn’t Robbe?”

Sander shakes his head. “No, but one of his friends.”

“And what about Robbe, then? How is he?”

“Good.” A soft smile steals over his face. “The best, as always.”

“Treating you well.”

Sander’s smile widens, and he raises his brows without saying anything.

Agathe points at him. “Not what I meant, and not what I need to know.”

“I thought we can talk about whatever I want in here,” Sander says innocently.

“Alright, then,” she acquiesces. “Tell me all about it.”

Sander blanches. He thinks about it, opens his mouth, and then thinks about it some more. Closes his mouth again.

Her smile is downright devious. “That’s what I thought.”

He huffs. “It’s very healthy, just so you know.”

“I am sure.”

“Explorative. Always consenting, of course. Frequent.”

“All very normal and well for teenage boys,” she nods, and it would be completely serious if Sander couldn’t see her eyes twinkling. She pauses. “Although, I can’t call you that anymore. How does it feel to be twenty?”

Sander narrows his eyes. “Nice change of subject.”

“Oh, if you had more to say, please continue. Just a thought that occurred to me, I don’t mean to steer you, you know that.”

He does know that, and it makes him pause, because. How does it feel to be twenty? He realises he hasn’t thought about it. He realises that’s probably a good thing—that he didn’t get stuck on his birthday this year, that it was something he just enjoyed. Maybe it was simply going to sleep next to Robbe that helped, but no anxiety had taken over at the end of the day.

Even after his conversation with Jens. It’s not the most prominent part of the day of Sander’s mind even now. Instead he finds himself tucking his hand into his pocket and grasping Robbe’s key, running his thumb over the already familiar ridges.

He hadn’t even been worrying about his major fuck-up with his assignment. He’s still not.

He’s not really giving himself the chance.

Should he be?

“It feels the same as being nineteen,” he says finally. “I didn’t become a different human in a day, sadly.”

He can see her latching on. “Why do you say it like that?”

“Like what?”

“‘Sadly’?”

“It’s just...a joke.”

“Okay. But why do you think it’s funny?”

It annoys him, because she’s not judgmental. She’s neither amused nor disappointed. Just curious, earnest, all focused and attentive as she gazes calmly, patiently at Sander. Even his attempt at throwing her off, making her awkward, hadn’t shaken her. She remains unfazed, as always. It’s annoying.

“I don’t,” he admits, “I guess. I don’t know what I’d consider it.”

Agathe nods, softening in her understanding, and it makes something twist in his chest. “Are you not happy with the human you are, Sander?”

He gives her a bland look. When she keeps waiting, he shrugs, gesturing at the room.

“I know,” she says gently, “that of course, you feel you would be happier without your illness. But who you are now—what you study, what you’re passionate about, who you surround yourself with, how you live your life day to day. Do you wish all of that was different?”

Sander doesn’t have to think about it quite as much. “No. But I—“

He cuts himself off, hesitating. She raises her brows and nods, prompting him onwards but not pushing. If he really wants to wait her out, she’ll move on.

“I just wish that it was easier,” he says.

She tilts her head. “Easier how?”

“I messed up. At college. I completely missed an assignment because I mixed up the dates with another one.”

She winces in sympathy. “And what happened in that case? Does that mean that assignment is marked as a fail?”

“No,” Sander admits. “He gave me the time I thought I’d have to do it. Marked it down as an extension. It’s due on Friday now.”

“And is it going alright?”

“Yes.”

“You aren’t struggling with it too much?”

“No.”

“Then it seems like a fairly simple mistake. Easy to make and also, thankfully, easy to fix for you. It’s not unusual. But do you see it as an effect or consequence of your illness? Is that why it bothers you?”

Sander is quiet.

She sets her clipboard aside and leans forward, clasping her hands again as she considers him. “You have to remember, Sander, that all humans are not without fault. That regardless of who we are or what we may have to deal with, we will inevitably make mistakes. Not every slip up is a reflection of you, or a sign of failure, of failing health. You’ve actually been doing very well for a long time, now. But this belief, or this worry, that it is taking a hold of you again can sometimes help it take on that direction. Do you know what I mean?”

He takes a moment to absorb the words before nodding, knowing that if he answers too quickly she won’t believe he’s listening. But he does know. He understands. He hates that she’s probably right.

“So in a situation like this,” she continues, “do you not think, that it is more beneficial for you to focus on correcting your mistake and the fact that you have that ability? Not only mentally, but overall. That your professor is so understanding must mean he thinks well of you.”

He shouldn’t ask. He does anyway, quietly. “You don’t think it’s just pity, or something?”

“No,” she huffs. “No, I do not. Did he give you the impression that that was why he was doing it?”

Sander rolls his shoulders, adjusting his position. “No.”

Her smile returns. “I think,” she says slowly, “that this all shows just how well you’re doing. That you can acknowledge your doubts are likely just that—doubts—and that you take responsibility when you mess up and try to rectify it. Do you not think those are all good things? Things just as healthy as your sex life?”

It shocks a laugh out of him, and he sees her eyes crinkle. “Maybe,” he allows. “But it really is very healthy. I don’t know if anything else should be forced to live up to the standard.”

She represses a smile. “I remember there was a time when you would never have even spoken about this in such a kind way.”

She’s right. It still freaks him out, sometimes, the hypersexuality that can be induced by his mania, and it even made him hold back from Robbe after his episode, at the beginning. The last thing he wanted was to freak Robbe out, or disgust him, or make him uncomfortable. Then Robbe had seemed downtrodden for about a week before hesitantly asking Sander if he’d done something wrong or if Sander wasn’t actually attracted to him, and Sander had corrected his doubts and behaviour fairly quickly, because how dare the most beautiful boy in the universe think that?

“How do you feel you’re doing, Sander?” Agathe asks. “Because although I can observe, only you can feel what you feel. If you are genuinely worried, we can talk about it.”

“No,” Sander admits, after a moment. “I think everything is okay, actually.” Which is the best it can ever be, really.

Now her smile is genuinely happy. “I think so, too. And I think, even if it comes about that it’s not, you have a better support than ever. Do you agree?”

That one’s easy. “Yes.”

“It’s important to remember,” she adds, “maybe more than anything else, that if a lapse or an episode or whatever does occur, it’s not the end of the world. It’s also not a reflection of you, or a failure. Bad days, bad weeks, that’s all a part of life, and something we know you’re more than capable of dealing with and getting past. I’ve watched you do it many times before now and it’s an admirable, wonderful thing.”

Sander doesn’t actually know what to say to that. He just swallows, and feels oddly emotional, and offers her a slight nod.

The rest of the session passes in a lighter atmosphere. She lets him ramble about his assignment to alleviate what stress he does feel over it, and they spend the leftover minutes discussing his party.

Sander considers talking to her about the other thing on his mind, but ultimately decides against it. She’s already taught him how to work through that, and he really doesn’t think it will help to be putting it back into open air. Instead he leaves with a fairly upbeat farewell, and heads in the opposite direction from home.

Robbe had texted him about where he was meeting with Yasmina for a study session, and it takes Sander less than ten minutes of walking to get to the small cafe from his appointment. He sees the two of them as soon as he enters, but neither of them notice him, so he moves to the counter to buy himself a coffee before making his way over.

He’s a couple of feet away when Yasmina catches sight of him and offers her bright smile, and then Robbe is looking over his shoulder.

“Hello,” Sander greets them both, grinning as he cups Robbe’s cheek and leans down to kiss the crown of his head. “I can see we’re very busy.”

Robbe has his hand wrapped around Sander’s wrist, preventing him from pulling away. He turns his head and presses a sweet kiss to Sander’s palm, nuzzling lightly against it. Sander lets his fingers slip over and tug gently on the boy’s earring before Robbe tangles their hands together and offers Sander his crinkly smile. “Hi.”

“Not anymore, I guess,” Yasmina says dryly, but she’s still grinning when Sander glances back at her.

He raises his hands; well, his free one. “Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt.” He hadn’t, really, he’d just wanted to be here when they were done to take Robbe home. He always likes being in the other boy’s company after a therapy session. Despite them not being quite so heavy at the moment, it’s always draining. Robbe is always able to replenish him with soft touches and soothing kisses, providing Sander with a silent, comforting company.

“Don’t be silly,” Robbe rebukes, predictably, swinging Sander’s hand idly now. “How are you?”

Sander squeezes his hand. “Good. I’m surprised you look so healthy, though.”

Robbe groans and buries his face against Sander’s arm. “Don’t. I’m suffering in silence.” He tilts his head ‘subtly’ at Yasmina.

Yasmina raises her brows at him, somehow managing to look wholly unimpressed and teasing all at once. “At least you can stave it off with sugar and coffee.”

Robbe has the sense to look sheepish, ducking his head in a nod. “You’re right, sorry, sorry.” He lets out a sigh. “You’re on too high of a level for me, Yasmina.”

“Queen shit,” Sander agrees, just to earn one of the girl’s unimpressed glances for himself. “Should I run now?”

She rolls her eyes. “Just sit down and drink your coffee. And keep your hands to yourself, if you can manage it? I still need my study partner, thank you.”

Sander grins and obeys, swinging a seat from the next table around to join them, dropping into it happily. He doesn’t place it as close to Robbe’s as he’d like, but Robbe leans into him for a moment anyway before refocusing his attention on his friend.

For the first while, Sander is content to listen and sip his coffee, feeling tiredness begin to creep into his bones. He lets his head loll against his own shoulder, trailing his eyes over Robbe’s profile and drifting into a sort of daydream. He can see the boy’s lips moving, but he has no idea what either of them are saying. They only let out the occasional comment, trading questions and answers and sighs and mutters. Robbe’s eyes are still red and a little puffy, a sign of his lingering exhaustion. He rubs at them absently as he looks down at his book and lets out another sigh, and leaves an eyelash on his cheek.

Sander reaches out and gently swipes it away with his thumb, an entirely mindless action that has Robbe looking at him in surprise before breaking out into a smile. He catches Sander’s hand before Sander can withdraw it completely, laying it on the table next to him. Instead of holding it, Robbe runs his hand along Sander’s sleeve, rubbing the soft seam between his fingers as he continues his work.

For some reason, it makes Sander blush. He’s sure his smile is unbearably happy, and he flicks a glance at Yasmina just to make sure she doesn’t know, only to catch her eye. She’s already smiling at him, and she purses her lips and raises her brows, teasing. Sander pulls a face at her, and she simply shakes her head as her smile widens.

“Can you work on your assignment while you’re waiting for us?” Robbe questions suddenly, drawing Sander’s attention back with a tilt of his head.

Sander glances at his bag, which he’s carried with him all day since he had to go straight to his session from a class. He considers for a moment but ultimately shakes his head. With yesterday being an exception, he usually prefers working at night—and when it’s not cutting into time he could otherwise spend admiring Robbe. “I’ll work on it when I go home,” he promises. Then, because he can’t help himself, “You’re too distracting.”

Robbe’s grin is small, and exasperated, but he yearns towards Sander, leaning across the table. Sander meets him and presses a quick kiss to his lips, then his nose, his cheek, before resolutely sitting back and waving at the textbooks and notes strewn in front of them. Robbe’s grin turns into a pout for half a second before he squeezes Sander’s wrist and focuses again.

Sander sinks back with a sigh, enjoying the feeling of Robbe’s fingers brushing against his wrist and skimming his hand, but he doesn’t feel quite as settled. There’s a prickle skittering over his neck, and he looks to his side and finds a woman staring at him.

Her nose is screwed, and there’s a vague curl to her lip. The disgust in her expression only heightens as Sander meets her eye and she flicks her gaze down to where Robbe’s hand rests over his. Sander can only stare back, dumbfounded.

When she looks at his face again, he raises his brows, as utterly bored as he can manage, and it only takes a moment for her to look away and get out of her seat across the cafe.

Sander tenses as she gets closer, hand enclosing around Robbe’s entirely, but she merely offers him another look before leaving. He deflates, squeezing Robbe’s fingers. It’s only when Robbe squeezes back that he panics again and quickly looks at the boy. But Robbe is in the middle of asking Yasmina a question, neither of them having noticed a thing.

“I meant to wish you a happy birthday,” Yasmina says, breaking him out of the moment. His mind has fogged over, and it takes him a moment to process the words. By then, she’s already moving on. “How was the party, anyway?”

Robbe and Sander share a look, and Yasmina waits. “Jens hardly said a word to me the whole day,” Robbe tells Sander, but he seems more amused than upset, so Sander allows himself to laugh.

“You didn’t tell him we didn’t actually do anything?”

“I did!” Robbe raises his hands. “He didn’t believe me.”

“What, what did you do to Jens?” Yasmina asks, confused. Then, after a second, “You know what, no, I probably don’t want to know.”

She cringes, and Robbe apologises profusely as Sander bursts into laughter, the weird incident from moments ago already forgotten.

Totally forgotten.

~^~

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#wtfock #sobbe #rosander #robbe x sander #sander driesen #sander season #tracing time #had to have yasmina in here at some stage!

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