#as he realizes that he is no longer a good dad/man/person AND he failed to keep his daughter safe and with him

[radiaking]

smth about how hank and barb are both willing to burn the world down for their loved ones vs coop and lucy both foolishly hoping they can save the ppl they love and be w/them again w/o anything bad happening or hurting anyone....

[cultofdixon]

Just Breathe, Love. I’ve Gotcha

Daryl Dixon • She/Her Pronouns • Babies come unexpectedly. It’s one thing being alone…thank god he was there • ANGST/SFW/NSFW - Implied Sex • TW: Pregnancy & Birth / Anxiety / Illness / Nightmares / Mentions of Miscarriage & Other Pregnancy Scares

Requested by: Anon

Y/N stood anxiously outside the house she shared with Daryl as it was practically brand new after the rebuild of Alexandria. She still couldn’t believe she convinced him to live with her above the surface. Nothing wrong with the basement just that things were changing and they’ll need more space.

Daryl finished getting packed for their trip to The Kingdom to help them for a month, but as he approached his bike gesturing with his body language for Y/N to join him…she hesitated.

“Love, cmon. If we leave now we can make it before sunset”

“Uh I can’t get on your bike though”

“What?” Her saying that confused the man extremely. “You’ve ridden on my bike before, what’s stopping yea now?”

“Fuck uh” Just say it. Just say it. “It won’t be safe for me and the baby, Dar”

The silence grew until Daryl simply blinked at his partner before throwing his pack on and getting onto his bike driving off. Y/N frowns thinking he needed to get some air after that news but before she even turned around, Daryl turned his bike around bringing itself into the garage.

“Dar?” She frowns taking a few steps toward the garage when Daryl came running out dropping his pack on the way and instantly engulfing her in his arms.

Y/N instantly latched onto her partner hiding her face in his shoulder as she started to sob happily hearing Daryl go on and on about how excited this is going to be for them. They were finally safe from any and almost every harm the world can throw at them.

They were going to be alright

First Trimester

…Maybe

The longer you get to know Daryl, you start to pick up on some things he does. In this very moment Maggie noticed two when she thought the archer was simply coming to the Hilltop for the community trading. Daryl, just a little, stuck out his tongue when he was in deep focus looking around Maggie’s office in search for one of her pregnancy books and another thing he did was his tiny finger taps when he was anxious. He is a very secretive and normally good at camouflaging, going unnoticed.

But she wasn’t going to stand there long. Only making herself known when she figures out what Daryl is looking for. That the moment he reached for the pregnancy book in her bookshelf, Maggie stepped into the room entirely.

“Find what you’re looking for?” Maggie smiles watching Daryl drop the book quickly turning to her.

“Yeah”

“Are yea gonna pick it up and take it? Didn’t take you for a seahorse, Daryl” Maggie teased watching him pick it up giving her a look. “How come Y/N didn’t—“

“Nah stop right there” Daryl quickly shushed her. “She’s comin’ next week to tell yea herself and she will kill me if she learns you knew from me”

“Oh boy you already fucked up that’s why you’re saying such” She smiles fighting back a laugh and failing. “Who did yea tell?”

“Rick”

“Oh” Maggie gave him a surprised look that quickly morphed into confusion. “Why would she be mad at you for telling Rick? He’s your best friend, brother even”

“Nah it wasn’t cuz I told Rick. It was when we had JUST found out” Daryl went silent after such and it didn’t take Maggie much to connect the dots as she brought herself to lay a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“Y/N is a very careful person. Your baby will make it and be absolutely perfect” She smiles at her friend before bringing him into her embrace feeling him tighten around her. “That baby is so so lucky to have you as a dad, Daryl. I can’t wait for you to experience it”

“Mags…”

“I don’t want to hear it. You’ve beaten yourself up about it enough and I know just saying that won’t make you instantly stop. But you’ve got to realize…we couldn’t have predicted what happen to have happened. Focus on the now Dixon” Maggie smiles parting from the man as he still hung his head low. “I won’t tell your partner that I know. But she better get her ass here soon so I can congratulate her”

Daryl returned back to Alexandria that night to find Y/N asleep on the couch after waiting a while for her man to come home. He set everything he was carrying down on the table as quietly as he could before approaching his girl and carefully picking her up. The action did cause her to stir just a bit but she didn’t care and brought her arms around his neck to secure her when he carried her upstairs.

“Long day?” She yawns out as he carefully places her on her side of the bed.

“A bit, sorry I was late” Daryl sat on the edge and took off his shoes as Y/N sat up enough to bring herself to lean against him until he was ready to climb into bed. “You gotta tell Maggie the news before it slips out of me” Which it already did.

“Mm. I have to go to get clippings from her for Alexandria’s gardens. Rick thinks we’ll have the water system done in about a month or two”

“You’re not allowed to overwork yourself, love” Daryl placed a kiss on her forehead before fully bringing himself to face her so he could kiss her completely.

Y/N wrapped her arms around him continuing to kiss her man as she brought herself to sit in his lap feeling his arms snake around her waist.

“What’s gotten into you, sunshine?” Daryl chuckles lightly to himself in between kisses feeling her get situated with her legs around his waist.

“Hormones.” Y/N giggles for a second before returning to her kissing. “You want me to stop?” She whispers only for Daryl to carefully bring her on her back onto the sheets as he towers her.

“No”

The next couple mornings were always spent sleeping in after the hours from the night before doing feeding into certain cravings.

“You’re gonna be the death of me, mamas” Daryl laughs kissing Y/N’s bare shoulder bringing himself to sit up watching his partner get up from their bed.

“Shouldn’t you be helping with the bridge plans this morning?” Y/N gave him a smile through the mirror above their dresser as she took one of his shirts slipping it on. “Instead of feeding my cravings” she continues to smile watching the archer get out of the bed shirtless in all his glory bringing himself behind her wrapping his arms around her.

“I’d always rather stay in bed with yea, than work” He chuckles kissing her temple. “‘Sides. We gotta tell Carol and Zeke the news”

“I’m still mad that you lied about not telling Mags. But thank you for getting the book…amongst other things” Y/N continued to smile as Daryl kisses her cheek before slipping away to get ready for the day leaving her alone for a moment.

Her smile faded when she opened the book to a part that talked heavily about complications. These “what to expect when you’re expecting books” have always been informative but Y/N never thought they’d be scary. Or feed into her fears.

It didn’t take long for Daryl to notice her sudden change in demeanor, especially on the drive to the Kingdom. He thought she was upset from their trip of 2 turning into five with Eugene, Rosita, and Rick tagging along. But she didn’t care about them joining and part of her didn’t talk about it with Daryl.

When they arrived, Y/N instantly got out of the car when she spotted Carol stepping out to greet them as Daryl tried to catch up but noticed his friend’s happy expression to the news falter only slightly until it went to warm reassurance when telling Y/N something. She soon pulled away from her to approach Daryl and hug the man.

“I’m gonna take your girl for a few hours.” Carol smiles still hugging Daryl as he instantly looked at Y/N for any sign that she was upset and all she gave was her usual smile that always struck him. “So don’t you dare come tracking us down.” She laughs pulling away from his embrace. “She’s in good hands, they both are”

Daryl trusted her, of course, but his worry still made him give his radio to Y/N knowing he’ll be with Rick when she’s gone and he always has one on him in case of emergencies.

“Be safe” He whispers kissing her cheek as she hums in response before going with Carol outside the Kingdom walls.

They soon found themselves seated behind a log after tracking down a small herd of deer as Y/N kept her eye on them with her hunting rifle in hand while Carol had her bow. She really kept her attention on her friend that glued her gaze on the buck.

What if something bad happens?

What if I get hurt and lose the baby?

What if I lose the baby?

Late term miscarriage?

Freak walker accident?

What if…

What if I die?

What if I die having the baby?

What if I need a c-section and it can’t be done?

What if—-

“It’s normal to be scared”

Her voice caught Y/N off guard in her thoughts as her emotions acted only by showing the tears form and roll off her cheeks. Carol frowns setting her bow down about to lay a hand to reassure her when a gunshot rang through and a thud echoed after.

The two were now looking at the buck Y/N had just shot down and as Y/N approached the down animal she noticed a deer and its baby run off.

I don’t want to leave Daryl and…fetus. I don’t want anything to happen to me Y/N sobbed and without any word from her end, Carol carefully brought her family into her arms holding her until she felt okay enough to go back.

Daryl wasn’t very helpful to the others when Y/N was gone. He honestly hope she had radio’d him so that he’d have an excuse to take off and find her. But she was okay when she came back. From what he gathered. When the two came back he offered to help prepare the meat but instead Carol brushed him off with a look to take care of his woman. Y/N didn’t say anything, didn’t even say anything to Carol, but he knew she just wanted him there in the moment.

Second Trimester

“I’ll be back in a week”

“I know. You still didn’t have to drop me off at the Hilltop like a daycare system”

“You get anxious alone in the house, sunshine. Rick and Michonne didn’t want you over because Judith is sick. Plus you’re helping Maggie with the garden layout designs.”

“Which you reminded me I couldn’t physical help with Hilltop’s” Y/N scoffs in a playful tone resulting in a smile Daryl wished to see from where he was at. Sadly the Sanctuary. “You’re missing out on a lot of movement…”

“She better calm the fuck down until I get there”

“Dead set on a girl?” Y/N smiles leaning against the headrest in the bed of the spare bedroom in the Barrington House, gently rubbing circles on her belly. “If that’s the case then, both your girls miss you.”

“I’ll be back to y’all soon”

“I love you, honey”

“I love you bee”

Y/N continued to smile holding the radio knowing she could continue the conversation with Daryl and he wouldn’t give a damn about his responsibilities at the Sanctuary just to continue for himself. He knew it was risky to take on the task of watching the shithole for a month, but both he and Y/N knew it was hard to say no to Rick. Though the biggest reason he said yes was knowing she wouldn’t give birth in the second trimester.

Shit can still happen but it doesn’t

Well, not literally.

Everything raced in Y/N’s mind as she watches Hershel Jr for an afternoon while Maggie gets a few things done for both her and her son, and the community she leads. Which included creating the farm plots outside the Hilltop walls as long as there were spikes protecting her home and the gardens.

“Your Uncle Daryl just loves seeing you, and I know he’s going to hog you when he arrives” Y/N smiles talking to Hershel Jr as he babbles while smiling up at his aunt. “You’re just…one happy little guy.” I miss Glenn she thought as she looked at his son feeling that awful anxiety return making her face contort to discomfort which the small child instantly took note of resulting in him mimicking her feelings. “No no no, I’m okay. You’re okay” she did her best at reassuring as she carefully picked Hershel up holding him protectively in her embrace quietly shushing his sobs.

A few hours passed and Maggie finally got a moment to herself as she plans to relieve Y/N of watching her son. But while she did expect Daryl to already be bothering his wife since he arrived an hour prior to her break, she was stopped by the archer.

“What are—-“

Daryl shushed Maggie quickly before showing that Y/N was asleep along with Hershel Jr happily laying on her enjoying the warmth she emitted. “Let’em sleep”

Maggie couldn’t agree more as she left him to admire the sight before she came back about an hour later for much needed baby time with her son.

When Y/N woke she noticed no baby and scrambled a bit too fast for her comfort resulting in her pause to hold her belly as Daryl instantly brought himself from the window to sit with her resting his hand over hers.

“Maggie got her son a bit ago. Didn’t wanna wake yea”

“You were supposed to wake me up when you got here” Y/N pouts only for her expression to instantly change to the bandage on Daryl’s thigh as she was instantly shushed by the man which was only going to make her angry.

“Nothin’ too serious just a bit of road rash”

“You spilled on your bike?!”

“Eh more like. Failed dismount” That rarely happens but one can imagine Daryl’s foot getting hooked onto his bike resulting in both him and the ride falling. Better than riding your bike and hitting a hole that sends you launching to your dea—-“Sunshine? You’re staring”

She really couldn’t help the tears that sprung on feeling Daryl’s calloused yet soft hands wipe them away when he noticed.

“I’m gonna be okay. Again, nothin’ serious” Daryl reassures, getting anxious when Y/N didn’t say another word on the matter but he knew she was thinking something. Her mind was never really one to be quiet. “Alright love, come here” he gestures for her to bring herself into his side leaning into him as he brought his arms around her, the hand in front of her instantly placing itself on her belly as she instantly brought her attention to such.

“She keeps kicking me in the ribs…but at least she’s positioned right”

“Good to know about the position…thing. But her kickin’ your ribs don’t sound comfortable”

“Want me to demonstrate?” Y/N jokes causing a small smile to break out when her man chuckled lightly to such before kissing her followed by a ‘no’. “Good. Shit sucks anyway”

Third Trimester

Daryl was already a hoverer. Now it was worse and a bit weirder. At least if you asked Y/N. She always found him somewhere in the room if he wasn’t right beside her and he’s really only hovering in case she “pops”. A word she now hates from what he uses it for.

“Siddiq is at the Hilltop. Should be back in the week in case you po—-“

“You have to stop saying that word. It’s weirding me out”

“Sorry” Daryl frowns watching Y/N struggle to get her shoes on and every time he tried to help, she would swat him away. Only frustrating the man who wants to take care of his pregnant wife.

The usual sigh of defeat is his indicator for him to go ahead and help.

“Do we have any pickles left?” Y/N asks with a pleading pout watching her man’s face change with his thoughts as he tied her shoes. “Or that jam Jerry made with his wife?”

“If this is another weird food combination, don’t make me try it” Daryl scoffs playfully but when he locked eyes with her she started tearing up and it was an instant shot through the heart. “No no please I’m sorry. I’ll try it if yea want me to”

“Yeah?” Her voice cracked watching him nod listening to him reassure her even if her mind was currently a pregnancy fogged mess.

While Daryl got up to get her her craving, Y/N felt that wave of anxiety, but with pain this time.

“Ouch��� Y/N winced holding her belly and checking her watch that wasn’t totally rendered useless in the apocalypse where one can barely tell the time. It worked well for timing—-“Contractions?” She whispered to herself feeling the pain come suddenly the second time around. “Fuck.”

The archer didn’t come back immediately because her first “ow” followed by a few others, he didn’t hesitate to radio Siddiq or anybody in his vicinity to get him on. Once he was instructed on what to do while the doc makes his way over, Daryl stepped into the living room finding Y/N flinging her shoes off with a bit of struggle as she gripped her stomach.

“We gotta get you ready”

“Fuck off” She whined. “What the fuck do you think I’m doing” she cries when another painful contraction hit, making Daryl come to her side trying to help her up hoping their bed would make it more comfortable. But she immediately fought him making her cry more when she thought she had hit him too hard.

“Y/N. I’m gonna carry you”

“You’re gonna drop me”

“I’m not”

“But I’m fucking HUGE and in PAIN. You’re only going to irritate me”

“Well that ain’t new. You used to push me off the bed” Daryl scoffs not caring anymore about the love taps he was receiving when picking up his partner.

“Because you are a human heater! But then I’d start sobbing” She states, already doing so as she held onto Daryl when he carried her. He debated taking her to the infirmary instead but she’s fighting him just from moving her from the couch to the bed. It would’ve been worse going from the house to the infirmary.

“I’ve gotcha, love”

“You’re gonna drop me”

“Do you want me to drop you?”

“No!”

“Then I’m not” Daryl tried to fight back his laughter when he finally got her to bed, adding his pillow with her several ones to have her sit up. “I gotta radio Siddiq see where he’s at”

“Please don’t leave me” Y/N sobbed holding onto his arm as she curls up a bit when another contraction struck. Daryl held her arm feeling her nails dig into his as it only made his anxiety worse, imagining what hers was.

“I ain’t going anywhere love” Daryl reassures as he had his radio on him.

The entire time Daryl was on the radio trying to get an ETA on Siddiq, Y/N laid there uncomfortable as the tears build up thinking the worse possible things that could happen without a doctor or at least someone who’s delivered babies being there. She loosened her grip when he started to pull away only to get the things needed that Siddiq was telling him from the other side.

“Siddiq is close and he’ll come straight here” Daryl states setting towels down on the side of the bed by her feet. “Yea need anything? Y/N?” He frowns watching her hold her belly protectively. “Hey? Love—-“

“It’s gonna hurt���I-It’s already hurting but once she’s—-“

“Yeah but once she’s out then it’ll get—-“

“Oh it won’t be the same. It won’t be the same” Y/N started to laugh nervously concerning Daryl a bit given she was still crying and her contractions were getting closer. “What if I tear?!”

“Stitches”

“What if I bleed too much and—-“

“We’ve talked about that but not in the sense of this” He gestures to the situation. “We have solutions to these problems”

“Not if I die!” Y/N snaps suddenly and before Daryl could even reassure that anxiety, Siddiq knocked on the door making himself present along with other supplies needed.

It was about time and Y/N wasn’t ready. She wasn’t ready this entire pregnancy because of everything that could go wrong and how much pain it’s going to become. Her grip on Daryl worsened, at this point he thought she was going to break his arm.

“You have to push on the next contraction, Y/N. Okay?” Siddiq’s words just went straight through her head, all she felt was the pain and Daryl’s hand squeezing hers. Which led to—-

“I-I can’t…” She sobbed to Daryl as he gently brushed away the hair sticking to her face. “It’s hurting and it’s getting worse. What if—-“

“Hey…just breathe, love” Daryl reassures bringing his free arm around her shoulders looking only at her as if it was only them in the room. “Breathe with me, alright?” And so she did while squeezing his hand every breath that was difficult to fulfill. “You’ve got this, sunshine. Just a few more then a lifetime with our girl”

Oh how the pain was all worth it in the end, and the anxiety simply slipped away…

The soft cries filled the room and both of their eyes were drawn to the little girl being held up wrapped in a towel. Y/N started to sob as Daryl pulled away for just a moment to cut the cord before being handed their daughter. He was already teary-eyed but now the archer was sobbing when he held their daughter and finally handed her to her mother.

Just breathe Y/N smiles through tear filled eyes at their little girl. Oh this beautiful little girl she held her close gently placing a kiss to her forehead.

“You did perfect, mamas” Daryl kisses Y/N’s forehead feeling him bring himself back to holding his partner as she held their little one.

“Thank you…”

“For?”

“For helping me bring this beautiful little girl to the world”

[starguardianniom]

Adrien and Marinette screwing each other's character development

That's literally what happened in season 5.

5 seasons of Adrien trying his best to break free of his dad's abuse and control only for Marinette to honors Gabriel's wish and make him believe he was a hero and a good parent, despite having front seat at his abuse, on top of fighting him, and Gabriel made the both of time cry. So now Adrien will forever think his father was a good man, when he was not. He will like his abuser, when the last episode showing them together has Adrien showing nothing but hatred toward his father for thinking he knew better for him when he was just doing what he wanted Adrien to do and not what Adrien wanted himself.

We spent 5 seasons watching Marinette trying and failing to confess to Adrien, only for him to confess to her instead which rendered kind of all her efforts pointless, on top of not having to learn the many lessons that she should have, like regarding his private life, or start seeing him as a person and not a perfect angel who can't do no wrong. They even had some jokes at her behavior, behavior that they later learned was because she had a traumatic experience which made her decide that the next poor sod that would catch her attention would not be permitted to have a private life whatsoever, just because she made an error of judgement and didn't listen to her friend's warning, something she keeps doing repeatedly during the series. She just gets her boyfriend and never has to change her behavior, and he doesn't get to maybe get mad or creeped out at all the stuff she did for him while she could barely speak to him, let alone struggle to stay close less she ran away out of being scared to ask him out. So her toxic behavior also doesn't get to be toned down. Biggest example is after learning that Gabriel is Monarch, she goes to speak to him because she wants Adrien back, not to stop Monarch once in for all. She has to when he finds her in his house and she can't hide much longer.

The main difference, Marinette has been aware since forever that Gabriel was pretty controlling with Adrien and got depressed over it several times since it meant she couldn't hang out with him. And she still sided with his abuser because she didn't want Adrien to deal with the backlash of knowing his father was the local terrorist of the city. A guy she spent 5 season fighting, and spent the last episode of season 5 beating up because he prefered to go with his crazy scheme instead of respecting his wife's last wish. And she decides to respect Gabriel's last wish instead of being honest with Adrien and the rest of the city, which I'm sorry to say, is beyond horrible of her. People deserves the truth, so does Adrien, stop coodling him like his father tried, he doesn't need it.

Meanwhile Adrien just learned in the last season that she had a crush on him. And saw her doing some pretty weird stuff, but never truly saw the real depths as to how far Marinette was willing to go to get his love. He didn't see her bully Kagami, he didn't see her lie and manipulate her parents to make her follow him to Shangai and abandoning her uncle on his birthday just to go stalk him, among other stuff. So he isn't aware of the worst of Marinette, and half of it he thinks she's just weird because to him that's how she's always been, weird and quirky but still charming and cute somehow.

I kind of just realised that while reading other posts about those subjects and just saw that they both ruined each other's development, Adrien unintentionally and Marinette, intentionally.

EDIT: chocolatevoidpizza made me realize I was victim blaming Marinette for the cruel prank she went through in Derision via the line "just because she made an error of judgement and didn't listen to her friend's warning".

That is unfair on Marinette and I apologize for writing that and take it back.

I however won't delete it cause I need the reminder to not have a repeat of that and I need the lesson.

So thank you chocolatevoidpizza for opening my eyes and knocking sense back into me.

[weirdestbooks]

British Michigan AU Oneshot

Tearful Reunions (Wattpad | Ao3)

America paced worriedly outside the meeting place, anxiety flooding his body and choking his mind, making it hard to think. His emotions were a tangled mess, and America couldn’t figure out if he wanted to scream or cry.

“Preferably, you won’t scream when you see him,” Amelia said in a soothing voice, “We don’t want to scare him off, and who knows what those bastards have been filling his head with. We’ve already—”

Amelia cut herself off, not wanting to mention what Britain had done to their son. It was hard for all of them to think about it, let alone say those dreaded words. America paused, nodding, not wanting to say anything. While he had recently revealed his DID, he was trying not to disturb anyone by talking to the others in public. 

Besides, this was one of the most important days of his life. He couldn’t mess it up. Not now, not after everything. Not when he was so close. America had stopped pacing now and was instead wringing his hands together, doing everything he could to dispel the anxious energy that filled his body. 

Then, his son arrived. Before he said anything, America just drank in the appearance of his son. Photos and videos online of various events he had attended were one thing, but America hadn’t seen him in person…America had never seen him in person before. Not outside of his inner world, at least. Tears sprung into the corners of his eyes, and a heavy lump settled in his throat.

His son’s flag was so reminiscent of a British colony, with the Union Jack canton that Britain used to claim them as his own. The brand was still visible on his son’s face.

“A flag is not a brand. I know you’re angry at Britain, but you can’t stand acting angry at Michigan. It’s not his fault,” James said.

“No. It’s ours,” Rebecca murmured as the family pang of self-loathing and regret hit America. 

The rest of Michigan’s flag was read, with a seal in the corner. A sun over what must be one of the Great Lakes and part of the lakebed, with a dear at the top. The deer’s legs were tied together. America wondered if he was being mocked if Britain created that seal as one final insult, one final blow to him. A reminder that he failed and his son was now forever stuck with his captors.

Michigan had grown into a handsome man with dark hair, brown eyes, and the deer’s ears and antlers. 

America still wanted to cry.

“Uh…Hello, America,” Michigan began. America knew that his father had brainwashed his son into hating and disowning him, but being called America hit him with a painful lance that thickened the lump in his throat. 

He really was going to cry.

“Hi, Michigan,” America began, his own voice thick with emotion and grief, “It’s so good to see you again.”

Michigan looked somewhat uncomfortable, and America began trying to reel his emotions in, not wanting to scare off his son after so long.

“Sorry if…sorry if I’m a bit emotional or a bit much. It’s…it’s been a long time. I’ve missed you so much,” America said.

“Maybe tell him you aren’t going to pressure him to call you dad. I know you want it, Ame, but it’s not going to happen for a while. Let him know you’ll wait for him to be ready,” Charlotte added. America bit down a bitter laugh.

He had been waiting for his son for almost two hundred years. He didn’t want to wait any longer. But Charlotte was right.

“You also…you don’t have to call me…call me dad, right away. It’s…it’s good enough to see you again,” America added and watched as some of the nervousness drained from his son’s body, sending another bolt of pain through him.

“Thank you,” Michigan said, his voice nearly a whisper, before he cleared his throat, speaking louder, “I don’t know what you want to do or talk about. I…”

Realizing that Michigan had trailed off, America quickly stepped in.

“I just want to get to know you again. I…there’s a nice family restaurant down the road if you want to go there and eat, and just tell me about your life and your interests and all that. I know…I know painfully little about you. You can control the topics. I just…I just want to be in your life again,” America said before swallowing thickly. The words had been hard to say around the lump in his throat, around the storm of emotions running through him.

Michigan smiled, and America was struck by how familiar that smile was—so reminiscent of Indiana and Illinois that it hurt.

A dark part of America wondered if Michigan was ever hurt for those superficial similarities. America shut that part of him down. He would cry about his failures after the fact.

“That sounds nice. But I…I am allowed to leave if I get uncomfortable?” Michigan asked. The pain in America’s heart grew. His son should never have to feel uncomfortable around him. He should feel safe. 

America nodded, “Of course you can. I don’t want to mess things up further. Let me, please, let me know if I have crossed a line. I know you aren’t the son I lost, but it’s easier to tell my head that than my heart that.”

“Thank you,” Michigan said. There was something so painfully formal about the way he was acting, like he was meeting an ally, not a long-lost family member. America wondered if his children who had written to Michigan over the past fifty-something years had dealt with a similar phenomenon.

He wondered how long it took for them to get through Michigan’s walls. Because as much as America understood why, and he could understand, he had lived under Britain for two hundred-odd years too, he wanted to know the man his son had become.

He wanted to know who Michigan was now. He knew Michigan’s birthday had been changed to the day Hull surrendered, and he wondered if Michigan remembered his actual birthday. He wondered if Michigan wanted to know.  

“Vermont says Canada is a good father, but uh…that’s true, right? He’s good to you? He doesn’t hurt you?” America asked. He knew how Britain’s parenting tactics were, and although Vermont visited the Canadian side of his family often, he was still an outsider, not privy to all details.

“It’s still a terrible first question,” James said, sounding annoyed.

“I don’t know. I think it shows that America still thinks about his well-being and cares about him,” Amelia said.

Michigan looked horrified at the prospect.

“No! Father—” And boy, if that didn’t sting. “—is the best. He treats me and my brothers well! He would never hurt us! Are you trying to make me doubt him?”

Michigan was instantly on the defensive, assuming the worst. It stung worse than him calling Canada father.

“No, no! I just want to make sure you’re safe and loved. I know…I know how Britain is,” America protested, concern and fear flooding through him as Michigan flinched slightly at Britain’s name. “I just…I want you to be happy. I accepted long ago that you would never again be part of my nation. I’ve come to accept that. But to me, you still never stopped being my son. No matter how much you hate me, I still love you. I always will. Canada and I have our issues, but as long as he ensures you’re safe and happy…then I’ll do my best to be as okay as I can with him being your dad. Even if it hurts me, you’re more important.”

It was more honest than what he was used to, but Vermont had drilled into his head that honesty was the best thing to come to Michigan with. Vermont said that if he laid everything out for Michigan, Michigan would be more willing to trust him because he knew where America stood.

“Father ensures that my family is as safe as happy as it can be,” Michigan said, voice firm as he stared America in the eyes. America nodded.

“Good. That’s all I want from him. To know you’ll be safe with him,” America said. 

“And weekly visits!” Amelia protested.

“Later, Lia. Not now. It’s not appropriate for that. We need to regain Michigan’s trust in us. Michigan calls the shots.”

Michigan let out a small laugh, and America smiled.

“This isn’t what I expected,” he said, “You’re more okay with everything.”

“I’ve had a lot of time to think. And…because I love you, I have to be willing to let you call the shots.” America said. Michigan smiled.

“That means a lot. Now, I’m hungry, so if it’s okay, can we go to that restaurant you talked about,” he asked. America nodded.

“‘Course we can.”

Maybe things weren’t perfect now, but they were better than they had been.

America got to talk to Michigan again. Very little could be better than that.

[kitpanthera]

haters can't stand to see me pondering ‼️ (thanks so much for the previous response! again, no pressure to respond to all of these, this is just what i've come up with since seeing your response 🩵)

1. you mentioned dipper's dad not liking that he got into gymnastics -- is that because he views it as a woman's sport? is this where dipper gets his weird relationship with masculinity and needing to be perceived as a man despite being 12? (would love to see him unpack all of that at some point) also, bill teaching dipper more about how to be a man than their father ever did???? (someone cooked here)

2. are there any physical side effects of dipper using magic? i'm thinking something along the lines of his fingers turning black, or his hair changing color. just a physical sign to signify that he's messing with things normal humans don't (even if it's only visible to other magic users). or even something like that for possession? you said his eyes are bleeding but does he experience anything else (even if bill isn't doing it to him -- more just something that happens from the physical toll of being possessed)?

3. does mabel actually realize how serious the situation is with dipper and bill? obviously the adults are probably going to have a better idea of why an interdimensional demon that's been alive longer than we can conceive hanging out with and befriending a child in order to use them is Bad, but i'm not sure if mabel realizes that beyond just knowing he's not a good person who's turned dipper's preteen angst up to 15.

4. will dipper ever interact with other human magic users? does he practice magic differently since he learned from a demon rather than another human?

5. i know i've asked a lot around the subject of their family. i am just,,, so upset about how literally every adult in dipper's life has failed him. have any of them realized how bad it is (besides ford, though i think he still has a narrow view of it since he's basing it on his own experience with bill)? has anyone realized how the pines parents are favoring mabel over dipper? i'd like to think that, on some level, mabel knows, but she's also known to be short sided (the curse of being 12!).

6. what's the axolotl up to? will the audience and/or dipper see him again? i can't imagine he's terribly pleased with how things are going right now.

7. Is there anything you'd like readers to ask more about/read more into?

as soon as i submit this, i'm sure i'll think of more. thanks so much for the responses! :)

Do all the pondering, screw the haters

1. Yeah, so Dipper's dad is definitely the "man's man" type. They put him in gymnastics as a kid because they thought it would be cute, but when he started being really into it, his dad freaked because he didn't want Dipper to be into such a... well, he didn't perceive it as feminine, per se, but more so kinda... wimpy, sport. Dipper always took it that his dad thought it was feminine (they encouraged Mabel to stay in gymnastics, but she didn't like it), so he has always felt the need to prove himself to him as a man, until Bill came along and became the new "man" to look up to, and had standards Dipper could fit while being himself.

2. Any physical manifestations will show themselves soon :)

3. Mabel is somewhat aware, seeing as she's read Journal 3 pretty much cover to where it stopped off. She knows Bill is dangerous enough for Ford to call him dangerous. More on Mabel's thoughts will be explained in the mini-novella I release between books 1 and 2!

4. Well, he doesn't practice the same type of magic in the same way that other humans do, so it differs a lot. Whether he'll interact with other human magic users is yet to be seen :)

5. There's kind of a reason why their parents are black sheep in their own families? In their own ways, they both suck, and the twins (especially Dipper) find themselves unfortunate victims to that. Neither of them notice what's going on because they're too absorbed in their own selves. Stan wouldn't know because he's not there, and Dipper hasn't talked to him about it. I honestly don't even think Mabel really notices, either, not really. She has it bad, and doesn't realize he has it worse.

6. We will see the Axolotl again, he's watching and waiting :)

7. Literally anything from any chapter, I've put so much effort into subtlety in this story, so many details I hope people will find, and I feel the things I omit are just as important as the things I put in! As well as the little seemingly random details, I haven't forgotten about the slowly expanding cabin in the Mindscape :)

[mysterybooks-world]

Hello guys

I have another one of the reincarnated storys

it's from the Hazbin Hotel series

warning: To watch the series, you must be of age 18 or above

but there is a twist.

y/n reborn as Alastor's father

I've seen many fan art & comic dubs & animatic about Alastor's father being a terrible person.

But some others make him such a good father in the aus.

I read this about Alastor's mother

But not much information about his father

Just this information: Around the late 1800s, she became involved with a Caucasian man and would go on to have a son who became known as Alastor. Shortly after Alastor's birth, her partner abandoned both her and Alastor to avoid possible persecution for being involved with a woman of Creole descent, leaving her to raise Alastor on her own.

So listen

y/n is big fan of (hazbin hotel)&(helluvaboss)

y/n 've read or Watch everything about them Such as theories & fan stories & they songs & y/n even read the comic Origin of hazbin hotel

you can say y/n they are a nerd

One day, y/n are now dead Then you became Alastor's dad

When y/n died they woke up they found themselves In another body,

At first they understand what is happening And when they looked in a mirror It was a reflection of a young man.

y/n when they touch the mirror Suddenly images of memories the owner if this body

(Important note: I couldn't find Alastor's father's name So choose a name for him. else I found on that Alastor fall name is Alastor Hartfelt)

So your name :(Oliver Hartfelt)

y/n they jaw dropped Out of shock. Then y/n took a deep breath Until they nerves calm they down And you understand the situation.

y/n: Okay, I'm in a stranger's body and his name is Oliver Hartfelt

mmm Why the name of Hartfelt sound Familiar

What kind of world am I in.

Usually When I read about This is a kind of storys I may be in a novel or game.

Is there any kind of guide or user guide

They were answered by A blue screen in front of them

and there is Info about me

y/n: Well, this is useful and I have read the writin.

and here my second time my jaw dropped From what they read

y/n:Okay, The bright side I'm in a world of hazbin hotel

OMG I do not believe this. This is like a dream come true But there is one problem

I AM THE FATHER OF AlASTOR

What a disaster

I know very well from the fandom that Alastor did not mention anything about his father

Because he was a bad person and There is also a theory that Alastor kill him

Of all the characters why me. No need to panic

As it seems Oliver have not met Alastor's mother

Then the screen changed Written on a screen say

I must get married to Alastor's mother and of If I fails to do it, then Alastor will no longer exist in the world

y/n panic again: WHAT.

Get a hold of yourself, y/n. You can do it

Although if I fails, I will destroy the future

without Alastor Things will change for the worse.

TO Make it a short

Oliver Try to win a Alastor's mother heart And there was a lot of drama

But in the end they succeeded Marry to her.

Oliver thinking about a work career to Radio host Because they knows that Alastor was a radio star host When he was alive

So you make things easier for Alastor when he grows up

This is exactly what happened

Oliver have a radio station building And Oliver became famous And learn some information about radio and he buy books about radio information or how to repair the radio for Alastor when he grows up

And when Alastor was born, He didn't realize he was crying tears of joy When he was holding Alastor in his hands And in is mind Curse The owner of the body, he knew, he would leave them in this part

But he is not him, he is someone else So he will care his family

Oliver skill set level up When he learns a new skill

Oliver hobbies

1-Playing musical instruments. 2-Hunting gun 3-Taking pictures of Alastor. (Oliver has a whole collection of books about pictures of Alastor and the stages of his life) 4-drawing 5-Making handmade things such as

Alastor is amazed at the things dad creates.

Alastor When he was young thinks his father was Kind of is a magician.

when Alastor grows up he became a Radu star like his father

And when Alastor began his career in notorious and elusive serial killer in secret After his mother died from an illness

There was a detective who caught Alastor while he was hiding the body

But suddenly Someone stabbed him behind the back in the heart

And this person is Oliver is dad

Alastor stood shocked While his father carries the investigator's body

Oliver: son Don't stand like this, quickly, let's hide the bodies

And after they returned home

The next day

Alastor asked his father How long did he knew he was the killer?

Oliver: From the beginning But I won't ask why you're doing this

Oliver: I'm not a person to judge people

Oliver: Sometimes the best people are the ones who are not perfect

Alastor hugs his father and says: thanked dad

Oliver: No problem. I think you are the most handsome killer, he added

Alastor Embarrassed: Dad no

Oliver: Dad yes

Oliver continues to tease Alastor

His father would help him kill people sometimes

Oliver told Alastor about a strange story he had with an old man

The old man tells him About hell When he was a child

Oliver lied about an old man. He wanted to tell Alastor about hell when he fell and Alastor would be prepared in hell

Of course Oliver can't tell Alastor directly

Alastor will ask him how he knows all this

So he made up a fake story about a mysterious old man who told him about how hell works when he was a child

One day

But someone tried to kill Alastor With bullets But his father protected him

And that's how Oliver died

Anyway

This is the form of a demonic Oliver.

Oliver tried to make it a coincidence to meet Lucifer And he succeeded

Lucifer like Oliver handmade things Especially the duck part

You can say Oliver became like his advisor

But after some time Lucifer started to see Oliver as father figure Not only him

Mammon Queen Bee-lzebub Asmodeus Belphegor Stolas Goetia

I've read some fan stories & fan comic that The rulers of hell are Lucifer's siblings

I imagine Asmodeus asks for love advice from Oliver And he talks about how he love Fizzarolli

You could say he became like a royal father to them

LOL

Do you guys remember (episode 5 Dad Beat Dad)

In a song

Hell's Greatest Dad Sing-Along | Hazbin Hotel

Alastor tried to annoy Lucifer by taking his daughter's attention away from him

however, Later Lucifer found the perfect revenge

Lucifer sent some pictures of him and Oliver to Alastor With a message says Your dad is my dad now

Nene Nene Nene Nene.

Alastor went crazy with anger and jealousy

Alastor Knew his dad was in hell With him Because his dad always visited him at his home

however, Oliver didn't tell Alastor With his relationships with the most powerful demons

Because he knows that his son will use him for more power

(note: y/n as Oliver is loves and adore his son Alastor. So if Alastor is sad or frustrated because of him.

Oliver will give very little power and information Until he sees him smile)

Here's the funny part of my story

In the past

Alastor with Vox talk about work

When Oliver suddenly came

Alastor: Hello, Dad how are you

Oliver: hello, son So who is your friend?

Alastor: Dad meet Vox, vox Meet my dad

Vox: Nice To meet you

They shake hands

In the middle of the conversation

Oliver said to Vox What do you think of my son

Vox: He is a good friend, even though he is Trickster

Alastor: Thanks for complimenting me

Vox rolls his eyes:

Oliver: you know Alastor

Oliver: I think you and Vox will be very wonderful couple

Alastor spat out his Coffee while Vox choke on a biscuit

Oliver smiles a devilish smile And continue by saying It's good that you found someone for you son

Alastor: DAD

Vox: Blushing with embarrassment

Oliver: so vox Let me show you some pictures of Alastor when he was a child

Alastor took the photo book and burned it

Oliver Take out another Copy photo book

Alastor did the same thing a hundred times

Alastor:How many copies do you have?

Oliver: Plenty Because I know you'll burn the pictures

Oliver show vox pictures while telling stories about pictures while Alastor hits his head on a table from embarrassment.

Yes, I know, I'm evil

[atinylittlepain]

You have convinced me, please let me know which albums of the great Bruce should I listen to first??

If it helps for suggestions:

- I am very much a listen to the whole album person

- I am very much NOT from america

- I regularly cry listening to music because it’s just, so good? 💙

Thank you!

Okay, non, it is time. I've thought very carefully about it, and I think I have a quintessential roadmap to guide you through my beautiful wife bruce's oeuvre. Before I get into that though, I have a few things to say about his music.

To put it plainly, think of each of Bruce's songs as a story - if you ever listen to him talk about his songs, he'll talk about personas and characters populating his albums, he'll talk about trying to capture certain American characters, archetypes and images that are now of the past. He means that, and it is what he does. Maybe this is a reach, or just me being pretentious (hello, let's put that english double major to work) but his songs really remind me of Flannery O'Connor's short stories - and she would often talk about being interested in grace, and capturing it in her writing. And it's not grace in the religious sense - it's a hard-earned, or sometimes hardly-earned grace, found in those that are failing, those that are longing, those that are young and uncertain and at the same time very old, and very tired. I've seen jokes circulating about how Bruce's music makes you realize that you too have a sixty-year-old beat-down midwestern dad somewhere inside of you - and I think those jokes are pointing to that grace, to something that inherently aches inside of us, something very old, and very human. That is my thesis statement about Mr. Springsteen - it's why I love him and why I listen to him and why I'll be sorely sad when he is no longer here with us.

AND with that, here is my bona fide roadmap to your first trip with Bruce:

NUMBER ONE

Alright, starter album right here, and maybe considered a bold choice by some - BUT, this is an album you can listen to start to finish and feel like you just watched a movie, and I feel that this album captures something essential about Bruce's work, both lyrically and sonically.

my favorite songs from this album

The Promised Land

Something in the Night

Darkness on the Edge of Town

NUMBER TWO

Mannnnnnn this album - I'll be honest with you, it's just fucking fun - some of Clarence's best work (sax man, beautiful man) some of the best imagery, and I believe after Darkness on the Edge of Town warming you up, it's a perfect second listen - it's short, and pretty punchy, but goddamn, it hits.

favorite songs

JUNGLELAND (one of my all time favorite Bruce songs, truly, tears in my eyes when I listen to it, it's that good)

Backstreets

She's the One

NUMBER THREE

So this album is my favorite Springsteen album, hands down, no holds barred. And yes, it is pretty different from any of his other stuff. Bruce recorded these songs on a four-track recorder in his home in New Jersey, with little else - he was in his early thirties, The River had been a smashing hit, and he was depressed. The original intent for these songs was to rerecord them with the E Street Band - however, that did not happen. The songs that did get rerecorded would end up becoming Born in the USA (arguably his most popular album), and the songs that didn't would get salvaged off a cassette he had been carrying around in his jacket pocket, and they would become this album. It's sparse, it's insular, it's unprecedented, and it is, indubitably, my favorite album. (I could make a whole fucking other post about just this album, but I will restrain myself... for now)

favorite songs

My Father's House

Reason to Believe

Atlantic City

And after you've gotten through these three, I would say be free and explore - The River and Born in the USA are pretty infamous - I would say you might like The River more just given the "NOT from america" status, as you said.

favorites off The River

The River (I mean, cmon now)

Drive All Night (makes me cry like a baby)

Crush on You

However, Born in the USA is inarguably brilliant, she's popular for a reason - I'm from fucking Ohio though, so that whole album really gets my gears turning regardless.

favorites off Born in the USA that are, um, less american-y

Downbound Train (all time fave)

My Hometown

Bobby Jean

And, of course, I highly recommend listening to his live albums, there's just something about them - here's two songs to get you started there:

Happy listening, dear anon, I'd love to hear what you think when you start digging in :)

[alex-dontknow]

Faraday Heath ramble under the cut because i love him so much uaauauauaua

@taterswithranch @k1rameki

Faraday is an experienced drama teacher and stage actor, favouring in musicals and non-naturalism to engage his audience and students. He has been teaching for a decade and acting for 15 years. His soul genre is Gothic Rock, although he enjoys dressing in the romantic goth substyle. He is Shakespeare-passionate and will defend many theatrical plays over his dead body.

Faraday offers after school drama sessions as a form of "stress release" for students and teachers alike. He knows about the pressure put on everyone in school (including himself) and sometimes acting is a really good outlet.

He is demisexual and transgender (FtM). He's also autistic with misophonia.

in addition to the gothic rock, Faraday has a British dad music taste. /hj

He also has the ability to disperse and throw his voice, meaning he can basically be his own choir. Why he didn't become a choir conductor will forever be a mystery /j

He used to work as a daycare assistant, henceforth he is really good with children.

He has few memories about his family, but what remains are memories of kindness and childhood joy.

His favourite food is bucket cotton candy and his favourite drink is lychee ramune.

He is 43 years old and his birthday is the 2nd of November. He speaks with an Oxfordshire accent and has a sophisticated, yet laid back vocabulary.

He will follow through with bets and student / teacher pranks and shenanigans, although begrudgingly.

Faraday is a mentor teacher to both his colleagues and students, and while he appears sardonic and critical, he does have a kind, caring, almost paternal personality if you embed yourself into his good books. He has a habit of calling anyone significantly younger than him (students and teachers alike) "kid".

He suffers from severe hayfever in the summer and has an ungodly heat tolerance. He doesn't fair so well in the cold.

This man is 43 and he cannot tie shoelaces.

He used to have an adopted child when he was in his early 20s. Unfortunately they ended up passing due to an incident involving the Deadly Musix: their soul genre was stolen and absorbed entirely, killing them immediately. Faraday himself was caught, a small fracture of his soul being stolen and, along with it, his memories of childhood. He no longer remembers his family. He only lives with the guilt that he failed to protect his child.

The device used to drain his soul genre would progressively absorb and transfer it directly into Aori wirelessly, no matter the distance between her and Faraday. When Faraday escaped, he unknowingly took the device with him, for it had been surgically implanted into his body. All this time, it has been ticking down and eating away at his soul genre for two decades.

Due to the degree of consumption his soul had been under, especially with how little is left, it won't be long until it begins to physically impair him. Technically if the device used to drain his soul was removed it would cease the process, however by the time he realizes what is happening even if he were to remove it he's too weak to function normally. He'd be forced to give up his passions and so much more in life.

He wouldn't be able to teach or act anymore.

Additionally, considering how much is now within Aori, the only way for him to retrieve it is to destroy the prison it is contained in.

... Time for a moral dilemma.

The way to keep him alive would be to restore his soul genre to its entirety. Aori would have consumed that lost majority by now, killing her could potentially return it to him, however she also has several other soul genres combined with hers.

If she were to die right there, Faraday would absorb all of them.

Those are other people's souls that he would be absorbing alongside his own. Would it be wrong? Would it be unfair? Would it be painful?

[mentallydeadartist]

Look who's back with another rambling post :,)

Well, let's just start with the usual, so I'll be opening up the box that is "Stranger by the shore" and like last time this is like a continuation of me blabbering to my friend 💀 so this is what I started with:

"It's way too fast paced. Also they focused on the wrong stuff. Like if you're already having bad pacing then I don't need a 5 min scene (or more) of them fucking. Like???

And the relationship is 1. Rushed, like they have known each other for like a while (I'd say a month but maybe even a few more months (I'd hope)) and then one of the guys needs to leave and the other is left to ponder for 3 years. Then when he gets back he (obv, he literally got back for him) starts flirting and what not so much that the other guy is just going deep down internalized homophobia and is brushing him off. He starts being distant and telling him "are you sure this is what you want" and man literally pulls out "you sure you don't want a girlfriend rather than having me?". 2. The internalized homophobia guy needs to sort some stuff out. He's way too quick when it's a stupid choice he's making. Like for example his fiance (who he broke off the engagement with even before meeting the other guy) is back to tell him about his dad. And while he fosters no feelings for her, when she asks "give a kiss goodbye, so that I'll be able to forget you" the motherfucker thinks for like two seconds ("oh yeah, that'll make it easier for her, so she'll leave me alone"). And mind you, he didn't even think about his fucking boyfriend. The other guy was literally on the side, he was gonna cheat. Without asking, without even realizing it 💀."

Like I said, it was way too fast paced for me.

And yeah it's a movie so "what were you expecting" idk. I guess I just think they could've done it better if some things were cut and some other scenes were given more time. I like the flashbacks tho, those were quite needed and at the right time too. I also get why they would want to show them flirting (or at least, Mio trying to flirt) to not have them rush too much (which, not only is it kinda playing into the "gay men rush thru every relationship they have" stereotype but also it's giving their story way less meaning) and they still failed, cause It's still too fast.

I have to say that this story would've done better as a longer film, a series would've been complicated to articulate tho. It's a rather weird situation.

I also find that it doesn't make sense for Mio to come back?? Like why would you. The "you helped me figure myself out" is not enough at all??? Why would you go back to someone you don't even know that well? How do you know he waited for you? We don't even know if they talked on the phone as much. Shun seemed shocked to talk to him, so I'd assume not. I'd understand if he (Mio) were to be grateful, as shun spent his time with him when his mom passed and didn't treat him like a good action, just like a normal person. And was still there by his side to help him through it. But not what Mio said to him.

Maybe the dub was also a mistake but it was 2 am and I was not gonna watch more subbed content.

Also the "almost cheating" thing just pisses me off. Like not only did shun just go for it (which, at least ask, like it makes sense why you would but you're not single my guy) but Mio kissed her, which you're not better than him??? Like yeah she's disappointed because it wasn't shun who kissed her, but it's still cheating bc again, Y'ALL HAD NO COMMUNICATION IN ALL OF THIS.

Also it's disgusting how after he completely messes up, shun just comes over and thinks he can make it better with kisses. Like I get if it's a small fight, but y'all both need to fucking talk because this could be getting more toxic if that isn't the case.

And then they fuck and it's anticlimactic as hell.

Like why was that even there????

"ah yeah, if people are watching, we might as well let them fuck" ??? What

Like yeah sure, pent up sexual frustration from both of them and also they're young so it's normal for them to make stupid choices.

But also they're both 20, fucking isn't gonna fix the lack of communication??

Also whose horrible idea was it to let Mio just wander with him?? Excuse me, what is he, a dog?? Mio is literally fixing everything in Shun's life and he's still getting dragged along like that. Let the guy rest istg. Now what's gonna happen? His dad is gonna be even more mad at him for being gay and then he'll sulk to Mio and he'll have to carry to burden of that too. And I get it, maybe Mio (somehow) thinks that Shun helping him is enough for what he's doing, but hm sorry to break it to you, but no way.

So if you're still planning to watch it, then just know it's some fujo bait or smt cause ain't no way it isn't 💀

[marunalu]

The longer AFO arriving at UA is delayed the more my belief in dfo starts to wane 🥲

The heroes are the ones "winning", or lets better say, things go to their favor right now. Izuku has still the upper hand against shiggy, nagant, gentle and la brava are back and fighting on the heroes side, la brava gives skeptic the trauma of a lifetime, kurogiri is glitching and doesnt listen to afo anymore and on top shigaraki managed to take control of his body again and the afo vestige goes without a doubt through a very rough time right now, but we dont know if all of that will actually last OR if all of this was even planned by the real afo. This man is known for having dotzens of backup plans for every plan that fails. Its also possible if the real afo realizes that shiggy is of no use for him anymore now, he will (try to) get rid of him. Afo showed in the past already that his main focus is on izuku anyway "you are next" and there is this very interesting theory of @psychomurderz that afo always considered izuku to be his true heir. Check out her theory of that, its really good and makes so much sense!

Sooner or later afo will show up where izuku and shiggy are. No matter what the outcome will be. And personally I believe the moment izuku recognizes afo as dear old dad, shit will go down bad for the hero side, because izuku is their only hope to win against afo and shiggy and will most likely be to shocked and devasted to be able to fight his own father, espicially if there are fond memories between them. Im also very positive that izukus heartbreak and shattered fighting will, will make afo manage to steal ofa in the end. And if that happens the heroes are doomed, except if izuku has his own afo quirk. The delay of afos arrival is due to hori most likely wanting to focus on izuku and shiggy first, before he dives into angsty family drama that makes the todofam plot look like a childs game.

[linkedkeysau-official]

Linked Keys Febuwhump

Days 6/7- Secrets Revealed & Time Loop (alt)

Mask knew he fucked up. He knew it before he even went through with the plan. He knew it was going to end badly, he knew it was going to make his dad furious… He probably wouldn't have been surprised if the Captain disowned him for it. He probably deserved it anyway… But it was his only choice. And it was for the greater good. And Mask had absolutely no problem making personal sacrifices for others.

Still… It hurt to be given the silent treatment like this. It would probably hurt less to be yelled at, which Mask hated. At least his father would be acknowledging him. This… Was awful. He wouldn't look at Mask, he wouldn't talk to him, he would ignore when the kid spoke… He even yanked the end of his scarf from the kid's hands when he tried to grab it to get his attention. And still didn't speak to him afterwards. 

The others noticed this behavior as well. They knew about the incident, in which Mask had mixed some of Legend's magic powder into Warriors' tea, leading to the Captain being conked out at camp while the others marched into battle without him. Some thought it was a prank gone wrong; Mask didn't know this would happen or that Warriors would react this way. Some thought it was just an honest mistake; the kid could hardly read any better than Hyrule could, he may have mistaken it for sugar. Warriors on the other hand, saw it as an act of betrayal, however. 

The Captain's trust issues were well known, as were Mask's. The Hyrulean army during the War of Eras had been riddled with traitors and spies, to the point where nobody knew who to trust, and putting your trust in the wrong person got you hurt or killed. Warriors was for sure overreacting, but he couldn't help it. He'd trusted the kid for so long. And then he pulls a stunt like this with no explanation.

It was not the first time Warriors had been given a drugged beverage by someone he thought was an ally, and to be honest he wasn't even sure this was the real Mask. But when he realized the kid had deliberately given him tea tainted with a substance that would put him to sleep like that, he suddenly found it impossible to trust the kid until he knew the full story. But right now he was too pissed to listen to him try to justify his actions. So he was simply not speaking to the kid. 

Everyone could see this was a problem, but nothing anyone said to Warriors changed his mind. The fact was: he felt he no longer knew his son, if  he ever knew him at all. Time was especially upset by this, though nobody was quite sure why, aside from what had everyone upset: seeing Mask so deeply hurt by his father's actions. But when the kid had run away after two days straight of utter silence, Time had to step in.

"You need to get over yourself Captain. Do you see what you've done? Mask is missing, and you don't even care." Time demanded

"He'll be back. He always comes back. A little time to think about what he's done would be good for him anyway." Warriors replied with so little emotion that it was terrifying. 

"This is utterly ridiculous. Are you even listening to yourself? He is your son!"

"And? No offense, Old Man, but don't tell me how to parent my child. He needs to know the consequences of—"

"I TOLD HIM TO DO IT!!" Time cut him off. 

"I...don't understand." Warriors' anger faded into confusion.

"I. Told him. To do whatever was necessary to keep you out of the fight. You obviously didn't listen to him the first few times when he tried to use his words. So he took matters into his own hands. It was not his fault. He didn't even want to do it."

"So why did he, huh? And why did you tell him to?" 

"Because it was the only way to save your life, Wars! Mask— I was trying to save you. Because I had seen you die, and failed to save you myself, so many times already. So I used the Song of Time to try again, and again, and again. I didn't want to get the kid involved. But after a while I realized he was likely the only one you might actually listen to if he told you to stay behind. So I asked him to do whatever he could to keep you out of danger." Time explained. Warriors was shocked, and suddenly felt appalled at his recent behavior. He'd gotten so wrapped up in the act itself that he didn't think about the motive… Or really who had committed it.

He'd hurt Mask… He'd treated his son like dirt these past few days, and it pushed him to run away, probably assuming he wasn't wanted anymore. Goddess, what had Warriors done…? 

“Go find him before he gets himself into danger out there alone, and talk to him like a normal person, not like a petty toddler.” Time ordered, “Hylia Almighty, you need a lesson in parenting…”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I almost didn’t want to get you involved in this one,” Time had confessed a few nights ago.

“Why?” Mask asked, “...Who was it this time?” 

He’d known he was going to regret this… He thought it would be worth it, the risk of upsetting the Captain for the sake of keeping him alive. He knew the rule: no revealing to anyone what happened in the other timeline until after the event in question has passed, and only if absolutely necessary. Others knowing about it, especially the one you’re trying to save, could mess up the whole thing. Mask knew what he was potentially getting into by resorting to sabotage, and still he regretted it, because it only confirmed that he was right. He would always end up alone… History would always repeat itself; such was the curse of one who could turn back time at will.

So naturally, when the Captain came looking for him, the last thing Mask expected was forgiveness. And yet… As he stood with his back against the wall, cornered in fear and shame, he was met with the unexpected.

“Relax, Sprite. I’m… I’m not going to hurt you.” 

“Liar. Why wouldn’t you? I hurt you first… I b-betrayed your trust…!” 

“Listen to me, Sprite. See, I’m unarmed. I’m not going to hurt you.” Warriors set down his sword, which he'd only brought to defend himself against monsters he might encounter in the search for his son, who he’d found taking refuge in a small settlement nearby, “Look, Time told me what happened, and I am so sorry for the way I treated you. It was a huge misunderstanding, and I overreacted. You were just trying to help, and you were desperate… I know that now, and I feel so, so awful for thinking there was any malicious intent behind your actions.” He said, approaching slowly. Mask finally broke, sobbing as he leapt onto his father in a hug. The gesture was returned, with Warriors lifting the kid up off the ground, struggling to hold back tears himself.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you…!” Mask wailed, burying his face in his dad’s scarf, relishing in the fact that his comfort item wasn’t going to be ripped from his hands this time, “We– We’re not supposed to mention it to anyone when we go back in time…”

“It’s okay. You don’t owe me an explanation. Not anymore.” Warriors assured him. He carried the kid over to a nearby bench and sat down, “Just out of curiosity, Sprite… How long have you and Time been doing this? This… ‘going back in time’ stuff to prevent people’s deaths?” 

“S-Since Hyrule was poisoned… It was too close for c-comfort, so we realized w-we might have to intervene at s-some point…” Mask explained. Geez, the Sprite and the Old Man have been keeping this a secret for that long?! It’s been months since that happened! 

“A-And… How many times have you had to do it?” Warriors asked, scared of the answer.

“...Lost count.” Mask replied quietly. Oh fuck, no…

“Oh, Sprite… I’m sorry… You should have never had to go through this. That must have been awful, having to watch your friends die over and over again. Seeing it once is bad enough…” Warriors held him close again.

“S’fine. I’m… kinda numb to it by now…” the kid muttered.

“But you shouldn’t be. You shouldn't have to witness something like that, let alone enough times to be desensitized to it. I… Know I can’t stop you from continuing. But I want to help in any way I can. You can tell me anything. Okay? And I’ll trust you.” Warriors promised. Mask stared up at him, shocked at this response. Usually nobody took him seriously when he tried to warn them of coming events. It had become such a pattern by now, having to do it all himself with only Time to help (if that). 

Things really can change… He thought to himself. All this time, he’d seen his life and the way things always tended to repeat themselves, as nothing more than one big time loop. But… maybe… it didn’t have to be that way.

He wasn’t going to end up alone…

[spideydreams00]

Hi! if your not too busy, maybe you can write some fluff+angst with peter where reader just got into a huge fight her parents who basically kind of gaslights reader and reader actually thinks its true and Peter just comforts her. P.S I'm also kind of starting out in writing again, hope your doing well :)

Hello 👋

Of course I’ll write this, this is actually the first thing I write and English it’s not my first language, sorry if there’s mistakes :(( (anyways I hope y’all like this

(Reader has she/her pronouns) (don’t worry I’ll write more with gender neutral pronouns :D)

Y/M/N = your moms name Y/D/N = Your dads name

WARNINGS: swearing, gaslighting, angst, emotional abuse, etc ..

(Any Peter Parker)

♬♩♪♩ - ♩♪♩♬

Every color that you make me see

Peter Parker x Reader



Her world was quiet but that didn’t mean she wasn’t happy that way, she had almost everything she dreamed of, there was some things to accomplish but that’s her problem she has her sunshine, bright passionate lover boy who’ll do anything to help her because she was his sunshine as well and for them, the stars shine only for them, obviously no one and certainly nothing will ever break them apart right?

Right?

As much as they’ll hate to admit it love can’t always solve all their problems and how do they deal with it? Y/N and Peter have their own mechanism, the poor boy have always struggled with life since he was a baby, loss and grief too much responsibility that he feels like he can’t actually fail, he knows he doesn’t have that privilege… and Y/N she struggles with different kind of things he fights super villains and she fights her own thoughts and as much as she says “It’s not a big deal baby” “don’t worry about it Pete” she wants reassurance and those intrusive thoughts that end up overwhelming her to stop. Ever since Y/N was younger she knew her family was a little different, in fact not the most stable family in the neighborhood but there’s not such thing as a “perfect family” she learned that and was very happy to realize it, her mom is a nice woman, she takes care of Y/N and makes sure everything is fine, her dad is a nice man tho, Y/N and him don’t talk that much but he cares about her, her mom and dad fight constantly, sometimes it is just screaming about unsolved problems in the past, sometimes it’s too much for her, those comments that are thrown in the air to piss each other, Y/N it’s not her fault, She knows it’s not her problem, but can’t help it when she feels bad about it because if it’s not your problem it shouldn’t affect you but their problems do.

Peter started to notices that something was off when she dodged questions about her day

“So… how was your day darling?” the boy asked with a bright smile hoping to hear about his girlfriends day. “It was fine. Don’t worry about it bubs… tell me about your day” peter never pushed her to talk but he wondered if she had a bad day.

Did you stand there all alone?

Oh, I cannot explain explain what’s goin’ down

I can see you standin’ next to me

In and out somewhere else right now

You sigh, look away

I can see it clear as day

Close your eyes, so afraid

Hide behind that baby face

Do-do-do

Do-do-do

That afternoon when peter came back from patrolling they went back to his apartment a night video games and monopoly sounded really good for two overstimulated teenagers to be fair “Honey?” Peter asked. “What do you want Parker?” “No need to be rude!” The boy exclaimed pretending to be offended “I no longer have money because I payed the damn taxes of your properties!” “Lemme make it up to you” The boy said while hovering over his girlfriend, his kisses meant the world to her and he lives only to hear those giggles.

You can drive all night

Lookin' for the answers in the pourin' rain

You wanna find peace of mind

Lookin' for the answer

Then she had to head home, not really excited, not really pissed off, just a neutral feeling about something that doesn’t mean a lot to her, the thing (person) that made her feel alive was cleaning his apartment because May asked him to, and when she opened her apartment’s door her mom was waiting for her and we’ll her dad was there too.

“You don’t fucking listen to what I fucking tell you!”

“How the fuck I’m supposed to know everything, you didn’t know as well!

“Where were you Y/N!?!” Her mom asked skeptically

“I was studying at Peter’s… w-we-”

“Doesn’t matter, I asked your dad to do one fucking thing and he-“

“So now it’s my fault right!?” your dad said

“I asked this man to tell you to come out of your room because dinner is ready and turned out that you weren’t there! Who do you think you are huh? Going out without permission so fucking late at night” Your mom was definitely angry

“Hell Y/N you see how things turn out when you don’t do the easiest thing in the fucking world! Send a fucking text!” Now your dad was definitely angry too.

“Im sorry! I-I forgot to do it… I thought you guys remembered I told you this morning mom! Before I left to school”

“You see she fucking told you!, it’s not her fault that you can’t remember!”

“Really Y/N!? Now you’re lying and blaming it on me when you just forget to do things huh!?” Your mom said

“Im not lying I told you this morning mom! You were typing something and i told-“

“End of thins fucking conversation! It’s not her fault that you can’t fucking remember things that your daughter tells you Y/M/N” your dad screamed and left the room leaving you in silence with your mom.

“Wow Y/N I just can’t believe you sometimes… you just really know how to fuck up things don’t you”

“This wasn’t my fault mom”

“It wasn’t? Then why are we having this conversation?”

“I-“

“Yeah that’s what I thought… The least you can do is clear the damn table”

Your mom said coldly while exiting the room too, you fucked up this time. You ruined everything in 2 seconds, it made you wonder if you’re just built that way… the next morning Y/N woke up feeling the heavy aura around her house from the night before… the thing that really pisses her off it’s that right now Y/D/N already said goodbye to Y/M/N probably smiled to each other that morning, that was normal he just went to work, now her mom was sitting and typing on her laptop. They apparently forgot what happened the night before like they always do.

Funny how it seems like yesterday

As I recall, you were lookin' out of place

Gathered up your things and slipped away

No time at all, I followed you into the hall

Cigarette daydream

You were only seventeen

Soft speak with a mean streak

Nearly brought me to my knees

Do-do-do

Do-do-do

“Good morning” Y/N said quietly

“Oh hi Y/N didn’t see you there” she said feeling indifferent towards her daughter

The conversation didn’t last and Y/N went down to school feeling a little better already she knew that she was going to see her friends and well Peter Parker, her lovely boyfriend but anyways who wouldn’t get happy to see Peter Parker.

“Y/N!” A boy suddenly screamed making her turn around

“Hey Flash” you said simply

“Are you busy tonight? We have to work on Mr. Jones project and you know… you seem a little out of it” the boy said looking around

“Out of it?” You said actually curious

“Umm yeah like, are you on drugs?”

“WHAT!? Of course not! How did you even made that conclusion!?”

“I don’t know, just wondering… I- you know what I’ll make the project and I’ll put your name on it no worries” he said hitting your shoulder gently

“Uh… I-“

“Like i said, no worries” he left without letting you finish still confused you went to your locker and a pair of hands covered your eyes.

“Flash?” You guessed

“Try again” The boy sounded upset

“Peter!” You said turning around and squeezing his cheeks immediately making him smile and any anger he felt moments before vanished completely his insanely cute girlfriend babying him? Hell yes

“Hey darling it’s really nice to see you” Peter said pulling you in a kiss

“It’s. Really. Nice. To. See. You. Too.” You said between kisses putting your palm on his cheek

“What did I do to deserve all this affection?” he said melting at your touch big heart eyes expressing how much he loves you

“Nothing special, just being the best boyfriend ever… and well you have a nice ass too-“

“Y/N! You’re making me blush… just because of what you said about my ass the other thing is so corny”

“Hmm you love it Parker, you love it when I compliment you, maybe it’s because of your praise kink-“ The boy panicked and kissed you

“Don’t talk about my praise kink in public, I don’t think I’ll survive if anyone else knows about that… well my reputation won’t survive” he said with a pout

“Deal honey” there was no reputation but let the boy be happy

The rest of the day went well, you went to Peter’s after school and this time you did text your mom, even your dad just to make sure. You and Peter were In his room you lying on his bed while he was working on something in his desk. Peter knew it was silly but why you thinking him was Flash won’t leave his mind? Do you guys even interact? He didn’t even knew you guys talked or were friends, maybe you guys became friends in class because after all Peter wasn’t in all your classes-

“What’s on your mind bub?” You suddenly asked making him turn around

“Hmm? Nothing really nothing”

“You sure? You seem… well you’re quieter than usual”

“No no it’s just- it’s silly Y/N don’t worry about it”

“Well it can’t be that silly if it’s bothering you Pete”

Just tell her, you know she won’t judge you

“Why did you think I was Flash?”

“What?”

“When I covered your eyes… you thought I was Flash… I didn’t know you guys were friends or something”

“We’ll i can’t say that we’re friends but we got paired in a project together”

“Oh”

“Yeah.. but the reason I thought you were Flash it’s because I was talking to him about the project right before you appeared Pete, that’s why I thought you were him”

“Oh oh okay” he said smiling again a doubt out of his mind

“It was weird, we’ve never talked so much yet he said that I was looking out of it”

“Out of it?”

“Yeah he thought that I was on drugs”

“What!?”

“Yeah weird, but I’m fine”

“A-are you? You know you can talk to me about anything and everything darling” he said taking her hand and kissing her knuckles that sweet gesture making her eyes water.

“I… I’m fine Pete, just the same thing bad thoughts and nothing you should worry about I just I guess I’ve never realized how distant or distracted I was acting”

“Do you wanna talk about it darling? Those thoughts”

“We’ll it’s just… my mom and my dad are constantly yelling at each other you know? And I guess I’m not really excited to go home and uh… last night they started to yell at m-me because I didn’t text my mom to tell here that I was here but I told her in the morning! Then she said I was lying and that I ruined dinner and basically that their fight was my fault… Pete even my dad was angry at me and we never talk”

“Oh sweetheart come here” he took you in his arms rubbing your back trying to provide comfort

“The thing is that they always make me feel like it’s my fault and maybe it is but then we never get to talk about again because it’s seems like they forget what happens in the morning and my mom starts to act coldly.. I hate when she does that” She said sniffing melting into his embrace.

“Y/N/N none of that it’s your fault.. I mean I don’t know the details of every fight but.. they can’t make you feel like that, not fair for you.. you always try to make everyone feel happy you’re like a sunflower I’m sorry that you have to live that” he said playing with your hair

“Thank you thank you so much” Y/N hugged him tighter

“And you’re always welcome to stay here you know, for as long as you want and need to, you don’t even have to go back to your apartment to pick up your things you know, you could start wearing my shirts to school”

“Thank you Peter for everything I appreciate it and yeah your shirts would make stunning outfits” You said giggling, fresh tears still on your cheeks and glassy eyes

“I love you so much Y/N” he said wiping your tears away looking at you as if you were the most beautiful sight he has ever seen

“And I love you too Peter, So much”

He kissed her hard but it was a soft kiss full of love to let her know that he’ll be there.

“If there’s something I can do please let me know love”

“You being here is enough for me”

You can drive all night

Lookin' for the answers in the pourin' rain

You wanna find peace of mind

Lookin' for the answer

If we can find a reason, a reason to change

Lookin' for the answers

If you can find a reason, a reason to stay

Standin' in the pourin' rain

Do-do, do, do, do

Do-do, do, do-do, do-do

Do-do, do, do, do

Do-do, do, do-do, do-do

We are here and you’re loved

[the-stove-is-divorced]

That's such a fun, delightful image omgggg?? We're robbed of athletic, competitive asf Debbie istg.

NOOO, that's so much fun omg, Mark's confict of being human enough to wound being a symbol of taught pride from Debbie, but weak as a Viltrumite and making him insecure, icky about his own scars. RRAHHHHHH. Nolan stop ruining this for Mark istg. The whiplash of vitrum genes kick in and suddenly he doesn't have ANY scars and he wants them back again. He doesn't want to be more like his Dad anymore, he wants his scars back, he wants to be Debbie's son. Legit would go crazy if he had a chipped tooth but Vitrum genes unchip the tooth. Weird healing biology fuckery.

AND SPEAK ON IT!!! WHY WOULD SHE TAKE HIM IN??? AFFAIR ASS BABY???? Like not only did do all this shit to you, but your kid comes back with MORE dad issues and an WHOLE AFFAIR CHILD? LIKE HELLO? NOLAN WHEN I CATCH YOU. Like, PLEASE, it is so much better if Mark steps up for the role, like the EASY parallels to either Nolan or Debbie we could've had makes me so illll. ALSO I FORGOT THAT? WHAT'S DEBBIE RELATIONSHIP WITH HER DAD, HELLO? Like not only is the reminder your own husband, that you taught how to a more rounded person and father and shared years of your life with said fuck you, but now he's named after your damn Dad? DEBBIE WHAT DOES THIS MEAN???

The way Eve and Mark are supposed to be a whole couple but like ??? It'd be pretty neat if she DID share that, or even helped the whole No Kill conversation with Oliver considering she's been a hero longer than Mark has! Also, like, what does Oliver know about his origins? He'd a kid so I'm sure that's a convo for later, but ?? Does he have NOTHING from his own mom? No mementos? Does Mark and Debbie get weirdly snappy about his apparent Dad, refusing to talk/discuss, making Oliver curious? Will he ever pull a "you're not my REAL mom" and Debbie snaps "I never wanted to be", gimme my family drama dammit. I feel kid characters do risk being boring asf by having similar Kid Personality + Can't Think Things Through, but this is a kid raised in THIS specific household.

He's also not human at ALLLL. If Mark eats wood, Oliver is straight up trying to chew a corner of the table. They don't keep mercury thermostats in the house anymore. Make the kid hiss PLEASE? Also single parent Mark arc would go so hard 'cause he's like 18, guilty asf, trying his best. How does a kid MARK tried to raise turn out? Is he bratty because Mark spoils him 'cause their shared Dad sucks, Mark's mom doesn't want to raise him, Oliver's own Mom is a whole galaxy away, and Mark is almost all he's got. There's something so fun, parallel wise, if just like Mark who idolized his Dad for being his dad AND Omni-Man, Oliver idolizes brother for being Invincible? Gimme Mark terrified of being depended on in case he fails. Gimme Mark realizes his Dad never tried to be AROUND like this. Gimme Mark realizing he CAN be more than Dad was.

Chewing on the bars of my enclosure about this.

Mark learning physics made me cackle 'cause at what point has he given himself several concussions? Boy, ease your way into slowing down you don't HAVE to crash.

Debbie being cool asf, weirdly knowledge, experienced, been to every place with wild stories and wild experiences is so fucking good. She's got photos of all the wonders of the world, she's fluent in multiple languages, you travel anywhere with her and not only does she know a place, the people know her and fondly. The contrast of Mark being notoriously bad at geography, cut off them these experiences, no impressive hobbies, is so good. Also I'm sure we discus before but I will beg for Debbie giving Mark emotional damage as well. LET HER. Also Nolan loving his human-persona sm is killing me. He utterly ignores the viltrum specific genes Mark's got, or the potential issues he's got with being a hybrid, like no he's Human and he doesn't know why Mark's teeth hurt or he doesn't HAVE baby teeth.

OMG NOLAN INFECTING PEOPLE TO PRESERVE??? YESSS. It's giving a subtle flavor of resurrecting people against their will. SO GOOOOD. SO PEAK. YOUR MIND.

As a fan of eldritch horror and funky hybrid explorations (SUF/SU they could never make me hate you, Steven has SO much going on and it's largely emotional based? RIP Steven's sanity) Mark being too alien for people but to other-ly for Viltrumites is so PEAK. Was playing w/ the idea Viltrumites don't really need to blink, ominous predator thing to never set your eyes off Enemy/Prey, BUT ALSO they blink as a social cue to emphasis your guard is lowered/trust/relaxed, like how it's theorized people yawn socially cue to OTHERS that they're tired. But Mark just ?? Doesn't Have to blink?? And some point forgets. It makes him like Ready to Attack and Wired to Viltrumites and straight up ominous to people, who can't quite put together why. It has to consciously choose to blink, and that's usually when he's nervous, contradicting his behavior even further who notice a) has this mf not blinked this entire time???? (people) or b) he is Blinking but he is Agitated that is Wrong (viltrum).

Gimme Mark subtly floating barely a speck off the floor and thus soundlessly walks around. Viltrumites still make NOISE when they walk OR they float. Mark straight up doesn't yawn.

Give Oliver the teeth/jaws of a xenomorph from the Alien movie.

Mark agreeing to go hang out on a beach w Debbie instead of refusing and the beach is Beach City (am now officially thinking too much about this crossover lol)

The way I got caught up on our back and forth I almost forgot this, lol! AND OH MY GOODNESS, IMAGINE? I forget exactly what which point Debbie makes the beach offer, but I’d love when exactly in SU/SUF-timeline they’d go? There’s something so fucking funny to me about them going during the SUF-timeline and always narrowly missing the strange, Steven-shaped mental breakdowns in the back. I know those don’t occur in a single day, but it’s tickling me. How could they miss anything? I don’t know I just think it’s funny.

Though, post-SUF is interesting if Gems can see the similar “world on your shoulders”, Mark has going on! Steven can shunt the narrative in the Gems’ minds, which I think is neat, if I’m not misusing the phrase since the guy’s on the road far away. Or maybe it’s just before Steven goes and they stumble into each other. I’d kinda love Pearl and Debbie interacting, honestly, if they could talk about loving someone who hurt you, hide things from you, even when you thought you knew them so deeply, and they left you to raise a child. Pearl being in a well adjusted space, and Debbie still grieving.

Honestly, the gems could help train Mark, they’re got experience and similar-ish powers in strength, sturdiness, and they can jump/run fast enough for flying to be vaguely similar enough to lecture about, I think. Or Lapis Lazulis, haha! Peridot with her trash can lid! Garnet, I’d love to see if she told Mark anything about his future in vague, well meaning advice. Or even giving relationship advice considering Amber. Or, importantly, how to convince an entire reign to end their colonizing ways, lol. Is Mark perhaps willing to start a war, take advantage of being related to any leaders, or fake his own death to varying results?

In general, there’s something so fucking funny to me about Nolan, in the sake of comparison, being Pink Diamond coded. Like OH, did an important or well respected of the colonizing empire come to earth and learn the beauty of its people and nature, including faking/lying/omitting things about his identity and background to being in, only to feel conflicted when his responsibility still remained, and he tried to free himself from them? Yikes! We’ve been through that before! Like gimme Pink Diamond and Nolan outfit swap rn. This is tickling me so much oh my goodness.

[cursestothemoon]

hellooooo<3 so, ive always loved the idea of Harry having an older protective sister(he really need one😭) could u pls do a headcanon of how she protects harry and their relationship? annnnddd how she also is dating Fred?? my heart needs it, pls and thank u❤️

i LOVE THIS 

(also i switch from third person pov to second person in the middle of this so im sorry :) but its fine ) 

ok 

i know a common headcanon/ fancanon for harry’s sister is that she looks like lily 

but hear me out 

Y/n Potter who looks exactly like James 

i mean to the T

and Lily would always make little teasing comments about how both her kids look like their dad and james is just :)

anyway

just picture it 

dark brown, wavy hair that was just tussled enough at all times

blue eyes

and the round rimmed glasses that James used to wear

stOP SHE WEARS HER DADS GLASSES BECAUSE WHEN SHE WAS LITTLE SHE’D PULL THEM OFF OF HIM AND AFTER HE DID SHE KEPT THEM AND WHEN SHE MISSES HIM SHE WEARS THEM AND THEY ARE SLIGHTLY TOO BIG AND SIT CROOKED ON HER FACE 

i made myself cry

anyway

lets talk protecting harry first then we will get into dating fred 

so she’s older meaning she’d be in Hogwarts for before him

let’s say she's two years older

George and Fred’s year

and she’d hear the whispers about her 

obviously

and i think she wouldn't tell harry

she would know the story of how their parents died and who harry was to the wizarding community but in an effort to protect Harry’s innocence and childhood for just a little while longer she wouldn’t tell him

at least not until he got to school then she’d be the one to tell him everything 

she is fiercely protective of Harry 

if someone so much as looked at him funny she was chewing their head off 

Harry might’ve been like James 

but Y/n Potter is James 

down to the way her eyes would narrow at someone in class when they made a rude comment 

or she’d try to charm her way out of trouble 

or charm Harry out of trouble

oH MY GOD SHE’D BE IN MCGONAGALL’S CLASS AND ONE OF HER FRIENDS WOULD SAY SOMETHING FUNNY AND SHE’D BE TRYING SO HARD TO HOLD IN HER LAUGH AND SHE’D MAKE THE SAME FACE JAMES WOULD MAKE WHEN TRYING NOT TO LAUGH

Mcgonagall almost cried 

she needed a moment 

ok Y/n would take the first week or so just to show Harry around Hogwarts 

she did not care if she was late

Harry was going to feel comfortable 

oH SHE NEARLY BEAT OLIVER WOOD WITH A BEATER’S BAT WHEN SHE FOUND OUT HE PUT HER TEENY LITTLE BROTHER ON THE QUIDDITCH TEAM AS A SEEKER

she is also part of the team, a chaser

will get spend most of the first few games with Harry making sure he’s ok

yeah malfoy doesn’t stand a chance

never did

10/10 would use the cloak to prank him

all the time

nothing is out of limits 

especially after he’s been nasty to Harry and his friends

growing up harry gets all embarrassed when she protects him because hes 15!1!1! he can handle it 

she is kinda hurt 

very dramatic 

“mY WITTLE BROTHER DOESN’T NEED ME”

“y/n... please”

“nO ITS OK HARRY I GET IT, ILL GO”

“where are you going?”

“YOU DON’T NEED ME ANYMORE, I AM NO LONGER NEEDED HERE”

“you don't HAVE TO LEAVE, WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS”

Ron was giggling on the couch in the common room he thought this whole scene was hilarious 

ron thinks she is so cool

ok i think she’d also have these little bits of lily that would shine through

unlike harry and james, who could just inhale near a book and get just above average grades

she took pride in studying and being able to sit down and absorb material 

Lily always passed with flying colors because she was a good student who wanted to prove herself 

it was the satisfaction of spending hours studying and being able to retain the information and apply it to earn an amazing grade that she loved

she passed this on to you

as well as her kindness to people who she believed deserved it

and quick wit

you two also had the same hands 

you had everything else from James but your hands looked like your mothers

down to the way your nails grew and fingers held a quill

snape hated it

because he really couldn’t hate you

he was weird around you though

hes just weird

where he'd bully and embarrass Harry 

he couldn’t do that to you because you wouldn’t give him the chance to

you knew the material

you knew the answer 

and he hated how when your hand shot up it looked just like Lily’s 

but you were making the stupid face James would when he’d concentrate 

you did not like snape

at first you were impartial 

then when you heard how rude he was to Harry...

it was also over for him

he didn’t stand a chance 

you had an affinity for pranks, fiercely protective, and you had gall 

your hand writing also looked like Lilys and snape had a rough time grading your essays

tough for him 

:)

also if any rumors went around about harry you were quick to make them actually about you

harry is the heir of slytherin?

actually no Y/n Potter is, there is no evidence but we just heard that it was her somewhere 

you didn’t care as long as no one was being rude to Harry

leTS TALK DEATHLY HALLOWS

so you don’t go with them on the hunt for Horcrux 

and you’d be going insane not knowing how they were or if they were ok

because all your life you had been able to protect to some extent 

but you were completely helpless now

you could do nothing

and then at the battle of hogwarts 

pLEASE

no one stood a chance

the feeling of seeing harry again

beaten, bruised, but still alive 

it was overwhelming

then seeing Hagrid crying in his seemingly dead body

also overwhelming

because you had failed 

you couldn't protect him 

and he heard you scream first 

it was loud and strangled and Harry felt so bad but he knew he had to do this 

I like to think Y/n Potter is the one who killed Voldemort in the end 

you cant argue with me on this sorry

ok

now

lets talk

dating freddie

so he’d probably notice you here and there starting in first year

but he was an eleven year old boy and girls were not on his radar right now

but he thought you were funny and pretty cool 

and your round glasses that were just a little too big for your adolescent face made you look cute 

then you tried out for the quidditch team with him and George 

you were amazing 

not only did you have James natural talent for the sport but that paired with Lily’s tactical thinking and quick mind

you were unstoppable 

you were brought on the team as a seeker 

and you were good at it too, but it wasn’t you’re favorite position

it entailed a lot of waiting and not really moving until you caught sight of the snitch

it was your excellent flying mixed with the fact that you literally had no sense of self preservation that made you a really good seeker

you'd just

nose dive 

if you hit the bottom you hit the bottom oh well 

but when Harry showed up you were happy to give him your position as seeker and take on the more exciting (at least to you) job of chaser

it was your quidditch playing that really got fred’s attention

because you were good 

and during team lunches or team hang outs you were always the life of the party

not because you were avidly trying to be 

but like james, people jus gravitated to your goofiness and happiness 

it was about the middle of fifth year fred realized he had a crush on you

and little man was panicked 

you had noticed fred before that

obviously 

but he was always just the funny guy on the team 

but as everyone knows the potter’s have a thing for gingers 

and it was when they came to pick you and Harry up from the Dursley's just before the quidditch world cup that you saw how attractive he really was 

please its james and lily all over again

kinda 

you become the funniest person in the room when he’s around

always smiley

lilypad?

no.

freddie bug

aH STOP PLEASE THAT’S SO CUTE

YOU’D JUST STARE AT HIM WITH A STUPID SMILE 

it would get to the point you'd be just blatantly flirting 

and fred bluSHES

BECAUSE HE ISN’T USED TO BEING THE ONE ON THE RECEIVING END OF SUCH CLEAR FLIRTING

usually he is the one to pick up girls

he has the charm

likes to make them blush

but yOU CAN JUST LOOK AT HIM WITH A STUPID SMILE AND HES BE ALL GIDDY 

he could barely get a compliment in between your flirting

“Morning Freddie bug, looking cute as always.”

George thinks it both hilarious and disgusting

ron just thinks its disgusting 

but fred is ultimately the one to make the first move to be more than just friends who flirt when the yule ball comes around

he asks you

“Potter! Potter!”

“yes?”

“You, me, Yule ball....”

and as he’s pantomiming it (ya know like in the movie) he also pantomimes a very heavy make out session then what you could assume would be kisses all over your face

it was now your turn to blush as you agreed to go with him

you guys started dating after that :)

pLEASE ONCE HARRY GOT WITH GINNY AND HE SAW A PICTURE OF YOUR PARENTS 

YOUR MOM BEING A RED HEAD AND YOU AND HARRY LOOKING JUST LIKE YOUR DAD

HE WOULD NOT STOP THE JOKES

“i see why you’re with me. it’s my hair isnt it?”

“what? no its no-”

“you probably wouldn’t even look my way if i didn’t have red hair. you potters are unbelievable.”

“you are such a dummy”

“oH AM I? BUT YOU KEEP ME AROUND BECAUSE OF THE HAIR. I SHOULD’VE KNOWN IT WASN’T MY SPARKLING PERSONALITY THAT YOU LOVE.”

taglist:

@amourtentiaa

@siriusement

[divinefireangel]

They Just Don't Know You

Soft Yandere! Seo Moon-Jo x F! Reader

Disclaimer: This is just a work of fiction. If this piece of fan fiction is offensive to any celebrity, fandom or culture please let me know so I can take it down. Also note that this is my version of a character or celeb, which will vary from person to person.

Author's Note: A 2nd longer fic for our lovely cannibalistic psychopath. I hate that I'm attracted to him. Someone please be my therapist. Or psychiatrist. Honestly doesn't matter. My brain is fucked anyway.

Copyright: Please note that this is my work and if you want to publish this on any other platform, take my permission before doing so. Taking an author's work and posting it somewhere else without any intimation is just disrespectful. I readily welcome suggestions and criticisms. That being said, Happy reading! 🤍

Warnings: 16+ and written for female reader, but all can read. (nothing specified with respect to appearance, etc of reader). Except that I've mentioned reader is short, cuz LDW is tall 🥰. There is a brief mention of sex, but no actual smut. Reader kinda highkey hates on her parents and younger sister. Read it to know. Age gap between reader and Moon-Jo. Slight obsessive thoughts. Manipulative words. I tried to put plot twist in the end, probably you won't notice it 💀. Please please tell me if I need to add more warnings. Do not read if you start to feel uncomfortable. I apologize in advance 🥺

❗❗PLEASE READ WARNINGS ❗❗

Pre-Requisite / Summary: Just a fic based on the song They Just Don't Know You by Little Mix. After watching Strangers from hell I related this song to him for some reason. Reader and Moon-Jo are in an established relationship. And reader's loved ones don't approve.

2.3k ish words My longest fic till date 🥳

" You know that he's too old for you. You can settle for younger, much younger guys for your age sweetheart. If you can't find anyone eligible enough, we will find one for you. And you don't even know if he has intentions of marrying you. What if all he wants is just a fling or some time pass relationship. Hmm? What are you going to do then? "

Sipping her tea silently, Y/N sat next to her dad on the porch swing, listening to all the criticisms he had about Moon-Jo. All his words did was boil her blood. But what could she do when they don't walk in her shoes? They don't know how safe and content she feels when he kisses her like she's the only girl for him in the entire universe. And no point in explaining that to her father anyway. She's tried. And failed. Multiple times.

"Are you done with your tea?" She asks her dad, in desperate attempt to try and get away from him and his words because she knows, and even he knows that it's going to end up in a fight if they continue to speak on the same topic.

Humming yes, he hands her his tea cup which she takes to the kitchen so she can help her mom with dinner. Placing them in the sink upon entering the kitchen, Y/N drags her palms down her face in frustration.

" I could hear what he said you know. Your dad. He's not wrong. Seo Moon-Jo seems like he'll break your heart in three. And we're only looking out for you Y/N. You don't have to go through heartbreak when you can very well avoid it." Her mom finished slowly.

" Why. Why is it so difficult for you to accept the fact that I'm actually in a happy relationship for once in my life. So what if he's much older than I am? He's a dentist. A doctor. A very good profession and he's known and well respected in his neighbourhood too. " Y/N said loud enough for her dad also to hear.

Huffing in annoyance she left the kitchen to go upstairs to her room. Or rather the room she shares with her sister. Of course the door is wide open. The younger rascal is always here for the drama.

Ever since Y/N came out to her family about her relationship with Moon-Jo, her sister has become the favourite child, for obvious reasons. And now eavesdropping with the door wide open? That's a new low. But what else can Y/N expect from such a low life who is literally thriving off her own sister's pain and suffering.

When entering the room, Y/N realizes how big a mistake it was to visit her family. And she did not need such snark from a younger, less experienced child.

"Are you that blinded by " Love " that you don't even see how weird his hair is? A man who isn't an idol or actor doesn't need such long hair. He's clearly a fuckboy. Or man whore. Whichever is right. " She said with disgust.

'She's just jealous. She's just a jealous bitch. They all are.' Y/N thinks to herself.

" At least one of us gets laid regularly. And just so you know, it's absolutely heavenly when he makes me cum over and over on his fingers and his dick-" Y/N said as her tone slowly got lower and darker and her emotion angrier.

Screaming and covering her ears, the younger girl ran downstairs to her mother, no doubt to tattle on her older sister. Rolling her eyes, Y/N started packing her things, all of them, in a bag she took down from the top shelf of the wardrobe.

It's really difficult to leave one's family, but it is clearly getting more and more tiresome to love them nowadays. If it's so wrong to date him, why does Y/N herself not see it? She's a logical and smart young lady. Does her family hate that man so much that they don't even want her to be happy? No matter who she's with. And is it so bad to date a man who's older? Richer? And cares more about her than all of her family members combined?

Wiping the fallen tear stains from her cheek, she just thinks to herself ' They just don't know him. They just don't know him like I do. '

Sending a text to her lover, saying that she misses him and that she's coming back home sooner than planned, Y/N carries her bag through the front door, her parents and sister ignoring her as she leaves and walks out that door one final time.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Once reaching their shared apartment, Y/N collapsed into her lover's arms the moment he opens the door, crying her eyes out. Seeing his lover in turmoil, shedding a tear or two of his own, Moon-Jo carries her to the living room couch to cradle her like a child who needs attention.

" They- They said -"

" Shh my darling. I know. " Moon-Jo said, shushing his girlfriend and giving her a shoulder to cry on. Once she's calmed a little, her sobs turning to sniffs, she lifts her head to meet his gaze.

Seeing her sad, tear stained eyes always upset him. More than anything in the world. Running his long slender fingers across her cheeks and jaw, he removes her hair from her ponytail with his free hand and rests it on her thigh.

" Tell me. Please tell me that you won't break my heart like them. That you won't try to tear my world apart like them. " Y/N looked desperately at him, wanting so badly to know that he's not just using her.

Those words, that slipped out her mouth, shocked Moon-Jo, to say the least. What did he do wrong? What did her family fill her head with?

Tilting his head to a little, he looks into her red eyes, trying to read her mind for a moment, all the while she just looked at him with the same desperate expression.

"Please tell me that you will be there when I need you the most. " Y/N whispered so softly, she herself barely heard it. But the end of the sentence, she started crying all over again.

Taking her head to his neck, he stroked her hair and her sides, trying to calm her down.

" Darling. I promise with my everything, that I will never leave you, I will never ever let you go. That I will do anything, anything necessary to prove my love to you. "

"No, oh dear no. That's not, you don't have- have to do anything at all to make me believe you love me. I'm sorry I asked such a stupid question. " She sobbed out.

Shushing her softly again, he rocks their bodies back and forth, till she's calmed and fallen asleep there, in his arms. Knowing that his arms are her only safe place for her from now on, he takes her delicate figure to the bedroom.

Placing her on her side of the bed, he lays down on his. Staring at her stunning face, he feather touches her face with his fingertips, memorizing every curve, every little detail on her, like a sculptor admiring his work and giving it the finishing touches.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

" So, I did a little digging on your sugar daddy. "

" Why?! And he's not my sugar daddy. " Y/N said in disbelief. No. Not her dear best friend too.

" I know you said not to and I'm sorry. But I am worried about you. He made you leave your family Y/N. " They stated with worry and sympathy.

" No. He didn't make me leave them. I left them by choice. They don't see him like I do. And clearly, they hate that I'm happy with him. " Y/N finished as they sat down at the lunch table.

" Y/N..... "

" What? Even you don't want me to be happy? " She questioned her friend in disbelief. Laughing sarcastically Y/N shook her head.

" I've heard rumours! Okay? He was in the orphanage that had that severe fire explosion. And most of the culprits from that incident are MIA. What if he's one of the people who caused it?! " They said in a whisper, worried that the neighbouring people can hear their conversation.

" Do you really think that? All of that is just a rumour. And he's told me about it. He's told me everything. Unlike my parents who so desperately tried to tie me down to an arranged marriage. "

" He's not good for you. I know you deserve better. Okay he may make happy and all but what if he leaves? What if he just uses you and drops you like you were nothing? We're just trying to make sure you don't get hurt Y/N. Physically and emotionally. " They finished.

" This, all what you said, is cheap talk. But it'll eventually wear down because when we get married and have kids and all that in the future, you're all going to look like fools. And I will proudly say ' I told you so '. "

" If that's the case then I am the happiest person for you. Hopefully I won't have to be the one to say ' I told you so'. "

" Wow. I, just- hah. Wow. Just wow. " She paused.

" You know, I really hoped you would be more supportive or at least tolerant enough to have patience and support me with my decision for my love. " Y/N said loud enough for eavesdroppers to hear audibly.

Of all the people she would have to drop, never even in her nightmares had she fathomed that her best friend would be one.

Getting up from the table, she picks up her bag and leaves without another word, and goes to the only place that has love for her and that accepts her.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Reaching home, Y/N notices the place empty. Maybe he's at the clinic?

Shrugging off her bag and jacket she sits on the couch for a moment, before her restlessness takes over and she begins pacing in the living room.

Why are people being like this? Do they hate her so much? They barely know him. Why are they treating and accusing him to be such a criminal! He's not. He takes care of Y/N so much. He loves her so much. He provides for her. He's affectionate with her, more than he's told he thought capable. He's become her ride or die. And she, his.

They don't know him like I do. They will never love me like he does.

They don't know about the love they have. The just see what they want to see. Bloody society dictating whom to love and whom to not. Is it so hard to see the love they have for each other? Can't they just let it be. They don't know the turmoil she's gone through recently; they don't know how well he's taken care of her, kept her happy and same enough to not let her intrusive thoughts get the best of her.

Her thoughts interrupted by the door clicking open. Smiling, Moon-Jo enters with a box, surely containing sweets from her favourite bakery. How can you not love someone so considerate, who does things for you without even having to ask.

Seeing the sad look upon his lover's face, Moon-Jo's smile fades into a frown.

" What's wrong my dear? "

Smiling sadly Y/N just shakes her head, conveying that she doesn't want to talk about it.

Placing the box of sweets on the coffee table, the two hug each other, feeling of comfort taking over them both. She can just stay here, forever, in his arms till the world ends.

" Babe. What's wrong? You can tell me anything. Anything at all. I'll take care of the problem. " Delicately Moon-Jo cradles Y/N's head in his palms, making her face up to him, their height difference evident.

Sighing, she moves to sit on the couch, motioning him to do the same. " It's just people. And what they say. My family was one thing, but my best friend, the person I chose as my family " Pausing Y/N breathers the tears back in, " They were doubtful of you today. How can I live knowing that no one will approve of us? " Y/N questioned looking at him.

" Does their opinion really matter that much? So much so that you are skeptical of my affection to you? " Coldly, he moved back from his seat on the couch.

" No! No. Gosh that is not what I mean. Not at all. I love you and I know that you love me. So much. So much so I would die for you. But there are other people whom I care about. Who's opinions matter to me. And I don't want to let them go. As happy as I am with you, I need them too. They give me joy in a different way, that is important. "

" Do I not make you happy? Are you not content with the love I give you? Is it not enough? " He asks carefully.

" That's not what I meant! You love me more than anyone I've known. "

"Then what's the problem? You don't need those people who don't love you. You have me. You will have me forever and ever. I will never leave you. And you will never leave me either. We'll be with each other till the end of the world darling. "

Nodding with a small smile you looked down at your feet.

Unhappy with your action, Moon-Jo pulls your face up by your chin to look at him with such force, it scared you a little, making your heart skip a beat in fear.

" Do you not love me, babe? " He asked tilting his head to a side, his expression mildly offended.

" I do! I love you. So much. " You finished with a soft tone, cupping his face with your hands.

Grinning like a Cheshire Cat, Moon-Jo leaned down to capture your lips with his. Reacting immediately, you kissed him with as much energy and sincerity you could muster, as you head filled with thoughts of doubt.

Had your parents been right? Had for friend been right? Had they all been right all along and you too blind to see?

No. It can't be. He loves you. He's said that so many times. And you love him.

You love him.

You.

Love.

Him.

...

Do you love him, or have you been illusioned into loving him?

[cali-holland]

Under the Stars- Tom Holland One Shot

Pairing: Tom Holland X Reader

Prompt: When you invite Tom and Harrison to go to a cabin in the woods with your old college friends, Tom devises a plan to finally confess his feelings for you. Little does he know, the cabin belongs to your ex-boyfriend, and he’s also seeking your attention this week.

Word Count: 12k

Warnings: slow burn (ish), swearing, sexual themes (jokes/references), the reader kinda gets sexually harassed (nothing actually happens), fist fight + some blood, tom being a simp

A/N: this was a nine month process, so i hope you enjoy :) also thank you to @duskholland​ for being so supportive and reading through this fic and editing it. love you hannah! + Also reposting this because the tags didn’t work the first time :/ and tag list will be in a reblog!

Masterlist   Tom Holland Masterlist

*Moodboard is mine, pics used are not *

~~~

When you walked into Tom and Harrison’s house, you weren’t expecting to hear odd grunts coming from the living room. You’d heard many strange noises made in that house— a good amount of their sources were still unknown, but you’d never heard such aggressive grunts. For a moment, you considered slowly backing out of the house and knocking on the door. It would be easy to pretend like you didn’t have a key so you didn’t have to walk in on anyone doing anything gross in the other room.

But then Harrison walked into the entryway, smiling at you as a greeting, “Hey, Y/N.”

“Hey,” You replied, closing the front door hesitantly behind you. You pointed towards the living room, “Do I wanna know what’s going on in there?”

Before he could reply, there was a loud bang from the living room, followed by a string of curses. Forgetting all worries of what may or may not have been the cause of the noises, you hurried into the other room with Harrison trailing behind you.

Tom laid on the floor, groaning in pain as he clutched his foot. Tessa, who had been checking up on her owner, popped up happily when she saw you, rushing over to greet you at your feet. Tom looked up at you and Harrison in the door, forcing out his best smile. You stared at the large tent that was currently taking up most of the space in the living room, questioningly.

“Why do you have a tent set up?” You asked. Tom hopped up off the floor, standing beside the tent.

“Well, our camping trip is this weekend, so I thought I’d make sure it’s still durable.” Tom said proudly. He put a hand against the tent in an attempt to be smooth, but the tent came collapsing down, making Tessa bolt behind you from the sudden loud noise.

“And he wanted to make sure he could actually set up a tent, which clearly he can’t,” Harrison stated, and Tom glared at him in response.

“Were you going to tell him?” You laughed, turning to the blond beside you.

“And miss the opportunity to see him struggle setting up a tent for forty minutes? No, I didn’t tell him.” He smirked, only making Tom more frustrated and embarrassed.

“Tom, it’s a cabin. You don’t need a tent unless you don’t want to stay with everyone else.” You explained. “I just said camping because it’s easier to call it that.”

“Fuck you, mate.” He grumbled to Harrison, flipping him off before starting to put away the mess of a tent. You stepped in to help him, and Harrison just laughed to himself before leaving.

“I really thought you would’ve known. Did you really think I’d invite you and Harrison to spend several days in the woods with me and my college friends in tents?” You joked, “Besides, I didn’t think you’d come if it was actual camping.”

Tom paused his movements, but you continued to undo the poles, taking no notice of his action, “Why wouldn’t I go if it was actual camping?”

“I don’t know.” You shrugged, looking at him with your usual charming smile, “You’re not the outdoorsy, camping type. You don’t exactly go out and rough it in the woods on the weekend, like Will or Tyler; you play golf with Harrison and your dad.”

While your words were well-intended and teasing, Tom couldn’t help but take them to heart. He took everything you said to heart.

It was hard for him to be so helplessly in love with you, his best friend (besides Harrison) from BRIT school, for the past few years while you were completely blind to it. Normally, he’d do little things to impress you because he still wasn’t sure if he wanted you to know about his feelings— if you knew, there was a chance you’d reject him, and Tom wouldn’t know what to do with himself if that happened. Recently though, he’s started to feel like his heart was going to explode if he didn’t tell you soon, but that didn’t mean he knew how to tell you.

So when you asked if he wanted to go on a camping trip with you, of course he said yes right away. His mind told him that, no, he really wasn’t the outdoorsy, “roughing it” kind of guy, but his heart told him it was a chance with you. He was a sap and thought that maybe he’d pluck up the courage to tell you how he felt under a moonlit campsite, maybe even the two of you could share a tent, maybe he could kiss you in the lake— god, did he want to kiss you.

That had all come crashing down when he’d realized it wasn’t a romantic camping getaway. You’d invited Harrison and a few college friends, friends that neither Tom nor Harrison had ever met. And there was one friend in particular who Tom never wanted to meet— Will, your ex-boyfriend. You two ended things mutually, but Tom couldn’t stop himself from feeling like he needed to compete against Will, especially when he discovered it was Will whose family owned the land you’d be camping on; Will who took you on hikes all around your college town; Will who taught you how to fish and how to kayak with the lakes nearby; Will who one time got bitten by a rattlesnake and sucked out the venom himself; Will who could climb any mountain and come back unscathed. Will was an outdoorsy “roughing it” badass fucker that Tom despised.

And now, you had just furthered proved that Tom was a delicate flower compared to the lumberjack prick that was Will. He didn’t care about being compared to Will’s best friend, Tyler, who (from what you’d told Tom) was in a serious relationship with your other friend, Jane. Besides Jane, the other person accompanying you all to the cabin was Rose, your best friend and Will’s sister. Needless to say, Tom was very grateful that Harrison was coming along too— he didn’t think he could handle a Will-centered week alone.

“We can just leave this for now. I know I promised you Nando’s before we leave.” Tom said, getting up from his spot on the floor.

“Are you sure? We can just get it on the way to the airport.” You said, looking at the tent mess before you.

“Come on, it’ll be fine.” He held a hand out to you and you took it, so that he could pull you up. Before you two could make it out the door, Harrison arrived downstairs with a loaded hiking backpack in hand.

“I know you’re not trying to sneak to Nando’s without me.” He said, and Tom glared at him from behind your back. Harrison was very well aware of Tom’s feelings for you— everyone was except for you, and he took every chance he could get at being a little shit about it, which included ruining quality time for Tom to spend with you.

The three of you left to grab your last meal in the UK before heading back to their house. Tom finished putting away the tent, and Harrison loaded up Harry’s car with your bags as well as his and Tom’s. Harry (through bribery from Tom) drove you all to the airport for the first step in your camping trip.

Since you went to school in the US, all of your friends would be meeting you across the pond. Will’s family cabin was located in Maine, so the flight wasn’t too bad for the three of you— though Tom wished it was longer so he could devise a more accurate plan to impress you this weekend. He had to prove that he could be the outdoorsy badass guy you wanted. He had to outcompete Will.

“Why would you have to outcompete him?” Harrison asked Tom after hearing his dilemma. Fortunately, you were getting the rental car for the three of you to make it to the cabin.

“Because it’s clearly a competition.” Tom stated, nervously fidgeting with his fingers as he looked over at you across the way. “She told me I’m not outdoorsy like Will- that makes it a competition and I have to beat him.”

As much as Harrison loved to see his friend fail at keeping it together around you, something felt wrong about telling him, ‘yeah, it’s totally a competition, so go beat up her lumberjack ex’. Instead, he tried, “I don’t think that’s what Y/N meant. You do golf more than you go camping.”

But Tom took no notice of his advice, “Just watch. I’m going to be the manliest man this weekend.”

“Hey guys,” You smiled, coming up to them, making Tom jump very unmanly-like in the process. “You ready to go?”

The journey to the cabin was a fairly long one. After a couple of hours of driving, you parked the car in one of those reserved parking lots off the side of the road. Tom and Harrison both looked around in confusion, spotting nothing but trees and a gas station.

“Why are we stopped?” Tom asked you as you got out of the car. Tom and Harrison followed you out of the car.

“We gotta hike in.” You replied. “The cabin’s down by the lake, so there’s no actual road to get there. It’s only about a mile and a half hike in. Be ready for lots of hiking. I think tomorrow we’re going to hike 12 miles.”

By the time you three got to the little a-frame cabin, it was already dinner time, which was great because that meant you three could sleep soon. The five hour time difference was already starting to hit. Before you could even step inside the cabin, your best friend met you with a bone-crushing hug.

“You’re here!” Rose smiled, stepping out of the hug after a moment.

“We made it.” You laughed. Your other friend, Jane, stepped up next to hug you. “I missed you two so much.”

“We missed you too.” Jane replied. You caught their eyes trailing over to Tom and Harrison behind you, and you remembered that they hadn’t met before. 

“Oh, girls, this is Tom and Harrison; guys, this is Rose and Jane.” You introduced the two parties with a smile. After a polite exchanging of handshakes, you looked at the two girls curiously, “Where are the boys?”

“Will wanted to get in a light swim before dinner.” Rose laughed, and Jane made her way back to the kitchen. “Come on, I’ll show you your rooms.”

Rose gave the three of you a little tour of the cabin. The front door had placed you all in a little entryway room with a simple, wooden staircase taking up most of the room; a fireplace sat beside the stairs with a small loveseat across from it. Besides a rather large bookshelf, it was relatively empty, but elegantly simple nonetheless. There were four doors downstairs, all intricately designed with the same light wood color as the stairs. The first door on the left was explained to be Will’s room, and the second was Tyler and Jane’s. The third stood as the main bathroom, as Rose described it. The fourth door led to Tom and Harrison’s room.

It wasn’t very big— neither of the rooms were according to Rose, but that was the a-frame style of a quaint log cabin. A bunk bed sat on the side of the room with a small wood dresser across from it. There was enough space for the two boys to coexist, and Tom was just grateful he didn’t have to bunk with Will of all people; he was glad he had his best friend with him.

The upstairs of the cabin held the open space of the kitchen and the main living room. With large glass windows covering one of the walls, the living room had a magnificent view of the woods outside, and three couches were set in place to overlook it. Under the couches sat a large bear rug, one which both Tom and Harrison eyed suspiciously at first before Rose laughed it off, reassuring them that it was fake. Behind the couches, the dining room was situated beneath a beautiful antler chandelier and set for eight places, completing the rustic vibe of the cabin. The kitchen, while it was small, seemed to be just as well put together as the rest of the cabin, complete with a breakfast bar. The smell of Jane’s favorite lemon salmon filled the air, making you even more excited for dinner.

Next was your own room, which was just past the kitchen. A queen bed was pushed in a nook with only the foot of the bed accessible. Unlike Tom and Harrison, you and Rose didn’t mind sharing a bed, which is why they got the smallest room downstairs. Right beside your bedroom door was another bathroom.

“You brought stuff for s’mores, right?” You asked Rose as you walked with her, Tom, and Harrison off the cabin’s porch to the nearby shed where they kept all of their hiking and lake gear.

“Yes, absolutely!” She eagerly replied, a happy skip in her step.

“S’mores are a real thing?” Tom questioned in disbelief.

“Of course! You can’t camp without—” You let out a shriek as you felt cold, wet arms wrap around your waist, picking you up and spinning you around. You laughed, immediately knowing it was Will. “Oh my god, Will! Put me down! You’re all wet.”

Will chuckled, setting you back down on the solid ground, “Well, if it gets you wet.”

“Fuck off.” You scoffed, smacking his chest playfully. It was then that you realized he was shirtless— shirtless and dripping wet from the lake and gloriously tan and somehow more built than the last time you saw him. Tyler, on the other hand, was still Tyler; still an attractive young guy, but not attractive to you and that most likely has to do with him dating Jane for as long as you’ve known him.

“Ty!” You smiled, hugging him tightly, not even caring if your clothes got wet and gross anymore. You’d just change later when you could.

Tom straightened up a bit, already feeling uneasy about Will’s presence. Will looked like the lovechild of Zac Efron and Chris Evans, with a hint of Scott Eastwood; he was perfect, there was nothing wrong with him. It made Tom question why you two broke up. Even though Tom knew you’d said it was mutual, he also knew it took a lot for girls to walk away from guys that look like that. Meanwhile, Harrison just bit his lip to keep from commenting on his friend’s ridiculous territorial issues. 

“So, you two must be Tom and Harrison.” Will held out a hand to them, smiling politely. Tom took his hand, trying to subtly shake it sternly as if to prove he was better than Will— childish, Tom knew it, but he already hated this guy with his six pack abs and perfectly white smile. Will didn’t back down though, squeezing Tom’s hand equally as hard. Noticing both guys tensing up, you looked between them awkwardly, having never seen either of them put on the tough guy act.

With introductions out of the way, you all trekked back inside the cabin. While Will, Tyler, and even you changed into dry clothes, Rose helped Jane finish dinner, leaving Tom to frustratedly rant to Harrison in their room.

“God, he’s so annoying.” Tom scoffed.

“He said two words to you.” Harrison stated, “Try to play nice. I don’t think Y/N wants you two to keep having a ‘my dick’s bigger’ contest.”

“But mine is and I know it!” He exclaimed, before realizing he didn’t know how thin the walls were- and how odd that implication was, “Whatever. He’s stupid. This trip’s stupid.”

Harrison was too busy laughing  to even attempt a response to his friend. Instead, there was a knock on the door, pulling both of them from their conversation. Tom opened the door and immediately softened when he saw you, clad in one of his old sweatshirts that he didn’t even realize you still had. It gave him a sliver of hope that maybe, just maybe, he didn’t need to worry that much about Will this week.

“Nice shirt.” Tom commented with a smile.

“Thanks,” You smiled back, “I’ve actually been meaning to give it back to you.”

“What? Why?”

“Is dinner ready?” Harrison asked, cutting off the two of you and reminding you both of his presence. As if on cue, his stomach growled loudly.

“Yes, it is.” You laughed, almost embarrassed from forgetting why you had been at their door in the first place. You tugged on Tom’s hand, pulling him out of the room. Harrison grumbled something dejectedly, but you paid no mind to it. Tom sent his friend an apologetic look, though he made no attempt to make Harrison any less of the unofficial third wheel on the journey upstairs to the dinner table.

It didn’t go unnoticed by Tom how you sat beside Will, even if Tom got the free seat beside you. Harrison slipped into the seat next to him with Rose to his right. The dinner of salmon with potatoes, salad, and bread seemed simple enough, but it was still quite possibly the best fish you’d ever had.

“Did you get a bone?” You asked Tom, seeing him awkwardly moving his mouth like his tongue was fishing out a hard piece of salmon. Blushing from you calling attention to his struggle, he held up a napkin to cover his mouth, trying to spit out the bone without it looking too gross.

“Yeah,” He admitted sheepishly, muffled by the napkin.

“I thought you got them all out.” Jane said, looking at Tyler expectantly.

“Don’t look at me, that was Will’s job.” Tyler laughed as he used his friend as the scapegoat.

“Must’ve missed one.” Will shrugged, before joking, “You’re still welcome that I caught these.”

“You caught this salmon?” You said, “I thought you only did catch and release?”

“I still do, for the most part, but this salmon was too good of an opportunity to pass up.” He explained. Tom was already boiling with embarrassment, and now he had jealousy bubbling over- of course this perfect fish was caught by the perfect outdoor man beside you.

“So, Tom, Harrison, we were talking about going for a run around the lake tomorrow morning. Want to come?” Tyler asked.

“Sure. How far?” Harrison replied, and Tom nodded in agreement.

“The loop’s about five miles.” Will answered.

“Are you going to run with us?” Tom asked you, knowing back home in Kingston you’d sometimes join Harrison on runs. Tom wasn’t the type to just go out for a casual run like his best friend was, but he wasn’t about to back down from this.

“Nah, you two can keep up with the cross country runners.” You joked, “I’d much rather save my energy for the hike.”

Once dinner ended and no one choked on any more fishbones, you all migrated to the couches. Much to Tom’s chagrin, you sat in the middle couch between Will and Rose, while Tom and Harrison sat on the couch opposite a very cuddled up Jane and Tyler. The fireplace in the corner crackled, keeping the room comfortably warm. When Rose suggested you all play charades, the entertainment for the evening was decided, especially considering the cabin had very weak cell-signal and no television.

“What are the teams?” You asked, sitting dead in the middle of everyone with three friends to your left and three to your right.

“Let’s do 3 against 4, so you choose who you wanna be with, Y/N.” Jane suggested as Rose stood up to get a boxed set of charade cards from the game cabinet near the kitchen. You looked between the two sets of friends. You wanted to lean towards Tom, Harrison, and Rose, because the two boys were incredible at charades, and Rose was your go-to partner for Password at least.

“Come on, you know you wanna be with us.” Will teased, throwing an arm over your shoulder.

“Just for that, nope.” You laughed and took his arm off you. You stood up from that couch and squeezed in between Tom and the arm. To make room for you and to mock Will, Tom casually put his arm on your shoulder and you made no effort to take it off.

Rose returned with the box of cards and the game began with you and Jane pantomiming first. The words ranged from silly ones like centipede to more inventive ones like lapdance; either way, you all were laughing and enjoying the evening. Tom was highly appreciative of the humor because more than once, you laughed so hard that you fell into him, clutching his knee or completely falling over into his lap. It wasn’t anything out of the usual for him to see you so effortlessly happy, but he enjoyed all the little touches.

“Okay, okay.” You breathed out, doing your best to compose yourself. You stood up from the couch with Tyler so that you two could read the answer and continue the round. Reading over the card, “Catch 22”, you began to think about what you could do to act out the card. As if it wasn’t impossible enough to describe it with words, you had to act it out. But then the lightbulb went off- you had a secret advantage and he was sitting right in front of you, as long as he could figure it out.

“Ready?” Tyler asked you nervously, and you nodded. Tyler started with the usual way of beginning: how many words and what it is. You immediately pointed at Harrison.

“Me?” Harrison spoke in confusion, and you nodded before pointing to your stomach, doing your best to act his death from the series.

“Catch 22?” Tom offered, and Harrison looked at him dumbfounded, still trying to connect how it was him as your main clue.

“Ah, thank god.” You smiled, cheering as he guessed it right. Tyler and the others sighed.

“How the fuck did you get that?” Jane questioned.

“Haz, here, was in the show.” Tom replied, proud of his friend. You were surprised by your college friends’ collective shock, but you were most intrigued by Rose’s reaction.

“Oh my god, I thought you looked familiar.” She said, impressed.

“Wait, you actually saw it?” Harrison asked.

“Yeah, I think I might have cried when you died.” She admitted, brushing a loose hair behind her ear, and that’s when it clicked for you- she was totally into Harrison.

“And you’re an actor too, Tom, right?” Will spoke up, casually taking a drink of his beer. You eyed him skeptically; he knew Tom was an actor. Back when you two were dating, you’d talk about your best friend’s accomplishments, so why was he now asking? Your only answer was it would clearly get a rise out of, at least, you, if not Tom as well.

“Yeah, only been in little indie movies. Nothing anyone’s heard of.” Tom played it off jokingly, causing you to smack him on the arm a little, your hand resting on his bicep.

“My mom loves that movie you did with Ewan McGregor.” Rose commented.

“Ah yeah,” Will laughed, “The one where you’re like 12.”

“I wasn’t 12, but thank you.” Tom replied sarcastically, and you could tell he was biting back a scoff. 

“Well, we’ve all seen the Marvel movies so you can brag a little about those.” You teased, making him blush.

“I know I cried when everyone was getting dusted.” Jane stated in a way to poke fun at Rose’s previous words.

“Never saw them.” Will shrugged carelessly.

“Yes, you did.” You corrected him immediately, and you felt Tom tense a little under your touch. While Tom liked that you were being supportive about this, he couldn’t help but feel like something was wrong.

Will acknowledged Tom’s clenched jaw and decided to press it a bit further, “Babe, if you’re talking about Infinity War, then, no, I didn’t pay attention.” He chuckled, “Don’t you remember we were in the middle of something?”

Tom wondered, at first, what he meant exactly. You dropped your hand from Tom’s arm and covered your face in embarrassment, but before you could comment, Rose let out a whine, “Gross, I was right next to you two.”

“Not like you’ve never gotten it on in a movie theater.” Tyler joked.

“Can we please not talk about this?” You groaned, getting up from the couch. “I’m going to bed. I’m tired.”

“That’s not a bad idea.” Jane stated as she stood up with a yawn. You closed your door, escaping to the privacy of your room, not wanting to think about how your ex just told everyone about that night- in your defense, you’d already seen the movie before so you weren’t missing anything.

Tyler and Will followed after Jane, leaving Tom, Harrison and Rose as they cleaned up the few cards that were left out. Feeling the awkwardness radiating off of Tom, Rose delicately spoke up, “Will’s just being a dick.”

“It’s fine.” Tom reassured her.

“Did you really cry when I died?” Harrison asked her the question that’d been on his mind since the second she’d made the comment. They started talking about the show, and Tom took that as a sign to leave. He thought for a moment about knocking on your door and checking in on you, but then he realized it might be too uncomfortable for you to talk about. There were times, like tonight with charades, that Tom considered maybe you liked him back, based on all your little touches here and there, but then, with Will’s comments floating around his mind, his thoughts were plagued by the doom of the friendzone. Tom didn’t know if he’d be able to sleep tonight knowing that you and your annoying ex ‘got it on’ in the theater during his own movie- what if he was dying on screen but you were too enraptured in Will to cry like Rose had cried over Harrison dying?

Tom only had a few minutes to himself before Harrison came back into their shared room, asking him, “How’re you feeling about the run tomorrow?”

“It’s going to kill me.” Tom sighed, and Harrison shrugged before climbing into the top bunk.

“Should’ve been running with me.” He laughed, “It’s not even that far.”

“I haven’t run five straight miles since Jake nearly killed me at the gym.” He replied, tidying up his bag.

“Why are you cleaning?” Harrison asked, looking down at his friend. “Are you worried Y/N’s going to come into the room or something?”

“Shove off.” Tom grumbled. Harrison took off his sweaty socks that he’d neglected to remove before getting into his bed and threw them down at his friend. One missed Tom completely, and the other clung to his shoulder. “That’s fucking gross.”

“If you’re cleaning, then clean them up.” He snickered. Tom threw the sock back at his friend, but it missed and weakly fell to the ground. A knock came from the other side of the door, and Tom opened it, smiling when he saw it was you, his absolute favorite person on this godforsaken trip. While you looked rather cute in your casual summer pajamas, he frowned when he saw his sweatshirt in your hands.

“Are you returning it?” He asked, and you laughed.

“It doesn’t smell like you anymore.” You said quietly, hoping Harrison didn’t hear your words. You held it out to Tom, “I figured I can give it back to you for a time, and then steal it once it smells like you again.”

“Wait a second.” Tom took the sweatshirt from you and disappeared into the room, rummaging through his once neat backpack to grab out another sweatshirt. He handed it to you, “Maybe this could suffice for now?”

Smiling, you sniffed it a little before tugging it on, “Thanks. It’s so cold upstairs, I don’t know how I’d sleep without it.”

“You could always bring your own.” Harrison said from the top bunk. Tom turned and chucked the other sweatshirt at him. You rolled your eyes at his words.

“Watch it, Osterfield, or your mattress is going to end up in the middle of the lake with you still sleeping on it.” You playfully threatened.

“I’m quaking with fear.” He laughed, laying down on the bed out of sight.

“Well, I should go.” You told Tom, “Thank you for the sweatshirt. Good night.”

“Good night, Y/N.” He smiled softly at you. As you walked away, he slowly closed the door, pleased with himself and his choice in sweatshirts. He turned to finish getting ready for bed, just in time for Harrison to throw the sweatshirt back at him.

“I will kick you out of this room.” Tom grumbled.

“I’d like to see you try.”

You didn’t sleep well that night. Even with Tom’s sweatshirt, your room was unbearably cold, and it didn’t help that Rose snored. With only a few hours of sleep under your belt, you woke up the next morning to the sun streaming in through the large window behind the bed and Rose already up and out of the room. You padded into the kitchen, making yourself some tea with the rustic teapot that was set out on the counter. Spotting Rose and Jane standing out on the balcony, you made your way outside.

“Good morning.” You said through a yawn, coming to stand beside Rose.

“We were wondering when you were going to wake up.” Jane teased. You looked at your two friends quizzically, taking a sip of your steaming tea.

“You already missed part one of the gun show.” Rose joked, sitting up straighter to look over the edge of the balcony, “They should be back any second.”

“Oh God.” You laughed, remembering the boys and their run this morning.

“I know I’m with Tyler, but damn, Y/N.” She teased, and Rose nudged you playfully. “Here they come.”

Seeing motion through the trees, you looked over at the runners. It was obvious they were racing the last bit of the run, considering how triumphant Harrison looked when he arrived first with Will right on his tail. And then came Tyler, and finally Tom. There was probably only a few seconds between their arrival, but it was still amusing to spy the looks on their faces. They were all shirtless and glistening in a layer of sweat, and they hadn’t noticed the three of you on the balcony at all- not that you were complaining. You’d rather not have them catch you all checking them out so unabashedly.

“Look at that. 24 abs right there.” Jane let out a small sigh. While her comment was for all four boys, her eyes stayed trained on Tyler. Rose, on the other hand, had her eyes on Harrison’s figure, which you noted to tease her about later. But you, you couldn’t help but check out Tom’s bare torso- there was a reason you didn’t watch either Spider-Man movie with him- you always ended up a little too focused on his shirtless scenes.

“Enjoying the show?” Tyler called up to the three of you, a cheeky smirk on his face, as they all made their way up to the cabin. You could’ve sworn you saw Tom blush a little when he met your gaze before Harrison playfully shoved his friend, making Tom lose focus on you and shove him right back.

“Boys.” Rose laughed quietly to you. You bit your lip, nodding in agreement.

“I’m glad I didn’t miss part two.”

The boys made their way into the kitchen, seeking out some water and gatorade as you and the girls went back inside to greet them. The sweet smell of salmon from last night was gone, overthrown by the ever lovely smell of sweaty men.

“It smells like a gym in here.” Rose gagged in disgust.

“I would’ve gone for sweaty ballsack, but yours is much nicer.” Jane laughed.

“Janie would know.” Will teased, clapping Tyler on the shoulder as he drank from his water, making the other choke a little.

“So how was the run?” You asked Tom as he and Harrison came over to you, Tom’s bottle of gatorade almost gone already. The other four got engrossed in their own conversation.

“Just a small workout, nothing too bad.” He replied, brushing it off.

“He was dying.” Harrison stated, making you laugh. “I told him he’s got to run with me more.”

“Well, you won, Haz, so congrats.” You replied.

“How did you know we were racing?” Tom asked. His ears turned pink from thinking that you knew he came in last.

“The four of you act like teenage boys; of course you’re going to make a race out of a casual run.” You teased.

“We should probably go stretch before our muscles tighten up again.” Harrison said, already backing up towards the stairs. Tom made his way to follow him, and you spoke up.

“I’ll come with.” You offered, setting your mug of tea on the counter. You followed them downstairs and out to the patio, feeling like you might as well spend some alone time with your two closest friends.

“You two think you can make it on the hike today?” You teased, already seeing Tom walk a little funny.

“Yeah, yeah, we got this.” He reassured you, sitting down on the solid ground to start stretching his legs. You started to stretch with them, and Harrison looked at you funny for it.

“Why are you stretching?” He asked with a laugh.

“It helps with flexibility.” You shrugged, switching legs as they did, all three of you mirroring the same poses. “How was the lake?”

“It was nice. We weren’t exactly looking at it though.” Tom replied with a chuckle.

“I don’t know, you were going so slow, I thought you were.” Harrison joked and Tom kicked his foot out, hitting Harrison in the leg.

“It’s shit like this that made me believe you were racing.” You laughed.

“I don’t do long distance running. I like focusing on my abs a lot more.” Tom defended himself. You flicked your eyes down to his abs, nodding a little, but Tom was so focused on his stretching that he had missed your small action, whereas Harrison fully caught it. He laughed, sending you a wink, and you flipped him off. Tom caught that exchange though, “Did I miss something?”

“Nope.” You replied quickly, only making Harrison laugh harder, “He’s just being a dumbass. Onto hamstrings.”

The three of you laid down to stretch your hamstrings, and you heard Tom let out a small groan from beside you. “I can’t do this. I fucking hate leg day.”

“Need help?” You offered. Before he could protest, you were already on your feet. He held his leg up as high as he could, and you pressed on his foot to stretch his hamstring even more.

“What if I need help too?” Harrison pouted, even though he was stretching his leg just fine.

“Sorry, Haz, it’s just you and your hand.” You joked, making Tom laugh.

“I see how it is. Ha ha, it’s me and my hand, and Tom and your hand, Y/N.” He sarcastically replied, as you dropped Tom’s leg and he bent his knee for you to lean on his shin. You helped him to deepen the stretch through his leg.

“Someone’s jealous.” Tom said, before grimacing a little.

“Was that too far?” You asked, loosening your hold on his leg, not wanting to overstretch his hamstring.

“A little.” He replied.

“God, Y/N don’t be so rough on him.” Harrison piped in, still having no issue stretching on his own.

“Haz, if you’re going to be a pouty baby about not having a stretching buddy, talk to Rose. She was totally checking you out earlier.” You stated, trying to change the conversation off of Harrison’s unnecessary innuendos. You let go of Tom’s leg and reached for his foot to stretch his other hamstring.

“Wait, really?” He asked, dropping his leg to peer at you with a serious look on his face.

“Yeah, why would I lie to you about that?” You laughed, “Besides, I don’t think I’ve ever seen her read a book, so I think she was lying about Catch 22.”

Flustered, Wide eyed and blushing, Harrison mumbled something about grabbing a shower before bolting off. You exchanged a curious look with Tom, but he followed after his friend.

You made your way inside after them and went to fix yourself another cup of tea. When you saw Will alone in the kitchen, you momentarily considered changing your mind and going to your rook, but it was too late, as he had already seen you.

“Want a cup?” He asked, holding up the coffee pot after he finished pouring himself a cup.

“No thanks.” You replied and made your way to the kettle.

“Enjoy the show earlier? Tyler and I started this new training routine that’s supposed to help with bulking up.” Will said. It took everything in you to not roll your eyes at his words.

“And how’s that working out for you?” You asked, not even trying to hide your disinterest. You still hadn’t forgiven him for his immature comments last night. Plus, the more you saw Will interact with Tom, the more justified you felt with your annoyance.

Will stepped closer to you. Slowly, he took one of your hands in his and pressed it to his abs, and you’d be lying if you said you couldn’t feel every part of his toned stomach. As much as you hated to admit it, you felt like you were falling under his trance again. “There’s more where that came from. Why don’t you come by my room tonight?”

He dropped your hand, and you were pulled out of your foggy state. You stepped away, turning away from him to continue getting yourself some tea. You felt his body envelope yours from behind. His head rested on your shoulder and his hands smoothed over your waist. Pressing a kiss to your cheek, he murmured, “I miss you.”

At his words, something inside of you snapped and you jolted away from his embrace, slapping his hands away. Firmly, you said, “I don’t miss you.”

Will left the room without another word, and you were left to ponder what the hell just happened as you stood alone in the kitchen.

It wasn’t until a few hours later that you all left on the hike, trailing through the towering trees to make your way to a nearby peak. You all stopped a few times for water and some food, and to even just enjoy nature. Between Jane’s ornithology degree, Tyler’s botany background, and Will’s forestry knowledge, identifying the different birds, plants, and trees around you was relatively easy.

“Can you imagine if we studied something environmental too?” Rose joked, nudging you in the shoulder as Jane mindlessly went on about the bird that had flown past nearly ten minutes ago.

“God, it would never end.” You laughed.

“What did you study?” Harrison asked Rose, making you look at Tom and roll your eyes at your friends.

“I’m a nurse.” She replied, and the two got swept into their own conversation.

“You sore yet?” You asked Tom, poking him in the side as you all continued the hike uphill.

“Me? Sore? Never.” He laughed. He shook his head to try to hide the slight hurt from the question. First, you didn’t think he was outdoorsy enough and now you think he can’t handle doing some mileage. “I’m perfectly fine.”

“Oh sure.” You smiled at him. Tyler pointed out a specific plant as you all passed it, talking about the intricate properties of the shrub.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been more confused about nature.” Tom mumbled to you quietly. Since you two were far enough behind Tyler, Jane, and Will, they couldn’t hear his comment.

“Don’t worry. I have no clue what he’s talking about either.” You reassured him before letting out a small yawn.

“Did you not sleep well last night?” He asked, looking over at you in concern.

“Someone was snoring a bit too loud for me to sleep.” You said, loud enough for Rose to hear. She stopped and spun around to face you, face red in embarrassment.

“It’s a nasal condition! You know how I get when it’s cold!” She defended. As much as she tried to sound angry, she still had a small smile on her face.

“Love you, Rose.” You blew her a kiss, laughing at her reaction. She and Harrison turned back around and continued their conversation about who knows what.

“I think Harrison’s got a nasal condition too.” Tom whispered, making you stifle a laugh to not draw attention back to the two of you.

“Rose doesn’t even snore that loud.” You admitted quietly, “Even with your sweatshirt, I was still too cold to sleep.”

“I can give you another one when we get back. You can double up.” He offered, “But it was pretty cold last night.”

“Thanks. I’ll probably take you up on that.” You smiled softly at him. “You know, I’m really happy you came.”

“I’m happy I came, too. Thanks for inviting me.” He replied, and you nodded in response. Tom paused after a moment, stopping his tracks to look at you with furrowed eyebrows, “Wait, did you not expect me to come?”

You looked at him in confusion, before answering, “I mean I did, but-“

“But I’m not outdoorsy, so you didn’t think I’d actually be here.” Tom grumbled in agitation, beginning to walk again quickly to catch up to the group. You ran up after him.

“Is that what this is about?” You questioned, your voice unintentionally raised, “That I said you weren’t the camping type back home?”

Harrison and Rose turned to look at the two of you, and Tom just bit his tongue to keep from exploding about the sensitive subject. He knew he shouldn’t have asked, but he just felt so inadequate with Will going on and on about trees and shit.

“What is going on with you?” You questioned with a huff of frustration.

“It’s nothing. Let’s just keep going.” Tom stated, shaking his head.

“I’m not going one more step until you tell me what the hell is up.”

“What’s the hold up?” Will called back when he noticed the stop in your hike. Tom went to step forward to continue the journey, but missed his footing on a particularly slick patch of leaves. 

A collective, concerned shout came from you and Harrison as Tom hit the ground. He groaned in pain, and Rose came to his side. All frustration at him slipped out of you as worry flooded your system.

“Tom, oh my god- are you okay?” You asked.

“I think I rolled my ankle.” Tom said, cradling his ankle in his lap.

Rose looked at it briefly, no noticeable swelling or bruising yet. “Can you stand on it?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.” He replied before pushing himself to his feet. He bit back a grimace, standing on his ankle as normal, and you didn’t seem to be the only one to notice it. “Let’s finish the hike, yeah?” 

“You’re not hiking on that.” Rose shook her head with a small laugh.

“I don’t want to hold you all back. I can manage it, really.”

“It’s fine. We’ll continue on. Y/N can lead you back.” Jane spoke up, a little smirk playing on her lips.

“I’ll go with.” Harrison offered.

“As the house nurse, I feel obligated to walk back with him.” Rose added, and you caught the blush that touched her cheeks.

And just like that, it was settled. You, Rose, and Harrison would walk back with Tom, who was doing his best not to limp, which everyone saw through. Rose and Harrison made conversation the whole walk back, while you and Tom just stayed awkwardly silent. By the time you all made it back to the house, he still hadn’t spoken to you. You went to put away your hiking gear and found Tom a few minutes later, sitting on the porch as he looked at the forest before him, an ice pack on his elevated ankle to help with potential swelling.

“I meant what I said.” You spoke up quietly as you sat in the chair beside him. When he just continued to look straight ahead and not physically acknowledge your presence, you continued, “I am really happy that you’re here, Tom. I didn’t say that because I didn’t think you’d want to come. The only reason I wouldn’t expect you to come is because you’re always busy. I guess what I really meant was that I’m grateful you were able to make time for me this week, especially because I know the countless other, more fun things you could be doing right now. It really means a lot.”

After another brief silent moment passed between the two of you, he looked over at you with a small frown on his face. “Why would you think I wouldn’t make time for you?”

“Like I said, you’re busy. You do one movie after the other, and I feel like we hardly see each other anymore. It’s,” You trailed off, searching for the right word, “comforting that you’d want to spend your free time with me.”

“You’re my best friend. Of course, I’d want to spend time with you.”

You knew his words were sweet and that he meant every single one of them, but you still felt a small, subtle twist in your gut.  Another unnatural silence fell between the two of you until Rose came outside like a true savior.

“We’re planning on making s’mores tonight, are you down?” She asked, a cheery smile on her face.

“I’m offended you’re even asking me that.” You stated, and she rolled her eyes at you. You turned to Tom, smiling, “You’re going to love them. Just don’t burn yourself.”

“Burn myself?” He looked at you as if you were crazy, making you laugh.

“Don’t scare him.” Rose teased, “Besides, my money’s on Harrison burning himself first.”

“I heard that!” He called from inside the cabin through the screen door.

Just as Rose was about to leave to go back inside, Tom spoke up, raising his hand a little, still confused, “How do you burn yourself on s’mores?”

Several hours later, he got his answer.

“Ow, fuck, shit, ow.” Harrison cursed, dropping his burnt marshmallow into the dirt.

“That’s how.” You laughed as Rose clinked her s’more against yours.

“How do you know when it’s ready?” Tom asked, eyeing the marshmallow at the end of his stick. He slowly rotated the stick in his hands just as you had told him to do.

“Golden brown are the best, but they’re tricky to make because you can burn them instantly, which is what Harrison did.” You teased your blond friend beside you before taking a bite of your perfect s’more and turning back to face Tom on your other side. “Burnt ones aren’t bad, they just have a more burnt flavor, obviously.”

“So is it ready yet?” He questioned, but he was looking at you not at his roasting marshmallow.

“No,” You giggled. You finished off your s’more with another bite and scooted closer to him on the log. You placed your hand on top of his on the stick, twisting it so that the marshmallow was a few inches above the flame instead of right by the firewood. “And you just keep rotating it. You can see there’s already a gold hue to it.”

You smiled, looking over at him to find him already gazing at you with a soft smile of his own playing on his lips. The light from the campfire made his brown eyes sparkle with specks of gold.

“It’s burning!” Jane exclaimed, and you quickly retracted the stick and marshmallow, blowing out the fire on the now burned marshmallow.

“Well, it’s golden on one side, but burnt marshmallows are an essential part of the s’mores making business.” You said as you passed the stick back to Tom. You gathered the two parts of a graham cracker as well as some Hershey’s chocolate and set it up for a s’more.

“I think I need help with this part.” Tom admitted with a chuckle.

“So you put the marshmallow here.” You pointed at the graham cracker topped with a piece of chocolate. He moved the stick to put the marshmallow in its proper position, and then you put the other half of the graham cracker on top. Grasping the two graham crackers with the marshmallow in the middle, you finished, “And now pull out.”

“Hah, pull out.” Tyler laughed at the innuendo through a face full of his double stacked s’mores. Tom did as told, his eyes lighting up in excitement when you presented him his very own s’more.

“Ta-da. It’s real rocket science, isn’t it?” You joked, and Harrison elbowed you, still grumpy that he had lost his first marshmallow and burnt his hand trying to catch it.

“Burnt and fallen marshmallows are just casualties of s’more making.” Rose said.

“S’mores have to be the thing I miss most about living here— the U.K. just doesn’t do camping quite as well.” You stated, shaking your head a little in disbelief.

“How could you miss s’mores more than us?” Will asked, a playfulness in his voice, but you could recognize the serious undertones of his words.

“I’d miss s’mores more than I’d miss you.” Rose teased, saving you from having to actually think of a response.

“Hand me a marshmallow. I’m ready to try again for a golden one.” Tom said to you, and you reached over into the marshmallow bag beside you, slipping him the soft treat.

“Good luck.” You encouraged him with a laugh.

Tom’s second attempt ended up burnt as well, and you gladly ate it while he made his third one. By the time it was golden brown and ready to be eaten, Jane, Tyler, and even Will had retired for the night.

“That tastes so much better not burnt to a crisp.” Tom said, impressed by his own marshmallow-roasting skills.

“Camping heaven.” You agreed, finishing off the s’more he’d burned earlier.

Rose stood up with a small sigh, stretching her arms. “I think I might head to bed.”

“Me too.” Harrison stated, getting up after her. Tom looked at him questioningly, and you bit your lip, giving Rose a teasing look. She rolled her eyes at you, smiling to herself as she turned to head towards the cabin.

Noticing how Harrison’s hand caught hers once they were a decent distance from the campfire, you called out to them, “Good night!”

“Night!” They chorused back.

“Haz and Rose seem to have hit it off.” Tom commented once they were inside. Your eyes drifted from the dying fire up to the starry sky overhead. 

“Yeah, they really have.” You nodded, caught up focusing on the twinkling lights above you. Quietly, you admitted, “I’ll never get tired of looking at the stars.”

“I bet your neck will.” He joked, making you shake your head.

“They’re just so beautiful.” You mumbled.

“Really beautiful.” You heard Tom murmur under his breath. Your eyes flickered over to him, noticing how he was definitely staring at you and not the stars in the sky. When he turned to face the campfire, your eyes diverted back up to the stars, trying your best to suppress how fast your heart was racing.

“I used to know all of the constellations too. Will and I used to camp a lot, and I’d just study the stars until I fell asleep.” You confessed, attempting to strike up a conversation to keep you from your thoughts. When Tom said nothing in reply, a small sigh escaped your lips, and your eyes trailed back down to Tom beside you. Staring right into the dying campfire, he looked deep in thought.

“What’s on your mind?” You asked him, nudging him a little with your shoulder.

“It’s nothing.” Tom shook his head, but his attempts to play off his thoughts didn’t work on you. After a moment, he spoke up, barely meeting your eyes as he did so, “Did you and Will really— you know— in my movie—“ he trailed off, not wanting to finish his question. He was already apprehensive about the answer, and yet he couldn’t help himself from asking.

“In Infinity War?” You asked, laughing lightly at his question, or lack thereof. Looking up towards the sky again, you replied, “Unless you count the fastest handjob ever, no, we didn’t.”

Tom was silent, making you look back over at him. His shoulders were shaking as he bit his lip, doing his best to stifle his laughter.

“Shut up.” You scoffed, playfully hitting his arm. “It wasn’t like you were dying in the scene or anything. You weren’t even on the screen.”

“I didn’t say anything.” He insisted, before breaking into a fit of laughter, unable to contain it any longer. In that moment, you felt complete tranquility. Tom’s laughter broke through the silence of the atmosphere, making your heart flutter in happiness. His eyes were shut, and you could count every crinkle by his eyes. With the fire illuminating his features just right, he was positively glowing. If you wanted any moment to last forever, it was this one. Tom settled his laughter, “Sorry, I shouldn’t be laughing, but it’s just-” He paused, and his smile faltered momentarily, “It’s a relief.”

“A relief?” You repeated before you could help yourself, and Tom realized his words.

He cleared his throat awkwardly, thinking on his feet of an explanation, “It would’ve been really awkward if I was dying, and you and Will- yeah.” He stopped himself short, and a comfortable silence overcame the two of you.

“How’s your ankle feeling?” You asked, not wanting the conversation to end. If it ended, then that meant the night was over and your precious alone time with Tom was over.

“It’s fine, now. Honestly, it didn’t hurt that much.” He replied with a bit of a nod. You watched as he sucked in a tight breath, “I’m sorry about what happened earlier on the hike. I got frustrated and a little jealous. I was so determined to prove that I could be like Will that I just ended up being a dick.”

His words took a moment to sink in, but you found a small smile breaking over your face as you understood the layers of their meaning. You reached out and touched his knee. Softly, you admitted, “You have no reason to be jealous over Will. I’d never want you to be like him. The main reason that I broke up with him was because, well, he’s not you.”

You could see Tom think about your words for a moment before, ever so slowly, he started to lean in. Tom’s lips seemed to fit perfectly with yours, tenderly moving in sync as you both caved into your suppressed feelings. With one hand cupping your cheek, Tom’s other hand moved to your waist, pulling you in closer to him. You paid no mind to the uncomfortableness of your position on the log, too lost in the kiss to think straight. For the second time that night, you wished that this moment would last forever.

But it came to a quick, bittersweet end as Tom pulled away. His face stayed close to yours, his breath fanning over your face. A smile crossed his lips, “That took us way too long.”

“Way, way too long.” You agreed. He went to pull you in for another kiss, but the sudden cold of the dying fire pulled you two back to reality. Almost reluctantly, you said, “I guess we should probably head inside.”

It was far too cold for either of you to want to stay outside without the comforting heat. Gathering the food and putting out the last of the fire, you two walked back to the cabin, hand in hand.

“Thank you for the s’mores.” Tom said quietly to you, aware that most likely everyone in the cabin was sleeping. He placed the last couple bags of marshmallows and graham crackers on the kitchen counter (the chocolate was all eaten long ago), and you made a mental note to take care of it in the morning. 

“Any time.” You joked softly. Tom leaned in to give you a quick, but just as sweet good night kiss.

As he made his way over to the stairs, he spoke up again, “Don’t get too cold tonight.”

“Good night, Tom.” You laughed lightly, turning towards your bedroom door.

“Good night, Y/N.” 

With one last exchange of soft, sleepy smiles, you both turned to go your separate ways.

When you entered your quaint cabin room, you were met with Rose’s snores, a sharp contrast to your favorite sound that was Tom’s laughter from moments ago. You quietly maneuvered around the room, getting ready for bed. A smile ghosted your lips as you tugged on Tom’s hoodie. The familiar warmth and scent enveloping you comfortably.

You waited for sleep to overcome you on the cold bed; it felt like hours (when really, it was probably only ten minutes) before you finally decided to get up. With a small sigh, you shuffled out of the bed. Maybe the couch would give you more peace than your shared room.

As you made your way out of your room, you heard a door downstairs open. Curiously, you peeked down the staircase to see Tom emerging from the bathroom, in nothing but basketball shorts.

“What are you still doing up?” Tom asked you with his voice just above a whisper. You silently made your way down the stairs until you were in front of him.

“Couldn’t sleep. The room hasn’t gotten any warmer since last night.” You admitted, subconsciously crossing your arms.

“Come here.” Tom slowly uncrossed your arms, taking one of your hands loosely in his. He led you to his room. The door creaked open and shed some light into the dark bedroom. Wordlessly, he brought you over to his bed and dropped your hand to shuffle the blankets.

“What about Haz?” You whispered as Tom slipped into his bed, laying sideways and as close to the wall as possible to make some room for you.

“It’ll be fine.” He reassured you. You slid into the bed, finding comfort under the blankets. You laid on your side facing Tom, and it was then that you realized just how small the twin bed was— you two were close enough to each other that you could feel his minty breath fan over your cheeks, which still made you nervous even though just ten minutes ago he’d kissed you.

“We’re never going to fall asleep like this.” You teased softly. Tom let out a quiet laugh, shuffling so he was flatter on his back, giving you room to lay in his arms. With your head pressed to his bare chest and his strong arms circling around you, you finally found warmth.

“You’re really warm.” You mumbled into his chest, snuggling into his embrace and letting your legs tangle comfortably with his. It wasn’t the first time the two of you had cuddled, but it was the first time the two of you have cuddled on a tiny bed and with him being shirtless.

“Makes me the best cuddling partner.” Tom mumbled, his chest shaking lightly underneath you as he chuckled. You hummed in agreement, a smile forming on your face.

“Do you two ever shut up?” You heard Harrison question from the bunk above you.

“Do you always have to ruin a perfectly good moment?” Tom replied, and you subconsciously snuggled deeper into his embrace.

“I better not wake up in the middle of the night to noises.” He grumbled. The bed shuffled as he flipped over in his bed to get comfortable.

“Haz, that’s just you snoring.” You teased. He muttered something incoherent and you whispered to Tom, “Let’s wait until he starts snoring and then move his mattress to the lake.”

“Deal.”

Unfortunately for you but luckily for Harrison, you drifted off quickly, listening to the sound of Tom’s heart beating underneath you. You couldn’t help yourself; he made for the best pillow and the best heat source.

The next morning, you woke up with a start, hearing a loud thud from right beside you. Blearily, you leaned over the edge of the twin bed to find the source of the sound; when you saw a groaning, half-asleep Tom on the floor below you, a fit of laughter overcame you. The blankets were falling off the bed, all tangled up in his legs.

“Did you fall off the bed?” Harrison asked, even though all three of you already knew the answer, and you looked up to see him peering over the edge of the bunk bed.

“It’s not funny.” Tom muttered, frowning in faux annoyance at your continued laughter.

You held your hands out to him, offering to help him up even though you were in an impossible position to really help, still laying in the actual bed. Teasingly, you asked, “You got an owie?”

Chuckling, Tom reached up and grabbed your hands, pulling you off the bed. You let out a yelp as you landed on top of him, in a similar position to just last night. Your legs subconsciously fell on either side of his to somewhat straddle him, and you lifted yourself up on the palms of your hands to look down at him properly, a smile etched on your face. The familiar intoxicating pull from last night returned; you almost forgot Harrison was in the room— key word, almost.

“Get up before I come down there and join in.”

And with that, you quickly got off of Tom, and he scrambled to his feet. As Harrison came down the bunk bed ladder, you and Tom put the blankets back onto the bottom bed. You pondered where last night left the two of you, and you weren’t sure how to approach the subject. You were clearly more than friends, but were you more than friends in front of the others?

“What’s for breakfast?” Harrison asked, cutting you off from your thoughts. 

Over the course of the next few hours, you tried to somehow be alone with Tom to talk things over. It felt odd how things ended last night— not a bad odd, but odd nonetheless. Between the guys going for yet another run and you all spending time at the lake together, it just seemed like the opportunity would never come.

“God, I can’t believe it took you that long.” Rose teased, a giddy smile on her face as she cut off your recounting of last night. The boys were outside chopping some firewood while you, Rose, and Jane prepared dinner.

Jane winked at you jokingly, “What was it like?”

“What was what like? The kissing?” You asked, and she nodded.

“We want all the details!”

“In all honesty, it was the best kiss of my life.” You admitted, the butterflies you felt last night returning at just the thought.

As the three of you continued to talk, coo, and gossip about the four boys outside, they were hard at work. The late afternoon summer sun was bearing down on them, and they had stripped away their shirts earlier. Tom decided very early on that he didn’t like chopping wood, even if Harrison was somehow worse at it than him. While Tom and Harrison mainly kept to themselves, Will and Tyler had their own conversations going, despite the others clearly within earshot.

“You and Jane— I don’t know how you do it. One girl for all those years?” Will commented, and Tyler laughed with a shrug.

“It’s been so long, I don’t know what I would do without her. Plus, she’s the best fuck I’ve ever had.” Tyler said crassly, making his friend laugh.

“Mine was by far Y/N.” He stated, loudly, as if to ensure that Tom would hear it. At the sound of your name, Tom and Harrison both began to listen in on the conversation.

“It’s been years. Surely, there’s been someone else.”

“Nope.” Will protested, stopping his work to lean on the axe handle, “She was supposed to come over last night, but she must’ve gotten lost.” Tom couldn’t stop himself from scoffing at his words. Hearing the sound, Will turned to face Tom, “Got something to say?”

“Yeah, I do actually.” Tom said, dropping the axe. Holding himself up straighter, he made his way closer to Will. Harrison hesitantly stepped closer to Tom as the brunet continued, “She didn’t get lost, she just had a better option.”

“Better option? You mean you?” He bit back. “Yesterday, you couldn’t even do a simple hike without hurting yourself, and you’re shit at chopping wood. You may think you’re hot shit in London, but this is my turf, movie star. I’m the one who gets the girl here.”

Harrison went to grab Tom’s balled fist, but he was too late as Tom had already swung, nailing the surprised Will right in the nose. Will responded quickly, throwing a punch back at Tom. Tyler and Harrison exchanged questioning looks, silently wondering if they should break up the fight or just let them go at it, but the pair decided the former was probably a better idea.

Aware of sudden commotion outside, you, Rose, and Jane all rushed to the balcony, wondering what could possibly be happening. The fight between Tom and Will was ending as Harrison and Tyler both successfully pulled their respective friends away from the other. Even from the distance, you could see the new bruises on Tom’s face and Will’s bloody nose; it was most likely broken, but you didn’t have it in you to care. The boys were unaware of you and the others, until Harrison looked up at the balcony. He gave you a sad smile, and Tom was next to look up. Ashamed, he didn’t dare to meet your eyes and, instead, grabbed his shirt from a nearby log and trudged his way down to the lake.

Your eyes flickered to Will, and a pit of anger flamed inside you. Just by the look on his face, you didn’t even need to question who was the antagonist. Not bothering to say a word to Rose or Jane, you marched downstairs and out to where Will, Tyler, and Harrison remained.

“What did you say to him?” You questioned Will angrily. 

“Nothing he didn’t already know.” He replied nonchalantly.

“That’s bullshit, Will. This is all just bullshit. Every chance you get, you bring up something to antagonize Tom and embarrass me. And, every time you do that, you just remind me that you’re half the man Tom is.”

“You’re acting like I was the one to start the fight. News flash, princess, your man threw the first punch.” Will said, bitterly.

You stepped closer to him, your eyes hardening, and you swore you saw fear flicker in his eyes. “Believe me, if Tom hadn’t broken your nose already, I would break it myself.”

Without another word, you turned on your heel and headed down to the lake. You knew they were all watching you-- Harrison, Tyler, and Will from the ground and Rose and Jane from the balcony. The sun was already starting to line the tops of the trees across the lake, and you felt your anger slowly dissipating as you saw Tom sitting on the dock. With his legs swinging off the edge, he looked at peace, but you knew him better than that; a storm was brewing in his head.

You didn’t say anything, and Tom made no effort to look away from his hands in his lap as you approached. Silently, you sat down right next to him at the end of the dock. Now that you were beside him, you noticed the bruise forming on his eyebrow and the cut on his lip. Will definitely got a few good shots at him, but you could tell Tom had gotten him worse. Your eyes trailed down to his hands; his knuckles were red in agony. Slowly, you reached your hand out to grab his injured one.

“It doesn’t hurt.” Tom mumbled, but you could tell he was holding back the truth. You tenderly placed a kiss on each of his red knuckles before intertwining your fingers.

“Wanna talk about what happened?” You asked him quietly, fearing if you spoke too loud the fragile moment would somehow be ruined.

“He was talking about you like you were just a good fuck and nothing more.” He replied, his voice just as soft as yours.

You couldn’t help but smile at him, your heart fluttering at the thought that he was defending you. You let go of his hand and turned to properly face him. The smile never left your face as you cupped his face in your hands. Confused, Tom asked through a laugh, “What are you doing?”

You kissed his bruised eyebrow before responding, “Well, I’ve got to kiss it better, don’t I?”

“I think you missed a spot then.” Tom pointed to his lips with a cheeky grin. You pressed a chaste kiss to the cut on his lip, before teasingly pulling away. You didn’t get far as Tom’s hand went to the back of your neck, bringing you in for another, deeper kiss. Caught up in the moment, you somehow forgot about his cut; it wasn’t until you nibbled on his bottom lip, accidentally catching the cut, that you remembered and Tom pulled away with a quiet groan.

“I’m sorry.” You said through a laugh, though you were still genuinely concerned about him. Your fingers traced lightly over the agitated cut.

“It’s okay.” He reassured you. One of his hands trailed up your arm to your own hand, and he brought it to his lips, kissing it just as gently as you had kissed his knuckles. “You’re cold.”

“Guess my personal heater isn’t working.” You teased.

“Come here.” Tom beckoned you closer to him. You slid into his side, snuggling into his warm embrace. With his arm hanging around your shoulders, you slipped your fingers through his, smiling at the ease of it all.

“I wish we could stay like this forever.” You mumbled, looking at the beauty of the lake and the sunset before you. It was like a scene from a painting, a scene you wanted to memorize forever.

Tom pressed a kiss to your forehead, pulling you in closer to him. “We can stay here as long as you’d like, darling.”