#because they had the audacity to have a dog. in their house. while cooking. while being viet

[scatteredcloud]

So here’s the thing about racist caricatures: there’s a root, it’s started by a characteristic blown out of proportion. It is not the responsibility of the people being caricatured to change those characteristics, regardless of how strange/unacceptable/weird it seems to people not in that group

[misstycloud]

Love on a loop

What the hell do you do when you can’t seem to break up, no matter what you do?

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

You stared blankly at him, a hundred questions ran through your head all at once. On the inside, you were panicking. You had experinced a range of emotions in just a span of a few hours; pain, regret, sadness, anger and great confusion.

All this happened while he, you boyfriend, simply looked at you with an unsure smile. He tilted his head and asked with a slight chuckle, “Are you okay?” When you didn’t answer, he decided to return to his previous question, of which you didn’t respond to either. “Ehm, do you want one egg or two? We only have three right now, but you can have the two, since I feel bad about always eating all the eggs.” He laughed.

You finally decided to speak. Your voice wavered a bit when you inquired, “What are you doing here?”

Your boyfriend paused his happy expression, and frowned. He glanced around as if he didn’t know what to do with himself. “I live here? Or have you gotten a mysterious case of amnesia?” He joked.

“No, you don’t- not anymore.” Your emotions turned to annoyance, and it was evident in your tone how displeased you were with him.

The irritation in your tone gave away that you really were angry at him and that it was not a silly attempt to be funny. What you could be upset about, he had no clue. He searched in his mind for anything he could’ve done to land him in the dog-house, but found it empty. There was nothing he could think of that would start a fight.

Your boyfriend switched off the stove and gave you his full attention. He asked in genuine bewilderment, “Love, is everything alright? Have I done something to make you mad at me- although, considering you liked me yesterday, I frankly can’t imagine how I could’ve fucked up so fast.”

Your mouth fell open. The audacity! “What are you doing? Why are you back here? I don’t get what you’re playing at but it is not funny. I just- what??” You pointed towards the door. “Get out!” You didn’t like to shout, however, this situation demanded some force, whether it was pleasant or not.

It was evident on his face that your yelling had hurt him. That sad, hopeless expression always made you melt in the beginning of your relationship. Everytime you would fight, he would put it on full display and immediately after you’d feel bad and apologise for whatever the fight was about. He stayed quiet as he untied the apron around his waist and hung it on a chair.

“Hey….I don’t know what this is about- seriously, I don’t! But you need to tell me if somethings wrong, I can’t help fixing it otherwise.” He held his arms up in surrender and began approaching you.

“No, don’t come closer, you need to go! Get out.”

“Love, I’m gonna hug you now. Is that okay?” He continued his advance. The way he spoke to you reminded you of someone trying to soothe a frightened animal; yes, you were freaking out- because of him! He was the one acting weird.

You backed up against the wall. “I don’t want your hugs- no, don’t touch me!” You felt a shiver down your spine as the familiar embrace surrounded you.

Your attempts to pull away proved fruitless, his grip was like iron chains. There was no way you could get free. Still, your small tugs continued even after you’d exhausted all of your strength. Your boyfriend stroked you hair, undoubtedly to calm you down. It was meant to be comforting, but the only thing you felt was uneasiness.

This was crazy. You had no idea what was going on. You were absolutely certain that the two of you broke things off for good yesterday.

You’d waited for him to come home that day, which he did, all happy of course; now he was able to see you. You had decided to cook his favourite meal in preparation to soften the blow. It was unlikely it would do anything to help, but it was worth trying anyway. You recalled how his mood turned from happy to totally elated. He chuckled and asked if there was any special occasion(it was, although not in the way he wanted).

You say him down and let him eat himself half-full before you broke the news to him: you were planning on leaving him. He took it surprisingly well compared to the expected reaction. Of course, there was the crying and self-blame, but after that he seemed to accept your decision with a sniffle. He was kind enough to let you have the apartment, he insisted even as you said that there was no need to concern about it yet and you could decide later on. He packed his essentials in a bag and threw the rest of his belongings into boxes and moved out the same evening. Again, you explained he didn’t have to but he said it was fine; he wanted to be out of your hair as fast as possible.

He seemed fine. There was no yelling at you and no big storm that came. So you let him leave(to a friends place, he said) and after a couple drink, you went to bed. The day had stressed you out to the point of exhaustion.

So why was your ex back in your apartment, and why did everything look the same like before, it’s as if yesterday never happened. Because, it did…right?

“It’s alright, sweetie. You’re safe, I’m here to protect you so don’t be scared.” He let go of you just enough to look up at him. “Mind telling me what got you freaked out this morning?”

“Yes: YOU.” Sending him a furious scowl, you said, “You are what’s got me so freaked out. Mind telling me why you are back?”

His expression was mixed with dejection and confusion. “I’m sorry. I really don’t understand what you mean.”

“Don’t play fucking dumb. We broke up. You moved out. Explain why you’re here and why-“ you gestured around the apartment “- did you put up all your things again? We are over, you need to accept that and move on.”

You wouldn’t call yourself a mind reader, however, it was easy to see that your eruption shocked him and sent his mind into a downwards spiral.

He spoke with urgency. “What? Broke up? Why would we do that? I don’t-“ he looked away and inhaled deeply. “I would never leave you.” Staring into your eyes, he asked in a quivering voice, “Are you not happy with me, is that it? Please, make me understand.”

“We already had this conversation-“

“When?” He interuppted you.

“Yesterday!”

He shook his head. “I think I would remember an important conversation like this. Are you sure it wasn’t a dream?”

You gaped at him. “It wasn’t a dream- I would know if it was. It was real and it happened. You are playing me, because what? Because I told you the truth that this is not healthy? This is not what a relationship should be like.”

“How is this not a good relationship? I love you and you love me. Is anything more needed?”

Your boyfriend could seemingly not honestly comprehend your point.

You pinched the bridge of your nose. “A relationship can’t be when two partners are so dependant on each other- like we are. We need other people too, it can’t be just us forever. Like, my friends don’t even bother to invite me to stuff anymore because I’ve always had to say ‘no’ because I’m constantly doing something with you. Can’t you see, I’m spending every waking moment with you? Hell, I barely talk to my family anymore.”

“I’m fine with only being with you. I don’t care about seeing anyone else, you’re all that matter to me. I don’t need other- is it not the same for you?” You noticed the tears brimming his eyes.

Sighing, you let yourself be honest. “No. It’s not enough for me. I’m sorry, but I can’t let my entire life be ruled and centered around you.”

The air was still around you. It was quiet. While you’d previously desired him to shut up, now you found yourself willing to do anything to make him say something. Finally, he spoke.

“Oh, wow. Okay.” His attention was focused on the floor. “I-I’m sorry, Love, I had no idea you felt that way. I didn’t mean for you to- you know.”

“It’s fine. I know you didn’t mean for me to feel bad. And besides, it’s partly my fault too. I can’t put all the blame on you.”

You ex tried attempted a little laugh, it came out forced and not at all smooth like he’d imagined. “I dunno what kind of dream you had, but maybe it was a sign- for us to…move on and stuff- I’m not mad though, I want you to understand that.

“Yeah.”

“Ooof, I guess that it’s also a sign for me to move out?”

You nodded. He was obviously depressed, however, he still tried smiling for you. You supposed he didn’t want you to feel bad. Within two hours he was ready to go. He sure was a fast packer when he wanted to.

Just like in your dream, you told him he didn’t need to move out directly, and similarly, he also said it was no bother. After he went, you breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed on your (formerly shared) bed.

It went well, didn’t it? You thought.

He agreed to break up without any fight. It was good. You could relax. You closed your eyes and let sleep come to you.

What you weren’t prepared for was to be awoken by the smell of cooking. You groaned and rolled out of bed. Checking the clock you saw that it was still a little early. You followed the noise to the kitchen.

“Hey, I was just about to wake you up. Do you want one egg or two?”

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

This fic didn’t really turn out exactly like I wanted to. Sorry if it seemed a little rushed at the end. Hope it’s still acceptable tho

[fatphobiabusters]

I have been forced to see so many Noom ads by YouTube, and each time I can't believe their audacity and how far they're willing to go. Off the top of my head, I can think of three specific Noom ads that astound me every time I have the displeasure of being reminded that Noom exists:

All of the ads that are just them showing footage of either extravagant or absolutely wild, no-one-has-ever-eaten-this food dishes with voice over saying "I couldn't figure out why I wasn't losing weight!" And the most recent iteration of this ad starts with footage of someone spraying whipped cream on a hot dog. Why? Who knows! But it's apparently related to why the paid voice actor wasn't losing weight I guess ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I was actually telling Mod Squirrel about this ad last night because the manipulative tactics of this one are so blatant and disgusting. The Noom ad starts with footage of puppies—I kid you not—and then says "Sick and tired of feeling sick and tired about your weight? We've got you!" I don't know what's more disgusting, the fact that they're using puppies (PUPPIES!!!!) to sell their fatphobic eating disorder app like some kind of cartoon villain, or the fact that they're pretending to come to the rescue of people who are tired of feeling ashamed of their fat bodies when companies like Noom are one of the direct causes of that internalized fatphobia in the first place. That would be like a canister of gasoline showing up to a house on fire and saying "Tired of me coming to your house ten minutes ago to set all of your belongings and memories ablaze? Don't worry, I've got you!" *starts a forest fire in the forest behind the house* "That'll be $100."

It's been a while since I've had to see this shitty Noom ad, and I hope it's because they received backlash for it since even people who don't care about fat liberation at least care about xenophobia. Does anyone remember that advertisement Noom made of (if I'm remembering correctly) a Latine grandmother showing her grandchildren love by cooking them homemade food that was part of their culture, and Noom called people like this Latine grandmother "food-pushers"? Literally coming after grandmothers making their grandchildren food from their cultural heritage????

Please let 2024 be the year that the Noom app dies. I am so tired of that fucking app.

-Mod Worthy

[cinnamonest]

please spare more crumbs for the sex slave au with diluc and kaeya's meimei,,

Thank you for giving me permission to be more depraved this is from forever ago but I'm slowly getting the "forever ago" stuff done lol

I love the concept tho, especially Crepus buying a lil qt and having to teach them how to be good masters bc they’re both dumb clueless boys, bless.

TWs: slavery, implied incest or pseudo-incest, could give vibes as under//age (nothing is specified but I guess it could strike some people that way so I wanna be cautious), noncon/dubcon, mentions of anal, misogynistic, awful depraved and nasty -------------------------------------

God. The arguing. The rivalry. The chaos. Like, with some poly yanderes/owner/master relationships, the two work *together* and focus attention on controlling *you,* but these two are... not like that. They have a lot of rivalry going on half the time.

Now, this could be Crepus buying a slave and basically indoctrinating her as a meimei, but of course, if you actually are one of the boys' bio sis, the one is gonna claim some authenticity - you know, the whole "well she's my real sister, not yours, so I get to fuck her more" kind of thing. The other appeals to "well she's your real sister which makes you worse," and it devolves into arguing back and forth about whether or not the blood relation makes them more or less justified in sticking their dick in you and claiming more rights to meimei's time and attention. Not just to each other either, it's also directed at you -- the whole "hey, I'm your real big brother, so you should spend more time with me than him" kind of thing. It actually can get pretty annoying over time, you have to constantly be soothing not one but TWO egos in desperate need of affirmation. But here I’m going more with the idea of Crepus just buying them a sweet meimei. Diluc's more... patient. He teaches you "touch commands" -- little learned gestures, like a dog. Just the lightest touch on your spine and you know it's a clear message to arch your back, a hand under your chin and thumb pressed against it has you instinctively opening your mouth, a tap to the back of your neck and you kneel. Little gestures that can bend your body and mind with minimal effort. Despite that though, Kaeya is actually the master of The Look™ - the kind that can make you go quiet and apologize in a mere instant when given. But because you know it, expect him to be even harsher if you defy it. Sometimes in your little tantrums you get so mad that you'll have the audacity to ignore that look and keep whining or being a brat which does not end well.

Meimei is what you call free use - any time, anywhere. One of the most important lessons Crepus told you when he first got you/when you were old enough is that you are never to deny the boys any of your holes if they want it. This is just as important for the boys to learn as it is you, he's a big believer in the whole, "if you act like a good proper master, the slave will naturally fall into their role too" sort of thing, so he teaches them to be forceful and dominating, not hesitant to do what they want -- if they're clear on what they want and make known their expectation of your obedience (and the subtle implication of threat of punishments if not complied with), you'll fall into the submissive role you're meant for and naturally want to submit to them like a good little wife-sister-slave.

So, whenever one of them beckons you over, you smile and ask them how you can help. Your brothers work so hard, and it's the least you can do to take care of their needs. Sometimes they just want you to sit on their lap, wrap your arms around them, sit there a while in silence when they're sad, sometimes they want to vent to you about things when they're frustrated, sometimes they want to use you. Of course, the former two usually leads to the last anyway. You're... emotional support pussy. There's important rules and practices to be followed, it's actually rules for all three of you, several apply to them, actually, as Crepus taught you before he died, and it's become second nature for the boys (it works in their benefit, after all). #1. You can never be left alone. There's a lot of reasons for this, but primarily it's in your instinct to get fucked, all you know how to do is take cock, so if you were left alone you may very well go running off and jump onto the first thing with a dick, and they can't have that. So basically you either have to be with one of them, within their sight, or accounted for in some way - there's a couple of installed tethering hooks and the like on the walls  in several areas of the house you can be attached to. But, really, they're not usually necessary, with two very horny males running around you're busy most of the time, even if it's a more passive task. You spend a lot of time sitting on someone's lap, sometimes taking naps throughout the day with whoever decides they're tired at the moment. So, you spend more or less every waking moment with one or both -- well, every sleeping moment too, of course you don't have you own room. You alternate nights between the two just like you were told to. There's not really any task you do alone. Bathing? It's always gotta be with one or the other. Sleeping? Always with one or the other. Even when you're cooking -- because obviously you do that, they wouldn't even know how to, since you've always done it -- one is always standing beside you, talking to you, or sitting a ways over in a chair as they vent about their day. Oh, speaking of that, as aforementioned, you're there for emotional burdens too. When one has had a long day, what would they do if meimei wasn't there for them to vent and whine and complain to? You've always been taught to be a good listener. Don't interrupt. Listen to everything and don't zone out. Don't oppose their actions when they're telling you about their problems, always tell them they were in the right and comfort them. Smile while you listen. That's how you were trained to respond when one of them has some burden to unload on you. Always offer your body to make them happy. That's the last part, and they've never not taken you up on the offer. That being said, sometimes you have to... motivate them. Push a little bit. You see, you're just so sweet that sometimes your brothers might want to just spend the entire day in bed with you. So you have to motivate them to do their actual work. Tell them that if they don't go to work, if they stay in bed all day inside you, how are you supposed to clean the house and make dinner for them? So they sigh and accept you're right and go off to work after all. And, again, the rule is important for them too. You can never run off on your own, but they're also vigilant not to ever leave you alone. When you're first bought, Crepus had to constantly pull them back inside the house when they'd go to another room for something because see, you're leaving her all alone and she's going to go running off and it'll be your fault. So they had to be conditioned to communicate and make sure you were always accounted for, taught how to restrain you properly. If you were left in a room, Crepus would come by to make sure they remembered to lock you inside, would test the tightness of your leash if you were tethered to something, and sigh and chastise if one of them neglected to do it right. #2. No getting off on your own, this is a rule they have to help enforce. It's a waste - you have TWO big brothers, surely one of them is always going to be available and eager, so really, getting yours without either of them involved is pretty selfish, and worthy of punishment if found doing so. If for whatever reason they're all too busy, you have the option of asking permission to ride and grind on their thigh, but no cumming until they're done with their task and are available to properly handle it. Crepus is particularly adamant about this rule, as well as enforcing the same mentality in them, doesn't think it's appropriate for a girl to be so selfishly absorbed with pleasure when she should  be giving it to the men that own her. For one, a girl should be spending all of her time dedicated to serving her masters in some way, and two, they're both needy boys that would be eager to fuck you at any time. So really, masturbating is an act of defiance and will be dealt with as such. #3. No favoritism! There will be times where you may feel mad at one or the other, and sure you have different levels of how much you can tolerate certain behaviors... But, you have to train yourself against that. Meimei should have no limits of what she can tolerate - that's part of your whole purpose. So even when you're mad at one, you can't try to avoid that one and go to the other, you still need to divide your time, energy, and body equally. Don't talk bad about one to the other, don't try to spend more time with one or the other at any time. This also includes pitting them against each other through jealousy, it's a huge no-no. Don't try to make one jealous of the other. If they catch you doing that, sooner or later they'll realize what you're doing, and deal with it, usually harshly, since it's seen as a high-ranking offense. In fact, you really shouldn't be mad, ever. Your big brothers know what's best for you, so if you're mad over a disagreement, you just need to accept that they're right and you're wrong and that you need to submit to their will. Outwardly showing you're upset is bratty behavior, things like pouting or giving them the cold shoulder are punishable offenses. #4. You're also a peacekeeper. Diffuse fights. Both of your big brothers can be... stubborn, prideful individuals. This leads to pretty regular conflict over this and that. It's meimei's job to help with that, calm them down with a smile on your face. Or, if it works better, with some tears and a quivering lip. Please don't fight, you say with watery eyes, sniffling, and well, they can't help but feel bad, they both turn their attention to you rather than to each other and apologize for making you upset.  And if they're having one if their regular it's my turn kind of arguments, your job is to propose the easy solution of sharing. You have more than one hole to fuck, and can easily cuddle one on each side. It should be an obvious solution. Oh, and they fight sometimes over who gets to do what, who spends time with you, but doing different things rather than both wanting to do the same thing. One is sitting at his desk to work and he can't be expected to focus on work without meimei sitting on his lap and cockwarming him of course, but the other says he wants to take a nap and how is he supposed to sleep if he can't rest his head on meimei's tits? There is only so much of her to go around! But they will legit adjust their schedules to make sure they get alone time. And are very nitpicky about it -- wait why do *you* get an extra hour on Tuesday?? If you get that I deserve an extra hour on Thursday -- that sort of thing. You're supposed to be able to propose such ideas. It's your job to come up with solutions that make everyone happy. You can cockwarm one brother while he works and tell the other that hey, if he postpones the nap, you can just ride him until he cums and can sleep right? Things like that. #5 Actually isn't for you, it's for them, regarding punishment. When Crepus got you, the poor boys didn't really know how to go about doing it, so they had to be taught. It's important to be a good master and know how to do so adequately, you know? To not let anger get the better of them and go too far, since sometimes they might get too mad about something. In fact, a good trick, he teaches them, is to just tie you up, and go blow off some steam before coming back to punish you. That way they won't go too far, and you'll have to wait around in fear for a while, which just helps the punishment sink in better. But at the same time, don't go too light. No matter how much you whimper, he says, don't feel pity for her and go lax. It's intentional, it's just your nature to try and fake-cry to try and get out of it. You did something bad, so they shouldn't feel bad about it, even if you cry and squeal. It's the right thing to do. You're supposed to cry, you're supposed to say it hurts and whimper, that just means they're doing it right. But of course, there's some sensitivities to be taught. If they have you bent over a knee, they have to make sure to only hit your ass and the back of your thighs, make sure not to go up too high and hit your back, since that could cause injury. If they're gonna fuck your ass as punishment, make sure to use a certain amount of lube. Things like that, it's important to be good masters, just as much as it is your job to be a good little slave.

And to remember, of course, that meimei is... an inferior little creature. Don't get mad at her just because she's stupid and doesn't understand this or that, that's not her fault. She can't be expected to be smart or responsible, that's their job. But also, don't feel pressured to give her what she wants just because she wants it or anything. And, most importantly, don't start having self-doubt and ever think she might be right about something while they're wrong, because obviously that can't be the case. You might get defiant and try to insist you know better than them, act like you're just as capable of something as they are, or think your opinions matter or something, but in that case, they have a responsibility to remind you of your place.

[percywinchester27]

La Petite Mort

Word count: 2.1K

Pairing: Dean X Reader AU

Warnings: None, just fluff, humour and implied sex ;)

Series Summary: The reader has just shifted to a new flat and boy, someone on the floor has a really banging sex life! The passionate moans have been keeping her up for several nights in row and enough is enough! Reader has her suspicions, but is it really the green-eyed hottie from room no. 307?  

A/N: It’s a neighbours!AU. I’m finally writing one. So excited to share it with you guys. Hope y’all like it! <3

Beta: The best babe, @deanssweetheart23​​​​​

Everything was fine till the banging started. Pun very much intended.

The shift had been smooth, the job was going great and life was finally on track. You had slid under the covers with the most satisfied smile in years only to be woken up to a lady very, very, very happy with her life.

Oh yeah… oh yeah… ahhh right there… oh fuck yeah…

You sat up right in your bed, eyes wide, face hot.

Third night in a row. Third fucking night. Literally.

What in the good heavens? The landlady might have mentioned this while renting out the flat!

Shoving the pillow over your ears, you fell back onto the mattress, closing your eyes shut very tightly. Eventually sleep overtook you and you lapsed into lousy dreams of trying to catch the taxi which kept evading you. Not a metaphor for your sex life at all. Nope.

The disturbed sleep didn’t help your mood the following day. Everyone at the office thought of you as a happy-go lucky person. Lately, they were seeing this whole new dark side of you. Sleep was essential to your functioning. 

In the evening, on your way back, you stopped by the coffee shop downstairs to pick up a brownie. It was a little place; busy yet quaint. The barista, Charlie, made two hearts in your coffee instead of one. That put the biggest smile on your face. 

At least, the day was ending on a high note.

Your newly rented flat was on the third floor of a very complicated building. One staircase did not directly lead into another. An entire hallway had to be crossed to get to it. The design probably broke a hundred different by laws and someone was definitely paid off in the city civil office to get a construction permit. You did not want to imagine how the people would fare in case of a fire emergency. Learning the escape plan was like memorising the map of a treasure hunt. You escape, you win. You lose… whoops! Better luck in next life. But the rent was cheap and you were already living all the clichés of a struggling writer- one incomplete book, a job at a publishing house and addiction to coffee. So, yes, you would brave fire when it came to being able to afford a living.

Struggling with the brownie package and the coffee in your hand you jammed the key into the door. It didn’t go in. 

What the hell?

You tried again, and once more the key got jammed. On a closer look, you realised that the lock didn’t resemble yours at all. Stepping back, you peered at the door. 307. Not 306- which was yours.

The floor design was insane and instead of the flats being lined up next to each other, they were all fronting one another in a haphazard fashion. Shaking your head, you took a step back and jammed the key into the lock of your own flat.

Jesus! You’re losing it, Y/N.

Shirking off the mild irritation, you cooked yourself a hot cup of instant noodles, put on your favourite TV show and slinked into your couch. Tonight’s episode was going to reveal who the murderer was and you had been dying for the suspense to finally end. 

Just when the protagonist was about to point a gun at the killer in the shadows…

Oh my God... you’re incredible… aahhhh… ahhhh… ahhh…

You completely abandoned the TV and jumped up from the sofa. The fire hazard might still be worth it, but the thin walls so weren’t.

On tiptoes, you made your way to the east side wall, putting your ear against it. The noise wasn’t coming from upstairs. That was the only sure thing. But it was impossible to pinpoint the direction. The moans were reverberating through the walls. So loudly that there was no escaping it. Not in the bedroom, the kitchen or the living room sofa. 

Of all of them, the east wall seemed like the culprit. 

Right there… yeah…

307. Whoever it was in that room needed to calm the FUCK down. You grabbed your blanket and dragged it to the end of the living room, fuming. What ticked you off was how much this was ticking you off.

It’s sleep you told yourself. The lack of sleep was the only thing making you mad. The sex noises couldn’t be it. Because there were other noises- a dog barked somewhere occasionally, one of the rooms had a very loud stereo and someone was too much into baking- the beater was ceaseless. No, it had to be the timing and your wrecked sleep schedule.

Just like the nights before, you covered your ears and started reciting the story of the manuscript you had been reading at work. Eventually, sleep overtook you again.

The next morning you woke up in a crappier mood. If that was even possible.

Breathing down on anything and everything, you locked the door on your way out for work. Turning into the corridor, you ran into a wall of solid flesh. 

In your groggy, sleep deprived state, the first thing you noticed was the way he smelled- leather and whiskey and something headier than that. It was divine. Next, you looked up into those eyes- stunning green, like sparkling water running over jade.

“Easy there, sweetheart!” The guy smirked. 

You straightened yourself and took a step back. In front of you stood the most handsome guy you had ever seen. He was tall, with dirty blond hair, almost brown, and those stunning eyes. 

“I’m so sorry,” you muttered, trying to collect your scattered thoughts. You had one of those dumb faces that gave away every damn thought crossing through your brain, so obviously you tried your best not to meet his gaze. Which was a shame really. That face demanded to be ogled at. Let alone the body that followed.

“No, no… I didn’t mind at all.” 

You saw him reach out to the door of 307.

“You’re the one who lives there?” You asked through gritted teeth. 

He raised an eyebrow. “Sure. You want a tour?”

Uhgg the best looking guy and he has to be such a douche!

Slipping past him, you stomped off towards the stairs. This too-good-looking-for-the-world asshat had been ruining your nights and in turn your life. 

You knew it was wrong to be mad at him without, at least, talking about the issue first. A polite conversation explaining your situation wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world now, would it? But how does one start a conversation pertaining to that? After all, he wasn’t exactly the one making the noise. What would you say?

So, hey would you mind pleasuring your girlfriend a little less? 

Or better. Ever heard of a ball gag?

Mere thought of it made you shudder.

The work day was spent trying to shove your neighbour's stupidly handsome face out of your mind. It didn’t help that your mother kept calling, repeatedly. You knew what she had to say. How you should have taken that bigger job at Royal’s publishing. How the writing career might never take off. How you really should get a boyfriend now, or you’ll be the only unmarried cousin in the family.

Usually you could entertain your mother with well-timed hmms and ahhs. Today wasn’t that day.

Bone-tired and absentminded, you jammed the key in the keyhole in the evening, only for it to get stuck again. You looked up at the door. 307.

Well, shit!

Putting both your hands into it, you yanked the key with all your might, just as the door opened. There he stood, with his crooked smirk, dimples digging in, wearing nothing but a thin cotton t-shirt and sweatpants that hung all too low on those hips.

“You don’t need to break into my house. I already offered a tour.” Of course, god gave him an irresistible voice. Cause at this point, why not?

“Sorry,” you muttered, looking anywhere but at him. “I keep getting the wrong door. This one’s mine.”

“Oh, so you’re the one in 306!” You could feel his smirk more than see it. “Looks like you’re having a good ol’ time in there.”

“Excuse me?”

The guy raised scratched the back of his neck, face apologetic. “You might… ya know… just keep the voice down in there?”

The audacity of this guy!

“Rich of you to ask anyone to keep it down!” You hissed. “Why don’t you tell your girlfriend to keep it low?” 

With that, you shut your door in his surprised face. The worst part was, after bumping into him in the morning, your mind was producing distinct images of him in the bed, doing things to a woman. You had tried your best not to let them make a home in your head. But like a stickly tenant, they refused to evacuate. No wonder it was hard to look him in those brilliant, brilliant green eyes. The guy was hot! There was no denying that. You weren’t even willing to accept to yourself just how much time you had put into imagining him naked.

If anything, the denial mixed with your pre-existing irritation and sleep deprivation had you ready tonight. 

So the moment the enamoured voice started begging, you hopped out of your chair. You had every intention of yelling yourself hoarse at the delectable resident next door, but the moment you stepped into the corridor, you came face to face with the very man. 

He was- thankfully, completely clothed- looking a bit harassed, himself.

aahhhh… ahhhh… ahhh… right there...

Your head whipped up to the suspected direction of the voice, and back at him. “Wait, you aren’t… it’s not...?”

His face mirrored your expression of surprise and then he burst out laughing. “Looks like we’ve both been played.”

“Not intentionally,” you said, peering at the adjacent doors, mostly to not look at him. “Where do you think it’s coming from?”

He shot a glance at the door opposite to his. “If it’s not you, my best guess is that guy over there. I mean, if you ask me, Nick over there doesn’t look the type to make a woman that happy… but what do I know?”

“You shouldn’t make assumptions about people,” you said, taking a tentative step towards the said door.

Mr. hot guy smartpants laughed. “Oh, trust me. He’s the douchiest douche you’ll ever meet. Guy like that? Definitely selfish in bed.”

You frowned at him.

“He asks women in the street to smile more,” hot guy explained.

“Uhhgg… yeah you’re right. It’s definitely not him.”

Hot guy pointed his fingers at the rest of the doors. “That one’s rented by three guys. I don’t think it’s them. Mrs. Hendrickson over there works night shifts. I have no clue who lives in there,” he pointed to the last door, directly in front of you.

Goodness you’re amazing...

“Yes, lady, we already know!” He called out.

You couldn’t help the giggle that burst through your lips.

His eyes softened. “Dean Winchester,” he said, offering his hand.

“Y/N. Y/N Y/L/N,” you said, taking his. He had a firm grip. A very funny sensation gripped your stomach. Like a flutter. Nervousness? 

“It’s great to meet you, Y/N.” He smirked. “I sure wish the circumstances were better.”

You bit your lip. “Listen, I’m sorry for the comment about your girlfriend. I was just mad about, you know... “

“Don’t worry about it. My non-existent girlfriend is very cool. She took no offense.”

You snorted.

“I was dead serious about the house tour,” He winked. “I can promise great coffee.”

“Sure, sometime soon.”

He shot a look at the door with the unknown occupants again. “I hate to leave this here, but I think we should get whatever kind of shuteye we can while they’re quiet over there, huh?”

“Oh, yeah!” You hurried back to your flat. “Night, Dean.”

He gave you his crooked grin again, just a hint of mischief. “Night, Y/N.”

You knew it wasn’t him now, and he was right about making the most of the quiet and fucking off to sleep, and yet, each time you closed your eyes, your mind decided to replay your imaginations for you. With a start, you sat up in your bed, a thought occurring to you like a hit on the head- If you had been thinking about him that way? Had he been imagining you as well?

Blood rushed to your face at the very idea. Though a tiny part of you begged for the answer- would it be such a bad thing if he had?

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

A/N 2: So? So? SO??? What do you think?

I value each and every reblog more than I can tell you! Thank you! Feedback is love and life!

This series will have a total of 5 or 6 parts max.

If you want be tagged in the future parts, YOU CAN SEND ME AND ASK or add yourself to the taglist HERE.

Or here’s my side blog @percywinchester27-writes. You can give that blog a follow and turn the notifications on to get notified when there’s an update.

La Petite Mort Taglist:

@deanssweetheart23   @cosicas-cuquis​   @like-a-bag-of-potatoes​   @mlovesstories​   @feelmyroarrrr​   @thefridgeismybestie​   @gabavaldman​   @akshi8278​   @michellethetvaddict  @fandomoverdose666​   @badlittlehabit99​   @lastcallatrockysbar​   @mrswhozeewhatsis​   @thestralsaregood​   @yoursmilemakesmeloveyou​   @notan-applepielife​   @stoneyggirl​   @tricksterdean​   @sea040561​   @i-is-for-inspiring​   @torn-and-frayed​   @flamencodiva​   @sunflowers-n-rocknroll​   @binxy   @sdavid09​   @sherala007​   @ohgodwhybloggg​   @mogaruke​   @seekingkairos​   @tootsie562   @pansexualgrapes​   @soitiswritten05  @shesnotmaria​   @miss-nerd95​   @thing-you-do-with-that-thing​   @atc74​   @onethirstyunicorn​   @thoughts-and-funnies​   @deandreamernp​   @deanwinchesterinthedarktower​   @outofnowhere82​   @traceyaudette​

[weareallgreyreally]

Tl;dr getting a dog changed my life -  aka my dog learned the word no very quickly, my mom is still a work in progress. TW: controlling parent.

Getting a dog while I still live with my mother saw me researching dog breeds for two years before deciding on one where my lifestyle would fit, creating a “25 reasons why I should be allowed to get a dog,” saving up, and joining online training courses so I knew everything I possible could before I took on the responsibility of Dog Mom. It convinced my mum but I got a lot of “this is your dog, your responsibility” “make sure you can afford it, you’ll always need to have savings just in case” “your dog better not do XYZ in my house.” All reasonable stuff, but there was a lot of general angst about it. She told me constantly that I’d cave on my boundaries because “she could never say no to me and my brothers.” I started to doubt myself a lot, worried that I’d get this dog and not be able to train it, worried that my anxiety disorder would be passed on and this potential animal would be better off with someone else.

I got him and now he’s “our dog” lmao. I pay for everything but my mom insists on being at all his vet appointments so she can loudly weigh in on decisions, I pay for his training so she can tell me the trainer doesn’t sit right with her and ignore their professional know how, I crate trained him for her to take all credit when talking to anyone despite her constantly letting him out in the night to sleep with her on the sofa, I don’t feed him anything but his strict diet (it’s veterinary as he has stomach problems) only for her to constantly feed him whatever she’s eating. Having a dog has really taught me a lot, mostly that my mother has a lot of audacity and co-dependence, and had zero respect for my wants / decisions. (“You can’t be a good dog parent if you don’t eat this thing I cooked that I know you don’t like” “you’re not a good influence for X (my dog) when your room is messy” “how do you expect to be able to look after X on your own when you don’t do your laundry more often” “you shouldn’t be spending money on XYZ (usually my card collection) when you have a financial responsibility”).

Turned out this is what made me realize I had no boundaries, that my inability to say no was not an inbuilt fault of mine I’d never overcome, but an outcome of it never being listened to. I told her that she’d instilled no confidence in my partner and I for looking after future offspring as she can’t even stick to boundaries with our dog which tweaked her tune a little as her biggest want is grandchildren (“an only child is a lonely child” still only having one at most, mom). There’s been a lot of tweaks lately. A lot of “I don’t need you at the vets with me for a check up / you talk over me / he’s my dog, I make the decisions” and “we’re training him to do XYZ because he’ll need to know it when we live on our own / no we won’t be bringing him over to stay with you every weekend.” Constant reminders (and sometimes arguments) as I have to enforce the facts that he’s my dog and I’m allowed to say no. I’m allowed to disagree with her. I’m allowed to get frustrated or upset or angry when my boundaries are ignored. I’m allowed to find her guilting me with my dog incredibly manipulative.

My dog turned 2 last weekend, he’s to die for; I’ve never cherished something so much in my entire life, he’s a dream come true. Having him has taught me a lot about patience and perseverance, a sht ton about responsibility and budgeting, but mostly having him has taught me that I’m braver than I thought, that I have the ability to stand up for myself and for him, and that I don’t need my mom’s approval to make good decisions. Getting him really did change my life; I’d been on anti-depressants for 6 years, I’d developed agoraphobia over Covid (was passing out when I left the house), I felt like I couldn’t do anything right, that there was something wrong with me. I don’t take meds anymore, I go out every day, I’m healthier than I’ve ever been, and I know there’s nothing wrong with me; I just needed a chance to see myself through my own eyes.

[flowerspecial]

He Yells At You Because He Is Stressed - Part 2

JB

In the following days, JB’s mood had only gotten worse. His stress levels were at an all time high, and now you weren't there to help him get out of it. You did all you could to try and ignore him, you made sure that you were out of the house for most of the day. JB had a huge pride problem, but he was starting to realise that he never should have taken it out on you. He eventually found you in the bedroom, you were reading a book and to him you looked beautiful. “Baby? I’m so sorry for shouting at you, I always take you for granted, and I don't realise just how much I need you. I’m sorry.”

Mark

You had decided to stay with a friend for a couple of days. Honestly you were so shocked at what Mark said to you, and you couldn't really be bothered to see him again. Mark came to his senses pretty quickly that he had massively screwed up, he tried ringing you numerous times but you never answered. But it wouldn't take much for Mark to work out where you were hiding, so he would march his sorry bum over to your friend’s house and beg for you to come back. “Honey please come back home. I was a real jerk to you and you don't deserve it, but I can't make it up to you if you don't come home.”

Jackson

Unlike in Mark’s situation, you actually had no one else near you when you lived with Jackson. So unfortunately, after a night of drinking by yourself, you had to go back to his apartment. It would get so bad that you'd practically do anything just to avoid Jackson, and he felt like the biggest dick around. “Baby, can you come in here please? I have something to show you!” Jackson would notice that you hesitated near the door, and he'd genuinely pick you up and carry you over to his seat. “There you go baby, right where you belong. I’m so sorry I shouted at you, I know you didn't mean to do it.”

Jinyoung

Jinyoung’s worst quality is that it would take him a while before he's even realised that he is in the wrong. And even then he wouldn't really acknowledge it, he'd just notice that you are acting differently. After his hurtful comments, you would stop cooking for him, not wanting to upset him any further. Jinyoung would actually have the audacity to ask you why you aren't cooking for him anymore. “Are you serious Jinyoung? You accused me of bloody trying to poison you! Why should I cook for you?!” Then, the penny would drop, and Jinyoung would instead cook for you, as a way of apologising.

Youngjae

Youngjae felt bad about shouting at you the moment his words left his lips. He had no idea why he decided to take it out on you, and he definitely didn't know why he shouted at you for taking his dog on a walk. But you have pride, and there is no way you are going to forgive him without him apologising. Youngjae would kinda crawl his way onto the sofa next to you and lay his head on your shoulder. “Angel, I’m very sorry for shouting. I couldn't tell you exactly why I did it, but that doesn't excuse my actions. I’m glad you look after my dog, but I think I need you to look after me as well…”

Bambam

You and Bambam hadn't spoken to each other in days, and there were no signs of either of you giving in. Bambam stands by that he didn't ask for much, and you stand by that if he wanted something done then he should do it himself. Eventually though, Bambam would grow tired of the distance between you two, and he'd know deep down that you are in the right. In order to apologise, Bambam would dedicate a whole day to you. Showering you with acts of service and adoration. “You do so much for me out of love, that I sometimes take it for granted. So now it's my turn to show you just how much I love you.”

Yugyeom

So that's exactly what Yugyeom did, and to say it annoyed you is an understatement. As soon as he was out of his little mood, he was trying to call and text you to ask when you can come round. He'd just shouted at you for being near him, and now he wants you to come round? Absolutely not! You’d ignore all of his messages, but it's not like Yugyeom is actually going to listen to that. Instead he would just walk round to your house, enter with the spare key you gave him and organise all of the takeout food. “Hey sweetie, I am a dick, I know that. But maybe we can eat some food and I can tell you how sorry I am?”

[husbandohunter]

LMAO that’s why she’s called Kat. She’s not exactly the same as her brother. In terms of being very deadly in combat they’re both pretty similar, yes, they spar often, but Kat won’t go as far as mastering all weapons and picking a fight with strong looking people. Before Ajax fell into the abyss, his desire is to be an adventurer, explore the world and what not. But after the abyss, well things change. Kat knew that the minute she stare in her brother’s eyes, she knew she lost a part of him.

Her going on her merry way, exploring entire nations, meeting interesting people and over all just having a grand adventure was her way of fulfilling a part of Ajax that she thought she lost. She still loves her brother but she doesn’t know how to confront him with the past and the fatui. Speaking of the fatui, it’s not exactly hard to not suspect a few things. Honestly she doesn’t want to know, hopefully it won’t cause her too much in the long run.

For the most part she lived up to her Anemo Vision. She does what she wants with no regrets. Except on the topic of Ajax and his very questionable life choices. And you were right to assume that their parents have their hands full. Ajax likes adventure + Kat likes adventure = sneaking out a lot to have their own little adventures. Never mind the bone chilling climate of Snezhnaya or the fact this twins are getting pretty adept at climbing houses. Nothing stops them from rescuing a dragon and fighting a princess— no wait that doesn’t sound right.

In terms of sending souvenirs she actually doesn’t do that. Unless she’s going home then she’s sending the souvenirs in bulk. But if she’s still in her conquest of 100% exploration, one nation at a time, she’s only sending letters and recipes and for the sake of trolling her brother her will. Alright now for how she met Xiao. It’s actually pretty funny, after befriending Smiley by buttering him up with compliments he agreed to give her tips on cooking and teach her how to make their specialty dish. When she mastered that, it’s obviously going to lead with her making a few modifications here and there.

Once she’s finish with her version of Almond Tofu, she left it at one of the tables that give the best view on the balcony and went to fetch her Kamera. She’s planning on sending a photo to her family and the recipe. She went back to the balcony only to find her that her food is missing. It obviously piss her off that someone had the AUDACITY to steal from under her nose, her room was close to the balcony she would have caught them red handed!

At this point in time, she’s already a regular and a friendly face in Wangshu Inn. She stayed there whenever she investigate Sal Terrae and to collect horsetail for rice buns. So she’s comfortable whining like a child at Verr about how some punk stole her dinner last night. A very amused Verr told her about the Inn’s secret and Kat just dismissed it “Adeptus or not, won’t change the fact that they stole my food. They should learn some manners or something.”

She woke up the next day with an empty plate on her nightstand and a qingxin flower on it. All Kat could think at that moment was ‘Is this an apology or an insult?’ So that night she made an Almond Tofu. Her Almond Tofu. And she meet the adeptus that night as well. An unlikely friendship was born from this. I’m not gonna go into details because it’ll turn into a fic.

In summary though, their friendship dynamic consist of, a very free spirited woman with a Guardian Yaksha for a guard dog best non human friend. When the traveler arrived and also befriend the yaksha Kat wouldn’t help but feel possessive. They befriended him the same way she unintentionally did. So she cooly challenge them to a chess game, because fighting is her brother’s thunder and unlike some people she doesn’t steal anyone’s thunder. Also chess fights is what cool and sophisticated people do.

They were good, more than that! The traveler actually made things challenging and interesting. Before she or the traveler knew it, quite a few hours had pass already. The traveler was close to dozing off but Kat still wants to play. Despite that, her big sister instinct kicking in, she gently coaxed the traveler to rest. She comfort herself that there’s still tomorrow to continue the game.

Uggghhhh I knew I was gonna word vomit about this. Things might get funky in my ‘descriptions’ because it’s honestly getting dangerously close to being a fic.

-Birdie

Yeaaahh these two would totally make their mom go bald and their dad constantly scolding them for their behaviour or something 😭😭 but you know I think its nice that Childe can have a sibling who is similar to him rather than protecting them 24/7 while hiding his secret life. I think they would share each other's burdens from time to time due to how close they are, at least thats the vibe I'm getting at xP Knowing that Kat isn't as extreme as her brother tells me shes probably the one who has to look out for him the most.

Oh would you look at that, now theres two cooks in the family (the moment I found out that Childe can cook was canon had me melt and vaporize 🥺) Maybe both of them would also have cooking sessions than just fighting ones? Thats some wholesome family moments uwu. Your OC kind of reminds me of a mix with Xiangling and Hu Tao because of their cheery vibes, but compared to their bold attitude, Kat sounds more brave (I guess its cuz she grew up with Childe). Xiao is a scary looking guy whom barely anyone goes near, unless they brushed off that glare like dust and just continue being their cheery self (I honestly love that dynamic as you can see xD). But truthfully, Xiao needs someone who is like that because obviously he's too secluded to do it himself ._.

I think his first impressions of her would be "presumptuous" but later he gets used to her company and it even grows on him. Maybe I'm just over analyzing this, the fact they both have anemo visions show how different they handle it's meaning. One wants freedom and the other knows how to live in it (eeek! Okok i stop before this gets off topic). In addition to the traveler coming into the scene, I bet they'll also become good friends too! After all, they both share the burden of loving their siblings too much (perhaps traveler would find some familiarity in her presence).

Hehe this was a fun read tho \(^0^)/ thank you for sharing! Honestly even if I said this many times, I really love reading people's ideas since it helps me get my inspiration back >_< The word vomit had just begun my friend, you might wanna keep it in a notebook LOL.

[trashyswitch]

Puppies! Puppies! Puppies!

Roman has decided to summon a whole bunch of puppies, to make Patton beam with happiness. As the day goes on, Roman becomes more and more evil and accidentally goes a little overboard on the puppies...

Sorry it's a little short. But, I'm gonna try and get more fanfics out more sooner than later. That is, if I can come up with ideas fast enough...

Roman smiled and gave the little bundle of excitement some pets while he waited patiently for Patton to walk out of his bedroom with his empty cup of coffee. Roman had been holding this fluff ball for a good 5 minutes or so, and was readying the little excited nut to surprise Patton with puppy love. You guessed it: Roman was holding a squirmy little puppy in his hands. Where did the puppy come from? That’s easy! Roman conjured the little guy! Why did he conjure a puppy? Well, that’s easy too!

Suddenly, the bedroom door opened to reveal a cheery, beaming Patton with an empty cup of coffee. Quickly, Roman put the puppy down and watched as the super quick golden retriever puppy sprinted up to Patton.

Patton made the biggest gasp and bent down almost immediately! “Hi! Hi there! Well, aren’t you the cutest little morning surprise?” Patton cooed, placing the mug on the side before showering the puppy with lots of belly rubs.

“Morning Patton!” Roman greeted, taking the mug.

“Good morning Roman! And thanks for taking my mug! I got a little distracted…” Patton hinted with a little giggle.

Roman giggled too. “Well, I can see that!” Roman reacted.

Patton resumed his neverending cooing and started playing with the puppy too! The puppy was so playful! And he had such an adorable whimper! Who could say no to that adorable face?!

A couple hours later, and Roman had conjured up another puppy so the first one had a playmate. This one was a white pomeranian puppy with the softest, longest fur known to mankind! So, Roman let that little puppy go, and let the 2 puppies befriend each other! It didn’t take long for the 2 puppies to come barrelling over to Patton again.

“Hi there buddy boy! And AWWWW! POM POM PUPPY!” Patton squealed excitedly, jumping up and down and clapping his hands excitedly at the literal ball of fluff. Patton bent down and showered them both with pets, before laying down to give them even more. As soon as the loving human laid its belly down, the pom pom puppy hopped onto Patton’s belly and walked over to him!

As soon as the puppy reached the neck, the pomeranian started sniffing the neck and smelling inside Patton’s shirt collar. “Ahahahahaw! Whahat dohoho you smehehehell?” Patton asked, giggling at the tickly, wet nose. “Do you smell cookies? Do you smell my delicious cookies on my cooking shirt?” Patton cooed as he fluffed the fur.

Meanwhile, the golden retriever seemed to be smelling something too, because the retriever quickly started stuffing its nose inside Patton’s lower shirt and onto Patton’s belly.

“Eeeehehehehe! Thahahahat tihihihicklehes!” Patton giggled, attempting to keep himself still while the retriever puppy explored him. The puppy only explored for another couple minutes, before deciding to lean itself on Patton’s chest to get more belly rubs.

Roman turned those couple of puppies into 4 puppies! This time, the new breeds Roman chose were the Morkie pup, and a big puppy: a Saint Bernard! Roman waited for Patton to head upstairs, before letting the 2 new puppies go. After the puppies all reunited with each other And quickly became friends, they all ran around to find Patton and any other puppy lovers they sensed!

Adorably enough; the Morkie, the retriever and the Saint Bernard all want for Patton, while the pom pom went for Virgil’s room instead. It was a good thing it did, because Roman practically died from cuteness overload at the sight of Virgil holding a fluffy puppy!

A few more hours later, and Roman had summoned 3 more puppies! This time, Roman summoned a white bichon Frise puppy, a Retriever Collie mixed puppy, and a teacup yorkie puppy! With a big bag of treats in Roman’s hand, they all gathered around and waited for a treat each.

Roman, knowing what he was doing, sprinted towards Patton with the bag of treats and did a switcheroo.

“THINKFAST!” Roman shouted, quickly grabbing the container of cookies in his hand and pushed the bag of treats right into his chest. Patton, growing confused, slowed his walking and widened his eyes upon the sound of barking, quick dogs running towards him. Patton giggled and knelt down in front of them, and happily let them jump on him while he gave them treats.

“Aww! Free treats! All the free treats! I am going to spoil you guys with so many treats until you are big, chubby fluff boys!” Patton declared excitedly. Eager for more than just food, the Saint Bernard jumped into Patton’s lap and turned onto its back so it could beg for belly rubs. Patton giggled and cooed at the cute little reaction, and happily gave it some well-deserved belly rubs.

A good 2 hours later, and Roman was ready to pull a chaotic move on Patton. He had managed to summon 11 more dogs for Patton (making the total of puppies go up to 18) and had placed them onto the other side of a wooden gate Roman summoned previously. With all the puppies out of the way, Roman carefully blindfolded Patton, put him into position and placed a whole bunch of treats in his hoodie pocket, and all his pants pockets.

“Alright Patton. You ready?” Roman asked.

“For what?” Patton asked, still unsure of what was happening.

“For some more excitement in your life!” Roman replied.

Patton giggled and shook his head. “This entire day has been filled with excitement. Is it really possible to have more?” Patton asked.

Roman chuckled. “Well, it is now!” Roman replied.

“What did you put in my-”

Roman interrupted Patton’s question with a quick whistle. Quickly, Patton began hearing barking and skittering paw sounds against the wooden floor. Patton gasped and knelt down, believing the puppies might be near him. But there was no fluff anywhere to be felt! But he could hear the puppies’ excitement.

Suddenly, Roman pulled the blindfold off, and let the dogs go.

“PUPPIES! There’s more puppies! Look at-” Patton’s eager smile quickly turned into fear and surprise when he realized where the dogs were heading. They were heading towards him like a stampede of small, biting, fluffy puppies! “OH GOD! OHNO- TOO MANY PUPPIES! AAAAAAAAAAHHH!” Patton screamed, taking off sprinting as fast as he could from the stampede of puppies. Patton ran just about everywhere in the house! Up stairs, down hallways, through doors, even outside! But the puppies wouldn’t stop chasing him!

At one point, Patton had to sprint past an onlooker. “HI LOGAN! HEEEELP!” Patton shouted. Before Logan could say even a sound, a huge cloud dust of sprinting puppies came barrelling past the man. Logan froze in place, struggling to even comprehend what had just happened.

Eventually, Patton managed to run past Roman again! Patton, believing he might be a good security guard for him, Patton jumped right into Roman’s arms. “HELP ME! THEY WON’T LEAVE ME ALONE! WHY ARE THEY CHASING ME SO MUCH?! I DON’T GET IT!” Patton shouted, holding onto Roman’s shoulders tightly.

“Oh, that’s easy!” Roman replied. Patton looked at Roman, before suddenly feeling a couple fingers digging into his hips. Patton squealed and laughed, kicking his feet and squirming in Roman’s grip.

“ROHOHOHOHO! STAHAHAP IHIHIHIHIT!” Patton laughed. But Roman didn’t stop! In fact, Roman actually had the audacity to lower him down towards the puppies! “WAHAHAIT! NOHO, DOHOHON’T DOHOHO THIHIS! PLEHEHEHEHEASE!” Patton begged, hitting his shoulders somewhat weakly.

“Shhhhh. Don’t question it. Just let the tranquility of these adorable dogs explore your pockets for endless dog treats.” Roman softly told him before laying Patton’s body onto the ground with a big smirk on his face.

“NO! ROMAN- MMPHmMmpHmPh!” Patton yelled, before his protests became all muffled from the puppy pile.

Roman giggled at the look of the chaos he had created. He was pretty proud of himself! And, if he placed them in the correct spot, Patton should start laughing...right aboooouuut…

“HAHAHAHA! WAHAHAHAIT, HEHEHEHEY! THAHAHAHAT TIHIHICKLES! STAHAHAHAP IHIHIHIT!”

There it is!

“Awww! Is Patton having fun in his big ticklish puppy pile?” Roman teased.

“WHYHY DIHIHID YOHOHOU DOHOHOHO THIHIS TO MEHEHEHE?!” Patton yelled.

Roman bit his bottom lip as a huge toothy grin showed up on his lips. “Cause I knew you’d love it! Everybody needs to be puppy piled sometimes, Patton!” Roman replied confidently. Patton only continued to squeal and laugh loudly as he squirmed around and curled in from all the puppies.

Every movement that the puppies made, tickled Patton to bits. Any time the puppies ran all over him, the paws’ pressure tickled him. Anytime the puppies licked him, the tongues tickled him badly. Any time the puppies started digging their noses into the loose pockets, their digging noses tickled him silly. And when the puppies tried to reach the pants pockets in the back, the puppies would use their noses to dig under the sides! And of course, that tickled him greatly.

Then, Roman being the evil playful person he is, summoned another handful of treats and placed it into Patton’s socks. Roman pulled the ankle part of the sock out, and slipped some dog treats into the socks so they would go for his feet as well. Then, Roman summoned ANOTHER pile of treats and knelt down beside Patton. He gently gave a few of the puppies a push to the side, before lifting up Patton’s shirt and quickly scattering them all over Patton’s bare belly.

Then, Roman let the dogs do their thing.

“AAH! NO! GETAWAYFROMTHERE- AAAAAAAHAHAHAHEHEHEHEHE!” Patton screamed further.

It didn’t take long at all, for the puppies to discover the big stash of treats under his belly. Quickly, the tiniest puppies in the group started digging their heads under the shirt, and started licking each and every treat off Patton’s belly.

“NAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! LEHEHEHEAVE MYHY BEHEHELLYHYHYHY ALOHOHOHOHONE!” Patton begged, squealing and holding his arms against his upper chest.

One of the puppies even licked his belly button! That got a snort out of the man!

“NOOOOOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO! ROHOHOHOMAHAHAHAN! IHIHIHI’M GOHOHONNA FIHIHIHIHIGHT YOHOHOHOU AHAFTER THIHIHIHIHIS!” Patton yelled at him. Roman only giggled at Patton’s ‘threat’. As if he’ll have the energy to do that…

Next up, a few of the puppies started navigating their way over to Patton’s socks, and started sniffing and gnawing at the socks. Patton let out a surprised guffaw and struggled to keep his feet still! He didn’t wanna accidentally kick the puppies while they were exploring!

“NAHAHAHAT MYHYHYHY FEEEEHEHEHEHEHEHEHET! GEHEHEHEHET AHAHAWAHAHAHAHAHAHAY!” Patton squealed helplessly, squeezing his eyes shut before attempting to curl into the fetal position.

“Does someone have tickwish feetsies? Does Patty have tickwish feetsie-weetsies?” Roman teased, wanting to be all teasy and playful towards the father.

“YHEHEHEHEHES! IHIHIHIHIT’S TOHOHOHOHOHOO MUHUHUHUHUHUCH!” Patton shouted at him.

“It can’t be that bad, I’m sure. You seem to be enjoying it a lot! You haven’t been fighting the puppies at all!” Roman told him.

“THEHEHEHEY’RE SMAHAHAHALL! IHIHIHI DOHOHOHON’T WAHAHAHANNA HUHUHUHURT THEHEHEM!” Patton yelled back.

“You’re such an adorable dad! They’re tickling you so much, and you’re not even trying to push them away too much!” Roman cooed, giving Patton’s neck a little tickle. Patton snorted and giggled before scrunching his shoulders in pure glee.

“So this is what’s going on?” someone clarified to them.

Roman looked up, and smiled upon seeing the face: It was Logan.

“Yup! Patton is the ultimate puppy pile person!” Roman declared.

Logan smiled at the silly nickname, and walked closer to Patton. “You okay in there?” Logan asked.

“IHIHIHIHIT’S SOHOHOHOHO TIHIHIHICKLIHIHIHISH!” Patton shouted back.

Logan chuckled. “Sounds like a fun time.” Logan replied.

“Do you wanna go next?” Roman asked, sensing some playfulness in Logan’s reaction.

Logan tsked and narrowed his eyes. “You know, I think I’m good.” Logan replied rather quickly.

Roman laughed at his reply and resumed looking at Patton’s puppy pile. After a couple more minutes of tickling, Roman saved the father from all the puppies. He picked up Patton, and placed him onto his light blue bed.

“That was absolutely adorable, and 110% worth it.” Roman told him.

Patton was still utterly exhausted from being tickled for around 20 minutes. So, his reply was slow. “That….was...*huff*...fun...very fun…” Patton replied.

“Aww!!!! So you admit that you enjoyed that?” Roman asked.

Patton had a big, contagious smile on his face from the tickling, and was giggling like the world was going to end. He nodded his head in reply, with starry eyes still filling his eyes.

“So tell me: how would you feel about guinea pigs or hamsters crawling around all over you?” Roman asked evilly.

...Let’s just say...Roman 100% deserved getting dog slobber and leftover dog treats smacked into his face...

[onthevirgeofdestruction]

Dreaming While I Wake

Sanders Sides Foster Care AU - Roman-centric Angst & Hurt/Comfort & Abuse Recovery

Roman tries to be upbeat and hopeful despite all the shit that’s happened to him. And a lot of shit has. Luckily, his new foster home is with two literal rays of sunshine (and a sarcastic asshole).

Words: 3,263 Warnings: Food, Food Insecurity Mention, Forcing Self to Eat Something Mention, Negative Self-Talk, Negative Self-Image, Video Game Violence, Dogs Characters: Roman, Thomas Universe: Dreaming While I Wake Genre: Vibing™ too hard and a bit of angst, as a treat

Chapter 24

chapter 1 for new readers - ffn mirror

   Roman kicked off his shoes at the foot of his bed and dropped his backpack next to his desk. He was tired, what’s new. His feet finally hurt less, at least. He was also immensely grateful to say that for once he didn’t have to spend all night on homework. He had something due at the end of the week, but he didn’t have to do it tonight. He was terrible at starting homework early anyway, so there was no point in trying today.

   Part of him was glad that the Sanders didn’t kick him back so he wouldn’t have to be doing this all over again at a new school. He’d only had two families that returned right away, but he did much less awful shit at their houses than he did here. It only made sense that they would send him away, but he didn’t mind still being here. They’d probably see reason eventually, so Roman shouldn’t get his hopes up or anything.

   A snack and breaking out the art supplies sounded like a pleasant way to pass the time. He’d sketched something he really liked in English, and he wanted to give it a proper go and not on thin notebook paper. The coffee table was glass, so he could transfer it to his sketchbook with that. He gathered the supplies he needed and headed back downstairs, dropping off the stuff on the coffee table and heading into the kitchen for a bite to eat.

   The pantry didn’t really reveal anything appetizing. He’d had mostly chips after school lately so he didn’t want those, and they’d long since finished those peanut butter filled pretzels much to Roman’s dismay. Roman scanned the fridge and freezer. He could have a healthy snack of an apple or something… or he could make some of those biscuits made entirely out of cheese they had with dinner last night and dip them in pizza sauce. The answer was obvious. He pulled out the cheese biscuits and lined them up on parchment paper in the toaster oven on the counter. He cooked a few extras in case a wild Virgil appeared. He seemed to have junk food sensing powers.

   Roman went to the coffee table to clear off some space to use it. The more he removed, the more it revealed it hadn’t been cleaned in a while. Spills and fingerprints would mess with his ability to use the table as a lightbox, so he grabbed the glass cleaner and a rag to clean it off. After cleaning both sides of the coffee table, he noticed the other glass in the living room was a little smudged up. The cabinet windows on the entertainment center had doggy nose prints on the lower parts, along with the windows. He already had it in his hands, so why not? Roman passed through and cleaned up all the glass in the living area, the mirror in the front hall, the microwave and stove door, and the window in the kitchen.

   The toaster oven dinged and distracted him from cleaning off the front of the dishwasher. He had completely forgotten he’d put those in. Roman wiped the last corner of the dishwasher and washed the ammonia off his hands, leaving the cleaner and rag on the counter. He grabbed a plate and served himself half of the biscuits and dumped a little pizza sauce from the jar on his plate. Some part of his mind registered that they were fresh out of the toaster oven, but he picked one up to dip like an idiot and burned his fingers, anyway.

   Roman grumbled while he ran his fingertips under cold water at the sink. He pulled them out to check if they were better yet, but they were still hot, so he kept them under the water a little longer. Virgil appeared as expected, which cheered Roman back up a bit. The idea of Virgil having junk food senses was funny, and he loved it when Virgil proved him right.

   “I made you some, too,” Roman motioned with his head to the toaster oven. Virgil grinned wildly and just stole Roman’s plate and left the kitchen. Roman laughed out loud at the audacity of this bitch and shook his head. He pulled his fingers out again, and they felt fine now, so he served himself the other half in the same manner. He had the good sense to get a fork this time. He threw out the parchment paper and sat at the table, pulling out his phone to wait for his food to cool down. He saw the date and realized he probably needed to do laundry, so he got up to head upstairs and grab his basket.

   He long since hasn’t needed to sort out his clothes into loads. His brights and darks were already all faded, and he only had a few whites, not enough to do a load with bleach. He just dumped the entire basket in the wash and put in some laundry sauce, starting the wash and bringing the basket back upstairs.

   Roman stared around his room, not remembering what he was doing last. He paused and concerned if there was anything he needed to do. Probably clean his bedroom? There wasn’t much to pick up, just a few art supplies were out for some reason. He didn’t have that many things in his name to mess up. His loose stuff like old keepsakes or hobby items all fit in one drawer in the dresser, so it was easy to keep clean. But he should come back up to wipe off his desk with an all-purpose cleaner and dust. Roman yawned and returned downstairs for some water and to grab the cleaners.

   He put away the filter pitcher and drank water, noticing his snack on the table. Oh. Roman chuckled to himself and sat down at the table, eating his four cheese biscuits and pizza sauce. He had completely forgotten he made them. They were at an edible temperature now, though. Convenient forgetfulness, for once.

   After rinsing the dishes, Roman grabbed the duster and all-purpose cleaner to go handle his room. He dusted some shelves in the living room as he passed, just because he had noticed they were dusty and covered in dog fur. They mentioned they got a maid service once a month for that. How could Lita possibly produce this much wiry fur? Baffling. Roman headed upstairs to clean his bedroom.

   Dusting the bookshelf in his room revealed that Lita must not come in here much since there was barely any dog fur on it compared to the downstairs. He was relatively certain Lita just napped in Thomas and Patton’s room until Patton appeared or something fun happened. Roman dusted off the books, his dresser, the desk, and the nightstand, then wiped down surfaces. There were plenty of eraser bits and broken pencil leads after the cluster-fuck of homework he had to do. Cleaning off the homework wreckage and such from the desk made it look much nicer, despite his pile of books and papers he hadn’t quite gotten around to organizing into something nicer looking yet. He organized his colored pencils by the rainbow in the organizer and took the cleaners back downstairs to put away.

   What the hell was he doing again? Roman put the cleaners back on the shelf in the laundry room. He swore he was doing something. He had no idea what he was doing. The washer was going, which reminded him he started that. Maybe that was the thing. He clearly still had time to wait, though. Video games? Video games. Roman headed out to the living room and paused to make sure no one else was coming in to use the TV. Virgil didn’t reappear, and Thomas wasn’t even in his office. Seemed safe enough to him. There were quests to be had and demons to slay. Roman switched the TV input and turned on the game system to play, settling down on the floor in front of the TV to kick some lich ass.

   Having free afternoons was a weird experience. Weirder than the forced days off, since he was kind of stuck in a room with Thomas for those. But this was totally up to him. He couldn’t remember the last time he had so much free time completely to himself. It was… wrong? It felt wrong. But also nice. It was wrrice. No. That was dumb. Whatever. He had an amulet that unlocked a labyrinth. Fuck real life. He made sure he had enough healing items and repaired his armour, absolutely raring to go venture into it.

   Something warm pressed into his thigh while he was fighting some goblins and jumped. He paused the game and glanced down. Lita had laid her head on his lap and was looking up to him pleadingly. Roman couldn’t help himself from melting a little and cooing, dropping his controller to scratch her behind her ears. Lita’s tongue bleped out and Roman could have died. He pet her a few times and she got up and trotted over to the back door and stared longingly at Roman. Roman got up to let her outside and followed her out. Lita bolted into the yard and ran it in three loops before stopping to sniff around near the tree in the backyard and used the restroom. She stuck her tongue out and happily cantered back over to the door. Roman headed back in and returned to his game when Lita went to go get some water.

   Things in the labyrinth were going well, but they were intense. He went into a room that had a bunch of greater liches in it and he nearly bit the dust fighting them all. He got plenty of potions from the room, but it miffed him that he didn’t get something cool like a weapon or rare item. Single-handedly killing four evil wraiths at the same time should have at least gotten some new boots. He saved and continued forward, anyway.

   “Hey, Roman,” He vaguely heard someone say while he was eyeballing a hallway that looked like it might have a trap.

   “Hey,” Roman responded automatically. Traps meant the game was protecting something, probably. He was tempted. Roman made sure he healed up and put poison immunity on and headed down the hall. The poison immunity paid off, but he should have done something to resist fire damage since he killed three potions from all the burn damage. He was rewarded with a giant skeleton monster and a better sword, though. Vindication! He saved again and kept going forward.

   “Do you want anything for dinner?” Someone asked and Roman chewed on his lip while he thought and killed a small army of evil rats.

   “Roast boar would be helpful,” Roman suggested after pondering it for a second. He could use a fortitude boost right now. The rats didn’t do a lot of damage, but it was impossible to dodge them all.

   “In the real world, Roman,” The voice sounded bemused. Oh shit. Roman paused the game and rubbed his incredibly dry eyes.

   “Sorry,” Roman muttered, wishing for moisture to return to his burning eyes.

   “It’s fine,” Thomas sighed and laughed a little. “I can relate, honestly. But I’m just about to cook dinner and want to know if anything sounds good,” He said genially.

   “Oh, um, ask Virgil,” Roman supplied and rubbed his face again. When was the last time he blinked and how long were his eyebrows furrowed?

   “Is there a reason you’re not wearing the gloves?” Thomas inquired. Roman turned around and saw Thomas leaning over the back of the couch. Roman froze and looked at his ungloved hands. Whoops.

   “Uh, I forgot to put them back on, honestly,” Roman replied sheepishly. “I promise I didn’t freak out about anything while they were off, though,” Roman added. Well, maybe he did a little at school, but his arms were untouched, so he must not have panicked badly enough to do any damage. Gym class was stressful again. He hadn’t gotten back grades on his packets and he hadn’t attracted a random bully or anything yet, so things were mostly okay. The people in his morning English class even friended him on twitter. Though he hoped he had implied he took the gloves off more recently than after he got to school in the morning.

   “All right. Do you mind putting them back on?” Thomas requested, sounding less peeved and more concerned. Roman nodded hastily and leaned back to get them out of his jeans pocket to slide them on. Thomas sighed with relief. “Just for my own mollification, show me your arms?” Thomas made a twisting motion with his finger. Roman turned around and held them straight out and rotated them for Thomas to see. Thomas smiled and nodded, apparently mollified. “Thanks. I appreciate you putting up with them for me. So, dinner? I already asked Virgil. I want to know if you want anything,” Thomas said pointedly.

   “I’ll eat anything, it’s fine,” Roman said dismissively.

   “I know you’ll eat anything, but I still don’t know what food you actually like to eat,” Thomas urged, looking inquisitively at Roman.

   “I like your cooking. Patton’s is seasoned oddly sometimes, but it’s all been fine,” Roman replied with a small shrug.

   “Patton’s cooking used to be significantly worse. I made him take a few cooking classes. He used to think five tablespoons was a reasonable amount of seasoning for anything. The grill incident wasn’t the only time we had to throw food out because we couldn’t eat it,” Thomas responded and shook his head with a light chuckle. Roman stared at Thomas in amazement. Did they actually throw out edible food?

   “That… why?” Roman asked incredulously. “That’s… food,” Roman stammered out, completely baffled by this information.

   “If it’s too disgusting to eat, then it’s too disgusting to eat,” Thomas raised his eyebrow and said something redundant.

   “I can’t… even,” Roman felt like his mind was melted. If it was turned into a charcoal brick by a fireball, that was one thing. But trashing it just because something was seasoned badly? That didn’t make any sense.

   “Okay,” Thomas drawled curiously. “Well, is there anything you hate then?” He inquired and motioned towards Roman.

   “Um, there are some textures I don’t like, and I’m not a fan of brussel sprouts, but I won’t waste food,” Roman answered him, still feeling really confused.

   “We had brussel sprouts last weekend, and you ate some,” Thomas said, furrowing his eyebrows at Roman. “Why didn’t you say anything?” He asked, looking upset.

   “I already said I won’t waste food,” Roman repeated and looked curiously at Thomas.

   “So say if Patton made peas and there was half a container of pepper flakes in it, you’d eat it?” Thomas posited incredulously, looking at Roman intensely.

   “… Yeah?” Roman replied, not following what Roman was trying to get at. It was food. The texture from the flakes sounded awful, but he wouldn’t waste the food.

   “You are a braver man than I. Okay, so. No brussel sprouts. What about those textures?” Thomas questioned and drummed his fingers on the couch.

   “Oh, uh, how… Gritty stuff and stuff that is mushy when it… shouldn’t be? There are also some things that just sort of… hit my palette weird, but I don’t have any idea how to describe that,” Roman supplied. “It only makes me kind of sick, it’s fine, though,” Roman said, shaking his head.

   “You shouldn’t force yourself to eat food that makes you sick, Roman,” Thomas said emphatically and leaned on his arm while he looked a little frustrated.

   “I’m not that used to having options, Thomas,” Roman replied blithely and sighed. Even with the Finleys he just made what they bought him, and sometimes there wasn’t enough for him to eat a complete meal. He’d always take what he was given. It was better than starving.

   “Kid, I swear every time you open your mouth I feel the need to hug you and tell you that things are going to be okay,” Thomas exhaled hard as he held his head and shook it lightly.

   “I’m… sorry?” Roman apologized, not understanding what Thomas was trying to say. He didn’t know how Thomas put up with Roman annoying him all the time.

   “It’s not your fault. Is there anything we’ve made you particularly liked?” Thomas asked, running his hand through his hair and seeming a little discouraged. Roman paused for a moment while he waited for a further reaction, but Thomas just exhaled and patiently looked to Thomas for an answer. He didn’t seem as frustrated anymore, and Roman loosened back up.

   “That pizza you made was probably my favourite thing,” Roman responded brightly. “The stuffed chicken breasts were fantastic, too,” He added.

   “It’s even better if we let the dough rest overnight,” Thomas said temptingly, holding up a finger.

   “You’re kidding,” Roman eyed him curiously. He didn’t think he’d ever had pizza as amazing as Thomas’s in his life and he couldn’t comprehend how it could possibly be tastier.

   “Nope. How about I make some tonight so we can have it for dinner tomorrow?” Thomas offered with a small smile.

   “Show me how!” Roman nearly jumped up right there but caught himself, gripping at the floor.

   “Only if you pick what’s for dinner tonight,” Thomas pointed at Roman. Roman chewed his lip. He didn’t know what to choose. His shoulders slumped a bit, and he grabbed one of his fingers nervously. “Too hard?” Thomas asked softly.

   “I just don’t want… to pick wrong,” Roman admitted quietly. “What did Virgil say he wanted?” He inquired, hoping for at least a starting point.

   “Spicy and crunchy,” Thomas reported. “Picking meals is hard for him, so he usually just gives flavours or something like that. I read that choice paralysis is common with PTSD. Is it the same for you?” Thomas prodded and looked pointedly at Roman. Roman rolled his eyes and sighed. He managed to not say ‘I’m fine’ this time, at least. Maybe it was true for Roman, maybe it wasn’t and he was just dumb.

   “I, uh, I am completely blanking, to be honest,” Roman replied impassively, trying to think of dinner. He desperately wanted to learn how to make pizza dough. But he didn’t want to pick wrong.

   “Yeah, I assume it would have to be some sides or something. We don’t have the stuff for the things I usually make when he asks for that,” Thomas shrugged, tilting his head to the side.

   “Uh, tortilla soup?” Roman suggested. It was the easiest one to make of what he thought of. “I mean, it’s a bit hot for soup, but it’s spicy and crunchy,” He added a little sheepishly. Maybe that was stupid.

   “Oh, that’s perfect! I didn’t think of that. We can make that quickly in the pressure cooker, even. We’ll chase it with ice cream to cool down. Pat will be pleased about that, honestly. Save the game and I’ll show you how to make the pizza dough,” Thomas smiled and stood up straight. 

   Roman nodded rapidly and turned back around to save the game as fast as it would let him. His knee bobbed impatiently while he waited for the saving screen to finish processing. He didn’t know how to bake bread, and pizza dough was probably the coolest place to start. Roman nearly tripped as he rushed into the kitchen after Thomas.

Personal Taglist: @bunny222 @elizabutgayer​ @prinxietyforever @kanene-yaaay-o-retorno @the-sympathetic-villain @croftersjam15 @ollyollyoxinfree @xytiiko

the taglist repository (ask to be removed):

High school:  @dragonwithproblems @starlight-era @averykedavra  @potatsanderssides

Roman Angst:  @k1ngtok1

Hurt/Comfort:  @callboxkat @nonasficcollection @supernovainthenightsky @evoodo123

Roman-Centric:  @smileyzs  @robinwritesshitposts @thatgaydemigodnerd

Fostering AU:  @i-am-not-a-dinner-roll

literally everything sanders sides:  @katelynn-a-fan @dwbh888 @grouptalekindnesssoul @the-hoely-bleach @anvil527up @fanficloverinthesun  @brain-deadx0 @the-grounded-raven  @ananonsplace

[prettymuchdolansbitch]

Her | Pt. 2 (Nick Mara)

Nick’s POV:

As I opened the door, I saw Y/N pulling out of the driveway. “Wait!” I screamed and ran towards the gate in nothing but sweats. I saw her car go even faster down the street. “Fuck!” I screamed and slammed on the gate.

Dogs began barking and I ran inside the house looking for my phone. “Fuck! Where is it?!” I screamed at the couch. As I began flipping cushions over, Ed came out yawning.

“What’re you looking for?” He asked. “I need my phone. And i was so drunk last night that i don’t remember where i put it, or what I said to make Y/n livid.” I laid down on the floor searching under the couch.

“Wait what?” Ed said scratching his head. “Dude just help me find my phone and i’ll explain while i text y/n” I ran to my room with Ed following. Ed grabbed the pair of jeans that were neatly folded on my console desk. My phone fell out from the folding along with my wallet and keys.

“Oh thank god.” I snatched up my phone and sat down. Ed sat on the edge of my bed waiting for an explanation of what happened. I texted y/n quickly asking if we can talk. when she didn’t answer, i figured she’s still driving. i type a quick “just lmk when you’re home safe” I put my phone away and see Ed staring at me.

“she asked- well stated that i said that i’m still in love with Alexys. I fucked up and said we were together for a while. Like she can’t blame me. right?” I asked while biting my nails. A habit I knew y/n hated.

“I hate to tell you this, but you’re fucked. Her asking was your chance to possibly save yourself depending on what route Y/n was taking.” Ed said and stood up. “Listen. Y/n’s chill. Just give her a little bit of time. Don’t force her to talk yet. Too many emotions are present right now..” Ed walked out of the room. I sat there with my phone waiting for a response from her.

Y/N’s POV:

I got home in less than 20 minutes. Usually it’s a good 40 minutes to get to my house, but i didn’t feel like being outside anymore. As soon as you saw the texts from Nick, you decide to shut your phone off for the day. You didn’t want to communicate with anyone right now.

After a binging session on Netflix, you get bored of it. You look outside and realize the sun is already about to set. You open your drawer next to your bed and pull out your bong and your bag of weed. You open your balcony door and sit in your hanging chair. You set everything up and see the sun is going down. You turned your phone on for the first time all day. A bunch of notifications popped up but you ignored it and played your music. After each hit, you immediately feel all emotion leave your body.

Nick on the other hand was a mess. Ed has warned everyone what happened. Zion tried making him play basketball, but he refused to get out of bed. Brandon needed him in the home studio for a song he was working on. Usually Nick would do it no questions asked, but he didn’t even answer the door for Brandon. Austin offered to cook for him. He didn’t even feel an ounce of hunger.

Nick would go in and out of sleep. When he was awake, he was just staring at his phone waiting for some sort of response or update from you. He knew he didn’t even deserve that considering he broke your heart; not the other way around.

Nick shot up as he got a notification you posted on your snapchat story. He opened it immediately and saw that you were home, smoking. Nick felt a sudden burst of confidence and swiped up. “So you can post but not answer my texts?” He sent it without re-thinking what he was saying.

You weren’t surprised when you saw Nick had messaged you seconds after you posted. You swiped to see what he said, but not all the way so he doesn’t know you read it.

You wanted to laugh. You couldn’t believe what you were reading. “This kid has the audacity to even give me the slightest bit of attitude.” You thought to yourself.

You weren’t going to ruin your high with his bullshit. You were of course sad because you love the kid. But you’re so close to losing it at the same time. You block him on everything. He had no chance of reaching you.

2 weeks later

The first couple days after the breakup, Nick moped around the house. He’s now just getting back into the studio and dancing again. Only Brandon and Nick went to the studio as everyone else recorded their parts.

Zion had texted you saying Nick shouldn’t be home for the day and you can pick up your stuff. As Brandon was playing the soundtrack back for Nick to hear, he got caught up in his phone. Zion was texting Brandon updates and how long they have to keep Nick in the studio.

Nick notices Brandon’s typing a lot and tries to get his attention. Brandon snapped out of his trance and tries to avoid Nick’s glare. “What’s got you so worked up?” Nick said pausing the music.

“Don’t get mad. Um.. Y/n’s at the house getting all her stuff..” Nick’s eyes bugged out. “SHES WHAT?! I need to go. I need to talk to her.” Nick began running around gathering his stuff. “Nick i don’t think that’s a good idea. I-“ “Brandon please. I never even got the chance to even try and apologize. I just need to talk to her” Nick was about to run out the door.

“She doesn’t want to see you!” Brandon yelled before Nick fully got out the door. Nick turned and saw Brandon now standing up. “She told us. She is really done, she’s moving back up near her mom in San Francisco” Brandon said not daring to look at Nick, who must be livid.

“And you guys hid that from me?! Whatever. Just I at least need to try. Because if I don’t, then.. then I’ll probably hate myself more than she already does.” Nick ran out and conveniently there was a cab out front.

Nick jumped in and told the guy the address to the house. Before the driver drove off, the door opened again. “Sorry man. I got you on the extra tip.” Brandon said settling in. “Dude why are you here” Nick said. “Well, i’m not gonna leave you alone. and you left your wallet in the studio.” Brandon handed him the wallet and they both stared out the window.

You were in Nick’s room searching for anything that was yours. You had a box full of his stuff and just left it in front of the closet. Zion sat in Nick’s chair and watched as you packed everything.

“So this is it? We’re never gonna see you again?” You laughed. “I’ll come back soon. Just I can’t be in the same vicinity right now.” You saw your necklace on the dresser in the same spot you left it. You sighed. “I think that’s it.” You looked away and gathered whatever you had.

Zion walked you to the door. Ed and Austin were standing at the door as well. “We’ll miss you.” Austin said hugging you. “You guys aren’t gonna make this easy huh.” “Nope” Ed said hugging you. “Bye guys. Thanks for this, again” Zion opened the door for you and you saw a cab pull in behind your car.

“Seriously!” You yelled before seeing the back door open. Nick’s head popped out. The car was close enough so you could hear what he said to the driver.

“Just keep it running, and do not move. You move, she leaves alright?” The guy shrugged and put the car in park.

At this point you’re at your car and everyone’s outside. The boys are standing at the door and Brandon is by the cab.

“Just give me a chance to talk. I mean you have to now, you have no way out.” You rolled your eyes. “I can easily just drive through your fence if I please” You smile and go to put your stuff in your trunk. Nick stops you from moving.

“You can, but you want to listen. If you didn’t, i know you’d be through the fence already.” Nick said and he was right. “You have 5 minutes.”

“Fine. You gotta believe me, I know i fucked up and i am so so sorry. I am in love with you. I literally can’t live without you. You can ask all of them. Today was my first good day in weeks.” You looked over at the guys and they all nodded. “And why ‘was’ it your first good day. It’s only 3 in the afternoon.” You crossed your arms.

“Because there’s a chance today might be the day i lose you completely.” You finally looked into his eyes to see if there was any sense of a lie. You don’t think you’ve ever seen his eyes so gentle and hopeful.

“Just one more shot. And if i ever fuck up again, which will probably be never, I’ll let you go as you wish.” He was practically begging. You sighed. You nodded.

“A nod? What does that mean? What does that-“ Nick said slowly freaking out. “You got your shot” You pout jokingly. Nick picked you up and spun you around. The guys started cheering around you. “Oh stop. But i’m still moving. If you really want to see me, you’ll drive” You laugh.

“Baby, I’d walk to SanFran if i want to see you.” You shook your head and hugged him. He kissed your head and rested his chin on your head. You came back to your senses after all the butterflies had settled. You punched Nick in the gut and he fell to the floor.

“That’s for breaking me. But we’re even now” You laugh as you help him up. “Fair enough.” Nick paid the guy and he drove off right away probably annoyed Nick wasted his time. He wasn’t wrong though, if there was no car in the way, you would’ve left.

“Thank you y/n. I’ll spend the rest of my life making this up to you.” Nick whispered so that only you could hear. You were skeptical, but happy to have him back in your arms.

[purplesurveys]

720

WHO was the last person...

you spoke to, in person? It was my mom. She went down around 20 minutes ago to make a couple of sandwiches for herself and dad. The quarantine has made our body clocks completely bonkers and it’ll be typical to see either parent go downstairs at 12 or 1 in the morning to make a meal.

you called? I rang up Gab fiveish minutes ago so we can do a video call on Messenger.

that called you? My mom called me from downstairs the other day to reprimand me about something I said on Facebook cause she said it might offend some of my relatives lol.

you texted? I haven’t texted in a hot fuckin’ minute. I’ve only been at home in the last month, so there’s been little need to spend on load for my phone when I can communicate with classmates and family from online anyway.

that sent you a text? My dad. He texted me that breakfast was ready so that he didn’t need to go into my bedroom, which I’m highkey thankful for. My mom would just burst into the room, pull up my window shade so the sunlight can come in, and yell in a loud voice so I wake up. It’s never improved my mood in all the times she’s done it so I dunno why she continues doing it.

you kissed? Gab, but that was a month ago ugh.

that kissed you? Also her.

you yelled at? My mom. She was yelling at me, so I yelled at her as well because two can play at that game now.

that yelled at you? ^

you watched a movie with? I watched Two for the Road by myself last night but as for companions, the last one I had was Gabie when we watched Titanic a few months ago.

you ate dinner with? My family. We eat dinner together every night, at least whenever my dad is back home in the country.

you were in a photo with? Also family. I haven’t been in a photo with anyone other than them in a while...

you took a photo of? That would be my dog. I don’t take photos of people these days, mostly because I’m unable to.

you went to a concert with? I went to my Paramore gig by myself since I couldn’t find anyone who had front row seats like me, but on the day of the concert itself, Denise, Erycka, and Leigh (who were all also going to the show but got cheaper seats) asked to hitch a ride with me. Gabie was also present but that’s only because she was excited for me and wanted to be around for that experience of mine.

you lied to? Probably a schoolmate that I had told I was busy even though I wasn’t and I just didn’t want to work that time.

you invited somewhere? I think Blanch? I told her we should go to Ayala Museum once we can go out again so she can see the prehistoric gold exhibit that they have.

you dated? Just my current girlfriend.

you dumped? I haven’t dumped anyone.

you rejected? Uh... technically Mike. There weren’t any words said, no closure or whatever, but I think we both knew and understood that he liked me but I let him find out for himself that I had already gotten back with my ex. Back then I was still horrible at the confrontation thing and didn’t know how to break it to him.

you held hands with? Gab, over a month ago.

you hugged? Same answer.

you let cry on your shoulder? Egh, I’m only mentally capable of doing this for Gabie. I can let people rant to me but it’s personally not good for my own mental health if I had people crying to me all the time.

that let you cry on their shoulder? Technically it was my dog. But the last person was either Angela or Gab, I don’t really remember.

you bought a gift for? I don’t remember aaaahhhhh. It was probably a Valentine’s gift though.

you wished a happy birthday? Luisa.

that disappointed you? Some distant relative who had recently added me on Facebook then, only for me to see her pro-government posts. I never unfriended someone so quickly.

that stayed over at your place? Ralph, my sister’s now ex-boyfriend. Never liked the guy and am so glad they broke up, I never did like seeing him around in our house hah. that let you crash at their place? Gabie, but only to have dinner and work. that made you angry? My mom told me personal insults over a chore I did wrong a few days ago and it made me really angry. that complimented you? Andrew and I exchanged compliments when we needed pick-me-ups sometime last week. whom you complimented? ^ you thanked? My dad, when I saw him baking chocolate chip cookies a while ago after I had nagged him all week to make some. that thanked you? Mom. She asked me to fetch her something. you saw, in person? Right now I can see my sister on the couch. I think she’s watching an anime or playing some game on her laptop. that bought you something? Now hasn’t really been the time to ask for non-essential stuff, but my dad did buy me my requested soju a few weeks ago. that made you laugh? My sister I think? My family watched an online mass livestream earlier and my mom wanted to try out an American Catholic church after my grand-aunt (who lives in the States) recommended that specific parish. ANYWAY so of course their accent was very different to what we’re used to, and my sister’s fazed reaction to how they said one of the words made me laugh. that you said you loved? Gab. that said they loved you? My mom. you flipped off? Haven’t done this to anyone in a whiiiiileeeeee. you made a silly face at? It would always be just my dog but person-wise I don’t even remember anymore. that drove you somewhere? Dad drove me and my mom to the local columbarium last month.

WHAT was the last thing you...

touched? Other than the keyboard and trackpad, I used a spoon to eat some of the raw cookie dough my dad had prepared heh.

threw? Second day I’m trying to finish this survey lol. I just took the last piece of painkillers to treat my headache, so I threw the packaging like 30 seconds ago.

ate? Shrimp pasta that my mom made for dinner.

drank? Coffee.

found stuck in your teeth? Idk, bits of food that I don’t really keep track of.

cooked? :( Never cooked a full meal ever but the last thing I *helped* my dad with was breading the meat he was gonna use to make pork chop haha.

baked? Chocolate chip cookies two years ago. I remember it distinctly because I never bake.

bought? Man I haven’t bought anything in forever. I’m thinking about it and it’s probably something I bought for lunch at school? The only thing I buy is food anyway so I’m pretty sure I’m at least on the right track.

sold? I'm not much of an entrepreneur. 

took a photo of? My dog with a cold compress on top of his head. The weather is starting to be unforgiving so I’ve been allotting my own compress for Kimi so that he doesn’t feel overheated.

were frustrated with? My mom telling us we had to watch a mass livestream this morning -_____- I thought she was only gonna make us ‘attend’ the Lenten masses i.e. Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, but it’s past Lent and she’s still making us do it. I’m guessing it’s gonna be routine every Sunday now, ugh.

broke? I don’t tinker much for the very reason that I tend to break everything I touch. That being said, I haven’t broken anything in a while.

spilled? I have a fear of spilling stuff because my mom has always reacted negatively to that. Yay for trauma!

tripped on? A piece of bone that my dog had left on the floor. It felt like stepping on a goddamn Lego.

kicked? My blanket when I started feeling too warm inside my room.

put batteries in? I haven’t used batteries in ages.

turned on? I opened my laptop to continue this survey.

turned off? My Nintendo Switch, when I didn’t feel like playing anymore.

wrote? A survey, if anything. I haven’t had to write anything ever since they suspended online classes.

wrote on? I think it was my sister’s notebook.

cleaned? Myself? I just took a bath if that counts.

WHERE was the last place you...

dined at? I’m pretty sure it was Yabu. Gab and I went out for dinner on the last Monday before the lockdown, didn’t see each other all week, then by Saturday when we saw each other again we just had dinner at her place. So it’s gotta be Yabu.

ordered something to go? A local sushi place and a local pizza place, a week ago. My dad was too lazy to cook that evening so we got takeout instead.

bought something? The local milk tea place that we have in school and Rodic’s. I got myself milk tea, and I got my dad my favorite meal from Rodic’s, tapsilog.

cried? My room, I think.

felt uncomfortable? Just the house cause I haven’t been anywhere in a month.

drove to? My girlfriend’s school and then her house.

had an appointment at? Eye doctor at SM Marikina.

went on vacation? Tagaytay and then we moved to Cavite the day after so that we got to maximize the time that we had to have a staycation.

hung out with a friend? The 30th. Ughhhhh I miss the mall.

bought clothes? Feliz, at an independent clothing stall at one of the top floors.

spent more than you had planned? Feliz then I even had the audacity to move to The 30th to spend more lmaooooo AND THAT WAS A MONDAY. I was so bad at saving money skksks.

saw a band/singer/musician perform? One of the local arenas in Manila so I can watch Paramore.

WHEN was the last time you...

told someone 'I love you'? A little over an hour ago I think.

cried? I don’t remember.

laughed? A few hours ago, maybe? I always laugh when I come across a dumb meme on Facebook.

left your home? March 10th. Really not a good time to be asking that question lol.

drank a soda/pop? Sometime in February when my org had an event and the only drink being served was Coke. I was extremely hungry/thirsty that evening so I had no problem chugging soda down, even though it was so unpleasant.

made your bed? This morning.

visited a doctor? March 9th.

went to the emergency room? I’ve never had to go to the emergency room except for the time I was being delivered.

kissed someone? The last weekend before the lockdown. Man, I had no idea how lame/sad my answers were going to be lmaooo I really should have thought that through before starting a “when was the last time you” survey.

hugged someone? Also a month ago. I’m not a hugger in the family but I do hug my friends a lot.

prayed? Sometime when I was 9 or 10 years old.

worked out? Last semester when my PE was actually focused on working out instead of a sport.

made a phone call? This afternoon. My mom got me load for my phone (after a month of not having any!!!) just because, so I surprised Gab by calling her.

answered a phone? Last night.

had an argument? A few days ago.

played a video game? A little over an hour ago. I was playing Mario Kart 8.

played a card game? It wasn’t necessarily a card game but last January at Rita’s place, she took out a deck, asked us to pick certain cards, and then told us about our relationships and the issues that lurk beneath it based on the cards that were left hahahaha. Of course I think the strategy itself is bullshit but Rita speaks well and is a psych student, so we still ended up having a good conversation after hearing the verdict for mine.

played a board game? Ages ago. I can’t even tell you how long it’s been.

rode a bike? Around a month ago. I told myself I was gonna learn how to ride a bike during the quarantine, but it’s been so hot outside these days that it’s so easy to run out of enthusiasm for it.

fell on your butt? I don’t remember.

took a shower? In the last hour.

took a bubble bath? A year ago, maybe longer.

watched TV? I asked dad to watch El Camino with me on my his and my mom’s TV when it came out, so that would be last October.

saw a movie at a theater? December. It was for Knives Out.

ate fast food? 3-4 weeks ago if I’m not mistaken.

ordered a pizza? A couple of weeks ago. We tried Angel’s Pizza for a change and it turned out to be loads better than Pizza Hut which tends to be our usual.

made someone laugh? I probably made a few people laugh off of the few memes I shared today, so there’s that.

sang? Like a half hour ago. Hayley from Paramore shared a clip of the band performing Hard Times to celebrate the song turning 3 and it turns out the gig was from their show in Manila, so I hurriedly clicked on the video and sang along.

played a musical instrument? It’s been many months since I last used the keyboard.

read a book? A month-ish ago.

drove a car? My dad asked me to move my car to a different spot sometime last week, which felt so surreal as I hadn’t driven in a few weeks. It felt so weird driving again and I had to drive in a crawl to get accustomed to being in the driver’s seat again.

went swimming? August 2019, at a beach in Nasugbu.

got a sunburn? Haven’t gotten a sunburn since I was little.

went to church or temple? First week of March.

went shopping? I don’t really remember but it was one of the last few weekends before the lockdown.

drank alcohol? Two weeks ago.

smoked a cigarette? Sometime in March, the same night when my friends and I went to BGC to party. When everyone else went home, Gab and I stayed for a bit, strolled around The Palace, and had a smoke while watching everyone else around us get crazy wasted.

threw up? Sometime last year. I haven’t drunk too much recently.

had a headache? Tonight.

had a cold? Maybe last year or a couple of years ago. I don’t get colds a lot.

had the flu? Probably not since I was little. I’ve gotten fevers in the last few years but that was all there was to it. I’ve never been sick and had cough and colds at the same time, at least not for a very long time.

had your hair cut? A week before the lockdown -____- Barely anyone got to see my bangs and I’ll always be disappointed about that hahaha.

dyed your hair? Never.

laughed so hard that you cried? I remember watching a hilarious clip on Facebook of this lady who had a contagious fucking laugh, I think it was a week ago or a little over that.

[old-read-all-about-kpop]

Anonymous:  Yo so idk how many request u have rn and I also don't wanna be like... annoying since I already requested two times but I just rlly can't get enough of ur writing so I'd like to request an Ateez reaction to ur bf/gf breaking up w/ u and ur all emotionally messed up and he (as ur bff (who maybe has a lil crushon u)) is kinda comforting u and eventually even confessing idk let ur creativity flow :) hope ur doing good, have a great day/night!!💝~💎

A/N: Yo so you’re not being annoying by requesting multiple times like what! How could you say such a thing? You’re my first anon (I would die for you) and I appreciate your very existence. I am beyond happy in knowing that you enjoy my writing, and I hope you continue to do so. So, without further ado, here is the reaction my love! 💓💓💓💓

Hongjoong

Your pained cries were the only sounds that disrupted the silence in the room. You clung onto Hongjoong like he was your lifeline, and you were close to dying. You felt like it, at least. The pain that has been inflicted on your heart just felt too overwhelming. 

Hongjoong, on the other hand, was trying his hardest not to succumb to his anger. For the umpteenth time, your douchebag of a boyfriend - well, ex-boyfriend now thank God - hurt you once again. But, this time, Hongjoong was uncertain if you’d ever come back from this agony. 

Your ex cheated on you. After everything you had put up with, the deception, the temper tantrums, the degrading, the possessiveness, the controlling egotistic remarks, he decided to cheat on you on your first anniversary! Unbelievable! Joong knew the guy was a tool but this just put the cherry on the top.

Joong tightened his hold on you, hoping that his embrace would keep you in one piece. He dreaded the moment he would let go and you would crumble like a fragile artifact. 

Joong kissed the crown of your head then, hearing you now settle down to heartbreaking sniffles. “I know it hurts, sweetheart.” He sighed heavily. “If only you were mine. I would treat you the way you deserved. Like a goddess.” He said this in a whisper as he rested his chin on the top of your head. He didn’t wish to confess like this while you were so emotional, but he still felt like it should be stated.

You raised your head up the slightest, gently kissing the underside of Hongjoong’s jaw. “I know, Joong. I know.”

Seonghwa

“After everything I’ve done for that prick and he has the audacity to break up with me? The one who helped him get a job? The one who has been giving him money so he can buy food during his lunch breaks? The one who slaves over a hot stove to cook him lunch when he is tired of buying food?” With each jab thrown at the jerk who stormed off after breaking the relationship off, you tore off pieces of the tissue you had in your hands.

You chuckled humorlessly. “You know what? Good riddance!” You began to tear at the innocent tissue angrily. “I never needed him. I never did!” Your speed-tearing faltered, your shoulders dropped. “He wasn’t any real good for me anyway,” you whispered. Your bottom lip quivered. You finally realized that you shouldn’t have dealt with the mistreatment he was giving you as long as you did. You began to realize how foolishly invested you were in that awful relationship. You should’ve known better.

Seonghwa took hold of your chin, leading your eyes to meet his. His gaze was solemn with sparks of anger and disgust that could easily be assumed to be aimed at your slimeball of an ex-boyfriend.

Seonghwa caressed your cheek delicately as if you were prone to breaking under his touch. You probably were by the amount of emotions you were feeling inside. He then wiped away a tear that, unbeknownst to you, slid down your cheek.

“You know you don’t have to put on this false charade of you being unaffected by that douchebag, right? I know you’re hurting inside, y/n. That’s okay. I know you had deep love for him, even though he didn’t deserve one bit of it. But, you’re human, you’re allowed to love and, unfortunately, to feel pain and devastation. So, go ahead, cry. I won’t judge you. Not even a little bit.”

Like a dam that had collapsed from the strength of the water, your eyes polled with tears before they fell like paratroopers. You dived into Seonghwa’s chest, letting out all the heartache that enveloped your body in broken sobs.

Seonghwa didn’t hesitate to pull you closer to him, rubbing your back as you cried. He brushed your hair away from your face and, despite the situation, gazed lovingly at your face and the beauty you humbly held. 

As he placed his cheek on the top of your head, rocking you back and forth, he sighed deeply. “When everything has settled down, I would love to dote on you and cherish you the way you deserve.” He chuckled. “I think we both know you earned it after that tragedy.”

You giggled, hiccuping immediately after, unknowingly pulling on your best friend's heartstrings. You tightened your hold on his waist before parting your lips to speak the words Seonghwa didn’t expect to hear in a million years. 

“I would love that, SeongSeong.”

Yunho

“Y/n, please, let me in,” Yunho softly said, knocking on your bedroom door. Upon receiving no response, he cursed to himself. He just had to put his foot in his mouth when you needed him.

You called him an hour ago, stating that it was an emergency and you needed him yesterday. Yunho, worried for your well-being, hurriedly packed his duffle bag with clothes and essentials and ordered a Lyft in a matter of five minutes. He didn’t wanna risk keeping you waiting.

Once he got to your place, you two sat down in the living room, where you let out a long-winded rant about your childish ex-boyfriend and how he completely embarrassed you during last night’s date. He assumed you were flirting with the waiter when, in actuality, you were engaging in some playful banter. But, being the stubborn mule that he was, he reprimanded you loudly in front of the other customers. It caused you to be kicked out of the restaurant. You were in shambles, utterly mortified over the spectacle.

And it only worsened from there when you gave him the silent treatment. He started calling you a brat and, eventually, once you got to your apartment, he called you a female dog. That was your last straw with anyone, no matter who they were.

You ended up kicking him out, losing your sense and going ballistic on him. It was satisfying seeing him taken aback by your sudden change in character but, once he was gone, you felt empty. Deflated. You didn’t understand what you did to deserve such mistreatment.

Yunho didn’t help the situation as he snarkily stated, “Well, I told you he was no good for you. But, with your head so far up his behind, I’m not surprised that you didn’t heed my warnings.”

Yeah, like that was what you needed in a time that you wished to be consoled. So, as you tried to keep the hurt and tears out of Yunho’s sight, you hurried for your bedroom. Yunho, quickly realizing his poor timing in wanting to say “I told you so,” raced to catch up with you. But, you were a second quicker as you almost had him kiss wood.

Twenty minutes have passed, leaving you to grow needier for some human contact, and Yunho to dwell in self-loathe. The silence was sometimes disrupted either by Yunho’s deep, sad sighs or your solemn sniffles. Your eyes were dry of any tears. You were back to feeling empty all over again.

“Y/n,” Yunho called, prompting you to look toward the door. “You know why I act like this? I know it isn’t right, nor is it excusable, but, the reason why I responded the way I did earlier was because...I love you. No, scratch that. I’m in love with you. Muffin, I have fallen for you. Your melodic laugh, your gentle tone of voice that could lull a puppy to sleep, your wise eyes, your down-to-earth mindset. I mean, there truly isn’t a thing that isn’t to fall in love with. 

Sweets, I’ve always wanted it to be me you’d end up with. But, until now, I’ve been hiding away my feelings like a dog does its tail when scared. I just didn’t wanna risk ruining our friendship. But now I say screw it. Because there is no way in Hell that we could break up. You are the puzzle piece that I need. We connect mentally and emotionally. What I’m trying to say is...is that...” He groaned, fishing for the right words. “What I am saying is that I want to be the man who-”

You pulled the door opened, immediately meeting the adorable brown eyes of the tall prince. You two stared at each other for a while. But, then, the corners of your mouth slowly lifted into a smile. Yunho slowly exhaled, having had held his breath.

You grabbed hold of Yunho’s hand, keeping eye contact the entire time. You lifted his large hand to your cheek, snuggling into the warmth it retained. Yunho could feel himself becoming putty.

“You’re the puzzle piece that I need too, Yunie.” You gazed up at him, showing him acceptance and love that he has been dying to see for the longest.

He felt like he had finally found the hidden oasis to your heart. 

“I swear to treat you like the queen you are, muffin.”

Yeosang

“So, I seriously can’t go to his house and egg it?”

You responded first with countless sniffles, trying very hard to reel in your emotions. You dabbed your eyes with a tissue as you spared your best friend a sideways look. “No, Sangie. You can’t egg his house. You could get arrested.”

“But he hurt you.”

“And you think the best way to get back at him is to egg his house? He could just clean that crap off.” You sat back into the couch cushions then, fiddling with the tissue. “No scars are gonna remain.” 

Tears quickly welled up in your eyes, causing you to turn away and stifle any whimpers that tried to escape your chapped lips. Yeosang watched you with pity, careful not to let you see it on his face. He knew the minute you do you’ll feel even more pathetic than you already did. You always hated getting doted on or receiving sympathy from others. It eventually led you to shut out your vulnerability, leaving it for the times you are by yourself, sobbing in the confinements of your solidarity.

Yeosang, mustering up as much confidence as he could, grabbed hold of your shoulder and forced you to turn around to face him. You kept your face down, refusing to let Yeosang see you in such a miserable state. But Yeosang didn’t care one bit. He was happy in knowing that you felt comfortable in allowing him see you with your emotions on display, with your heart on your sleeve. He wanted nothing more than to tend to you and your beaten heart.

With a tight grip on his nerve, Yeosang took hold of your face, cupping it in his hands tenderly as if you were a porcelain doll. He rubbed his thumbs across your cheeks, hoping that you could feel his love for you through his soft touches.

“Y/n,” he began before wetting his lips. He took a deep breath in, his nervousness bucking within him like a raging bull. “Darling, you’re so special to me. More than you can ever know. And, as cliche as it may sound, it physically hurts me when you date these boys who don’t respect you. They don’t see the halo that envelops your body. They’re blind to it. Because you are an absolute angel and deserve nothing less than the love and tenderness that you deserve in your life. Y/n, you deserve the world! And...I want to provide it to you. I know it’s probably in poor taste to confess my feelings to you at this sad point in your life but I just felt like I was-”

He was cut off by the feel of your plush lips against his. His eyes were the sizes of soccer balls as he tried to fathom the turn in events. But, the glorious feel of your lips molding into his had his eyes flutter shut. In no time did he recapture your cheeks in his hands. He pulled you in closer, relishing in the blissfulness of finally kissing you. Embracing you to the full extent that he wanted to. He was gonna show you that you were a queen that needed to be worshipped. He was going to cherish you.

San

Quiet sobs and heart-wrenching whimpers were the only sounds that disrupted the silence in your bedroom. You clutched onto San tightly, prompting him to pull you in closer as well. The pain in your heart was overpowering, weighing down on you like cement blocks. The only way to keep you from crumbling under the extreme weight was by holding onto San, who has been nothing but comforting and a great support system.

A couple of minutes passed before your cries ceased. Now, you were just laying on San, thinking of nothing as your face dried from the salty tears that stained your face. San, still being as quiet as a mouse, never stopped rubbing your back. Rising and falling along with his chest as he breathed caused you to fall under the impression that you were on a boat, bobbing along to the calm waves of the ocean. It was a lovely reminder that you were not alone in this awful moment in your life.

You rose up then, causing San to drop his arms from around you and fiddle with the hem of your (his) sweatshirt. He peered at you expectantly, his eyes soft like a puppy’s. You couldn’t help but admire him for a few heartbeats. His face was serene with the slightest hint of sadness. Sadness toward you, of course, his one and only.

He reached his hand out then, lightly touching your face as if not to startle you with the contact. You dipped your face deeper into the palm of his hand, happily welcoming his touch. San smiled then, a gentle one that had yet to be adorned by his dimples.

After a few moments of comfortable silence, San spoke, but quietly as to not harm the silence. “Listen, Y/n... You might not want to hear this right now but, I need to say this or else I will continue to have this restless ache in my heart that I know will kill me one day. 

“Princess, you are a gem. You are a precious part of my life that I cherish with every fiber in my body. I hate seeing you frown. Your cries inflict so much pain within me. Baby, you’re a flower. He was weed killer. He was diminishing your light and that was the most sinful thing he could have ever done to you. 

“Again, you might not want to hear this but, I love you. I’m in love with you, to be frank. I don’t want to ever see sadness take over your beautiful face. If I ever were to be the cause, I would fall to my knees and repent. And you know why? Because you matter to me. Without you," he sighed heavily, "I don’t think my days would be as bright as they are when you are with me.”

Tears poured over your waterline. But, this time, it wasn’t due to how melancholy you were feeling. No man has ever conveyed such poetic words like San just did. No one went out of their way to say such sweet words to you with as much sincerity and love as San did. His eyes, observing you carefully, were gleaming with hope for your answer and adoration that genuinely displayed his feelings for you.

Without saying a word, you let your actions do the talking. You leaned down and wrapped your arms around his neck. Instinctively, San engulfed you with his strong arms, pulling you so close that he could’ve fused your bodies together.

You then placed a soft kiss on his cheek, letting your lips linger on his smooth skin for a few seconds before snuggling into his safe embrace. This is where you belonged. At this moment, you flourished, and thus you wished you could freeze time. You were finally back to being a full-grown flower, no longer wilted, as you had San, your water, soil, and sunlight.

Mingi

Thirty minutes ago, you texted Mingi to come to you two’s favorite spot immediately. And the moment you texted “I need you,” Mingi’s confusion disappeared like smoke as he dashed for the closest hoodie and practically ran out of the dorm. 

Now, as you two softly swung back and forth in your chosen swing, you two were embraced by a pregnant silence. It calmed you more ways than one. It seemed to coddle you, providing you some peace that you dearly needed. The fight you and your ex had was explosive, and it didn’t help that you saw a naked broad exit the bathroom, asking in her child-like voice where the shampoo was. To think that you were gonna be the pushing force for him to change his player ways. All your friends  warned you and told you that you were putting your heart in the battlefield. Your poor, innocent heart.

Mingi glanced at you nervously, unnerved by your cold expression and hard gaze. Upon his arrival, you merely whispered a “hi” before having him sit with you in this annoying silence. Whispers turned to shouts as they demanded Mingi to say something, anything in order to snap you back into reality. He was afraid you were too deep in your thoughts. He knew you did that a lot when you were bothered by something. But, usually, when you felt hurt, you would confide in Mingi the minute you two saw each other. It was almost like an instinct more than it was a habit.

Mingi, finally gathering some courage, cleared his throat awkwardly. You didn’t even blink. That was when he knew you were in too deep at that moment.

Swiftly, Mingi made his way over to you, standing in front of you. But, you were still unfazed by him. He then seized your face, jerking your head up so you may be looking into his gentle gaze. You blinked then, your eyes widening the slightest at how close you two’s faces were. 

Mingi brushed a strand of hair away from your face, his eyes scanning your entire face. Whatever he was preparing to say flushed down his throat like a toilet. He gulped, unintentionally pushing the words further down his throat. He had to clear his throat a few times to prevent himself from choking.

His irises scurried over your face hurriedly, as if they were trying to indulge themselves in your quiet beauty without looking too greedy but also not too stingy.

“God, you’re so beautiful,” he mumbled, talking more to himself than you. “How could someone be dumb enough to mistreat you as if you were some ordinary rock? You’re a freaking diamond, for God’s sake! How does one not know the difference?" He scoffed. "Oh, I know, someone who doesn’t understand true value. But I do and your value goes above and beyond. Because you are worthy and I feel like a peasant as I dream of being with you. Appreciating you. Loving you.” He shook his head slowly, closing his eyes for a moment, and inhaling deeply. 

He opened his eyes. Immediately, they refocused on you like a Polaroid. He blanched then, realizing that his rambling was not in the privacy of his mind. 

You, on the other hand, had a rosy hue inhabit your face. Your hands were trembling. What your best friend accidentally conveyed to you was your emotional undoing. Your eyes became glassy as you maintained eye contact. 

Mingi nibbled his pillowy bottom lip, dreading your reaction to his confession. You just got out of a relationship and he decides now to confess to you? Freaking fantastic!

You inhaled a shaky breath, hesitating on what to say to the beautiful man before you. You slowly swiped your tongue over your lips, parting them the slightest. “Can you help me see my worth?”

Mingi froze, staring deep into your eyes. Your eyes were glossy with vulnerability, an emotion that caused Mingi’s heart to crack. Your eyes held longing but also timidness. The man had to resist the urge to pull you into his chest.

Instead, Mingi bent down and pressed his forehead against yours. Before he fully settled into the position, though, he quickly lifted his head and placed a chaste kiss on your forehead. He then put his forehead back on yours, sighing fondly. 

“I would be honored to show you, gorgeous.”

Wooyoung

You heard a knock at your door, prompting you to hurry to open it. The minute you whipped it open, revealing the silver-haired young man, you broke out in loud sobs. 

“Yah!” Shocked, Wooyoung slammed the door behind him unintentionally hard and yanked you into his chest. He didn’t mean to be so aggressive but, the last thing he expected from your abrupt text was to see you in such an emotional state. You were never a crier. You only ever cried if you were angry or stressed. Thus, Wooyoung’s stress levels were boiling over.

Wooyoung rocked you two back and forth as he tightly embraced you. Your sobs were now muffled but your body shook from each hard cry that escaped your throat. Feeling you shake so violently had Wooyoung’s grip on you tighten even more. You were never the one to have this big of a breakdown. He was getting more and more worried about your mental health as the minutes ticked by. You had a part-time job, lived on your own, had rigorous studies to accomplish at your university, and you had a buffoon of a boyfriend who was inconsiderate and unbelievably rude when things didn’t go his way.

“He broke up with me,” you said in a shaky voice. Your cries calmed down finally, but the condition of your heart was unknown.

Wooyoung abruptly pulled you away from him, his eyes wide like saucers. There was a fire in his stare. 

He took hold of your face tenderly as if you were a day-old puppy. His gaze was soft as he scanned your face, but a flame would flicker alive every now and then as he wiped the tears off your lovely cheeks. He felt the vein in his neck throb. He wanted to punch something. Well, preferably, someone, and that someone was your pocket-brained ex-boyfriend. 

Wooyoung was snapped out of his angry thoughts when he felt your hand pat his chest. His eyes refocused on you, resuming eye contact. 

“Breathe, WooWoo,” you said, a small smile adorning your face. 

Just that smile alone gave him a smidge of hope that you would be okay. You needed to be okay. The thought of you being shattered from this breakup and becoming unrepairable destroyed him inside. You were his treasure, and he needed you with him on his journey through life.

Without thinking, Wooyoung leaned in and pressed his plush lips against yours. He suppressed a groan as he could finally feel the softness of your lips. It was thrilling. Like he was eating a forbidden fruit. And then he almost melted onto the floor when he soon felt your lips follow in sync with his, molding perfectly like puzzle pieces that have been united.

Suddenly, you pulled away. Fear, shock, and confusion shown in your eyes as your face remained as calm and collected as possible. You both were breathing unevenly as you watched each other closely. The silence was deafening.

You were the first to break the silence after a while. “Woo... What was that?” you asked slowly, still in a haze.

Wooyoung licked his lips, trying to quickly get a hold of his thoughts. He felt drunk off the long-awaited kiss. “I-I d-don’t know... I-I wasn’t thinking.” He groaned in frustration, running his fingers through his hair. The layers of thick hair moved beautifully, like soft sand on a beach. 

Silence fell over the both of you like an itchy wool blanket. You both felt jittery, hyper-sensitive, and utterly uncomfortable.

Finally, Wooyoung blessed you both with a break from the silence. “You know what? I know why I did it. You wanna know why? I’ll tell you! Because I freaking love you that it should be considered illegal!” he exclaimed.

You blinked slowly, processing everything sluggishly as if you were a outdated laptop.

Wooyoung continued, pacing. “God, Treasure! You are too good for this cruel world. I just wanna stuff you in my pocket and protect you from all things evil! But I know that you can handle yourself with no problem, which makes me wanna love you even more! You just don’t understand how much my heart yearns for you, y/n. Your beauty, your humbleness, your intelligence, your cute beauty marks that seem to be scattered over your entire body, and your adorable nose crinkle when I bop your nose is just the thing I need to see to decompress. All of those things cause me to have nothing but undying love for you and I want nothing more than to express that to you and appreciate your existence!” He took a deep breath, pausing from creating a strip in your floorboards. He knew he just spilled everything he felt for you in an angry-sounding rant (the complete opposite of what he had in mind when he would be presented the opportunity to finally confess) but he felt like he was getting closer to combusting the more he kept his feelings under wraps. He felt like he was unraveling.

You soaked everything in like a submerged sponge. You felt as though Wooyoung had some type of crush on you over the years but you grew denial. As handsome as Wooyoung was there was no way that he would like you. You were decent compared to him.

An unknown force got the better of you, pushing you closer to Wooyoung until your lips met his. Wooyoung stiffened for a second before relaxing his body and moving his plush lips against yours, coating them with the love he retained toward you like a salve.

You two separated after a while, taking in deep breaths. You two gazed into each other's eyes the moment you opened them, taking in each other in a new light.

“Be mine, please, Treasure,” Wooyoung said, a strong plea in his hushed tone.

You smiled at the nickname, peering deep into his eyes, knowing good and darn well that no one could ever make you safe from mere eye contact like this man standing before you. You knew your answer before you even conveyed it.

“Give me time and I will.”

Jongho

“Are you sure I can’t break his legs off like an apple?”

You rolled your eyes in annoyance toward the repetitive question. But, despite the fact, you had a little smile on your face. “No, JongJong. You cannot break his legs off like an apple.”

Jongho huffed. “But why not?” he whined.

You fought back a laugh at his childish action. “Because then you would go to jail for assault and I don’t want that. Who would comfort me and remind me of my worth when you’re away?” You said the question quietly, blushing against your will.

Upon your inquiry, Jongho also blushed. He tore his eyes away from your lowered face and looked elsewhere, clearing his throat. He didn’t want to have an awkward ambiance between you two so he decided to speak. “Well, I guess that is a pretty good reason not to risk being locked up. But I’m not happy about letting that kid walk around unbruised.”

“Well, I guess you’ll have to deal with it then, huh?” You looked up at your best friend then; your glassy eyes sucker punched Jongho right in his heart.

Jongho licked his lips slowly, carefully contemplating on his next move. You watched him innocently, your mind forcefully made blank for your heart’s sake. You solely wanted to focus on this moment and this moment in life only.

Jongho reached his arm out slowly, hesitating briefly, before laying his hand on the top of your head and then sliding it down, stroking your hair. His actions were comforting to a tenfold. You smiled at the boy, grateful to have him by your side.

“You know I love you, right? More than anything in the world?” he asked, softly. Then he thought for a second before adding quickly, “Well, along with my family, of course.”

You chuckled, looking down momentarily before reconnecting your eyes with his. “Yes, I know.” Your voice was just as soft.

Jongho ran his tongue over his lips a couple of times, almost provoking you to ask him if he needed some chapstick. But, you knew he was only doing that because he was nervous. What you didn’t know was the cause of his nervousness.

He quickly flickered his eyes between your lips and your eyes before seeming to finally decide what he was gonna do. Thus, he leaned in close, causing your breaths to become quite shallow. Your chest felt constricted. The hairs on the back of your neck stood straight up. 

For a moment, Jongho stayed there, his lips barely brushing against yours. It was as if he was inhaling your scent, grasping your existence. Finally, he decided to do something better, by kissing your forehead instead. Your breathing stuttered slightly, causing Jongho to smirk. Your reaction gave him hope.

He leaned back, carefully analyzing your face. You provided him nothing as you kept your expression serene.

Moments ticked on like that as you two remained staring at each other. But it was unnerving as you two seemed to be gaining new perspectives of each other. It was a perspective that revolved around an uncharted territory that neither of you could predict the outcomes for entering it.

You finally woke your voice up and spoke. “Why...why did you kiss my forehead?”

Jongho took a deep breath before speaking. “Well, firstly, I don’t think a kiss on the lips would be appropriate due to the state that you’re in right now. And then, secondly, is because I still wanted to express the amount of love I have for your cute self. Also to promise you that I will forever care for you like the precious human being that you are.” He smiled shyly then after conveying such strong words.

You inhaled deeply, your eyes watering quicker than soil that’s been rained on. Jongho, concerned that he might have done something wrong, cupped your face gently as he looked deep in your eyes. 

“Crap! I’m sorry, y/n.” He threw back his head and groaned loudly. “The last thing I wanted to do was give you more feelings to deal with. Now, look at you. Jeez! What a great friend I am-”

You cut him off, sealing his words off with your lips pressed against his. Jongho yelped out of surprise but instantly melted into you. He let out a sigh as you two’s lips moved together like calm waves of an ocean, fully indulged in the beautiful sensation of your lips on his. No amount of dreams could compare to the real thing. 

Eventually, you two separated, your eyes gleaming with adoration and child-like hope for the next step in you two’s lives. Together.

No further words were said as you two embraced each other, content like no other.

A/N: Yay! I’m finally done with this! 🎉🎉 I would have been done with this one sooner but, for some strange reason, I couldn’t complete it on my phone and had to wait to get on my computer. Thanks Tumblr for making my life difficult for NO REASON! Anyway, at the end of the day, I am done and I am hopeful that you enjoyed it my dear 💓

[wxnhvs]

       ♚◞  𝑨𝑺𝑲 𝑴𝑬𝑴𝑬  .  »   brayden nam  & lennon nixon .  ˎˊ˗      @seosoojae​​

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 ?  :  

         considering they had   after all the drama & all the waiting, he wanted to make sure to make it special, for both of them. after picking her up from her house, he gifted her a teddy bear that he’d won at that ( dreaded ) carnival -- he’d been saving it so he could give it to her at the most opportune moment. brayden then took her to a quaint & cozy italian restaurant, sapori d’italia, with outdoor seating, which ended up being their “ go - to ” spots in the future. 

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐝𝐨 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫’𝐬 𝐮𝐩  :  

        brayden is pretty affectionate with lennon to begin. initially, when he notices she’s upset, he’ll graze his knuckles over the soft skin of her cheeks, asking if she wanted to talk about it & reassuring that he’s here for her if she needed. letting her prop her legs onto his lap, he lets his hands run over the smooth skin, grasping them gently every now & then as he listens to her vent about whatever is on her mind. naturally once she’s feeling a little lighter, he HAS to shower her in kisses. it’s just how it’s done.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐮𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 ( 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 ) ?  :

       BOTH ; brayden –  considering he’s an early bird, many times he finds that the two fell asleep on the couch. rather than waking her, he untangles himself  &  lifts her up bridal - style and carries her up his bedroom so she could be more comfortable. if it’s a good day, he gets back into bed with her. lennon -- when she finds that bray has fallen asleep with his head in her lap during their movie night, she leans down and brushes the tip of her nose against his before dropping a soft kiss on his lips. he’s a light sleeper, it doesn’t take much for him to stir awake.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐮𝐩 ?  :

         NEITHER ;  if it ever came to the point of someone getting splashed awake, it would be completely accidental. brayden’s on a call with nick and accidentally spits it out, shocked at something his friend said -- only to realize it fell on to lennon. let’s just say he was gonna give nick an earful, quickly hanging up so he could grab her tissues and begin groveling.

.    *    ◜  𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐲 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫’𝐬 𝐮𝐩  :

         being that brayden has always woken up early to get his day started, it’s more than likely that he wakes her whenever he’s back from the gym, drenched with sweat. he knows how much lennon dislikes the smell, so he purposely gets into bed with her  &  slips his arms around her. she responds instinctively with a lazy grin, shifting closer -- only till she realizes that it’s that time. post-gym time, aka time to wake up.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐚 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 ?  :

       BRAYDEN ;  when lennon starts cooking or baking, the kitchen is basically off - limits. she takes her culinary seriously -- almost too seriously, in his perspective. so when he saunters in, eyes full of mischief, she’s ready to kick him out. except he’s distracting her by walking up behind her and resting his chin onto her shoulder. after a few feathery kisses, he’s dragging his finger through the batter only to swipe it across her collar bones. all hell breaks loose.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐣𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐢𝐞𝐬 ?  :

        BRAYDEN ; he’s relentless at this point, risking his life just to get a reaction out of his girlfriend. after the chaos he triggered when she last tried to bake, he was essentially banned from the kitchen  &  yet still has the audacity to walk in when she begins mixing ingredients. this time he keeps his distance and hands raised with a,  “  i come in peace.  ”  she tolerates him only until he actually suggests putting weed in the brownies -- and can we guess what happens ? she kicks his ass outta her quarters.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐢 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐰 ( 𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 ) 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐢𝐭 ?  :

        NEITHER ;  it hits him all at once. he’s been noticing how warmth would flood into his chest whenever he’d catch her gaze across the room or if they were doing something as simple as helping each other wash dishes (  it’s the only time she lets him into the kitchen tbh ). he plans on confessing how he feels for the blonde sooner than he ever expected.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐩𝐡𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 ?  :

        BRAYDEN ;  at this point in his life, he’s had his share of altercations ( one of them -- over her ). at the end, it proved to be worth it, even if it was against his best friend. so of course, if anyone ever tried approaching her in the wrong way, he’d have to step in and show them to back tf up.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐩𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 ( 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐞𝐭 ) ?  :

        LENNON ; even though he shares a pet with her best friend  &  current ex - girlfriend, she’s totally up to adopt another dog -- any animal really. though she loved dogs more than anything, majority of their DMs consisted of all kinds of furry lil animals doing crazy things.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐫 ( 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐞𝐝 ) ?  :

         in bed, INITIALLY -- they’re both pretty quiet, testing the waters to see how the other is. bray gets more spurred on when she if she voices just how much she’s enjoying it ; once they’re more comfortable, they’re absolute freaks. they’re both pretty loud whether it’s him asking her if she likes it or her sensual moans, though he’s muting them with his lips against hers. out of bed, they’re both just straight up loud. they’re always making each other laugh or he’s doing something that has her yelling at him ( all fun  &  games though ).

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤𝐬 ( 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐞𝐝 ) ?  :

        BOTH ; in bed, they’re both quite the risk takers ya feel me. they’ll try all kinds of different positions until they realize what REALLY gets the other going. then it’s just game over. if they weren’t risk takers out of bed, they probably wouldn’t have even gotten together considering she’s best friends with his ex  &  his best friend had the longest crush on her.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 ‘𝐝𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐲’ 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 ?  :

          considering he’s got literal daddy - issues, he’s not sure how he feels about it. so if she ever used it on him, he’d be turned on more by the way she’s looking at him than by the actual word. after they smash, he def talks to her about it -- making sure not to make her feel weird or uncomfortable for even using it.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝, 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐤 ?  :  

        bray loves her lips & how they feel against him -- anywhere really. just when she’s about to reach her peak, he loves capturing her lips in a kiss, her moan vibrating against his mouth when he does. he’s also a fan of hickies, but moreso in places where nobody can see -- in a place where only the two of them know. like a little secret.

.    *    ◜  𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬  :

         not gonna lie, in public, they might just be THAT couple. if he wants to kiss her while they’re on the line for starbucks or any line for that matter, you bet your ass he will. though, it’s usually chaste in front of others. he’s no pig. except when they’re in private, he likes grasping her hips and pulling her close, moving his lips against hers slowly to revel in the feeling.

.    *    ◜  𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐲 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫’𝐬  :

        brayden likes buying her things ; if he sees something that reminds him of her, he’s buying it. often times he finds himself in the baking aisle of a grocery store just to pick up some sort of frosting / cake - mix / or sprinkles, that she might like. if there’s some stationary he thinks she’ll like, he’ll grab that too. and if he’s about to go see her, he’ll stop by at starbucks to by her favorite drink before showing up to her place.

.    *    ◜  𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧  :

          often times, brayden finds himself staring at her with endearing hues when she’s talking or laughing with her friends. even if he’s sitting a few feet away and is amongst the guys, he’ll make his way over, gently grasping her chin to drop a quick kiss against her lips and give her a little bop on the tip of her nose. other times, he’ll pull her into his lap even if there are other seats available. he just likes being close to her ( like a clingy heaux ) lbr.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞 ?  :

        BRAYDEN ;  he knows exactly what’ll get a rise out of her and will probably go out of his way to do it, only because he finds her reactions cute. when she switches it around on him, he’s a goner. when she’s dominating, he finds her even more attractive. he too, is a whipped ass hoe.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 ?  :  

       BOTH ; there have been times where he’s heard lennon singing in the shower  &  he’ll literally bust through the door to sing the main hook of the song as if he’d composed it.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 ?  :

       BRAYDEN – his daily showers are after his workouts. even if she’s tired, he’ll manage to convince her into joining him with a simple, “  don’t worry baby, i’ll take care of you.  ”  even if she’s resting her head against the tiles with her eyes closed, he has no problem carefully massaging shampoo into her blonde locks -- he’s also lowkey fascinated with the way they get so much darker under water  &  probably mentions it after. 

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐱 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡 ?  :

        LENNON ; more often than not it’s because of brayden’s touches  &  him insisting on helping her wash her body parts that gets her in the mood. it probably makes her wonder whether it’s all pre - planned. lbr, why wouldn’t he want to ? even if its quick  &  rushed, he knows how much she likes when he’s pressing himself against her from behind.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 ?  :

       BRAYDEN ; being the perfectionist that lennon is, he knows how much she enjoys playing hostess at family events. she loves making sure everyone’s happy and taken care of -- and he likes to make sure she’s taken care of. the table is full of her cousins and their significant others  &  he doesn’t even flinch when he slips his hand onto her inner thigh, tips of his fingers drawing little circles on against her skin. the same goes when his sister is around -- except, it would be too evident if he ever pulled anything around evie. she would never let him live it down  &  lenn would probably never forgive him for it.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐢𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜 ?  :

         neither make a fuss over what to listen to as it really just serves as background music to their conversations. although, bray is more of fan of rap and r & b EXCEPT he’ll find himself listening to random oldies from frank sinatra  &  start serenading lennon promptly after.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧 ?  :

        BOTH ; it’s date night & they just dined at sapori d’italia when it begins to rain. they could run inside but they’re both on a ‘ successful - date ’ high  &  decide to savor the moment. considering the restaurant’s old italian music was playing loud enough for it to be heard outside, brayden couldn’t pass up on the moment, offering her his hand before pulling her into his embrace for a slow dance. were there oldies swoonies ?  you bet.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐞 ?  :  

        NEITHER ; brayden has always been rather timid when it came to discussing something as serious as marriage -- after seeing the way his father broke their family, only to start a new one with another, took him down a bottomless pit of dark thoughts. except now, there was always a bright light at the end of it all -- now, it didn’t pain him as much when he thought of marriage and the possibility of a family with lennon. she knows his family history  &  wouldn’t want to push him on it either. so of course, when -- at some point -- he does propose, it knocks both of them off their feet.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧 ?  :  

        growing up, he’d never entertain the idea of a happy family with the shit show his father put him & his sister through. and yet, when this blonde ray of sunshine known as lennon nixon enters his life, he finds himself with five children. each one given a middle name of someone that means something dear to them ; eliana aurora nam, arabella lorelai nam, grayson nicholas nam, rowen evangeline nam, & maddox amir ( a ) nam.

.    *    ◜  𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 ?  :

         though each one has a little bit of both of the parents -- it’s rowen evangeline nam that’s daddy’s girl af. he’s not sure whether he has a soft spot for her because she has his sister’s middle name, but if he needs to be convinced for anything, the other siblings send her his way. eliana took after her mother the most -- even though she inherited her father’s dark locks, she had her mother’s hazel eyes and bright smile. she was the one brayden worried for the most, not wanting some punk ass idiot to approach her. while grayson was a perfectionist in the kitchen, maddox was working magic with his fingers, taking after brayden with the piano. arabella was a little bit of everything, a perfectionist sloth who also happened to be a musical genius. brayden still questions why they used ‘ lorelai ’ as her middle name -- though, if he questions it one more time, lennon would kick his ass.

[bard-dadsquared]

In other news, I do need validation. Long angry rant is about to happen.

The other day I called my Ex on fb so he could talk to our son. I made a comment later that day how he looked like he hadnt been sleeping and how he seemed like he may be depressed, and the person i was talking to was just like

"Poor guy :(("

To which I just shrugged and told them that I didnt feel bad for him, everything he's feeling, he brought on himself.

They said "I feel kinds bad for him because I know he loves you!"

And I'm just???

Maybe he did?? Maybe he does?? But that doesn't negate all the shit he did to drive me the fuck away. I loved him too once. But then everything I said, everything I felt, everything I tried to ask for fell on deaf ears.

I don't feel bad for him because when we moved to the duplex in Texas, he left all the loading and packing to me. It was up to me to find people to help me move stuff to the new place and make sure everything was packed and ready to go. All he worried about was his PC and his desk. Hell even my brother and I had to put my bed frame together because he hadn't done it.

He was an asshole everytime we had to go back to the other house to help clean up too and got mad once because my mom asked us to bring something and he didnt bring it.

But things settled down mostly. I hated how i was expected to do almost everything but it was manageable.

Then he wanted to move and find a new job, which was fine, he sorta?? Let me know what kind of jobs he was applying for and where. But when he got an offer, he accepted it without even talking to me about it. The job he took he was going to start in two months and I had less than a months notice to pack all of our shit and leave not only that but they didn't offer relocation and he was going to be getting a little less in pay. We had less than a month to move Which again- he barely helped with. All the sorting through shit and packing was left up to me once again. I ended up leaving almost all of our stuff behind because I couldnt fucking take it with me to my moms.

I gave Virginia a shot and i was more miserable than I've been ever. I was expected to do everything. EVERYTHING. I decided to go to California. I had originally hoped that in doing so we could save some money and he could use the money we saved to get stuff for the apartment to make it more comfortable.

Which didnt really happen until April. After being with Family in Cali for a while, seeing how well lucian was doing and stuff, I honestly didn't wanna go back. I went back to sign the lease and then again a couple months after my aunt died because of how tense things were at the house, i figured it'd be a last ditch effort to save things.

But no. I tried to tell him how I felt. I tried to tell him what bothered me, why i was so depressed. I told him I felt lonely, I told him I felt like i was expected to do everything. And it always. always felt like I was talking to a wall

I told him I wished wed go out and do things more, that itd be nice and I might meet people. He wanted me to meet people online first and then meet them in person. Which totally defeated the purpose of getting me out of the. House to socialize, and even if indidnt make any friends then at least I got out and was productive. But he doesnt like leaving the house.

I told him countless times that I felt like it was unfair that he expected me to do so much work around then house with minimal help, but nothing changed. He thought helping more meant cleaning the kitchen and making easy dinners.

And while I appreciated it in wished hed help more with the living room too, or the laundry, or anything else literally. The most recent time I brought it up he managed to turn it around to finances and told me that he doesnt spend money on himself because he spends it all on me and Lucian. He told me that if i didnt get what I wanted I essentially acted like it was the end of the world.

Granted yes, I'd get disappointed and my displays depending on my mood or whether or not the item was seasonal or limited edition varried from minor to being a little mopey (i really tried not to be, most of the time i was usually more upset about the ungodly cost than anything.)

Then he invades my privacy, not once but twice I found out. This son of a bitch logged on to my discord, TWICE.

The first time he did it was a day I cleaned the whole apartment. Like I vacuumed, shampooed, cleaned the kitchen counters the best in could, did the dishes, took out the trash, wiped counters and the stove, did several loads of laundry, picked up in the bedroom.

As soon as he got home i went to my room and I guess thats when he did it. He logged onto my account on the computer and opened discord, and went through my messages.

That's literally the only reason he asked me for a divorce. Was because he had seen I've been thinking about it for a while.

And then for whatever reason he did it a second fucking time.

The irony? The first time he did it?? If hed just fucking come to me, I was gonna ask him for a divorce myself. But then he did it, and while it was a huge relief at the time, it would have taken every ounce of willpower not to slap him if I had known then that he was only asking because he went through my messages.

We managed to work things out to maintain some civility for Lucian's sake, and i was okay with that! I was glad we seemed to have cleared the air a little bit.

But then I thought about it more, he never actually apologized to me for anything. He never actually apologized for the messed up stuff he did or said, and he doesnt think he did anything wrong by going through my messages. In fact he thinks he was justified because "I needed to know how they really felt."

And then when I admitted some things I did or said was messed up, he didnt even actually own up to his bullshit. He had to lump me in with him

"Cant we bith admit that we both did and said fucked up shit?"

Like?? That's whaT I WAS JUST DOING. WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING THIS WHOLE TIME???

Then on my way to CO I find out??? He tried to say he does everything himself??? Inwas looking into the requirements to fly with my cat and dog because originally i was going to fly to Colorado. I dont remember which airline I checked, but I checked the requirements for the airline he was gonna send me on, and then he tells my step dad hes tired of doing everything himself.

WHAT???

I looked it up!! I thought I was gonna fly with a certain airline so that's who I fucking looked it up for!!! And hes trying to say he did all the footwork HIMSELF?! If I'd known he was considering another airline I WOULD HAVE LOOKED THAT UP TOO, BUT I DIDNT. Then He has the audacity to say hes tired of being the only one doing all the work??

Are you fucking kidding me????

No, nuh uh. Fuck him. I dont think I hate him surprisingly but FUCK IM LIVID.

I should by all rights hate his fucking guts, but dont, if I did the sight of him would send me into fits of rage as would the mention of his name.

But God damn I am PISSED OFF at him. So fucking pissed off. I mean for all I know hes hacked my account and is reading this right fucking now.

If you are Alex, FUCK YOU for everything you've put me through these last couple years.

fuck him. I don't feel bad for him in the least. I know I'm not fucking perfect, but I fucking tried. I gave him more chances than he fucking deserved. He held me to unfair standards, he expected me to clean house in 2 hours or less, expected me to cook every fucking night, constantly tried to tell me my mental health is harder for him than it is for me, tried to tell my family that he does all the fucking work (okay I cant make phone calls but I can do fucking research you fuck), made me out to be the bad guy constantly, doesn't own up to his bullshit, put me through all this and EXPECTED ME TO APOLOGIZE FOR GOING TO CALIFORNIA, went through my fucking discord, and countless other bullshit.

Yeah no I don't feel bad for him. Not at all, he had plenty of chances to work with me to avoid all this and he chose to ignore it. The only attempts seemed to be when I wasn't with him.

I have a lot of baggage and issues, but I fucking deserve better than that.

If hes in emotional turmoil because of what happened. He brought it on himself. I fuckin tried.

If me not feeling even a little sorry for him makes me a bad person

Then get me my fucking demon costume.

[sirkkasnow]

03 Semi-Legitimate Uses Of Gunpowder

Ao3 link

07/04/13 Thursday

The household settled into a comfortable routine over the next few days. Chaos was such an underlying constant in Gravity Falls, particularly with the kids around, that throwing another body into the mix made very little difference.

Clary rose early once she’d recovered from the initial shock. Summer schedules for both kids and adults ran late, which made it easy for her to slip into the kitchen before most everyone else. She’d asked Stan whether she could help cook, he’d offhandedly said sure, and the next thing he knew she was baking things.

The contents of the fridge began to dwindle in interesting ways. Frittatas jammed with too many vegetables materialized on the breakfast table. The sour-cream coffee cake she’d made on Tuesday morning was down to crumbs by Wednesday.

“You’re a guest, not the cook,” Stan argued in exasperation that morning in the crowded kitchen. He dug out a second wedge of egg-potato-and-green-stuff from one of the cast iron skillets.

“If you guys ate anything other than pancakes for breakfast, I’d join you, but I like my eggs. Besides, I don’t see you complaining.” Clary eyed his plate, scrubbing down utensils. Her kerchief for the day – there was always a kerchief for the day, wrapped twice and knotted neatly at her throat, the colors and patterns as varied as Mabel’s sweaters – was a splashy watercolor design of pale yellow daisies. “I’m used to cooking for an army anyway.”

Stan cocked a brow at her in question, and caught the brief flicker of her smile. “My place in Baltimore is this huge brownstone. I’ve got eight bedrooms. I ran a boarding house as a sideline, because what else can you do with eight bedrooms?”

“That sounds exhaustin’.”

“Running tours isn’t? I liked it. Lots of law students, a few graduate accountants.” She chuckled over his groan. “Yes, a very, very nerdy household. We ran DD&MD once a week for years.” Stan saw Dipper perk up from the far side of the kitchen table and started a mental countdown to major geekery. “With that many rules lawyers and number-crunchers around the table things got pretty sidetracked at times.” Clary settled into one of the two free chairs, Mabel leaning over to peep her plate.

“Grunkle Stan? Have you got enough left for one more Stancake? Clary, you have to try one!”

“I don’t usually do pancakes, hon.” Clary begged off gently like she had every morning.

“You don’t get it.” Mabel leaned in, eyes widening. “These are Stancakes. They’re unique. You can’t possibly enjoy the full Pines experience without sampling Stancakes.”

Stan rolled his eyes, took up a rubber spatula and coaxed the last of the batter out of its bowl while Mabel made her pitch. Just enough left for a half-size flapjack, fine, that’d do. He finished that off in the skillet while Clary half-heartedly protested, then slid it onto her plate alongside what was left of her eggs. Mabel applied a river of maple syrup and a scatter of edible glitter before any counter-arguments could be offered.

Clary blinked at the twinkling result for a few blank seconds. “Nothing ventured, nothing gained,” she finally said, and dug in. Mabel stuck out two thumbs up in approval.

Once the Pines clan scattered after breakfast, Clary had been staking out the battered old couch on the porch. Stan had passed her on the way out to the car two mornings in a row now. She wore a wireless earpiece and balanced a laptop on her knees, the picture of professionalism in her summer togs. Sometimes he’d catch bits of what sounded like German as she talked to the air, cajoling or explaining or arguing with whoever was on the far side of the line.

This time he caught her with the computer set to one side, speaking what was definitely German in a soft tone at odds with the usual steel. She spotted him as he tried to slide by and simply relocated her quiet conversation, slipping into the shade of the pines for half an hour before returning to brisk business.

He made a point of keeping an eye on her, and calling out when it was clear she was off the phone. “Hey, Clary!”

“What’s up, Stan?” She leaned back into the cushions as she squinted out at him.

Lawyer humor had turned out to be a rich vein, if a somewhat single-minded one. “What’s the difference between a good lawyer and a bad lawyer?”

She sighed at him in grudging amusement. “A bad lawyer makes your case drag out for years. A good one makes it last even longer. What’s the difference between a good lawyer and a great lawyer?”

“A good lawyer knows the law, a great one knows the judge!” Stan actually chuckled to himself over that one. He straightened, shrugging a shoulder so he could swab off the drop of sweat stubbornly stuck at the tip of his nose.

“You’re not going to outlast me on those, you know.” Clary set aside the computer and strolled over to the wagon, quirking him a momentary grin as she headed around to the back.

“Maybe not. I’m self-taught when it comes to screwing clients over. You’ve got the degree.” Her faint, indignant snort was just audible around the corner. “Whatcha need?” Stan braced his feet and stretched, spine creaking, then came around to see what she was up to.

“The Fourth is tomorrow and I did something a little reckless. I keep forgetting I have these.” She was waist-deep in the wayback, shifting aside a couple of blankets to reveal a flash of brightly-printed color on cheap glossy paper.

“You brought fireworks.” Stan reached past her to hoist the crate. She’d picked out a deluxe assortment of the biggest roadside skyrockets to be had, and he didn’t bother to stifle a twinge of delighted surprise at her audacity.

“Don’t look so shocked. These are legal in Wyoming and there are stands all along the highway at the state borders.”

“All of which have prominent signage sayin’ it’s illegal to transport ‘em across state lines.”

Clary looked fleetingly guilty, then defiant. “You’re right. I read them all and then I ignored them. I’m guessing you know what you’re doing with low-yield explosives. Are you going to help me fire these off or what?”

“You are in luck, Miz Merrick, because I am what passes for the fireworks committee around here, an’ you’ve just bought yourself a ringside seat to this year’s display.” Stan winked and tucked the crate under one arm. “We’re doin’ it on the lake this year. We’re gonna use the old dock and I’ve actually got a permit this time ‘cause the mayor’s a pushover! Which of course just meant it was a little easier to get hold of the good stuff.”

The faint smirk on her lips widened slowly. “Excellent. I was hoping we’d get to blow something up. So we’re going to fire all of these off when the time comes?”

“That we are. Congratulations, you’ve been deputized! Hope you can handle loud noises.”

“I can handle myself just fine, Pines.”

The morning of the Fourth was spent in a frenzy of preparation. Soos, Melody and a grudging but overtime-paid Wendy had the moneymaking end of the venture under control – they would be running concessions at lakeside all evening.

Stan’s job was of course the attractions end of things, which meant explosions, which meant he and Ford were preparing endless mortar racks and crates of mostly-legal fireworks.

Clary, as the spare adult, was recruited into assisting with the munitions. Soos loaned her a paint-spattered canvas work shirt that draped her frame like a tent. Borrowed rubber gloves were cinched in at her wrists with masking tape. Under Ford’s distracted tutelage, she worked patiently on splicing shell fuses into daisy chains.

Stan watched her quick hands for a curious minute. She put as much careful focus into this as she’d put into the hawkweasel thing, perhaps with more concern for potentially blowing off a finger.

They ferried everything down to the lake in relays that afternoon. The oldest, most distant, most splintery of the lake’s docks was where they’d been given permission to set up. The three adults did the bulk of the hauling, dragging setpieces out along the battered planks.

Stan consulted a scrawled-pencil sketch of the layout to keep things more or less in order. Dipper and Mabel were in charge of setting up ‘command central’, which consisted of a few folding chairs, a burn-scarred camp table, and a bulky battery pack for a motley collection of goose-necked lab lamps.

It was after six before they finished most of it. Clary flopped down on the edge of the dock with feet dangling, reading her way through an Oregon fire-safety manual. Mabel and Dipper kicked off their shoes and dashed off down the town beach to mingle with the gathering tourists and locals. Picnics outfitted with grills and beach umbrellas were in full swing by now and the scent of charred hot dogs drifted on the still air.

“Keys, Stanley,” called Ford. Stan tossed them over without bothering to look up. “I’ll be back with the control console in a bit. You’ve got everything you need?”

“We could set all this stuff off by hand, y’know.”

“And leave lengths of fuse lying all over the place? This is so much safer!”

“Not quite as much fun.” Stan waved his brother off, then collected the toolbox and the random bits of picnic stuff they’d hauled down to make the wait until dark more comfortable.

“This is all they’ve got?” Clary muttered, more to herself than to Stan as he hauled over the cooler and set it at her side, elbowing the lid back to fish out a couple of sodas. “This is a twelve-page pamphlet. Most of which consists of ‘do not set up an amateur fireworks display.’” She glanced up to him, accepting a can. “Ford told me that he and the kids actually built a couple of these shells.”

“Chemistry lessons.” Stan shrugged. “Ford knows what he’s doin’, we’ll be fine. We’re gonna hold those until last so that the kiddos can help fire them off. Besides, we’re no amateurs. I’ve been doin’ this for years. Maybe not on this scale.” He looked down the dock along the rows of milk-crate mortar racks, rather pleased with himself. “Usually we’re just firin’ the suckers off from the roof of the Shack for parties.”

“So you’re a pyrotechnician, among your many other titles.” Clary popped her soda can and tapped its edge lightly against his. “Cheers. Nice layout, though I bet it’s just as much fun to improvise.”

“Probably more. This’s a lot of work, but Soos has been layin’ plans since springtime, and what’m I gonna do, say no? If this goes off well he’ll probably pick it up for future years. Not sure if Ford an’ I’ll be here for the next round.”

Stan pivoted and propped himself against the nearest piling, looking out across the lake at the increasing bustle near the main beach. “Though I gotta admit this is a nice way to blow a couple months and we should probably take advantage of the kids’ vacations until they get tired of us.”

“You’ve got just the two grandies, then?” Clary gestured vaguely off down the shoreline. “None of your own?”

“Nah. Too much goin’ on in my life during that stretch.” Way, way too much, he thought. “You?”

“No. Those stars never aligned for me. I’ve got a niece and a nephew, and she’s got two little girls, so I have grand-niblings of my own.”

“Married?” She didn’t sport a ring, but who knew?

“Widowed.”

Oops. “Sorry ‘bout that.”

“Don’t be. It’s been a long time. You?”

“Married…for six hours. That didn’t end real well.”

She chuckled hollowly into her can. “Neither did mine. Here’s to independence.”

“Siblings?”

“One older sister. You’ve got Ford, and I guess a brother?”

“Shermie, yeah. He’s what passes for the normal one.”

“Someone’s got to be the white sheep in every family. I can assure you that it wasn’t me in mine.” Watching her relax to this extent was a pleasant surprise. Clary had an elbow propped on a bent knee and the starch had gone out of her smile.

“I don’t believe that for a minute.” Stan made a show of looking her up and down, and she went faintly pink under the scrutiny. As usual she was color coordinated, today’s kerchief mostly red with bits of white and blue, hair clipped back with something glassy and scarlet. “Law-abidin’ lady like yourself? Okay, so maybe you smuggle fireworks every now and then, but who wouldn’t?”

“This is my summer for living dangerously, and believe me I have no idea what I’m doing.” Clary looked off down the shoreline to where Mabel was jumping up and down and waving, then twitched in surprise as her phone started to jangle. “Whoops – I think I’m being summoned. See you when we get closer to dusk?”

“Yep, I’m gonna guard the ordnance, I guess, Wendy’s crew probably has runnin’ bets on whether or not they can swipe a few rockets.” Stan tipped his can back to drain it. “Mind haulin’ over my chair while you’re up?”

“Got it.” Clary levered herself upright, dusted off her backside and jogged down to the pier’s end, returning with a folded lawn chair. “Don’t nod off, now.”

“What, with all this thrillin’ readin’ material? Don’t worry about me, kid.” Stan waved her off, set up the chair and settled down with the safety manual. He was out like a light within ten minutes, dozing comfortably in the late-afternoon sun.

He snapped awake twice as the sunlight shaded into deeper and deeper gold. Each time he winged an empty pop can with terrifying accuracy at overcurious kids, sending them scattering. Wendy’s crew, true to form, showed up as the bluff’s shadow crept across the lake.

Stan pinged Thompson in the head with his last empty. He watched them take off and sat up grumbling to look along the shoreline. The sun was nearly down by now, though it’d be forty minutes yet to full dark. Clary and the kids were making their way back, feet splashing at the water’s edge. Right on time.

Unfortunately the control console and Ford hadn’t shown up yet. That was going to be a problem. Stan checked his watch, huffed in frustration and levered himself upright to start setting manual fuses on the closer fireworks racks.

“Kids!” His voice boomed out across the water. “Need you t’check on Poindexter. Clary, you good to set the trigger wires for the far racks?” He waved an arm vaguely at the end of the dock as the three broke into a jog. Dipper dropped off a paper bag that smelled temptingly of grilled stuff on top of the cooler as he hopped onto the worn planks.

“Got it, Grunkle Stan!” Mabel tapped at her phone as the other two split up. Clary threaded her way between milk crates down to the far end and back again to pay out lengths of trigger wire a few at a time. Dipper rummaged up a roll of masking tape, a marker and Stan’s creased layout sketch, and started labeling wires as he tacked them to the dock.

“Five minutes! Says he found a short!” Mabel ran to help Stan substitute lengths of extra fuse for wires on the closest few racks, her quick fingers making short work of masking-tape splices. “I don’t know why we didn’t just stick to the old fuses. Those worked great last year!”

“Because we nearly burned down the Shack last year.” Dipper accepted the last couple of wires from Clary and tagged them neatly.

“Don’t sweat it, kids, you think I didn’t bring backups?” Stan fished out a battered matchbook, dropped it into his breast pocket for easy access and reached for the paper bag. “Eat up, gremlins, it’s almost showtime.”

Ford finally screeched in as they were all finishing off the last few bites of hot dog. He ran full-tilt up to the dock, gasping out vague apologies about losing track of time. The control console hit the top of the camp table with a thud. Between Ford and Dipper the numbered wires were clipped into the rig at terrifying speed, Mabel angling a gooseneck lamp to illuminate the tags in the near-dark.

“We’re missing two banks – Stanley.” Ford glared as he finished counting wires, and Stan shrugged.

“Didn’t know when you’d be back, set those up with quickfuse. We’ll be fine.” He fished a couple of punks out of the toolbox of backup gear, checked his watch, then looked downshore. “I’m gonna give ‘em fifteen more minutes of desperate anticipation. Then we’ll light ‘em up.”

Clary rocked on her heels in impatience, squinting down along the lake’s edge to the scatter of lights and silhouetted townsfolk at the main beach. Stan leaned over to murmur in her ear. “Your stuff’s all set up on one of the racks we just did fuses for, so I’ll have you touch those off. This’s what we’re usin’….”

He explained the slow-burning punk, basically an incense stick that’d hold just enough of an ember to do the job, and pressed his spare into her palm. “We’ll get that goin’ in a minute. Don’t set anythin’ on fire unless you mean to. Ready?”

Light was scarce, all the color washed out of her profile, but her eyes shone. “Ready.”

“Check the time and cue it up please, Mabel,” Ford said, a little too cheerful as he and Dipper settled in behind the control console with its dozens of little labeled switches.

Mabel tapped a couple of phone buttons and a low, mournful orchestral score started up, tinny through the tiny speakers. The opening bars echoed faintly over the lake from the speakers set up at Soos’ end.

Clary leaned over to peer at Mabel’s phone, brows rising as a baritone voice kicked in. “Tulen Synty? This is Finnish.”

“It’s ‘The Origin of Fire’. Eight and a half minutes. Perfect!” Ford flipped the first couple of switches and a few popping rockets went up from the far end of the dock. Distant whoops of approval drifted across the lake.

Stan tugged out the matches and got both his and Clary’s punks going. “He wanted to choreograph it, the racket will drown most of it out anyhow, and it’s too old for anyone to go after us for royalties. Works for me.”

The display built up slowly, Ford singing absently under his breath as he triggered one batch of mortars after another. It took two minutes of strings and woodwinds for things to get really interesting. Dipper, Mabel and Clary all tilted their heads back to watch while Stan snagged a lamp and angled it at the manual fuses.

At five minutes the men’s choir on the track welled up full-throated. Ford kicked off the first few of the big rockets with precise flicks of fingertips. Half lit from below and chuckling to himself, he looked just a bit unhinged. Might as well get it out of his system.

“Aight – you’re up, Clary, get over here.” She jolted with surprise from the piling she’d been leaning against with Mabel, watching the explosions. “We’re mixin’ in your batch, you get to light these. C’mon, nothin’s gonna bite.” Stan nudged her into place at the right spot. “Right here, just start from the end of this row, there ya go.”

Clary lit four in succession, her grin incandescent in the reflected light of the down-angled lamp. “Good?”

“Good, now step back, kid!” The fuses were hissing fiercely and he half-turned to shield her as the sparks began to fly and the rockets went up, one-two-three-four, screech-flash-bang, chrysanthemum bursts of fractured light reflected in the cool black mirror of the lake. The squeal of delight she produced was nearly as high-pitched as Mabel’s. It was like teenage-girl stereo for a few seconds and Stan laughed, pointing down the line. “Nice! Next batch, go get ‘em!”

They settled into a comfortable rhythm with the last half of the shells. Ford flicked switches with a conductor’s grandiose concentration to fire off his carefully coordinated and ever-escalating barrage. Dipper scrambled up to stand on the cooler, swapping off between three different cameras to get both digital and film exposures.

Stan knelt with the spare punk as the orchestral track soared to its conclusion. With Clary’s help he set off an impressive, noisy and entirely random volley of the leftover rockets to wrap it up.

Once the echoes faded, they all settled back to listen to distant, ragged cheers from the shoreline.

All in all it was definitely one of his better shows.

Stan straightened, hands to hips as he flexed and grunted and felt something shift between his shoulderblades. All that craning to squint up at the sky took it out of a man. “Dipper, Mabel, I’ve got a last batch for you guys to light up, c’mon over. Saved some of the little ones.”

“Little ones?” Mabel was all indignation as Stan dragged over the last couple of racks. Ford unclipped wires by the fistful from the back of his console and jogged off along the dock with a flashlight to check for duds, humming in contentment.

“So maybe I’m a little more wrapped up in safety concerns than I used t’be. Maybe.” Stan made sure Ford’s line of sight was otherwise occupied, then held up a fat, foil-printed skyrocket and waggled it with a wink at Mabel and Dipper. “Let’s fire up this last handful.”

Clary spooled up trigger wire and watched in amusement as Stan handed off the punks and made sure both Mabel and Dipper got to fire off the remainder of the rockets. The two largest he held until last. Those went up with a rising screech and a deep boom, crackling showers of blue and purple sparks cascading down to sputter out before hitting the water.

Both the kids whooped in delight. Ford was startled enough to deliver a brief, stern lecture on safety protocol which Stan waved off. They’d all blown up bigger things than this and seriously Ford had no room to talk.

It was just about midnight when they finished loading the control setup into the El Diablo. The empty racks they left for pickup in the morning, given that everyone was all but swaying on their feet. The five of them draggled up to the car with the last couple of chairs and the cooler.

Clary and the kids packed themselves into the back, chatting sleepily about past Fourths and the best fireworks they’d ever seen. The conversation petered out as Dipper, then Mabel nodded off. Clary turned her tired gaze up to the front seat. “Very impressive, fellas. Never thought I’d get to participate in one of these personally.”

Despite the afternoon nap, Stan was pretty wiped out himself. Ford was still irritatingly alert and chirped up. “Where did you pick up on Sebelius, Clary? I didn’t know you were a fan of the classics.”

Clary settled a careful arm around Mabel, who’d tipped into her side. “I got stranded in Helsinki by a weather reroute last year. There wasn’t much to do at that hour so I just wandered and read everything I could find. Tulen Synty came up in something about the Kalevala.”

“Finland! We have that on the list for next year, perhaps Saimaa if the boat’s up to it. Were you out there for business or pleasure?”

Worn out as he was, Stan picked up on her momentary hesitation. “Some of both, I guess. I have family in Switzerland and I expect to be working in Zurich for a while come fall.”

“That the niece and nephew?” Stan nudged. “And your sister?”

Her eyes tracked to his in the mirror. “That’s the crew. I’ve got a mess of cousins in Alabama, but I can’t say the South ever really agreed with me.”

“Definitely didn’t agree with me. Pretty sure I’m still banned in everythin’ but Mississippi, and that’s because it was never worth my time to get into trouble in Mississippi.” That didn’t quite get a laugh, but he preferred the glimmer of her smile to that look of exhaustion.

Shame Switzerland’s land-locked, he thought absently, and kept her busy with some of the less embarrassing stories about his travels in Dixie until they made it home to the Shack.

tumblr: [00][01][02][03][04][05][06][07][08][09][10][11][12]

Ao3: [00][01][02][03][04][05][06][07][08][09][10][11][12]

She looks guilty, then defiant. “Are you going to help me fire these off or what?”

No way, she’s a potential liability.

Maybe she can help out with concessions.

Hell yes, let’s blow stuff up!