#before courtney came into my room and took my mind off of it

[lovaboy]

being emotionally dysregulated is made exponentially more fun when you're on your period and nearly burst into tears because twitter decided to kill a thread you'd been typing for half an hour

[cobaltperun]

Eternal Flame (2) - Those Eyes

Jenna Ortega x Female Reader

Summary: For her it’s a passion, for you it’s an accident. And as she continues shining brighter and brighter with each role you are left mesmerized, drawn to her flame and cherishing every time she lets herself be vulnerable with you.

Spotify playlist

Masterlist / First Part / Next Part

Word count: 6.1k

-I close my eyes and all I see is you and the small things you do-

Jenna couldn’t remember the last time she’s gotten this excited. Soon she’d turn eighteen, she was about to start filming Scream, meet several legends in person, work with people that already seemed like they were absolutely amazing, and, well, work with you. She walked into the hotel late at night, past ten o’clock, meaning she missed dinner, but she was excited nonetheless, barely feeling the hunger after hours of traveling.

“Hi, I’m sorry I’m checking in this late,” she gave her ID to the receptionist.

“Don’t worry about it, thank you for choosing our hotel,” the receptionist smiled politely, the entire cast basically booking the hotel was going to be profitable for it.

“Say, could you tell me where some of the others are? Which rooms I mean?” Jenna asked with a bit of a shy smile on her face.

He raised an eyebrow, and she knew she could just send a message, so yeah, in hindsight it probably didn’t make her seem like the smartest person around. “Sure,” he checked the papers and pulled out a map of the floor she was on. “You’re between Melissa and Mikey, and Jack and Dylan are also on your side of the floor. Mason, Y/N, Jasmin and Sonia are on the other side of the floor, Neve, Courtney and David are on the floor above you,” he told her and pointed at each room as he said the names. Room 23, she smiled but quickly reigned it in. The two of you have been texting on and off these past few weeks, and Jenna definitely felt the connection between you. It’s been so long since she made a friend close to her own age, and it really felt like the two of you were heading in that direction.

“Thank you,” she said and took key to her room, thankful that her stuff arrived before she did, so it was already waiting for her in her room. She went up the stairs to her room but just as she was about to unlock it she looked down the hall and changed her mind, heading right for your room first.

The number 23 on the door seemed almost intimidating for a moment, after all, she didn’t even send you a message to ask if you wanted to hang out. Still, she remembered all the texts you exchanged, the time you spent hanging out, eating lunch and dinner at the same place and then walking through the park and sitting on a bench, watching the sky. There was nothing to worry about. Nothing at all, so, she knocked and took one step back, waiting for you to open the doors.

And you did, you opened the doors dressed in sweatpants and light gray T-shirt. “Hey,” she smiled, stepping closer to you. “Sorry for dropping by unannounced,” she apologized and readily accepted it when you just pulled her in for a hug. It felt warm, welcoming, and Jenna felt herself sinking into that feeling.

“I’m glad you did,” you whispered as you pulled back and smiled brightly at her. There was nothing in your body language, not a single hint that you were annoyed, or that she interrupted you. She could only see genuine happiness to see her in your eyes, in the way your touch lingered, and how openly you moved to invite her in. “Come on, I’m sure you’re hungry,” your words took her by surprise.

A bit of her should have felt guilty, because in a way it made it sound like she just came to eat, but the promise of a meal instead of going to bed hungry made any guilt she could have felt disappear for the moment. “Sure, but how did you know?” she asked as you led her into your room and Jenna found herself looking around, especially since she didn’t get to see her own room. The room was simple, offering basic furniture, and each came with its own bathroom, it looked comfortable, and she noticed the final script lying on the table.

“Just a guess. I sent you a message a while ago to see if you were hungry,” you said and turned the stove on. Jenna felt heat rushing to her cheeks, she once again neglected her phone. She should probably send a message to her family. For now, she looked at you moving around the hotel room. From the looks of it the rooms came with small kitchen, enough for someone to make a simple meal, or heat up the leftovers, just so they wouldn’t have to go to the kitchen. Sometimes they could make meals themselves and sometime the hotel staff would take care of it, that was the deal from what Jenna heard. She was brought out of her thoughts by the smell that made her mouth water as you placed a small pot filled with rice pilaf with green peas and corn, and you must have added something else to it because it smelled incredible.

“Oh, I’m definitely hungry,” she said, and as if on cue her stomach confirmed her hunger and the two of you laughed. “Join me?” she asked as you heat up the pilaf, she grew up in a large family, often worked with a lot of people that usually had meals together at a designated large area, and she found that she hated eating alone, no matter how often it happened between projects.

“I guess I could,” you agreed, much to Jenna’s relief. “Could you set the table? There’s a few plates and utensils in the cupboard to my left,” you told her and it was just another reason Jenna felt comfortable around you. When she was with you it didn’t matter that she was an actress, you didn’t treat her like that automatically made her free to just sit and wait for you to serve a meal for her.

“Mhm,” she hummed and found the things you’d need for your rather late dinner. “Do you want me to take them to the table or wait until you fill the plates first?” she asked as you went to cut a tomato for a quick salad.

You paused for a moment. “Take them to the table,” you eventually decided and Jenna did it.

She turned toward you, catching herself watching your back as you spread a bit of vegan cheese over the tomato and seasoned it with a bit of salt. She noticed your movement, easy, relaxed, yet precise. That seemed to be your normal, just chill and easygoing, calming in a way, and she found it hard to imagine you being tense, or anxious. At least that’s how you looked to her from this close. You’ve shown her brief glimpses of nervousness, but it was just the regular amount, nothing out of the ordinary, and she found herself admiring that attitude.

Of course, she was yet to get to truly know you, but those were her first impressions.

“There,” you said as you finished preparing the salad and washed your hands on the sink before carrying the pot and the plate filled with the salad to the table where Jenna was waiting for you.

She watched you as you filled up the plates, your eyes met for a moment and you grinned, as if promising her she’d like the food. She knew she would, taste aside, though she had no doubt about that either, you took time to either get or make this for her, and she’d love it for that alone. She waited until you sat down, though with how hungry she was and how good the food smelled she found it really hard to resist. Finally, once you sat down she took a spoonful of the pilaf and hummed at how good it was. “Oh, this is amazing,” she praised and quickly turned to you. “Did you make this?” she could already guess the answer, but she still asked, almost astonished by how good it tasted.

“Yeah,” and that was all you really needed to tell her as you ate dinner at late hours of the night, on the first night of your stay at the hotel where you’d be filming Scream.

“Thank you, I really appreciate it,” Jenna told you once you emptied your plates, that fondness for you that’s been growing since meeting up in Los Angeles making her feel warm despite the slight chill of the late September night.

About an hour after she came into your hotel room her eyes widened and she quickly grabbed her phone. “Shit, mom will kill me,” she quickly sent a message to her mom, not wanting to interrupt her since she was at work at the moment.

She did it again, she lost track of everything while with you.

~X~

The birthday surprise sounded like a great idea, after all, you just had to hide it from Jenna for a couple of days. Nothing too bad, right? You underestimated just how difficult that was going to be. Especially since she seemed to like your company, and normally you’d be thrilled by that, but you were trying to surprise her for her birthday!

You also had to handle figuring out what she liked and didn’t like, or if there were any food allergies to worry about, or decision she may have made herself. And asking her about her preferences in sweets might be a bit too obvious. So, you did your best with what you had. Jenna mentioned she became a vegan a while ago in passing, so you knew that, and from what David told Melissa, Jenna wasn’t allergic to anything. So, there you were, in the hotel kitchen seeing what ingredients you had available and which one you were missing as you mentally went through different cakes you thought Jenna might like.

Making the cake would also be fairly easy. The kitchen was kinda bland, the regular dark gray kitchen, but it was spacious, and you would be able to easily get used to it. Most importantly, it looked like hiding the cakes would be easy. That was basically the deal, make two cakes so everyone can get a slice, Mikey and Melissa would handle some small appetizers, and that would be it. Get some non-alcoholic drinks, sing a song, and make sure not to overwhelm the girl, because you imagined that having a bunch of, basically, strangers, organize a huge surprise birthday party might be a bit overwhelming for anyone. And Jenna was already a bit shy and definitely introverted, so there was that too. You considered preparing a dinner, but between too many people being there and simply being unable to disappear for the whole day you gave up on that idea.

So, you were leaning on the counter, in the middle of flipping through the pages of your recipe notebook because you liked having hand-written notebook with recipes you’ve made and could comfortably claim were good. Remembering them was all well and good, but double checking was always a good choice. And then the kitchen doors opened.

“Oh, hi,” you heard Jenna’s voice and jumped, notebook flying up into the air as you tried to catch it. Only to just barely graze it with the tips of your fingers and have it land in front of Jenna’s feet. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you like that,” she quickly apologized when she got over the initial surprise, but you could see the amused smile on her face. You smiled back, seeing right through her, she was a bit proud of making you lose your composure, and well, you could respect that.

Well, it wasn’t that you were easily scared, you just did not expect her of all people. And you kinda panicked when the one you were meant to make a birthday cake for caught you in the kitchen! Even if you were yet to do anything. Especially since you kind of doubted you could lie to her, that’s how quickly she broke through any defense you may have had. “Right, that was,” you paused, leaning down to pick up your notebook. “Embarrassing,” you chuckled as you leaned back on the counter.

Jenna shrugged with a small smile on her face. “Please, do I need to remind you how many times I embarrassed myself, I think you’ll survive,” you could tell she was curious about the notebook. It was old, worn out, which was normal since it was half a decade old, a birthday gift from Barbara, s there was sentimental value to it as well.

“Oh, right, I forgot you were way worse,” you shrugged, the grin on your face giving away that you were joking.

Jenna frowned, and for a moment your heart skipped a beat. “Mhm, I’m sure I was,” she turned away from you and began looking for something in the kitchen.

You immediately backtracked. “Wait, please, I didn’t mean-“ but before you could finish you caught an amused look in her eyes, you still haven’t gotten to know her well enough to know for sure if she was joking, and she was still using that. It didn’t change the fact that you were still caught off guard by how expressive her eyes were. “Oh, you are sneaky,” you grinned.

“I’m looking for some fruit. You want some?” she asked you.

“I guess I could go for some fruit. There’s some canned pineapple in the storage, apples and bananas over there on that counter and some grapes and plums in the fridge,” you told her and she went over to the fridge.

“Grapes sound good,” she took a couple of smaller clusters and you pulled two bowls out. They were already washed so she just placed two clusters in each bowl. “Wanna eat them together?” she suggested, and you nodded with a grin, you quite enjoyed eating dinner with her last night, so you easily accepted sharing the fruit. So, you ended up following her through the halls into the dining hall, it wasn’t empty, but it wasn’t crowded either and you both greeted the few people you walked by.

You sat down next to Jenna and popped a grape into your mouth. “Did you get in trouble with your mom last night?” you asked and she shook her head.

“She understands, and I may have thrown you under the bus and said you held me up,” she revealed, clearly completely serious and you just froze with a grape in hand.

“Preposterous,” you huffed, and she raised an eyebrow. “Okay, maybe it is fair, but-“ yet before you could finish your sentence Jenna stole the grape in your hand and ate it. “Now that’s just uncalled for,” you blinked, taken aback by her boldness and Jenna just, she just laughed, leaning on your shoulder for support.

“You were saying?” she reminded you, but you just shrugged.

“Guess you’ll never know, thief,” you teased her just as your phone buzzed in your pocket, and you saw you were meant to go and prepare for the fight scene. Now, you were serious about your job, but a minute or two wouldn’t hurt, especially when you felt this at ease around Jenna, and you dared to say she felt the same way.

You moved on to the second cluster and your eyes widened a bit when you realized just how sweet it was. “Damn, these are really good!” without really thinking you split the cluster and dropped half of it in Jenna’s bowl.

“Wait, Y/N,” Jenna began protesting, even if she just stole a grape out of your hand, but you plucked the few grapes remaining on your cluster and got up to dispose of the trash.

You just winked at her. “Sorry, ma’am, duty calls,” you mock-saluted. “No, seriously, they need to go over the fight scene with me,” you made sure to explain and left the slightly embarrassed girl.

“Good luck!” Jenna exclaimed and you pumped your fist up in the air.

~X~

Two days later you were in the gym doing pull-ups when Melissa jogged in and looked around after she spotted you. “Good, you’re here, is everything set for Sunday?” she asked, not beating around the bushes in case Jenna somehow came in.

“Yeah, just need to actually make the cakes,” it wasn’t the first time Melissa came in to talk about the surprise while you were working out, and when she told you it was okay to just keep training you found no reason to go against that. You had about fifteen minutes left anyway. You dropped down after finishing the set and took a few deep breaths, next one would be tough.

“Great, and you’re sure she doesn’t suspect anything?” she asked, making you nod.

“Not one thing. So far so good, we’ve all been busy, especially her since she has the first half of the opening scene to film, so she hasn’t been paying attention to things that may have given the surprise away,” and there were few things. She bumped into Mikey and Jasmin after they did the shopping for the appetizers. She ended up walking into the kitchen while you were talking to the hotel staff about what you’d need to borrow, and even Melissa had a close call or two from what you heard from others.

Melissa nodded at that, satisfied with the answer. “I think having a birthday away from your closest loved ones, especially one as significant as the eighteenth birthday would make someone feel lonely, and she’s a lovely girl. I’d like her to feel appreciated,” Melissa confessed. You could see she almost immediately got attached to Jenna, and you were willing to bet she felt even a bit protective, so slipping into the role of the protective older sister definitely wouldn’t be difficult for Melissa.

Not that you could say anything, you’ve known Jenna for less than a month, chemistry test not included, and you couldn’t deny that you felt the say way Melissa did. You wanted Jenna to be happy and if you could do something to make her birthday feel better, you’d do it in a heartbeat.

“We’ll do everything we can to make her feel that way,” you confirmed, jumping up and grabbing onto the bar with only your right hand. You gritted your teeth, focused and did one-armed pull-up, ignoring the gasp Melissa let out. Yeah, you figured one-armed pull-ups were a bit impressive.

~X~

The first few days of filming, at least for you, were mostly used for preparations, going over the fight choreography and practicing the fights, so you barely filmed any scenes, though you and Jenna got through the scene you did for chemistry read. You were both definitely comfortable with one another, but you both also knew every other scene between you two from now on would rely on touch even more.

And surprisingly you were perfectly fine with it. And it wasn’t just that you were professionals doing your jobs, you really were comfortable with Jenna’s touch.

It wasn’t the touch that you were worried about, in fact the only scene you were truly worried about, as far as your own acting went, was the climax of the hospital scene. When your and Jenna’s characters are held by Ghostfaces, and your character gets shot while Tara has an asthma attack. Honestly, you were kind of dreading that scene. Not only would it be emotionally draining, but you felt like you were still not back to the performance level from Logan, having only been acting for a few days now, and you just weren’t sure of yourself. You knew, you understood that for the scene to be done well you and Jenna would have to give it your all, and make it not the sum of those two parts, but something bigger, better than that. At least the scene would be filmed over the span of three days so you hoped you could get your act together by then.

Right now, you and Jenna were settling down on the bed, with Keith, one of the stuntmen for Ghostface getting ready and putting the mask on.

“Are you comfortable?” you asked as Jenna lay down with her head on your chest. You could see the hint of a blush on her cheeks as she swallowed the lump in her throat and you hesitated to pt your arm around her like you were supposed to.

“I am, don’t worry,” she assured you, and she was honest, she really was, but deep down you could sense she needed reassurance. Yet you weren’t sure how to give it to her. “You? I can move a bit more to the side if you want?” she suggested, but you shook your head.

“I’m okay,” you looked down at your arm and she nodded, giving you the permission to hold her. It wasn’t like the couple of hugs you had, this was more intimate, would last longer, would probably be repeated a few times. While Jenna seemed to enjoy the hugs, you understood why she was nervous. It wasn’t even you in particular, but just being this close with someone, especially when it was the first scene like this for the two of you.

Matt and Tyler finishing giving instructions to everyone, the two of you closed your eyes, pretending to be asleep. Keith walked into the room, and you heard him stopping at the bottom of the bed. He paused, as he was meant to do. Since Amber was supposed to watch Tara and C/N for a bit and then try to kill your character.

Keith then moved, but bumped his foot on the bed and winced. “I’m okay,” he assured, and you opened you eyes, you’d have to start over anyway.

“I always feel like somebody's watching me! Who's playing tricks on me?” you sang, so abruptly Jenna began giggling and you laughed, soon enough the crew around you lost composure.

“I’m so sorry,” Jenna apologized as she struggled to control her giggles.

“Completely my fault,” you grinned, and you felt her relaxing significantly more, relaxing into your touch. You didn’t say anything, pretending not to notice the shift in her posture, as she was no longer trying to hold most of her weight on her side but properly leaned on you. Her eyes shone brightly as she finally stopped giggling and looked at you with a grin on her face.

There it was, the look you were hoping to see. The same way she looked at you when you weren’t filming.

“Okay, now that everyone is calm again, take two!” Matt instructed and the two of you and Keith got back into your positions.

Keith walked to your side of the bed, and you felt robes brushing against you, which was your cue. You moved quickly, just barely syncing with his movement and catching his wrist. You stayed like that for a few moments, letting your character process everything as Keith pretended, he was trying to push the knife into your chest to no avail.

Jenna opened her eyes and screamed, and it was impressive to say the least. And she quickly placed her hand between your chest and the tip of your knife. But more than that, the way she scream, the way she moved, you, even if only for a bit, felt the anger your character would be feeling in these circumstances.

So, you and Keith went through the practiced action scene of the day, first with the knee to his shoulder, and elbow to the guts, of course, just making it look like you were hitting him. You gently moved Jenna aside. “I’ll be right back,” and your eyes widened. That wasn’t meant to be the line!

“Cut!” Tyler exclaimed and you just sat up.

“Sorry about that,” you apologized to Jenna and Keith, and also the rest of the crew, but mostly to the two of them.

Jenna, however, seemed to have another idea. “Wait, isn’t that one of the rules? Don’t say ‘I’ll be back’?” she asked, and you could swear you saw lightbulbs lighting up above Matt and Tyler’s heads.

“You’re right! We’re keeping that in, get back into positions!”

And so, you did, getting it all just right in the next take.

~X~

Finally, Sunday, and with that Jenna’s eighteenth birthday came, and you would soon stop having to hide the truth from the younger actress. You figured she’d spend the morning on the call with her family, so she’d likely just grab a snack from the kitchen instead of eating breakfast with you like she did these past few days. Well, it wasn’t only with you, someone else was usually there as well, but she was always next or very close to you.

You were somewhat glad she would skip the breakfast with you, because keeping your eyes open seemed like an impossible task at the moment, and you kept almost dozing off at the table with your sandwich lying on the table, unwrapped and barely touched. Seeing how many times you jerked awake it really was good that Jenna wouldn’t see you in this state.

Though, maybe you underestimated how used Jenna got to eating with you.

“Hi!” she dropped onto the seat next to you with a light breakfast, just some cereal and a French toast, and even as sleepy as you were you could tell she was in a really good mood.

“Morning, Jen,” you, however yawned, seeing as you spent most of the last night making the cakes and didn’t really get any sleep. You’d have to take a nap later, but more importantly you were surprised Jenna was here instead of sleeping in or something. It was seven in the morning! It was her birthday! Did that mean nothing to her?

“Long night?” she asked, both concerned and amused by the state you were , and if you weren’t so sleep deprived maybe you would have noticed that she was holding back on telling you something.

“Yeah,” you felt like it would be easier to bench a thousand pounds than it was to keep your head from dropping onto the table. If it was any other week you’d be fine, but between making the cakes, long workouts, action-heavy scenes, as well as practicing for them, and pure mental exhaustion brought on by your high expectations of yourself you were just about ready to drop.

And Jenna noticed that. She placed a comforting hand on your shoulder and squeezed lightly. “Hey, hey look at me,” she whispered gently. “Go back to bed, okay? Do it for me?” well now, who were you to refuse such a sweet and genuine request.

“You’re the boss,” you began packing your sandwich, but Jenna placed her hand over your own, taking the task over. “Sorry,” you apologized but she just smiled at you, and you could see she didn’t mind doing it.

“Come on, let’s get you back to your bed,” she place your sandwich on her tray, picked it up and took your hand, slowly guiding you back to your room.

“Jen,” you nearly wished her happy birthday, it was on the tip of your tongue, but you weren’t about to ruin the surprise. “Thanks,” instead you just thanked her, hoping that one word would be enough to show that you really, genuinely appreciated her doing this for you as you unlocked your doors and stumbled to the bed, not even bothering to lay down properly.

You still felt a blanket covering you and a soft hand lifting your head up just enough to put a pillow underneath it.

~X~

The entire cast let the day go on as usual, just chilling out together and getting to know each other. Not once did you hear anyone wish happy birthday to Jenna, so you figured she didn’t tell anyone and was just going along with the day as if it was any other. Though, she did spend some time in her room, on a call with her family. You were glad it happened to be Sunday, she deserved to rest on her birthday.

By the time the dinner was approaching you were making sure everything was set, the appetizers, the birthday cakes, you went with an icy wind cake, using layers of kiwi, banana, strawberry and blueberries on the very top. It was a cake your neighbor taught you how to make while you were still a teen, and considering you found out that Jenna did like most fruits you figured this was a good choice.

“Is everything ready?” Melissa asked as her, Mason and Jasmin came in, ready to help you bring everything out.

“Yeah, just lighting the candles,” you said, lighting the candles on both of the round cakes.

“You know, I think she’ll love this,” Mason commented as he and Jasmin took the plates with appetizers, while you and Melissa took one cake each.

“I sure hope so, it was a pain in the ass to hide this from her,” Jasmin laughed and nudged you with her elbow. “Especially for you.”

“Don’t remind me,” you chuckled, thinking back to the many times Jenna nearly stumbled into the surprise you all were preparing for her.

Jasmin opened the doors for the four of you while Mikey kept Jenna distracted and with her back turned to the door you would come through. And then, when she saw the four of you, she grinned. “And, three, two, one!” she exclaimed as everyone else from the cast began clapping and all of you began singing ‘Happy birthday’ to Jenna.

Poor girl looked around wide-eyed, completely taken aback with a dark blush covering her cheeks. “Oh my god!” she hid her face in her hands, something you noticed she did whenever she felt shy and embarrassed.

“Someone remembered your birthday,” Melissa motioned toward David “And we had to celebrate it,” she set the cake down on the table and patted Jenna on the shoulder to comfort her.

“Thank you!” Jenna quickly hugged her and got up, going to Jasmin and Mason and hugging them as well, as you were still busy placing the cake next to the one Melissa left on the table. The moment your hands were free from the cake she quickly hugged you, keeping her hold on you firm and tight as she nuzzled against your shoulder. “Thank you, thank you so much,” she whispered before going on to hug each and every person in the room.

You took a camera from Mikey and gestured toward it as Jenna got ready to blow the candles. “Please,” she gave you the permission and you snapped a few photos as she blew the candles out and then handed the camera back to Mikey so she could handle taking the photos. You and Melissa had another task, to cut the cakes since Jenna was still a bit too shocked by all of this.

“Here, birthday girl,” you grinned as you gave her the first piece and she playfully rolled her eyes at the name before taking the plate.

“This looks amazing, where did you even get it?” she asked as she waited for everyone else to get a piece. And then the realization hit her when she saw your grin. “No way!”

“Apparently someone was cast too perfectly for her role,” Mikey teased you a bit as you handed her the piece. “Y/N made them,” she confirmed what Jenna already figured out Jenna just looked at you, her eyes looking into your soul and heart as you shrugged.

“I never said my cooking is limited to basics,” you grinned handing out the last few pieces to whoever didn’t have their piece. There was maybe a sixth of the second cake left by the time you were done. As you set the knife down you felt a hand on your wrist and you turned around, and before you could register what was going on Jenna pulled you in for another hug. “Thank you, you shouldn’t have, but thank you,” she whispered as you hugged her back.

“Don’t mention it,” you told her softly. The two of you went and sat down and began eating the cake.

Jenna hummed at the taste, and you couldn’t hold back a proud grin on your face. “This is amazing! You have to give me a recipe,” she wasn’t asking for it, she damn near demanded it.

“Sure, but I have to try it when you make it,” you said, pulling out your phone and typing the recipe from memory.

Jenna shook her head. “I can’t make this, but my mom can,” she explained, causing you to nod.

“There, sent it,” you told her after a few minutes and then you just enjoyed the celebration, which quickly turned into a chaotic fun as Mason and Jack tried to get the projector to work so you could all watch a movie.

“When is your birthday?” Jenna asked, watching fondly as the chaos ensued in the room.

“Don’t know,” you smirked teasingly.

“Come on, tell me,” she persisted, even going as far as to lean closer to you to try and get you to talk.

“I’m telling you, I don’t know. Mom was Chinese zodiac enthusiast, dad hated everything, so all I know is I’m born in the year of the metal dragon. Yes, metal dragon was very important to her, so much so that she waited nine years to have me,” you said it so confidently, so casually, that you wouldn’t blame someone if they took you seriously.

“Y/N,” Jenna warned you teasingly.

“Enjoy the day, I’ll tell you tomorrow. I was born in the year of the dragon though, that isn’t a lie,” you assured her, and though she pouted, she sighed and accepted that trying to get that information out of you right now was more than likely futile.

“Thanks again, for making the cakes for me,” she said, leaning slightly on your shoulder as the movie finally started.

“Anytime, Jen,” you whispered.

“Wait, so that’s why you were sleepy this morning!” she suddenly realized, and you just laughed, pulling her in for a one-armed hug as she pouted at you.

“Thanks for taking care of me, by the way,” you told her, hoping she would know this was fine, that you were more than happy to do this, and that given the chance you’d do it again.

~X~

When you came back to your room a few hours later it was after everyone was done with the celebration. It probably could have went on for a bit longer, but you all had to go back to filming in the morning so no more partying for any of you, that was for sure.

Your phone buzzed in your pocket, and you raised an eyebrow, not a lot of people called you. You took it from your pocket and grinned, answering immediately.

“Well, hello there!” you fell back on the bed, your day just got even better, if that was possible.

“Hey kid, got anything you’d like to share?” you could hear the teasing, as well as pride in Hugh’s voice. He already knew, you could tell that much, but he wanted to hear it from you as well.

“Back to filming, but you already knew that,” you wondered if you could live up to it, to his expectations. What were his expectations anyway?

“Yes, Tom told me,” you actually met Tom through Hugh, so of course Tom would tell him. “Just take it easy, okay? I know you’ve got a lot on your mind right now, all the pressure you might be feeling, just know that what matters the most is that you are happy while doing this job,” that was the same logic he had back when he advised you while you were filming Logan. Love your job, love portraying your characters and if possible, love your characters as well. Love them enough to come back and play them again if needed. That, aside from teaching you to take your time with things, was the most valuable lesson Hugh taught you about acting.

“I’ll try, I just, I feel like I need to follow Logan up with something incredible,” you admitted, and you both knew what you meant. It wasn’t about awards, or about the audience reception, it was about the experience making it, because Logan was truly something special for you as a child.

“You will, I’m sure you’re getting to know people that will help you turn it into something like that,” he assured you and you smiled, given how the past couple of days went you actually believed him.

Masterlist / First Part / Next Part

Taglist: @lilbitdepressed27 @freakshow2501

[nightwriter357]

Just friends - Those two are so obvious

Soo.. here's part two of my Damien Haas x reader story called 'Just friends'. I'm really enjoying writing this and I hope you guys don't mind that the chapters are a bit shorter than usual.

Love you all xxx

Those two are so obvious

You sat on the couch with your roommates, Damien and Shayne, finally winding down for Friday night. The comforting hum of the television filled the room, punctuated only by the occasional laughter from Shayne or the soft clinking of ice in your drink. It was a rare relief after a long week, and you were soaking it in, savoring every sip as you leaned back into the plush cushions. The chaos of work and responsibilities faded away, leaving just the three of you in this cozy bubble.

Shayne glanced at his phone, swiping through messages before looking up with a thoughtful expression. “So... I was thinking—if it’s cool with you guys—that I might have Courtney over tonight?” His tone was casual, but you could sense the hint of excitement in his voice.

You and Damien exchanged a look, eyebrows raised. Damien leaned forward with a smirk. "Sooo... like a date?"

Shayne's face scrunched in protest. "No, more like a movie night on the couch."

You took a sip, nodding as if pondering deeply. "Oh, so like... a date?"

Rolling his eyes, Shayne waved a hand. "No, not a date—just two friends watching a movie. Like you two did last week."

You tilted your head, your smirk growing. "Totally different. Damien and I didn't cuddle and gaze into each other's eyes."

Shayne shot you a pointed look. "Yeah? Because I came home to find you two fast asleep in each other's arms on this exact couch."

You nudged his arm defensively. "Hey, that was different. I was... sad."

Shayne huffed a laugh. "Yeah, because of the emotional depth of 'Shallow Hal'?"

Damien rested a hand on your shoulder, shaking his head in solidarity. "No, the whole concept of the movie was sad."

You looked back at Damien, nodding with mock seriousness. "Exactly."

Shayne shook his head, still smiling. "So... can I invite her over?"

"Of course," you said, waving him off. "We'll clear out, maybe have a movie night of our own."

Damien's eyes lit up. "Oh, definitely."

Shayne grinned. "Good. 'Cause she's already on her way."

You leaned back with a smirk. "So what would you have done if we'd said no?"

Shayne didn't miss a beat, shrugging with a deadpan expression. "Killed you."

There was a beat of silence as the words hung in the air, then Damien let out a laugh, nudging you. "Well," he chuckled, "guess we dodged a bullet."

You snorted, giving Shayne a look. "Good to know where we stand."

The two of you headed into Damien's room, where he quickly shuffled around, clearing some space on the bed. He turned back to you, gesturing around the room. "Alright, so what's the plan?"

You folded your arms, already plotting. "We spy on them, gather intel, then nudge the conversation in the right direction until they're planning a wedding. April Fool's Day, obviously."

Damien raised a brow. "Of course—April Fool's Day. Any reason?"

You looked back at him and shrugged. "It would be funny."

He grinned. "Can't argue with that. Alright, what's step one?"

You leaned forward, voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper, as if plotting some grand heist. "Wait for her to show up," you said, eyes gleaming with mischief. "Then we peek out and assess. Get a vibe check... and when the moment's right, we go out there and nudge them in the right direction."

Damien glanced at the floor with a chuckle. "So... You and I are spending the night crouched on my floor?"

You shrugged, playful. "Kind of your dream night, huh?"

He rolled his eyes, but his smile softened. "Not... too far off."

Damien handed you a pillow, which you placed under your elbows on the floor. His shoulder pressed lightly against yours as you both leaned into the doorway, his hand steadying you as you adjusted for a better view.

Courtney's knock broke the quiet, and Shayne scrambled up, fussing with his hair before heading to the door. You shared a smirk with Damien as the two of you huddled in his doorway, peeking through a small crack.

"Here we go," you whispered, already fighting back a laugh.

Shayne pulled open the door, giving Courtney a too-casual "Hey." She stepped inside, giving a friendly smile.

"Hey! Where is everyone?" she asked, looking around.

"They're, uh hanging out in their rooms... ," Shayne replied, shrugging. "So, it's just us tonight."

Damien leaned in close to whisper, "Oh, he's playing it cool."

You rolled your eyes, grinning. "If 'cool' means obvious."

They settled on the couch, a cautious gap between them as they started chatting about the most random topics—music, the weather, a funny story about Ian from last week. They were trying too hard, and it was obvious.

Damien nudged you, his arm brushing yours as he tilted his head toward Shayne and Courtney. "You see the popcorn bowl? Not a single move toward it. Classic sign of 'we're just friends.'"

You stifled a laugh, shaking your head. "They're keeping so much distance, it's painful. I mean, who sits that far apart on a couch?"

You exchanged a look, then turned back to the "show" on the couch, both leaning even closer to watch Shayne nervously fidget with his glass. When Courtney finally nudged him, he jumped like she'd shocked him.

"Oh, look," Damien murmured. "We've got an arm touch. Monumental progress."

You bit your lip to keep from laughing as Shayne looked like he was holding his breath, his eyes glued to his drink, while Courtney seemed perfectly at ease. "Poor guy's panicking," you whispered. "He is basically packing up and moving into the friendzone."

They kept talking, Shayne leaning back and stretching his arm along the back of the couch—near Courtney, but not quite touching her.

"Textbook," Damien said, barely able to contain his grin. "That's him definitely not putting his arm around her."

You leaned even closer to Damien, squeezing into the small doorway space, your shoulders brushing again. For a second, you thought you heard Shayne mention your names, but they quickly shifted the conversation.

"Do you think they're talking about us?" you whispered, pressing your ear closer.

Damien leaned down too, his cheek right next to yours. "Probably, I mean it's an interesting topic of conversation, right?"

"Of course," you snickered, watching as Shayne and Courtney's laughter softened, their voices dropping a little.

You both froze as the silence from the living room stretched out, watching as they glanced at each other, then away. You couldn't help but notice how the whole situation felt eerily familiar.

"They're really going for the 'friends who stare at each other occasionally' approach," Damien whispered.

"Totally normal, just two friends, hanging out. Just the two of them watching a bad romantic comedy on a friday evening, totally platonic" you replied, your words trailing off as you both focused on the scene in front of you.

In the quiet, you and Damien watched, barely breathing, heads close, his shoulder brushing yours as he leaned in. You could feel his breath as he shifted a little to peek over your shoulder, but neither of you moved an inch away.

"Think they'll make a move?" he asked, his eyes drifting from the scene on the couch to linger on you instead

You shrugged lightly, rolling your eyes and missing his glance.  "Not likely. Those two are so obvious, it's painful. I mean, how can you be so clueless? How can she not see that he likes her?"

Damien swallowed, his eyes still fixed on you "Yeah... how can she not?"

He paused for a moment, deep in thought, before an idea seemed to spark in his eyes. "I should totally go out there and give Shayne a little push. He clearly needs it."

You raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Oh? And how do you plan to do that?"

Damien straightened up, a playful glint in his eyes. "You'll see," he declared, his tone light but determined. "Wish me luck!"

You watched him leave, a grin creeping onto your face as you stayed back and observed from the doorway.

As you peeked in, you could hear Damien's voice, a hint of nervousness in his tone. "So, uh, you know, I once knew these people..." He paused, glancing between Shayne and Courtney like he was piecing it together as he went along. "They were great friends who spent so much time together, and then one day, they realized they had feelings for each other. It was kind of wild, right?" He shot a glance at you, clearly trying to gauge if this was working.

Courtney raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued, but Shayne seemed oblivious, focused on the movie. You held your breath, hoping it would spark something.

Damien continued, leaning forward slightly. "It's amazing how easy it can be to miss the signs. You could be hanging out, laughing, and then suddenly you realize—hey, maybe this could be something more." He glanced at you again, a hint of vulnerability in his expression. You gave him an encouraging nod from the doorway, urging him to keep going.

"Speaking of that," Damien pressed on, his voice steady but earnest, his eyes flickering between you and Courtney. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, his hands fidgeting in front of him. "I'm in this situation.. right now. With someone I really like, but we're just friends." He hesitated, running a hand through his hair, a nervous gesture that betrayed his confidence. "I mean, I would hate to lose what we have. It means so much to me."

As he spoke, he crossed his arms tightly, a protective barrier around himself. "What if we tried to take it further and things didn't work out? I'd be terrified of messing everything up." He sighed deeply, uncrossing his arms and letting his hands fall to his sides, a gesture of surrender. "Sometimes it feels safer to just stay as friends, you know? I keep thinking about all the fun we have together, and I wouldn't want to ruin that by making things weird."

That caught Shayne's attention. "Dude, that's complicated," he said, finally pulling himself from the screen.

You bit your lip, wanting to jump in but deciding to let Damien lead for now.

"Exactly!" Damien replied, turning back to Courtney. "If you were in a similar situation, what would you do? I mean, how do you even tell someone that you want more? There's always that risk of it going south and losing the friendship. I don't know if I could handle that."

Courtney leaned forward, her expression turning serious. "Well, I'd probably want to make sure the feelings are mutual before making a move," she said thoughtfully. "But at the same time, if you really care about the friendship.. maybe it isn't worth it"

You felt a surge of anxiety as Damien's words seemed to sway Courtney, and it hit you that he might be convincing her to reconsider her feelings. 

Just then, you decided it was time to make your presence known. "Speaking of feelings, I'm feeling... up for snacks" you called out, stepping into the room.

You stepped into the room with a bright smile, blurting out, "You two make such a good team. It's great to see friends who get along so well. You should definitely hang out more, just the two of you."

With a playful urgency, you practically dragged Damien back toward the doorway, your heart racing as you tried to shift the energy in the room. "Come on, let's grab some snacks! We need to keep our energy up for the next round of movie watching!" You flashed a hopeful grin at Courtney, hoping to lighten the mood.

Damien looked at you, confusion and gratitude flashing in his eyes, as if he was thankful for your interruption. "Uh, yeah, snacks sound great," he said, following your lead with a slightly bewildered smile.

As you pulled him away towards his bedroom, you could hear courtney from the couch, "Are they drunk?"

Shayne nodded with a serious expression on his face, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Yes. Yes, they are," he replied, glancing back at you two with a smirk that hinted at his amusement.

You closed the door behind you, the soft click of the latch creating a small barrier from the outside world. Lowering your voice, urgency creeping in, you turned to Damien, your hands resting on your hips. "What were you thinking in there? You were about to talk Courtney out of making a move!"

Damien chuckled nervously, running a hand through his hair again, his fingers trembling slightly as they brushed through the strands. He shifted his weight from foot to foot, a sign of his lingering tension. "I didn't mean to, I just... I got caught up in it."

You smiled at him, your playful confidence returning. "Well, at least I totally saved it."

He looked back at you, a hint of mischief  in his eyes as he tilted his head. "Oh yeah? I beg to differ," he said, a teasing grin breaking through the remnants of his earlier unease.

You crossed your arms, leaning against the wall with a smirk. "You know, you're as bad as Shayne when it comes to this stuff. Seriously, do you even know how to flirt?"

Damien's eyes widened in mock horror. "Absolutely not true! I can flirt!"

"Oh yeah?" you challenged, raising an eyebrow. "Show me then. How would you seduce someone?"

He paused for a moment, his playful grin turning more confident as he stepped closer, invading your personal space just enough to make your heart race. The intensity in his gaze sent a jolt through you. You felt a strange flutter in your stomach, something you couldn't quite name.

"Alright, watch and learn," he said, leaning in slightly, lowering his voice. "You've got to make them feel special, you know?" He reached out, lightly brushing your arm with his fingers, letting his touch linger a moment longer than necessary. You swallowed hard, your breath hitching as a shiver ran down your spine.

"It's all about connection," he continued, his gaze locking onto yours. "Then you lean in and give them a compliment." He hesitated, and you could feel the tension. "Like, I don't know, you look really fucking great tonight."

You felt your cheeks warm at his words, an unfamiliar flutter in your stomach. Had he really just said that? "Okay, not bad," you replied, trying to sound nonchalant. "I mean, you don't have the ooze that I do but I guess that's a fine start" 

Just as you both laughed, your phone buzzed on the table, breaking the moment. You glanced at the screen, your heart sinking as you saw it was a text from your ex.

"Hey, we should probably meet up next week. I need to get my stuff back. Don't want to drag this out any longer. You know how it is."

You felt the weight of his words and the emotions they stirred inside you. Without thinking, you sank to the floor, your back resting against the door. The moment felt so fragile, and you hated the reminder of your past.

Damien followed you down, sitting beside you on the floor.

You grimaced, feeling a mix of annoyance and reluctance. "Ugh, look at this. He wants to meet up next week to exchange our things."

Damien furrowed his brow, his expression shifting to concern as he leaned closer to read the text. He reached out, gently taking your hand in his, his warmth grounding you amid the chaos. "What an idiot," he said, shaking his head in disbelief. "You know you don't have to see him, right?"

You sighed, feeling a mix of frustration and hurt. "I'll be fine. I just wish he hadn't left me for somebody else. It just makes me feel like trash."

"Like I said... idiot," Damien replied, his voice firm, a hint of anger bubbling beneath the surface. His grip tightened slightly on your hand.

After a beat, you leaned your head on his shoulder, finding comfort in his presence. You glanced around the room, a small chuckle escaping your lips. "So... you and I are spending the night crouched on your floor?"

He shrugged, a playful smile creeping onto his face as he looked down at you. "Kind of my dream night," he said, his voice softening, a hint of sincerity shining through.

[libbylubb]

The baby - Angela Giarratana

“So she told you to do this?” Chance asked, an eyebrow raised. “Yeah!” Angela smiled, rocking baby cho in her arms. “Y/n is almost 8 months pregnant, I want to make sure I don’t torture our baby girl when she’s here,” Angela explained. Chance rolled his eyes and walked off, Courtney didn’t leave though. She stood in front of Angela, cooing at the fake baby. She looked behind Angela and smiled, “speaking of…” Angela turned around to face you, a very pregnant lady, exhausted and in pain. “Sweetie, what are you doing here? How did you get here?” Angela asked, giving baby Cho to Courtney so she could give her attention to you. “I think you ju-“ “hush, Courtney. Baby, what’s going on?” Angela asked, cupping your cheeks. “I got bored… so I took the bus to get here. And I want a massage…” you mumbled, leaning into her touch. “You should be at home, resting. Plus I’m only half way into my day,” you pouted, but looked over at Courtney and baby Cho. “Awwww! I know he’s not real, but he’s adorable and it does not help,”

Angela let you stay, she did miss you as well. Plus you could help out with baby Cho. As of now. Angela was doing a live stream at the moment so she left the baby with you. “Aw, you had your baby?” Alex asked you. You pointed to your belly. “Does it look like it?” You asked, a bit naggy. “Wow, sorry,” he mumbled and walked off. You sighed as Shayne sat down beside you, taking baby Cho from you. You looked at him, “careful,” you pointed a finger at him. “Yes yes yes of course, but hey! I guess yours and Angela’s baby will be the real Smosh baby,” Shayne pointed out. You hummed and leaned your head back in the chair, stroking your belly. “She will, I just hope she’ll be easier for me than she is now. Cause boi, does she take a toll on my energy level,” you laughed a little, opening your eyes and lifting your head to make eye contact with Angela. She gave you a small smile before turning back to the convo.

“Have you thought of a name yet?” Shayne asked. You shrugged, “baby Chosy?” You laughed, he laughed as well. “No, but we have thought of some names. April, Diana, Carrie… but those names give off so different vibes I think we have to see the baby before we can decide,” you explained. “I understand, Carrie is really nice,” you nodded, stroking your belly with a smile. “It is, but soon we’ll see what her name shall be,” you giggled at your rhyming before you felt a pain in your stomach.

You bit your lip, “fuck,” Shayne looked at you, “what’s wrong? Should I get Angela?” He asked, sitting up in his seat, ready to sprint anywhere. “No, no, it’s fine. It’s just false labor,” “Labor!?” Shayne shouted. “Nooo, false,” you explained. But he was already shouting out that you were in labor. “Shayne! Get your ass down. I’m fine!” You tried to drag him down. Angela came rushing to your. “Hey, baby, I want you to breathe.” “Angela, what are you talking about?” You asked, confused as the room suddenly got thick. “You’re going into labor,” she explained. “Girl, don’t even try to mansplain. I know what’s going on, the doctor said it was completely normal,” you told her, stroking her cheek. “I still think we should go to the hospital,” she said, grabbing her keys from her jacket on the chair. Keep in mind while this was happening, the stream was still going. Though no one was in the chairs.

“babe, we don’t have that kind of money. We can’t afford another doctors visit,” you told her, trying to calm her. Angela took a deep breath, looking into your eyes. “I don’t care, come on,” she managed to get you in the car and drive off to the hospital. She also contacted your doctor, who would be ready for you the second you came into the building. You sighed, “it doesn’t hurt anymore, I’m fine Angela. Can we just go home?” You pleaded, placing your hand high up in her thigh. She jolted a little. You smirked, “shh, baby, don’t be scared. Let me please you,” you stroked her thigh. She was about to give in, however she had already parked the car.

Do you think it’s false labor? Or are you and Angela about to have your angel?

If you want another part lemme know, and definitely what should happen next😼

[natalynsie]

Candy (Noco Oneshot)

Cody’s afternoons consisted of normal teenage things. Playing video games, doing homework, and thinking about Gwen.

So, a usual Thursday afternoon, Cody was laying in bed, watching a youtube video but not fully paying attention, and thinking about Gwen.

He thought about how she looked today in Spanish, and the things she said, all the typical stupid delusional teenage boy things that consumed Cody’s life.

Yeah. By this point, Cody knew he had no shot with Gwen. He stopped flirting with her for the most part. And they were chill as friends. Well, more like acquaintances. Either way, he stopped all of that because at this point he knew he was being annoying. But that didn’t stop him from thinking about her.

Cody yawned and turned off his phone.

Spanish was great. Cody loved sitting behind Gwen. When the teacher wasn’t being a stickler, Cody had a good time talking to Trent, Gwen, and Noah. And he did. And Gwen looked so good. She put her hair up in a half-up-half-down and she couldn’t have looked cuter. Cody was 79% sure she caught him staring.

Cody rubbed his eyes, adjusting his pillow.

Noah looked pretty cute too. He wore jeans today, and this cute little button-up shirt. Cody wondered why Noah had dressed so nicely these past few weeks. Whatever it was, Cody was not complaining. He didn’t mind a little eye candy.

In English that morning, they played grammar games. It was table versus table, and the winners each round got candy. If that wasn’t a motivator, Cody didn’t know what was.

Unfortunately, the rest of the class thought the same way.

“The second sentence should have a comma. You need to move you’re in the way. should have a comma between move and you’re. Congratulations to Eva’s table.”

Eva smirked at Cody and his table.

Ms. Brown walked to Eva’s table with a bowl of candy.

“Thank you Ms. Brown,” Harold said dryly. Leshawna, Ezekiel, and Eva just responded by taking their candy.

“You won this time Eva, but we will be victorious!” Izzy exclaimed.

“Calm down Izzy,” Noah suggested.

Izzy shook her head at Eva before returning her eyes to her own table with Noah and Cody.

“We gotta step up our game, guys,” Cody heard Courtney say from another table with Duncan and Alejandro. Cody turned his attention to Trent’s table, but it seemed he, Tyler, and Justin weren’t really interested. The other two tables did seem in-the-game, though.

“Okay, gameplan,” Noah began. “Me and Izzy do the work. Cody checks us over if we get our paper returned. Owen gives the paper to Ms. Brown when we tell him to because he sits the closest. Ready?”

“Wow, Noah. I didn’t know you liked candy that much,” Izzy expressed.

“Yeah, I thought you weren’t big on sweets,” Owen confessed.

“I’m just competitive,” Noah stated.

“No, you aren’t,” Cody replied. “You’re in my gym class. I’ve never even seen you touch a dodgeball.”

Noah crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair. He took a quick glance at Cody before looking away. “I’m just into the game.”

“Ohhh,” Owen smiled. “I get it.”

“Get what?” Cody asked.

Owen laughed. “Nothing.”

Cody remained confused, but brushed it off. “Well I’m glad you’re doing whatever you’re doing, because I love candy.”

“We know,” Noah stated.

“I didn’t,” Izzy told the group.

Ms. Brown handed out the new papers. “Three, two, one, turn your papers over.”

Papers all around the room were immediately turned over.

Cody watched as Izzy and Noah stared at the paper, analyzing every word.

"Capital," Noah deadpanned, scratching the paper with his pencil.

Izzy made some changes all well before Noah handed the paper to Owen.

Owen charged for the teacher's desk, but unfortunately he came back with the paper. "We got the first 3 right but we're missing something."

"Cody," Noah said, shortly.

Cody nodded and immediately took the paper. "You forgot punctuation here," Cody pointed to a spot that read "I asked for a ham sandwich" he said. "Wait. Comma or period?"

"Comma," Noah answered quickly. "Dialogue with dialogue tags after it always has a comma instead of a period."

Cody quickly added a comma and handed the paper back to Owen.

After skimming two other papers Ms. Brown took Owen's.

"Good job. Owen's team wins this round."

Ms. Brown explained why Noah's team won, a few groans at simple mistakes were heard around the room.

Ms. Brown took the candy bowl and let the group each take a piece.

Cody quickly grabbed a green apple jolly rancher and popped it in his mouth.

"I can't believe you like green apple," Noah stated, twirling his snickers bar between his middle and pointer finger.

"It's the best flavor, no questions asked," Cody responded.

Noah rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Want my chocolate?"

"Really?"

"I wouldn't say it if I wasn't offering."

"Okay. Sure." Cody took Noah's snickers, smiling widely.

Noah smiled back.

Cody sat up in bed. He looked at the clock for a moment before staring back at his wall.

When the hell did I start thinking about Noah?

How did he get from Gwen to Noah? He was just thinking about how beautiful Gwen looked and all the things she did today and then he started thinking how beautiful Noah looked and all the things he did today.

And Noah looked so beautiful today.

Why was Cody thinking about how beautiful his friend was?

"Fuck," Cody whispered. "I like him"

Cody laid back down. He liked him. He liked Noah. Of all people.

And why? Because he wore a goddamn button-up shirt and gave him a candy bar in English. Izzy really was right when she said his type was girls who are mean to him and boys who are nice to him.

Cody did not need to like a boy. That was not something he needed to do. Especially with his parents.

Well to look on the bright side, maybe this would help him get over Gwen. Hopefully. But he hoped it wouldn't give him another useless unrequited crush.

Either way, this was a problem for morning Cody.

[artificialqueens]

🏳️‍🌈 Bianca Doesn't Like Being Touched (Bitney) - BiancaDelRioIsTheBest 

Bianca Del Rio doesn't like being touched, so why does she like it so much when she and Courtney touch each other.

"Rule number 1 broken, never touch me". Bianca joked on stage with an irritated face as Courtney hugged her. "Oh, you don't mind touch that much". Courtney said staring at Bianca lovingly. "Yeah, it's just your touch I hate". Bianca then said, then wrapped her arm around Courtney's waist. Courtney laughed and placed her hand right on Bianca's padded ass, shocking her a little but not enough to have a physical reaction.

Once they finished the show, and were in somewhat of a private space, they got to talking about the show. "Show went well, didn't it?". Courtney asked. "Yeah everything went according to plan, except the part where you grabbed my ass". Bianca said in a jovial tone. "Oh yeah I forgot you hate when I touch you". Courtney said jokingly. "You couldn't control yourself could you?, you whore". Bianca asked. "You liked it, didn't you?". Courtney told her. "Bitch please!, don't flatter yourself". Bianca scoffed. Courtney started walking towards her. "No, go on, admit it, you liked it". Courtney said. "And what makes you think that?". Bianca asked. "All the other times I've ever touched you. Including last night and earlier today, right before the show. I see you tried to cover those". Courtney simply said, pointing out the partially covered hickeys spotting Bianca's neck.

Bianca blushed under her layers of foundation and moved her hand to hide her neck. Courtney caught her hand before it reach its destination. "Don't be embarrassed, I'm proud of my work on you". Courtney said caressing Bianca's torso then kissing her on the cheek and on top of the still sensitive hickeys. Bianca's eyes shuddered close at the feeling. "Oh Courtney!". She moaned, putting her hand on top of Courtney's. "Let's go somewhere private". Courtney suggested, pulling Bianca with her.

Once they were in Courtney's hotel room she instantly had Bianca against the wall in a passionate kiss, with no protest from said queen. Their lips felt like magic against each other. Bianca's eyes rolled in pleasure as Courtney moved from her lips down to the other side of her neck, producing new hickeys on to the sensitive skin. She took hold of Courtney's waist to bring their bodies closer together and held her tightly.

Courtney stopped her movement and looked directly into Bianca's glazed over eyes. "You want it badly, don't you pussyface?". Courtney asked. "Yes, I want it bad, I want those lips all over me". Bianca responded and kissed her lips.

Courtney got on her knees, lifted the ends of Bianca's dress, opened Bianca's bodysuit, then peeled her tights off. Which revealed Bianca's erection behind her underwear. She palmed the other queen through that one layer and watched as her eyes rolled back. She then took off said fabric and took hold of Bianca's shaft and stroked her hand up and down as she listened to her breathing get faster.

Courtney licked her lips and took Bianca into her mouth. Moving her tongue and lips against the hard member in slow ministrations, still stroking with her hands.

Bianca was losing her mind as Courtney slid her lips around her cock, sliding her tongue and sucking in such a way that Bianca was struggling to remember to hold her dress out of the way. Bianca started to breathe heavier as Courtney moved around her faster. Sucking the precum out and on to her own tongue. Squeezing around her cock nice enough to make her want Courtney to never stop.

And Courtney didn't stop, she kept going until Bianca finally came with a sharp cry.

Bianca kept her eyes closed and stroked Courtney's blonde wig. Courtney stood up and said, "what do you wanna do now?". "Well, I have to reciprocate the gesture, don't I ?". Bianca said, replacing her hands on the other queens waist and moving her towards the hotel bed. After Courtney was sat on the bed, Bianca knelt down and started to unbutton her shorts. She released Courtney's hard on and immediately took her into her mouth. Courtney eyes closed as Bianca's lips moved around her cock, she stroked the blonde curls of Bianca's wig and watched as she attempted to take Courtney down her throat, she got most of it in and stroked the rest as she swallowed around her cock.

"Oh Bianca!". Courtney moaned. Bianca looked up at her, doe eyed, eyes watering, liner starting to stream down her face. Bianca pulled off and layed her head on Courtney's thigh, still stroking her. "I need you Courtney, I can't hold out any longer". Bianca whimpered. "Tell me what you want, pussyface, and I'll give it to you". Courtney told Bianca. Bianca lifted her head up to Courtney's ear, "I need you inside me, Courtney". She said in a deep whisper that sent chills down Courtney's spine. "Get on my lap, sweetheart". She then instructed Bianca, kissing her lips after.

Bianca quickly straddled Courtney legs, moving her dress out the way. Courtney reached into the drawer next to her to retrieve a small bottle of lube. She put some lube on her fingers and moved her hand under the swaths of red fabric and started to prep her hole, to which Bianca shuddered. "Still stretched from earlier aren't you". Courtney teased. Bianca moaned between closed lips. After Courtney thought Bianca was prepped enough, she lubed up her own shaft and set Bianca on top of her.

Bianca breathed out sharply as Courtney stretched her wider with her shaft. Courtney thrusted into Bianca steadily, hands moving to Bianca hips to move her along to the thrusts. "Oh my god". Bianca moaned as she rode Courtney. Courtney hands traveled up her dress and Courtney held on to Bianca's ass to guide her movement. Bianca gasped at the feeling of being touched so intimately her head fell into the crook of Courtney's neck, biting her lip to keep her sound under control.

"Oh Bianca, I love touching you, I love how sensitive you get when I touch you". Courtney whispered to Bianca, reaching in between the 2 of them to stroke her hard on as she fucked her even faster. "Ohh! Fuck!". Bianca swore in pleasure as the pace increased and as she was being stroked. Bianca was breathing heavily as Courtney continued her movement and hit a sensitive spot inside of her, and with the pleasure she was feeling, Bianca couldn't keep quiet anymore. "Oh yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!". Bianca whimpered into Courtney's ear, pressing herself closer to the other queen.

Courtney held on to Bianca tightly as they grinded into each other, Bianca hard against her and Courtney hard inside her. Courtney moved to kiss Bianca's jaw to which Bianca welcomed entirely. Courtney increased her pace, which made Bianca thrust her head backwards and thrust her hips forward. "Ohh! My god! I'm gonna lose my mind doing this shit!". Bianca yelled in ecstacy as Courtney thrusted fast and hard into her. Bianca didn't even bother to try to stay quiet. "Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh My God!". She chanted, getting louder each time. Her eyes started to water more as she found herself getting closer to the edge.

"Court, I'm can't keep going much longer". Bianca said to the other queen. Courtney felt Bianca clench around her and could fell her trying to move faster against her, trying to chase her orgasm. Courtney started to stroke Bianca's cock faster. "Oh really, you want me to make you cum again, pussyface". Courtney asked as Bianca's eyes rolled backwards at the feeling. "Oh yes! Please! Please! Please! Please! Please! Please! ". Bianca chanted, begging for Courtney to finish her again, voice getting more and more desperate.

With only a few more thrusts Bianca and Courtney came at the same time, with a fairly loud cry from Bianca as her second climax hit her. Courtney thrusted hard 3 more times to help them ride out their orgasms. Bianca placed her head on Courtney's shoulder as they tried to even out their breathing. After a moment of peaceful silence Courtney eventually spoke up. "You know, we'll have to get cleaned up at some point". She said. "I know, let's just stay like this for a little". Bianca says before lifting her head up to kiss Courtney on the lips one more time.

Pride Challenge Points: 1051

[cutethingstolove]

Lazy Sunday

Photos From @little-stephanies-diary​ and @babiechristy​, Part 13

Stephanie sat at the table eating her breakfast as if on auto-pilot with her thoughts consumed with all the new information she had learned in the last hour. She occasionally glanced at Courtney knowing that they were both sitting in wet diapers while they ate. Something about the situation made Stephanie feel closer to her best friend than ever before, and she really wanted to hang out again today. Since it was still football season, Steph knew her dad would be gone most of the day watching the games at a friends house, and the girls could have the house to themselves! Now she just hoped that Courtney was free for the day before she asked.

“Hey Court,” Stephanie spoke up, “What are your plans for today?”

“Don’t have any plans actually,” Courtney perked up, “What did you have in mind?”

“Well,” Stephanie replied, “I haven’t really hung out with anyone this week because of my dad’s rule, but since you already know, I thought we could spend the day together!”

“Sounds like fun!,” Courtney excitedly yelped, “I’ll call my parents and let them know!”

Courtney bolted up from the table, grabbed her phone, and went into the living room to call her parents. Stephanie was elated at the idea of spending a worry-free day with her best friend! She had so many questions she wanted to ask Courtney about wearing Goodnites every night, especially now that Stephanie had been wearing some form of a diaper all day for nearly a week. Her head was flooded with curiosity, but more than anything, Stephanie was just excited to spend some more quality time with her friend. It was right as Stephanie was finishing her breakfast that Courtney bounced back into the room and announced that her parents said it was ok!

“Great!,” Stephanie squealed with glee, “Let’s go get changed and figure out what we are going to do!”

“I’m so excited!,” Courtney replied, “Besides, it’ll  be nice to get out of this wet diaper. This is the longest I’ve actually stayed in one after waking up when I’ve had an accident.”

“Yeah,” Steph replied a little reluctantly, “I’ll race you to the bathroom to change!”

With that, Stephanie shot up from her chair and ran to the bathroom so she could take off the bulky diaper she had on. She still knew that she had to wear Goodnites during the day, but she still had a small stash of those in the bathroom which meant she didn’t have to stop by the bedroom first. Once she reached the bathroom, Stephanie realized she had to pee really bad, and thinking she wouldn’t be able to take off her footed pajamas quickly enough, she decided to use her diaper one more time before changing. Once done, she took off her pajamas and soaked diaper before reaching under the sink to grab a dry pair of Goodnites to put on. Not wanting to waste time, she decided not to put her footed pajamas back on and just grabbed a purple t-shirt out of the hamper before heading back across the hall to her room.

As Stephanie walked into the bedroom in only her pullups and t-shirt, she noticed that Courtney had remembered to bring Vincent back up to the room. She was grateful for that, but also noticed that Courtney was grabbing a clean pair of panties and clothes out of her bag. Feeling a little embarrassed that she was still going to be in a Goodnite all day, Stephanie sheepishly asked her friend what she wanted to do for the day.

“I have no idea,” Courtney responded before looking up, “But I thought I would get changed first before we made plans.”

“Oh,” Stephanie replied a little disappointed, “I was kind of hoping we could just hang out in our PJs today.”

Courtney looked up to see Stephanie standing there in in just a t-shirt and Goodnites and remembered what Stephanie had told her about her ‘potty training’ week. Not wanting to make her friend feel bad, Courtney agreed that a day lounging around in pajamas would be fun. She still wanted to change out of the wet diaper she still had on, but realized she didn’t need to hide throwing it away like she had always done in the past. Courtney put her change of clothes and the plastic baggie back into her duffle bag before heading towards the door to go change in the bathroom, her clean panties still in her hand.

“Hey Court,” Stephanie piped up, “Could I maybe ask for a huge favor?”

“Sure!,” Courtney replied, “What’s up?”

“Well,” Steph said while looking at the floor, “I was kind of hoping I could talk you into wearing a Goodnite today like I have to. It would make me feel a little less embarrassed.”

Courtney barely thought about it before saying, “I wouldn’t mind, but I only brought the one with for the night. Otherwise I would.”

“You can use one of mine!,” Stephanie said excitedly, “I have a drawer full in here, and a few stashed under the bathroom sink too! It would be really nice if you would be willing to for me.”

“Ok!,” Courtney replied, “I’ll grab a pair in the bathroom. I really do want to go get changed though.”

Courtney dropped her panties back into her duffle bag and went across the hall to the bathroom. While she was gone, Stephanie grabbed a pair of black sweatpants out of her dresser and a pair of pink tennis shoes from her closet. Just as Steph finished tying her shoelaces, Courtney came back into the bedroom and pulled down the front of her sweatpants to show Steph that she was wearing a Goodnite too. Courtney was a little cold, so she grabbed a hoodie with some cartoon cats printed on it as well as a pair of kitty ears that she wore sometimes.  The girls giggled a little about how silly they were being before heading back downstairs just in time to catch Steph’s dad leaving the house.

“You girls decide what you are going to do today?,” Steph’s dad asked as the girls as they both sat down on the couch.

“Yes daddy!,” Stephanie blurted out, “We are going to just hang out here in our PJs today!”

“Sounds like fun,” her dad replied, “I’ll be back around 7:30, so you two have the house to yourselves. And Steph, do you have your special underwear on?”

“Yes daddy,” Steph said as she rolled her eyes, “See you when you get home.”

Satisfied with the answer, Steph’s dad left the house for the day. The girls turned o the TV, but it was really just background noise for their chatting. Stephanie still had a lot of questions she wanted to ask, but hadn’t come up with a natural way to bring up the subject. As Stephanie was trying to think of a way to ask, Courtney fixed the problem by asking if they should play Truth or Dare! Stephanie was elated at the idea and instantly agreed. Both girls decided to pick Truth for the first few rounds, and the questions were pretty tame. After a little bit though, Courtney picked Truth and Stephanie finally asked a question she really wanted an answer too.

“So you already told me that you wear pullups every night,” Stephanie started, “But have you ever used them on purpose?”

“Well,” Courtney said timidly, “Sometimes when I don’t want to get out of bed in the morning I do. Your turn, Truth or Dare?”

Not wanting to answer any embarrassing questions, Stephanie replied, “Dare.”

“Oooh, let me think,” Courtney said, “I dare you to take off your sweatpants and leave them off until your dad gets back!”

A little taken aback, Stephanie accepted the dare and pulled her black sweatpants off. Since the sweatpants were the only thing she was dared to take off, however, she left her shirt and shoes on just to be silly. She turned around on the couch, and shook her diapered butt just a little saying, “You mean like this?”

“Your turn now,” Stephanie said with confidence, “Truth or Dare?”

Knowing Steph was probably going to ask more embarrassing questions, Courtney decided to say, “Dare!”

“Hmmmm,” Stephanie audibly hummed, “Since you already admitted that you’ve used them willingly before, I dare you to pee your diaper right now!”

Smirking just a little, Courtney simply replied, “What if I already did?”

“What?!,” Stephanie gasped, “I don’t believe you! Prove it!”

“Ok,” Courtney said slyly, “But if I prove it, you have to pee yours too!”

“Deal!,” Steph replied just a little too excited as Courtney pulled her sweatpants off and showed her wet Goodnite.

A little shocked, Stephanie followed through on the deal and filled her Goodnite with pee too. The girls laughed with each other, both sitting on the couch with no pants on and both in wet diapers. They decided they had enough with the game, and turned their attention to the TV, occasionally giving each other knowing glances and giggling. Stephanie made sure that Courtney knew that they would need to change before Steph’s dad came home, lest her week of ‘potty training’ go on any longer. Courtney understood, and agreed that they could change and put their pants back on later since she didn’t want Steph’s dad to see her in a wet diaper either. The rest of the afternoon went on without much incident, but the two girls felt closer to each other than ever before, and they were both having almost too much fun in their current state.

To Be Continued…

[hournites]

Take it slow, but it’s not typical

Hournite fluff 

@barrysollie

~.~ 

Beth’s heart was still hammering when she stepped off the stage with cameras flashing in her face. The heavy weight of the gold medal around her neck felt good. Really good. Beth always knew her mind worked differently than other people. Ideas came faster, her thoughts crowded in and then sometimes didn’t even filter fast enough for them to come coherently out of her mouth. But since middle school, Beth has learned to manage, refine, and store information in so many hundreds of thousand mental boxes. It’s natural, an automatic mechanism she uses just to cope with her thinking. It’s crazy that it’s what contributes to scholastic awards. She has a collection of plaques and trophies, and other ribbons of accomplishments for her school competitions in her room from school. But this is the first one she’s tried at the college level, registered as the youngest qualifier for Nebraska State. And she won. 

The girls ambushed her once she weaved her way through the auditorium, stopped five hundred times by professors and faculty for praise and greetings. It was a lot, it was so much, and so novel. At Blue Valley High School, nobody cared about these competitions. The audience was near-empty, only parents and occasional siblings spread throughout the seats with the mandatory judges. But here, Beth was a superstar. She was the centre of attention. It was crazy and awesome, overwhelming and validating all rolled together in an incredible ball of emotion. Courtney threw her arms around her, bouncing on the balls of her feet with an excited squeal before Beth’s own mom could get a word out of congratulations. Beth laughed and nearly dropped her bursary prize, the envelope pressed between them. 

She lets go for Yolanda’s turn, who’s hug is not quite as intense but just as meaningful. “We are so proud of you! That was amazing!” 

“Thanks for studying with me,” Beth said back. 

Yolanda smiled and let Beth step away to hug her dad and mom. They freed her of her certificate, bursary and ribbon so she could have her hands to herself again before mingling with the rest of the crowd. 

They made it out to the lobby and Beth spun around in her blue checkered professional jumpsuit. She tried to level her voice as she looked around. “Where’s Rick?” 

Courtney looped Beth’s arm on one, and Yolanda’s with the other, walking them to a coffee cart. “He stepped out.”

“Oh?” Beth didn’t want to sound disappointed. She had spotted him in the audience between turns, sitting with her back straight on a hard metal chair under the stage lights. “He wasn’t bored, was he?” Beth didn’t think so. 

“No!” Courtney nearly shouted. Yolanda glared at her and reached out to order them all chocolate bars instead of coffees from the cart. “He saw you win! He’s super stoked, he just had to check on his parking spot or something, he’ll be back!” 

Beth didn’t need Chuck to know Courtney was lying, but the high of the event and Yolanda’s nod of reassurance when she glanced at her was enough for Beth to tuck that weirdness away to think about later. She took the chocolate from Yolanda appreciatively and tore into the wrapper. She covered her mouth with her hand when more people stopped to remark on her quick-thinking and bright future, waving at them instead of saying thank you with her mouth full. 

“Where’s your mom?” Yolanda asks. Pat was with Barbara and Mike, talking to some random lady that they ran into who Barbara used to go to school with. Beth shrugged, not really sure, but she had a good hint. “Probably bragging about me somewhere…” 

Courtney laughed and poked at her side. “You say that like it’s a bad thing!” 

Beth’s mouth twitched up at the sides, conceding that Courtney was right. There were far worse things to be embarrassed about your parents. 

Twenty minutes full of bathroom mirror selfies later, they pushed through the wooden academic arched-top doors. 

Someone tapped on her shoulder. Beth turned around in her mini heels and smiled at the familiar face. 

“Rick!” She smiled breathlessly. “Hi!”

His eyes softened in front of her, then flickered down at the medal hanging around her neck. “Hi,” he said back. “Sorry, I had to go...do something. You were great. You’re amazing, Beth.”  

“Thank you,” she replied. She clasped her hands together behind her back, swallowing down the bundle of nerves that suddenly graced her stomach again. Which was really weird. That butterfly feeling always melted away by the time she got in front of a mic. And the competition was over. So why were they making a comeback? 

Rick shifted his weight and ran a hand through his hair, still sporting that soft-eyed grin.. “Hey, do you want to walk with me to my car? I forgot something.” 

Beth turned to confirm with Yolanda and Courtney in case her parents wondered where she went off to, but both were already promising of that before Beth could get the sentence out, nodding their heads eagerly at her. Courtney actually gave her a shove into Rick.

 “...Okay.” Beth got the hint. She should go with Rick. Okay, that was fine with her anyway. 

They walked in silence, which was a bit unusual, but silence isn't awkward between them. Beth fiddles with her medal as they walk off campus. Rick’s yellow Mustang is very easy to locate even a block and a half away from where it sits by a parking meter. At his car, Rick opened the door and pulled something out from his backseat in a plastic bag. 

“Turn around,” he said. 

Beth tried to peer over his shoulder. “What? Why? I don’t care about your car mess.” 

Rick rolled his eyes and gently swivelled her around to face the line of student housing. “It’s just for a second.” 

Beth crossed her arms. “Okay.” 

There was rustling, and then his car closed and a full bouquet of yellow lilies and red roses came in front of her. Rick used his free arm to wrap around for a behind-half hug. The stems were still wet, cut fresh from the flower-shop, according to the sticker against tissue paper and plastic wrap.  His neck right by her ear. “For you.” She could hear the grin in his voice when she gasped. Their fingers brushed when she took the flowers. 

“What!” She spun around to face him and beamed. “Rick!” 

“You like them?” 

He seemed flustered, but that was okay, Beth could hardly contain her awe. 

“These are so pretty!” Beth brought them to her nose to smell. Nobody has bought her flowers before. Not anyone other than her family. Yellow was their favourite colour...And she knew what red roses meant. She blinked back very sudden grateful tears. “I love them very much.” She wrapped her arm around him again. Rick bent down so she could reach for his neck. “Thank you. This was where you ran off to?” 

“Uh.” Rick messed with his hair again. “Yeah. Sorry for making it look like I ditched, I saw the flower shop downtown on the way over and I made a call during the intermission to pick them up.”

“Intermission?” She frowned at him, a little confused. “That’s before I won.” 

“Does it matter? I was going to give them to you anyway.”  

Beth’s heart did a little nerdy summersault in her chest. “Oh,” she said delicately, a bit at a loss for what else to say. This time a tear really did fall down her face. Rick really owned a whole piece of her heart. She huffed out an embarrassed laugh and quickly wiped it away. With a shaky exhale, she reached into her pocket for her phone. 

“C’mere,” she said, beckoning Rick forward for a selfie with her bouquet. Rick leaned into the frame, smiling with Beth at her front-facing camera. Two seconds before her thumb pressed on the shutter, she sucked in a breath of courage and pressed a fast kiss to his face. 

“There!” Beth sent the photo to the JSA group chat, then put her phone away. “Let’s head back, I think my dad said Ms. Woods organized a group dinner to celebrate.” 

Rick’s cheeks were still as rosy as her perfect red flowers. He ducked his head, still smiling as Beth tugged him along back up the street.  “Okay.”

[hockeylvr59]

Honest Love || Cale Makar

Requested: [ ] yes [x] no

Authors Note: And we’re off...What better way to celebrate this man’s birthday than with the first chapter of the sequel??? We’re backtracking a little bit to cover the gap I purposely created so this picks up right after part 24 of Secret Love. We’re going to see a little more of Cale’s POV here in the sequel (***** will be your signal of a switch in viewpoints) and I hope you enjoy that additional insight into this relationship that I am head over heels in love with. Quick shoutout to @nazdaddy�� for the necklace jewelry concept...it didn’t get used before but I didn’t forget about it. I think that’s all I’ve got...let me know what you think. 

Gif Credit: @samgirard​

Warnings: cursing

Word Count: 3,385

~~~~~~~~~~~

It was shortly after noon when you pulled into the parking lot of the Avs practice facility. You were tired but beyond relieved to have finally reached Denver after a combined sixteen hours in the car over the past two days. Climbing out of the car you stretched, grateful that you had less than half an hour driving left in you after your little detour.

Walking down the hallways of the practice rink, you smiled at the sound of skates on ice as they slowly grew louder. Having been given directions, it wasn’t long before you found yourself standing at the end of the hallway right beside the benches. For a few minutes, you watched the players perform an offensive drill, quickly spotting your boyfriend moving across the ice. 

Thankfully, it wasn’t long before he spotted you as well and after finishing the drill, he skated over, reaching into the bench area. Finding what he was looking for, he continued along, greeting you with a quick kiss as he dropped the item into your open hand. 

“Talk later.” He promised, stealing one more quick kiss before skating away to the sound of his teammates’ chirps. 

“Hey, Makar...if you wanted a kiss all you had to do was ask.” EJ ribbed, shoving Cale gently. 

“Yeah...pay attention.” Nate teased. “I know we’re not as pretty as your girl but…”

“Don’t tell me you dragged her down here just to help you settle in,” Gabe stated, leaning on his stick as he shook his head at the former rookie. 

“Fuck off.” Cale groaned peeking over at you. “I had to get her an apartment key okay. You know...so she can actually move in.” Even from across the rink you could see that his cheeks were flushed and his dimples were on full display as he spoke. His words caused whoops to spill from his teammates’ lips and after watching Cale jostle with them for a few minutes, you shook your head before finally heading back out to the car. 

By the time you pulled into the underground lot of Cale’s…your building, you were ready to go upstairs and just crawl into bed for a nap. Gathering up your purse, overnight bag, and one of the smaller boxes, you locked the car and headed upstairs, letting yourself inside the apartment you now shared with your boyfriend. 

As you turned to head into the main living area, your eyes immediately landed on the ‘welcome home’ banner hanging above the island. Beneath it, a beautiful bouquet of roses was placed next to a bottle of your favorite wine and a small box. Setting your things down, you pulled the small card out of the bouquet, your eyes taking in Cale’s scratchy writing. 

Welcome home beautiful. 

I love you and am so grateful you agreed to move in with me. 

Cale

Again...Cale was just too much and you hadn’t even opened the small box yet. Gingerly picking it up, you cracked the lid open and your eyes went wide. Inside was a teardrop-shaped pendant with a practically flawless opal surrounded by tiny diamonds. This was way way too much but you knew Cale would refuse to take it back. He’d insist that you were doing so much for him that you deserved to be spoiled a little. And it didn’t pass your notice that he’d picked an opal...his birthstone. 

Popping the bottle of wine in the fridge, you gathered up the necklace along with your overnight bag and the box and made your way through to the bedroom. There you found post-its attached to all of the drawers Cale had emptied for you, including one of the two bedside tables. Even though he’d only been in town for a day and a half longer, he’d already gone to great lengths to ensure that you were able to transition into the space as easily as possible. 

Unpacking the few items you’d already brought up, you settled onto the couch for a few minutes just needing to take a breath. This was big...and it would take some time before this place felt like your own. Dozing off, you jolted awake at the sound of the apartment door hitting the doorstop. 

“Hey sweetheart, I dragged Josty with me to come help unload boxes and Calvy tagged along...where are your car keys?” When Cale finally appeared in front of you he clearly noticed your groggy state and immediately the volume of his voice dropped. “Sorry...I woke you didn’t I?” 

“Guess I dozed off.” You admitted, blinking a few times and yawning as you pushed yourself to your feet. “Keys are on the island.” You declared, pointing in their general direction. 

“Hi.” Cale grinned, kissing you again before pulling away to snatch the keys. “Don’t worry about lifting a finger, we’ve got the rest.” He insisted. 

A few minutes later, the three men were dropping boxes off in the living room while you stood looking out the window, taking in your new surroundings. 

“Thanks, guys,” You declared, looking back over your shoulder. 

“No worries.” Tyson insisted. “I live in the building anyway so it’s not really out of my way at all.” 

“And I wanted to meet the woman Cale can’t shut up about.” Matt declared, offering his hand out to shake. “Courtney and I would love to have you and Cale over for dinner sometime next week, I know she’s looking forward to meeting you as well.” 

“That would be great.” You agreed. You knew how close Cale had become with the Calvert’s during those first two playoff series and as much as they were looking forward to meeting you, you were looking forward to meeting them. 

“Well, we’ll let you get settled in, Cale explained that you’ve spent most of the last two days in the car, so I’m sure you just want to get unpacked and spend some time with him. We’ll see you at the team cookout tomorrow.” Matt declared and your eyes went wide at the end of his statement. As you looked over at Cale, Matt tugged Tyson out of the apartment, an unintelligible mumble falling from the younger man’s mouth as they went. 

“Yeah...uh...didn’t get the chance to mention that yet.” Cale declared rubbing his hand along the back of his neck. “Mel and Gabe are having everyone over tomorrow. Mandatory start of the season thing.” 

“We’re diving straight into things aren’t we?” You whispered to yourself, taking a deep breath. 

“I’m sorry.” Cale murmured. “You don’t have to go if you aren’t feeling up to it, I know everyone would understand.” 

“Cale it’s fine.” You insisted. “Just caught me a little off guard. It’ll be nice to meet everyone right away.” Cale eyed you skeptically before moving closer, his hands settling onto your hips. 

“If you're sure.” He breathed. “Now can we say a proper hello? I missed you, hopefully the drive wasn’t too bad.” 

“It was okay.” You shrugged. “Long.” Trailing your hands up to the back of his neck, you pulled him into a kiss that lingered, your body relaxing immediately under his touch. “How about we let these boxes sit for now and you come take a nap with me?” You suggested, a soft shriek spilling forth as Cale scooped you up and carried you into the bedroom, kicking the door shut behind him. 

“A nap it is.” He agreed, laying you down before toeing off his shoes and sliding under the covers beside you. The moment his warm hand slid along your bare hip, you felt your eyes fall shut, sleep taking over quickly. The bed may be different, but sleeping beside Cale...that was home. 

________

Having spent most of the previous night in bed with Cale, you didn’t have the opportunity to touch the boxes until the following morning. Unpacking led to stressing over what to wear to this cookout and before you knew it Cale was tossing a t-shirt and shorts at you insisting that anything you wore would be perfect. 

The driveway at the Landeskog residence was empty when Cale pulled in 45 minutes later and you looked over at him.

“How early are we?” You questioned, knowing smirk on your lips. 

“Fifteen...maybe twenty minutes.” Cale replied, sheepishly. Flicking his shoulder, you climbed out of the car. 

“My punctual boyfriend.” You declared, following after Cale as he headed up the front path, knocking on the door. It only took a minute for Gabe to answer and when he did he immediately seemed relieved by your early arrival. 

“Great timing...I need help with…” You had barely stepped foot in the house before Gabe was pulling Cale away, his voice falling off. Assuming, probably correctly, that you weren’t getting your boyfriend back any time soon, you continued through the house finding Mel in the kitchen. 

“So Cale doesn’t know how to not be early, and Gabe already stole him so is there anything I can help with?” You questioned, your hands tucked into your pockets as you waited to draw Mel’s attention. 

“Oh my god!” Mel declared, immediately stopping what she was doing. “First...I am so happy you’re here. When Gabe said Cale had asked you to move to Denver I was over the moon.” Rinsing and drying her hands, Mel immediately came to wrap you in a quick hug. “Second...would you mind watching Linnea...she’s starting to get a little restless I think.” 

You’d somehow completely missed the playpen in the corner with Linnea in it, the infant attempting to pull herself to her feet as she whined for attention. 

“Of course.” You agreed. “Not a problem at all.” Seeing Zoey laying on the floor with a ball beside her, you moved closer to the playpen. “Hey Linnea...why don’t we go outside and throw a ball for Zoey.” Your tone softened as you talked to the baby girl, but not to the extent that it would be considered ‘baby talk’. 

With Linnea smiling her mostly toothless grin up at you, you lifted her out of the playpen and onto your hip. 

“C’mon Zoey. Let’s go outside.” You declared, smiling back at Mel as she mouthed a grateful ‘thank you’. After sliding through the backdoor, you headed down the porch steps and into the grass, settling yourself down on the ground, Linnea between your thighs. As you helped Linnea throw the ball for Zoey, it was easy to lose yourself in the sound of Zoey’s playful prance and Linnea’s sweet giggle.

*****

Cale grunted softly as he adjusted the cooler in his arms to open the back gate of his captain’s yard. Of course Gabe didn’t do this the easy way...no he had to fill the coolers with ice and drinks before moving them into the backyard. There was definitely a lapse in common sense there. 

As the gate swung open, Cale froze in place, his eyes taking in the sight across the yard. He was jolted forward when Gabe bumped into him from behind but not even that could pull his eyes away. 

“Dude...what the hell?” Gabe mumbled. “Oh…” 

Cale could feel the heat flooding his cheeks as his heart started racing like he’d just skated a dozen laps. Just when he thought Y/N couldn’t possibly become more attractive to him she went and proved him wrong. Because there she was, dressed in the clothes he had picked with the necklace and bracelet he’d given her resting against her skin. Her hands were wrapped around his captain’s daughter’s hips as Linnea giggled loudly, bouncing up and down on her chubby little legs. The way she held the baby, the way she spoke softly to Linnea, the way Linnea reacted to her presence...it made Cale’s throat go dry and stole the breath from his lungs. 

It had been four months since they’d talked about kids, four months since he’d really thought about having kids. Cale knew that it was absolutely something he wanted someday and that she was the only person he wanted to have kids with. But now...now ‘someday’ seemed too far away. Now...for the first time he didn’t have to imagine what Y/N would be like as a mom and a part of him was screaming loudly that that was what he wanted...no needed. Now he knew without question that as soon as he put a ring on her finger he was going to also try and put a baby in her belly. His baby. Their baby. 

“If you’re going to stand there staring at her...maybe at least move so you aren’t blocking the gate.” Gabe’s chuckle snapped Cale from his daze and his cheeks flushed further as he moved just a step forward, his eyes landing back on his girlfriend as she cradled Linnea against her shoulder, her hand rubbing up and down the baby’s back. 

“Should we tell Joe to prep the ELCs for those mini Makars you’re gonna have her popping out soon?” Gabe teased, knowing look on his face. Suddenly, the weight of the cooler and the way his muscles were straining registered again and Cale moved to set it down near the porch steps. When he didn’t react to Gabe’s statement, the captain’s face turned serious. “Wait seriously...you’re actually thinking about it.” Gabe murmured softly. 

“Thinking about what?” EJ’s booming voice asked as he and Nate came in through the back gate. 

“Calesy here is thinking about knocking his girlfriend up.” Gabe replied, looking over his shoulder to where Y/N had disappeared with Linnea just a moment before. Sounds of disbelief fell from his teammates’ mouths and Cale rubbed at the back of his neck shrugging. 

“It’s not like we haven’t talked about it before.” He admitted. 

“You’re what...four months in and you’ve talked about kids?” Nate prompted. 

“We talked about them the day we got together. It’s not like we were strangers guys.” Cale defended, shoving his hands in his pockets. “So yeah I’m thinking about it. She’s spent most of her life waiting for me...I don’t want to make her wait too long. Maybe we’ll start trying come end of the season.” 

“Well look at you growing up.” Gabe declared. “She’s the one isn’t she? You’re way more confident than when we last saw you.” 

“She’s absolutely the one.” Cale agreed. “Now what else did you need help with?” No one fought him as Cale changed the subject and headed back toward the garage, making a mental note to get better at masking his expressions when it came to his feelings for Y/N. 

*****

You’d laid Linnea down for a nap after she’d fallen asleep on you outside and then had been promptly pulled into a house tour by Mel since you hadn’t seen it before. By the time you made your way back outside with a glass of wine in hand, you found Cale sitting at the table on the patio, a beer in hand as he listened to the guys share stories of their summers. 

Sliding your palm down along his chest, you leaned down to press a kiss to his cheek. 

“Linnea wants you to know you have good taste in jewelry.” You whispered softly, smiling as his head tilted up to look at you, his eyebrows raised. “She liked the way the sun reflected off of my necklace. She fiddled with it until she zonked out.” Cale’s hum of approval and recognition was soft as he scooted back, seamlessly pulling you down onto his lap. 

There you stayed, Cale’s chin on your shoulder as more and more of Cale’s teammates and their families arrived. As soon as the Calverts arrived, Cale was immediately summoned by Kasey to play and you watched as your boyfriend chased after the four-year-old. This was the first time you had seen him with kids in quite awhile and it only reaffirmed how great of a dad he would be when he decided he was ready to take that step. 

Having finished your glass of wine, you moved to take it inside so that it didn’t get broken. As you reached the kitchen, you saw Mel and one of the other women fawning over something on a cell phone. 

“Oh, Y/N, perfect timing.” Mel declared. “There’s something I think you should see.” 

You took the phone from her, pressing play on a video. Mel must have snuck outside earlier without you noticing because you watched as Zoey trotted over with a ball before racing off again as Linnea tossed it for her. Hearing yourself praise Linnea for her strong throw was slightly odd but as the camera followed Zoey as she chased the ball your eyes fell to the background. Cale was standing there with a cooler in his hands and even with the focus slightly blurred you could see that his cheeks were flushed and the expression on his face was one that was unfamiliar to you. 

Handing the phone back, your mind raced, trying to figure out what Cale had been thinking. There were bits and pieces of emotions you recognized: love, awe, joy; but all together it added up to something unreadable. 

“Should we uh...be expecting any more big changes in Cale’s off-ice life soon?” The other woman questioned, an almost knowing look on her face. Your brain finally placed her as Matt’s wife Courtney but it wasn’t quite fast enough to pick up on what she could possibly be referring to. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about?” You deflected. 

“You mean it doesn’t look like he wants to get you pregnant as soon as possible?” Mel chimed in. “Because that’s all I see. Cale saw you with my baby and he gets that look on his face...he wants to make you a mom, no doubt in my mind.” Swallowing hard, you moved to finally set your glass in the sink. 

“He’s not ready for kids yet. We’ve talked about it.” You explained. “We’re just focused on us right now. We’ve only been together for a few months.” Thankfully, one of the guys walked into the kitchen allowing you to slip back outside. You’d planned on grabbing a water but after that conversation you definitely needed something a little bit stronger. Flopping down on the steps with a wine cooler in hand, you watched as Cale played spike ball with Tyson, Nate, and Burky. Immediately your conversation back in May came to mind and you thought about how Cale had said he didn’t think he’d be so scared about having a baby if the situation was right. That didn’t mean he wanted kids in the short-term or that he was even ready to start thinking about it. But then again...you hadn’t been able to place the look on his face which was abnormal so maybe there was a grain of truth to Mel and Courtney’s presumptions. 

“You look puzzled...everything okay?” Cale’s smooth voice pulled you out of the rabbit hole you’d found yourself in and you looked up at him amazed at how one look settled all of the uneasiness inside you. Cale would let you know whether he wanted kids when he was ready, there was no need to dwell or worry about it now. Kissing him gently, you nodded, letting him pull you up onto your feet. 

“Everything is good.” You assured him. “Just needed a minute.” With Cale’s hand rubbing against your lower back you let him convince you to go get your asses kicked by Sam Girard and his girlfriend at cornhole. It was fun, especially when you made Sam throw backward because he was just too good otherwise. 

By the time you finished your best of three series, the food was ready and you made up a plate, settling in beside Cale on the steps as you ate. After dinner the two of you bowed out because your eyes had started to droop from fatigue. Though the guys chirped him, Cale kept his focus on you until you had slipped into the passenger seat of the car. 

Adjusting to life in Denver was going to take some time for sure. But you were confident it would be worth it because Cale was definitely worth it. 

Welcome Home Gifts:

Cookout Outfit:

[thatgoblin]

Stuck

Summary: You’re the fifth member of ‘The Fixers’ crew and it’s time to build a fish pond with an overhanging chicken coop in Thailand! Up in the mountains in a rural village the weather is unpredictable and despite safety precautions, you end up requiring a daring rescue.

Warnings: None, daring rescue with slight injury because I’m a sucker for people swooping in to save the day and I want to read it. I also took my sleep meds right before writing this because I’m dumb and I don’t care. I love Nick Apostolides, fight me. Also, I blame ‘Now and Then’ for my obsession with saving people from drowning. Go watch it, it’s a good movie.

The rain came out of nowhere and while you would have preferred it to come after the pond was finished being dug and lined, you would just have to work through it. That is until Kirin called work off because the rain began to pour and worry about the electric tools getting soaked went to the top of the already long worry list. It was a good time for lunch though, meaning everyone was off to the mess all at the top of the hill.

“Hey, you coming, Kid?” Nick called as you were finishing covering the wood you were working with.

“Just a second!” You called back. “I gotta get this stuff covered or it’ll take all day to dry out!”

“Alright, hurry up! Lunch smells good!” He gave a small wave as Courtney challenged him to a race in the already slick mud. You shook your head and chuckled as you finished covering your supplies and began to make your way around the pond. It was the fastest route and you were sure it wouldn’t be too hard to get across. The lip was pretty wide so you didn’t really think it wasn’t safe. About midway across, your foot slipped and hit a rock that quickly gave way. Tumbling into the pond, you felt your ankle pop as sharp pain bloomed quickly. You barely got a cry out before you were in the foot of water at the bottom of the 15 foot deep pond.

“Shit,” you hissed as you sat in the water. A quick assessment told you your ankle was twisted at best, broken at worst. The camera crew was even gone by the time you thought to yell for help. Everyone was up on the hill and with the rain, no one would hear you. An attempt to stand was made, your ankle holding for the most part thankfully. You hobbled to the side of the steep embankment and began to try to climb out on your hands and knees, even on your belly, but every attempt ended with you sliding back down into the bottom.

It was only 15ish minutes and you were tired, having to tense every muscle in case you slipped and didn’t want to twist or fall and smack your head on the ground. Not that it helped as you could feel the cuts and scrapes burning from the tiny rocks biting into your skin and drawing blood here and there.

“Help!” You screamed, trying to see if someone else could hear you. Perhaps there was a stray worker or camera person that could lend a hand. The rain kept coming, muffling any noise you made and created a rushing waterfall of the stream Courtney had created to feed the pond as well as aerate it. “Anybody!”

The sound of heavy plops into the water caught your attention, looking to see rocks tumbling down the hill confused you for a split second till you realized it was a landslide and you were at the bottom of a hill in a pit that would catch and contain said rocks that were getting bigger.

“Oh shit,” you breathed as a dozen softball sized rocks bounced down the hill as they gained speed with smaller ones trailing behind it. Shoving yourself up, you jumped to the side before the largest slid to a stop where you had been. “Nick!” You screamed again, trying to stay out of the way of the raining rocks. The water was rising with the rain as well as the rocks, making it hard to play dodgeball with nature. It meant that in the few minutes the rock slide happened, you took a speeding, sharp rock to the side of the knee. Knocked back into the water, you cried out in pain as the last of it came to a stop on your leg, pinning you down.

The only good part was that it was the leg with the bad knee and ankle.

The last few that had come sailing down the mountain were large and impossible to move on your own. It was nearly a half hour from when you fell in that the rain started to let up, the water in the pond up to your armpits making it a bit hard to breathe. Half an hour seemed to be the magic time, as someone finally came looking for you.

“Y/N?” You heard Nick’s voice call for you as you struggled to try and shift yourself to get any of the rocks off your.

“Nick!” You screamed as you looked up to see him rush to the side of the pond. “I’m stuck! There was a landslide or something and I got caught in it!”

“Shit,” he said, looking behind him before waving someone down. “Just hold on! We’ll get you out!” Relief flooded you as Courtney, Kirin, and Ariel all rushed over. They were making a plan to get some rope or cables to get to you and lift you out. It seemed the day was saved, till water began surging down the waterfall. You didn’t have much room to keep your head above water before and now it was even worse.

“We gotta get them out of there now!” Courtney cried as he and Nick jumped into the pond as Kirin and Ariel ran to get the supplies. “Are you hurt at all?” He asked as they trudged through the muddy water.

“My ankle and knee,” you said with a wince as Nick started to move rocks. They were heavy, even for them and each one moved felt like it was threatening to let a bigger one drop on you. “I twisted it when I fell in and when the rocks came down.”

“Okay, we can do this,” Nick said, nodding as he gave you a smile. That was Nick, ever the one to try and remain positive even in the life or death situation you found yourself in. “Don’t worry, we’ll get you out of there.” Between the two of them, they managed to dig you out mostly.

Your scream as a rock dug into your leg, threatening to fall and break it, made them pause.

“What? What is it?” Courtney asked.

“The big one, by my shin. It’s digging in,” you said, pushing yourself an extra inch out of the water as the surface started to cover your shoulders. “It’s heavy and it’s gonna break my leg.”

“Okay,” Nick said, panting as Kirin and Ariel came back with a rope of sorts. All they had to do was get you free of the rocks. Easier said than done. “Court, you push the rock up as hard as you can and hold it. I’ll drag them out from under it.”

“You sure? They’re right, that rock slips and they’ll have a broken bone. We’re in the mountains too, hours from a hospital,” Courtney said, catching his breath as he looked at Nick with a furrowed brow.

“We have to. The water’s only getting higher,” Nick said before looking at you. “Are you with us?”

“Yeah,” you said with a nod, knowing he was right. It was either this last plan or you’d be literally sleeping with the fishes. Nick moved to squat behind you, wrapping his arms around your middle.

“I’m gonna pull hard and I’m sorry if it hurts,” he said into your ear as Courtney moved into position. “On the count of three. One, two, three!”

Courtney growled as he pushed as hard as he could on the rock, giving just enough room for Nick to yank you out of it’s way. It was only seconds later that Courtney had to let go of the rock as well, falling back into the water before standing to help Nick and you up.

“Can you stand?” Nick asked as the two men helped you balance. Taking an experimental step, you nearly fell over trying to put weight on your hurt leg. If it wasn’t for Nick, you would have tumbled into the water again. “Okay, take it easy, we’ve got you.”

Both men wrapped an arm around you under your arms as you wrapped yours over their shoulders. Well, over Nick’s shoulders and Courtney’s waist. Together they got you to the rope where Kirin and Ariel were waiting with volunteers from work to assist in pulling you up.

“I’ll tie in with them so I can push up since they can’t use their leg,” Nick said, letting Courtney help balance you. Rope in hand, he quickly tied it around both of you. Facing one another, you were pressed together tightly before the others started to pull. Almost to the top, Nick reached up to grab Kirin’s hand when the rope snapped, sending you both sliding back into the pond.

You yelped as Nick moved to slow your descent, keeping you from slamming your leg into anything else.

“Fuck!” You heard Kirin snap as everyone began to rush to try to find something else to get the three of you out of the pond.

“If we wait long enough we’ll be able to swim out,” Courtney said with a slight chuckle. As if the danger was upset that it was forgotten, the wind began to pick up as a boom of thunder followed a streak of lightning flashing in the sky. “Never mind!”

“Grab onto this!” Ariel yelled, tossing the unplugged extension cord to one of the power tools they had. Tying it around the two of you, Nick held onto the cord with one hand and wrapped his other arm around you. Your arms wound around his neck as the crew began to pull you up again. This time it worked.

Covered in mud and soaking wet, Nick and you were finally out of the pond. When both of you were free from the cord, it was flung back into the pond for Courtney who came up a lot quicker than you and Nick had.

“Jesus Chris,” Kirin sighed, panting as Nick helped you up and over to a school room as the rain kept pouring. “No one is left alone again. I mean it.”

“Noted,” you said as the rest of the team came in and an on site medic came over to look at your leg. Sitting on a bench, leaning back into Nick, you winced and gasped as the pant leg was cut off. Your knee was swollen and had a giant gash that showed bone. Adrenaline must have been your pain killer as you were wondering how it didn’t feel so bad. Your work book came off and your ankle was just as swollen as your knee. Able to move your toes let the medic know nothing was broken in your ankle at least, but you really needed to go to a hospital.

“I can’t leave you guys,” you said, looking up at your team as the medic cleaned your knee. The pain of the alcohol had you in tears as it kept you from arguing further.

“It’s okay, we’ve got this,” Kirin said. “You need to get that taken care of as soon as possible and you can’t do that here. You’re no good to us if you get sick from infection.”

“We still have three more days to work,” Ariel said, reminding you. “You need to be safe and healthy first.”

“I’ll go with you to the hospital and we’ll be back tonight,” Nick said, patting your good leg. “I still have to wait for the rain to stop to get the chickens anyways.”

“Don’t worry, we’ve had worse conditions with less help,” Courtney said, beaming just like he always did.

“Alright,” you said, knowing they were right. You weren’t much use with a bum leg, let alone a bum leg with an infection. “I’ll go get it taken care of. Nick will be my handler and make sure I don’t get into any more trouble.”

“Please. I only ask that you keep them from getting hurt further,” Kirin said, groaning as the others laughed.

“Let’s get you to town, Kid,” Nick said, helping you up after the medic put a brace on your ankle and bandaged your knee. With no crutches, it was slow going as you had to use Nick and Courtney to get to the truck with the translator/guide. While you sat in the back after saying your goodbyes, Nick sat next to you, holding your hurt leg in his lap to help keep it stable on the bumpy road.

“Nick,” you said after a few minutes of silence in the truck.

“Yeah?” He said, looking at you.

“Thanks for saving my neck,” you said with a soft smile.

“It’s what family does,” he said, smiling back at you.

Master List

Tag List: @abysswhiskey11 @interviewedchicken @lonely-af-fangirl @girl-obsessed-with-things @mmmm----15 @depressedthebluefox @whimsywispsblog @singingsiren98 @parkerschurros @chrissyreid @bohica160 @death-is-beautiful

[sunflowerandco]

After the Fact: Act II

Act I

Rating: M for depictions of sex. Now edited not to be explicit.

          It all made perfect sense to him. Their closeness, his need for her, and immense feelings about her that he couldn't ignore formed those clouds of truth again.

-Senior Year-

          Their cumulus forms became more noticeable as they collected moments that may have seemed simple. Still, they weakened the image he had of himself. A persona that wasn't capable of ever having these feelings.

          He needed Courtney to know, and the truths that clouded his mind didn't care about the perfectly crafted image Duncan cared to maintain.

          An image Courtney saw right through.

          "I love you...so fucking much." His words were delivered in between hitched breaths. The grip he had on her hips tightened while he had her take deeper strokes over and over. He could feel himself getting closer to his peak.

          Courtney's mind could only imagine feeling the same way. She heard herself say "I love you, too," in between whimpers.

          It wasn't long after these confessions that Courtney sunk deeper onto him. Deep, warm waves rippled through her lower body as her moans reached their cap. She began grinding in him in a desperate need to ride her peak out. Duncan held her by her waist, making her climax last as long as it could.

          Seeing Courtney at her most unconstrained dissolved all tension in him. He sat up slowly until their foreheads were touching, their panting out of sync with each other. Their lips brushed lightly, and life magnets they leaned in and closed the gap of light that peered through Duncan’s curtains. Their deep kiss ended when Courtney sought out a new position, lying next to him on his bed.

         She was still basking in their glow; enjoying the privilege of not rushing to put on the first piece of clothing she saw right after the act. That's when Duncan got up and headed towards the bathroom. She unashamedly caught glimpses of him as he made his way out. She heard sink water running when she lied on her back again.

         Courtney sighed in content, feeling the most relaxed she's ever felt.

         Then it hits her. The very thoughts he confessed to her. Those three words.

         He... loves you?

         She tried her best to shake this feeling. She knew Duncan. Their feelings being mutual wasn't the most outrageous concept to themselves or anyone who spent 5 minutes in a room with them. But love? Courtney couldn't remember the last time Duncan used that word about anything. She assumed he said it in an intense moment of lust, and that he must’ve forgotten by now. She decided.

          She heard the faucet turn off and footsteps toward the door, and Duncan came back with a wet, warm rag.

          "Here, babe," Duncan offered as he removed the bedsheet from her body.

          Courtney's legs were still weak when he parted them to wipe down and around her folds with the cloth. She lied still, frozen by her own realized fears.

          Duncan tried to read an unclear expression on her face. It was almost blank. “Hey... you okay, Princess?” Courtney did her best to ruin this train of thought that left her detached from reality.

          “Yeah. I’m okay. Everything’s okay over here.” Duncan looked unconvinced. Still, he knew you couldn’t force Courtney to do anything until she was ready. He still couldn’t help but feel like he was at fault. All he could do was try to change the subject at hand. But Courtney added on to speak over her lingering thoughts. 

          "Actually, I think I should go home. I don't need my parents worrying about me." Duncan retreated.

          "Alright. My parents should be back soon, too. I'll drive you-"

          "That's okay. I can walk." Courtney reassured him as she gathered her clothes. 

          She let herself out when she finished getting dressed, leaving Duncan concerned and confused.                                                                                                                                          ***

          Courtney practically slammed her locker shut before looking both ways. She successfully avoided Duncan for the rest of the weekend and hoped to do so for the rest of the school day. Upon turning right she saw her friend, Bridgette, at the other end of the hall in front of an empty classroom.

           Bridgette spotted her as well and waved across the her, beckoning Courtney over.

           "Hey, Bridge. Have you seen Duncan today?"

           "Hey, Court, no. I haven't seen him all day. I'm pretty sure he just skipped with Geoff." Bridgette trailed off before remembering Courtney’s plans for last weekend.. "So... how did it go on Saturday?" She asked while playfully poking her.

            Courtney delayed her answer when she grabbed Bridgette's arm and into the empty classroom before shutting the door. She readjusted the bag on her shoulder before locking the door behind her. Her actions caused a look of concern on her friend's face.

          Bridgette sat on top of one of the desks. "I take it didn't go well? What happened?"

          Courtney paced back and forth in short steps before she answered half-heartedly. "Duncan told me he loved me, and I said it back."

          "Oh my gosh!" Bridgette exclaimed. She half-jokingly threw a fist in the air. "Finally! That's so great!" Bridgette smiled through and through, but Courtney's look of uncertainty remained. "Why aren't we smiling?"

          "Well, he said it while we were having sex and..." Courtney trailed off. "What if he just said it because I took my clothes off for him?"

          "Woah, Courtney. You're getting way too ahead of yourself. This is Duncan we're talking about. The guy's had a crush since, like, 7th grade." Bridgette waited for a counterargument from her best friend. "You can always just, you know, ask him?"

          Courtney groaned at the suggestion. "That'll just make me look weird and clingy." She stared into her shoes as she thought of all the possible ways she could be perceived, all of them being out of her control.

          Bridgette couldn't help but give an all-knowing smile. "Oh my gosh. You really, really Love him. I mean, loooove."

          Courtney gave Bridgette a solemn look. "Now is not the time for you to rub in how right you are! Why does love make me so dumb?!"

          Bridgette hopped off the desk she was sitting on and held Courtney by her shoulders. "It doesn't make you dumb, Courtney! You need to accept your feelings for what they are. You both made pretty bold statements to each other. It's okay to ask given the situation. Okay?"

         Courtney took a deep breath before Bridgette loosened her grip on her shoulders. All she could do was nod in agreement. She couldn't argue her way out of this one, and didn't want to. She had truly had enough fighting with herself. She had to give herself a break.

         Bridgette walked her out of the classroom. The hallways were emptier than they last left them. She offered Courtney a ride home, and they made their way out to the school parking lot. They opened the door to see a familiar car parked in front the entrance. Courtney turned back towards the entrance doors, but was quickly caught by Bridgette by the arm. She gently pulled Courtney in the direction of the car. The driver rolled down the window and Bridgette leaned down into it with Courtney caught onto her grip behind her. She heard his voice as Bridgette greeted him.

        Punk rock blared on the radio before it was dialed down, and Courtney looked in through the window to see him sitting there. "Hey, Bridge. Need a ride?"

        "No, but she does." Bridgette gestured to Courtney. She stood straight again to pull Courtney towards the passenger side. Courtney opened the door herself, giving her friend a glare before settling down on the seat. She continued to look towards the windshield without saying so much as a 'bye.' The blonde smiled nonetheless and shut the door for her. She buckled herself in as Bridgette walked towards her own car, and she heard her yell from a distance.

       "See you tomorrow, Courtney! Love you!" Duncan turned on the ignition to make his way to her house.

                                                       ***

          A long ride in silence opposed the advice Bridgette gave Courtney. She had never let fear rule her more than this moment. Duncan pulled onto her street and stopped the engine.

         “Okay, well, see you tomorrow?” He asked in a self-conscious manner, 

         Courtney still faced forward as she answered quietly. “Yeah, see ya. Goodnight.”

         Duncan found he couldn't do anything to make her talk, so he called it a night. Still, he needed her to know. “Okay. I love you, Courtney.”

         Courtney started grabbing her bag and cardigan from the backseat. She responded out of frustration before realizing what he said to her. "I love you, too - wait," she turned her face back toward Duncan for the first time today, her ears increasingly getting warmer. "You meant that?"

         Duncan's brow furrowed before answering. "That I love you? …Yes...? Why would I not mean it?"

         Courtney sat back down in the passenger seat, looking back him again, this time with diffidence laced in her words.  "I don't know... people can say anything in the heat of the moment."

         "Heat of the..." It was then Duncan realized what she was indicating. She looked away. "Let me get this straight. You think I told you that I love you just because we were having sex?" Courtney couldn't admit it, she only sat in silence.

         "Look, Courtney. I meant it. Every word I said. I wouldn't say something like that just to fuck you over. You're..." Duncan trailed off.

         "What? I'm what?"

         Duncan gripped the steering wheel with one of his hands and looked around. "...You're too important for me to lose, Princess. I love you. And I'll say it anytime I want."

         Courtney sat still, but her heartbeat thumped heavy in her chest.

         Duncan pushed her a little. He knew the answer, but still asked. "Well? Do you love me?"

         Courtney turned to him once again. She threw her arms up in surrender. "What? Yes, I love you! I can't remember a time I didn't!" Courtney crossed her arms in a habitual attempt to barricade herself emotionally.

         Duncan inched closer to Courtney, adding fuel to her flame. "And I can't either!" He gestured to himself What's so wrong with that?" His voice took to a deeper, serious tone. "I don't know about you, but hearing that on both ends makes me think we're doing something right. Like I'm doing right by you. Did I do something wrong?"

         Courtney sighed. She could acknowledge this was a product of her own overthinking. "No, not really. I don't know what got into me. I just knew I had these feelings, and I realized that... I'm in deep." She looked down onto her lap. "I knew I wouldn't be okay if it all disappeared one day."

         Duncan placed a hand on her shoulder. "We're gonna do our best to make sure that doesn't happen."

         "Come here." Duncan cupped her chin and placed his lips on top of hers. She joined in the beguiling pattern of his lips drawing out every kiss to be longer and deeper than the last. Courtney sighed into his lips. She felt her hands go through his mohawk as their slow motions began to pick up the pace.

         Duncan placed his hand on her thigh, surpassing the hem of her skirt while his other hand found her lower back. His hand slipped underneath her shirt and Courtney shivered at his touch, and Duncan smiled into the kiss, reveling in the effect he had on her. She wrapped her arms around his neck as an invitation to be pulled in closer. He gripped the back of her thighs to lift her onto his lap. She was halfway there when-

         HOOOONK!

         Courtney practically jumped out of her skin screaming and Duncan frightfully yanked his arm away from the horn. She landed back onto the passenger seat clutching her chest. In between getting the shit scared out of her and the breathlessness of their consolidation, Courtney found herself laughing. Duncan took notice to her loosening up and felt relief. Courtney looked over her shoulder at her house, and noticed one of the lights in her parent's bedroom turn on.

         "I should go in before they chew us out." Courtney calmed her giggles down and gave Duncan a kiss on his cheek. She draped her bag over her shoulder and looked at him one more time. "I love you, delinquent.

         "I love you, too, Princess."

         He watched her to make sure she made it inside her house. She closed the door shut, and Duncan felt himself smiling like an idiot.

A/N: Hello! Quick question: Am I making them too soft? I tried to make them vulnerable because having sex in a new relationship with a person you've only shown one side to can be a scary thing, so they're not gonna be their love/hate selves after they've shown how serious they are about each other. I don't know. If you think they're out of character, let me know and I'll try my best to fix that. See ya in act iii!

[winchesterwords]

“Not Heaven, But Hell” John Winchester x F!Reader

Summary: The reader is a hunter who used to casually date John Winchester. They left when things went wrong between them, or so he thought. When the two of them are reunited during a routine hunt, old emotions are sparked and a secret is revealed.

Word Count: 3194

Warning: Mention of Abuse, character death

Song I Wrote To: “Dopamine” by Barns Courtney

Note: I was just needing some John Winchester angst in my life.

----------

As the hour of midnight approached in the forests of Gatlinburg, Tennessee, a hunter relished in the silence. 

You had been traveling alone for months, picking up jobs wherever you could. Whether it was a vampire, skinwalker, or just the run of the mill haunting, you managed to take care of it quickly. When rumor had sprouted of a Ghoul nest in the area, you had taken the hunt from another hunter as the job had come over the wire. You were closer and in need of a distraction.

After investigating for a day and a half, you had discovered that it was a false trail and that if any ghouls had been in the city, they were long gone now. However, you still headed into the thick woods for one last look, and being among trees and nature at night had always brought you peace of mind which was very much needed at that moment. 

The leaves beneath your feet were soft from the morning rain and your breath was visible as you exhaled. However, even with the brisk weather, you didn’t feel the cold. You didn’t feel much of anything as you walked. 

When you reached the old abandoned shack near the edge of the North Woods, you slowed your pace, pulling your gun from your waistband. Knocking the barrel against the side of the old building, you attempted to draw anything outside and towards the bullet that was expertly loaded in the chamber of your pistol. It was silent for just a moment before you heard footsteps. With a sigh, you raised your gun and stepped around the side of the shack. You immediately came face to face with another barrel as you stared down at the gun with wide eyes. 

“Jesus,” a man swore and it took you less than a second to recognize the voice. When your heart finally calmed down and you looked up at the face of the person in front of you, your gun fell to your side. 

“John?” you asked, completely taken aback. 

“(Y/N),” he said. He wore his usual expression of concern mixed with caution, but his eyes always remained very warm. John Winchester looked the same from when you last saw him, but there was something about the way his shoulders were tensed that told you something was wrong. The band of his wedding ring glinted in the moonlight, reflecting off the shiny weapon in his right hand. 

“John, the gun,” you said, staring at the piece that was still aimed between your eyes.

“Oh, shit, sorry,” John said as he holstered his weapon, earning a relieved sigh from you. “What are you doing here?” he asked as you pushed past him. 

“Same reason you’re here,” you said, examining the eves of the shack. “I’m working. Though it looks like you have it handled so I will leave you to it.” You turned to leave, hoping to find more peace and quiet before the day was over. The last thing you wanted was John Winchester around. 

The two of you had casually dated years before and after it ended horribly, you had essentially disappeared from his life and never looked back. Now, seeing him in those woods, felt like a dagger to your chest. One you desperately wanted to yank out.

Deciding that silence was better than trying to explain, you turned your back on him and began walking away. John, however, was not going to let that happen. Not yet anyway.  

“Wait,” John said as he caught up to you, stepping in front of your path. 

“Move,” you ordered, but he just sighed, already dreading the conversation. 

“Come on, (Y/N), there’s two of us and if this nest is full then we should be able to take them.”

“What nest, John? All I see is a decrepit building with a whole lot of nothing. I told the hunter that gave me this case that there was probably nothing to it. Looks like I was right.”

“Or maybe you weren’t and there could still be evidence of a nest,” John said, trying to persuade you. “Come on,” he tried again. Looking between him and the shed, you finally relented and with a sigh nodded for him to go ahead. “Right, always makin’ me go in first,” John jested. 

“You’re idea, big man,” you shot back, and even with his back turned, you knew he was rolling his eyes. It was odd the way the two of you just slipped back into the routine of jabbing at one another. You didn’t like the way it made you feel, that knife only twisting further. 

You and John took either side of the main door in the end, both pulling your weapons. John counted to three before reeling back and kicking in the door, splintering the hinges. Immediately, you were met with darkness and when John clicked on his flashlight, you crossed your arms in annoyance. 

“Told you,” you said, gesturing to the empty room around you. “Not even a shred of ‘ghoul-ness’.” 

“That’s not a real word,” John said and you gave him a rude gesture to which he just frowned. 

“So, you’re still an ass. That’s nice to know,” you said.

“And you are still as charming as ever,” John retorted, finally turning to face you in the dark of the shack. “The years have certainly not changed you, honey.”

“Don’t call me ‘honey’,” you shot and he raised his hands in surrender. After staring at each other for a moment, you gave up and left the shack and John behind. He silently followed after you in the woods and you didn’t have the energy to scream at him. 

“Main road is the other way, (Y/N),” John called out, his boots somehow not making a sound as he walked along the debris-littered forest floor. 

“I’m aware, Winchester,” you called back. “Not goin’ to the main road.” 

“Then where are you going?” 

“Do you care?” 

“Maybe,” he said. “I’m allowed to wonder.” 

“Then you can just keep on being the curious cat you are,” you said with a roll of your eyes as you crested a small hill. John jogged to catch up and stood beside you as you looked out at the city below, all lit up in the dark of night. “John, go home.”

“I’m in no rush,” he said. 

“Maybe I am,” you whispered.

“What was that?” 

“Nothing,” you said as you began to descend. “Just go, John.” He ran to keep up with you and when you turned to snap at him again, you heard a low howl echo through the air. You froze as the sound entered your bones. 

“What?” John asked, noticing your change in demeanor. In the distance, you heard the unmistakable sound of an animal running, many animals. You didn’t even need to look at your watch to know that it was after midnight. All the negative emotions you had been feeling towards John vanished at that moment and all you could think about was that you didn’t want to be alone anymore.

And so, you just whispered one word to him, “Run.”

-------

You and John ran through the woods. 

He didn’t even hesitate or ask questions when you had told him to run. There wasn’t time and he clearly understood that from your tone of voice. He kept up with you as you sprinted, not daring to look back. When you spotted an old annex building down another hill, you picked up your speed. 

Slamming into the door, you fumbled with the lock. John arrived shortly after, pushing you to the side and aiming his weapon. With a single shot, he blasted the lock from the door and wrenched it open, pushing you inside. He followed and then slammed the door shut. “Help me with this,” he ordered gesturing to a metal cabinet. 

The two of you dragged it in front of the door, but you knew it wouldn’t hold. Nothing was going to stop them from getting in. “This is all your fault,” you rasped, trying to catch your breath.

“How?” he asked, staring at you with wide eyes. 

“If you had just listened to me,” you said, though you didn’t mean it, “then maybe we wouldn’t be in this mess.” 

“I don’t even know what this goddamn mess is,” John shot back. “Whatever it is, we can wait them out.”

“Whatever,” you said, as you began to pace. 

“You’re still a bitch too, huh?” 

“Seriously?” you asked, not in the mood for his attitude. In fact, all you wanted was for him to hold you and not talk, but you were too proud to admit that, especially to a man like John Winchester. 

“Sorry, but it’s true and you know it,” John spat back. 

“I’m not the one that ruined us,” you said, hating the words that came from your mouth. 

“Aren’t you? You never cared about what happened to you on hunts. Hell, you were so damn reckless more times than not, always running into situations halfcocked and full of anger.”

“I never cared? And you did?” 

“Are you kidding me? I always offered to go with you!” 

“And I told you to stay the hell home with your boys. Or did you suddenly forget about Sam and Dean?” you asked and you knew it was low, but you couldn’t stop yourself. John’s face turned dark at your words. He stepped closer to you, his eyes almost deadly in the dark of the room.

“Don’t,” he said in a low voice, “Do not bring my boys into this, (Y/N).”

“Tell me where they are right now, because I know damn well that they aren’t with you,” you said, gesturing around you with wide arms. John was silent for a moment before taking a step back. 

“Sammy is at school and Dean is on a hunt of his own, they aren’t kids anymore.” 

“All grown up, huh? Good for them.” 

It was shortly after that when John stopped talking altogether. He wanted nothing to do with you at that moment and all you wanted was for a little human contact. Yet, you couldn’t stop trying to push him away. John was right, he was always right, you had been the one to ruin the two of you, but it was for a good reason.

At least that was what you kept telling yourself. 

As you sat behind those walls, the howls got louder and you couldn’t help the shivers that ran down your spine. You had been expecting this, you were ready, but you never expected to not be alone when it happened. 

“I’m sorry,” you suddenly said, getting John’s attention who saw across from you. “Your boys are off-limits. Always have been. I didn’t mean to bring them up.” John just nodded, accepting your apology. At least that was still the same, the ability to read him like an open book. He was quiet for a bit longer before he finally looked at you. 

“Bobby told me that you were attacked,” he said, trying to offer some sympathy. 

“I’m fine now,” you told him. 

“You were in a hospital for a month,” he pointed out, moving closer to you, clear worry on his face. 

“I survived. I always do.” 

“You should have had back up,” he said. 

“My back up was my other gun,” you said in defense. John ran a hand down his face in exasperation. 

“Dammit, (Y/N), when are you going to realize that you pushed me away. I haven’t felt the way I feel about you since Mary. Do you not understand that? Have you ever?” You shook your head, not wanting to hear any of it. You knew how he felt about you, he had made it abundantly clear multiple times. 

He had even offered you a chance to stay with him for more than a weekend here and there. John had wanted you to meet Dean and be with him officially. A part of you wanted that more than anything, but then you would think back to your current situation and it would all disappear, the hope and the wanting of the future. 

That wasn’t in the cards for you. Not now, not ever.

“John,” you whispered, “I am not someone you want to be around.” Speaking those words had felt like there were hands around your neck and you were choking them out. 

“Why not?” he asked, trying so hard to see the world from your perspective, to know what you were thinking. 

“I have demons in my past,” you admitted. 

“Honey, we all do,” he said and your heart dropped at his use of the pet name that had become very familiar to you. 

“No, you don’t understand,” you whispered. “I mean I have actual demons.” John’s brow furrowed, confused and so you continued. “You once asked me why I always seemed on edge. Well, baby, I’m reachin’ my ten years.” 

“What are you talking about?” John asked, his eyes never leaving yours. 

“I made a deal,” you said. “In order to get away from my abusive ex-husband, I made a deal with a crossroads demon. Ten years of peace and then...then I’m going downstairs. Midnight tonight is when the clock ran out.” John was already shaking his head before you finished. He moved forward, taking your face in his hands. You could feel the rough callouses that littered his palms from all times he handled a blade. 

“No,” he whispered. “I will not let that happen.”

“It’s hellhounds, John. That’s what’s coming for me. You won’t be able to see them, but I can,” you said as the tears dripped down your cheeks. His fingers caught them as he looked at you as if his world was falling to pieces right then. “It’s time and I am being so damn selfish because I don’t wanna be alone right now.

“(Y/N)…”

“They won’t hurt you, I promise,” you explained, trying to get him to look you in the eyes. 

“No,” he said again, still trying to deny the inevitable. 

“Yes, John, I’ve already accepted it,” you said, leaning your forehead against him. 

“Is this why you pushed me away?” he asked. 

“I’m sorry, but I had to. You already lost one love, I couldn’t be the reason you lost another.

“Dammit,” he said, clutching you tighter to him. 

“Please don’t be mad. I never intended to become so fond of you. I never expected to fall in love with you because I do, I love you so much and I never stopped.” 

“I love you too,” John managed to get out. 

“I need you to promise me something because I don’t think I have much time left,” you said, choking on the riding sob in your throat. 

“Anything,” he promised. 

“The next time you see Sam, tell him you love him. For me, please.”

“(Y/N)…”

“No, I need you to listen to me,” you said, leaning back to look him in the eyes so he would understand. “I know that the two of you never get along and I also know he struggled growing up on the road. I need you to tell him that his father still cares about him. He needs to hear that whether he knows it or not. None of us hear it enough. 

“Stop,” he begged, but his voice was barely above a whisper. You kept going. 

“I know that Mary was your forever John,” you said, smiling through the tears, “but you were always mine.” John hastily rubbed at his face, not wanting you to see what he thought was his weakness, but you thought he had never looked more beautiful than in that moment kneeled before you. 

“We were never supposed to die,” he said, reminding you of a laughter-filled conversation one evening in the backseat of his truck. 

“John,” you whispered and he looked into your eyes as if he was trying to memorize every ounce of them. “Don’t forget to love again.”

“No,” he said. “You’re it. Nobody else, I’m done.” John surged forward and kissed you with every bit of love he had in his body, holding you tight to his chest. You couldn’t hide the sobs now as you kissed the man you loved. 

You pulled away just as something bagged against the door, rattling the walls. John held onto you tighter, afraid you were going to be snatched away at any second. “You’ll be okay,” you told him as you detangled yourself from his arms. 

“No, no,” he whispered as you stood us and made your way to the door. 

“Our legacy lives on, Winchester,” you said, pushing the cabinet from the door and bracing your hands on the buckling wood. “Don’t let it completely end with me or your boys. The world needs Winchesters and I was just so lucky to know one of them.” 

“Please…” he begged, but you were shaking your head. 

“Don’t say anything else. Just remember what I told you and tell Sam, Dean too. They need to hear from their dad more than anything. You may not see it, but I do. The three of you need each other. One day, you’re going to change the world.” 

“I’ll tell them,” John promised. “I’m so sorry, (Y/N).”

“I’m not,” you said, shaking your head. “I got to have one epic love in my life and not many people can say that.” Reaching behind you, you unlatched the door and threw it open. “Until we meet again, John. Thank you, for loving me.” 

John cried out the next moment as you fell to your knees and long red lines appeared down your neck as the hellhounds descended. Yet, as you were being pulled away from him, you smiled, and then, in a rush of cold air, you were dragged away and you were gone. 

--------

John didn’t know how long he sat there as he stared at the space you had disappeared through. 

He didn’t know if he’d be able to find your body or even if he wanted to. He would be lying to himself if he hadn’t thought about you in the years after you left him alone in that motel room. John never stopped loving you and the fact that when he had found you again, you were taken from him was as cruel as it got. 

However, this time he couldn’t fix it. There was no singular demon to hunt and kill. You had made a deal and you had chosen to take the consequences when the bill came due. 

Leaning back against a stack of crates, John felt for his phone in his jacket. His thumbs fumbled on the keypad for a moment before pressing the number one on his speed dial.

It didn’t take long for his eldest to answer. Dean answered groggily from the other line and all John could think about then was you and your final words to him. 

So, after taking a deep breath, he finally spoke to his son, “Hey boy, have you heard from your brother lately?” 

[a-singleboat]

Locked In

Word Count: 4.1k

Request: great! you’re a really good writer! could I get a Shayne Topp x Reader where they end up doing a bunch of romantic scenes together in a sketch, like slow dancing and a nice dinner and the cuddles, and you guys have been flirting constantly for months and after the shoot Damien, Court, Ian and everyone lock you two in a room because they’re TIRED of it not going anywhere - @mrtopphaasmyheart​

A/N: this actually turned out a lot longer than i thought it would... sorry not sorry!

It was Saturday night when they emailed out the filming schedules for the upcoming month. You were sitting at home, reading a book and being “insanely boring” as your friends had so eloquently put it. 

But as much as you had wanted to go out with your old college friends, that week of filming had really taken a toll on you and your body. Now, as a YouTube personality, you weren’t required to do your own stunts due to the fact that stuffed dolls could easily take your place for comedic effect. However, being a former stuntwoman for a few months during college, you loved the adrenaline crashing through a window or two gave you. 

As Smosh’s stunt coordinator, that meant you weren’t on screen as often as your coworkers. Which is why the upcoming month’s filming schedule shocked you. Aside from a Try Not to Laugh and a few Smosh Gaming videos, you were also scheduled in an Every Blank Ever. Namely, the Every Valentine's Day Ever video. 

Considering Valentine’s Day was a little less than a month out, it wasn’t weird that they wanted to get this video recorded and on its way to editing. What was weird was the fact that most of your filming blocks aligned with Shayne Topp’s. 

It wasn’t a secret that you were the group flirt. Next to Courtney, you were both the most notorious for flirting with your coworkers on screen and, in your case, off. 

But with Shayne… It started five months ago. Five months ago, your harmless flirting turned into something a little more than for-good-fun. 

Five months ago, the flirty little winks you sent in his direction meant more than something friendly and the words exchanged turned into something more than just words. But you were sure that was all you. 

There was no way Shayne felt the same for you. After all, he was an extremely friendly guy and he acted that way to everyone. That was your best defense. That he was just really nice. 

You shook your head as if the motion would shake the thoughts from your mind. You closed your book and laptop, shoving both items off to the side. You reached over and clicked your bedside lamp off, settling in for the night. 

You’d figure it out in the morning, you decided, closing your eyes and letting sleep take you off to another world.

The next morning, you met up with Courtney and Olivia for your weekly Sunday brunches. You had settled on a new place, rather than your regular brunch spot. The only difference was this place offered outdoor seating, which was nice despite the fact that it was still January and it was sixty degrees Fahrenheit. 

You guessed you could blame the warmer-than-average weather on global warming. 

“What’d you do yesterday, Olivia?” you asked as Courtney wrapped up her recount on the movie night she had with one of her many siblings. They had gone out to watch The Turning, much to her sister’s amusement and to Courtney’s torture. 

“I just hung out with Sam,” Olivia revealed, shrugging. “Wrote in my filming schedule in my planner.”

You took a sip of your mimosa, nodding along. “Yeah, I had a mellow weekend too.” 

Courtney kicked your foot under the table. “But did you see who you were paired with for, like, eighty percent of the scenes, Y/n?”

You shrugged, setting your drink down. “Shayne? Yeah, I saw it.”

Courtney poked you this time. “For the Valentine’s scenes. You know, the romantic stuff!”

She wiggled her eyebrows as you fought to keep the smile off your face. “We won’t even be shooting those until Wednesday.”

You and Shayne had about three or four romantic scenes in the Every Blank Ever, marked ‘Breakfast in Bed,’ ‘Dinner,’ ‘Proposal’ (which was a continuation of ‘Dinner’), and one unspecified scene. You figured they’d tell you what the unspecified scene was when it came time to film it. 

“So that means you have until Wednesday to fantasize all about it,” Olivia said, wiggling her fingers like she was a wizard spreading magic. 

You laughed slightly, shaking your head. You held up a hand and asked your waiter for your check. You thanked them when they brought over the little black book, shooing off your two friends as they tried to poke fun of you. 

As the baby of the group, you figured a little teasing was warranted. It came with the territory. 

But by the time Wednesday rolled around, you figured your status of the baby of the group wouldn’t help you much. 

Sarah Whittle, one of your bosses, stood near you as you did up your own makeup. She was waiting patiently for the curler to heat up so she could do up your hair, making you feel much like she was your mom helping you get ready for Prom night. 

“You ready for today's scenes, Y/l?” she asked in a teasing manner. 

You rolled your eyes and took a break from applying your mascara to stick your tongue out at the older woman like the child you were. 

“It’s the breakfast in bed scene first,” you complained as you nearly poked your eye out with the wand. “Why do I need to have my hair curled if I just woke up?”

Sarah picked up the curler after sliding on the black cloth glove that was designed so that she couldn’t burn herself too badly with the heated stick of metal. 

“Well, you’re going to be wearing a hair covering for this scene so your curls can set for the dinner scene,” Sarah explained before winking. “Plus, it’d be less work for me later.”

Since Sarah had already sectioned off your hair, it made it easier for her to curl the pieces and then pin them up with bobby pins to keep them secure. Once she finished, she reached over and grabbed a patterned shower cap and slid it on over the little bundles of curled hair. 

She explained that the residue heat would essentially act like one of those giant hair dryers that you would sit under at a hair salon, but with less health risks. 

After you were finished with hair and makeup, you were ushered off to costume where you were given a nightgown and a robe.

You thanked whatever deity was up there that you had been provided a robe before making your way to set, passing a dressed up Courtney, who waved enthusiastically at you. You resisted the urge to jokingly throw up the middle finger at your friend, instead choosing to wave back and give a tight smile that showed off your discomfort. 

Thankfully, Ian was the scene’s director, which immediately put you at ease. It wasn’t that you had anything against the others. In fact, you loved being able to work with Ryan. It was just the fact that since coining Ian as your Smosh dad, you found it easier to perform better in scenes like these if someone you had already been emotionally vulnerable with was the one behind the steering wheel.

“Okay,” Ian said, clapping his hands together. “Y/n, you’re going to wake up and maybe yawn a little, and then Shayne is going to come in with a tray of food. I want you to take a bite, and chew through it while pretending you like it. You got that?”

You shucked your robe, handing it off to one of the assistants that were on hand. You gave him a thumbs up before settling into the bed, moving down so it looked like you were sleeping. 

You waited, counted three breaths, before you heard Ian call, “Action.”

You waited two more breaths before ‘waking up,’ yawning and groggily rubbing your eyes. You sat up in bed, moving yourself so that your back was flush to the headboard. 

“Good morning, Sweetie,” Shayne said, pretending to have come through a door. He made his way over to the bed and set the tray over your lap. You smiled at him, imagining what domestic life with Shayne would actually be like.

“Good morning,” you replied, remembering that this was a scripted moment. “What’d you make for me?”

Shayne settled into the bed next to you, pointing at each item as he listed them off. “I made the pancakes I made you on our first morning together, as well as the scrambled eggs that I know you love so much, and I got you some orange juice in a mug with a heart on it that I found from our local flea market.”

You acted like it was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for you. Putting on a face that would read to the audience that you two were madly in love. “Oh, honey. I love it, thank you!”

You kissed his cheek, thinking nothing of it as you moved onto the next part of Ian’s directions to you. You put a spoonful of eggs into your mouth, making a face at the ‘taste.’

“Do you like it?” Shayne asked, still in character. 

You made a face that was halfway between joy and disgust, acting like it was the worst thing you’ve ever eaten. “It’s great, Steve.”

Ian called for a cut and you reached out beside you as the assistant from earlier rushed to hand you a bucket. You spat out the food, scraping your teeth along your tongue to get the residue egg out of your mouth. 

She handed your your robe next, to which you replied, “Thank you, Julia,” before pulling the article of clothing on. 

Shayne threw an arm around your shoulders as you got out of bed, pulling you back and wrapping his arms around you. You laughed, feeling your cheeks burn with half embarrassment and half oh-my-God-what-is-he-doing. 

“They got us up this early, they can give us a few minutes to nap,” he declared, settling his head atop yours the best he could in the awkward position he had put you in. It was nothing new, Shayne being touchy with you, but this time was different. You couldn’t exactly pinpoint what, but you knew something had changed. 

Maybe it was the fact that you had just filmed a scene in which you both were a couple. The fake engagement ring that sat on your finger reminded you of that. The fact that this was fake. 

“Come on,” Ian scolded, a laugh also written across his face. “The sooner you both get through the next three scenes, the sooner you can go home.” 

You wriggled out of Shayne’s grasp, laughing as he tried to tickle your sides. It wasn’t the fact that you were insanely ticklish, no. It was the fact that his hands on you felt so undeniably right, that your brain had thought of no other reaction but to laugh. 

“Alright,” you surrendered, “I’ll go. I’ll see you at dinner, Mr. Topp.” 

He kneeled on the bed, raising up from his sitting position. He bent at the waist jokingly, a goofy grin on his face. 

“Until then, Ms. Y/l.” 

You gave him a two-finger salute in farewell before disappearing from set, making your way back to hair and makeup. There, Sarah awaited you, anxious to take out the pins and reveal her ‘masterpiece.’

Once your hair was revealed, which did look insanely good, you set to work on applying a modest amount of makeup, knowing that the amount of lights on the set would even out your complexion. 

From years in show business, you’d learned that a healthy medium between your normal everyday makeup and stage makeup was the way to go when filming in a closed set. As far as you knew, you wouldn’t be filming outside or in any dark or enclosed spaces. 

When you were carted off to costume, you were glad to trade out your nightgown and robe with a red dress that really did flatter your figure in the best ways. You gave Lindsay a spin when she asked you to before being carted off to set for the second time that day. 

Luckily, you’d be in the same outfit for the next three scenes you had to film that day, which meant no more back and forth between departments. 

You thanked whatever deity was up there because ten minutes in and the heels Lindsay had put you in were already cutting off circulation to your toes. 

“Okay,” Ian said, and clapped again. It was a habit of his that didn’t look like it was going anywhere soon. “For this scene, we’re going to film the dinner and proposal all in one and splice it in editing and whatever. I’ll stop you if I want to give a little more direction, but you know what you’re doing and so does Shayne.”

You smiled at Ian’s attempt at easing up your nerves. No matter how fake, getting proposed to was always a nerve-wracking experience. 

Shayne walked up to set next, dressed up and looking a little extra fancy. 

You bumped his hip as they set up the scene, threading your arms through his. “You clean up nice.”

He smirked. “I could say the same for you, Y/n.”

You felt the heat rise into your cheeks, hating that Shayne could get any kind of reaction from you. 

You heard Ian call action and immediately started walking. The two of you gossiped about the “hot new Italian restaurant” your boss recommended before arriving at the entrance. 

“Hello,” Damien greeted them, an Italian accent gracing his lips. “Do you have a reservation with us tonight?”

Shayne stepped forward a little. “Yes, Copper. That’s C-O-P-P-E-R.”

“Copper,” Damien repeated, though his accent botched the pronunciation a little for comedic effect. “Ah, yes. C-O-P-P-E-R. Right this way.”

Damien ‘led’ you to your table, though in all reality, the cameras cut as the set changed slightly, the restaurant tables coming in and some of your coworkers coming in to fill the seats around you. 

Damien asked for your order in proper waiter fashion before dashing off to ‘fetch your drinks.’

You leaned in, tucking some hair behind your ear as to not obscure your face from the cameras. “Babe, this place is really fancy. Are you sure you can afford this?”

Shayne scoffed and brushed you off. “Of course, I can afford this!”

He made a joke loudly, and you laughed nervously, looking around and apologizing to the other patrons of the bar as scripted. 

“Babe,” you hissed. “Quiet down, people are staring!”

He scoffed again, doing his little bit before returning to the script. 

“Let them stare!” he announced, climbing onto the table. Your eyes widened as you held onto the table, even though you fully well knew that it was bolted down to the set. 

“Ramona, I am in love with you and have been since I first swiped right,” he declared, putting his hand to his heart. He jumped off the table and leaned over to another table, taking the engagement ring right off an extra’s finger. 

You watched as she acted offended, storming off with her fiance. 

You returned your attention to Shayne, who was down on one knee in front of you. “Ramona, will you marry me?” 

You looked around, acting shocked and repulsed by what had just taken place. You gave it a few moments, waiting for the comedic timing to line up, before bursting out into fake tears and saying yes. 

The crowd around you burst into cheers, you could hear your coworkers clapping and calling out congratulations as Shayne held you in his arms. 

Ian called cut but Shayne didn’t let you go, holding you around the waist with one arm instead of two. 

You saw Ian and Courtney exchanged glances with Damien, but thought nothing of it, enjoying the feeling of Shayne’s arms around you. You looked up at him, staring into his bright baby blues. 

“What do you think the next scene is?” you asked him, leaning into his side. His arm tightened around you.

“I don’t know but I hope it's something to do with dessert,” you said excitedly. 

Shayne cocked an eyebrow at you, causing you to realize the secondary meaning to your words. You slapped his pec, unsurprisingly meeting the hard muscle there, before slapping yourself in the face for not realizing it sooner.

“That’s not what I meant,” you insisted, separating yourself from him. You crossed your arms over your chest as he laughed at what you had said. You ended up laughing a little as well, walking away from the set and kicking off the heels. 

While they were absolutely beautiful, they also made your feet hurt like hell. The assistant, Julia, offered you your casual shoes and you took them, making a mental note to get the woman a gift basket or something sometime in the future. 

Ian came up to you as you were sliding on your Crocs, clicking the toes together happily as your feet were enveloped in the surprisingly comfy croslite. 

“You ready for this next scene?” Ian asked, taking a sip out of his mug. It was nearing lunchtime now, meaning they had less than an hour to film this next bit. 

“Does that mean you’re going to finally let me know what the scene is?” you asked, quirking an eyebrow. He chuckled and patted your back. 

“You’ll figure it out,” he said, clapping your shoulder. “It’s all improv but you’re both extremely great at that!”

You winced at his tone of voice, not believing him at all yet you allowed him to lead you and Shayne into one of the prop closets, already decked out with studio lights and everything.

The presence of the lights put your mind at ease and considering you were wearing a red dress paired with your bright yellow crocs, you crossed your fingers in hopes that they weren’t about to record anything past waist level. 

Ian pushed Shayne into the closet slightly, causing the man to tumble into you. He caught you around the waist while reflexively grabbing hold of a shelf fixed to one of the walls. You felt the heat rush to your cheeks once more, glad that his attention was more focused on making sure the two of you weren’t about to collapse onto the floor right then and there. 

Once he got the two of you back on your own two feet, you wheeled around, ready to confront Ian but was met with a closed prop door. 

You approached the door knob and twisted it, to find that it was locked. You shook it in hopes that this was one of the closets that would just slide open to no avail. You and Shayne were stuck in the closet with one of the hottest stage lights the company owned. 

“We’ll be back in thirty minutes,” you heard Ian call out, the sounds of Courtney and Damien snickering coming from beyond the door. 

“You’re dead, Hecox!” you shouted before resigning. “They’re not gonna let us out in thirty, minutes, are they?”

Shayne chuckled, trying to make the best of the situation. He had already made himself comfy on one of the wooden chests. 

Then, the stage light shut off and that’s when the panic set in. 

“Oh, my God,” you freaked, eyes going wide. The only light was now the half-dead emergency bulb in the ceiling of the prop closet, leaving the both of you in what was essentially the dark. You turned around and started to pound on the door, calling for your boss, Courtney, anybody. At one point, you found yourself calling for the assistant that had followed you around all day. 

“We’re going to die in here,” you lamented, leaning up against a wall. 

Shayne hopped off the chest and came over to you, grabbing your arm and pulling you into his chest. 

“We’ll be fine,” he comforted. “It was probably just a blackout. We’ve been getting them around the studios pretty often recently. They’ll probably come back for us in a few minutes when they realize that the building’s powerless.

You nodded, calming yourself down in his arms. He was right. The crew wouldn’t leave you in here during a blackout… would they?

You started to think about how much of a safety and fire hazard leaving the two of you in here would be and started to panic again. 

“Shayne,” you whimpered. “What if they can’t get back to us? If the building is on lock down then they wouldn’t be able to use their key cards to get us out and I don’t even think Ian remembers where he put the backup keys and--”

You were cut off by a pair of lips covering yours. You let out a muffled noise of surprise, before closing your eyes and leaning into the kiss. Your hands flew to his hair as he pulled you even closer, if humanly possible. 

Now, when someone tells you that the fireworks aren’t real, they probably weren’t doing it right because here, with Shayne, it was like the Fourth of July. You felt the lust, the passion, the absolute adoration for the man that held you in his arms well up inside you until you had to pull away for air. 

You pulled back, struggling to regain control over your breathing. You looked up into his brilliant baby blues and searched for a reason behind what he had just done. 

“Uh,” he licked his lips, “you were panicking and I had to do something so that you wouldn’t pass out or--”

You cut him off that time, standing up on your toes to meet him with another kiss, just as passionate as the last. 

“What was that for?” he asked, when you finally pulled back. 

You bit your lip. “I’ve liked you for a long time,” you finally admitted. “And it sucks that it took our coworkers locking us in a room together that I finally grew up and did something about it.”

Shayne glanced at the still-closed doors. “Yeah, those assholes. Forcing me to get kissed twice by the woman that I am deeply infatuated with.”

He kissed you again, laughing as your lips met. You pulled back and kissed his cheek and then down his jaw, settling one last kiss over his lips for good measure. 

“You know, we should totally fuck with them,” you proposed, a hint of playfulness behind your eyes. “And then go home and figure this out on our own terms.”

Shayne’s eyes met yours with the same intentions behind his eyes as yours. “Are you thinking that I’m thinking?”

You nodded before kissing him again, and again, and again…

It was forty-five minutes later until your coworkers came to your rescue. 

Putting your plan into action, you crossed your arms and turned your head away from him. You were sure there were still black tear marks down your face from when you had started crying earlier, after realizing the power in the building had gone out. 

Ian was the first to apologize upon seeing your disheveled state. Thankfully, he had taken the state of your hair and makeup as a sign you were actually distraught. He apologized, along with the others, for locking you in the prop closet in the first place. 

You told them it was okay and that you just wanted to go home after the ordeal you had been through. 

Surprisingly, you had managed to escape the building an hour later. You met Shayne by your car, giggling as he grabbed you around the waist. He peppered your face with kisses before setting you down, allowing you to unlock your car. 

He entered from the other side as you thanked whatever deity was up there for making today one of the days he had decided to carpool with Damien. His excuse was that he was just going to Uber back to his place, seeing as it wasn’t that far from the studio.

Although that was a load of bull, the two of you were heading back to your apartment to work things out. 

“Those idiots,” Shayne joked as you pulled out of the lot. “They were none the wiser.”

You laughed as you drove away from the building. “I’m sure they’ll figure it out by tomorrow. After all, I’m your ride in tomorrow.”

Shayne shrugged, reaching over the console to grab your hand. “I’m fine with that. As long as I get you all to myself for tonight.” 

“I’m fine with that,” you said, a grin on your face. You would spend an eternity with him if it meant you got moments like these in the future. And you were fine with that.

[phonecallwithsatan]

Letter (Part II)

a.n.: the support for this particular fic has been astounding! Thank you so much to everyone who liked and commented! I appreciate you so much and you all make my day<3 Click here for part one!

I used parts of Pillow Talk by Courtney Peppernell for this at the end. Full credits go directly to that book!

Reader and Mildred Ratched live a secret life in Lucia, California. All is well, truly, until reader walks in on something she did not expect. Angst central. Picks up from where Mildred ended. 1.2k words.

☆

Mildred jumped to the side as her beloved frightened her with their shared car. There they go. Leaving. Because of something so stupid. 

Y/n didn’t turn back to look at her as they drove. They just continued on down as the headlights cleared path for them.

She turned and looked at the door that was flug open. 

Fucking Gwen’s car was gone. Mildred stared at the empty spot with agonizing eyes that could kill. She wanted to kill.

Mildred was standing in the middle of her street covered in only a bedsheet. She wouldn’t cry. She refused to cry. Mildred walked back inside. This is when panic set in.

She began to scream and kick whatever interior she could find. Vases on the counter, shoes on the ground, half-empty glasses like her mood, she wreaked havoc. She screamed into the hallway, not allowing time to hear her screams echo back to her as her screams continued on, and on, and on, until she couldn’t allow herself to continue anymore. She placed a hand on the wall to support herself but this ended up being a bust.

She fell to her knees and from there Mildred allowed herself to lean against the wall with her right shoulder propped against it.

“Fuck.” She muttered. “Fuck!”

It was over and Mildred knew it from the moment she met Gwen. She remembered that day. Y/n made her a sandwich. Bologna. 

Y/n was home that day. Mildred always ate lunch with them when they had shifts together. But that one day. That one, singular day, Y/n was home. 

Mildred shut her eyes quickly and opened them after a few seconds of pressure. She didn’t know where Y/n was, or where Y/n was going even at this point. Mildred rubbed her eyes and got up after a few staggering moments. She walked down with a hand still on the wall and she looked at what her bedroom had become.

There were roses on the floor. The stems were broken and the petals must have flown off when they were thrown against the wall and stepped over. Her sheets were spread out in all the wrong places — fucking Gwen.

Mildred knelt down and picked up Gwen’s skirt from the floor and she threw it in rage. What the hell was she thinking? 

Mildred felt herself grow lightheaded. She needed to sit down. She took the sheets in her hand and gripped them as she sat on the bed. This has never happened to her before. She looked around frantically, looking for Y/n, but realizing that they were not going to appear. She took a cigarette from the bedside table and lit it slowly. 

The wine bottle in the corner brought by Gwen didn’t look half as bad right now. 

☆

Mildred woke up with a red splatter stain on the carpet. She regained consciousness and her eyes opened wide as she stared at the spot without blinking.

What happened last night?

She blinked and turned to the right. That’s when she saw the wine bottle. She remembered now. Y/n was gone and she was basically a homewrecker. Mildred ran a hand through her uncombed and unstyled hair. She felt like all she could do was mope around and wait for them to come back. But in the back of her mind, Mildred just knew that they weren’t coming back.

Y/n was so independent and decisive. They were not the type to second guess or to not succeed in something. Y/n was capable of betrayal at the same level that Mildred was at. This is something Mildred knew when she got involved with them. They were such a strong flame, and honestly, there was nothing that could dim that light.

This proved to be wrong.

Mildred got up and stared at the stupid skirt on the ground that served as a constant reminder for what she had done. All of a sudden, the skirt reminded her of something new.

How many days had it been? 

When — How long ago did this happen?

What day of the week is it?

Mildred furrowed her brows and she kicked the skirt and saw the withering flowers under it. It had been many days. 

Milred finally began to get a sense of surroundings. She could finally smell, see, think, feel, and hear properly. She reeked of uncleanliness, her room was covered in stains and overall must, there were bottles and pieces of paper on the ground she must have accumulated over the days, a migraine was forming again, and finally, the window had been cracked open. The only thing you could hear were the birds singing and children playing hide-and-seek in the neighbor's yard. That was until a new sound appeared.

The phone was ringing.

Mildred snapped her head to the door and ran out of it. Running down the hallway, she got to the phone that sang the common “ddrrrring” that filled atmospheres loudly.

She picked up. 

“Mildred Ratched.” She cleared her throat and panicked at her response. She must have not talked in a few days, maybe even weeks?

There was only a slight crackling on the other end. 

“Hello?” She spoke again. There was nothing. Mildred took the receiver away from her ear to hang up. Right before she placed the piece back, Mildred heard a voice.

“...Me. I’m calling from Colorado.”

Y/n. Mildred listened as her knees buckled.

“Y/n, baby, please-” Mildred heard you breathe heavily from the other end and she touched the phone with her other hand to feel closer to them. She sank her cheek into it. 

“I’m not coming back. I wanted to call so we could arrange the car.”

Mildred was disappointed with the reasoning for the call. Regardless, she was so happy to hear their voice.

“I don’t know what you want me to say. Keep it. You’re already out there. Unless,” Mildred began to continue but she was cut off by the other end.

“No, Mildred.” Y/n spoke sternly and you heard a child squeal in the background. “I have to go.” 

“Hold on, Y/n!” Mildred yelped out. She was so desperate.

Y/n didn’t respond but Mildred realized she didn’t hang up.

“Y/n, listen. I thought about kissing you today, and yesterday, and the day before that.” Mildred didn’t know what day of the week it was but she wasn’t lying. “I know I’ll think about kissing you tomorrow and that day after that. I think about kissing your dimple, your cheek, your spot. I only think about kissing you.” 

Mildred decided to continue.

“I miss you. Please, baby, come back. Come back home. It’s only you. It’s always been just you-”

They hung up.

“Hello?! Y/n?” Mildred pleaded and her voice cracked. She held the phone up to her face in such a tight manner. It was over. 

Mildred tried speaking but nothing came out. 

It was over.

[lostonehero]

Surprise the nerd isn't a nerd

Contains swearing, minor sexual themes, redneck characters, mentions of child endangerment, threats of violence and violence. Trans character.

Archie held the black box in his hand, he was so nervous, but he was confident in what he wanted. It was just as he was a he. After the whole legend fiasco, Maxie and him grew close, and two years later Archie was head over heals for the red head. He even got input from Courtney and Tabitha for the ring, all that was left was meeting Maxie's family.

Archie knew Maxie had a large family from the limited information he had, five older siblings, parents, and his grandmother was still around. The now combined magma and aqua base had more then enough room to house everyone for the holidays. His family was also coming, and he knew Maxie would have the occasional pirate jab, but his parents did like the red head enough. Hopefully there combined families will get along.

He stuffed the black box in his pocket as he headed back to the base. Steven gave them the holidays off, and gave them extra time after Archie told his plan. Steven could be a hardass sometimes but he was weak when it came to romance. Only one more week and he will be meeting Maxie's family, and proposing. Archie couldn't be any happier.

.....

"Y'ain't coming here with no guns, I ain't gettin more legal troubles." Maxie huffs. "Ma use a cane not your Betsy."

Archie couldn't help but overhear Maxie's conversation. Sure he knew Maxie was from the country, but he just assumed a small farm town, he had a funny feeling that wasn't the case anymore.

Maxie sighs. "Yah Ma will do, love ya too." He hangs up and looks over to Archie. "Ma is bringing some food over I told her it wasn't a potluck."

"Let your mom cook Maxie it's not the end of the world."

"Grandma Archie, we just call her Ma, mom is my mother."

"Oh uh ok, that's fine let the old woman cook." Archie rubs the back of his neck.

"I do miss her Chili. Anyhow you were watching me on the phone." He gets a little red. "Sorry my accent does come out talking to family."

"Its cute Maxie don't worry about it, I like that your a bit country."

"A bit?"

"Yeah you grew up in a small town right?"

"Yes and no, I grew up on a farm Archie by a small town."

"Ah...."

"Yeah don't worry my family isn't like a stereotype with being transphobic or homophobic."

Archie frowns kind of forgetting that glaring fact about the two. "Are you sure?"

"My Ma clocked me for gay before I turned 10, and one of my sisters is trans. Ma did nearly kill one of my uncles for misgendering her though." He pauses. "I got to tell mom to keep Ma from bringing Betsy."

Archie suddenly gets a bad feeling. "Your grandma nearly killed your uncle?"

"Well not nearly she missed her shot on purpose it was a warning."

"Maxie guns are illegal."

"Oh yeah.... never stopped us before."

Archie's bad feeling becomes a bad omen in his mind.

......

Tabitha looks Archie dead in the eye digesting what he was telling them. "So let me get this straight, you invited Maxie's family out for the holidays?"

Archie nods

Matt looks down at Tabitha sitting in his lap. "Why's that such a big deal again? Isn't family a good thing, I'm sure that nerd's family is as stuffy as him."

Tabitha covers his face. "I've only met one of Maxie's brothers and well Maxie only looks like a nerd. I don't like speaking poorly of Maxie but that man is a redneck, hick, a country boy of every type."

Archie begins to chuckle. "Sure he has his temper and the accent when he lets it slip but it isn't that bad."

"A hick? Tabby what are you talking about?" Matt hums

"Let me make this clear with an example of something Maxie told us." Tabitha sighs. "Maxie didn't get his first pair of glasses till he was 16."

Archie gets that bad feeling again but shrugs it off. "Isn't he legally blind without his glasses? Why did it take so long?"

Tabitha frowns. "To quote Maxie 'I'm a better shot without the glasses."

Matt pauses. "Shot? Do you mean gun?"

Tabitha nods. "He got his first gun at 13."

Archie pales and so does Matt.

Archie loves Maxie but as he learns more information he is slowly starting to fear the man.

.....

Archie smiles seeing a old woman alone, and of course he goes over to help the scowling woman. "Are you lost ma'am?"

The woman looks up and her glare sends daggers through Archie as she slams her cane down. "I am looking for my grandson, not his boy." Her accent is thick

Archie kind of freezes and stutters. "I uh"

"Straighten your back I can walk on my own." She continues foward. "Don't keep me waiting boy."

"Y-yes ma'am." Archie nods following behind her.

Archie sighs in relief spotting Maxie.

"Ma you're early I told ya wait at the train station." Maxie smiles giving the old woman a hug.

"Nonesense my baby boy doesn't need to come on out for little old me." She smiles then frowns looking back at Archie.

"Ma that's Archie he is my partner." Macie smiles softly moving to hold his hand.

"He better be worth your effort Max." She sighs

Maxie sighs. "Yes Ma he is. Do you need help with your bags?"

"Thank you kindly for you asking but I ain't that weak." She smiles "just show me to my room darling."

Maxie nods and leaves Archie to show his grandma to her room.

.....

Archie has a newfound fear of Maxie listening to stories about Maxie growing up. He is more so shocked that the man isn't dead yet, also how many guns has he hidden in the base, and why can't Archie find a single one.

"As I was saying this little prick decided to run into the camerupt pen, eight years old he goes in and runs out with an egg biggest smile on his face screaming 'I found my partner.' " his oldest sister was holding back laughter. "The brat was covered head to toe in mud so happy with himself."

Archie just looks at Maxie wide eyes. "You weren't trampled to death?"

Maxie red faced. "What no why would I be?"

"Maxie you were eight years old surrounded by camerupt." Archie looks at him wide eyed.

"Pssh wasn't the dumbest thing I did growing up." Maxie chuckles the red leaving his face his accent in full force.

"Fucker shot fireworks off the roof git jessabell to light them. That hellhound only liked him." One of Maxie's brothers snickered.

"You're the one who got the fireworks Henry." Maxie scoffed

"Yeah and? You lit them up." Henry sticks his tongue out.

Archie just nods as the stories continued, Maxie wasn't just a nerd no that was a cover, Maxie is a full redneck. He was too in love to back out now.

......

The food was way too spicy for Archie, but desert was the beat thing he had ever eaten. Granted his nerves were getting the best of him, and Maxie's grandmother was glaring at him because he refused anymore food. He took out the black box from his pocket and turned to Maxie.

"Archie?" Maxie looked back at him.

"Maxie I love you more then anything you know that right?" Archie smiles getting down on one knee. "And we've done our worst but also our best together, and I wanted that to continue, like the land needs the sea I need you Maxie." He takes a deep breath "will you marry me?"

Maxie covers his mouth and nods. "Archie is that why you asked my family out here?" He looks around then back at Archie and pulls the man into a kiss letting Archie put on the ring. "Of course I'll marry you."

Ma gives a look Archie can't decipher. "You better teach him right Max."

"Yes Ma." Maxie smiles and whispers to Archie. "She likes you."

Archie looks back to the glaring woman not being able to comprehend that fact.

[artificialqueens]

Galactica, Chapter 77 (Group Fic) - TheDane/Veronica

A/N: Click here if you’re looking for previous chapters (or here if you’d rather read on AO3). 💫

Previously: Violet had to come to terms with Sutan’s past. Courtney got whisked away for a luxury vacation. Fame enjoyed entertaining Juju and Detox’s youngsters.

This Chapter: Courtney tries something new, Sutan and Raja chat, Violet gets an intriguing invitation, Adore and Tati catch up on the hot goss, and Dahlia has an embarrassing run-in.

***

“See anything you like?”

Bianca had just dumped the contents of a canvas bag onto the bed, and was looking down at Courtney with a half smile, clearly waiting for some kind of response. Courtney blinked, her mind still a bit addled from drinking all day, wondering what those objects were.

“What are…” Courtney trailed off, heat creeping into her cheeks as it slowly dawned on her what she was looking at: a large and varied collection of colorful sex toys. She bit her lip, touching one of them, heart pounding.

“Well?” Bianca sat down beside her on the bed, a grin deepening her dimples as she watched Courtney’s face.

“Um...I guess I’ve always wondered what a vibrator’s like,” Courtney admitted, looking closer at the various toys, taking in their shapes and textures. “I’ve never actually tried one.”

“Never?” Bianca asked, and she sounded so incredulous that Courtney found herself blushing even more.

“Well, I...I lived with my parents, and then in college I had roommates, and...I dunno. Shut up.”

“You’re adorable,” Bianca said, kissing her cheek. “But, okay...anything you see that piques your interest?”

The good thing about the liquor still strong in Courtney’s blood was that it helped ease her self-consciousness. It allowed her to blurt out the first thought that came into her head, even looking boldly up at Bianca with a naughty expression.

“Why don’t you show me your favorite?” she asked, leaning back on her elbows.

Bianca held her gaze for a few seconds before nodding, grin deepening into a confident smirk.

“Alright.” She chose one of the toys, sweeping the rest off the bed. “This...is called a Magic Wand…”

She placed the toy between Courtney’s legs, the rounded, velvety-soft top just barely touching her. Courtney arched forward, trying to edge closer.

“Uh uh...not so fast, my love…” Bianca began to kiss down her throat, smiling into her skin as she listened to Courtney’s pained whimpers.

Everywhere Bianca touched her, Courtney felt tingles on her already heated skin, a hunger for more blooming inside her as she dug her fingers into Bianca’s shoulders. When Bianca’s lips ghosted over hers in a teasing kiss, she summoned the strength to grab her hair and pull her in closer.

“You ready, angel?” Bianca moved her hand down to the wand, the back of her fingers brushing against Courtney’s thigh as she gripped it tightly.

“Yes,” Courtney breathed, praying that whatever the toy did, it would relieve the unbearable pulsing between her legs, satisfy the ache spreading in her core.

“Okay…” With one last kiss pressed to the corner of her mouth, Bianca turned on the wand, and Courtney was immediately electrified by the quiet buzzing against her, a gasp leaving her lips. “You like that, baby?”

“Y-yes…oh god…” Courtney threw her head back, her hips thrusting up again and again, unable to get enough. “More...please…”

Bianca turned up the vibration, pressed the toy harder against her, and Courtney let out a moan, full-throated and shameless, unable to hold back.

“That’s right…” Bianca purred into her ear, shifting slightly, now using her own weight to press the toy against Courtney’s clit, freeing up her hands to wander higher, fingers skating over her skin.

Courtney squeezed her eyes tightly closed, thighs around Bianca’s hips, arching up to match her rhythm. And then, something incredible happened. First, Courtney heard Bianca’s breath begin growing ragged in her ear, felt her touch change from light and teasing to intense and urgent as she wrapped her hands around Courtney’s waist.

Her hips were rolling faster now, pressing Courtney down into the mattress, choked whimpers unlike anything Courtney’d heard from her before sounding from her throat. Courtney took Bianca’s face into her hands, wanting nothing more than to witness the look on her face as she came. She watched with rapt attention, positively enthralled by the way her eyes rolled back as her whole body shivered with pleasure. She brought her face closer, brushing their lips together, swallowing up her beautiful broken moans with kisses.

When Bianca’s hips finally stuttered and then stilled, she almost immediately started squirming uncomfortably.

“Too much,” she gasped, and Courtney somehow knew exactly what she was trying to say.

She reached down and pulled the toy out from between them, switching it off and then tossing it aside before wrapping her arms around Bianca once more, holding her close.

Courtney couldn’t help but feel like seeing her fall apart like this was a rare honor, in spite of the number of women she’d slept with. She took that privilege seriously, cradling Bianca in her arms, stroking her cheek lightly with a finger.

It was awhile before Bianca spoke again, clearing her throat, almost embarrassed. “Uh, I didn’t plan on that…”

“You’re so beautiful,” Courtney responded, placing a light kiss at the corner of her mouth.

Bianca bit her lip, and the look in her brown eyes seemed adorably vulnerable, almost self-conscious, as she curled back up in Courtney’s arms, for once at a loss for words.

***

“You know, I think we need a discussion about what constitutes an emergency,” Sutan tapped the side of the coffee grinder, pouring the last bit into the porta-filter, “Because you forgetting how to work your espresso machine isn’t one.”

“Oh shut up,” Raja groaned, and Sutan chuckled, clicking everything into place and turning the machine on. Raja was hungover, the wine glasses in the sink and the empty bottles telling their clear story of what his sister and Raven had gotten up to last night.

Raven had left for the gym, which was why Raja wallowed in her misery, but Sutan had to admit that it was kind of adorable, Raja so rarely giving into her brattier side.

“All I’m saying sister dear,” Sutan took the fresh cups of coffee, Raja always taking it black, and followed behind her into the living room, “is that I might hesitate the next time you claim to be in distress.”

“Please,” Raja dumped down on the couch, holding out a hand for her cup. “Like you’re ever going to not be there.”

Sutan sat down, a little ball of warmth happily nestled in his chest as Raja put her legs in his lap. He didn’t say it often, but he loved Raja so much that it hurt sometimes.

“Mmh,” Sutan took a sip of his coffee, the beans perfectly roasted. “Have you heard from Bianca?”

“No.” Raja didn’t elaborate, and Sutan had to hold back an eyeroll. Seemed like he shouldn’t tell Raja that he had been texting with Bianca, asking her to bring back a bottle (or several) of pitorro when he had learned that she was in Puerto Rico, not that he wouldn’t share said bottles with his twin if Bianca brought them back.

Sutan didn’t have any cards in the latest game of drama amongst his friends, his position as neutral as possible since he genuinely didn’t care about the girl Bianca was dating, her name already forgotten once again, but he had to admit that he had hoped the entire thing would have blown over already.

“Where’s Violet? Still asleep?”

“Work.” Violet had kissed him goodbye after breakfast, saying that she’d text him when she left the office, but being alone suited him fine since Sutan had actually planned to work himself before Raja had called, his fingers itching with the need to truly get going on launching Gigi as a model.

He leaned back, watching Raja take one of the wrapped chocolates from the crystal bowl on the couch table, the desire for sweets truly cementing his twin's hangover.

“Actually,” Sutan drummed his fingers on Raja’s shin, the lounge pants she was wearing the softest gray jersey. “Speaking of Violet...”

[Speaking of Violet what?]

Sutan had to fight not to shrink at Raja’s instant switch to Indonesian, the conversation suddenly that much more serious.

[Speaking of Violet...] Sutan bit the inside of his cheek, wondering for a moment if he should continue. [She apparently didn’t know that I have been married.]

[What?] Raja raised an eyebrow, disbelief thick in her voice. [Seriously?]

“Yup.” Sutan popped the P. [I think I figured she had googled me, read my wikipedia or just…] He could honestly not remember the last time he had dated a woman who didn’t already know all about him, who hadn’t dived into the catalogue of his past. [I don’t know if I should feel bad about it, or if-]

[Feel bad?] Raja huffed, taking a sip of her coffee. [Why on earth would you feel bad?]

[It seems like something I should have told her,] Sutan sighed, crossing his arms. [I’m always-] He cut himself off. He had wanted to talk about Violet’s past, about how jarring it felt each time he discovered another layer of the woman he was dating, but it didn’t feel right to tell Raja, didn’t feel like his story to tell. [Do you think we’re too self absorbed?]

[Who? Us?] Raja smiled, a teasing tone in her voice and Sutan nodded. He knew his world began and ended with Raja, that she and their friends had been at the center of his universe for literal decades.

[Yes.] Sutan thought he had loved some of his past girlfriends, had genuinely believed that there was something special there, but as he continued to get to know Violet, as they continued to grow closer, the feelings of his past faded at an alarming rate.

[Well brother dear, I’m not the one who assumed my girlfriend read my wikipedia.]

“Oh fuck off!” Sutan groaned, pushing Raja’s leg, making his twin sister laugh. [Don’t twist my words!]

[Never.] Raja smirked, reaching for the remote to turn on the TV.

***

Violet swiped her card, doing her best to balance as she opened the door to the design floor.

Galactica was completely empty, a single security guard on the ground floor the only other person she had seen. It reminded her of when she was an assistant, so many of her mornings starting before anyone else was even in the building.

Violet didn’t miss being an assistant, at least not really - what she was doing now so much more creatively fulfilling, but there had been a rhythm to being in Fame’s office, a way things were done that was easy to understand and to follow, Fame consistent and even predictable in her own way.

It was simply a matter of delivering perfection, and as someone who used to dedicate her life to ballet, she understood.

Violet maneuvered her way through the door, the new crossbody Yves Saint Laurent Sutan had gifted her for Christmas perfect for when she needed her hands on her crutches, the thin layer of ice outside treacherous terrain.

She had come in to print the pictures she had found of Raja at the MET, to get started on the folder she’d bring for the first meeting that was already plopped into her calendar by Ivy before the holidays.

She had a vague idea of a color palette, and she was pretty sure she had seen some stones in the warehouse that she could maybe use, but she knew she couldn’t move forward with sketches until she had physical samples of fabric.

Violet had expected the design floor to be empty, but the light was on, the sound of a sewing machine greeting her.

She paused, looking around the floor, closing the door behind her. “... Hello?”

“Chachki!” Violet looked over, only to see Bob sitting at Maxwell’s machine, a bright grin on his face. He was wearing a patterned sweater, a gigantic cup of coffee and a half-eaten blueberry muffin next to him. “Hi!”

“Hi?” Violet smiled, the fact that Bob seemed genuinely excited for her to be there filling her with warmth. She walked over, her curiosity too great to ignore. “I didn’t know you sewed.”

“I’m a man of many talents,” Bob smirked, pushing his tortoise shelled glasses onto his head. “I can’t sew like tailoring, or even you guys, but this apparently tore the last time I wore it.“

For the first time, Violet looked at the project Bob was working on. It appeared to be a gigantic almost Barbie-like orange dress, the size of it supporting Bob’s claim that it was his own dress.

“And Maxwell won’t be back from Seattle until tomorrow, so here I am, trying to put it back together.”

“Let me see,” Violet took a seat on the edge of Maxwell’s desk, putting her crutches aside to pick the costume up. The dress was a beautiful deep orange, silver thread woven into the fabric, it ended in a mermaid tail that had layers upon layers of orange feathers, and that was where the problem was, a tear going through two of the layers which had destroyed the integrity of the entire tail. “I can help.”

“You can?” Bob shot a quick look at her cast, and Violet had to fight not to roll her eyes.

“Yes.” She pushed out from the table, Bob getting up from his chair so Violet could take a seat.

Sure, it was bulky and annoying to work a sewing machine with a broken ankle, but it was all about swallowing the pain, which was something Violet excelled at.

“You know...” She grabbed the tray of needles, quickly flipping the tail so she could redo what Bob had done, his work adequate, but she prefered things her way. “I can’t wait for people to stop treating me like an invalid.”

Sutan had gotten better at it, her boyfriend almost believing her now when she said she could do something by herself.

“Sorry,” Bob grinned, the coffee cup in hand as he watched, “but hey, if you’re not an invalid, you should come see my show tomorrow.”

“Your drag show?”

Everyone at Galactica knew Bob did drag, his drag name - creatively enough - simply Bob the Drag Queen. Violet had never seen him in action, but Jovan had shown her pictures, and Blu had entertained her with the story of how Bob had made her snort vodka out of her nose. She had never been to a drag show, but during her time at school, both at the Ballet Academy and at Parsons, several of her fellow students had been big fans, a few of the guys even dabbling in drag themselves.

“Yeah! It’s going to be great!” Bob smiled. “Comedy, dance, the whole shebang.”

He was certainly selling it, and Violet would be lying if she said she wasn’t curious about what Bob was like as a performer. “Can I bring Sutan?”

“Would I ever say no to that?”

“Then yes.” Violet smiled, “Yes, I’d like to go.”

***

“Ah!” Raven moaned, throwing her head back, her legs cramping and catching Raja’s hand between them, water and bubbles splashing over the edge of the tub as she came.

Raja grinned, pressing a kiss against Raven’s temple, her thumb slowing down to lazy circles over Raven’s clit, her other hand still pinching her nipple. “Hey princess.”

“Mmh,” Raven groaned, her eyes still closed, a sated smile blooming on her lips, her nails digging into Raja’s arm a little whine leaving her as Raja pulled her fingers out. “Fuck you’re good.”

“So I’ve been told,” Raja smiled, reaching out with her foot to turn the warm water back on.

It was rare for Raja to have time like this on her hands, to luxuriate in a bubble bath with Raven, to know that she didn’t have to hurry, that they didn’t have to be anywhere or meet anyone, and Raja loved it.

***

VIOLET: Bob has invited us to a drag show tomorrow

SUTAN: Bob who?

VIOLET: Bob from work

SUTAN: Tall?

VIOLET: Yes.

VIOLET: He’s performing. In the show

SUTAN: Cool. Sounds fun

SUTAN: I’m in! ;)

***

“Ughhhhhh…” Bianca whined, flopping heavily onto the bed. “Everything huuuurts.”

“Come on, it can’t be that bad,” Courtney giggled, climbing in after her.

At her beautiful girlfriend’s request, they’d spent a large part of the day going on a guided paddle boarding tour around a nearby lagoon. It was all very nice in theory...looking at sea creatures and enjoying the sunshine and fresh air, not to mention Courtney’s ass in skimpy bikini bottoms. But Bianca was just, simply put, not in the same shape as Courtney, and after trying to keep up with her all day, she felt like she’d been hit by a truck.

“I’m a little past my athletic prime, sunshine,” she said.

“Well, I think you did great,” Courtney said. She pressed a kiss to Bianca’s cheek, wrapping an arm around her waist.

Bianca offered only a grunt in response, making Courtney laugh and hold her tighter. The ruffles from her dress brushed against Bianca’s thighs as she slid her leg in between them, and while Bianca was not about to admit how good it felt to be wrapped up in an embrace, she did feel her muscles softening a little at her touch.

“I’m serious, it was very impressive…” Courtney added, then cooing, “My good girl…”

Bianca cracked open one eye. “Why do I feel like I’m being patronized?”

“Well…” At first, Courtney looked like she was going to deny it, but then she changed her mind, a charming smile spreading across her face. “Do you hate it?”

“Mmm...not completely,” Bianca admitted.

Courtney giggled again, holding her close. “So...do you want a special reward, for being such a good girl?” she asked.

“Yes. Alcohol.”

“We can do that,” Courtney laughed, nuzzling into her. “Anything else?”

“Yeah, how about we make tomorrow a spa day?”

“You got it.” Courtney pressed a kiss to her jaw, her lips lingering, arm tightening around her waist.

When Bianca breathed out a contented sigh, she felt Courtney smile against her skin.

“And also…”

“Yes?” Courtney asked, voice lilting teasingly.

“Use your imagination,” Bianca said, pushing her on her back, hand sliding up under her dress.

***

“Hi! Can you hear me?” Adore waved, grinning at the camera, her voice much louder than it needed to be. She wasn’t that much older than Tati, but she was an absolute Grandma when it came to technology.

“Guuurl omigod I have a headache like you wouldn’t believe. When are you back in town?” Tati asked, settling on her bed, iPad propped against her knees.

“I fly back in 2 days, why?” Adore asked, laughing.

“My cousins got the new PlayStation for Christmas and it’s been non-stop screaming and cursing from the den, which is like...literally the other side of my wall,” Tati moaned. “I was hoping I could crash with you in the city for a couple of days, at least until they go back to school.”

“Baby, you know you’re always welcome!” Adore said.

“Thanks. Tyra’s not coming back until after New Year’s and you know Morgan’s roommates are cunts about overnight guests. And Courtney...well, I’m not trying to set foot in that dungeon anytime soon.”

“Courtney might not be in the dungeon much longer,” Adore laughed, fluttering her lashes.

“Why? What do you mean?”

“Let’s just say that bae has my sister wrapped around her little finger,” Adore said. “I’ve actually never seen Bianca like this. And Courtney...well...she’s fucking gone, you already know that.”

“I do, I do,” Tati laughed. “Her posts have been...extremely extra. But you really think they’re gonna be breaking out the U-Haul so soon? Kind of a cliché, don’t you think?”

“I don’t know for sure. But it wouldn’t surprise me if Courtney was moving on up to a dee-luxe apartment in the sky sometime soon,” declared Adore.

Tati laughed. “Wow, and to think we knew her when…”

“Ha!” Adore snorted, some of whatever she was drinking coming out her nose.

“But what about you?”

“What about me?”

“Any hot girls on the horizon?” Tati asked, raising one eyebrow suggestively.

“I mean, hopefully,” Adore chuckled, “But nobody’s made their presence known in my universe at the moment. Well, except this waitress that I proposed to the other day. But I think that affair is over.”

“Aww, RIP.”

“Yeah…” Adore’s smile faltered slightly and she sighed. “Honestly, it’s been a bit bleak.”

“You’ll find someone,” Tati insisted. “You’re like...the most lovable person on the planet.”

“Awww, thank you baby…” Adore’s grin returned in full force, and Tati grinned back at her.

“COCKSUCKING MOTHERFUCKER!” screamed one of her cousins.

“Sorry, when did you say you’re back?”

***

It had seemed like a sexy idea, in Dahlia’s head. Showing up at Pearl’s house after her shift, still in costume, with only a winter coat thrown over it. It probably could have been sexy, if Pearl was the one who answered the door.

Instead, as she posed in the doorframe, the door swung open to reveal a bald white guy wearing an Aloha shirt over a purple turtleneck.

Shit.

It somehow hadn’t occurred to Dahlia that Pearl’s roommates would be home up and about at this time of night. She immediately straightened up, hands going reflexively to the belt of her coat, making sure it was securely tied. The last thing she needed was a tit to fall out in front of this man.

“Um...hi,” he said, a slightly puzzled but still friendly smile on his lips. “I assume you’re a friend of Pearl’s?!

“Uh, yeah. Hi.”

“Come on in. I’m Trixie, by the way.” He opened the door to let Dahlia through, then gestured to a pretty blonde on the sofa, who was sitting in front of a TV that was paused in the middle of The Nightmare Before Christmas, her lap filled with some knitting project. “That’s Katya.”

Katya waved cheerfully, calling out, “Hi!” and then, “PEARLIE!”

“WHAT?!”

“COME OUT HERE!”

“Whaaaaaat?” After a few moments, Pearl’s bedroom door opened and she appeared, looking slightly disheveled and extremely hot in that just-woke-up way she had about her.

“Company,” Trixie informed her, and the pout faded from her lips as she spotted Dahlia.

“Oh, hey!”

“Can I take your coat?” Trixie asked kindly.

“No! Uhhh...I mean, no thanks. Sorry. I just…”

“Why don’t we hang out in my room?” Pearl suggested, tossing her hair over her shoulder. Her sleepy bedroom eyes had a mischievous glint, promising an evening of fun.

“Okay,” Dahlia said, breathing a sigh of relief. Before she disappeared behind Pearl, she remembered to say, “Um, nice to meet you. Both.”

Trixie offered a still-slightly-puzzled wave as Pearl yanked her inside and shut the door firmly.

“Jesus. Sorry. I didn’t realize the’d be-”

“Whatcha got under the coat, pumpkin?”

Dahlia pursed her lips, amused at how Pearl had caught on so quickly to her game. “Well I...didn’t exactly change from work.”

“Show me.”

“Say please.” Dahlia smiled, fingering her belt.

“Please,” Pearl said immediately. She settled on the bed, leaning back to enjoy the show she so clearly expected. “Please show me…”