#but i think jimmy knew what he was doing lets be real

[kreauxlighe-art]

i told myself this year i'd try to draw something every day, even if its just for 15 mins. at first i was feeling a little anxious about that but then i realized i dont have to SHARE something every day. p key distinction there imo

lucky (???) for yall today is a sharing day

(ref below the cut)

based on this garfield comic

[caotictimmy]

Hey!!! Can you do Curly x (gn, but it's okay if you don't! Whatever you prefer writing) reader headcanons? Post or pre crash idk it's up to you! Even if you want to write a one-shot I don't mind really whatever you feel like writing it's up to you I JUST NEED CURLY CONTENT JDJDJDJJWJSBSB

Btw I hope you have a wonderful day!!!

Thank you!!! I hope your having a good day to! I’m gonna be doing pre crash Curly. I’ll probably be doing the same format I did with Daisuke. Crushing - confessing. Dating than NSFW. It will prob be more Gn but I’ll put (AFAB) when in gonna talk about more AFAB stuff. (Btw this is gonna be like what a regular trip would be for them.)

Crushing - Confession

- Kind of like love at first sight. But it’s a love at first true conversations. Lemme explain

- Yes you’ve had conversations with Curly before. But not on a personal level. Your guys first conversation was prob Like you guys were either both up going to get coffee at a late hour. So when you both see each other where the coffee machine is. You guys make small talk. Before the conversation starts get more real. Not just forced talking. The conversation flows freely. And you guys find out you have a lot more in common.

- After that moment he realizes how much you guys click together. You interest him. So except for him to come up and talk to you a lot more. He wants to get to know you better! (Totally not to remember everything you like and love to woe you)

- He’s another person who’s gonna be a bit obvious. Not as much as Daisuke though. But he’s still gonna be obvious.

- Curly definitely treats you better. Not like he doesn’t treat his crew good (jimmy doesn’t exist here.). But it’s more like picking favorites. Opening doors for you, before letting it slam shut even though Swansea was just about to walk through the door. (Curly got an ear full after that happened.).

- But the funny thing is that no one really notices that you’re getting treated better. Except for Daisuke funny enough… For another example imagine they have his surprise birthday party! He’s cutting the cake and he gives you a noticeable bigger piece of cake. Giving Daisuke a smaller piece. And let me tell you. This man was outraged. HE ASKED FOR THE BIGGEST PIECE AND CURLY GIVES HIM A SCHOOL PARTY SIZED PIECE?

- So of course he had to speak up. “Listen Curly, since I’m such a righteous man, I’ve let the favoritism towards them slide. BUT I CLEARLY ASKED FOR THE BIGGER PIECE! AND YOU GIVE THEM THE BIGGEST PIECE. I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS TREATMENT ANY LONGER!”

- To say everyone was stunned is an understatement. It was quiet for a good couples of minutes. Just standing still like the moment was paused. You then silently switched plates with Daisuke. Taking the smaller piece. He then found balanced was restored!

- “never mind Curly now I get why you favorite them.” He said looking over to you before raising his hand. “High five dude!” He said, smilingly giddily. (I love daisuke he’s so silly!)

- To say Curly was embarrassed would be an understatement. After that moment Curly knew he had to confess to you to soon. So he called you down to the cock pit. When you got there he lead you to sit in one of the chairs. Crouching before you. Holding your hands on his as he stares up at you. “You’ve made me feel emotions I’ve never truly felt before, god you mean so much to me. Will you be my partner.”, He asked.

- When you say yes he cups yours face with his hands. Leaning upwards to bring you in a passionate kiss.

Dating

- Like I said in that brief moment In Daisuke’s headcanons. This man is a die hard romantic to his core. So if you don’t mind. Curly would love to cuddle with you in bed, while watching sappy love movies. Just holding each other. God he loves you sm I’m gonna tweak up in this bitch.

- I think the affection he likes to receive is quality times and words of affirmation . And I think the affection he gives is acts of service and physical affection. Now let me cook. Guys LET.ME.COOK

-(receiving) Curly loves spending time with you. He tried to find as much time to fit you into his busy schedule. So when he finally gets to spend time with you. Omg he’s love sick!!!!!! He really doesn’t care what you guys are doing while being together. Whether that be doing or watching something together. Or maybe doing your own stuff. Your presence is so comforting. You calm him down sm.

-(receiving) He receives compliments a bit. But when you do it. It’s different. It makes his heart flutter, makes him feel like he has butterflies in his stomach all over again! He just feels so special when you compliment him!!!! Please compliment how good of a captain he is. Yes he gets praised for being a good captain. It just feels so genuine from you.

-(giving) He doesn’t care how you guys spend your quality time together. Whether that be doing or watching something together. Or just doing your guys own thing. He just loves being in your presence. You being there just makes him feel calmer, he knows he doesn’t have to keep this big stoic act in-front of you. He doesn’t mind if theirs silence or background noise. As long as he got to spend time with you.

-(giving) Curly isn’t gonna be doing big/a lot of physical affection all the time. Even though he does give you a lot of physically affection. I know I sound dumb right now stay with me. He’s more soft with his affection. Gently rubbing his thumb on your hand. Drawing shapes on your back while cuddling. Rubbing your leg when you sit next to him on the couch. Kissing a bruise you got from falling(those floors look slippery asf PROVE ME WRONG). He’s very romantic and soft with you and Curly’s just such a sweetie.

- A SUCKER for pda. Like he loves it so much. He feels bad if he has to “hide” how much he loves you away from the world! He feels so special knowing you wanted him, HIM! He’s just so sickly in love with you. He wants to show you off. Not in a trophy wife way but in a. Yeah see the drop dead gorgeous person that picked ME, yea that’s right, be jealous.

- He loves if you draw in him! From his hands to his arms. I think he finds it very relaxing and therapeutic. As long as you don’t draw anything inappropriate, he won’t care what you draw. He WILL proudly show off the drawings on his hands and arms. Like FLEX his arms. He loves them sm. Every time you draw on him, he takes a picture and keeps it in a folder on his phone.

- Loves anything you make him. Bracelets? Wears them all the time he might acually get a permanent imprint. Clothe? Try’s to find any opportunity to wear them. Art? Hung proudly in his bedroom. He appreciates anything you do for him. No matter what form affection it is.

- This man loves slinging his arm/arms around you. Arms around your waist. Arm around your shoulder. Hand on your hip. Idk why I think he likes it. But I have that spicy sense.

NSFW - DO NOT READ IF YOUR A MINOR OR UNCOMFORTABLE WITH NSFW (AFAB)

- Another man who would be into public/semi public sex. Y’all have DEFINITELY done it in the cockpit. Like almost everywhere. Curly and you have probably done it on the table too(you guys cleaned it afterwards don’t worry). But I think he just loves the thrill of it. You guys have almost been caught but thankfully Curly knows how to be quiet! (No shade to you Daisuke we love you)

- This man loves keeping his hands on you. Like a FIRMM grip on your hips as he’s hitting it. Gripping yours thighs. He just likes sinking his fingers in your soft flesh. Somehow just kinda grounds him in the moment. He also just loves feeling up your body.🫢

- Speaking of feeling you up. Dry humper. DRY HUMPER. I feel like this man is a tease. So this man will pin you against a wall, and just grind on you. Teasing you until you can’t take it anymore! He loves seeing a pout on your face before he gives you what you want.

- Like before, curly is a tease. He will push all your buttons. Just get you right there! Then stops. He wants to make sure when you climax. It’s better than the last time you guys had sex. It’s a GOAL for him to make you feel even better than the last time you guys slept together.

- Loves overstimulating you. Unlike Daisuke who accidentally overstimulates you. It’s Curly’s mission to get you brain dead by the end. He knows he’s making you feel good. This man won’t over do it though. Your comfort and safety is his priority! So he’ll always make sure you’re comfortable.

- Call him captain!!!!! God Curly gets so riled up when you call him captain. Teasingly calling him captain earns you a night of either overstimulation or edging. So I hope you are aloud to take sick leave, cause wooo…. You will be sore my friend

- (AFAB) Sit on his face.. OH GOOD GOLLY SIT ON HIS FACE. I imagine he’s buff. Like have you SEEN that fanart. So he can definitely take a lot of weight!( shout out my cubby AFABs i really wanna make a chubby reader FIC but idk..) BUT PLEASS, he’ll beg on his hands and knees. Like why are you keeping that tantalizing gift away from him???

- Yes I’ve been saying he can be a freak.(guys I promise I’m trying to be original 😭🙏) But I definitely think he’s More into romantic, soft sex. He likes to take his time. Kissing up and down your body. He wants to make sure you feel loved, and that he’s not just using you for your body. He is a sucker for you.

- He loves watching your face when he’s pleasuring you. No matter what he’s doing or where. He wants to know your getting pleased! That’s how he figured out what you liked and didn’t like fast. He kept his eyes trained on your face. He truly is a giver!

Authors note: GUYS I’M SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG. IVE BEEN HAVIBD SIRE AFFECTS FROM MY PLAN B. Like dude I’ve been bed ridden for the past two days. But I’m feeling better and it’s the weekend. So more requests are on the way!

[moonstruckme]

ok i have a request/idea: gf reader on tour supporting bf rockstar!sirius but she starts to feel homesick being on the road for so long <33333 just feel like sirius would be so comforting and caring

I feel the same babe! Thank you for requesting <3

rockstar!Sirius x fem!reader ♡ 1.4k words

Even after months on tour, you don’t understand why rockstars need to smoke indoors. You’ve found a corner of refuge in the stranger’s house, siphoning fresh air from an open window, but you feel for James, grinning and bearing it while he talks to another band that performed tonight and makes nice with groupies while showing off pictures of his girlfriend back home. 

Part of you is still a bit awestruck that you get to go to these things, another part equally mystified at how routine it’s come to feel. During the first several nights of the tour, you’d been endlessly dazzled by the wealth you were suddenly surrounded with, the vibrancy of the people around you, the novelty of it all. The world had suddenly become so much larger, and everywhere you and the boys went everyone wanted to talk to them, buy you all drinks, invite you to parties and afterparties and after-afterparties. 

Sirius bears it beautifully, like this was always his destiny—in a lot of ways, you imagine it was—but sometimes when the two of you are alone he’ll confess to still feeling giddy that he and his friends have made it this big. You wonder if it’ll ever feel normal for him, the hugeness of it. You can tell by now that it never will for you. 

You’re still very impressed by the glamor of touring, you still have a good time on these nights out, but lately you’ve started to feel the distance between where you are and your real life. It’s almost as if before you could feel something invisible connecting you to home and, somewhere along on the road, it severed without you noticing. Now it just feels like a phantom limb, and when you try to recall the scent of you and Sirius’ kitchen or mime the way you have to jimmy your key to unlock the front door, you can’t manage it. 

You’re still thinking of the scent of your kitchen when it sidles up next to you. 

“You smell like garlic,” you tell Sirius, not without fondness. 

“God, it’s that potent, is it?” Your boyfriend’s tone speaks to a chagrin entirely unlike him, and he corroborates its falsity by caging you in his arms and touching his cheek to yours. You don’t mind, as he knew you wouldn’t. “I was given a choice, gorgeous, and I took a gamble.” 

“Mm. What was that?” 

“Do you want to get out of here?” 

You turn in his arms, tangling your fingers behind his back so you’re holding him as he is you. People start to give you a bit of berth, as one does for couples at parties, and selfishly you enjoy it. 

Touring is non-stop motion, a blur of people and places and sounds, and you miss the slow, quiet moments you and Sirius used to have more of. You’re with him all the time, but it doesn’t always feel like it. It hardly feels like you’re with yourself. Not his fault, not anyone’s, but not ideal. 

“It’s hardly one,” you say. 

“Which means” —he drops his lips to your eyebrow, speaking loudly to be heard over the music but just soft enough to have goosebumps skittering down your arms— “the fast food places will be closing in an hour. Fancy some grease, my love?” 

You tilt your chin up, pecking him on the lips. Truly, you don’t mind the garlic as much as you suppose you ought to. “Sure, let’s go.” 

Getting to the door is a melee, several people stopping you to try and pull Sirius back into conversation or ask if you’re going to the next party and such-and-such’s place in a couple hours, but when you do make it out the noise deadens and the air tastes clean. 

It’s a pleasant night, just cool enough to raise the hair on your arms and refresh your energy. Somewhere above you, the moon is hidden behind clouds, but still it’s bright enough that it casts a silvery glow in the areas not lit by streetlights. 

You make it a few paces down the block before Sirius is fisting his hand in the material of your shirt, spinning you around to face him. 

“Have I told you how stunning you look tonight?” 

Only thrice between the hotel and when he went on stage. “No.” 

“Liar,” he says lovingly, leaning in to give you a kiss. 

You expect from his mood for it to be hot and indelicate, and you’d hardly have complained, but he closes his lips around yours softly. His hand loosens on your front, coasting upwards to cup your cheek, sweet and savoring. 

“Garlic knots,” he says as he pulls back. 

You’re unjustifiably breathless. “Hm?” 

“That was the choice I had to make. One of Ricky’s friends heated up garlic knots, and I wagered you’d prefer kissing someone who tasted like garlic over someone who tasted like cigarettes.” 

“It’s not just someone.” You grin at him, turning and taking his hand to keep walking. “I’ll always prefer kissing you. I would’ve done it either way, you know.” 

You can hear Sirius’ smile in his voice, your favorite sound. “Yeah, but I chose right, didn’t I?” 

“You did,” you confirm, and he gives your hand a triumphant squeeze. “I have no idea where I’m going, by the way. I don’t know why I took the lead.” 

He hums. “Do you ever think you might have one of those honing instincts? Like, the way bees are to their hive, that’s how you are with fast food. My honeybee,” he says it drawn out and extra saccharine, knowing you’ll hate it, and laughs when you let go of his hand and make to walk away from him. 

Sirius grabs for your hand back, tugging you close enough to get his arm around your shoulders and pulling you into his side. You don’t put up much resistance. 

“You’re spot on, sweetheart,” he says. “I clocked a McDonald’s just a few streets down when we were driving here.” 

A buzz of excitement goes through you. “Why are you so keen on McDonald’s all of a sudden?” Sirius is as happy with fast food as the rest of you, but you know he’s been enjoying the lavish meals the boys’ new manager pays for and having room service sent up at your hotel. “We can always have that at home.” 

“You’ve been talking about milkshakes for a couple of days now,” he says, “and you’re getting quiet. I recognize that mood. I missed home last summer, too.” 

“Really?” This is the boys' first big tour—they’ve already been on a shorter, less grandiose one you hadn’t come along for—but it’s hard for you to picture Sirius ever not enjoying it. He’s not someone who sets down roots, and with the way he talks about where he grew up you’ve never thought of him as getting particularly nostalgic for any sort of place. “I figured you’d feel most at home wherever James and Remus are.” 

“Yeah, but we’d left you behind. I was torn in two, gorgeous.” Sirius’ tone is doing that weird thing where it’s teasing but not. You can hear the sincerity lining his words. He mashes a kiss into the side of your head. “Why didn’t you tell me you weren’t feeling well?” 

“Because.” You take his hand where it’s draped over your shoulder, your fingertips dancing in between his own. “It’s not the sort of mood I’d like to give into if I can help it, and I’d rather be here with you than at home anyways, so it’s pointless. There was nothing you could do, baby.” 

“Well, that’s where you’re wrong.” Sirius gives your fingers a playful squeeze. “You should always assume there’s something I can do, haven’t we been over this? Right now, I can get my girl a milkshake and some fries, and then I was thinking we could go find a park to eat them.” 

That sounds so unbelievably nice. You turn your head to smile at him, and find he’s already looking at you with a similar expression.

“And if more things come up that would make you feel better, I can try to make those happen. How does that sound, lovely girl?” 

You steal a kiss to his cheek, but Sirius doesn’t let you get away with just that, stopping to hold you in place so he can peck you properly on the lips. The neon sign of the McDonalds is close enough now to cast you in its glow. 

“You woo me more every day, do you know that?” 

“Yes, well,” says Sirius, wrapping his arm around you again to lead you the rest of the way, “I do have to prove myself better than home somehow, don’t I?”

[cherry-pop-elf]

Kiss It Better

Curly (mouthwashing) x reader

AN: No one asked for this but CURLY DESERVED BETTER-!

Sum: You were taking care of Curly, your partner, when you just had to ask him a question that was burning you as much alive as the cockpit burned him. Did he actually crash the ship?

Warnings: 18+, gore, medical situations, Jimmy, violence, just mouthwashing in general, ablism, lots of medical stuff (from someone that knows way to much about medical shit because of being in and out of the hospital all her life)

“Morning honey.” You would force yourself to smile. You had to. You had to for him. To give him hope like he always gave you. To be a little bit of real sunshine through the day. Just wanted to take care of him. Give Anya some kind of break.

A wheeze was your greeting.

Wasn’t like it was his fault. He couldn’t really speak right now. You wondered if he would ever speak again. You would miss his voice but it’s worth it for him to live. He will live, you knew he would. You would make sure of it.

“Let’s have a look at you.” You would grab the clipboard that Anya left for you and took a look over. The small little list to help you understand how to care for his issues. When to wash him, what time his medications were, whatever routine was needed for that day. Was your Bible so to speak. You followed it to the last ink splotch.

“Your bandages don’t look to need to be changed yet, your IV bag needs to be changed, I’ll check your catheter, and yada yada yada. Wanna try and swallow today? Maybe if you can swallow some water I can grind up the pain pills into powder for you. Wanna try?”

He gave two distinct blinks for yes.

“Wonderful. Let me do this routine, so you can mentally prepare.” You would explain, as you went to slip on the latex gloves. Didn’t want to risk transferring some kind of infection. He’s already fighting for his life as it is. No need to make it harder.

You would first change out his IV bag, since he needed to stay as hydrated and fed nutrients as possible, before working on the awkward catheter. Luckily Anya made it very easy to use. She had opted for a condom catheter since she didn’t want to put himself at anymore risk to infections, and pain, as possible. Seemed the trauma made it rather impossible to control his bowls anyway so it worked out. All you had to do was drain the bag, wash it, and reattach it to the side of the table. Wasn’t like he was going to be moving around much anyway.

“So Daisuke was showing me his gameboy. Teaching me about how the lore works and all that. I really had no idea what he was talking about, but it’s better than Swansea snoring.” You laughed, and did your best to keep yourself peppy. To help Curly feel somewhat involved with society. To not just be trapped in the med bay alone. Daisuke and Swansea would visit, and Anya did what she could medically, but sometimes you just need someone to talk to.

“Think it’s a rouge like game. That’s nice. Helps keep you entertained with wanting to break through more and more dungeons in one session.” You rambled, before reattaching the bag. Had you sigh in relief to see you didn’t mess up the chord. Some urine had already started to fill the bag. Must have been triggered by the new IV. Good good. Everything was correct.

“You ready?” You asked, as this was always the hardest part. Getting medication in him. Anya would do her best but you couldn’t blame her for struggling. It’s such a mental tax to try and take care of someone but it results in more pain. You were willing to take that burden. You were his partner after all. You felt it’s only fair you take care of him. Gave Anya some breathing room to actually care for herself. She deserved to take care of herself to.

With two clear blinks you would get to work.

You would slip your hand under his back, and forced him to sit up. He groaned in pain, and tried his best to keep his head upright, as you two tried to work together. To survive this. To try and fight through.

“You are doing so well.” You reassured, as your brought the water bottle up to his open mouth. He was able to let his head hang back, and did what he could to open his throat. Was awkward, but he managed to do it. He took a proper swallow of water. You could hardly hide your excitement.

“You did it! Oh my god you did it!” You couldn’t help but kiss his cheek. It hurt, of course, but he very much felt it was worth it. He had his own pride in being able to do some kind of basic human function again.

You would lay him back down, and was quick to grind up medication to put in the water bottle. You couldn’t wait to tell Anya his progress. You were positive the rest of the crew would be happy to hear the progress.

Well…..Most of the crew.

You used your anger towards Jimmy to help you grind the pain killers into powder. Oh how you hated him. You knew deep down he was responsible for the crash. You knew he was. You weren’t sure why he would be, but you just knew that Curly would never. If he had to, for whatever reason, he would have come on to the intercom to inform everyone to prepare for a crash. He would have done something. Anything.

What purpose would there be in crashing the ship?

Jimmy was his copilot. He would be the only other person to have access to the cockpit. He had to have been involved somehow. There had to have been something going on. You just knew it.

You just wish you had proof.

You sighed, as you would shake up the powder in the bottle. Made sure it was fully dissolved to avoid any issues with it going down his throat.

You just couldn’t understand.

Why would Jimmy crash the ship?

You would return back to curly, and do the same routine again. Slow, and small, drips into his throat. Would take a while, and would make your arm beg for death, but this would make life easier for Curly. That’s all that mattered. A arm cramp is worth it to help Curly survive.

“Curly…..Since you are more lucid now I….I just gotta ask something.”

The way his eye darted towards you said he knew what you were going to ask. Knew that it’ll be asked. He knew, and he couldn’t help but try and look towards the door. As if afraid someone would walk in.

That had you very concerned.

“…..Jimmy crashed the ship, didn’t he?” You whispered. Tried to be as hush as possible, in case someone did overhear. Was just the slow drips of the water into his dry mouth, and you.

One blink.

Two blinks.

“I fucking knew it.” You gritted your teeth, as you felt stupid to ever even have the slightest doubt that any possible reality there would be that Curly would do such a thing.

“I wish I could ask you why. Do…Do you know why?” You had to ask. You just needed to know. Know if Jimmy was as dangerous as you thought.

One blink.

T-

“How’s the captain doing?”

You would turn your head sharply, and saw Jimmy. Just standing there. God you were terrified how long he had been there. Did he hear what you asked? Didn’t seem so. Jimmy was a very aggressive person. He snapped at the slightest tone shift. If he heard you ask a question like that you wouldn’t be talking now.

“He’s….Alive.” You were caught rather off guard. You didn’t know what to say. You were scared of him. You had to be brave, though. You had a better chance at defending yourself. Curly couldn’t.

You would hear his heavy foot steps come closer, and out right feel his body heat against yours. Just looking over your shoulder. Was like this burning shadow over you. Made you feel like you’ll be squashed like a bug.

“Has he been able to talk yet?”

That’s a weird question to ask. Why not ask how he’s feeling, what progress he’s made, how his vitals are. Why is him talking on the front of his mind?

Because Curly knew something he shouldn’t.

“No. I think he’s lost his voice for good. I don’t think he’s ever going to speak again.” You lied, as you finished the test of the bottle. Returned your partner back on the table, and spun around. Nose to chest to the man. Had you terrified, but you must be brave. For Curly.

“Damn. Rough for him. No more barking orders, huh?” Jimmy tried to joke, but you could only give an awkward laugh at. Mostly to keep from pissing him off.

If he’s willing to crash a ship what else is he willing to do?

“Did you need something?” You managed to force out, as you grabbed the clipboard. Just trying to find an excuse to not look directly at Jimmy. To have a motive as to why you would stay in the med bay longer than most. Just anything to get Jimmy to leave you two alone.

“Hey, I give a shit to about him. Is it criminal to care about my friend?” He snapped at you, and it made you grab your clipboard tighter. You swore he seemed to smirk at seeing you so startled. Like he got off to the idea that he got the captains sweetheart scared.

That he’s the new boss.

“Never said that. You are the co pilot and new captain. You-“ “Pilot now. As if he’s ever going to steer a ship again. Not even a wheelchair with those stumps.” He snorted, as you wanted to smack him across the face.

“Yes….As the new Pilot and Captain I would figure you would be swamped in work. Like finding a way for us to contact help. Kinda the biggest priority after Curly. Anya and I are busy with him. You, Daisuke, and Swansea can handle the rest.”

You noticed how he seemed to roll his eyes about Anya. As if he couldn’t care less about the woman. Made you curious on what kind of beef he would have with her. She’s Anya! Who hated her?

“Yeah. Guess you are right there.” He muttered, as if it was never on his mind. Never an option that they could escape. Oh how you were getting chills.

“Keep on trucken then. Take care of our Captain Cripple. His ass needs all the help his stumpy limbs can get.” He would give him a once over, before looking at you. You made sure to keep your eyes to the clipboard instead. All you did was nod in acknowledgment, before he left.

“What are we going to do, Curly?” You sighed, as you would just lay next to him in defeat. What can you do? You had no idea. Curly was always such a good captain. Made you regret never paying more attention to how he worked the cock pit. Maybe if you did you could be more useful.

As you were full of worry and regret, Curly would weakly try and turn his head. Naked teeth were against his cheek. A attempt to kiss your cheek the best he could.

You smiled at the gesture, and made sure to be careful with snuggling your face into his shoulder.

“I’ve got you, and you got me. We can do this. I know it.” You reassured you both, as you closed your eyes. There to wait until his pain medication kicked in, so he could sleep.

As you relaxed, you couldn’t help but swear something was strange about his breathing.

It was like….He was saying words.

You would focus as hard as you could on your ears, as he would drift in and out of his buzzed state. Fighting to stay awake, but sleep coming for him.

“A….a…n…ya…..Kn….ows……”

[bluecollarmcandtf]

"Dude, I possessed your professor...

The hairs on your neck prick up as you notice the glassy look in Dr. Bradley's eyes. It was the trademark sign that your old pal, Jimmy, was back from the dead to haunt you. Obviously, your professor was his next host...

"...holy crap! Look at this idiot! I know he's real booksmart or whatever, but he can't be that clever with a jocked up body like this! I'm gonna strip him down and see what he's hiding under this fancy shirt. I know you wanna see your teacher naked, right?"

You stare at the uncharacteristically goofy grin on your professor's face as he oggles his own body. Back when he was alive, Jimmy was the most immature and gayest guy you'd ever met. It feels so wrong to see him wearing the school's most renowned researcher like a costume! Dr. Bradley would be more mortified by behaving this way than by seeing actual paranormal activity.

"Come on man," your old friend speaks with the doctor's sonorous tone, "If I'm a ghost, I at least wanna enjoy the perks. And when else are you gonna get the chance to screw with this straight tight-ass?"

You stare at his body as he lounges back on a desk. It creaks under the weight of the man's hefty muscles. God, his bare chest is practically begging for your attention!

"Come on, bro. Screw me in your professor's body," Dr. Bradley -no, Jimmy- flashes a wicked smile.

Before you can decline, Jimmy assertively throws up one of the man's strong hands, "Maybe I can make this easier on you, dude. I'll raise your grade if you spank me a few times to get started. Hell, if you leave his ass red, I'll even send an email to the dean about how you deserve another scholarship!"

It's time to put an end to this, you think. Jimmy's talking about playing around with this man's career, and you really don't want to get him or yourself in any trouble.

"Alright, then a new tactic," Jimmy sneers, employing the lower, more commanding register of Dr. Bradley's voice, "Fuck him up the ass, or I'll change your grade to an F. We can do it right here, on his desk..."

You stare at your professor's glazed over eyes and his drooling grin. Jimmy wouldn't actually blackmail you, right? This has to be just another one of his careless antics.

"Get up here," Dr. Bradley grins at you, "I want my favorite student to do whatever he wants with my hot-teacher body!"

You shake your head one final time, but you can already feel your defenses breaking down. Exploring your possessed professor is starting to sound more and more like a good idea.

"You know I've been practicing my ghost skills, man?," he continues, "I can jump into these idiots and stay for up to seven days before I need to jump out and stretch my legs again. That means I can be Professor Big-Butt all week!"

"Maybe I'll kick out his wife and kids so you can come over and play house with me. Imagine your professor waking you up ever morning with his mouth on your pole. Imagine him under the dining table slobbering over your feet while you enjoy the dinner he prepared. Dude, imagine hitting a gay bar with this professional stud as your obedient muscle-slut and pimping him out to every guy who walks in. Bro, I'm so down to do whatever you want to see him do!"

You stare at Dr. Bradley in awe, precum soaking into your shorts. Once again, Jimmy's imagination has you drooling with desire. You can't help but squeak out an affirmative response.

"Hell yeah, man!" the professor's voice is unrecognizable with Jimmy's ecstatic glee.

"Now hop up here and destroy this guy's ass! Don't forget; I know about your kink for degrading guys so I want you to really humiliate me!"

In a daze, you unbuckle your belt and climb up behind your professor. A part of you knows this is wrong, but that part of you is buried somewhere deep beneath your primal lust. If Jimmy wants you to degrade and humiliate him, who were you to say no? Besides, you couldn't let Dr. Bradley -Jimmy- give you an F!

"I knew you were my favorite student for a reason," your ghostly friend says, imitating the doctor's direct and authoritative demeanor, "You're more of a man than I could ever be. I knew it from the first time I saw you in class. We locked eyes, and I just knew; all of my achievements, all of my time spent in the gym, everything I had once been proud of; all meant nothing compared to you."

Hearing the professor's heartfelt manifesto was more than enough to get you into the mood. They might not actually be his words, but they were coming from his mouth, and it was more than enough to get you on Jimmy's side. Ideas for using and abusing your tenured professor were already racing across your mind, and thanks to Jimmy, Dr. Bradley is a willing subject.

This next week is going to be a good one...

[thebearer]

hii I though it would be cool if you show what the atmosphere would be like when reader and Teddy visit the bear for the first time since the fight? Maybe for their family dinner? Also I totally love ur work, super cool

relief lol. genuinely relief.

like they knew carmen was getting better. he’s still so fucking private but he ducks out early every tuesdays and thursdays in the middle of prep and they all pretend they don’t know where he’s going, but they know he’s going to his therapist.

still there’s this kinda tense vibe even after you’ve went back home. carmen seems better, and it’s not out of the ordinary that you haven’t shown up bc teddy is so little, but they’re still a little like “oh shit what if she left him?”

until you show up unannounced at family with baby teddy. she’s bigger now, it’s less of a risk and you’ve missed seeing them. probably after you and carm have settled back to normal (post smut lol let’s be real) and you come to see everyone.

tina actually sighs of relief. like she is so fucking happy bc she nearly killed carmen. wouldn’t talk to him for weeks, weeks, it was like worse than when he started. a worse cold shoulder bc she heard a sliver of what he did (not even the whole thing).

I do think they all see a change with him. that they don’t have to walk on eggshells around him. he’s not blowing up as more anymore. tried to talk calmly and not lose his shit when things get out of control. talks more instead of bottling things up. actually lets other people do things. and follows through. both at the restaurant and at home.

definitely is more appreciative in general. not so mean and doom and gloom. i feel like he got called out by someone (richie or jimmy i can’t decide), “I don’t know why you’re so fuckin’ miserable all the time. what more do you want? you got a wife, a healthy baby, a successful business, and a family that’s- yeah, it’s kinda fucked up- but they love you.”

and that really floored him bc that is genuinely all he ever wanted. it was stuff he never thought he’d have and now he does and he’s still sad and moody and mean all the time?

he’s so touchy at family dinner. everyone’s coping over teddy, and so you actually get to eat a meal without juggling. carmen’s not overly pda (let’s be realistic, it’s carmen) but he kisses you when he greets you (HUGE lol) and keeps his hand on your thigh. looks at you with the most lovestruck gaze while you giggle and talk with the others. just complete adoration. he always has but it’s different now.

[bookuce]

Change My Mind

SUMMARY: Josh and Alina are great friends most days. Other days, they want to tear each other apart. Some days, they’re in love with each other, but neither of them will admit it. 

*DISCLAIMER: This is a multi-part series. I do not own any of the characters in the writing except for the OC. The book uses actual names of wrestlers. Josh is Jey, Jon is Jimmy, Trinity is Naomi, and Alina is Alina. The book is not realistic and does not take place during real events, but some actual events (matches, storylines) could pop up in the story eventually. I DO NOT GIVE ANYONE PERMISSION TO TRANSLATE OR REPOST MY WRITINGS ANYWHERE. THAAAAAANKS. *

PAIRING: Jey Uso x Black OC

TROPE: Friends to Lovers

WARNINGS: Language

WORD COUNT: 5.4K

PART NINE

PART TEN

Alina hadn't gone on a double date in years. Some of her favorite dates just so happened to be doubles. After Theo, it didn't happen much anymore. She had started seeing her friends less in gatherings and seeing them more alone. What Theo did ruined the healthy dynamic of the friend group and made Alina feel like she was forcing her friends to choose between him and her. She never wanted to be that friend but had to. She refused to reopen wounds that hadn't fully healed for a two-to-three-hour outing.

Yesterday's events didn't help either. Somehow, years of growth and healing went out the door once Theo chose to stir up drama. Now, her best friend won't talk to her, and their friend group's dynamic has shifted again because of him. She glances over at Josh, Trinity, and Jon, watching as they talk and laugh with each other. Alina's spent all of two years with these people. They've become her family away from home, her family period. What would happen to them if she and Josh broke up?

Alina didn't want to think about that, but because of Theo, she had no choice but to do so. She'd probably have to switch shows and relearn how to be alone again. She wasn't looking forward to that. She and Josh have been joined at the hip for a year now and even more now than ever. Losing him would hurt her more than anything--especially now that they were together. They were in too deep with each other now. 

A bump to her arm would pull her attention from the outside. She and Josh would lock eyes with each other. Dark brown eyes searched hazel ones for a moment before Josh decided to speak up. "You good?" He asks lowly. He knew she wasn't, but would she tell him that right now? No, she'd save that for a conversation later. 

"Yeah, I'm fine," She starts. "just thinking." She finishes, turning her attention towards the window again. Josh continues watching her before reaching over to grab her hand. She looked at him once more, watching as he clasped his large hands around her own and pressed multiple kisses to it.

Josh knew Alina would be hard to reach after everything that happened this weekend. Between him, her ex, and her best friend ignoring her, she was emotionally and physically exhausted. He hoped this outing with Jon and Trinity would take her mind off it all for a few hours--or at least the rest of the night. She deserved peace, laughter, and happiness, and he planned to give her all that tonight--and any other day she needed it. 

"Lina, you excited to meet our parents tomorrow?" Jon asks, causing the couple to turn their attention to him. Josh's lip curled slightly at his brother, making Jon lean back slightly. "What? She ain't know?" He asks. 

"No, Jon, but thank you for telling her," Josh says, annoyed.

"Were you not gonna tell me?" Alina asks. As soon as the question left her mouth, she regretted it. It was hypocritical of her to be upset at that, considering Lina let Josh meet her ex-fiancé and didn't give him a warning. Josh turns his attention back to her just as she closes her eyes. "I'm sorry." She sighs, shaking her head.

Jon and Trinity glanced between the couple before looking at each other. He furrows his brows at her, and she shakes her head, a silent conversation happening between the two. They didn't know the full extent of yesterday's events and planned to ask later, but with how their brother and his girl were acting, they should hold off on being nosy for a while. Josh gently nudges Alina, forcing her to open her eyes. They'd stare at each other again. "Can we enjoy ourselves tonight, please?" He asks her. 

Immediately, Alina begins to nod. "Yeah," She starts. "Yeah, I'm sorry."

"Stop apologizing. You ain't did nothing," Josh says, turning away. Josh looks between his brother and sister before sniffling and shifting his gaze to the floor. Alina would return her regard out the window, watching as buildings passed them by. She still didn't know where they were going and now had to worry about meeting Josh's parents tomorrow. She's been with the company for two years and never met Rikishi, nor did the twins ever talk about him. Josh spoke of his mother a lot--a Mama's Boy, this one is. 

"Alright," Trinity breathes, glancing down at her phone. The car ride quickly became awkward, and she needed a way out soon. "The GPS says we should be arriving in about five minutes." She announces. 

"Good," Jon mutters. "before they start fighting back there."

"Bruh, shut up." Snaps Josh.

"You shut up," Jon echoes, turning around again. Josh sits up in his seat. "You ain't gonna do nothing."

"Says who?" Josh asks.

"Shit, me and Theo will be twins to-day!" Jon smacks his lips at him, turning his head to laugh slightly. He points at his brother, wiggling his finger quickly from left to right. "So will that right and left eye." Alina and Trinity roll their eyes at the conversation happening. The twin brothers were bickering. It was nothing new--they've seen them fight plenty of times; they're usually okay right after. Jon enjoyed knowing he could effortlessly get under his brother's skin. He says it's his responsibility as the eldest brother to get on his nerves, but Josh would beg to differ. 

"Wait till we get out of this car." Josh threatens, prompting Jon to throw his hands up in feigning fear.

"Can y'all not do this right now?" Trinity says.

"Yeah," Alina agrees, looking between the twin brothers. "Last time, someone called the cops." She reminds them. Their fights were never serious, just a headlock and a shove here and there. If one threw a hit too hard, the other would initiate an actual scuffle. It was rare, but it happened. The brothers stared at each other in silence, one with a goofy grin, the other with a gaze cold enough to kill a man.

"Ay, listen to your wife," Josh advises, pointing his index finger at him.

"Listen to yours." Jon echoes back. Alina cut her eyes at Josh to see his reaction to the title his brother gave her. Josh glances in Alina's direction briefly before relaxing in his seat. She furrows her brows a little, glancing between Jon and Trinity before letting her eyes settle on her boyfriend. Alina half-expected Josh to scold his brother about the 'wife' comments like he commonly did, but it never came. 

The car slows to a halt, cueing everyone to look at the windows. They were in the parking lot of a karaoke lounge. Alina quickly turns her attention towards the Fatu trio in front of her. "Oh, are y'all deadass?" She asks, earning grins from everyone. 

"A family that karaoke together stays together," Jon says. "Now get your ass out of the car." He tells her. She looked at Josh, who was already getting out. Her reaction was why he didn't mention where they were going. He knew that if she found out they were going to a karaoke bar, she would try to find a way out of the date. He wasn't going to allow that to happen.

Josh made his way around to her side of the car, opening her door. She peers up at him with wide eyes. "Baby." She whispers at him. 

"Get out the car, Alina." He tells her, holding his hand out for her to take. She sits there for a moment, her mouth agape. Josh tucks his lips between his teeth, his eyes briefly going to the ground. He was trying not to laugh in her face about this, but her reaction was just what he expected it to be. She never wanted to do things that she felt were embarrassing, and now she had no choice. He was forcing her out of her comfort zone. "Come on now, honey, the driver got places to be." He says, urging her to get out. 

She glances back at the driver, who is glancing back and forth between the couple. He waited patiently for the chaotic group to leave his car, but Alina refused to let him end this ride. "How much to drive me back home?" She asks him. Josh smacks his lips at the question, reaching in to pull her from the car. "Josh!"

"Have a good night." He calls out to the driver before shutting the door behind Alina. 

The couple begins to walk towards the entrance of the lounge. Music and terrible singing are heard outside the venue, making Alina's stomach knot. "I'm not singing." She tells him, making him scoff.

"We'll see." He says, holding the door open for her.

"I mean it." She says, looking at him as she passes him on the way in.

Josh didn't believe that one bit. If he knew only one thing about Alina, he knew that with the right amount of alcohol in her system, she'd do anything. Whether sober Lina liked it or not, drunk Lina was going to be on that stage singing her heart out by the end of the night. 

She wasn't a terrible singer either. She was quite the opposite. Alina grew up in church as a choir girl, versed in the hymns of her ancestors. That wasn't her choice; her mother made her do it. She now avoids having to do it unless her grandmother asks her to. Josh knew she could sing. He's heard her sing softly to herself plenty of times before and thinks she has the prettiest voice. It was never where he was supposed to hear her. She sang behind closed doors, in the safeties of her shower, or the kitchen while she cooked, but never where he was supposed to hear her.

The group of four approaches the hostess, the older woman's eyes lighting up at them. "Well, this ain't a sight you see often in here." She says, coming around the podium to hug the twins and Trinity. Alina quickly caught on that this was a regular spot for the Fatus when they were here in Pensacola--which was strange because Josh couldn't sing to save his fucking life.

"Hey, Miss Lana." Jon greets her, wrapping her in a tight embrace before passing her off to his wife. "How you been?" He asks. 

"Good, your father was in here last night." She says. "Are y'all gonna out-perform him tonight?" She asks, moving on from Trinity and on to Josh. She notices the black eye, but she has but opts out of questioning it. The boy has gotten into fights for as long as she's known him, so picking up a career in wrestling made sense for him. What a strong warrior spirit behind that sweet face of his.

"C'mon, Miss Lana, you already know." He answers, pulling back from the hug. Miss Lana turns her attention to Alina, giving her a look over.

"Now, who's this pretty girl next to you, Joshua?" She asks. Alina holds her hand out, a bright smile on her face.

"I'm Alina, Josh's girlfriend." She says. Alina wasn't sure of the importance of this woman to the Fatus, but it did seem she was in tight with their entire family. She didn't want any negative word to get back to The Twins' parents that she was anything short of sweet. The older lady takes her hand and shakes it gently.

"Pleasure," She nods, turning her attention to Josh. His gaze shifts from Alina to the little lady again, his eyebrows raised. He had been watching how the two women interacted with each other, hoping that the family friend would approve of her. "Something tells me she's a keeper." She informs him, earning a mental sigh from the man. 

The little old lady turns away from the group, walking back around the podium. "I would be crazy not to agree." He says, reaching down to wrap his hand around Alina's. She squeezes gently, getting a tight squeeze back from him. She smiles softly to herself, her eyes finding the ground.

"Well, I'll let y'all go in. Have fun." Miss Lana says, shooing them away. Josh would begin to pull Alina into the lounge area. The space was dimly lit, adorned in purple, red, and blue lights to set the mood. Each table had candles at its center to make the setting intimate. Currently on the stage was someone singing a terrible rendition of Insatiable by Prince. The lounge was packed with people, a constant for this place. It was extremely popular with the people of Pensacola. 

They stop in front of a vacant table for four, the Twins moving around to pull out chairs for their women. Trinity and Alina sit in the two chairs toward the middle, leaving Jon and Josh to both be on the outside. "So take it slow, baby, and let's unwind!" Sings the person on the stage, causing the crowd to erupt into cheers. "Do you really want all my clothes off?" He asks, running his hand over his chest and gyrating his hips. 

Alina's eyes widen when the singer erupts into a shrill scream, earning more applause. "Oh no." She groans to herself. She turned to Josh, who was still standing next to his seat. He was watching the performer, his head moving to the song. She taps his leg, making him lean down to her height. "This was not what I expected when you said double date!" She shouts over the booming music and people. 

"Oh, you said you want a drink?" He replies. He was purposely ignoring her complaining at the moment. She furrows her brows at his response. 

"What? No, I said--." Josh turns and walks off toward the bar. Jon follows after him, leaving Trinity and Alina alone. Lina scoffs to herself. "You could've given me a heads up." She says, turning towards her friend. 

Josh and Jon approached the bar together, both leaning up against it at the same time. "Thanks for doing this with me, Uce," Josh says, clasping his hands together tight. Jon glances over at his brother, his eyes immediately going up to the bruise on his eye. He shakes his head gently.

"You gonna tell me what happened?" He asks, bypassing the appreciation his brother was trying to show him. "Did he hit you with a brick or something?" He asks. Josh sucked in a breath, his jaw clenching and unclenching while he tried to choose his words carefully.

"He had on some rings--or something; I wasn't paying attention." He answers. "All I remember is that he came over talking about some; he asked Alina to leave me and be with him. She told him no, and he followed it up with, 'Well, she told me she loved me, and I love her too'." The bartender would come over to them, interrupting their conversation. "Let me get a beer and a tequila sunrise." He answers for him and Alina; Jon orders for him and Trin, sending the bartender on his way. 

Josh pulls out his wallet, getting ready to pay, but Jon taps his shoulder. "I got it, Uce, y'all been through it this weekend." He says, prompting Josh to put his wallet back in his pocket. Jon slides his card across the countertop to the bartender. "What did you say to make him hit you that hard?" He asks after several moments of silence. "Because you had to have said something crazy." Jon assumes.

Josh gives a smug grin, glancing down at his hands. "Why do you assume I said something crazy?" He asks. Jon and Josh look up at each other at the same time. A smile grows on Jon's face. 

"Because I know you, stupid." He notes. "What did you say?" 

Josh chuckles softly. "I asked him if he thought Alina would play house with him and then told him that if she wanted to be a mother, all she had to do was ask me." He confesses. Jon stares at him for a few moments longer before bursting into laughter.

"Yeah, you deserved that shit, Uce." He says, leaning into his brother. "That's some crazy shit to say to a person's ex." He tells him. Josh would shrug slightly, his eyes averting to the drinks placed on the countertop for them. Josh reaches forward for his beer, taking a quick swig of it. "Did he draw blood?" Jon asks suddenly, his eyes on his brother again. Josh's eyes remain fixated on the beer bottle in his hand. He twisted it from left to right as he studied the label. 

He knew where this was going. Always the Devil on his shoulder, that Jon was. "Yeah." He answers. 

"So, we're getting your lick back, right?" He presses, prompting Josh to look at him. They would watch each other silently for a few before Jon pressed on. "It's only fair. Blood for blood."

"You trying to get us arrested."

"Not if provoked." He says quickly.

Josh smacks his lips at him, looking at his brother. "Man, what?" He asks. 

"Let him pop up again. He's in the friend group, ain't he?" He asks. "Alina's gonna get an invite somewhere--."

"Fuck no," He starts. "you going to have me fuck up her friendships more than I already have." He tells Jon. Despite Alina blaming everything that happened yesterday on her, Josh took full responsibility for the events of the evening. He was confident that was causing Tasha to not talk to her, and he planned on fixing it eventually. He just needed to figure out how to approach it without making everything worse, and fighting was not a solution. With one last glance at his big brother, Josh grabs Alina's drink from the counter and walks towards the table. 

Jon appears next to Josh with his drinks in hand. "All you gotta do is let me know when something is happening, I'll plan a trip to Atlanta for me and Trin, and we'll get his ass outside somewhere." He proposes. Josh comes to a stop.

"Bruh, no." He objects. "I'm not doing that to Alina." He stresses with a shake of his head. Josh resumes his walk to the table, leaving Jon blown away by his refusal to fight. Any other time, Josh would have said 'hell yeah' to beating up someone, but he was not interested in hurting Alina more than she already is. The fight that happened last night shouldn't have even happened, and he regretted even entertaining Theo's ass. Was this growth? Maybe, maybe not.

In Jon's eyes, Theo deserved an ass-whooping. What do you mean you approached his brother and told him you tried to sabotage his relationship? What do you mean you initiated a fight, your boys saved you from getting fucked up, and you drew blood? That man should be on his way to a hospital! Jon watches as Josh passes Alina off her drink. 

Eh, he just needed a little more persuading. 

"Thank you, baby," Alina says as she takes the Tequila Sunrise. Josh sits down next to her, pulling his chair to her side. His knees pressed into the side of her leg, his body leaning in towards her. 

"Yo, we want to thank everyone for coming out for R&B night tonight," The DJ starts. "It's gonna be a night of love and nothing but straight vibes, you feel me?" The crowd cheered around them. "We got any lovers in the crowd tonight?" Alina lifts her hand to her mouth, letting out her own cheer. 

She then leans towards Josh, causing his eyes to light up at the attention. "That's all you're getting out of me tonight." She tells him, making him laugh. She leans away once more, her eyes going to the stage. He taps her leg, calling her attention back to him. She leans in again, giving a quick peck to his lips.

"The next person on the list will serenade you with the sounds of Jon B. Ladies and Gentlemen, give it up for Max." The DJ says, calling out for the next person in the queue. What was interesting about this karaoke lounge to Alina was how receptive everyone was to being there. The cheers of drunken patrons helped make those on stage feel more comfortable embarrassing themselves. 

They Don't Know started to play throughout the lounge as the next performer got on stage. "How y'all doing tonight?" He calls out. Jovialities break out around the room, including Josh, who only shouts to make Alina laugh, which he does successfully. "Sing along if you know the word. Clap on the beat if you don't," Max instructs them. "Heard about my past, the things I used to do." He sings off-key. Alina grimaces slightly at the delivery, bringing her glass to her lips. Maybe this will all start sounding right by the night's end if she gets more drinks in her system. 

Josh leans into Alina again, his mouth to her ear. "How are you feeling?" He asks, sending shivers down her spine. He probably shouldn't ask as often, but he needed to know. 

She glances down at her drink before turning her head to face him. "Considering I still don't have my phone?" She asks.

"You're not getting your phone back tonight." He says quickly, shaking his head. "I told you I need you here with me." He reminds her. 

She watches him for a moment, her eyes skimming over his face. "She's my best friend, Josh." She says finally. 

"I understand that," He starts. "but she could care less that you are losing sleep over her. You've been trying to contact her, and she's not answering. I don't like that." Tasha and Alina were two grown adults who could settle their differences with a simple conversation, but one refused. He could see why they were best friends now; Alina did that to them often when she was upset with him. Alina looks away from him, her eyes focused on the performer on the stage now. "Ay," He says, calling her attention back to him. "You shouldn't have had to find out from someone else that she was mad at you." He says, shaking his head gently at her. 

He was right. Alina shouldn't have had to find out that way, but she understood why she did. She would be upset too if that was her wedding and her maid of honor and boyfriend were fighting the best man during a day that was supposed to be about her. "She wants to act like this, let her. Give her her space and let her come to you. That's what I do." He says, making her hang her head and laugh. 

"That's what you do?" She asks, looking up at him. He smiles big at her.

"Yeah, that's what I do." He repeats, nodding his head. "You still here, aren't you?" He asks. She grins at his question before nodding slowly. Josh leans in, pressing a few kisses to her lips. "It's going to work itself out one way or another." He promises. 

"I know," She starts. "I'm just worried." 

"And that's fine," He says. "If something changes, I'll be here; so will Trin and Jon, but until then, be here with us. We planned this whole outing just for you." 

Alina tilts her head to the side. "And you chose a karaoke bar?" She asks. 

"Ay, it's fun. You're just hating right now cause you're in a bad mood, and that's fine." He says. "I forgive you, though." Josh looks away from Alina and to the stage. The tone-deaf singer that was up there was finally closing out his song.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the night progressed and more drinks got into her system, Alina began to liven up. She found herself singing along with the performers that were up on the stage. She sways from left to right in her seat, her right foot tapping as she does so. Yesterday's events quickly became an afterthought for sober Lina to worry about tomorrow. Lina was in a great mood right now.

Josh had walked off a few moments ago; she assumed to get more drinks, but it's been a while. She turns in her seat towards the front of the building, eyes scanning the bar for a mullet of curls. When she didn't spot them, she turned to Jon and Trin, who were cuddled up with each other. Trin had moved from her seat into her man's lap, her arms wrapped loosely around his neck. She taps Jon's arm, getting both of their attention.

"Where did Josh go?" She asks. As soon as the question left her mouth, Trin started looking around the venue. Jon did a slow turn towards the bar. When he didn't see him there, he looked at Alina.

"He ain't gone far." He assures him. Josh wasn't one to wander after a few drinks. Then again, they did get lost in Times Square that one time. He quickly expelled the thought of his twin running off somewhere drunkenly from his mind. "I'll call him." He says, removing his phone from his pocket. 

Alina snatches Josh's phone off the table and shows it to his brother. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we got a rare treat for y'all tonight in The Marina Lounge," The DJ starts. "Get ready to be serenaded with the sweet sounds of Pensacola's own, Ucey Juicey!" If Alina turned her head any faster, she would've broken her neck. I know that ain't who I think it is, she thought, standing to her feet to see over the crowds of standing people.

"Yeeeeeeet," Josh says into the mic, confirming Alina's suspicions quickly. Her boyfriend was on the stage, slapping hands with the people in the front row. He wasn't about to sing, was he?

"Good God up above..." She says to herself. 

"Ay, I want to dedicate this song to the love of my life, the future Mrs. Joshua Fatu, Miss Lina McLemore." He says, making her hang her head at the dedication. "That's my best friend, y'all, I love her." Dear God, he was about to sing. Music began playing, prompting Alina to look at the stage in second-hand embarrassment, half of her face covered as she watched her man prepare to make an ass of himself.

The crowd clapped to the beat, hyping him up more than before. He takes a sip of the Tequila Sunrise he had in his hand, which could be the cause of this performance. At what point in the night he switched to fruity drinks was a mystery to her. "I can't imagine life without you by my side..." He sings. He slurred his words together as he sang the first few lines. Alina stifles a laugh, closing her eyes to gather her composure. 

"Damn, not you got this man singing songs for you," Jon says, earning a glare from her. "Tyrese at that? That boy sprung." Trinity slaps his chest.

"I don't see you singing for me." She says.

"I'ma sing for you later. My falsetto nice." He says, sticking his tongue out. Both girls would groan at his response. Alina turns her attention back to the stage.

"Things tend to slip my mind like how you like to wine and dine, babe..." He sings, lifting the hand that held his plastic cup in the air. "Yeet." He adds. Alina giggles lightly at him, turning to grab his phone. She needed to record this. No one at work would believe her unless Lina showed them. She takes hers from beneath Josh's, switching the phone into camera mode. "Ay! Have I told you I loved you? Alina..." He sings. "Have I told you that you mean the world to me..."

Josh started to dance, letting the instrumental play for a few moments. "The song, Uce! Sing the damn song!" Jon shouts, reminding his brother to sing. 

The younger twin stops dancing, leaning over slightly to laugh at himself. "My bad, y'all--." He apologizes, looking up at the teleprompter. "Where the fuck was I?" He asks himself. Someone would shout something at him, making him laugh again. "Ay, you ain't lied!" He responds, pointing at them.

Alina turns to Jon. "I hope you know you're helping me get him in the house." She tells him. Jon cringes slightly, pulling his bottom lip down at her words. His hand goes up to the back of his neck, rubbing at the back.

"Jon," Trinity says, looking back at him.

"I'm not going to let her carry his big ass in alone, girl, damn." He says, bringing his hand to his chest. "I was just playing." He says to Trin. She leans in to press two kisses to his lips.

"And verbally, I tend to forget how much I L-O-V-E-U really means..." Josh yells into the microphone, bringing Alina, Trin, and Jon's attention back to his drunken singing. "Lately, have I told you I loved you? Alina..." Adding her name to the lyrics made her laugh. Her feelings of embarrassment began to subside the longer she watched him. 

Josh made it his life's mission to remind Alina often how much he loved her. If he didn't use words, he would express it with his actions, eyes, and hands, in silence, alone, or on stage in a crowded room full of drunken people. If he could do it on national television, he would. That man was in love, and there was no denying it. 

The song ends, and the crowd erupts into cheers again. Alina would join them, a big smile on her face. "Thank you, thank you," Josh says, passing the microphone off to the DJ. Josh came walking through the crowd, dapping up people greeting him on his way back to his table. "How'd I do?" He asks his group once he makes it over. Josh wraps an arm around Alina's shoulders, draping his weight on her body and causing them to stagger barely. He leans in to press several kisses to her lips, the taste of orange juice and tequila still in his mouth.

"You're not going to Hollywood, that's for sure." She teases between kisses.

"That's fine," He starts. He turns his head to finish the last of his drink. "I'm tryna take you home, though," He says, leaning in for one more kiss. "Give you an encore performance." Thick black eyebrows lift to help with the delivery of his words. 

"You're going to sleep when we get home." She tells him.

"Who said that?" He questions.

"Me." She replies.

He points at the stage, looking over his shoulder slightly at it. "Girl, I just sang my ass off on that stage for you." He says, looking back at her. "Panties gotta drop."

"Boy--." She starts, pulling back to look at him. She laughs softly at his words. "We are going home, and your drunk ass is going to sleep! That's final." He scoffs at her, tilting his head up in disbelief. His brows furrowed, and his top lip curled slightly. The man was shocked, hurt, sad, and possibly depressed at her rejection. In reality, he was being dramatic.

"See if I sing for your ass again." He tells her.

"I hope not." She says, looking back at Jon and Trin. "Y'all ready to go?" She breathes. 

Trin and Jon stand to their feet, both nodding simultaneously. "Yeah, we can call it a night." The eldest twin answers. "Let's get Keith Sweat over here home." He says, with a sigh. Josh lifts his middle finger at his brother, but Alina pushes it back down. She takes that hand of his, unwraps his arm from her shoulders, and pulls him towards the entrance. 

"Did you have fun tonight?" Josh asks. Even though he was heavily intoxicated, he still wanted to make sure his girl had fun. That was the goal for the night: to make sure she had fun. 

She turns to face him, a broad smile on her face. "I did."

Josh nods to himself, proud he was able to get her mind off of everything. "Good." He answers. It would get temporarily quiet between the pair as they watched each other. "I'll send you my bill since you won't fuck me."

"Josh!" She groans.

"I'm just saying."

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A/N: we love a good double date! i wasn't planning on this chapter to be as long as it was, but here we are. 🤭

🏷️ list: @thesamoanqueen @whatdoeseverybodywant @headoftheetable @mzv11 @southerngirl41 @yana3sworld @wanderingreigns @wrestlingprincess80 @siriuslycee @vebner37 @astridxxxxxx @alichesmi @tshepisho @scarlettnoir01 @brokenglassslippers @reignsboy19 @sayyestoheav3nn @cyberdejos2 @empressdede @sisinever @truefant4sy @paigereeder @tbmotw @fearlesschimera @venusesworld @usoholic @sageispunk @bebesobrielo @jstarr86 @vibessonvibes @issahyland @fandomphasess @evilli0s

[joeys-babe]

Joey B Imagines: Welcome To The Jungle

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summary: even nine months pregnant there’s no way you’ll miss the bengal’s first real game of the season, though joe is completely against the idea even if you’re with his family in the box.

warnings: fluff, pregnancy, birth.

pairing: joe burrow x reader

imagine universe: into the mystic

————————————————————————

"you're 9 months pregnant baby, i don't think it's a good idea for you to go to the game.." - joe

"joe there is no way i'm missing your first game of the season." - you

"you went to all the preseason games so you'll be fine to sit this one out." - joe

"you didn't play during preseason. joe i'm going to the game." - you

"what if you go into labor and i miss it." - joe

"i'll hold them in. but i'm not due for another week." - you

"i don't know about this..." - joe

"i'm on maternity leave right now so i'm gonna be in the suite with your mom and dad. i'll have people with me just in case, not taking pictures on the sidelines." - you

"okay, just please if you do go into labor, call me. i'll run off the field mid-play if i have to." - joe

"i will, joey." - you

"i put the go bag in the car just to be safe." - joe

"you're the best." - you kissed him

"okay, let's get going." - joe

he helped me into the car, along with putting his bag in the back seat next to the baby’s car seat. if only you two knew you weren’t coming back home with that empty.

right before we arrived to the facility joe called his mom down to help me up to the suite since he wouldn't be able to.

when joe pulled in the back entrance and drove to his normal parking spot we both saw his mom was waiting at the elevator.

"y/n, you are about to pop!" - robin

"shhh don't say that around joe, he'll drive me back to the house." - you

"no he won't, don't worry." - robin laughed

"yes, he will." - joe

joe turned to me, i felt a speech coming on.

"if anything happens. and i mean anything, call me okay. i'm not missing anything." - joe

"okay, joe listen to me okay. good luck today, it's the first game of the season and i want you to know i'm so proud of you. i love you so much, baby." - you

joe smiled and placed a kiss on my lips.

"i love you too, mamas." - joe

when we pulled away, joe checked the time on his phone before sighing.

"i have to get inside, thanks mom." - joe

“you're welcome, joey." - robin

joe took a glancing look back at me, his eyes wandering down to my bump as he anxiously licked his lips. he looked away and closed his eyes for a second, trying to still his racing thoughts. once he collected himself he gave me a brief hug.

"bye, guys." - joe

"bye, baby." - you kissed him one last time

joe grabbed his bag and i watched him walk towards the players entrance.

robin encouragingly rubbed my back as we walked into the elevator. she was fully aware that if joe was nervous, you were nervous as well.

once we reached the burrow suite his brothers and their girls were already there.

codie, joe’s older brother jamie’s wife, went wide eyed when she caught sight of you in her peripherals.

"y/n, girl! what are you doing here?!" - codie

"here to watch joe!" - you laughed

"you are about to pop!" - codie

"i know.. but there is no way i'm missing the first game of the season." - you

"i don't know what joe did to deserve such a supportive wife." - jimmy laughed

i sat down on the couch and leaned back against the couch, trying to get comfortable.

"joe’s just as supportive jimmy. i think he's more nervous about me being here than he is about the game." - you

jamie was standing up next to the glass and he could see joe anxiously looking up at us after the team ran out.

"y/n, joe keeps looking up here." - jamie

i practically rolled off of the couch and walked over to the glass, holding up a thumbs up.

when joe saw me, and his anxieties were eased just a little bit, he focused back on warming up.

the fact that joe was more anxious than normal was evident to the whole family, and it went silent till joe’s other older brother, dan, spoke up.

"you can tell his nerves are up." - dan

"yeah that’s obvious, but i know he'll still do amazing." - you

*time skip*

it was after the second quarter and the bengals were up 25-12 against the bills.

it was halftime so i decided to get up and walk around to grab some food from across the room.

but when i stood up, i felt and heard a splash.

"oh… no…" - you

"did your water just break?!" - codie yelled

"oh my god! we need to get you to the car, we're going to the hospital!" - robin

"no no no! i can wait till after the game, i can't make joe leave now, they're winning!" - you

"y/n, you have to go. do you know if joe will answer his phone?" - jimmy

"no, it's off in his locker for sure." - you

"i'm calling zac." - jimmy picked his phone up

as i was being rushed out of the suite by codie and robin i felt a sharp pain in my stomach

"owww!" - you

"contraction?" - codie

"yeah" - you hissed

*zac's pov*

i was talking to the team during halftime when my phone started ringing and the name "Jimmy Burrow" popped up.

knowing that y/n was nine months pregnant with twins and at an nfl game i figured it was probably about her so i answered immediately.

"is everything okay? is it about y/n?" - zac

i tried to whisper but when i said her name, joe’s eyes shot up to me and he speed walked over to me.

"everything is okay. just please tell joe that y/n went into labor. robin and codie are taking her to the hospital. let him know she’s in safe hands, i don’t want him to worry." - jimmy

"okay, will do." - zac

before i even put my phone down joe asked what was wrong and who it was.

"taylor, what happened? who was that? is it about my y/n?” - joe

"it was your dad and he called because y/n went into labor, codie and your mom are taking her to the hospital." - zac smiled

"i- i have to go with her! can i go?" - joe

"yes, joe you can go. good luck!" - zac

joe pretty much sprinted to his locker and grabbed everything he needed before running out the door in full uniform.

"joe where are you going?!" - tee

"y/n's in labor!" - joe smiled

the whole locker room heard and erupted into cheers as joe ran out of the locker room.

(joes pov)

i ran at full speed out to the car and saw my mom and codie shutting the back seat door.

"joe, you're here!" - robin

"of course! you think i'd miss this?!" - joe

"get in the back with y/n. she needs to see your face right now." - codie

when i slung the door open and dipped my head down inside the car, i watched y/n's face lit up.

"joe!" - you

"hey baby, are you ready?" - joe smiled

"as ready as i'll ever be!" - you

"OWE" - you

as soon as i was sitting down i grabbed her hand, rubbing the back of it in a way that told her i was there for her.

"you didn't even change?" - you

"nope, i ran out before even thinking about changing." - joe

"i'm sorry for making you leave your game." - you

"you and those twins are way more important than a football game.” - joe

“i love you.. so much.” - you

“i love you more, y/n.” - joe

joe pulled his shoulder pads off, leaving him in just his tight compression shirt.

he grabbed a pair of his nikes when he had ran over to his locker so he also took his cleats off.

"i'm so happy you're here joe. i was worried we wouldn’t get ahold of you." - you

"i'm happy too, but you know i'd drop anything to be here with you." - joe

"i know." - you said before a contraction hit and you squeezed joes hand

"ouch, my hand." - joe

all three women in the car looked at him with faces that said nothing but shut up.

"joe, i love you, but shut up!" - you

"okay, yes ma'am!" - joe

*time skip 2 hours later*

(joe’s pov)

when we got to the hospital we were taken to a room which is where we would be till transported to the delivery room.

i finally got the rest of my uniform off and put on sweatpants and a sweatshirt.

y/n was laying in her hospital bed as i sat on the couch.

"joe, it hurts.." - you

i stood up and walked over to her bed, taking her hand in mine and pressing a kiss to the back of it.

"i know baby, you're so strong. i'm so proud of you." - joe

"i love you, joe." - you teared up

"i love you too baby, more then you'll ever ever know." - joe

i leaned down and kissed her forehead, when i pulled away a nurse walked in to check on y/n.

"how far apart are your contractions?" - nurse

"uh-" - you went to answer

"8 minutes." - joe answered

"uh okay, thank you." - nurse

the nurse asked a few more things and then left the room.

(y/n's pov)

"joe." - you

"mhm?" - joe

"i could've answered those questions." - you

"sorry.. i got a little excited i guess." - joe

"it's okay." - you smiled at how cute he was

joe kissed my head and then walked back over to the couch.

"joe, turn the game on." - you

"what?" - joe laughed

"turn the game on." - you

"wouldn't you rather watch like the office or new girl or something?" - joe

"no. it's the first game of the season, put the game on." - you

"okay.." - joe shrugged

he picked the remote up and turned the game on.

it was the last quarter and the bengals were still winning. it was 37-25 with 3 minutes left.

3 minutes later i was clapping my hands and cheering as the boys celebrated their first win of the actual season and ran back in the locker room.

i got a text from my best friend alexa, who was dating ja’marr, that's said where are you? so i decided to tell joe to facetime her with my phone.

"y/n where are you and why did joe leave- oh hi joe." - alexa

"hi alexa!" - joe

"where are y'all?" - alexa

joe flipped the camera and showed me in the hospital bed.

"holy crap are you in labor?!" - alexa

i nodded my head and gave her a thumbs up.

"oh my god!!" - she excitedly squealed

"y'all should be proud of me! i didn't tell her that y/n went into labor!" - ja'marr

"bro do you want a cookie?" - joe joked

"are you guys excited?!" - alexa

"i am, what about you baby?" - joe

"i'm thrill-" - you started but a contraction cut you off

"that's 6 minutes after your last one!" - joe

"thanks for the observation joe!" - you fought through the pain

"i guess the mood swings don't go away during labor." - alexa laughed

"yeah i think we established that.. i'm gonna go. bye guys" - joe

"bye mom and dad!" - alexa

after joe hung up he stood up and walked back over to me.

he kissed my forehead again and grabbed my hand.

"you can squeeze my hand during your contractions." - joe smiled

"stop being so cute, i'm supposed to be mad at you for causing me this pain." - you

"hey it's not all my fault, you participated in the process just as much as i did. don't act like you didn't enjoy that process either." - joe quipped

"go back to the couch." - you rolled your eyes and dropped his hand

"you sure?" - joe

i was about to say yes when i got another contraction and grabbed joes hand, squeezing as hard as i could.

"please don't leave!" - you choked out

"im staying right here. don't worry, my love." - joe

*time skip*

"you're ten centimeters dilated, ready to start pushing?" - the nurse smiled

i looked at joe, a sudden rush of panic and excitement falling over me.

he gave me an encouraging smile so i turned back to the nurse and nodded.

i was transported to the delivery room and joe never left my side.

*time skip*

long hours of labor later i heard a baby crying and a loud gasp from joe.

a couple nurses rushed over to a corner, holding the first twin.

"be careful with him!" - you cried

not even 20 minutes later another set of cries were heard.

"oh my gosh.. they are so tiny. look how tiny they are, joe." - you basically sobbed

"i know.." - joe smiled back to you

once the babies were cleaned off just a little bit the nurses placed both of them on my chest.

"oh my god, you guys are so cute." - you cried

joe snapped a picture of me holding both of the babies.

"joe, we made them." - you smiled up at him

"we did didn't we. you did amazing by the way, i'm incredibly proud of you baby." - joe

"i couldn't have done it without you by my side, baby..." - you

joe kissed my sweaty forehead before i pulled his face to mine, kissing his lips.

after a few more minutes of bonding with the twins, they were taken away to be weighed, measured, and various other things like that.

"joe can you get in bed with me?" - you

"what?" - joe laughed

"can you lay down with me? please?" - you

i scooted over slightly and joe laid down next to me, my head leaning onto his shoulder.

"i can't believe we made life." - you

"i know, and thank you." - joe

"thank you? for what?" - you chuckled

"for carrying the babies for 9 months, and giving birth. you're a strong woman y/n." - joe

"you make me feel like the luckiest girl in the world every day joe. you're the best husband ever." - you

one thing about our relationship is that we were deeply appreciative of the other, and how amazing they were.

i wrapped my arms around joe and moved my head from his shoulder to his chest.

i took a little nap till joe woke me up when the twins were given back to us because i was utterly exhausted.

my parents flew down as soon as joe called them and said i was in labor so they arrived shortly after the babies were given to us.

joe was holding a baby, and i held the other.

"you're so tiny... i love you." - joe

"you look really really good holding a newborn, shiesty." - you smiled

"look at him, he's so stinkin cute!" - joe

"we need to establish names, we can't keep calling them him and he." - you

"okay well.. we know the names so now we can just pick which ones which." - joe laughed

"okay... uhm. i think i know." - you

"i think i do too." - joe smiled

before we could even say anything the door opened and at least 4 people walked in.

it was my parents and alexa and ja'marr.

"oh my gosh!" - alexa gasped

"my baby is a momma.." - your mom teared up

"aww, momma." - you smiled

"my baby girl had twins.." - your dad also started to cry

"what are the names?" - your mom smiled

i whispered into joe’s ear for confirmation about which twin was being named what name.

he nodded and i went on.

"i'm holding Tyson Lee" - you smiled

"lee is joe’s middle name right?" - your mom

"yeah, it was really important to me that one of the twins was going to be named after one of the most important guys in my life." - you smiled

in the corner of my eye i could see joe looking at me and when i returned the look a tear fell down his cheek before a huge smile appeared on his face.

it seemed like neither of us could stop smiling.

"this is so sweet.." - alexa

"what's the other name?" - your mom

"joe, baby you can say." - you

"the baby that i'm holding is named Miles Anthony." - joe smiled at ja'marr

"wait-" - ja'marr

alexa looked at the two confused before it clicked, and her hands covered her mouth.

"you named your kid after me?" - ja'marr

"ja'marr anthony chase.. meet miles anthony burrow" - joe

ja'marr walked closer to joe and looked down at miles.

"damn bro." - ja'marr sniffled

the whole room laughed at ja'marr being somewhat emotional; a side no one sees of him.

once everyone stopped crying the twins were passed around and everyone got to hold them before they were returned back to joe and i.

when ja’marr was holding miles and alexa was holding tyson, ja’marr cleared his throat and faced joe.

“i mean we got our next qb’s they just need a wide receiver.” - ja’marr

“if you have a boy in the future we gotta train em. we gotta keep the ‘burrow to chase’ connection going.” - joe

“it’s a good thing we won’t have to wait too long.” - ja’marr looked at alexa and smiled

“what do you mean?” - joe

one of my hands went over my mouth as my other slapped joe’s arm in shock.

“i’m pregnant. with a boy, too.” - alexa smiled

“no freaking way!” - joe

“how far along are you?” - you grinned

“3 months.” - alexa smiled

“congratulations guys, that’s awesome!” - joe

they stayed for awhile longer, we talked about all the things we wanted to do with our boys once they were older before they left.

the twins were back in joe and i’s arms and soon after there was another knock on the door.

when the door opened, joe’s parents with wide grins on their faces.

robin let out a small gasp as she walked closer to joe and i.

"oh my gosh… they're so perfect. jim look, they look so much like joe.” - robin

“sorry guys.” - joe whispered to the twins

“don’t listen to your daddy guys, he’s the most attractive man in the world and a total heartthrob. tons of women have eyes on him.” - you smiled

in my peripherals i could see joe roll his eyes but the blush on his cheeks told me that he appreciated the compliment.

“the only women’s eyes i want on me are yours, baby.” - joe kissed your cheek

jimmy and robin both got to hold each of the babies before the nurse came in and said that i could leave tomorrow morning.

it was around 9 pm when everyone had left and it was just joe and i.

the babies were in their bedside bassinets and joe was laying on the couch, giving me "personal space" in the hospital bed.

"joe you can go home if you want, i know you'd like to shower and wash your hair with your fancy shampoo and conditioner." - you

"are you crazy? you think i'm gonna leave this hospital?" - joe

"i don't know, i just figured you'd want to go home eventually." - you

"the only time i'm leaving is with you tomorrow morning." - joe

"are you sure?" - you

"absolutely sure, now get some rest baby. if the twins wake up i'll take care of em', you just need to rest." - joe

i shut my eyes and fell asleep extra grateful. i had an amazing husband, and beautiful healthy twin baby boys.

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authors note: fluffy imagine for friday 🫶🫶

hope you enjoyed! ❤️

[roosterforme]

Hello, I Love You | Rooster x Reader

Summary: When Phoenix signs Bradley up for speed dating on Valentine's Day, he is skeptical. But after he meets the woman of his dreams, he's not afraid to admit his best friend was right.

Warnings: Pure fluff, adult banter, some cursing

Length: 2300 words

Pairing: Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Female Reader

This was written for my Love Is In The Air playlist challenge! Thanks for reading! And please check my masterlist for more Top Gun fun.

Bradley strolled into the Hard Deck, got a beer from Jimmy, and then made his way to the pool table to join his friends. 

"What's up?" he asked Phoenix when she eyed him a little nervously.

"Now, don't get mad, okay?" She set her pool cue down and patted his shoulder.

"What did you do?" Bradley asked, frozen with his beer halfway to his lips. 

Phoenix smoothed out his Hawaiian shirt across his chest and shoulders, and then she took his chin in her hand and turned his face from side to side. "Yeah, okay, should be fine," she muttered, examining his appearance. 

"Nat, seriously, what did you do?"

"Well.... I signed you up for speed dating," she informed him, wincing before he even responded.

"No," he said, adamantly shaking his head. "Nope." Bradley sipped his beer and turned to grab some darts.

"And it starts in thirty minutes," Phoenix added, her eyes going wide as Bradley glared at her.

"Natasha, I'm not going."

"But you're lonely! And it's Valentine's Day! You need a girl!"

Bradley scoffed. "I'm not lonely. I'm... picky."

"Too picky, Rooster. Just go to the speed dating thing, please? I already spent twenty bucks to sign you up," she pleaded. "It comes with a free drink!"

Bradley chuckled. "You think I'll find a girl there? You're insane, Nat. It's going to be the weirdest assortment of people under the San Diego sun. Crazy people who collect cats and probably a bunch of basement dwellers."

But as he watched his friend's face fall, he felt a little guilty. "I just thought you might have fun, you know, putting yourself out there. It's been a year since you dated anyone," she said softly. 

Bradley took a sip of his beer and ran his hand over his face. "Fine. I'll go, but only to prove to you that I'm right and you're wrong."

He watched her jump up and down a few times and clap her hands. "Yes! It's at the Surfside Tavern, and if you leave now, you'll arrive just in time," she said, taking his beer from his hand and pushing him toward the door. "Text me later and let me know how it goes... unless you know, you're busy getting hot with a basement dweller."

Bradley just rolled his eyes and headed toward the Bronco. 

--------------------------

"Let me get you signed in! What's your name?" asked a young man with Connor on his name tag. He was seated at a small table at the front of the bar, and now Bradley was getting a little nervous. There were a lot of people here tonight.

"Bradley Bradshaw," he replied, taking a name tag sticker from Connor. 

"Just grab your drink at the bar and head on back to the area where the tables are set up. I'll get everyone started soon," said Connor with a smile. 

Bradley took a deep breath, half tempted to bail, but then he thought it would be worthwhile to get his free drink since Nat stole his other one. He got a beer from the bartender and then turned toward the back of the room, where there were a bunch of guys were wearing suits. 

"Shit," he muttered, glancing down at his own jeans and bright shirt. 

When he looked up, he quickly braced himself as you accidentally bumped into him, the drink in your martini glass sloshing precariously close to the rim. "Sorry!" you gasped, looking up at him. 

He steadied you, wrapping on big hand around your waist as you regained your balance. And Bradley instantly knew there was no chance he would be bailing early tonight. 

"Thanks," you whispered, tapping your martini glass to his beer bottle with a grin.

You took a slow step away from him as Bradley whispered, "Damn." You looked like a real treat, with bright eyes and kind of a shy smile. And as you walked toward all of the guys in suits, you turned to smile back at him over your shoulder.

"Okay, let's get started!" Connor announced, pulling your attention away from Bradley and toward him. "Let's have the ladies each take a seat at one of the tables, and the guys will rotate around the room. You'll have five minutes to get to know each person, and then I'll tell you to switch. You can grab a notepad and a pencil if you want to keep track of names. Let's go!"

Bradley watched you take a seat and cross your legs, subtly glancing at him again. He was pulled toward your table like a magnet, barely able to control himself. But it looked like he wasn't the only one. 

"Fucking suits," he groaned when another guy sat down across from you. Bradley doubled back and chose a table with someone else, practically tripping since he could barely look away. 

"Hi! I'm Bridget!" said the bubbly woman now seated across from him. 

"I'm Bradley," he replied with a smile, trying to discreetly count how many tables away you were sitting. 

"Oh my God! We both have B names! That's insane!" Bridget gushed.

Bradley laughed nervously. "Both are BR names, actually," he muttered. Then he watched her scribble down his name with KEEPER next to it. 

Oh shit. He had to endure five minutes of Bridget listing off potential names for their theoretical future children. Bruce, Brandy, Bryce, Brinley, Brooke and Brynn were apparently all viable options, and when Connor announced that five minutes was up, Bradley launched out of his seat. 

He tried to hustle over to your table, but Connor was on him right away. "We're rotating in order. Remember?" 

Bradley looked over to where you were sitting, shaking hands with your second "date". But you were looking at Bradley and smiling. It looked like you were trying not to laugh. 

Bradley glared down at Connor, towering over him. "Come on, man. See that one over there? I wanna talk to her." 

But Connor was not deterred, and rather showed Bradley to his next table with Angie. "What do you do for a living?" she asked, smiling at him across the table.

"I'm a Naval aviator," he replied, trying to get a peek of you talking with Mr. Suit. 

"Oh," Angie replied, and her smile turned into a frown. "I'm in the Army." Bradley watched her jot down his name and write NO next to it. Then she took out her phone and started to play Candy Crush. 

Once again, when it was time to switch tables, Bradley jumped up and rushed toward yours. 

"Sir, we've been over this before," Connor called after him, but Bradley made his way to where you were sitting with a different guy who was wearing a full-blown tuxedo. 

"Hi," Bradley said, reaching out to shake your hand. He checked your name tag this time; he just fucking knew you'd have a pretty name. And your hand was so small and soft, he held onto it for a moment. 

You looked up at him, and an adorable giggle escaped your lips before you also said, "Hi."

"I just wanted to make sure you know I'm coming up in two more tables," he told you very seriously. 

You nodded your head and pressed your lips together to try to stifle your smile. "Yeah, I noticed that when you tried to knock several people over a few minutes ago."

Bradley smiled at you, already loving your sense of humor.

"Don't write down anything flattering about him, okay?" Bradley nodded toward the guy in the tux who just scowled in response. 

Your shoulders shook with silent laughter. "I'll see what I can do."

"Sir!" Connor scolded. "This is not your table!"

"Yes, Connor, I know," Bradley grumbled, heading over to sit with Michelle.

Michelle eyed him cautiously. "I take it you're only interested in her?" she asked, gesturing toward your table.

Bradley shrugged. "Sorry, Michelle."

She shrugged too. "That's okay. I really liked Simon. Want to hear about the novel I'm writing?"

Bradley was enthralled after five minutes of Michelle explaining the intricate plot of the detective thriller she was working on. "Damn it, Michelle. I need to know how it ends."

She smiled and jotted down his email address. "I'll put you on my mailing list."

Finally Bradley was seated at the table next to yours, just a few feet away from you. "Hi," he said again, and he could tell he must have the dumbest look on his face. 

He watched your lips curl into the most radiant smile. "Hi, Bradley." God, he felt light headed as soon as you said his name. 

"I'll be there soon," he promised, and you blushed a little bit as you turned toward another guy in a fucking suit.

Bradley turned toward Cara and asked, "Has every other guy been in a suit?"

She nodded. "One was in a tuxedo."

"Huh," he grunted, trying so hard not to focus on you while Cara asked him questions about himself. 

"Bradley, where do you work?"

He shook his head, "No... I'm originally from Virginia."

"That's not what I asked."

But Bradley couldn't help it. You were sipping your martini and re-crossing your legs. And the guy you were with sounded boring as hell.

"Are you even listening to me?" Cara asked, breaking his concentration 

"Oh, uh... sorry, no," he replied, smiling at you as you glanced at him.

"Rotate!" Connor called, and Bradley was practically shoving the suit guy out of his seat at your table. 

"Finally," he muttered, smirking as he sat down. Your cheeks were a little flushed as you spun your martini glass on the table by the stem. When your gaze slid up his chest and neck and landed on his face, he asked you, "You've gotta tell me, what are you doing here? You could get a date just walking around Target in your pajamas."

You laughed and bit your lip, tipping your head back to look at the ceiling before meeting his eyes again. "I don't wear pajamas," you told him with a smirk of your own.

Bradley sucked in a breath and let it out slowly. "I rest my case."

"What about you, Bradley? You're cute. I like your mustache. And thank God you're not wearing a suit. You could probably get a date just by shoving the previous guy out of his seat and asking me."

He nodded his head and tried not to smile. You were so fun. And you were quick on the draw. "We'll get there, babe. But actually... my best friend made me come tonight. She thinks I'm too picky when it comes to women."

"Oh yeah? Well, what do you like?" you asked, raising the glass to your lips again and taking another sip.

"So far, I like you. A lot."

Your cheeks were even more flushed now, and Bradley wanted to talk to you all night long.

"What do you look for in a guy?" he asked, leaning his forearms on the table to get a little closer to you.

You leaned a bit closer as well as you told him, "I need someone who can make me laugh. It doesn't hurt if he's handsome. And I think mustaches just moved to the top of my nonnegotiable list."

Bradley licked his lips. "And what's your ideal first date, babe? I'm planning on making it very memorable for you; already hoping for a second."

You laughed again. "Padres game. Complete with beer and ballpark nachos."

"Seriously, why are you here?"

You nibbled on your lip for a beat before you said, "My sister made me come. She said she's so tired of listening to me complain that there are no cute, funny, single guys with mustaches who aren't afraid to wear a green and yellow Hawaiian print shirt in public."

Bradley's entire body was humming. "There's nothing about you that would turn me off, is there?" he asked, and his voice was raspier now. 

He watched you lick your lips and shake your head. "No. Unless you can't stand smart girls who like to be a little sassy when they aren't wearing any pajamas."

Bradley audibly groaned and you giggled. 

"Rotate!" Connor called, and everyone was up and moving around.

"Fuck, no. I'm not moving, Connor!" Bradley called over his shoulder. Your eyes were glittering with amusement, and Bradley was going to leave this bar with you if it killed him.

Connor walked over and sighed. "You've already had five minutes together."

"That's not long enough. Have you seen her, Connor?" Bradley asked, nodding at you. "Fifty bucks if you tack on another five minutes, my man," Bradley promised him, making you crack up across the table. 

Connor just muttered, "Before he wouldn't sit down, now he won't get up." 

Bradley felt you take his hand in yours, and his eyes were immediately on your face. "Let's get out of here, Bradley," you suggested. "Go to another bar? Or go for a walk?"

"Absolutely," he replied, hopping up and pulling you to your feet.

You led him through the bar, smiling at him over your shoulder as you laced your fingers through his, and Bradley could already tell you were his perfect match.

------------------------------

Natasha was still shooting some pool with the guys when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out to read a text from Bradley.

Rooster Bradshaw: YOU WERE RIGHT.

"I knew it!" she shouted, jumping up and down again.

------------------------------

Thanks for reading! There are plenty of other love song themed Top Gun: Maverick stories available here!

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[badwolfrose34]

Rambles about The Doctor and Rose

So I’m starting to realize my overall perspective within the timepetals ship is not the most popular one so I want to explain my reasoning. I ship Tentoo/Rose AND I also believe that every future incarnation still thinks of her and knows that no matter what she will always have been the great love of their life.

First I’ll talk about Tentoo. I do believe he is exactly the same man as Ten. Rose did not just get a cheap clone she got the real deal. He’s just as much the Doctor as any other incarnation of the Doctor, he just happened to exist at the same time as Ten. I also believe that the Tentoo/Rose ending is the happiest most unproblematic ending possible for the two of them. The Doctor watching Rose grow old and sick while he remained young would’ve been tragic. Rose becoming immortal also would’ve been tragic. The tragedy of these alternate endings does not, to me, diminish the fact that every Doctor is in love with Rose Tyler and Rose Tyler would’ve been in love with every Doctor.

I don’t take Rose’s reaction to Ten almost fully regenerating as proof that she wouldn’t be just as in love if he did change. I take that moment as a human reaction to uncertainty and fear. As Nine, the Doctor ranted about how dodgy the process could possibly be. Let’s not forget how much pain the Doctor was in last time he regenerated. How horrifying it was to watch him be virtually comatose. I don’t think Rose thought she’d stop loving the Doctor. She promised forever, not “until you regenerate”. She was in a heightened emotional state and was thinking worst case scenarios like headless Doctor who won’t love her anymore (I’ll get to why I think that kind of thought process of him not loving her anymore might come from a triggered emotional state but isn’t actually a possible outcome of regeneration later).

Yes, Rose specifically adored Ten’s face and personality and if he had regenerated she would have grieved for it. It would’ve been a traumatic change no matter what, but like any other deep romance, it’s the soul she loved more than anything. And yes, I said triggered because I think what we know about her relationship with Jimmy Stone would’ve created abandonment issues. Which is why Rose could’ve erroneously believed regeneration would change the depth of the Doctor’s love for her. Not because it’s actually possible for a reset of one’s genetics to undo the deepest love the Doctor has felt and will ever feel.

Moving on, I don’t think it’s possible that the Doctor moved on from Rose, forgot Rose, or had the depth of his love for Rose diminish in any way. This may come from my own perspective on regeneration. The person at their core and the soul does not change. If the most significant parts of a person do not change then, the deepest truest love that individual felt could never go away just because the genetics of that person got overhauled. I think the love the Doctor felt for Rose is deep enough to be one of the things that will always be part of the Doctor. In the Novelization of “The Giggle” Fourteen reflects on how he still misses her despite knowing how well she’s doing. Yes Fourteen’s genes are probably almost the same as Ten’s but it is Fifteen who mentions her name as someone he loved. The only romantic interest he expresses love for. Besides, Wouldn’t it cheapen the moment the Doctor said Rose could spend her life with him but he’d have to live on alone, if he could ever just leave his feelings for her behind through time or regeneration?

The Doctor does try to recapture what they had with Rose to an extent but it never works and they know it never will because they know Rose is his soulmate and true love.

River feels more like something he pursues out of obligation, there never seems to be a genuine sense of love from his side at all. River knew this and said “you don’t expect the sunset to admire you back.” Yet, the Doctor’s love for Rose was so obvious he took comfort in knowing that Rose knew how he felt. He knew that she knew. It’s not that the Doctor is so beyond reach that they’re like a sunset. It’s just that their true love is Rose Tyler.

Eleven had a genuine attraction to Clara but that was over 200 years after Rose. It took that long for any attraction to anyone to form, and that attraction was part of his childhood regression persona. It seemed to go away when he regenerated to Twelve because he said “I’m not your boyfriend Clara.” Now that doesn’t prove to me that something as deep as the Doctor’s love for Rose would change via regeneration, only that a childlike crush would change. It was never anywhere near as deep as his feelings for Rose. (For any Clara fans out there I do believe the Doctor’s feelings later deepened into a strong queerplatonic bond, just not a deep romantic one).

Thirteen regenerated to look like Rose! I haven’t seen anyone mention this but she did. When the Doctor became a woman she used her true love as the blueprint. I did not see Thirteen and Yaz’s relationship fully but from what I gather, it was once again nowhere near as deep as the love the Doctor had for Rose.

Perhaps Rogue will be the deepest love the Doctor feels since Rose, but it will still never be as deep because Rose is his true love.

Yes it’s tragic for a character to live on for millenniums loving someone they can’t have, but I don’t think the Doctor is spending all that time sad they can’t have her. I think a lot of the time they draw strength from Rose’s love, even after all the time that has passed. Think back to when he said “That name keeps me fighting.”

Edit: To clarify I am not trying to imply that platonic or queerplatonic loves are less valuable than romantic. Or that the Doctor doesn’t have extremely meaningful platonic bonds throughout the show, but I am saying that the most impactful companion to him personally has been and always will be Rose. See my pinned post for more about why that is. I also think it is possible for the Doctor to fall in love again, but it just won’t be the same kind of soulmate love he had with Rose.

Edit 2: Rose’s significance goes beyond the romantic aspect—she was a transformative figure in the Doctor’s life, shaping his actions and identity in ways that are deeply personal. I fully acknowledge the importance of the Doctor’s platonic relationships, but in this post, my intention was to focus on the unique bond he shared with Rose, which I believe holds a special place in his life. Rose represents a transformative force, someone who shaped his actions and identity in ways no one else has. She is a uniquely important figure in his life. See my pinned post for a better explanation.

I chose to focus on the Doctor’s romantic relationships, not because I see romantic love as superior to platonic love, but because his most significant bond was a romantic one. As a result, the Doctor’s attempts to recapture this bond were in his later romantic relationships, but they fall short because she is his true love. It just so happens that his most meaningful connection is also a romantic one. This doesn’t mean I interpret every character this way, but it feels true for the Doctor and Rose.

[makedatmoneymayne]

One Night Only?😈

------------------------

~~Y/N is a black woman but anyone can read this regardless. Y/N just officially became an announcer for the WWE. While celebrating at the club she notices this sexy man with a shaved head staring at her with low eyes. Will this only be one night?~~

Warnings:Smut, Cursing, Smoking, and Drinking.

**~~ means Randy's POV**

........................................………...............................................

You were faded, I mean SUPER fucking faded. You smoked a few blunts with your girls before heading to the club, yo ass was already high as the Eiffel tower heading into the club but then you also decided to drink a round of shots. One moment you were drinking next you was fucking some man who claimed he was a wrestler? You didn't know and you didn't give a fuck this man was sexy AND his dick was fire.

-

He took you into the women's bathroom and locked the door, both of you guys stumbling. He growls like an animal before gripping your neck kissing you on your juicy plump lips. The kiss stops "You're so fucking sexy baby" He says before lifting your dress putting his hand in your lace panties to grip your ass, other hand still gripping her neck. He moves his hands to the front of your panties, immediately shoving two fingers in with ease due to your arousal. You start moaning so loudly you already knew people who were close to the bathrooms could hear everything. Letting go of the tight grip you had on his forearm as he still fucked you with his fingers, you grip his long, thick print. "You like how this shit feels baby." You feel you orgasm coming quicker than usual, he obviously feels it too by how much faster his fingers are going, curving at angles, hitting spots you didn't know you had, you can't even answer for real. "No noo I wanna hear you say that shit Do.You.Like.How.This.Shit.Fe-" Before he can even finish,you do, yelling, squirting all over his hand, "Yes daddy I like it!" You didn't even come down from the high you just had before he turns you around on the sink, slapping your ass multiple times then slowly entering his length into you. Y/N's on a non stop loop of moaning, so loud she can't hear him say "Let me know when you want daddy to fuck you for real." He knows you can't hear him, only working half his dick into your pussy. Slapping his hand over your mouth, he moves his lips next to your ear kissing and sucking on your earlobe. "Can daddy fuck you good now baby" he asks politely words still slurred. Nodding your head he immediately fucks you with no mercy, almost pulling all the way out each stroke. Both of his hands on your mouth now as he fucks you, you crying from how good it feels. All throughout the bathroom all you hear is clapping sounds, him lowly growling talkin his shit while he's in it, and your sniffles and moans from your throat.

-

"Where the fuck did Randy go?" Cody asked the guys looking throughout the club, puffing his cigar. "I think he went to the bathroom uce." Jey mention before taking a shot. "He prolly with some random girl in nere' leave him be uce." Jimmy laughed at the thought, "Nah bro im gonna go see what's taking him." As Cody approached the bathroom he also saw his wife with the same look of worry. "Oh hey baby, Y/N's taking forever in the bathroom and im contemplating busting in there." Cody was already a few steps ahead of her trying to open the door but noticed it was locked. "Oh my gosh." "What babe?" Brandy asks still confused and worried. "Those motherfuckers are fucking in there Jimmy was right." They begin to laugh in unison. Brandy bangs on the door and yells "Don't wear him out now Y/N."

-

Little did they know Y/N was the one getting wore out and Randy was addicted.

-

You woke up at 4:56 am in a bedroom that was NOT yours AT ALL. Looking down you see a large tattooed arm on your stomach. Confused you lift his arm up so you can get up to put on your clothes. He groans moving a little. You hurry and leave out the door, jacket halfway on as you ride to your hotel.

-

You were finally in your bed, melting into your covers after a nice long hot shower. Rolling in your covers you feel every ache and pain this man caused but oh did it hurt so good. It was going on 5:41am now, time barely passed due to your speeding. You had about 4 hours and 19 minutes to sleep a but more. You dreamed about that mystery "wrestler."

Backstage at WWE, Jade, Brandy, Bianca, and Naomi all raved about your wild night. "Girl I still can't believe you fucked THEE Randy Orton in that bathroom" Bianca blurts out giggling. Brandy says a little louder, "Rumor says, aka literally just Cody, anyway it says he's upset you left." "THE RANDY ORTON I HEAR VOICES NIGGA? Damn I kinda ate." Before any of the girls can react I get called to head out for me to announce the match thats coming up. I sat down in my chair waiting for Bobby Roode's music to hit. On the right que I make my phenomenal announcement for him. I look down at my rehearsed paper to see "Randy Orton..." with all his attributes listed below for me to say. I almost miss my que for him but I get it out immediately locking back in. I stay standing watching him do his famous pose.

He glanced down, mouth slowly ajar mumbling, "No fucking way."

------------------------------------------------------------

~~The End~~

-im just writing for whoever I find sexyyyyy anyways enjoyyy😌-

[hmshermitcraft]

The Emperors were planning a prank on Jimmy, a rather elaborate one that would require him to be distracted for quite some time, all they needed to do was figure out how to distract him.

They decided to go to Flick, one of his deputies for advice, without telling him it was for a prank of course, citizens of Tumble Town always got so angry about them for some reason.

Flick was suspicious at first — citizens of Tumble Town also didn’t really like them for some reason — but he did eventually let an idea slip,

“You could always ask him about Tango.”

They stared at the cat hybrid in confusion before Katherine finally spoke up, “What do you mean?” It wasn’t the only question they were all thinking but it sure as hell was one of them. Flick let out an amused chuckle and looked back to his paperwork, “I mean once he starts talking bout Tango he doesn’t stop, I swear he’s spent four hours just talking bout his eyes once.”

The Emperors all felt a pit grow in their stomach, only Sausage was able to speak up and say the main question running through their minds, “And, who exactly is Tango?” Flick looked at the group of them like they were idiots before replying,

“Tango Tek, you know, his husband?”

(I live for unrequited and jealousy, especially when it’s the emperors and they all love Jimmy, with the knew knowledge of Tango’s existence and his relation to Jimmy they are forced to realize the reality that even if they hadn’t pushed him away with toy ‘jokes’ (that can’t even be considered anything but bullying and borderline abuse) Jimmy is genuinely unattainable)

A few of the more rash emperors (ahem Joel) are quick to search out this mysterious "Tango Tek" - if that even IS his real name - and have a talking to him. They have first dibs on the sheriff, after all.

None of them were expecting a blaze hybrid who was more than willing to go up against gods, witches, and the like to protect his sweet husband.

[watcheraurora]

Deepfrost Pass

More than a little inspired by @/mellozheist's want to give credit but not bother with my shipping nonsense so no tag unfinished Let It Go Tango animatic that I was watching... but as always I've got Rancher brainrot on my brain... have fun! 3.2k words

—

"Absolutely not," Grian snapped. "No. Not happening. You can't."

"Try and stop me," Jimmy challenged. "You're not a Watcher here."

"I am a Watcher here, but my powers are limited. Not gone. And I say no."

"Well I say yes. And you won't stop me." Jimmy shoved Grian out of the way of the door. "It's your fault anyway."

Grian's wings went rigid. "Excuse me?" he demanded, voice cold.

"It's your fault!" Jimmy retorted. "If you hadn't made that stupid server—"

"If I hadn't made that stupid server, you two wouldn't ever have met the way you did!" Grian spat back. "You wouldn't ever have known him like this if it weren't for me. If anything, you should be thanking me."

"I am grateful to you for that. But only that. The rest? Yeah, I do blame you for."

"If you go there, you'll die."

Jimmy shoved his arms into his coat. "That's a risk I'm willing to take."

"Tim—" Grian's hand lashed out and caught Jimmy's wrist. "Even I can't—and I'm a Watcher—It's just—there are nearly ten wardens in there. They've taken him over. He left for a reason. Can't you just—"

Jimmy shook Grian's hand off. "No. I can't 'just.' I know you think that whatever he found up there corrupted him or possessed him. I think you're wrong. That server was awful to him in a way he wasn't prepared for. I can take being the butt of jokes. I'm used to it. He never handled betrayal well and put on such a brave face that no one noticed. He snapped. And I'm don't care. I'm going to see him. I'm not here for very long before I'm going to get kicked."

"Tim, don't be stupid—"

"That's me. Stupid, stupid Tim," Jimmy spat. His wings snapped open and he hurled himself into the sky.

Grian was a fantastic flyer. He was small and nimble and could maneuver incredibly well. But he couldn't hold a candle to the raw power and strength of Jimmy's massive wings. That was what came from their height difference and builds. Jimmy was built for strength and speed. Most real canaries weren't, but he wasn't an actual bird, for crying out loud.

His armor barely even weighed him down as he surged higher into the sky. Grian would never be able to catch up. In small areas with lots of obstacles, Grian would win a race any day. But wide open sky going in a straight line? He'd have to work extra hard to keep up with Jimmy's casual flight.

He flapped his wings and soared higher. The world dropped even farther below. He knew this would be a long flight—hours, probably—but he would make it most of the way on the wing. Then the last leg of the journey on foot. He was prepared. He knew what he was doing.

He hoped.

All sorts of landscapes passed by beneath him. For hours. Gradually lifting up from plains into hills into foothills. Until he was in a taiga. Nearing the tundra tree line. Mountains surged up from the ground ahead of him, and he'd have to gain more altitude to access the pass between two of them that he needed. His wings beat the air harder, lifting him up until the air was almost too thin to cushion his wings and keep him aloft.

Jimmy flew until frost started to crystallize on his feathers. He knew he wouldn't be able to get any closer via flight, so he tilted into a sharp dive and braked hard, landing with a crunch of his leather boots in the deep snow. He pulled his coat tighter around him and drew his wings in close. They were so long that they dragged through the snow behind him. And they took the bite of this cold mountain range the most. But he couldn't let himself care about that.

He pulled a Blaze Rod out of his inventory and held it in one hand, a torch in the other. The Blaze Rod lit the torch and both helped keep him warm as he trudged up the mountain. He knew he couldn't be far now. The sun was going down. Mobs were going to start spawning soon.

He ate as he hiked. A golden carrot styled to look like a churro every so often. Scar had insisted he take them, so he had.

The sun went down. A full moon began to emerge over the mountain peaks. Jimmy caught sight of it when he was between peaks. There was no path to where he was going. Just the ever-worsening cold to lead him on. But he felt the direction in his heart.

So when he rounded the mountain and saw the fortress, he wasn't sure how to feel.

The thing was massive. Dark stone and teal accents. Grey-black towers clawed at the midnight-blue sky, as though trying to feed the stars to the gaping, frowning mouth partway up the enormous central tower. A warden's mouth.

The doorway was open, the portcullis raised.

Who needed security like that in a place like this? When the dangerous stuff was inside?

Jimmy stared.

The Deepfrost Citadel.

Blood. Pain. Screaming. Tango's yellow fire hair simmering down, blazing back up with the ice-blues and teals of soul fire. His friends' betrayals still lingering in his heart. The rage never fully going away, just pretending it was gone...

Jimmy still had some of Tango's memories. He remembered waking up in the middle of the night in Tumble Town, not too long after he first settled there after Double Life had ended, to Tango's screams in his nightmares. He remembered waking up months ago to a message from Grian, panicking that Tango had retreated into the mountains and no one had seen nor heard from him since.

Tango had even avoided him when he'd crossed over into Jimmy's world. Jimmy had rebuilt their ranch and everything. Tango promised it was his home. And then he spent all his time down in Gobland, too absorbed in work to... to ever... to ever come home.

A tear slid down Jimmy's face, trying to freeze but so hot that it made his skin tingle from the contact.

He trudged closer to the citadel.

Fine. If Tango was going to go back to his cave and his castle since returning home to Hermitcraft, then Jimmy was going to go to him.

He made it into the maw of the open doorway and shook off. Snow fell off his hair, wings, and the shoulders of his coat. His sheriff clothes were designed for the broiling heat of the mesa. They were thick and protective, but lightweight to release body heat.

Not a good idea for this taiga. He was freezing.

He climbed a long, dark staircase into a semi-constructed great hall.

"Tango?" he called. His voice echoed to the towers above him.

He heard the humming of a warden, coming from somewhere deep below. Just that sound alone made his blood run cold.

"Tango!" he called louder.

Something moved in the shadows cast by the soul fires. He whirled, expecting a warden or a ravager.

Nothing.

He held the Blaze Rod closer to his chest and extinguished the torch, tucking it back in his inventory. The lack of its warmth made his wings shiver. "Tango. Is that you?" he asked quieter. "Tango, please."

The movement was a shadow itself. Humanoid in shape, but nothing more than silhouette. It pointed, dodged to another shadow, and pointed again. Jimmy followed. "Tango, is that you?" Jimmy asked more urgently.

The shadow shook its head. Pointed again. Flitted to another shadow. Pointed. Jimmy followed its path.

A hole in the wall that led to a hole in the ground. The shadow briefly appeared, pointed down, and vanished.

Jimmy looked down apprehensibly. He didn't see any water... but there was a water elevator right next to this drop. Obviously a way up and down to somewhere.

Trusting in Tango, trusting in whatever they'd been on that first Ranch, hearts and souls in each other's hands, he closed his eyes and stepped off the drop, pulling his wings in tight so they wouldn't smash into anything or break and holding the Blaze Rod to his chest.

He landed on powdered snow, covered in a carpet square. It absorbed the damage of his fall. He ducked low to clear his wings and stepped out.

He was in a storage room. The walls were lined with rows and rows and columns and columns of chests. It was a remarkably compact storage room, all things considered. He'd seen the incredibly complex, sprawling system behind the doors of Scar's shop fronts in his theme park. That was huge. This was just chests. All shoved against one another. A Nether portal droned off to his left. And beside it, an archway that led out into a huge open cavern. Jimmy stood on the edge of the storage room's packed mud brick floor and looked out, his wings extending slightly behind him.

The cavern wasn't just some empty hole. It was filled with an unfathomably complicated web of redstone, all woven around structures. Jimmy couldn't make heads or tails of any of it.

This kind of area is where Grian's flying skills would be more beneficial than his. Jimmy could fly around in here, but he'd smack into every wall and track of redstone he came across. He couldn't maneuver anywhere near as well. This was an obstacle course dream for Grian.

Jimmy unfurled his wings and launched into the cavern, trying to keep his ridiculously long wingspan as close to himself as he could while still staying airborne while he flew around, searching the structures and the web of redstone.

"Tango?" he called. His voice echoed around the structure. He wondered if, for a moment, he actually saw that shadow running through the darkness alongside him. Or if he was losing it.

He heard giggling. Tango's distinct giggle. He pulled up short and banked in a circle, looking around.

"Hmhm! Dungeon's making me hear my birdie," Tango said in his high-pitched, silly voice. Sounding... slightly manic.

A firework rocket shot off. Jimmy heard the snapping of Elytra membranes. He looked around—

And caught sight of Tango flying back toward the storage room, a shulker box in hand. Jimmy twisted sharply and shot after him, catching his wings on tracks of powered and activator rails. He grunted in pain at the impacts.

When he finally made it back to the storage room, Tango was kneeling in front of a ground-level chest, rifling through it. He had a black hood on, attached to the long black coat he'd worn on Jimmy's world. The one that had spawned on him in Jimmy's nightmare when he snapped and his yellow fire hair had turned blue. The nightmare where the wardens broke through the ground at Tango's command and attacked the other Hermits who tried to contain them—and him—before he retreated up Deepfrost Pass and churned out his fortress.

He was singsonging under his breath as he moved materials from the chest into the shulker box. "Just keep workin'. Do the buildy-buildy. We'll show them. We'll show 'em all when I watch Ravagers munch their faces off. Especially Bdubs."

He shuffled over, popping another shulker box onto the ground and filling it with contents of another chest.

Jimmy just watched for a few moments.

"Gotta finish. Have to. Can't wait to feed the Hermits to the wardens."

Jimmy crept closer. He set a hand on Tango's shoulder. "Tango," he said gently.

"Wah-ga-gah!" Tango exclaimed, whirling around with his coat flaring around him. His hood fell off, revealing soul-fire hair. And, for just a moment, black eyes. But the black disappeared, and they were back to blue with deep blue sclera. He started laughing. "Very funny, Decked Out!" he called toward the cavern of structures and redstone. "Making me hallucinate Jimmy isn't going to speed things up, you know!"

"Tango, I—I'm not a hallucination," Jimmy said, tightening his grip on Tango's shoulder. The coat was so thick, he couldn't feel Tango's muscle giving underneath.

Tango leaned closer conspiratorially and winked. "That's what a hallucination would say," he said playfully. He turned back to his materials and kept shoveling them over into the shulker box.

"No, I'm not. Tango—" Jimmy grabbed Tango's shoulders and spun him around. "Look at me. I'm really here. I flew most of the way here and hiked the rest. I had to come see you. I had to—you—I miss you. I've barely seen you since our home worlds collided. You never came home to Tumble Town. The only reason I came through the Rift was to spend more time with you, and I've barely seen you since I've been here. You just left. What did I do, Tango? What have I done to warrant you avoiding me?"

Tango tried to turn back around, but Jimmy held him firm.

Tango blinked. Something like clarity sharpened in his eyes. "You're really here," he said.

"Yes. I'm here. I'm not some illusion or hallucination."

"I thought... the dungeon..." Tango looked out to the cavern, then back to Jimmy. Somewhere deep below, a warden hummed and sniffed. Jimmy's wings shivered. Tango's eyes snapped back to his. "I have to finish Decked Out. The dungeon needs to be whole."

Jimmy knelt so he and Tango were nearly at eye-level, still holding the shoulders of the coat. A glassy look made Tango's eyes unfocus.

"The others... they tried to stop me from leaving. But they've already held me back for so long. Bdubs betrayed me. We were teammates. He stabbed me in the back. He was no match for my wardens. Grian thought he was some almighty eldritch creature. But six wings are just more targets to get blastificated. Even Etho—the original!—was powerless to stop me when I finally let go of everything I'd used to hold myself back."

"Tango. Can you find it in yourself to forgive your friends?" Jimmy ran a hand through Tango's soul fire hair. It burned his skin in a way he wasn't used to. Soul fire was hotter than normal fire, but back when they were SoulBound, Tango's fire hadn't even been able to burn Jimmy's skin.

Tango bared his sharp teeth. His hair blazed brighter, higher, and hotter. Jimmy leaned away.

"Tango," Jimmy said soothingly. Repeating his name over and over to remind him who he was. To remind him he was a person. He cupped the side of Tango's face. "Look at me. Look at my eyes." He waited until Tango did. "Can you?"

Tango grumbled under his breath. Bitter and sarcastic.

"Hey. Remember when we first met? In Third Life? And I died to your lava game?"

"Dare to Flare," Tango said automatically.

"That's right. Do you remember when we met again in Double Life? After the creeper?"

Tango's voice pitched up. "You were angry."

"I wasn't," Jimmy said. "Not at you. Just that I'd lost the resources I'd gathered. It had nothing to do with you. And you were always so kind to me. I'm used to everyone putting me on the short end of the joke. You never did. You were a little sarcastic with me, sure. But you always put yourself at the short end of the joke. But you were kind to me. You're one of the only people who ever treated me with unconditional respect as a person, all the time. It's why I..." Jimmy cleared his throat. His wings twitched and ruffled. "It's why I fell for you, so fast."

Tango blinked, slow, like a cat. His head tilted into the contact of Jimmy's hand.

"You saw, while we lived on the Ranch, how everyone else treats me. I'm used to it. I encourage it. If they have to be mean to someone, they should be mean to me. I can take it. But you... you were never anything but loyal. Not just to me. To your team. And you got nothing in return but betrayal. You and me—we really feel our emotions. We pretend we don't, but we do. Our emotions are big and deep. The good, and the bad. Maybe it's why we got put together." Jimmy bent closer and rested his forehead to Tango's. "We have to learn to let the bad slide off, once we've felt it. You have to forgive the other Hermits. You have to let go of the rage."

Tango took a deep breath. "I... I can't."

"Please? Just try. For me?"

Tango reached up and wrapped cold hands around the back of Jimmy's neck, lacing his fingers together. "Birdie..."

"I'm only asking you to try. Breathe with me, and thing about letting it go."

"I'll try."

They shared deep breaths. Trying to tune out the wardens deep below. "Thank your emotions for keeping you safe, and release them," Jimmy whispered.

They knelt on the floor of the storage room for what felt like a long time. Just breathing and quietly encouraging Tango to forgive and let go. Jimmy kept quietly whispering affirmations he used to tell himself when he was learning not to mind the jokes.

A warden screamed somewhere below.

Tension surged out of Tango's shoulders and he slumped forward.

Jimmy caught him, cradling him to his chest. "I got you. It's okay. It's okay. You're fine." He rocked them both, his wings encircling them in a gold shield of protection. "What was that? Why did that warden...? Was Grian right? Were the wardens' influence bleeding into you?"

Tango shook his head against Jimmy's heart. "No. Other way around. My pain was bleeding into them. Wardens are mourners. They were mourning for me. But you're right. I can let it go."

Jimmy smiled. "That's it. Exactly."

There was a long pause. "I do still have to finish this game though. I've been working on it for so long—I can't just stop now."

"No, I know. But let it be just that. A game. Not a vessel for revenge or a channel for betrayal. Just a game."

"I can do that," Tango said. "Or. Well. I can try, anyway."

"That's all you need to do. Just try. Because there's merit in trying. And eventually, trying can pay off. Next thing you'll know, you'll be doing."

"Yeah... yeah. I can do that."

Jimmy kissed the top of Tango's head. The soul fire hair didn't burn him. "That's all I ask." He pulled back a little. "Come up with me? Outside? Come see the sky, please? The sun went down, but the stars are beautiful this far from everyone else. It's so dark and high altitude up here. They're beautiful."

"Okay."

Jimmy smiled. "Okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. Okay!"

"Come with me!" Jimmy pulled Tango toward the water elevator.

[pr0wlerpunk]

Title: I trust you.

Person: Roman reigns(yayyy)

Requested: |Yes|No|

Part. 2 Part. 3

★Trust Masterlist

Afab!reader

Warnings: slight!angst, slight!dark themes, reader feels frightened after the whole Sami zayn thing, Reader thinks bloodline is going to betray her, reader is very overwhelmed so that means crying :/

Pairings: Romantic!roman x reader, slight!romantic!Jey x reader, slight!romantic!Jimmy x reader, slight!romantic!solo x reader, also includes a very friendly Paul heyman

Pic creds: WWE/friend Aya

A/n: this is meant for a Roman x Reader thing but it also has some bloodline x reader, also no real plot made!

Standing backstage watching Sami and ko talk Paul walked up to you

“Miss Yn, you have a match right after…that” he gestured towards the screen

“Wait what?” You were confused, how’d you been that out of it you’d forgotten about a match?

“Miss Yn, have you forgotten?!” Seeing the shocked expression on his face was enough to keep you quite

“Oh my, I’ll contact the tribal chief and tell him you can’t do this match-”

“No!” You were quick to say rushing to grab his hands

“No?” He questioned

“I’m doing the match” nodding your head as you spoke

Paul slowly put his phone back into his pocket before nodding and leaving

You let out a short huff as you felt tears prick your eyes…

🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮

You hadn’t known what to expect but asuka wasn’t one of them, still you carried on the match like you would any other one

Except

Something was off

Everyone could see it…

You were on edge

All you could think about was how many times the boys got ambushed or even Cody rhodes coming down that ramp with Ko and Sami, still you knew you couldn’t fail

Failure would compromise your position in the bloodline

Because unlike Sami you actually loved being in it…

So you pushed yourself, breaking out of all the holds and pins she had you in, at one point you thought you were about to win

That was until..

“Asuka with her mist!” Corey yelled into his mic as you felt the sudden burn to your eyes

wiping at your face to try and get some of the most of as your vision blurred, barely being able to see you felt a kick to the face

Stumbling back you felt a liquid run down your mouth as you realized she made your nose bleed

Again thought swirled in your head

This is too much

What are they going to think of me?

Do they think I’m useless?

What does Roman think of me now?

Does he think I’m useless too?

You hadn’t realized it but you were crying

Quiet sobs racked through your throat as you trembled with only one current thought

You had to win.

🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮

And so you did

with a spear actually she never saw it coming as it knocked her out cold

Blood rushing out of her nose as you hoped out the ring and walked up the mat

The stadium erupting in cheers of your name as you turned out of sight

The first thing you could start to see was Paul and a medic

But you kept walking wanting this night to be over

you could hear Paul tell the medic something before his footsteps picked up until he was right next to you as you both stood outside the entrance to Roman’s locker room

Silence filled the air as neither of you made a move to enter

“Miss Yn..” turning your head slightly as to acknowledge him

“Are-are you okay?” You could fill the tears prick back up in the sincerity of his voice

You sucked in a breath as you shaked your head yes, not trusting you voice to speak

🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮

As you and Paul entered he took his seat next to Roman as you stood awaiting

Roman looked up before motioning you to come towards him

Making your way you expected to be yelled at

What you didn’t expect was for him to pull you into his lap to inspect your nose and eyes

“Why’d you turn away the medic?”

It was a simple question really

so why did it break the wall you had built up?

Tears streamed down your face for the second time this night as sobs broke out your throat

Body shaking as Roman pulled you further into him shushing you

You couldn’t see the confused face Roman gave his cousins

Or even their confused ones back

“Baby, why’re crying?” His voice softening

All you could repeat was “I’m sorry”

All your bottled up feelings came rushing out at once and you didn’t know how to stop them

“Babygirl look at me”

“You did nothing wrong, so why are you crying?” Hearing his confusion you sniffled before speaking

“Because I almost lost the match, and you probably think I’m stupid for not expecting her mist, and you probably think I’m like Sami, and im scared your all gonna turn on me when I don’t expect it-” you rambling was cut short as he quickly spoke up

“Hey, hey, hey” his voice light as he looked directly into your eyes

“You will Never be stupid or useless to me or anyone I’n this family you hear me?” His voice become start as he continued his own ramble

“You are Not Like Sami and you Never will be”

“So what if you got sprayed, you Won that’s all that matters and you should be proud of yourself like we are” you eyes widened before you spoke

“You’re-you’re proud of me?”

You couldn���t see it but Jey,Jimmy and Solo exchanged knowing looks with each other

“Yes sweetheart we all are” he gestured behind him where Jey,Jimmy and Solo all agreed

“Why?” Your voice meek as you spoke

“Because we Trust you”

There was a pause..

“Princess I Trust you..” hearing that statement made more sobs come out as your body shook

“Shh I know, cmon let’s get you cleaned up babygirl”

🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮

After getting cleaned up you went to bed before them shortly after they entered the room standing over you

“She’s overwhelmed uce” jimmy spoke quietly as to not wake you

His twin rolled his eyes scoffing lowly

“She needs a break from this bullshit”

It was silent as the tension picked up

“Nah”

Eyes turning to their youngest

“She needs us”

Solo spoke looking directly at your sleeping form

They all looked at each other before nodding with a shared thought..

You Needed Them

And No One was taking you away from them

🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮

Not proof read!

If this does well and if you guys ask for it I might make a part 2

[max-icons]

In Defense of Curly.

I'm going to start off with the biggest thing that this post could ever mention. Obviously this thread is not at all claiming he is innocent, at all, but some of you need to learn what an unkowning bystander is before you all go and jump Curly and make him out to be just as bad as Jimmy, if not worse for his "Inaction" and i'm going to explain in this thread that accounting bystanders to be apart of the crime is not fair, and how the situation with Anya, Jimmy and Curly is actually very realistic on how real life rape situations go, and the spiraling that occours afterwards.

This is going to be a long thread involving the topics of rape and other mental health junk, so strap in!

Anya's rape.

I'm going to immediately preface this section with a very big important thing. I am a victim, so do not think I am talking out of my ass here when I am talking about Anya, kay we cool now? kay.

So, we as the player know what happens. We know that there was a situation between Anya and Jimmy which either lead to rape, or it was enforced upon her, the actual content of the situation we don't know anything about, all we know that it was not consensual. But how it started and the exact details, we know nothing about.

When Anya tells Curly that she is pregnant, she expresses its something bad, but never tells Curly HOW it happened. And Curly's immediete action is to be concerned for her, he is worried for her, and even though he shouldn't, he LETS HER keep the gun as well!

But WE KNOW exactly what happened, as the player, but Curly wasn't told. He was only told that a pregnancy occurred between her and Jimmy, but the actual details of the event- what we know, is not something that Curly knows. We're able to pick up all the signs and see the language and imagery used, but to Curly, it just sounds like they had a hook up and it ended up in a pregnancy.

And that is a totally fair assumption to make, and it is also a completely fair assumption that your best friend wouldn't do such a thing. (I'll touch on this a bit later) So why would his first assumption be rape? Being unhappy about the pregnancy doesn't exactly scream anything in particular, in Curly's mind, she could be unhappy for multiple reasons. That it happened with Jimmy (of all people), that she is stuck on a ship in outer space for what seems like the remainder of her pregnancy, which is an already unsafe environment to be pregnant in and carry a baby to term. So it is a totally understandable and fine thing to not automatically assume rape when there are already plenty of other things at play that could make her and Jimmy unhappy with the outcome.

And plus, when Anya asks what Curly would have done, people seem to be ignoring (or just plain outright not even noticing) the language used. She's asking him what he would have done. The event is already over, it happened, she is asking what he would have done if he had been there, or if he knew earlier; or maybe if he knew at all.

For safety, for whatever reason the cockpit has locks, whatever reason the Meday has a lock, but not any of the bedrooms. Curly acknowledges the absurdity behind the decision, but he doesn't quite understand or grasp why Anya could be asking such a thing beyond simple curiosity because of course someone like Anya would be pointing out something like this, she spends the most time in the med bay, and Curly likewise with the Cockpit.

There are a ton of nuances that go into play when trying to realistically picture what could have or what should have happened on the Tulpar with Jimmy, and I really wish more people were willing to understand that it's not just as black and white, and not people that end up enabling said abusers are not always a willing and knowing crowd. And start maybe thinking about the fact that maybe

Curly really did not know the depth of the situation.

Jimmy's Spiral

The other thing I see tons and tons and tons of people talk about is "why didn't Curly do more about Jimmy!" "Why didn't he see this coming!"

Because, proven by my point of him not noticing Anya's rape, he would not have noticed Jimmy to do such a thing as murder-suicide. They have been friends for a "long time" according to Curly, but what if this was truly the first time he's ever seen Jimmy get this mad? When Anya tells Curly she told Jimmy, his first immediate response is to panic, he knows that Jimmy is an angry man, possibly a violent one as well.

He expected there to be yelling, or worse, physical violence, but Jimmy just.. walked away. And that's what scared him the most, the fact that he didn't react terrified Curly. So he ran to go and check on Jimmy and try to calm him down, which he thought worked, until it didn't. Curly would not have ever expected Jimmy to do this, how could he?This is probably the very first time that he's seen Jimmy spiral so hard, so intensely and in such a short time. He's seen him get mad, get angry, get violent, but those have all been in different situations, which have not as dire consequences as being the co-pilot of a ship with everyone on board. How the hell was he supposed to assume that he would ever do something like this? And that's even further proved by Curly's shock when Jimmy does divert the ship to crash it.

He is in genuine shock that Jimmy would even do this, and it seems like even Jimmy is as well. Despite having made multiple conscious decisions, turning the steering wheel right, getting out of his chair, grabbing the override key, disabling auto pilot and then steering again into the asteroid, he is still in shock that he actually went through with this. He wasn't actually expecting to do it, and then he did, and now he's grasping the consequences of his actions way too late.

And Curly is also just as shocked.

"I didn't- I should have..." is an immediate blame towards himself for not thinking that Jimmy would do something like this, but again, how do you plan for something like this? If Curly knew Jimmy was capable of such collateral destruction, he would not have him as his co-pilot, so it only makes sense that this was the first real and dangerous time he ever saw Jimmy truly spiral into madness. There were all the warning signs, all the red flags, but nothing could have prepared him for this. Why would Curly's first reaction to anything be the worst outcome, you don't do that when you trust someone. And again, this could be seriously the first time he's ever seen Jimmy react like this.

All we know is that Jimmy has had it rough back on earth, that he was jobless for a long time. Nothing else, nothing about him being a criminal, nothing about him being in trouble with the police, just that he has had it hard which can really mean anything.

It was the wrong time, the wrong person, the wrong break with all the wrong tools.

In conclusion, Curly is not entirely innocent. But I think it is extremely fair and very realistic to not automatically assume the worst of someone you thought you could trust. And he genuinely thought he could trust Jimmy, and he reacted pretty realistically and fairly given the circumstances. He absolutely cared about Anya and the rest, and would have done much much more if he had the time or the ability to do so.

Of course he didn't notice the smaller details, he's used to looking at the bigger picture.

[thebearer]

when teddys like two or three months you and carl are in a patch of him not being around and he comes home one day and she gives him no reaction or loves, and someone she sees frequently she is gummy smiling at them

oh this would wreck him. like the freezer scene has nothing on what this would do to him.

so the bear is doing really well. like really, really well, but they've got some competition. this new restaurant is moving closer and a little too close. they already tried to take marcus and syd, and carmen is stressed, falling back into his old ways. he feels like in a way he got himself here bc he had a baby and got lazy in a way- distracted, is more like it. as awful as that sounds, that's how he felt.

teddy's about six months and carmen's been at work non-stop. comes home late, if you go to the restaurant he barely has time for you, he's tightly wound and hateful- loses his temper quickly. richie tried to talk to him, tina, too; and he told them the same thing- to mind their own business.

you miss carmen, you do. but when you tell him that, he tells you he's here now- now being when he's practically collapsed in bed beside you.

it's the roughest patch the two of you had ever been through, and carmen doesn't even seem to realize it. until one day. the other restaurant got moved to the other side of the city- something about the building being mysteriously shut down for shoddy wiring (uncle jimmy had nothing to do with it!!)

carmen's feeling good. feeling like he can breathe again.

comes home early and you're surprised. he's happy and excited, but when he goes to teddy, she cries.

that tiny baby cry for you, just a little whine of sorts that she does when a stranger tries to hold her.

a stranger.

"teddy," carmen coos, trying again. "it's daddy, teddy bear."

teddy just turns into your shirt, whimpering and clinging to you. you watch carmen's heart break- the fall of his face, eyes widening into horrified realization.

"i think she's cranky, carm. it's her nap time-"

"she doesn't even know who i am." carmen's tone is hard- hurt.

"no, she's just a little sleepy, carmen. look, teddy, look," you coo, bouncing her lightly to coax her out of your chest. "look, baby, it's daddy."

teddy seemed to recognize the word, eyes lighting but she didn't relate carmen to that. blinking and looking around like she was looking for her dad. carmen's face crumbled, running his hands over his face to keep himself from sobbing in front of you.

you didn't know what to do, how to make it better. "i'm going to smoke." carmen rasped, voice tight with emotion, snatching his cigarettes off the table and going outside.

he called the only person he knew to. richie. breaking down, raw and emotional, begging him for any sort of advice on how to make it better.

"cousin, she's a baby. you got time to fix this. she won't even remember this-"

"-she doesn't even remember me." carmen sniffed hard, knee bouncing as his chest bubbled over with that familiar painful panic. "my own kid doesn't know who the fuck i am. what the fuck richie? what's fuckin' wrong with me. all i ever do is fuck everything up-"

"-hey, cousin, i'm stoppin' you right there, ok? let me be honest with you. this ain't about you, ok?" richie huffed. it was mean and cutting but it was true. "this isn't the time to be feelin' all sorry for yourself and shit, ok? you left your wife alone with that baby and you've been a real jagoff- like i said."

carmen hated it, hated that he was right, hated how he felt.

richie continued. "instead of sittin' in there like an asshole, why don't you go inside, take a few fuckin' days off, and get your shit together."

"cosuin, i-i can't do that-"

"- holy fuck, carmen. ok, let's try it again, alright? go inside. quit being a self loathing jagoff piece of shit, and take a few days off to be with your wife and kid, ok? i got the place for a few days." richie snapped.

"richie, we're booked for the next-"

"-look, do you trust me or not?" richie snapped.

"yeah, yeah, i trust you, c'mon." carmen muttered.

"then i got it, alright? if i need you, i'll call you, but for right now- your family needs you. if this was tiff or eva, i wouldn't even think twice about it. go be with your family, and fix this shit, you dumbass." richie huffed.

carmen took richie's advice. finding you in the bedroom, folding teddy's teeny tiny baby clothes. it made carmen sob. heavy heaving cries and mumbled apologies while he clung to you.

the next four days, carmen wouldn't leave the house. wouldn't leave your side or teddy's. he'd gotten her hesitantly out of the crib, eyes red rimmed when he cooed at her and changed her. she didn't cry this time, even giving him a tiny gummy smile that had him emotional all over again.