#but the curly hair guy in the trailer that helps you in the beginning?

[birf]

looking back at the very first bloodlines 2 announcement trailer and how I was a bit skeptical of it all but still really excited about it and thought it actually looked so good (like my only complaint at the time was the 1st person but I hate that in any game) but oH how far we’ve fallen…

[littlexdeaths]

older brother’s best friend eddie x fem reader

warnings: slight suggestiveness on eddie’s part, but also lots of tooth rotting fluff <3

it’s a recipe for disaster masterlist.

a/n: this takes place somewhere after the car troubles saga, but before the fake dating saga. based on this lovely request, i hope you like it my love! i appreciate your patience xx

“dude, you sound like fucking shit.”

you hear sid’s voice ring out loudly from the dining room.

you sit up, your inherent nosiness now quickly outweighing any desire to pay attention to the movie flashing across the television. so you carefully get up from the sofa and you peek your head around the corner into the dining room.

sid has his back to you, watching out the window while he continues to talk on the phone. wednesday nights were always slotted for band practice, so you knew it could be one of four people that he was talking to. you just hoped it wasn’t a certain curly haired lead guitarist on the other end.

wednesdays had quickly become your days together as well, once sid fell asleep that is.

your brother snorts but just shakes his head in response to whatever the person on the other line just said.

“nah, don’t worry about it, ed. i’ll see what the other guys wanna do, no need to infect the rest of us with your crap.” he laughs and your heart sinks a little.

so eddie wasn’t coming tonight.

while you feel a little disappointed, an idea suddenly comes to you. and your mind is already made up before sid can even finish hanging up the phone. you grab your keys and purse and hurry past him to the front door.

“hey! where the hell are you going in such a rush?” your brother calls while you slip on your sneakers.

“robin’s having really bad cramps, gotta get her some stuff.”

you’re a little shocked with how easily the lies and excuses come to you now, but you know it’s better than dealing with the reality of sid knowing.

“okay— too much info!” he says with a whistle before he picks the phone back up to call jeff.

you make it to the bradley’s big buy without any issues, besides a disapproving look from hopper as you flew past him on main street. you’re just grateful he was feeling nice today and didn’t pull you over.

as you push the squeaky cart through the aisles you begin to pile saltines, pedialyte and chicken noodle soup into the basket. paying extra mind to grab a couple packages of reese’s pieces and twizzlers on your way past the register.

two of his favorites.

during your short drive to forest hills trailer park, you can’t help the nerves from rumbling in your belly. would he be upset that you showed up unannounced? you didn’t think that was likely, but things were still so new between you. and you really don’t want to mess anything up.

but the look of delighted surprise that crosses his features when he opens the door has any lingering worries dissolving almost instantly. while he’s dressed in a pair of checkered pajama pants and a ratty old band tee— he still manages to take your breath away.

“surprise!” you mumble sheepishly.

“you know,” eddie grins, the tip of his finger tapping against his chin, “i don’t think i ordered a nurse?”

his small chuckle quickly morphs into a hacking cough, the male resting his body further against the doorframe. but the way he’s leaning against it is very reminiscent of that night your car broke down, the night that changed everything. only this time the sweat on his brow is from a fever and not the raging humidity.

“well lucky for you, i do house calls,” you tease, lightly brushing past him to enter the trailer.

eddie had set up camp in the living room, if the amount of tissues strewn about the floor were anything to go by.

“uh… sorry ‘bout the mess,” his already pink cheeks flush a shade darker while he quickly tries to tidy up. “—wasn’t expecting company.”

you can tell by his wobbly stance that he shouldn’t be up and moving around at all right now, so when he bends down again to grab more discarded tissues— you stop him.

“hey, don’t worry about that now, okay?” you reassure him, slipping your hand around his waist to guide him back towards his bedroom.

eddie all but deflates into your side, his mouth lifting into another grin when you reach the edge of his unmade bed.

“i see what’s going on here…” he hums, “trying to get me in bed before we’ve even been on a proper date.”

one of his palms slaps over his chest in mock horror as he flops down onto his mattress in the most dramatic, yet completely eddie-like manner imaginable.

“what kind of guy do you think i am, sweetheart?”

you roll your eyes fondly when he sits back up, eyebrows quirking up suggestively beneath his bangs.

“oh shame on me, we must keep that precious virtue of yours intact.” you giggle, letting him wrap his arm around your waist while he tucks you into the space between his thighs.

you can feel the overwhelming warmth radiating through the thin cotton of his shirt, and the beads of sweat beginning to trickle down his neck when you wrap your arms around him.

“please tell me you’ve been taking tylenol or something for this fever, eds.”

concern laces your tone, but you already know the answer by the way he peeks up at you under his lashes in feigned innocence.

“—uh… no.”

you let out a sigh before untangling yourself from him and he almost manages to follow you out of his room. but you are quick to turn on your heel and press a firm hand to his chest.

“nuh uh, mister. you need to lay down,” you scold, despite the pout adorning his features. “and that’s an order.”

eddie utters a soft, so bossy under his breath before he retreats back to his bed. you’re quick to rummage through the medicine cabinet in his bathroom until you find what you’re looking for. coming back to his room with a full glass of water and two tylenol in tow.

he tosses the pills back without any further argument, much to your relief. but the male immediately reaches for you again and you unwillingly slip through his fingers.

“nooo— where are you going now?” he all but whines.

you merely respond with a giggle as you slip out of his room, padding down the hall towards your bag of goodies you left near the front door. you snatch out the candy and pedialyte, and graciously clean up the rest of his tissues before making your way back towards his room.

eddie perks up at the sight of you, immediately pulling back the bedsheets and welcoming you in with open arms. you set your goodies down on his nightstand before sliding in next to him, the male completely enveloping you in his embrace.

“thank you.” he mutters softly, pressing a kiss to the top of your head.

and truly, he means it.

eddie has spent most of his life fending for himself, so he’s not used to someone wanting to dote on him like this. but the fact that you were so willing to drop everything to come here and check on him — spoke volumes.

you carefully tilt your head up to glance at him, his soft chestnut hues meeting yours as he tucks comfortably into his side.

“anytime, eds.”

and you mean it too.

you spend the better part of the evening nursing him back to health, as much he’ll let you anyway. while eddie is beyond grateful that you’re willing to care for him like this, he’s just happy to be in your presence.

and he can’t deny he’s become quite attached to you in the short time you’d started seeing each other. so much so that when you finally get up to make him some dinner he all but clings to your side, despite your protests for him to go rest.

eddie is nothing if not stubborn, so he follows you into the small kitchen. keeping his arms wrapped securely around your waist and his chin resting on your shoulder while you heat up a can of campbell’s chicken noodle soup.

but as much as he's enjoying the coddling in his current state, he draws the line at your attempts to spoon-feed him. it only leads to him playfully nipping at your fingers until he finally manages to sneak the utensil from your grasp.

with his belly fully and his fever beginning to break the two of you make your way back to his bedroom. slipping comfortably beneath the covers while you flip through the tv stations until you’ve settled on some old the price is right reruns.

eddie falls asleep not even five minutes after his head hits the pillow, soft snores tumbling from his plump lips. the utter picture of content. so you can’t help when your gaze quickly shifts from bob barker and the spinning wheel to his sleeping features.

you admire the way his long lashes fan across his freckled cheeks and the little scar on the slope of his nose that you’ve never noticed before. the way his lips are slightly chapped, but still kissable all the same. and when you lean up to press a soft peck to the corner of his mouth, he doesn’t even stir.

but as you snuggle yourself into his chest you miss the way his lips quirk up in a half smile, the male ultimately catching you in the act. eddie decides to say nothing as your breathing begins to slow and you drift off to sound of his steady heartbeat in your ears.

and later, when wayne returns home from work that evening to find you both entangled and sleeping soundly in his nephew’s bed, he just quietly shuts the door behind him with a knowing grin on his face.

series taglist: @nailbatanddungeon @devil-in-hiding @mugloversonly @eddiemunsonfuxks @munsonhoneybaby @alagalaska @creative1writings @missmarch-99 @stolen-in-moonlight @xxbimbobunnyxx @calumfmu @bastardstevie @prestinalove @indigosparkle444 @tlclick73 @hellfire--cult @take-everything-you-can @guiltyasquinn

let me know if you’d like to join the taglist!

[homiesexual-or-homosexual]

Pairing: Eddie Munson x reader

Warnings: Eddie lore, you get bullied (sorry), protective Eddie, some petnames, Hellfire teases Eddie and you, sorry for any typos :]

Genre: some angst, fluff

———

A newly 13 year old boy. His mom is dead and his dad was in prison, again. The only thing the boy has left is a small ring with a soft, oval shaped emerald in the middle and mid-back length, curly, matted hair. Well maybe not the matted hair anymore. His uncle, who’d he’d been placed with only yesterday, had sat him in a metal chair outside the trailer and buzzed his hair down to a thick stubble. The boy cried silently, looking down into his lap as he messed with the ring. But once the buzzing stopped, the boy’s uncle crouched down in front of him, wiped his eyes clear of tears, rubbed his scratchy head, and mumbled a “look, we match now.”

All before the first day of 7th grade.

And on that day of 7th grade, Eddie had a girl in his home room. A shy thing with a couple missing teeth (baby teeth, mind you), and short, boyish hair. Rumors started up almost immediately, about him and the girl. Eddie learned that her parents left her with her grandma before driving off to who knows where. And despite not knowing a single thing about each other, the two new kids seems to drift towards each other throughout the whole day.

About half way through 7th grade, Eddie had made it known to the students body that he would not tolerate bullying of those he endeared, whether Eddie realized whether he cared for that person or not. A couple of the more “popular” kids had begun to pick on your quiet, shy self. It started off as pokes and jabs, supposed playful exchanges in the girls’ bathroom, and whispers in the classrooms that weren’t quiet enough to be actually whispers. But the last straw was when one of the “leaders” had tripped you as you walked to your table in the cafeteria. They’d tripped your just perfect to where you slammed your frontal lobe against a nearby table and blood spewed from both your nostrils, and you fled blindly out the doors. Eddie followed the spaced out drips of blood against the cheap tile to a less popular wing of the school and into one of the bathrooms that no one uses anymore. He found you sitting against the wall in the larger stall, thin toilet paper stuffed up your nostrils, hands shaking, and shoulders shuddering with choked-up cries. Eddie was gentle, hands wiping your bloodied ones down with wet paper towels, and soft fingers wiping away your tears. Later that day before walking home, Eddie hunted down the guy that tripped you and took out his young, rightly earned anger out on the guy. It earned him a black eye and split knuckles, but the other guy looked much worse.

From then on, Eddie kept you under his wing. Joining you on activities when you didn’t have a partner or sitting next to you in classes and “distracting” you when the whispering got to you a little more than it usually did. He’d bark back at bullies in the hallways and even the bullies felt even a little brave, Eddie would send them off with a bite at the end of the day.

The bullies seems to back off a bit at the beginning of freshmen year when Eddie finally grew into his limbs. He was taller now, muscles highlighting his body from helping his uncle out around the house. His hair was also longer now, just barely brushing his shoulders, curly and wild. Eddie also seemed a little more intimidating on the days when he wore the leather jacket his uncle gifted him as a congratulations present for starting high school.

Classmates learned not to even look at you the wrong way when Eddie was around. The scar on his chin and the permanent rosiness of his knuckles showed the consequences of a cruel whisper.

The bullying didn’t stop for Eddie though. They seemed the build up when he joined the school’s dungeons and dragons club, held two times a week in the basement in the abandoned theatre room. Especially when he wore the custom “Hellfire Club” shirts.

The summer between freshmen and sophomore year, Eddie had joined Corroded Coffin, mastering solos of popular metal bands and writing a few songs of their own. And because Eddie’s uncle was a bit tight on money that summer, Eddie had started dealing weed to classmates and upper classmen who were interested. And that’s when the bullying started up during the summertime as well, rumoring that Eddie was a low-life stoner that would go nowhere in life, or that when you go missing no one will be surprised that you’ll be found tied and bleeding in some sort of satanic ritual.

So, the poking and prodding was only worse during sophomore year. Extending into lunch and on both yours and Eddie’s lockers. But Eddie’s outbursts didn’t start until a few weeks into junior year. Shouting at those who picked on his friends and getting into a few fights when things got a little too heated.

Eddie lost it when you were hurt though, physically that was. He found you hiding in a dark corner in the Hellfire room, nose bleeding and eye bruised. It was scary when he asked who it was, and you followed him like a scared baby deer followed it’s mom. And it was scary when Eddie shoved the jock against the hallway lockers, growling out that Eddie would kill him if he ever laid a hand on you again. The jock retaliated with a punch to Eddie’s face, causing his nose to bleed and you could tell by his squinting eye that it would be bruised as well. And Eddie, ever the dirty fighter when angry, only grabbed hair and shoved the jock to the ground to serve a few kicks to his gut before walking away with you under his arm to go get cleaned up. And when you were both cleaned up and your black eyes begun to settle in, Eddie smiled at you and said “Look, princess, we match.”

Eddie seemed to hover even more after that, behind you like a shadow. Even more so when he started to drive, legally. Taking you to and fro school, and occasionally when school got a little too much you’d hang out in the back of Eddie’s run down van and talk. And when the occasional stoner client came to Eddie’s driver window, Eddie only shooed them away, his attention back on you in record time.

The touchiness started in senior year though. Hand holding, touches of the lower back or even the waist. Wiping something from your face if need be. Hand on your thigh at any time of day. Sitting in Eddie’s lap because he dragged you in to sit on his thighs. Or even, cuddling. Whether that be in his van or over at each other’s houses, which often resulted in one, or both, of you taking a nap. Which even resulted in sleepovers when Eddie’s Uncle Wayne and your grandma began to trust you both to not get down to any “funny business.”

Hellfire made fun of Eddie, all in good humor. Asking him when he’s gonna ask you out, or if you two are dating yet. Sometimes if they’re feeling peckish for a reaction, the boys would even ask when the wedding was, causing Eddie to sputter and you to hide behind the tall boy.

[xhoneygirlxx]

Life Sized

Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

summary: After a spell gone wrong, Eddie Munson is stuck with a real life Lucky Lucy doll.

warnings: fluff. slight angst. grump x sunshine reader. cussing. mentions of Eddie dealing. strangers to friends. Reader is a doll, "Lucky Lucy", however because she's made up skin tone, body type, and ethnicity is not mentioned. Eddie calls reader doll/Luce/Lucy Reader does wear Eddie's clothes. Reader and Eddie are around 20 (even though reader is a doll, she's been out for about 20 something years). 90s era.

*if I missed anything please let me know!

a/n: hi my loves! I'm so sorry for the wait but life was hectic for the past few days with schedule changes and birthday plans. I want to let you guys know I am slightly hung over so this might now be the best. Anyway, thank you guys for joining me on this birthday adventure! Love you guys :)

Cause we are living in a material world

And I am a material girl

“Woah woah woah woah woah,” Eddie waves hand back and forth, eyes closed as he tries to process what he just heard, “You did what?” 

Sighing heavily, Dustin stands up from the well loved couch that sits in the Munson’s trailer. “If you listened the first time you would have heard me. I said, I went to the crazy lady’s store in the hopes of bringing Chews back from the dead because I can’t watch my mom cry anymore. Before I created a monster out of a dead cat, we decided to practice on Mike’s sister’s doll,” Turning his body slightly, Dustin points to the pretty girl that sits in the recliner. 

“It didn’t work but when we woke up this morning she was sitting there.” The curly haired boy stares at the older boy in front of him, semi out of breath from his fast speaking. 

“Let me get this straight, you went to the one place that is off limits to everyone in Hawkins, bought a book of spells, and then brought a doll to life, only to bring said doll to my house?” His voice is loud enough to ricochet off the thin walls. 

“Well you said everything I just said, but yeah pretty much.” The young boy nods causing the curls of his hair to bounce. 

“Nuh uh, no, I don’t want any parts of this.” Shaking his head, Eddie begins to push the younger boy towards the door. 

“Eddie please,”  Will begs from his spot on the couch, “We have no one else to turn to.” 

“Yeah, come on Eddie, we need our dungeon master.” Lucas adds, knocking his shoulder into Mike who stays quiet on the arm of the sofa. 

“Hey don’t bring me into this, I didn’t want to do it.” Mike throws his hands up defensively, only to change his answer when the other two boys give him a stern look. 

“I-I mean, Eddie, we need your help.” It comes out more like a question than a plea but it’s the best they're going to get out of the black haired boy. 

Locking eyes with the older man who still has a hand on his shoulder, Dustin does his best to give the world's cutest puppy dog eyes. 

“Please, Eddie. I need you.” It’s quiet and sincere, and because it’s coming from Dustin it goes straight to Eddie’s heart, tugging tightly on the strings. 

Fuck why did he have to have such a soft spot for the kid. 

“I swear to Ozzy himself, if you don’t fix this in twenty four hours, your ass is grass.” A ringed finger is pointed at Dustin, his eyes going semi cross eyed from watching it wag in his face. 

Turning his body quickly, Eddie points his finger to the other three boys who sit wide eyed on the couch. “And that goes for you three. Your asses will be hanging right next to Wayne’s mugs if it doesn’t get fixed. Capiche?” 

When all four heads nod vigorously, Eddie straightens his posture and releases a sigh so loud it sounds like all the air from his lungs came out.

"Can I just say, you remind me of Lucky Lars! He has cool tattoos and long hair like you too!" You're looking right at him, eyes sparkling with happiness.

"Jesus H. Christ, there's really a talking doll in my house." Eddie's voice sounds like a whining child as he pinches the bridge of his nose.

"Alright it seems like everything is fine here, so we're gonna go ahead and leave." Before Eddie can stop Dustin or the rest of the younger boys, they're already out the door and gone.

"Great, just fucking great." Slapping a hand down to his thigh, Eddie spins on his heel and heads to the kitchen. He needs a fucking beer, or maybe six, either way he needs something to get him through this nightmare.

Opening the fridge, he grabs a cold can of pbr and gulps it right down without taking one breath. The liquid goes down so smooth and for a minute Eddie seems to forget the predicament he's in. Then you speak and he's instantly brought back to reality.

"Um, excuse me sir," It comes out so graceful and sweet and he hates it.

Without moving his head in your direction, he spits an angry "what" at you - teeth gritting and fist clenching. A part of him regrets being mean with you, it's not your fault this whole shitshow happened.

"I um, just wanted to ask if everything was okay." He hates that your pretty face is scrunched up with so much sadness and that he's the cause of it.

Deep breath in. Deep breath out.

"Yeah, just peachy." It's forced through his tight lip smile.

"Oh well that's great!" You annoyingly clap your hands together and he winces at the sound. "When can we go shopping?"

Eddie didn't know who he wanted to kill more, you, Dustin, or himself. Why he even agreed to taking you to Starcourt was beyond him, but God was the whole experience horrible. You commented on every single thing, stopped and looked at mundane objects, and ooh'd and awee'd every time you stepped in a new store.

Every store you walked into, you left with multiple bags, which Eddie had to carry. To make matters worse he had to pay for everything, burning a hole right through his drug dealing money. You're a doll for heaven sake, why the hell would you have money?

On the way home you would not stop talking about the whole experience, comparing everything to Lucy's Lucky Land. To make matters worse, you wouldn't stop touching the radio until you landed on the most ear bleeding pop song.

The moment the two of you arrived back at the trailer, Eddie realized he couldn't escape this nightmare. He was stuck with you until those little shit heads could come up with a solution to the problem.

"Alright, just uh.. put your bags somewhere in the corner." Eddie instructs, pointing in the cleanest corner of his bedroom.

Pink heels step on the brown shag carpet of his room, eyes traveling around as you take everything in. It was completely different from what you were used to, clothes scattered everywhere, cups and dishes stacked up, and posters with names you've never heard of.

It amazes you just like everything else you've seen today. You've never seen a room like this, not even the boy's back home had rooms like this. With wide eyes and agape mouth, you spin around with open arms, just like you did when you walked into the mall.

"Oh, Eddie! This is so beautiful!" With your bags still in hand, you sit down on the mess that is his bed.

"Oh my lucky stars!" You gasp, "Your bed is so soft!" Proving your point, you bounce on your butt causing the springs to creak with every movement.

Eddie watches from the doorway, unamused by your entertainment.

"Ugh yeah, it's a bed. Don't you have those in Lucky Land of Lucy or whatever it's called." Crossing his arms over his chest, raising an eyebrow in questioning.

"It's Lucy's Lucky Land," you correct him, still smiling ear to ear, "and yes we do have beds! Our beds are made of plastic though, not bouncy like this one!" Sliding the bags from your arms, you continue to bounce but now you use your arms to make yourself go higher.

"Right, I should've known." He drawls.

Crossing into the room, Eddie starts taking off his vest and leather jacket, followed by his heavy boots. He doesn't realize that you've stopped bouncing, now honed in on his movements.

Turning around from where he stands by his dresser, he's met with the sight of you trying to take your shirt off.

"H-hey now, let's not do that." Turning his head to the side so he doesn't see anything he's not supposed to, he stretches his arms out to stop your hands from moving.

"Did I do something wrong?" You're so sincere when you say it, innocence dripping off of you like raindrops on a flower's petals.

"You can't just start taking your clothes off, Luce." His eyes are still to the floor, cheeks glowing red from the flush that's creeped it's way there.

"But I thought that's what you were doing." It sounds dejected and Eddie chances a look at you and he instantly regrets it.

There you sit on his messy, old, stain ridden bed, glossy pout on your lips and eyes glassy with tears. In that moment he sees you, the girl that's been nothing but sunshine and rainbows all day, the girl that's taken every indirect insult he threw with a smile on your face, now reduced to tears because of him.

"No, sweetheart, I was just taking off my shoes and jacket. When it's ready to change I'll let you do it in privacy." He tried his best to explain to you not wanting to upset you anymore.

"Are you mad at me?" You sniffle.

His eyes study your face, watching the tears roll down the plush skin of your cheeks. The more he looks, the worse his frown gets. "Why would I be mad at you?"

"B-because you d-don't want m-me here. I-I didn't mean to r-ruin your life Eddie." Tears now fall like a stream of water and words are being choked out through hiccups.

Eddie can feel all the blood drain from his body, cemented to the floor of his room. You're reduced to tears and snot because you think he hates you. He made you feel this way through constant eye rolls and loud huffs. You've been nothing but kind to him, trying everything in your power to get him to have one decent conversation with you. Yeah, there were some things he couldn't wrap his mind around when it came to you, especially when you tried to chase down a squirrel in pure curiosity, but you were trying.

Just this afternoon were you dropped off in a stranger's home, new to everything in the world, with not one single clue about life outside of your little playland. You didn't ask to be brought to life, you didn't ask for any of this but Eddie made it your problem the minute you opened your mouth.

He doesn't know what to do or say, he just stands there completely silent watching your shiny exterior crumble to nothing.

"I j-just wanted to be y-your friend b-but you hate me." Your small palms catch your face, your sobs now echoed in the curve of your hands.

"Lucy," Eddie walks over to you, dropping to his knees in front of you, "I don't hate you, okay?"

Separating two of your fingers, you peek at him from the comfort of your hiding spot and quickly retreat when brown eyes peer into yours.

"Lucy,” He calls but you don't move.

"Luuuccy," This time it's sung but still no movement from you.

Releasing a deep breath, he tries to think of something that will make you happy.

"I guess I'll just have to find someone else to play with my hair." Shagging his shoulders, Eddie sighs sadly and drops his head.

"I can play with your hair?" You sniffle, face still shining with the wetness of your tears.

Craning his head back to you, he smiles softly and nods his head. In an instant your jumping up from the bed, clapping your hands together in happiness.

"So what kind of jobs do they have in Lucy Land?" Eddie asks, wincing slightly from your finger untangling a knot in his hair.

"Oh we have so many! I've been a fashion designer, model, singer, baker, doctor, and a ballerina!" Your fingers continue to intertwine sections of the curly brown hair, trying to be as delicate as possible.

"Then there's Lars, the one you remind me of, and he's an action star. Then there's Lance who is a race car drive. Linda is a teacher, Lorelai is a painter, Lily is a florist, and then there's Larry, he doesn't have a job."

"Why doesn't Larry have a job?" He asks, flinching slightly when you pull a little too hard for his liking.

"Cause he's Larry." You say nonchalantly.

Pulling the scrunchie from Eddie's wrist, you tie off the first braid before moving on to the next one.

"What's your job?" It's an innocent question but it still makes him choke on his drink.

"I ugh, I uh work in sales?" It's the best answer he can come up with, not wanting to explain what drug dealing means to your innocent ears.

You continue to tug on his hair, pulling and twisting strands. "What's that?"

"I sell things." Blood rushes to the tips of his ears and apples of his cheeks.

"Like what?"

Eddie would rather deal with the yanking of his hair than answer this question. He racks his brain for an answer, letting a small pause settle over the conversation.

"I sell brownies to people." Doing his best to shrug, embarrassment sinking to the pit of his stomach.

"Oh my golly!!! I love making brownies," You gasp and then pause for a moment, "but in my world our ovens and food are fake, so I wouldn't know how to do it in your world."

"Wait, so what do you eat?" Eyebrows are pinched together in confusion.

"Oh Eddie, you're so silly." You giggle, reaching for his other wrist that adorns the pink scrunchie.

Tying the end of his braid, you pat his shoulders gently, "All done."

The lanky boy stretches from his position on the floor, knees creaking from the movements. Walking over to his mirror, calloused fingers run over the french braids, shocked by how neat they are.

"Wow," he whispers, "They look really good, doll." Eyes still trailing over his hair, head moving side to side making sure to see every angle.

"They look so good because I had such a pretty model." Your lips are sprawled out into a smile.

Eddie finds himself blushing again, bats swarming around in his tummy and heart skipping multiple beats. Trying his best to shake it off, he claps his hands together and spins to face you.

"How about I make you my famous mac and cheese for payment?"

"Who knew food could be so good?" A satisfied sigh falls from your lips.

"Yeah, who would've thought?" Eddie snorts, sarcasm soaking his words.

Leaning back onto the couch, your eyes flutter shut in contentment. Your hands sit folded on top of your belly, shoeless feet propped up on the coffee table in front of you.

Eddie lets you enjoy your food coma, picking up the empty bowls and walking them to the sink. He decides it would be better if he washes them now, not wanting Wayne to get home and bitch him out for having a full sink.

Once the dishes are done and dried, he walks back into the small living room and is met with the sight of you sleeping. Long eyelashes fall on the tops of your cheeks, your permanent smile still sits on your pretty glossed lips, and small snores falling from your nose.

For a moment he just looks at you, eyes following the lines of your features for the first time all day. When you first showed up, he could see that you were pretty and during the mall trip he'd find little details he hadn't noticed before, but right now he's really taking his time to admire you.

You're so beautiful, flawless really, and man did he get lucky having you crash into his life. You're a doll, something that's made of plastic, but nothing about you screams fake. You're so sweet and kind, always quick to accept whatever apology he gives you when he's been shitty.

Your spirit and energy shines brightly through you, bringing light to the darkness of his reality like the sun coming out on a cloudy day. You're all pink and sparkles, glitter and fluff, while he's black and spikes. For all the bad in the world, you remind Eddie of all the good.

He doesn't hate you, in fact he likes you and he wants to have you around for a bit longer. He wants to be friends with you, teach you about the real world and everything it has to offer. For the first time today Eddie realizes that this might not be so bad, not when he gets to relive all the cool things in life with you by his side.

Stalking over to you, he gently shakes your shoulder. "Luce, hey Lucy. Come on, s'time to wake up."

Squinting from the harsh yellow lighting of the room, your lips pout slightly from the rude intrusion of your slumber.

"Come on, Luce. We're gonna go to bed now." Holding out a hand to you, Eddie helps you stand up from the couch.

"I don't have jammies." You sound like a small child, voice quiet and hushed from how tired you are.

"What did you get at the mall then?" Leading you to the edge of the bed, he helps you sit down.

"I bought cute clothes to wear during the day." You shrug, rubbing your eye with the back of your hand.

"Of course you did." It's quiet enough so you can't hear, fingers rubbing hard over his forehead. "Alright, well I have something you can wear."

Digging through his drawers, Eddie finds an old Hellfire shirt and a pair of sweatpants from high school he doesn't wear anymore. Walking back over to you, he hands you the clothes and instructs you to change when he leaves the room and to call for him when you're done.

When your groggy voice echoes from behind the closed door, he slowly creeps in. You're still sitting in the same spot now wearing his clothes.

"Everything fit okay?" You nod, eyes growing heavier the longer you're up.

"Good, good. Well let me help you," Eddie leans over you, trying to fluff up the pillows the best that he can. Pulling the covers back, he tucks you into place.

"I'll be sleeping on the couch, so if you need anything just call my name and I'll be back." Giving you a tight lipped smile, he turns to shut the bedside lamp off.

"Eds?" Your voice cuts off his actions. "Can you sleep in here with me?" You blink up at him tiredly, still as beautiful as ever.

"How about I sleep on the floor next to you? Is that okay?" Eddie offers and you quickly accept with a sleepy smile and a lazy nod.

"Okay let me grab some extra blankets from the closet and change, then I'll be in." He reassures and you wiggle around in a tiny dance making his chuckle.

"Hey Eddie," Again you cut his movements short, "Thanks for being my best friend. I like being here with you." Your smile is shy, fingers nervously picking at the frayed edges of the blanket.

"I like being with you too. Thanks for being my best friend." The two of you beam at one another, letting the warmth of your budding friendship sink into both of you.

Leaving the room Eddie makes sure to shut the door behind him. Before he digs for any kind of blanket, he moves to the phone that sits on the wall. Punching the numbers fast, he looks back to make sure you haven't left your spot.

After a few rings, the other line finally picks up to his relief.

"I know it's late but ugh," He checks the door one more time just in case, "Forget what I said earlier. Yeah, she's gonna be staying here for a bit longer."

After hanging up the phone and grabbing whatever he needed, he heads back into the room where you're now sound asleep. Throwing a pillow to the floor, he shuts off the light and lays down.

For a moment it's quiet, the darkness of the room lulling him to sleep quickly. Before his eyes slam shut, your arm snakes out from under the blanket, your awaiting palms sitting there for him. Without hesitation, he grabs on and holds it for dear life.

Yeah, having you around won't be so bad.

Thank you guys for reading! love you all <3

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[scarlettrosethorn]

♡TRUE BLOOD♡ Chapter one: into the fog

Summary: Salem is finally old enough to begin her journey among the slendermen. She hopes that by following in her father's footsteps, she will not only achieve the same success he did but also earn the respect of both her father's and her uncle's ranks.

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Just outside the city limits was the biggest and most vibrant circus, where crowds of people joyfully meandered from ride to dazzling ride. The bright lights and cheerful sounds could probably be seen from miles away, perfectly capturing the spirit of 'family fun.'

Salem stood near the entrance, swaying nervously on her feet to make room for the bustling passersby. She watched as groups of friends, small families, and the occasional crying child flowed through the gates. With her hands tucked into her pockets, she checked her phone repeatedly before letting out a frustrated huff and sliding it back into her back pocket.

"Where the heck is she..." Salem sighed heavily to herself, running her fingers through her hair as her anxiety bubbled up the longer she stood there.

"Salem!" She jolted at the sound of her name called from beyond the entry gates. Straining to locate the source, her heart soared as she locked eyes with a pair of familiar golden orbs. "Willow!" she exclaimed, excitement lacing her voice as her sister weaved her way through the throng. Salem had always thought her sister’s curly hair, streaked with shades of blonde and brunette, was the prettiest. Willow wore the brightest smile, her joy infectious as she enveloped Salem in a warm embrace, nearly lifting her off the ground.

"Ahh! Look at you! You look so grown-up!" Willow practically squealed, swinging Salem around in a whirlwind of excitement.

"T-thanks! You're crushing me!" With a gasp, Willow finally set her down, allowing Salem to catch her breath. "How can I look 'grown up' if you’re only three years older than me?" Salem laughed, her heart lightening in Willow's presence. "Oh, that doesn't matter," Willow said confidently, slipping her arm around Salem’s shoulders and guiding her forward.

"So, are you ready for the next week?" Willow asked, curiosity sparkling in her golden gaze.

"I mean, sure? I don't really think I'm going to fit in, you know?"

"Aw, come on, you'll be just fine. I mean, look at me; I turned out okay!"

"That's because you were with Dad," Salem teased, and Willow rolled her eyes, chuckling at the playful banter. "How's Mom?" she asked, waving at a guy selling delicious cotton candy as they passed.

"She's doing well. She didn't really want me to leave."

"That's understandable. But you know how it is." Salem nodded knowingly, and the two of them strolled past the iconic Big Top. They continued until they reached the performers' trailers, where a bustling crowd of vibrant characters hurried by, arms full of makeup and colorful costumes, all blending into the festive chaos.

The girls approached a trailer with large red letters on the door that boldly proclaimed "Ring Leader." Willow knocked eagerly. "Dad! Are you in there?" she shouted, her excitement palpable. A moment later, a cheerful voice responded through the door, "Is that my girls? Come on in!" Willow shrugged playfully and opened the door. "After you," she said, stepping back to let Salem take the lead.

Once inside, Salem was greeted by the sight of a large man hunched over a mirror. His skin was completely white, and his eyes were a deep, pitch black. For a moment, she was taken aback, realizing her father was not in his usual human form; sometimes she forgot that he was actually a Slenderman. "Salem! How are you, my girl?!" The trailer rocked slightly as he moved. Salem couldn’t help but smile, replying, "H-hi, Dad. I'm doing alright." He was almost comically large, and as he tried to rise to give her a hug, he accidentally bumped his head against the roof of the trailer, knocking down a few knickknacks in the process. "Oh, excuse me, girls! Sometimes I forget this trailer wasn't built for someone like me," he chuckled, making Willow laugh too at their father's clumsy excitement.

Sonny turned back to the mirror, and in a matter of seconds, his appearance transformed completely, morphing into a normal-looking man. As his stature shrank, so did his aura—swiftly shifting to match his new form. Soon enough, the two sisters stood before a very ordinary-looking Sonny. "Ooooooh my girls!" he exclaimed, pulling them into a bear hug that elicited playful groans from both Salem and Willow.

"My goodness, Salem! You have gotten big!" Sonny marveled, a proud smile lighting up his face.

"Daaaddd," Salem groaned, laughter bubbling beneath her words.

"What? It's been how long since I've seen you?" he pressed on, his voice full of warmth.

"It's only been like a month," Salem chuckled, incredulity written on her face.

Sonny pinched her cheek affectionately before topping off his flamboyant rainbow polka-dot suit with a jaunty top hat.Do you girls want to be in the show tonight?" Sonny asked, beaming with a huge, cheesy grin that could brighten anyone's day. The girls exchanged glances before bursting into laughter. "No, thanks," they replied, their voices light and playful. Sonny shrugged and opened the door, an easy acceptance in his demeanor. "Okay, suit yourselves. I'll see you two later tonight."

"Okay, Dad," Willow responded, nodding as Sonny stepped out, leaving the two of them cocooned in the warmth of the trailer. Salem let out a soft sigh as she settled into her father's desk chair. "He never changes, does he?" she murmured, a mix of fondness and exasperation in her tone. Willow nodded in agreement, "Probably never will."

They sat together in the cozy space, listening to the distant cheers of the crowd and, of course, their father's enthusiastic voice announcing each act. Salem mostly scrolled through her phone, as she waited for Sonny to return after the show. Suddenly, a gentle knock at the door pulled them from their thoughts. The sisters exchanged furtive glances, surprised to see anyone other than their dad.

Willow opened the door just enough to peek outside, and her heart raced when she found herself looking into two glowing red eyes. "Alex?" she questioned, her brow furrowing in intrigue. The figure smiled, and as their eyes adjusted to the darkness beyond, they recognized it was one of Sonny's proxies.

"Hey! Sorry, Miss Creek. Didn't mean to spook you," the man said cheerfully as the girls stepped out of the trailer. Alexander was one of many non-human proxies, a shape-shifter who didn’t quite manage to conceal his otherworldly nature like Sonny did.

"What can we do for you, Alex?" Willow asked, her curiosity piqued, while Salem added with a warm smile, "Hi, Alex!"

"Well, your father asked me to bring you to the edge of the forest," Alex replied, nodding at Salem. Salem felt a flutter of excitement in her chest. "It's that time already?" she asked, an eager anticipation in her voice.

Willow let out a resigned sigh. "Yeah, it is. Come on," she said, leading the way alongside Alex. As they reached the border where the trees began, the headlights of a car illuminated the scene ahead. The three approached the vehicle, where faint voices danced in the air. There stood another man and a girl; the girl had striking all-white eyes and scars etched across her face, while the man wore a clown mask, both waving cheerfully at Alex as they drew closer.

Willow waved enthusiastically at the man in the mask, "Hey Dustin!" A warm smile spread across her face as she greeted him before nodding toward the girl beside him, "Charlie." Salem sensed they were likely more of her father's ever-loyal proxies. "You know how boss man is; he wanted to make sure you two were safe while we waited," Dustin replied in a surprisingly rough voice, his gaze shifting to Salem. She offered a small smile to the pair, silently acknowledging their presence.

After a few minutes filled with light conversation, Sonny drove up in a golf cart adorned with an array of Circus memorabilia. "Sorry about that, girls!" Sonny exclaimed, bouncing out of the cart with enthusiasm. "You know how the crowd loves their Encores." He gave a nod to Dustin and Charlie, signaling them to depart. As Dustin hopped into his car, he poked his head out the window, wishing, "Good luck, kid," to Salem as the car pulled away. Sonny adjusted his suit before transforming back into his towering original form, standing at an impressive height of 9 feet outside the trailer. Just as quickly as he had grown, his features shifted back to ghostly white skin and piercing pitch-black eyes.

"Are we ready?" Sonny asked, glancing at the two girls and Alex.

"As ready as we'll ever be," Salem responded with a nervous chuckle, her heart racing.

Sonny beamed, "Hey kiddo, you'll do just fine, I promise." He affectionately patted Salem on the head, as if she were still that little girl. Although she bristled at being treated like a child, a sense of comfort enveloped her.

Peering out into the woods, Salem noticed the trees parting and the air subtly shifting. A dense fog seemed to exist solely in the depths beyond the trees. Sonny took the lead, guiding Salem, Willow, and Alex into the darkness of the thicket.

In mere moments, Salem glanced back, only to realize the tree line and the Circus had vanished from view. The forest was filled with the rich scents of pine and leaf litter, the air thick and damp with fog. Taking a deep breath, Willow savored the essence of the forest and let out a contented sigh, "It's nice to be back," she said, looking fondly at her sister. Yet an unsettling feeling gnawed at Salem. This forest didn’t feel ordinary; it felt alive, as if the trees were watching them, changing with every glance she cast.

"It changes," Willow remarked, pulling Salem from her thoughts. Confusion flickered in Salem's eyes.

"What?"

"The forest, it changes. Think of it like it's taking us somewhere," Willow explained.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I'm sure you'll learn how to communicate with the forest," her sister assured her.

Salem’s eyes darted to her father, who gave her an encouraging nod. "We may have just traveled a thousand miles, and it's only been a matter of minutes," Sonny chimed in. Soon, the trees grew shorter and the fog lightened, revealing a clearing up ahead. As they stepped into the clearing, a sprawling manor came into focus. It stood impressively huge yet undeniably abandoned, with cracked windows and peeling paint.

"Is this Uncle Sullivan's manor?" Salem asked, standing close to her father.

Sonny shook his head, a knowing smile on his lips. "Nope." He led them to the porch, which creaked ominously under their weight. "It's a decoy," he informed them as he swung open the door.

Alex chimed in, "It's just in case a human wanders into the forest. This keeps them away from the deeper parts." They stepped into the manor, which was just how Salem had imagined—dusty, dark, dilapidated, and steeped in age. Sonny led them through the gloomy expanse of the house to another door on the far side. "We use this mansion to access the deeper parts of the forest more swiftly." Sonny placed his hand on the doorknob, a sense of anticipation building before he turned it and pushed the door open.

Alex was the first to walk through the door, followed closely by Willow, with Salem trailing her father. The door opened into a vast, open area, and the forest they stepped into was transformed—alive with evergreens, predominantly pines, as if they had entered an entirely different realm. Salem ventured out into the clearing, pausing to gaze back at her father as he disappeared deeper into the woods.

Quickly, she followed him, captivated by how uniquely the forest smelled compared to where they had just been. The trees were colossal, towering above her like guardians of an ancient world. Salem soaked in her surroundings, feeling the magic of the place.

Willow breathed in deeply, "We're close," she announced, glancing at her father as she too began to shift. Pointy ears sprouted from her head and a fluffy tail erupted from her back. With a small adjustment, Willow smoothed her shirt, preparing to navigate with her newfound tail. A werewolf, and one of the only ones for miles. She shook her head, embracing her transformation. "Ahh, that's much better." Salem chuckled and rolled her eyes at her sister, her mind swirling with tales of her uncle Sullivan’s proxies—dangerous beings, far more so than her father’s or even her other uncle's.

Suddenly, a clearing burst into view as the trees parted gracefully, almost inviting them in. There, looming before them was another manor, towering over the first one they had encountered. It was beautifully kept, with red rose bushes framing the front porch—a sight that seemed plucked straight from the pages of a magazine. Salem peered at the windows—no lights, no movement; it felt eerily lifeless, as if no one were home. "This is the manor," Alex said, breaking the silence. "I can hear them inside." The hairs on Salem's arms stood on end at his comment. Who exactly was "them"?

Sonny scanned the eerily empty yard. "Huh, we're the first ones here? That hardly ever happens."

"Where's Uncle Sullivan?" Salem asked, still fixated on the darkened windows.

"Oh, who knows? He’s always here and there," Sonny replied with a casual shrug.

"Hm.. o-okay." Just then, Salem thought she caught a flicker of movement in the third-floor window.

Willow nudged Salem playfully with her fist. "Hey! Come on, you’ve got to carry yourself with more confidence! It’s all about first impressions." Salem chuckled before playfully punching her back. "Besides, they wouldn’t dare hurt the daughter of the Slenderman," Willow teased, a mock-seriousness in her tone.

Who knows, maybe one day you'll be their boss." Willow flashed a mischievous grin, her sharp teeth gleaming in the dappled light. Salem rolled her eyes, ready to respond, but a voice cut through the moment from just beyond the tree line, "Oh, as if I would ever let that happen!" It was a playful male voice, tinged with mischief.

From behind the trees emerged two men, one tall and striking with bright blue eyes, his vibrant red button-up shirt contrasting against the woodland backdrop. A seemingly eternal smile danced across his lips. The other man, younger, had rich mahogany hair and forest green eyes that sparkled with enthusiasm. "If anyone's gonna be top dog, it's gonna be me!" he declared with a hearty laugh. "Of course you will, Seb," Willow replied teasingly, rolling her eyes as he approached.

Sonny waved at his brother, a genuine smile lighting up his face. "Santiago, I honestly thought you weren't gonna show up!" he exclaimed. Santiago paused for a moment, then shifted into his original form, resembling a slender figure straight out of a storybook—except he had no eyes. Nodding at his younger brother, he replied in a gruff tone, "Well, I gotta show up every now and then."

With a playful glint in his eye, Seb lunged at Salem, trapping her in a light headlock and ruffling her hair. "Look at you, pip speak! You got taller!" he teased. She squirmed under his grip, laughter bubbling up, clearly outmatched by her cousin's strength. "Ahhh! Seb!" Salem shouted, her voice a mix of exasperation and delight. Seb let her go, chuckling. "I gotta roughen you up, kid! Or else how would you get tougher?"

"I am tough!" Salem protested, smirking as she fixed her disheveled hair.

"Okay, okay, buuut it could make you tougher," Seb replied, playfully squaring off as if he were boxing, providing sound effects with each pretend punch.

Salem scoffed, swatting his fist away with a playful annoyance. Seb laughed heartily before giving her shoulder a reassuring pat. "So, how is Aunt Marie—" But before he could finish, he was tackled aside. Seb groaned dramatically as he landed on his back, muttering, "Motherfucker." Looking up, he saw Shawn standing over him, an enormous cheesy grin on his face. "Hey bro!" Shawn said with an infectious joy, and just like that, the two launched into a friendly wrestle, pretending to battle while wearing grins.

As punches flew and the boys jostled for dominance, Sylvester, the third slenderman and Salem's uncle, stepped up beside them. "Brothers," he greeted in his usual stoic manner. He had already adopted his Slenderman form, features non-existent save for the glasses perched on his unseen face. Salem couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of her uncle Sylvester—who needed glasses when he had no eyes at all.

The group observed the boys for a moment, noting their apparent improvement in sparring. The two then paused, Shawn caught in a headlock, as they both turned to gaze into the forest. Following their line of sight, Salem noticed five silhouettes approaching, one woman and four men. "Please, continue; don't let us interrupt," a woman's voice called out.

She was tall and carried an air of authority, dressed in a black suit with long hair. Selen's attention shifted to the newcomers, and the brothers acknowledged their eldest niece with a nod and a greeting. Selen positioned herself beside her father, the original Slenderman, whose presence was both powerful and commanding. Sullivan, characterized by his iconic pale skin and absence of facial features, was rarely seen in his human form.

Sullivan then dismissed two of the men: one wore an all-white mask with black features, while the other donned an all-black mask with a painted red frown. These two were Tim and Brian. Salem had only encountered these two proxies among her uncle's group, and they appeared to be the most subdued of the bunch. She watched as the two men walked toward the porch of the manor and then entered through the door.

Selen motioned toward the other man beside her and Sullivan, revealing the long scar that ran along the side of his face, from his cheek to nearly his ear. "Before you ask, this is Ryan. He's been with my ranks for quite some time, and has recently earned a promotion to my upper echelon," Selen explained, her tone flat yet hinting at an underlying pride. Willow lowered her head in respect to the proxies, who returned the gesture with a nod.

Sullivan brushed off his suit with a subtle air of confidence before stepping closer to Salem, who gazed up at her uncle, a mix of admiration and intimidation evident in her eyes. Sullivan gently patted her on the shoulder, "Shall we get started?"

[leeyarak]

The Paths of Life Legacy - Gen A

"A" ... like adventurous

At the beginning of a long journey, Yannik Potts rented a small trailer in the small town of Strangerville. Rather, he got stuck here because his car broke down before the end of the first section to travel. But he hoped for at least a quiet time. Peace and contemplation. He had been struggling with a creative block for a long time now, hence the trip. All the paintings he made were just rubbish. Only a change of scenery could help. No parties. No affairs. Just rest and creative self-discovery. Different cultures, landscapes and new people.

As soon as he set foot in his new, temporary home, there was a knock on the door. Unsuspectingly, he opened it in the hope that he would get the first social contact with the curious neighbors – in a small town this was unavoidable – over with as quickly as possible. Before him stood a blond, petite curly head. Feminine, somehow pastel. Whether she was pretty - not that it mattered to him - he couldn't tell. She had twisted her face into a strange grimace. Behind her were three more women. Everyone was drooling and talking incoherently. "T..T…T… Taste the fruit!" Yannik jumped back, startled. An opportunity that the ladies did not want to miss. They staggered into his room, tearing down what few decorative items the home had to offer, and standing in the room with a strange stoop. Yannik wondered if he should call the police. Maybe the ambulance? Anyone? Before he could figure out who could best help him with his problem, the ladies disappeared again. But he didn't have time to catch his breath. Men and women in black entered his property, collected strange purple fruits from everywhere, threw a note at his feet, stole his fridge, told him that nothing had happened and disappeared again. At least his first visit had brought him cake. He had almost forgotten about it and since he had nothing else in the house he really didn't have a choice. With his stomach rumbling after all the hustle and bustle, he ate a bite. Another mistake that day.

But Yannik didn't want to end his first day in a new place in such a negative way. After all it was his time of self-discovery and peace! There must still be sensible people in this wasteland. A little further down the street he saw a kiosk. The people who worked there always knew more about a place. When he checked in at the store, he saw something medium-sized, red-haired, a bit gaunt, with a metal hat on his head. When Yannik greeted him, although he had to weigh things up a bit, he jumped to the side in shock and yelled: "No, you can't get me!" After a short moment he caught himself: "Excuse me, I'm Erwin. I'm sorry.” He leaned forward and whispered very softly: “They're over everyone. You know. You have to be careful!” Then he assumed a normal posture again and smiled brightly at Yannik. "Do you want to buy something?" Yannik tried to keep his composure and even managed to exchange a few nice sentences with the guy. So that the situation wasn't that unpleasant, he quickly bought a lava lamp, which he definitely didn't need and for which he actually didn't have any money. Something wasn't right here, but since he was planning to flee when he could afford to fix his cars, he probably wouldn't interfere. He wasn't interested in any of that. Actually. But he did feel a certain thrill. And so far he has never been able to resist it.

[madmunson]

challenge me / eddie munson oneshot

word count; 4.1k

author's note; hey guys!! sorry it's been such a long time since my last story, i've been going through a lot personally and kind of lost passion for writing. i'm glad to say i'm back though, and stories are gonna be even better now that i have a clear mind to do so. i hope you guys like this one, i've been working on it for a minute <3 i also don’t know how to add a ‘read more’ button on mobile, but i published on wattpad too!! it’ll be easier to manage pages/scrolls there, @madmunson!! enjoy!

disclaimer; unprotected sex, sexual situations. please don't read if you're sensitive to those subjects!! **italicized font is flashbacks**

For three months now, Hellfire Club had been planning the ultimate tournament. Everybody would meet at Eddie's trailer for the last big tournament of the year at three o'clock on Friday morning, "Devil's Hour", as Eddie called it. The sky outside was darker on this night than the usual nights previous, the deep night sky gently caressing the bright white stars as they shined upon your house, glistening through your window. You stared out for the hours before, imagining Eddie in several different scenarios with your heart pounding so hard it could beat outside of your chest. You did this every time the group snuck out prior to meeting up at Eddie's, while everybody else prepared or maybe slept, you daydreamed about him. Since the stakes were so high, given it was the last of the whole year, everybody was stoked. Mike had mentioned that he had spent all year preparing for it, while others were less prepared, yourself being the worst of them all. You were an experienced Dungeons and Dragons player, hence why Eddie involved you in Hellfire Club to begin with, but you had spent so long with your mind wrapped around him it almost started to affect your game. You despised yourself for it, but he was just so irresistible.

You had gym first period. So far, you hadn't made any friends in this class, and your only friend outside of school was "zombie boy" Will Byers. You decided to keep to yourself almost every day. Your gym clothes consisted of a Dungeons and Dragons shirt you hand designed, and a pair of black shorts, you always wore your hair down. Every so often, you'd get glances. People always called you "the freak", or "the punk", given the way you dressed and acted. But there was always this particular boy who loved to stare. You knew vaguely about him through Will who would occasionally mention him without particularly name dropping him, and had always daydreamed about him. He was attractive, long curly chestnut hair, deep brown eyes, and a "Hellfire Club" t-shirt. You slightly knew about the club because of Will because of how heavily involved he was with Dungeons and Dragons, but thought the design was really cool. He felt so much cooler than you, but you crushed over him. You would never admit it to yourself, and tried to shrug off his smiles he'd send here and there, but you most definitely crushed on the tall man.

On this particular day, he had been staring a little harder than he usually did, it practically burned a hole through your head. You fell in lust with this, every glance made you want him more. You tried to hold off a little longer before attempting to talk to him, as a means of edging, you suggest to yourself. You couldn't help but imagine the things he could do to you, if you gave him the chance. Finally, you got tired of edging yourself over this boy and decided to approach him. You almost spoke to him, but the bell rings and indicates the first periods' demise. Per usual, you were the first out of your class, as a way to avoid the ridicule and shit talk. The man was usually the last out, but today, he tried to make it to the front. You watched as he moved past the large group of people, tossing little "excuse me"s and "sorry"s as he stepped past. He didn't catch up to you though, as the more you thought about it the more you realized you didn't even know what you would've said to him, and the idea of even talking to him to begin with was stupid. You couldn't help but imagine yourself walking up to your dream man with nothing to say besides "uh", or "um". The idea of talking to him now felt so stupid. You were too shy and weird, he was so cool and out of reach, despite his popularity in Hawkins High not necessarily being the most keen. You felt that it might never work out the way you wanted, and decided to keep his image as a mere fantasy in your brain. You walked a little faster, and managed to pass him and the crowd he attempted to maneuver through.

"Hey! I like your shirt," The brown haired man rushes to catch up to you. He's waving at you, fighting his lungs as he catches up. You stop dead in your tracks, people walking around you as you wait for the stranger to catch up. When he finally does, he playfully punches your shoulder and continues, "make it yourself?" He questions. You continue to walk, and he follows, walking by your side as he casually chats.

"Well they don't exactly sell Dungeons and Dragons shirts, ya know how people are." You awkwardly chuckle back, slightly playing with your hair as a means to distract you from the attractive man walking adjacent to you.

"Yeah, isn't that crazy? Another excuse for the jocks and pricks to label us as freaks or satanists." He says, expressing his words with his hands as he flails them.

"Right! It's absolutely repulsive." You shake your head in response, finally feeling heard. You would hope this lasted forever, you couldn't imagine being unfortunate enough to be forced to depart with him. Now that you were talking to him, all of the negativity you held over yourself started to diminish, and you felt more comfortable. 

"Hey, I like you!" He smiles, placing his hand on your shoulder.

"I like you too," You smile back, stopping at your locker then leaning against it. He steps directly in front of you and smirks ever so slightly.

"So I take it you play?"

"Ever since Will introduced me to it when we were kids."

"No way you're on the same skill level as Byers. That kid nearly takes my ass out every single time, as much as I'd hate to say that. Kid's cocky, got some fight to him."

"That's Will Byers for you!" You say with a smile, "but to be honest with you, I just may be better than Byers."

"No way!"

"Oh, yes way!" You nod with certainty. You were just joking though, nobody could outsmart Will when it came to D&D. You lost to him every single time. 

"I wonder if you have as much passion as Byers though?" He states, more like a question. 

"Oh yeah, so much passion. I'm good at what I do. Maybe I can show you sometime." You smirk. You couldn't help yourself, and let the naughty thoughts you had been thinking about him this whole time slip past the tip of your tongue and spew out past your lips. 

"I would love that," he smirks back, fraying his eyebrows as if he didn't expect such a response from you. Immediately you felt your heart drop as he reciprocated the same energy. After a moment of staring at you, the man speaks back up. "Want to join my club? Hellfire Club, we have tournaments and we're pretty badass, if I do say so myself." His whole demeanor paused as he awaited for a response. Your heart pounded outside of your chest. You had never felt this way before, it was like love at first sight. You couldn't even lie to yourself, you wanted him so bad.

"Yes, I'd love to,"

"Great, I'll see you Friday night!" He grabs your hand, and turns it over, making your palm visible. He pulls out a permanent marker and writes an address on your palm.

"See ya then?" He smiles, walking backwards as he steps away from you.

"For sure, wouldn't miss it." You blush in response. You stood paused at your locker for a few more moments, daydreaming about him before walking to class. That whole class period the only thing you could think about was him, and how massive your crush for him truly was despite not knowing him and only holding one conversation with him.

The clock finally struck 3 o'clock and you had just managed to sneak out, meaning you'd be fashionably late to Eddie's. You knew it would result in Eddie becoming absolutely outraged. Since you always had the biggest crush on him, disappointing him was devastating, but you had to wait until your parents went to sleep and that was a whole deal. Your family were a group of night owls, and didn't sleep until three o'clock on the usual night, something about "spending more time with family".

You hurried and biked as quick as your legs could take you, picking up your pace as you rushed down your street to make it to Eddie's within a reasonable time. Your efforts failed, and after five minutes of consistent pedaling, your legs ended up going much slower than you had wanted. You made it to Eddie's by fifteen after, and you dreaded the response.

"Well, well, look who decided to show!" Eddie shouts before you are even able to walk up to the door. The door pops open, and he comes out, resting on the door frame as he stared at you. He was so unbelievably attractive it made your heart spin.

"I'm-I'm sorry Eddie, I had to wait for my parents to go to sleep and that was this whole thing, but-"

"But what?" He asks, still resting on the door frame but now with his arm extended to you. He was always so cinematic and animated with his responses.

"But I'm here now," you sigh.

"You're right doll, my bad. This is only the biggest tournament of the entire year and you show up fifteen after, but you're good, you're here now!" He sarcastically says. He dramatically walks back inside, letting the door slam behind him on his way back in. You stood for a moment, waiting for his next response, until you hear a loud "Well? Are you coming?" shout from the inside coming from the male's throat. You hurry inside, letting the door slam behind you as well. The group was sat around Eddie's table already, prepared for the most and all paying attention to you as you walked in.

"Sorry I'm late guys, I-"

"She was waiting for her parents to go to sleep," he sighs, plopping down into his special chair. He waves his arm for you to come sit, and you just nod.

"Welcome to our first tournament, Y/N!" He announces, everybody drum rolling on the table as he does so. "Our newest addition to Hellfire Club, and truly a doll, isn't she?" He waves his hand up, pointing all of his fingers forward with his palm exposed as he bows.

"Thank you, thank you!" You bow back. The team introduces you to Hellfire's rules, and you agree with a full heart. They chat about the next tournament, and begin setting up, getting your first game with the team started almost immediately.

The game goes as normal, Eddie throwing his apparent usual moves and everybody following with attacks back. He started off strong, barely starting at his weakest choices before diving in. He wanted a rough game, something that would truly test you. You found this so attractive, even if he had no idea. Without warning, he begins picking each individual member off with every draw, killing players left and right as he chooses. The room filled with intensity, people shouting as they died, acting out each individual death to the group.

"Fuck we're losing!" Dustin shouts, slamming on the table. "He's killing everybody, damn it! Come on! We've got to do something!" He continues. You smile, and look at Will. Will was a master player, and one of the only members left alongside you, Mike and Dustin.

"You're gonna do it?" He smiles. You nod. You both knew you had the ultimate fight back, and were so excited to throw it.

"Oh Y/N, you must be new here. Challenging me?! I don't like to be challenged." He smirks, waiting for your play.

"I most certainly am new, but I'm gonna kick your ass!"

"Hey Y/N!" Will says.

"Hey Will, how's it hangin?"

"Oh you know, the usual. You?"

"The demogorgon is tired of your bantering!" Eddie shouts, slamming his demogorgon piece on the hardwood table ahead of you guys.

"Shit, starting out strong, are we?" You say, not thinking before the words piled out of your mouth like vomit. You immediately smacked your mouth with your palm out of shock, not being able to believe you had just said that out loud to him. He stares at you a little puzzled, twisting his head at you to indicate his confusion.

"I'm sorry, strong? Is this too strong for you, Y/N?"

"Oh quit with the teasing, there's people around." You joke. He smirks at you, and chuckles to himself a bit.

"Darling, you haven't seen a Munson tease yet." He says, holding eye contact with you. "Now, answer my question, is this too much for you?"

"Not at all,"

"That's kind of what I thought,"

The game went on as usual, with Dustin's typical freaking out at every stronger opponent and tossing around descriptive language as he did so. Erica fought hard, as well as Will who carried the battle per usual, winning Eddie's approval as the hardest fighting team. Nancy and Robin were the audience (though you practically had to pay them for their attendance), sitting close together as they paid attention to each move. The game was difficult for sure, Eddie was relentless, but ultimately it lead in your team's success. He couldn't stop glancing over at you throughout the whole game, remaining eye contact through several points. You couldn't lie to yourself, it turned you on so much.

"Alright everybody, amazing game per usual," Eddie says as everybody starts to exit, yawns escaping their mouths as they proceed out the door. "Aside from Y/N. I believe we're due for a talk." He says animatedly. You swallow harshly, but turn around. 

"Oh get a room, you two!" Dustin joked in response.

"Wrap it!" Mike laughed in return.

"Clearly the two of you have never had a famous Munson talk. Good luck Y/N!" Will shouted as he walked out. They continued to laugh with each other and poke fun at the two of you as they exited, laughing harder than you had ever seen them laugh as they walked away, chanting nursery rhymes that involved the two of you and a tree, and a whole bunch of spelling. You had tried so hard to escape before he seen you leave. As soon as everybody exited, he closed the door, standing over you as he locked the door that was directly behind you.

"Good game back there huh?" He smiles. You stayed back to help him clean up, every chance you got with him was for the better. You smiled back at him, nodding gently as you picked up the pieces and carefully placed them back in the box.

"You know, challenging me was a bold move."

"Totally bold, but I'm glad I did it!"

"Yeah, fair point!" He chuckles.

"Totally kicked your ass!" You laugh. 

"You don't even know what you've got yourself involved in, do you?" He questions, putting the D&D box on the table as he faces away from you. "I just think it's funny, you know?"

"What are you going to do?" You say with a bratty tone.

"Just wait. Go ahead and do it again."

"Maybe I will." 

"What um- what did you want to talk about?" You swallow, taking in the big gulp that sat on your throat. You didn't know what to do, other than to just stand there and wait for him to respond. But he held eye contact, still stood over you and looking directly down at you. His eyes glistened with lust. He stood silent for a moment, just watching you tremble.

"The fact that you challenged me back there," he says, "again, after last time, I want to know what that was all about." He walks away from you, his back facing you as he finishes his sentence. You watched as his Hellfire shirt hugged every right muscle on his back, visible through the pale white. Your eyes traveled to his hands, veins piercing his skin as he relaxed his hand and rings sparkling on each finger. You then glanced your vision to his curly chestnut hair, and it's soft appearance. You were trying so hard to contain yourself, but it was becoming more impossible by the second. You must've not had responded for a long time, as he turned around quickly and says, "huh?" ever so smoothly. Now all you could think about was all the sweet things that same voice could be telling you as he was deep inside you, rearranging your insides as he thrusted. You simply couldn't help yourself. "I asked you a question," he says for a final time.

"I'm-I'm so sorry, I- I-" You stutter.

"This again, huh?" He smirks, walking over you. "I'm gonna tell you what I think is going on here, and you can tell me if I'm wrong, 'kay?" You frantically nod, listening to his every word as he responds. He nods, and smirks once more, before starting back up. "You have a crush on me, it's so obvious," he says. He moves back to his original stance, standing over you as he continued. "Late at night, you think about me and think about what I could do to you, right?" You nod, unable to speak for him. "Right. So now you come here, and challenge me, like I won't just show you what I will do to you? You should've known better. That's unsafe, baby. You're playing with fire."

"Maybe I want to play with fire," You finally speak.

"Oh, so she speaks!" He says excitedly, putting his thumb over your mouth. "Tell me how much you think about me,"

"Yes Eddie," you say. He seemed to be taken aback by it, but ultimately turned on as he nods and steps away. "All the time," you start. At this point, your mouth was producing the words before you had time to ponder on the words, and you couldn't care less. "Every single night,"

"What do you do when you think about me?" He picks you up, and places you on the same table you had just played the game on. You were shocked, but more than into it. You were so turned on, you were unable to hold yourself back anymore.

"I put my hand down my pants, and then down my panties," you start. He stares at you with lust, using his fingertip to trace over the seems of your clothes, almost indicating he wanted to take them off without taking them off just yet. He takes lifts you up on his kitchen table as he watches you continue. "And I finger myself. I close my eyes and play it out in my mind, sometimes when I'm home alone I'll even shout your name as I finish." You finished.

"Tell me more," he growls, taking off your shirt to expose your almost bare chest. You lightly moan at his swift motion, unable to process the reality of the situation.

"I think about you so much it makes me ache, Eddie." You say. He places his hand over your covered center as he listens. He strokes your covered breast with one hand, and plays with your masked center as a means of teasing you. You moan a little for him, letting him know how good it feels without speaking it.

"Tell me more," he demands, taking off your bra and underwear, traveling down. His lips meet your center, lightly licking along the folds before softly attacking your clit. You breathlessly moan for him, begging him to continue.

"I can't stop thinking about you," you say, pausing to moan before entirely forgetting your thoughts.

"Good girl. Focus on how good this feels." He puts his jaw into the movements, lightly sucking and licking upon your clit as he continues with circular patterns. He picks up his motions, going faster and faster by the second, before inserting his two fingers inside you. He curls his fingertips, caressing your right spots for several long moments. You had never felt anything so powerful before, it felt enlightening and numbing in the best way possible. You really allowed yourself to let go, gripping his hair with one hand and the other gripping up on your left breast. You couldn't contain yourself anymore, it absolutely overcame you.

The walls captivated your moans and echoed them throughout the entire trailer, your passionate language slipping through the drywall in every room. He didn't stop there, and proceeded to go faster. You begged him to continue, the movements of his jaw causing you to become unhinged. You arched your back as he continued, moaning his name in the shadows of his home.

The pressure on your shoulders began to intensify, traveling to your core and spreading throughout your body as the heat your center built became more unbearable. You felt a tingling sensation throughout your whole body, gripping on his hair and begging him for more. You were so close to finishing you could feel it on the tip of your tongue, cold sweats breaking through your entire body. You felt so feral you couldn't control it anymore, your body moving frantically without any hesitation on the cold table as you became more edged. Finally, all the pressure released, leaving your legs shaking as you finish on his mouth and fingers. Your body loses control, and you feel as your whole body shivers and quakes beneath your skin. You let out one final moan, falling back on the table as you continue to shake.

"Fuck baby!" You practically shout as you lie breathless on the table.

"Feel good?" He asks, holding your legs as a means to try and control the shaking. You nod frantically, and smirk back at him.

"Yes," you manage to let out, your lungs barely holding onto what air they could manage to grasp in that moment.

"Good, because I'm not done." He stands up, placing himself at your entrance before slowly entering. He slowly starts, his thrusts paced slow and steady at first. He leans down and begins kissing your breasts once more, licking around your nipples as he firmly holds it. His hand travels up to your neck, and he starts to go faster. You took every inch of him, gasping and moaning at the size of his length above you. You never expected him to be that huge, and it took you aback briefly.

"Thank you," you moan, staring into his eyes. He smiled down at you, his eyes traveling over the chills that ran across your body.

"You're welcome," he whispers in your ear as he thrusts. His strokes were sharp and slow, he aimed for your weakest spots as he continued. You moaned as his length shook the insides of your core. "That's my girl."

"Fuck!" You shout, "Faster!" He listens, picking up his pace and causing that same feeling to build up. He places his thumb over your clit as he thrusts, moving his thumb in circular motions as he proceeds. You continue to beg for him, your body ached for him. Moments pass, loud vibrations of skin smacking shaking the walls of the small trailer. Your body was consumed with heat, pressure building above your shoulders. You felt your head spinning, your body begins to start shaking. Finally, all the pressure released, leaving your legs shaking as you finish on his mouth and fingers. Your body loses control once more as the pressure releases, and you finish below him. You shake even worse than you had before, your lungs practically collapsing as they  attempted to catch up with the familiar feeling.

"Good girl," he hisses. He continues with his fast motions, and soon after you, finishes inside of the condom he had provided. His legs begin to quiver as he steps back, both of your balances deteriorating by the second.

"Holy shit that was so good," you chuckle awkwardly.

"You're so cute," he tosses his clothes to you and walks to his bedroom briefly with a new pair. You felt elated that he gave you his clothes.

"You should challenge me more ya know," he smiles. You agree and practically jump into his clothes. The two of you sit in his bedroom floor struggling to catch up with your breaths.

[peterpparkrr]

Master of the Upside Down

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Eddie Munson

Summary: Steve Harrington makes a deal with the devil.

Word Count: 1k

A/N: This is highkey-lowkey just Hades!Eddie x Persephone!Steve (shhhhh this is just a blurb)

Darkness. 

The blood-red sky of the Upside Down begins to fade into maroon into black above Steve as he makes his trek into the unknown.

This isn’t Steve’s first time in the Upside Down, far from it. But this was the deepest he had made it before being attacked by the worst demon monsters you can possibly imagine. 

And the darkness seemed to just get darker the deeper he went, the closer he got to the supposed castle that Dustin had handed him the map to. The plan to make an alliance with the mysterious Master of the Upside Down to help defeat Vecna was seeming more and more foolhardy the further Steve traveled. 

The Master of the Upside Down did not, as it turned out, live in a literal castle, as Steve had (perhaps naively) assumed. 

Instead, Steve found himself working his way up the path to what looked to be several trailers Frankensteined together and heavily barricaded. “You came here to… ask for my help?” Eddie Munson, the Master of the Upside Down, Prince of Hell asks in disbelief as Steve stands before him. 

To put it lightly, this was not how Steve expected this to go. First of all, every single creature from the upside down that he had been forced to face looked like it was made out of wet black flesh, so The Master turned out to be a young, tattooed, attractive man with curly long hair that’s wearing a leather jacket, black skinny jeans, and a fist full of rings which was a real head-scratcher for Steve.

“If you want my help defeating Vecna I’m going to need something in return,” Eddie tells Steve as he shifts forward on his throne. 

“Anything I can give you is yours,” Steve tells him, causing Eddie’s face to break out into a wide, shit-eating grin. 

Eddie is wholly unsurprised by the Hero of Hawkins that is now standing in front of him. He’d been hearing rumblings about the man for years now. And he has to admit that Steve Harrington lives up to expectations. 

With his fluffy hair, preppy little windbreaker, and signature bat strapped to his back. The Golden Boy. It wasn’t hard to see why people were so quick to see him as a hero. He looked the part, sunshine and goodness wrapped up in a handsome little package. Even if Eddie knew that Steve lost fights just as often as he won them. 

“So what do you want?” Steve asks slowly. His distrust was written all over his face as he took in Eddie warily. His eyebrows furrowed in an expression that Eddie took a strange delight in. 

“I think you know what I want,” Eddie replies as he slowly takes in the man standing beneath him. 

“What?” Steve asks.

“I want you,” Eddie replies.

“I’m sorry, what?” Steve asks as his head snapped up in shock as he stared up at Eddie with disbelief.

“You want me? I want you,” Eddie states as if it’s obvious. A quote-unquote ‘fair trade’. “You’ll stay down here. With me. Sacrifice yourself to save your world.”

“There’s got to be something else,” Steve says as he shakes his head. “I have-

“Sorry, This is my only offer, take it or leave it,” Eddie replies with a blasé flip of his wrist as he leans back. 

“Can I at least have some time to-“ Steve stutters as he glances around, desperately wishing he hadn’t insisted on going on this supposed suicide mission alone. He had been so worried that this guy would kill him before he could get a word out that he hadn’t wanted to risk anyone else coming with, but now he wished that he’d let Dustin or Nancy, hell, even Robin would be a welcome help in trying to figure out how to make this deal. 

“You’re out of time, dude,” Eddie replies with a cocky smirk. “Isn’t that why you came to me?”

Steve’s gaze shifts away from Eddie after that comment. He’s right. This stupid son of a bitch is right. He’s their only option, and if Steve doesn’t make this deal? They’re fucked. His friends are as good as dead. And the world will end. 

And Eddie doesn’t seem… that bad. Maybe it’s all an act, to lull Steve into a false sense of security, But Steve sure as hell doesn’t trust him. Not yet. But he knows that Eddie has the power, the abilities they need to end Vecna once and for all. 

All things considered, this doesn’t feel like the worst sacrifice he could make.  

“I’ll do it,” Steve tells him as he looks back to Eddie, resolute, his jaw clenched tightly as he steps up to the throne, his hand outstretched in front of him. 

“What a hero,” Eddie replies sarcastically as his own hand comes out to shake Steve’s. 

Steve shouldn’t be surprised by how cold Eddie’s hand is, but it is, the same temperature as the metal rings that are making indents in the skin of his palm. Icy cold. 

And they’re close now. Too close. Less than an arm’s length away, and Steve can make out the color of Eddie’s eyes from here, a deep brown that he looks away from quickly only for his eyes to flicker down to Eddie’s mouth which Eddie immediately clocks with a tick of the corner of his mouth though he thankfully doesn’t say anything about it. 

Steve’s own hand is warm. Eddie feels like it’s almost too warm. Not scalding, but warmer than Eddie feels comfortable touching. Yet he can’t manage to let go either. 

“I’ll give you a tour,” Eddie says with a wink as Steve finally lets go of his hand, and Eddie pushes himself out of his chair. “Welcome to your new home.”

[confetti-cupcake]

As promised, here’s an unedited sneak peek into Chapter 1 of my in-progress 9-1-1/Lone Star Survivor AU, Thirty-Nine Days, the video trailer of which can be found here. For anyone who doesn’t know, Survivor is a reality TV show where everyday people are stranded on a remote island. They’re divided into teams called “tribes” and have to work together to survive in the wilderness, compete in challenges and vote each other out. It requires a lot of strategy and duplicity, but it also bonds people in a pretty amazing way, and the winner gets awarded a million dollars. The fic bounces around to all the characters’ POVs at one point or another throughout the game, and this specific snippet is from Buck’s POV. Buddie is the fic’s main pairing, but Madney, Bathena, Tarlos and Judd/Grace are also featured. 

For context, this scene takes place at the start of Day 1 during the marooning. This is the opening challenge where the contestants run around on a boat, gathering supplies to help them survive, then get on their tribe’s raft and race the other tribe to shore or to another boat for a reward (in this case, a bag of rice). Here’s an example from the actual show, to get a sense of what it looks like. Hope you all enjoy, and feedback is always welcome!

“Get on the raft! Get on the raft! Come on!”

The first words Buck heard as he surfaced were ones of urgency. The last minute had been one of the most chaotic in his life — and that was saying a lot, considering the career he’d made out of running into burning buildings. 

He had stayed on the boat much longer than he had initially planned, having picked up a saw, a hammer, and a packet of nails, before turning back to retrieve an armful of watermelons. He had promptly tossed them each overboard as he found them, moving too fast to care if anyone down below was in the line of fire. It was a race after all, and one for food, at that. But as he glanced around the deck after launching the final melon into the water, it was clear most of his tribe had already abandoned ship. Not wanting to be left behind, he had thrown himself — some might say recklessly — over the starboard side of the ship. But he didn’t have time to think about his own safety, not with sustenance for his team on the line. And so he soon found himself splashing forcefully into the Fijian sea, completely submerged before coming up for air. 

Disoriented from the impact, Buck swam toward the first raft he saw, only to stop when he noticed the outfits of the castaways climbing aboard. Yellow tank tops, yellow flannels, a yellow hoodie. Yellow buffs around their necks and wrists and foreheads. He whirled around, desperate to find the right color over his competition cannonballing themselves overboard. Purple, purple… where are you, purple?

"Hey!"

“Over here!”

Buck lifted his head and peered to the right, struggling to tread water as the waves of the sea rolled toward him. A timber raft about eighty feet away on the other side of the ship floated in the water, and he could make out several figures standing up, waving their arms, flashes of purple fabric standing out against the horizon. Buck swam over, managing to dodge the battered fruit bobbing in the water. As he approached the raft, the figures came into focus.

A woman in a purple track suit with wide-rimmed glasses and big hoop earrings stood on the edge of the raft, and Buck reached out for her, hoping to get a lift aboard. She leaned down extending her hand, but toward another woman on their tribe, an entire water jug on the shoulder of her small frame as she struggled to stay afloat. He swam around her, reaching for the next person, a tall redhead, but she seemed more concerned with keeping the supplies balanced than lifting anybody up. 

Frustration setting in, he made a beeline to the tribe member next to her, desperate for any kind of help. The tribe member turned around, and Buck was suddenly face to face with a young guy, probably no more than a couple years older than Buck. 

The man locked eyes with him, and suddenly everything became hazy. The exhaustion was, of course, the most likely culprit. Time seemed to slow down, the havoc faded into the background and his teeming desperation melted away. His eyes were immediately drawn to the cursive tattoo inked around the man’s left forearm as he knelt down, reaching for Buck, and something about the action unleashed a ripple of familiarity and relief. His tribemate’s fingertips padded against the double ring tattoo similarly wrapped just above Buck’s elbow, and when he felt himself slipping, Buck felt no shame in holding on tighter. “I got you. I got you,” the man affirmed as he pulled Buck’s entire 6’2” frame up onto the raft.

“Thanks,” Buck said breathlessly when he was finally out of the water, crawling around the stack of supplies growing taller by the second. 

“Don’t sweat it.” The man ran a hand through his dark brown hair as he looked around the raft, eyes widening when they landed on the object he was searching for amongst the mess. “Here,” he said, pushing a paddle into his hands. “Get ready, I think we’re about to take off.” 

Buck nodded, but, either out of a weird sense of gratitude or the desire to experience this peace for just a bit longer, felt a sudden urge to prolong the interaction. “What’s your name?”

The man paused, eyebrows knit together, as if the question took him off guard. After a brief hesitation: “Eddie.”

“Buck.”

The look of intensity flickering in his soft brown eyes morphed briefly into an inquisitive expression before settling into a faint smile. His lips parted, as if to say something else, when another purple buff-wearer emerged from under the water. Eddie punched him on the shoulder lightly before turning around to pull the person out. Buck’s momentary bubble of repose had popped, leaving him at the mercy of his frenzied surroundings once again. 

Most notable was a physical-looking, middle-aged man with salt-and-pepper hair, who brushed by him on the way to the back of the raft. Buck immediately noticed the machete in hand, and the all-too-familiar LAFD shirt on his back. 

The man grabbed the rope holding the raft to the boat, turning back around to scan the structure. “How many do we have?” he called out.

Buck surveyed his tribemates, finding it difficult to track the absolute mayhem happening around him. He spotted a stocky blonde woman in front, sliding back in to grab a cooking pot that had begun to float away. One. Eddie —  two — who had probably served in the military if the shirt he was wearing was any indication, pulled another young woman dressed for a day at the office out of the water, making it a tighter squeeze aboard. Three. A bundle of firewood rolled off their pile of supplies back into the water, and a woman treading water nearby snatched it up. Four. Buck reached down to grab the bundle from her — wait, nope, that person was on the other tribe, judging by the yellow buff wrapped around her tight, curly hair. And… he had already lost count. It was too early for his brain to do math, he concluded.   

“We have nine by my count,” the woman with the hoop earrings piped up. The man grimaced and began scanning the water for their missing tribemate, prompting Buck and the others to do the same, until a shrill voice traveled over the chaos.   

“Wait for me, guys!” 

Buck whipped his head toward the barge, just in time to see a shorter, Korean man jump from the ship, bushel of coconuts in hand, resulting in a violent splash that rocked the raft.

“Get up here, man! Nice of you to finally join us!” firefighter number two yelled jokingly, still holding onto the rope. The way he naturally seemed to take charge combined with his jovial attitude reminded him of his fire captain back home, so he decided he’d call this guy “Cap” in his head until he learnt his name. 

Buck grabbed the floating coconuts before they could be pilfered and set them down on top of their stack of loot, while Eddie once again lifted up their man overboard. Before he knew it, Cap had already chopped through the rope and set sail toward the barge.

As Cap started a rhythmic “Row!” chant, which made him feel like he was less on Survivor and more on the college crew team, Buck glanced toward the yellow tribe’s raft in curiosity. They had just found their machete and were also on the verge of breaking away. He squinted at the women, who were slowly fading out of view, and thought back to the brief chat they had with Jeff before the marooning. He wracked his memory, suddenly unable to tell if his eyes were deceiving him. Was it her? Nah, couldn’t be…

A large hand suddenly clasped his shoulder. He turned around to see Cap wearing a stern expression, no doubt reserved for him. A look that was also not unlike his fire captain’s back home.

“Kid, I need you to row. You can look at the other tribe later. We can’t have them catching up.”

Buck narrowed his eyes, but submerged the oar into the water and rowed with all his might, keeping time with his tribemates. But as coordinated as they seemed, the yellow tribe was gaining… and gaining… and gaining, until they were suddenly within ten yards.

One glance at his own raft was enough to understand why. The precariously-stacked mountain of supplies in the center of the raft was slowly losing its integrity, with coconuts and fish traps and Buck’s watermelons — which were looking rough at this point — rolling off the top toward the ocean, forcing his tribemates on the other side to forgo their paddles to keep everything aboard. A collapse was imminent, and to make matters worse, the raft was beginning to stray off-course. 

The poor woman with shoulder-length blonde hair sitting in front of Eddie was taking the brunt of it, struggling to fend off the falling objects and row at the same time. Buck pitied her for more reasons than one. She had probably done something to piss off production, given she was thrown into the game wearing a power suit, instead of the more camping-appropriate attire the rest of them had been assigned to wear. She stuck out, but she was sure as hell making it work for her, and Buck had to scold himself to focus on the task at hand.

“We’re tilting guys, we’re tilting!” Cap called out to the tribe. “Let’s straighten out.” 

Everybody stopped paddling all at once. Buck wasn’t sure if it was due to the abrupt absence of movement or a current that had come out of nowhere, but their tower of supplies suddenly gave way with an ugly snap, sending the rest of the heavy crates tumbling down and knocking Power Suit Girl straight into the water.

It had never been clearer that the cast was rife with seasoned first responders, as not a moment was lost to panic. Like a well-oiled machine, half of the tribe leant over the water’s edge in an attempt to pull her back up, while the other half scrambled to salvage as many of the lost objects as they could. But as quickly as the rescue mission was set into motion, the raft’s pursuit of the barge came to a screeching halt. 

Another violent splash cut through the commotion, and Buck whipped his head in the direction of the Matagi raft. The woman wearing a hijab on the other tribe had jumped in, tearing through the water toward the barge, egged on by the cheers of her tribemates.

Buck didn’t take a second to think. He threw the paddle aside, staggered to his feet, and dove in. Head first.

Tagging my fellow Survivor fans: @ashavahishta @wolvesofinnistrad @loveyourownsmiilee @halsteadsass @browney3dgirl6 @phonotactless @no-moremusic @pennykent

[makebank]

school is in session | part 1

Summary: Your mom is moving you to the Outer Banks right before the start of your senior year of high school. You see a hot blonde boy next door and begin your first day of school. 

JJ Maybank x Reader

Word Count: +1.5k

Warnings: none i think, slooooow burn tho

A/N: i don’t think anyone has written a school imagine yet. and i just really wanted it even tho the pogues life is summer. gif credit to owner!

series masterlist

You rolled your eyes while looking out the car window at your mom’s comment. You were squished into the backseat, since the car was full of everything you owned. Your dog Ollie claimed the passenger's seat and is currently napping. 

“I think you’re going to like it here Y/N” your mom said while locking eyes in the rear-view mirror. You huffed at her words, “Yeah, not likely”. 

All you could think about was how angry you were at her for taking you away from home. The place you’ve grown up in. St. Petersburg, Florida. Home of the elderly. It was where you learned to swim for the first time. It was where all your sweet old neighbors were that always made you your favorite snacks. It was where your closest, and only, friend Kayla lived. 

You two met in second grade when she asked why you were so terrible at math. Both of you busted out laughing and you’ve been stuck at the hip since. She was average height, had extremely long, blonde hair, and was the most caring person you had ever met. Her days were spent working at the retirement home down the street or with you. When together, you two either just lounged on the beach reading, binge watched TV series, surfed, or got stoned. Kayla would talk anyone’s ear off about marijuana that would listen, but it kind of also became something that was a part of your normal hangouts. 

-

“Y/N it’s going to be fine. I’ll come visit soon and we can video call everyday” your best friend said after you started crying telling her the news. 

“But-” you tried to make up excuses, but she cut you off. “But nothing. We’re best friends and a little distance won’t stop that. I know you're scared, but I promise you’ll be okay” Kayla said while wrapping you in a comforting hug. 

This is what you were going to miss most. Your kind friend that always knew what to say

-

After reminiscing on that sweet moment with your best friend, you were brought back to your anger. You knew your mom was bringing you to the Outer Banks because she wanted to come back to where she grew up. Your parents divorced a few months ago, and your dad moved to the west coast. He barely spoke to you now, not like you cared anyway; he was shit. Oh fuck. You silently cursed yourself for being such an ass to your mom. Of course she wanted to move. 

Welcome to the Outer Banks Paradise on Earth the sign read as it passed your window. You let out a long breath. It’s not that far from home. How bad can it be?

-

As the sound of the car’s brakes came to a screeching stop, you were in front of your new home. Well it's not the worst thing you’ve ever seen but definitely not as nice as your last home, you thought. You stepped out of the car to take in your surroundings. It was quiet. You liked that. 

You went back to the car to grab the first box, then heard someone yelling.

“Fuck you! I go to school more than you do!” a blonde boy screamed as he crashed out of your neighbor’s house. He glanced over at you for a moment and you locked eyes. It seemed that he was taking in your appearance, then he raised his eyebrows and continued to storm off. 

Wow. He was hot. He had a green hat on backwards with little pieces of his blond hair sticking out. You could tell by the way his shirt stuck to his body he was in shape. His boots looked like they used to be black but were now dirty. And his eyes were just so blue.

“I could get used to looking at that” you accidentally said out loud. “What was that?” you mom questioned. “Nothing, I didn’t say anything”. Your mom only shook her head in response and continued into the house. 

You plopped yourself down on the living room couch after spending all day unloading the car and the trailer attached to the back. “Mom, I think you’re breaking child labor laws”.

“Oh quit your whining. You know school starts in a few days, so we had to hurry” your mom scolded. Shit. You almost forgot about starting at a new school for your senior year. “Ughh, do I have to go?” She shot you a death glare and you slumped further into the couch.

-------

The next day on the way to John B’s JJ couldn’t take his eye off your house and checking to see if you were visible. After making his way up the steps, he finally looked away and headed into the chateau. He made himself at home on the couch pushing his way in between Pope and Kie.

“JJ get off!” Kie yelled as she elbowed him to push him off her lap. Pope just stared at him exasperated. 

John B walked in after just waking up and walked to the kitchen to get water before speaking. “Hey, did you guys see that someone finally moved into that old house next door?” Kie responded first, “Yeah, I heard it's a new girl. I’m stoked”.

“She’s fucking hot so” JJ said through his juul smoke. John B snorted at his comment but didn’t disagree. “That’s all you would care about” Pope said. 

“Anyways. Do you think she’ll go to school with us? Kie asked. John B started to speak “Probably-” But then JJ interrupted “Why don’t you just go ask her? Can we do something else besides talk about John B’s neighbor? It’s the last day of summer.” 

They all agreed and headed out to spend the day on the HMS Pogue drinking beer and fishing. 

-

Beep Beep Beep Beep. You smacked your alarm clock and groaned at the sight of the sun barely up. Unenthusiastically you drug yourself to the bathroom to shower. You put on your favorite black ripped jean shorts, a marvel t-shirt, and all white vans. Normally, you wear crop tops or tank tops, but you weren’t sure of the dress code. 

In the kitchen, you smelled breakfast cooking. Your mom was sweet like that, always making sure you had a cooked meal. “Good morning, sweetheart. You look so cute” you walked over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Thanks mom”. “I have to go so I’m not late for work, are you going to be okay getting to school on your own?” “Yes, it's just down the street” “Well okay, have a great day I love you” “I love you more, good luck at work”. 

Your mom had gotten a waitressing job at a place called the Wreck, that she said she used to love. It didn’t pay a whole lot, but it was enough for where you lived. After she left, you finished your breakfast and started your walk to school. 

During your walk, you got a text from Kayla. Have a good first day. Don’t be lame, talk to people. You smiled at the words and sent a heart back. 

As you neared the school, it got loud as tons of people’s voices were talking over each other outside. You walked past them all into the school to find the office. An elderly lady at the front desk helped you get your schedule and a map and sent you off. 

You can do this.

You started to hold the school map up searching for your first class, chemistry. Meanwhile, the halls started to fill with students, but you were too busy trying to read the hieroglyphs in front of you to notice. 

Suddenly, you were tripping over yourself and falling into the back of someone. “Oh, fuck I’m so sorry” you hurriedly rushed out. “It’s totally fine” a tan skinned curly haired girl giggled back at you. Then her eyes went wide “You’re the new girl! Hi, I’m Kiara but you can call me Kie”. “Hey, I’m Y/N. It’s nice to meet you”. “What class are you going to?” she asked. Scanning your list, you said “Chemistry with Mrs. Holland?” not quite sure if you were reading it right. She almost yelled an excited yes at you and grabbed your hand to pull you with her. “I’m in that class and so are my friends, you’re going to love them”. 

In the classroom, most people were already sitting down but Kie pulled you towards two seats in the middle. 

Once you settled in your chair, Kie started introducing you to her friends. She said the long-haired boy behind you was John. B your neighbor. The boy with a beautiful smile behind her is Pope. And the boy to your right is JJ. You looked over and locked eyes with the same blond from the other day. What are the odds. He gave you a half smirk that made you blush. “I’m Y/N” you introduced, and JJ looked you up and down like you were prey.

Fuck. This is going to be a long semester.

Part 2 here :)

[heavenseed76]

M&M's

Rating: E

Fandom: The Walking Dead

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x Paul Jesus Rovia

Warnings: M/F/M, threesome, M/M sex, MINORS DO NOT ENTER Homosexual sex, unprotected sex, consensual sex

Summary: Daryl tells Jesus about a wild threesome he had just before the turn.

Paul Rovia stared up at the ceiling of his trailer, his lover tucked against his side in the tiny bed. His long fingers scratched lazily at Daryl’s scalp, eliciting sound that bordered on purring from deep in the hunter’s chest. Daryl nuzzled Paul, pressing his lips lazily against the soft skin where beard gave way to nape and earlobe. Large but deft fingers played through the thick hair on Paul’s stomach beneath his navel, Paul’s own hand absentmindedly grazing up and down the attached arm.

“Ever had a threesome?” Paul asked. He was genuinely curious, as sex with Daryl Dixon was not the amateurish rutting he had expected.

“Thought we were done with this game?” Daryl’s voice was dark in his ear.

Paul moved his naked thigh against the semi hard cock resting gently against him, earning himself a hint of teeth on his earlobe. “I like learning things about you. It’s fucking hot, when you talk about sex.” Paul’s hand settled on Daryl’s larger one, as the hunter started reaching lower.

“Turns you on to think of me with someone else?” “Not- like not instead of me... but stuff you’ve done before and still think about.” Paul felt more than heard Daryl’s chuckle. “My m&m’s?” “You’re what?” Paul turned to look down at his smiling lover. “You wanna know my masturbation memories.” Paul blushed. “I guess so. Yeah.” Daryl huffed and rolled over onto his back, Paul rolling to his side, effectively switching places. “Alright. Yeah. I’ve you, know, had a threesome.” Daryl’s face and chest flushed deep red. “Spill.” Paul grinned wide and snuggled closer. “It wasn’t that long before the turn... before I met up with my brother. I was lit as fuck, can’t remember what I was on. I was drinking at this gay bar in Atlanta, went outside to smoke, and there was this girl, cryin. Just got dumped by her girlfriend.” Daryl sighed and looked down at Paul, who was rubbing circles over his chest, lazily thumbing a nipple every now and then. “I shared my cigarette with her, got to talkin. She was hot, with all this curly red hair. Big brown eyes, like a doe. Her friend comes out lookin for her. And he’s fuckin hot too. He’s wearing lipstick and eyeliner, but he’s built.” Paul hummed appreciatively, hips gently rocking against Daryl’s muscular thigh. “They took me to his place, and we started drinking. Next thing I know, chick is kissing me, put my hands on her tits. She gets on my lap and takes her shirt off. She’s got the most beautiful tits... Just fuckin perfect. I couldn’t keep my mouth off em.” Daryl’s eyes close, seeing the memory as Paul takes his nipple into his mouth. “But then, then I open my eyes and the dude is kissing her. And he is a sight- lipstick smeared...” Daryl gasps as Paul’s hand ghosts over his erection. “We all just kinda stop and look at each other. And then he starts kissing me. This girl-Jessica, her name was, she’s takin off my shirt and unbuckling my belt. Pretty soon they got my dick out and are jerkin me off together.” Paul leans over to kiss Daryl, cupping his testicles in his warm hand. Daryl shivers in his lover’s arms, turning slightly so their cocks bump against each other. He pulls Paul closer, taking a firm buttock in his large hand, helping increase the exquisite friction between them. “Tell me more.” Paul murmurs into Daryl’s ear. Letting out a groan, Daryl continues. “I don’t know how, but at some point I have this guy’s dick in my hand, and we’re both suckin this chick’s tits. She must have been fingerin herself, cuz she starts comin in my lap.” Paul whimpers and starts to stroke both of them with tortuous strokes. “We finally get into the bed, and she gets my cock in her mouth. She’s takin all of it- deep throatin like a porn star; I look down and dude is eating her out. But he’s watching me.“ Daryl scrubs a hand over his face, trying to continue his story while Paul slides his hand down and turns it, teasing over his entrance. “That’s hot... keep going.” Paul urges. “Jess finally gets a condom on me, pushes those hot tits in my face and starts riding me, and I’m seeing stars. I’m about to come and all of a sudden she’s tighter. The dude, Matt, he’s pushin into her ass!” Daryl groans as Paul pushes a slick finger into him. He’s already stretched, but Paul knows exactly what he’s doing and Daryl’s body begins to tremble. “Mmmhhmmm... I can feel his cock against mine and fuck if she didn’t squirt when she came.” Paul pushed a second finger into Daryl. “We all kind of stop- none of us were expecting it. I let Matt finish me off, first time I ever came in a dude’s mouth and he came all over those tits.” Daryl barely noticed Paul masturbating in earnest as his fingers picked up in pace and depth, reaching now for Daryl’s prostate. “Fucking-A Daryl! That is the kinkiest shit I’ve ever heard!” “Want you inside me.” Daryl all but pulls Paul on top of him, a panting, groaning mess. Paul slowly but eagerly presses his aching cock into Daryl, stilling as he hits bottom. Daryl arches his back, cock red and leaking. With a few deep breaths, Daryl keeps talking as Paul starts

moving. “Thing is, Jess is fucking insatiable. Those nipples. She can’t get enough of having them sucked. Matt fucks her again and I’m rubbing her clit, suckin those tits til she’s coming again. I think we all fucking, oh fuck, Paul ... passed out... don’t-don’t stop!” Beneath Paul, Daryl is a growling live wire, while Paul enjoys slow, deep thrusts into Daryl’s body. Paul can see Daryl’s cock twitching, the thrusts to the man’s prostate sending erratic streams of semen onto his lover’s stomach. He leans over to kiss the man below him, and it’s too much for both of them, Paul swallowing Daryl’s cry as their bodies spark and snap with their shared orgasm. The men slowly come down from the high of their orgasm, Paul stretching out on top of his lover, covering him with his warmth like an overfed cat. “Your turn.” Daryl finally caught his breath. Paul looks up to see Daryl grinning down at him. “You want to hear one of mine?” Daryl smirked, “Hell yeah.”

[heartofsnark]

This Is Love (Chapter Nine): That Melts To A Shriek

Notes: Hello~, school has been stressful af, but luckily(?) for y’all I sometimes write to ignore my feelings/schoolwork. So, chapters have been getting done anyway. 

Word Count: 11596

Chapter Warnings: Implications of abuse, not sure the best way to word this; acts of violence/property damage done against cops for being cops but very nearly hurt/killed a civilian.  

For chapter one and the warnings about this fic’s overarching themes, please click here!

For the previous chapter; click here

Taglist (trying this out, these are folks who interacted with the post over on my personal or contacted me privately, if you’d like to be added just message me): @enchantedbythebidders, @tender-wounds, @satanscaffeinatedfriend

Dahlia skids her bike to a stop in the diner parking lot; Cassie is sitting in the dirt just outside the building with her knees pulled up to her chest. She parks and makes a beeline to the girl, as she pokes her head up, looking at the deputy through a curtain of dark curly hair. Her cheek is red, just beginning to bruise, the imprint of a hand visible in the moonlight. 

“Cassie,” Dahlia speaks her name delicately, seeing the tears tracking down the girl’s face. And she sinks down next to her and hugs her. Cassie hugs her back and sobs into Dahlia’s shoulder; trying to talk but everything muffles through chokes of crying. 

Eventually, Cassie’s tears slow and her sobs lessens, fading into soft hiccups as she clings to Dahlia. 

“I know it’s hard, but can you tell me what happened?” Dahlia asks once the young woman has calmed. 

“My mom,” she wipes away her tears as she breaks their embrace, “I, I guess, I crossed a line. She kicked me out.” 

“She hurts you?” 

“She’s intense….I guess.” 

“She’s put her hands on you.” 

“Yeah.” 

“A lot?” 

“Yeah…” Dahlia wipes away the fresh tears that fall from the girl’s eyes, heart breaking for her. 

“You didn’t cross any line, you know that, right? Nothing you’ve done makes it okay.” 

“I just wanted to keep one paycheck, one, that didn’t have to go towards her bills or her clothes, or her whatever. Just one I could keep for myself and it was too much to ask and now…,” she searches for her next words, “I don’t know where to go…” 

There’s no homeless shelters in Hope County, no emergency housing for people struggling, the exact reason so many of the drifters in the area sleep in abandoned train cars. It’s ridiculous, no rehabs despite the county having a drug problem and no shelter for people who need it. How the fuck are people supposed to get through?

“You can stay with me,” Dahlia offers, she sleeps on the couch anyway, no reason not to offer her bed to someone in need. 

“No, I, I couldn’t. I bothered you enough, I-“ 

“Nonsense, we need to get you somewhere safe and I can’t think of anywhere safer, right now. Unless you wanna go out of county.”

“No, no, god no, I don’t wanna leave Hope…” 

“I ain’t got much, but I got room for you.” 

“Thanks…” 

“You got anything with you?” Dahlia asks, when she notices all Cassie has are the clothes on her back, a thin jacket thrown over her waitress uniform. 

“No…couldn’t grab anything…” 

“Okay, then, we’ll make do tonight and tomorrow, I’ll see about getting your clothes back. That alright with you?” 

“Yeah…just don’t…” 

“I won’t do anything crazy, promise.” 

“Okay…” 

“Here you,” Dahlia says, handing over her motorcycle helmet to Cassie. She takes it and Dahlia knows Cassie is taller, a little older too, but in this moment, she seems so small and young, almost like a child. 

Once the helmet is secure, Dahlia gets on her bike, allowing Cassie to climb on the back of it, instructing the girl to hold on as tightly as she can. Thin arms wrapping tight enough to dig into Dahlia’ s skin. The night air is cold, Cassie’s body all that much warmer in comparison as it presses in against and around the deputy. 

There are a few eyes watching the girls as they ride into the trailer park, Dahlia coming to a stop by her porch. She’s gentle as she helps Cassie off the motorcycle, taking the helmet from her, the taller girl’s dark eyes dart around nervously, straying near where a Moonflower resident is glaring at the pair. Dahlia rubs a hand through the back of Cassie’s hair, ruffling the dark curls, mimicking Sheriff Whitehorse and his method of calming her. If it works for her, maybe it can help Cassie.  

“Don’t worry about them, go on inside, I’m gonna lock up my bike okay.”

Cassie nods her head and walks off into the trailer. Dahlia catches eyes with the man who was glaring and she glares right back, flipping him off before locking up her bike. She could give a damn less what anyone does to her, but she’s not going to let them give Cassie hell. The girl has been through enough. 

The older girl is on the couch when Dahlia walks back into the trailer, Cassie’s eyes looking over everything. 

“Hey, you, uh, want anything to drink or eat? I don’t know how to make coffee, but there’s coke, water, uhhh…?” Dahlia pauses, arm still gestured outward as she tries to think of what else she can offer. 

“Actually, I just wanna  grab a shower and sleep, if that’s alright.” 

“Of course, I’ll go grab some clothes you can sleep in, the bathroom is just right here,” Dahlia tells her, tapping a hand to the bathroom door. 

“Thanks.” 

Dahlia scurries off to rummage through her clothes, finding warm oversized sweatshirt and sweatpants, finding the warmest but least…Dahlia’s aesthetic to offer Cassie. She knocks on the bathroom door, giving Cassie a warning before she opens the door and quickly drops the change of clothes in the room before scurrying off.  Trying to be welcoming, homely, nice, she doesn’t even know; she tries to get some food together. Store bought cookies and instant bag mix cocoa with hot water. It’s bad and shoddy, but she doesn’t have much to offer in the way of hospitality. This entire night has been a whiplash for her and she can’t even imagine what it must be doing to Cassie, she doubts shitty hot chocolate or mass produced cookies can fix it, but it’s something. 

A few moments pass, Dahlia cramming cookies in her mouth as she waits, and finally Cassie leaves the shower. Despite being taller than the deputy, the baggy black clothes look big on her, the skulls along the sleeves don’t suit the woman much either. 

“Thanks for the clothes.” 

“No problem, uh, sorry they’re…so, me, I guess?” 

Cassie laughs and a bubble of tension bursts inside of Dahlia, her shoulders finally able to relax as she smiles back. It no longer feels like walking on eggshells around a scared animal, Cassie at once seems more comfortable and happy even if only for a moment. 

“It’s okay,” Cassie tells her after a moment, “seriously, I just appreciate, all of this. Don’t worry so much.” 

“Hey, I’m happy to help, uh,  help yourself to anything I shitty whipped together and oh I know. I need to show you where you can sleep,” the deputy fumbles about and then walks down to the bedroom, opening the door, “I know it ain’t much, but hey, bed’s a bed, right?” 

“You have a second bedroom?” 

“Huh, oh nah, I sleep on the couch.” 

“You don’t have too, I don’t expect you to give up your bed for me, I-“ 

“No, no,” Dahlia gently touches Cassie’s shoulder before she can get too worked up, “I just do that, nothing to do with you.” 

“Oh….that’s…weird.” 

“I appreciate your honesty…I think?” Dahlia makes a huffy laugh, unable to hold down the corners of her mouth, the little insult? Dig? Whatever, someone might call it has brought a bit more levity to this and fuck knows the situation needs it. 

There’s not much conversation for the rest of the night; Cassie visibly exhausted, only grabbing a cookie before excusing herself to sleep for the night. Dahlia eventually falling asleep on her couch later that night. 

It’s back to work the next day, Dahlia planning on making a visit to Cassie’s mom during a quiet moment, claiming it as a lunch hour. She has no intention of using force or being aggressive, but she knows her uniform could add some….incentive for someone to be more helpful than harmful towards her. 

Maybe it’s that, knowing she’ll want the full effect of it, or maybe it’s because she missed working, but she wears her uniform the proper way and with a bit more pride than she did before. She says goodbye to Cassie, the words clumsy and stumbling from her lips, as she tries to grow more comfortable with someone else in her home. 

The morning hours pass by without much of note, harassing Pratt whenever the time presents itself and searching for affordable housing or shelters, or whatever the hell is available for Cassie. And she comes to the same conclusion she had when searching for her own housing ; The Moonflower is the absolute most dirt cheap. 

A buzz and crackle over the radio, dispatch starting to break through. 

“Boshaw’s parked out in Falls End at his bullshit again.” Dispatch doesn’t even pretend to have decorum and Dahlia knows there’s more than one Boshaw, the owners of the Moonflower being Boshaw’s themselves, but given his history and the tone she immediately thinks of Sharky. 

“Oh god, really, can no one else go?” Pratt asks, looking like he wants to jump into traffic more than deal with this. 

“Nope, everyone else passed the buck, so just go tell him to scram.” 

“Fine, fine, fine.” 

“It that Sharky guy?” Dahlia asks once Pratt starts to drive. 

“Un-fucking-fortunately, pain in my goddamn ass.” 

“He stealing again or…?” 

“Hmm,” there’s a sudden glint in Pratt’s eyes, a smirk on his face and Dahlia already regrets coming into work, “actually, this seems like a good welcome back for you, Rookie.” 

“I’m gonna want to strangle you after this, aren’t I?” 

“Definitely.” 

She groans as the police cruiser makes it’s way through Falls End, ultimately coming to a stop in a store parking lot, a few other cars are around but it’s mostly deserted. Pratt points out a dark green jeep within the lot. 

“That’s Boshaw’s truck, go knock on the window and tell him to scram.” 

“Jeep…” 

“What?” 

“You called it a truck, that’s not a truck, that’s a jeep.” 

“Does it fucking matter?” 

“Not really, but it bugged me, and I don’t know why.” 

“Go knock on the fucking window.” 

“What’s he even doing? Drugs? Or?” 

“Go knock and find out.” 

“I swear to god,” Dahlia grumbles and finally opens the cruiser door, she has no idea what the fuck she’s walking into. 

She’s able to see Boshaw through the driver side window of his jeep, eye closed and head leaned back. Dahlia speeds up, she’s heard of residents overdosing in their cars, he never struck her as a hard drug user but one can never really tell. Dahlia raises her fist to knock on the window and then she sees it. Boshaw’s hand rubbing up and down the length of his dick. This is her life. 

“What the fuck!” She yells out and closes her eyes, because she does not need the image of his dick burned into her brain, she’s still dealing with the image of John fucking Holly rattling around in there. What is wrong with people? 

“Shit,” she hears him curse, a shuffling of something, a window being rolled down, “what the hell-“ 

“Get the fuck out of here or I’m charging you public indecency, right fucking now, christ!”

She waits until she hears an engine starting up and then makes a beeline back to the cruiser, not wanting to even chance seeing that weirdo’s dick again. Dahlia stomps her way back to the patrol car, Pratt’s laughing hitting her as soon as she opens the door. She kicks into the car, not hard, just a quick jab of her boot into his arm before she pulls back. 

“What the actual fuck, Pratt!?” 

“What, get an eyeful?” 

“What the actual fuck, does he just do…that!?” She’s cringing as she climbs into the passenger side seat. 

“Yeah, he just, is like that if he isn’t jerking off in public, he’s setting something on fire. Or both.” 

“Dear lord, what is wrong with people? What’s wrong with you doing that to me, asshole!?” 

“Ah, don’t get your panties in a twist, I’ll buy you lunch.” 

“Save your apology food for tonight, I got something to take care of during lunch.” 

“So, you’re abandoning work?” 

“For an hour max and you can call me if anything comes up.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I’m just giving you shit, it’s fine.” 

She rolls her eyes as they go back to the station, just a short drive away in the small town. The young deputy waves off her patrol partner as she climbs onto her bike, making sure her ringer is turned on this time, just in case something does manage to come up. Cassie gave her the address this morning and she quickly finds the little house surrounded by woods, as so many of the houses in Hope County are. 

Dahlia lets out a breath before knocking her knuckles against the door, firm and heavy despite the knot twisting her insides. After a few moments pass and then finally the door opens; an older woman staring back at Dahlia. The resemblance between her and Cassie is strong; the same pitch black hair and dark eyes, just to an older face. 

“Oh god, she didn’t drag you all into this did she?” Her words drip with condescension and venom and a muscle in Dahlia’s cheek twitches, her jaw tight. 

“I’m sorry to bother you ma’am, but I was hoping to collect Cassie’s clothes and personal items.” 

“Pff, what’d she tell you, some sob story, I’m sure.” 

“This isn’t a criminal matter,” yet, Dahlia would like to add, but decorum or something, “if that’s what you’re concerned about and I don’t have a warrant either, for full disclosure. I’m just kindly asking to get her things, I can collect them myself or you can hand them to me if you’d rather I not enter the home, whatever you like.”

“You can come on in, I don’t have anything to hide,” Cassie’s mother lets her in. 

“Thank you so much, where is her room, if you don’t mind me asking?” 

“Right this way, I swear she’s so fucking dramatic.” Her mother bitches and complains, taking Dahlia there and showing her an open duffle bag that she can put clothes in. 

“I just know she asked me to get her things.” 

“I’m so sorry she dragged you into this deputy, I’m sure you have better things to do.” Her mother talks as Dahlia tries to gather as much as she can into the bag, not only clothes but things that could be important, books and a laptop. 

“I’m always happy to help out where I can, thank you so much for your time and patience, ma’am.” 

A hand catches Dahlia’s bicep, Cassie’s mom stopping her. She turns to look, not sure what exactly is going on now. 

“So, where is she staying?”

“I don’t know ma’am, I was only asked to bring her things to the police station, but I assure you she’s in a safe place. No worries. Have a lovely day.” 

Dahlia pulls away from the woman’s grip and leaves the house, she keeps an eye over her shoulder as she leaves, insuring that the mother isn’t following her. Just in case she takes a few odd turns to make sure and then finally makes her way back to the Moonflower. 

She’s compelled to knock on her own trailer door, not sure what Cassie might be doing with her alone time. Cassie’s dark eyes peek through the window and Dahlia waves, before the door opens. The girl’s head tilted to the side slightly, eyebrow raised. 

“Did you forget your key?” 

“No, I uh, just wanted you to know I was here, I guess.” 

“Okay, uh, you really act like a guest in your own house, don’t you?” Cassie points out as Dahlia walks into the trailer. 

“Ehhh, like ya know,” she makes a vague noncommittal wiggly gesture with her shoulders, “anyway, I got your clothes. No trouble, no issues, check through and make sure I grabbed everything.” 

“Thanks, really, you have no idea how much this means to me,” Cassie gushes as she looks through it. 

“It’s not problem at all, there is one thing I wanna talk to you about.” 

“What’s up?” 

“So, I’ve been trying to look around, see what options are available for you to move into. The cheapest housing in Hope is right here, if you wanna save up to rent a trailer. Then things get pricier, you’re looking at the trailers at Silver Lake which are twice as much, and even more than that for renting an apartment in Falls End or god forbid you’re trying to buy a house.” 

“I…don’t really wanna live here on my own… The people here are…” 

“Rough?” 

“We’ll go with that. But, it’s not like I can afford anything else.” 

“Well, there’s affordable housing like section eight in the bigger places, b-“ 

“I don’t wanna leave Hope either, I-, oh god.” 

“Hey, hey, hey, I’m not trying to freak you out or overload you. You don’t have to know right now, you don’t have to know anytime soon. You can stay here as long as you need, no rush or pressure. I just wanted to let you know what I found.” 

“Thanks, I just gotta save up some money and then…” 

“Hey, I still got some time for my lunch break, I’ll treat ya if there’s anywhere you wanna go.” 

“Uh, I could go for some pizza.” 

“Sounds like a plan.” 

Dahlia takes them both to the 8-Bit Pizza Bar, the rest of her lunch break isn’t very long, so they don’t get much time to chat. Finishing off a pizza and talking about video games before Dahlia has to drop Cassie back off at the trailer to head back into work; warning her new roommate that she’ll be going to The Spread Eagle after her shift. And finding out what she can bring Cassie home for dinner. 

Whitehorse is out in the bullpen style offices when she arrives back to the precinct, discussing something with an officer. She waits as patiently as her baseline personality will allow her, unable to help tapping her fingers against her thigh, also brimming with some sort of uncontainable energy. Surely, Whitehorse might know someplace Cassie can turn to? Someplace that can help her. 

“Something on your mind, Rookie?” 

“Yeah, you remember that waitress, Cassie?” 

“Something happen with her?” There’s a furrow in his brows and a clench in his jaw, worry and concern darkening his eyes. 

“She called me, her mom hurt her, threw her out, she’s not interested in pressing charges. So, she’s staying with me right now, safe. But, uh, she’s…not really happy at the Moonflower. Rough folks ya know, give her dirty looks ‘cause she’s hanging out with a cop, that whole mess. So, I was wondering if there’s literally anything available to help her out?” 

“I’m sorry to say, there’s not a hell of a lot around here, Rook. Moonflower’s cheapest place she’d find to live, but as far as charity goes, Hope County runs low on it.  Churches use to help out when they could, you can always try with them, but not sure they can afford to help anymore.” 

“Never thought I’d be upset at a lack of religious involvement in anything, but what do you mean they can’t afford it.” 

“Most of ‘em are bleeding members. Pastor Jerome’s church in town and the old Lamb Of God Church only got a few regulars right now. Most folks jumped to Eden’s Gate.” 

“Does….Eden’s Gate do any sort of help?” 

Dahlia raises an eyebrow, Joseph certainly seems nice. The way Layla and Waylon talked, the church is no stranger to helping the crestfallen. Certainly, they do some sort of outreach? Even the worst of churches tend to do something; hell her own shitty step-dad’s church helped rebuild the community after the hurricanes. It’s good PR and a way to draw people in. 

“Sure, but for most people they’re a last resort and for good reason.” 

“’Cause they’re buzzkills and no one likes them?” 

“That’s one way to put it,” he gives her shoulder a comforting squeeze, “good luck and if there’s anything I can do to help, just let me know, alright?” 

“Will do, thanks, Sheriff.”. 

Later in the night, shift ending with little trouble, the three deputies make their usual Spread Eagle trips. But Dahlia can’t seem to settle. She assumed it’d feel easy and nice to be back to her completely usual routine, a celebration when she returned,  but everything draws her mind back to Cassie. Dahlia can’t help but feel guilty when she thinks about it, despite opening her home to the older girl, she can’t say she’s been there much. Having to go to work today and only sparing her a half hour for lunch. And now she’s out with friends… She tries to focus on what Pratt and Hudson are saying, but only finds herself worrying about Cassie. She’s alone in an unfamiliar place… probably still scared and worried about every shadow. 

“You alright, Rook, you seem out of it.” 

“Yeah, uh, actually, my head is starting to hurt, injury and all that. So, if it’s cool, I’m gonna split early tonight.” 

“Alright, but if you think you’re getting a rain check on that free food, you’re out of your mind,” Pratt taunts her and she laughs, flicking his ear. 

“Somehow I’ll live, see you guys tomorrow.” 

She orders some food to go for her and Cassie then heads out. There’s that familiar end of shift exhaustion as she pulls into the Moonflower, bones and muscles always a little leaden. The desire to just stuff her face and veg out in front of the tv for a while. It’s an all too familiar feeling of trudging back to her trailer, but this isn’t the same as all those nights. 

Darkness and silence don’t greet her as she opens the door, the clawing feeling of loneliness doesn’t strike her like a snake hiding in underbrush. Her trailer is alive, it seems, lights and tv on, brightness and a burble of noise. Cassie sitting on the couch, curled up as some romantic comedy plays on the tv. Her entire body turning to greet Dahlia, bright eyes and a soft smile welcoming the deputy. 

“Hey, I thought you were gonna be late?” 

“Yeah, turns out I wasn’t feeling it tonight, brought dinner though,” Dahlia shows the bag off, “what’re you watching?” 

“10 Things I Hate About You. I know it’s cheesy as hell, but it’s one of my favorites.” 

“Never seen it.” 

“What, oh my god, you have to watch it with me! It’s so good.”  

“Okay, okay, let me settle in and we’ll have a movie night.” 

Once she’s changed out of her uniform, Dahlia settles in on the couch with Cassie, who’s rewinded the movie back to the beginning. They’re cramming food into their mouths as it plays and it’s adorable. A guy being paid to date a girl, so another guy could date her sister due to some dumb dad rule, but then alas he falls in legitimate love. Cassie says lines along with the actors, showing just how many times she’s watched it, able to quote characters verbatim. She does a nervous little glance over at Dahlia now and again as it plays on, checking Dahlia’s interest, the deputy makes sure to smile a little brighter when those eyes land on her. 

“I want you to want me, I need you to need me, I’m begging you to beg me~!” Cassie sings along to the final song that plays the movie out, a band conveniently located on the schools roof, because why the hell not?

“I see why that’s one of your favorites.” 

“Sorry I couldn’t shut up,” Cassie apologizes, cheeks red. 

“No, no, it’s cute. Shows just how much you’re enjoying yourself.” 

“I still remember when they showed it to us in class, I just fell in love.” 

“They showed that in school?” 

“Yeah, it’s actually based on an Shakespeare play, Taming of The Shrew, so they showed to us in English. Along with the DeCaprio, Romeo and Juliet.” 

“Ah, I haven’t seen that movie either.” 

“You haven’t seen many movies have you?” 

“My family wasn’t big on tv and honestly, if my school played anything, I probably slept through it or don’t remember it well.” 

“I mean, your memory can’t be that bad, high school was probably not that long ago for you, was it?” 

“Hey, you don’t know that, I could be pushing forty for all you know.” 

“Oh yeah, and dermatologist just hate you,” she rolls her eyes, “seriously, how old are you?” 

Maybe, it’s the food warm in her belly, the comfort of her own trailer, or the shared smiles; but she feels a little more honest than usual. 

“Twenty…ish,” she says, with a little smug smirk, knowing the question to follow.

“Ish?” 

“Hmmm, well, between you and me, I may be a little shy of it.” 

“You’re nineteen?” 

“Only for the next three months or so, but, yeah…” She admits, trying to do the math, she turns twenty in September. 

“So, you’ve just been lying about your age?” 

“It’s three months, okay, nineteen just hits the ear differently. I have a hard enough time getting anyone around here to respect me without being called a teenager.” 

“But, you are a teenager.” 

“Technically, my age does contain the word teen in it.” 

“And what do you plan on doing when everyone expects you to turn twenty-one and you don’t?” 

“The only people who know when my birthday is would be the Sheriff, you kind of, or in Louisiana. As long as you and Whitehorse don’t run around alerting everyone, there’s no way of any of them knowing, I can play it off as my birthday being further away.” 

“Is that worth it just to not be called a teenager?” 

“Considering all the shit I get about my age and rank already; yes.” 

“I mean, you do look like a baby faced high schooler.” 

“Oh you’re one to talk,” Dahlia laughs, reaching out to pinch Cassie’s own round cheeks, the girl giggles and shoves at her in response. 

“Shit, it’s late,” Cassie says after a moment, catching the time. 

“You headed for bed then?’ 

“I, uh, actually needed to ask you something first?” 

“Sure, what’s up?” 

“I got today off because of…everything…but if I wanna start saving money back up, I gotta go into work. But…I don’t have a car…” 

“What’d you do before?” 

“I just used my mom’s car, she didn’t let me have my own, said it was too much…” 

“And public transport ain’t exactly booming out here.” 

“You can’t even get rideshares out here.” 

“What’s your shift hours?” 

“Nine to five.” 

“You okay with getting there early and hanging out there later? If so I can drop you off on my way to and from work, my shifts are just a bit, lengthier.” 

“Yeah that’s fine, hell, I could chock it up to overtime and probably get a coworker to drive me home at the end of my shift, if you can just get me there in the morning.” 

“We can do that.” 

“Thank you, thank you,” Cassie throws her arms around Dahlia, “seriously, this just thank you.” 

“You’re welcome, you’re gonna get through this and I’m gonna help you every step of the way, promise.” 

She rubs a hand up and down the girls back, then she hears it. Maybe it’s just everything hitting Cassie, maybe it’s the deputy’s words, or the comforting touch; but something pushes the older girl to tears. Broken whimpers and cries, tears wetting Dahlia’s shoulder as she does her best to comfort Cassie, holding her tight and letting her just let it out. 

It’s unclear how long it lasts, the outpour of emotion, but at some point, Cassie is finally able to pull away with red rimmed eyes and apologies on her lips. 

“Nothing to apologize for, mon cher. Why don’t you head on to bed, morning will be here before you know it.” 

“Okay, night, and I know I sound like a broken record, but thanks again…” 

“No problems, now go get some sleep.” 

Cassie leave for the bedroom and Dahlia chews her lips, thoughts racing through her brain. There’s a thought pressing on her, she didn’t bring it up to Cassie and likely won’t until she settles in a bit more. But, she wonders if Cassie could once she gets her footing, just chip in for rent here? She said she feels more comfortable in the Moonflower with Dahlia around, they get along well, and Dahlia likes having a friend to come home to… But a conversation for another day… 

It’s the following afternoon when Pratt and Dahlia are called out to a local veteran’s house. Redler is an older man, older than Whitehorse, with steel gray hair and deep wrinkles creased into his face. Despite his age, he’s strong and sturdy, shaking Dahlia’s hand with a near bone crushing strength when she greets him the next day under the afternoon sun. She can feel the years of work in the rough calluses that mar his hands. Pratt told her that he fought in Vietnam when they got the dispatch call, someone tried to break into his home last night and they were asked to check everything out. 

“Pleasure to meet you, sir,” Dahlia says after introduction, feeling the need to straighten her shoulders around the veteran. 

“Thank you both for coming out, I’m sure I’m just being paranoid, but I’d appreciate if you’d check everything out. I can’t get around quite like I use to.” 

“We’re happy to help, Redler.” 

Pratt and Dahlia start to walk around the house and property, searching for anything that could be considered suspicious or out of ordinary. There’s nothing that jumps out at Dahlia, Redler said he heard something last night but when he yelled out, whatever or whoever it was went away. 

“You think they managed to do anything before he scared ‘em off?” Dahlia asks Pratt. 

“Nah, some of the local teenagers just like to be a pain in his ass.” 

“Why?” 

“He’s an old sometimes crabby guy, kids are pains in the ass, like you.” 

“Haha,” she mocks dryly, “you’re so funny.” 

“I’m hilarious, in fact I had a very eye-opening experience this morning.” 

“Yeah, what was that?” 

“I woke up.” 

“Ughh,” she groans what an awful fucking joke, “you corny dumbass.” 

She raises her fist to give him her usual playful punch against his shoulder, then he steps out of the way. Her knuckles swinging through empty air before connecting with the glass behind Pratt. Blood drains from her face as the window shatters from the force of her punch. She…broke Redler’s window. 

“What the fuck, Rookie!?” Pratt looks at the window and at her, hazel green eyes wide with shock. 

“I, I, you moved!” 

“Oh no, oh no,” he shakes his hands emphatically and smirking, “you’re not blaming this on me.” 

“Why did you move!?” 

“How hard were you trying to hit me?!” 

“No harder than usual, I, I-“

“What the hell was that?” Redler’s voices rings out, steps following after his question, no doubt he heard the shatter. 

“Oh god.” She buries her head in her hands, embarrassment and shame hot in her face, she broke the man’s window over a shitty dad joke. Pratt is cackling at her expense and she knows she’s an idiot. But why did he move?

“What the hell happened here?” Redler asks as he comes around the corner of his house, seeing the broken outside window. She’s sure the inside is a mess of glass, oh god, what is wrong with her?

“I’m so so so so sorry,” she gushes out loudly from behind her hands, “I accidentally punched your window. I didn’t mean to, really. I’ll clean it up and fix it, I promise, I’ll pay for everything. I’m so sorry.” 

Her words slur and run into each other, as guilt forces her to practically beg for forgiveness. 

“Dear lord,” Redler sighs, the heavy sound a vice around her heart, dear god he must think she’s the stupidest person ever and he’s right, “I have the supplies to fix it up, you know how?” 

“Yes, sir, I could build you a brand new house if you gave me the time and supplies,” she tells him, which okay, maybe an exaggeration. But, if he asked her to, she’d try her damndest.

“That won’t be necessary, c’mon now.” 

There’s two different sheds, or shed like structures on his property. One is locked up tight, a keypad on the door and she finds herself wondering what might be in it as he brings her to the other building; helping her gather what she’ll need. Dahlia gets to work on fixing the disaster she’s created, first by cleaning up the broken glass inside and out of the home. Pratt on standby to snicker at the young deputy. 

“You punched a window…” He says, voice straining to contain laughter. 

“I know.” 

“Because of a dumb joke.” 

“I know.”

“Why are you like this?” 

“I don’t know!” 

If it wasn’t for the guilt and embarrassment; she’d probably be laughing at the ridculousness of the situation. But for now, every chuckle from her superior officer just fills her with a fresh dose of shame. Once she’s moved onto fixing the broken window itself, glass cleared, Pratt’s finally shifted his focus away from taunting her.

“Hey, Red,” he talks to the veteran while she works to clear out the dirt and old caulking from the window frame, “you going to the Rye barbecue tomorrow?” 

“Yeah…” 

“You don’t sound thrilled.” 

“Gah, it’s nothing, Grace and her dad are taking me, since I can’t drive or walk too well anymore. Just-“ 

“Don’t like having to be helped?” 

“Yeah, hazard of being my age, I’m afraid.” 

“It’s nice to see the veterans looking out for each other, though.” 

“Pff, use to see it a hell of a lot more because that damn Eden’s Gate bought the veterans center out from under us,” he sighs, heavy and deep for a moment before the older man looks over at her, “what about you, gonna break some of Kim and Nick’s windows tomorrow?” 

He’s smiling and Pratt laughs; at least Redler finds some humor in this she supposes. Her face is beet red as she tries to search for a response through her embarrassment. 

“Not that it stopped me from breaking yours, but, uh, I don’t know Nick or Kim. So, I’ll be steering clear.” 

“Still hung up on that,” Pratt rolls his eyes, “I told you, just show up with some food, no one gives a shit.” 

“I’m not showing up at a strangers house for their barbecue; that’s just asking for awkwardness and I have enough of that in my life as is.” 

“C’mon; me, Hudson, Whitehorse, even Beau will all be there. Ain’t like you won’t know anyone.” 

“All done,” she cuts off the barbecue talk, finished glazing and setting the window, it’s good to go. 

“Would have preferred you didn’t break it, but thanks for getting it fixed so quick.” 

“No problem and like I said,” she pulls cash from her wallet, more than enough to cover all she had to use, “’cause no reason you should be out for the stuff. Sorry again.” 

“And goes without saying, we didn’t find anything amiss, so you scared the brats off before they did anything,” Pratt chimes in. 

“’Preciate you two coming to check it out and despite the trouble, I suppose having some company was nice, I’ll see you around.” 

With that the pair of deputies leave the veteran to his evening, hopefully one that will contain significantly less broken windows. Dahlia rubs  a hand down her face when she sits down, tension leaving her back and shoulders now that she’s managed to fix the mess she made. 

“You should seriously come to the barbecue.” 

“Pratt….” 

“It’ll be a chance to meet some more folks, you’re talking about not knowing people, this is how you meet people.” 

He’s not wrong and she knows it, if she ever wants to make friends beyond him, Hudson, Cassie and Eden’s Gate members who’re hated by everyone else, then surely she needs to try to be social. 

“Fine, fine, I’ll buy something to bring tomorrow.” 

“Store bought crap isn’t exactly a way of winning folks over.” 

“I can’t cook, Staci.” 

“Who the hell can’t cook?” 

“Me, asshole.” 

“Oh please, you can throw something together.” 

“I mean if you want me to give the county food poisoning, I can.” 

“I’m sure you’ll manage,” he rolls his eyes and starts up the cruiser, he doesn’t seem to understand just how incompetent she is in the kitchen. 

The moment her shift ends, Dahlia is in a grocery store with her phone on searching for recipes. She needs something good, but more importantly, absolutely idiot proof. She wonders for a moment if she could get away with just freezing juice and sticking toothpicks in them for popsicles, that might be the only thing she’s incapable of fucking up. Though knowing her luck the freezer would just explode. 

She’s gonna kill Pratt; actually, physically kill him. 

No bake cookies, she spots on a list of recipes, that should be easy enough. Probably, it doesn’t even have to be baked, what’s the worst that could happen? Dahlia gathers up ingredients, enough for a few batches, in case she fucks up the first few attempts. Which she will. And some store generic brand sugar cookies in case she fucks up every attempt. Which she probably will. 

Cassie is on the couch watching movies, having grabbed that ride home from a coworker, when Dahlia comes home with bags filled with ingredients. The older girl raises an eyebrow, watching as Dahlia drags these bags to the kitchen, which she hasn’t touched since she made shitty instant hot chocolate. 

The deputy rubs her fingers idly against the burn across her palm, her step father having held it to the stove when her mother tried to teach her to cook and she hadn’t listened. It stands out among her colorful history of abuse at his hands, the burning of her own flesh a sharp and brutal contrast to the bite of a belt or the strike of a hand. It may only be second to the snake incident… 

She shakes her head, trying to shake off her memories like a dog drying itself. She’ll have time to review Father Monroe’s greatest hits later, for now she needs to try to make cookies without destroying her trailer. 

“What are you doing?” 

“I’m going to the Rye barbecue tomorrow, so I have to make something…” 

“Oh those have always been fun.” 

“You’ve been?” 

“Yeah, everyone loves Nick and Kim.” 

“Well, I’ve never met them and I’m terrified.” 

“Pff,” Cassie laughs, “they’re sweethearts, though Kim’s a little hormonal with baby.” 

“I…ya know what it doesn’t matter, what does matter is; you wanna play hooky from work and go with me?” 

“I need money.” 

“Ugh, you and your need for basic survival requirements,” Dahlia dramatically roles her eyes, “if you must disappoint me by ‘needing money’, you can least make up for it by making the cookies.” 

“Not happening.” 

“God damn it, fine, I got this.” 

Dahlia dumps the ingredient out on her counter;  sugar, milk, butter, cocoa powder, vanilla, peanut butter, and oats. So, she needs to line baking pans with parchment paper… the fuck is parchment paper? Why was this not mentioned in things she needed? 

“I don’t think I got this,” Dahlia announces. 

“It’s been a minute.” 

“What the fuck is parchment paper?” 

“Its paper so it doesn’t stick to the pan, I think you have some non-stick spray, that may help?” 

“Okay, okay then.” 

“Do you even have pans?” 

“Yes, I have pans, I’m not a cavewoman.” 

“You sure about that?” 

Cassie merely laughs at Dahlia’s pout, the deputy then grabbing the pans and spraying them down, this should be fine? She shrugs to herself, what’s the worse that could happen if she uses spray and not paper?

“Okay then,” Dahlia starts to read the rest of the recipe, “wait what?” 

“Do you already have a new crisis?” 

“…maybe… These are supposed to be no bakes, why am I heating shit up on the stove? That makes no sense.” 

“Well, that’s not baking.” Cassie shrugs like it’s obvious and maybe to her it is. 

“What?” 

“Baking means it’s in an oven,” Cassie speaks slowly, eyes wide at the realization of how deep Dahlia’s incompetence runs, “if it’s on a stove that’s more like cooking.” 

“There’s a difference?” 

“Yes.” 

“What the fuck? Why do you need more than one word for making food hot?!” 

“Do…do you know anything?” 

“Clearly not!” 

Dahlia curses under her breath, already frustrated at her lack of knowledge. Why is she such a fucking idiot with this stuff? She just wants to make a good impression on people and she’s such a fucking mess. Ruminating will get her nowhere; she ties her short hair back into a sloppy little ponytail and takes her deputy uniform shirt off to tie around her hips, knowing the stove will quickly heart up her small kitchen then sets her phone to play some music. 

“You need music to cook?” 

“Need it to function.” 

“Some parts of my brain are probably still sleeping I wish I could tell but I'm probably still sleeping.”

Dahlia starts following the instructions , humming along to the music, something upbeat to help her not want to die through this entire process. She eyeballs the amount of  sugar, butter, cocoa powder and milk into the saucepan; trying to make it look like the pictured amount and turns on the heat. The recipe calls for her to whisk it, but she doesn’t have one those, so she stirs it off and on with a spoon, this isn’t too hard so far.

“Uh, are you measuring that?” Cassie asks and Dahlia leans on the table to talk, tapping her fingers along to the beat. 

“The recipe doesn’t say how much, but like, it can’t be too hard.” 

“Uhhhh deputy….” 

“I look to the window, I look through your eyes

I can see my reflection, but I can't close the blinds.”

There’s a burbling noise followed by sizzling and Dahlia turns in time to see chocolate milk boiling over the pan. It runs down onto the floor, sizzling as it hits the burner. The word shit is said under Dahlia’s breath like a chant as she shuts off the heat. 

“So…too much milk?” Dahlia wonder out loud as she cleans up the mess.

“Like I know.” 

‘Someone has to, ‘cause I sure as shit don’t.” 

“It's like someone's determined to change how I think

But if I just close my eyes I'll wake from each dream”

Dahlia cleans up the mess and dumps out the chocolate milk soupy mess within the pan, ignoring Cassie’s snickers of laughter as she works. She just had to do this with a peanut gallery, didn’t she? But hey, she was prepared for the first couple attempts to fuck up.  She combines the ingredients again, using much less milk this time. 

“Maybe you should find a recipe with measurements?” 

“I already have the ingredients for this recipe,” Dahlia says, if she switches now there could be shit she doesn’t have, right?

“You’re so stubborn…”

“What?” Dahlia asks when she notices the trail off, storing the new mixture which is thicker and becoming harder to stir in seconds, is that good?

“Holy fuck.” 

“You okay?” 

“I don’t know your name.” 

“Yeah, you just realized ? Umm, is that smell normal?” The chocolate mess is starting to smell like burning tires…which is probably bad.

“Would it let you down if we don't grow up?

Would it make you proud if we gave up?

What about anybody?

They're all just chasin' money”

“How is that possible? I’m living with you and don’t even know your name.” 

“Don’t beat yourself up over it, Whitehorse is the only one who knows my full name.”

“What the-do you not tell people your name?”

“I mean, I never avoided it, but I usually just call myself the new deputy and we move on. Just sort of happened and now I just think it’s kinda funny, uh this is definitely not good is it?” 

“Jesus fuck, no that’s not good!”

Pitch black smoke has started to roll off the pan; solidifying burnt chocolate sticking to it. Dahlia swings the pan around to the sink, rolling it under cold water before it can spark fire. She huffs, blowing lose strands of hair up and out of her face, sweat and flush on her skin as she turns to face Cassie. 

“So, not enough milk that time.”

“You giving up?” 

“Of course not, third times a charm, mon cher,” Dahlia bolsters her fake confidence as she grabs a new pan, surely she can salvage one batch?

“Would it let you down if we don't grow up?

Would it make you proud if we gave up?

What about anybody?

They're all just chasin' honey”

Dahlia recombines finding a middle ground for the amount of milk to avoid burning or boiling over; she hovers over it, stirring the entire time as she watches for any signs of a new disaster. The entire time Cassie seems to be watching her, but she doesn’t talk as much this time, Dahlia can feel eyes on her arms in particular. She looks down at her arm, half expecting to see a spider, a pimple, or something that’d draw attention. But all she sees is her own bicep, maybe it’s the tattoos. Nothing complicated, as she couldn’t afford much, two solid black bands around her right bicep. 

“If ever you want me, if ever you need me

I may not be conscious but baby I'm honest

I'll look to the mirror, I'll look through your heart

I can see good intentions but we tear them apart”

“Do you like tattoos?” Dahlia asks, wondering if that’s why Cassie’s eyes have been drawn to the ink. 

“Huh, oh, uh they’re alright, I don’t have anything against them, do you have a lot?” 

“Just these and one on my lower back.” 

“You have a tramp stamp?” Cassie raises an eyebrow, a smile to her lips.

“No, tramp stamps are across the middle, it’s on the left side, so ha.” 

“So, it’s tramp stamp adjacent?” 

“Shut up.” 

“What is it of?” 

“A quote from Lady Lazarus; ‘and like the cat I have nine times to die,’ Sylvia Plath.” 

“That’s,” Cassie blinks, taken aback, “a lot more…pretentious than I expected from you.” 

“Someone I use to live with had all these books of poetry, philosophy, all the deep shit you could dream of. It was my first real time reading that kind of stuff, so a lot of it stuck with me. Cats are kind of a…theme in my life. They called me their stray, got me the helmet, I even had a cat for a…short period of time. So, it’s the quote from it I picked.” 

She can’t help but smile thinking of the shelves of books that Lloyd and Caroline had; when they first took her in, after years of being hidden away from anything ‘sinful’ or ‘worldly’, she was desperate to consume any media she could. She read every book in their house, spent days in front of the tv just binge-watching stuff she wasn’t allowed to watch as a kid. Mostly pokemon cartoons, horror movies, and Sailor Moon if she’s being honest. Caroline was the one with the love of poetry, telling Dahlia about Sylvia Plath when she found the books of poems one night. 

The idea of constantly being killed only to be brought back, over and over, a constant revolving door of pain. A cycle you beg for release from but are never afforded the mercy of it; Caroline explained how Plath struggled with suicidal thoughts… Dahlia never thought herself suicidal through her childhood, but she couldn’t deny how often she wished for death, an escape of any kind…  The symbolism with the condemnation of Jewish people, knowing the half of Dahlia’s background that her mother threw away for Father Monroe and made Dahlia throw away too, yet still they were called such vile and slurs… It just stuck with her. 

“Was there another contender?” 

“Yeah, I love the poem all around but two parts of it have always been my favorite.” 

“The cat one and…?” 

“Dying is an art, like everything else. I do it exceptionally well.” 

“God, you’re a dork.”

“So rude, what am I gonna do with you,” Dahlia laughs, shaking her head as she moves the pan off the burner. So far, it’s going alright, all she should need to do is mix in vanilla, peanut butter, and oats. Wait…she may be dumber than originally thought, which is saying a lot. 

“Something wrong, you look like you’re doing math in your head or something.” 

“A lot of people are allergic to peanuts…aren’t they?” 

“It’s like one of the most common allergies, yeah.” 

“And I chose food with peanut butter in them…” 

“Wasn’t gonna burst you bubble quite yet, but I’m pretty sure Nick is.” 

“What!? Why would you-!? What were you waiting for, me to kill a man!?” 

Cassie just laughs and Dahlia’s face feels like absolute fire, she’s frustrated and dumb. And between this shit and Redler’s window, who let her be like this? Did no one ever realize that she clearly does not have a brain? Was she born like this and the doctor was just like eh it’s fine and threw her little empty headed baby body out into the world? 

“It’s not a b-“ Cassie tries to speak through red faced laughter, because Dahlia’s misery is hilarious. 

“That’s it! I’m moving to Alaska, bon voyage, I’m out!” Dahlia claps her hands and swings her arms dramatically before dropping onto her back on the kitchen floor, crossing her arms over her chest. It’s so dumb, eyes stinging and throat feeling tight. It’s just cookies, she actually wants to cry over cookies, but dear god she can’t even make fucking cookies! It just feels like another failure. 

“Hey, hey, hey,” Cassie stands up and comes around to talk to the dejected puddle of deputy, “it’s not a big deal, don’t be dramatic, alright?”

“I’m not being dramatic, between this and Redler’s window, I’m just gonna dye my fucking hair and run away to Alaska so no one knows who I am and no one can find me.” 

“What happened to Redler’s window?” 

“I broke it…” 

“Why’d you do that?” 

“I was trying to punch Pratt and he moved!” 

“Holy shit.” 

“Aren’t you suppose to be helping me?” 

“Umm, pack plenty of coats and I wouldn’t recommend going blonde.” 

“I hate you. Why do all my friends bully me?” She asks, thinking of both Cassie and Pratt being shitheads with her. She expects it from him, but Cassie, really?

“We do it with love, I assure you, now get up.” 

“No.” 

“I’m serious, okay, you can write a note and put it by them, most people expect no bakes to have peanut butter anyway.” 

“I can’t write a note.” 

“Wh- oh yeah your handwriting is…” 

“Dog shit, I know.” 

“I’ll write it for you then, okay, now get up.” 

“Thank you…” Dahlia reluctantly climbs up onto her feet, still pouting when she looks at Cassie who just smiles at her before ruffling her already messy hair. 

“You got this.”

“Do I?” 

“No. But I’m trying to be positive.” 

“Okay, fuck you too I guess?” Dahlia says in mock anger, laughing at the ridiculousness of all of this.  

She rubs a hand down her face and gets back to mixing up the rest of them mix, then spooning it onto a pan, after that it’s a matter of letting them set so they can solidify. When she sucks some of the mix off her thumb, she’s pleasantly surprised, half expecting with her luck for it to be inedible, but it tastes fine. Chocolate, hint of peanut butter, and oats. Nothing fancy, but she’s not gagging which is something. 

“Here, that should help, if you end up taking these,” Cassie says, showing a notecard with a warning for peanut butter on it. 

“What do you mean ‘if’ I end up taking them, they’re not bad, they actually turned out pretty well.” 

“Well, they might not set.” 

“What?” 

“Sometimes no bakes don’t set properly and you end up with just puddles of chocolate oatmeal instead of proper cookies.” 

“What the fuck…what?” 

“Not to literally bring you down again, but, um, no bakes are kinda finicky and not a great choice for beginners.” 

“I’m never baking, cooking, broiling, roasting, or whatever the fuck else you call this shit ever again.” 

“That’s probably best for everyone…”

“I hate you.” 

“Yeah, yeah, love you too. I’m gonna head to bed now.” 

“Yeah, now you got your fill of entertainment.” 

“Don’t stress too much.” 

Dahlia sighs as Cassie leaves, shoulders still tense. She just wants to make a good impression, she nearly ruined her chance at that with the church barbecue, only by the grace of far too patient people did she manage to come out of it with hopefully some friends. Dahlia doesn’t have the religion barrier in this situation, so she should be better off? She hopes, she doesn’t expect to be best friends with anyone or be welcomed like family, but the more people around here like her the better. Hopefully with Pratt there, some of her nerves will be tamped down on. She’s closer to her coworkers now and has a few friends, so it shouldn’t be too bad, despite her struggle with crowds and socializing. She crashes down onto her couch, yanking her hair tie out before she goes to sleep. 

She’s up early to take Cassie to work before she goes to the barbecue, the older girl bustling to get ready as Dahlia checks on the cookies. Her finger sinks right into one, still wet. Oh no. Maybe they just need some more time, yeah, that’s all. 

Once Cassie is safely at work, confirming a coworker is going to take her home, Dahlia heads back home. The cookies are still wet… She’s going to scream.  There has to be a way to make them set? She considers holding a hair dryer to them, but on second thought the heat may just make them melt further. 

Frustrated and the time to leave getting closer, Dahlia goes to get ready, hoping by some twist of fate that they’ll be set by the time she’s showered and dressed. 

Hair still damp, dressed but with a towel across her shoulders to catch stray droplets, she checks again. Cursing under her breath when they’re still just lumps of wet chocolate oatmeal. She might as well show up with a Tupperware container of slop. 

Dahlia slam dunks her failure cookies into the trash a little harder than needed before grabbing the store made sugar cookies. It’s probably for the best with the peanut butter anyway… She throws on her jacket, boots, and helmet before headed out west towards the Holland Valley. Pratt told her the Rye’s property is just outside of Falls End. 

Her shitty directional skills manage to not get in her way, thanks in no small part to the signs for Rye and Son’s Aviation. Small blessings she figures. There’s a driveway that cuts through the woods, a cozy house closer to the drive-way, then an outside building and the hangar beyond it. 

People are gathered in open space near the hangar, picnic tables and a grill set up. There’s an airplane out, a vivid yellow seaplane with a shark design. She parks her motorcycle along with the rest of the cars and trucks, still a short walk from where the party is. She’s searching for familiar faces, before she walks forwards, Pratt mostly. She doesn’t find him. 

Hudson is speaking with Mary May and two women she doesn’t know. One with long dark hair and fatigues, the other a noticeably pregnant woman with hair shaved at the side. They talk and laugh. Despite having felt a little less awkward with Hudson, since spending more time with her, the idea of interrupting or cutting in feels wrong. 

Whitehorse is talking to a man she doesn’t know, but judging by the pastor’s collar she can assume his job. Catholicism isn’t particularly common out here and the only catholic church she can think of is the one in Falls End. Not exactly comfortable jumping in there either. 

There’s not really an easy place to put herself in,  nothing that feels comfortable or right. Everything feels like an intrusion. 

“Everyone’s gonna think you’re a creep, if you keep staring like that,” a familiar voice taunting her, Pratt’s standing beside her and she can’t help but smile, tension easing. He’s a jerk, but he’s her jerk. 

“Shut up, dickhead, I was trying to see who I knew,” she explains, grabbing the store-bought cookies from the under-seat storage. If Pratt’s by her side, she feels a bit more confident joining in.  She’s not sure when he became a rock for her in a situation like this, but maybe it’s best not to question that.

“So, you just bought store crap?” 

“Okay, judgey, what did you make?” 

“Pff, I can’t fucking cook, the hell are you talking about?” 

“What,” she glares at him, if this was all an excuse to fuck with her, she’s killing him, “you said everyone cooks, no store bought crap!” 

“And you believed me? Food is food, no one gives a fuck where it came from, well there’s the one time the Seeds brough this gross ass mac and cheese, but that’s another story.” 

“What the fuck Pratt? I was up all night trying to make something edible.” 

“Take it that didn’t go well?” 

“I’m gonna fucking kill you.” 

“Hey Beau, hey Nick,” Pratt calls out and then goes rushing off towards the crowd, he’s leaving her. 

“Where are you going?” 

“Sorry can’t hear you, need to be near witnesses, bye,” he’s laughing through his words and she finds herself wanting to grab the back of his shirt, to drag him back just so she won’t have to go in alone. But that’s childish…so she watches as her rock runs off to join everyone else. 

And once again she’s the sore thumb and maybe if she tried, she could make a new friend. And maybe if she’d just get the courage to talk to someone, she’d be fine. And maybe if she wasn’t such a damn coward, she’d do that. But she’s been the outsider looking in for her entire life and there’s a level of comfort in the loneliness; familiarity in isolation. 

When she thinks of it, the people who breach that comfort zone rarely do so because either of them make that step. Circumstance, not courage, is what always brings people into her life. Pratt and Hudson are her friends, because they work together, Pratt more so because they’re made to spend almost everyday together. Cassie because she was in an awful situation and needed a home. Lloyd and Caroline because she needed one. Hell, Eden’s Gate members are the closest to it, but they still sought her out for another body in the flock, not because they wanted her as a friend. Circumstance, desperation, pity, and religious duty. 

And as her throat tightens, feet frozen in place as she debates trying to socialize, she realizes…maybe that’s okay. Not happy or pleasant to think of, but okay. She’ll stay in her bubble for another day or the rest of her life; one of the two. 

Dahlia throws the cookies back into the under storage and slips her helmet back on, climbing onto her bike, riding away from the barbecue. Music blasting in her ears and racing down backroads on her motorcycle; it feels like home. 

Songs change, hours pass, the sun sets and the moon takes it’s place with the stars keeping it company. She’s spent the entire day riding and her heart feels lighter for it, she thinks as she pulls over to get gas, filling the tank. The entire barbecue and cooking thing is a fucking fiasco, but she’s happy now and that’s what matters, so fuck it. She got to spend an entire day doing one of the things she loves most in this world and she has a friend, no matter how they got there, who’s waiting for her at home. 

Then her phone rings and Dahlia feels her heart leap into her throat, the hair on the back of her neck raising. That little sixth sense warning her that something is wrong. Because as she’s learned quickly, even her most minor of happy moments must be interrupted by total fucking hell.  It’s Cassie and her fear only raises. 

“Deputy…” And she’s brought back to the night Cassie called her, that broken and scared voice asking for help, no longer the happy woman who’d taunted her last night.  There’s something in the background; some sort of yelling and music. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“I…I don’t know, someone broke a window, I, there’s yelling, they’re doing something, I’m scared to check.” 

“You’re at the Moonflower.” 

“Yeah, I, I don’t know what going on.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can.” 

Dahlia keeps her on the phone as she races back, a repeat of Wednesday night it feels like. Just when Cassie was feeling safe, just when things felt good, because of fucking course. She has no idea what hairbrained idea the Moonflower folks got in their head, she knows they hate her and fine, she gets it, but to scare Cassie like that is so fucking wrong. 

It looks like they decided to have their own party while so much of the county was away at the Rye’s. There’s a stench of booze around the entire trailer park. Rage is white hot inside of Dahlia when she sees the cluster of them around her trailer, a few cursing when they see her getting closer. She could give a fuck less about the damage, the broken windows or the PIG spray painted across the trailer, but Cassie is there. Curled up and crying, surrounded by broken glass as they shove and push at the home. 

“Everybody stand back!” Liam calls out; lighter in one hand, bottle of booze with a rag in the other. And she’s on him, tackling him to the ground beneath her. The lighter and would be Molotov thankfully fall away without igniting. Instinct and anger pushes her to raise back her fist and slam it into Liam’s face. 

She’s blacked his eye, skin breaking at his eyebrow and making his blood stick to her knuckles; then someone is grabbing her from behind, pulling her off of him. Dahlia slams her elbow back into the person’s gut, making them let go of her, she watches as Liam gets up, The crowd is surrounding them, no doubt ready to dogpile Dahlia if she tries to go after him again. He’s smiling and laughing, like an asshole, she wants to punch him again. 

“Quite a temper you got there, deputy.” 

“What the fuck is wrong with you!?” 

“Fuck is wrong with me? You’re the cop running around hitting people over a trailer,” he taunts her, reminding her that she should be better than this. 

“Fuck you, this ain’t about the god damn trailer!” 

“Wh-“

“Deputy…” A broken timid voice rings out from behind Dahlia, Cassie… When Dahlia looks over her shoulder, she can see her friend on the porch, just poking her head out from behind the door. Her eyes are wide and Dahlia wonders just how much of this mess she’s seen. 

“Shit…” Liam murmurs and the smirk is wiped off his face, eyes wide. 

“Everything okay, Cassie, I’m taking care of it. Go back inside, okay?” She watches as Cassie goes back in with a timid nod. 

“I… we didn’t know anyone was home…” 

“Oh so it’s all okay, everything’s fine ‘cause you didn’t fuckin’ know! You could have killed her, you dumb fuck!” 

“I-I’m-“ 

“Save it! Get the fuck away from me before I do something I regret.” 

Liam gets the picture, he has something more to say, everyone else there seems to too. But, no one’s stupid enough to test their luck or maybe smart enough to know this isn’t the time to talk. Once they’re all gone and she knows they’re not going to do anything stupid, again, Dahlia goes back to the trailer. 

Cassie is curled up on the couch, knees pulled up to her chest. The inside of the trailer is a mess; broken glass from windows, beer bottles, trash, rocks, and a brick that was probably used to break it. All thrown inside while Cassie sat horrified. 

“I’m so sorry,” Dahlia says and sits next to her, extending an arm to hold her. 

But Cassie flinches away, curls up deeper upon herself, as if Dahlia’s even attempt to comfort had scalded her. And the deputy’s heart seizes in her chest, pulling her arm back, seeing the blood on her knuckles. Did Cassie see her hit Liam? How much of her rage did she witness? Bloody knuckles, red faced, and nearly frothing at the mouth as she screamed her anger out… She must have seemed more like a monster than a friend. 

And Dahlia’s reminded of Genevieve all at once, the child of Dahlia’s mother and Father Monroe, the deputy’s half sister. The young girl, she’d be no older than eleven or twelve by now, was his blood and his golden child for it. And he told her of every one of Dahlia’s so called faults, sins he believed she committed, and convinced the child Dahlia was a monster in their home. And for so long she treated her like it; flinched from her affection, cowered at her sight, and shrunk away from her at every moment. As if Dahlia was the boogeyman, she fought for years with silly stories and blanket forts to coax her own sister into loving her. But, progress was always quickly undone. Every effort to chip through the wall he’d built between them was met with abuse, egging on her anger so he could make a show of her sin , so Genevive would always see Dahlia as the monster who’d spit her blood and bare her teeth rather than give in. 

Now, she’s there again, another person  flinching from her, terrified of the monster she’s shown she can be. Scared that one day those bared teeth will be at her throat instead of at another's. And Dahlia truly can’t blame her. 

“I…know it’s the only option…but I really don’t like it here…” 

Dahlia had wanted to offer an invitation for Cassie to stay, those passing ideas of having a roommate, how nice it’d be. At the time Dahlia thought she could keep Cassie safe, that this is better than the hell she had with her mother. And maybe for a few days it was, but if this is the kind of shit that can happen, all Dahlia’s done is taken her out the pan and placed her in the fire. Almost literally… Cassie could have been burned alive if Dahlia hasn’t made it back in time…

Cassie needs someplace else and the conversation with Whitehorse resurfaces, Eden’s Gate. They take people in, the only conflict she was saw was when Layla was at a store, but the church and the compound were safe…protected. They have plenty of land to house anyone who needs it and apparently they have the heart to do so. The Seeds can be a little off, but they’re not bad… 

“I got an idea,” Dahlia speaks up.

“What’s that?” 

“You got anything against Eden’s Gate?” 

“I mean, I’ve heard some stuff, but I don’t know much about them. I’ve seen Faith a few time and she seems nice.” 

“She is, they, uh, they take people in sometimes…I can take you up to Joseph’s church and we can talk to them.” 

“You think they’d help me?” 

“Yeah, I do.” 

“I think I’d like that.” 

“Okay then,” Dahlia jumps up from the couch, “get dressed and lets get you packed up.” 

“Right now?” 

“You wanna spend the night here?” 

“God no, lets go.” 

It doesn’t take long for Cassie to get dressed and pack everything up in the bag Dahlia got from her house. They may be counting their chickens before they hatch, already getting her things packed up, but Dahlia can’t see Joseph turning Cassie away. He’s too kind for that. And even if he were too, Dahlia will find something, even if she has to go barge on Whitehorse’s door. 

Dahlia has an arm around Cassie as they leave the trailer, hoping to offer even the smallest modicum of support. Cassie pulls on Dahlia’s helmet, at this rate maybe she should invest in a second helmet. And then with Cassie’s arms wrapped tight around her waist she rides out of the park. 

Eden’s Gate is quickly becoming one of the only good places to be in the whole damn county; they got to help her… All Dahlia can do as she rides through winding roads is hope that her faith in the church isn’t misplaced.  

[vertigoseokjin]

Break my Heart Again

Sweet Pea x Y/N x Reggie (requested)

Break my Heart Again: FINNEAS 

Warning: this displays a toxic poly!relationship and self hate, hints at an abusive relationship

I’m so sorry this took forever to post! Also the ending isn’t that fluffy but-

could i request a poly! with pea, reggie & reader where pea is busy with a new, girl, serpent & reg is helping another girl for something & the reader feels jealous & neglected? angsty with a fluffy ending pls!! :)

Loud laughter echoes through your shared trailer, a sound that usually warms your heart. Yet, today, you only feel uneasy walking into you and your boyfriend's house. There's a motorcycle you've never seen parked outside, and a pair of woman's shoes that definitely don't belong to you.

Although your relationship is made out of three people, Reggie's the only one who resides on the Northside. In order to lessen the living costs, you and Sweet Pea decided to move into a trailer together shortly after the start of your relationship.

It always worked out, the three of you have never fought. Yes, you bickered very often. But that was inevitable when Reggie Mantle and Sweet Pea were anywhere near each other. Yet, you all knew you loved each other. Sure, things have been a bit tense recently, but you brushed it off as stress from school and Serpent things. But now you can't help but wonder if something else has been happening.

"Pea?" You nervously call out, slipping off your own shoes and coat. "Pea, are you home?" You can't help the small crack in your voice when you call his name.

When there's no response, you decide to venture a little further into the trailer, finally making it to the bedroom.

Taking a deep breath, you knock gently on the door. "Pea? Babe, are you okay?" Again, no response. Before you can knock again, the door flies open. You flinch back at the sound of the wood colliding with the wall.

"What?" Your eyes widen, shocked at the hostile acknowledgement directed towards you. "Are you going to say anything?" His tone becomes increasingly louder and aggressive.

"I-is everything okay?" You speak through tears, already feeling choked up. Sweet Pea nor Reggie have ever screamed at you the way he is now.

"Everything was okay. Before you decided to piss me off." The tall boy practically growls while rolling his eyes, before walking back into the room and plopping onto the bed. That's when you notice the girl.

She's laying comfortably on your side of the bed, holding your laptop.

As soon as Sweet Pea lays down, she snuggles closer to him, the pair already ignoring you again.

"Pea? Who is this?" The words come out cautiously, not wanting him to blow up again.

"Charlie." He answers simply, no other explanation coming with his introduction. He presses 'play' on the movie they were watching, and the pair immediately burst out in laughter again.

"Pea..." you try again, immediately regretting your decision when Sweet Pea huffs loudly and harshly slams your laptop shut.  

"What? Can't you see we're doing something! What the hell is wrong with you?!" He rapidly begins approaching you, causing you to back away in panic.

Sweet Pea never hit you, or any of his past girlfriends, before, but he also never spoke to you in such a... hateful tone. Rather than striking you like you were expecting, he slams the door shut. You shake the shock from your body, before rushing to the front door to escape Pea's rage.

With nowhere else to go, you find yourself walking in the direction of your other boyfriend's house.

Hurriedly wiping the tears from your red face, you knock gently on the door.

"I got it!" Another feminine voice shouts, not sounding like his mom's or sister's. The door opens to reveal a beautiful, tall girl. She looks to be about your age, with curly brunette hair and seemingly perfect features. Just staring at her adds to your insecurities. "Hey! I don't think we've met, I'm Jennie!" Even her stupid name and personality are perfect.

"H-hi. I...I'm (Y/N)." You fail at matching her enthusiasm. "Is Reggie home?" You force yourself to ask.

"Yeah! I'll run in and get him!" She practically skips into the house, shortly returning with a smiling Reggie. Unfortunately, his smile falls the second he sees you.

"What are you doing here?" He rolls his eyes as he speaks.

"J-just missed you..." you mumble. "I didn't know you were busy, I'm sorry. I'll go..." you drag your feet down the stairs, wishing he'd even say bye in response, but all you get is the door slamming shut.

You begin dragging your feet down the road, unsure where to go now.

Instinctively, you find yourself in front of your best friend's house, Jughead Jones. You almost talk yourself out of knocking due to fear of annoying him too, but there's nowhere else to go.

You knock quietly, the door almost flying open right away.

"(Y/N)? Sweet Pea asked me to look out for you, is everything okay?" You stare at him confused, why would Sweet Pea care about me? "(Y/N)?" Him calling your name again snaps you out of your violent thoughts.

"Sorry! I was just... yeah everything's fine. Can I come in?" You blurt out. He nods uncertainly, but steps over to let you in. "Why did Sweet Pea ask to look out for me?"

"Something about you rushing out with his jacket? I don't know, but he sounded busy." He shrugs uncaring. You look down and notice you are wearing Sweet Pea's signature jacket. You sigh, realizing he doesn't actually care about you. He just needs his jacket. "Everything okay?" He seats himself on the couch, patting the spot next to him.

"Yeah..." you simply mumble, not wanting to get into details about your failing relationship.

"I don't think you'd be here if that was true." He dryly chuckles.

"It's whatever, Jug. Can I spend the night? Thanks." You get up quickly, wanting to avoid the conversation. You hear his delayed yes, but still make a beeline to his spare room.

"I know you don't want to talk, but maybe a date at Pop's with them would clear things up? The three of you should sit and talk." Jughead suggests, leaning on the door frame. You almost laugh at how well he's able to read any situation.

"You're right, I just don't feel like dealing with it right now. They're busy anyway."

"Busy? With what? Charlie?" Your eyes almost bug out of your head.

"You know Charlie?" You almost shout at him.

"Newest Serpent." Jughead states factually. "Sweet Pea threw a tantrum about initiation, got her in without doing the dance." He can't stop the eye roll that comes with his words, where you get chills from remembering your own initiation.

"Really? Do you know anything about her?"

"Not really, she's quiet though. I never really got a chance to speak to her." You release another sigh at his words.

"I bet she's nice. And pretty." A loud groan escapes your mouth following your rant. "Reggie has a new girl too, and she's perfect. I can't compete." Jughead smiles sadly, sitting next to you and hugging you close.

"You don't need to compete, (Y/N). You're perfect." You can't help but let your mood rise a bit after his words.

"You always know how to make me feel better, Juggie."

"Of course. Get some rest, alright? Talk to them tomorrow." He ruffles your hair messily, before leaving you alone with your thoughts.

You're able to sleep with your spirits lifted a little.

___________________________________________________________________________

The next day, the three of you decided to meet at Pop's for lunch.

You leave Jughead's with a heavy heart after he leaves a gentle kiss to your forehead, in a perfectly brotherly manner.

After the fairly short walk, you decide to get a booth, knowing they tend to arrive late.

You're hoping to get a fixed relationship out of the conversation.

However, you're met with surprise when you see four seated at a booth, instead of two like you were expecting.

Reggie, Sweet Pea, Charlie, and Jennie are all seated together.

You cautiously walk up to their table, unsure how to act.

"Hey (Y/N)!" Jennie says cheerfully. "We ordered fries for you!" She pushes a plate full of clearly half eaten fries in your direction. You still crack a little smile at the the effort.

"I... I just thought it was gonna be the three of us?" You ask weakly, still standing over their booth. Rather than a response from the two you came to meet, Jennie pops in again with a small gasp.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know we were intruding! Here, me and Charlie can grab another table!" Jennie goes to collect her stuff, before being stopped by Reggie.

"No, it's fine. I don't know why she's acting like that." Reggie rolls his eyes, Sweet Pea and Charlie still not even bothering to look at you.

"Reggie, it's really our fault. We should've known it was a date when you said (Y/N) was coming." The bright smile still doesn't leave her face.

"It's okay, sorry Jennie." You finally force yourself to speak. "I was just a little confused, I'll pull a chair over." You leave to find an empty chair, dragging it over to the head of the table. Yet, once you sit, the group resume in their previous conversation, excluding you. You just sit quietly, pushing your plate of fries around, having lost your appetite from the interaction.

"Alright, I think we're gonna head home." Reggie finally acknowledges you. Jennie and he begin collecting their stuff, leaving you unsure on what to do.

All you want to do is lay down on your own bed, maybe cry a little, and just go to sleep. But you don't know if Sweet Pea and Charlie are going to your trailer.

"Yeah, us too." Sweet Pea follows, stretching as he gets up from the booth.

"Pea? Are you going home?" You finally gather the courage to ask, holding your breath as you wait for a response.

"Why?" He snaps again, still not looking at you.

Does he hate me that much he can't even look at me?

"I... I do-don't want to bother y-you guys if yo-you're going ba-back to the trailer." You struggle to get the words out.

"Good, cause we are." He rolls his eyes again, shoving past you, Charlie closely following.

"Hey, (Y/N), Reggie and I were going to head back to my place. Would you want to come? We're probably watching a movie or something." She smiles sweetly at you, but you still let yourself be swayed by the look of disgust on Reggie's face.

"It's alright, but thank you for the offer." You mumble, staring at your torn up shoes.

"Are you sure? Don't you live with Sweet Pea? Where are you spending the night?"

"I'll figure it out, Jennie. But thank you for caring." You try to give her a genuine smile, but it doesn't reach your eyes.

"Alright, good night (Y/N)!" Her and Reggie leave you sitting alone in the chair you pulled over, once again not knowing where to go.

After a deep sigh and covering your face with your hands, you pull yourself up and let your feet guide you. Talking yourself out of bothering Jughead again, you decide to break into his father's office instead.

FP Jones barely uses it anyway, it's more of a storage room. But, lucky for you, there's a recliner big enough for you to spend the long night.

You sadly curl up on the chair, allowing yourself to shed a few tears, before calling it a night. _____________________________________________________________________

Unfortunately, a voice wakes you before your alarm goes off.

"Kid, what the hell are you doing?" You roll off the sofa in surprise, making eye contact with the owner of the office you broke into.

"Mr. Jones! Sorry! I was going to leave in the morning but I fell asleep... I'm so sorry. I'll clean everything up an-" he simply holds a hand up to silence you.

"Don't worry about it. You didn't even touch anything." You sigh in relief, feeling thankful for your close relationship with him. "But you are going to explain to me what you're doing in my office at the ass crack of dawn." He plops himself down on his office chair, scanning your disheveled appearance.

"I don't really wanna talk about it..." you mumble, trying to get out of the situation.

"Then you shouldn't have broken into my office. C'mon, spill." A deep sigh escapes your lips, before you finally nod in defeat.

"It's Sweet Pea and Reggie," your voice is barely audible, too embarrassed to properly speak to the gang leader about your relationship drama.

"They hurting you?" His posture immediately stiffens into a defensive stance, causing panic to course through you.

"No! Of course not! They'd never, Mr. Jones."

"Then what's the problem?"

"They've just been ignoring me, I guess." You mumble sadly.

"Charlie?" You hate how the Jones's know you so well. You're unable to hide any thought or problem from them.

"...yeah, and this other Northsider. Jennie. They're... perfect, Mr. Jones. And I'm not. I can't blame them." He responds to your self hate with a soft sigh, not knowing how to respond.

Teenage problems have changed a lot since he was growing up.

"Don't put yourself down like that, kid." FP replies with uncertainty, never really the best at advice. His dad would just smack him over the head and tell him to get his shit together.

"It's okay, Mr. Jones. I'll get going, thank you for letting me stay the night."

"Course, Charlie. My office is always open for you to break in to." You try to smile in response, but the smile doesn't reach your eyes. Then, you swiftly exit his office, still embarrassed from being caught in the first place.

You sigh to yourself, still so confused.

When did everything get so complicated?

_______________________________________________________

You walked over to Jughead's house again, still temporarily homeless. As always, he welcomes you happily, deciding to kill time by cuddling and watching a movie. Always unable to stay awake during movies, you feel your eyes drifting shut right after Jughead points out the most important part. Still, you rest your head fully on Jughead's shoulder and pull him a little closer.

"Hey, your phone's blowing up." He rasps, shaking you awake gently.  You thanked him softly, squinting as the light from your phone burned your eyes. You were shocked when you saw your phone practically flooded with texts from Sweet Pea and Reggie. "Who's it?" He slurs, tiredness obviously hindering his actions.

"Pea and Reg." You mumble, throwing your phone to the side.

"You're not responding?" He woke up a little more at the sound of the names causing you so much distress.

"No." You answer firmly, with no thought, just holding him tighter. Jughead releases a quiet laugh at your answer, but has no problem with accepting it.

They can wait.

________________________________________

Later that night, you finally forced yourself to answer their endless calls and texts. Your phone is filled with panicked texts and voicemails wondering where you disappeared to.

You roll over on the bed you decided to share with Jughead for the night, seeing he's still asleep. Not wanting to bother him, you slowly roll out of his bed, leaving him a note about your situation.

You call Sweet Pea, curious of his sudden care towards you.

"Hey," you're so shocked of him answering right away you forget to respond. "Babe?"

"Yea-Yeah! Hi!" You almost shout.

"Reg and I were wondering if you want to have a movie night? We haven't seen you in a while." You hold back a scoff, choosing to keep the air clear.

"O-okay. Can I come over now?" You ask weakly. You almost want to ask if Charlie and Jennie are going to be there, but you hold yourself back. You start walking in the direction of Reggie's house, assuming the movie night is hosted by him as usual. The walk isn't too long, maybe 15 minutes, and the weather was nice so you weren't complaining. You really did miss them.

"Of course. Meet us at Reggie's." Always a man of few words, you assume the conversation is over there. However, you bring the phone back to your ear when you hear them speak again.

"Hello?" But you go unanswered.

"I don't know, Reg. She's been getting on my nerves lately." You don't want to eavesdrop, but you're unable to help it. You know you should hang up, but your relationship has been on the verge of completely falling apart, and you'd do almost anything if it even gave you a chance at fixing it.

"(Y/N)? I know what you mean." You can almost hear the eye roll that came along with the agreement. "She's so clingy. It was cute at first, but I don't know if I can keep up."

"...we shouldn't make it too obvious though, right? We have been ignoring her recently, she doesn't deserve that." A gentle smile cracks through your face when you hear the little concern he has for you, but it quickly fades at the remembrance of their previous words.

"I mean, I guess." You can almost hear the shrug that comes with those words, Sweet Pea needs to maintain his careless persona.

Finally deciding you heard enough, you hang up and gather the courage to knock on the door.

"Coming!" Reggie's deep voice shouts. The door flies open quickly, his smiling face greeting you.

"Hi." You say quietly, genuinely not wanting to annoy them with the sound of your voice.

"Hey babe!" Reggie exclaims, coming closer to embrace you.

How can he be acting so normal?  You ask yourself.

"Hey." You utter another greeting, but trying to avoid his hug.

"Babe? Is everything okay?" Slipping off your shoes and dropping your bag neatly by the door, you respond with a gentle nod. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I just think I'm coming down with something..." your voice lowers in volume with every word, eyes drifting to stare at the floor.

"Really? Do you need tea? Medicine? PEA! Boil some hot water!" Reggie commands, coming closer to try and embrace you again, to which you back away quickly.

"No! It's okay!" You internally panic at the thought of bothering Sweet Pea with your needs. "I don't need anything, I'm fine." Reggie still stares at you uncertainty, but accepting the odd behavior.

"...okay, just let us know if you need anything. We missed you!" You only nod in response, trying to reduce the amount of times you speak to them in a day.

"Hi, sweetheart." Another deep voice sounds from behind you. You flinch at the sudden appearance, turning to face your other boyfriend. "You feeling okay?" Instead of allowing a gentle forehead kiss to happen, something that always helped you relax, you rapidly nod your head so he doesn't attempt to come closer than he already is.

"I'm fine." You squeak out again, walking past both of them to sit on the couch.

The pair share a suspicious look behind your back, before shrugging and coming to join you on the couch.

Sweet Pea beats Reggie to the spot next to you, immediately pulling you closer to him and attempting to cuddle with you. However, you hurriedly shove his arm off, moving to sit on the recliner positioned diagonal from the couch.

"I think I'm sick, I don't want to give you my virus." You make up on the spot, curling up in a ball in your seat.

"Babe, it's alright if you're sick. We don't care." Reggie approaches you slowly, placing his hands on the arms of the chair, caging you in so you can't run again. "It'll be more comfortable if you sit on the couch with us, come on."

"I just feel hot, Reggie. It's cooler over here." You mumble again, curling under the blanket draped over the recliner. He sends you an odd look, but shrugs when he realizes he's in a losing battle.

"Alright..." he takes a seat next to Sweet Pea, the pair sharing a blanket with their eyes glued to the movie playing. You smile sadly at the sight of them sitting together. They look... perfect. It only adds to how out of place you've been feeling lately. You sitting in the middle of them would just ruin the picture perfect image.

Another gentle sigh escapes you, but you try to focus on the movie instead of them.

"Hey, babe, don't you like that actor?" Reggie asks, but you just nod stiffly, not even sure what or who they're talking about. You've long since zoned out of the movie, you wouldn't even be able to tell them the title if they asked. You miss the look they exchange, the only actors on the screen are from an infomercial about adult diapers. Something's clearly wrong with you.

"Okay, do we need to talk about something?" Sweet Pea finally cuts through the awkwardness, turning the TV off. "You're acting weirder than normal." He directs towards you, but you still refuse to make eye contact.

"No." A short answer, still trying to not talk around them.

"(Y/N), it'll be easier if you just talk to us." Reggie tries to urge you into speaking. You finally lift your head up, looking rapidly between the two of them. "You know you can tell us anything." He smiles softly, trying to ease you into speaking. You shut your eyes tightly, before taking a deep breath.

"I think we should break up." You finally blurt out without thinking. The two boys' mouths widen in shock, not fully comprehending your words.

"Break up? Why?" Sweet Pea can't stop the anger flooding into his tone from your impulsive suggestion.

"Just... because." You mutter, not knowing how to vocalize your thoughts from the last month.

"Sweetie, we're gonna need more than a 'because' if you want to break up." Sweet Pea's naturally condescending tone makes you feel even worse about the situation.

"I-I don't know." You stupidly say, opting to stare at your hands.

"You don't know?" He stands up suddenly, rapidly walking towards you.

"Pea, calm down." Reggie snaps, blocking your body from Sweet Pea. "We're going to sit down and have a calm conversation, does that work for everyone?" You just nod, Sweet Pea rolling his eyes in anger.

"Whatever." He grumbles, sitting down in his previous seat on the couch.

"Baby, you have to have a reason." Reggie tries again.

"I just don't want to bother you anymore..." you mutter, tearing up slightly.

"Bother us?" Sweet Pea's tone softens slightly, but he's still in a slightly defensive stance.

"I mean... you guys have new people now." You chuckle slightly. "You don't really need me anymore. We haven't even talked in at least a month. You're all so happy with Jennie and Charlie, I don't want to be in the middle of it anymore." They stare at you in what you're assuming is anger. "I'll just go guys. I'm sorry for ruining your night." You get up quickly, making a beeline for the door. However, both of the men stop you, Sweet Pea picking you up and gently placing you back on the couch. You're surprised to see the tears in his eyes.

"Baby... baby we're so sorry." He cries into your shoulder, causing your own tears to fall.

"No, don't say sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't better for you." You choke out through sobs.

"That's not true." Reggie rasps, tears flooding his own eyes. The three of you sit huddled together on the couch, unable to speak anymore through the never ending sobs.

"We love you, baby." Sweet Pea finally breaks the silence, pressing a small kiss to her cheek after wiping her tears.

"We love you so much." Reggie adds, squeezing the both of you tighter. Their hearts break when they hear your little sobs and Sweet Pea goes to wipe your tears.

"Can we fix this?" You finally force yourself to ask, still not able to see a solution within the love they're giving you.

"Of course!" Reggie and Sweet Pea exclaim loudly.

"We'll do whatever we need to make up for it." Reggie tearfully promises, kissing your forehead.

You feel nothing but love being in their arms in this moment, but something doesn't feel right still.

You still have so many questions.

"But... why were you so mean?" In any other scenario, the boys would have swooned at how adorable your childlike tone came off. Yet, it only breaks their heart more. It's another reminder at how badly they messed up.

"I don't know, baby. I-"

"That's not good enough!" They also jump away in shock at your sudden outburst. Your voice hardly ever went past a gentle whisper. "I- you all made me feel worthless! I spent this past month wondering what I did wrong and I couldn't even go home because you and Charlie were always in our room! I need more than an I don't know." Your anger is radiating off of you, but you can only feel proud at finally standing up for yourself. But they just stare at you blankly. "If you don't have an answer, I'm going to go back to Jug's house until you know what you want from me."

"No, let's just sit and-"

"I waited a month, Reggie. I need an answer now."

"Honestly, we don't have one." Sweet Pea bluntly states. "I know you want an explanation and reasons, but we can't give you one. But we can give you a promise to never let it happen again. Hell, we won't even need to contact Charlie or Jennie ever again," Reggie nods in agreement, "so, can we try again?"

"Yeah, we're so sorry, baby." Reggie chimes in. "We love you more than anything and I can't believe how badly we messed up. Just give us a second chance, baby? Please?"

You know you shouldn't. Everything is screaming at you to run away back to your safety and forget about them, let them be happy with their new girls.

But... the amount of love in their eyes right now makes it hard to doubt their truthfulness.

"Okay." You mumble weakly. "Okay. Let's try again." You're suddenly tackled by two large figures, the three of you collapsing onto the couch. They start peppering every inch of your face and neck in kisses, causing giggles to erupt from all of you.

You suddenly feel like you won't regret this decision.

[ohtheseboysilove]

The greatess actress II [Ben Hardy x F!Reader]

sWords : 4, 000 K +

Warnings : mostly angst, fluff

Summary :  Things aren’t always as they seems.

Note : More angst for you guys, I know you all ask for it so here you go :) I’m really gmad for all the reviews and positive feedbacks I had for the first chapter so thank u so much ! I didn’t start writing chapter 3 yet but I have few ideas so if you guys have suggestions or theories I would love to heart hat !!! (i mostly replied to the messages in my inbox bc it’s easier to see them than the comments !!) Much love xx 

x Masterlist x

“And…action !”

You pretended to leave and Ben grabbed your wrist, tugging him against him rather roughly. You put a flat hand on his torso and looked at him with big, lost eyes.

“What—”

“Don’t say anything, baby” Then he crashed his lips on yours, sending a wave of electricity down your spine as you replied eagerly to the kiss.

The kiss was intense, slow and hot, during for what seemed like age. You weren’t really complaining. But it was the third time you did this scene because of the director who always wanted to add something and it started to be a bit much for you and your weak heart.

“And we got it ! Awesome guys !” The director jumped from his seat and went behind the camera looking at the screen with enthusiasm. “Everyone, take 5 !”

You sighed discretely and detached yourself from Ben, running a nervous finger through your hairs.

“Are you still coming tonight ?” You glanced toward the blond man, gaze falling right on his swollen lips, tempting and deliciously-looking red.

“Hum, probably ?” You scolded mentally yourself to stop looking at his mouth like a fucking creep and instead focus on his eyes.

Which maybe wasn’t better.

“Oh come on, it’s Randy’s last day ! He won’t forgive you if you don’t come” Ben winked and you chuckled awkwardly, ignoring the way the butterflies were going crazy in your belly.

“I guess you’re right” You smiled almost shyly, his bright and beautiful eyes were always making you kind of timid. “But I won’t stay long, we got an early scene tomorrow” You felt yourself become ridiculously red when he laughed loudly and threw an arm around your shoulders, squeezing you tightly against his strong body.

“You’re right and I’m pretty excited for tomorrow anyway”

You both walked to your trailers, next to each other, as the day was done and you couldn’t wait to go back into your own clothes.

“You are ?” You briefly remembered that the scene you had to do tomorrow was pretty romantic, lot of touchy-feely moments but nothing sexual, thanks god.

“Yeah, I mean…we’re filming at the beach so obviously breaks gonna be funnier than on set” He grinned and you silently swallowed back the disappointment bubbling in your chest.

“The beach, right” You forced a smile. Of course that was the reason why he was excited, idiot. He had a freaking girlfriend for god’s sake. “I will see you later, Ben” You waved awkwardly and climbed the few steps to your trailers before closing the door behind you, barely hearing his answer.

You let your body fall heavily on your bed, feeling exhausted and completely stupid.

It wasn’t the first time you had feelings for one of your co-star, honestly it was hard to stay hermetic when your job was to kiss a handsome and nice guy all day long. Once, you had to film for few weeks with Liam Hemsworth and god, the man was absolutely breathtaking. You had a tiny crush on him during the filming but nothing horrible, it didn’t make your job more complicated or anything. It was fairly innocent. You just enjoyed what a beautiful man he was but you stayed in control easily.

You also dated for two years with one of your previous co-stars, George Mackay but it was pretty obvious from the beginning that the both of you were into each other, which made everything easier.

You didn’t forget either when you had a tiny role in a big Hollywood move where you were only needed to literally make out with Leonardo DiCaprio. It was probably the first time you were so nervous to act, which was ridiculous because you barely spent more than two hours on set. But it was Leonardo freaking DiCaprio, your first crush had been Jack Dawson from Titanic so obviously it was huge for you.

No one probably remembered you from this movie but it was your little moment of pride. You made out with Leonardo freaking DiCaprio.

But nothing could compare to your feelings with Ben. You weren’t prepared at all for the wave of feelings which hit you strong in the face. Not at all.

When you first heard that you would be filming with Ben as co-star, you did some researches and found out it was the guy from the Bohemian Rhapsody movie, you were happy because he was an excellent actor in this film. And you couldn’t denied he was pretty attractive which could help as you were supposed to play lovers in this new project.

It started with an innocent crush, making your friends a bit jealous because you were kissing and holding hands with the new heart-robe of Hollywood. But it turned out to be much more when you started hanging out with him. He wasn’t only handsome. He was really funny, humble, generous, always making sure you were comfortable for any kind of intimate scene but he was also sensitive and not as confident as you thought first.

He was everything you could dream in a boyfriend.

You sighed loudly and rubbed your face roughly, heart beating heavily in your chest.

Why did you have to fall in love with an unavailable man ?

**

“We’re gonna miss you, big guy !” You watched Ben cheekily tussled Randy dirty red hairs, a large smile on his face.

“´f course you will ! But no need to go all emotional on me, Hardy. You’re still invited to my wedding in two months” Randy chuckled, his hand wrapped around a large pint of beer.

You giggled quietly as the two friends hugged again, both of them pretty tipsy after several drinks. Randy was playing one of Ben’s closest friend in the movie but he finished to do all of his scenes and he was now, sadly, leaving the set.

You took a little sip of your Margarita, only the second drinks of the evening for you as you hated being tired or hungover to film. Especially when you had to focus much more with your feelings for Ben, making your job much harder.

“Who is gonna kick my ass at FIFA now ?” The British man complained with a pout, making the whole table giggled.

“Literally everyone, Hardy” Joshua, one of the secondary actor of the movie spoke up, earning a round of applause from everyone.

You let your eyes trailed on Ben for few seconds. You couldn’t help but looked at him. He was so different out of the set, much more relax and you loved even more this part of him. His blond hairs were all over the place, slightly longer than before and it was certainly doing things to you. The way his eyes were sparkling due to the alcohol made your heart beat faster, this childish look was good on him, always wearing his boyish smile which made your knees weak.

And, surprisingly, Isis wasn’t here tonight. You felt like you could breath a little bit easier when she wasn’t around. You were so worried she found out you were in love with her boyfriend, it was scaring you more than everything.

“(Y/N) !” You jumped at Randy's voice and quickly tore your eyes from Ben’s jaw, pushing aside any thoughts.

“Yeah ?”

“I said do you want another drink ?” You nodded weakly and swallowed thickly, feeling nervous to almost been caught day-dreaming about Ben. “What were you looking at so intensely ? This little boyfriend of yours ?” The red hair laughed and pinched the blond’s cheek, making him groaned.

“Hey!” Ben pushed his hands away from his face and looked at you, an amused smile on his features. “I’m pretty sure she wasn’t looking at me, she see me enough all day long”

“True” You grinned and internally screamed. You could never be bored of looking at his pretty face. Never.

“So who where you looking at ? Did someone caught your eyes perhaps ?” Everyone turned, very discreetly, around and started giggling like teenager when they saw a quite charming brunette glancing over the table, few of his friends clearly teasing him.

“I see” Ben winked at you, finishing his drink with one gulp. “I think you should talk to him” He tilted his head toward the guy and you cringed internally.

It was literally the last thing you wanted to do. You didn’t even notice this guy until they all started looking at him. Your luck, obviously.

“I’m not sure about that” You laughed awkwardly and pushed few strands of hairs behind your ear, hoping for something, anything, to save you from talking to this stranger.

“Oh come on ! He is literally devouring you with his eyes” Ben nudged you gently. “And you were doing the same a minute before” He smirked and you were half relieved that he didn’t notice you were ogling him, not this random dude.

“(Y/N) ! (Y/N) ! (Y/N)” You wanted to disappear right now. You watched your friends cheering your name until you had enough and decided to agree, walking to the bar where you knew the guy would meet you too. “Go get it girl !” Randy drunkenly yelled and you felt your whole face turned red.

“Hey” You looked at the brunette, he wasn’t bad looking clearly. Curly hairs and cute dimples. Totally your type before you fell for a blond beefy guy.

“Hi” You smiled nervously and discreetly glanced toward Ben, looking for any kind of reassurance that he was maybe a bit annoyed by the fact that you were talking to another guy.

You couldn’t help yourself but wished that maybe he was sharing your feelings. Deep down. Maybe he was falling for you too but still confused with Isis. Conflicted. It was selfish but there were nothing you could do about these thoughts. Except keeping them for you.

But for all answer from Ben, you get a cheeky smile and two thumbs up. Clearly not bothered by the situation. You returned the smile, fake and smaller one before turning around to the man, your throat tight and your heart even more broken.

These feelings were clearly one-sided.

**

“You look like shit, hun” Molly greeted you as you sat, or rather flopped very graciously, on the chair in front of her, a fuming Costa cup in your right hand.

“That’s why you’re here” You snorted lazily before taking a sip of your coffee, not in the mood to talk much.

She glanced at you, feeling the mood immediately and decided to start your hairs and makeup in silence, humming quietly.

The whole crew was at the beach for the day and the place was truly breathtaking, a little creek mostly quiet except for the soft rolling of the waves. It was still dark outside, the sun barely peaking up and you needed to get the perfect scene as the director really wanted the whole sun rising romantic moment for your and Ben’s characters.

“Ten minutes before we started !” You sighed quietly and quickly finished your coffee, feeling already done with this way too cute scene for you.

Ben waved at you from his chair, Isis not far from him, both of them getting ready too. Yeah, like it wasn’t hard enough for you, Isis managed to get a small part as an extra for few scenes. Easy when you dated the main actor. And even more when you were as gorgeous as she was.

“All done, honey” You thanked Molly and rose on your feet, walking toward the small wardrobe department to get your clothes for the shoot.

A cute little yellow bikini and a pair of sunglasses were all you needed for today. The thought of spending so much time near Ben with so little clothes on was stressful. You nearly fainted when you spotted him walking in his blue swim trunk, a beach towel lazily hanging from his right shoulder.

What a sight.

**

And…action !“

You took a deep sight and blocked every other thoughts than the ones about Ellie, the character you were portraying in this movie.

"I’m glad we decided to come here” Ben or rather Will, murmured in your ear, hands softly resting on your hips as you were perched on his lap.

“Me too” You slightly turned your head just enough to catch his eyes, smiling sweetly.

The scene was indeed very romantic. Kind of cliché but still, it was making your heart beat much faster. Ben was seating on the white sand, his body pressed against you was bringing shivers down your frame.

Your group of friends were seating around a camp fire, giggling and chatting as you and Ben were with them but in your own bubble, looking at each other lovingly.

As the sun slowly rose, you continued to act as you had to, suppressing the love which was wrapping your entire body every time you looked at him. Few kisses were exchanged, few touches as well and other sweet little attentions between the two of you, carefully following the script.

It was even harder because for you everything felt so natural. When you had to play with his hairs at the back of his neck you weren’t acting, not really. It was easy, like you done it your whole life. When Ben rested softly a hand on your knee you didn’t feel awkward or nervous, it felt right. And it had been like that since day one.

“You’re not too cold ? I felt you shiver during our scene” Ben whispered as you had a mini break, waiting for everyone to go back at their assigned spots.

You wanted to laugh at his innocent remark. God bless this sweet, innocent Ben. Yes it wasn’t very warm but the simple feeling of your half naked body against mine was the only main reason of my shivers.

But you simply nodded. “Yeah but it’s alright we’re almost done with this scene anyway” You patted his shoulder nicely and he gently rubbed your forearm, in a nice attempt of keeping your warm.

**

Few hours later and you were still on the beach, few more scenes to film with this time, the sun high in the sky and the heat nicely warming your skin.

You shielded your vision to watch Ben cockily walked toward you, his body dripping wet from the bath he just took in the sea.

“Hey there” He grinned and didn’t lost a minute before laying on top of you, making you squirmed under him at the freshness of the water.

“Get off me idiot !” You giggled and tried to wiggle your way out but his strong body was easily caging you.

“Can’t do that, you’re really comfy” He laid even more on you and you let out a shaky breath as you could feel every muscles of his body against yours. “Everyone is having fun, except you, come on !” You gasped when he ran his wet hand in your hairs, purposely messing them on your face before moving off you.

“I’m reading a very good book” You weakly replied, the lie tasting bitter on your tongue.

You were just avoiding going near his girlfriend. You were on a break for a little hour and most of the crew was in the water and you would love to join them. But Isis was there too, gaining most of the attention as she was always speaking loudly or giggling. And did you mentioned how pretty she was ? Everyone could see that too. So you just felt awkward next to her, stupid really but she was so confident and dating Ben. You were so scared that somehow she noticed how you looked at him and understood what was going on. It would be a total mess if she did. 

“Yeah, whatever” The blond rolled his eyes at you bad excuse before catching your hips and throwing you over his shoulder. You screamed from the top of your lungs as he run toward the water, chuckling louder every time you asked, rather yelled, him to let you go.

He threw you on the water as everyone cheered, apparently really amused by his stupid joke. You felt two hands quickly grabbing you from under the water and you took a big breath, the salty water dripping on your face.

“You’re alright ?” Ben’s giant smile immediately warmed you up. You clenched your hands on his shoulder, wiping the water from your features with your free hand, couching a bit at the salty taste.

“Asshole” You mumbled as you pushed your hairs away from your face. You slapped his chest when he audibly laughed. ”This is so not funny ! I was fine on my towel" You protested but couldn’t suppress the amused smiled from blossoming upon your face.

“Why are you laughing then ?” Ben teased you and you rolled your eyes before swimming away from him, heart fluttering heavily at the simple interaction you just had with him.

Why he had to be so bloody cute with you all the time ? It wasn’t helping your case.

You looked behind your shoulder toward Ben and your smile dropped immediately when you spotted Isis, hanging around his neck as they shared a giggling kiss.

He was just being friendly, get your shit together for god’s sake, (Y/N).

You didn’t miss the suspicious glance that Isis threw you, her brows slightly furrowed like she was in deep reflection. She gave you a little smile when she caught your eyes on her before she focused back on the British man.

You deeply hoped she wasn’t thinking anything about this little friendly moment between you and Ben.

**

“Baby, can you put me some sun-cream on ?” You raised your head toward Ben and stood up, grabbing the protection from his hand.

“You knew you could do it yourself” You commented as you applied a small amount of cream in your hand before rubbing it onto Ben’s large shoulders.

“I can’t reach some part” He grinned, sunglasses hanging low on his nose.

It was like the universe like to torturing you. Every scene you had to do was painfully touchy today and it was putting you under a strong pressure. Isis’ intense gaze on you wasn’t helping either, she watching with attention every of your interactions with her boyfriend.

It wasn’t your fault, you were just acting right now. But you felt incredibly uncomfortable under her eyes. Like you were doing something wrong. Which you weren’t as it was your freaking job.

“You’re just lazy, Will” You rolled your eyes and kept rubbing the sun-cream on his back, breathing quickening as you reached his hips. “Done” You announced before he turned around, welcoming you with his beautiful and chiselled face.

“Why about here, hum ?” He cheekily drummed his digits on his firm pectoral. He cocked his head to the side, wearing your favourite boyish smile. “Don’t wanna burn” He pouted and you bit your lips, finding him unfairly adorable.

You quickly stopped your day dreaming and scoffed as you were supposed to, pretending to be annoyed.

“You’re a pain in the ass, Will” You repeated the same actions, pouring cream in your hands before rubbing it on his warm torso, goosebumps spreading all over your skin,

“But you love me anyway” He replied with a little smile, pushing his sunglasses on the top of his head.

“Yes, I do” You murmured and, not without difficulty, grinned at him. You were supposed to be happy but the painful truth hiding behind your words was hard to get along with.

“Your hands are so much softer than mine” The blond sighed as he closed his eyes, your pads barely touching his abs. You couldn’t go further or you would literally combust.

“That’s because you never want to put night cream on yours, silly” You said and took few steps away as he lowered his head toward you, eyes still closed. You sighed loudly and quickly rubbed the sun cream on his face.

“No, no ! Stop !” The director made you jump as Ben opened his eyes, both of you looking at him. “(Y/N), darling, you were doing perfectly fine but this last scene…you need to be gentle and tender, alright ? It’s supposed to be a romantic scene between Ellie and Will, not looking like you just want to get ride of him” You chuckled weakly and nodded, watching the director going back to his chair.

“Already annoyed with my presence ?” Ben teased as he went back to his previous position.

You simply smiled and waited for the green light of the cameramen before executing the script. You slowly rubbed your fingers against his face, caressing every of his features without looking away from his eyes, giving to the director all the love he wanted. You swallowed thickly at your proximity, his eyes not leaving yours for a second as you kept caressing his strong cheekbones.

“There you go” You rubbed the remaining of cream on his neck and locked your arms behind it, repressing a shiver when his hands found your face.

You absolutely adored how his digits slid softly on your skin, cupping your jaw like if you were the most precious thing in the world. His thumb gently caressing your cheek as he pressed a sickly sweet kiss on your lips. You could feel the warmth coming from his chest and the pleasant sigh which escaped your mouth wasn’t for the act anymore.

There were absolutely not better feeling in the world.

**

You let out a deep breath as you snuggled further into your hoodie, the warmth of the day already fading away as the sun disappeared slowly. You grabbed your phone and answered few texts, exhaustion rolling down your bones.

“Are you texting the guy from yesterday ?” You shook your head lazily, letting a yawn escaping your mouth as Joshua, who was playing your brother, sat next to you. “Why not ?”

“Not really interesting” You didn’t bother explaining further, to tired for that. ”How it’s going with Danny ? When he is coming already ?“

Joshua’s eyes immediately lighted up at the mention of his boyfriend.

"Very well, thanks” He beamed and showed you his new screen lock, an adorable picture of the two of them with their new puppy. You let out a little aww and Joshua smiled wider. “He is coming next week, I can’t wait to see him ! And to introduce him to you !”

You listened to his exciting chatting, a little pinching for your heart at how happy and in love he was.

**

You groaned and get up from your chair as Ben was late for filming. You knew Isis was around so they probably just didn’t see the time, laying in bed. Still, it wasn’t something Ben did often, he was always in time and ready to work.

You swallowed roughly as you walked to his trailer, praying they weren’t shagging because you didn’t know how your heart would take it.

“It’s my freaking job, Isis !” You jumped at Ben’s loud voice followed by few cursing words.

You froze and decided smartly to not knock on the door and instead waited patiently next to the trailer, ear dropping shamelessly. You shouldn’t but you couldn’t help yourself.

“Well, I don’t like it at all, Benjamin !” She yelled back and you heard him sighing, probably knowing he was already late and his girlfriend wasn’t helping. “You didn’t see the way she look at you !”

You felt the same way as the day your best friend from high school threw you a bucket of freezing water on your head. You stopped breathing by fear they would hear you and tried your best to not panic.

Was she talking about you ?

Of course she was ! Who else could be the She ? You were done, done, done. The rest of the filming would be just awkward because of you and your stupid feelings.

"Oh my god, Isis ! We already had this conversation, (Y/N) is simply doing her job, alright ? You need to stop being so paranoiac for Christ’ sake !”

You felt yourself sweating uncomfortably as you listened to them, heart beating like crazy. This was a nightmare.

“She is not acting anymore Ben ! Open your damn eyes for once !” Isis groaned as she slammed a cup loudly on the table, making you jumped again. “She is not acting at all ! It’s fucking obvious !”

“What are you saying Isis ?” Ben muttered, clearly done with this argument. “Come on, enlighten me as apparently you know better than everyone !”

There a beat of complete silence, your muslces completely tetanised as you waited for her answer.

Isis let out a sarcastic, cold laugh. It worried you a lot. And then she pronounced these six little words which would make your heart stop. 

“She is fucking in love with you, Ben”

**

Tag list :  @jennyggggrrr @queenlover05 @cubedtriangle​

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[calmgotmelike]

Hey guys! So this is something I wrote awhile ago and idk if y’all will like it but wanted to post it 😊 let me know what you think and/or if I should write more. If you have any questions about horse stuff feel free to message me! The cover page has all the horses on it! I’ll reboot with the order of which horse is which.

5sos x horses; Luke Hemmings x Nicole

Chapter​ ​1

The​ ​trailer​ ​door​ ​swung​ ​open​ ​and​ ​a​ ​beautiful​ ​chestnut​ ​warmblood​ ​backed​ ​out​ ​with​ ​his​ ​head​ ​held​ ​high​ ​and​ ​his​ ​tail brushing​ ​against​ ​his​ ​legs,as​ ​he​ ​swishes​ ​it​ ​back​ ​and​ ​forth.​ ​His​ ​name​ ​was​ ​etched​ ​on​ ​the​ ​silver​ ​plate​ ​attached​ ​to​ ​the cheek​ ​piece​ ​of​ ​his​ ​orange​ ​halter.​ ​The​ ​scripture​ ​was​ ​neat​ ​and​ ​straight,​ ​etched​ ​in​ ​all​ ​capital​ ​letters​ ​"CRASH"​ ​centered in​ ​the​ ​middle​ ​of​ ​the​ ​plate.​ ​Crash​ ​was​ ​a​ ​heck​ ​of​ ​a​ ​horse,​ ​strong​ ​and​ ​trained​ ​to​ ​the​ ​t.​ ​He​ ​excelled​ ​in​ ​everything​ ​he​ ​did. He​ ​won​ ​almost​ ​all​ ​the​ ​Jumper​ ​shows​ ​he​ ​entered​ ​and​ ​excelled​ ​in​ ​dressage.​ ​Crash​ ​was​ ​sent​ ​to​ ​my​ ​farm​ ​as​ ​a retirement​ ​home,​ ​even​ ​though​ ​he's​ ​only​ ​about​ ​6.​ ​His​ ​owner​ ​decided​ ​that​ ​he​ ​should​ ​retire​ ​from​ ​the​ ​show​ ​life​ ​and​ ​just be​ ​a​ ​normal​ ​horse​ ​so​ ​I​ ​bought​ ​him​ ​to​ ​teach​ ​people​ ​how​ ​to​ ​jump​ ​and​ ​use​ ​him​ ​as​ ​a​ ​beginner​ ​level​ ​show​ ​horse.​ ​I​ ​took Crash​ ​from​ ​the​ ​trailer​ ​hand​ ​and​ ​led​ ​him​ ​into​ ​the​ ​barn.

The​ ​barn​ ​had​ ​about​ ​12​ ​stalls​ ​with​ ​an​ ​attached​ ​indoor​ ​riding​ ​arena​ ​at​ ​the​ ​end.​ ​There​ ​were​ ​6​ ​sets​ ​of​ ​cross​ ​ties in​ ​the​ ​isle​ ​between​ ​the​ ​stalls.​ ​There​ ​was​ ​a​ ​room​ ​5​ ​stalls​ ​deep​ ​on​ ​the​ ​left​ ​that​ ​was​ ​filled​ ​with saddles,halters,leads,bridles,​ ​and​ ​everything​ ​the​ ​horses​ ​needed​ ​along​ ​with​ ​their​ ​food.All​ ​the​ ​stalls​ ​led​ ​out​ ​to​ ​long stretched​ ​out​ ​paddocks,​ ​leaving​ ​the​ ​horses��� ​plenty​ ​of​ ​room​ ​to​ ​run​ ​and​ ​graze.​ ​All​ ​the​ ​horses​ ​were​ ​outside​ ​in​ ​their pastures​ ​when​ ​we​ ​entered​ ​the​ ​barn​ ​and​ ​​ ​I​ ​brought​ ​Crash​ ​into​ ​the​ ​4the​ ​stall​ ​on​ ​the​ ​left.​ ​I​ ​released​ ​the​ ​lead​ ​from​ ​the place​ ​it​ ​was​ ​clipped​ ​on​ ​his​ ​halter,​ ​letting​ ​him​ ​loose​ ​in​ ​his​ ​stall.​ ​He​ ​instantly​ ​gulped​ ​up​ ​some​ ​water​ ​and​ ​moved​ ​to​ ​his hay​ ​with​ ​a​ ​wag​ ​of​ ​his​ ​tail.​ ​After​ ​waving​ ​off​ ​the​ ​trailer​ ​hand,​ ​i​ ​climbed​ ​up​ ​into​ ​the​ ​hay​ ​loft​ ​and​ ​pushed​ ​down​ ​8​ ​bales​ ​of hay,​ ​landing​ ​them​ ​right​ ​outside​ ​the​ ​front​ ​door​ ​of​ ​the​ ​barn.

"Oy,Nicole!​ ​You​ ​almost​ ​crushed​ ​us​ ​there​ ​sweetheart."​ ​a​ ​thick​ ​Australian​ ​accent​ ​called​ ​from​ ​below.​ ​I​ ​smiled as​ ​i​ ​climbed​ ​down​ ​the​ ​ladder​ ​faced​ ​with​ ​4​ ​boys​ ​covered​ ​in​ ​hay.​ ​"Sorry​ ​guys!"​ ​I​ ​giggle​ ​as​ ​i​ ​grab​ ​each​ ​hay​ ​bail​ ​and quickly​ ​stack​ ​them​ ​in​ ​a​ ​4X4​ ​pile.​ ​"Haven't​ ​brought​ ​the​ ​horses​ ​in​ ​yet?"​ ​A​ ​voice​ ​asked​ ​form​ ​behind​ ​me.​ ​I​ ​turn​ ​around​ ​to face​ ​him.​ ​He​ ​is​ ​tall,​ ​about​ ​6'3",​ ​with​ ​bright​ ​blue​ ​eyes​ ​and​ ​blonde​ ​hair​ ​that​ ​was​ ​styled​ ​up​ ​into​ ​a​ ​quiff.​ ​"The​ ​new​ ​horse came​ ​just​ ​a​ ​few​ ​minutes​ ​ago,Lucas.I​ ​haven't​ ​had​ ​time."​ ​I​ ​smiled​ ​at​ ​him​ ​as​ ​i​ ​walked​ ​up​ ​to​ ​him​ ​and​ ​quickly​ ​kissed​ ​him on​ ​the​ ​lips.​ ​If​ ​you​ ​couldn't​ ​tell​ ​the​ ​blonde,tall​ ​boy​ ​is​ ​my​ ​boyfriend​ ​Luke.​ ​With​ ​him​ ​he​ ​brought​ ​his​ ​friends Ashton,Calum,and​ ​Michael.​ ​Ashton​ ​is​ ​tall​ ​but​ ​the​ ​shortest​ ​of​ ​the​ ​boys.​ ​he​ ​has​ ​curly​ ​brown​ ​hair​ ​with​ ​emerald​ ​green eyes​ ​and​ ​is​ ​always​ ​smiling.​ ​He​ ​wore​ ​a​ ​ripped​ ​up​ ​muscle​ ​tee​ ​and​ ​black​ ​skinny​ ​jean​ ​identical​ ​to​ ​the​ ​rest​ ​of​ ​the​ ​boys. Calum​ ​has​ ​black​ ​hair​ ​with​ ​a​ ​blond​ ​streak​ ​in​ ​his​ ​bangs​ ​that​ ​is​ ​swept​ ​off​ ​to​ ​the​ ​side​ ​just​ ​over​ ​his​ ​chocolate​ ​brown​ ​. Michael​ ​has​ ​a​ ​different​ ​hair​ ​color​ ​every​ ​time​ ​i​ ​see​ ​him,​ ​but​ ​today​ ​it​ ​was​ ​red​ ​and​ ​styled​ ​in​ ​a​ ​messy​ ​wind​ ​swept​ ​look hiding​ ​​ ​a​ ​little​ ​bit​ ​of​ ​his​ ​jade​ ​eyes​ ​from​ ​view.

"Do​ ​you​ ​guys​ ​wanna​ ​help​ ​me​ ​get​ ​them​ ​in?"​ ​i​ ​asked​ ​as​ ​i​ ​ran​ ​down​ ​to​ ​the​ ​end​ ​of​ ​the​ ​barn​ ​entering​ ​the​ ​stalls and​ ​clipping​ ​the​ ​doors​ ​to​ ​the​ ​paddocks​ ​open​ ​and​ ​sliding​ ​the​ ​stall​ ​doors​ ​closed​ ​behind​ ​me.​ ​Ashton​ ​and​ ​Calum​ ​did​ ​the same​ ​as​ ​I​ ​saw​ ​Luke​ ​and​ ​Michael​ ​struggling​ ​to​ ​open​ ​a​ ​hay​ ​bail.​ ​"Um,Nicole​ ​do​ ​you​ ​have​ ​like​ ​a​ ​knife​ ​or​ ​something?" Michael​ ​yells​ ​to​ ​me​ ​as​ ​i​ ​meet​ ​Calum​ ​and​ ​Ashton​ ​by​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​room,​ ​all​ ​the​ ​stalls​ ​ready​ ​for​ ​the​ ​horses.​ ​"You​ ​don't​ ​need one,Mike."​ ​i​ ​say​ ​as​ ​i​ ​walk​ ​over​ ​to​ ​them​ ​and​ ​take​ ​the​ ​baling​ ​twine​ ​and​ ​popping​ ​it​ ​off​ ​the​ ​hay.​ ​"Your​ ​girlfriends​ ​got​ ​some muscle,​ ​Luke"​ ​Michael​ ​nudges​ ​Luke​ ​in​ ​the​ ​arm​ ​as​ ​he​ ​watches​ ​me​ ​break​ ​open​ ​4​ ​more​ ​bales​ ​of​ ​hay.​ ​"It's​ ​because​ ​I've been​ ​opening​ ​hay​ ​bales​ ​for​ ​you​ ​for​ ​like​ ​3​ ​years."​ ​i​ ​turn​ ​around​ ​and​ ​look​ ​at​ ​Michael​ ​who​ ​is​ ​shocked​ ​for​ ​being​ ​called​ ​out on​ ​not​ ​be​ ​able​ ​to​ ​do​ ​it.​ ​The​ ​rest​ ​of​ ​the​ ​boys​ ​start​ ​laughing​ ​at​ ​Michaels​ ​lack​ ​of​ ​words​ ​and​ ​soon​ ​he​ ​joins​ ​in​ ​realizing​ ​i

was​ ​joking.Partially.​ ​The​ ​4​ ​boys​ ​helped​ ​me​ ​get​ ​hay​ ​in​ ​all​ ​the​ ​stall,​ ​Luke​ ​tossing​ ​a​ ​broken​ ​up​ ​bale​ ​over​ ​his​ ​shoulder and​ ​walking​ ​to​ ​the​ ​end​ ​of​ ​the​ ​barn,​ ​throwing​ ​2​ ​flakes​ ​in​ ​each​ ​stall​ ​until​ ​he​ ​ran​ ​out.

As​ ​soon​ ​as​ ​the​ ​hay​ ​was​ ​in​ ​all​ ​the​ ​stalls,​ ​Calum​ ​turns​ ​to​ ​me​ ​and​ ​asks​ ​"can​ ​i​ ​do​ ​it​ ​this​ ​time?"​ ​I​ ​laugh​ ​as​ ​I​ ​nod my​ ​head​ ​and​ ​grab​ ​onto​ ​Luke's​ ​arm​ ​as​ ​he​ ​comes​ ​up​ ​next​ ​to​ ​me.​ ​Calum​ ​put​ ​his​ ​fingers​ ​in​ ​his​ ​mouth​ ​and​ ​whistled​ ​loud and​ ​long​ ​and​ ​there​ ​was​ ​a​ ​moment​ ​of​ ​silence​ ​throughout​ ​the​ ​barn​ ​then​ ​there​ ​was​ ​the​ ​sound​ ​of​ ​thundering​ ​hooves.​ ​All the​ ​horses​ ​came​ ​running​ ​in​ ​as​ ​we​ ​stood​ ​at​ ​the​ ​beginning​ ​of​ ​the​ ​barn​ ​and​ ​watched​ ​as​ ​the​ ​horses​ ​started​ ​to​ ​nibble​ ​on their​ ​hay.​ ​In​ ​the​ ​stall​ ​to​ ​our​ ​left​ ​was​ ​Cam,​ ​a​ ​big​ ​chestnut​ ​suffolk​ ​punch.​ ​His​ ​coat​ ​glistened​ ​from​ ​the​ ​sunlight​ ​peeking​ ​in through​ ​the​ ​door​ ​behind​ ​him,​ ​making​ ​him​ ​look​ ​as​ ​if​ ​he​ ​was​ ​sparkling.​ ​On​ ​the​ ​Right​ ​side​ ​was​ ​Joe,​ ​a​ ​big​ ​black percheron​ ​with​ ​a​ ​huge​ ​head​ ​and​ ​body.​ ​His​ ​mane​ ​was​ ​perfectly​ ​straight​ ​and​ ​flopped​ ​to​ ​one​ ​side​ ​as​ ​he​ ​ate​ ​his​ ​hay. Beside​ ​Cam​ ​was​ ​my​ ​favorite​ ​horse,​ ​Baelfire.​ ​He​ ​is​ ​a​ ​beautiful​ ​bay​ ​Arabian​ ​with​ ​a​ ​beautiful​ ​white​ ​blaze​ ​going​ ​down​ ​his forehead​ ​and​ ​ending​ ​at​ ​the​ ​end​ ​of​ ​his​ ​nose.

Across​ ​from​ ​Baelfire​ ​was​ ​Jade.​ ​I​ ​have​ ​had​ ​Jade​ ​since​ ​she​ ​was​ ​a​ ​foal.I​ ​rescued​ ​her​ ​form​ ​an​ ​animal​ ​shelter after​ ​her​ ​mother​ ​passed​ ​away​ ​and​ ​needed​ ​constant​ ​care.​ ​​ ​There​ ​was​ ​about​ ​a​ ​month​ ​where​ ​i​ ​was​ ​sleeping​ ​in​ ​the​ ​barn with​ ​her​ ​,feeding​ ​her​ ​bottles​ ​every​ ​3​ ​hours.​ ​Now​ ​she​ ​was​ ​one​ ​of​ ​the​ ​best​ ​horses​ ​I've​ ​ever​ ​trained.​ ​Even​ ​though​ ​she​ ​is about​ ​7​ ​years​ ​old,​ ​she​ ​is​ ​trained​ ​to​ ​understand​ ​my​ ​vocal​ ​commands​ ​and​ ​i​ ​use​ ​her​ ​all​ ​the​ ​time​ ​to​ ​teach​ ​the​ ​barn​ ​kids how​ ​to​ ​ride.​ ​She​ ​is​ ​a​ ​beautiful​ ​white​ ​Warmblood​ ​mare​ ​and​ ​is​ ​one​ ​of​ ​the​ ​most​ ​beautiful​ ​horses​ ​I've​ ​ever​ ​seen.​ ​Next​ ​to Baelfire​ ​was​ ​Luke's​ ​horse,​ ​Coal.​ ​We​ ​had​ ​gotten​ ​him​ ​about​ ​a​ ​year​ ​and​ ​a​ ​half​ ​ago​ ​as​ ​a​ ​5​ ​year​ ​old​ ​and​ ​Luke​ ​instantly fell​ ​in​ ​love​ ​with​ ​him.​ ​Horses​ ​then​ ​turned​ ​into​ ​a​ ​passion​ ​for​ ​both​ ​of​ ​us.​ ​Luke​ ​worked​ ​hard​ ​with​ ​Coal​ ​to​ ​make​ ​him​ ​the excellent​ ​horse​ ​that​ ​he​ ​is​ ​today.​ ​Coal​ ​is​ ​absolutely​ ​spoiled​ ​too.​ ​Luke​ ​always​ ​sneaks​ ​down​ ​and​ ​gives​ ​him​ ​twizzlers​ ​and candy,​ ​which​ ​Coal​ ​loves​ ​and​ ​can​ ​now​ ​smell​ ​on​ ​anyone,​ ​even​ ​in​ ​your​ ​breath.​ ​Across​ ​from​ ​Coal​ ​​ ​​ ​is​ ​a​ ​horse​ ​named Klaus​ ​who​ ​is​ ​the​ ​biggest​ ​horse​ ​in​ ​the​ ​barn.​ ​He​ ​is​ ​a​ ​beautiful​ ​black​ ​and​ ​white​ ​shire​ ​with​ ​with​ ​fluffy​ ​white​ ​feathering​ ​on his​ ​jet​ ​black​ ​legs.​ ​​ ​He​ ​has​ ​a​ ​straight​ ​blaze​ ​running​ ​down​ ​the​ ​length​ ​of​ ​his​ ​face​ ​and​ ​ending​ ​right​ ​above​ ​his​ ​nose. Despite​ ​his​ ​big​ ​body,​ ​he's​ ​the​ ​sweetest​ ​horse​ ​and​ ​everyone​ ​who​ ​meets​ ​him​ ​instantly​ ​falls​ ​in​ ​love​ ​with​ ​him.​ ​Next​ ​to Klaus​ ​is​ ​Crash​ ​the​ ​warmblood​ ​that​ ​I​ ​received​ ​this​ ​morning.​ ​He​ ​was​ ​settling​ ​in​ ​nicely​ ​as​ ​he​ ​munched​ ​on​ ​his​ ​hay looking​ ​up​ ​and​ ​down​ ​the​ ​aisle​ ​at​ ​the​ ​horses​ ​around​ ​him.​ ​Across​ ​from​ ​Crash​ ​is​ ​Beck.​ ​Beck​ ​is​ ​a​ ​solid​ ​colored​ ​golden paint​ ​with​ ​a​ ​flaxen​ ​mane.Beck​ ​is​ ​sort​ ​of​ ​the​ ​barn​ ​stud.​ ​He​ ​always​ ​has​ ​the​ ​2​ ​barn​ ​mares​ ​around​ ​him​ ​and​ ​he​ ​is​ ​always very​ ​possessive​ ​over​ ​them.​ ​The​ ​other​ ​horses​ ​let​ ​him​ ​think​ ​he's​ ​the​ ​boss​ ​but​ ​when​ ​he​ ​steps​ ​out​ ​of​ ​line​ ​the​ ​horses​ ​put him​ ​right​ ​back​ ​in​ ​his​ ​place.

Next​ ​to​ ​Beck​ ​is​ ​an​ ​empty​ ​stall​ ​at​ ​the​ ​moment.​ ​Across​ ​from​ ​the​ ​empty​ ​stall​ ​is​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​room​ ​filled​ ​with​ ​saddles and​ ​bridles,along​ ​with​ ​brushes,first​ ​aid​ ​supplies,​ ​and​ ​a​ ​bunch​ ​of​ ​other​ ​horse​ ​necessities.​ ​Next​ ​to​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​room​ ​is​ ​a chestnut​ ​warmblood​ ​gelding​ ​named​ ​King.​ ​He​ ​is​ ​the​ ​old​ ​guy​ ​on​ ​the​ ​farm​ ​at​ ​the​ ​age​ ​of​ ​24,which​ ​is​ ​just​ ​a​ ​number​ ​to him.​ ​King​ ​loves​ ​to​ ​run​ ​and​ ​he​ ​loves​ ​to​ ​act​ ​like​ ​a​ ​2​ ​year​ ​old​ ​and​ ​run​ ​around​ ​the​ ​paddocks​ ​with​ ​the​ ​young​ ​guns​ ​of​ ​the barn.​ ​We​ ​never​ ​count​ ​King​ ​out​ ​because​ ​of​ ​his​ ​age.​ ​His​ ​age​ ​just​ ​makes​ ​him​ ​more​ ​experienced.​ ​Across​ ​from​ ​King​ ​is the​ ​other​ ​barn​ ​mare​ ​Aussie​ ​who​ ​is​ ​an​ ​Australian​ ​Stock​ ​horse.​ ​She​ ​is​ ​a​ ​beautiful​ ​dark​ ​bay​ ​with​ ​light​ ​points​ ​and​ ​legs. Aussie​ ​is​ ​a​ ​great​ ​trail​ ​horse​ ​and​ ​has​ ​received​ ​many​ ​ribbons​ ​in​ ​reining​ ​and​ ​barrel​ ​racing.​ ​I​ ​still​ ​take​ ​her​ ​to​ ​shows​ ​every once​ ​in​ ​a​ ​while​ ​but​ ​here​ ​new​ ​favorite​ ​thing​ ​to​ ​do​ ​is​ ​to​ ​go​ ​swimming​ ​in​ ​the​ ​lake​ ​down​ ​one​ ​of​ ​the​ ​trails.​ ​Next​ ​to​ ​Aussie is​ ​one​ ​of​ ​my​ ​favorite​ ​horses,​ ​Dino.​ ​Dino​ ​is​ ​an​ ​18​ ​hand​ ​giant​ ​Warmblood​ ​and​ ​is​ ​ever​ ​pound​ ​of​ ​2,000lbs.​ ​Dino​ ​is​ ​a​ ​dark bay​ ​with​ ​light​ ​dapples​ ​on​ ​his​ ​rear​ ​and​ ​white​ ​socks​ ​on​ ​his​ ​two​ ​front​ ​legs.​ ​Across​ ​from​ ​Dino​ ​is​ ​a​ ​small​ ​Paint​ ​named Mason​ ​who​ ​is​ ​very​ ​vibrant​ ​red​ ​paint​ ​with​ ​one​ ​brown​ ​eye​ ​and​ ​one​ ​blue​ ​eye.​ ​Mason​ ​is​ ​The​ ​youngest​ ​horse​ ​that​ ​i​ ​have at​ ​just​ ​about​ ​3​ ​years​ ​old.​ ​He​ ​is​ ​ridable,​ ​but​ ​is​ ​very​ ​green​ ​and​ ​needs​ ​a​ ​lot​ ​of​ ​help.​ ​Every​ ​one​ ​of​ ​these​ ​horses​ ​holds​ ​a special​ ​place​ ​in​ ​my​ ​heart​ ​and​ ​they​ ​are​ ​all​ ​family​ ​to​ ​Luke​ ​and​ ​I.

"So​ ​you​ ​guys​ ​ready​ ​to​ ​go​ ​now?"​ ​I​ ​ask​ ​as​ ​I​ ​enter​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​room​ ​walking​ ​down​ ​the​ ​line​ ​of​ ​bridles​ ​hooked​ ​to​ ​the wall​ ​and​ ​grabbing​ ​the​ ​black​ ​leather​ ​bridle​ ​with​ ​a​ ​snaffle​ ​bit​ ​on​ ​it​ ​and​ ​a​ ​silver​ ​tag​ ​on​ ​the​ ​brow​ ​band​ ​reading​ ​"Baelfire".​ ​I then​ ​grab​ ​my​ ​saddle​ ​from​ ​the​ ​saddle​ ​rack​ ​to​ ​the​ ​left​ ​of​ ​all​ ​the​ ​bridles,​ ​along​ ​with​ ​a​ ​saddle​ ​pad​ ​and​ ​girth.​ ​"Ash​ ​here has​ ​never​ ​ridden​ ​a​ ​horse,​ ​Nicole"​ ​Michael​ ​says​ ​as​ ​he​ ​grabs​ ​Ashton's​ ​shoulders​ ​and​ ​pushes​ ​him​ ​a​ ​little.​ ​"​ ​He​ ​can​ ​ride Jade!​ ​Where​ ​did​ ​Luke​ ​go,​ ​he​ ​can​ ​help"​ ​I​ ​ask​ ​Michael​ ​as​ ​Luke​ ​is​ ​no​ ​where​ ​to​ ​be​ ​found.​ ​As​ ​if​ ​on​ ​queue,​ ​Luke​ ​comes out​ ​of​ ​one​ ​of​ ​the​ ​stalls​ ​and​ ​starts​ ​walking​ ​towards​ ​us.​ ​"Well​ ​i​ ​was​ ​tacking​ ​up​ ​Coal​ ​cause​ ​i​ ​had​ ​a​ ​feeling​ ​you​ ​were gonna​ ​ask​ ​me​ ​to​ ​help​ ​Ash."​ ​Luke​ ​announces​ ​as​ ​he​ ​comes​ ​up​ ​next​ ​to​ ​me​ ​with​ ​all​ ​my​ ​tack​ ​in​ ​my​ ​arm​ ​and​ ​grabs​ ​my saddle​ ​and​ ​places​ ​it​ ​on​ ​the​ ​saddle​ ​rack​ ​near​ ​Baelfires​ ​stall.​ ​"​ ​Thank​ ​you,​ ​Baby."​ ​i​ ​say​ ​as​ ​walk​ ​up​ ​to​ ​where​ ​he​ ​was with​ ​my​ ​saddle​ ​and​ ​i​ ​attached​ ​my​ ​lips​ ​to​ ​his.​ ​At​ ​first​ ​it​ ​was​ ​a​ ​soft​ ​kiss​ ​but​ ​then​ ​it​ ​grew​ ​into​ ​more​ ​of​ ​a​ ​kiss.I​ ​started​ ​to

Laugh​ ​into​ ​the​ ​kiss​ ​as​ ​Baelfire​ ​reached​ ​his​ ​head​ ​out​ ​of​ ​the​ ​stall​ ​and​ ​grabbed​ ​Luke​ ​by​ ​his​ ​t-shirt.​ ​Luke​ ​pulled​ ​away from​ ​the​ ​kiss​ ​feeling​ ​the​ ​pressure​ ​of​ ​Baelfire​ ​pulling​ ​on​ ​him​ ​and​ ​once​ ​he​ ​got​ ​his​ ​shirt​ ​free,​ ​he​ ​said​ ​"I​ ​guess​ ​i​ ​have some​ ​competition,​ ​Hey​ ​Baelfire."​ ​Luke​ ​giggled​ ​as​ ​he​ ​scratched​ ​Baelfires​ ​head​ ​and​ ​started​ ​walking​ ​towards​ ​the​ ​tack room.​ ​"What​ ​do​ ​you​ ​want​ ​Jade​ ​in,Nicole?"​ ​Luke​ ​yells​ ​over​ ​his​ ​shoulder​ ​as​ ​he​ ​enters​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​room.​ ​"​ ​Throw​ ​her​ ​in​ ​the kimberwick​ ​and​ ​use​ ​Mason's​ ​saddle."​ ​I​ ​yell​ ​as​ ​I​ ​get​ ​a​ ​halter​ ​on​ ​Baelfire​ ​and​ ​pull​ ​him​ ​into​ ​the​ ​aisle,​ ​attaching​ ​him​ ​to the​ ​cross​ ​ties.​ ​"What​ ​the​ ​heck​ ​did​ ​you​ ​just​ ​say?"​ ​Ashton​ ​giggled​ ​as​ ​he​ ​looked​ ​at​ ​me​ ​like​ ​i​ ​had​ ​3​ ​heads.​ ​"It's​ ​the​ ​tack Ash.​ ​Luke​ ​will​ ​show​ ​you."​ ​I​ ​laugh​ ​as​ ​i​ ​return​ ​to​ ​Baelfire​ ​and​ ​start​ ​brushing​ ​him​ ​off.​ ​Calum​ ​and​ ​Michael​ ​come​ ​out​ ​of​ ​the tack​ ​room​ ​with​ ​tack​ ​and​ ​place​ ​them​ ​on​ ​the​ ​saddle​ ​racks​ ​that​ ​are​ ​on​ ​the​ ​wall​ ​down​ ​the​ ​aisles.​ ​"Are​ ​you​ ​guys​ ​taking Beck​ ​and​ ​Dino?"​ ​I​ ​ask​ ​as​ ​the​ ​walk​ ​down​ ​to​ ​the​ ​end​ ​of​ ​the​ ​barn​ ​and​ ​into​ ​stalls.​ ​"Yes,Nicole.​ ​Is​ ​that​ ​a​ ​problem?"​ ​Calum sasses​ ​as​ ​he​ ​gives​ ​me​ ​a​ ​grin​ ​and​ ​enters​ ​Dino's​ ​stall.​ ​"​ ​I​ ​laugh​ ​and​ ​continue​ ​brushing.

​ ​Luke​ ​comes​ ​out​ ​of​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​room​ ​with​ ​Ashton​ ​in​ ​toe​ ​and​ ​sets​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​down​ ​on​ ​the​ ​saddle​ ​rack​ ​with​ ​a​ ​Purple saddle​ ​pad.​ ​I​ ​put​ ​Baelfire's​ ​light​ ​blue​ ​saddle​ ​pad​ ​on​ ​his​ ​back​ ​along​ ​with​ ​the​ ​saddle.​ ​I​ ​then​ ​attached​ ​the​ ​girth​ ​and tightened​ ​it​ ​on​ ​both​ ​sides.​ ​I​ ​unclipped​ ​Baelfire​ ​from​ ​the​ ​cross​ ​ties​ ​and​ ​slip​ ​the​ ​reins​ ​over​ ​his​ ​head​ ​and​ ​slide​ ​off​ ​his halter.​ ​I​ ​slowly​ ​push​ ​the​ ​bit​ ​in​ ​his​ ​mouth​ ​and​ ​pull​ ​the​ ​crown​ ​piece​ ​over​ ​his​ ​ears​ ​and​ ​adjusted​ ​the​ ​nose​ ​band​ ​and​ ​throat latch.​ ​I​ ​left​ ​the​ ​reins​ ​over​ ​his​ ​neck​ ​and​ ​just​ ​let​ ​him​ ​stand​ ​there​ ​as​ ​I​ ​put​ ​on​ ​his​ ​light​ ​blue​ ​splint​ ​boots.​ ​Once​ ​I​ ​was​ ​all tacked​ ​up.​ ​I​ ​looked​ ​behind​ ​me​ ​to​ ​see​ ​everyone​ ​tacked​ ​but​ ​Ashton.​ ​"Whats​ ​the​ ​hold​ ​up​ ​Luke?"​ ​I​ ​ask​ ​as​ ​i​ ​come​ ​up​ ​to Jade's​ ​side.​ ​"Umm,​ ​well​ ​i​ ​can't​ ​find​ ​her​ ​girth"​ ​He​ ​says​ ​as​ ​he​ ​scratches​ ​the​ ​back​ ​of​ ​his​ ​neck​ ​and​ ​looks​ ​around​ ​the​ ​tack room.​ ​I​ ​go​ ​in​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​room​ ​and​ ​look​ ​under​ ​some​ ​of​ ​the​ ​saddle​ ​racks​ ​and​ ​find​ ​the​ ​girth​ ​we​ ​were​ ​looking​ ​for​ ​under​ ​one. It​ ​must​ ​have​ ​fallen​ ​while​ ​we​ ​were​ ​moving​ ​all​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​around.​ ​I​ ​exit​ ​the​ ​tack​ ​room​ ​and​ ​hand​ ​Luke​ ​the​ ​girth​ ​as​ ​he hands​ ​it​ ​to​ ​Ashton,​ ​he​ ​instructs​ ​him​ ​on​ ​how​ ​to​ ​put​ ​it​ ​on.​ ​"Ok.​ ​Ash​ ​so​ ​you​ ​buckle​ ​it​ ​like​ ​a​ ​belt​ ​and​ ​then​ ​you​ ​go​ ​to​ ​the other​ ​side​ ​and​ ​tighten​ ​it​ ​a​ ​bit."​ ​Ashton​ ​does​ ​the​ ​girth​ ​no​ ​problem​ ​and​ ​then​ ​picks​ ​up​ ​the​ ​bridle​ ​from​ ​the​ ​saddle​ ​rack​ ​and moves​ ​to​ ​her​ ​head​ ​and​ ​unclips​ ​her​ ​from​ ​the​ ​cross​ ​ties​ ​and​ ​bridles​ ​her.​ ​After​ ​he​ ​is​ ​done​ ​bridling​ ​Jade,​ ​He​ ​puts​ ​on​ ​her purple​ ​splint​ ​boots​ ​and​ ​she​ ​is​ ​all​ ​set​ ​to​ ​go.

We​ ​all​ ​went​ ​outside​ ​with​ ​our​ ​horses​ ​in​ ​one​ ​hand​ ​and​ ​a​ ​helmet​ ​in​ ​the​ ​other.​ ​Michael​ ​led​ ​Beck​ ​out​ ​in​ ​his​ ​dark green​ ​saddle​ ​pad​ ​and​ ​splints​ ​which​ ​contrasted​ ​perfectly​ ​with​ ​his​ ​light​ ​coat​ ​color.​ ​Calum​ ​came​ ​out​ ​next​ ​with​ ​Dino​ ​in​ ​a Teal​ ​saddle​ ​pad​ ​and​ ​white​ ​splint​ ​boots,​ ​not​ ​matching​ ​the​ ​teal​ ​because​ ​we​ ​couldn't​ ​find​ ​teal​ ​splints​ ​in​ ​his​ ​size.​ ​​ ​Finally Ashton​ ​and​ ​Luke​ ​come​ ​out​ ​with​ ​Jade​ ​and​ ​Coal​ ​and​ ​join​ ​us​ ​in​ ​the​ ​little​ ​field​ ​in​ ​front​ ​of​ ​the​ ​barn.​ ​Luke​ ​put​ ​Coal​ ​is​ ​a​ ​bark blue​ ​saddle​ ​pad​ ​and​ ​splints,​ ​which​ ​kinda​ ​matched​ ​with​ ​Baelfire​ ​and​ ​I.​ ​Luke,Calum,and​ ​Michael​ ​all​ ​hop​ ​on​ ​their​ ​horses and​ ​put​ ​their​ ​helmets​ ​on.​ ​I​ ​tie​ ​up​ ​Baelfires​ ​reins​ ​and​ ​let​ ​him​ ​nibble​ ​on​ ​some​ ​grass​ ​and​ ​walk​ ​over​ ​to​ ​Ashton​ ​to​ ​help​ ​him get​ ​on.​ ​I​ ​walk​ ​over​ ​to​ ​Jade​ ​and​ ​tighten​ ​her​ ​girth​ ​and​ ​roll​ ​down​ ​her​ ​stirrups.​ ​"Ok​ ​Ash​ ​so​ ​all​ ​you​ ​have​ ​to​ ​do​ ​is​ ​put​ ​your foot​ ​in​ ​the​ ​stirrup​ ​and​ ​pull​ ​your​ ​self​ ​up​ ​into​ ​the​ ​saddle."​ ​I​ ​instructed​ ​as​ ​I​ ​held​ ​on​ ​to​ ​the​ ​stirrup​ ​on​ ​the​ ​right​ ​side​ ​of​ ​the saddle​ ​while​ ​Ashton​ ​was​ ​on​ ​the​ ​left​ ​side.​ ​Ashton​ ​put​ ​his​ ​foot​ ​on​ ​the​ ​stirrup​ ​and​ ​pulled​ ​himself​ ​up​ ​into​ ​the​ ​saddle​ ​like he​ ​had​ ​been​ ​doing​ ​it​ ​for​ ​years.​ ​"We​ ​have​ ​a​ ​natural​ ​here​ ​boys"​ ​Calum​ ​says​ ​as​ ​he​ ​drops​ ​his​ ​reins​ ​and​ ​puts​ ​his​ ​hands up​ ​in​ ​the​ ​air​ ​celebrating​ ​that​ ​Ashton​ ​got​ ​on.​ ​I​ ​adjusted​ ​his​ ​stirrups​ ​for​ ​him​ ​as​ ​well​ ​as​ ​tightening​ ​his​ ​girth​ ​one​ ​last​ ​time and​ ​then​ ​walked​ ​back​ ​over​ ​to​ ​Baelfire.​ ​I​ ​untied​ ​his​ ​reins​ ​and​ ​jumped​ ​on​ ​his​ ​back,​ ​clipping​ ​my​ ​helmet​ ​in​ ​place​ ​before​ ​i adjusted​ ​my​ ​girth​ ​and​ ​stirrups.

When​ ​I​ ​was​ ​finished,​ ​I​ ​asked​ ​"Are​ ​you​ ​ready​ ​boys?"​ ​with​ ​a​ ​nod​ ​from​ ​all​ ​4​ ​boys​ ​we​ ​start​ ​heading​ ​on​ ​the​ ​trail.​ ​I gave​ ​Ashton​ ​a​ ​quick​ ​run​ ​down​ ​on​ ​how​ ​to​ ​ride,​ ​"Ok​ ​Ashton​ ​so​ ​kicking​ ​her​ ​will​ ​make​ ​her​ ​go​ ​forward​ ​and​ ​kicking​ ​her more​ ​after​ ​shes​ ​moving​ ​will​ ​make​ ​her​ ​go​ ​faster.​ ​if​ ​you​ ​want​ ​her​ ​to​ ​stop​ ​pull​ ​on​ ​the​ ​reins.​ ​If​ ​you​ ​want​ ​here​ ​to​ ​turn​ ​pull gently​ ​on​ ​the​ ​rein​ ​in​ ​the​ ​direction​ ​you​ ​want​ ​to​ ​go.​ ​Don't​ ​worry​ ​if​ ​you​ ​have​ ​a​ ​hard​ ​time,​ ​Jade​ ​knows​ ​commands​ ​so​ ​just tell​ ​her​ ​what​ ​too​ ​do.​ ​Got​ ​it?"​ ​I​ ​ask​ ​riding​ ​up​ ​to​ ​Ashton's​ ​side.​ ​He​ ​nods​ ​and​ ​gives​ ​Jade​ ​a​ ​gentle​ ​kick​ ​and​ ​we​ ​were​ ​on our​ ​way.

[mirkwoodshewolf]

The Magician; Brian May x reader

*Author’s note*

Okay guys here we go with the final part of my Hallowqueen series. I apologize if the whole story feels rushed, I sorta struggled trying to make the sweetest guy of Queen into a dark fictionized magician but I hope I still made you guys happy.  Thank you all so much to everyone who gave this mini series a chance and I hope that in the next couple of days, you all have a happy and safe Halloween. Enjoy my lovely darlings and I hope to have the next part of my Aladdin queen series back up hopefully this weekend ;)

Warnings: DEATH, drugs (not like drugs drugs but like poison drugs) hints of dissection, and yeah just some dark themes with this fic.

Link to intro

Taglist:

@psychosupernatural​

@plethora-of-things​

@ixchel-9275​

@waddles03​

@geek-and-proud​

@mexifangorl​

@queendeakyy​

@precioustyler​

________________________________________________________

While walking through the circus you soon find yourself bumping into someone.

“Sorry.”

“Why don’t you watch where you’re going!” the man hissed at you.  You look to see a rather mean looking adult.  He was at least twice your age and had multiple piercings as well as a tattoo across the left side of his face.

“I said I was sorry.”

“But clearly you’re too stupid to even look up to see that someone’s in front of you!”

“What’s going on here?” a voice soon called out. You both turned around and soon coming up was the curly haired magician.  The pierced man then tried to make himself look like the victim.

“Well I was just minding my own business when this hussy out of nowhere tried to assault me.”

“What?! No I—”

“Simon you’ve tried this before back in Montreal and Vancouver. And quite frankly I’m sick of it, so apologize to the lady and kindly remove yourself from the circus, less I lay the message to Freddie about this.” At the mention of that name, the man turned pale.  But he turns to you and said in a snappy voice.

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” He then stormed off.

“Simon can be a bit of a handful. Honestly I don’t know why he keeps coming in. We’ve tried to have tighter security against him since he’s caused some problems in the past. You okay though love?”

“Yeah, I’m—I’m fine. But it was kinda my fault I—I wasn’t really paying attention to where I was going.”

“True, but Simon shouldn’t have been so cruel to someone who apologizes, especially if they are a woman. I can’t stand men who treat women with disrespect.” Wow, a true gentleman huh? “How about I make it up to you with some tea in my trailer? If that’s alright with you of course.”

“Oh I couldn’t impose.”

“Nonsense love, I insist. Besides it’s getting cold out there, at least drink something warm before you leave.” You ponder on the offer and you begin to think it wouldn’t hurt, plus it’d be free tea and you could also get to know the handsome curly haired sorcerer a bit more.

“Only if you’re okay with it.” He smiled a wide but warm smile as he said.

“I would be honored.”

“I’m (y/n).” you introduce yourself.  The magician takes your hand and says his name.

“Brian. Brian May.” He then kisses the back of your hand and you could feel your heart skip a beat as you stare into those beautiful blue eyes of his.

He then guides you into his trailer and has you sit down on the blue couch and you can’t help but admire some of the things he has inside.  A telescope, a mini bookshelf with all kinds of spell books as well as astronomy books and physics books.

He comes back and hands you a beautiful crafted Victorian teacup that was white with pink roses painted along the entire cup.

“I hope you like it, it’s herbal tea. Good for the soul.” You thank him and you take a sip but can’t help but taste something bitter.  You try to hold in a grimace but he seems to notice it as he says, “Do you not like it?”

“No, no it’s just—never really had herbal tea like this before.”

“Well I tend to make my teas differently because I use true organic materials and raw herbs without all the pesticides teashop owners use nowadays.” He says.

“And there’s nothing wrong with that. So by saying that I’m gonna take a guess that you’re also a vegetarian.” He fiddles around with his teacup as he says.

“I know Roger and Fred mock me for it, but I just think it’s cruel to eat animals when they’ve never done anything to us.”

“Wait so you’re also an animal activist too?” you ask as you turn fully to face him.

“In my downtime. At least before I joined this circus I was a part of many animal rights groups. Was about to star my own organization before Fred found me.”

“Oh my god I never thought I would meet another animal right’s activist here.”

“Wait so you’re…..” you then show him your bracelet which was an organization for Badger conservation. “You help out badgers?”

“Been working with these guys since high school. We help rescue, rehabilitate, and release badgers once they’re done recovering.” You say proudly.

“That’s amazing love, badgers are one of my favorite animals.”

“For real? Mine too. I never met another person who loves badgers.”

“Well here I am.” The two of you laugh and that’s when he asks you.  “So how did you get involved with the badger program?”

“Well like I said it was when I was graduating high school. I always wanted to be a vet technician but not for just domesticated pets, I wanted to do the exotic animals like wolves, badgers, hedgehogs, foxes, bears.”

“And did you become one?”

“Well I would’ve but then the math got too hard for me so I ended up failing college at the time.  After a couple years I went back and made my major to English. Kinda stupid huh?”

“No not at all. There’s nothing wrong with an English degree. What was your area of study?”

“Folklore and mythology.”

“Really? That sounds fascinating.”

“It really wasn’t. I mean at least the courses I was required to take weren’t. There was hardly any courses on the real mythology that I could take at my college. Anyways it was then I saw a flier for rescuer volunteers for this organization. I gave them a call, did the interview and here I am 10 years later.”

“That’s amazing. How many rescues were you apart of?”

“Well I didn’t get out onto the field till 18 months after my training. But if I remember correctly I think I’ve done 100 rescues.”

“Wow.” Brian said in awe as he kept his eyes locked right on you.

“Yeah. My recent rescue was a pair of hedgehogs. They got swept up by the river from the recent storms we’ve been having.”

“Aww the poor little things. Are they alright?”

“Yeah, they’re currently being incubated to get their body temperatures up. But nothing serious was damaged, just a little cold, wet and scared. At least the siblings didn’t get separated from each other.”

“Yeah. There’s nothing worse than when animal siblings get separated from each other.”

“Right. Alright I’ve bored you enough with my stories.”

“Oh no love not at all. I find your story very interesting. I mean if anything I think I’ll be the one boring you if I were to tell you my story.”

“Well I’ve got all night Bri.” You don’t know why you called him that so you quickly apologize. “I’m sorry I-I-I-I just…..”

“It’s alright. In fact all my friends call me that. Plus it—sounds lovely when you say it.” You couldn’t help the slight blush that came across your face, and it only seem to grow darker as you felt his hand take yours and you can feel his calloused thumb stroke the back of it. “Well to make a long story short besides animal loving, I’ve always just been fascinated by space and the wonders of the universe. As a sorcerer I get a further in depth look at what lies beyond the cosmos, and actually bring it before an audience.”

It was then his hand began to glow a soft blue color and soon all around the trailer was a mini-version to the galaxy he had presented earlier that night.  All the constellations coming to life in their pictured form.  Pisces the fish swam around you while Leo came up to you and nuzzled your head.

Orion the hunter stood before you and bowed in respect almost like he was greeting a Queen.  You smile and bow back to him before he dissolves back into the stars.

“Oh Brian this—never did I imagine the cosmos could be so beautiful.” You whisper in awe.

“I may hold the cosmos and everything regarding the universe in the palm of my hand, but I see a far more beautiful sight in front of me.” You turn and see that he’s looking at you with such wonder and warmth.  

At his pickup line you can’t help but bashfully lower your head but he lifts your chin up so that he can look at you properly. He stands up and holds his hand out to you.

“I normally don’t ask this but—would you like to dance?” you look up at him and you couldn’t explain it but there was something just pulling you towards him.  You take his hand and he helps you stand up.

“Uhh Bri?”

“Hmm?”

“I—don’t know if a trailer is a good place for dancing.”

“Oh right, silly me.” With a wave of his hand, the trailer almost seemed to disappear and all that was surrounding you was nothing but starry skies. “Is this better?” he asks you.

“Yeah.” You muttered.  He takes your hand in his and slowly almost kinda sensually wraps his other arm around your waist, making shivers and sparks of electricity run up your spine.  He then leads you in a gentle sway.

You both stare into each other’s eyes and that’s when Brian says to you.

“(Y/n). Has—anyone ever told you that your eyes sparkle like the stars themselves?”

“No one but you Bri.” You confess.  He leans his forehead against yours and you can’t help but surrender to his touch as you close your eyes and lean closer toward his lips.  Soon enough your lips meet with his and you end up kissing him.

At first you had no idea why you were doing this and one part of your head was telling you to back away and stop it, but then there was this other part telling you to keep going.  You feel his hand gently cup underneath your jawline which caused the kiss to go deeper.

You moan as you quickly fall under the spell of Brian’s kiss.  If he wasn’t magical before then there was definitely something about him because you just couldn’t stop kissing him, nor did you want to separate from him.

Suddenly you felt this agonizing pain in your stomach. You forced yourself to break free of Brian’s kiss and embrace and the room turned back into the trailer.

“(Y/n), love are you alright?” your vision started going in and out as you pant.

“I—suddenly don’t feel so good. God my—my head’s spinning like a top.”

“Perhaps some more tea will help you?”

“No, no…..” you try to walk away but all you ended up stumbling around the trailer, knocking things over. “Air….I need air….” You somehow finally managed to reach the doorknob but a hand covers your own. You look up and see through your blurry vision, three Brian’s.

“You’re too sick to go out my dear. Please rest. I can take care of you.”

“No, no I…..” he picks you up bridal style and takes you into what looked like a bedroom.  He sets you down on the black bedsheets and the next thing you feel is a cold rag being dabbed across your sweating face. “Wha—the tea….”

“You’re mumbling love. I can’t understand you.”

“The tea tasted bitter—what did you put in it?”

“As I said before it was freshly grown herbs, tea leaves, a teaspoon of honey.”

“No you—you poisoned it…..somehow. I…..” you groan in agony and that’s when you hear.

“Well. There was one more thing, but it wasn’t poison. A special potion I brewed up myself. Amortentia.”

“Wha?”

“Think of it as a—love potion of sorts. It increases pheromones in the body as well as estrogen. It’s not harmful once digested, just increases your hormones a bit.” This didn’t make any sense.

If the tea wasn’t poisoned, the why did it feel like you were dying? You groan in agony again and you could hear Brian’s gentle coos and shushing as he lay down close beside you, stroking your cheek and kissing around your face.

Wait; unless—no it…..it couldn’t be that way.

“Figuring it out now love?” his voice suddenly had a darker tone to it.  You look up at him and he just grins down at you darkly as he chuckles in the same dark tone. “At first I didn’t want to believe Freddie but I guess it is true that one kiss can seal someone’s life.” He brushes the hair out of your face and walks over to his dresser.

He then holds up what looked like a stick of chap stick but as he opens it he says.

“With a bit of nigh shade berries and a dash of arsenic, it does become quite the concoction for a—toxic kiss.” Ahhh shit! How could you be soo foolish to accept the tea? That’s always the first thing people poison whenever it comes to a murdering or killing, so why were you so stupid?!

He comes back over to you and tells you as he hovers over you.

“Now don’t get me wrong love. It’s nothing personal, and nothing against you. In fact—you are beautiful. Too beautiful in fact to be in this body. You are a true star that should belong in the cosmos. So allow me to help you get there. Well—it’s not like you have a choice in the matter anyways.” He chuckles once more before pulling something out of his drawer.

“Please……don’t do this.” You whisper with your last breath. He looks down at you and cups the side of your face and whispers.

“No need to be afraid love. And no need to be embarrassed. Your body is beautiful. And I will enjoy every second of this.” He then shows you a scalpel.  You wish you could scream but the only sound you could hear was the sound of your heartbeat slowly stopping.  Your vision goes dark and soon all you feel is numbness before you finally draw your last breath.

Within a week in Paris, Brian now stood before the audience showing the audience the beauty of the cosmos.

“So you see monsieur’s and mademoiselles. The stars show us what lies beyond our universe. And sometimes, we can see those we love amongst them.” It was then a formation of stars came down before Brian and they morphed into a young woman with (h/l) hair and her eyes were replaced by two of the brightest stars ever imagined.  “Hello my love.”

Her arms wrapped around Brian and she leaned up against his chest and clung onto him like a child needing comfort from their parent.