#can’t forget the ‘oh he was so nice to her’ in like a few scenes meanwhile the male lead was literally saving her every episode

[eyeball-freak]

‘Tis hard being both a Kataang shipper and a Inukag shipper in these trying times.

Like here we have a relationship with a whole series of build up, in fact you could even go so far to say their relationship was the whole point of the show. And it’s so beautifully done seeing them grow together and fall for each other throughout the show like, it’s perfect!!!

And then for some reason the more popular ship is between the main female lead and the “hotter, cooler guy”, despite the fact that they don’t even have much chemistry, or even much interaction compared to the canon ship-

And then of course you later find out the only real reason they became such a popular ship is because the shippers thought the broody older guy was hotter than the male lead.

Honestly if I had a nickel…

[lowkeyren]

NOT EVERYONE KNOWS!

in which — being in a secret relationship with them but they’re all idiots

featuring — dan feng, blade, jing yuan (separately) x gn!reader

wc: total 2.6k, from event req: here!, debut fic for my milestone event yippee, they keep fumbling but it’s ok cus they’re hot, reblogs w comments are appreciated, please enjoy!! <3

#DAN FENG

+ wait… since when are you guys married?!

dan feng? i just know he’s gonna mess this shit up so badly. he’s the high elder, but also the epitome of boyfailure. he really can’t help it, those terms of endearment just slip out so easily when you're by his side.

and it doesn’t stop there. he’s completely oblivious to the shocked silence and wide-eyed stares from others; for example, he might be holding your hand absentmindedly while discussing serious matters, and only snaps back to reality when you cough awkwardly.

but unfortunately, it’s not that simple when the gang (re: high cloud quintet) find out about your relationship. disclaimer: chaos ensues

dan feng immediately sits up upon seeing you enter the room, a fresh batch of tea brewing in hand. the discussion among the group gradually fades into the background as his eyes trail your figure while you carefully pour tea into each person’s teacup.

the piquant aroma fills his senses, and he can’t stop a small smile from creeping across his face when you take a seat next to him. he takes a sip, the delicate flavor enveloping his taste buds, leaving behind a delightful aftertaste that lingers long after the tea is swallowed. 

“—thus we require a substantial amount of time, speaking of which, anything on your end dan feng?” 

he finds himself watching you out of the corner of his eye. “imbibitor lunae…?” and it’s almost impossible for him to tear his gaze away from you. 

“hello? dan feng?” he snaps back to reality, blinking a few times before processing the initial question. “a-ahem, yes. darling, could you pass me the report?” he says, turning to your side.

the room falls silent, and a shocked gasp escapes from baiheng's mouth before jingliu clasps a hand over it; jing yuan shifts in his seat, exchanging a bewildered glance with yingxing. 

“hm..? did you forget to bring it?” his tone is soft and gentle, a stark contrast to the shocked expression on everyone’s face. “are you alright my dear? your face is quite red, do y—”

before he can finish, you manage to find your voice, trying to mask your embarrassment with a strained smile. “no, i didn’t forget the report, and i’m perfectly fine…  though our friends might need a minute to recover.” 

baiheng, still wide-eyed, blurts out, “hold on, are you guys… in a relationship?” 

dan feng blinks in confusion ”oh, did i forget to mention that part?” —to which you hear someone across the table audibly facepalm. 

you sigh, voice strained but laced with amusement, “i can’t believe you never told them we got married.” your words are followed by the sound of a cup shattering on the floor.

“wait… since when are you guys married?!” you pat jingyuan’s back, trying to stifle a laugh. “since last year.”

“seriously, and you never thought of telling us.”

“it was an honest mistake, yingxing.” dan feng replies, crossing his arms defensively.

baiheng shakes her head, “an honest mistake? like forgetting to water your plants, not like forgetting to tell us you got married!”

“well congratulations, i suppose. though a heads-up would’ve been nice.” jingliu manages a wry smile, though she internally cringes at baiheng’s exaggerated (or not) reaction, opting to just let her be. 

"sorry, it slipped my mind.” dan feng's nonchalant shrug only serves to further fuel jingyuan's irk, his eye visibly twitching; yingxing lets out a groan, still reeling from the revelation. you can’t help but chuckle softly at the scene unfolding, taking a sip of your tea. 

“you weren’t planning to tell us at all?!”

"honest mistake."  you can tell he’s just teasing his friends by the way a small smirk appears on his face as he attempts to hide it behind his teacup. (you nearly had to restrain baiheng as she tried to leap over the table.)

well, it seems like you’re not going to get anything done today.

#BLADE

+ easy, just buy me a nice ring and leave the lying part to me.

please. if you had a penny for every time blade almost exposes that you’re dating, you’d have three pennies. which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened thrice. 

the first time was when he received a call from you while in the car with firefly. he answered almost immediately, without realizing that wearing earphones does not necessarily mean he isn't able to be heard in real life, just that others can’t hear what he’s listening to. 

“went to boomerville n the locals said they knew u” —silverwolf, probably.

second was when someone confessed their feelings to you, and he “instinctively” jumped in to say you have a husband. "what husband? i don't see a ring on your finger." so now, that same man won't stop asking you about this so-called “husband” (that doesn’t exist). 

and third time, well we’ll see.

“are you sure you don’t want me to kill him.” 

you huff out in annoyance, “this wouldn’t even be an issue if you hadn’t mentioned i had a husband.” sighing, you push yourself off the bed and turn to face your boyfriend.

“...that aside, how exactly do you plan on handling him?” blade raises an eyebrow, a hint of amusement in his gaze. “easy! just buy me a nice ring, and leave the lying part to me.”

if blade hadn’t seriously considered taking care of the man before, he certainly seems determined to do so now. “hey what’s with that reaction…”

blade’s eyes narrow as he takes in your response. “a ring huh, what are you going to do with it?” you roll your eyes, trying to stifle a smile. “what else? pretend i have a husband.” 

he sighs, “is this really the best solution you can come up with?” (he really doesn't like the idea of you having a husband…that isn’t him, fake or not)  “yup!” you reply with a grin, “i’ll be eagerly awaiting the ‘surprise’!” with that, you plant a quick kiss on his cheek and swiftly exit the room.

oh you’re lucky he loves you. (even though this is totally, 100% his fault)

—

“hmm, bladie? why the sudden interest in jewellery?” kafka smirks, curiosity dancing in her eyes. blade chooses to stay silent, picking out the most expensive ring; and kafka’s expression only broadens with amusement as she watches his intense scrutiny of the display.

“planning something special, are we?” she teases, leaning closer. “or are you just trying to impress someone?”

blade finally glances up, his face inscrutable. “just taking care of business.” he replies tersely, slipping the ring onto the counter along the pile of designer jackets. 

“right… well, i’ll be interested to see how this turns out.”

—

“what?” the man in front of you asks, his confusion evident. 

you tilt your head slightly, trying to gauge his reaction. “you seem surprised. did you think i was joking?” you casually brush a strand of hair away, subtly flaunting the ring to him —and to any onlookers; trying not to crack a smile when you hear a loud gasp followed by a flurry of hushed whispers.

he grits his teeth, clearly embarrassed and humiliated by the commotion. “i didn’t expect you to be married… especially since you never wear the ring.”

“or is it that you’re not all that attached to your husband?” the audacity of this man… just as you’re at a loss of words, a firm hand grips the man’s shoulder from behind.

blade yanks the man back, and away from you. “you’re pushing your luck.”  the sudden motion causes the man to stumble, his face pale with a mix of surprise and fear.

“w-who the hell are you?!” the man’s voice trembles as he tries to regain his composure. meanwhile, you notice a crowd beginning to form around you, with some people eagerly pulling out their phones to record the escalating drama.

“leave, now.” you can tell blade’s patience is wearing thin, dangerously so.

the man’s eyes narrow in defiance. “why should i? you’re the one to talk when you’re hiding behind a disguise.” blade pins the man with a steely gaze, his intense stare making the man stiffen under its weight.

but what you didn’t expect was for blade to turn around, remove his mask and letting it dangle from one ear; he then raises your hand to his lips, placing a tender kiss upon it.

the man’s face immediately drains of colour, and the crowd around you erupts into a cacophony of gasps and murmurs. you’re not sure whether he's more shocked by blades' bold gesture or by the fact that a notorious criminal is standing right in front of him. (its the latter)

the man, now visibly shaken, scrambles away, yelling out a “sorry!” before disappearing into the crowd. blade pulls you away, ignoring the flashes of cameras and ducks into a nearby alley.

the next morning, you wake up to a barrage of notifications on your phone. you discover the group chat flooded with messages from your friends.

“@barcodewrist @[you] explain yourselves”

“Bladie, so that was what the ring was for~” 

“bro i cant believe this old ass man has rizz”

you quickly type out a message asking for context, in which you only receive a link from silverwolf. as you click in, you can’t help but wish you can unsee what’s on the screen.

“‘YOUR NAME’, IDENTIFIED IN ASSOCIATION WITH STELLARON HUNTER ‘BLADE’: WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE. BOUNTY SET AT 3.5 BILLION.” and attached below is a video of what transpired yesterday. 

“great” you mutter under your breath, “not only am i dating a wanted criminal, now i'm one too.” you shoot a quick message to the group chat “any tips on staying out of trouble when your boyfriend’s a fugitive? asking for a friend... and my sanity.”

on the bright side, at least you’ll be greeted by a very pleased blade, now publicly acknowledged as your husband —oh and don’t question the second ring on your finger.

#JING YUAN

+ stop you're not allowed to smile at me like that. / like what?

how do i even start. he’s so smug, please throw a rock at him and wipe that “:3” off his face.

you really do sometimes wonder if jing yuan ever truly intended to keep this relationship a secret, especially by how he practically transforms into a lovesick puppy whenever you’re within a 10 meter radius. 

goodluck because he's also such a tease, an insufferable one. despite that, you can’t deny there’s something endearing about how he always seems to light up when you’re around, his constant teasing remarks making it harder to stay mad whenever you call him out for being “too lax”. 

after all, he may be a headache, but he’s your headache —one that comes with a hefty dose of affection and a penchant for making every single moment spent together memorable.

being the general’s secretary, and his lover isn’t an easy job. 

you’re focused on the task before you; reviewing documents, scheduling meetings, coordinating logistics for high-stakes missions —ensuring no crucial information slips through the cracks. 

but you can’t help but feel a pair of eyes boring into you. it’s a subtle sensation, a weight that pulls your awareness away from the task at hand. you glance up from your desk, only to be met by jing yuan’s gaze, fixed on you with an intensity that makes your pulse quicken.

“jing yuan, what are you doing?” you ask, but he doesn’t answer. though a smile slowly spreads across his face as he continues to watch you. his overwhelming stare makes it difficult to concentrate…

and worse? he looks utterly and hopelessly in love.

“stop, you're not allowed to smile at me like that.” the words come out softer than intended; he leans in slightly, the warmth in his expression only deepening.

“and why not?” he asks, his voice carries a hint of amusement. the twinkle in his eyes suggests that he knows exactly what he’s doing, and it only adds to your annoyance. 

“because” you reply, trying to sound exasperated, “you’re looking at me as if you’re in love with me or something!” —and your handsome face makes it impossible to focus.

jing yuan’s smile only widens, clearly enjoying your reaction. “is that so? i didn’t realise my smile had such an effect on you.” (you hope his pants catch on fire because he’s obviously lying about being unaware of the effect his presence has on you)

“and i am in love with you.” 

that, in fact, did not ease the fluttering in your chest. “shh!” you quickly cover his mouth with your hand; you hold your grip for a moment longer, feeling the warmth of his breath against your palm.

“hmm… so i can't even look at my beloved partner now?” his voice comes out slightly muffled and distorted due to your playful assault on his face. you give his cheek one last, harsh pinch before finally letting him go.

you heave a sigh of relief once you’re sure no one heard anything, you loosen your grip but keep your palm resting on his face. with a playful pinch, you squeeze his cheek. “you tease!” you furrow your brows, though a small smile tugs at your lips despite your effort to remain stern.

you shake your head with a smile, “do you have any idea how hard it is to stay focused when you’re looking at me like that?” the admission slips out before you can stop it, and you feel a flush rise to your cheeks.

“i know,” he replies with a grin, “and i wouldn’t change a thing.”

jing yuan rests his chin on his hand, his elbow propped up on your desk; the warmth of his gaze and the cheeky grin on his face makes it hard to stay frustrated at him. 

“you’re impossible,” you say with a mock scowl, though your tone carries a lighthearted edge. “but it’s also hard to stay mad at you.”

he chuckles softly, clearly pleased with your reaction. he leans in a bit more, his eyes sparkling with mischief. “oh? then would you like to head out—”

“you wish.” you cut him off with a deadpan look, “that stack of papers has been sitting there since this morning, and it’s not going to magically sort itself out.”

you gesture toward the mountain of documents on your desk, which has only grown throughout the day. he sighs, settling himself comfortably into the seat beside you. you pick up your pen as you try to regain your focus again amidst the lingering warmth of his presence.

this time, you really do consider throwing a rock at him when his head falls on your shoulder as he dozes off just five minutes later.

but hey, at least he makes it clear that he’s head over heels for you, even if it comes with a side of embarrassment, and a few near heart attacks. 

MASTERLIST ; EVENT M.LIST

[millenianthemums]

Chapter 6 of Mabel’s Guide to the Power of Friendship is up!!

Writing this one took me a while, and then the art also took a while… everything took a while. i always enjoy writing this once i get to it, though! hope you enjoy this one too.

PREVIOUS

INDEX

chapter text under cut:

It was hard for Mabel to really relax, knowing that Bill was lurking just below the floorboards. But by the time the sun was low and her family was gathered around the dinner table, she’d mostly put it out of her mind. It was hard to be miserable with them around.

“You think Soos will bring more empanadas when he’s here tomorrow?” Dipper asked, picking at the strangely opalescent casserole on his plate.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were insinuating something about my cooking,” Ford said wryly.

“Whaaat? No! No, don’t be– that’s ridiculous,” Dipper said. “This is great! I mean, it’s a million times better than last time, this one didn’t even come to life and attack us–”

“Don’t jinx it,” Stan said.

“Hey, c’mon, guys,” Mabel piped up. “It’s the thought that counts, right? It’s really sweet that he tried. Besides, even Grunkle Ford can’t be perfect at everything.”

Ford chuckled. “Thank you, Mabel. As far as backhanded compliments go, that’s quite nice.”

“It’s true!” she said. “So what if you’re not a chef? You invent, like, six magical contraptions a week!”

“That’s a wild exaggeration,” Ford said with a grin. “It’s been at least a month since the last one. Although Fiddleford and I have made some real progress on our current project…”

“New project?” Dipper perked up. “What is it?”

“Oh, I don’t know if the details will interest you that much–”

“Shaaare!” Mabel demanded. Dipper immediately joined in, both of them pumping their fists and shouting “Share! Share! Share!” until Ford laughed and gave in. They all knew he didn’t really need that much encouragement, but it was fun anyway.

“Alright, alright! I’ll tell you.” Ford waved his hands to set the scene, the way he always did when he started talking about science stuff. “So, we all know that unicorn tears have remarkable healing properties, right? But we also know that unicorns aren’t generous creatures, and trying to obtain some tears by force often creates more injuries than they could ever heal.”

Stan snorted. “And how many tries did it take for that lesson to set in?”

“Not the topic, Stanley. Anyway, our goal was to synthetically recreate the healing properties of the tears, eliminating the need to seek out the real thing. This has been in the works for a long time; in fact, our biggest breakthroughs came from studying the sample Mabel and her friends obtained last year…”

Dipper extended a fist to Mabel, and she proudly bumped it.

“...And I must say, we’ve had some very promising results with the latest prototypes! There have been some hiccups here and there– we really should have fireproofed the lab sooner– but I think in the next few weeks, we might even end up with something that could surpass the healing properties of unicorn tears!”

“Nice!” Mabel held out a fist to Ford. “Take that, you overrated horses!”

Ford laughed, accepting the fist bump. Stan clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Here’s hoping you get it workin’ before we set out again. It’d make things way less stressful on the boat. Heck, the coast guard medics might even have time to forget our names!”

“Wait, you’re setting out again?” Dipper asked. “When?”

“End of the summer, same as you kids!” Stan said proudly. “First thing in September, we’re headed right back out there.”

Ford nodded. “We still have a lot more to investigate. I expect we’ll be very busy once Fall comes around, which is why I’m under strict orders to ‘take it easy’ while we’re here. Otherwise, the elixir would probably be finished by now–” Stan crossed his arms, and Ford quickly added “--but I completely understand the point of it. Rest is important, kids.”

“Darn right,” Stan grunted. “Far as I’m concerned, we’re both on vacation for the summer.”

Dipper tapped his fork on his chin. “So you won’t be studying Gravity Falls for a while?”

“C’mon, brobro,” Mabel chided. “Grunkle Ford’s willingly taking a break for once, let’s not remind him of all the extra stuff he could be doing!”

“That’s not what I meant!” Dipper protested. “I’m just saying…”

“It’s a fair question,” Ford said. “There certainly are plenty of mysteries left unsolved around here. But I think Stanley and I have broadened our focus a bit too much to give special attention to Gravity Falls anymore. Just our brief stay in the Arctic Circle alone has raised so many fascinating questions, and we still have so many more places to investigate… there’s just not enough time to solve all the world’s mysteries, I’m afraid.”

“Hey, relax, Poindexter,” Stan cut in, shoving Ford’s shoulder. “We’re not the only ones working on this stuff. Something tells me Gravity Falls’ll be in good hands, even without us.” He gave Dipper a meaningful wink. Mabel couldn’t help but smile at the way her brother’s face lit up.

“Hey, guys?” Dipper asked, leaning back in his chair and trying to seem subtle. “Can we talk after dinner? I was hoping to get some feedback on this project I’m working on…”

Mabel’s smile faded. “Is it about that dumb thesis contest?” She turned to the Grunkles and pointed accusingly at Dipper. “He won’t let me help with it! He wouldn’t shut up about how cool it would be to win and get a big smarty-pants paper published, and now that he’s allowed to start working on it he won’t even tell me what it’s gonna be about! I could have done like fifty illustrations by now if—”

“I told you, there’s nothing to share yet!” Dipper protested. “I’ve… kinda been putting it off. I’ve still got a week until the topic proposal’s due…”

“Then what do you need Stan and Ford’s ‘feedback’ on?”

Dipper tugged at his shirt collar. “Uh… it’s…”

“I could help,” she said, voice a little louder than she’d wanted. “Even if it’s something I’m bad at, I could help make it look cool. If you just told me a little bit about it…”

Dipper sighed. “Look, Mabel, I promise I’ll share it with you soon, okay? I just… I want it to be a surprise.”

Mabel looked at him doubtfully over the rim of her water glass. She wanted to keep prying, but it was clear she was just making him uncomfortable. He didn’t want her help, he just didn’t know how to say it. She could tell.

“Okay,” she said, trying not to sound hurt. It was fine, really. She had high-speed bike riding; Dipper was allowed to have things just for himself too. It was normal for twins to grow apart. She drained the rest of her glass and stared down at the tablecloth.

An awkward silence hung in the air for a moment. Then Stan spoke up. “Speaking of surprises. Hey Sixer, remember that thing we ran into off the coast of Greenland in March?”

Ford laughed. “How could I possibly forget? Now, kids, I don’t know about you, but nothing in my paleontology education gave me the impression that wooly mammoths were aquatic…”

Soon Mabel was too wrapped up in seafaring stories to be sad about anything.

——-

Bill must have fallen asleep at some point. He’d been lying there, in the basement, in the dark, with the Pines’ infernal voices ringing above him, but then something had happened. The voices changed. And suddenly he wasn’t in a basement anymore. He was lying on an exam table, and his arms were strapped down, and his eye wouldn’t close, and the air was thick with antiseptic. And there were voices all around him, moving around him, but he knew he couldn’t look, he just had to keep his eye focused on the stars overhead, just don’t look, just don’t look at them, just pretend they’re not there, pretend you’re among the stars and nothing’s happening, nothing hurts. So he didn’t look away, not even when the quiet voices he could hear through the pain changed again, became painfully familiar, he still didn’t look, even when they started screaming, even when their cries and pleading were drowned out by the sounds of flames, even when the heat waves twisted the air and the crunching, sizzling, tearing sounds and the smell of burning meat drowned out all his other senses he still didn’t look, he didn’t look down, he wouldn’t–

And then he was back in the basement. It was dark and still. The only sound was his own ragged breathing.

He sat up and scrubbed at his face with the blanket he’d been wrapped in. Dreams. He hadn’t been ready to deal with dreams. Other people’s dreams were a riot. Not his own.

He’d been distracted too quickly to dwell on the last one. He’d foolishly hoped that would be the last one for a while. But no, of course not. This world couldn’t allow him even a moment of peace. Every sleep was going to be like this.

In the dark, he staggered to the small bathroom in the back of the room. He ran the cold water in the sink and rinsed his mouth until he forgot the taste of the smoke. It was so vivid. So convincing. Even though none of it had made any sense, it felt real.

He stared numbly at the mirror. Their voices. He’d remembered them, of course. Despite all the worlds that had sprouted and withered between then and now, despite everything he’d tried, he’d never been able to stop remembering them. But he never thought he’d have to hear those voices again.

Someone knocked at the door.

His first thought was “thank god”. He’d been desperately hoping for anything else to think about. His second thought, as he heard the door unlock, was “that could be anybody”. So he stood just at the edge of the room and prepared to run for cover, until a small, high-pitched voice said “It’s me.”

Bill relaxed a little. Not a lot, but more than zero. He scrubbed his face dry and straightened his bowtie before she entered, trying to look as stoic as possible. She didn’t seem to notice anything amiss as she rushed in and slumped against the door to shut it. Both her hands were busy carrying an overloaded paper plate.

Trying her best to not let it fold under the weight of the food piled onto it, she glanced around for a surface to place it on. The curved lid of the wooden chest was considered, then quickly rejected when the plate started sliding. She winced before resorting to setting it down on the floor beside the beanbag. Finally, she retrieved a packet of plastic utensils from a takeout place and laid it beside the plate, trying to make it look presentable.

“We need to get a table or something in here,” she muttered as Bill drew closer to inspect the offering.

“YEAH, SOME APPLIANCES WOULD BE NICE TOO,” he joked. “I’M THINKIN’ A STUDIO APARTMENT KIND OF SETUP. WASHER AND DRYER OVER THERE, THAT CORNER’S THE KITCHEN… FULL-SIZE JACUZZI ON THAT SIDE, OBVIOUSLY…”

“I have six dollars,” Mabel piped up.

Bill laughed before he could stop himself. Encouraged, she went on: “I mean, there’s an empty fish tank and a car battery in the garage. We could make a hole in the side and stick a blowdryer in there for a jet. That’d be fine, right?”

He laughed again. “I LIKE WHERE YOUR HEAD’S AT, KID. IF WE SHUT OFF THE SPRINKLERS, WE COULD SET UP A FIRE PIT IN THE KITCHEN CORNER!”

“Perfect plan!” Mabel laughed along with him, but then seemed to think better of it. “But okay, hold on, we can start with the home renovations later. For now, you should eat.” She pointed to the plate. “It’s just some leftovers from tonight. Figured taking more snacks would look suspicious. But if it, uh… disagrees with you… then just let me know tomorrow.”

That wasn’t a glowing review. Looking dubiously at the alleged “food” on the plate, he didn’t see much reason to doubt it. Still, he tried to look grateful as he picked up a plastic fork. “WILL DO,” he said, trying not to look down.

“I’ll come back down tomorrow, before the others wake up,” she said, crossing back over to the door. “Including Grunkle Ford… ugh, that’s gonna suck. But once I’m back, we’ll figure out a plan, okay?”

Bill glanced around the room. “I THOUGHT THIS WAS THE PLAN,” he said.

“C’mon, you can’t just stay in one tiny dark room all summer! This isn’t Guacamole or something.”

Bill snorted. “GUANTANAMO?”

“Whatever,” she said, flushing. “The point is we need to get you outside once in a while. You have scales, things with scales need sunlight or they get sick. And what’s the point of all this work if you get sick and die??”

She had a point there. Bill shifted uncomfortably, realizing he wasn’t totally sure if the sun thing would apply to him or not. “YEAH, FAIR ENOUGH. KEEP FORGETTING THIS…” he gestured to the body, “…THING NEEDS ‘VITAMINS’ AND SUCHLIKE.”

“Relatable, honestly. But there’s a bunch more stuff to plan out, too! We need to be able to contact each other in emergencies. And, like, a secret knock so you know when it’s me, and a code to communicate…” as she spoke, her hands started flapping with excitement. “Oh my gosh, it’s like one of those spy games Dipper likes. We could make a guidebook with all this stuff! Like a, what, codex? For the code? We could make our own code! You can handle that part— I know that’s your thing, it’s literally your name… I get to do all the art, though. It can have a scrapbook vibe— I gotta find my craft scissors with the zig-zags—”

“KID.” Bill cut her off. “I KNOW IT’S IN YOUR NATURE NOT TO TAKE STUFF SERIOUSLY. IT’S A GOOD TRAIT! MAKES LIFE A LOT MORE BEARABLE. BUT THIS ISN’T SOME SILLY SUMMER CRAFT PROJECT. THIS IS LIFE OR DEATH, GOT IT? CAN WE TRY TO ACT LIKE IT’S IMPORTANT?”

She looked hurt. “Silly things are still important,” she muttered. “We could hide it in here. And even if someone finds it, it could be any goofy old thing I made! Dipper showed me how to do that invisible ink thing; I could act like the empty space is just unfinished parts! I dunno, I just… I thought it’d make this whole thing a little more fun.”

Bill squinted at her as she stared at the floor, arms crossed tight over her chest. Then he rolled his eye. Maybe he was being a choosing beggar here. This was Mabel Pines; of course she’d want to make some stupid game out of this. And the whole plan was to humor her. If this was what it took to keep her invested, he should probably just play along.

“OKAY, FINE. I’M IN,” he sighed. “WE CAN MAKE A BOOK OR WHATEVER.”

She lit up again. “Really?? Yes! Awesome! It’ll be so fun, I promise.” She paused and glanced at the dark window. “But we can start that later. I gotta go get at least a tiny bit of sleep first.”

Bill shrugged. “SURE. CAN’T KEEP THIS BODY ALIVE IF YOURS GIVES OUT.”

“Thanks for the concern,” she snorted. “And see you in the morning.” She gave a quick wave before shutting the door behind her.

Watching the door, he heard the heavy “clunk” of the lock clicking shut, then rapid footsteps bounding up the staircase. He sighed and pinched his forehead. That much youthful energy couldn’t be sustainable. She probably wouldn’t live past 20.

As he waited for the various noises and occupants of the house to settle, he wolfed down the food as fast as he could. The kid was right to be apologetic, but if he ate quickly, he didn’t taste it much. It was just fuel anyway.

When the plate was finally empty, he dropped it back to the floor and picked up the plastic fork. He rinsed it in the sink as well as he could, wiped it dry with the paper napkin that came with the set, then bent one of the tines away from the others. He leaned one side against the crack in the door, listening intently to the silence from above. There wasn’t a whisper of movement.

He stuck the tine of the fork into the lock.

It was more stubborn than your typical household lock, but Bill had bested much worse with much less. It only took a little finagling before he heard the “clunk” he was listening for. Slowly, cautiously, he eased the door open. The hallway was dark and empty. He stashed his impromptu lockpick in his hat, locked the door behind him, and crept up into the house.

—-

The place was as quiet and dark as he’d hoped for. He’d been right to judge by the footsteps above him that they’d all gone to bed. And thankfully, even without his usual glow, the stars outside were bright enough to see by. He crept along with his back against the wall, testing each floorboard before he stepped, scanning his surroundings.

The decor was about the same as he remembered, with a few notable changes. A lot of the ceiling and walls had been replaced; probably necessary after they turned it into a big stupid robot last year. And it seemed like someone else might have moved in. There were some new decorations that weren't anything close to the “style” he’d come to expect from the place. Lace doilies hung from the tops of chairs and sofas like dusty cobwebs, and handmade blankets and wall hangings were scattered all around. Shooting Star was crafty, sure, but these didn’t look like her handiwork. The colors were way too easy on the eye, and there wasn’t a crumb of glitter to be seen. If they were her doing, they were a big step down in quality.

But if they weren’t, it meant an extra person to deal with. Better keep his eye out.

He turned a corner and a massive shape blotted out the hallway ahead. He scrambled back, clenching his teeth tight beneath his eyelids to stop a yell from escaping.

Then his eye adjusted, and he had to stifle an irritated growl. It was just that stupid pig. He’d forgotten how huge it was now, and it looked a lot less pathetic from a low angle. It was sitting in the middle of the floor, directly in his path, staring down at him. Its eyes glittered in the moonlight like two tiny black teeth.

Bill glared up at it defiantly. Just let it try and make a move. He might not have magic, but he still had claws and teeth. A ripped throat wasn’t as flashy as immolation, but it was still perfectly fatal.

The pig returned his stare with no discernable expression. A few silent seconds crept by.

Then the pig gave a grumbly snort and laid its head on the ground. It flopped onto one side and closed its eyes with an indifferent sigh.

Bill hurried on, telling himself to thank his lucky stars instead of feeling indignant. Still, his ego stung a little. Not even livestock saw him as a threat anymore.

To his relief, he had no more surprise encounters as he cased the second floor. The layout of the rooms was about the same as before, which meant the sounds of walking from above his little home base would still be a reliable method of tracking the inhabitants. He steered well clear of all the bedrooms and kept his back to the wall, and the floorboards beneath him kept silent. He was out of practice with walking, sure, but nobody who grew up causing problems ever forgets how to sneak through a hallway.

Once he’d made mental notes of all the storage spaces that might have supplies he could use, he headed for the portal. On the way through the gift shop he snagged a small notepad and pen from behind the desk. Scanning over the portal wreckage, he made a list of the missing components and tools he’d need. In code, obviously; secret codes were literally his name, after all.

Once the darkness outside started to lift away, he cut his work short and headed back. He tore the used page from the notebook and placed it and the pen back where he’d found them, exchanging them for a single paperclip that he stashed in his hat with the paper. That was all he felt comfortable taking for now. It was much too early to start gathering supplies. Anything left out of place would definitely make the kid suspicious. For now, he’d just plan. Make sure everything went as smoothly as it possibly could. He wasn’t sure how he was going to get all the power tools and steel he’d need down to the basement without being noticed, but there was no point freaking out about it now. He’d figure out logistics later. He could pull this off. He was going to pull this off. He had no other choice.

By the time the first pink rays of light had breached the horizon, he was back in the cell. The paperclip made a perfectly serviceable lockpick to latch the door behind him. Like nothing ever happened.

He curled up in his nest of blankets, trying to hold his eye open. Hoping to ward off the dreams a little longer. But eventually his exhaustion won the battle. His eye slid shut.

Maybe the next dream would at least be over quick.

—-

Bill’s wish came true. As soon as he jolted awake, he regretted making it. It felt like he’d been yanked out of a tar pit by his eyelashes, but his brain stayed behind. His head, chest and eye socket all felt like they were stuffed with wet cotton, and his bones were shaking with this sudden painful chill. His thoughts were so slow and muffled that it took a second for him to even realize that someone was staring him right in the face. He lurched away and fell backwards off the beanbag.

Mabel poked her head over the beanbag and beamed down at where he lay on the floor in a tangle of blankets. “Morning!” she said in a bright half-whisper. “How’d you sleep?”

Bill glared up at her with silent disdain. After a moment, she seemed to take that as an answer. “Yeah, me too. Had a lot of stress dreams. Anyway, time to figure some stuff out.”

She disappeared from view for a moment, then reappeared at his side with a fuzzy pink notebook and a chunky pink pen with a glittery pom-pom topper. She leafed through the book for a minute, then looked up at Bill. “You ok?”

“I’M DYING,” Bill croaked. It was barely hyperbole. That freezing, sinking pain just kept getting worse. Every second he kept his eye open, it felt like gravity increased tenfold.

Mabel hissed through her teeth. “Hold on a second.” She vanished from view again, then popped back in with a mason jar full of what looked like the fluid from inside a neon pink glowstick. She propped him upright and shoved it into his hands. “Drink this.”

Bill ought to have been at least a little suspicious of a drink presented so vaguely. But a billion years of drinking cocktails made from substances meant to power quantum reactions, combined with the weight of sheer exhaustion muffling all his thoughts, meant that he barely hesitated before lifting the jar to his eyelids and taking a gulp.

A second later, his eye shot wide open. “WHOA!” he shouted, blinking rapidly.

“Ooh, I might’ve put too many pop rocks in that batch,” Mabel said. She grabbed the jar and shook it, sending frozen fruit shapes and plastic dinosaurs clattering around in a glittery whirlpool. “Mixing it usually helps. Dipper keeps telling me to warn people before I give them this stuff—”

Bill grabbed the jar back. He took an approving glance at the crazy-looking drink— now that his brain was working, he could fully appreciate the vibe— and then knocked back another mouthful. A rush of energy buzzed through his brain, setting his neurons alight like christmas lights hooked up to a nuclear reactor. The dangerously sugary concoction stung the inside of his mouth like acid, but this was a fun kind of pain. “OH, THIS IS PHENOMENAL.”

Mabel’s face lit up. “You like it??”

“DO I?!” One more swig and the jar was empty, and Bill was actually bouncing in place a little. “I FEEL LIKE A WHOLE NEW TRIANGLE! WHAT IS THAT?!”

“It’s Mabel Juice!” she beamed. “My own personal secret recipe! It’s so secret, not even I know what the secret is! Seriously, I hardly ever write the ingredients down.”

Bill laughed. “WELL, COLOR ME IMPRESSED, KID! I HAVEN’T HAD A DRINK THAT GOOD SINCE THAT BATTERY ACID DAQUIRI I MIXED BACK IN THE ‘30s. AND THIS ONE DIDN’T EVEN DISSOLVE MY STOMACH!”

Mabel’s smile dropped for a second, then returned. “I’ll take that as a compliment!” she said proudly. “I’ll bring more down later. I’ve got a million different brews you can try! The others don’t drink much of it, they always complain about how there’s ‘so much sugar’ and it ‘burns their mouths’ or whatever…”

“HEY, THEIR LOSS! I’LL TAKE IT OFF YOUR HANDS! EXTRA BURNING ON THE SIDE, IF YOU’VE GOT IT,” Bill offered. He had to hand it to the kid; she made pouring on the charm pretty easy. In a better world, he would’ve hired her as a barista in the Fearamid.

Mabel grinned, but then her face froze. From somewhere upstairs, the familiar sound of heavy, clomping footsteps rang through the ceiling.

Bill froze in place too, his eye locked on the ceiling. His teeth clenched tight behind his eye socket as he tried to repress his anger. Like a favorite song after you set it as your morning alarm, that sound made his blood boil on contact.

“Grunkle Ford’s up,” Mabel whispered. Bill glanced over to see her watching the ceiling too. “I thought he’d at least sleep ‘til five…”

“RISKY GAMBLE THERE,” Bill muttered. “FORD DOESN’T HAVE A SLEEP SCHEDULE, HE JUST WORKS ‘TIL HE KEELS OVER.”

“He’s working on it,” Mabel said defensively. Maybe Bill hadn’t kept all the derision out of his voice. He kept his mouth shut, just to be safe.

“Okay. Alright. This is fine.” The kid was clearly reassuring herself more than him. “He shouldn’t hear us down here. Nobody heard you screaming your head off the other day, they shouldn’t hear us just talking… we should be fine for now. As long as he doesn’t wander down here and happen to just randomly get close to this room. Or wander upstairs to his office and pass our bedroom and happen to look in and notice I’m not there. So as long as he stays on the exact floor he’s on now, we’ll be okay…”

“KID, RELAX. YOU SOUND LIKE PINETREE,” Bill laughed. “WITH HOW LOUD THOSE STEPS ARE, WE’LL HAVE A TON OF WARNING IF HE HEADS FOR ANY STAIRS. JUST CUT TO THE CHASE SO YOU DIDN’T WAKE ME UP FOR NOTHING.”

She shot another worried glance at the ceiling, then nodded. “Okay. Sure. The chase… hold on.” She grabbed her notepad and pen again, then started rooting around for something else in the backpack she’d brought. “The Chase, part one. Secret messages. Ooh, that’s good.” She opened the book and labeled the first page with that title. Bill bit his tongue to stop himself from pointing out that huge pink bubble letters weren’t the best choice for subtlety.

“Now,” she said, throwing the notebook down like a frazzled detective presenting her notes. “I would’ve loved to, like, build a two-way radio out of soda cans, or find a way to send smoke signals through the A/C system or something. But I think we should wait on that ‘til later. Right now, simplicity’s the name of the game.” With a victorious flourish, she revealed the thing she’d fished out of the bag. It took a second for Bill to parse what the battered old thing even was. A cell phone. An ancient, blocky brick of a flip-screen cell phone.

“YEESH!” he exclaimed as she shoved it into his hands. “WHAT ANCIENT BURIAL GROUND DIDJA DIG THIS THING OUT OF? IT’S OLD ENOUGH TO BE YOUR DAD!”

Mabel snorted. “Give me a break! It was the best one I could find in the closet where Grunkle Stan keeps all his burner phones.”

“WELL, I’D HATE TO SEE THE COMPETITION!” Bill remarked. “WHAT WAS THE WORST ONE, A CLAY TABLET? A BONE CARVED FLUTE TO CALL THE NEANDERTHAL TRIBE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN?”

Mabel hid a giggle behind the turtleneck of her sweater. All according to plan. Jokes were a great way of lowering a mark’s defenses, even if they didn’t land. And despite her best efforts, Shooting Star was a good audience.

He held down the power button and marvelled as the dusty, scuffed screen actually lit up. “WHAAAT! LOOK AT THIS LOGO! THIS COMPANY WENT UNDER IN 2002! THE CEO BURNED DOWN THE OFFICE TO HIDE TAX FRAUD AND MELTED HIS EYELIDS OFF!”

Mabel clapped her hands over her ears. “Ugh!! Why would you tell me that?”

“BECAUSE IT’S HILARIOUS! THE GUY WAS A TOTAL LOSER ANYWAY, HE WAS TOO UPTIGHT TO TAKE MY DEAL AND COULDN’T EVEN HANDLE A WEEK OF NIGHT TERRORS BEFORE HE CRACKED—”

“Anyway!” She cut him off. “This was the only phone I found in the closet that could send texts. We need to be able to keep in touch, so you can let me know if you’re hurt or need more supplies, and I can warn you if people upstairs can hear you practicing your evil laugh or something.”

“WHA— HEY! WHO EVEN— NOBODY NEEDS TO PRACTICE THEIR LAUGH, THAT’S JUST STUPID.” Bill hoped he didn’t sound too defensive. There was no way she actually knew about that, right?

She just rolled her eyes, holding back a smile. “Point is, that phone is yours. Nobody’ll recognize that number. My number’s in there already, you can text me in morse code if you need something.”

Bill looked up from the phone screen to squint at her. “MORSE? C’MON, KID.”

“What’s wrong with morse?”

“THAT’S THE MOST BASIC CODE IN EXISTENCE! YOU REALLY THINK ANYBODY IN THIS HOUSE WOULDN’T RECOGNIZE MORSE WHEN THEY SAW IT?” he said. “YOU THINK THEY’LL SEE YOU ANSWERING TEXTS IN MORSE FROM SOME RANDOM NUMBER AND HAVE ANY OTHER THOUGHT BESIDES ‘SHE’S HIDING SOMETHING’?”

Mabel sighed. “Okay, fine, Mr. Code Snob. What should we use?”

“WE SHOULDN’T ‘USE’ ANYTHING. WE JUST KEEP THINGS VAGUE AND SIMPLE,” he said. “ANYTHING THAT EVEN LOOKS LIKE IT MIGHT BE CODE WILL JUST GET PEOPLE’S ATTENTION. BESIDES, IN A HOUSE FULL OF CON ARTISTS AND MYSTERY DORKS, I DOUBT THERE’S ANY CODE WE COULD USE ON THIS THING THAT NONE OF THEM WILL RECOGNIZE. THESE TEXTS NEED TO BE AS BORING AND UN-MYSTERIOUS AS THEY CAN POSSIBLY BE. SO BORING THAT NOT EVEN PINETREE IN HIS SNOOPIEST MOOD WOULD GLANCE AT ‘EM TWICE.”

Mabel pursed her lips. “Spam!” she said after a minute. “Dipper and I get spam texts from random numbers all the time. We can make up a system where I know what you’re saying based on what you’re trying to sell me. Like a scam alphabet!”

Bill’s eye crinkled with his version of a grin. “NOW YOU’RE TALKING!”

Mabel grabbed her pen and started rattling off scams to list in her notebook. Stan had clearly taught her well, and between the both of them they soon had a massive list to work from. On the opposite page, they listed phrases to match with each scam. “NEED FOOD”, “NEED SUPPLIES”, “INJURY”, “FIRE”, “RACCOON GOT IN”, and so on. As soon as they had a workable “alphabet”, the kid insisted they start deciding on secret knocks. They’d just started to argue about whether “shave-and-a-haircut” was too uncreative, when suddenly Mabel stopped short and held out a hand. Before Bill could ask what was up, he realized what she’d heard. A voice from upstairs. A voice that was much too prepubescent to be Ford’s.

“Dipper’s up,” Mabel hissed. “Why is Dipper up? He never gets up this early on his own… Did he notice I was gone? Is he looking for me?? How am I gonna get back up without—”

“GEEZ, RELAX,” Bill said. “LOOK, THE STAIRCASE TO THE ATTIC IS RIGHT ACROSS FROM THIS ONE. JUST WAIT UNTIL HE’S IN THE KITCHEN…” he pointed to that corner of the house, from where Ford’s voice was now ringing through the ceiling, “AND YOU CAN SNEAK BACK UP WITHOUT BUMPING INTO HIM. JUST DON’T LET HIM SEE YOU LEAVING THE BASEMENT, AND WE’LL BE FINE.”

“I don’t like how much you know about our house.”

Bill pointed to his eye. “REMEMBER HOW HALF THE DECOR IN HERE USED TO BE MY EYES?”

“Yeah, duh. Doesn’t mean it’s not creepy.” She shuddered, and Bill tried not to laugh. At least the memory of his powers still inspired fear… but he didn’t want her knowing how happy that made him.

Mabel gathered up her stuff and headed for the door. “I gotta go before he notices I’m not sleeping. Soon as I get a chance, I’ll sneak back down and we’ll sort out the other stuff on my checklist.”

“FAIR ENOUGH. BE SEEING YOU, KID.” He couldn’t resist putting a little extra emphasis on that word, pointing to his eye again with a smug, half-lidded smile. Shooting Star was his ally for now, sure. But she shouldn’t forget where things really stood. He was the one who was really in control here.

“And I’ll use the We Will Rock You knock.”

“UGH, COME ON!” Bill protested. “I’M TELLING YOU, SHAVE-AND-A-HAIRCUT IS THE GO-TO FOR A REASON, IT’S PRACTICAL—“

“See ya later!” She winked and vanished through the door. The lock clicked heavily into place.

Bill glared daggers at the door until the sound of footsteps had faded away. Then he took off his hat and rifled through the lining, taking a reassuring glance at his folded-up notes. And the paper clip fastening them in place. That dumb kid put way too much trust in that lock. Did she really not realize the danger she’d let into her house? Did she really not know what she was dealing with?

His eye was drawn in by a soft gleam from deep within the hat. He brushed some fabric aside and stared at the fragment of his dimension. It caught the dim light in the room and threw it back much brighter, twisted into colors that didn’t exist anymore. It hurt to look at it with this new eye. He let his gaze rest on it longer than he should have.

Then he tore his eye away and shoved the hat back on. No, she definitely didn’t know. The fact he was still here— still alive— was proof enough of that.

[najaemism]

i think she knows! | karina x fem!oc

chapter 01: chemistry read

synopsis. march shim and karina yu had been compared and pitted against each other for years, and the media even dubbed them as rivals simply because their careers were slightly similar. their professional lives cross when they’re both casted as leads in a new series, sparks flying both onscreen and off.

(oh—and march also runs a secret stan account for karina.)

warnings. language, stans being dramatic, march being down bad

word count. 855 words

MONTH. march!

March smiles and thanks the second actress that she did a scene with, shaking her hand before she leaves the holding room where they’re doing the chemistry screening. As soon as the actress is out of the room, March’s smile falls as she lets the three—Wonwoo, Mingyu, and the casting director—discuss the chemistry read. She listens intently before her mind eventually starts to tune them out.

Her phone vibrates, and she notices that she’s been receiving notifications from the groupchat with her friends. Before she can go and check them, the assistant comes in to announce the last actress they’re doing the screening with, and March pockets her phone quickly before she stands up from her chair to greet the actress.

She puts on a smile as she turns around, and then—

Oh my fucking god.

“Ms. Karina Yu, this is March Shim. She’s going to be one of the leads of the show,” Wonwoo introduces them, smiling from his spot at the long table with the casting director and Mingyu. 

March glances at them with wide eyes, as if asking for help. She then sends them a glare when she notices Mingyu trying not to laugh and Wonwoo’s lips twitching in amusement.

“March?” 

Her glare immediately falls upon hearing Karina’s voice, her head quickly snapping to the other actress’ direction, looking at the older girl with her eyebrows raised. 

Karina sends her a warm smile as she offers her a hand. “We met before in passing when you had a small scene in ‘Dreams Come True’, but I doubt you remember meeting me. I’m Karina Yu,” she introduces herself.

March feels like she’s malfunctioning—she’s so fucking pretty, how the fuck is someone this pretty? Of course I remember meeting her, how can someone forget meeting the Karina Yu—she takes a few seconds before she hears someone clear their throat (it was Mingyu, who is definitely going to give her shit for this later) and she snaps out of it, giving a shaky smile at Karina before accepting her hand and giving a firm shake. 

“Nice to meet you, Karina—well, we… I know we met before. I remember you, I mean—” she lets out an awkward laugh and lightly shakes her head— “but yeah, hi, I’m—I’m March Shim,” she introduces in turn. 

Oh, god, can the ground swallow me up whole now? she thinks to herself.

Karina chuckles, nodding at her before she pulls back her hand to to stand beside March—god, even her laugh sounds pretty… snap out of it March!

Mingyu starts speaking to Karina. “You can start anytime,” he says, making both actresses turn their heads to look at him. He offers them a reassuring smile. “Go on ahead.”

It takes only a few seconds before Karina’s reaching out to hold March’s wrist, and her eyes widen in surprise before she realizes that—oh, right… we’re starting. She puts her mind to the role that she’s supposed to be playing, and lets the scene roll out.

They both hear a click, signaling that the scene is over. March turns to look at the three people sitting at the long table, and she can’t quite make out what the expressions on their face mean. She sees them whisper among each other before scribbling something down, and then looking up to both of them.

The casting director smiles. “Thank you, Ms. Yu. We’ll be in touch with your team if you are selected for the role.”

Karina bows at them in respect and thanks them, before turning to look at March. “I’ll see you around, March.”

March's eyes widen for a fraction before smiling at her and nodding. “See you around, Karina,” she echoes her words before the girl waves goodbye at her and leaves the room. 

There’s a few moments of silence before she snaps back from watching Karina leave and walks towards the long table. “Okay, I’m not being biased when I say that was the best among the three, right?” she asks.

Wonwoo chuckles. “I don’t know, Mara, we’ll have to talk about it,” he says.

“Wonwoo, come on, you know she’s perfect for the role,” March insists.

“She is right,” the casting director agrees, “and it helps that their chemistry is good.”

“We have chemistry?” 

“It’s a chemistry reading,” Mingyu points out as he pushes her head with his pointer finger, letting out a laugh when she frowns up at him. “We’ll discuss it with the others tomorrow, and you’ll just find out when it’s announced, yeah?” he says, and the girl pouts before crossing her arms.

Wonwoo stands up and ruffles her hair as he smiles at her. “We’ll head to dinner, you wanna come with?” he asks, changing the topic.

“All I’ll do is convince you to cast Karina,” she says as if it’s a threat.

“I know,” he says, “shall we?” 

March huffs and nods. Maybe she will end up convincing them with this dinner, or maybe, they have decided the moment the older actress entered the room and approached her to introduce herself to her.

PREV | MASTERLIST | NEXT

notes.

accidentally posted this earlier then unpublished it bc it's supposed to be for new year... but then i thought fuck it why not so here it is

i actually dont know what happens during chemistry reads, nor do i know how to write a script so pls dont attack me !? 😭 i just wanted to do the script thing for when they're acting out scenes from the show

also if u got confused with their roles in the show, march = rowan, karina = skye

my favorite part in writing celeb smaus are the tweets between the fans SO !!!! if u want to be a stan account for this smau, pls let me know!!!

also !!! taglist is still open !! 💌

taglist. @archivedmkl @yuyuy90 @linonyang @yjiminswallet @jaeyuuns @syronns @gtfoiydlyj

[mulloey]

public (minho drabble)

just minho fucking you with a remote control vibrator in public. that’s it. requests open!

You’d known since the start of the relationship that Minho was on the… kinkier side of things, but until now he’d refused to show you just how far he could go. You couldn’t handle it, he maintained, having only been introduced to this type of thing when you’d started dating him, but you swore you could. Anytime, anywhere, you’d said. As soon as the words left your mouth you knew it was a mistake.

A few days later he’d stopped you as you left for work, pinning you to the wall and pulling your dress up. He’d yanked your panties down wordlessly, rubbed your clit enough to get you wet before unceremoniously shoving a small vibrator inside you. As he pulled your panties back up he slapped your pussy sharply before letting your dress fall back down. “Keep that in there,” he said, pressing a kiss to your lips just like he did everyday. “And have a good day, baby.”

He doesn’t use the vibrator all day; you almost forget it’s in there, in fact. You wonder if he’s forgotten about it but you know he hasn’t. When it comes to you and these games, Minho doesn’t forget.

After work you meet him in the cafe next to the building, as has become a tradition every Thursday. When you walk in he’s at your usual table by the window, greeting you cheerily, your usual already on the table. You sit down, happily munching on your cake before he speaks.

“How was your day, honey?” He asks.

Just as you go to answer, a low, dull vibration starts inside you. You jolt, eyes widening. No. He can’t be doing this now. Here. No.

He tilts his head, smiling with all the innocence of someone not fucking their girlfriend with a vibrator in the middle of a restaurant. “Is something wrong?”

The vibrations speed up, stronger and deeper now and you choke. “F…fuck,” you gasp. “Minho, fuck.”

“That’s not very nice,” he frowns. “Or appropriate. We’re in public, you know.”

“Yes we are,” you snap as quietly as you can. He scowls slightly at your tone, but he’s having too much fun to press it further. “So stop doing this. Please.”

Minho sighs, nodding softly before his finger twitches in his pocket and the vibrations ease a little. You exhale finally, getting a hold of yourself and whispering your thanks.

“You’re welcome,” he smiles. Then his finger twitches again.

You don’t have time to react, to beg him not to, before the vibrations return, the highest they’ve ever been and you almost keel over. Through tear-filled eyes you see a few people at a nearby table turn concernedly to you, muttering lowly about the scene in front of them. Minho keeps his gaze on you, unbothered by the attention you’re drawing. He adjusts the settings a few more times, up and down, with a focused expression.

“Is she okay?” You hear someone enquire. You look up to make out an older woman at the next table staring worriedly at you. “She looks distressed.”

Minho smiles kindly at the woman. “Oh yes, Ma’am,” he says. “She’s having one of her migraines, I’m afraid. They come on so quickly.”

“Poor thing,” she says. She offers you a sympathetic smile which you weakly return. “You should get her home.”

“You’re right,” Minho says. “Such a shame. She said she’d be fine today, but I guess she just couldn’t handle it.”

The woman smiles meekly and turns back to her friend, sparing you a few more glances before Minho pulls you from your seat and walks (drags) you out of the cafe. As the door closes behind you he grabs the back of your neck, whispering harshly in your ear. “Wait til I get you home.”

[eddiernunson]

Really Drives Me Mad | EX-bfs dad!Eddie Munson x Reader | 18+

Previous Part | Master List | Next Part

Word Count: 12.8k

Big big thank you to @forget-you-morelike-fuck-you for editing for me I appreciate it, bestie

Another big thank you to @bebe07011 for spitting ideas and giving feedback.

Warnings: Degradation/praise, eating out, public sex, daddy kink, and several scenes where smut is mentioned but not described. There is about 1k of words just from Dylan's perspective but its worth it trust me.

Eddie is a bit of a sugar daddy in this part, but its ok cause we all want him to spoil us anyway.

Author's note: Some of y'all are gonna make me cry with how kind you are with your words for this fic. I cannot believe how much this story has truly taken over my life. People have expressed sharing it with friends and I just cannot get over that. Thank you.

-

Your hands held a home-made cocktail on ice while The Princess Diaries played on the tv, a soft blanket covered your crossed legs as you sat with both Sky and Bethany in your living room, scattered along your couch.

Bethany often snuck a joint or two while she visited, the window staying open to minimize a smell with a 20-dollar fan in front of it to promote air circulation. It was nice to have a girls’ night, to order bags of chips and candy over SkiptheDishes, wear face masks, do your makeup for the hell of it, and just let loose.

Bethany made her way over about a movie and a half ago, and she was now explaining a stupid mishap from her office administrative position that quite literally pulled the company to a halt for 45 minutes. “I swear, you could not pay me enough to put up with those drivers.” She claims, taking an inhale from the joint in her two painted fingers.

Sky makes a sudden movement in her seat, reaching to the remote next to her to pause the movie. “Holy shit. Did I tell you I saw Eddie?” Her question is directed across you to Bethany, and you’re left wondering why the hell your boyfriend is the new topic of discussion.

“Wait, what?” Bethany asks, wide green eyes moving back and forth between you and Sky. “When and where?”

“Our date?” You interject her, a little weirded out by the turn this conversation has taken. “When Eddie picked me up, she was here.”

“Oh, I see.” She hums to herself. “Well, since she won’t show us a photo, please tell me what the man who’s old enough to be her father looks like.”

You roll your eyes at this, a cheeky thought occurring to you. “Well Dylan might be great; but he is a sequel. Ain’t nothing compared to the original.”

Sky nods, agreeing. “Eddie is… very good looking.” You shoot her a warning look, for some reason, her just alluding to his good looks makes you feel territorial. “Show her a picture if you don’t want to hear it, damn! Just telling the truth…”

“It’s not that I won’t show you guys,” you explain, unlocking your phone. “It’s that he doesn’t use social media, so he has no good photos of himself.” On the internet, at least.

“What, no throw back photos from Dylan’s insta?” Sky asks, mostly joking.

You go to Dylan’s insta, and you can’t view it. Fuck, you forgot. He blocked you. Even though he seems to be on better terms with you, simple reminders like being blocked from his social media or him refusing to tell any details about his life remind you he’s still nursing a healing wound. “Still blocked.” You look up, and their faces tell you they’re not letting up on it. “Fine. I’ll go to Eddie’s Facebook.”

Eddie added you as a friend the day after your date, adorably waiting as you went on your phone to accept it. The moment you did he went onto your profile and dove into your photos. His eyes were comically wide as he scrolled through them, and after the first few swipes he lifted his head to you. “You just put these on here? Fuck.” The photos weren’t even particularly bad, just you in a bikini on the beach or in a summer dress, he’s just that obsessed with you. You asked him if he minded and he shook his head comically, his dimples so prominent from his wide smile, he looked manic. “Oh, I never said to stop, sweetheart.”

Your thumb slides into Eddie’s profile, and while you were afraid of the calls from a judgemental relative about the relationship with him the word single on his relationship status still hits you hard in the chest. You move to his photos, past the useless profile picture that was his company logo of Munson’s Garage and swipe through the regular posts, past Dylan’s graduation from college, from high school, a picture of a nice car, an old one of his ex with Dylan, (barf), until you finally got through to a throwback, one posted in 2011.

It was taken in the 90s, so a picture of a picture of him sitting at an old kitchen table arm in arm with another dude. One of his feet was up on the table, and he was clutching a beer, lifting it to the camera. His friend was talking to someone off camera, distracted for the moment, his slightly freckled face in a scowl. His friend had brown hair down to his neck styled specifically in a swoop, and they seemed about the same age.

His friend was quite attractive, but younger Eddie made you fucking drool. God, he was so gorgeous. He wore a leather jacket under a denim vest, ripped blue jeans over his big black boots. Fuck. You almost didn’t want to share this photo.

You go to the next photo, and a giggle leaves your mouth as you see him posing with a friend, tongues out and devil horns on their heads as smiles peek through. The background is a stage at an Iron Maiden concert, and they both look ecstatic. It’s a different friend in this one with curly hair, but it looked like he had posted from the Iron Maiden concert. A few more scrolls told you that the throwback photo would be the best option.

“Ok.” You finally say, and both girls have been waiting so long at this point they’ve started scrolling on their own phones. “Guys. You wanna see it or not?”

You hand your phone to Bethany, indicating he was the one on the right. The possessiveness that hits you when you see her reaction, her wide eyes and jaw literally dropping, stunted you. “Holy shit. This is him from how long ago?”

“In the late 90s, I guess.” You tell her.

She hands the phone to Sky, who was asking for it repeatedly as soon as Bethany let out her reaction. “Oh, yeah. He was a cutie. Honestly, he’s hotter now.” Your teeth grit, and you take a deep breath in to calm yourself.

“How?” Bethany asks, gesturing to your phone.

“Ok. Enough. He’s very good looking. But he’s fucking taken.” You bark out, holding your hand out for the phone.

They both stop talking, your sudden anger very uncharacteristic of you. Usually when you find someone particularly good looking, you’d show them off, agreeing with your two friends when they would praise their good looks. This wasn’t anything like those times. Hearing their praises just makes you want to sink your teeth into Eddie’s neck and mark your territory the next time you see him.

“Woah, girl.” Sky says, laughing lightly to diffuse the tension. “Never seen that side of you before.”

“Well, I didn’t even know she existed until a waitress looked at Eddie on our date and I wanted to throttle her,” You admit, grabbing the nearly empty cocktail and taking a sip. “I just…I don’t know why I’m so territorial over him, but God, the thought of him with someone else makes me sick to my stomach.”

Bethany holds her hands up in surrender, “Alright, we won’t compliment him anymore. But you did good, girl. You did mighty good.”

-

As per usual, the girls'-day-in resulted in the three of you falling asleep in the living room, blankets and pillows scattered across the three of you. The sun cascading through a window by the couch wakes you up, disgruntled, as you pat around for your phone. The screen greets you harshly, your notifications indicating you have three messages from Eddie, two from a manager at work, and the several random ones, which you clear out, not caring about Instagram stories for the moment. Eddie texted to say he was going into work for a few hours. The next two messages indicated if you were there when he got home, he wouldn’t be against it.

Basically, he just told you to please be there when he got home. Fuck, the feeling of him reaching out first was enough to send a wide smile to your face, staring stupidly at your phone. You message him back, letting him know you’ll be there.

The messages from your manager were one from two hours ago, asking if you’d be able to come in for 10 o’clock– Which was thirty-five minutes ago– and the second asked if you were able to come in at all. You quirk your eyebrow, glad your read receipts are off for her, because you’re planning now to text at 3 o'clock to let her know that, oops, you just saw this. No, you’re not going in on your day off, you’ll be spending it with your ridiculously hot boyfriend.

You leap from your couch, running into your room to pack another overnight bag. You’re out the door before the others even stir.

As you pull into Eddie’s driveway, you notice Dylan’s truck there, but Eddie’s is still gone. You wonder when he’ll be back, because although Dylan is civil towards you, interactions with him are still stunted. You open the front door, grateful Dylan tended to leave it unlocked. You drop your overnight bag and pillow off at the staircase, its usual spot, before you trot off to the living room where Dylan sits watching tv.

As you plop down next to him on the other side of the couch, Dylan looks to you, startled by the movement, but his eyes roll in exasperation when he realizes that it’s you. “Hi.” You sing-song to him, knowing you’re annoying him, but having fun with it anyways.

“Hey.” He deadpans, watching the tv instead of looking over to you.

“Oh, wow you’re almost caught up.” You say, indicating to a show that you had recommended he watched a while back.

“Turned out to be a good show.” He comments, sounding annoyed.

“Well, how about that?” You retort, and Dylan rolls his eyes before a small smile lands on his face.

Progress.

Less than an hour later, the front door closes, indicating Eddie’s homecoming. He walks in, and as you pay attention to a particularly good episode in this series, you hear a big stretch come from him. “Hi, Ed!” You call out, finally turning towards him.

Fuck. Holy shit.

A few grease stains paint Eddie’s hands and chin, and he’s wearing a pair of blue coveralls from work with a patch on his chest of his name. The grease monkey suit shows off his muscles beautifully, both sleeves rolled up to his forearms. His hair is tied back into a messy bun, and you’re sure he forgot about the reading glasses on his head. Oh god, he is mouth watering.

A throw pillow hits your face, completely startling you. You whip your head around, glaring at  the culprit. “Little drool.” Dylan mouths, pointing to his chin.

“Oh, little drool?” You mock, getting up to hit him with the pillow hard. He chuckles, fighting you off.

You push his shoulder off, shuffling into the kitchen. You turn to see Eddie moving around the kitchen, making himself a quick sandwich. “Hi baby!” You greet him, reaching out for him.

“Oh, hi baby.” He says, following up with an air kiss. He breaks into laughter at your scowl. “Sorry, you don’t want this grease on you. It smells terrible and it’s not fun to wash off.”

“But there’s no grease on your lips.” You point out, staring at those pretty pink lips of his.

“Baby, I cannot kiss you without touching you and there is grease all over my hands.” He chuckles, holding them out.

You want to point out that he’s getting things dirty with grease in the kitchen, including his sandwich, by his own logic, but you have a feeling you won’t get away with it very easily. “Fine. Come see me when you’ve had a shower then.” You tell him, attempting to waddle back to the living room.

“Ah, ah.” Eddie tuts, grabbing your hand. “Come with me, after I shower, I need time with you in my bed.”

“In your bed? Or, in your bed?” You ask, your eyebrows furrowing suggestively at the second option.

“If you didn’t know the answer by now, clearly I haven’t done my job right.” He says in a lowly, his eyes darkening in an instant.

Eddie turns around to the sandwich he made as if he hadn’t said a word, grabbing it quickly before tugging on your hand to take you up the stairs.

He hops into the shower, you scroll through your phone on his bed as you wait, somewhat impatiently, your panties already uncomfortable from his stroll into the house in his work uniform.

Fuck, he was hot. You thought about him. His muscles, the slight glisten of sweat, and your phone was tossed aside before you even realized your hands were roaming over your body. You close your eyes, the image of him busy at work on his back on one of those…rolly things in your head. His forearms flexing, the look of concentration on his face.

Your hands itch for your center and you can barely hold back anymore, thankful you opted for a pair of stretchy shorts. Your fingers graze your center easily, rolling around in small circles as you picture the easy access his coveralls would give you, showing up with a dress and no panties and just riding him in his office. Fuck, maybe you wouldn’t even make it there. Goddamn, the images were too hot, your panties finding their way around your ankles as you grind up against your own fingers.

“Fuck.”

Your eyes fling open to see your boyfriend in his towel. You were so wrapped up you didn’t even notice the water from his shower turn off. He’s staring, open mouthed and eyes dark, and Jesus… This was a fantasy of yours from the beginning. You continue, staring half lidded back at him, hand grabbing up at his bed frame when it started to feel so fucking good.

Eddie’s towel drops when his brain catches up, jumping into his bed to lay next to you. “Couldn’t even wait, huh?” He asks, and you let out a whimper as he lightly kisses your neck. “Just couldn’t fucking wait.”

“You were so hot—” you gasp out, moving faster on yourself now. “—in that goddamn uniform. Wanna…wanna ride you in it.”

The very indication that you were playing with yourself because you found him that hot in his uniform is too much for Eddie to process. He nearly moans, leaning for another kiss on your neck. His hands are itching to help you, itching to take off the rest of those clothes that hide your gorgeous body, but he holds back, needing to know more about it. “What—what were you thinkin’ ‘bout, baby?”

“You, in the uniform…” you tell him, your hips starting to move when your want grows. Why isn’t he helping?

“C’mon, baby. I wanna touch you but I just gotta know.” Eddie tells you, his voice gruff.

A gulp moves through your throat before opening your mouth to tell him. “Your dick out of the uniform, and me with no panties and a dress at your shop, riding you anywhere…your office, the rolly thing, god, just you in that uniform…Ed…”

Goddammit, was that an idea Eddie certainly had before. He has wanted to show you around his workplace, but also christen it with you, and he had had the exact idea with his uniform and you in a dress, to boot. “Fuck, my horny, eager little slut, hey?” Eddie asks, watching your closed eyes as you continue to work yourself.

“Please…please touch me?” You ask him, the torture of his voice there but not actually helping you is too much. “Want…want you.”

“Hmm. Horny little slut didn’t wait for me…I dunno if she even deserves my help.” He bluffs, wanting nothing more than to reach out and feel the slick of your wet pussy.

You nearly cry out in protest, not calling him on his bluff. “I’m sorry, couldn’t help myself…you’re just so…fuck…you’re so fucking hot, Ed.”

He leans in to kiss you and you accept it gratefully, a smile against his lips. As his lips move against yours, deepening the kiss to easily work his tongue against yours, his hands land on yours against your pussy delicately, gently pulling your fingers to the side. He slides a digit in and you whimper into his mouth, your hips thrusting up. “Oh, so fucking desperate.” You nod your head, agreeing with him. You’re desperate for more. Even with Eddie on your mind, your fingers never even compared to his.

He leans into your neck, the scent of his aftershave and body wash strong but oh-so-goddamn good. He slides your shirt up your torso smoothly with his free hand and pulls it from your neck fiercely. You feel his hand somewhat desperately go around your back to unhook your bra, and as it falls casually over the edge onto the floor, he moans at the sight of your exposed tit, your nipple just begging to be touched.

He leans in to mouth the bud, and you whimper at the sensation. He pauses, breathing heavily and open mouthed onto it. You gasp, his hot breath sending waves down your body. “Fuck, so pretty.” Eddie mutters to himself, dark eyes watching your face as you get closer.

A desperate hand of yours tugs him up to your face, desperate for more of his wet and hypnotizing kisses. “Fuck me.” You gasp, suddenly feeling that his fingers weren’t enough. “Need…need your cock. Please.”

Eddie’s mouth opens at the prospect of you simply begging for him, and you can feel a shift in his energy as he starts to kiss you deeper and hungrier. “When you beg so sweetly, how could I possibly say no?” He hums, his hand framing your face.

He finishes yanking the last of your pants off your ankles. As he settles himself in between your legs, he can’t help himself. He leans down, taking one long lick along your folds, for just a taste. You whimper in response, knees springing up to your chest. Eddie chuckles, crawling up slowly until his chest lines up with yours, the tingle of him against you too much to handle. Slowly, he moves into you, and as he stretches you open, your eyes roll back and your toes curl. Eddie watches the utter bliss that takes over your face.

“Oh that beautiful face you make, sweetheart.” He grunts, smoothing his hands over your forehead. His words make you pulse around him. “This fucking tight little pussy wrapped around—” he stops, grunting as you continue to pulse around him. One hand moves down to your hip, caressing it softly he uses the leverage to buck into you.

A hushed swear comes out of you, the simple pleasure from his cock alone sending you into euphoria. Eddie continues slowly, enjoying every inch of your heat around him. “Your pussy…god how did I live without it?”

You clutch onto him, staring up into his darkened brown eyes. You open your mouth to respond in kind, but the particularly harsh rut into you leaves your mouth gasping open and your eyes fluttering shut in pure heaven. “Oh, that’s it.” He mutters, hips moving faster. “That’s my cock-drunk little whore.”

Your nails scratch down his back, and he moans in response. “Eddie, your cock. There’s…I…please.”

“I-I know, baby. I know.”

He collapses onto your chest, and you feel his cock twitch into you as your orgasm takes over your body. His hand carefully sweeps your sweaty forehead as he watches you recover, your eyes losing their haze as you return to earth. “Hi.” He mutters, leaning in to kiss you softly.

“Hi.” You smile. For once, he does take his dick out of you right away, despite your protests. However, you can’t protest any further when he comes back and wraps his arms around you with his chest pressed against your back, his still steadying breaths lulling you into a quiet nap.

Somehow, you know that his arms are always going to be the best place in the world.

-

About an hour later, you’re snuggled against his side, legs intertwined as Eddie watches his show and you work on a crossword puzzle. “What’s a six-letter word for angry?” You ask him, stumped for a good minute.

“Uh…grumpy? Heated? Hmm…raging?”

“Raging! Fuck, I couldn’t get that one. Thanks, baby.” You tell him, receiving a kiss on the head as a response. “Why’d you go in for work, Ed?”

“Other than making my baby horny?” He jokes, muttering it into your hair. “Well, one of my best-known clients called and my men know that when he calls, they need to call me in, because his car is just—” he cuts himself off, holding out the OK sign. He continues talking about the mechanics/politics of handling a car like this in his job. The caliber, the horsepower, the specialized engine, and everything else.

It’s not like you know a whole lot about cars. Most of what he is saying comes out as gibberish. But you listen to him, watching as he gets more and more animated, his hands gesturing wildly as he excitedly explains his morning. You watch him, a soft smile creeping up your face as he describes…what, you weren’t even sure, to you.

He stops as he notices the peculiar look on your face, your eyes glazed over. “What?” he asks, wondering if you caught even a word of his story.

“I love you.” It comes out before you even realize. But it’s true.

With your whole chest, you love him.

Eddie inhales sharply, and he looks at you like you had placed each star in the sky just for him. Because you did. “I-I’ve been wanting to say that to you since I first saw you.”

His words feel both impossible and like they make the most sense in the entire world. Because since day one, you have been captivated by him in every sense imaginable. Taking the time to get to know, see and love every inch of him before recognizing that yes, this is love.

This all occurs to you within a second, because Eddie’s hand is framing your face and you feel his lips on yours, deep and caring to a point that takes your goddamn breath away. Your tongue collides with his, and his fingers are so gentle as they cradle your face it barely feels like he’s holding it. He tastes so good, like the air you breathe is suddenly useless, and all you need to do is breathe him. His fingers intertwine in your hair, he gasps as his forehead collides with your own, clinging onto you for dear life.

“Will you say it?” You ask, realizing he still hasn’t.

“I fucking love you.” He says in a low, soft voice. He uses a hand to force you back and you open your eyes to look into his beautiful brown ones. “I love you.”

Your chest inflates rapidly, like all the emotion just bursts into it. A giggle escapes your lips, the smile on your face seeming to be permanently etched there. He tugs you into the tightest hug, and you feel his heart beat rapidly against your own as your arms fling themselves around his torso, burying your head in his neck.

God, it’s like you fit perfectly there.

He slouches down, ignoring the book you dropped and the forgotten tv show, and lays you down, chest to chest, his arms wrapped around you as you curl into his chest. He nestles his nose into your hair, breathing you in, feeling the breath, the life in you as you breathe in sync with him.

Any sense of time, responsibilities, or the outside world become muted and pale in comparison.

It’s just you and him.  

-

The sizzling sounds of bacon for dinner mixed with Eddie’s humming to some oldies fill the kitchen. Every time he turns around from the stove to grab something, he shoots you a smile that captivates his face, something that you wholeheartedly return each time. The acknowledgement that this is love somehow didn’t feel like it had tied you to anything or that any new expectations were put on either one of you. You simply want his company and he, yours.

You scroll through your phone absentmindedly, though the sight of his hips in his low sitting sweatpants are much more enticing than anything your phone’s algorithms have to show you. Playfully, Eddie keeps dancing a little too hard to the music, head banging and swinging his hips to even the softest of Dad Rock.

God, it’s Heaven. As Eddie serves up a few plates, Dylan comes down dressed in one of his better date night outfits.

“Ooh, hot date?” You ask him, leaning forward onto the kitchen island.

Dylan’s brows furrow, stopping mid stride. “Yeah. Not talking to you about that. You’re still my ex. And you’re still seeing my dad. Weirdo.”

Eddie sends a glare his way, eyes darkening in a split second. Dylan rolls his eyes, sneaking around him to grab a bite of bacon. Ignoring it, Eddie places a plate in front of you with eggs, bacon and toast, and you thank him as he leans in for a kiss.

“Love you.” Eddie mutters, and you smile into his lips and feel him do the same.

“L-love?” Dylan spits out, his voice exasperated. He shakes his head, still chewing on the bacon. “Fuck right off.”

“Dyl.” Eddie starts, leaning forward as he takes a bite from his toast. He has a devious smile on his face, chewing on his idea. “Quiet. The adults are talking.”

If you had expected something out of pocket, it certainly wasn’t that.

The brown eyes Dylan shares with his father widen in pure exasperation. “What?? Dad, I’m six months older than her!”

You barely keep in the laughter that bubbles out of your chest. Eddie grins at you and lets out his own chuckle. “That’ll teach you to be an ass, huh?”

Dylan doesn’t respond, just grits his teeth and yanks one more piece of bacon before leaving through the front door.

-

Dylan Munson got dealt a dirty fucking hand from whoever the fuck is in charge of this shit.

It was only a mere nine weeks ago when you made your way across the mixer to say hi to him that he thought things were going his way. The more he saw you, the more he thought that this had to be leading to something. It made sense to him, but as he had started mentioning long term plans or anything of the like, he could feel you clam up. Every time he mentioned something requiring commitment, your shoulders tensed up, your face winced by only a smidge, but when it became a regular occurrence, Dylan realized you might not have been ready as you thought you were.

He was willing to accept it. So, he took matters into his own hands. Honestly, he would’ve been fine paying the daily fee for parking, but he knew his dad was there, and he was excited to introduce you to him. Boy, what a shit show that turned out to be.

As he woke up to an empty bed, he had expected you to be downstairs. Instead, he was faced with a bowl of cereal without the milk, and he couldn’t tell how long it had been there. He searched the whole house. Your bag, clothes, and shoes were still there, so he knew you couldn’t have gone far. Turns out, he was right. You didn’t. You went two doors down from his own.

The sight of you and his fucking dad in the white sheets was already too much to bear, and then the stab of betrayal from his own father hurt more the initial shock of yours, tugging angry tears from his eyes as he ran to his room. The torture of hearing your whimpers, a sound he knew well, while downstairs trying to cheer himself up was fucking brutal.

When you finally left, his dad came home with a terribly apologetic look on his face as he walked through the front door. Dylan refused to hear a damn word out of his mouth, dismissing all his claims of ‘holding back as long as he could’ and ‘I’ve never felt this strongly about anyone before.’ Shit just hurt.

A day later, Dylan couldn’t hold it in anymore. He screamed at the top of his lungs, the anger finally kicking in. His dad did yell back, but mostly at the choice words aimed at you. It hurt for a moment, as it felt like he cared more about someone he had met last week, his (now ex) girlfriend.

When you and his dad showed no signs of slowing or stopping any time soon, he realized this would become a new normal. Didn’t mean he liked it.

He came home after a relatively long day at work to you and his dad sitting and watching a movie comfortably. His knee jerk reaction was to swear angrily, but the look on your face stuck with him. You had never relaxed with him. You were always looking around corners or there was some part in your body unable to lean into him completely.

As you apologized awkwardly on his bed, his hurt finally felt acknowledged by you, and fuck, he needed to hear that he didn’t do anything wrong. He genuinely started to wonder if he did.

Most of his nights he spent going out, his friends asking where the hot new girlfriend he was bragging about now was. He just said you cheated on him and it was over and they called you a bitch and moved on.

Yes, even Ethan. (The one friend you actually liked)

He drowned his sorrows in alcohol, always making his way back to the house where his ex was expected to be at any given time. God, it was so shit.

After your apology, though, he had to admit, you looked good together. It seemed like his dad’s smile just hadn’t left his face for days, and goddamn, was it annoying to admit that you were good for him. That remaining anger seemed to itch at him, unable to forgive or forget, a buried hatchet with an X to mark the spot.

Ethan eventually brought his girlfriend to boys’ night out, which was met with disgruntled groans from the collective group. Ethan’s girlfriend invited a friend who would be joining, and Dylan fought hard not to roll his eyes.

An hour into the night, a drink, and a few good dances in, Ethan’s girlfriend brought her in, and Dylan stopped dead in his tracks. Okay, no one said she would be fucking gorgeous.

If Dylan thought you were out of his league, then Maya wasn’t even playing the same game. His heart pounded out of his chest, and he knew he had to grab this girl a drink and get her number, now. As he pulled into an easy conversation with her, the hairs stood on his arms as it felt electric just being near her.

Maya met his enthusiasm, agreeing to a date within the first hour of conversation with him. One of his buddies mentioned Dylan had been cheated on by his most recent girlfriend, and Maya was floored. If any girl was lucky enough to have him, how could they even think of cheating?

As Dylan rode home in the backseat of his friend’s truck, drunk on her undivided attention and, well, plain ol’ drunk, something his dad had said came to mind. “I can’t explain it, I just had to know her. In every sense of the word.”

He felt the same way about Maya. Everything about her drew him in. Her smell, the way her jeans hugged her hips, the shine of her red hair. God, she was fucking beautiful.

As he smelled bacon on the way down the stairs, he decided to grab a piece on his way out to his first date with Maya, jitters galore. You asking him about the date was kind, but still too weird for him to gush about the gorgeous girl from the bar he met when that ‘gorgeous girl’ was once you.

Love you, his dad said. The word struck him, it occurred to him he doesn’t truly understand how much you and his father cared for one another. The L word didn’t come easily to Munson men, after all. Dylan walked to his car, disgruntled as the interaction rolled over in his mind.

What a mess he would be bringing her home to, if he ever got lucky enough.

-

Since you worked the next day, you had to go home for the night. The lingering kisses at Eddie’s door were too much to bear.

Too much for Eddie, too. You get a text about twenty minutes after you get home, Need you.

You grit your teeth, you need him, too. Working four days in a row sounds manageable, at least it usually does. Without Eddie to come home to or to wake up with, it’s nearly torture. You ignore Skylar’s comment of codependency. Fuck co-dependency, it isn’t that you depend on him too much, you just need him too much. You need to come home to him, to sit and watch tv with him… It’s the domestic bliss you miss.

Somehow, just reading a book at the end of the night without his even breaths has you on edge. You shoot him a text letting him know you’d be there soon.

As you walk through the doorway of Eddie’s house, he welcomes you and you hop into his arms, inhaling his shampoo as soon as you get close enough to, his familiar scent bringing you an indescribable feeling of safety.  “Need you to stop leaving for so long.” He mutters, feeling nearly crazy for missing you so much while you were gone.

You hum in response, staring into his pretty eyes as they stare down at you lovingly, resting your chin on his chest.

“Move in with me.” It’s impulsive.

You blink, unable to register what he just said. “Uh, what?”

He chuckles, hoping the stunned look on your face is a good thing. “It’s stupid for you to keep moving back and forth between here and your apartment all the time. Move in with me.”

It’s a tempting offer. Could you do it? Realistically, could you bring your things in, set up your skin care routine in his bathroom, have a horde of snacks at your disposal, bring Bethany over for sleepovers…is it possible? He watches as you think it through, and his heart skips a beat as he watches it falter. “I-I can’t. Not yet, at least.”

His head tilts curiously, eyebrows furrowed. “Hmm?”

“I’m still tied to my lease for another three months.” You can’t abandon Sky, not after all this time. “Skylar would be pissed if I just up and left her to either scramble for a new roommate or for a new apartment.”

Was that it? “Oh,” Eddie says, relieved. “I can pay that.”

His answer momentarily stuns you, and a gorgeous laugh escapes his lips as he takes in your slack jaw and wide eyes. “W-what?”

He leans in, kissing your lips sweetly. “Sweetheart. I’m not gonna wait another ninety days when I can just pay it now and get you here tomorrow.”

“You’ll pay my half?” You ask, eyebrows raised, a light smile on your face.

“What’s your rent?”

“1800 for the apartment, we both pay 900 plus utilities.”

He does the quick math. “Oh, so 54 (hundred) to buy the lease out? Yeah, I’ll pay it. Might relieve Sky from being pissed at me for stealing her roommate.”

The casualty of his words drench your underwear, his urge to take care of you sending a heat to your center you can’t explain. You lean in, swiping your tongue on his bottom lip, showing your appreciation. “Can-can we go upstairs?” You ask him, out of breath.

Eddie smiles, taking in your lust-blown eyes and slack expression. “You know that’s not why I offered, right?”

The overwhelming happiness bubbles up from the inside and you shoot a wide smile up at him, chin resting on his chest again. “I know. Still, baby. Want you. Please,”

Eddie smirks, framing your face with his thumbs lightly. “When you say it so nicely, how could I ever refuse?”

You tug him by the hand and start running up the stairs. A yelp echoes through the house as Eddie grabs at your ass near the top, and when he lies down on the bed, you can’t get his cock down your throat fast enough.

-

To say the least, Sky couldn’t find it in her to be angry. She was going to miss you, more than she could describe as her roommate. She also had a three month warning to find a new roommate or a new apartment and had ample time to put at least some money aside while she didn’t have to pay for rent. She really had nothing to complain about. Still, she was gonna miss you.

As soon as the lust of him offering to take care of you died down, you went into overdrive, remembering how stressed you were when you had to move in your current apartment, a lease you’ve renewed twice now. You started making a list of things you needed, working between your phone and a random spiral notebook you found in a junk drawer. How many boxes did you need to get? If you used both Eddie and Dylan’s trucks how many hours would it take to move down the stairs-only building you had?

“What’re you working on?” You hear his voice over your shoulder.

“Oh, just working out the kinks of moving. My car won’t be enough, I’ll need your guys’ trucks to help. I also have my own furniture to worry about. The entertainment center is hers, but the couch is mine. My dresser, my bed, my bathroom shelf, all my bathroom junk—”

“Baby.” He interrupts you, a hand sliding up to your neck. “Relax. I can hire someone to take care of all of this for you. Just focus on packing your things and directing the men around on where to put them.” He places his hands delicately beneath your chin. “Ok?”

Fuck, you might just blow him again.

“Ok.”

And you did just that. You shared your list to Eddie’s phone, who called a smaller moving truck with three men to assist, hired an organizer to assist in organizing what you do or don’t need and who will handle selling your furniture, and finally, paying the rest of your rent to your front office without blinking an eye to get you out of the lease.

Soon, you were on the driveway on a hot day, watching as all the boxes containing your clothes, shoes, makeup, and other junk went up the stairs to Eddie’s (and now your) bedroom, a few staying downstairs.

He stands next to you in a white muscle shirt with a band you don’t know pictured on the front and some sweats, hands on his hips as he watches the movers go back and forth between the house and the truck. He radiates authority, each mover couldn’t be much older or younger than you, but they all look to him with respect, all of their words followed by the word ‘sir’.

“Sir, huh?” You ask, teasing him.

Eddie slightly grimaces, rejecting it. “Yeah, they insisted.”

“Dunno, kinda suits you.” You tease, and you walk back to the house, missing the audible gulp that comes from his throat, imagining it. You, on your knees, begging for him, calling him sir…

“Sir?” One of the movers asks, getting his attention. He flicks back, seeing the clipboard held in front of him. “Need you to sign.”

“Oh, shit, sorry.” He mumbles, picking up the pen to sign.

As he signs his name, Dylan pulls up, taking in the men, the truck, the boxes on the floor visible past the open front door. “She’s moving in?”

Eddie looks at him, apologetic. He had asked you yesterday, and since then, he hasn’t had time to sit down and tell Dylan in person. “Sorry, bud. Kind of just happened all at once.”

Dylan thinks of his new girlfriend’s apartment, the night he had just spent wrapped up in her sheets. “I-I get that.”

Eddie blinks, expecting more of a push-back. “So, dad. I met this girl.” Oh, that explains it. “She’s…” the smile that lands on Dylan’s face is peaceful, and Eddie feels both curious and reassured. “Anyway. I wanted to bring her over for dinner to introduce her. Is that okay?”

A firm hand lands on Dylan’s shoulder, bringing him for a hug. “Of course, bud. When did you want to bring her over?”

“Friday at 6?”

It’s Wednesday, so that gives you both ample time to unpack and get the house ready for a dinner guest. “Friday works. Bring her over.”

“Hey, do you guys need any more help with the boxes?” He asks, running into the house.

Eddie doesn’t answer as he stands, stunned at the change in his son over the last, what, week?

The next two days make Dylan realize although he was in a much forgiving mood, he’s going to need to move out and fast. Just when he thought the two of you were bad, he didn’t realize how much worse you’d be when you moved in. In hindsight, he wasn’t sure how he didn’t see it coming.

Soon, he texted a friend he knew who was looking for another apartment about maybe moving in together after realizing your moans were not coming from your bedroom as he grabbed his keys and booked it for the front door.

You were on Eddie’s laundry room floor, wrapped in his arms, with only your shirt around your torso and his hair halfway out of its ponytail. You were still in the middle of recovering; Eddie edged you twice before finally letting you finish. “Did you hear the front door close?” Eddie asks, still breathing heavily as he does.

“N-no.” You gasp, moving your head up to face him, his chest hair tickling your chin. “Were we that loud?”

Eddie laughs, letting a thumb pet your face lightly. “Have you ever tried to be quiet, sweetheart?”

You shut him up with a kiss, slippery, but filled to the brim with everything you had. “Shut up.”

“I love you.” He mutters as you wrap yourself in his arms, and you whisper it back into his chest. “We do have company coming over, so we should probably finish unpacking.”

You groan lightly, but Eddie takes your hands and forces the two of you onto your feet, your knees lightly buckling. “I have so much stuff! There’s so much left to unpack.”

“Oh, I’m sure unpacking yourself into the second half of the walk-in is so hard, baby. C’mon, I’ll help you out.”

Again, Eddie’s house looks humble from the outside, but it was nothing to snark at. As he made more money, he slowly upgraded and renovated instead of just moving into a bigger house. The one upgrade that wasn’t really for him, but a constant reminder of what he lost, was the his-and-hers closet he had made for his ex, something she only enjoyed for six months before leaving him. He was excited to see your dresses, skirts, pants, and underwear in his closet, and especially your smell. Basically, he was excited for your invasion of the house.

You walk over to his–your–room where there are still boxes sitting, waiting to be unpacked. You start unpacking the one labeled dresses/skirts. As you start laying out a pile, separating the skirts you knew you weren’t gonna wear from the ones you would, Eddie sidled up beside you, pulling one you knew looked good on you up from the pile you weren’t gonna wear. “Hey, hey. Why haven’t I seen you in this one?”

You hesitate in your answer, pulling two more dresses out before answering. “Dylan fucked me while I wore that.” You admit, and he drops it immediately. He pulls another one up, hands moving over the silky blue fabric. Damn that one looked great on you. “That one, too.”

He drops it unceremoniously, hands moving to his hips. “Which ones hasn’t he touched you in?”

You put your hands on the much smaller, less appealing pile. “These.”

Eddie sighs, scratching his head. “Alright. We’re going shopping.” He announces, placing the pile of your old ‘rejects’ onto the floor.

“Huh?” You ask him, not sure you heard him correctly.

“Yep. Just leave all the clothes in a pile right there, and on Saturday I’m taking you shopping.”

“Baby, I work Saturday.”

“So call in.”

After Eddie helps you settle in for the next day and a half, you spend a good portion of your Friday in the kitchen, working in tandem to make supper together. You place plates at the dining room table Eddie and Dylan barely used, straighten up the napkins and the utensils when Eddie comes from behind you, and you feel his cock press right up against your ass. You grind back into it, closing your eyes and whimpering.

“Ed, they’ll be here in like,” you let out a sigh, “half an hour.”

He turns you, giving you a dirty kiss and gripping your hips harshly. “Then we better get moving.” He slips your dress up your hips and your underwear down.

“Hmm…take off your pants.”

He slips his cock in, bending you over the table, making you gasp. “Already off, baby.”

-

Dylan pulls up in his truck, now having to park in the same spot you did in the street since you took over his spot on the driveway. “So, this is my house.”

“For three more weeks?” Maya asks, teasing him.

He lets their hands intertwine, leading her to the door. “I did grow up here.”

“Yet your dad is kicking you out.” She says, eyes narrowed.

“No, not kicking me out…” He drifts off, when Maya’s green eyes silently ask him, he dismisses it. “I’ll tell you later. C’mon.” He unlocks the front door, and as soon as it’s open, a very peculiar, very annoying sound is heard echoing in the house.

“Fuck, Ed, oh shit.”

Maya’s eyes go wide, it takes her a second longer to understand what they were listening to than it did for Dylan. Dylan shuts the front door, shoving his hand into his pocket for his phone. He dials his dad right away. “…Hello?” Eddie asks after three rings.

Dylan puts him on speaker. “Dad, wrap it up, we’re here.”

“Shit, sorry. Give us five—” the sound of your giggles interrupts him, “sorry, ten minutes. W-we’ll call you.”

He hangs up.

Maya’s face is the picture-perfect expression of what the fuck. “Dyl, when you said your family dynamic is odd…”

“I meant it. C’mon, let’s go for a walk to the corner store.”

Maya is taken aback, but she easily falls in line as Dylan holds his hand out for her. “Can’t believe the first thing I heard from your dad was that.”

“Darling, I have never meant it more than I have right now.” Dylan assures her, and she can see how much he means it in his brown eyes. “My dad has met my girlfriends in worse situations. Just be glad we didn’t see anything…’cause that was not coming from their bedroom.”

-

Eventually, you had to go upstairs to find a new dress to wear, Eddie having completely soiled it during your tryst as he phoned Dylan to let them know they were in the clear. Turns out, the two of you had time blindness when it came to one another, because neither of you were even close to done when Dylan had called.

As you climb down the stairs, there’s a knock on the door, and Eddie meets you there in time to open it to face Dylan and his new girlfriend. It was an intriguing feeling, opening the door to Dylan while Eddie’s arm was behind your back. Like a couple welcoming their son home. It was…bizarre to say the least. “Hey, sorry about—”

“It’s fine, dad. Rather not talk about it.” Dylan insists, his arm around a pretty redhead.

“Sure. Come on in.”

They step in, Maya taking a look around at the place as she does. “Maya, this is my dad and his girlfriend, Y/N. Guys, this is Maya.”

You weren’t used to Dylan being suddenly so cool with you and Eddie being together. He’s never out loud said that you were his dad’s girlfriend before without rolling his eyes or gagging. Whatever he had with Maya seemed to bring him some peace.

Thank god, you didn’t know if you could handle more eye rolls from Eddie’s 25-year-old teenage son. “Maya! Nice to meet you.” You hold your hand out to her, which she accepts graciously.

You remember meeting Eddie as a father to Dylan, and while your thoughts were occupied, whatever you were expecting for Dylan’s dad, it certainly wasn’t Eddie. You could see it clear in her face she wasn’t expecting this metalhead, either.

“Hi, Mr. Munson, nice to meet you.” She extends her hand to Eddie, and Eddie just about loses his mind.

“Ew. Don’t. Call me Eddie. Please.” Eddie gags, the same reaction he had when you addressed him that way when you first met.

“Oh. Sorry. Nice to meet you, Eddie.”

Eddie smiles back, purposefully dressing himself down as a parental figure. You could tell he was poising himself differently for them. Whether it was self consciousness over the last time he met a girlfriend, or making it clear to Dylan he had no plans for a second contender, it did the job.

“Alright, the dining room is this way.” You extend your hand out down the hall, leading the way out of a somewhat awkward situation.

The four of you sit at the table, both men at the heads of the table while you and Maya sit across from one another. Eddie picks up the salad bowl, plating himself quickly and handing it over to you. “So, Dylan. Tell us how you and Maya met.”

They both start the story, eager to share. “Oh, can I tell, Dyl? You always get to.”

“Fine by me.”

Maya giggles softly before facing you and Eddie. “Well, my best friend sort of ditched me to tag along to guys’ night, and I refused to be ditched, so I got myself ready and ended up being fashionably late. When she invited me, I was already done for the night, pajamas and all but I got dressed up out of pure spite.” You chuckle, that’s something Bethany would do. “I got to the club, and suddenly I saw Dylan, and I didn’t want to talk to anyone else for the rest of the night.” She looks over to him, her eyes soft and her pink lips in a sweet smile. “He just drew me right in. We talked for so long we didn’t even realize it was time for last call.”

“Wow.” You comment, taking the last bowl in rotation from Eddie’s hands, the stir-fry vegetables. “Sounds like you guys have a great connection.” You look at Dylan at the last word, hoping he receives your message.

“Oh, we truly do.” Maya grins, Dylan shooting a wink at her in response.

Eddie grabs your hand under the table, and you hold it, petting at the tough skin and colliding with his rings.

“Our first date was incredible.” Maya mentions off-hand but doesn’t elaborate. If it was anything like your first date with Eddie, you knew better than to pry further. “So Dylan told me how you guys met, tell me about that.”

You and Eddie share a look of surprise at how casually she mentions it. You weren’t expecting her to know yet, in fact you were wondering if Dylan was going to tell her at all. Eddie lets out a chuckle. “A shitshow, let’s just say. When Dylan found us, it just became real messy in here.”

Unfortunately, Eddie missed the continuous waving Dylan was doing across the table to stop, please!

“How would meeting online make things messy?” Maya asks, the story Eddie had just told her and the story Dylan explained not exactly lining up.

“What?” Eddie asks, now unsure himself.

Your hand meets your mouth in understanding, facing Dylan with his head in his own hands. “Baby, I don’t think he told her, yet.”

“Nope.” Dylan musters out, annoyed.

“Oh.”

“Can someone tell me what’s going on?” Maya asks, watching everyone’s facial expressions one by one.

Dylan sighs, not ready to explain this part. “They didn’t meet online. Remember, my ex? The one who cheated on me?”

Maya rolls her eyes. “Of course I remember that bitch.” She says, giving you a look that says, ‘am I right’.

Dylan sighs, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Uh, Maya?”

“Hmm?”

“That’s her.” He says, pointing to you. “She cheated with my dad.”

Maya looks at you, dumbfounded, as you wave with a tight smile on your face. Being called that cheating bitch behind your back was certainly a new development from him. Not the…greatest feeling in the world. She looks to Eddie, who isn’t smiling, somewhat insulted on your behalf, but gives a friendly wave nonetheless.

“O-oh.”

“I said my family dynamic is different, didn’t I?”

“I thought you meant with how young she is…”

“There’s that…and there’s this. It used to hurt me a lot more, but honestly, since I met you, I don’t really feel that pain anymore.” He says to her. “I wish we could’ve had this conversation in private, but I guess I didn’t warn them.” A new hardness reaches Maya’s eyes as she looks at you, and you’re slightly taken aback by it. “Don’t be mad at them, because I’m not anymore. Well, mostly anyway. My dad said when he met her that he had to know everything about her or he was going to lose his mind.” You look to Eddie, and he winks at you slyly as you mouth the words I love you to him. “I used to think that was bullshit… But when I met you, Maya, I felt the same way, and I realized I couldn’t blame them for pursuing it if it was half as strong as what I felt when I saw you.”

The ice in Maya’s stare all melts the gloss in her eyes. “That’s still super messed up.”

“One hundred percent.” Dylan looks over to you and Eddie, and you’re wondering if the two of you were supposed to leave the table and give them privacy. “But now…they look good together. They’re good for one another. She puts this smile on his face that I never get to see anymore, and she seems more happy with him than she ever was with me.”

Your phone buzzes in your chair under your thigh. A text from Eddie. For the record, no one feels as strongly for anyone as I do for you. No one ever will.

You look at him and he nods once, his lips in a firm line. Your hands reach for his, interlocking with his. “Maya, I know you didn’t mean to but I would appreciate you not calling her a bitch.” Eddie tells her, parent voice on. “Now that we have all that out of the way, Maya, tell us what you do for work.”

-

Maya was a peach, and she seemed great for Dylan. As she helped clear the table she asked Dylan a question and it led to him announcing he was moving out. Out loud, Eddie gave him a proud hug, telling him it was a great idea.

To you, Eddie pumped his fist in celebration. As you washed the dishes that night, insisting Dylan and Maya go enjoy a movie on the couch, Eddie comes up behind you, wrapping his arms around you. “When Dylan finally moves out, I’m fucking you on every surface in this house. I might just tell you to stay naked for easier access.” He leaves a wet kiss on your neck, and you’re left to imagine the possibilities as he adjusts himself while clearing the rest of the table.

True to his word, as Saturday dawns, Eddie wakes you up two hours before you start work and tosses your phone to call in sick for it. You text your manager at his request, and as soon as you hit send, Eddie sends you to his bathroom to get ready for a shopping day. In your first outfit, a pair of shorts and an oversized sweater, Eddie looks up and down at you exasperated and tells you to go get all dressed up and put some makeup on.

When your hands land on your hips at this he backtracks hard. “Of course you can wear what you want, baby! I just know that you love to get all dressed up, and I thought it would be fun for you. That’s all. We’re going to be trying on lots of clothes and I want my girl feeling her best.”

Okay, he has a point. An hour passes by, Eddie moving around you as he gets dressed up himself, less dramatic than his date night outfit, but dressed up all the same. As you finish, a wing on your eye, he comes behind you, looking over your shoulder for something. “You know I used to wear eyeliner all the time?”

“I…no?” You stutter, turning to face him.

“Might put some on today.” He mutters, slightly teasing you.

“If you don’t want to scare the general public, maybe we’ll save it for a date night, Ed.” You yank the pencil away from him, terrified that if you look away for one second, he’ll go overboard.

“Not even a little on my water line?” He asks, and you suddenly realize that yes, he does want some makeup for the day.

“I don’t see why not.” You shrug.

Now you walk hand in hand in the largest mall in town, starting the journey down the large aisle, leading Eddie. But eventually, Eddie ends up leading you, knowing exactly which stores he wants to go to. In the first store he takes you to, you look around the racks timidly, putting away anything you see over 20 bucks. In less than five minutes, Eddie comes by with a pile of clothes in his arms. “I’m gonna get a dressing room started, ok?” He pauses, noticing the 45 dollar dress you just put back. “Ooh, can you hand me that?”

“No, it’s too much.” You insist, looking at the large pile of clothes he has. You thought he meant like, three or four items at the most.

“I didn’t ask how much it was, sweetheart. Hand it over.” He tells you, to which you do. Only five minutes later, as you have only picked out two or three more dresses yourself, does he swing by and tug you to the biggest dressing room, the walls decorated with clothing.

“I-I’m not trying all of this on, am I?” You look around, it would take you at least an hour, and that’s if you hurried.

“Yep. And you’re showing me every piece.” He says, before closing the door on your stunned face.

“Eddie, this is way too much.”

“No complaining, just show me the first one!” he yells to you, no real bark behind his command.

The first dress you wear was a bit revealing, an open back, up to your thighs with a cowl neckline that shows cleavage. He smiles at you, leaning his elbows onto his knees in the seat offered in the dressing room. “Nice… Do a spin.” You roll your eyes, spinning for him slowly and timidly. He whistles lowly. “Man, I’m good. Next!”

He asked for a spin in everything you modeled for him until he didn’t need to, you did it for him. With each new piece, you were learning to not care if you were in a store with him, posing for him as he assessed each piece. Some you thought looked decent on you, he put in the no pile, while others you thought were a sure no, he put in the yes. He told you ultimately, it was your decision and if you felt uncomfortable, you could put one in the no pile, but he knew your body better than anyone. If he insisted it looked good, it must’ve looked good.

At the last piece you put on, he can’t seem to decide, asking an attendant for her opinion. She says she thinks the shirt looks amazing on you but isn’t sure about the style of pants. “Yeah, I chose them just to see if you’d wear it.” You shook your head no, feeling uncomfortable in the business type pants. “Cool. Get dressed in your clothes, we have more stores to hit up.” You toss the shirt to him after yanking it off, and by the time you make your way to the register, the attendant is already handing over two oversized bags to him.

“Eddie, this is enough clothes, I really don’t need anymore!” You insist as he directs you to a store only three spaces over.

As soon as you walk in, they see the big bags Eddie’s carrying and immediately offer their assistance. Eddie rolls his eyes, knowing he only ever gets the star treatment if he’s walking around with the occasional designer bag. (He likes their underwear). “Well, I don’t know if you noticed, but the women’s side of our closet is huge, and you didn’t have nearly enough clothes to fill it anyway.”

Our closet. You’re so fixated on the use of the word our that you don’t realize he’s waiting for you to talk. “Doesn’t mean I need more.”

“Oh, that’s exactly what it means!” He turns to the employee who’s been following him around and hands her the bags. “Be a dear and hold on to these, will ya?” He turns back to you, resting one hand on the rack beside him and staring down at you intensely. “Baby. I want to spoil you. Let me. Please! Pick out some clothes you want, I’ll pick some out, too, and you can try them on.”

“You’ve spoiled me so much already!” You insist, gulping at the sincerity in his eyes. “You’re all I could ever ask for.”

“That’s exactly why I have to spoil you.” He retorts, placing a gentle kiss on your lips. “I love you. Let me show you how much. I have a stupid amount in savings. I kind of want to chuck some out just to keep me humble.”

You giggle at this, finally, fully giving in to his madness.

Madness, it is. As you go from store to store, he gets about two more bags full from each one, and you’re sure some of these outfits will never see the light of day after you see how he looks at you in them. About ten percent will just be something you put on for about two seconds before he takes it off you. He’s buying dresses he knows he’ll be the only person to ever take them off or see you in them.

At one point, he runs back to his truck to put the eight bags he got tired of carrying around away, coming back to meet you in the store he left you in. It wasn’t much of a clothing store, but you had a basket of things you were planning to buy for yourself. Earrings, a knick knack for your desk, a cute notebook and the like. (There was a shirt you found for Eddie that you got just for the hell of it.) You're waiting in line, and you’re digging through your purse for your wallet when Eddie comes behind you, wallet out, card in the machine. “I—”

“Baby. Your money is useless today. Let me.”

You roll your eyes, and the cashier’s wide eyes at his pet-name for you catches your eye, a laugh escaping you. “Yeah, sorry. Guess I forgot to mention my boyfriend is also in his 40s.” You giggle, having just gushed about how Eddie was spoiling you to him.

“What? 40s? I’m clearly in my 20s.” Eddie asks, acting offended.

The poor cashier looks genuinely frightened, holding up his hands in surrender. “He’s joking. He is. Likes to make people squirm.”

“Oh I love to make you squirm—”

“Eddie!” You berate him, yanking him out of the store as he lets out a bout of laughter. He catches his breath, still laughing as you cross your arms, waiting impatiently for him to stop.

“Sorry, sweetheart, you made it too easy! C’mon, two more stores, then we can grab food.”

“Can I pay for food?” You ask, holding his hand.

Eddie smiles, petting your hand with his thumb. “Of course.”

The second to last store he brings you to is an underwear store. Eddie lets you do all the picking, following closely behind and offering any commentary when you ask for it. For once, he doesn’t insist that you model for him, claiming that just seeing you go through the lacier drawers of panties was torture enough. You walk out with a wardrobe’s worth of new underwear, bras, and a little bit of lingerie. It was the first time you were there to see the total, your eyes widening as Eddie takes out his card.

He smirks at your stunned expression. “Oh, this isn’t even the highest bill, sweetheart.” The transaction goes through and the kind lady behind the desks offers the bags to him. “This isn’t even half of it.”

The bill was at about 700 dollars, so the very idea drove you insane that he had already collected every receipt and refused to let you see them.

He brings you to one last store, wall to wall, covered in clothes. He goes a little ham this time, and you notice he focuses on basics. Sweatpants, sweaters, shorts, and under shirts. There’s one thing he chooses that has you struggling to get the zipper up, and eventually you call out for him for help after a good five minutes of fumbling .

He opens the curtain delicately so as to not reveal anything, and you look at him helplessly as your hand can’t reach the zipper sitting low on your ass. His fingers are light to the touch, as one hand rests on your shoulder, one on the zipper as it goes up to your neck, your hair held by your hands. You can’t help the shiver that runs through you as your hair curtains down around your neck, and you turn to face him, holding your hands out to silently ask him what he thought.

What does he think? He thinks that this fucking dress looks so good on you that it would be a crime to get you to start trying on those shorts and sweaters. Hell, you knew your size, you were probably good to go. It was much less revealing than any dress you tried on, a number he’ll probably get you to wear on your next date. He couldn’t help himself, surrounded by the privacy of the small room, he leans in to kiss you sweetly, one hand going up to frame your neck. “Baby.” He mutters, his voice sounding desperate. “You look…fucking gorgeous.”

You smile into it, your hand tracing the seam of his shirt along his torso. “Thanks. Help me out of it? I still need to try on all these clothes.”

His tongue swipes across your bottom lip, surprising you. A slight whimper escapes you as he backs you into the wall against a few clothing articles hanging there. “I will absolutely help you out of this dress.” He says, his voice husky and a touch of arousal lands in your underwear as you realize why. “But then I’m going to get my cock in you.”

“In-in here?” You ask, highly aware you’re in a public space.

“Mmhmm. Be quiet and no one will suspect a thing.” he says, hand slipping under the skirt of the dress to start palming at your folds over your panties. You whimper at the touch into his mouth, focusing all your energy on not alerting the kind sales lady that you were hooking up in her dressing room. “Oh, good girl, keeping herself quiet.”

“It’s…it’s hard.” You whimper, the light touches over your panties not enough, but still causing more arousal.

“So am I.” Eddie chuckles, watching your face as he teases you. He slips the hand into your panties, letting them drop on the floor. “Oh, so wet, huh?” He asks you, eyebrows furrowed as he plays with the slick on your folds.

“Mmhmm.”

“Does daddy buying all the pretty clothes make you all hot, baby?” He asks, voice in your ear and fingers rubbing at your clit gentle, but enough to start you to your destination. You nod your head, because on some level, this was a big turn on for you. “Oh, you horny little slut.”

“Good girl…” You whimper, and Eddie leans back from your shoulder. “Good girl. Please?” You ask him, the slut shaming wasn’t doing it for you.

“Oh, you wanna be called a good girl, huh? Daddy’s good girl?” You nod, your eyes closing as he starts to rub at your clit faster.

“Feels…feels good, Daddy…”

“Daddy’s gonna make you cum, and since you’re a good girl you’re not gonna make a fucking sound. Okay?” You nod, holding a whimper in your throat from the finger he slides into your heat. “Oh she’s close.” He mutters to himself, placing gentle kisses on your neck. “Fall apart on my fingers so I can fuck you, my good girl.”

Your mouth is open in a silent scream, an orgasm shaking through you as you wither against the dressing room wall.  

“Oh, that’s my good girl, such a good listener. Now, turn around and hold on to those hooks.” You do as he says, and as you brace yourself with your hands awkwardly against the hooks decorated with hangers, he zips the dress off you, lifting it over your head and nearly forgetting to muffle his own moan when he sees you aren’t wearing a bra. He lets his pants fall around his calves, and as his cock pushes you, you let your jaw open and eyes close, doing everything you could not to moan out loud.

He slowly bucks into you, and you close your eyes and lean against the wall headfirst while the scent of store clothes invades your senses. Soon, Eddie leans forward, forcing your torso up against his back as he places his ringed hand around you like a necklace. He kisses at the skin he can reach sweetly, eyes open as he watches your reaction to everything he does to you.

While the prospect of being caught by someone was hot, Eddie found himself watching for your visual reactions than listening for your audible ones. Hmm. He didn’t realize he had begun to rely on them. “How’s Daddy’s cock?”

“G-good.” You whisper, leaning into his chest with your head back against his shoulder.

“Gonna cum in you.” He mutters. He starts fucking into you a little harder, and it has to be perfectly timed because if he went all the way in, the sound of his balls against your pussy would be a dead giveaway.

“How’s everything in there?”

“Speak.” Eddie commands you, and you have to tear yourself from outer space for a moment.

“Great, thank you!”

“Just a reminder we try not to encourage two people in one dressing room.”

“She was just needing help with a zipper. Almost done.” Eddie pipes out, sounding relatively normal for someone seconds away from cumming.

“If you need any help or sizes, let us know.”

 “Thanks…” Shit, that sounded out of breath.

“Cum in me.” You whisper, and Eddie does just that, slowly fucking his way through his orgasm, his cheeks flushed, shirt clinging onto the sweat.

You nearly protest as he takes himself out and tucks himself back into his pants. At this point, you were so turned on you kind of wanted to blow him while you had him in the room. You hold his face in your hands and connect your foreheads. “Is it bad I still want more?” You mutter under your breath.

Eddie swears softly, his boner fighting harshly against his slacks. “Fuck. No, I do, too.” He tugs your naked self into his arms, kissing your hair softly. “But…she was suspicious. Unless we want to get kicked out, we should quit while we’re ahead.”

“Can I blow you when we get home?” You ask him, turning to grab your own clothes off the floor.

Eddie chuckles, shaking his head as he grabs the clothes scattered around the dressing room. “Abso-fucking-lutely.”

It took multiple trips from Eddie’s truck to bring in all the bags. You truly didn’t realize how many pieces of clothing he had bought you until you saw it all scattered on the closet floor, all ready to be reorganized. Eddie starts hanging them, and you notice the outline of his cock in his slacks. He was still throbbing.

“Can I?” You ask, sitting pretty on your knees and looking up at him.

“Fuck, I’m never gonna say no to that.” Eddie answers, placing a hand under your chin.

You undo his pants, giving him a hungry look as his cock springs free. “You’re still hard?” You ask, knowing you’ve gotten food at the food court and walked around the mall a bit more before coming home.

“Mmhm.” You smile, jerking him lazily as you eye the length hungrily. You have the idea to tease him more, but the need to feel the weight of his cock on your tongue is too much. Eddie swears loudly as you take him in your mouth, gripping onto the center console for accessories and underwear. “Fuck”

You slowly bob your head up and down, staring up at him through your eyelashes as you relax your throat and allow your nose to meet his stomach. His hands skim through your hair, moving your head lightly, and again, you find it ridiculously easy to submit to him.

Eddie is uncharacteristically quiet, head thrown back in bliss as he feels the spit gather at his base. His stomach starts to tighten up a little bit and under your hands, his thighs are tense. Somehow it spells out to you he’s close.

You prepare yourself, moving your head faster on your own accord, opening your eyes at him again to watch for his reaction as you double down. A goddamn whimper escapes his throat as you continue, and suddenly it’s your goddamn mission to make him make that sound again. “Fuck, baby. Fuck…” Without any warning, the warm salty taste of his cum hits your tongue and you moan around him as he rides through his orgasm.

For once, as you wipe your mouth, you can tell he’s the one that needs recovery. You move to your feet, waiting for him to catch his breath. “Need some water?” You ask him, somewhat joking.

“The fuck was that?” He asks, his face in awe as he looks at you.

You give a cheeky and quick little kiss to the hand on your cheek. “Wanted to make you feel good.”

“Jesus Christ—” he tugs you into a hug, habitually kissing your hair. “How did I get so lucky?”

“Uh Ed.” You push lightly on his chest to get out of the hug, giving him a look of disbelief. You look gesture around the closet to the half of the clothes still not put away. “How are you the lucky one?”

Eddie’s face breaks into a wide smile, his dimples prominent, his smile lines deep. “You keep thinking that, darling.” He laughs, tugging you back into his arms.

As you stand there against his chest, relaxing into him with your eyes closed, the doorbell rings. “I’ll get it. You put away my clothes since you know where everything goes.”

“I did design this closet.” He retorts, pointing a finger at you.

You walk down the stairs to the front door, seeing a tall figure facing away through the smart glass. You open the door to a gorgeous set of brown locks, perfectly coiffed. The figure turns around, and clearly doesn’t expect to see you standing there. “Hey, Ed- whoa.” You recognize his face, but you aren’t sure where from. You subtly fix your hair; suddenly aware you had just given head to your boyfriend. “Uh, sorry, little lady. Is Eddie here?”

“He’s upstairs in the closet. Can I help you?”

The stranger smiles kindly, and you notice the freckles on his face are like constellations. “Oh sorry! I told him I’d be coming through town, but I forgot to say when. I’m Steve, Steve Harrington.”

-

Thank you so much for reading! I love to read your comments, replies, and reblogs. As always, reblogging is the best way to support your fic writers on tumblr.

Taglist: @pinkcowracing @yourthebrokengirl @skrzydlak @thirddeadlysin @sammararaven @bebe07011 @prettylovley @josephquinncore @forget-you-morelike-fuck-you

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[haveihitanerve]

Clarissa’s DIY Wedding- Watched it premier yesterday but didn't write any commentary because i was busy laughing at it with my friends but now i get to watch it again and write commentary so here ya go!:

The way AJ immediately marches across stage to snatch Luke’s hand and Luke just gets up and is like ‘alright then- are you the girl or am i?’

“Theres the turnpike!” *laughs* “and I know what that is!” Guessing by AJ’s wide eyes, he does not, which is precisely why Luke said it XD

Luke: *giggles* AJ: *stops his entire speech just to stare judgmentally for a few seconds*

OH MY GOSH HES PROPOSING!!!!

“I wanted you to be my wife, Suzanne.” AJ!!!! FIRST MINUTE AND YOU REALLY MESSED UP ALREADY??????? Smh boi…

“Mark and… Suzanne.” Luke glaring at AJ. Turns to audience like- you guys seeing this shit?

Oh it took Sam a second to get the joke- perfect

Trying to salvage the situation, but gonna actually make it worse, we love it

“No-hold on-what?” AJ breaking bc ‘wtf Sam?? Interrupting my proposal??? Really??’

“Oh ma god.” AJ ur Mark- not Clarrisa- *GASP* MAYBE HE WAS TRYING TO MAKE HIMSELF CLARISSA TO BE GA- wait no he’s mark… nevermind

“Clarissa Suzanne Jenkins.” Lifesaver Sam, but Aj’s already plotting murder

AJ dropping his hands… sigh sam

“HUAHHH!” AJ literally flinching at Sam’s scream- lmaooo

“What are you doing picking up your phone when you got a proposal going on???” As if he could've ignored it sam…

“You’d forget your own name-” *breaks completely*

“Suzanne you always do things like this..” Idk if its Tom or Sam wheezing in the background, either at AJ committing to Suzanne, or at “you always do this!” especially because he’s changed registers and is now lightly female and bronx?? Instead of his previous deep voice

“It was.. My.. moooom.” AJ cracking a smile. “So what?” 

“Im sorry that you don't have a great rela-” Tom: *prematurely starts ooooohing* Luke i thought you were trying to salvage the situation and actually get the marriage going- not insult him and make it worse-

They’re never getting married if they keep getting offended

The benefits of marrying Tom- he’ll give you his actual wedding ring lol. Good thing in this case- because AJ is fucking chucking it, but wtv y'know

“Ow!” Sam its a tense scene! You can’t make both of them break!!! XD

*trips on chair* Sam: *laughs at his pain* Luke: *also smirks*

Sam excellent stagecraft as always

“Hey mark.” Shit aj did not want to be part of the next scene lol

Sam is killing this drunk dad voice wth-

“Little dick!” thats not an insult- big dick

“What?” AJ is genuinely hurt damn XD

*opens second fridge to get more beer*

“You killed her!” woah plot point- whattttt

“You were the one that didn't stop me getting in the car!” Sam almost breaking and Luke slowly folding behind AJ because ‘wow sam. Dark’

Luke: *does disappointed hand over face* Sam: *does his classic- fist against mouth to stop laughing*

OH SHIT!!! THEY’RE THROWING HANDS!!!

Yet another beer

“Now if she wants to do a wedding she can fucking do it herself.” brilliant work AJ. Absolutely flawless. Yes, get it back on track to the other half of the title!!! Excellent

Luke slowly loosing it as Sam takes “a call”

“Mark! MAARRK!” *silence as AJ casually lets him suffer* 

LOOK AT AJ’S GRIN!!!! Hes sitting casually in his chair, just watching Sam, grinning. Payback for… something

“MAAARRK!!!” Tom ending the scene, thank you sir- though I do wonder how long AJ would have let it go on for…

Oh a Tom and Luke scene! This should be fun! 

“I just feel like SHIT right now.” … “you're not shut.” Brilliant motivational speech Tom, truly. Wow. I feel so much better now XD

“And you know what? Even if you were-were.” tom laughs quickly, Luke snorts. “If you were-were” ahh i love it when they commit “if you were shit, anyone would be lucky to have you inside their bowels.” … honestly? That would make me feel better. Nice. 

Tom keeps going, love it king- “you're digesting, oh whats this!- its a beautiful angel.” awwwww

Tom being a feminist yesss!!! Slay diva!!!

“So how do I get him back?” LUKE! NO! SELF WORTH!!!! I don't think he understood a word of the message- but also he does need to make a DIY wedding happen so…

Aj is genuinely curious- leaned forward- and oh he laughed! yay!

“The other people in this restaurant apparently have ideas.” Yesss i love when they include the audience!

“I heard an old lady say lingerie.” Luke i cant-

TOM IS STEALING PEOPLES ALCOHOL NOW????? WHAT IS THIS XD

“We’ve got a brit here. Honey-” his little bend down- 

AJ confusing everyone- love it XD

“Blessed with two names, but only one heart and that heart is damaged.” damn Tom is being poetic ok-

“The restaurant used to be a church.” never thought i’d see the day where AJ is the one keeping the plot on track-

“I'VE JUST HAD A GODDAMNED FUCKING BRILLIANT IDEA!” of course you have Tom, lets hear it

“I meant you do it yourself-” Tom walks away in disappointment- this time because of Luke- wow they’re really switching it up lol

“You are my dad so that makes sense-” what XD

“And if he turns you down” *we interrupt this conversation to brush away a lock of Luke’s hair* “he doesn't know what he’s missing.” Tom- 

“You're such a good friend.” oh the audience didn't like that-

Sam laughing off screen-

“I think the other *laughs* drunk British restaurant goers think theres something between us.” Tom you literally made something between you- or was the hair brush “not meant to be sexy” 🙄 lol

Platonic high five 😭

“Silly. *head lowers an insane amount to be near Luke’s shoulder before reconsidering* no. *pats leg awkwardly*” is no one gonna end the scene for them lmaoo????

“Ah.” waiting awkwardly for an indication of who tf this character is. “father.” sam: that helped not at all in the slightest, thanks AJ

“Mark! Mark, right? Or mr. wilson, let me put my glasses on!” smooth sam, XD, very smooth

Luke laughing

“Its mark.” thank you!

Luke and Tom just enjoying the show :D 

“Someone else die?” way to be sensitive Sam what???

“I don't know if I want to be here-” *while laughing* AJ never change, thats brilliant

“Come on come on come on!” AJ: *turns around grinning, looks at the audience* Sam: *like a creepy dude inviting you into his van* come oooonnn Luke: *laughing* AJ: this guys a dick! :) 

“Thank you so much Tim.” i wonder how he came up with that brilliant name… (no ok guys you don't understand the amount of times i've had to gone back to edit because i accidentally wrote tim instead of tom is making me go insane-)

“You should hear this boys soprano.” Sam trying to get Tom to sing, instead of AJ like usual XD

“Should i stay or should i go?” Tom unsure of if he belongs in the scene-

“And ill watch…” The silence

“Raise your hand if you’ve got a mom!” damn…damn sam

“How- how are you?” the voice cracks- “good good.” Sam thats traumatizing please stop-

The look Tom gives him- XD

“Sometimes i'm not sure about this career path.” Sam, Tom, and AJ all laughing

“Hehehehe yeah:).... yeah:(“ Tom- oh you sweet precious child-

The slow zoom in as Tom’s detailing Father… Petronus? As Aj is slowly going mad

“He has a good heart-” “yeah yeah!” “but the stuff that comes oit of him-” “its just awful. *shakes head.*” i am loving this interruption business they've got going on, peak

“Hes aggressive, hes rude-” I think this is one of those- is he talking about the character or Sam moments lol

“We’re not even in a booth.” Sam laughing- having flashbacks to “i think someone wants to come into the outside. Where we are” 

“Its not a toilet dude.” for once, AJ isn’t the confused dude messing up scenes XD this is insane!! Lol (not that we don't love the chaos he brings, but its usually him, not luke lol)

“You know my child-” like he’s not about twenty years younger-

Wow Tom being poetic again- “and meet you in the-in your home.” what. 

“Come on man, it aint a theology clas-” “WAIT ONE MINUTE!” you tell him Tim!

Aj’s side glance at Tom in concern- 👀

“Oh shit i really gotta confess-” Luke is just committing to the bit now, love that- and it causes AJ to have to bite his tongue in laughter

Sam alone in a scene, lovely

Sound effects??? Sam’s look of confusion, before resuming his stagecraft

Tom creepin in the background????

AJ loosing it as Sam spots him-

“Thought i saw death for a second there-” lmaoo what???

Tom just disappearing behind the curtain randomly?? XD what is this play anymore

Now AJ remerging??? Mid scene?? What is going on 😭

AJ: *gestures for Tom to join him* oh so we’re doing a split screen scene acting stuff, got it

Aj and tom holding fingertips XD so cute

“Never wanna see those two in the same room” its like Batman and Bruce Wayne- I’m not saying Sam is both the father and the priest- but also i've never seen the two of them together-

AJ’s smile is sooo big and Tom has no idea whats going on- this is amazing

“I feel like i should try to stop you from stealing my best friends mothers money” Tom, no sweety- he means pizze dough- hes the baker dude- your dad!!!

“I didn't just randomly steal-” Both AJ and Tom breaking together- cuties- also, Tom??? Where did you think he was trying to take the story??? Sub plot of a thief??? what XD

Luke’s shoulders shaking with silent laughter as Sam has to look away to not break

“Some weird subplot-” thats what im saying??? Tom??? “I thought you were a thief.” yeah no we got that sweety- XD

Luke needing to fully cover his mouth with his laughter

“Look at my shoulders.” Sam casually pretending that Luke is yawning to cover his break

“Look at my- look at my characterization!” Tom you’ve broken AJ-

Tom: *glances over at Luke and Sam, sees Luke stroking an unconscious Sam’s head, goes ‘wtf im staying out of that’ and looks back at AJ*

AJ is done with Tom XD

Tom, of all people: Im glad we’re all on the same page. AJ laughing from off stage and Sam chuckling in sleep because yeah, now you are

“Thats not very long. *laughs*” Tom never change XD also- AJ cackling in the background

“Im sorry honey, i didn't mean to attack you.” If Tom and Luke had been the ones in the first scene, we probably already would have been at the wedding by now lol

“How long has this ring been in any generations?!?!” Ok, i take it back- if Aj and Tom had started the first scene, they would have been married by now, idk why Luke is choosing violence today but ok lol

Also- don't attack his real ring Luke! Ur just mad that AJ didn't have a real one to give you aren't you… XD

Tom: *eats the ring* tom baby what- its mime, you could've stuck it in your pocket- y'know what whatever 

“Keep your mouth shut!” Tom’s little “what else am i supposed to do???” shrug is amazing

AJ doesn't remember Tom’s name- “amandas got a throat infection-” thank you luke

“You okay?” “mmm.” “Good to see you.” “MMM.” someone has a little bit of pent up anger/jealousy

“Everyone deserves for them to come to your home.” … AJ, darling, baby, sweetheart, i know thats what tom said but what-

Luke casually dragging him closer, as if that'll make it easier to understand not hear

“So that you can apologize.” ok- ok-, sweetheart, i agree that technically Luke is in the wrong. But that is not how you go about saying it baby-

Tom’s finger on his lip- the pose

Grabbing the wine- the pose

“So you're not gonna come into my home?” no AJ, baby i don't think so 🤧

“Honey, if you don't mind me saying, i think you're being a bit of a bitch.” *laughs* gotta agree, just apologise Luke XD

Tom smacking Sam-

“I HATE YOU!” Aj thats terrifying- Tom’s hands on his chest in *gasp*- Sam’s jaw dropping-

Oh stagecraft- he went around Luke to exit through the door not the wall, nice :) 

“You can come out from behind the curtain.” AJ:*deer in headlights*.... *goes behind the curtain*XD

“Got the fuckin money-” sprints off stage- AJ i love you XD

The way Tom and AJ hover together off stage, leaned into each other ugh my heart so cute-

Now we get a montage of Sam doing DYI actor work- ill try to mention each thing as much as possible but we’ll see

Hold on- Sam is an actor pretending to be an actor who is pretending to act out DIY stuff. Everyone got that? Good ok moving on-

“You know that song?” oh aj the power you've given him- “:) sing it for me.” 

AJ’s personal rendition of I don't need a man by the pussycat dolls??

Flawless singing as always- and nice backing vocals

The other three are thoroughly enjoying this lol-

“Cause i am enough!” luke- hey luke- would you even say you are… kenough???

“Oh didn't you recognize me?” Oh its time for Tom’s payback-

“Even though my posture makes it clear-” ok to be fair to AJ he does change between a hunchbacked old man and a 6’0 tall young man, so like… there

Btw Sam is currently hanging and straightening a picture frame or smth in case you were curious

“Unless he comes here by coincidence.” nice set up luke, very nice

Tom: *another motivational speech or whatnot* Sam: *mixing cement and throwing it at the audience* AJ: *throwing pizze dough into the air and feeding Sam*

“Im 14 years old. Thats a *holds up his hands* one and a four” Tom i love you, please keep playing these young characters-

Luke, you gotta get better at apologies, but i suppose that works- and Sam is currently chopping wood???

“Hes telling me how small my dick is-” Sam: *leaves the stage because his time has come*

“Oh what a shame- your mic isn't on.” *giggles* Luke laughing

“MARK!!!” not this again- XD

AJ’s hand flailing from backstage to tell Sam to stfu (i almost wrote sfth)

Oop nevermind he was summoning him-

“I don't like seeing him sad okay?” The windup Luke does holy shit its brilliant-

“You're always making him sad you piece of shit!” Yes!!!! Clarissa and Mark might not be the best relationship- but they care about each other and its beautiful!!! Defend him to his dad Luke!!! Even while you guys are fighting!!! Yes queen!!!

“Mark im sorry.” “oh you should go then.” the snort of laughter from both Sam and AJ into the mic- precious

“There was like- 50 people with pizzas walking down the street.” “and we immediately assumed “huh must be a wedding!”” thank you sam XD

Both AJ and Sam laughing into the mic again- XD. istg when they’re off stage- and looking at each other they are much less composed and honestly i love it

“Boop.” oooooh clever Luke. soooo cute

Sam is back with a really loud power tool

“Sorry could you mime that instead?” ok- recap- Sam is an actor pretending to be an actor who is miming miming for a DIY wedding. Everyone good? Good. 

“You put the ring on with your tongue!” Tom’s little pose-

“I got the tongue! :D”... “but you still choose him- okay.” Amanda? You're so underappreciated girl

Luke turning after the crowd cheers because hes confused- “what?” 

“No, im playing!” Tom crossed back to him so fast. Really wanted to be the relationship in this one huh? “I mean you’re wrrrgh but you know” (whoever is doing the subtitles thank you i really needed a way to spell the sound he makes)

“You're hot but it was a lust thing so you just-” sounds like a guy who just got denied-

“We could have a threesome- idk” AJ concerned if he should enter the scene or not-

Tom’s little peck on Luke’s shoulder 😭

Also currently Sam has been digging himself into a hole btw

And now hes struggling to pull himself out- anyway back to the main play-

“Oooah!” AJ like jumped back lmaooo

When Luke looked at Tom i really thought he was about to steal his ring for AJ-

“In perfect soprano.” *starts really low*

“I… was drunk driving-” Tom biting his lip to not laugh- Sam full on laughing, AJ’s hidden smile of “h w h a t.” and luke… i cant see his face but im sure hes smiling

Awwww the hug is really cute my heart🤧

“Does anyone else have a fuckin-” “STOP THAT WEDDING!” sam with his three personalities

Luke folding in disappointment as AJ just laughs

“Ill watch.” sam. I beg of you- please no

Sam alternating between Ma and Preacher dude and Dad 

“Then, in slow motion,” ok Tom-

Ok the kiss is actually adorable tho-

Its so gentle, the way AJ cups Luke’s face, lukes hands on his waist/back, the way AJ then dips him, adorable

And the hug afterwards- im gonna cry its so sweet- theyre so sweet

AND SCENE! Yay!!! Thanks for reading another SFTH play by play, grateful as always, until next time, probably tmr, anyway, byebye!

@dawn-speckled  @snek-of-eden

[typicalopposite]

sunday snippet (sunday sentences)

heyyyy! so that thing i mentioned yesterday? the racing au? yeah that one! Welllllp! I did the it!

<3<3<3<3<3

Victory Lane

Focus. Speed. I’m speed…

.

.

.

One winner. 42 losers.

.

.

.

“I eat losers for breakfast!” Tommy says in a mock Lightning McQueen voice (which is actually pretty good, if he says so himself). He reaches over the back of the couch and grabs Jee, lifting her up into the air. She squeals, and giggles, and wiggles against his hold until he finally sets her back down. 

“Watch with me, Uncle Tommy!” she says, bouncing on the cushion and smiling up at him so sweetly… is he actually expected to say no? He looks at the TV– at the opening scenes of Cars as it plays out– and sighs dramatically. “Pleeease!!” she begs, lip in full pout and eyes wide and sad… both Buckley siblings strongest attributes being used against him. 

“Okay, okay! Break my arm why don’t ya!” She leaps up from the couch and grabs hold of his arm, tugging him around until he's seated next to her. 

By the end of the movie Jee is determined to grow up to be a racecar– “You mean race car driver?” ; “No.”–  and Tommy is feeling just nostalgic enough from a long since buried time in his past to indulge in her newest interest. He finds a box in his garage filled with some of Evan’s belongings he hasn’t unpacked yet in the move. He dumps– with care, so he doesn’t get in trouble for it later– the stuff on his work bench, and then returns inside with the box. 

Some cutting, and taping, and coloring later and he is pushing Jee around the backyard on a track made with painter tape and hoses, in her very own racebox. At least it’s what he does until his back reminds him he is in his forties and so he cuts out some leg holes, attaches shoulder straps, and officially RaceBox Jee is born. Then he sets her loose on the track and reclines in one of the yard chairs watching as she wears herself out nicely for a nap. 

When Maddie and Howie pick her up that afternoon, Jee can’t stop talking about racing; she tells them about the movie, shows them her car costume– “Uncle Tommy said this was what his car looked like!” she says enthusiastically and Tommy had honestly thought she would forget that detail. Howie stares at the cardboard car impressed, before finally lifting his eyes to Tommy. “I didn’t know you were so into racing!”

“Oh… well– I’m not, really. Not anymore.”

“Wait, you actually had a car?” Maddie presses, brows raising with interest. “Did you race?”

“I– Yeah… a long time ago. It was just… a hobby, I guess.” His hands find their way into his pockets, and he sways on his feet nervously. It’s been… a while since he has talked about that part of his life, he thought he’d keep it buried forever. Damn it Disney.

Were you good?” she continues.

“How many did you win?” Howie adds.

“Does Buck know?” They seem so enthralled with learning something new about Tommy– the constant mystery among the 118 & co. His face must give away the overload they are putting on him and Maddie’s cheeks turn pink. “Oh god, we’re so sorry!” she laughs, resting a hand on Howie’s shoulder. 

Tommy feels the weight of expectant answers lift, and he smiles at them. “You’re fine, but no, Evan doesn’t know… it just hasn’t been important to me in so long it didn’t feel significant enough to bring up.” Maddie gives him an understanding smile, and a big yawn from Jee signifies it is time they head out. 

*

“So how did your first time babysitting go?” Evan asks the next morning. He all but runs into Tommy’s arms, pressing their lips together before Tommy can give an answer. 

“Mmm,” Tommy hums, forever savoring the taste of Evan’s kiss. “Technically, it wasn’t my first time. We have watched her dozens of times before.”

Evan gives the slightest of eye rolls, smiling as he pulls free of Tommy’s embrace. “Yeah, yeah… but this is the first time it was just Jee and Uncle Tommy,” he clarifies, smiling at himself for using the title he put Jee up to using a few visits ago, and she took to using it ever since. He loves it. Uncle Tommy. You couldn’t have made Tommy of the past believe this would be his life if you could take back cold hard evidence to prove it. Tommy of the past, even back when racing was something he used as an outlet– something that brought him joy amidst his bleak outlook on life– would have laughed at the idea of settling down. The idea he could find happiness in another person, The idea he could be himself, and would have a family to support and love him anyway. Yeah… right. 

Thank god Evan stopped Tommy of the present from letting Tommy of the past be right.

“It went great actually. We watched Cars.”

“I love that movie!” Evan beams over at him from the coffee pot as he pours himself a cup. “Maddie used to say I thought I was Lightning McQueen back in the day.”

“Like uncle, like niece,” Tommy laughs. “Jee says she’s going to be a race car when she grows up.”

“Like a driver?”

“No.” Tommy laughs at Evan’s confusion, but moves on without clarifying. “We, uh, made her a car out of a cardboard box… I– I made it up to look like a real race car– a specific race car… actually.”

“Oh? What car?”

Tommy opens his mouth to say mine, and his phone rings. He groans and grabs it off the counter, feelings like the entire world hit the brakes when he sees the name. His Aunt Cassie, whom he hasn’t spoken to since Christmas when she called to fill him in on the current drama going on in their families personal lives. She is the only family member he even still speaks to. The latest dose of gossip was that his dad had been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer– nearly fifty years of smoking non filtered cigarettes will do that to you. He was surprised it hadn’t got him sooner. He already knows what to expect when he answers the phone. 

“He’s gone, baby…” she says with a heavy sigh… and Tommy isn’t sure how to respond to that. Thankfully Aunt Cassie is a godsend and understands. “I have the arrangement taken care of, don’t fret with that… just get here as soon as you can; funeral will be Sunday.”

Sunday was three days away. 

At the very latest he has to be back in his hometown– a place he hasn’t stepped foot in in almost fifteen years– in three days.

<3<3<3<3<3

hopefully she is done... SOON!

no pressure tags forrrr @30somethingautisticteacher @nine-one-wanton @judymarch15 @sunnywithachanceofbi @herrmannhalsteadproduction

@onthewaytosomewhere @quintessenceofdust88 @unhingedangstaddict @kinardsevan @bidisasterevankinard

@hyperfocusthusly @beanarie @lavenderleahy @weewookinard

@silversky9 @somethingaboutfirefly @bucksxkinard

and you know... anyone else who wants to play!

[21wanderer]

MacGyver and son

This story is a fanfic of a show, I've never actually watched, apart from a very few scenes. Nevertheless I think, that viewed in the right context, it would be a very interesting plot twist.

Body a day - #19: Dad

“I still can’t believe he fell for it,” laughed ‘Sam’, whilst Murdoc began to take off all of MacGyver’s clothes.

“Tell me how you managed to achieve this, whatsyourname?” Murdoc asked his partner as he was stripping the former agent and sworn enemy.

“It’s Sam now, and you better not forget it, dad,” said his partner in the guise of a nice young man firmly, “Sean Angus Malloy, but everyone just call me Sam.”

“All right then, Sam... Tell me...”

“Oh, Old MacGyver was a real heartthrob, when he was young, not difficult to imagine with that face and that body, I managed to track down one Kate Malloy, who he had a loving relation with, she was an excellent source of information…”

“How did you get her tell you all this?” Murdoc asked now standing with the naked husk of MacGyver.

“It was easy, really,” Sam replied, “I told her, I was interviewing her for a book. She was apparently very fond of him, so she spent a long time telling me all sorts of stuff about him, and I also got her to tell me about herself. And with your help, I had all that I needed to successfully play his 'long-lost son'. And he believed every single word I told him, I even managed to get him to quit, just to spend time with me.” Sam laughed again at the last remark, then got up from his chair to help Murdoc with the MacGyver-suit.

“Heh, now you’ll certainly live up to your title as ‘master of disguise’, you couldn’t have asked for a better disguise,” Sam grinned.

“You are absolutely right,” gloated Murdoc, having stripped himself naked. He held the hollowed out skin of MacGyver up in front of him, “let’s get to it then.”

Stretching out MacGyver’s mouth ludicrously wide, Murdoc slid his legs one at a time into the warm and squishy skinsuit. Sam pushed the toes into place one by one, as Murdoc pulled MacGyver further up his body. MacGyver’s strong legs were now in place. Murdoc continued, pulling the skin up further, covering his torso, he forced down his arms down MacGyver’s mouth and guided his upper limbs into the empty husk's. He flexed his new hands. Murdoc caressed the rest of his new body, still with MacGyver’s hollow head hanging off his shoulders like a hood. Sam rubbed him on the back, helping him smooth out any creases or flaws.

“Now put on the face, dad” urged Sam, “Heh, all right,” grinned Murdoc and pulled MacGyver’s face over his own, he pushed the facial features into place and opened his eyes. “How do I look, son?”

“You look amazing, dad,” came the reply.

“Yes, this guy is fit,” the new MacGyver said, rubbing his hands across his bare chest and arms, "and pretty handsome too - now the way is open for us, Sam, nothing is going to stop us,” MacGyver laughed, replicated the voice of his enemy perfectly. He paused, looking pensive, then asked; “but if Sam isn’t the son of Malloy and MacGyver, then who is he?”

“I don’t know,” said Sam indifferently, “just some random pretty young man, that kinda looks like MacGyver, I don’t think there’s any relation between them. But hey, I’m not complaining, and the idiot believed me.” Sam’s boyish demeanour was incredibly convincing and effective at hiding the evil within, and he played the role of easygoing young man with an innocent smile and disarming laughter perfectly.

“I’m ready,” said the MacGyver imposter, having pulled on his victim’s t-shirt, jeans, socks and boots, “get the biker jackets and the rest of the gear, and let’s get going.”

“Sure thing, dad,” laughed Sam. Now they only had one final little role play to wrap up, then they’d be on their way. Murdoc had big plans for using MacGyver’s body, and Sam was the perfect partner. The two imposters went outside to get on their bikes.

‘MacGyver’ and ‘Sam’ arrived on their motorcycles, in their matching leather biker jackets. ‘Sam’ was quickly of the bike to greet MacGyver’s boss and best friend, Pete Thornton. “Hi Mr. Thornton.”

Mr. Thornton shook his hand, “Sam. What, are you guys all packed for your trip?”

“Just finished,” MacGyver replied. “Oh, MacCyver, the Phoenix Board asked me to give you this,” Thornton said pulling out an envelope from his inner pocket.

“Pete-” said MacGyver trying to cut him off. “It’s an offer of a new contract, and it’s very generous, and I think you oughta look at it.”

“We’ve been through this before,” MacGyver said impatiently, silently pleased with how easy he could deceive even MacGyver's closest friend. “Sam, and I got a little catching up to do,” he continued and padded Sam’s face, Sam laughed.

Accepting defeat, Thornton put the envelope back in his pocket. “Well I – I told them that you wouldn’t go for it,” he paused, “You know… I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like without you around here.” That statement had the most delicious irony, thought MacGyver to himself, trying to look just a little sad. “Well, it was bound to happen – things change.”

“Not always,” replied Thornton, “good things don’t.” MacGyver and Sam both suppressed the urge to laugh. “Don’t you ever change, MacGyver” Thornton continued, clearly being moved by this ‘sad goodbye’, that both MacGyver and Sam played through. “Don’t you either,” replied MacGyver. Thornton opened his arms, and the imposter gave him a hug.

“Well, can I expect to drop in once in a while anyway?”

MacGyver placed a hand on Thornton’s shoulder, “Count on it, my friend.” “Sam,” Thornton said and stretched out his hand to the young man again, “take care of your old man, will ya?” “You can count on it,” Sam replied delightfully, shaking Thornton’s hand a final time.

'MacGyver and son' mounted their bikes. “So – where to?” asked Sam rhetorically as he grabbed his helmet. “Somewhere else,” replied MacGyver rehearsed. Sam sent him one of his boyish smiles, after which they both put on their helmets. They started their engines and headed off. That was the end of the old MacGyver and the beginning of a new.

[harlowtales]

A chance encounter leaves Jack searching for his Cinderella 🪄✨✨✨

18 plus - Adult Themes

PART 1

Jack saw you from across the New Balance store. He was getting fitted for tour and was busy recording in New York and had an appearance on the Tonight’s Show. He walked in and they rushed everyone to finish their purchase to let the superstar shop. You desperately needed a new pair of shoes with being on your feet all day at work. Since working nights the pain was getting worse. You didn’t take kindly to being asked to clear out and were so annoyed you didn’t even care it was him.

“I’m not leaving because some big shot walked in here.” You said pointing over to him which had Jack looking around slightly embarrassed but quite entertained with a smirk on his face. “That’s so disrespectful to your other customers. My feet are in pain!” You complained loudly and caused a bit of a scene.

“Can I help?” You knew the voice. Everyone knew that smooth Kentucky drawl.

“Not unless you work here.” You shot back rudely. Like how dare he?

“Slow down I didn’t ask for the store to be cleared out. I wouldn’t do that.” He said “hold on let me clear this up. Don’t move.”

You sat down out of sheer exhaustion and agony and waited on him for what reason you didn’t know but were too miserable to care.

“K it’s all good, just shop and take your time. You ight?” He asked with the crease in his brow characteristically showing concern.

“Since you asked I am in fact NOT ok. My feet are fucking killing me working night shift.” You replied honestly.

“For real? What do you do? Oh sorry I know you know and don’t seem to care but I’m Jack by the way nice to meet you…” he said extending his hand

“Zoey.” You said shortly. You knew he was a heartthrob but Jack did nothing for you. Although his height in person was impressive you just weren’t into slick fuck boys and didn’t get all the hype about him. He did look effortlessly good though with a backwards green hat that went well with his eyes, white tank and jeans with the New Balances on that he designed with his best friend Urban. There was a kindness in his crystal blue bedroom eyes and dimpled grin with an almost boyish charm the way he covered his mouth and bowed his head when he chuckled. It was staring to register with you a little bit why girls liked him.

“Nice talking to you Jack I gotta go find something good with amazing arch support” You said sounding every bit the old lady you felt like.

“Um ok no worries I’ll um…leave you alone but you had me shook for a minute I can’t lie. I like your spunk Zoey.” He said almost tentatively but kept an eye on you as you browsed.

“My spunk? Ok Connor, me and “spunk” need some shoes for these tired ass feet.” Your slight grin let Jack know at least you didn’t hate him for potentially ruining your one chance to get comfortable sneakers.

“Forget it bro. She ain’t with it.” Urban nudged Jack and whispered. “Not every chick digs you man just chill.”

“Yeah you right lemme relax. Something about her though” Jack mused as he played with the little tuft of hair under his lip trying to figure out his next move or to actually leave you let you be.

“Yeah like she could give a rats ass who you are and now you’re taking it as a challenge and want to crack her code, we’ve been here before fam. Just drop it we gotta go.” Urban said sensibly. Since he settled down he really wasn’t into Jack hunting down girls around him. He had fucked up once and wasn’t about to do it again.

Later that day Jack Tweeted on X as he now rarely did and sent his fanbase reeling “Hey Zoey I got you. Holler.” while holding his New Balance collab. X was going nuts and soon it spread like wildfire across all platforms and gossip blogs were crashing fielding questions about who this Zoey person was.

A few weeks later you hopped on IG. With night shift, school, and managing your little one you didn’t have time to scroll and had turned off notifications for everything. You hadn’t told anyone about your encounter as you had virtually forgotten about it by now. Nobody alerted you to anything as there was thousands of Zoeys in New York City and you never talked about being remotely interested in Jack Harlow.

As you scrolled finally having the time to get your nails done you dropped your bubble tea. “Mommy are you ok?” Your daughter Aaliyah asked you and picked up your drink with her little chubby hands lovingly handing it to you. You pecked her on the forehead.

“Yes bubs I’m fine.” You lied. Suddenly you felt warm and like you needed to lie down, but why? It was New York and famous men checked you out before but this was no regular feeling. You weren’t following him on IG but a hip hop page had the pic of Jack holding the shoe and said “Who is Zoey a.k.a Cinderella”. You swallowed hard, followed him on X and Tweeted back “I’m a size 7”.

PART 2

“Jack? You good bro?” Copelan said watching Jack’s face suddenly look like he’d seen a ghost. They were out just chilling grabbing some fast food which Jack didn’t do often but lately he felt off and everyone noticed.

“She…it took weeks for her to…” he said dumbfounded. He hurriedly called his assistant Kat. “Get me on a flight to New York ASAP. Cope pack a bag we’re going to New York” Jack had kept his Twitter notifications on to know the minute you replied and was just about to turn them off again and flag it under just another chance encounter.

The plane couldn’t go fast enough. He had to get back and see if there was a chance of what exactly he wasn’t sure. He didn’t like feeling out of control like this. He called the shots in every situation but you had a way of unnerving him. Most of the girls in his circle didn’t have much to do but hang out and look pretty. Here you were working a night shift. He had to know more. There was a story there with you for sure. He saw pics of your daughter and you on IG but no dad. He was hoping the coast was clear.

His assistant had already found where you work. Mt.Sinai Hospital. Him, Copelan, Kat, and his security hit the room and had a nap because from Kat’s sleuthing she found out your shift at the hospital started at 9PM. Exactly what you did he wasn’t sure but by the looks of you he was crossing his fingers you were a nurse.

“Ok everybody listen up! It’s going to be another crazy night. You know what to do, have each other’s backs and Zoey will be your resident med student tonight so let her know what you need.” The safety huddle was only 5 mins before everyone scattered for a busy night at the hospital. You were loving your new sneakers, got an A on your last assignment, your daughter was safe with your Grandma and you got an extra pep in your step with a hot large coffee.

Tonight was going to be good. You were finally awake and had a 2 week break from school. It wasn’t easy being in med school as a single parent but landing the gig at the hospital was a huge win. Aaliyah was finally able to get the glasses she needed. Poor little thing kept bumping into things before it was realized how bad her eyesight was at 5.

The night was wearing on but that large coffee had worn off. You had to fill in at the front desk for a bit and it actually was a bit slow. To keep from dozing off you put in your earbuds and put on some Jack Harlow. After you met him you started listening to more of his music and liked what you heard. You put your feet up and did nod off for a second. You woke up with a start by a tap on the shoulder.

“Does anybody fucking work around here or what?”

“JACK????!” You screamed “WHAT THE FUCK”

“Hello is more like it young lady.” Jack said cheekily sitting on the front desk counter swinging his legs preparing to be a total nuisance.

“How did you..???” You said bewildered “When did..”

“I have my ways and I got in this afternoon.” He answered loving that he regained control by throwing you off so much. “So can you get off or what? I got your shoes want to take a walk and break them in?” he said producing a box of size 7 New Balances in his floral design.

“I…wow. Thank you so much.” You said blushing opening the box with a smile that showed your dimples.

“That’s what I like to see.” Jack remarked wholeheartedly. To see you smile and be happy rather than annoyed to see him like the first time made the whole trip worth it. “I also brought well…a smaller pair.” He said as Copelan handed him another smaller box for Aaliyah. “I hope they fit her.” He said.

“Jack I can’t.” You refused the pair for your daughter not wanting to send him the wrong message and not trusting him yet.

“Please. It’s just some shoes, we give them away to kids all the time. I insist.” He said convincingly

“So you’ve obviously been on my insta to know where I work and have a daughter.” You said not sure what to make of all this but cautiously accepting the small box.

“I also didn’t see no man on your gram.” Jack said confidently his manly side showing up in a big way.

“Yeah about that…” You said slowly “I’m too busy and Aaliyah’s dad passed away the 1st year she was born so it’s just me and her now.”

“Oh.” Jack said completely changing his posture to a more humble one. “I’m sorry to come all up in your space like this.”

“No don’t be it’s adorable. I just can’t you know…” You said trying to let him down gently. You saw his face drop and decided to make it up to him. “Let me work my magic and I’ll be right back.”

His face lit up and he jumped down from the counter excited. A few minutes later the supervising doctor came out. “So you weren’t lying! It’s Jack Harlow!” She exclaimed. “Nice to meet you” She said nervously shaking Jack’s hand way too hard and for too long. “You know what Zoey? Take tonight off we got it covered here.”

“Imma get you some sneakers too.” Jack said to her gratefully as he walked away with you. Just let Zoey know your size and I got you.”

“Seriously??!! Can you sign them?” Your supervisor said glowing.

“Done.” Jack said “I’ll send them signed.”

“Wow. So how long you been a nurse?” Copelan asked you.

“Um I’m in med school to be a doctor. Cardiac specialist actually.” You said a little tired of people always assuming women were nurses.

“Oops my bad. I didn’t mean..” Cope tried to recover but Jack just gave him a sign to stop.

“Look Jack I need to know where we’re going. I can’t be walking in too late.” You said worried about Aaliyah and knowing your Grandmother would not be having you coming in wee hours of the morning because you had been out with a rapper.

Jack opened the door of the black SUV for you and once nicely inside he sat beside you and took your hand and said “I know you’re a mom and you have a life and responsibilities and I totally respect that. Nothing crazy, let’s go for a bite to eat with the team so you feel safe. There’s no rush. I’m here for a few days because I wasn’t sure how this would go and in case you didn’t like that I surprised you I had time to go back in for more abuse until I had a relative level of success.” He chuckled and it melted your heart. You were starting to relax.

Dinner was fabulous. It was the fanciest restaurant you had ever been in. It made you a little scared because you were working hard and you didn’t want to give Jack the impression you could be bought and no way was he meeting Aaliyah any time soon. You never had guys in and out of her life and you weren’t about to start now. As glasses of wine clinked and the hum of rich conversation was all around you as you sat in your hospital scrubs you knew that without Jack, the way you were dressed, how ordinary you looked, you would never get in a place like this on your own. Your head was spinning. Forever the med school major you were thinking too much. “Why can’t I just enjoy this?” You thought in frustration.

Jack caught a vibe you were uncomfortable. He leaned over to you and whispered “Hey you want to go for a little walk? Get some air?”

“Sure.” You said immediately feeling claustrophobic.

He got up and pulled out your chair for you. As you stepped out of the buzzing Italian restaurant the night air was chilly so he gave you the light jacket he was wearing and rubbed your shoulders to warm you up making you full on laugh.

“That’s what I been wanting to hear. That laugh. That’s the spark in everything.” Jack said wistfully as you strolled together down the street in the city that never sleeps hitched under his arm. For both of you it felt like a dream. You leaned your head on him that sent a tingle through his body. He liked girls before but was this what love felt like? The feeling he said in numerous interviews he had never felt? Maybe it was the champagne but his head felt light and he felt a weight had been lifted off of him having you warm up to him like this. He just wished he could take you home with him. You, Aaliyah, your Grandma and make all your lives so much easier, but he knew that wasn’t possible, at least for now.

“Thank you Jack for all this I…” Jack interrupted what you were saying with a deep kiss. Steam was rising from the street with lights and sounds going fuzzy for that moment like you were in some surreal parallel universe. You didn’t expect his lips to feel so soft and the touch after so many years of not being kissed was almost overwhelming and old instincts kicked in to escape closeness.

“Oh god, Jack that was… oh my, I need to get home to Aaliyah.” You lied checking your watch. Everyone at home was sleeping not even aware you were not at work.

“Zoey please.” Jack pressed into your body gently going in for another kiss.” This time you felt yourself wilt and totally succumb to him. He backed you up against a brick wall as you hadn’t noticed you had turned into an alley that was hard to see what was happening but you felt completely safe with him. Too safe.

“I need you Zoey.” He said breathlessly as his hand drifted lower and lower to your behind. You pushed your tongue into his and felt him rising. Was it going to happen here? In the open like this?

“Jack no this can’t happen here.” You said weakly protesting as he kissed up your neck.

“I wouldn’t expect anything now.” He said “I’m just savouring this moment. Why don’t we head back sweet Zoey, songs are written about girls like you.”

PART 3

In dropping you off Jack walked you to your door. An old brownstone row house you shared with your Grandmother and daughter. As you were saying goodbyes and you were standing in the doorway Aaliyah snuck right past you. You didn’t even hear her coming. With pyjamas on, a curly mop of hair, rubbing her eyes with a teddy bear she was suddenly looking at Jack bewildered.

“Hi.” She said to him shyly and hugged your legs.

“Aaliyah hunny I’m sorry to wake you up.” You apologized picking her up and hitching her on your hip. This wasn’t supposed to happen! Now she saw Jack and Jack saw her.

Jack was immediately taken by Aaliyah. She was a mini- version of you and he felt like his heart was going to leap out of his chest. It was hard to contain what he was feeling and not be super goofy with her in some way. He hoped to have a few of his own one day.

“Hey Aaliyah right? Pleased to meet you I’m Jack.” He simply said not wanting to overwhelm the tired little girl.

Aaliyah rested her groggy head on your shoulder and stuck her thumb in her mouth. “Well Jack as you can see I have to tuck her back in. Thank you so much and I apologize for how I acted when we met.” You offered.

“It’s all good. You were going through it that day. Bye Aaliyah, have sweet dreams. I got you a gift and your mom is going to give it to you tomorrow ok?” Jack said rubbing her back.

“Ok Mr.Jack.” She said sleepily

“Zoey, can I please see you tomorrow?” Jack asked cautiously hopeful.

“Jack I have to spend time with Aaliyah tomorrow.” You replied.

“Ok I can come with, if it’s ok. Aaliyah can I hang out with you and Mommy tomorrow?” Jack asked her

“What are you doing? Don’t ask her that, she’s not ready for that.” You shot back at him turning away cradling Aaliyah as she drifted off back to sleep.

“She’s not ready? Or you’re not ready.” He countered. He wasn’t going to back down easily.

“Jack…” you started to say

“I’ll pick you up at Noon.” He interrupted. You had successfully curved guys for years but feared you just met your match. “How’s the Zoo sound tomorrow for this little sleepy bubs.” Jack said affectionately.

“I call her bubs.” You said frozen in surprise at him using that word.

“I knew this was on some serendipity vibes meeting you. I hope you’re ready to make some changes in your life Zoey cuz this is happening.” Jack said firmly

PART 4

Aaliyah waited by the window for the man that gave her the pretty sneakers with flowers. She liked that he was nice to her mommy and made her smile because mommy didn’t smile that much. She saw the Black SUV roll to a stop in front of her house. He started walking up and rang the doorbell. Aaliyah jumped down from the couch “Mommyyyyyy!!!! Mr. Jack is here!”

You were in your room breathing and talking to yourself that everything would be fine. “It’s just the Zoo, it’s just the zoo.” You said calmly while freaking out inside. That kiss lived in your head rent free since it happened and made you nervous to see him again. You jumped when the doorbell rang and Aaliyah called for you. You gave yourself one last look in the mirror scrutinizing every last detail of your outfit. Hoop earrings but not too big, jeans with a rips in the knees, Jordan’s and a Nirvana hoodie, light makeup, and sloppy but controlled bun. This was a day at the Zoo with a pre-schooler not exactly the time for impressing Jack, and in fact you didn’t want to send the message you were too available.

Jack had a personality that was very strong, quiet, light hearted but energetic all at the same time. He was almost as much of a handful as Aaliyah. You were adjusting to who he was feeling awkward and out of practice going on dates. When you made it downstairs Jack, his Security, Copelan, his assistant, and the driver were all in the living room talking to Aaliyah and your Grandmother. They were eating some fresh homemade banana bread and sipping some tea out of the good tea set. Granny only broke that out for damn near royalty.

Aaliyah was enjoying the extra treats she was getting because there was a guest. She sat happily having an extra piece of banana bread which was her favourite and playing with a new Barbies Jack instructed Kat to pick out for her at Wal-Mart early in the morning. He knew the key to your heart was him treating Aaliyah right and he was holding back from spoiling the little girl or you. He had brought you flowers but that’s it. He could tell showering you with gifts would make you run.

As you appeared in the doorway everyone stopped and looked at you. Jack swallowed hard because he thought you looked naturally gorgeous. Copelan nudged him because he had his mouth hanging open and was staring. “Miss Zoey you had this poor man waiting on the stoop I had to entertain and feed him poor thing was hungry.” Your Grandmother said in a chiding tone.

“Thank you Granny for entertaining everyone while I took a whole 5 minutes to come down.” You said sarcastically. “Aaliyah you remember Jack right?”

“Yes and he brought me Barbies!” Aaliyah exclaimed

“I see that. Don’t get spoiled.” You cautioned her sternly. “Shoes and Barbies in less than 24 hours. Wow okay thank you Jack.” You said disapprovingly.

“Zoey! So rude!” Your Grandmother said in shock you would say that to the only date you had in years that happened to be so handsome and charming. “I’m sorry for my Granddaughter’s attitude Mr. Harlow.” She said turning to Jack embarrassed.

You were mortified and turned crying running upstairs and slamming your bedroom door. “What is wrong with me?” You said sobbing uncontrollably.

“It’s ok Mr.Jack Mommy cries a lot.” Aaliyah said while playing with her Barbies.

“I got this. Guys we’ll meet you in the car. Aaliyah I’ll go check on Mommy ok.” Jack said concerned it was so normal for the little girl to see you cry like that. He gently knocked on your door. “Zoey? You ight? Can I come in?”

You were surprised he hadn’t left. You blew your nose, straightened yourself out and opened the door. “Hey” you said humbly knowing you were totally out of pocket a minute ago.

“Hey.” Jack said softly holding out the bouquet he brought you like some sort of peace offering. “May I?” He asked gesturing to wrap his arms around you to which you tearfully nodded. “No matter how hard you try I’m here. Even if this goes nowhere. I know this is a lot for you and I been holding back to not overwhelm you but if I don’t push a little Imma get nowhere.”

Jack continued holding you and tilted your chin up to look him in his blue eyes. “I’m just trying to get to know you. I didn’t fly all the way back here with my team to make you feel bought and paid for. I genuinely think Aaliyah is the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen because she’s a mini you and I’m hoping…Zoey I….I’ve fallen for you and dammit Imma fall as hard as I want to. You’re not the only stubborn one up in here.”

Jack disarmed you once again with his caring calm voice and his warm embrace. “I don’t deserve you. I’m a single mom, I’m not anything to date a famous person. I don’t know how to act or what to say.” You said frustrated with yourself.

“Zoey, that’s why I like you. You’re just you. I haven’t seen you try to impress me once since I met you and you don’t know how much that means to me. Barbies? I held back from buying Aaliyah that whole damn toy store. I’m trying to go at your pace but you gotta let me do something to show I care. So can we go to the Zoo? I’d really like to get out of your bedroom because 3 more minutes and we are taking this convo to the mattress. That messy bun is my kryptonite.”

You giggled and gathered yourself to have a great day. “I’m going to the Bronx Zoo with Jack Harlow and it’s perfectly natural right? What in the actual fuck is going on??!!!” You thought as he helped you into the luxury SUV with the most plush seats you ever sat in holding your hand all the way to the Zoo.

PART 5

“Mommyyyyy!!!! Look!! The giraffes have suuuppper long legs like Mr. Jack.” Aaliyah said delightfully not in any way trying to insult Jack. She was quite taken with him hitching a ride sitting on his shoulders.

Jack thought it was adorable “Can’t beat kids for their brutal honesty” He said with a giggle.

“Wow now I can’t unsee it.” You said with a straight face looking at him and looking at the giraffe. Jack thought he was the only one that could joke sarcastically serious but he was wrong. Most girls would be afraid to come off rude and be putting on a show for him on their best behaviour but not you. He’d already experienced you being down right rude and a crying mess so this was a step up as far as he was concerned.

The day was super fun but on the way home both you and Aaliyah fell asleep on either side of Jack putting your full weight on him. Kat thought it was so cute she took a picture. “Don’t post that it would piss my baby right off.” He whispered in a chuckle feeling like the luckiest man in the world.

“Your baby?” Kat said with a smirk “Careful Jack it sounds like you have feelings after all.”

“I have lots of feelings I just make sure I stuff em down as far as I can cuz when I settle down it’s gotta be forever. I have big shoes to fill with my Grandparents and parents married for so long.” He said so seriously it gave Kat tingles. She was so happy to see this side of her boss. “I can’t fuck up my whole bag on some gold digger. This one right here…might be it” He said pecking you on the forehead waking you up.

“Oh geez I’m so sorry I fell asleep on you!” You said with a start.

“It’s fine. I’m glad y’all enjoyed it.” Jack said

“I never been to the Zoo. My parents died before…and then her dad…I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be a downer. We had a ball Jack.” You said not wanting to ruin the moment. There was plenty of time for sob stories. You happily pecked him on the cheek.

“That’s why you cry a lot.” Jack said looking at you like his whole world.

“How did you know that?” You said incredulously

“A little birdie told me.” He said looking at Aaliyah passed out leaning on his arm.

“Yeah that little birdie sings like a canary sometimes.” You said frowning at your daughter for spilling that tea.

When he dropped you off it was turning into evening. Granny was cooking up a storm disappointed Jack couldn’t stay for dinner. Jack had Aaliyah on his shoulder and carried her upstairs. You tucked her in and met him in the hallway. He pulled you in for a long kiss his hand grazing your breast but he pulled it back. “One day soon Jack, I promise.” You said breathlessly. “It’s not like I don’t want to I just…”

“You don’t have to explain but if I don’t hit the road we gone make a movie in your childhood bedroom and Granny tryna feed me.” He said completely serious but you snorted a laugh.

“Mmmmm I hope we make a movie and a sequel.” You said caressing his built chest through his TShirt.

“Zoey please I’m getting a hard on stop it.” Jack said in mock protest. “Im tryna turn over a new leaf here and behave myself.”

“You’re right. Aaliyah is all I can handle.” You replied rolling your eyes at her bedroom door. “Unless….”

“Unless what?” Jack said sexily leaning back against the wall while you put your hand on his generous bulge through his trackpants

“Zoey…..” he moaned

“Come to my room.” You said daringly pulling him in and locking the door.

Granny heard a thud from upstairs as you both flopped on the bed and just shook her head giggling to herself as she finished the macaroni and cheese she was making to go with the pot roast. “I guess he’s staying for dinner.” She said

@itsyagirljaz @okaaay-mice @ride4harlow

[halloiambored]

Random Snippet

CW: kidnapping and suffering, the works.

Ethan isn’t a hero.

He’s just an average guy who lives in a modest apartment on the East side of the city. He has a cat. It’s nice.

Okay, yeah - he knows things that could cripple the agency in minutes, but that doesn’t make him a hero. If anything, he’s just a liability.

“Large black coffee, please.”

This cafe is always busy around noon, conversations and kitchen clamor bleed together with the muffled chaos of the city streets.

“Sure thing. Would you like our medium or dark roast?”

“Dark would be great,” Ethan smiles weakly, thumbing through his wallet. As he pulls out a ten, his focus catches on the casual tapping of the cashier’s nails.

“Do you want room for cream and sugar?”

“Ah, nope, no thanks. Do you take cash?”

Whatever she says is lost to the ringing in his ears. A few dazed heart beats later, he remembers how to breathe. God, his life is a mess.

“Sir?”

“I uh, sorry, what did you say?” How she manages to be so kind is beyond him.

“We do! It’ll be—”

“On me! Thank you.” A gloved hand on his arm makes Ethan jump, eyes darting to the man - nope, hero - beside him. Ironically, he doesn’t recognize their suit. Ethan, the designer of every super-suit in the city, doesn’t recognize their suit.

“Really?”

“Don’t worry about it! I haven’t checked in on you in a while, it’s my treat. Hey, how’s your cat?”

Completely at a loss, Ethan stares. Something is eerily familiar about his crystal blue eyes, but he can’t place it.

“Are you okay, man? I’ve been worried about you, after everything that happened last week. Here - let’s get out of the way.”

Draping his arm across Ethan’s back, the stranger subtly shoves him toward the pickup counter.

“Look, Ethan - it is actually Ethan, right?”

“Who—”

“Oh c’mon, you don’t recognize me? Wow. Here, I’ll jog your memory.”

With a smirk, the man sends a spark of electricity racing up his spine. And sure, it’s jarring to feel his muscles flex and flutter involuntarily, but the discomfort isn’t what makes his stomach drop.

No - it’s because the villain beside him is Aaron fucking Whitehall, the ex he spent years trying to forget. Since he mentioned last week, it means he’s here because... not to…

“Oh my god.”

Like a switch, Ethan tries to squirm away. To his dismay, his strength seems to be evaporating by the second. All he manages to do before he’s slammed against the wall is knock over someone’s lunch, their plate shattering on the tile floor.

For a beat, the tension in the room is palpable. Then reality crashes back into place.

Naturally, someone’s screaming as the crowd tries to escape the henchman at the door. Ethan, though - he’s begging, eyes wide and filling with tears, hands pathetically pushing at the gloves holding him in place.

“Look, now you’ve made a scene. I was trying to be subtle, y’know. Nice. Hell, I caught you off guard in broad fucking daylight and you’re stupid enough to try to run. Aren’t you supposed to be good at your job?”

“Pleaseplea,” he chokes, breath hitching, “don’t do this, please, I don’t understand why you’re her—”

Without warning, fire. Ethan’s world is on fire.

Gasping in shock, his struggles turn frantic, panic clouding his every thought. Desperately, he coughs out, “StOP!”

“Mmm no,” Aaron continues with a malicious grin. “Instead, three things are about to happen. One, you’re going to get in my car. Two, you’re going to cooperate unconditionally. And three, you’re going to spill all of the marvelous little secrets in that pretty head of yours.”

“N-no—”

“Yeah, you will. Because if you don’t…” Aaron leans in, his breath ghosting over Ethan’s ear. Somehow, the pain gets worse, ripping a scream out of his already sore throat.

“You will suffer. I will make your life hell on earth and I will enjoy every second.”

As the rush of artificial electricity fades, Ethan falls. Even free, the designer’s lungs burn for air that doesn’t come, his body shaking uncontrollably.

“So, shall we?” Startlingly polite, Aaron turns on his heel and walks away, clearly expecting Ethan to follow.

Fuck fuck fuck, this is not going to end well.

Without missing a beat, two of the henchmen step forward to drag him along, effectively cutting off his weak protest with a knee to the gut.

“You got the wrong guy,” he wheezes, voice hoarse and charged with emotion.

After all, Ethan isn’t a hero, he’s just a liability. But if he can make Aaron believe him, if he can get out, maybe the city stands a chance.

“Yeah, sure I do.”

“No really, Aaron,” the goons throw him in the backseat, and he gracelessly scrambles away from the open door. “I work at the agency, but I’m not - they don’t trust - what secrets?”

With terrifying ease, the men drag him back to lock shackles around his wrists, the metal unforgiving.

“Oh, you don’t know anything? Seriously? After your agency leaked your name, you really think I’ll let you off that easy?”

The villain’s cruel smirk leaves nothing to the imagination. Obviously, he isn’t going to be convinced that easily. No, Aaron will ruin his dearest captive, and then some, to get what he wants.

But when Ethan finally sobs, he’s still surprised when Aaron laughs.

Why did he have to be the one to find him?

“Dam-mnit. Please, at least — I’m trying,” his already warbled voice cracks, “I trying to tell you the truth. Please. You’re going to make me go through this, you’re going to… it’s… oh my god, please let me go. I-I can’t give you information I don’t have. Aaron, plEAse!”

“Bullshit.”

At that, the car door slams in his face.

[jamiedc-they-them]

Being Joel's Surviving Child and an Older Sibling to Ellie Part II

Link to Part I

CW: Normal last of us violence, swearing. Mentions of suicidal thoughts. Bunch of angst. Also, a long one!

So, five years. A lot of can happen in five years.

You’ve almost, almost, gone back to how you used to be. Normal. A citizen rather than a survivor.

You’re more relaxed.

It’s not constant, twenty years of surviving isn’t something you just forget and move on from in an instant.

Your family understands that.

Tommy takes you out on hunts sometimes. It’s a good bonding experience with your uncle.

He has your help with organising patrols. These are the main times you see Ellie. Other than teaching her how to shoot.

It’s nice seeing your sister, though she is more distant.

You just put it up to age. She’s growing and changing, becoming more independent, so she distances herself more because of that.

You and Sarah had sort of done that before…everything.

In a way, you’re envious.

Still though, you just keep going on.

You help out with the town.

Joel checks in every so often. But after a certain period, you can’t quite remember how long into those five years it is, he does it almost all the time.

He acts differently. Softer. 

“Something wrong?” you ask.

“I’m alright, kiddo. Just…feeling my age is all. Do you, uh, do you wanna come over later? Found that sequel. Curtis and Viper 2. ”

“No way?! Hell yeah, I’ll be there.”

“Alright, kiddo. Sounds like a plan.”

You notice Ellie’s absence. You don’t question it, though. Her and Dina have been talking lately. From the brief interaction you had with the girl, she was sweet. She was kind to Ellie, as was Jessie. You liked that they had a little group.

When you next see Ellie before a patrol, you talk to her.

“Didn’t see you at Dad’s last night.”

She turns to you, but you can tell she’s more tense now, “Oh, shit. Yeah, sorry. I was out with Dina and Jessie,” she does sound genuinely apologetic. You miss the mistrust in her eyes. It flickers only for as second, but you still miss it.

“It’s cool,” you say, waving it off, “just be careful, yeah?” 

“Always am,” she assures, putting her pack on her horse and mounting up, letting you take them outside the stables, “besides, with your training, how could I go wrong?” 

“Exactly,” she chuckles at your response, “Just…talk to each other, yeah? Whatever it is.”

She sighs. She wishes it was that simple, but she tells you she will.

She loves you, but doesn’t like you meddling sometimes. Joel too.

Sometimes, you’ll take her on a run. Or one of her friends.

It’s through this, you get the idea that someone has a crush. Dina asks you things about Ellie; favourite food and what not.

You don’t always have the answers, but you do have an idea of what is going on.

You don’t pressure Dina or her on it. Though you do ask one about the other every now and then to try to gauge it and push them to admit their feelings.

You were never into the whole love thing, so this is not your field. But they are adorable, the pair. Jessie is a good friend. Loyal. He opens up a bit more to you. He’s funny, too. Casual. Good person.

Brings out your lighter side.

Seth isn’t an awful guy, but is a homophobe. 

Ellie seems to have a six sense with you, despite the distance she’s caused, and always finds you before anything bad happens.

Her own blood boils when he calls you a “queer” in an insulting way. But she always drags you back, keeping herself between you and him. Her eyes on you as she forces you not to make a scene.

This happens with a few other troubling people in the town.

She also gives you a place to crash when you want to, or are drunk. You do that a bit. Trying to tame the loudness in your head.

It worries her, but she’s gentle. If you ever wake up from a nightmare and are around her’s, she wakes you up. 

“It’s ok, Y/N. It’s ok. It was just a dream. I’m here. I’m here,” she puts a hand to your cheek, “I’ve got you.”

Sometimes she’ll stay with you. Sometimes you both stay up together. Sometimes she sits with you until you drift off, looking at your gentle form, before going to bed, wishing she could stop whatever is plaguing you.

You’re her sibling, older sure, but she loves you.

Sadly, she never gets a chance to ask you, as she soon is plagued by similar nightmares. 

A golf club kills your father, and she had no choice but to watch.

Dina arrives before you, Jessie being the one who fetched you when Joel didn’t come back.

Dina gets Ellie up and out, but Jessie sees you frozen, just staring at your father. Or what’s left of him.

He sees your fist start leaking blood. You don’t notice. Your eyes are glassy, but no tears fall.

You’ve shut down.

You don’t even register him leading you away. Mentally, you’re still there.

Maria visits you.

“Oh, sweetheart,” she says, sitting next to you on your bed, “C’mere.”

She tries to hug you, but you lean away. 

You stand up, arms crossed, facing away from her.

“What’s that?” she prompts, not hearing what you said just then.

“It should’ve been me,” you say, a bit louder.

“Y/N. No. No, it, no it shouldn’t of been.”

“He’s dead.”

“I know…” 

“He’s dead…”

“I’m so sorry, Y/N.”

She goes to hug you, or try and help, but you scream, back away, and then run from your room and out of your house, tears be damned.

Dina hears you sprinting, just seeing you as you trip over trying to get into the cemetery.

“Shit,” she says, going to help you up, “hey, Y/N. Hey!” she’s gentle, but you flinch at her loudness, “Look at me,” you do, eyes frantic. She hates her friend in pain like this, “I have you. I -”

“I need him,” her heart breaks. You sound like a scared child - she doesn’t blame you, this is a horrible situation - and not the late thirties person that you are.

You sob, putting your head in your hands as you just break completely.

You then fall back in the snow.

“Sarah would’ve been able to control herself. She would’ve stopped this.”

“Y/N,” Dina crouches near you, ignoring the cold, “you aren’t expected to just control this. There’s no precedent for this.”

“Sarah was. Henry and Sam were. Tess was.”

“They weren’t your fault.”

“Then whose were they?” 

She doesn’t have time to answer you, as Ellie clears her throat.

Ellie moves to you, her too crouching down, “I’m so sorry,” she says, voice raw, “I’m so fucking sorry, Y/N.”

Despite what Dina just tried to get you to understand for yourself, you impart it to Ellie, “It’s not your fault, El. It’s not your fault.”

Dina hates what this has done to you both. Broken you both. Her girlfriend and friend who looked out for her.

You both go to Joel’s house, and she waits outside for you both.

“Can…can you…” Ellie can’t finish her words.

Wordlessly, you nod, opening the door and going inside. 

You’re both slow, looking around.

You even find the copy of Curtis and Viper 2, you let out a choked laugh at it.

Ellie takes the revolver, but hands you the watch.

“I think…I think he’d want you to have this.”

 You take it, and put it on your arm. It fits you just as well as it fit him.

You look at your little sister. He’s gone, so you have to step up.

You go where she goes. That’s your job: you protect, you guide, you support.

Maria isn’t happy with Tommy going, and tells you guys to go get him.

Before you leave, Maria stops you.

“Please make sure you come back too, Y/N, ok?” 

You nod, “you can count on it.”

She doesn’t think she’s ever been more scared of you. The flicker in your eye. The crazed look of someone on the edge of breaking completely, and with one more promise on the line.

It’s the look of someone who will do all they can for that promise. No matter the cost.

As said before, she’d heard the stories of what you and Joel did to survive, how you were so young and lost your soul in the name of survival and control.

The last five years had seen you return to normal. 

That had now been taken.

So, off you go to Seattle. 

You tell them all the memories of this place you can remember. From small trips and what not. Dina paints a picture of Sarah in her mind as you describe your actions with your twin. 

Randomly, small facts come back to you about the place. They’re always impressed by your vast knowledge (you doubt a lot of it is true, but there are one or two you know are facts).

Then you’re brought back to how the world is with them asking you how old you were in your first kill.

The age gap between you and them is shown, as you try to water it down. You tell yourself it’s to protect them, but really it’s just to protect yourself.

“We’re old enough to know, Y/N,” your sister says, “or are you forgetting about David?” 

The words sting. Ellie regrets them. You just ride on ahead.

“Who’s David?” Dina asks.

“An arsehole. He’s dead now.”

“Did he do something to you?” 

“Tried to. But he also made he break a promise I made to Y/N.”

“And what’s that?” 

“Doesn’t matter now.”

Dina nods, respecting the boundary. It makes her miss her sister more, having inside secrets that friends wouldn’t know.

When it comes to climbing, Ellie goes, joking about your age and your back. It brings her back to simpler times.

“Did I do something to make her upset?” you ask Dina as you wait for Ellie to open the gate.

“Oh. No, I don’t think so. She didn’t say anything to me about something like that. Why?” 

“Just…I don’t know.”

“You’re not gonna lose her, Y/N,” she assures.

“I thought I wouldn’t lose my dad, either,” it’s a cheap shot, and she knows it’s not being fired at her, but she still flinches at it, “sorry,” you say.

She nods, “it’s ok,” though there is hurt in her voice.

Ellie shows you the map, handing it to you every now and then to double check where you’ve been and haven’t been. Sure, things are marked on and off, but she doubts herself a bit. 

Dina moves past the awkwardness between you both, listening as you and Ellie swap stories about Joel.

Dina is happy to hear them, at least you both aren’t completely drowning, you’re keeping each other afloat, and she’s glad to be of assistance in that. 

Dina opens up to you both about being Jewish. You always liked the idea of a god, but never believed yourself. Especially not after the apocalypse, but the hope it gave her was something you understood.

Ellie was that hope for you. If she was alive, and happy, you were happy. 

If what was left of your family was ok, you were ok.

That was why you had to make this right. Make it mean something.

When it comes to combat, you take the lead. Giving them orders. It makes it seem more controllable that way.

Most times, it goes wrong, with you having to adapt, but the feeling it gives you before that keeps you going.

Ellie and you are a deadly duo, Dina notes. Able to read each other’s minds and actions. You seem to forget Dina is there for a moment, your soul focus being on your sister. 

One time, with you all being pinned down, you shot someone who was going to sneak up on Ellie, only for Dina to take a hit.

You helped patch up her wound, but avoided her eyes.

She doesn’t want to hold it against you. You’re her friend, and Ellie’s sibling. You’ve been good to her on runs. You were honest with her about things. While she knows she’d be like this had her sister still be alive, but it does scare her what it can do. 

Yes, she’s following you because she cares about you both, but she’s also scared for you both. What you’ll do. How you’ll do it. What you’ll lose in the process.

Ellie is taken, and you don’t talk the entire way to rescue her. Dina follows, and sees how good at tracking you actually are. 

Dina is shot through the roof, and one bullet catches you. You lay on the roof.

Ellie shouts up to you, telling you to “find another way to get this fuckers!” 

You hesitate, and she seems to tell, “Go!” She yells, “trust me!” 

You do, but you can’t find another way in. Your heart hammers, hearing only the chaos inside.

They’re out of your sight. What if they get hurt? What if they die? You lose more of your family?

You reunite outside, and you check them numerous times for injuries. 

“We’re fine. We’re fine, Y/N. Look, look! No wounds,” she shows you. You just pull them both in for a hug. 

Ellie remembers Joel doing that at the hospital…though she doesn’t push away this time, not wanting to raise suspicion or confront you on it just yet. She doesn’t want to lose you too.

You find more images, and one of the people from the photos is dead. 

Dina looks to you, “What the fuck have we gotten involved in?” 

“I don’t know,” you say, honestly, “but we just need Abby.”

“Y/N, this is insane. What if they already got her?”

“They wouldn’t have,” Ellie says.

“How do you know?” Dina challenges.

“Gut feeling.”

Dina looks to you.

“Let’s go,” is all you say.

Ellie’s secret comes out about the immunity, and you all barely escape with your lives intact and make it to the theatre. 

Dina reveals she may be pregnant and Ellie snaps. You don’t follow her, instead, you sit with Dina. 

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” she says.

“I get it,” you say, “it’s scary. Especially in a world like this.”

“Do you think it would be ok? Even after all this?”

“It will.”

“You can’t promise that Y/N,” she hopes you’re right, but is being more real about it.

“I can. I can,” you say, nodding, but you look away right after.

She nods once, before laying down. 

You find yourself falling asleep on the floor. You dream about Sarah.

Ellie remembers the birthday gift you and Joel gave her. That was a good day. A day of your bonds being the strongest.

You have a memory of a time when she fixed something, some dickhead bully. He never bothered you again.

You wish that either she was here instead of you, or you could do what she could.

Ellie wakes you up, nervously asking if you can come with her.

“We’ll make sure Dina is safe. I just…can we go together, Y/N? Please?”

You nod, leaving with her. Dina just asks you both to be careful.

It’s quiet, at the start as you both set off on your journey to find Tommy.

“Did I do something?” You ask as you search a store.

“What?” 

“Did I do something?” 

“No,” she says, not completely lying. 

“Is there a reason you and dad weren’t talking as much? Was it the party?”

“Mostly.”

“‘Mostly’?”

“It’s complicated,” it both is and isn’t true.

“You can talk to me, you know?” 

She wants to more than anything, but that would be - potentially - driving away the one piece of this family she has left that has been with her through so much.

“I will, ok? Just, give me time?” 

You want to press her on it, it sounds bad. Especially if it drove your sister and father apart. But, to keep her happy enough, you find yourself saying the one thing that can do that:

“Ok.” 

Ellie and you find the archery statue. She holds it up and turns to you.

“People cared about this stuff?” 

“Sure, sometimes.”

“You think this thing was worth a lot?”

You chuckle, “not money-wise, no. Thing was probably cheap as anything. But, sentimentally? Yeah, definitely.”

“Why’s that?”

“Made people feel valued. Wanted. Like they actually accomplished something.”

“This little thing did that?”

“A lot of things can do that.”

She nods, but can understand what you really mean. It’s why you’re here after all.

It makes her feel valued. Less alone. 

She does have to admit, seeing you not drowning or shutting down in your grief as you had before was a genuine relief to her.

But, she does know you. She’s known you for like six years at this point.

She can see it’s getting to you. 

You look at the blood on your knuckles more. You check in with her more. Making sure she is ok.

She tries to with you, but you just turn it around on her.

With Jessie, you drive. She rides shotgun, and Jessie sits in the middle. You almost die, but you’re just thankful Ellie learnt how to swim.

Dina and Jessie reunite. You see Ellie walk off, you watch the friends and exes reunite.

“Look, Jessie, I -“

“It’s cool, Y/N. Really. I’m not angry.”

“You’re not?” You did sort of go into this whole thing thinking he would. Though, maybe that was just because of the shows Sarah made you watch when younger.

He chuckles, “Yeah, all good. I mean, it’s a lot. But, Dina and Ellie are my friends. I want them to be happy. Their problems, are my problems.”

“That’s a sweet way to live, kid.”

“You’re my friend too, you know.”

“I’m older.”

“So?”

“I take on more problems for everyone. It’s my job.”

“That’s not healthy,” where’d he read that?

“We ain’t in a healthy world.”

Ellie has a mostly good memory of you, the strings incident. Well, good with you anyway, though at that point you had started to catch onto something being wrong. Still, you like that your dad is trying now with the comics. He and you had even had some discussions.

With the Bloater, you just held Ellie in your arms as Joel took it down.

With the couple and the lie you’ve both spun to her, you’re silent while Joel doubles down on it. She’s catching on, and you don’t like that.

Reminders of the lie you told her about being there.

Whenever you remember a birthday, you ignore that bit. You just remember the dinosaur.

With the strings, you focus on the bloater part and the comics.

With the sewers, it’s you who goes out the window. She doesn’t even think before jumping in to try to find you.

You drag her out of the water.

“What were you thinking?!” 

“Me?! What the fuck were you thinking?!” 

“I had to protect you, El!”

“You scared me! I thought you were dead, you arsehole!” 

She hits you in the shoulder, and then you both take pause. 

You’re both disturbed by the Seraphites.

“You think we should have a code like that?” She asks you as you make your way through a building.

“Would be useful,” you admit, “maybe you learning to whistle weren’t for nothing.”

She gives a humoured scoff. But she’s glad you can still have these moments.

She’s glad she hasn’t lost you. She just hates that internally she adds a ‘yet’ to that.

Before the camp, however, she turns to you, “I need to do this on my own.” 

“What?” 

“Look, there could to spores in there. And I don’t want you getting infected.”

“The fuck are you talking about, Ellie? We stick together.”

“Do you trust me?” 

It seems like you hesitate, but really she sees you weighing up the options in your head.

You nod.

“Hey,” she grabs your hand with hers, “I’m coming back, ok? With that bitches head. I promise,” she squeezes your hand.

You look one more time to the camp, then back to your sister. 

“I don’t like this.”

“I’ve got this,” she says. Your eyes soften at her echoing words.

You nod a tiny bit. You know she does.

You make your way back to the theatre.

“Y/N…” Dina says when she sees you, “Oh. Oh, god, is Ellie…” 

“No,” you say, instantly, “No. She’s fine. Just thought she should go alone. Spores and whatnot. Don’t exactly have my mask.”

“You sure it’s a good idea to leave her on her own?” Jessie asks. He means well, but he is also their age.

“She’s got this,” you assure her friends, “she’s tougher than you think.”

“I know that,” he says, “it’s just…with her state of mind.”

“I’m worried about her too. But, I’d be no use to her dead.”

“To any of us, Y/N,” you smile a little at Dina’s words. 

“So, what do we do?” Jessie asks.

“We wait for her to come back. I’ll, uh, give you two some space to talk about the whole…kid, thing.” You clear your throat, doing that.

Ellie returns when you’re asleep. Jessie wakes you up.

“Where is she?” 

“With Dina,” you get up, and Jessie knows what your plan is, “I think we should just leave them for tonight. Dina’s got her.”

“I could help.”

“I’m not saying you can’t,” despite the almost twenty year gap between you both, he seems to be the more mature one at times, “but you don’t need to smother her.”

Your eyes look dangerous when you look at him, “I ain’t.”

“I’d follow you, Joel, Ellie, or Dina anywhere, Y/N. But, Y/N, there’s gotta be a line where you walk away.”

“Not with her. Not with this.”

“I know Joel was a good man; he was a good father to you both. But, look, Dina’s pregnant. We aren’t exactly going to find her help out here, are we? And I know, you wanna help Ellie; but…she’ll listen to you.”

You go to check on your sister, she shivers, her wounds making you sick. 

You sit next to her, and move the cover she has over her a bit more. She flinches a bit. You mule over Jessie’s words.

You go with them, giving Dina a bottle of water, and leaving too.

However, you then see how high the water is out there. And you see Ellie’s plan to steal the boat.

Jessie starts to back away. Ellie then looks to you

“Not you too,” she says. Damn it, she knows you too well.

“El -”

“Don’t do that. Please don’t fucking do that.”

“I just think –”

“I didn’t think you’d leave me too.

“I’m not –”

Guys,” Jessie tries to interject, noticing your voices going up a notch in volume. You hold your hand up to silence him, then gesture with your hand to lower the volume. Even in her pissed off state, she agrees to that.

“I thought you’d have my back on this,” she says, quieter.

“I have your back. Really, I do. But I’m gonna have to pull rank on this and –”

“‘Rank’?” 

“I’m the older sibling. I have to look out for you.”

“Then do that by coming with me on that fucking boat. If we fall in, we can both make it back to the boat. I need you to trust me.”

“And I need you to listen to me.”

“They killed, Joel. What if it was me?”

“That’s not fair.”

“If it was you, you would want us to try, at least.”

“I wouldn’t know, would I?” you take a breath, “we should just go home. Ok?” 

“You go, then. I’ll see you there later,” you open your mouth to argue, but she beats you to it, “fuck off then, coward.”

The words sting. You want to say more, to try and get her to see the way things are going. But you realise, maybe too late, that you can’t stop her. You can’t control her.

Jessie says what is on your mind:

“I really hope you make it.”

He respects your silence on the way back to the theatre.

You don’t explain to Dina, you just go to your own little space.

“Are they ok?” Dina asks Jessie.

“Ellie and them had a fight.”

“Oh…” she says, looking to the stairs, “should we go check on them?”

“No. No, I think they need some time alone, you know? I don’t think they’ve really had time to unpack everything.”

“None of us have,” it had only been a few days after all.

“That’s true. But, he was Y/N’s dad.”

“You know, at first, I thought Y/N was Ellie’s dad.”

“Yeah?” Dina chuckles a bit.

“Yeah. I mean, you seen how protective they both are…were, over her?” 

“Y/N still is.”

“Yeah…” Jessie looks to the stairs too, “that’s what scares me.”

Jessie leaves on a quick patrol of the area and finds Tommy. He brings him back.

You come down and see your Uncle in the first time in what seems like forever.

“Hey, kid,” he says to you.

He doesn’t get a warm welcome, instead, he gets shoved. Then slapped.

“You left, your goddamn wife! She’s worried sick about you, Tommy!”

“I know, I know,” he says, but you don’t stop there.

“You could’ve died, and we wouldn’t of known. You fucking idiot!” 

The younger two have never heard you so loud. Not even when fighting Seth.

“I KNOW!” Tommy roars, “They killed my brother! I had to try, Y/N! I had to do something.”

“And how’d that fucking go?” you sneer.

“I saw her,” he says, “I saw the bitch that killed her.”

“Yeah? Where’s her head?”

Tommy looks almost ashamed, looking at the ground as he answers you, “she had a kid with her. They beat me. Almost drowned.”

“Yeah, well, you didn’t. I’m glad you didn’t, Uncle Tommy.”

He nods, “Me too, kid.”

It’s then, you hug him.

Time goes on a bit longer before Tommy and him decide to leave to find Ellie. They hear on the radio about the Aquarium. 

Dina is the one who asks you to stay, “please. I don’t want to be alone. I’m scared.” 

You tell the other two to go and stay with Dina.

You keep her drinking water. Try and keep her as well as you can.

She falls asleep, and you try your best to get her to bed ok, though she does stir awake at one point. But, only slightly, she falls back to sleep pretty easily. You get her in bed, trying to get her comfortable.

You don’t exactly envy her situation, especially given how hard it would’ve been in the old world. This new one just added more challenges. 

Still, you wanted to help. Just how was the question?

You hear the door close and cautiously see who it is.

It’s your friends.

You see Ellie, eyes distant and scared.

“Hey. Hey, what happened?” you ask, moving on from the words exchanged earlier.

You look to Tommy, he shakes his head: not now.

“Do you wanna go see Dina?” she nods, “Ok, kiddo. Ok. I’ll take you to her.”

You’re slow with your movements, moving at her pace.

When she sees Dina, she is less tense. You let her go, and she goes to Dina, laying down next to her and moving some hair back. 

You close the door gently, before going downstairs.

“So, you wanna tell me what happened?” 

“One of the girls she killed,” Tommy pauses, puts his head in his hands, and pushes his hair back, “she was pregnant, Y/N.”

“Jesus,” is all you can say as you sit on the stage. 

“Yeah,” is all Tommy can say as he sits next to you. He then looks around the theatre.

“You remember when you and Sarah came here?” 

You smile a bit, “yeah. Or, well, somewhere like here.”

“Nope. Pretty sure it was here,” you have no idea if he’s fucking with you or not.

You narrow your eyes at him a bit.

“I’m serious,” he says, “can’t remember what we saw, mind. But, it was right here we saw it.”

“Hm. Quite the legacy,” you admire.

“Ain’t it just.” 

A quiet few moments go by.

“I think we should go home,” you say.

Tommy nods, “Yeah. Though, not exactly looking forward to Maria kicking my arse.”

“Yeah, well, I ain’t gonna be able to help with that.”

“Maybe I’ll use you as a shield.”

“As if she’d let you,” you say, “She loves me.”

“I’d like to think she loves me more.”

“Uh-uh, told me herself.”

“Did she now?” 

“Oh yeah.”

It’s nice, this moment of normalcy.

“Go get some rest kid, we got a long trip tomorrow.”

“Guess you’re right,” you say, standing up and stretching, “night, Uncle Tommy.”

“Night, kid.”

You don’t sleep too long. Your instincts tell you something is going on.

You go to the main lobby and see Tommy on the floor, an arrow in his leg.

“Hands up,” you say, pointing your pistol at…shit, it’s Abby. And the kid Tommy mentioned.

“Y/N, run!” Tommy calls out.

“I ain’t leaving you,” you say to him, keeping your eyes on your father’s murderer.

“It’s you,” Abby says in realisation, “you’re the one who Marlene took as bait for…for him.” 

“You took him from me,” you spit.

“And yours took mine. Now you know how it feels.”

“We just gonna stare at each other?” 

“Not if you move. You’re not on my list. The girl is who I want.”

“So you can run more tests? There ain’t no cure.” 

“No. No, the cure is long dead. On that, we can agree.”

“I’m not letting you get my sister.”

She steps a bit closer, gun aimed up a bit, “Then I’ll take you both. I don’t care.”

You look to the boy, “You found the one good Seraphite?” 

“Just as quick as the rest.”

“Ok then,” you say, putting your gun down, hands raised, “then take me.”

“NO!” Tommy shouts, getting a kick in the gut.

“Maybe I would’ve,” she admits, “but not anymore. You’ve both taken too much from me. All you had to do, was stop. To get her to stop.”

You go to say something, but the door bursts open.

A few gunshots go off. You ignore the burning sensation on your body, and instead, try and deal with the one at your throat, the arm Abby has around it crushing your available air.

“Come on out! Or this one’s next!” Abby calls out.

“Ok. Fuck!” Ellie throws her gun away, standing up, hands raised, “you did this because of me, right? Because they both saved me? It’s me, I’m the one you want. Just let them go, ok?” 

Abby presses the gun into your head, “we let you live,” she says to Ellie.

“I’ll let you live,” Abby says to you, “but I swear, if I see you again, I will kill you.”

Your world then goes dark. But you hear your sister yell out your name.

You wake up to silence. 

Your vision goes double. You vomit on the floor.

Once on your feet, you slowly make your way down the theatre. You wished for music. You wished for something. Some sound to signal life.

You get backstage, and see a hole in the floor. You don’t even think before dropping down it. It doesn’t help your vision or unsteady legs. Shaking your head and getting to your feet once again, you’re greeted with your sister, coughing blood on the floor, and Dina bleeding from her head, unconscious. 

You go to your younger sister, fall down and hover over her. She just coughs more.

You don’t know what to do. You just put her head in your lap, running your hand through her hair.

If this is it, then so be it.

You go to sleep, not expecting to wake up again.

You do, and Ellie is quietly saying your name.

You look down, an unknown amount of time having passed.

“Are….are you…?” 

“Here. Present. Alive.” you say.

“Dina…” You look to your friend. Gently putting Ellie back down, you turn Dina over. The baby bump looks ok. You get some cloth and put it on her head.

“I think the baby’s ok.” 

Ellie lets out another cough, this seems to be her attempt at a sigh of relief.

How you get out, you can’t remember. But you do.

Ellie leaves Jackson. But you’ve already gone before then.

You can’t deal with all the looks from everyone. And what you gather to be a disappointed look from Maria when you bring Tommy in.

You aren’t far from it, instead just living in the woods.

You go to the same part of the water you went to clean yourself in after Henry and Sam died. You don’t really care you’re stealing the Jackson community water technically, you just use it.

You figure this will all help clear your head. It’s neutral. 

Maria comes to visit you, bringing some extra supplies. You just thank her.

She updates you on Tommy. Even tells you they split.

You just give her your condolences and go back to your little hobbit existence. Just you and a tent.

The final time Maria visits you, it’s to ask for you to go with Tommy. He wants to visit Ellie.

“I think she could use your company, too.”

Maria is still family; as is Tommy; as is Ellie.

You have to pick up the load now that Maria shares.

“Ok,” you say, voice croaky from a few months of disuse.

“Thank you,” she says. You nod.

She smiles a bit, happy that you’re somewhat in good standing with each other.

Tommy tries to make conversation with you, but you ignore him the whole ride down.

You help him off his horse and send him up the stairs first to the door.

You take in the place. It’s got a nice view. They’ve done well for themselves.

Dina greets you warmly.

“Hey, Y/N,” she says, giving you a hug.

“Hey, hon,” you say, hugging her back.

She takes a look at you, looking at your face and moving it around with her hands, “you had it rough, huh?” her voice is soft, unjudging.

“Sort of?” you say, unsure of how else to answer.

“Well, sit down. We’ll get you cleaned up.”

Then Ellie comes in, with a baby. 

She pauses at seeing you both, but a whole flood of emotions comes to her when she locks eyes with you.

“Hey,” is all she can get out.

“Hey,” you say.

It’s all going ok. Then Abby is mentioned again, and the mood turns sour.

“Oh, for fucks sake,” you say, hand going down your face.

“Now, don’t you fucking start –” Tommy starts to say.

“We ain’t doing this, Tom. You said you wanted to talk to her.”

“I am,” he protests, though does note your lack of ‘Uncle’ being used, “that’s all we doing.”

“Is it hell,” you say, trying to not teach the kid bad words this early. Like your dad did with you and Sarah.

“Oh, so now you wanna talk, huh?” Tommy challenges.

“We ain’t doing this here. Especially not in front of the kid,” you say, pointing to JJ. He grabs you finger, cooing as he moves it around. You move a bit closer, hand going through his hair, as your eyes stay on Tommy.

“Can you hold him?” Dina asks. You do. He complains at first, being away from his mother, but settles into you in the next moment. Dina takes Tommy outside.

“You’re a natural,” Ellie says, somewhat brightly. You start to rock from side to side gently as JJ settles even more, head on your shoulder.

“Yeah. Somehow,” you joke. Ellie scoffs humorously. 

“I’m glad you’re ok,” she means it.

“Ditto,” as do you.

The silence is awkward, and you see her eyes go to the map.

“Don’t,” you say, “don’t mess this up.” At ‘this’ you swirl your finger around the area.

“Ok,” she says. You look into her eyes that flicker down to the map every so often. You’re looking for signs of bullshit. You find some. You just don’t say anything.

“Ok,” you say.

Tommy leaves, but you stay the night. You get to know your nephew a bit more. He’s lively.

Dina and Ellie both show you around the farm. The sheep are nice. They help calm you down. Even JJ loves petting them.

Dinner is nice. They can both cook. You both even dance a bit. Just minus bigots being there, even better!

Then comes to bed. They show you your bedroom. You thank them and head in.

Early in the morning, you head downstairs, taking the map and putting it in your bag.

“What are you doing?” Ellie asks, coming downstairs, Joel's jacket over her shoulders.

“Trying, one last time.”

“To do what?”

“To stop you from this spiral being complete.”

“I’m not spiralling, Y/N. I’m hurting, and I don’t know how to make it stop.”

You sigh, sitting down, “You know, back in the old world, they had things called therapists. You ever heard of them?” she shakes her head, “they’d talk to you, try to help you find a way through. I’m sure there are some who would fit that role your age without knowing the turn, or just people my age who became them, but the talking bit I can do.”

“I don’t want to talk. Give me the map.”

“So you can run off and get killed?” 

“I won’t get killed.”

“How’s that?”

“You and Joel showed me how to survive.”

“And anyone can get a lucky shot in. I mean, Christ, look at Tommy, a bullet through the head should’ve killed him.”

“But he’s still alive. And so are you. I don’t want anyone else to almost die because of me.” you can hear the slight crack in her voice.

You know you could keep doing this with her. Going in circles. Your own spiral.

But, you’ve drained yourself.

So, you stand up, and take the map out of the bag. 

You see Dina peak from around the corner, but you’re quick in your eyes going back to Ellie, who is watching you, eyes glassy, and tense.

You approach her, and put the map into her hand, “I love you, Ellie. Far as I’m concerned, you’re my blood,” you grab her face in your hands, “You always will be, ok? But, if you do this, I won’t be here when you get back.”

Either timeline her brain cooks up as to that meaning scares her.

“Ok,” she says, even as her voice wobbles and tears threaten to fall. She takes the map and goes to her bag. You hear her sniffle from the kitchen.

You turn to Dina, and knock your head to the kitchen. She goes down. You sit on the chair in the living room as they share a goodbye.

Dina then comes back, you hug her. You hear the back door close. Ellie seemingly didn’t want to confront you again.

“What…what happens now?” Dina asks you in hiccups.

You kiss her head, “well, I’m gonna get some supplies from Jackson, and go back to my little home.”

“Can you…can you help me move some things back there, please?”

You hug her a bit tighter, “course, kiddo.”

“Thank you,” she says as you pull apart.

You smile down at her, “you’re family,” is all you say.

The three of you head to Jackson, you help Dina set up in her room. 

“Thank you. I mean it. Please visit, that’s all I ask. Don’t do that other way out. Please.”

You sadly smile at her, “I’ll do my best on the last part. I’ll swing by, though. Promise.”

“Ok…ok,” she hugs you again.

“I think you would’ve liked my sister,” she says, voice muffled by her shirt.

“Bet I would’ve,” you agree.

You go back to your tent; luckily, nothing has happened to it. 

You go on a hunt and start skinning your deer. You hear a twig snap, and a quiet “shit” from the person you know who broke it.

You continue skinning, then start cooking. Ellie takes a seat on the log.

You look at her, seeing her casual clothing, and that she’s missing two fingers.

You don’t say anything. She watches you, eyes going to the fire every so often, fingers playing with themselves. 

Wordlessly, you hold out a small cup of water. She takes it, and drinks from it, before handing it back to you.

It is then replaced with some meat.

She eats, then looks back to the water.

She feels something hit her feet. Looking down, she sees a sleeping back. Looking back up, she sees you trying to do another tent. 

She finishes her food, and approaches you, “I’ve got it,” her voice quiet, drained, hurt.

You don’t look at her as you go with your own food. 

“Can you help me, please?” she asks. You pause, putting your food back into the bowl, before getting up and helping to finish her tent.

“Thank you,” she says. You nod, before finishing your meal.

You then set up your sound traps.

“Is that like Bill’s?” she asks.

“Yup,” you answer.

“Cool,” she says.

You just nod.

Once they’re done, you retire to bed yourself.

Ellie stays up, just looking at the fire, then down at her fingers that can no longer play the guitar.

She goes into her tent. The bed isn’t too uncomfortable. Yet she’s still restless.

She hears you snore a bit from the tent diagonal from her.

She shuts her eyes. In her mind’s eye is one of you, her, and Joel having a snowball fight. It’s nice. Warm. Fuzzy. Happy.

You have a dream of Sarah. Of one time of you both comforting each other after a sad film, just holding each other and crying. It’s sad but comforting. 

The dream changes, Ellie comes and sits next to you, and a new movie starts: Curtis and Viper 2.

You all pull up the shared blanket.

It’s a dream, you know that.

Yet you find comfort in it.

It drowns out what’s actually happened. What’s actually been lost.

The illusion will shatter as soon as you wake, as it always does.

But you hope you can dream a bit longer.

Escape the broken bonds you have to go back to at some point.

The sad existence you live.

The emptiness you feel.

The one your sister has too.

Maybe you can overcome it, one day.

But you both know that day is far away.

And it terrifies you both…

[highfiveheroes]

⭐️ tell us about any section from now I breathe flames>:)

AAAH OKAY

listen this isn't my FAVORITE section but it certainly means a lot to me because i had to work So Hard On It. canon being fictionalized..........and fucking bleem making it So much harder for me because he didn't give us ANY behind the scenes.......

it's fine. i'm proud of this.

What are you trying to forget, Kipperlilly? It’s been too long since she had checked up on the Bad Kids. Oh, she’ll be in for it later, when she realizes—they must know something. Fuck, they must know something, and no wonder Jace has been texting her nonstop to stop being so sloppy— What are you trying to forget, Kipperlilly? Why are you so mad, Kip? "It's really nice how charmed everyone is," she says, the words tumbling out in her sudden fury. She doesn’t know what her face betrays, but every inch of her is tensed as she tries to keep herself at the brink. She asked for this rage, and that means she can’t let it get away from her. Fuck, she can’t let it get out of control, not now, not now— "It’s really nice how charmed everyone is by how little you fucking care." Her smile is fixed in place. She feels like a porcelain doll, cracking at the edges, and she needs to walk away—she gets a message from Oisin saying as much, in fact, but she doesn’t turn as they approach behind her. "I guess egg on my face for wanting something." "What do you want?" Kristen asks. As if she cares. As if this whole candidacy wasn’t a fucking joke to her from day one. As if Kristen fucking Applebees hadn’t just waltzed in with three dead gods on her hand and decided to ruin Kipperlilly’s whole life, her whole future, on the whimsical decision that Kipperlilly’s energy had been wrong. As if Kipperlilly was nothing more than a silly little stock character in the story of the Bad Kids, one never made to be fleshed out beyond her first appearance— "I want you to go fuck yourself," she says suddenly. Behind her, she can feel Oisin’s anger pulse in tandem with the rest of the party’s. Idiot. There’s something of an uproar; Fabian Seacaster starts yelling, Kristen jumps behind a few people, and that imbecile Figerouth Faeth starts acting like a fucking guard dog again. Kipperlilly can barely see past the red screen of anger now. She misses everything else that happens; she hears hissing, and she sees them talk to Mary Ann, and she sees them all making jokes and trying to square up, but it bounces off her entirely. Magic overcomes her, probably for the best—she can’t imagine what Porter would say if she lost it here in the cafeteria, if she forced their hands too early— Oisin casts dominate person on her, and they all leave with little incident. Mary Ann gets her soda, carrying a plush from—somewhere—and—and—god, it’s so hard to think when she’s this mad— "Go home," Oisin tells her as he drops the spell. Somehow, they’ve made it to the front of the school—just the two of them. "Go home, Kipperlilly." "What?" she says. Her voice is lilting funny. She thinks she’s dizzy. "Go home." He casts something else—and for a moment, she’s okay with listening to him. "Right," she says lightly. "I’ll see you at home."

because. okay listen. LISTEN. for this chapter i basically had to take this scene and work fucking backwards. like, based on what we can gather (that the rat grinders didn't actually use the devil's honey???) why would this be the thing that makes her snap? and beyond that, where does kipperlilly go for the rest of the scene???? that whole bit of narration reads not all in one interaction, but then they retcon it to be all the same interaction, so the fact that kipperlilly is just. Gone, and doesn't say a word??? this is also a BIIIIIG part of the changing of the tides—it sort of foreshadows the oisin second in command reveal a few scenes later, because he's the one doing damage control and he's the one trying to get kipperlilly back on track and he's the one who has to dominate person so she doesn't ruin the plan and he's the one that has that one anime stress mark on his temple every time kipperlilly so much as opens her mouth. anyway!! mad kipperlilly is So fucking fun to write!! i absolutely adore her and her stupid flawed way of thinking, because it's so removed from how literally everyone else sees the world. the thing about kipperlilly is that she's an unreliable narrator, especially when she's mad. she jumps to conclusions that don't make sense and she decides things that are fundamentally not true and can be disproven if she had a Single braincell devoted to rational thought!!! anyway i love her, and this scene was. such a fuckin trip to write, because it's one of the only rat grinder scenes we see on screen that i felt like i needed to completely rehash for the sake of "behind the scenes" <3333

[yiplee]

Hi again and thank you for doing my last request :) This time can you do ler Craig and lee Tricia? For the scenario can it be that Craig is tired of Tricia being a little prick so he tickles her as revenge, then they make up at the end? Ty💕

Hello anon!! Thanks for the great ideas! I love this request because people seem to forget all about Tricia!

Alrighty, let’s get into it!

———————————————————————

Tricia was storming around in her room, ranting on and on about how she didn’t get a toy at the mall, and everything else that didn’t go her way today. She had made a scene in the mall in front of everyone, embarrassing Craig and his mom in front of all the other shoppers.

Craig sighed in front of Tricia’s door, thinking of how to deal with her. She wouldn’t talk to Mom or Dad, so Craig was their last option.

With a sharp inhale, Craig opened the door and stepped inside, closing it behind him. “Oh, get out, Craig!” Tricia said sharply, pointing to the door. “Don’t even try!”

Craig sighed. “Tricia, if you would just listen-” he started, trying to be gentle with his sister.

“No, YOU listen! That toy was the ONE thing I asked for! I should’ve gotten it!” Tricia snapped, drawing another annoyed sigh from her brother.

“Tricia, look, I can’t talk to you if you don’t calm down first.” Craig started, taking a few steps towards Tricia.

“I don’t care! I’m not just gonna ‘calm down!’ Not this time!” Tricia argued. Craig approached her and held her hand, trying to calm her down.

“Tricia, come on-” he started, but she swatted his hand. Craig blinked in surprise, before frustration overcame him.

“Alright, that’s it! I’ve tried to be nice, but you just wanna be a complete brat about everything! You seriously need to calm down, Tricia!” He snapped, surprising his sister.

She turned away dramatically, as if she hadn’t snapped at him first, and that’s when Craig gets his idea.

Craig steps closer and wraps his arms around Tricia in a hug. After a moment of pulling away angrily, she sighed and hugged her brother back.

“Now, will you calm down?” Craig asked, hoping that the gentler approach would ease his sister.

“No.” She huffed stubbornly. “Alright then…” Craig nodded, suddenly tightening the hug. Before Tricia could react, Craig poked a few fingers at his sister’s sides.

She squeaked in surprise and attempted to squirm away, but she was stuck in her brother’s embrace. “Hey! Craig! What are you doing?!” She hissed.

“Calming you the fuck down.” He said, as his fingers began fluttering across his sister’s sides.

Tricia attempted to resist, keeping a stubborn scowl on her face as she continued pulling away from her brother. When he dug into Tricia’s stomach, though—that was a different story.

She buried her face in her brother’s chest, attempting to hide her snickering. Craig smirked as he sped his fingers up, drawing more giggles from his little sister.

“Crahaig, stohohop ihihit! Get ohohoff!” Tricia squealed, wriggling around in her brother’s grasp. She tried to grab her brother’s wrists and pry them off, but they sped all around her too fast for her to keep up.

“Are you gonna stop being a brat?” Craig asked, as he slipped a hand under Tricia’s arm, evoking a squeal from her.

“NOHOHO!” She exclaimed.

“Oh. No? You’re not? Well, that’s bad news for you then.” Craig said with a smirk, scribbling one hand along his sister’s ribs.

“NOHOHO THAHAHATS NOT WHAHAT I MEAHAHANT!” Tricia shrieked, squirming wildly away. She tried to tickle her brother back, which almost started to work, but she couldn’t keep her hands in place as instinct drove her hands to try to stop Craig.

“Then will you calm down?” Craig asked, starting to let up on the tickles, but not stopping.

“Yehehes..” Tricia sighed tiredly, and Craig stopped, hugging his sister again. She hugged him back calmly.

“I..I’m sorry I got so angry…” Tricia sighed. “I just felt like..nothing was going my way.”

Craig nodded. “I know. I’m sorry I snapped at you. Now, let’s go apologize to mom, hm?”

Tricia nodded shamefully, and Craig held her hand as he led her out the door.

[mostspecialgirl]

beast tower.

[next]

oc rambling under the cut

I ATE THIS SHIT UP !!!!!!!!

ahem. Sorry. I meant. I think i did a good service to iris’s team. or, i guess, Novekhrys’s team, but WE KNOW WHO’S PULLING THE WEIGHT AROUND HERE !!!!!

okay. There’s actually a bit i want to say about cementing these designs.

Gráinne was an easy design to nail. i’ve wanted her to be loosely sparkledog scene adjacent from the get. and that’s what i did. i dunno if i’m satisfied with her color scheme but she canonically dyes her hair something completely different every so often like ramona flowers so it’s cool to just. Have this for now. i’ve been dying to use that pinterest hairstyle i saw a few weeks back and i finally got a nice opportunity to use it. also i gave her a name. she’s gráinne now. because i used to want to call her diarmuid. any fenian cycle fans in the chat

IRIS!!!! she’s the same as last time i drew her properly BUT like Oh My GOD she looks pretty here i was blown away by my own ability. iris is like. one of my first relicverse oc’s to be made in mind with the fact that the Relicverse Is A Thing so she’s always sort of been a benchmark character for me even moreso than demi or any of the sinai have been. i’m glad to have fully assembled a picture of her leg of ninestrike today seeing as i’ve been teetering back and forth on who exactly should lead it, and who’s fitting for her to serve under. novekhrys should have been the obvious choice from the start and i have no idea how i never saw it

like, are you seeing this???

and MY GOD. this is one of those times SETTING 1000 LOOSE THREADS pays the FUCK off because i needed one more admin and OBVIOUSLY it ONLY MAKES SENSE for it to be Kumbhakarna, seeing as Ravana has long been serving under Novekhrys (shoutouts to ravana i dont draw him enough but hes genuinely one of my favorites to write) and the two of them have always gone through cyclical incarnation hell together. i can’t break up the band. AND. Because of course, Ravana’s contract with Novekhrys making him into the Nameless Asura… That means Kumbhakarna must also have entered a similar deal. but i can’t call them both the nameless asura! sure, i can call him the nameless rakshasa instead BUT !!! BUT !!! I HAVE BEEN IN NEED OF CHARACTERS WHO HAVE INHERITED THE ROMAN GOD TITLES POST-DEVILS MANNER !!! and so, of course, he is MORS!!!!! why is that? of course, because of kumbhakarna’s curse… and because of the Somnus Title… what does that mean for Somnus…? Only time shall tell !!!!! Kuahahahahaha !!!!!!

lastly. of course. novekhrys ainzbury. demiurge’s son-in-law. husband of astaphe and father of lucille. I’M EVER SO GLAD TO BE ABLE TO START LOOPING HIM BACK INTO RELEVANT LORE!!!!!!!!!

I FUCKING LOVE THIS MAN!!!!! I’VE EVEN REINSTATED HIS STATUS AS A DRAGON!!!!!! FUCK IT!!!!!!! GIVE HIM THE WORLD!!!!!!!!

previously, in novekhrys’s lore, he existed at a time where magic was a very contentious existence for me in relicverse lore. and if i’m really coming down to it, he was technically the first proper magic user. it completely slipped my mind until literally like a few weeks ago that i realized he’s a tower master within the mage society. i often find myself forgetting astaphe exists, much like everyone seems to forget about the much less powerful children of the demiurge. But voila. my problem was solved. who better for iris to work under?and obviously, who better to be the much needed FREAK of the unraveling division than the FREAK tower master of the beast tower, the very man who fucked demiurge’s only daughter and had a child with her.

letting the pieces slide together was the most satisfying shit in the world. This is why i write. I live for these moments where all my loose threads come together. Good lord. Good fucking lord. And good god man does him being the beast tower master ever serve as such a great rational support to ravana’s existence. I KNOW my ass was not thinking about that at all back then. But like. Fuck yeah dude.

i tried to base his design off of demonic sect leaders in those cultivation novels combined with his draconic origins and it all worked together nicely. he looks better than ever! or maybehe just has long hair. I love long haired men. And horns. He’s lost a little of his signature “pathetic disheveled shell of a man” but i’ll be sure to draw plenty of that when he ISNT posted up for a beauty shot with his admins.

ALSO. holy HELL has his relationship with hana slotted in PERFECTLY. she’s always received funding from an unnamed tower master, and of fucking COURSE having it be novekhyrs the disciple hunter would only make sense. she’s a rare deviant species. his FAVORITE. and it’s never really made too much sense why hana would ever take any particular interest in expanding her leg of ninestrike and joining the union BUT IT ONLY MAKES SENSE IF IT WAS NOVEKHRYS WHO DRAGGED HER INTO IT. bringing in the Small Rewrite that the beast tower was built upon the remains of Hermes’s NinthSpire, and with enough bullshit backstory on the fly lore drawing inspiration between the old lore links between him and Father and BOOM!!!! he’s got his own ninestrike invitation with absolutely zero conflicting changes to established lore!!!! Oh my god and this is why hana takes the name of ninestrike as her own after novekhrys tells her about the history of the science tower

AND i get to write him again. It’s like christmas morning for me. This is nonsense to you all but this is PURE genius at work. This is why you leave everything 85% done because the remaining 15% will come to save your ass in the future. God Bless the Mage Society !!! Long live the Phenomena White Tower !!!

okayi. Have to sleep now. Seriousky. Im insnae

I have to do eight more drawings in this style cor eaxh division now

[i-love-you-all]

For the shuffle music ask: Breach x Sage (or alternatively solo sage)?

Thank you for the ask! I did Breach/Sage for this one, and I think I'll do Sage solo afterwards bc she does not get a large spotlight in this one as it's mostly from Breach's POV. It's a Nurse!Sage and Criminal! Breach. My choice to make Sage a nurse instead of a doc was because of how I see her. She's more hands on, nurturing, aka more likely to be at the patient's bedside instead of coming in to check every few hours and being the one to diagnose/order tests. Viper would be a doctor in this tho!

The song I got for this one is Mika's Dr. John. The full outline is below the cut. Bold parts are the actual lyrics, everything else is me :))

These are fun, so if anyone else also wants to send in an ask, please do! (Link here to the original post I made)

I look for joy in a strange place; From the back of the bar, from afar

Scene starts in a busy bar that belongs to Breach, or rather, his family, on a friday evening. Breach, still healing from wounds is seated somewhere shady and secluded to finish up “business”. Sage comes in with a couple friends.

Breach notices right away bc her style is so different from others. Wraps up his part as soon as he can and walks over.

“Strange, I walk into your place of business yesterday, and now you come into mine. Almost like fate or destiny huh?”

Sage is ready to leave the bar, remembering that she doesn’t like this guy

Viper gets along well with Breach, he handles her bluntness well, and he’s not put off by anything she says.

But how kind he is to her friends, and by extension Sage, maybe gives her doubts? After all, no one’s an angel when they’re in pain.

He leaves her alone, and for a bit, she forgets about him until they’re about to leave when he maybe sends them home w extra food or helps them call a taxi.

I see the look on my mama's face. When her son's in the corner, undone. She says that my life is over: "Boy, you don't know what you got till it's gone. Come put your head upon my shoulder” She gave me her hand, but I ignored her.

Breach has to reconcile with the idea that his business is not safe and so there’s no point in thinking about the nurse, and that he’s heard the stories and seen firsthand what people will do to hurt someone. Their aim often strays in their attempt to ruin their target.

His mother comes by his apartment to make sure he’s eating well and that he’s not taking the pressure from his father too hard.

She shows him a picture that one of his partners (Raze) took of him and Sage and sent it to his mom.

She asks him about his happiness and if this is what he actually wants to spend the rest of his life doing.

“Haven’t you ever thought about resting? Picking up from your fears and making something nice out of them?”

His answer is no, and when she asks if he wants help, again he refuses.

Oh, Dr. John, What am I doing, what am I doing wrong? 'Cause I keep on trying. Something ain't going, something ain't going on, Dr. John

A scene where Breach is rambling to Raze about his fears about what’ll happen to them if he can’t find a way out of this target on his back. She has complete faith in him and what he can achieve. Almost to a foolish amount, she truly believes that they’ll make it out of this war alive and well.

“Can we stop talking about this? It’s pulling down my mood, man.” (Raze) “What will you do after?”

Breach has no answer because he has no plans. This is all he’s known, one war to another. The opponent always changes, and sometimes, his allies too.

I see the look on my daddy's face. When his son's fallin' over, undone. Father, my life is over. I didn't know what I had, now it's gone Can I lay my head upon your shoulder? If I fall asleep, will it be over?

Breach gets bad news about his brother. He’s stable, but it’ll be a slow recovery. Like Breach predicted, the target widens every time they learn about someone he cares about. And this takes all wind out of his sails. He just wants this fight to end, even if it ends with his death.

He doesn’t realize that well, this is the hospital where Sage works until he talks with Viper (the Dr) and recognizes her.

Sage does come in later, covering for another nurse for the day, and she sees Breach alone, last of his family to leave the hospital, with his head between his knees as he’s trying to think about his next move.

Breach wants to end this as quickly as possible.

Sage gets him a cup of coffee and they talk

They talk about how he’s in the hospital quite often, and Breach divulges that it didn’t used to be like this.

They talk about family, and that his brother was his father figure for a long time and so if he lost his brother…

She makes the leap of assumptions and implies that Breach is part of a gang or some sort of organized crime, and she asks why

Family? It’s just what was expected.

“If you could do anything in the world, what would you want to do?”

Breach has no answer.

Sage might’ve wanted to be a gardener or a botanist. Hospitals can get hectic, and she loves her meditative activities.

First establishment of a connection of some sort until she needs to move on with her shift, and he goes home.

You say I'm a big heartbreaker, but Doctor, I'd never hurt you. Isn't it obvious?

This would come in much later in the story. Maybe they’ve been dating for a month or two. It’s a private dinner in the bar that’s been closed for the day. This is when the finale of the gang/crime war happens, and Breach needs to find a way to defend himself, protect Sage, call backup, and win. At the very end of it, when Sage finally realizes just how deep into all this stuff Breach is, they have a serious conversation.

Sage is able to protect herself and hold her own in a fight (martial arts if ppl come close to try and take her hostage but obviously, Sage doesn’t feel safe.

She knows how cyclical this is. Another group will want revenge on Breach, and then the next and the next, and that’s assuming Breach doesn’t die. She’s seen it too much in the hospital. She also knows that more than just the guilty parties get caught in the crossfire.

Also, Sage doesn’t want to patch up her partner after every fight.

Breach is falling hard for her and though he knew the answer, he doesn’t want to let her go either.

He promises things like he would never let anything hurt her, and that he never meant to wound her like this.

She admits that it feels a little like heartbreak, and he can do nothing but accept that.

How would I end this? I think it would lead to Breach dealing with the aftermath and the revenge plots like Sage predicted. I think she overhears something at the hospital and goes to warn him but arrives barely in time and it’s her, Breach, and Raze fighting their way out before a large event (explosion or something similar). Breach gets hospitalized and with some strings pulled with Viper and Sage, Breach and Raze are pronounced “dead”. They get their new start, and Breach moves on to his passion project, maybe something simple at first like mechanics, maybe car detailing, and Raze can help paint cars. Something simple.