#feel free to suggest things. I sadly don’t play video games so I like REALLY don’t know anything about Arkham riddler so I refrained from

[abiscuit]

Hello Tumblr.com, boy do I have the post for you

This is my very serious very cool graph that I woke up this morning and felt the very express need to make.

I’m sorry to the 2004 Batman fandom, I have not actually seen that show, I hope I am right. I will watch it soon enough.

[waitimcomingtoo]

heeeey, in love with you, your writing and your blog 💖 Tbh I have read everything you have and I really in love with your writing. And I know that your request are close, but if you want could you write a Tom x reader where they have a fight and Tom has to leave a few days to promote his new movie and when he's back he sees like some of the reader's stuff are missing and thinks she left but in reality she's in another room couse she's awfully sick and doesn't want to get Tom sick too

Thank you so much anon!

Give Me a Minute to Hold My Girl

Pairing: Tom Holland x Reader

Synopsis: Tom can’t find you after a bad fight

Masterlist

Tom was away a lot.

You knew traveling was a big part of his job, so you never did complain. That being said, it wasn’t easy having a boyfriend who was never around. All the missed birthdays, events, and art shows weighed on you after a while. You were more than proud of him, but you were growing lonely. He had a saying, something he said every time before he left you:

“Wherever I am, and wherever you are, we’re always looking at the same moon.”

And it used to assuage you. You’d go outside on nights he was away and stare at the moon, wishing he was looking at it where’ve he was. You knew it was never true though. He was rarely in the same time zone as you and was definitely not spending his precious time staring at the moon.

You couldn’t help it. You were miserable. 

On a night where Tom came home three hours later than he said he would after being away for a week. He sent a short text alerting you that he’d be home late, therefore missing the art show he promised he’d be at after missing the last three. Upon reading the text just mere moments before your show, you decided your quota was filled. You couldn’t handle the lonely nights anymore. If he didn’t start shaping up, you were gonna have to start considering looking elsewhere for love. You loved Tom, but you had to love yourself more.

“Hi, babygirl.” Tom came behind you that night and wrapped his arms around your waist as you rinsed your brushes. He smelled like he had been using a new cologne, one you didn’t recognize. You stiffened a little in his embrace as you wiped off a brush.

“I thought you were gonna be home at 2.” You said quietly.

“Plans changed. Sorry I didn’t call.” He kissed the back of your neck with strangers lips.

“Do you remember what today was?” You asked for your own amusement.

“Oh uh…” Tom scratched the back of his head as he raked his brain. “Not your birthday.”

“No.” You confirmed with half hearted humor.

“Not our anniversary.” He continued.

“No.” You shook your head.

“Um…” he trailed off until his eyes landing on your paint brushes next to you. “Your art show. I totally forgot.” He rubbed his eyes. “It was today?”

“Yeah.” You nodded, never meeting his eyes.

“I knew it. I’m so sorry, sweetheart.” Tom took your hands and looked at you apologetically. “I got pulled into a meeting about Spider-Man 3 and it just slipped my mind.”

“It’s all right. I didn’t place or anything.” You shrugged, not wanting a fight. “You can come to the next one.”

“This was the one where you paint on the spot right? Can you paint me a new one while I get changed?” Tom suggested as he brushed some hair out of your face.

“Sure. Anything specific?” You asked, warming up to him now that he was showing an interest in you again. The fire you felt for him was burning once again.

“Paint how you feel. I’ll be back soon.” Tom kissed your forehead before leaving the room.

You put a blank canvas on your easel and squirt some dark paint on your palette. As you painted, you heard Tom shouting and cheering from the other room. You decided it wasn’t worth it to get angry at him for playing a video game, after all he did have a long day. You kept the painting simple and void of color so you could get back to spending time with your boyfriend. When you finished and felt happy with your work, you called him back.

“I’m done, Tom.” You called out to him.

“Just a second. I’m in the middle of a game.” He called back. After ten minutes had gone by and he still hadn’t come into the room, you decided to add another small detail to the background of the painting. Tom walked in shortly after with a different outfit and freshly showered. You gave him a small smile.

“I can clean up and we can grab some dinner.” You said as you collected the used brushes.

“I actually gotta go soon, honey. I have meeting in Manchester tonight.” Tom told you timidly. You stopped collecting your brushes and looked at him.

“But you just got home.” You said, not bothering to hide your disappointment.

“I thought I’d come back for an hour to see you.” He said as if was no big deal.

“And then you spent that hour playing video games with Tuwaine.” You pointed out in anger. You felt the fire fizzle out.

“He’s never on, I didn’t want to miss him.” Tom said light heartedly in an attempt to cheer you up. “He’s the best at 2K.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t really he was the best at 2k.” You said sarcastically. “How stupid of me to try to pull my boyfriend away from making virtual half court shots after I haven’t seen him in a week.”

“I haven’t seen him either.” Tom reminded you, only fueling your anger.

“But you gave your only free hour to him. When am I gonna get to see you, Tom? When you’re dead?” You questioned.

“I’m here now, aren’t I?” He held out his arms.

“Until your car pulls up.” You shot a look at his phone which you knew would be buzzing any minute.

“What do you want me to say?” Tom asked. “I work. I’m a working actor. People need me.”

“I need you.” You threw a sheet over your canvas and finished collecting your brushes, not wanting to look at him.

“I don’t know what to tell you, darling. I’m sorry. I can’t be everywhere at once.” He apologized. You shook your head before turning to face him.

“You spent last week in Mexico, Berlin, and Scotland. You’ve been to LA, Germany, and Vancouver this week. And now you’re off to Manchester? Do you mean you can’t be everywhere at once, or do you mean you can’t be anywhere I am?” You accused.

“I don’t pick where I go. If I have a meeting, I go. If I have a premier, I go. If I have to film, I go. It’s part of the job.” Tom defended himself.

“Chris wasn’t at the London premier.” You said quietly. You weren’t going to bring it up, but it felt warranted.

“What?” Tom asked at the random claim.

“Chris Pratt. He wasn’t at the London premier for Onward.” You told him.

“Okay?” Tom said in confusion.

“Do you know why?” You tested him.

“No.” Tom said after a minute of thinking.

“He was home with his family. He said his son started crying as he was leaving for his flight so he stayed. It was all over the news.” You told him. “Traveling is part of his job too, and yet he knows how to be there for his family. Why can’t you do the same?”

“Harry and Sam were there.” Tom pointed out.

“I don’t care about Harry and Sam!” You raised your voice. “I care about how the only time I get to see my boyfriend is when I’m scrolling through Instagram. Girls all over the world get to see you but the girl you swore you loved is lying at home in an empty bed. You can make time for millions of strangers but you can’t make time for me? Do you know how it feels every time you don’t answer my FaceTime calls but then you go on Instagram live? Do you have any idea how unhappy I’ve been?” You asked desperately.

“I have to tend to my fans, it’s a part-“ Tom began.

“Of the job, I know.” You cut him off as you stormed out of the room.

“What do you want me to do? Quit?” He laughed bitterly as he followed you into the living room.

“Would you?” You spun around.

“What?” Tom faltered.

“Would you give it all up for me?” You repeated lowly. “If I asked, and I wouldn’t, but it I did? Would you give up the money and stardom and power for me?”

“Why are you asking me this?” Tom sighed.

“Because I think I know the answer.” You said tearfully. You and Tom stared at each other for a long time. He could see how hurt you were and prepared to make amends.

“I love you.” He said meekly.

“Don’t give me that.” You shook your head and looked up at the ceiling.

“I do.” He said firmly but you didn’t answer. “What do you want me to give you, then?”

“A reason to stay, maybe?” You shrugged sadly as tears fell down your cheeks. “I’m seeing nothing but a lifetime of loneliness ahead of me because of your beloved job.”

“We love each other. Isn’t that enough of a reason?” Tom stepped closer to you but you backed away. His face fell at your indifference.

“I always thought it would be but…” you shrugged and pulled your sweater tighter around you.

“You wouldn’t leave.” Tom said starkly.

“I would if I had nothing to come back to.” You looked him in the eye. His eyes were red now too.

“I’m here. I’m what you have to come back to.” His voice wavered as he got to the point of tears.

“Tom, when are you ever here?” You laughed at the absurdity of his statement. “When have I ever had you to come back to you?”

“You think I like the traveling anymore than you do? I hate leaving you. I miss you like crazy when I’m away. It kills me to be apart.” He defended himself as he raised his voice.

“Oh, is that why you don’t answer my texts? Because being away from me killed you?” You asked sarcastically. “That makes total sense now. Although, I never really got the feeling you “missed me like crazy” when you were dodging my calls.”

“I’m sorry about that.” Tom apologized, knowing this wasn’t an argument he was going to win. “I’ll start coming home more, I promise.”

“Like you promised you’d come to my show?” You shot back, not yet ready to let him off easy.

“I just forgot! Am I not allowed to forget things?” Tom shouted.

“You have ten thousand assistants who revolve around you like you’re the sun and not one of them was there to remind you about my show?” You yelled. Tom quoted down when he realized you were right.

“Darling, I cannot deal with this right now.” He rubbed his face with his hands. “Can we please talk about this tomorr-” he cut himself off with a sigh.

“What?” You asked bitterly.

“I won’t be here tomorrow. I have press in New York. I have a flight out of Manchester after the meeting tonight.” He told you with dad eyes. “I’m sorry, I completely forgot to tell you.”

“How convenient.” Your voice cracked. It was at the point where you were plenty used to the goodbyes, but this one felt final.

“I was gonna tell you, I swear. It just slipped my mind.” Tom apologized.

“That’s been happening a lot, hasn’t it?” You snapped.

“You know this is part of the job.” He said weakly, hating himself for having to give you such a lame excuse.

“I do know that.” You nodded. “What I didn’t know is that I was gonna live my life freezing to death in the shadow of your career!” You shouted.

“Then get a new life!” He shouted back, eyes immediately displaying regret. You tilted your head as tears streamed down your face.

“Do you mean that?” You asked quietly.

“Maybe I do.” Tom shrugged as he stared you coldly in the eye. His phone buzzed and he glanced down at it. “I have to go.”

“Good. Go.” You snapped. He went to the door but stopped and looked at you.

“You’re gonna be here when I get back, right?” He asked timidly.

“Would you even notice if I wasn’t?” You responded as you went to retreat into the bedroom.

“Darling, wait-“ Tom began to follow you but you stopped in your tracks.

“I don’t have anything left here to wait for.” You told him and you watched his heart break.

Tom opened his mouth to speak but his phone buzzed again. He looked at it and sighed as you wiped a tear.

“Go. Your car is waiting.” You said.

“I can’t leave you like this.” He mumbled as he typed something into his phone.

“Just leave. You know how.” You said bitterly. Tom looked up at you at your words. He was in a bad way. His nose was running and his eyes were bloodshot.

“I can cancel on the press. I can stay home-“ he said desperately.

“This is not a home! This is a prison!” You yelled. “I am chained to this one man cult we call a relationship. Please, just go! You have people waiting on you, people you clearly find more important than me. You need to leave, because I will never kick you out. Go on your press tour. Go to New York. Go do your precious “job” and meet your fans. Go stare at the fucking moon. I don’t care. Just leave.” You yelled until your voice was ragged.

“You’ll never find someone like me.” Tom warned, saying anything he could to get you to stay.

“I hope to God that’s true!” You screamed.

Tom took a step towards you, but his phone buzzed again. He wiped a tear off his cheek and nodded.

“I’ll be back in a week.” He swallowed.

“Good for you.” You said dismissively as you walked into the bedroom and slammed the door. He stared at the door for a long time, about to knock when he got yet another text telling him his car was there. He swallowed thickly, pressed a kiss to the outside of the door, and left without another word.

“I’m home.” Tom called into his home a week later.

He immediately felt the chill of your fight hitting him. When he didn’t hear a response from you, he shivered in his jacket, suddenly feeling like he was wearing somebody else’s clothes. He set his bag down timidly in the ground and looked around. The first thing he noticed was the lack of dishes in the sink. You weren’t one for cleaning up after yourself and Tom had grown accustomed to coming home to a pile of dirty dishes in the sink. You’d usually wash and dry them together before settling down on the couch to watch a movie. Tom felt fear prickle the back of his neck at the empty sink. There was no way you’d actually left, Tom told himself. You wouldn’t just up and go without a note or a call or a text. Not that Tom was very good at answering your calls and texts. Tom took another step into the house and glanced around the living room. Your favorite blanket was missing and the room looked like it hadn’t been touched since Tom left a week ago. Your pile of movies was no longer next to the TV and Tom began to feel sick.

“Y/n? I’m home.” He called out again. His voice bounced off the walls but didn’t get a reply. His palms began to sweat as he walked into the kitchen and opened the cabinet. All of your coffee mugs were gone. There was an empty space in the middle of the cabinet where they used to be.

“Princess? Are you here?” Tom called out, desperately this time. When he was met with silence, he rushed into the bathroom. Tom washed his face with cold water and noticed your toothbrush was missing from the holder. He started at the vacant spot for a long tome before rushing into your shared bedroom. Upon entrance, he noticed your pillow missing. The bed looked like it hadn’t been slept in all week, and Tom feared it hadn’t. He flung open your closet doors and noticed a large gap in your clothing. All your favorite T-shirts were gone. After rummaging through the drawers, Tom found that your leggings, bras, underwear and socks were all missing too. Tom sat on the bed and out a hand over his mouth to muffle his sobs.

You’d done it. You’d left him.

While he spent the week with friends and fans, you spent the week packing up your life. Tom snapped his head up when he heard the doorbell ring.

“Babygirl?” He asked as he rushed to the front door. He swung it open, only to find his next door neighbor.

“Oh, hey Tom. Glad to see you’re back.” His elderly neighbor smiled at him.

“Hi Shane.” Tom said weakly.

“I wanted to see how Y/n was doing. She left kinda late Thursday’s night and I haven’t seen her since. Been about a week I think.” Shane informed Tom. He perked up at the mention of you.

“You saw her leaving?” Tom asked. “When was this again?”

“Thursday. Sped off in such a hurry, you’d think she was in a race.“ Shane laughed. Tom looked past Shane and noticed your car wasn’t in the driveway.

“Did she say where she was going?” Tom inquired.

“Oh, no. My wife and I only saw her leave. We were visiting our son all weekend and got worried when we got back and saw her car was still missing. I rang the doorbell a few times this week but there was never an answer.” Shane said and Tom felt like crying all over again. “When I saw that you had come back if figured I’d ask you. Is she okay?”

“I’m sorry Shane, I don’t know.” Tom answered honestly.

“She’s not home?” Shane asked.

“Uh, no.” Tom looked back in the house and then back at Shane. “Shes not home.”

“Do you think it’s serious? Has she ever done this before?” Shane wondered.

“No. Never.” Tom shook his head.

“Have you tried calling her? You two are always so cute, I thought for sure you’d know where she was.” Shane said worriedly. Tom bit his tongue to keep from crying.

“We had a fight before I left last week.” He admitted, feeling like he needed to tell anyone who would listen.

“Oh, did you?” Shane said sympathetically.

“A really bad one.” Tom continued as his voice weighed heavy with guilt.

“That’s okay. Every couple fights. My wife and I have been fighting for 52 years.” Shane tried to cheer him up.

“Shane,” Tom sniffled as he gathered his thoughts, “I don’t think Y/n is coming home anytime soon.”

“No?” Shane asked sadly.

“I think she might’ve left.” Tom said with a shaking voice. “Left me.”

“Oh, Thomas.” Shane nodded in understanding. “I’m very sorry to hear that.”

“I’m so sorry, will you excuse me?” Tom closed the door quickly before his neighbor could see his tears. He leaned against the door and slid down it as tears poured from his eyes. He sobbed into his hands for a moment until he noticed something. Your easel was standing in the middle of the living room with a sheet covering it. Tom got to his feet and carefully approached the easel. He soon reached it and pulled the sheet off. The canvas was a mirage of gray and white with a portrait of a woman crying. She was holding half of her own broken heart and cradling it to her chest. In the background, a faint silhouette of a man walking away with the other half of her broken heart trailing on a string behind him.

Toms words echoed in his mind from that night: “Paint how you feel.”

That’s how you felt. Heartbroken, abandoned, and tethered, all because of Tom. Tom ran his fingertips over the painting as if were a piece of you. He tilted his head and smiled at it fondly, always blown away at how talented you were, even when painting your lament.

He noticed another canvas leaning against the back wall, also covered in a sheet. He walked briskly to it and ripped the sheet off.

Underneath the off white sheet was a portrait of Tom himself sitting on the world. He had a crown on his head and a bright smile on his face. There were tiny, detailed fans and billboards with his name on either side of him. He was in a suit and had his hand clamped firmly around a the sun. You had painted with bright colors, colors of the sunset and the sky. Your words from the fight came back to him:

“You have ten thousand assistants who revolve around you like you’re the sun and not one of them was there to remind you about my show?”

On the other side of the globe sat a girl. Tom turned the portrait around and saw you. You were sitting alone, literally on the other aide of the world. Tom felt his heart break when he noticed you were staring off mournfully at the moon. On the top corner of the painting was a blue “first prize” ribbon. Tom distinctly remembered you telling him you didn’t place, despite you winning the entire competition.

That was enough for Tom. The tingling sensation started in his nose and he found himself able to see less and less of your painting as tears well up in his eyes. Body shaking sobs ripped through him as it finally sunk in that you had left him. He cried into his hands until he heard something coming from the guest bedroom.

A cough.

Tom almost thought he imagined it until he heard it again. Someone was coughing in the house. Tom scrambled to his feet and pressed an ear against the door. He heard silence for a while, then a sniffle. His heart pounded in his ears as he twisted the doorknob.

Tom opened the door slowly and heard a clanking from the floor. He looked down and saw a pile of your favorite coffee mugs, a few plates, and some bowls on the ground. He pushed them aside and fully stepped into the room. Sitting in the guest bed was a very pink-nosed and red-eyed you. You were lazily scrolling through your phone as you dabbed at your nose with a tissue. There was a bottle of bills and a bottle of cough medicine on the nightstand, as well as a sea of mugs. There was a garbage can next tot he bed with a mountain of tissues coming out as well as surrounding it. Tom felt like he was seeing a ghost and suddenly felt like a stranger in his own home. He looked around the room and saw all your missing clothes strewn around. You were wrapped in your favorite blanket and your pile of movies was next to a tub of ice cream by the TV. Tom blinked a few times in shock.

“Oh, you’re home.” You spoke and Tom snapped out of his daze. You didn’t sound angry, just congested.

“Y/n?” Tom whispered as if he spoke to loudly, you might disappear.

“Hi, Tommy.” You said sleepily as you rubbed your eyes. “Did you just get home?”

Tom watched your every movement as you scratched your head and reached for the cup of water next to the bed. He quickly got it before you did and handed it to you, taking a careful seat next to you on the bed. You gave him a grateful smile before downing the glass. You licked your dry lips a few times and sighed.

“Yeah. I just got in.” He said, never taking his eyes off you.

“I didn’t hear it. I’m on this medication that completely knocks me out. Oh, I’m sick, if you haven’t noticed.” You laughed sleepily. “I got the flu from one of my friends.”

“You’re sick? That’s why you’re in here?” Tom asked as hope burbled in his chest.

“I didn’t want to contaminate all your stuff.” You told him. “Can’t have you getting sick before Uncharted starts filming.” His heart warmed at the thought of you looking out for him even after the fight you had.

“Thank you, princess. I appreciate you looking out for me.” He told you sincerely.

“Uh oh.” You looked at him with a half smile. “You only call me “princess” when you’re really upset. What’s going on?”

Toms lip began to tremble at your words and you looked worried.

“Your toothbrush isn’t in the bathroom.” Was all he could find the strength to say.

“Yeah, because it was disgusting. I had to throw it out this morning.” You assured him.

“All your stuff is missing. Your clothes, movies, mugs.” Tom continued.

“Look around you.” You laughed again, gesturing to all your previously “missing” stuff.

“Shane is worried about you. He said you left Thursday and never came back.” Tom told you.

“Aw, is he? I drove to the hospital Thursday night because my fever was so high and the doctor made me stay overnight. I took an Uber back on Friday because I got sick in my car. Its at the shop getting cleaned until tomorrow. Would you tell him I’m okay?” You asked.

“Of course.” Tom nodded, feeling himself relax a little.

“Thank you.” You said. The room fell into an awkward silence. Tom toyed with what he needed to say in his head.

“I saw your paintings.” Tom spoke up.

“Oh.” You said causally, knowing the content of the paintings.

“You didn’t tell me you got first place.” He said softly.

“I didn’t want you to feel bad for missing it.” You admitted.

“Princess” ,Tom laughed sadly, “I feel terrible. I feel terrible about every thing. Every word I said to you, I regret it. I thought about you and our fight the entire time I was gone. I couldn’t eat or sleep. I was miserable without you. And when I came home today and all your stuff was gone…” Tom trailed off as he got emotional again. You pulled him to you chest and let him cry it out. “I thought you left. I thought you left me.”

“I would never leave you.” You promised.

“But our fight.” He cried.

“All couples fight. The ill-timing and stress didn’t help. But I’m not someone who just walks away. Especially not from something like this.” You assured him as you stroked his hair.

“I hurt you. I missed your show, I didn’t talk to you when I was home.” Tom listed off his mistakes. “I abandoned you.”

“It’s the job.” You laughed sadly.

“No. I’m not gonna let that be an excuse anymore.” Tom pulled his head off your chest and you wiped his eyes. “You deserve better. So, so much better. I’m sorry it took you almost leaving for me to realize how much I need you to stay.”

“I’m sorry about the fight.” You told him weakly. “I said some things I didn’t mean.”

“What didn’t you mean?” Tom asked as he gathered your hands in his and kissed them.

“I know I said there wasn’t nothing here for me to wait for, but there is. Of course you’re worth waiting for. You’re away a lot, and it sucks, but nothing compares to when you’re here. A few days with you is better than a lifetime with somebody else, I know it. It’s just hard to remember the good times when I’m sleeping alone every night.” You finally told him your feelings in a much calmer manner.

“Princess, I’m so sorry. This ends today. If someone needs a meeting with me, they can come to Kingston. I’m not gonna fly all over the globe to talk about movies for an a hour anymore when I could be at home with my beautiful girlfriend. You are so much more important than any job.” Tom promised you. “I didn’t answer you that night, and I honestly didn’t even know the answer, but now I do. I’d give it all up in a heartbeat for you, love. All the money and fame is nothing to me if I don’t have you.”

“Do you really mean that?” You asked him.

“I do. And I’m gonna prove it.” He swore. “I want you to come with me when I shoot Uncharted. And I want you there for the rest of my press tour. You can bring your easel and your brushes and paint all over the world.”

“Really?” You asked happily.

“Yes. People are gonna stop coming to see me and start coming to see you because you’re gonna be the most famous painter in the world.” Tom painted you a picture. “You have more talent than people could even dream of achieving. The world needs to see your work.”

“I’d love to come with you.” You told him with a smile.

“Then do it. We don’t ever have to be apart again. I can’t sleep if it’s not next to you anyway. We won’t have to look at the same moon anymore. I can just roll over and see you instead.” Tom cupped your face. “We’re gonna go to Berlin and Italy and Mexico, all the places you’ve wanted to see. You’re gonna see the prettiest sights and eat the greatest food and live the most wonderful life by my side. And we can go anywhere else you want to go too. Fuck it, baby, we’re going to the moon. Or mars. Wherever. It doesn’t matter as long as we’re together. That’s all I need.”

“That’s all I ever wanted to hear.” You told him as a happy tear rolled down your cheek. “I don’t want someone like you. I just want you.”

“I just want you, too.” He grinned as happy tears welled in his eyes.

“I’m sorry, baby.” You apologized for the fight.

“I’m sorry too.” Tom nodded tearfully as he reached forward to kiss you.

“I’m sick.” You reminded him as you pulled away slightly to dodge his kiss.

“I don’t care.” Tom shook his head as he pressed his lips to yours before pulling you into a tight embrace. “I’m never leaving you again. Just give me a minute to hold my girl.”

Tag List 🏷

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[petersasteria]

GUESS WHO???? Yeah, you're right! ME! AGAIIIIIN ! I see the 39 and thought about Harry and his british sarcasm. I have no idea who you can do a prompts with that but be my guest !

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA YOU AGAIN

39. “Screw the dolphins.” “A guy tried that last year, banned from SeaWorld for life.”

Harry || Main || Taglist

You were having a bad day. In fact, you were supposed to be happy, but there's been a hiccup. You see, your all time crush just asked you out but on the same day of your outing with your friends. You were having a dilemma and you're currently bawling your eyes out.

"Let's play 'This or That' to help you." Harry, your best friend, suggested. "Sam and I always play that so we can decide on things."

"I am SO NOT playing that stupid game with you." You sniffed.

Harry raised his hands in defense and just went on his phone. Both of you quietly sat in your living room for awhile until you broke it. "You know, I love all of you, right?"

"Yup." Harry responded without looking up from his phone. "We love you too."

"But you guys also know how much I like Cameron, right?" You mentioned and Harry nodded.

"I swear if you're picking him over us-"

"But Harry he asked me out! It's a once in a lifetime thing and if it works out, we'll get married and have cute kids! It's just one date and besides, I hang out with you guys ALL THE TIME." You explained.

"That was before." Harry pointed out. "But now we're all so busy and this is the only time all of us are free."

"And I understand, but why are we going to an aquarium thing? It's boring!" You frowned. "It's just one time. I'll hang out with you guys again, okay?"

"So what's your final decision?" Harry asked, putting his phone away to fully face you. You frowned and sighed, "I'm going on the date."

Harry slowly nodded and said, "Fine, then."

"I can see the sea creatures some other time. Screw the dolphins, Harry. Fuck it." You said.

"A guy tried that last year, banned from SeaWorld for life." Harry said with a deadpanned expression. You knew he was being sarcastic, but it didn't really help the situation.

"Have fun on your date then." He added, getting up from his seat.

"I'll video call you guys, okay?" You said to lighten the mood. You didn't want your friends to feel forgotten.

"Don't bother." Harry huffed as he walked out of your house, making you frown.

Sam was outside when Harry came out and looked at him expectantly, "Well?!"

"She's not coming. She has a date with Cameron." Harry sighed sadly.

"I told you to make a move, Harry." Sam said. "You didn't listen to me."

"I know, but that aquarium thing was SUPPOSED TO BE the day I make a move. Now it's ruined. I planned it out already." Harry frowned.

"Well, forget about her. She's just a girl, alright? There are millions of other girls out there who would want to be with you." Sam said.

"I guess." Harry frowned.

"C'mon, let's get some ice cream." Sam smiled softly as they walked away from your house.

[askaceattorney]

Dear Asexual-Deesasters,

Mod Edgeworth: 

If you want to know the answer to that question, go to this link.

Dear Skibot99,

Co-Mod: I’m fairly certain it was The Mod, but I don’t know for sure.  He actually had another one before it, made from an old Ace Attorney musical animation.  I haven’t been able to locate that video, unfortunately, but here’s the old banner:

Ah...  Those were good days.  Good days.

Dear Dawsongfg,

Co-Mod: It’s fine.  Besides, it won’t be too long before those letters are accepted, so maybe we’ll hold onto them until that time.

Dear skibot99 again,

Mod Edgeworth: The Lost Turnabout hands down. All logic is thrown out the window the moment Phoenix had amnesia. It’s clear the Judge knew something was wrong with Phoenix, so why didn’t he call for a recess or check on Phoenix? Not to mention Wellington was annoying. He’s probably the only character I would be hesitant to play as when answering letters, if only because he was so unbearable.

As for Turnabout Ablaze, I do agree that it is a drag to get through in the end, though the entire game of AAI was boring, aside from the game mechanics. As a case by itself, I wouldn’t put it as my least favorite, if only because I did get some funny parts out of it.  It also contributed to the overall story, whereas The Lost Turnabout could just be taken out and it wouldn’t effect the overarching plot.

Co-Mod: I’d probably have to go with Turnabout Big Top.  I honestly couldn’t figure out the part where you have to present Max’s poster without consulting a walkthrough.  Why couldn’t we just present Max himself?  Besides that, the ending was largely underwhelming -- the murder weapon was hidden under Acro’s blanket the entire time, but instead of seeing a screenshot of it there, we just have to imagine it.  Maybe it was a filler case, but that was no excuse for it to end so poorly.  Not to mention one of the witnesses was a literal puppet.

It’s hard truth, Trilo.  Live with it.

Dear skibot99 and Anonymous,

Mod Edgeworth: I… think I heard from her when the localization of DGS was announced? I know Mod Kristoph and Mod Maya introduced themselves when I came into the group. There’s a third person, but I only heard from her once. As for what’s going on with her… I don’t know.

As for the flooding the inbox, it’s fine. I won’t promise a letter or two won’t be deleted, but we may make an exception and I’d hardly consider 4-5 different letters flooding the inbox. However, I do highly suggest lowering your letter sending to no more than three a day to prevent deletion of your letters. The only time I’d say your letters are flooding the inbox is when you’re sending 10-20 of them, especially of the same letter, and we have to scroll down for a while to get to the next letter. We will only choose three out of that pile and delete the rest.

And yes, we do have a few that send us 10-20 of the same letter to multiple characters in the span of five minutes. Geez.

Co-Mod: Mod Paups has had to remain absent for personal reasons, and sadly, has recently communicated to me that she wishes to leave the blog entirely.  Thanks for all you’ve contributed to this blog, Mod Paups, and best of luck in whatever you do next!

(Referenced Letter)

Dear mungeondaster,

Mod Edgeworth: Since I answered this one, I shall answer your letter.

(^ Why do I always use this sprite? ^) Actually, the localization never specified if Manfred Von Karma was born in Germany or not. In fact, we never knew the German part until Justice For All when Franziska Von Karma was stated to have flown all the way from Germany. It never specifies any reason for this and fans were quick to jump to the conclusion that it means the Von Karma family were German, which… isn’t entirely true? Manfred Von Karma never said he lived in Germany and, for all we know, Franziska could’ve lived in Germany to study law or something.

Now, the OG does give us more specific detail on this, being why I answered this the way I did. In the OG, both Von Karma’s were born Japanese, but lived in America or at least have an estate there. It specified that they were originally born in Japan, which would be translated to LA, California in the localization. While using the OG canon isn’t normal here, I will use it, if the localization doesn’t specify things. In this case, it never specified if the Von Karma’s were born in Germany or if Manfred Von Karma lived in America. Since he had to wait out the Statue of Limitations for DL-6, we can assume he lived in LA for 15 years or more. That means he’s American.

I am still getting the hang of writing letters, but I try to stick to canon as much as possible. If you believe we’ve made an error in our letters, feel free to let us know, but also show proof, if we go against canon. We’ll be sure the letter is sent to the right mod or else fix it.

Dear  Bluedragoncody,

Mod Edgeworth: I... don’t know how to feel about that.

Also, I accidentally deleted your previous letter before this one when trying to post it on here. I’m so sorry about that. If you could remember it, would you send it again?

Co-Mod: I’ll just respond to this with an old classic:

Dear Aceattorneyismyjam,

Mod Edgeworth: I-I’m not a pro! I accidentally deleted an important mod question from bluedragoncody, because of my inexperience. Oof! Again, so sorry!

Granted, I am good with digital art and writing essays, but I’m still trying to get the hang of being a mod here. Believe me, I do get corrected on several mistakes I do here. I can’t really call myself a pro just yet. I’ve only just started becoming a mod here last month lol

Dear Dahlia,

Mod Edgeworth: I thank you for your support of this blog and my essay. Manfred Von Karma is also my favorite villain and someone I do feel is underestimated as a one dimensional villain. I think people hate him so much, because of how he ruined Miles Edgeworth’s life without looking at the bigger picture. They focus on the bad things with their black colored glasses without dissecting Manfred Von Karma’s character as a whole. 

One thing I love about this blog, even before becoming a mod, is that no one here ever portrayed Manfred Von Karma as the one dimensional villain. He can be snappy at times, but as proven in many of our previous letters, he’s also portrayed as being calm when threatened, polite at times and absolutely loves his wife and children. Yes, he’s a terrible person, but that’s what makes him so interesting. He’s a bad, evil person that does good things from time to time. It doesn’t justify any of his horrible deeds, murder included, but it does make him human.

Co-Mod: I’m...going to assume you’re a different Dahlia.  (I’m grabbing a Magatama of Parting just in case, though.  I’m sure you can understand.)

Anyway, thanks for being such a loyal follower!  This blog’s been through a lot of changes since it began, and since I joined it back in 2017, so I’m glad it’s still a good source of enjoyment for you.  I’ve seen all sorts of cringe by now, by the way (some of which I wrote myself), so don’t worry about it.

I’m also glad that the characters still sound like themselves and not like us.  The hilarious personalities and quirks given to them by Capcom’s writers, as well as the humanity in so many of them, make them easy to relate to, and thus fairly easy to mimic.  I may have said something like this before, but I see myself in a lot of them -- in Athena’s fear of inadequacy, in Apollo’s desire for justice in a world where it’s hard to find, in Sebastian’s confusion about where to go next after his world falls apart, and possibly even in the von Karmas’ desire for perfection.  I of course identify with their positive feelings as well -- Phoenix’s smugness when he gets things right, Athena’s joy after pulling off a victory in court, Adrian’s pride after her self-confidence is restored, etc. -- but there’s something about the struggles they face that make them easier to relate to, on top of being that much more awesome in the end.

Unfortunately, I can’t promise anything about this blog continuing on in perpetuity.  For one thing, I don’t plan on being around forever (I’m fairly certain the other Mods don’t, either), and for that matter, there’s also no telling how long Tumblr will be around.  All I can promise is that I’ll give my best while I’m here, and that the love from you and everyone else who shares it here is sure to be what keeps us going.  Thank you for your contribution!

Dear TurqouiseJavelin,

Mod Edgeworth: Hm... not bad ideas. Though, we mods choose our own mod names under the condition that it doesn’t match anyone else’s mod name.

Co-Mod: What Mod Edgeworth said.  Choosing the name “Mod Athena” may or may not increase your chances of being hired, though.  *wink, wink*

Dear Anonymous, 

Mod Edgeworth: Actually, Gregory was stated in the Autopsy to have died by a gunshot. However, you do bring up something interesting. If Gregory Edgeworth realized he was dead and last remembered Robert Hammond strangling him, he wouldn’t think “I died by the shot of a gun.” Since the Detectives weren’t aware that victim had died unconscious, they’d assume the victim would recall being shot and killed. This makes me wonder if Gregory Edgeworth was channeled, but never brought to court to be cross-examined.

There are still holes, but I do like your aspect on DL-6.

Co-Mod: Dang...  No matter how many times you come back to this game, there’s always something new to think about.  I honestly hadn’t considered those details about Yanni Yogi’s trial.  Your explanation makes the most sense to me, but there’s one other possibility regarding Gregory’s testimony -- he may have chosen to lie about who murdered him in order to protect his son from a murder charge.  That’s all open to interpretation, of course, so your guess is as good as ours.

It’s a good thing we’re not actual defense attorneys, huh?

-The Mods

[magic-belodie]

I finished Priya’s route of MCLLL episode 15. It cost me 1372 AP. I got Priya's illustration. Here is the summary:

You start this episode in front of the café. You are talking with Gustave, your banker. He is telling you that you need 50,000 otherwise they will close your business by the end of the month. If you have any idea how, you can contact him. Gustave will leave. You go inside the café. Nina will ask you how it went. You tell her what Gustave said. Sadly Nina has no solution for this. You tell Nina that if she needs time to find another job, she can get some free. But Nina assure you, she will be with you until the end. Then Steve walks inside. He comes inside for a drink. But he heard you two talking, so he wants to know what is going on. You don't want to tell him at first, but Nina steps in and tells what happened. Steve suggest starting a crowdfunding campaign. You are not sure about this idea. Nina and Steve try to convince you. There is no other solution. Dambi and Crowstorm can help with giving something back to the people who donate. And you are always the one helping others, so you do deserve some help back. Steve will leave after suggesting it another ten times. You send Nina home, so you can think about the idea. The rest of the day you spent thinking.  When you are almost done at work when Eric walks inside. You thought he will slip out of your life after what happened. But a month has gone by and everything is back to normal. You tell him what happened with the bank and about the crowdfunding campaign. You give him a coffee, and he wishes you good luck. It is time to go home. Priya is already at home. She even pick-up something to eat. It is going a lot better with Priya since she is self-employed. She notices that your appointment with the banker didn't go well. Priya gives you a hug. You tell Priya about the crowdfunding campaign. She thinks it is a good idea. Together you great the idea for an event. Where you can sold paintings and let a band play. Crowstorm is going to be the band, and you are going to ask Chani for the paintings. You think this will save you café. You two go to bed. The next day, you are in front of the café. You go inside and wait for Nina and Hyun. You have called him, and he is really excited to help. Together you make a video. Hyun will also be the one who keeps the crowdfunding page up to date. He will put the video online and make sure that they can already order drinks for the event. You will send a message to all you contact to let them know about the event. Then Chani calls. She is sorry for not knowing about all this. You ask her if she will show her paintings at the event. She was about to offer that to help. You go to her place. Nina will watch over the café. Chani gives you a hug when you come in. Then she set some tea. In between you bring her up to date with everything that happened. You are happy Chani is there for you. Then Chani tells you that she is going to quit her job. She is going to work full-time on her paintings. She is so excited about it. Chani will also donate everything that her paintings bring up at the event to the café. And Violette is going to participate. She will make a special painting just for the event. Everything will go to the café. Chani will arrange everything with Yael and Violette. You thank her for everything. Then the story skips to the next morning.

You are at the park. You get a call from your mom. She asks how it is going with the event. You tell her about how happy you are with everyone’s support. Your parents made a big donation on the crowdfunding page. You hang up, and go to the studio to see Castiel. Gabin and Leo are there. They both let you know that they support you. You ask Crowstorm to play at the event. And they say yes. You are so happy. You go back to the café. There you tell Nina the good news. She is happy. But she kind of reveals that something is going on. Because she says that they were in no place to say no. But then Steve comes inside. You thank him for the idea and tell that you put into working. He already knows and promoted it on social media. Then he has to go. The rest of the day you tell all your customers about the event. Then Kim comes inside. You ask her how it is going with her leg. She is doing a lot better. Violette and Chani told her what happened with the café. She is offering to help you with a benefit race. You think it is a great idea and are happy with her help. Kim leaves. You get a message from Yael to talk 3 days later. The story will skip 3 days.

You are in front of the café. You walk to the restaurant, there is you will see Yael. When you walk inside the restaurant you get a call from Rosa. You tell her that everything is going well with the crowdfunding and at home with Priya. She promises you to help you find an outfit for the event. Then you hang up because Yael arrived. Yael is going to help you with getting her contacts to the event. And also get painting from other artist to sell. You two have a nice lunch, and then you go back to the café. At the café, Nina has some good news. You are at more than 20%. Dambi is doing a streaming donation with her game. It is going good with Dambi. Because of you she was able to go pro. And without her job at the café she would have drop everything. So she made a donation and told the story on her stream. You send a message in the chat to thank everyone. Then Nina suggest investing money into the crowdfunding page to promote it. You try to call your banker about it. But you get the voicemail, so you leave a message behind. A half hour later Gustave is at the café to talk about it. Gustave is going to help you. And he will come to the event. He leaves. The story will skip to the day of the event. You are at the café with Rosa and Nina. Together you make the café ready for the event. Then you and Rosa leave to get an outfit. Nina will follow Rayan's plan with hanging up the rest of the paintings. At the shop you see Leigh. He will get three outfits ready. I choose the outfit for the illustration with Priya. Then Leigh will donate some money to the café. You and Rosa go back to the café. Everything is ready for the event. The event starts. The auction is going really well the paintings are selling good. Cullan bought one of the painting of Chani. He is happy he can help. It makes Chani blush. You go check in the kitchen. Hyun is working on the cake. He will bring outside when it finished. You go back inside. There you see Nath. He and Eric motivated all their colleagues to donate. Nath will walk around to see if he can find Eric. Then you see Rayan. Rayan also remembered everyone at university to donate and made a donation him self. He is going to walk over the place. You check your account and you got enough money. Your café is saved. You go outside to the terrace. There you see Eric. Eris sold his old guitar for the café. Then Eric suddenly sees Priya. Priya is angry at Eric. Eric thinks he deserves it. Eric tells you two that he won't be bothering you two anymore, because he will be transferred to another town. He wishes you both the best. Then leave you two alone. Priya won't be sad about Eric leaving. You tell her to kiss you instead of saying things like that. You two kiss passionately. Then you tell her the good news the café is saved. Priya is so happy for you. You go inside the concert is about to start. Castiel announces that they can't wait to play and that the café is saved. After the concert, you walk into the kitchen. To fill up some trace. There you see Nina and Gabin. They are together. But it just started, and they want to keep it for them self. You are happy for them. You go back inside. There you see Alexy and Morgan talking. They are saying sorry to each other. They both are feeling a lot better since last time. You will take a toast with all your friends. Then everyone will be leaving. Yael offers you to partner up more again. You say yes and she leaves too. Only you and Priya are left. Priya is impressed that you saved your dream. Her whole is always been talking about feelings. But ever since you two first kissed, she had been flustered. What Priya feels for you is beyond words. Priya goes down on the ground and asks you to become her wife. You go down too and get your illustration. You say yes. If someone told you the day you met Priya that things will go like this. You wouldn't believe it. Priya kisses you. And for her goes the same thing. Priya can't wait to spend the rest of her life with you. The episode ends.

[fmdkiana]

*to the tune of backpack backpack from dora the explorer* plot time plot time plot time plot time Yeah. under the cut i have little blurbs on where my muses will be and ideas on threads, so come poke my dms (for tumblr ims i suggest messaging sung) or like/reply to this post and i’ll come around to u!

ki

overall she’s the best muse for first time meetings bc company events like this are the main way to have a conversation with her

choice activities miss ki is doing the candlemaking class and dance class

ki likes making her own soaps and candles as is, so she’s the lucky one of my muses to have an activity just for funzies. she could perhaps teach ur muse a thing or two, or they could challenge themselves to try to make candles for each other

dance class could be practicing together, ki helping a non-dancer/someone unfamiliar in the style, even maybe scrutinizing the video together for the next take

other schedules:

the pool party isn’t one she would attend of her own volition, but definitely could be dragged into it if she likes a muse enough or is given reason to do so. could be fun to get her drunk, loosen her up a bit. or, yk, california, give her some weed and listen to her talk about her special interests for hours

surprisingly ki would show up at the food truck festival, at least for a little while. she tries to be careful about what she eats because her skin is sensitive to so much, but she’d be curious and, what she considers, impulsive. it’d also remind her a bit of home in seattle, the good parts, so she could share that with someone, maybe help someone navigate around too given her english-ing

the best way to bond with ki is through common interest, and either flight could be good for that! your muse or ki engaging in one of her interests and it sparking up a conversation could leave a good (or negative, if ur muse has opinions she Really can’t get behind) impression of them to her

jeonghwa

trying something new, stepping out of your comfort zone, doing something unapproved of by higher ups, all things u can count on jhwa for

choice activities this round are fan makeovers and secret fantasy concert

these activities don’t have much in the moment to thread on, but the spaces around the activities could be! pre-makeover making each other up, doing one another’s makeup and it becomes a cute thing to mention to the fans. maybe jeonghwa was being too distracting at the side of the stage during your muse’s set and they talk about it after. could be loads of things!

other schedules:

you knoooow she’s gotta go to the pool party. she’s probably the one spreading the news to everyone about the party in the first place. if anyone needs an extra kick to be able to come, or someone to help them make bad (see: fun) decisions, jeonghwa’s got u. and honestly if someone isn’t skinny dippin w her what’s the point of the party

random but she makes for a good flight partner. coming in or going, she could sit next to your muse and play games, make it less terrible to go thru for so long

one of the after concert meals jeonghwa would go bc free food and drinks, maybe she convinces your muse to “go to bed” early and they dip to explore, get into trouble, whatever

food truck festival eating contest when? jeonghwa getting dared by a friend to smash funnel cake in someone’s face and your muse is sadly the recipient?

andy

antisocial is in the name, BUT he’s feeling pretty good, if tired, so it’s not a terrible time to approach andy. though, depending on his mood, he could make for some more bitchy moments too

his choice activities are for an individual fansign and the softball team (go red)

fansign may not offer much in the moment, but afterwards, andy could have a little complain session about fans, or gasp, maybe he actually liked one of them

softball team... andy is a competitive motherfucker and is gonna Enjoy playing up the sporty angle. imagine hsm2 i don’t dance, same level of playful banter, same sexual tension, but also more aggressive, and you’ve got it. do i know what this means in terms of a plot? absolutely not but i know it’s so chock full

other schedules:

will andy be at the pool party? yes. but his lips will likely be preoccupied with copious weed and hwa the whole night so a muse might need to specifically seek him out or catch him on his way to the drinks

at the welcome brunch buffet can someone please argue with andy about brunch culture,,, he’s anti brunch :/ says it’s just an excuse for white women to get day drunk and they should just admit to it. all the while he’s pounding back mimosas

sung

sung thinks it is incredibly inappropriate for gsm to not only be pushing him, but the rest of the element members, into work schedules so soon after disbandment. sooo this is probably the most upset 99% of famed would have seen him in public. what shock

his choice activities are being a fashion show model and the busking trip

being a model upsets him, given he was already upset, but then tacks onto it feeling like gsm is valuing him highest for his looks at the moment. anyone who can make the experience less than the worst would b appreciated (or make it worse, talk exclusively abt his visuals, i’m down)

busking sung is actually much more into, but that’s largely because of how much he loves performing, with a side helping of appreciating the charity angle. performing is definitely a release for him, but who knows, he could possibly butt heads with someone too

other schedules:

at first glance, sung wouldn’t be very interested in going to the pool party, but he would only need a small nudge to go tbh bc what teeny part of him has capability for pettiness would want to do something gsm doesn’t approve of, And it would be him giving into utilizing whatever unhealthy coping mechanisms he wanted, just for one night. i’m sure he’d black out by end of night, and would make terrible decisions. encourage him? help him? all up for grabs

could be convinced to go to one of the after concert meals but would need the convincing since he’d rather lay in bed being a sadsack

[dear-yandere]

Welcome back my queen. 🙌 so happy you’re back my dash was a sad place without you! Wanna see what you think about Giorno and it Josuke with darling who tries to use guilt to manipulate them? Constantly talking about their loneliness and utter misery without them around.

Gosh these asks are about a month old, sorry for the wait!! I’m late in saying this, but I’m really glad to be back!~

Giorno and Josuke are really soft, so any sort of manipulation will work on them, especially Josuke. While Giorno is smart enough to recognize manipulation when he sees it, he doesn’t feel it’s his place to complain. He is keeping darling against their will, after all. The least he can do is keep his schedule as clear as humanly possible and spend hours upon hours with his amore, if they so wish.

Josuke though... gods, the boy is so smart but also a bit... dumb. He knows something is off, but he doesn’t dwell too much on it. His babe is telling him how much of a bad boyfriend he’s been, and the only thing running through his mind is how to fix it. He’d scrap any other plans he’s made, putting aside even his beloved video games and friendships just to keep darling company. He’s lucky enough to have even landed someone as amazing as them, he thinks, so why would he blow his chance now? And over something so easily fixable? He’d be a fool to do so.

anon 2 said: Im happy that your problems with stolen content has been solved. I just saw that suggestions and concepts were open. You can answer if you want, i know that, since you might be busy with other projects.I would like to imagine what Don Giorno would think if his darling suddenly got attached to mista. Like they're always so lonely, have no one for themselves 24/7. So a guard like mista would make them so happy, even tho it will be bad for GioGio.

Mista probably wouldn’t be darling’s guard for the most part, but Giorno does trust him enough to visit darling in his place. Being a don is tiresome and leaves him with next to no free time, and he figures darling could use the company from a trusted friend. Mista’s insanely sociable anyways, and the bullets are adorable and more than happy to make a new friend while hanging out on the island’s beautiful beaches.

Giorno trusts his darling, at least he wants to, but he kinda of... expects their feelings to wander when he sends someone like Mista over. Assuming Mista isn’t yandere in this universe, he’s much better company since he didn’t kidnap darling and keep them isolated against their will. Even as he attends meetings or deals with mountains of paperwork, Giorno knows how happy darling must be right now, laughing and playing with Mista. It hurts. It hurts more than anything he’s ever experienced, but he can’t complain. He knows he isn’t the best match for darling. All he’s ever wanted to do is protect darling, and if that means sacrificing whatever love they may have developed for him in the process, then... he’ll begrudgingly have to accept.

And, because I’m sure I’ll be asked, assuming Mista is yandere in this universe, Giorno wouldn’t let him anywhere near darling. Giorno is clever, cunning, and extremely observant, so he’d pick up on Mista’s... undesirable behaviors before anything. Mista probably won’t even know that Giorno has a partner or a private island, actually. 

anon 3 said: (1) So Giorno wanna appear strong and reliable to his darling as well as consciously refuse their love, affections and validations huh? Guess what? Childhood friend AU where darling has been knowing him since birth, always stick with him through thick and thin, always stand up for him when he was "weak" (prior Vento Aureo), can be a dumbass at times but knows him like the back of their hand and ultimately just wish him a good life. Though they has a firm grip of the reality of the situation when

(2) they suddenly wake up at some random island far away from mainland, they don’t hate Giorno because it’s understandable considering his occupation and childhood but they also try to reason with him, try to make a compromise that can somehow please both of them. Sadly it doesn’t go anywhere. So, a loving yet conscious darling vs Giorno’s complexity 😂 Would it be any good for him? I guess yes but on the other hand darling constantly remind him of the truth is just👌bittersweet content👌.

Giorno’s always been stubborn, darling knows that much. He’s always been overly protective, overly aware of the dangers that surround them; he has to, when he opens the door to his home and finds his abusive step-father ready to beat him up again. It’s become second nature to him. Darling knows that compromising won’t work, and honestly, they accept that. There are other ways to convince him, a slow burn if you will. 

The constant reminders are one thing, but what hits the hardest is when he visits and finds you screaming or crying in your sleep, or when he sees you on your balcony or on the beach gazing longingly to someplace far away, lost in your thoughts. You don’t want to be here, he knows that. He didn’t want it to come to this point either, but he knows how much you trust him. The amount of support and love you give him is almost unbearable sometimes, especially with everything he’s taken from you, but most of the time he appreciates it. Maybe this is going too far, maybe he’s just being  paranoid, but for now, you’re indulging him. He couldn’t ask for anything more, really. Maybe you think he’ll come to his senses one day, and... maybe you’re right. But for now, you need to put your faith in him and let him keep you safe.

Even if you have to put your faith in him for the rest of your life.

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Michael in the Mainstream: Crash Bandicoot

Reviewing video games is not my forte. Like, sure, I can review the Metal Gear franchise because it’s near and dear to my heart and it’s incredibly story driven to a cinematic degree, but I’m not super good at touching on game design or any of that. I stick with movies. But then there are a lot of games I love and want to talk about, such as this game, Crash Bandicoot, and it’s like, how do I talk about this? This is a platformer that is very light on plot and is more about precision platforming than anything, and I’m just not really good at talking about gameplay.

But I’ve come up with a solution! One that I plan to use going forward for a few other games, too! I’ll start with a few paragraphs with my basic overview of the game, and then I will do a ranking of my favorite levels, and then how I’d rank the bosses. I’m much better at talking why I enjoy the challenge of specific elements of games like these then I am talking about the game as a whole, so let’s see how this turns out.

Crash Bandicoot was the first video game I ever played, and so is extremely near and dear to my heart. It’s a rather simple game, a “save the girl” platforming adventure in the vein of something like Mario, where an intrepid hero travels through platforming challenges to save the love of his life from an evil mastermind, though as the main character is a furry animal with a bit of 90s ‘tude, and his archenemy is a mad scientist who utilizes cyborgs to stop you, there’s a dash of Sonic in here too. Being a simple platforming game like this, you’d think there wouldn’t be all that much to the story… but surprisingly, that’s not totally the case (although the story is still relatively simple to later entries).

Crash was meant to be the ultimate soldier in Dr. Neo Cortex’s army of evil marsupials and other assorted critters, an army he presumably was going to use for world domination. After rigorous training, Crash was set to be brainwashed and turned into a mindless slave, but something got screwed up and Crash remained a good, heroic guy. He ended up chased out a window and washed up on the beach of a nearby island, and set out to save his buxom, big booty bandicoot babe Tawna from the creepy clutches of the cantankerous Cortex, causing chaos and crushing crates as he went along. The manual included with the original version of the game actually outlined sort of a little story for the first island, showing how the levels involved Crash infiltrating a native village, defeating its leader, and then riding a hog to escape on his way to the next island. It’s kind of fun and imaginative, and the next island keeps it up, with Crash having to brave ancient ruins to make it to the volcano on the other side of the island, before finally going through Cortex’s toxic power plant, causing a reactor meltdown, and climbing Cortex’s castle to confront him as his island burns to the ground. It’s a fun, simple story that’s not too challenging on the mind while still being engaging.

Perhaps the best thing about the game is the music, which was done by Josh Mancell with the assistance of Mark Mothersbaugh’s Mutato Muzika production company. Let’s not beat around the bush here: Every single track in this game slaps. Basically every track in the original trilogy slaps, but I feel pound for pound this game just hits all the right notes with its music. It perfectly sets the tone for each level, with eerie levels like Slippery Climb getting foreboding music and unsettling yet somewhat whimsical levels like Road to Nowhere getting music that perfectly suits it. This is the biggest downgrade of the remake; they redid the score, with no option to go back to the old tracks, and while some of the updated tunes are great, they don’t really hold a candle to the original (especially the creepier levels, which got dumbed down a fair bit to the point of narm).

The one thing this game is being known for these days is its pretty brutal difficulty, at least with the original release. A lot of the staple elements of the series like checkpoints saving the boxes you had previously broken and an actual save room were not present, so every level (including the brutal ones where the margin of error was incredibly slim) needed to be completed perfectly in one go. The challenging road to 100% completion was absolutely brutal, but thankfully the remake polished things and brought it more in line with its sequels to the point you only need a flawless run on colored gem levels. It can still be pretty tough since the colored gems are located in the hardest levels of the game, but it’s a lot easier than it once was.

The original game is a great, fun game, but only play the original release if you really want to test your skills; the remake is the way to go. The game holds up amazingly well even today, so no matter which version you end up playing you’re in for a fun platforming challenge.

Anyway, let’s get on to the levels!

TOP 10 LEVELS

10. Generator Room

There’s something to be said about the various one-shot themed levels of the third island. Toxic Waste is an interesting one we’ll talk about later, The Lab is a fun penultimate level, and Cortex Power is a frustrating slog of confusing backtracking. The Generator Room, though? This is unnerving atmosphere and dark ambience at its peak, with the eerie, minimalist music and the looming Cortex faces lending a chilling sense that you’re being watched as you make your way through this dark platforming challenge. It’s not the most exciting level, but among the one-shot themes it stands out for being a heaping helping of nightmare fuel… Though moreso in the original game. The remake sadly toned things down a bit too much, though it’s hard to blame them, really.

9. Native Fortress

The level that caps off the first island is a more challenging remake of The Great Gate, and closes out the story of the first island by showing how Crash escapes the territory of Papu Papu’s tribe. It’s a pretty fun and reasonable challenge for the point in the game, but my favorite aspect of the level has always been that, when you get the red gem, you get to fly up in the clouds and experience the painted background of the other two islands with less clutter. It’s just a simple background image, sure, but I have always found it very pretty and breathtaking.

8. Road to Nowhere

Everyone’s favorite! This is one of the more challenging levels if you don’t know what you’re doing because of the tricky and precise jumps you need, but it just has so much atmosphere and pleasant music it’s hard to get mad even if I screw up and plummet to my doom a few dozen times. Bouncing off of hibernating turtles to make long jumps and inexplicable evil hogs help make this memorable. Frankly, if you want to direct your ire to a stage, direct it to The High Road, the third island’s more challenging take on this level’s theme and which is a joyless, frustrating experience.

7. Castle Machinery

This level is honestly a bit of a breather for being so late in the game; sure, it has a lot of tricky jumps and an annoying crate bridge you need to really think about to conquer, but overall it’s just an improved take on Heavy Machinery without an obtuse branching path to figure out. Still, this level really makes the list because, if you have the right colored gem, you can just immediately skip the entire level and gain thirty free lives in the process in one of the single funniest moments in the game.

6. Toxic Waste

This level is simple, straightforward, and to the point. It’s one long-ass hallway where Crash is on a narrow walkway and has to avoid incoming barrels being tossed at him by the Mafia. It has no branching paths, no crazy elements, just Crash, some barrels, some boxes, and some bad guys. It’s almost too basic, but what saves it is the atmosphere of it all and the sheer awesomeness of the music, no matter which version you’re playing. It’s a level that has stuck in my mind since I was a kid. In a way, it also set the basis for colored gem unlocks in the games to follow, as avoiding the barrels is more of a puzzle than anything, much like the tricky puzzles you had to solve to unlock the colored gems in Cortex Strikes Back and It’s About Time. It’s a neat little first step even if it’s not quite there yet.

5. Boulder Dash

I almost didn’t include one of these levels, but God, these levels were trendsetters! The whole “Crash gets chased by dangerous thing” trend began in this game, and this second take on the boulder chase from the second island is a lot more fun and challenging than the earlier version of the level. And if you get the colored gem, you’re taken to a pretty underground alternate exit with tons of crates, which is pretty dope.

4. Fumbling in the Dark

The only one of the secret levels that requires a Cortex key to make the list, Fumbling in the Dark is a remix of Lights Out, the level it branches off of. That level is a bit of a cakewalk if you have the right gem, with an alternate exit being available to you before the level’s challenge ramps up. Not so with this level! You’ve gotta do some tricky timed jumps as quick as possible so you can get to the next Aku Aku mask before the light runs out. It’s a pretty fun and fair challenge, and it pushes my platforming skills to the limit. I also just really enjoy the creepy, Gothic aesthetic of the levels inside Cortex’s castle.

3. Hog Wild

This is, hands down, the funniest level in the game. From Crash’s really suggestive eyebrow waggle which leads to him tackling a pig to the extremely goofy music, this level is just an absolute blast. It does have an equally fun yet more challenging remix as an optional secret level, Whole Hog, but I have to give props to the original level for being the most hilarious thing I ever saw when I was little.

2. Slippery Climb

Where Stormy Ascent is a brutal, unrelenting challenge, Slippery Climb is more of a tough, but fair challenge. It’s definitely up there with Sunset Vista and The High Road in terms of difficulty, and the fact you’ve gotta do a flawless run of it if you want the red gem is daunting, but this is the most thoroughly rewarding mandatory level to conquer. You’re gonna feel really cool when you take this one down, guaranteed. Maybe not as much as when you take down Stormy Ascent, but still, this may be the toughest level in the game.

1. THE GREAT HALL

WOO YEAH BABY! LOOK AT THIS CHALLENGE!

Ok, ok, here’s the real number one:

1. N. Sanity Beach

This is the first level in the game and, thus, one of the easiest. And yet I placed it above all the levels I find to be more fun and challenging. Why? Well, for one, the pure nostalgia of it all. This was my first level in a video game, and I have fond memories of traversing the beach and jungle. For the other, this is one of the most perfect tutorial levels I have ever seen. Basically everything the game has to offer is laid out to you and slowly dished out to you: you start with a couple crates and a free life, move on to experience some enemies and pits, you can get total invincibility if you’re smart, you’re introduced to branching paths and backtracking… Everything is dished out to you at a solid pace so that any new player will be able to figure out what they’re doing with relative ease. Plus, the music slaps, and interestingly enough halfway through the level changes to a different song (the only level to do this). It really does encapsulate the game as a whole in one tiny package, and for that, I think it’s my favorite level of all.

Boss Ranking

The best way to describe the bosses in the original Crash is that they are incredibly basic. Most of them have simple patterns, easy tells, and don’t take much effort to take down. There’s not really anything here that will put your skills to the test, but none of them are really bad per se; in fact, considering how hard the levels can get, it’s sort of a breath of fresh air when you get to a boss that can be taken down without thinking hard.

6. Papu Papu

Coming in last place is our first boss, the big chief of the first island himself. He’s a pretty simple and straightforward boss battle: just jump on his head a few times and he’ll be out cold. It’s pretty nice to ease in new players, but it’s seriously not much of a challenge (though none of these bosses are particularly hard, mind you).

5. Koala Kong

So far, this has been Koala Kong’s sole major outing, as he was pretty quickly replaced with the more engaging Tiny Tiger in terms of dumb muscle.Tiny at least has some semblance of combat prowess and strategy, while this guy is just tossing boulders at you to spin back while he’s flexing and posing like he wants a part in the next volume of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. He’s certainly not the sharpest tool in the shed. Still, he’s not bad or anything, just a bit of a generic battle compared to the last three or the one before him.

4. Ripper Roo

Ripper Roo is a bit of a frustrating puzzle boss, requiring just the right timing to get in any damage on the guy. Still, the fun and bouncy music coupled with the amazing stock laugh does help make him a bit more memorable than the previous two bosses. I will say he’s probably worse in terms of an actual boss battle, because he ends up being more an exercise in precision than the typical dodging and waiting for the right moment to strike, but he’s also a funny kangaroo in a straitjacket, and I think that counts for something.

3. N. Brio

The longest boss in the game, Brio comes with a massive health bar that you’ll shave off pretty quickly for his first phase if you’re careful, and whose second phase features him hulking out into an incredible monstrosity. He’s simple and straightforward, much like all the bosses to be honest, but I think the bosses on the final island all have solid presentation to make up for that. Brio just comes out at the lower end, which is honestly a running theme for him in Crash games, as his battles are rarely the best out there and few can match his debut.

2. Pinstripe

Pinstripe may not be the most challenging boss in the world, but damn is he cool. A tommy gun-toting potoroo gangster who goes full-on Scarface and starts blasting up his office when you walk in while cackling like a madman? Awesome. Defeating him is also heavily implied to be the reason Cortex’s castle eventually starts burning down, as he accidentally shoots the generator upon defeat, which is a neat little touch. If nothing else, Pinstripe is just fun, and he has killer theme music to boot.

1. Cortex

Cortex begins his reign as the big bad of the franchise with a final boss battle that, while lacking in serious challenge, has such good music and presentation that it’s hard to really care. The fight is simple and straightforward: you dodge his blasts, and hit back the ones of a certain color so they blast his health off. All of this is done from atop his dirigible, as his island burns down in the background. The bosses just don’t get any cooler than this.

[theartofdreaming1]

Partners - Part 9: Meeting Mary

Rating: T

Pairing: DickBabs

Summary:  After investigating some more, Dick and Barbara have finally found out where Mary and her son are hiding. Now, all that's left to do is figuring out a way for Mary to trust them... My DickBabs police officers AU.

You can also read this chapter at AO3 or start from the beginning on my blog

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On their next free weekend, after some more sleuthing, Dick and Barbara made a trip to Snug Cay’s Most Beautiful Hiking Trails. Close by the adjoined parking lot, a couple of rental cabins were scattered along the edge of the woods, not too far from the summer camp at which Mary Wallmer used to work as a counselor in her highschool years.

“It’s actually quite pretty here,” Dick commented when he got out of the car, eyes roaming over the nearly empty parking lot with its big map sign detailing its various hiking trails. Well-marked entries into the woods lining the three sides of the parking lot invited visitors to go for a walk.

“Mhm,” Barbara murmured absent-mindedly, rummaging the backseat of the car for their jackets and backpacks, filled with snacks, bottles of water and a map of the area - props to give them the inconspicuous looks of a couple out for a hike.

She handed Dick his stuff, then put on her own gear.

“Maybe we should consider actually coming here for a hike at another time,” Dick suggested conversationally, while Barbara re-checked the most recent location of Redhorn’s son - product of her latest digital scavenger hunt - with the positions of the cabins on her map.

“You mean when we’re not tracking down a potential witness that could help us topple the entire system of corruption of a city?” Barbara replied drily, packing the map away.

She pointed east, towards the side of the woods that was closer to the bay, “Cabin 7 is over there.”

Hands in his pockets, Dick started to walk leisurely in the direction Barbara had pointed, a cheeky grin on his lips: “I guess that would be more convenient, sure."

Barbara rolled her eyes, then slipped her arm into his: “Let’s sort this thing out first, shall we?”

Dick’s expression lost it’s cheerful air and smoothed into a more serious one.

“Right, let’s go over our approach again:” he agreed, now focussing on the task at hand, while they were heading towards their destination, “We’re a couple that went out for a hike and when we wanted to head home, realized that our car wouldn’t start. Unfortunately, both of our phones don’t have any reception out here so we’re now stuck wandering around, trying to find someone who would let us use their phone.”

He looked at Barbara for confirmation.

The redhead nodded: “Exactly.”

“And you really think that all this deception is necessary? It’s not exactly inspiring trust once we tell her the actual reason why we’re here.”

Barbara let out a sigh.

“I know, I know,” she admitted, deflated, “but I think we won’t be able to get a foot in the door otherwise - everything she thought she knew turned out to be a lie; the person she had trusted the most turned out to be in the thick of the scheming and corruption that’s been ailing Blüdhaven for the longest time… Would you trust a pair of strange cops who claim to have come to help you and contend that they have a plan for bringing down said corrupted system that has permeated seemingly every nook and cranny of the ‘Haven’s society, including the sphere of your own home??”

She let the picture she’d painted hang in the air, then shook her head sadly.

“No,” she said grimly, answering her own question, “I don’t think she’d hear us out if we presented our case to her, straightforward. She’d only grow more terrified and slam the door in our faces…”

“Leaving her more afraid for her life and her son’s without listening to our offer to help them out, most likely causing Mary to try even harder to go into hiding,” Dick supplied, finishing Barbara’s thought.

“Mhm.”

Dick let out a sigh, unable to argue with his girlfriend’s logic: “Fine, initial deception it is… Oh, look,” he exclaimed, pointing to a wooden cabin which was hidden away off-trail, almost entirely concealed by the grouping of fir trees lining the path, “that’s got to be it!”

Barbara consulted the geolocation marker on her phone she had created based on the online activity of Redhorn Jr. (even though the teenager had refrained from posting anything on his social media accounts, he still had been watching YouTube videos via his phone, which Barbara had used to backtrack his and his mother’s whereabouts): “I think you’re right.”

They left the larger path along which the cabins were scattered and followed the narrow trail covered in crushed rocks and fir needles. They discovered the wooden sign marking the wooden cabin at the end of the trail to be number 7; it had been completely obscured by the low, thick branches of the fir trees.

“So this is it?”

“Gotta be - the GPS coordinates match the location at which Redhorn’s son liked a video about three hours ago.”

In the shade of the cabin, Dick noticed a red toyota with a familiar looking license plate: “Hey, that’s Mary’s car, isn’t it?”

Apparently, all their prep hadn’t been for naught: “Yes it is.”

“Alright, so this is it… You ready?”

Barbara took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself for the task at hand.

“I’m ready. You?”

She caught Dick’s eye and saw the determined look on his face.

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

Together, they climbed up the three stairs to the cabin’s porch and knocked softly at the door.

***

They heard the sound of shuffling of feet behind the door, but no one answered it.

“Hello, is anyone there?” Barbara asked in a tentative voice.

Then, the door opened slightly and revealed a frightened blue eye which nervously examined the two young adults lingering on the porch.

Having discussed during their car ride that it would probably best if she took the lead early on (assuming that Mary would probably perceive a woman as less threatening), it was Barbara who addressed their supposed stranger in a friendly, if slightly embarrassed manner:

“Oh, hi! We’re so sorry to disturb you, but my boyfriend and I just returned from our hike around these parts - only to discover that our car won’t start and neither of us have any reception on our cellphones; may we use your phone to call roadside assistance? That would be incredibly helpful.”

The wary expression on what had been visible of Mary’s face had dissipated by the time Barbara had reached the end of her prepared speech and the door was opened fully now, revealing an unassuming woman of 5’2’’ and stocky build. Her blonde (probably dyed) hair was wavy, about shoulder-length, and framed a round, open face. Faint lines around eyes and mouth indicated her age to be around forty.

“Oh you poor things!” the middle-aged woman exclaimed emphatically, any hint of her previous mistrust completely vanished, “Of course you can use the phone here! Come in!”

And with that, Mary stepped aside, motioning for the two strangers to enter the cabin.

It wasn’t difficult to see how Redhorn had managed to conceal his wrongdoings from his wife for so long - she was downright guileless.

To be honest, Barbara couldn’t help but be surprised that Redhorn’s thugs hadn’t found Mary yet - once they had, it would have been all too easy for them to take a hold of her; it was probably for the best that Mary had sold the house of her deceased parents before she had stumbled upon the evidence of her husband’s criminal activities - this way, she couldn’t seek refuge in her childhood home even if feeling tempted to do so… and Barbara wasn’t all that convinced that Mary was cunning enough to have recognized that as a bad move on her part.

While Barbara was reflecting on the naivety of their potential informant, Dick engaged with Mary in idle small talk, making introductions, thanking her for her kindness and answering the many questions of the talkative and curious woman, such as where they were from and what had led them here?

“We are from Gotham City,” Dick explained, elaborating on the narrative he and Barbara had prepared beforehand (which wasn’t based completely on lies), “We’ve been meaning to take a break from the city for some time and decided to check out the hiking trails of Snug Cay - which definitely deserve their positive reviews online! Too bad our trip had to end with car trouble,” he concluded with a grimace so believable and sympathetic, Barbara would have been convinced of his story if she didn’t know any better. A born performer, indeed.

“Such bad luck!” Mary exclaimed empathetically. “But don’t you worry, we will get this fixed in no time! Let me show you to the phone; I think there should also be some brochures of nearby businesses and a phone book…”

She led Dick and Barbara to a small end table in a semi-secluded corner in the hallway next to the entrance door. Three doors lined the hallway wall; muffled yells of excitement sounded from behind the one closest to them.

“Don’t mind that,” Mary said nervously, giving a strained smile, “my son is not a nature lover such as you two - he prefers to play on his phone or gameboy or whatever it is called.”

“Ah, I’m familiar with the kind,” Dick nodded knowingly, ”I’ve got a teen brother who is very much into gaming.”

He gave Mary one of his disarming smiles:“How old is your son?”

“Thirteen.”

Dick grinned: “Yeah, the wonders of nature don’t particularly score with that demographic.”

Mary let out a laugh, then opened the drawer of the end table that contained the phone book and brochures.

“You should be able to find some number of a road assistance service in here.”

Thinking that it might be for the best to give Dick a little more time to build a rapport with Mary, which hopefully were to improve their chances of being heard out later, Barbara took the stack of papers out of Mary’s hands.

“Thank you so much,” she said warmly to the older woman. Then, after exchanging a meaningful glance with Dick, she motioned at the phone: “I’ll take care of it.”

“Sure thing,” he replied, his expression letting Barbara know he understood her silent message.

“We’ll leave you to make your call,” Mary responded kindly before addressing Dick: “Would you like something to drink, Richard?”

He smiled: “That would be great, thank you.”

***

While she was looking up the name of a local car mechanic (just in case) and pretended to make a call, Barbara could hear the other two engage in a friendly chat with one another.

By the time Barbara made her way back into the main room, she found Dick and Mary sitting in the living room, with Mary comfortably seated on the couch and Dick occupying one of the arm chairs. The blonde woman was grilling Dick about his private life.

“You two make such a gorgeous couple! How did you two meet?”

“Um, we first met each other at work, actually. We got assigned partners.”

“How fortuitous! If you don’t mind me asking, Richard, what do you do for a living?”

“Um,..-”

Barbara could tell that Dick was starting to sweat a little, so she made her move to intervene.

“Ah, there you are!” Mary exclaimed happily when she noticed Barbara return from her ‘phone call’, “Did you get everything sorted out?”

“Oh yes, someone will come over soon.”

“Wonderful!” Mary responded smilingly, “Is there anything else I can do to help, my dear?”

Barbara directed a meaningful at Dick and carefully sat down in the other empty armchair: “Actually, yes, there is one more thing…”

The helpful older woman nodded attentively, ready to help. Barbara felt a little bad for what she was about to do; still, this was in Mary’s best interest as well as theirs.

“You see,” Barbara began, her voice dropping into a hushed tone,”we know about your husband and the social calendars you’ve kept all these years - We think that they could help us with our cause.”

At that, Mary blanched and a panicked look appeared on her face, her eyes nervously flickering over to the door of the room her son was currently occupying.

“We’re not here to hurt you!” Dick was quick to add, ”We can help you, offer you protection - get you and your son far away from the ‘Haven and your husband’s influence, so you guys are safe.”

The poor blindsided woman twitched anxiously, as if she wanted to get up and run, but froze when Barbara moved to get something from the inside of her jacket.

It took Barbara a few seconds to realize what Mary must have suspected.

“Don’t be afraid, I’m not-” she began hastily, before breaking off. She then slowly, carefully, produced her badge and ID from the inside pocket of her jacket, putting them down on the couch table, right in front of Mary. Dick followed her example with equally cautious and measured movements.

“Here,” Barbara gestured at the evidence laid out in front of Mary,”the two of us are officers at the BPD; but we are from Gotham, originally. We have nothing to do with Blüdhaven’s corrupt elite,” she explained calmly, while the older woman’s gaze fluttered nervously between the ID cards on the table and the two officers seated next to her.

“Barbara’s father helped clean up the corrupt police force in Gotham,” Dick further supplied, ”and we want to do the same in the ‘Haven.”

Mary didn’t say anything; the poor woman only looked frightened.

“We have found a few officers who have the same goal,” Dick continued to explain in a composed voice, “and we are now building up a case against all the corrupt politicians and police officials - including your husband.”

Mary winced, her eyes now fixed firmly on her knees.

“It would be very helpful for our case if you could give us those notebooks you’ve kept all these years,” Barbara went on, “regardless of whether you’d be willing to testify against your husband or not.”

“You don’t have to do either of those things, of course,” Dick hastened to reassure Mary, who at last dared to cast a tentative look in his direction, “for now, it is much more important to keep you and your son safe.”

“Exactly,” Barbara nodded fervently. She noticed that Mary seemed marginally calmer than before, appearing to be listening intently.

“We know that your husband has involved some of his people to look for you two,” Dick said gently, ”and frankly, a lot of his cronies have some very worrisome reputations.”

“And this is where we come in,” Barbara jumped in, “I know some people at the FBI who can help you get out of the reach of the criminals that have been running Blüdhaven as of yet.”

She handed Mary two business cards. Clammy hands gripped the cards tightly.

“Here are the contacts of the two agents that can help you. I have worked with them before on a case of corruption in Blüdhaven; they passed the background checks I conducted on them to ensure that they are not connected to any Blüdhaven elite with flying colors - they are trustworthy.”

Mary looked at Barbara with big eyes; the business cards still in a vice grip.

“I… I don’t know-”

Dick gave Mary a reassuring smile: “You don’t have to decide right now.”

“No, but you shouldn’t wait too long,” Barbara warned emphatically, “If we can find you here, it’s only a matter of time until your husband or his cronies will figure out a way to find you, too.”

“I… I don’t know what to do,” the poor woman stammered, distressed. She looked pleadingly from Dick to Barbara, as if waiting for them to tell her what to do.

Of course, that was not what they had come for.

“Ultimately, you will have to decide on your own what is best for you and your son - I know that all of this must be overwhelming and that we’re just two random strangers that appeared out of nowhere,” Dick said sympathetically, “You didn’t ask to get dragged into this, you just want for you and your son to be safe-”

Mary nodded energetically, “Yes!”

“We can’t tell you what to do - You have to be the judge on which course of action you want to take,” Barbara stressed.

Averting her eyes again, Mary only nodded meekly.

“Personally,” Dick mused aloud, causing Mary to look up again “I’d say your safest bet is to call these numbers,” he tapped the business cards Mary was still clutching tightly, “These FBI agents will get the two of you out of here, someplace safe.”

Mary’s lips parted as if wanting to say something - but in the end, she only pressed them together and fiddled nervously with the cards in her hands.

Dick exchanged a telling look with Barbara, who pulled out a burner phone and put it on the table.

“Here, take this,” Barbara said, “there is one number saved in there - it’s to a safe line which only Dick and I can access; it can’t be traced. This way, you will always be able to reach us - if there’s anything you think we can help you with - call that number.”

This gesture seemed to finally have broken the dam. With a trembling hand, Mary reached for the phone, staring at Dick and Barbara with teary eyes.

“Is this real?” Mary asked in a quiet, shaky voice.

“This is real.”

“And… And it’s not a trick?”

Dick gave an encouraging smile: “It’s not a trick. I promise.”

A brief pause followed, then: “Okay.”

***

They went over the particulars again, making sure that Mary would know what to expect when reaching out to Barbara’s contacts at the FBI. Once they had settled everything, Mary brought up the one thing that still remained unresolved:

“And… And the notebooks?”

Barbara cocked her head to the side, a friendly smile on her face: “What do you want to do with them?”

Mary fiddled nervously with the phone in her hands.

“I don’t know, I just- I just want to be rid of them, I suppose,” she said, sounding tired. She sighed deeply.

“You want them, I assume?”

“It would be useful for the case we’re building,” Barbara admitted honestly, “but if you don’t want us to use them in our case, you don’t have to hand them over.”

There was a long pause while Mary was mulling over it.

“No, you should have them,” she mused,”I think that’s why I took them with me in the first place - I knew that they were valuable evidence, I just didn’t know what to do with it… Or maybe I wasn’t ready to admit to myself that - that my husband is a criminal.”

Gently, Dick put a reassuring hand on Mary’s shoulder.

“We’re sorry.”

“No, it’s fine, I’m fine,” Mary said shakily, making a dismissive gesture before getting up from the couch, “I’ll go get them.”

The blonde woman hurried away into the hallway and disappeared behind the door furthest away. Dick and Barbara could hear the clunking of a floor board being moved and scraping noises. Soon after, Mary returned, three small black pocket calendars in hand: “Take them.”

Barbara took the unassuming, but invaluable notebooks and stowed them safely away in her backpack.

She smiled warmly at Mary: “Thank you.”

Suddenly, the other door in the hallway opened and a skinny boy of thirteen shuffled out. “Hey Mom, when’s dinner- who are you guys?”

The teenager stopped short, eyeing the two strangers suspiciously.

“Alex!” Mary exclaimed, jumping up from her seat on the couch. She quickly regained her composure, though: “These are Richard and Barbara, they went hiking in the woods but then had car trouble and no reception - they asked to use the phone to call for some help.”

The teen regarded Dick and Barbara with narrowed eyes. Barbara had the slightest inkling that Alex was by far not as unaware of their precarious situation as his mother might assume.

“I thought I heard some knocking about, like, an hour ago.”

The boy cast a challenging look at the two ‘visitors’, but Dick just countered smoothly: “We had to wait until they could send a mechanic, chatted for a bit and lost track of time.”

As she gathered up their backpacks and jackets, Barbara added: “I’m sure someone from Larry’s should arrive at any minute.”

“Oh yes! You should get going, it would be awful if you missed the mechanic!”

“Yeah… Plus, we wouldn’t want to delay your family dinner any more,” Dick remarked brightly, winking at Alex as the three adults made their way to the front door. The boy seemed to loosen up a little, although his eyes remained alert.

At the door, Barbara seized the opportunity to express her gratitude: “Thank you so much , Mary, you saved our day.”

The older woman blushed.

“Don’t mention it,” she responded humbly, “I’m just glad I could be of service. And… And I'm really glad I got to talk with you two.”

Dick gave an affectionate nod.

“Take care.”

Mary smiled brightly.

“You, too! I hope everything works out well… with your car.”

“Thanks!”

Dick and Barbara said their good-byes and followed the path back to the car, leaving cabin 7 behind. They didn’t exchange a single word on the way back.

Once they had entered the car, Barbara finally looked at Dick, a big smile on her face. She felt dazed and utterly exhilarated at the same time.

“I think… I think we’ve done it?”

She was met with a wide smile that matched her own:

“We’ve done it!”

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

To be continued... here.

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Notes:

Nightwing #71-74: This is entire chapter is very loosely based on this story arc. Basically, Dick learns that some of Blockbuster's goons are trying to get to Mary because of the meticulously kept social calendars she has in her possession and wants to protect her - which leads to a chase to some of Europe's most famous cities (Rome, Paris, and London). For this story I decided that Mary's hiding spot would be less extravagant and instead some place familiar to her, somewhere she had felt safe before. In the comics Dick also tries talking to her in full Nightwing gear, but Mary is too frightened to hear him out; Babs is the one to point out that Dick Grayson might stand a better chance to get to chat with Mary than a masked vigilante - here, Babs gets to intervene a lot sooner (she is more practical and efficient than Dick in that way, I think). While Babs deals with their task at hand in a more pragmatic way, I decided to have Dick be the one who is better at quickly building rapport with Mary - this way, they make the perfect team to get the job done (technical skills/logistics + people skills)

Oh, and I decided to name Mary's son Alex because comicvine states Chief Redhorn' name to be "Francis Alexander", although I can't recall for the life of me where that name ever appeared (the only times I remember Redhorn's first name being mentioned, it was always "Delmore" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[sxciallygray]

I’ll be here when you come back (Colby Brock)

A/N: Hello my dudes!!! How long it’s been? Like 4? Maybe even 5 since I posted the second part of Let Her Go.

I’ve had most of the last part written since last November, but I got busy and lost inspiration to write – which seemed to be back for now.

I hope you like this last part, I enjoyed writing the last bit because if I have to be honest I’m not sure if I like the rest of it – like I said I wrote almost 5 months ago and usually when I read things I wrote a long time ago I normally don’t like them.

But you are the important ones! If you like it then I’m happy.

I hope you are all safe and doing well in the crazy times we are living and I also hope this helps you to think about something else.

Love you!

Warnings: English is not my first language so I’m sorry in advance if I made some mistakes.

Part1: Let her go

Part2: All you had to do was stay

It had been a month since (Y/N) had come back to LA, which lead her to think one thing only, the call with the information about her new destination was closer than she liked.

She hadn’t realized how much she missed her life until she came back and could enjoy all her friends again, specially how much she had missed Colby. At that point it was hard for both of them to hide how much they wanted to spend time together, Colby would find the most random excuses to make plans with (Y/N) and she wouldn’t hesitate on saying yes to everything Colby came up with. Like that night for example, (Y/N) had suggested going to Rae’s to have dinner with the whole group, after dinner Sam suggested a chill game night at his and Kat’s place, but Colby excused himself saying he had to film a video for his channel and that he needed help. Of course (Y/N) was the first one to offer herself volunteer.

None of their friends at that diner booth were blind, they could see Colby and (Y/N)’s undeniable desire for some alone time with each other, so most of the time they would play along instead of teasing them in public and potentially make things awkward – something they both were thankful for since from the first second the fans saw (Y/N) was back ninety percent of comments were about if they were back together or not.

What they didn’t know, not even (Y/N), was that there was no video that needed to be finished. Colby’s intentions were to take (Y/N) to a place he had recently found, a quiet spot on the hills of LA where they watched the city from afar.

The later it got the better they could see the stars above them, which reminded (Y/N) of a recurrent thought she had at the beginning of their time apart. She liked to look at the sky and think that no matter what, no matter the time of the day, the weather or how far away they were from each other, both of them were looking at the same sky. For some reason thinking about that brought her peace and made her feel a little connected to Colby.

“What are you thinking about?” they’ve been quiet for a few minutes and Colby was only wondering why (Y/N) was so smiley.

“Nothing” her smile only grew wider, making Colby grin bigger.

“C’mon, tell me” he turned around so he laying on his stomach over the blanket they were sharing.

“I was thinking about that time you fell down the hill and made it to the bottom on your butt” she lied, while she laughed remembering that moment.

“My pants were so destroyed at the end” he chuckled shaking his head.

(Y/N) was about to make a comment on how his fat ass helped him to not get too hurt but their attentions were caught by the sound of movement on the bushes behind them.

“Did you hear that?” (Y/N) whispered, sitting up as fast as she could to look in the direction of the sound.

A low growl followed the noises and that was enough for Colby to get up and help (Y/N) get up too “get it the car, fast” he whispered grabbing the blanket and giving it to her while he opened the door for her.

The first thought that came into mind for Colby was that they could be attacked by an animal, so he had to put (Y/N) in a safe place, but before he could close the door they heard some high pitched whimpers coming from the same place.

That got (Y/N) out of the car and running to the bushes, followed by Colby telling her to stop.

“Oh my god”

“What? (Y/N) what is it? Be careful” when Colby approached her he could finally calm down, it was a dog and he was trapped on the bush.

“Hey buddy, I’m going to help you, okay?” (Y/N) was crazy about animals, if it was for her she would have so many, but sadly she was never in the same place for too long and having a pet wasn’t a good idea under those conditions.

When the dog kept whining and liked her hand, (Y/N) took it as a sign to proceed and help the young looking dog to get out of the mess he had got himself into.

“He has no collar and he’s so dirty it looks like he’s been around here for a while” she announced looking up at Colby as she kept caressing the dog to keep him calm.

Colby, who also happened to be an animal lover, saw his opportunity in the palm of his hand “why don’t we go back to my place and we get him clean and fed?” if there was a way to (Y/N)’s heart, it was definitely that one.

“I think that’s a great idea” she looked down at the scared dog again “we’re taking care of you my friend, don’t worry I won’t let Colby pick the food, he has no taste” she joked, picking up the dog and winking at a fake hurt looking Colby.

The car ride was smoother than expected, luckily it was the middle of the night, which meant no traffic at all. It was good thing too because Colby was paying more attention to the interactions (Y/N) was having with the dog than where he was going.

Something none of them had realized was how, as much as they have been hanging out, (Y/N) hadn’t put a foot on Colby’s apartment. Being in the outside world together gave them many private moments, but being alone in Colby’s home was different, that feeling of anything could happened was settled as soon as they both walked through the room.

“The bathroom is over there” Colby pointed to the only closed door in the open space.

(Y/N) made her way over while she looked around his apartment, taking in how empty it looked, there was no decorations at all and she was thankful for that, if she had seen any of their old decorations she would have died inside.

“I made you a sandwich” Colby announced, walking into the bathroom twenty minutes after (Y/N), who had already washed the dog and was drying him off with a towel.

“Did you make it or did you go to the store to buy it? Because it took you a while” she joked, wrapping her new little friend with the towel and snuggling him.

Truth was that Colby just needed some time by himself, gather his thoughts before walking into that bathroom. It was getting very difficult to be around (Y/N) while they were playing by the ‘only friends’ rules.

“Making sandwiches is an art, it takes time” he sat on the tiled floor, right in front of (Y/N), who was also sitting on the floor. They stayed in silent for a few minutes until Colby broke it “I always thought we would get a dog.”

Was he too tired to stop himself from saying things like those? He definitely was.

“But then I left” (Y/N) whispered, avoiding eye contact.

Was she too tired to follow that conversation? Oh you better believe she was.

“But then we broke up” he corrected her.

“Because I left” they hadn’t talked about their relationship, not even just once ever since they had started this new found friendship. So Colby couldn’t help but give (Y/N) a confused look, not understanding where she was coming from with that.

“Okay, if that is what you believe then you could say I didn’t do anything to try and stop you from leaving” he said once he understood she was, in some level, blaming herself for it “you followed your passion and there’s nothing wrong with that”

Colby’s soft tone and sweet words made (Y/N) finally look at him in the eyes, feeling less guilty. She wasn’t sorry for leaving and following her dreams, but was she coastally wondering what could’ve been if she had stayed with Colby? Of course.

“It doesn’t mean I didn’t wanna stay too” at the end of the day there was two things she was passionate about, trying to transform the world in a better place and her future with Colby Brock.

“I know, (Y/N)” he couldn’t lie, it felt good to hear that. He knew she was heartbroken for leaving and that gave away a hint of how bad she wanted to stay, but hearing it out loud felt so fucking good “but do you really think I would’ve let you give up on an opportunity like that?” she shook her head, earning a smile from Colby, who moved closer, until the only thing keeping them apart were their legs “That’s correct, I wouldn’t’ve had let you” he placed a hand on her knee “don’t ever think I blamed this on you leaving, not for a second. I’m so fucking proud of you for chasing after your dreams”

“Thank you, Colbster” she smiled, the use of the nickname she had given him shortly after meeting Colby made her slightly flush. The dog found that the perfect moment to lick her sad face away “okay, okay I’ll let you go” she chuckled letting the dog free to run around the bathroom before storming out of it to explore the rest of the apartment.

“I put some of the food we bought on a bowl in the kitchen, someone’s going to be surprised” although he was apparently focusing in something new (Y/N) couldn’t stop repeating his words in her head and how badly she wanted to kiss him right now, but she couldn’t.

Just like that she made her decision, the dog would be the sing she needed to see what the universe had to tell her.

The following morning, bright and early, Colby and (Y/N) went to the closest vet to find out if the dog had a microchip, which would lead to an owner and then to discover if the dog had run away or if it had been abandoned – a heartbreaking theory on (Y/N)’s eyes.

While the vet did her job It was visible how nervous (Y/N) was, Colby couldn’t figure out why and he was planning on asking, but the vet talked sooner, announcing the dog had a microchip and that she was going to call the number that appeared on the computer.

“You’re going to make a hole on the ground if you keep bouncing your leg like that” Colby joke, earning a smile from (Y/N).

She didn’t answer though; she was too deep in her thoughts. If that dog didn’t have an owner that wanted him that was it, she was staying in LA, she would find a place to live, a job, she would take care of her new little friend and she would work as hard as it needed to be worked to gain Colby back.

“Good news, the owner is on her way, she says she’s been looking for Oreo like crazy” Oreo, so that was the dog’s name, who the fuck names their dog after an Oreo? Okay probably (Y/N) would do it, it was a cute name and she was just too upset to recognize it.

“Great, that’s awesome to hear, right?” Colby had to take the lead and talk when there was no reaction from (Y/N), who only nodded when Colby tried to get her to respond in any way possible.

The thing is, Colby still knows (Y/N) like the palm of his hand, he can feel how upset she is when she gets slightly flushed as a reaction of how hard she is trying to hold back the tears, but what he can’t understand is the reason why she is so upset all of the sudden, was he missing something?

So the poor and confused boy does the only thing he can think of at the moment. He places his hand on her back, rubbing small circles at first and when (Y/N) doesn’t try to stop him from doing so he pulls her closer “What’s wrong?” the vet is too occupied with Oreo to hear what Colby has whispered to (Y/N), which (Y/N) is thankful for because the last thing she wants is for the vet to think she’s crazy.

“’m just tired” the lack of eye contact wasn’t helping her in the fail attempt of lying “and hungry”

“We can go to Rae’s for breakfast” although Colby knew that wasn’t the problem, he followed along “and then take a nap” and maybe too carried away, but the last thing he wanted to do was to finish their time together, even if he was just as tired as she was because they stayed up all night talking and playing with the dog they had just found in the middle of nowhere.

For some reason he felt like if he let go of her in that moment she would be gone again, just like if she had never been here in the first place. That’s why when (Y/N) nodded and leaned her head on his shoulder he felt the biggest relieved he’s felt in so long.

They were given the option of staying until Oreo’s owner came to pick him up and as much as (Y/N) would have loved to witness the encounter in other given circumstances now it wasn’t the best time for it, so they left to get Colby’s promised breakfast at Rae’s.

From the first second they put a foot outside the vet clinic Colby was dying to ask what was really the reason of (Y/N) mood swing, sadly he didn’t feel in the right position to push her that much in order to get an answer.

“Can you take me straight to Tara’s? I’m really tired, I just want to sleep” Colby felt like he had lost a battle, one that (Y/N) had no idea about, but somehow she had defeated Colby.

“Yeah, sure, I can take you there” (Y/N) hated to be the reason why things had got so awkward between them so fast. With Colby too afraid of making the wrong move and pushing her away forever and with (Y/N) too upset to even pretend she was fine.

_

Colby’s suspicions were correct, for the next three days he couldn’t get a hold of (Y/N), she wouldn’t answer his calls and the texts she did answer were very vague. The whole situation was equally confusing and frustrating for Colby. On one hand he was fine with giving (Y/N) her space, leaving him some time for himself too; on the other hand, he couldn’t point where did he go wrong, what did he do to make her so upset and disappear for three days, that was all he had in his mind most of the time, but it also didn’t stop him from keeping up with his busy schedule and daily life.

It wasn’t much different for (Y/N), she felt like the longer she tried to stay away from Colby the harder it would be to fall back into good terms, after all she would have to explain why she was acting so weird.

The lack of sleep and the realization of still being very much in love with Colby were the two main factors that got (Y/N) so upset. She wasn’t one to believe in signs from the universe, but in that moment at the vet she would have follow her plan of staying in LA if the universe had made that dog one without an owner, that would have been her sign. On the contrary, she took that sign as one of take your things and run before you make a mistake.

Hence why she is upset, she doesn’t believe in signs, but she made herself believe in that one, which was followed by the call she’s been afraid to receive the very next day.

“You look awfully quiet, my dear” of course the second (Y/N) got the news she went to the only place she could feel better again, Rae’s, where Carly made her the best strawberry milkshake, yet (Y/N) didn’t feel any better and Carly could see it.

“isn’t Colby joining you today?” Rog didn’t mean any harm, he was very happy when Carly told him about having the young couple reunited again after such a long time, but the reminder of Colby hurt.

“No… it’s just me today” (Y/N) couldn’t even look up to answer his question, she was too occupied moving the straw around the half full glass, as if the answer would pop out of it any second.

As Carly and Rog kept taking care of preparing meals and drinks (Y/N) watched them, this time paying more attention than ever before. How Rog would look at Carly from time to time and a smile would appear on his face, how Carly had an endless list of cute nicknames for Rog or simply the way they would crack jokes with the other every other minute.

“How did you and Carly meet?” (Y/N) asked Rog when he got closer whipping the other side of the counter.

“Way back in the day, we were neighbors” just talking about it put a smile on Rog’s face “I didn’t stop until she agreed to go on a date with me”

“Where did you take her?” (Y/N) was already hooked on the story, she loved old people and their life stories.

“To the movies, of course” Carly was a big fan of everything movie related and the decoration on the diner showed her passion, they had the walls covered with movie posters “I was scared to death of her father, but I managed to build the courage and ask for permission. Best decision I ever made”

“How did you know she was the one for you?” you could say she was trying to get advice without asking for it.

Rog stopped cleaning the glasses that had piled on the counter and looked at the lost girl sitting at the stool on the other side of the counter, he could read the look in her eyes.

“It took me some time, some mistakes were made, but without those mistakes we wouldn’t be here today” now (Y/N) was intrigued, but she felt that asking about those mistakes was way too invasive “I asked myself many times if Carly was the woman I would end up marrying, if there was someone else out there for me, because when we started dating it didn’t feel like I could have a connection with anyone else the way I had it with her” (Y/N) stayed quiet, wanting him to continue “but when she and her family moved here , the place she had always dreamt of, I had to let her go, still one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do to this day. I told myself it all happened because it was meant to be like that, I had to stay in New York and work in my father’s business and she was meant to move here” (Y/N) couldn’t help but compare their story with hers and Colby’s “It didn’t take me long to realize what really mattered to me and let me tell you it wasn’t working for my father” he laughed, probably at the memory of those golden years they lived together.

“Did Carly wait for you?” although (Y/N) loved seeing him so happy as he told his story, she couldn’t hold back the questions.

“Oh no, I would have never asked her that, we truly believed we wouldn’t see each other again, but the second I found her… things fell back into place” well, now that was true love “almost fifty years later here we are”

“It’s a beautiful story, Rog” (Y/N) smiled, already deep in thought, putting into perspective everything she knew or at least everything she thought she knew.

“You seem conflicted” Rog had caught on early when she asked the first question why did she wanted to now. After all he had witness the mess Colby had been for the first few weeks after (Y/N) left.

“I am conflicted” with a heavy sigh (Y/N) let her head fall on her crossed arms over the counter.

The action made Rog laugh, that kind of sympathetic laugh you can’t be mad at. He wasn’t stupid, in fact his age and his life experience made him a very wise human being.

“If you want my humble opinion” he started, stopping just to build some expectation, which made (Y/N) look up again “I think you already have the answer you need, you just haven’t accepted yet, so whatever it is you are conflicted about accept it already and put yourself to work”

It wasn’t admitting that Rog was right, (Y/N) already knew what she really wanted to do, but the thought of actually putting herself to work to get to her goal scared her too much.

Fuck that, it was about time she got up and made up for the time she was losing. Rog could see in her eyes how fast her demeanor was changing, leaving the old man with a proud smile on his lips.

“I’m going to do it” (Y/N) stood up from the bar stool, almost knocking it down with how fast she did it “thank you Rog” before running out of the diner, with an unfinished milkshake, she left a five-dollar bill for Rog not waiting for her change, the man deserved the big tip.

_

“Jake, what does it take so long to pack? Seriously dude”

Colby had been waiting for over an hour for Jake to give him a heads up whenever he had finished packing for their trip and he couldn’t stop texting Jake to hurry up. He wanted to leave as soon as possible, although it was going to be a ‘bussiness trip’ because they were visiting haunted places for the Sam and Colby channel, Colby really wanted to be a few days away from LA.

“Brother relax, don’t pay it with me if (Y/N) doesn’t answer your calls”

It wasn’t a secret for anyone how (Y/N) affected Colby even if he didn’t want it to be that way, none of them couldn’t help it. Jake didn’t mean harm with his comments, they were all in a joking tone, he felt like it was better to joke about it than to make it this taboo topic that made things weird.

“If you’re not ready in ten minutes I’m ditching your ass”

After sending that last text Colby let himself fall on the couch with a deep sigh, why couldn’t he stop thinking about her just for five minutes? A little break for his tired brain and aching heart.

Meanwhile, not so far from Colby’s complex apartment the running hadn’t stopped for (Y/N) when she left the diner, she kept running down the street, through the sea of people that couldn’t care less for the crazy looking girl trying not to trip and fall.

Two blocks into running she was feeling exhausted and the thought running through her mind was how the next thing she was doing was getting in shape.

---

The banging on his apartment door straddled Colby, he wished it was different, but it caught him off guard. Normally none of his friends even knock, they either walk in without knocking or they let him know they’re going up the stairs through a text, so it couldn’t be Jake, the only one Colby was waiting.

“(Y/N)?” it felt like he was in such an emotional rollercoaster in that moment that he couldn’t trust his eyes, but she was there, standing in front of him, breathless from all the running.

“I-“ so breathless she felt like it would take her a while to form a sentence “’m sorry” the frown in Colby’s face deepened.

“Sorry? For what?” (Y/N) quickly put a hand up to let him know she needed to talk and not be interrupted.

It was nice to know she cared enough to acknowledge the fact that she had been avoiding him and she needed to apologize for that, but it wasn’t necessary to run all the way there, she could’ve just called.

(Y/N) took a deep breath, enough to form a full sentence without being cut by her lungs’ terrible performance “I’m sorry for pushing you away when that’s not what I really want”

The possibilities were endless for Colby’s reaction, that was the most terrifying part for (Y/N), who felt her heart start beating again when a small grin appeared on Colby’s face.

He had to admit something, in all the years he had known the breathless girl in front of him, there wasn’t many times he could recall seeing her admit so clearly she was doing something wrong – which was the most beautiful form of art in his eyes.

“Okay… I forgive you” she could recognize the smug smile on his face, he was enjoying this moment in many ways and although in the past she would had told him to stop, now she just wanted to look at him smile in any way possible “Can I ask why you started acting so weird though? I think apologies usually come with explanations.”

It wasn’t a surprise for her, who in their right mind wouldn’t ask? So she invited herself into the living room, where Colby followed after closing the door.

“I… really wanted to keep the dog we found” she admitted turning around to meet his intrigued eyes, the same ones that asked her to keep going “I thought if he didn’t have an owner who wanted him it would be a signal that I should stay in LA, no more voluntary work around the world” Colby was feeling conflicted, he loved the idea of her staying in LA, having her back completely.

The constant movement in her hands was making both of them nervous, they didn’t even take a seat – Colby didn’t mainly because she seemed too anxious to keep herself in place.

“But the dog had an owner” Colby took a step closer, taking her hands in his so she would stop playing with them. It seemed like the physical contact made her focus better, nodding while she looked down at their hands before looking up at him again.

“And that meant I didn’t have a reason to stay here” the tone of her voice went down, now that he was so close to her it felt like the right choice “or so I wanted to make myself believe”

“Do you want to stay?” Colby was doing the best he could to keep himself together, it wasn’t too difficult most of the time, but (Y/N) had always been an exception to any existing rule.

She timidly nodded “I do wanna stay” if someone decided to check her heart rate in that moment she would have broken the machine, because her heart was beating so fast she could pass out at any second “but I realized that way before we found out about the dog’s owner” the confusion on Colby’s face made it clear to her that he had no idea what she meant “I knew I wanted to stay when I realized I’m still in love with you”

Exactly the words he had been dreaming to hear again, a moment he had been waiting and had made himself believe it wouldn’t happen ever again – oh how wrong he was.

If this was a dream he wasn’t risking waking up, so instead trying to learn how to breathe again he let go of her hands and moved them up to cup her face delicately before crashing his lips with hers.

That wasn’t exactly the reaction (Y/N) was expecting, but definitely the best outcome. Of course she kissed him back, this time with no doubts or regrets. It felt so new yet still like coming back home after a horrible day, so warm and welcoming.

Her hands quickly made their way to his waist, tugging on his shirt to keep him close, a small detail that made a spark run through Colby’s body, who was starting to feel breathless from the kiss and the adrenaline of his intense emotions taking over him.

Even when they pulled apart the electricity trying to keep them together was vibrant.

“That was… unexpected” she smiled, intuitively licking her lips that still tasted like him.

“I know; it was unexpected for me too” her sudden love confession was beyond anything he could’ve imagined.

They stayed in silent, looking at each other with silly smiles on their faces – those smiles you get in the so called honeymoon phase of your relationship. In this case Colby and (Y/N) had a long history behind them, but it had always been like the honeymoon phase for them no matter how long they had been together.

Her hands had made their way up to his jaw, letting her fingers dance along his soft skin “Can we get a dog?” she asked out of nowhere.

The look of adoration on Colby’s eyes only intensified after that question, how had he functioned all that time without her? Without feeling the way he was feeling in that very second?

“I thought you’d never ask” this time it was (Y/N) the one who pulled him down for another breathtaking kiss.

There was still a long road in front of them before getting a dog, of course, but the main point was that they were in the same page, the both wanted the same thing and it was as simple as having each other by their side.

Colby’s phone went off, interrupting the heated kiss. When he looked at his phone he saw the incoming called from Jake, just like that he was brought back to reality, he had to leave to the airport, he wasn’t going to be able to enjoy (Y/N) for at least a few more days.

“Fuck” he cursed under his breath, hanging up on Jake “I have a trip with the boys and I should be going to the airport by now”

“It’s okay” giving him a reassuring smile she pecked his lips one more time “have fun, find some ghosts and tell me all about it” her words made him feel automatically better about leaving “I’ll be here when you come back”

His arms wrapped around her tightly, bringing her into a warm hug, one that he needed more than any of them knew. He took in her sweet scent, while she kissed his shoulder and locked her arms behind his back to hug him tighter.

__

Just as she had promised when Colby came back she was there, not only in LA, but in his apartment. She had found a way to go inside, decorating the place with a bunch of lit candles and flowers she had got for him, because even if he couldn’t keep them alive Colby had always enjoyed getting flowers. She had also made a welcome back sign and since he was coming back late at night she had also made dinner for the two of them.

Colby didn’t know he needed that in his life as much as he did when he saw the whole thing, now remembering all the times he had come back to an empty apartment felt so sad.

“Oh my god” the mixture between his nervous laugh and big smile let her see how much he liked the surprise.

“Welcome home!” (Y/N) exclaimed, jumping from behind the couch – Colby’s smile only went bigger “I promise I wasn’t trying to make a séance with all these candles” she joked, making him laugh.

The shock and surprise was still very clear in his actions, his face, how he couldn’t stop looking around the place “how did you- when- ugh I have so many questions” his focus finally falling back on her.

“I told you I would be here when you came back and Sam has keys to get in here so I just had to nicely ask for them, get them from Kat and get everything inside” she explained “you like it?”

“Oh believe me, I’ve never been so happy to be back home” letting his backpack fall on the floor he shortened the distance between them and kissed her, not holding back for even a second, he was giving it all in that passionate kiss that took her breath away.

“don’t you want to have dinner?” she chuckled between kisses, for Colby there wasn’t time to waste, it was visible in how his hands traveled down her body, stopping one of his hands on her butt and giving it a squeeze while with the other he moved the hair away from her face to kiss her lips again.

“Dinner can wait, I have other priorities at the moment” he whispered, bringing his other hand to her butt too and picking her up, gaining a grin from her.

“mhmmm, I’ve always liked your way of thinking” she added leaning in to kiss down his jaw.

Just like that everything fell back in place, the same way their bodies feel in Colby’s bed. They had found their way back to each other, like (Y/N)’s lips found their way down Colby’s neck. Bodies fitting perfectly together after a long time trying to fill that space with the best new thing, not knowing there was nothing or no one who could compare to the way they worked together.

tagged:  @dolanshemm

[dxmedstudent]

DX update

So you may remember that I’ve been self-isolating for COVID-19 type symptoms. I’ve been looking after confirmed patients (albeit the mildly affected ones who are wardable), so it’s pretty likely this is the real deal, even thuogh it’s too late to test me, now. I’m doing OK - this is not a scary Boris-style update. I just thought since I haven’t spoken much that I should let you all know that I’m doing OK. My symptoms are mostly better - the myalgia and headaches have mostly died down, though they were pretty annoying at their worst. I described it as feeling like an Ent - waking up in the afternoon  was a pain because you just didn’t want to get out of bed if it made you feel sore and creaky. I only got up and about because I didn’t want a DVT.  The abdominal symptoms are bearable but still nigglingly present. I can’t wait for my tummy to stop feeling achey and upset - but since I have IBS I’m used to that enough that it’s no biggie.  I’m not feverish any more. I feel less SOB, though I only felt mildly so at times - like you’re a bit more out of puff than usual. The cough is mostly better, but sometimes it kicks off again pretty annoyingly.  I’ve walked out of this without my sense of smell, but that’s likely to come back, eventually. If this is all I have to sacrifice during this pandemic, then I’m lucky.  I feel generally less shitty -  I was feeling pretty sorry for myself at the beginning of the week but I feel much more myself, now. I’m still probably really tired - I haven’t had a chance to test my stamina since I got ill because all I’m allowed to do is stay in my room. But I have a feeling that when I go back to work I’m going to feel really wiped. What’s it like having likely coronavirus? In my case, like the flu. Shitty, but not life-threateningly so. And yet, the thing they don’t warn you about is how it’ll play on your mind - knowing that you might be one of the unlucky ones to get really sick. And knowing that you have to try your best not to infect anyone. One of my dear friends is also going through it, and the fear is real.  The worst thing is that usually when you’re ill people want to come round and make you feel better, but when you’re likely to have coronavirus that’s usually the worst thing that can happen. Unfortunately, you still have all the same instincts to seek love and reassurance that you usually have when you are sick - so you know that you should stay alone, but you might still crave being taken care of, or at least kept company. Because the people we love make us feel better.

Review: 2/10 stars. I would not recommend getting coronavirus. 2 stars because it scores you a few days off work, but you have to stay at home and you’ll probably feel miserable. I’ve been trapped in a flat I’m not fond of (It’s OK but not exactly home) for a week, even though the weather is nice and I’d love to go outside. Though fortunately I’m very well supplied with food and medicine and entertainment. I’ve been talking daily with family, the Guy and my friends, all of whom have done their best to entertain me and make me take care of myself. I’ve been sleeping a lot. A lot. I haven’t really had the energy to do anything but sleep and play games, TBH. When I’ve dragged myself out of bed to video chat with loved ones or take part in activities like playing games, or a virtual pub quiz with his friends, I’ve recuperated by zonking out the rest of the time. I might look quite functional at a distance, but that’s only because I’ve been sleeping almost all the rest of the time. My family call me every day to make sure I’m alive - they see the stories of nurses in their 30s suddenly dying, and it’s very real to them. I feel bad for them - if it was my kid sick with coronavirus I’d probably be scared, too. But I can’t do anything to take the worries away, when none of us know what the long term sequelae might be. I am glad they didn’t tell my relatives until I was much better - I really don’t want my entire extended social circle to think I’m dying, and there’s really no need for everyone to stress over me. My siblings have been encouraging my Animal Crossing obsession. It’s not th only game I’ve been playing in isolation, but it’s something that’s been easy to play even when I feel pretty rotten.  It happened to come out at just the right time to make me feel better, and that’s pretty lucky. My friends check in every day - they reminded me that I won our sweepstake on ‘who catches coronavirus first’ - sadly there is no prize unless you count myalgia as a win.  We spend the days sharing useful information about coronavirus, but also just trying to keep each other sane. Another of my friends is sick, and she seems to have gone down a bit worse than  I  have, so I hope she gets well soon. Colleagues are going down in their droves, according to our sickness reporting group, but I don’t know how unwell most of them are. I hope they are doing OK.  I haven’t managed to catch up with everyone I care about yet, because messaging gets kind of overwhelming when you don’t feel great. I worry about a lot of people, but I can’t keep up with everyone right now, so I’ve had to take my time and conserve my energy. Still, I’ve been checking in with as many friends as I can, and so far almost everyone is doing OK. I’m hoping to keep connected with as many of them as I can, and already planning things to do with them. The Guy checks up on how I’m feeling daily. He’s much more zen about things, and his approach is always “If I can’t change it, I should try not to stress about it”. Which means he took our separation better than me, at least when I was feeling sick. I think that’s partly because whilst  he hopes this may be over shortly, I know it’s going to be a long haul. Though he does have to tell me to take it easy and look after myself every day so I guess he’s not stress free XD I know this must be stressful for him, too but he can’t change the risks I’m facing. That said, he’s more the quiet, practical sort, anyway. So rather than moping, he suggests playing games or watching things together and invites me to whatever he’s doing with his friends - he did before, whenever I was around, but now that everything’s online it’s easier to be there. Now that his friends have transferred to roll20 under the lockdown, he’s invited me to join their DnD campaign because he knows how much I miss DnD - and him.  It’s funny how little things can make a big difference, when they are all you have to look forward to. I haven’t been looking forward to my days off, at all because I no longer had stuff to do - but he and I try to book activities on weekend days so it still feels special. My friends are a lot busier than his (because medics) so we haven’t done as much though we talk often, but I’m grateful that his friends have basically adopted me.  As a left over from my friendless days I always feel a bit awkward joining a group or making friends but they’ve been very welcoming and that makes me happy because I know it makes him happy. At first I felt like an impostor in all their group chats (guys, have you arrived in a relationship when you’re in nearly all the group chats? I’m pretty sure that’s a milestone or something), but I’m gradually accepting that they genuinely don’t mind me being there. Which is nice. They mean a lot to him, so I respect them and want to be a good friend, and I genuinely like them too.

I’m looking forward to going back to work. I’m not sure I’m 100% over this - I’m fine from a rules point of view, I’m just not 100% better. But I have to try and see how I get on. I need to be occupied and useful, because otherwise I’m just going to stress and sleep all day and feel mildly guilty about being sick. Which I’ve been told I should not be feeling, but there it is.  We’ll see how things go.

[onlyssca]

Teach me - byler

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22132717#main

Mike had invited his best friend over for the afternoon. For no particular reason. He just wanted to see him. The watched a movie sat on the couch of the basement. Limbs tangled under the blanket.

Then they talked for at least half an hour, listening to some music on the radio. To finally finish by playing video games, sat on the couch, sides pressed together.

“Hey um, Mike?” Will stopped playing for a second.

“Yeah” Mike said not looking away from the screen.

“There’s this boy in my art class, he kinda asked me out and we have a date this weekend” Will’s words made Mike’s throat tighten. His character dying in the video game was a great metaphor to what he was feeling right now.

“That’s great” He tried his best to sound genuine even though in reality he felt a tear in his heart.

“Yeah but I’m so nervous. I’ve never done anything like this before, I don’t know what to do… Could you maybe give me some advice?” Will asked.

Give Will some advice to date some other guy that may lead to a long lasting relationship that would constantly break Mike’s heart, no way!

“Sure” He mentally slapped himself. “I mean I don’t know what dating a boy is like, but I can give date advice”

Mike only dated two people, two girls. His first ever girlfriend was El, but they were quite young and didn’t really know what love was and it ended up with them being more friends than anything. Then last year, he was seeing this small brunette named Ashley. Her big green eyes certainly didn’t remind him of someone else.

His relationship with Ash wasn’t serious, the whole Party knew about it but never judged him. The quick making out sessions in the school bathroom and lack of romantic dates, was nothing more than Mike’s way to keep his mind off his best friend who he had fallen deeply in love with.

“Okay so how do I start?” Will suddenly stood up and walked a little bit away from the sofa to shake his arms and stretch his legs.

“Well,” Mike followed him and stood in front of him. “you can start by holding hands maybe” Mike said and Will simply nodded. He waited a couple of seconds before he grabbed Mike’s hand. Then looked at him in the eyes. Mike wasn’t expecting it but went along.

“Like this?” Will asked.

“More like…” He moved his hand, interlocking their fingers “…this” They both stared at their hands. Mike felt his heart sank, the way Will’s small hand fit perfectly in his felt so natural.

Mike looked up and their eyes met. They stared at each other for a moment. Mike unconsciously started to rub his thumb on Will’s hand, only aware of it when he felt Will reproduce the movement, which brought Mike’s eyes back on their linked hands.

“Yeah just like that” Mike smiled.

“Then what?” Will asked, clueless.

“Uuuh… Try complimenting him” Mike implicitly told Will that he could try on him. Will bit his bottom lip, avoiding Mike’s eyes instead looking him up and down trying to come up with something nice to say.

“I like your sweater” Will tried. The comment made Mike chuckle.

“I mean yes, that is a compliment but maybe try something more… personal.” Mike clarified still holding Will’s hand.

“Like what?”

“Like…” Mike’s heart was racing anticipating what he was about to say. “I love the way your eyes lit up when you smile” His stomach definitely did a backflip right there.

Will’s eyes fluttered as he took a deep breath, not expecting something so personal. Mike though that maybe he went too far and started to pull away.

“or something else, that applies to him, I-” He said while pulling away, but Will tightened his grip on Mike’s hand to bring him back.

“You know how people have their heads in the clouds,” Mike turned his body to face Will. “well mine is often in the stars because the freckles on your face are like constellations.” If Will’s cheeks were slightly pink while saying it Mike’s definitely were bright red and so warm he thought, he might have rosacea. But what he was the most aware of was the way his heart melted.

“Y-yeah that’s, that’s very effective” They finally dropped their hands down. Mike realized his was so sweaty. He wiped it off on his jeans, before bringing it to his neck avoiding Will’s eyes who did the same. Mike broke the silence with his next sentence.

“Well, I think you’re good for a first date.” Mike said walking back to the couch.

“What if he tried to kiss me?” Will blurted out. This scenario never crossed his mind but if Will was to date someone they would end up kissing sooner or later. He hated it but he couldn’t do anything about it.

“Unless you don’t want to, you just kiss him back” Mike said sadly. Not looking at him.

“I-I don’t know how to kiss…” Will said.

“Oh, well, it’s not that hard-”

“Will you show me?” He caught his sleeve, stopping Mike’s on the way.

Mike quickly lifted his head not believing what he just heard. It was a terrible idea. If he crossed that line he wasn’t sure he would recover from it. But his eyes unfortunately met Will’s puppy dog eyes. How could he say no to him? He simply nodded, not trusting his voice at the moment.

They were back in the same position as earlier. Facing and looking at each other, not saying anything. They stayed like that for a minute, leaving time for Mike to collect himself and think of what to say, what to do.

“So, you can start by holding his face or let him hold yours” Which is exactly what Mike did, he was more comfortable that way, and it was easier as he was the tallest of the two. “that way you can rest your hand on his shoulder or arm, for balance” Will brought his right hand to Mike’s shoulder.

“Like that?” He asked, his eyes not decided which eye to look at, and went from right to left and vice versa. Mike nodded and placed his other hand on Will’s waist, applying a little pressure. Will felt the hand burning through his sweatshirt. He briefly looked at it.

“It’s easier to bring him closer that way” He did exactly that as soon as the words left his mouth. Their bodies were almost touching. Will also placed his own hand on Mike’s hips.

“Then we just?” Will said implying the kiss.

“Uh-huh” Mike nodded. “Just remember to breathe through your nose instead of your mouth, that way the kiss lasts longer.”

“Got it”

“And you don’t have to, but keeping your eyes closed is…”

“less creepy.” He finished Mike’s sentence.

“Yeah”

“Okay”

Mike was ready to lean in but realized that he didn’t have to lean too far because they’ve been leaning since the beginning. They closed the gap and their lips collided. Mike felt his heart exploding as their lips moved together, sending electricity to the vey edges of his body. Will’s lips tasted so sweet, like candy almost. The kept on kissing for about 15 seconds before Will spoke against Mike’s lips.

“Do I need to do something while we kiss?” The way he phrased it made Mike forget about the art class boy and feel like the sentence was directed at him. He pulled away, just enough to be able to see Will.

“Yes, no, I mean, you can just kiss me” He was meant to say him. “but if you really want to you can move your hands” Mike dived back in for another kiss.

“Where to?” Will spoke against lips.

“Anywhere” Mike brought their body even closer, by putting his arm around Will’s waist, and moved his thumb on the small boy’s cheek, giving him an example.

Will moved one hand to the back of Mike’s neck, and the other was sliding down his back. “Like this?”

“Yes” He almost moaned out.

“Anything else?” They both pulled away and opened their eyes. They could see that the other was in the same messy state.

“Well,” Mike tried to catch his breath as he watched Will do the same. “There are a lot of other things you can do but then we’re talking about making out not just a simple kiss” As if what they’ve been doing wasn’t already making out.

“Okay” Will looked at him seriously and waited.

“Oh” It hit him that Will was willing to continue. “Okay ummm… just like before, the hands wandering and,” He looked away for a moment “you can also bite, not too hard, and put tongues…” He listed the possibilities. “But really, you jus- as you kiss you kinda see what the other person likes and you go along with it” He brought his attention back to Will who was glancing at his lips.

They leaned back in and kissed once again. This time more passionately, adding Mike’s suggestions to the bliss. Seeing as Will got more comfortable and started to make decisions for himself Mike encouraged him to do so.

“You can also feel free to add pressure or do something else you think you might like-” Mike totally forgot the rest of the sentence. His mind went blank as he felt Will kiss lowering to his neck, and gave him a love bite

“or do that!” Mike said with a higher pitched voice. He tried his best not to moan but it became impossible as his whole body went weak when Will combined the neck kiss and the slight hair pulling. It was a bit too much for mike so he pulled Will’s lips back to his. At this point they were both very aware that they had stopped pretending. They stumbled against the coffee table and fell on the couch.

Will ended up in Mike’s lap, grabbing his collar, while Mike held him down afraid that he’d fall again. They slowed their movements down. Mike broke the kiss. Will left his forehead against Mike’s, their eyes still closed.

“Please don’t go on your date.” Mike pleaded him.

“Not a chance… I never planned on going anyway” He said. Which made Mike open his eyes and look confused. “He did ask me out but it’s not him I want… because he’s not the one I’m in love with…” Will confessed staring at the helpless boy below him. Mike was glad he was sitting down because his knees became so weak he would’ve fallen. He felt his heart pumping as his lungs squeezed it when he took a deep breath. His head fell on Will’s chest.

“William Byers you will be the death of me” He mumbled on Will’s chest.

“If you die who’s gonna teach me how to kiss?” Will giggled. Combing Mike’s locks with his fingers.

“You definitely don’t need my tutoring anymore” Mike replied.

“Maybe not for kissing but I might need you to teach me other stuff” He said smirking. Mike looked up to see him smirking down and he froze. Is he implying? Mike went crimson and felt heat radiate through his entire body. “Not right now!” Will made it clear that he was not ready to go further and so was Mike.

“Okay good.” Mike felt relieved. “Because I would’ve died right there” They both laughed.

A couple of minutes past and Will broke the silence. “Soooo” He leaned back straightening his back. “Are you gonna ask me out or?” Will pinched his lips, looking at the ceiling. Mike smiled.

“How about,” He took Will’s hands in his. “I come pick you up, Saturday evening, and we can go see a movie, I’ll buy you popcorn AND reese's pieces, of course.”

“Wow so generous” Will joked

“I can be sometimes. And if you’re nice we can also grab an ice-cram on the way home. What do you say?”

“Is it a date?” Will asked smiling.

“It’s a date.” Mike smiled

“Then I’d love that!” Will answered and placed a soft kiss on his boyfriend’s lips.

[sadisticpussies]

A Friend in Me

(Rina one shot)

Pairing: Ricky Bowen/Gina Porter

Fandom: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series

Note: These two characters have AMAZING chemistry together. I love how well they both understand each other. That car scene definitely turned me into a rina shipper (fight me, idc.) I'm here for them being friends right now because they both need that at the moment. But I would also love to see the show explore them as a couple in future seasons. It would be a wasted potential if they didn't.

...

He savagely crunched on the raspberry flavored snow cone that he held in his hands, his curly brown hair wisped in the crisp autumn air as he cruised down the sidewalk, riding his skateboard.

It was an early Saturday afternoon, usually he would be spending his free time with Bed Red, playing video games in his basement while they guzzled down heaps of junk food until their stomachs hurt, but today Ricky needed to go to the one place that always helped him clear his head.

Upon his parents really informing him of the gut wrenching news about their divorce and his dad still sulking on the couch in his melancholia, Ricky was adamant on avoiding going back home in any way that he could. Everything was changing, his family was slowly tearing apart and he didn't know what to do or how to make things better.  

So, he did what he did best; went to the skatepark to clear his mind. Prior to joining the theatre club, Ricky found solace in the skatepark whenever he needed a place to escape to. He would be there for hours, carelessly riding around until his momentary problems perished from his brain. 

Ricky knew that eventually, he would have to confront his new reality about his home life, but right now all he wanted to think about was skating. He silently chewed on the flavored ice, licking the sweet, sticky liquid that coated the shaved ice, savoring in the delicious fruity taste. He effortlessly maneuvers his skateboard down the sidewalk, easing through the pedestrians that walked ahead of him. 

He rode past the park, intending to head directly to the skatepark until he caught vision of a girl sullenly slouched over as she was perched underneath a tree. Squinting his eyes and doing a quick double take, Ricky notices that it's Gina. He plants his foot down onto the pavement of the sidewalk, bringing the skateboard to an abrupt halt. 

Ricky picked up the board and tucked it underneath his arm as he stood there momentarily watching her from afar. He chewed numbly on his bottom lip, hestitant, contemplating if he should approach her or not. He knew that they weren't exactly friends, he'd only given her a ride home after homecoming. But, he assumed that after they talked a bit in the car and expressed how both of their home lives sucked right now, that they were at least friendly acquaintances. 

Exhaling a deep breath of air, Ricky slowly gaitered towards her. She must've heard his footsteps or sensed seomone approaching, because her head quickly snapped up as she turned around, narrowing a grimace at whoever was coming. “Hey, it's just me.” Ricky says, one hand raised defensively in the air and the features of her annoyed scowl slowly smoothed into a small, faint smile at the his presence.

He gives her a small, upward smile in return. He gestures to the empty spot on the ground next to her, nonverbally asking if he could sit. Gina nods as she scoots over and makes room for him. He sits his skateboard down onto the ground before easing next to her. They sit in a stilled silence at first, each of them consumed in their own thoughts, unsure of what to say. Ricky speaks first; softly clearing his throat before asking,  “A-Are you okay?”

And he inwardly winces in chagrin at the question because it was evidently clear that she wasn't. “Sorry, that was a dumb–” 

“No,” Gina says, interjecting him mid-sentence.“It wasn't a dumb question.” She assures him. She averts her gaze down to her folded hands that sat in her lap.  She shrugs her shoulders, smiling sadly before answering, “It's my mom.” She vaguely explains. 

The night of the homecoming dance after he apologized to her for rudely confronting her for coming to the dance with EJ, Ricky remembered her informing him about her having trouble at home too, and how her face fell into a sad frown at the mention of it just as it did right now. “We kinda had a fight about me being in the musical. She thinks it's a waste of time and that I should be doing something more productive.” Gina elaborated with a wry scoff as she shook her head in dismay. 

“Maybe she's right...”

“What? No!” Ricky incredulously exclaimed in rebuttal. Gina lifts her head and looks at him, her eyes widened with a piqued curiosity. Ricky sighed softly as he ran a hand through his pillowy curls. “You are talented, Gina. Someone as talented as you deserves to be in a place that helps showcase that talent. Being in the musical is doing just that. You're passionate about it and you shouldn't let your mom or anyone else make you feel like you don't belong here because you do.” Ricky blushes when he sees the amused smile she's giving him. He bit at the corner of his bottom lip, shrugging a shoulder as he sheepishly rubbed at the back of his neck. 

“Youre not wasting anything. You're exactly where you need to be.” He admits.

Gina smiles, softly, tilting a curious head up at him. Prior to a few words of exchanges in practice, she and Ricky hardly spoke to each other but now here they were talking, having in depth conversations about something that she would never talk about with anyone else. She refrained from being vulnerable and letting people see her soft side, it was a defense mechanism she adapted after constantly being moved from city to city. She never had anyone to talk to, never had someone to actually sit down and listen to her. So, she sheltered her emotions and placated a vivacious façade. 

It was strange, because for reasons unbeknownst to her, she could feel herself wanting to open to her vulnerability. Before meeting him she never felt that way, but whenever she was around Ricky Bowen, Gina could feel heself at a comfortable ease, like she could talk to him without the fear of being judged. They understood each other and she liked that, because she always felt like an outsider wherever she went.

“You hardly know me, how do you know what I'm passionate about?” She quips, playfully, teasing him only a little. 

“Because, I can see it whenever you sing or dance.” He answers truthfully, and Gina feels her heart erratically pulsating against her chest. The blush that flushes his cheeks deepens a rosy scarlet as he averted his eyes up to hers, meeting her gaze. “You're an amazing dancer, probably the best one that I know. You shouldn't think differently just because your mom thinks so. You belong in High School Musical just as much as anyone else.” Ricky adamantly reassures her.

Normally, he probably wouldn't been embarrassed by this admitting, he usually wasn't the type of person to excel at pep talks. With Gina however, it was different. The similarities they shared; with both of them being outsiders and dealing with home drama, he felt like he could talk to her. He understood what she was going through. He too has had those moments of feeling lost and and not having anyone to talk to, of needing a friend to help him get through it.

 

Gina smiled softly in appreciation. “Thanks for saying that and for checking up on me. I know you probably had important things to do.” She says, nodding her head towards his skateboard that laid forgotten in the grass.

Ricky shook his head. “Nah, not really. I was just gonna go to the skatepark for a few hours. I needed to get away from home, you know? It's one of those days.” He exasperates with a heavy sigh and Gina nods her head in understanding.

“Yeah, I've been having a lot of those at home lately.” She somberly confesses, she glanced around the park taking in its natural scenery. “This seems to be the only place besides theatre where I can clear my head after a hard day.” Gina says, and Ricky silently chews on his inner cheek as he contemplates an idea.

“Would you want to come with me to the skatepark?” Gina's eyebrows furrow in curiosity at his suggestion. He elaborates further. “It's where I go when I need a few hours away to myself. I figure why be alone when you can be with a friend instead?”

“Friend?” She repeats, in an aghast surprise. She didn't know that he considered her a friend. Just as she told him before, making friends wasn't easy for her due to her parents constantly moving her around, and now with them finding stability in their small house residing in Salt Lake City, it was still a great challenge for her to make friends as she was still fairly new at school and had an unjustifiable reputation as a mean girl to those in theatre club. People tended to steer away from Gina whenever she walked down the halls, or avoiding talking to her at any cost. Not him though, not Ricky.

“Yeah, a friend.” He rouses to his feet, absentmindedly dusting the dirt off of his jeans before offering her his hand. “Come on, we could take turns riding the board.”

“I don't know how to ride a skateboard.”

He shrugged, still smiling widely at her. “It's okay. I can teach you.” Gina contemplated for a moment before eventually sliding the palm of her hand over his, grasping onto his fingers as he help her to her feet. Ricky reached down and picked up his skateboard, they walked side by side heading to the skatepark.

[ifritini]

So the prompt was from a conversation that basically went “wait video games are real in FFXV that means I can play my favourite games haha nice” which devolved “haha the lads reacting to you falling for vidy game characters” and going with it. Basically I took a shitpost prompt and ran with it. 

Noctis Lucis Caelum

He is OFFENDED the moment you either say it casually or let it slip. After all he's the one who suggested playing the game together to spend time together, only for you to proclaim your love for one of the characters. To think you'd fall for someone that's not him and admit to it just like that? Preposterous. 

In his mind he knows it's all fictional and you truly love him. His heart however? It knows a thing or two about jealousy from even one offhand comment about your new fave video game spouse. There are of course doubts here and there over just how much you truly love him but he tries to ignore them. Success varies depending on his current peace of mind. As best as he tries to keep this jealousy up under wraps, it's hard for Noctis to not subconsciously pout over it. 

He knows you love him more than that person on the television screen but sometimes knowing for himself isn't enough and you telling him that your love for him is far greater if not entirely incomparable to that of a fictional character. He knows it's petty and childish, but he will be smug about it. Perhaps even a "Take that!" directed at them. 

Takes up to teasing you over it. "Oh look, there's your Prince not as charming as me." whenever they appear on screen. No, the pillow to the face won't shut him up no matter how many times you throw it at him. 

Prompto Argentum

He is distraught. Shaken. His own chocobae betraying him like this, in his own home no less. He is quickly reduced into a mess faster than you can add onto your passing comment; "Man I think I'm falling for this character.". He believes his entire love life career has ended then and there. Prompto has been trying to play the game of love and he just got a fatality. 

He's known jealousy towards characters before, wishing he was as cool or as smart as them in the past but now he's found a new type: your affection for them. He puffs out his chest and attempts to be ten times cooler ten times braver and ten times more badass than his newfound rival and it's hard for him to be subtle about it. 

Prompto does need to be told that it's only a passing fictional crush and your love for him outshines the crush for this character, and always will. Sure they're neat but he's the whole cake with a cherry on top.

Apologises weeks later for his crisis because he progressed further in the game and fell in love with a separate character and understands precisely how you feel. You two bond over your fictional crushes and holding their hands while lounging on Prompto's couch holding each other's hands. 

Gladiolus Amicitia

He is indifferent. Partially indifferent. The other part is mildly offended he now has competition he can't square up with face to face. Can this character hold you in their arms? Give you kisses? Take you on long hikes? No? Then what's the point of loving them when he's right there ready to do all that and more. 

He can't say much though. He plays a ton of fighting games (and mostly got good at them to wipe the floor with Noctis whenever they played against each other) and Astrals know how many times he's felt a little swoon over either lady or man who could snap his spine in half with no effort. Not to count the same crushes with the same standards from the plethora of books he's read. To protest your crush would make him a hypocrite and Gladiolus most certainly isn't one. 

Not to say he doesn't slip in "Bet they can't love you as much as I do." and bringing you closer without a warning and smothering you with all the love only he can give. Nope, not jealousy. Not one bit. "You realise I love you more right?" you ask and he just beams like he heard it for the first time again. 

Much like Noctis he will relentlessly tease you over this. No you can't shut him up. No he won't stop. No shoving a pillow in his face won't work like with Noctis and he'll dodge it. But Astrals forbid you find out about his own pile of fictional crushes because it works wonders as a counterattack. 

Ignis Scientia 

Mostly confused over literal pixels managing to get your affection. Not that he blames you considering his schedule offers little free time but he can't help but find himself… Thinking. The day he admits this "thinking" is his cover up for sulking is the day he will die. A small, horrible little thought wonders if you're finally falling out of love with him. Again, he won't blame you due to his work. 

As silly as it is Ignis admits he feels jealousy. To himself only of course. He would rather die than let anyone else know that some fictional person has his heart in a twist over you. Him being so in control over his emotions is his triumph, but after it's been eating away at him after a while it becomes his downfall. 

"Did you really think I'd legitimately choose anyone over you?" comes your response after he finally decides to open up what's causing his most recent fowl mood. He knows it's silly. He assumes you know he knows it's silly. Yet hearing those words has him beaming. Hiding the self assured smug smile becomes harder with each passing second. 

Won't tease you as bad as Noctis and Gladio, but does make a passing comment every now and then. Though instead of teasing you over your crush, it's more in the ilk of "A shame they're not there to hold you like I am." 

Lunafreya Nox Fleuret 

She is FLOORED. What do you mean you love them? And what is she? A worm to you? She will be pouting about this and she will be miffed you can't take her seriously when she looks cute doing anything, including pouting. A shame she is very much so guilty of the same thing. You distinctly remember her talking about some muscle bound sword wielding girl in a television show a day before and how dreamy she was, and a week before about some ditzy male character in a book she found cute. She won't win this. 

Jealous? Absolutely. Does she try to hide it? Yes and the keyword is try. You easily tell what's up when she's frowning at the television and that character appears. She'll have her few attempts at denying anything but finally caves in and admits that she does in fact envy your feelings for a bunch of pixels no matter how small the affection. 

Knows she shouldn't need reassuring that you love her most but that doesn't stop her from revelling it when you confess your undying love. You can tell by the slight puffing up of her chest that she feels a GREAT sense of victory over this. 

It's just back and forth teasing and both your fictional crushes turn into a battlefield. It's all a game who can get the other flustered worse and sadly there are no winners when you both end up a mess. It's all good, and the scores are always settled by cuddles right after the battle is fought. 

Ravus Nox Fleuret 

Frankly he is offended. Granted you cannot tell by his disgruntled look that seems to be ever prevalent no matter his current internal turmoil. He is right there in the flesh and you're fawning over pixels? He just doesn't get it and refuses to. Immediately takes the leap to conclusions and assumes you truly don't love this mess of a man anymore. Laments over his continuous loss and begins coming to terms with his fate of being unloved. 

Tries not to be passive aggressive over it but it turns out it’s something easier said than done. Somehow he manages to perfectly convey it without any words - just glaring an impressive amount of daggers at the television screen. Hasn’t felt this jealous since that time before he could even muster up the courage to confess to you and he found out some random Niflheim soldier was chatting you up. At least then his competition was tangible. How was he to prove himself over some funky colours on the screen? 

The cat’s finally out of the bag and your suspicions are confirmed when he makes his first ever direct remark: “What’s so great about them anyways.”. His tone absolutely takes you aback; he sounds like a sibling who received a second less worth of attention from a parent. Ravus has to get affirmation that you do in fact love him a whole lot more. Ravus will revel in this little fun fact - or would smug be a better word? 

Cannot tease you without feeling jealousy creeping up and he absolutely hates himself for it. And so instead you get little offhand comments such as “Let them best me in a duel and we will see who wins your hand in marriage.” No varying levels of exasperation in your sigh will deter him, he will refuse to relent. 

Ardyn Lucis Caelum

For the most part he is confused. Didn’t really think someone could catch a bad case of the feelings for a fictional character but sometimes it’s best some questions go unanswered. Jealousy? In my Ardyn? It’s… less likely than you think. He knows for a FACT whoever this person is on the screen cannot even begin to compare to what he has. Perhaps their one redeeming factor is not being a walking talking daemon parade and being able to not sting in sunlight but that’s not enough to outshine this package. 

Doesn’t stop him from making a big show out of it all. He sees the chance to dramatically drape himself over your lap, lamenting how his one love has been snatched away by this stranger. The antics cannot and will not end. 

Doesn’t really need confirmation that you do in fact love him more, but appreciates it when you say it nonetheless. That’s simply proving him right and the only thing he loves more than being right is you. The second bonus is more smugness to throw around. “Oh I pity that poor soul, never knowing what true love feels like. Unlike me, of course.”. 

And a pity for you, because he’s found a new weaponised way to tease you with. A whole ten miles farther than Noctis or Gladio could ever wish for, you’d swear he’s writing you some sort of self insert fanfiction on the spot. The pros? He seems to be putting quite a lot of effort into it. The cons? He’s doing it specifically just to fluster you, alongside the things he decides to come up with to achieve that goal. 

Aranea Highwind 

Her confidence has not wavered since she found out. Or rather, it hasn’t wavered that much. Psh, of course you still love her. Right?  Right? Good thing that inner turmoil is kept under wraps. She’d much rather an Astral strike her down where she stands rather than have to admit she has beef with a fictional character you just so happened to take a liking to. 

Gets all in a little jealous twist wondering exactly what she’s missing. What does that pixelated rando have that she doesn’t? A physical body for one and that leaves her ever so slightly questioning her lover capabilities. Has she failed? Is this how it ends? You somehow ride off into the sunset with this character somehow materialised? What a life to live and this shall be her legacy. 

Her act gets thrown off and while normally concerning, this time you’re grateful so you can pinpoint just what’s on her mind. She may huff all she wants but there’s not much one can do caught red handed. Logically she knows she doesn’t need that affirmation but emotionally? By the Astrals does she wanna hear it. “You do realise… I love you more right…?” Damn right you do. Her confidence has reached astronomical new levels. 

There is no grandiose teasing but there is a few smug comments. Her goto is looking at the screen and tutting; “A shame they’ll never be me, huh babe?”. Absolutely takes is as a competition and knows she can win every battle by simply stating that she can do it ten times better, and will do it now given the chance.