#gerri fields imagine

[mister-supernova]

Bringing this back since it’s technically still Valentine’s Day 🫶🏻

A Very Good Bad Night

Pairing: Gerri Fields x Reader

Word Count: 8.1k

Summary: It’s Valentine's Day and you’re in need of a date who can get you through the night for your parent’s wedding anniversary dinner. Who better than your best friend?

Warnings/Genre: Explicit language, minor injuries, shitty family dynamics, FLUFF, light angst, friends-to-lovers

a/n: the way I wrote this with the intention of posting it on Valentine’s Day lmaoo better late than never plus I love me some fluffy Gerri shit

There was no sugarcoating the fact that Valentine’s Day was your least favorite day out of the year, but it wasn’t for the same reason that most single people hate the holiday. Ever since you were a kid, your parents made it a tradition to spend their anniversary bringing your family together for a formal dinner.

In theory, this sounds like it should be a nice night out with the people who brought you into this world and it probably would be if your parents weren’t such self-absorbed assholes who treat you like the black sheep of the family.

The obvious way out of this situation would be to avoid the dinner altogether, but being that they’re the reason you’re not homeless living in the heart of New York, you have no choice but to show up or fall into crippling debt.

Instead of spending Valentine’s Day whining about not having a significant other while eating your weight in chocolate covered strawberries, you get a night where your egotistical parents and headass of an older brother hound you about your life while bragging about how perfect theirs are, making you want to gauge your eyes out with a butter knife.

You’re highly aware that tonight will be no different in comparison to the previous years, but you’ll be damned if you have to go through it alone this time.

This brought you to the person you know you can count on for absolutely anything.

Carefully digging through a potted plant that’s littered with thorns no matter how hard you try to avoid them, you only prick the back of your hand three times before finding the spare key that unlocks the front door to the Fields Residence.

“Well, if it isn’t my favorite intruder!” Mr. Fields greets you warmly from the kitchen, already making your day better. After tossing the key back in its place, you walk inside, removing your snow-covered boots and winter coat.

“Still haven’t thought of a less harmful place to store your spare, Danny?”

Formalities with Gerri’s parents were aggressively thrown out the window the very first night you met them. After meeting her over a year ago in your college’s music theory class, the two of you became close friends and the first thing you did during Thanksgiving break was meet her family.

Immediately, you loved their warm and welcoming energy seeing as it was something you weren’t used to with your own parents. The Fields family made it clear from the beginning of your friendship with their daughter that you were always welcome in their home.

This in turn made you feel more homesick for her home rather than yours whenever you were back at school.

“You never know with all the crazies out there, Y/n. I’m just surprised Gerri hasn’t given you your own key at this point.” The man teases, half-joking since you show up here so often, sometimes when Gerri isn’t even home.

“It would definitely help with the pain, no offense to Barry,” that’s what the cactus is named, “Though, the scars do make me look kinda badass, especially when I nick my knuckles.” You ponder, flexing your hand outwards to show Danny the healed up cuts and he puffs out his lip, nodding his head in agreement.

“Very badass.” The two of you laugh as he gives you a brief but tight side hug, “Gerri’s up in her room, by the way, kiddo.”

You thank him, casually thieving a chocolate covered strawberry on the counter and nearly inhaling it before also wishing him a quick Happy Valentine’s Day.

Trotting upstairs, you follow the sound of Gerri’s speakers loudly playing Love Story by Taylor Swift. Her door is already halfway open, but you slow to a stop before taking a peek around the corner.

With the music blasting at max volume, Gerri is unable to hear your footsteps creaking down the hallway, lost in her own world as she dances around her room and sings the lyrics at the top of her lungs.

You watch Gerri jump around, her wavy brown hair slowly falling out of her already loose lazy bun, dancing with such fluidity while holding a stuffed bear you won at Coney Island yet she insisted on keeping.

A smile can’t help but form on your face at the adorable sight and you’re too entertained by the show to announce your presence. Even when looking like a total doofus, you still thought of Gerri as the most beautiful being you’d ever set your eyes on.

That’s not something you could bring yourself to tell her out loud, though.

Before the bridge of the song, the brunette twirls and finally sets her eyes on you, but she doesn’t shy away from the fact that you caught her in a private moment.

That’s not your Gerri.

“I got tired of waiting,” she smiles mischievously, tosses the bear back on the bed, and beckons you over with her index finger, “wondering if you were ever coming around, my faith in you was fading, when I met you on the outskirts of town,” she continues to sing and move her shoulders to the beat of the song.

You shake your head amused, remaining in your spot against her door frame.

“I said, Romeo save me, I’ve been feeling so alone, I keep waiting for you but you never come.” Not taking no for an answer, Gerri skips forward until she’s pulling you into the room by your shoulders.

Now she’s singing in your face with enormous passion, shaking your body back and forth as she grows impatient with your silence, but it’s very difficult for you to sing through your smile.

“Is this in my head? I don’t know what to think,” As Gerri slides her hands up to the sides of your face to shake your brain around instead, you hold onto her wrists to keep her from giving you whiplash or accidentally bonking your heads together. “He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said…”

Unable to deny her any longer, you finally give in, belting out the words while bobbing your head up and down. Gerri’s smile widens and she intertwines your fingers together as she pulls you closer to the middle of her room.

“I love you and that’s all I really know!”

Next thing you know, you’re getting yourself lost in Gerri’s world, too, shuffling your feet and spinning around like you’re the only two people to exist. The comfort of her carefree energy never fails to envelop you into a safe place that makes you feel more at home.

When the music ends, the two of you gracefully fall side-by-side into Gerri’s bed, both out of exhaustion from jumping so much and to slow the intense dizziness. One of her hands has yet to let go of yours, making your head spin even more.

“That was fun.” The brunette pants, letting out a breathless laugh as she looks over at your smiling face.

“Yeah, it was.”

When you return her gaze, you notice that her hair had fallen completely out of its bun, the brown strands beautifully lying around her head upon the mattress.

Every word known to man could never accurately describe her beauty and what it does to your heartstrings.

With her fingers still laced with yours, Gerri lifts it up to observe the damage you’ve taken today, “You prick yourself again?” She asks, softly grazing her thumb over the new marks on your skin.

You hum a yes, incapable of tearing your eyes away from the concern that shows on her face. The way she worries for you over some harmless scratches that were no bigger than the size of a tic-tac made the butterflies in your chest flutter.

“Sorry, we really need to get you your own key.”

Huffing out a laugh, you softly pull your hand away so you can sit up, “Your dad was telling me the same thing.”

Routinely, Gerri stands from her bed to grab the mini first aid kit from her dresser. When she returns, she sits in a criss-cross position, pulling out some mini alcohol wipes and band-aids from the plastic box. “I feel bad having to patch you up every time you come over.”

You turn your body so that you’re facing each other, “Well, first off you don’t have to patch me up. It’s a tiny scratch from a thorn, not a bite from a rabid subway rat,” you inform the girl, making her eyes roll slightly as you instinctively place your injured hand on her lap, patiently waiting for her to clean the fresh cuts, “Second, it isn’t that big a deal. I mean, if you guys placed your spare right next to a wasp nest instead, then we’d have some bigger problems.”

Gerri giggles softly, rubbing the alcohol pad on the open wounds and stinging them for just a moment before little band-aids are placed. When she finishes, Gerri carefully lifts your hand to her lips, placing three gentle kisses on the patched up skin.

Closing both of her hands around yours, she keeps it in her lap, leaning forward slightly as she smiles cheekily at you.

“There. All better?”

The playful yet gentle stare in those gorgeous green eyes makes your stomach turn in the most exciting way possible, but you push the feeling down as you always do. You chuckle, squeezing her hand as you look at her adoringly, “All better. Thank you, Dr. Fields.”

The softness in your voice makes Gerri’s eyes light up, making her subconsciously bite her lower lip. You watch the action with a racing heart, looking back up to find her pupils had dilated as her gaze flickers between your mouth and eyes.

Surely this is part of your imagination, right?

Before either of you could pluck up the nerve to lean in first, you’re both startled when a hamper full of clean clothes is thrown into the room. Breaking eye contact, you and Gerri see her little brother standing in the doorway.

“Were you two about to kiss right now? Because you jumped away from each other like you were about to kiss.” He wonders with an amused smile, narrowing his eyes between the two of you and making you both blush madly.

“Karl, get out! Now!” The brunette exclaims, dropping your hand to shove the boy out. He laughs loudly as Gerri shuts the door, leaning her back against it to ensure he doesn’t come in again.

She covers her face in embarrassment, unable to look you directly in the eye for the moment.

Quietly laughing to yourself, you let Gerri regain her composure and stand from the bed to empty out the hamper, helping sort out her clothes.

“Damn, Gerr. I didn’t think the idea of kissing me was that repulsive.”

“That’s not– I wasn’t–”

“Just jokes.” You look at her over your shoulder with an assuring smile.

Gerri lets her shoulders fall after exhaling out a relieved sigh.

Slowly, she makes her way back over to her phone, playing another song for the two of you to listen to before she begins picking at the clothes you had already folded and starts putting them away.

This routine became a regular thing after your first couple of visits to Gerri’s house. Once she was comfortable having you in her room so often, she started getting too lazy to put her laundry away and you did not want to be lying on a mountain of clothes that were scattered across her bed.

When this habit of you cleaning her own messes began, Gerri felt bad watching you do it alone, so she decided to lend a hand. To her pleasant surprise, it was actually really relaxing having you around to help. Plus, the chore would be done in half the amount of time compared to if she were to do it by herself.

“So, what are the rest of your Valentine’s Day plans?” You casually question, silently praying that her schedule is open.

“Probably just going to throw on some shitty romcoms and get sick from eating too many chocolate covered strawberries. Why?”

You swallow your nerves, reminding yourself that this is just you, a friend, asking for a favor from Gerri, another friend.

It doesn’t have to be a nerve-racking conversation, but you wonder why your palms are getting so sweaty and what it was that was making you hear the sound of your own heart pounding in through your ears.

“Don’t you have that family dinner for your parent’s anniversary tonight?” She asks, taking the handful of bundled socks you give her.

Oh good, she remembered. “I do. I’m not exactly looking forward to it though, because it’s the worst night of my year, surrounded by literally the worst people on this planet.”

Gerri is aware that you’re not very close with your family and that you don’t like to talk about them much, but you’ve never gone into detail as to why that was.

She noticed the way your entire mood deflated whenever she asked about them in the beginning of your friendship, how the mere thought of them brought up some uncomfortable feelings in you, so she quickly stopped asking.

“Why don’t you just tell them you can’t go?” If this night was so dreadful for you to go through, Gerri wondered what was stopping you from ditching the event completely.

You chirp up, playfully pretending to be shocked, “Oh, wow! You know, I’ve never thought to do that. That’s actually a really good idea, Gerr. Why hadn’t I-”

Gerri lightly smacks your bottom with a shirt she’s putting away, making you both laugh, “Okay! You don’t gotta be a smartass about it. Geez.”

“Trust me, if I could avoid tonight, I would. To my terrible misfortune, I can’t afford to pay my college and housing bills on my own yet, so my parents financially keep my head above water. Not without a price of their own, though. They’re not that generous.”

Gerri watches you carefully from the foot of her bed as you start getting lost in your own rambling, but you continue folding her clothes to distract yourself.

“The deal is that they keep me stable so long as I attend their stupid yearly dinner at their stupid favorite restaurant where I have to sit and listen to their stupid lecture about how unsuccessful I’m destined to be in life. Meanwhile, my dickhead of an older brother gets all the loving praise for being the most mediocre man in the world.”

You stop folding the clothes, pausing your ramble to take a deep breath in an attempt to relieve the stress that’s already brewing in your chest.

“You know, I can’t even remember one time in my life they were happy for me about anything. My valedictorian speech at my high school graduation? With such a small school it shouldn’t have been that hard to get in the first place. We also have a conference that weekend. My NYU acceptance letter? Well that’s useless since you’re wasting college on a silly music degree, Y/n. Why can’t you study business like your brother?”

It was unfair how poorly your own family thought of you, like you weren’t even a part of them, especially when you did nothing in the past to make them treat you this way.

“Literally everything I do is wrong in their eyes. It’s the fucking worst, but then again they’re the fucking worst so what else should I expect?”

You slump back down on the bed and massage your temples, attempting to erase the stress that’s already festering in your brain just thinking about going through tonight.

“I know I didn’t exactly paint the prettiest picture of them to you just now, but I really don’t want to sit through this hellish night alone again and I’d hate it a lot less if I had you there with me,” you tell Gerri, nervously fidgeting with your new band-aids, “It’s a lot to ask and I’m not expecting you to say yes, but I just… I need you there, Gerr.”

With your shaking leg, hand fidgets, and cheek biting, all of your anxious tics were on full display for Gerri to see and the dinner hadn’t even started yet. This night weighs you down so heavily that your friend would be a fool to let you carry it on your own.

Pulling you away from your fixed stare at the floor, Gerri places her soft hands upon your face and tilts your head until you look up at her calming gaze. You immediately loosen your jaw, fluttering your eyes shut when she runs her fingers through your hair, letting the rest of your muscles relax beneath her touch.

“Hey,” she calls to you gently and you open your eyes, leaning into her hands as she links them behind your neck, “I’ll be there.”

You smile up at her softly, pushing your body forward until you bury your head into Gerri’s stomach. She laughs, lightly scratching your scalp and tracing her fingers along the nape of your neck.

Everything is so easy with Gerri, you sometimes find it hard to believe that she’s real.

“Thank you.” You mumble into her shirt before looking back up to meet her eyes. “I can’t promise that it’s going to be the most fun time of your life, but-” The brunette squishes your face together to shut you up.

“Don’t worry about it, okay?”

You nod your head, slurring out an “okay” with your smushed face, making you and Gerri chuckle before she drops her arms back to her sides. You miss her touch instantly.

Standing up, you feel a lot lighter than you did before coming over. Gerri just knows how to make everything better and you’re already more at ease thinking about tonight knowing she’ll be by your side.

“I’m gonna go get ready right now and I’ll come pick you up at seven,” you say, opening her bedroom door and taking a backwards step across the threshold, “Just dress like you’re going to any regular formal event.”

“Well, now I’ve got a lot of clean options to choose from,” she gestures to her rack of clean clothes, “so I’ll see you at seven!”

“Cool,” you nod, feeling a small box of candy in your jacket pocket, “Oh! Almost forgot,” you toss her the heart-shaped candy that she happily catches, “I got those at the gas station for you.”

“How romantic,” Gerri smiles as she pulls one out, reading the little printed words aloud and she shows it to you, “Be Mine?”

Before you can wonder whether her tone in that question was serious or playful, she tosses the light pink sugar heart into the air and you easily catch it in your mouth. “Seven o’clock!” You remind her while making your way down the hall.

“Seven o’clock!” Gerri repeats back to you, now having the feeling that out of all the clothes hanging in her closet, she has absolutely nothing to wear.

- Seven O’Clock -

The clock barely changed and you’ve already checked your watch five times as you anxiously waited for Gerri to walk downstairs.

You couldn’t tell if the nerves were from the possibility of being late to the restaurant or the fact that you were taking Gerri out for dinner on Valentine’s Day—not that it was going to be a great one that you’d much rather take her on.

When it comes to the person you are or the people you surround yourself with, you don’t give a shit about what your parents think, but the last thing you want is for Gerri to see you differently and believe your future is becoming carbon copies of them.

“Sorry, sweetie,” Mrs. Fields—or Kate as she prefers—gives your shoulder a comforting squeeze as she notices how tense you are, “Gerri ran a quick errand after you left, so it took her a little while to start getting ready.”

“It’s no problem. The reservation isn’t for another hour anyways.” You say, nervously messing with a rose petal from the bouquet you brought. You didn’t really consider buying Gerri flowers until your drive back over here, thinking it’s the least you could do for her agreeing to endure this torturous night.

Gerri’s mom sits across from you at the dining room table, smirking as she observes the color of the flowers you choose to bring tonight, “Are these for Gerri?” Looking up from your fiddling, you nod your head, “You do know what yellow roses with red tips mean, right?”

No, you do not. You swallow dryly at this new information, “They have different meanings? I just thought they looked the coolest.”

The older woman laughs, only inflaming the intensity of your nerves, “I’m sure you’re fine, Y/n.”

“C’mon Kate, what do yellow roses with red tips mean?” You plead for an answer before panic begins to set in.

“Just friendship…” she shrugs, leaning back to take a sip of her wine, “amongst other things.”

Your eyes widen, making her laugh even more as you smile nervously, “What other things?”

“Honey, stop torturing the poor kid,” Mr. Fields gives you a supportive pat on the back, amused at your cluelessness and for a moment you’re content, “But seriously, you don’t know what the meaning behind these roses are?”

Burying your face deep into your hands, you groan helplessly at their teasing.

You’ve grown a little used to having Gerri’s parents mess with you about possibly crushing on their daughter, but you’d be lying if you said it doesn’t fluster you. Just when you think one of them is on your side, they team up against you in the end.

“What’s so funny down here?” Gerri’s voice fills the room, silencing her mom and dad’s laughter and drawing your attention to the kitchen’s entryway.

If your heart wasn’t racing already, now it’s only a couple of beats away from pounding out of your chest.

Dressed in a red quarter-sleeve dress with floral lace designs that leave just enough room for imagination, Gerri Fields made you forget how to breathe. The girl was already naturally beautiful, so it only made sense that she could transform herself into an even more attractive goddess.

You might just run late from staring at her in complete awe.

“Y/n/n, you okay?” She nervously grins, taking note of your flustered state.

“Uhh…” Clumsily standing from the chair that skids across the floor, you can’t bring yourself to take your eyes off her, “Yeah, I’m uh…” Danny picks up your bouquet of roses and pushes them into your chest. Without looking away, you hold onto them a little too tightly, “I’m good.”

Gerri giggles softly, walking forward until she’s standing in front of you, “Are these for me?”

With a small grin, you nod, now too mentally incapacitated to move your mouth to speak, especially when she bites her lip while smiling at you like that.

“They’re beautiful.” She says, purposely letting her touch linger on you as she takes the flowers from your hands.

“You’re beautiful.” Even you’re shocked by how naturally the words fell out of your mouth, possibly flustering you more than the blushing brunette in front of you.

She briefly hides her smile behind the bouquet before lowering them down so that she can lean forward to kiss you softly on the cheek. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” You quietly say, nearly losing your voice towards the end of your sentence.

Caught in your own bubble that is Gerri, the two of you miss the knowing smiles her parents are sharing from behind you both.

Clearing your throat, you take a look at your watch and note that you still have plenty of time to make it to the restaurant. “Um, I have the car warming up in the driveway.”

Gerri’s eyes widened in realization, “Right! Sorry! Dad, could you…” she quickly hands him the roses and he moves to put them in a vase.

“Have fun, you two!” Kate yells from the kitchen as you and Gerri help put on each other’s coats by the front door.

You share a strained smile with the girl and snicker, both knowing tonight will most likely end in disaster. At least you’re not going through the fire alone this time and you wouldn’t want to have anyone else on your side.

During the 30 minute drive to the restaurant, you and Gerri sang along to every song that played on the Hits 1 radio, even the ones neither of you knew the lyrics to, and it set you at ease. Of course, Gerri’s presence alone brings you peace.

However, all of your anxiety came rushing back to the surface when you arrived at your destination.

You sat in front of the steering wheel silently for a solid five minutes, mentally preparing yourself for the amount of hell you’re going to be dragged through and how everything might go wrong. Before you can start biting at your fingernails, Gerri takes your hand and traps it between the both of hers.

“What’s going on in your head?” She asks, playing with the rings on your fingers.

“Just remembering that there’s a reason I don’t introduce anybody I care about to my family. They’re terrible people, Gerr,” leaning the side of your head against the seat, you look at the brunette, “I’ve learned how to put up with their bullshit, so I’m used to it by now, but if you’re having second thoughts about coming here with me then I—”

“Y/n.” Gerri halts your rambling, squeezing your hand between hers, “I’m here for you, okay? I don’t care how awful they are, I’m not going anywhere.”

You breathe out a large huff of air, leaning the back of your head into the headrest and closing your eyes, silently praying to any and every God that this won’t turn into the worst night of your life.

“Hey,” opening your eyes, you look back at Gerri, watching as she brings your hand to her lips and presses three soft kisses upon the skin, “All better?”

Three little big words nearly slip through your mouth, but you conceal them with a smile that nearly conveys the very message you’re keeping to yourself, “All better.”

With Gerri giving you the strength you need, you finally exit the car and her hand never leaves yours as you walk inside the restaurant.

When you give the hostess your last name, the two of you are immediately escorted to the same table your parents reserve every year. It’s a circular table that seats six in the back corner of the place, close enough to the restrooms and the A/C hits the area just right according to your mother.

God forbid anyone else takes this table and whoever does will have hell to pay. Five years ago, they made an unnecessary scene when another party was seated here and forced the manager to move them to another spot.

You still cringe at the memory to this day.

Arriving at the table, you see that your parents are already seated, but they're too distracted with their phones to realize that you’re there.

Realizing they’re not going to look up anytime soon no matter how close you get to them, you try to speak up, but your father beats you to the punch, “We’ll start with the bottle of white merlot.”

Goodness, at least this wasn’t the worst way the night could’ve started.

Gerri looks over at you and judging by the annoyance on your face, she comes to the conclusion that your dad doesn’t have a sense of humor and this isn’t him trying to be funny.

“Not the waiter, dad. It’s your child.”

His eyes never leave his phone, neither do your mothers. Instead, your dad sighs like he’d rather have the waiter here, “Hello, Y/n.”

It was pointless to go around to their seats and give them a hug like most loving children would. They weren’t exactly the physically affectionate type of parents—not with you anyways.

You shake your head before pulling out one of the empty chairs for Gerri, giving her a sorry smile as she sits down and you take the seat next to hers.

“You didn’t happen to catch your brother and his fiancee walking in, did you?” Your mother asks as you settle in.

“No, but there’s someone I want you guys to–”

“He said he’d be running late, dear.” Your father talks to your mom while scrolling through his phone.

“Guys, can you–” You try getting their attention, failing again.

“I told him traffic would be heavy right now. Hopefully they’re not too far out.” Your mom shakes her head, more concerned about your brother’s arrival rather than the stranger sitting at the table.

“Hello?” The music in this place isn’t blasting, so you know very well that they can hear you speaking.

“It looks like they’re fifteen minutes away on the tracking app.” Your dad shows her the map on his phone and she looks at it closely.

“Y/n talking here.”

“Oh yes, that’s not too far at all. They should get here right as the crabcakes are brought out. He likes them fresh.”

You clap your hands together loudly, finally capturing their attention, “Oh, good. Your ears are still working. Guys, this is my…” suddenly, you didn’t know how to introduce the girl next to you to them, your mind still calming down from them ignoring you seconds ago, “...Gerri. My-my friend Gerri.”

Blushing lightly at your first slip up, the brunette presses her lips together in a tight smile to the intimidating eyes that lock on her, “Happy anniversary, Mr. and Mrs. L/n. It’s really great to finally meet you both.”

They stare blankly at the girl in front of them without so much as a friendly smile back, then your mother looks at you, “You didn’t tell us you would be bringing a guest, Y/n.”

You clench your fist under the table, digging your fingernails into your palm to redirect the anger you’re beginning to feel, “I, uh I didn’t realize that I had to. No one usually sits in the extra chair and you guys always hound me about not bringing a friend, so…”

“I’m just saying it’s inconsiderate of you not to inform us beforehand that you were bringing someone with you. What if your brother also brought one of his friends with him?”

You shrug, “It’s almost like we’re in a restaurant that has extra chairs for that very unlikely instance.”

Your father points an accusatory finger at you and speaks in his authoritative voice, “Hey, don’t be rude to your mother, Y/n. She’s right, it was very thoughtless of you bringing this on us at the last minute.” He shakes his head at you in disappointment, returning to his cell phone.

You could go on about how rude they’re acting to Gerri after she kindly introduced herself to them, only to not even receive a simple ‘hello’ back. You would’ve taken a cold greeting in response rather than them ignoring her completely.

It was one thing for them to act like assholes to you, but when it came to the girl by your side, you were more than willing to call them out on their shit.

Before you can start a fight, Gerri keeps you from the screaming match by placing her hand over your tightened fist. Relaxing to her touch, she intertwines your fingers together and gently brushes her thumb across your skin.

“It’s okay.” She whispers with a soft smile, taking a deep breath that you instinctively mirror to relax. A small fragment of your stress fades for the moment and you give Gerri a grateful smile, reminding yourself that this dinner won’t last forever.

Your parents begin discussing work with each other, leaving you and Gerri completely out of the conversation, but you could care less.

You imagined the two of you sitting in the comfort of her bedroom, watching cheesy rom coms like Gerri had initially planned to do tonight.

Maybe you would find the moment to confess about the crush you’ve had on her since the day you met. You’d tell her how she’s the first person in your life who has ever felt like home.

You would say that you were in love, and in a perfect world, she would tell you that she feels the same.

You couldn’t say those three words out loud, not right now, so you secretly traced those letters on the palm of her hand instead.

Gerri’s lips twitch up into a faint grin when you initiate a few games of thumb war underneath the table, biting back laughter as you get a little more competitive each round. This is the first time you’re glad that your family is way too caught up in their own conversation to pay either of you any attention.

“The favorite has arrived!” Your older brother announces in a sing-song voice as he confidently saunters over to the table, his fiancée in tow a couple of feet behind him. Meanwhile, you and Gerri have broken out of your bubble.

The peace was nice while it lasted.

The bored expressions on your mom and dad’s faces change almost immediately, now beaming with happiness as their precious baby boy approaches. They stand up, engulfing their son with tight hugs and kisses on cheeks.

The stark difference as to how you were greeted shocks Gerri, but looking at your reaction or lack thereof, she can tell this was normal for you.

After your brother’s finished saying hello to your parents, he turns to you with a half-assed wave as he and his new wife take a seat, then his eyes land on Gerri.

“Who’s the new broad with you, Y/n? You had me convinced you didn’t have any friends.” He cackles idiotically.

How your brother has yet to get socked in the mouth for the things that come out of it is a mystery to you.

You wanted to confess your reasoning for never wanting to introduce your good hearted friends to your cold hearted family, but you save the argument.

“Yeah, good to see you too, Richard. This is Gerri.”

With a friendly smile, the brunette waves at him, “Hi, nice to meet you.”

He laughs like he’s just heard the funniest joke in the world, making Gerri shift in her seat uncomfortably, “Jerry? Like a guy? What, did your parents hope for a boy or were they on drugs?”

Oh. Fuck. No. You sit up a little straighter, slightly tightening your hold on Gerri’s hand, “It’s unisex, you ignorant piece of—”

“Y/n. Let’s not do this already.” Your mother quietly warns you from across the table, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Do what? He’s being disrespectful to my friend.”

“It was a joke. No need to be so sensitive about it.” Richard rolls his eyes with a scoff, snickering arrogantly with the most idiotic grin.

“Oh, I must be the one losing my hearing at this table now because not a single person here thought that was funny.”

“Christ, Y/n, will you relax? I’ve been here for two seconds and you already have a stick up your ass for no damn reason,” he looks at Gerri, “You’re being paid to be here, aren’t you, sweetheart?”

You could tackle your brother where he sits. Your jaw clenches and you have to bite your tongue to keep you from flying out of your seat, “Talk to my friend like that again and I’ll put an actual stick up your ass, Dick.”

If there’s one thing that gets under your brother’s skin, it’s when you use his all-too-accurate nickname that he lives up to.

He scowls at you next, just as ready to jump you across this table.

“That is enough, Y/n!” Your dad silences you with his raised voice that means you’re already skating on paper thin ice, “We’re not putting up with this tonight, you hear me?”

Richard smirks in victory, knowing your parents will always take his side no matter how out of line he acts. With an annoyed huff, you lean back into your seat and refocus on Gerri’s hand that’s still holding yours.

You shouldn’t have brought her here and had you known your family would be this disgustingly rude to her, you wouldn’t have invited her in the first place. Gerri was too good of a person to have to sit through this.

“It’s Richard, right?” Gerri speaks up, earning your brother’s attention and he nods, “Well, Richard, the answer to your previous question is no, I’m not being paid to be here. Y/n talked about how important this night is to your family and because of how important they are to me, I came. I also don’t appreciate the inappropriate jokes you made to me like we’ve known each other for years even though we just met.”

“I assure you, he meant no ill intent with his comments towards you. That’s just how he is.” Your mother comes in for the rescue, making infinite excuses for the thirty year old man who has the brain of a psychotic, tantrum-throwing toddler.

“Seriously, mom? He’s a grown man. There’s no need to jump to his aid like he’s a kid who’s been pushed on the playground during recess.”

Richard rolls his eyes, “Jesus, why do you have to ruin the night for everyone? It’s mom and dad’s anniversary for Christ's sake.”

“You’re saying inappropriate things to my guest. If this were the other way around, all of you would be on my ass.”

“Yeah because every time you come out with us now, you act like a psychotic little brat. I honestly miss when you were quieter because your bullshit is fucking exhausting to put up with.”

You laugh heartily in disbelief, “Oh, you find me exhausting? Now that’s a great joke, Dick. Seriously.”

His face burns red and you can almost see smoke blowing out of his elephant ears, “Fucking Christ,” he groans, pausing for a beat as he debates on whether or not he should say more. With just enough wine in his system, he decides to say, “You know, this is exactly why I didn’t want you at our wedding.”

Your amused smile begins to fade and you give him an inquisitive look, “What the hell are you talking about?”

“Richie.” Your mother sighs as she pinches the bridge of her nose, but she doesn’t look guilty.

“What, you thought your invite got lost in the mail or something?” He teases with a sickening grin when he sees that he’s properly shut you up, “Thought it was just a simple mistake?”

“Rich.” Your father warns and that’s when you see the golden wedding band on Richard’s ring finger.

“Newsflash, you weren’t sent one in the first place and the way you’re acting tonight is a spectacular example as to why that was. I didn’t need you fucking things up on the happiest day of my life, so mom, dad and I came to an agreement. The wedding would be a close friends and family only event. We all think you’ve proven yourself to be neither of those things.”

You look to your parents, the smallest part of you hoping they’d come to your aid just for once in their goddamn lives. Instead, they remain silent in their seats, awkwardly sipping on their wine and avoid eye contact with you completely.

Fucking typical.

You could break down right at this table because of how terrible this night is going. Not that you expected anything less, but it was embarrassing to have this happening in front of the only person you care about in the room, witnessing you get tormented by the people who were supposed to love you unconditionally.

The sound of Gerri’s laughter catches you off guard and your attention turns to her.

“I’m sorry, are you people out of your mind? Do you-do any of you know anything about this person right here? Like, have you actually tried getting to know them?”

Your family is silent, some huffing out annoyed sighs, but you’re only staring at Gerri as she continues.

“Did you know they can finish a six page essay in one hour and end up getting an A? Or that they’re a master at balloon darts and can hit two at once? Or that they know every lyric to Taylor Swift’s entire discography? Or the fact they hate dancing but will do it anyway just to make you smile? Or that they will help you do just about any house chore out of the kindness of their heart without asking for anything in return?”

Your gaze softens as your heart fills with nothing but love for the woman sitting by your side. All you could look at was her and fall even deeper into all that she was–your parents and brother no longer taking an inch of space in your mind.

“Within the twenty-something years you had to really know your own child and sibling, I only needed one to see that they’re pretty fucking incredible and it absolutely blows my mind that such an amazing person can come from assholes like you.”

Eyes widening slightly at the sudden profanity, you look over at the mortified expressions on your family’s faces at Gerri’s closing statement. “How dare you speak to us that way, young lady.”

“No, how dare you for showing so much love and attention to Satan’s spawn while neglecting the literal best thing in your life.”

“I think it’s time for you to leave. Both of you.” Your father says sternly, looking around the establishment for a manager to wave over.

Gerri sighs in relief, pushing out her chair first and you slowly follow suit as she pulls you with her, “That we can agree on.”

Moving around the table, you don’t miss when Richard mutters, “Bitch.”

Knowing you’ve already caused a scene, you thought it wouldn’t hurt to spill his glass of red wine all over his white button up and khakis. “Dick.” You mutter back, not wasting another second being in their presence and quickly making your way out of the restaurant.

The drive back to Gerri’s house is radio silent, the two of you processing tonight’s catastrophe. When you pull up to the house, Gerri breathes heavily as you walk through the front door, the grip on your hand tighter than the one you had on hers.

While she was coming up with different ways to murder your family in her head, your mind was still reeling in the fact she had the courage to stick up for you in front of the people she just met and that you couldn’t love her more for it.

The brunette sighs in exhaustion, turning to face you when you find your way into her bedroom, her mind still running a million miles a minute from what just happened, “I’m sorry for flipping out in there, I just couldn’t fucking stand them talking to you like mmph–”

You abruptly cut Gerri’s sentence short, using your free hand to cup her face and press your lips against hers. She gasps in surprise, taking a few seconds to process the new sensation but then quickly matches the kiss before you can think about pulling away.

Her lips move against yours softly and sweetly as she feels her knees begin to weaken slightly, needing to slide her hands onto your shoulders to keep herself from falling.

Though you’re both completely lost in each other’s touch, Gerri suddenly recalls the situation you just walked out on and gasps, being the first to break the kiss.

“Oh my God, I totally fucked things up for you back there didn’t I?” She pants, her breath blowing across your face as hers remains close.

You could care less about the effects of tonight’s dinner from your parents. The one thing you knew for certain was you wanted to hold Gerri and not let her go, “I’ll figure it out.”

Your lips find Gerri’s again, feeling like it was exactly where you were supposed to be. The brunette sighs with contentment, her arms now wrapping around your neck to pull you closer as your hands slide down her waist.

“I really like you.” You say between kisses, making the girl laugh through her nose.

“I really like you, too.” She whispers.

Your big idiotic smiles makes it harder to keep kissing each other, but you do so anyways. With one last long lingering soft press against her lips, you slowly pull away, leaning back just enough to get a better look at the brunette’s face.

Her sea green eyes stare into yours longingly and you swear that looking into them feels like home. One that you’ve been searching for forever and one you’ve found that doesn’t need four walls and a roof, just those gorgeous orbs that make you feel the most peaceful you’ve ever felt.

“Y/n, I-”

“Gerr-”

You speak over each other, immediately laughing afterwards as your heads lean forward until they’re leaning together once more.

“You go first.” You offer.

“What if we both go?” Gerri suggests, brushing her nose against yours and making your head spin faster than it already was.

“What if we say two different things?”

She softly bites her lip, containing a small smile, “Call it a hunch.”

You chuckle, feeling your heart begin to beat harder and race faster at the thought of her thinking those same three words as you.

Leaning your head away, you meet her eyes and nod.

“Okay. On three.” You say, squeezing her waist in anticipation. “One.”

“Two.”

The both of you take a deep breath, “Three.”

“I love you.” You say in unison, making your breath hitch at the sound of her confession. For a moment you think you’re imagining things until Gerri smiles widely.

“God, I love you so much.” She repeats, pulling you forward by your shirt to bring your lips back to hers, kissing you slow and languidly.

Matching her tenderness, your hands slide around and up Gerri’s back, pressing her body impossibly closer to yours like she would fly away if you let her go.

She sighs against your mouth, guiding herself backwards until the backs of her knees meet the edge of the bed and she pulls you down on the mattress with her. One of your hands is quick to move onto the cushion to keep yourself from crushing the girl beneath you, but your lips never leave each other’s.

Beginning to lose oxygen, you reluctantly pull away but continue your trail of kisses over to her cheek, along her jawline, and down to her neck. Gerri’s eyes remain closed, fingers now tangling through your hair and your lips set her skin on fire.

She gasps softly when you find the spot that drives her crazy and she holds you there, craning her neck back to allow you more access and moaning as your tongue runs over her pulse point.

Before she can further lose herself in your touch and grow even more tempted to rip off your clothes in record time, something else pops into the brunette’s mind.

“Shit, I almost forgot!” She gasps, making you abruptly stop what you’re doing and pull away to look down at her with a worried expression.

“What? What is it?” You pant with a face of concern that makes Gerri smile adoringly.

“I got you something.” She says, pecking your lips once more before urgently pushing you to the side and making you roll over on your back.

Relieved that it wasn’t a serious matter, you chuckle as you watch her push off the bed and quickly grab a small box from the dresser.

You push yourself to sit up on the mattress when she takes a seat next to you, nervously biting her lip as she places the item in your hands.

“Little early for a proposal, isn’t it?” You tease, getting Gerri to nudge you slightly.

“Shut up and open it.” She wraps an arm around your back, tracing gentle patterns with her fingers while resting her chin on top of your shoulder and placing a kiss on your cheek.

You smile, excitedly examining the little cardboard box for a second before removing the cover and revealing a single golden key with a chain necklace and a small engraving of Gerri’s initials at the top. Recognizing each curve and edge of the metal, you immediately know what it’s meant to unlock.

“Now you’re able to come and go as you please, free of being pricked by digging through Barry to get the spare.” She tells you with a soft smile, taking the long chain out of the box and delicately placing it over your head until it rests on your neck.

Looking down at the gift, you take it between your fingers and graze your thumb along Gerri’s initials. A few tears build in your eyes, feeling more love from the beautiful soul next to you within a single night than you have for your entire life.

“You’ll always have a home here, Y/n.” She utters, one hand traveling up to scratch along the nape of your neck while she presses another kiss to the single tear falling down your cheek.

Chuckling softly, your head turns to look at the brunette with a loving stare that she returns. “Having you around alone, anywhere is home for me, Gerri.”

Eyes darkening slightly, it doesn’t take long for Gerri to lean forward and kiss you again, this time without any intention of stopping for the rest of the night.

[gingiesworld]

Unexpected Christmas

Gerri Fields x GN! Reader

Warnings: Fluff

Taglist : @natashamaximoff-69 @canvascoloredin @wizardofstories @louxbloom @wandanats-goodgirl @the-ox-fan20 @ladyqueenxoxo @aemilia19 @wandaromamoff69 @mfd-101 @dorabledewdroop @marvelogic @dopeyouth @karsonromanoff

18+ MINORS DNI

As Christmas break was fast approaching, Gerri’s parents had been pressuring her to tell them about her love life, asking if she had any suitors and if whoever it was would come with her for Christmas. So that was how Gerri ended up pleading with Y/N in their dorm room.

“Please, they will not give up until I bring someone home with me.” Gerri begged as Y/N sighed.

“You could always just not go home.” They suggested as she shook her head. “What’s one christmas? Tell them you have a shit ton of work to get through before the next semester starts.”

“No!” She threw herself on their bed, looking up at them with her puppy dog eyes. “Please just come with me, you’re not doing anything for christmas so it could be fun for you.”

“Well, they might tell me some embarrassing stories of a younger Gerri Fields.” They teased as she swatted their chest, making them laugh at her cute pout. “Fine, I’ll come with you.”

“Thank you.” She jumped on them, wrapping her arms around their neck as she smothered their face in playful kisses, although they knew she would never see them as they saw her, it never stopped the butterflies erupting in their stomach.

Y/N was extremely nervous as they drove to Gerri’s childhood home, listening as she sang along to the radio.

“Don’t you forget about me.” She sang along to her favourite Simple Minds hit as they smiled. “I’ll be alone, dancing, you know it baby.”

“How far are we?” They asked her as they interrupted her performance.

“Only around 10 minutes now.” She told them as she smiled at the streets she grew up on, a sense of peace filling her until they pulled up outside of her parents house. “So, we know the story about us?” She questioned as they nodded.

“We’ll pull through this, ok?” They reassured her as they took her hand in theirs, a gentle smile on their face as she took a deep calming breath.

“Let’s do this.” She told them as they got out of the car, rushing to her side and opening the door. “You didn’t have to.” She told them as they smiled, leaning in to whisper in her ear.

“You want me to pretend right, this is me when I am in a relationship.” They told her as she blushed lightly, feeling their lips press against her skin. She watched as they soon got their bags from the trunk before leading them to the door. Sighing before she unlocked the door and being pressed by her parents.

“Mom, Dad, this is Y/N.” She introduced them as they shook both of her parents' hands.

“It’s nice to meet you both, Gerri has told me so much about you.” They told them with their charming smile.

“Go and put your bags in your room, and come and have some tea.” Kate told them both as the two nodded, they watched as Y/N carried all of the bags as they followed Gerri up the stairs. Once they were inside, she closed the door and sighed loudly, causing Y/N to look at her.

“What’s wrong?” They asked her softly as she shook her head.

“This was a stupid idea.” She whispered as they gave her a gentle smile. “A fucking bad idea.”

“Hey, we will get through this.” They told her softly as she just nodded. “Ok, I won’t leave you.” They reassured her before pulling her in for a hug.

Once the two had joined Kate and Danny in the living room, Y/N held Gerri’s hand on their own.

“So, how did you two meet?” Danny asked as he gestured between the two of them.

“College.” The two answered in unison.

“We were paired for a project on our music course and we did a number.” Gerri started.

“So you play guitar?” He cut in as he pointed at Y/N.

“I do sir, and the piano.” They answered him.

“Double threat.” Kate mumbled to Danny who hid his smile. “So tell us about your family.” Kate asked them as Gerri glared at her mom.

“You don’t have to.” Gerri told them as they gave her a small smile.

“It’s ok.” They reassured her. “My parents died while I was just starting high school, my brother and I were put into the system and well, I don’t know where he is right now since they split us up.”

“I’m so sorry.” Danny spoke sincerely. “We didn’t mean to pry.”

“It’s ok.” They shook their head. “You want to know the person who is possibly going to be Gerri’s life partner, it’s completely understandable.”

“Why don’t you two go and relax while Danny and I start on dinner.” Kate told them as Gerri decided to drag Y/N out of the house for a walk around the neighborhood.

“I’m so sorry about that.” Gerri started as she walked beside Y/N. Soon stopping when they held her hand.

“It’s ok.” They told her. “They just wanted to know the person who they let into their home.”

“But.” She tried as they shook their head.

“It’s fine.” They told her before they continued their walk. Gerri telling them as much as she could about her childhood and growing up.

Christmas Eve, Y/N was helping Danny cook hot dogs and burgers on the grill, the two just conversing before he decided to ask them a serious question.

“Do you see a future with my daughter?” He asked them as they nodded.

“I do, sir.” They answered him honestly. “From the moment I first saw her, I knew that I needed to know her, be her friend and maybe be her everything if she would let me.”

“You love her.” He observed as they nodded, feeling relief as they spoke their true feelings.

“I do, I guess it’s from the moment I looked into her eyes and heard her laugh for the first time.” They told him.

“Have you told her?” He asked them as they shook their head no. “You should tell her. You only live once.”

“Y/N, can you help me?” Gerri popped her head outside which they just nodded, following her out onto the front porch.

“What’s up?” They asked her as she closed the door.

“I heard.” She spoke shakily. “Everything you just said, did you mean it?” She asked them as they remained silent. “I need to know if you meant it or if it was all pretend.”

“I meant it.” They told her. “I meant every word Gerri. You’re my best friend and I have been in love with you for as long as I can remember.” They sighed as they took a nervous step closer. “I guess everyday that I have spent with you has made me fall more and more.”

Gerri stepped before them, cupping their face as she looked up into their eyes. Slowly leaning in before she spoke.

“I love you too.” She told them before closing the gap, kissing them intensely as their arms wrapped around her waist. The two finally felt at peace and neither needing to dance around their feelings.

[randomfoggytiger]

Scully and Matters of the Heart: S1-4

Scully's thoughts on love and relationships.

Fire

So, she shows up knowing the power she has over you and then she makes you walk through fire, is that it? ...Mulder, are you sure you don't need me to help you out on this one?

Gender Bender

Hard to imagine in this day and age someone having sex with a perfect stranger.

Lazarus

We dated for almost a year.... But it was always hard for Jack to relax, it was impossible for him, really. He was always so intense, so relentlessly determined.

Tooms

Mulder, I wouldn't put myself on the line for anyone else but you.

One Breath

Mulder? I had the strength of your beliefs.

Firewalker

["He stopped taking his pills. Yeah, he said that they were polluting his brain. And, he said I was polluting his body.... I just want to go home, now."]

Where's home?

["Anywhere but here."]

Aubrey

Things must be difficult for you now. I've had... feelings for people I've worked with. Inner-office relationships can be complicated-- especially when he's married.

Fearful Symmetry

["Whatever... connection he and I had was over long ago."]

But you asked him, anyway. To help you.

D.P.O.

Well, you don't have to be afraid anymore. You and your husband are safe as long as we can count on your testimony.

The List

Woman gets lonely. Sometimes she can't wait around for a man to get reincarnated.

2Shy

You're more than a monster: you didn't just feed on their bodies, you fed on their minds.

War of the Coprophages

Her name is Bambi? ...Her name is Bambi?

Syzygy

["Must be Detective White."]

If that's the reason we're sticking around, that's your business.

Jose Chung's From Outer Space

["...For, although Diana Leski is noble of spirit and pure at heart, she remains, nevertheless, a federal employee."]

Avatar

["He lives under this misguided notion that silence is strength. He's built a wall to keep everyone out."]

Including you?

["Especially me."]

Is that why you were separated?

Home

["I can tell you don't have no children. Maybe one day you'll learn the pride... the love."]

Unruhe

Why did your sister kill herself, Gerry? What did your father do to her?

The Field Where I Died

["Dana, if um... early in the four years we've been working together, an event occurred that suggested or if somebody told you that we'd been friends together... in other lifetimes, always... would it have changed the ways we looked at one another?"]

Even if I knew for certain, I wouldn't change a day.

Paper Hearts

["You do this full-time-- telling people this kind of news?"]

No, sir, not full-time.

El Mundo Gira

He didn't kill her, Mulder.... Mulder, I know you don't want to hear this, but I think the aliens in this story are not the villains but the victims.

Never Again

This circle: it usually starts when an authoritative or controlling figure comes into my life; and part of me likes it-- needs it, wants the approval-- but then at a certain point along the way I just... y'know.

Memento Mori

For the first time, I feel time like a heartbeat: the seconds pumping in my breast like a reckoning. The numinous mysteries that once seemed so distant and unreal threatening clarity in the presence of a truth entertained not in youth but only in its passage. I feel these words as if their meaning were weight being lifted from me, knowing that you will read them and share my burden as I have come to trust no other. That you should know my heart-- look into it, finding there the memory and experience that belong to you, that are you-- is a comfort to me now as I feel the tethers loose....

Kaddish

And through all this he hid the ring?

["Even after the war, he hid it. Even from my mother."]

Why?

["Because to him it was a dead relic from a forgotten place. Until the day I told him I was getting married; and for the first time in fifty years, he took out this ring. He said he felt his village was being born again. He knew how much I loved Isaac."]

Unrequited

Mulder, what she has is a simple... hemorrhage brought on by her emotional state.

Max

["Can I buy you a drink?"]

No, it's okay-- I'm with somebody.

Synchrony

Lisa, if you're leaving anything out-- if you're hedging the truth, you could be held accountable if Jason committed a crime.

Small Potatoes

No, I'm seeing a whole new side of you, Mulder.

["Is that a good thing?"]

I like it.

Elegy

I mean, maybe in some drug-addled way she was trying to kill happiness-- Harold's happiness. His love for those women. Trying to destroy something she never thought she'd have again.

Demons

["Why shoot herself and her husband?"]

I can't say definitively; but judging from an almost identical suicide... I believe that the victims were suffering....

Gethsemane

Hey, look, just because I haven't bared my soul to you or to Father McCue or to God doesn't mean I'm not responsible to what's important to me.

["To what? To who? This guy Mulder?"]

Thank you for reading~ Enjoy!

[artificialcorby]

× The Sinner ×

CW for mention of religion, internalized homophobia, masturbation and §uicidal thoughts.

He woke up early. After yet another nightmare. They're more frequent now and harder to shake during the day. To clear his mind, he goes for a run; leaves the quiet base before it wakes for yet another day.

It's still dark but he knows the narrow field path by heart. Knows every tree, every root, every bump in the ground. He knows where the path forks and which one to take to either get to the small church on the hill, which he used to go to with his family when they visited his cousin at base or further away from the urban area out onto the fields.

The fields that know his sins better than the small church does. The fields to which he entrusts his secrets.

His breath forms small clouds in the crisp morning air. Dead foliage crunches under his shoes with each step. It's the only sound he hears besides his heartbeat and his steady panting as he runs uphill. Soon he'll reach the top, looking over fields stretching as far as the horizon. The sun will come up soon and burn in a myriad of reflections in the morning dew on every leaf, every blade of grass. And for a brief moment the world will hold a collective breath and marvel over the beauty of HIS creation.

It's where he feels closer to the heavens than anywhere else.

He's been running for a while now, but his mind won't stop revolving around …him. The other day he watched his Lieutenant train the recruits. Still thinking about it when he went to bed. Thinking about him in a way he shouldn't. Quietly moaning his name.

He stops in his tracks. The cold wind cuts like knives on his skin so he doesn't even feel the tears. He yells his frustration, his anger and his fear out onto the fields before he breaks down.

He will deny this ever happened, deny his sobs, deny his pleas to be wiped off the surface of the world this instant.

But ultimately he won't pray for salvation. He won't pray for absolution.

Sitting on top of the hill, watching the sun slowly crawl over the edge of the horizon, warming his body, he only asks for one thing:

A single day.

Or just a moment.

One minute.

One kiss.

If he could get that, he accepts damnation. He accepts eternal torture. He accepts whatever fate awaits him.

Because recently he realised something.

He'd rather get one second of pure bliss, feeling instead of just imagining his touch and be reassured that these feelings run both ways than be granted eternity in a so called paradise…

… without Simon.

× end ×

[devilsanus616]

I'm in love with Gerri

And pls, it was so sweet, it soothed my heart

Gerri Fields & Fem!Reader

Tags: drabble, fluff, mentions of sexual content & themes, slight possessiveness

Summary: During your date with her, Gerri proposes a deal.

A/N: partial idea credit goes to this ask ! :D

With a Chinese takeout container in one hand and the other digging through your noodles for a piece of fried shrimp with a pair of chopsticks, you spoke with a mouth half full, “Snape is shady as fuck.” 

“No. He’s just misunderstood, kinda,” your girlfriend argues, wagging her chopstick in the air as Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire plays on her laptop. “No one gets him at first. Just wait until we get to Half-Blood Prince.”

You wave her hand away with a laugh. “Gerri, you’re getting pieces of your fried rice in my face.” She reaches over and picks up one of the rice grains from your shirt and puts it into her mouth before raising her eyebrows at you.

You give her a look that she returns as you lean to the side and place your takeout box with your chopsticks down on Gerri’s nightstand. Then you lift up one of the spring rolls from the plastic container laying between the two of you. “Wanna split?” you ask then look over your shoulder to her.

She nods. “Yeah. Give me half,” she answers then puts her own takeout box down. She outreaches her hand and you give her half of the spring roll. Then the both of you lay back against the headboard of her bed amongst an array of pillows.

After a while when both your dinners are finished and you’re now lounging against each other lazily, Gerri looks up from your shoulder and seems to just be watching you. 

A smile forms on your face and you chuckle awkwardly when you look down and see her staring intently at you. “What?”

“Nothing,” she answers with a smile. “Just feel like kissing you.” Then she places a hand on your thigh, using the leverage to reach up and meet your lips with hers. Her actions hasten and her hand moves over to your furthest thigh, squeezing you softly as she gets onto her knees.

Her lips didn’t part from yours for a moment. Her hair slips down from behind her ears and tickles the sides of your face as she moves a knee over your legs and takes a seat on your lap. She cups both your cheeks in her warm palms, thumbs moving gently across your cheekbones as she caresses you through the kiss.

Your hands move down her body to flatten against the back of her hips and you bring her close so she’s pressed against you. She moves onto her knees again and lifts herself from your lap so you have to tilt your head up to kiss her.

“Watermelon?” you exhale against her lips when she finally pulls back to take a breath.

She grins and meets your eyes. “It’s my lip gloss.”

Gerri quickly runs the tip of her tongue over your lips which makes you giggle. She tightens her arms around your neck, enamored by your laugh. “Tastes like strawberry,” she notes.

“My chapstick,” you say.

She kisses you again but parts from your lips to trail kisses down your cheek. Her lips reach your neck and you feel yourself shiver at the feeling of her tongue darting out occasionally to flick teasingly against your skin, gentle kissing moving all the way down to your clavicle before Gerri straights again and sits back down onto your lap.

“Y/N,” she says, slightly breathless. “Let’s make a deal.”

Taking a few seconds to steady yourself after Gerri’s kisses, you inhale deeply before answering, “What kinda deal?”

“I want us to lose our virginities to each other,” she says confidently. “I want you to promise that I’ll be your first time. I mean, it might be obviously that we’ll — you know — at some point.”

She becomes a bit bashful and looks away from you with a shy smile. Then she meets your eyes again. “But I want to make sure. I want to make sure it’s me. I want to make sure it’s you. I want to be your first everything.”

With a smile that does a poor job at suppressing how thrilled you feel by her offer, you quickly reply, “Me too. I wanna be everything to you, Ger. I promise.”

She lifts her pinky finger up between your faces. You wrap yours around hers, sealing your promises to each other, and Gerri lowers both your hands to kiss you softly, her lips moving against yours with delicate passion. 

Gerri disconnects her pinky finger from yours and takes your hand. She brushes the tip of your noses against each other when she rests her forehead against yours. 

You gaze into each other's eyes and she smiles before the two of you break into a fit of girlish giggles. Both of you bask in the enthralling feeling of intimacy that comes with having promised your first times to the other.

There’ll be a lot of firsts with Gerri.

It makes your stomach fill with butterflies just thinking about it.

[naoa-ao3]

Scenes of Desctruction

Camping isn't exactly one of John's favorite past times but when the invitation comes and it's on someone else's dime he accepts and spends a day trying to find his hiking boots. He tears apart his whole flat in the process but he does find them, shoved to the back on a shelf in his closet.

They're almost brand new and he goes for a smoke to celebrate his find, packing that evening and heading out to meet his friends.

He's got a lot of friends and there's always someone interesting about when he's around. He just seems to attract interesting people. Sometimes to his own detriment.

He goes out with a few friends who have latched onto a retired history professor from down south.

It's his first time meeting Gerry but the man seems friendly enough and he shakes his hand and Gerry asks him for a light as they set off, all packed into a brown Ford Grenada wagon. There's five of them and plenty of room and once they're out of London someone sparks a joint, reminding John of years and journies past.

He's not as into the drugs as he was when he was young but he takes a little toke and laughs with the others.

It's a good crew and sometimes it's just nice to be included. He rolls the window down and sticks his arm out while the others talk politics and movies and people they know, sports and horses, jokes and local spots.

Gerry, who seems to be holding the whole venture together has a loud, booming laugh and a wild beard that looks like it took some real work to achieve and John likes him. Gerry tells them about passing historic sites and happenings and he listens easily as the wheels turn.

They pass other cars and massive lorries, farms and houses and it's nice weather.

They drive for nearly an hour and pull off alongside a field.

Then it's everyone out and over a low stone wall and through a small woods until they find a spot on the edge of a private field.

"You sure this spot is alright?" Someone asks as John and another two start trying to figure out the tent.

Gerry laughs. "Course it is." He said. "Right to roam, you know? It's been upheld."

The legitimacy of their venture doesn't hinder them too much and they get the tent set up and a fire going before too long and soon enough they're all sitting around comfortably by said fire, eating and smoking and laughing.

Gerry knows the history of just about every field in England it seems and every wall and valley too and he tells them fantastic stories of battles and then less exciting ones about the political ramifications of those battles.

They all listen and John enjoys the stories, it's good to know the history of the place you're standing on and he imagines men in old armor, spears and swords and horses screaming.

All things lost so long ago.

The smoke from their cigarettes and joints mingles into the air with the smoke from the camp fire and John takes his turn fetching wood with two of the others, enjoying himself as he tramps through the woods in search of a good stick.

The sky eventually turns dark over head and they all settle back, listening to Gerry explain the past and staring up at stars that have hung there for centuries.

John wonders if any of the men in Gerry's stories looked up at them and then after a while talk turns to little things and after that people start to drift off.

John wakes fairly late in the night and after too many beers and too much fun he disentangles himself from the tent and slips out to take a piss.

It's dark now and curiously he creeps out of the woods and into the clearing to get a better look at the sky.

It's a fairly clear night out, only a few dark whisps hang black against the sky.

He lights a cigarette and enjoys his private moment before a cracking sound fills he air and he jumps, hitting the black earth as a bullet wizzes past his left ear.

His cigarette slips for m his fingers, glows orange in the night and then disappears to earth.

John lays with his heart hammering painfully I'm his chest.

Gun fire?

He looked around and then hears feet pounding and the screaming if horses.

A hunter he could process but when he raises his eyes to see he can make out hundred of pairs of legs, all trampling the black earth hard around him.

It's a thunderous sound that reaches his ears. Hooves and men standing around him and he rolls then, trying to get away from the stampeding feet.

People are screaming now and when he's finally managed to get back to the edge of the woods he can only stare in dumbfounded shock.

The field is full of fighting men, old armor clanking and swords clashing as they battle but hidden amongst the silver and spears are the even stranger men and women. . . Men and women with painted faces and bare chests. . .

John's eyes don't totally take in the awful sight as the figures spill black blood across the earth.

A young man falls near him, leather armor a poor match for steel.

The boy's green eyes blink up at him in pained confusion and his mouth opens and closes uselessly but he's staring right at him and he's the only one that's seemed to notice him.

John states back, uncertain of what to say to him or if speaking would make a difference.

The boy reaches for him then, young, maybe only twenty. . . He's got blood on his lips and confusion in his eyes.

He doesn't want to touch him, doesn't want to see the blood or the green eyes but for all times he's been called a bastard John does have a heart and so he reaches out and takes the boy's hand.

Something desperate seems to roll from the boy's face and he gasps. "A-am I dying?" The boy asks as a wooden shield splinters and it's barer falls, black blood hitting black earth and seeping in dark rivers down below.

John nods. "Sorry mate."

The boy's eyes, impossibly fast. . . they search the ageless stars for some understanding and he nods, those same eyes rolling in his long dead head. "I feel cold." He whispers.

John hangs his own head. "I know, lad." He whispers, feeling the boy's forgotten fingers tighten around his hand.

"D-don't want to die." The boy says but John knows the truth. Most people talk about death like they have a choice but when they don't have that choice they don't want to die. Not most people. This kid didn't have a choice. He's already dead.

A warring figure so old John can't place his clothes falls then, speared on the blade of a man a millennia younger. It's gruesome and probably has already happened. Probably never happened. Couldn't have happened.

Happened?

This is only a reflection after all.

A million battles fought here, across this torn and bloodied land. The blood soaking the soil as kings and pages fell alike. Over and over and over, all of them fighting but without rules or sense.

"Do you have a name, lad?" John asks the dying boy, trying to be kind to him, trying to show him some bit of useless compassion.

The boy's mouth works curiously but he only stares upwards. "Can't remember." He says, green eyes vivid in the dark. Afraid in the dark.

Girls might have liked him once if this hadn't happened.

"It's alright." He hears himself say.

It isn't, not really. Not for this one or for any of these men.

"Will they burry me?" The boy asks, voice high and choked now.

John doesn't know so he lies and nods.

Bones split and shatter, men and horses scream; steel strikes painfully against flesh, cutting and tearing men like they're nothing.

The boy coughs blood and John wants to let him go but doesn't. It won't be long now and the boy will be dead. No use for cruelty now.

Not when he's been dead for a few hundred years already.

Gerry's words about the civil war and Cromwell flit between his ears, dancing in this boy's green eyes and reflecting off of the armor that's now stained with blood.

He looks out as the boy dies again, perhaps as he does every night or just on anniversaries and sees black, wet earth and weapon bitten bodies.

They don't look like living men when they're laid out like this and yet they were. A thousand dead men, all left to rot. Killing and dying in vain for eternity.

Bullets and stone weapons side by side, all of their barres bloody and lost.

These scars that don't heal, trenches and pits, nameless graves for the ones here. All of them forgotten in time and history except by men like Gerry and now him too who's seen it, seen the battles that don't end.

He watches a man's head- split by a club and almost chokes on the sight. This is hell, this is terror. This is insanity.

The boy is dead again, as he has been all along and then a second later he's back and on his feet again, crying out to his master and running back towards him to serve and die again.

John watches helplessly and sees a bullet pass through him. The poor fool falls, eyes hurt and confused and asking careless skies.

A horse screams and John stumbles as far back as he can get, green eyes hanging in his mind as he watches the scene unfold.

Destruction and chaos on every hand, in every heart and in every mind, their wounds spilling black death onto modern soil, recent earth. Turned earth. Earth that covers them. Them that were left here. Them without graves or names.

Them with green eyes and confused faces. All of them lost here.

A thousand broken spears and lives, heads split and bones broken. . . All aberrations of life. All wrong and twisted. All forgotten.

The boy is back again, helpless to his death as any of them and he's bleeding and angry and confused.

John pities him just a little and looks as an ancient king stares round, nose wrinkled and expression lost. He wonders what order this man gave. Which of these dead are his burden and if he even knows what he's done.

The king is felled, just like his men and bows to the earth already marked with blood. His eyes wide and his head wreathed in hammered metal for all the good it did him.

For all the good it does him for he rises right back up again and stabs a man with a painted face through the middle, ripping flesh and screams from men he's never met and never hated.

John remembers he came here to piss and turns from the sight and the dying men, turns from things he can't control and nearly trips over a down limb.

He curses and shakes his head, horrid sounds and images locked in himself now behind scared, green eyes.

He takes his piss, safe from the sounds of death and far behind the tree line. He leans against a tree to light up after, the only one awake and alive that night. His hands are still shaking.

It's good to know the history of the place you're standing on and he looks back through the dark trees to an empty field spilled black with centuries of forgotten blood.

It's silent now but in his mind he can still hear them fighting. . . still hear the ringing of their swords, the crack of their rifles and the pain in their voices. All of it clashing over and over and over again on a dark field behind a low stone wall.

He finishes his cigarette and tramps back to the tent and fire, walking away from Saxon kings and ancient men with painted faces, men with muskets and knights that never made it home. . . Their green eyed page boys all lost in the mud.

Camping isn't one of John's favorite past times but he does have to admit that there's something to it, something in getting away from the city and Gerry sure knows how to pick a spot. The man knows every battlefield and stone wall across England.

Now John knows one too.

[deafmangoes]

So the spouse and I recently finished watching all of the original Captain Scarlet - the one with the puppets and the incredibly high on-screen body count for a "kids' show".

And I tell ya, I have theories. If I can get them into any sort of coherence I'll probably post them, but for starters:

This man is a gay icon and - I'm pretty sure - Lieutenant Green's dad. I will elaborate.

I am aware that Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's stated backstory for Charles Grey (his actual name) is that he's a widower whose wife died possibly in childbirth - but where's the fun in respecting canon?

White is exceptionally Dad-like to the whole Spectrum team; even to the point where, during the penultimate episode*, he pulls Captain Scarlet in during an emotional life and death situation and tells him to get a haircut.

Throughout the entire run, he just gave me the strongest vibe of a very "straight gay (yet catty and sarcastic)" father figure who had seen some shit and thrown hands in the past. Again, referring to his backstory, he was a rebel leader against a tyrannical British government, helping to overthrow it, and then became not only the youngest fleet admiral on record but retired to head up the London branch of the 'Universal Secret Service', becoming a feared spycatcher.

I imagine that under this tyrannical government, a lot of LGBTQ+ rights were repressed, which has led to his particular attitude (as perhaps an artefact of the show being made in the 60s, he really gave me the vibe of someone forced to live in the closet for much of his life, who now doesn't give a fuck).

Speaking of giving a fuck. He's Lieutenant Green's dad. Perhaps this happened during a time of indiscretion after the death of his wife, before he fully came out of the closet, I don't know, he might just be bisexual! But he's definitely Green's dad, and Green doesn't know this.**

I base this theory solely on how overly protective he is of Green, even more so than the rest of Spectrum. He refuses to let Green go into the field except under duress, keeps him literally within eyeshot at all times at the communications desk, and goes far softer on him than his peers.

Incidentally, the show takes place in 2069 of what we can assume to be an alternate history where architects think that a "car park" consisting of one giant spiral concrete entrance/exit looming over London is a good idea - but assuming for a second that the divergence point is still in our future, and that Colonel White is in his fifties during the show, that means he would have been born in the last decade.

And that the UK becomes a fascist dictatorship as if that would ever happen lol ahahaha i made myself sad

Anyway. Yeah. Colonel White is the best character in the show. I'd follow him into certain death against an immortal and unkillable enemy any day of the week.

*This episode is revealed to be All A Dream but I have no reason to believe everyone in it was acting at all out of character.

**I know that in the CGI remake Green is not only gender-flipped but also there's an episode where she has to literally kill her own father, but that's clearly a different universe.

[royallymagpied]

A Christmas together

Written in response to: Write a story that includes the line “Be careful what you wish for.”

The old woman, Lydia, was staring at herself in the bedroom mirror, the worn velvet sinking beneath her bony frame. Outside, the wind was howling, tree branches knocking on windows, a mournful counterpoint to the silence within. Her first Christmas alone.

Lydia shivered, though the room was well heated. She was overcome by a deeper, more chilling fear. She had never felt that way before her husband died, but since his funeral her heart had been tightly gripped by the pointy and sharp talons of a monster from her nightmares.

George. Her George had come back to keep her company.

She glanced at the ornate mirror clearly carrying her fingerprints and dust. George's face, pale and gaunt, leered back at her, eyes hollow and black. Decay, like a creeping mold, had begun to mar his features, the skin stretched taut over bone, a grotesque parody of his former self.

George Paley, the man she'd spent a lifetime tormenting, the man whose life she'd been determined to derail. There was no love, at least not the love you picture in your imagination. He'd always been a means to an end, a comfortable provider, a sturdy oak against the storms of life, a conveniently silent shadow by her side. She'd married him for security, a random pick from the line of his friends.

And she'd never let him forget it.

Every meal was a battleground, every conversation a minefield. His jokes were met with withering disdain, his opinions dismissed as foolish and soon he chose to eat in silence letting her flood the kitchen with gossip and nonsense. His attempts to please her were met with icy indifference, his love met with a rebuke so he chose to go through the motions like a soulless creature. He had never been enough and she'd taken every opportunity to remind him about that.

"You're such an idiot, George," she'd sneer, her voice dripping with venom. "I should have chosen Tom or Gerry instead. They are the real men."

He'd wither under her gaze, his spirit crushed beneath the weight of her constant criticism. He'd try harder, desperate to win her approval not even love. But it was a futile effort, a Sisyphean task.

His only chance to shine was his life outside his marriage. He was a well-respected figure in his professional field and a man adored by women. The further he travelled from home, the brighter his eyes shone. He flourished and conquered in the world outside once spared his wife's poisonous presence.

One evening, he'd complained of chest pains.

It'd been a year since he retired and fell victim to her daily attacks, choosing to stare blankly at the TV screen blocking his wife out. The pain worsened but he refused to go to the hospital, listening to his heart skipping beats and looking at the doctor calmly. He'd never been so tired in his entire life.

The next morning, he was found slumped on the bathroom floor, cold and stiff.

If only Lydia could feel any guilt! Her screaming and crying, and shaking his body was done only to prove her despair to the invisible audience. She didn't feel sorry for George, she felt sorry for herself.

"I wish… I wish you were still here," she'd whispered, tears rolling down her sunken cheeks. "I've never allowed you to go!"

And so, he obeyed.

Every night from then on, the old woman heard the mournful whistle of the ghost train. It chugged along the ghostly rail track that ran through her back yard overgrown with weeds and shrouded in an eerie mist.

The train carried him back, night after night, a spectral passenger on a journey to torment.

He'd appear in the mirrors, a grotesque reflection of her own despair. His eyes, hollow and black, would follow her every move, a silent accusation.

She'd try to ignore him, to pretend he wasn't there, but his presence was a suffocating weight, a constant reminder of her cruelty, her indifference.

Sleep became a distant memory. The nights were filled with the sound of his labored breathing, his ghostly sighs echoing through the empty rooms.

She'd see him in the shadows, a fleeting glimpse of a gaunt figure lurking in the corners of the room. He'd stand at the foot of her bed, watching her sleep, his presence a chilling reminder of her guilt. She wouldn't get more than a few minutes of sleep woken up by him staring at her from the dark.

Terror gnawed at her as he found a way in, slithering through the cracks, a malevolent spirit haunting her every move.

"Be careful what you wish for, Lydia," his voice, a chilling whisper, would echo through the room.

She'd recoil in fear, her heart pounding against her ribs. She'd never truly understood the meaning of those words until now.

She'd yearned for his presence, so she could continue with her comfortable thought-free life knowing that he'd provide for her and swallow every accusation, every insult and never fight back. All he'd ever done was pleading. Once he'd tried to fight back though. She'd faced his anger and bitterness indifferently completely missing his pain. All she'd ever been capable of was feeling sorry for herself, wanting to be the centre of attention, the ever sick but never dying martyr, the misunderstood victim. Whatever he'd asked for was met with disgust as if it violated her rights.

But she'd lost her weapon for he'd crossed the scariest line that every living feared and was watching her from a place far beyond her reach rendering her helpless. And still she refused to look at her actions and feel any remorse whatsoever.

The ghost train continued its nightly journey, its mournful whistle a haunting reminder of her tyranny and vanity.

And George, the ghost, remained a constant, malevolent presence in her life, a chilling testament to the devastating consequences of a lifetime of cruelty. He was ready to stand by his marital vows even in death and remind Lydia that some debts could never be repaid.

Even in death. Even on Christmas.

[thaoworra]

With November we have all of the winners finally in for the major Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association awards. This was a big year for all as the association marked its 45th year. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners and nominees, and a big round of applause to all of the chairs who worked tirelessly to ensure a smooth process:

Elgin Awards Now in its tenth year, the first place Elgin Award winner for Book of the Year is Some Disassembly Required by David C. Kopaska-Merkel (Diminuendo Press, 2022). Second place went to The Saint of Witches by Avra Margariti (Weasel Press, 2022), while third place was a tie between  Elegies of Rotted Stars by Tiffany Morris (Nictitating Books, 2022) and Not a Princess, But (Yes) There Was a Pea & Other Tales to Foment Revolution by Rebecca Buchanan (Jackanapes Press, 2022),  The Elgin Award winner for Chapbook of the Year is The Last Robot and Other Science Fiction Poems by Jane Yolen (Shoreline of Infinity, 2021). The second place chapbook was Spacers Snarled in the Hair of Comets by Bruce Boston (Mind’s Eye Publishing, 2022).  The third place went to Cajuns in Space by Denise Dumars (self-published, 2022).

Morgan L Ventura served as the 2023 Chair of the Elgin Awards. 78 members voted on the selections. 58 books had been nominated and 18 chapbooks had been nominated.

Rhysling Awards For the Rhysling awards, in the Long Poem category, Colleen Anderson’s “Machine (r)Evolution” from Radon Journal 2 received first place. In the Short Poem category there was a tie between Jennifer Crow’s “Harold and the Blood-Red Crayon” from Star*Line 45.1 and Terese Mason Pierre’s “In Stock Images of the Future, Everything is White” from Uncanny 46.  The second place award in the Long Poem category went to Rebecca Buchanan’s “The Bone Tree” from Not A Princess, but (Yes) There was a Pea, and Other Fairy Tales to Foment Revolution (Jackanapes Press) and the second place in the Short Poem category went to Sarah Grey’s “Bitch Moon” from Nightmare Magazine 118. The 2023 third place Long Poem was  Akua Lezli Hope’s “Igbo Landing II” which first appeared in Black Fire—This Time, ed. Kim McMillon (Aquarius Press). The third place award for Short Poem was a tie between Amelia Gorman’s “The Gargoyle Watches the Rains End” from The Gargoylicon: Imaginings and Images of the Gargoyle in Literature and Art ed. Frank Coffman (Mind’s Eye Publications) and Lisa Timpf’s “First Contact” from Eye to the Telescope 44. Rhysling honorable mentions in the Short Poem category included “Field Notes from the Anthropocene” by Priya Chand Nightmare Magazine 116,  “Near the end, your mother tells you she’s been seeing someone” by Shannon Connor Winward, from the SFPA Poetry Contest, and “Dinner Plans with Baba Yaga” by Stephanie M. Wytovich from Into the Forest: Tales of the Baba Yaga. In the Long Poem category, honorable mentions were given to “Herbaceous Citadel” by Avra Margariti in The Fairy Tale Magazine January 4,  “Living in Rubble” by Gerri Leen from Eccentric Orbits 3, and “The Thing About Stars” by Avra Magariti from The Saint of Witches (Weasel Press).

Maxwell I. Gold was this year’s Rhysling chair. 102 short poems were nominated, and 70 long poems were nominated from across 94 publications and collections. 114 members voted.

Dwarf Stars The 2023 Dwarf Stars were tied for first place with “Believe the Graves” by Rasha Abdulhadi from The Deadlands 16 and “In Perpetuity” by Bruce Boston in Analog, July/August 2022. The second place award went to “Excerpt from a Proposal for the New City” by Alyssa Lo from Strange Horizons, 11/14. The third place was tied between “As Slow as Starlight” by Kim Whysall-Hammond in Frozen Wavelets 7, “Surviving” by Sumiko Saulson in The Rat King: A Book of Dark Poetry (Dooky Zines), and  “Trichotillomania” by Warsan Shire in Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head (Random House). This year’s chairs were David C. Kopaska Merkel and Miguel O. Mitchell, PhD. This year 120 members reviewed 105 poems across 54 venues.

SFPA Poetry Contest Judge Michael Arnzen selected the winners of this year’s SFPA Poetry Contest. Prizes were offered in three divisions: Dwarf (≤10 lines), Short, and Long (50+ lines). Contest chair R. Thursday received 439 entries (114 dwarf-length, 253 short, and 72 long poems) from around the world.

Dwarf Form: First place “Calcination” by Colleen Anderson Second place “What Ghosts Didn’t Do” by Mary Soon Lee Third Place [open window] by Michael Nickels-Wisdom

Dwarf Form Honorable Mentions: “All Sales Final!” by Alan Vincent Michaels “Starstruck” by S. Iya Iya “My Mother’s Eyes” by Chad Stanke “Poisoned Gold Sprinkles” by Greer Woodward “Black Sea” by Anna Cates

Short Form: First place “Abraham Lincoln Addresses the Nation Before He is Executed by Interstellar Invaders” by Kate Boyes Second place “Embryo Warehouse” by Amber Winter and Joshua St. Claire Third Place “A Jar of Cherries” by Jay Caselberg

Short Form Honorable Mentions: “Hovering Free” by Hamant Sing “In Which I Tell You Speculative Fiction is the Trans Body” by West Ambrose “Charming” by Anna Cates “Considering Fuseli’s ‘The Nightmare'” by Frank Coffman “Enceladus Elegy” by Bradley Earle Hoge

Long Form: First place “Metamorfish” by Randall Andrews Second place “Nightmare in Blue” by Kurt Newton Third Place “Wake Unto Death” by Lori R. Lopez

Long Form Honorable Mentions: “This Body Isn’t Mine” by Christina Connerton “The Odd Couple” by Anna Cates “The Origin of ‘The Steamster'” by Jerri Hardesty “Panopticon” by F.J. Bergmann “An Eschaton of Ice” by John Bell

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association was established in 1978 by Suzette Haden-Elgin and has an international membership representing over 19 nations and cultures including United States, Italy, Canada, Brazil, United Kingdom, Ireland, Romania, Poland, Denmark, Germany, France, Spain, Israel, South Africa, Singapore, Thailand, Laos, the Hmong, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association publishes two journals: Star*Line and Eye to the Telescope. It oversees three major literary awards for poetry: The Rhyslings, the Dwarf Stars, and the Elgin Awards. They also conduct an annual science fiction poetry contest and other special events and gatherings. Further, they also provide resources for emerging and established poets seeking professional publication and networking opportunities.

[royaltyofmultifandom]

Just for the Weekend [One] - Gerri Fields x Reader

Summary: Gerri lets slip to her best friend that she is no longer a virgin and is dating someone after she was teasing her for still being a virgin in college. Gerri asks you to pretend to be her girlfriend for a weekend to convince her best friend she is no longer a virgin. Gerri doesn’t know you are in love with her. It’s just a weekend you think what can go wrong?

Warnings:fluff, little angst, will be 18+ in the last chapter.

Words: 3.5K

A/n: I have recently caught covid so I have more free time to write this week. I know I have some stories to update and I will try to do that along with some requests. This idea has been in my head for a while and I have been dying to write and release it so here you go. Hope you enjoy :)

MASTERLIST //  Join my Taglist!

//

It’s a typical Monday afternoon on campus, the sun is shining down on the campus grounds and students are everywhere sunbathing on the green. There are students underneath the old oak trees as they laugh and soak up the sun as Spring has arrived.

You find yourself smiling and breathing in the fresh air as you walk past a cherry blossom tree on your way back to your dorm room. You are heading back to invite your roommate Gerri to grab some food and join the mass of students enjoying the warm weather. 

Gerri and you hit it off immediately as soon as you met and in the past few months you have found yourself developing feelings for your best friend and roommate. Gerri was unlike any other girl you had come to know. Gerri was quirky, both in terms of her personality and dress sense, she was also kind and compassionate if not naive sometimes. You found yourself feeling very protective over Gerri especially when you first got to know each other and took her to her very first college party and she had her first experience with alcohol. 

Gerri was incredibly funny and musically gifted. She would often play her guitar in your dorm room and you would love to watch her and hear her new songs. Most of all though Gerri was beautiful, she was probably the most attractive woman you had ever laid eyes on. 

You found yourself at your dorm door and walked in “Hey Ger, it’s beautiful outside. What do you say we go grab lunch and hang out with the rest of our friends?” you inquire as you dump your stuff on your bed. Then you hear a sniffle and immediately spin around to find a red eyed Gerri with a deflated look on her face and tear stains down her cheeks sitting on her bed.

You rush over to Gerri and climb on her bed and pull her into your chest “Hey, what’s wrong Ger? You can tell me” you whisper against her hair as her body shakes with her silent sobs against your chest. You rub your hand over Gerri’s back hoping to soothe her and soon enough her wracking sobs subside so, you gently pull her away from your chest and wipe her tears from her cheeks with the pads of your thumbs softly. 

“Hey, it’s okay. You wanna tell me what happened” you asked softly not wanting to push her too much. 

Gerri sits up and turns so she can face you again and sighs “It’s stupid just my friend back home Lily, you know the one I told you about?” Oh boy did you know about Lily and the whole debacle that had happened just before Gerri came to college. Gerri had told you all about Lily and her boyfriend David and you still couldn’t understand how a best friend could do that to someone, let alone to Gerri. 

You just nodded “well she called and everything was great at first but then she started mentioning how great her and David were since they reconnected. Then she proceeded to tease me about not losing my virginity yet and that I should get a move on and it wasn’t really that big a deal. She also teased me because I hadn’t even had so much as a kiss here at college” she continued. 

Your eyes went wide at Gerri mentioning she was still a virgin but you managed to hide it as Gerri was so upset recounting her phone call with Lily. How could someone as attractive as Gerri Fields not have lost her virginity yet but this only made your heart pound faster and your feelings for her grow fonder. Of course she was still a virgin, she was so sweet and caring that it made sense for her to want to wait for someone perfect. 

Very quickly this affection turned into anger, not towards Gerri of course not but, towards Lily. How dare she make fun of Gerri for not losing her virginity when she took that opportunity away from her the summer before college when she started having sex with the guy Gerri fancied. 

“Anyway, I got so frustrated with her teasing that I may have blurted out that I actually had lost my virginity and I was dating someone” Gerri finishes sighing. 

“First of all there is nothing wrong with still being a virgin many people are during their first year of college. And so what? It’s a teeny white lie, how’s she going to find out anyway?” you asked confused whilst grabbing Gerri’s hand and brushing over her knuckles with your thumb to soothe her once more. 

Gerri pulls her hands back and starts fidgeting with them and looks away shyly and mumbles something. 

“What did you say Ger, you were mumbling” you questioned her. Gerri looks into your eyes “I said that I told Lily that I had sex with you and that I was currently dating you and I would bring you home this weekend with me to meet my family and Lily” she blurted out. 

You looked at her with wide eyes and mouth agape “Ger! Why’d you do that, I can’t pretend to be your girlfriend this weekend” you exclaimed jumping off her bed pacing around the room nervously. You couldn’t do this not when you had strong feelings for Gerri, not when you were in love with her. 

You kept pacing around throwing out nos to every one of her pleas as you ran your hands through your hair nervously.

“Please y/n? It’s just for the weekend, please I can’t have this looming over me. Lily already thinks I am a joke for still being a virgin, she cannot know I lied about this because I was annoyed and embarrassed. Please y/n, it’s just three days I promise” Gerri had strode across the room and was now holding on to your arm pleading with you. 

You looked into Gerri’s moss-green eyes and sighed as she was looking at you with so much need silently pleading with you. You have never been able to say no to Gerri and this moment wasn’t any different as you melted as soon as you stared into those gorgeous eyes.

“Fine, I'll pretend to be your girlfriend. Just for the weekend though Ger, I mean it” you state warningly. 

Gerri smiles widely and it makes you weak at the knees as she wraps her arms around you and buries her head in the crook of your neck “Thank you, thank you y/n” she mumbles gratefully, her breath brushing against your neck causing goosebumps and your heart to start pounding rapidly in your chest as you bring your arms around her holding her tightly. 

What the hell, you think. What could possibly go wrong? 

Oh boy were you wrong.

///

The two of you were fully packed by Thursday night and by Friday you were both on the road travelling back to Gerri’s hometown. You had offered to drive as you were the only one with a licence and the drive was only four hours long. 

During these four hours Gerri spent the whole time filling you in about her mom and younger brother along with Lily and David. You noticed she had begun spiralling and reached over to put your hand on her thigh to calm her down. 

“Ger, don’t worry. I have met your mom and brother loads of times this isn’t any different and as for David and Lily well, you have me now. I won’t let them put you down or make you feel embarrassed. Why are you even still friends with her after what she did and the way she makes you feel anyway?” you pondered. 

Gerri sighs “she hasn’t always been like this. She’s been my best friend since we were three and I don’t know if people always say you change when you first get a partner maybe that’s just what this is” she speculates. 

You nod in understanding, still stroking Gerri’s thigh before pulling it away to put two hands on the steering wheel.

“Okay well, if we are going to convince Lily and David we have to come up with a set list of facts. That will ensure that if either of us are cornered alone then we have the same stories and are consistent so as to avoid suspicion. 

First of all, we need the story of how and when we decided we felt more towards each other than just friendship. Then we need a first date story, a first kiss story and the first time we slept together. We don’t have to go into detail. We can just say we were nervous and clumsy at first but I made sure you were comfortable and it turned out to be amazing. We just state that we want to keep the details intimately between us. Is all of that okay?” you suggested. 

“Yeah, that sounds great. Thank you y/n, I mean it. There is no one I would rather date or fake date than you” Gerri expresses her gratitude. You smile at her but feel as if you have been punched in the gut, you are going to have to remind yourself that anything the two of you do this weekend is fake dating. 

It’s not real and you feel yourself deflating as you remind yourself of this and the situation you are in. 

////

Eventually, with directions from Gerri you pull up to the driveway at her house and see her mom and brother standing waving at you both along with two blonde-haired individuals who you presume are Lily and David. 

You switch your engine off and turn to Gerri “Ready babe?” you tease as Gerri quirks her brow confused. You unbuckle your seatbelt and lean over to whisper in her ear “We’re supposed to be girlfriends. So I’m going to be talking and acting like I am actually dating you to make this believable. Now, is there anything you are not comfortable with before we leave this car?” you whisper in her ear. 

Gerri shakes her head “no bubs” she giggles. To everyone outside it looks like the two of you are flirting so you lean back and press your lips to Gerri’s cheek as she blushes. You smile “well then let the weekend commence Ger” and you get out of the car and unload the bags. 

Gerri comes over and slings her bad over her shoulder and grabs your hand, interlacing your fingers with hers as she pulls you over to everyone. 

“Y/n, I am so glad that the two of you came to your senses and confessed your feelings to each other” Gerri’s mom cheers as she hugs you and Gerri. You glance over at Gerri and you see her blushing profusely so you smile at her and lean over and kiss her temple whilst squeezing her hand reassuringly. 

“Me too, Mrs Fields” you reply. 

“Oh come on now y/n, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Kate” she playfully chastises you. “Well, thank you Kate. I promise to take great care of your daughter” you promise her and she nods thankfully. 

Kate and Gerri’s brother head inside to prepare lunch whilst Gerri introduces you to Lily and David. 

“Lily, David. This is y/n, my girlfriend that I was telling you about on the phone. We were roommates and became very close friends and then from there we started dating. Y/n, bubs, this is my best friend Lily and her boyfriend David” Gerri introduces us all. 

“It’s nice to meet you both, Ger talks about you both highly. It’s nice to finally put faces to the names” I say politely as I hug Lily and shake David’s hand before wrapping my hand around Gerri’s waist and pulling her back into me rubbing soothing circles along her hip bone.

“You know I was surprised that Gerri had actually lost her virginity, let alone started dating someone. I had no idea she was into girls, I thought she would remain frigid for at least a couple more years at college” Lily jeered. 

I felt Gerri tense up by my side “well, Ger is an amazing human and I would have been blind and stupid not to fall in love with her. I think her waiting until she was in a proper relationship instead of some person she had just met means a lot more. You and David started out as a one night stand no?” I bite back to Lily’s surprise. 

“I suppose we did,” she responds stiffly before putting her fake smile back on and suggesting we head inside and get something to eat. 

Once inside Kate shows us up to Gerri’s bedroom and leaves us to get settled and to join everyone else out in the back once we were unpacked. As soon as the door was closed Gerri came up and buried her head against my chest “thank you, for standing up for me when she called me frigid” she thanked me.

I wrap my arms around her tightly before leaning back as I cup her cheek to look at me “of course, she was out of order. I won’t let her insult you in front of me like that. She acts like she is better than you because she isn’t a virgin anymore. It’s important that you know just because sex means a lot to you and you haven’t found the right person does not mean you are frigid Ger. 

Also, what she said about not knowing you were into girls. Was that true? Are you interested in girls romantically or sexually?” You inquire softly. 

“Yeah I am into girl sexually and romantically. I’m bisexual is that okay?” she hesitates looking right into my eyes. 

“Of course, that is okay Ger. I just wanted to make sure I didn’t make you feel too uncomfortable during this weekend” you reassure her. She hugs you once again and the two of you head back downstairs hand in hand after unpacking. 

The afternoon passes by quickly and you find yourself bombarded by questions from Lily. You find the more time you spend with this girl the less and less you like her. She flaunts David in front of Gerri throughout the afternoon, makes condescending remarks and constantly makes jokes that David chose her. At one point David gets uncomfortable and tells Lily to knock it off and you place a kiss on Gerri's temple to hide your smirk. 

You can tell although you and Gerri are affectionate Lily isn’t buying the whole relationship and is becoming sceptical. Lily keeps asking questions to catch you both out which leads to her questioning the first time you two kissed. 

“Well, y/n had asked me out and she took me to this little hidden lake on campus that we had found whilst exploring campus the first week of college. She told me she had liked me for a while and that she couldn’t imagine doing this anywhere else. I asked her what she meant and she cupped my chin and tilted it upwards and asked if she could kiss me. I nodded and she kissed me” Gerri gushes as her eyes light up almost like she wishes it had happened.  

“Very romantic y/n. Asking for consent and taking Gerri somewhere romantic almost seems as if it was straight out a fairytale” Lily implies whilst narrowing her eyes at me. 

Lily’s response irks me to no end “Well, I knew that I was Gerri’s first kiss with another woman and I wanted to embrace that and make it as memorable for her as it was for me. Also, I take consent very seriously Lily. I wouldn’t want Ger to feel pressured at any point in our relationship, I love her too much” I recount. 

Eventually, Lily and David go home and Gerri and I head upstairs to relax before dinner with Gerri’s family. 

I shut the door behind us and jump on Gerri’s bed letting my frustrations at Lily go. I feel Gerri come lie on the bed next to me and rub my back soothingly “I’m sorry” she announces. I quickly sit up and hold her hand “why on earth are you apologising Ger” I ask. 

“The way Lily treated us, I don’t think she believed us enough. God, this was so stupid” she groaned. 

“Hey, no. After meeting her in person I get why you did it and I’m more determined than ever to show her we are dating. But we need to move things up a notch to make this believable. I, uhm, I was wondering, if I could possibly kiss you? I mean I think to make this believable we need to kiss in front of everyone or in the corner when we think people aren’t paying attention. But only if you are comfortable with it, we can not kiss and just keep doing what we are doing. I’m sorry I probably just made things weird we don’t have to. It was-” Gerri yells my name to cut off my rambling. 

“Yes, you can kiss me. Like you said if we want this to be believable then we need to kiss. It doesn’t mean anything, it's just for this weekend to help this act move along” she chuckles. 

I feel a pain in my chest as she notes it doesn’t mean anything but also nervous as I have wanted to kiss Gerri for a long time now. I nod and shuffle closer to her. I push a strand of her hair that had fallen back behind her ear and cup her cheek as she looks at me. Slowly, I begin to tilt my head towards her as she does the same and soon I feel her breath brushing against my lips. I close the gap and capture her bottom lip in mine and I feel my heart soar as she begins moving her lips against mine. 

I take in how soft her lips are against my own and the taste of her peach Chapstick that she put on earlier. I find myself wanting to be more immersed with her so I run my tongue along her bottom lip and she grants me permission as she gasps against my mouth allowing my tongue to meet her own. Our tongues move together perfectly as I explore her mouth with my own. 

In this moment I forget we are not together and that this is all fake and after this weekend it will be as if this kiss and all the others to follow will never have existed. I try to tell myself that her moaning is because of me and that she might feel the same as I do at this moment as she wraps her hands around my neck pulling me against her lips further. 

Eventually, we have to break away for air and I open my eyes to see hers still closed before her eyes flutter open slowly as her moss-green eyes meet my own y/e/c ones. 

“You’re an amazing kisser y/n” she giggles. “Thank you Ger, you were pretty amazing yourself. Keep kissing me like that and you might fool me into thinking we are together” I joke not noticing the way Gerri looks away shyly. 

I excuse myself from the bed and head to go take a shower before dinner. 

“If only you knew how in love with you I am y/n y/l/n, that that kiss wasn’t fake for me” Gerri sighs. 

Gerri couldn’t believe her ears when you said you were willing to kiss her often to make this believable. She wasn’t lying when she said you were a great kisser. It was everything she hoped your first kiss with her would be, she felt as if she was floating on cloud nine right now. 

Gerri brings her fingers up to her lips tracing where your lips had moved against her own, the way your mouth fitted perfectly against her own as if they were two puzzle pieces coming together. The way your tongue gilded with her, she felt embarrassed when she had moaned but you had only held on tighter and kissed her more passionately. Gerri’s heart was still pounding fast in her chest as she tried to come down from the euphoria you had brought her from one simple kiss.

Turns out Gerri had been in love with you since the first week of college but was too frightened to say anything in case it ruined your friendship. You were the woman who made Gerri realise that she was bisexual and she confided in her mother that she was in love with you. 

It was why Gerri was always so affectionate with you, why she cuddled in your bed at night, how she would always sleep in your bed, why her mother was so happy for you two. It was why you were the first name she blurted out when she started this whole lie and Gerri guesses that she hopes by the end of it you will fall in love with her too. 

Little did she know you already had and that this was about to become a very messy weekend. 

Let me know if you wished to be tagged. This will be a three chapter story :)

[abimess]

Christmas Confessions

Gerri Fields x Reader

Summary: When Gerri is faced with having to spend the holiday away from you, she makes the most important decision of her life.

Warnings: none

Pronouns: not used || Word count: 1.550

This story isn't part of the Christmas Special, but it's still special: a Christmas gift for @somewhatgreatexpectations. Friend, you already know how important you are to me, I don't need to say it again. But I will, you're immensely important to me haha I hope you enjoy this humble gift.

You do NOT have permission to repost or translate my work on any platforms (even with credit)

Masterlist | Library Blog

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Christmas miracles only exist in movies. Gerri would find that out this holiday.

You and the brunette met at university and to say that you have become inseparable since then is a great understatement.

The connection between the two of you was surprising not only to you but to all your friends.

After the friendship, it didn't take long for other feelings to develop between the two of you. However, just as they were intense, they were also hidden.

You fell in love with Gerri's goofy ways, and the brunette fell in love with your stubborn and determined manner that seemed to be much more apparent with her. Neither of you talked about it, though.

And then time passed and the winter break arrived.

Gerri was going to stay in New York, of course, her family was from here after all. But you were going back to California, to your hometown.

The idea of being away was very badly received by both of you. But you couldn't find an excuse convincing enough to stay, much less Gerri found one to ask you to stay.

And so, you came home and Gerri hasn't been able to stop thinking about you ever since.

Christmas at the brunette's house would be like all the others, dull and boring. This year, however, there is something more. The urge to see you, to be with you, to...

Screw it.

This is what goes through Gerri's mind as she makes up her mind.

Without a second thought, the brunette buys the first ticket she can find to Los Angeles, not even bothering to pack more than a simple backpack.

Telling her mom about this minor change of plans was easier than she expected. But that's only because she did it over the phone on the way to the airport, hanging up on her mother as soon as she started screaming that her daughter had lost her mind.

But all good things are short-lived, so it didn't take long for the first problem to appear.

Gerri hates snow.

She didn't hate it five minutes ago. But now that the damn ice crystals had delayed her flight, she hated them deeply.

Half an hour. One hour. Two hours. Fuck!

The brunette was about to pull every hair out of her head when finally the damn airport speakers announced that they had arranged a new flight for her, and Gerri rushes to the gate indicated by the employee.

Checking the time on her cell phone before turning it off for the flight, the brunette sighs heavily. She would land in Los Angeles around 7:30. Not such a bad time, right?

And we come to the second problem: Gerri now hates cars too.

Let's face it, it was obvious that the streets would be crowded at this time on Christmas Eve. But where are all those Christmas clichés when you need them?

Honestly? Homophobic.

In the back seat of the car, the brunette anxiously watches the minutes tick by on her cell phone screen. The car is not moving at any moment.

To make things worse, the driver didn't seem to be in a hurry at all, unlike her.

With an impatient huff, Gerri programs the map app to check how far it is to your house.

20 minutes. Not like this. An idea crosses her mind.

This is stupid. Oh, this is so stupid. But it's you, so it would be worth it.

Without a second thought (for the coincidentally second time that day), Gerri opens the door and steps out.

⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅ ⋇ ⋅

Christmas is one of your favorite days of the year. It lost some of its fun without Gerri here, though.

To make matters worse, the girl was not answering any of your texts and you were growing bored.

Trying to distract yourself with food and your family's conversations helped a little, but only briefly.

"Y/n!" Your sister calls your name as you check your cell phone for what must be the twentieth time that night, and you raise your eyes to her with a furrow of your eyebrows.

"It's for you." She announces in a sing-song voice, a knowing glance directed at you that only makes you more curious.

When you reach the door, however, your confusion turns to astonishment.

"Gerri?" You ask shocked, but the girl smiles easily, admiring the face she has missed so much over the past few days. "Hi."

"What are you doing here?" You ask curiously, closing the door behind you and muffling the sound of the party inside.

"I came...to see you." The brunette replies, pausing as she breathes heavily, her hand on her belly. You furrow your brows even deeper, an amused chuckle escaping your lips as you ask, "are you all right?"

"Almost, I'm recovering," Gerri replies, resting her hands on her knees as she takes deep breaths in an attempt to get herself together. "The traffic here is terrible."

"You can't really complain, New Yorker." You snidely retort, making the other girl laugh softly. As the pieces begin to fit together in your mind, you widen your eyes in wonder. "Did you walk all the way here?"

"I ran, actually." The brunette tells, straightening her posture finally and looking at you. "Only the last twenty minutes of the drive."

"Did you spend twenty minutes running or did you run the twenty minutes that would've been by car?" You ask with a single raised eyebrow, and a key seems to turn in the girl's mind. So that's why those supposed twenty minutes seemed so long.

"Yes." She answers playfully, refusing to tell you that it was indeed the second option, and you chuckle softly, shaking your head in amused disapproval. Soon, however, your posture returns to a curious one. "What are you doing here, Gerri?"

"I need to talk to you." She says hesitantly, and you can't help but notice her fingers anxiously playing with her rings. You raise an eyebrow teasingly. "Have you ever heard of phones?"

"It needed to be in person." The brunette confesses amidst a giggle, her cheeks taking on a shade of pink that blends in with the previous pink from running. "Couldn't you wait until after school starts?"

"Do you want me to leave?" She retorts in a playful tone of irritation and you laugh softly, the sound making Gerri smile immediately.

With a theatrical motion of your hand, you indicate for the brunette to speak. Despite the teasing, your eyes are tender and full of expectation, giving Gerri the courage to speak.

"I love you." She breathes out, and the confession makes the eyes of both of you go wide. "Damn, this wasn't smooth at all." The brunette mumbles next, but noticing that you are too stunned to say anything, she takes a deep breath.

"It's the truth, though. I love you and I've tried to tell you this all semester, but I haven't had the courage because you're beautiful and so, so sweet, and amazing and perfect... What was I talking about again?"

You bite your lip in a smile, relishing the girl's passionate, almost hypnotized look your way. Deciding to disguise the rapid beating of your heart, you joke, "You were professing your undying love for me."

"Right. That's right." The brunette confirms, nodding energetically, and you let out a brief happy giggle, Gerri joining you with a shy one.

"So?" She asks, a tone so hesitant and expectant that all you can think to do is step forward.

The brunette watches wide-eyed as you put your hands on her cheeks, your lips moving slowly toward hers.

Despite the complete flustered mess your proximity has turned the girl into, Gerri meets you halfway, her hands making their way to your waist, pulling you close.

With her brain completely devoted to drinking in your presence, Gerri is only able to formulate three thoughts:

1) your lips are deliciously soft;

2) you taste like home;

3) she wants to kiss you forever.

Unfortunately, however, the third thought does not come true, and you slowly pull away from her.

"I love you too." You whisper against her lips, and Gerri swallows hard, trying to regain the rhythm of her heartbeat.

"Are you sure? I think I'm going to need more confirmation." She replies breathlessly, her eyes completely drawn to the smile you flash next before leaning in once more.

The second kiss is even better than the first. But unfortunately, like the first, it too comes to an end.

"Come on now, let's get you something to eat to refuel your energy for the marathon." You tease, your hand coming down from her face just to hold hers, and Gerri smiles.

"Just for the record, it was totally worth it." The brunette informs, raising her index finger in the air to emphasize her words, and making you laugh softly as you lead her inside.

All-day long, Gerri didn't think that by coming here she would also meet your family, and the girl was about to combust from timidity.

But it's okay because you would stay with her the whole time, your hand caressing hers to reassure her whenever everything seemed too much.

And she didn't know it yet, but you were as much hers as she was yours.

Everything would be all right.

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And that's it for today! I hope you enjoyed it, thoughts and comments are always welcome ツ

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[wndaswife]

gerri fields headcanons

really good with directions and navigation. when you go out together she’s always the one who has google maps on her phone telling you which train and bus tickets to buy etc

not the best with writing letters, but when writing songs for you, she’s incredibly well-spoken and really, really creative

when watching movies or shows with you, she’s always the most opinionated about infidelity or any other form of betrayal between partners or friends and has gone on several spiels about it while you’re watching with her. she has high standards set on friendships and close relationships and sees them as objective

would definitely help you move a couch into your new apartment (with help) and would also buy the most gorgeous lamp for your living room as a housewarming gift

is really fucking good at super mario kart because she’s had a long history with the game playing with her younger brother and cousins years ago. always chooses either luigi or koopa troopa. she’s good at a lot of board games too, and has beat you in battleship every time you play together

can be very anxious at times and initially feels ashamed and confused by her first panic attack. she considers herself to be a very laidback person who lets things happen as they naturally do, and isn’t completely educated on anxiety. by the time she has a panic attack in front of you due to a stressful situation that’s been eating at her for weeks, she tries her best to level her breathing and tells you that it’ll pass as it’s happened several times prior. you comfort her and have gerri understand that it’s completely normal and not anything to feel ashamed of, and especially that it doesn’t make her weak

has been wanting to get into repairing guitars and finds it really relaxing once she gets into repairing her own. you like to lay on her bed while she sits at her desk repairing some of the guitars from some other guitarists she’s met at local live music performances. i can vividly imagine quiet music playing in the background while you scroll through your phone with gerri sitting across the room at her desk with her hair up while she changes and tunes acoustic guitar strings and occasionally talking with each other or when you want to show her videos on your phone. that goes on for about two hours before gerri gets hungry and you go for a walk to get take out and watch a movie together back home

can be kind of unrealistic at times because she has such a hard time envisioning the future. even with small things like making plans for the following week or a few days away, she feels no urgency to plan and would always rather figure things out as they come, which can sometimes be frustrating as it makes it a little hard to make plans with her. it’s not because she’s lazy or purposefully difficult, but it’s just that gerri is so present-focused that it doesn’t come naturally to her to make any sort of long-term plans

but also, gerri can be a huge dreamer who can at times face difficulty focusing on reality. with some things, she can’t be bothered even trying to imagine a future because she’s just so unconcerned with things that don’t involve the present. but with things she’s passionate about, she can be incredibly idealistic while forgetting the reality of things. it’s admirable though, because gerri can sometimes talk for a very long time about the kind of life she wants to live away from home in an apartment of her own while continuing to play live music, to live in a nice place and can even plan down to the decor in her future living room, but can completely forget things like needing to work in order to be able to reach those things. but you love hearing her dreams and things she’s passionate about so much, and you always indulge in her idealism. she likes that about you too

similarly, gerri is a huge romantic. she loves with everything in her because she knows absolutely no restraint in romance and her dreams

[gingiesworld]

Buddy angst with happy ending.. Taylor or Gerri

Be My First

Gerri Fields x GN! Reader

Warning: Angst but a happy ending.

18+ MINORS DNI

Y/N had lost everyone they had ever loved in one fell swoop, even being took in by Kate and Danny when they were still in high school after having no other family in the state. So they had had a friend in Gerri as they recovered from the car accident. They became Gerri's test audience to her music which they loved the sound of her voice. They found it soothing and they would never get tired of hearing her sing. Pretty much soon enough falling for the girl.

Even during the last summer they had spent there, they had a job and decided to help with some of the repairs around the Field's residence even though they were afraid to step foot into their old home.

They were there for them all when Danny passed away that summer too. Although Kate tried to stop Y/N from donating anything of their earnings to help towards funeral costs, they never backed down.

But the moment they heard about the fight between Lily and Gerri and how this guy, David was the cause of Gerri's heartbreak. They went straight to him, anger coursing through their veins as they approached him on the basketball court with Lily.

"Hey!" They called out to the two. "What the fuck is wrong with you? You lead on my friend and she thinks she has a chance with you and you." They turned to Lily. "You're supposed to be her best friend and you screw her over just like that."

"It never meant to happen." Lily started as David put his hand up to stop her from talking.

"It's none of your business kid." He told them as they scoffed. "What and who I do is none of your business."

"It becomes my business when it is someone I care about." They told him with a swing of their fist, connecting with David's jaw. Before Lily coupd stop it, he tackled them to the ground and punched them as hard as he could. Y/N soon managed to get out of his hold and kneed him in the crown jewels, sending him rolling on his front as he groaned in pain.

"What the fuck!" Lily yelled as she got on her knees to comfort David.

"Gerri needs you Lily." Y/N told her softly. "Not me. She needs her best friend." With that they left the court. Lily knew they were right in Gerri needing her, especially with the loss of her father.

That was the moment Y/N decided they should move out of the Field's residence and move back home. Although they remained there for them all, but not so much more for Gerri.

But the moment she had found out what they had done, she soon made her way to their home. Banging on their door.

"Y/N! I know you're in there!" She yelled as she continued to bang on the door. Y/N groaned as they got up from the sofa, stretching as they made their way to the door to open it to an angry Gerri.

"Hello." They greeted her as she stepped inside.

"Don't hello me." She told them sternly. "Why would you interfere in my relationships? Hell, why did you beat up David?"

"Lily told you?" They questioned as Gerri chuckled dryly.

"Of course she did. She told me at my dad's funeral, which you weren't even at!" She poked their chest as they sighed.

"I was there." They told her. "I paid my respects to your family and well, you were busy with Lily and I didn't want to interrupt the two of you."

"You could have still came to me." She told them as they shook their head with a soft smile.

"You need your best friend more than you need me." They started to fix the comforter on the sofa and move the pillow to the cupboard.

"I need you too Y/N." Gerri told them as her shoulders deflated. "I guess I was too hung up on the deal I made with Lily and then the two of us fighting over David that I never realised that what I needed was right in front of me."

"What was the deal?" Y/N asked her as they moved to the kitchen.

"To lose our virginity before college." She told them as she followed them. Taking the bottle of water from their grasp.

"You shouldn't just throw that away with someone who couldn't care about your feelings." They told her with a tender gaze. "Your first time should be special. Memorable even and with someone who would do anything to make the experience as comfortable, safe and loving as it happens. Someone who loves you with every fibre of their being." Gerri listened as they spoke, the butterflies in her stomach going wild as she gazed into their eyes.

"Then be my first." She whispered as Y/N looked at her, shocked by her bold words. "I want you to be my first. Hell, you should be the one to kiss me and speak sweet nothings to me everyday. You should be the one who has me. Mind, body and soul."

"I will be your first." They told her as they stepped closer, caressing her cheek as she looked up at them. "But not right now. Not this week because I want to do this right. I want to take you out on dates. Support you at your shows. Shower you with love, affection and gifts. You deserve to be treated as such because you are amazing Gerri and I would be the luckiest person alive to have you by my side through everything."

And with that, she sealed the new chapter with a kiss, loving and passionate as she sighed at the contact. Her whole being was electrified and well aware of Y/N's hands that had now moved to her hips. Squeezing and caressing as the kiss deepened as she wrapped her arms around their neck, keeping their body as close as she could. Her mind was full with every thought that was Y/N. Her every fibre craved their touch. Her heart belonged to them and she never realised soon enough, but she was ready for a lifetime of love and safety in the arms of her person.

[ultrone]

EAGER TO PLEASE

♡ top!virgin!gerri fields x experienced!reader

genre: smut – (best) friends with benefits

wc: 2.3k+

summary: Your best friend was urged to lose her virginity, and as the good friend that you are, you offered to teach her how to do it the right way.

warnings: MINORS DNI +18, corruption (?), hot kisses, breast/nipple play, oral & fingering (r receiving), hickeys, r guiding/telling gerri what to do.

note: i think i remember seeing a prompt or something about this a long time ago and when i remembered about it i had to write it about gerri 😩 hope y’all like it <3

please do not translate, copy and paste, or repost my work anywhere. likes, comments, and re-blogs are always appreciated tho <33

Gerri was desperate.

It was almost her second year of university and she still hadn't lost her virginity, and even though you always told her that it didn’t matter, that it would happen when it had to happen, she disagreed with you and told you that you were biased because you had already lost it.

Unlike Gerri, you were lucky enough to have lost your virginity in high school, and thanks to that, you had a lot of experience up your sleeve, so it wasn't rare for you to sleep with a couple of people every other week, an activity that Gerri truly envied.

It was a Friday night, and since there were no parties or things to do that same day, Gerri and you decided to have a movie night. It was during the second film that a sex scene brought up the frequently discussed topic between the two of you.

“Ugh, a girl can only dream,” Gerri said in a sigh while chewing on a gummy worm.

If you were being honest with yourself, you would have to admit that Gerri was a very beautiful girl. Yes, you were both best friends, but that didn’t mean that you were blind. For several months now, listening to Gerri's desire to lose her virginity made you unable to help but think about what would happen if you took her virginity. Is she a top or a bottom? Is she a good kisser? How would her soft hands feel all over your body? Is she really as eager as she makes it seem? All those unanswered questions left you no choice but to suggest a very risky idea to her.

“You know, if you really wanna lose your virginity so badly then you should lose it with me, I mean, we're best friends and I have a lot of experience after all. It’d be a great opportunity for you to learn.” You offered in a joking tone, hoping that the girl would get the hint.

The moment the sentence left your mouth, Gerri's face turned to you at high speed, eyes wide and mouth half-open.

“Wait… Really?” She asked genuinely, biting the inner part of her cheek.

“Well yeah, that’s what best friends are for, am I right?” you asked, letting out an awkward chuckle, surprised at how quickly you managed to convince her. “I guess she truly is desperate,” you thought.

“Wha- well- sure,” she stuttered, “that’d be nice,” she said with a nervous but excited smile.

With that said, you took the initiative and grabbed the remote control to turn off the tv, then you removed all the snacks from the bed and started to play some background music to ease the tension that had formed between the two of you.

“So… where do we start?” She asked timidly, fidgeting with her fingers.

Once you noticed this, you gently grabbed her hands and caressed her knuckles with your thumbs, “you know we don’t have to do this right? I was only giving you the choice but if you changed your mind then that’s totally okay,” you reassured her, “we can pretend this conversation never happened.”

“No, no. I want to, I just don’t know what to do or where to start.” She confessed. “You’re the boss.” She said jokingly trying to ease the tension.

You chuckled. “Okay, then. We can always stop if you don’t feel comfortable though.” You said giving her a little squeeze on the hands. She replied with a nod.

Unbeknownst to you, Gerri shared in some way the feelings you felt for her. She thought you were gorgeous and had always wondered what it would feel like to be on top or underneath you. Often daydreaming about the two of you doing things that she knew would never happen — until now.

“I think we should start by kissing, don’t you think?” You asked, getting closer to her and trapping her between your body and the headboard.

Gerri couldn't wait for another instant and threw herself at you, pressing your lips together in a passionate kiss. You gasped in surprise at her urgency but quickly adjusted to the kiss, returning it with the same vigor. You slipped your arms around her neck and she wrapped hers around your waist, pressing you closer to her until your chest met hers. She sucked on your lower lip and caressed it sensually with her tongue asking for passage, and you granted it with no hesitation. While your tongues intertwined and rubbed against each other, Gerri began to slide her hands from your waist to your ass and gave it gentle, slow squeezes. You bit her lower lip in response, eliciting a throaty groan from her. Gerri couldn't hold back anymore, she needed to feel your warm pussy against her mouth right now, so she started unbuttoning your shorts.

You placed your hands on top of hers halting her movements and broke the kiss, your lips remaining a breath away from hers.

“I wanna make you feel good,” she whispered breathlessly, her hot breath brushing against your lips.

“I know, I can't wait.” You confessed and stared at her through low-lidded eyes. “But first, you have to get me all wet and ready, yeah?”

“Show me how.” She husked out, resting her hands on your thighs and giving them a little squeeze.

Still straddling her lap, you moved away from her face and grabbed the hem of your blouse, pulling it up your body seductively until it was completely off. When you saw Gerri's face, you couldn't help but smirk at the sight of her hypnotized eyes staring so intently at your breasts, which were being covered by a black lace bra. She gulped loudly and made eye contact with you.

“Can I touch them?” She asked hesitantly, darting her eyes between the two.

“Be my guest.” You responded with a smirk.

She slowly raised her hands, cheeks blushing as she cupped your covered breasts with them. She gave them a little squeeze and then proceeded to massage them more thoroughly. She crept one of her hands behind your back and brought your breasts close to her face, placing it directly against them. She nuzzled her nose against them before starting to give them open-mouthed kisses, nibbling and tugging at the edge of your bra. She slipped her hands under the bra and felt stiff nipples against her palm, eliciting a low grunt from her, which you felt vibrating against your chest.

“You’re surprisingly good at this,” you panted, feeling her smile between kisses. “Take my bra off,” you asked with urgency, tired of her slow teasing.

She did as you said and got rid of the garment. “Now play with them,” you husked, receiving a nod from her.

The moment her mouth closed on one of your nipples, your hand flew to the back of her hair, tugging at it softly. With her hands on your back pressing you impossibly closer, Gerri flicked her wet tongue over your exposed nub. “Y-yes– hng– just like that,” you slurred. Her tongue was so warm, pressing and circling desperately around your erect nipple, giving it soft nibbles. “Don’t forget about the other one,” you reminded her amidst groans. Attentive to your commands, she resumed stroking your opposite breast, gently pinching and tugging at your nipple with her fingers while savouring the other one with her mouth and tongue. You felt a wet patch growing on your panties.

Gerri held your waist tightly and nimbly flipped you under her, towering over you. She gave you a lingering look and then continued on with her previous endeavours, making you let out little whimpers.

“Can I eat your pussy now?” She said with your tit in her mouth, batting her eyelashes.

You whimpered softly at her bluntness, followed by a soft chuckle, finding her eagerness funny but arousing as well. “Patience,” you groaned. “Come here,” you muttered as you cupped her jaw with both hands and pulled her up to you, crushing your lips together in a smothering kiss. She kissed you back, open-mouthed and with fierce lips. “Mark my body,” you said breathlessly against her mouth, and with one last hungry suck on your lower lip, she released your lips and began to deposit hot kisses — and marks — on your body, working her way down from your neck to your chest, alternating between each sensitive breast, then reaching your sternum and eventually landing on your lower abdomen. “How am I doing?” she asked genuinely. You clutched her hair tightly in your hands as she continued to leave searing marks on your belly. “Good, mhm, s’good,” you slurred with your eyes closed.

Gerri began to run her tongue along the edge of your shorts, giving small kisses to your flesh as she began to fiddle with the hem of your shorts with her fingers. She shifted her attention up to your flushed face, asking for your consent. Once she saw you nodding your head with an encouraging smile, she began to undo the buttons and removed the garment completely.

“You’re wearing too many clothes, I wanna see you.” You said, making her realize that, in fact, she hadn’t yet taken off any of her clothes.

“Shit- of course, sorry,” she clumsily apologized while letting out an awkward chuckle, and quickly discarded all of her clothes. She carefully spread your legs apart and returned to her previous position while delicately stroking your thighs. Exhilarated shaky breaths left her lips as she stared intently at your dripping wet core, all she could think was "I did that."

You helplessly watched as her gaze wandered over your body, returning her gaze with the same fascination. “You can start now,” you said eagerly. “Patience, Y/n.” She responded with a cocky smile, making you roll your eyes at her.

She began to suck and kiss the skin on your legs, working her way up from your knees to your inner thighs, getting closer and closer to your beating pussy.

“You know, I should start teaching you the most important lesson: don’t tease,” you joked breathlessly while putting your hands on her hair, trying to pull her closer to your core.

“But that’s no fun,” she said as she gave you a hickey an inch away from your cunt.

“Please, just st-”

You got interrupted by Gerri's warm tongue giving you a long and hard lick all the way from your throbbing hole to your swollen clit. “Oh — fuck!” you said between gasps, receiving a groan from her that vibrated against your nub deliciously. “Make circles around my clit,” you commanded and she nodded. Gerri began to swirl her tongue around your clitoris vigorously, working it at different speeds. Then, she began to experiment by grasping it between her lips and sucking on it, all the while pressing it with her tongue and giving it little nibbles. This made you let out a sharp whine, causing the girl to feel even more eager to please you, loving the sounds that left your lips. “Shit! So good,” you moaned.

As she continued to devour your pussy, she began to tease your throbbing hole with two of her digits, slowly running them through your soaked folds, spreading them open and collecting your juices on her fingers. Her other hand remained on your thigh, squeezing it harshly. “Please…” you begged, and with that, Gerri thrusted her wet fingers in your entrance. “You feel so good, Y/n.” She murmured against your clitoris, making you moan even harder. She started to move her fingers at a relentless pace while still playing shamelessly with your clit, groaning here and there so you could feel the vibrations against it. Her fingers kept reaching deeper and deeper into your cunt until she touched the spot she was looking for and started to curl her fingers desperately against it. Breathless groans left your lips as you pulled her face impossibly closer to your cunt, taking her hand from your thigh and putting it on one of your breasts so she could play with it. “You’re– fuck– you’re doin’ great Gerri,” you managed to choke out, rocking your hips unmercifully against her mouth and fingers. “Your pussy feels so tight and gummy around my fingers Y/n,” she husked while continuing to rub her fingertips against your g-spot.

Your body tensed up and you started to lose your rhythm, feeling the coil in your stomach tighten. “Fuckkk– ‘m close,” you slurred with difficulty. Despite the cramps she felt, Gerri began to move her fingers and tongue even faster, feeling your pussy clench around her fingers every few seconds.

You came violently the instant she sucked on your clitoris and stroked your g-spot in perfect synchronicity. ”S-slow down, slow down,” you managed to say, broken breaths and curses leaving your mouth as she helped you ride your high, moving slower just like you told her to.

She pulled out her drenched fingers and released your over-stimulated clit with a pop, licking her lips afterwards. You looked at her through hooded eyes as she licked all the cum off her fingers, “you taste really good,” she murmured, giving you a wink.

You gave her a soft playful slap on the head and motioned her to lay next to you.

“I must admit,” you cleared your throat, “you’re a pretty fast learner,” you husked breathlessly, letting out an airy chuckle.

“Well, who knows? Maybe one day the student will surpass the master,” she joked.

“We should do this more often,” you suggested a bit hesitant.

“Yeah, we totally should,” she replied, “and next time you better teach me how to be a bottom,” she said while raising her eyebrows and biting down a smile.

“You bet I will,” you replied, attempting to hide the excitement in your voice.

[aquamarinescarlet]

The Half of It

Pairing: Gerri Fields x Reader

Word count: ~ 5.5k

Warnings: catfishing (kind of), crushing on a straight girl… y’know, the basics

Request: Hello there! Not sure if you take requests but there’s a movie titled the half of it and I thought it would be a great fanfic idea for a lizzie (or any of her characters) x reader (if you’re not busy of course)

Author’s note: Alright, I cut this in two parts ‘cause it needed a lot of editing and I wanted to post it soon. Thank you anon who sent the request, I loved writing this, I hope you like it. Stay tuned for part two.

Taglist: @b0mbdotc0m

Part 1 - Part 2

The ancient Greeks believed the human body was once formed by 4 legs, 4 arms and a head with two faces. They were complete. So complete that the Gods, fearing their wholeness would not require a need for worship, separated them in two, leaving our split selves to wander the Earth in misery, forever longing for their other half. It was believed that when one half meets the other, there’s a harmony, a moment of no greater joy.

Of course, the ancient Greeks never went to high school, or realized they don’t need the Gods to mess things up for them.

Perhaps humans spend too much time looking for someone to complete them. How many people find true love? And if they do, make it last?

All the more evidence to support Camus theory that life is irrational… meaningless.

And that, my friends, is an A plus is philosophy. You thought to yourself as you discreetly passed around the papers during quire class, your phone chiming with notifications from money sent by Tori, Steve, Coraline, or whoever had paid you to write their essays this time.

Mr. Fields, completely oblivious to your secret scheme, stood in front of the class, explaining something about the talent show which you couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to. Soon enough everyone was standing, per the professor's request, following along to some music sheet he had handed.

You sat by the piano, following along with the rest of the band, although completely lost on what you were, in fact, supposed to do.

There were at least half a dozen seniors singing, and yet you couldn’t help but only pay attention to her. Gerri Fields. The girl dating the hottest, most popular guy in school. The girl who always had her nose buried in some book. The girl with the most angelic voice you’ve heard.

Maybe it was all in your head, but she overpowered the whole room. Her voice completely filling the space.

Unfortunately the moment was short and soon the bell rang. Since quire was your last period, you now found yourself biking back home. The ride was boring, as much as it was every single day. You appreciated the nature surrounding you, the peace and quiet, seemingly alone, or so you thought. You were pushed to the floor, being completely broken from your daze.

“What is your problem?” You said while picking yourself and your bike up.

“Sorry- I’m sorry- I just…” the boy trailed off and you noticed he had a paper in hand.

“Ten dollars for three pages, twenty for three to ten.” He looked at you nervously.

“I’m not trying to cheat.” He simply stated.

“Then what’s that?”

“A letter.” He handed it to you and you quickly opened it.

“Who even writes letters these days?” You read the name on the top, Gerri Fields.

“I thought it’d be romantic.” You folded the paper back, looking at him with disbelief.

“Dude, I’m not writing for Ger- some girl.”

“Why not?”

“Letters are supposed to be authentic not-”

“That’d be great,” he interrupted you.

“No,” this boy must be stupider than you thought, “I cannot be you being authentic,” your patience was starting to wear thin “look, get a dictionary, read some poetry, and good luck Romeo.”

“I can pay more for authentic.” You heard him scream, but you were already far ahead.

Back home, you took the interaction off of your mind and focused on your studies in the living room, while your dad watched a movie. Your concentration was broken by the lights flickering, you knew he hadn’t paid the bill, so you made a mental note to call the company first thing the next day.

And that’s exactly what you did. You rang them first thing in the morning and was put on hold. While you biked to school, during class, while you practiced piano alone in the band room, at least two times in which you had to avoid the boy in the corridor... throughout all that you were on hold.

You were so concentrated that you bumped into someone on your way to class, all your stuff falling to the floor. You leaned down to pick’em up when a pair of shoes came into view.

“These hallways are murder,” you looked up to find none other than Gerri Fields.

Her brown hair tied into a bun, a few loose strands framing her face perfectly. Her body dressed with the characteristic boho-chic clothes, and somehow her green eyes out shined all that color.

“I’m Y/N Y/L/N,” you muttered when you noticed you were staring.

“I know,” she responded while picking up your stuff, “you’ve been playing my dad’s services for years now. You’re his favourite, he hates mediocre accompanists,” you couldn’t think straight when her eyes met yours.

She handed your stuff, while you just remained completely silent, and walked away. You just stared, the hallways now empty due to the bell just ringing.

You were brought back to reality by the voice on the phone.

“Miss Y/L/N, your bill is three months overdue, we will need a minimum payment of fifty dollars by tomorrow or we’ll be forced to terminate your power.” Your mind was empty with ideas of how to solve this.

On cue, the boy from yesterday, who was running down the hallway, stopped by you, looking expectant.

“Fifty dollars. One letter. After that, you’re on your own,” your face was one of pure annoyance.

He raised his hand in celebration, but you just turned and walked the other, him following suit.

Dear Gerri Fields, I think you’re really beautiful. Even if you were ugly, I’d wanna know you, because you’re smart and nice, too. It’s hard to find all those things in one girl, but even if you were only two of those things, I’d be into it. But you’re, like, all three, just to be clear.

You were shocked, to say the least. The fact that normal teenagers wouldn’t write essays such as yours was not news to you, but this letter, this was something else.

About me: Some people think I’m the cutest one in my family. Those people being my grandma… who’s dead now. Nevermind my dead grandma. All I’m saying is that I like fries. I like dipping them in my milkshake. Is that weird? It’s actually really tasty. Would you like to try that with me sometime? I work part-time and I have a truck. Let me know whenever. Thanks. David Avery.

“So what you’re trying to say is-”

“I’m in love with her.” He blurted out, not giving you enough time to take that all in.

“Have you ever spoken to her?”

“I- I- I’m not good with words.” Shocking, still you pitied him as he looked at you, slightly ashamed.

“And you know you’re in love with her?” You tried to take in the whole picture of what you had gotten herself into.

“I know I think of her when I go to sleep, when I’m working at the ice cream stand, when I go to the beach, when I’m at the studio, when-” you cut off his rambling.

“That just means you’re stubborn, not that you’re in love.”

“No, it’s love. Love makes you screwy. Don’t you get screwy?”

“No.” Who gets screwy because of someone? How does that even make sense? This thing was going to be more trouble than you initially anticipated.

Your attention shifted back to the piece of paper on your hands. A pen scribbling over the words, trying to figure out how you could fix the mess that this was.

“Oh, I get it,” David said, while you mumbled random ideas, “you’ve never been in love.”

He got into your nerves. What does it matter if you’ve been in love or not? You considered getting out of this, leaving him to try his own luck, but you needed the money, so you just got up, shoving the letter onto his chest and saying,

“You want a letter about love? I’ll write you a letter about love,” and stomping away angrily.

Writing it turned out to be more of a challenge than you thought. You were again sitting in the living room, watching a french movie with your dad, struggling to get the words onto the paper.

You were close to giving up when a sentence, uttered by one of the characters on the TV, caught your attention.

“Longing… longing for a wave of love to swell up in me.” That would work.

The next morning you handed David the finished piece, sealed so he couldn’t look at what you’ve written.

Yet again you were caught by David while biking back home. Thankfully this time he didn’t throw you onto the floor, he didn’t need to since you stopped immediately when he said she’d written back. Of course you had said ‘one letter’, but you were allowed to be a little curious at her response.

He caught up with you and handed the letter.

Dear David, I like Wim Wenders too. Wouldn’a plagiarized him though. - Gerri

She was good, better than you expected.

“Who’s Wim Wenders, and why did you cheat off of him?”

You couldn’t be bothered by his confusion, completely ignoring his question, you were interested, you were hooked, you were eager to see what she would come up with next.

“This is good.” You mumbled.

“How?”

“It’s- It’s like a game. She’s challenging us. But in a good way.” And for some reason, you were willing to take that challenge.

You biked away leaving him behind like a lost puppy.

“Game on, Gerri Fields. Game on.”

Dear Gerri, okay, you got me. I sometimes hide behind other people’s words. For one thing, I know nothing about love. I’m 17. I’ve lived in Squahamish my whole life.

“Such a downer,” David finished reading the, still incomplete, second letter you wrote for him.

“Not a downer,” you retorted.

“Major downer, ask her to hang out.”

“What do you mean by ‘hanging out’?” You asked with genuine curiosity, doing everyone’s homework had kept you from having an active social life. The fact that you lived in such a small town did not help. “Like… what do you do?”

His friends interrupted the conversation before he could explain.

I hang out with my friends. I keep my head down. I’m a simple… guy. Which is to say, if I knew what love was, I would quote myself. - David

“Psst, in here,” David called from the confessionary, “she wrote back.”

The second letter had been finished and sent, and now you had another response.

Dear David, Did you know it takes 11 muscles to yawn? This is the sort of weird fact I find myself recalling to keep myself from… well, yawning. Or showing anything I feel really. So, yeah, I turn to other people’s words, too. When you’re a pretty girl, and I know it makes me sound conceited, but that’s why you’re even writing me, right? When you’re a pretty girl, people want to give you things. What they really want is to make you like them. Not like them as in ‘I like you’, but like them as in ‘I am like you’. So I’m like a lot of people, which makes me kind of no one. - Gerri

“Can I text her now?” What was up with this guy and going so fast?

“Too soon,” you quickly shut him down.

You left him inside that church, mind bubbling with ideas as to what to write next.

I never thought about the oppression of fitting in before. The good thing about being different is that no one expects you to be like them. - David

Doesn’t everyone think they’re different, but… pretty much we’re all different in the same way? - Gerri

Says the girl perched on the rarefied peak of Mt. Popularity. - David

Easy Mr. I-Know-Nothing-About-Love. I may surprise you. - Gerri

The messages became shorter, and somehow deeper. It was no longer a simple exchange of letters, it became some sort of a game, and Gerri was a damn great player. So much so that you didn’t even notice her coming into the bathroom while you washed your hands, lost on thoughts of the conversations you’ve been secretly having.

She was leaning against the wall, her hair pulled up by those bandanas she’s always using. When your eyes met, you stopped breathing for a second, nervousness prickling at your skin from the prospect of getting caught on the scheme you had with David.

But she just smiled, and you could’ve stayed there, looking at her for hours. Unfortunately the other girls chatting in the bathroom, oblivious to both your presences, scared her away when the topic of her boyfriend came up.

You could sense how hurt she was by those words, how they talked her down by talking him up. It was the first time you’ve seen first hand how this universe that she was trapped in could suck sometimes. All you wished was to punch their faces. She didn’t deserve to be treated like that.

What’s surprising is: people don’t see what they’re not looking for. - David

The obvious unseen. - Gerri

You were getting too caught up by this. No longer writing people’s essays for them. To the point where even one of the teachers started to notice. It was funny how she knew everyone cheated and still preferred to cover for them over having to read what they’d actually write.

You didn’t care. You were getting the money and Gerri Fields was piquing your interest immensely. She was much more than you expected.

I’ve been thinking about what you said - about seeing and not seeing. I had a painting teacher once tell me that the difference between a good painting and a great painting is typically five strokes And they’re usually the five boldest strokes in the painting. The question, of course, is which five strokes? - Gerri

Along with the message came attached a picture of a painting. It was a challenge. Would you be able to see those five strokes?

I get it. After one’s slaved away at making a pretty good painting, the last thing you’d want to do is make a bold stroke and potentially… - David

Ruin everything. - Gerri

You spent hours analysing the painting. You had your ideas of what those strokes were, but had she seen the same thing? Or did she see it from a totally different perspective?

You tried to explain to David the strokes. How to read a painting like it was a book. Showed him the painting she’d sent. Explained what made that painting a great painting.

Sure, he didn’t understand any of it, just nodding along, which surprised you since he has interest in pictures. It was pointless, but he was still the one she was flirting with, the least you could do was to keep him alert, curious, aware of who Gerri Fields was and what he was in for.

That’s why I gave up painting. Still, I wonder if that is how I’m living my life. It’s a… pretty good life. Probably the best life one could hope for in Squahamish. - Gerri

It was time to step up your game.

Perhaps… but how well do you really know Squahamish? 41.1º24’12.2”N 2.1º10’2.65”E - David

You found a simple stroke of paint on the mural you had prepared. The coordinates you sent her led to this empty wall, a few bottles of spray paint sat at the bottom. Since you’re talking about paintings, why not make one yourselves?

Oh, so that’s your boldest stroke? - David

I’m into the slow build! What was that? - Gerri

The conversation had shifted from a paper and pen to paint and a wall. You had added some random pattern, and came back to find she had done some of her own as well. Let’s see what you can do, Gerri.

Decisiveness, but please… take all the time you need to be BOLD. - David

Is this BOLD enough for you? - Gerri

What was once a splash of light green paint was now overpowered by a golden figure in the center, specks of a darker green surrounding it. Now that’s a bit more like it.

And thus was abstract art born… - David

And transformed. - Gerri

It wasn’t just the spray paint this time. She had broughten tools of her own. The golden figure had taken the form of a woman, delicate shades forming her body and marking the roots of her hair. A star at the tip of her hand.

It was a great painting. No change needed. No more bold strokes.

Unfortunately, it was gone as soon as it came to life. A now white wall hiding what was once a great piece of art.

Or not. - Gerri

Everything beautiful is ruined eventually… Maybe that’s the thing. If you do ruin your painting, you gotta know you have everything in you to get to that pretty good painting again. - David

But if you never do the bold stroke… - Gerri

You’ll never know if you could’ve had a great painting. - David

“But when does the dating start?” Why does this boy have to be so impatient?

“This is dating.”

“No, dating is burgers and fries and shakes. And maybe another order of fries. And…”

This was a shallow way of putting it, you thought, there must be more to dating than eating fast food and talking about dead grandmas. Although you wouldn’t know, life hasn’t given you much opportunity for dating.

“... I’m gonna text her.” Your eyes went wide with those words.

“Wait, what?”

Before you reached him he had already sent out the message. Fast food emojis, tonight was spelled ‘tonite’, it was all wrong, so wrong. You watched the phone intently, waiting for a response, hoping you’d get a response.

Those three little dots appeared and disappeared, making your heart sink in your chest.

You had to think, and you had to think fast. David was getting utterly frustrated behind you and no response was coming. A thousand ideas went by your head when a specific one seemed a good enough excuse.

“Little sister hacked my phone. Can we take this to a safer platform? Ghost Messenger? My handle’s ‘Smith Corona’.” You typed frantically.

“Who’s Smith Corona?”

“Just… a guy,” you shrugged him off.

The both of you were staring anxiously at the screen when, once again, those three little dots appeared and disappeared, earning loud sighs from you. So this was it? All that for a stupid message to ruin everything? Would Gerri really give up that easily just because she now thinks David’s a moron?

The sound of an incoming message on your phone broke you out of your thoughts, raising your hopes back again. You fumbled to your bag and there it was.

‘New Ghost Message’

DiegaRivero: So… where are these fries?

“Yes!” You and David celebrated. Gerri wasn’t that easily scared off after all.

Although now you had a completely new problem. Gerri and David would go out together. On a date. Just the two of them. And you couldn’t be there to help him. The heavy feeling at the pit of your stomach was screaming at you that this wasn’t going to work.

Sparky’s Diner was the place of choice. Secluded, not that popular, nice food. A good choice. You had David on the phone while he drove.

“She prefers abstract to representational. If she brings up Remains of the Day, talk about how the movie loses out by not spending more time on the Nazis.” You explained, more to comfort yourself than to help him, you really didn’t want him to screw this all up.

“Relax. I got this.” This boy is too confident for his own good. “It’s a date, not a book report.”

He kept you on the line, his phone on speaker, but with no volume, so you could hear into their conversation while being at home. You were dreading having to listen to this.

“I got two of them signed when he came to Powell’s Books last year.” You heard her voice for the first time in a while, you assumed she was talking about Remains of the Day just like you had predicted. “I drove all night to get there.”

“Oh, uh… cool.” What an idiot.

“You’ve probably already read it. Thought you’d like one.” You were starting to pity the girl and the night she was in for.

“Uh, yeah, totally. No, I- I love, uh… Nazis.” You almost hit your head on the wall out of frustration. “I mean the- the- the ones in the book. I mean, like, more of those Nazis. Am I right?”

Silence settled for a few seconds, a pretty uncomfortable one you’d bet, before Gerri spoke again.

“Uh, speaking of Nazis, thank you for meeting me here. My dad… he isn’t a Nazi exactly, but, uh… he can be pretty strict. You know, people talk.”

“Um, yeah. Talk. Ugh.”

More silence.

“It’s nice… to make a new friend, though.” Points to Gerri for the effort, but damn was this going badly.

“A friend. Good.” He sounded disappointed but what did he expect, for her to propose or something? She has a boyfriend, and he knows it.

Silence filled the conversation more than words, David saying the stupidest things that definitely didn’t sound like what she expected of him. They didn’t sound like you. This was over and done with, but he just couldn’t accept it.

“It wasn’t that bad,” he tried to convince you the next morning while you biked.

“What about that date wasn’t bad? You have nothing in common.” You argued. “Game over!”

“I can’t give up!” He retorted.

“Look, you and Gerri Fields, not gonna happen.” You needed to get some sense into this boy’s head.

He, on the other hand, didn’t give up, following you all the way to this abandoned school bus.

“Gerri Fields thinks you’re into abstract art and repressed British literature. None of that is you.”

“It could be, I started reading that Remains of the Day book.” You were pleasantly surprised. “That’s gotta count for something.”

“There are no points for effort.” Gerri already thought highly of him, he could no longer win her over with just ‘trying’.

“Isn’t that what love is? How much effort you put into loving someone?” Is he right? You never experienced love, you wouldn’t know for sure.

“Well, whatever love is, we just blew it with Gerri Fields.”

On cue the sound a notification came from your phone, leaving the both of you shocked.

DiegaRivero: So that was… weird?

Maybe not everything was lost.

“We can do this!” David exclaimed. “I’ll pay you double,” he added when you didn’t say anything.

“You don’t have to pay me,” the words were out of your mouth before you could process them.

“Don’t be weird, why else would you do this?” You didn’t have an answer. You didn’t even know why you were still doing this.

You quickly accepted the offer so he wouldn’t get suspicious and, let’s be real, some extra cash could always come in handy.

Now that the game was back on, you devised a three week plan to get David ready for the next date. You didn’t have time to teach him everything, you had to be selective, deep versus broad-based learning. Spy on Gerri and specialize David on her favourite things.

Existentialism. Sartre. Camus. Hepburn. The Philadelphia Story. Conversation Lessons. Reconnaissance. Following Gerri around the movies, the pharmacy. Kathenne. The Roman Holiday. Mapping out her boyfriend, her interests, favourite foods. Watching her family, night dinners. Soon enough the entirety of the abandoned school bus was covered with information on any and everything you could gather on Gerri Fields.

Other than quire class, Sunday services were the only moments in which you could see Gerri Fields without creepily following her around town. Her father, Mr. Fields, was in charge of the church quire as well and, as Gerri had pointed out weeks ago, you were his favourite accompanist.

DiegaRivero: Do you think Father Shanley has any idea what’s going on around him?

You received the message in the middle of one of the services, after Father Shanley, who was in fact too old, had one of his ‘moments’, which basically meant he screamed some nonsense for no reason.

SmithCorona: I think Father Shanley KNOWS ALL

Your heart ached when Gerri turned and smiled at David, sitting amongst the crowd, while you watched from your place on the piano, above everyone else. It was lonely. But the fact that her eyes were on him just made it all the more lonelier.

The training with David kept going, conversation lessons making you both closer. While playing ping pong you’d learn about your past and present, suddenly aware of how sad it is that neither of you have ever been anywhere other than Squahamish. He has his truck, but the beach and his family business keep him stuck in town, and also away from pursuing his dream of working with photography. You, on the other hand, never even thought about leaving.

DiegaRivero: So… why you always up so late?

Night had fallen upon the small city before you even noticed.

SmithCorona: World’s asleep, more room for thoughts

DiegaRivero: Hour of secrets?

SmithCorona: Something like that

DiegaRivero: So what secrets… ?

It was in moments like this that you were reminded of the fact that she wasn’t talking to you, she was talking to David. Or, at least, that’s what she thought, and that secret was killing you inside.

After one of your ping pong/conversation lessons, you caught yourself wondering what it was about Gerri Fields that was so enticing to David. He knew nothing about her before this whole scheme started, and they had nothing in common.

“What do you like about Gerri?”

“She’s pretty,” he answered with no hesitation, “and smart… and she’s never mean. And she smells like fresh-ground flour.” See, nothing in common. “Why?”

“Just wondering.”

“What else could I like about her?”

The question got you thinking about what it was in Gerri that enticed you so much. Why you kept up with the game. Why you were so invested on it.

“I don’t know.” So many thoughts were flooding your mind. “How her eyes look right into yours. How… she twirls her hair when she’s reading.” Images of these moments going through your head. “How her laugh busts out like she can’t help herself and she stops being so perfect for just a few moments. She has at least five different voices. How you could live in an ocean of her thoughts and… feel like she knows, like really knows-” You stopped the moment you noticed David’s expression had turned into a mixture of surprise and disappointment.

“I’m so stupid.” Your heart stopped for a second. “I’m so dumb.”

“No,” you were getting desperate, “don’t think that I-”

“What you said,” his voice was louder, “that’s what you say when you love someone.”

“No I- I was just talking,” you weren’t sure if you were trying to convince yourself or him, “I- I would never, ever actually-”

“No, it is, and- and you don’t even care,” a rush of relief took over you. “I mean, I love her and I can’t even… agh!”

He was getting frustrated. He wanted to be as good as you were with words. Poetic and… romantic. That wasn’t his thing. You felt sorry for him, you really did. So much so that you caught yourself contradicting what you’d said weeks ago to him.

“You try… harder than anyone I’ve ever met,” your voice was soft, soothing his nerves, “to show a girl that you love her. And if love isn’t the effort you put in… then… what is it?

He smiled a little, calming your own nerves. This boy was starting to grow on you.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

David was becoming a friend, someone you truly care about. Despite how much it killed you to flirt with Gerri for him, you wanted him to be happy. You wanted this to work.

SmithCorona: No secrets. Just a good guy… and you should be with a good guy

These late night talks weren’t particularly helpful.

Three weeks passed and that second date was long overdue. This time you wouldn’t stay too far away from him, but close and ready to come to the rescue whenever he screwed up.

“Okay,” you opened the door to his truck, “Gerri. If she brings up immigration, you’ve been talking about the recent-”

“I know.”

“When in doubt, if the name is Italian, probably an artist. If French it’s probably a-”

“Hey.” You stopped your rambling. “Thanks.” His voice softened.

“Oh…” you were surprised, he had not thanked you yet for all of this, you did not quite know how to respond, “uh, sure.”

“I’m probably gonna crash and burn, but thanks for sticking it out with me anyway.” He was nervous, it was endearing.

“Well, not like you didn’t pay me,” you tried to lighten the mood, earning a gentle scoff from the boy. “You’re not gonna crash and burn.” You reassured him while he left the truck.

You didn’t believe your own words. He was totally gonna crash and burn. But a little boost of confidence couldn’t hurt.

They were sitting at one of the window seats at Sparky’s Diner. You could see them clearly, and, by the confusion on her face and the nervousness on his, you could tell it did not start well.

The conversation was clearly taking a weird turn. You couldn’t hear what they were saying but you could see none of them seemed to be enjoying the date that much. So you had an idea. You picked up your phone and typed Gerri a message.

SmithCorona: I get nervous when you’re close

She smiled at him. She bought it.

DiegaRivero: Why?

David, on the other hand, was totally confused by what was going on, and soon enough you received a message from him.

“Wut????”

“Look at your phone!” You typed back, she had to believe it was him who was texting her.

SmithCorona: …

DiegaRivero: …?

SmithCorona: …..

DiegaRivero: I’m just a girl

SmithCorona: You’re not just a girl

David was quick to interrupt, still being kept in the dark.

“WUT. ARE. YOU. SAYING???”

“STOP. LOOKING. AT. ME!!!” Why can’t he just go with it?

DiegaRivero: I’m not? Then what are you?

SmithCorona: Also… not just a girl

She giggled at the joke, and boy what you would have given to listen to it. David, still oblivious, gave her thumbs up, while she just stared him up and down, totally confused. You don’t blame her, it feels like it’s two different people because it is, and if the boy doesn’t learn better, he won’t get her ‘cause she’ll be stuck in this idea of who he is.

DiegaRivero: You’re strange, but cute

SmithCorona: You have classic bone structure

You typed, instead of sending all the things you were thinking about her just by staring at her through a window.

DiegaRivero: ...Thanks

Your mind tried to think of something, what to say next, but came out empty. While you brainstormed something that was fit for Gerri Fields, David decided to take matters into his own hands.

“I don’t wanna be just friends,” he stood up abruptly and spoke loud enough that even you could hear.

No, moron, that’s how you crash and burn. But of course David wouldn’t listen to you, your advice. Too eager, too impatient, unable to enjoy the build up. If he didn’t ruin everything before,for sure he would do it now. And you were helpless, there was nothing you could do from inside his truck at this point.

You couldn’t listen to what they were saying and it was nerve racking. His mouth moved, she just stared, and it all seemed uncomfortable and confusing, until it wasn’t. He smiled, he sat back across from her, and when she turned she was smiling too. That moron had figured it out on his own.

You were proud of him. But you were also a little sad. He was starting to walk by himself, soon enough he would not need you anymore. And yet you were enjoying this little game. You were enjoying these interactions with Gerri, even if she didn’t know it was really you she was talking to.

That was the deal when you signed up for this. You flirt, you put in the work, and David ends up with the girl. Why you ever thought it would happen differently is beyond you.

So, reluctantly, you left his truck. You left them alone. David could carry himself from here on out. There was no point in being there anymore.

And yet, you wanted to be there so bad.

[somewhatgreatexpectations]

Gerri Fields Masterlist

Main Masterlist | Main Page

"Softly" - One-shot

Warnings: None. (No pronouns used. I think.)

Summary: A chance encounter with a beautiful (and partially dressed) stranger leads to one of the best nights of your life.