#gonna play a bunch of video games and barely move from the couch for at least a day lol

[ann-chovi]

(just a quick "i'm not dead" post) Finally done moving! Taking a couple of days to just... exist. And sleep. A lot of sleep. But I'm itching to finally get back to Redirect (it has been a MONTH since I've even been able to THINK about it- I'm dying). So comic updates should hopefully get going again soonish.

[mydemonsdrivealimo]

being the other's blanket

telling each other about their days in soft voices while cuddling

cuddles without doing anything else even though they have a bunch of things to do

THANK YOU

being the others blanket

no bc they do this all the time. bryce is a weighted blanket FREAK so if he doesn't have it jensen is his next best replacement

first time was during book 3. jensen was over to hang and get a little escape from the roomies. it was a couple months before boards so bryce helped him study a little but studying quickly became video games

bryce was sprawled across the couch w his legs on jensens lap and jensen got up to clean up the dishes and bryce just. didn't move

jensen came back and was like uh. im gonna squish you

bryces response was "not like you haven't been on top of me before." so.

jensen just rolls his eyes and crawls over top of him (w kisses to the neck bc if it's there he's going to do it)

jensen snuggles into him and bryce rubs his back (it's the law i swear) while jensen sits and plays w his hair and his hoodie and anything else there is

they end up talking ab nothing for a while before jensen falls asleep on top of him and then bryce just keeps them there for a while

telling each other ab their days in soft voices while cuddling

as domestic as this could be im more thinking in a crowded kinda space

like donahues during some celebration. they barely know who they're celebrating they just wanted an excuse to drink lol

jensens getting hot and overstimulated so he takes a much needed break outside. goes and sits at one of the far tables that nobodys at and plays on his phone for a little bit to recharge

it doesnt take long for bryce to come find him. he sits down but doesnt say anything but jensen turns his phone off which is enough of a sign that he's up to chat

but bryces throat hurts bc he's been talking all night and maybe sitting quietly for once wouldn't hurt him

he leans over and presses a little kiss to jensens cheek before wrapping his arms around jensens, letting his chin rest on his shoulder w a kiss here and there

jensen runs his hand over bryces arm a few times, leaving goosebumps while he starts talking ab his day at work. it was busy, as always, but he had some fun cases

when he's done talking he gives bryce the smallest forehead kiss which signals it's his turn. they go back and forth until they're ready to go back inside, just sitting on the picnic table bench w bryces arms wrapped around jensen and jensen touching his arms and thigh occasionally

cuddles without doing anything else even though they have a bunch of things to do

immediately reminded me of them moving bryce out of his apartment and into jensens

bryce HATES packing. bane of his existence. so the whole time jensen is like okay it's go time, clearing 3 boxes and hour. bryce has maybe 4 things in one box

bryce strips the bed and ends up flopping down on it for 30 min while jensen is working his ass off in the bathroom clearing out bryces hundreds of products carefully so they don't break

he comes back to bryce doing fuck all and kinda wants to strangle him

he tries to pull bryce out of bed but, as strong as jensen is, bryce catches him off guard and yanks him down

he's all "oh well now that you're here" and jensen is NOT having it

he keeps trying to get up but bryce keeps distracting him w kisses and just. refusing to let him go. so jensen ends up there for like 20 min

after the first 10 he relents and figures that giving in will maybe motivate bryce enough. bryce ends up w jensens arm tucked under his head w his face pressed into his chest. jensens playing w his hair a little while bryce keeps talking and talking ab literally nothing. like as if he can keep jensen from thinking ab the fact that they're getting absolutely nothing done

but yeah they just end up cuddling on the bare mattress for a good half hour while bryce procrastinates and jensen takes a much deserved break

[chippedaxe]

stepbro george smut 🤤 if u could do hard dom george with fem reader?

˚˙༓࿇༓˙˚˙༓࿇༓˙˚˙༓࿇༓˙˚

Title: 𝒮𝓉𝑒𝓅𝒷𝓇𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝑔𝑒𝑜𝓇𝑔𝑒

Warnings: NSFW! (Minors DNI), coarse language, sub reader, hard dom, stepcest, degrading, teasing, masturbation, slapping, voyeurism, (unedited)

Pronouns: she/her AFAB

Synopsis: You and George are left alone at home which causes you to become bored and restless, you then bother George with your boredom.

Word count: 1.6k

Note: I'll try to write this the best I can, I don't rlly know how to write hard dom george but I'll try! Thank you for the request <3

* Let me know if there are any warnings or any other things to change !!

Welcome 🧝🏽‍♀️ anon btw!

*My emojis updates since I took that photo so now the emoji looks different

˚˙༓࿇༓˙˚˙༓࿇༓˙˚˙༓࿇༓˙˚

Your eyes shifted to stare at your stepbrother George, you then quickly glanced away when he looked over at you. You heard him scoff a bit before he walked away, the heat rose to your cheeks and made you blush. You were sitting on the couch watching the TV and zoning out but stopped when you heard your parents at the door "We're leaving to stay at your aunts for the weekend! George is in charge of the house!" you had barely caught on to what they were saying as they had just suddenly left.

"George?" you called out to him just as your parents had left "yeah, what?" he came down the stairs "Why're our parents leaving?" you asked "didn't you listen to them? They're staying over with our aunt" George rolled his eyes at you "No yeah- I got that, but why?" you turned around on the couch so you two were now face to face "They left because you were annoying them too much" George snickered "Hey! That's mean- Why're they really leaving??" you got up from the couch.

George shrugged and started walking off "Don't be an asshole!" you crossed your arms and pouted "An asshole? Me? Never! I'm one of the kindest guys you'll ever meet, and I know you won't meet many but that's not the point" he teased you "HEY! What's that supposed to mean?" you followed him up the stairs "What? I'm just saying the truth!" George slipped into his bedroom and tried to get away from you, you groaned as he shut the door on you and went into your own room.

'George is an idiot, he keeps teasing me' you thought to yourself as you laid down on the bed, you tossed around in your sheets as you were becoming restless and bored. "I'm so BORED" you groaned out in boredom, your hands pulling at your face in agony "ughhhhh" you made random noises to try and satisfy your boredom "Hey- do you mind not being annoying?" George opened your door "I'm so bored though!" you exclaimed "Yeah well go and do something then, stop bothering me about it!" George went to slam your door but you stopped him "Why don't you hang out with me or something??" you suggested.

"Because you're just my dumb little sister" George walked off "C'mon! We can play a game or something!" you were desperately trying to satisfy your boredom "Why don't you just go on your phone like a normal person?" George left you alone once again. You slumped down onto the floor and held your head in your hands "Why's he always gotta be so difficult?" you huffed in annoyance, you take your phone out and decide to bother George over the internet.

You called him a bunch of times until he picked up "WHAT?! WHAT DO YOU WANT??" he screamed into the phone "I'm bored! Why don't you just hang out with meeeee?" you asked "because then you'll just complain the whole time!" George hung up but you repeatedly kept calling him "I'm literally so close to blocking you!" George sighed "We could play one of your video games??" you smiled as you thought he might finally agree to do something with you "I am not gonna let you touch my shit, just go touch yourself or something, I don't fucking know" he hung up again.

You blushed at his suggestion 'Touch myself? I can't believe he suggested that! He's a gross pervert!' you thought to yourself but your hand was ironically already subtly making its way down between your legs. His suggestion couldn't hurt and it was an easy way to pass sometime and cure your boredom, you had to be quiet though, George's room was literally right next to yours and you'd be embarrassed to hell if he heard you.

You pulled down your pants so they were hanging around your thighs and then you proceeded to rub yourself down there, you moaned quietly but then had to quickly shut yourself up. You leaned over on the bed and positioned yourself so your face was buried in the blankets and your fingers were rubbing at your sore clit, you were huffing and puffing into the sheets.

Your fingers slipped inside and you let out a small gasp, you moved your other hand to cover your mouth. Your eyes closed as you felt yourself getting closer and closer to releasing, your orgasm already approaching hastily, you didn't know that anyone was there watching you until you heard a clear coughing noise "Having fun?" you blushed all over. You slowly moved your hands and looked up at George "h-hey.." you gulped nervously, you stupid girl- why didn't you lock the door?!

"That looked fun, why'd you stop?" He crossed his arms over and looked down at you "B- Because you're watching me.." you whispered "If you didn't want my attention then you should've been more quiet. Fucking yourself right next to my bedroom? Naughty girl" George smirked "I- I-.." You tried to speak up but he didn't let you "Keep going" He ordered you. You meekly listened and started to touch yourself again "There's no use in hiding your voice, our parents are gone and I'm already here" George told you.

You let out a choked moan, you glanced away from George as his eyes were on you "Didn't know my sister was such a whore.. Getting off because I told you to, aren't you?" George teased, you nodded shyly "I knew it. Are you thinking about me while you do it?" He leaned in closer to breath hot hair onto your ear. You shiver from his warm breath "m- maybe.." you answer him "maybe isn't good enough, doll" George crawls on top of you and pins you to the bed.

You pull your hand away from your crotch and you try to back up a bit "Are you tryna run away? Just let me know now if you want me to leave" George gave you a way to back out but you rejected it "Fine with me, c'mere.." He leaned in and kissed your lips. You kissed him back gently, you were still half stunned that your stepbrother was here doing this to you. You pulled away quickly "G-George! You're my stepbrother!" you exclaimed "Yeah, you just realize that now?" George laughed and pulled you back in again.

"Come on, don't use me like this, you don't even like me!" you pushed him away "Who says I don't like you? I might tease you and you might annoy me but that's just regular sibling things, right?" George had a point "Is that all you think of me? Your sister?" he shakes his head "During the day I do, but at night-" He didn't finish his sentence as he captured your lips in another kiss.

You closed your eyes and kissed him back, your hands running through his hair as you two kiss. George pulled away for a bit of air and then started to roughly kiss at your neck "fuck.." you gasped "D- don't leave any marks!" you warned him "And if I do? Just put some makeup on" George bit down on your neck "ah!" you moaned from his little actions.

"Did you stretch yourself earlier?" George started to unbuckle his belt, you nodded and opened your legs to show your aching hole "You're such a slutty sister.." George bit his lip as he zipped down his pants and positioned himself at your entrance, he slowly slid in and you let out a loud groan "ahhhhh fuckkkkk.." you threw your head back.

He grunted as he started to thrust inside of you, his cock felt huge inside of you, the tip of his dick was hitting every part inside of you and it felt amazing! You held onto his arms and dug your nails into his shoulders "S-shit!" you swallowed down another moan "Damn, you gonna cum already?" George teased you. He started to buck his hips even faster, his free hand was bruising your hip while the other one was clamped around your neck and holding your head up to look at him.

"Cum for me, cum for your fucking stepbrother" he slapped you across the face which left a tingle on your skin. You came just after he had slapped you, your pussy clenched around him and he groaned loudly "oh fuck-" he didn't mean to but he ended up cumming inside of you after you had an orgasm. You laid down on the bed and tried to catch your breath, George sighed and left the room to grab a washcloth.

He started to clean your insides, his hand sliding inside of you just to clean the cum out "Ow!" you winced "Sorry Y/n.." he whispered "What're you being so nice to me now for?" you asked "I'm your brother, I can still be nice and an annoying dickhead" he smiled up at you. "What'd you slap me for by the way? Now my cheek hurts.." you whined "to knock some sense into you" George joked around "asshole."

[sirthisisa-wendys]

The Enforcers: Part 5 (Geto Suguru x Fem!Reader)

wc: 1.7k

tw: NSFW. (It's finally happening.)

masterlist

Suguru stares at the screen in disbelief.

"I don't know what else to say," you breathe, eyes wide. "I think that we should go to the Grand Council or my parents and--"

"It's a hoax," he frowns, shaking his head. "None of this makes any sense. And I've seen fabricated shit like this before."

"But the timestamps!" you retort, pointing at the metadata.

"Those can be fabricated by using an old machine. You can't trust anything these days unless it comes from the Archives."

"But--"

"I think you need to delete these and forget about it. This is someone's sick idea of a joke, y/n." Suguru stands, scowling at the computer one last time before turning away. "I'll figure out who did this. Don't worry. Just delete that shit and don't mention it to anyone." Suguru stalks out of the room and you look at the files, dragging them to the trash before turning your computer off and trying to put it out of your mind.

_____________________________________________________________

You're back at the club with your friends, sitting among new faces and old ones just the same. But the nagging feeling that something isn't right is dragging across the pit of your stomach like a rake. When you glance at Suguru, he's laughing with his other Leviathan friends, but barely touching his only drink.

He must be unnerved by it, too, you think, and rub your forehead before watching Yuji try his best dance moves on Nobara, which fails miserably, of course. Yuki sits to your left, also watching the show with varying degrees of amusement before looking over at you.

"Why the long face, Ms. Successful? Is this too boring for you?" You consider telling her what's really bothering you, turning to her in the dim lighting and pressing your lips together. Her face changes and you know your secret can't be kept for long.

"What would you do if someone played a really bad prank on you?"

"What, did Suguru piss on your curtains?"

"Huh?" You look at her in shock, and she shrugs.

"Alright, maybe that's just a Toji thing. My bad." She sips her drink thoughtfully. "What kind of prank are you talking about?"

"Someone..." You hesitate, but decide to keep going anyways. "Someone put files on my computer to make it seem like my parents were involved with something called Project Kudzu and Project Redroot." Yuki frowns deeply, blinking rapidly.

"Y/n, I've never heard of those things before." You sigh, shaking your head. "Did they have any real proof?"

"Yeah, some audio files, two videos, and a bunch of TS-CO labeled documents that--" A hand lands on your shoulder, and you look up to see Suguru standing above you.

"That pre-game was wild, wasn't it?" Pre-game? "Sorry, Yuki. Y/n here had a whole bottle of red wine and played some weird game before coming. She's been going on about it to me for hours... projects and stuff." Yuki laughs, waving him off.

"It's okay! I was a little confused, too, but I get it. Girl," she turns to you, shaking her head. "You should probably go home and get some rest. If I had known you were drunk already I would've--"

"I'm not drunk," you reply, looking back and forth between Suguru and Yuki. "I swear, I'm not--"

"Let me get you home, party girl," Suguru mumbles, pulling you up from your seated position and gripping your hand tightly as he drags you along with him. "It's been a long day."

"But I'm not--" The look Suguru gives you is deadly, and you shut your lips as he takes you to the car you both came in, opening your door silently. You slide into the seat and he shuts the door with force, climbing into the driver's seat, but not starting the car. He grips the steering wheel and clenches his jaw, finally muttering,

"Didn't I tell you not to say anything to anyone?"

"Suguru, this has been bothering me for days! I don't know what to do!"

"I'm trying to find out who would break into your room and do this to you. Can you let me work?" he asks tersely. "For once in your life, can you let someone look out for you?" His black eyes are blazing in the dim light of the parking lot, and your bottom lip quivers.

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he exhales, starting the car. "I just... I just need you to let me figure this out. Someone isn't playing nice in our own organization and if it comes at the expense of my partner, I'm not having it. Lay low for me for a while, got it?" Suguru places his hand on your thigh and you nod, feeling your heart pick up an uneven rhythm. Your mouth goes dry at his lingering touch, but before you can think about it any further, he removes his hand and pulls out of the parking lot to take both of you back to the base.

When you get back to your barracks, you pause in the living room, looking over at your Leviathan as he removes his leather jacket and deposits it on the couch, sighing. You slowly approach him from behind and touch his back, which makes him flinch a little.

"I don't know why you continue to put up with my antics," you murmur and he huffs a breath out, shaking his head. "But thank you for saving my ass... and for looking out for me." Suguru turns to you, his lips quirking up a bit.

"Little Ms. Successful is thanking me for my service? Are you drunk?" Your cheeks heat up at the nickname and you roll your eyes, about to turn away from him when he catches your wrist. "Don't do that," he breathes, bringing you in close so your chests are touching. Your breathing hitches and he raises his knuckles, grazing them over your cheek. You close your eyes at the contact, and he slides his fingers down to your chin, tilting it up and humming softly.

"Open your eyes," Geto whispers, and you do so, trying your best not to seem too flustered. He leans down, brushing his lips across yours for permission, and your close your eyes again, letting him kiss you. When his lips separate from yours, he touches your nose with his, and you raise up on your tiptoes to feel his lips on yours again. "Are you sure you want to do that?" he wonders as you pull away. You nod your head, and he laughs softly.

"I do want to keep kissing you, yes," you reply, and he wraps a hand around your waist, lifting you off your feet and wrapping your legs around him.

"Nothing good comes of that," he warns, but you scoff.

"I'd beg to differ."

And that's how you find yourself on his neatly made bed, legs pushed up to your chest as Suguru greedily laps at your cunt like a starving man. "Su..." you moan, and he grunts in response. "That feels so good."

"I bet it does," the Leviathan replies, raising his brow at you salaciously before flicking your clit with his tongue. Your toes curl painfully as he dips a finger into you, then raises it up to your lips, tugging your mouth open so you can taste yourself. You suck on the digit with pleasure, humming when he pulls it back out and finger fucks you while sucking on your clit.

You buck under his grip, but he raises off of you, denying you an orgasm so soon. Geto kisses you deeply, swiping his tongue across yours so you can taste yourself again, then sits up, motioning for you to do the same.

"You want to do this?"

"Yeah." Suguru pulls his long hair up with an elastic and removes his pants, climbing back onto the bed and sitting against the headboard. He pulls you into his lap and raises you up, allowing you to grasp his hard length before sliding onto it carefully.

"Easy, easy..." he hisses, and you slow down, taking him inch by inch. You place your arms around his neck and rock back and forth, closing your eyes when you feel all of him nestled inside of you. Suguru groans, closing his eyes and tilting his head forward onto your shoulder. "Hold on, I'm gonna lay on my back." You allow him to slide forward, and he pushes you down onto his chest with a broad hand before pumping into you methodically.

"Oh, god..." you moan, and Suguru exhales shakily. "Su, you feel amazing."

"Say it a little louder so our neighbors can hear you," he jokes, but you clench around him and his laughter is cut short. "Fuck!" The man beneath you smacks your ass, and you yelp in response. "Keep doing that and this will be over faster than you can spell your own name."

"Then fuck me and quit being a smart ass," you gripe. Suguru shrugs and mutters,

"You asked for it." before slamming his hips into your ruthlessly. You cry out at the sensations his pace brings, and he grips your wrist as you lift off of him, holding your left hand against his chest. "Stay right here, princess. I'm not letting you go for shit." Your mouth seems to maintain its "O" shape the entire time he's fucking you senseless, and you can't say a word, eyes crossing and making you see double of your partner.

"Oh, god," you finally shudder, and Suguru lets go of your hand to lean you back down, mouth latching on one of your breasts.

"Cum for me," Geto challenges you before going back to sucking on your nipples relentlessly. You feel something inside of you break - almost like a busted dam releasing a flood of sensations and emotions that you've held at bay since you arrived here. "Oh, you're doing so good," Suguru grunts, holding you as you tremble fiercely while his hips stutter. "Just let it all go."

And for some reason, tears - actual tears - come out of your eyes as if this sexual release also broke your heart in two.

"Did I hurt you?" Suguru asks, swiping at your tears with a worried expression.

"No," you reassure him, shaking your head fiercely. "Not at all."

"Hmmm..." He rests your head against his chest as his breathing slows, hands stroking your back and hair with care. "You've had a hard couple of days. Just rest, alright? I'll be here when you wake up." So, you fall asleep, trusting your partner who's never betrayed you before.

_____________________________________________________________

TAGLIST: @missbonekitty @wack0-genius @thankuary @jsqeeut@r-i-m-f-009 @sunfloweroranges @leanne-tamashi @girlruby23@rein-icu @brownskinnedgirll @chanelmalandro @savantsoulfinder @jibe-gajima @chilledlucifer @amnxsia @kontentious @fuyuko26 @everybodylovescayrayray @flare-on

[fridayfirefly]

Retirement

Read Retirement on AO3

Masterlist

For Maribat March Day 21 - Domestic Bliss

The first time Marinette and Garfield ever discussed retirement was before they even started dating. For superheroes, retirement was just a fact of life. One day, if you make it long enough, you'll put down the suit and you'll never pick it up again. Maybe someone will take your place. Hopefully, no one will need to. But no matter how strong you are, not even if you're Superman in his prime, the simple fact was that someday you would retire.

"What do you think you'll do after you retire?" Marinette mused to Garfield. Out of all the Titans, Marinette spent the most time around Gar, simply because the two of them spent a lot of time in the living room. Marinette liked the ambient noise that his video games provided when she worked on her projects, and Gar liked to have someone to talk to while he played. Most of Marinette's current focus was on the embroidery in her hands, as she stitched vines running down the sleeves of her shirt, but she still took the time to start a conversation with Gar.

"I dunno..." Gar glanced up from the game he was playing. "What'll you do once you give up being Ladybug."

"That's a tough question. I used to think that I wanted to run a big fashion company, like Agreste Fashion, but now I think I want something a little more low-key. In my ideal future, I own a little boutique where I make custom clothing. There would be a fabric store and a café on the same block as me, and I would never have to leave the neighborhood."

"That sounds nice. I think I might try going to college and see where that takes me. I applied to Jump City University right before Christmas, and they accepted me. If I went, I would start classes in the fall.”

Marinette’s head jerked up as she gave Gar her full, undivided attention. “I’m going to JCU next fall!” she exclaimed excitedly. “We might have classes together. What are you planning on majoring in?”

Gar shrugged, “JCU has a veterinary program that I'm interested in. I'd be taking animal behavior, biology, chemistry, and a whole bunch of other science classes.”

“That’s so cool!”

“It’s nothing much. I didn’t expect them to accept me, anyway.”

Gar seemed oddly subdued about the idea of going to college. He was a naturally enthusiastic person, which made it very out of character for him to be so dismissive. It worried Marinette. “No, you deserve praise for your accomplishment. Jump City University is a very selective school.”

“I’m not a genius. I’m just me.”

“You’re smart, Gar, I know you are. Getting accepted to JCU is just one of the many reasons why you are brilliant.”

“Are you gonna name them all for me?” joked Gar.

His question was rhetorical, just a joke, but Marinette wasn't finished convincing Gar that he deserved all the praise in the world. “For starters, you can finish any video game in less than a day. Even the ones where you need logic and strategy, you fly right through them. Secondly, you’re a genius when it comes to animals. And it’s not just because of your superpower. You taught yourself animal behavior so that you could blend in with the animals you’re imitating. Thirdly, you pretend not to be invested in politics, but I’ve seen how you keep yourself informed about environmental policies and activism. You really care about the planet. Fourthly-“

"Alright, Buginette,” laughed Gar, a slight blush on his cheeks. “You’ve proven your point.”

Marinette set her embroidery down on the coffee table and moved to Gar's couch. "Is this game multiplayer?"

"Yep. Do you want to play a few rounds?"

"Hmm... I think I could spare a few minutes to kick your butt."

"Please. I'm going to squash you like the little bug you are."

"You wish!"

----------

The next time Marinette and Gar discussed retirement was well after they started dating. They got together in their Junior year at JCU after spending two years in relationship limbo, with both too nervous to make the first move. They finally confessed their feelings for each other after Dick and Starfire locked them in a closet together until they admitted that they liked each other. They graduated college as a couple, with Gar planning on attending veterinary school and Marinette planning on starting up her fashion business. That summer they spent a lot of time talking about the future.

"I've been thinking of recruiting someone to take over as Ladybug," remarked Marinette as she cuddled up next to Gar on the couch.

"Really? Who do you have your eye on?" asked Gar.

"Wonder Woman recently took on a new protege, Cassie Sandsmark. The Ladybug Miraculous already has some connections to Wonder Woman and her home of Themyscira. Her mother, Queen Hippolyta, was a wielder of the Ladybug Miraculous for quite some time."

"If you gave up the Miraculous would you still fight crime?"

Marinette shook her head. "I think it might be time to give up crimefighting. It's been ten years since I took up the Ladybug Miraculous to fight Hawkmoth, and six years since Hawkmoth was defeated. I wasn't ready to give up that responsibility then, but I think I'm ready now."

"When would you give up the Miraculous?"

"Soon. I talked to Wonder Woman about it last week and she's enthusiastic about the idea. I would need to spend some time getting to know Cassie, just to make sure she's a good fit, and Tikki would need to vet her as well, but I have a good feeling that she'll pass any tests of character we put her through." Marinette turned to face Gar. "I didn't want to make any concrete decisions before I talked to you. I know that we've always fought crime together, but I'm ready to move on with my life. I'm ready to retire."

Gar nodded. "I understand and I fully support your decision. I've been considering leaving the Titans as well. I know I could continue living in the Tower and attend veterinary school at JCU, but last week I got an acceptance letter from UC Davis for their School of Veterinary Medicine."

Marinette's eyes widened. "Gar, that's amazing! I remember looking into UC Davis when you were applying, and their program is nationally ranked."

Gar grinned. "The best in the country. It's too good to pass up."

"You have to go!" exclaimed Marinette. "This is your dream!"

"I think I'll send in my acceptance tomorrow," decided Gar. "Maybe we can go to Davis this weekend and scout out an apartment."

"And fabric stores," chimed in Marinette.

Gar laughed. "Anything for you, Buginette."

----------

The final time Marinette and Gar discussed retirement was years later. Marinette and Gar had gotten married and had moved back to Jump City. Marinette opened her fashion boutique, which had very quickly exploded in popularity. Gar started working for a non-profit veterinary clinic, which provided free veterinary services to lower-income neighborhoods. They had both achieved their dreams, and yet neither seemed content with their lives.

"Maybe we just need a change of scenery," suggested Marinette, leaning her head against Gar as they both sat on the beach watching the sunset. "I'm so tired of the city."

"Maybe," said Gar. "It would be nice to have a house with a backyard, rather than just an apartment."

Marinette sighed. "I know that I always said that I wanted to be the owner of a successful boutique, but this wasn't really what I had in mind. I'm so busy that I feel like I never get to spend any time with you anymore. Every day my inbox is filled with emails asking me to sell my company or expand to more locations. I'm tired of it. My passion is for making clothes, not running a business."

"I know how you feel. Every day I encounter another neglectful pet owner who brings their animal to the clinic for help but refuses to listen to me when I tell them that they need to change the way they treat their animal. It's exhausting."

"We could both just quit our jobs and move into the woods," joked Marinette.

Gar nodded, but he wasn't joking. "I've actually been thinking about that. There are a lot of remote regions with a real need for veterinary practices to provide medical assistance for the farm animals out there. I would feel a lot more useful taking care of animals that don't have anyone else."

Marinette turned to face Gar. "I wouldn't mind moving. I've been sending all of the offers to buy my boutique straight to my email archive, but I'm sure if I looked through them all I could find someone who would be able to take care of the business aspect of Ladybug Designs. I could retire from the business and design on my own time, when the inspiration strikes, instead of forcing myself to churn out design after design."

"You really wouldn't mind?" asked Gar, a hopeful look on his face.

Marinette shook her head. "I was serious about moving out of the city. There's something I've been wanting to tell you for a while, but I've been waiting for the right moment. I think that moment is now. Gar, I'm pregnant."

The deer-in-the-headlights look on Gar's face was comical, to say the least. Marinette giggled, "Well?"

Gar snapped back to reality, transforming into an elephant, trumpeting his joy. He turned back into himself and wrapped his arms around Marinette. "I'm so happy! This is the best news I could have ever heard, Buginette. Now we have to move. I want our kid to have a backyard and a dog and a big driveway where I can teach them how to ride a bike and a pond where they can swim in the summer-"

Marinette cut Gar off with a kiss. "One thing at a time," she giggled.

"I think this will be the best decision we have ever made," declared Gar.

Marinette agreed. "I think that partial retirement will be good for us."

----------

This was bliss. The feeling of grass under Marinette’s bare feet as she walked back to the house from the lake, hand in hand with Gar. The sound of their daughter's laughter as she danced around them, catching fireflies. The taste of homemade apple pie and vanilla ice cream, eaten rebelliously early as Gar proclaimed, "Dessert before dinner!" The sight of the stars up above them, no light pollution to mask the beauty of the heavens. The sound of Gar's voice, whispering, "I love you, Buginette," into Marinette's ear. And as Marinette settled into her husband's arms, she knew for certain that retirement was the best decision she had ever made.

@maribatmarch-2k21

[smellyfootboy]

SMELLY ENCOUNTERS WITH ETHAN PT 2

So it had been a few months after my last encounter with Ethan where he basically made me his foot bitch. I had moven on and taken It for what it was. A one night fantasy come true because he was drunk. I still jerk off frequently thinking about that night. The whole thing still feels like a dream.

I hadn't really seen him much since then and I hoped It wasn't because he would feel awkward after what had happened. Honestly I question if he had even remembered with his intoxication.

But that day, he texted me out of nowhere:

ETHAN: Hey man. Wassup.

ME: not much hbu?

ETHAN: It's been a while... what are you up to?

ME: just playing PS5... I was able to snag the last one at target.

ETHAN: The fuck dude... and you weren't going to ask me to come play? I wanna try it out to see if it worth it before I get one.

ME: I mean, you are welcome to join me. Sleepover video game party? Haha

ETHAN: Fuck ya! I'll be over in about an hour.

I got butterflies in my stomach. Video game sleepover???? Was he gonna make me his bitch again? I was getting hard just thinking about it. I quickly picked up my apartment a bit. I was tempted to pick up some booze to hopefully recreate the last time but decided against it. It would look too desperate.

Some time past and Ethan arrived. He looked as hot as ever. I noticed myself acting a little nervous around him. I looked down at his shoes and they were a pretty beat up pair of Globes. Different from the converse he wore last time. He typically always wore skate shoes.

"Hey man how you been? I brought some snacks. " Ethan said as he brought them over to the counter.

"Cool thanks! Yeah I don't think we've seen each other since um... new years ?" I said awkwardly.

"Ha. New years that was a fun night... so show me this ps 5 you lucky bastard." Ethan said.

Fun night. Ugh. I just want to talk about it. And make it happen again.

We went to the couch and I handed him a controller. We played for a good hour.

"This is pretty sweet. I think i might have to get one." Ethan said.

"Yeah ... so what did you do all day?" I asked

"A lot of running around. Went and worked out a bit at the gym. Got pretty sweaty. And then came here" Ethan said.

"Not even a shower first? Is that what that smell is " I asked.

"Bitch you know you love it." Ethan said as he shoved my head into his armpit which was definaly strong. I resisted and pulled away.

We went back to playing games for a bit and somehow I ended up sitting on the floor leaning against the front of the couch while Ethan was still on the couch. At some point we switched from video games to watching a movie and I feel asleep on the floor.

I woke up to Ethan whispering my name.

"Guess he's sleeping. Fair game." I heard him say under his breath. His big shoes were hovering inches above my face. His feet had to be size 11 at least. He then removed both of his shoes and looked down at me. I shut my eyes quick to pretend I was still sleeping. The smell hit me like a ton of bricks. When I heard Ethan lean back I opened my eyes again. His big smelly feet right above my face. Not only that but this time the red, white, and black socks he was wearing had a bunch of holes in them like they were years old. The smell seemed almost stronger than the last time I had an experience with him. It was so overpowering. He lowered his feet a little more so my nose was right in his toes. His big toe poked out of one of the holes which I honestly found pretty hot. I couldn't belive this was happening again. How long should i pretend to be sleeping? I didn't want to move. I continued sniffing them trying not to inhale too deeply so he'd know I was awake. He suddenly took his big exposed toe and pried it in between my lips. I could feel it rubbing my teeth. And while he did this, his other foot remained hugging my nose. I heard him unzip his pants. I had no idea what he was planning.

"You awake yet?" Ethan asked. I didnt know what to do. But I guess it was time. I pretended to wake up.

"Huh wha..." I pulled his toe out of my mouth

"What are you doing! Ew not again" I yelled pretending I hated it.

"Excuse me! Did I say you could do that?" Ethan said sternly. He slapped my face with his stinky foot and I layed back down.

"Remember when we were young? At sleepovers, anyone that falls asleep first would get hazed." Ethan said. He was determined to make me his bitch again. Who was I to stand in his way? He reached down and pulled his socks off and leaned back again. His big rank feet centimeters from my face.

"After my work out, and wearing these socks for a couple days, I could use a good cleaning. Stick your tongue out" Ethan demanded. I obliged. What immediately followed was Ethans big foot sliding across my tongue. I could taste the workout and the days old socks with every lick. Ethan kept doing this and then started on the toes, sliding my tongue between each one. I could feel the sock lint on my tongue. After what seemed like forever, Ethan switched to the other foot and it was the whole process all over again. My tongue was so dry and so smelly.

After about 20 minutes of vigorous torture to my tongue Ethan took his feet off of me.

"Good boy. Now re-lubricate that tongue." He said. I pulled my tongue back in my mouth and all I could taste was Ethans feet. Once I gained enough saliva, I swallowed and could feel the dirt and grime go all the way down. It took me a minute to catch my breath. I started to get back up.

"Nope." Ethan said as he pushed me forcefully back to the ground.

I was confused... his feet were clean, what was coming next?

Suddenly I could see Ethan's huge balls coming down from above me. He layed them over my nose and they smelled phenomenal. Like they had been excessively sweating all day long.

"Tongue out" he said. Once again I obliged.

His huge nuts started to slide across my tongue. I could feel the stubble on his balls, but they were mostly smooth. He was stroking his large uncut cock while he did this. This was way further than we got the last time we hung out. Ethan suddenly used his hands and stuffed his huge nuts into my mouth. I had to open very wide for them. I could barely breathe. His balls were gagging me and his sweaty taint was over my nose. As he would jerk off I could feel his precum dripping down my chin. I was so turned on.

"Yeah clean off those balls good like you did my feet." Ethan said.

I could feel Ethan reaching climax as I swirled my tongue around his balls. I watched him reach over and grab one of his stinky holey socks, and put it over his cock. I watched him cum in ecstacy while my mouth was stuffed with nuts. He pulled his cum filled sock off his dick and pulled his balls out of my mouth and sat back up on the couch.

"Whew. So yeah. You can expect that when you fall asleep first. " Ethan said laughing. He went back to playing video games and I didn't even know what to do. I started to get up and I was about to grab the other controller to play with him and he grabbed my hand.

"Nah you aren't done yet." He said. He took his cum filled stinky cock and stuffed it in my mouth.

"Chew on that for a while and tell me when it's clean." Ethan said.

So i watched Ethan play video games over the next half hour while sucking on this cum filled filthy sock. This was probably the best night of my life, even better than the first time. I couldnt wait to see what would happen next time we hung out.

[fakeloveaskblog]

Hi, me again. Hope I’m not bugging you with all the asks. I have a bunch of ones, don’t feel pressured to do all of them these are just a bunch I think would be cute.

For Remy maybe 🛁, ⛑, 🤝 or 😭

For Remus 💤, 🥰 or ✋

For Janus 🍳, ☺️, 🧣 or 🛎

all of these happened some time in the timeline but not right now since it's still technically christmas in the story. I have been going in and out of dissociation for days now so sorry if there's worse grammar than usual ig???

For Remy: 🛁: A relaxing bath⛑: Some tender first-aid 🤝 : Some help performing a basic task (This first one is much longer than the other 2)

"You need to press the X butto- oh we died again"

"Why do we even gotta like fight the colossus??"

"Beanie that is the whole point of the game"

Remus was laying on the couch with his head leant on Remy's ribs while they were half sitting, aimlessly pressing buttons on a controller. He'd brought his ps4 over to their apartment to keep them company.

Remy made the character ride his horse in a circle "I like horsing"

"This is why you suck at this. You don't have any bloodlust!!! You don't have any need to hear your victims scream in anguish!! No want to peel toenails out and put them into people's eyes!!"

"We died again" Remy replied after they'd accidentally made the horse fall down a cliff.

"I can take over. I'm the stabby stabby master"

Remus had fought against the serpent colossus about a dozen times so he didn't have to pay full attention to it. Instead he noticed out of the corner of his eye how Remy tried to subtly reach out and grab their wrist warmers. Their hands were shaking as they tried to put them on but their fingers gave out every time. They kept dropping the warmers into their lap the entire time he played.

"We won" He said "Do you want me to help you on with those?"

"With what?" They replied while dropping the wrist warmers again.

"Dude."

"It's stupid"

"Certain species of boars evolving to make their husks stab into their heads is stupid. Not this"

Remy rolled their eyes while handing the wrist warmers over to him. He mumbled a little 'thanks' while gently holding onto their wrist. For once they were wearing something long sleeved and they refused to pull the sleeves up but he managed. He put the warmers on as carefully as someone putting on a wedding ring.

"You can tell me if playing video games is hurting you, you get that right? I'm not gonna cut your head off for it" Remus said while rubbing his thumb up and down their palm.

"Some of us just aren't made to be gamers" Remy sighed it out as dramatically as they could. They could barely hold back giggling as they continued "I could never be a gamer- 'Cause- y'know- I'm not a virgin"

They burst out giggling like they'd just said the funniest shit imaginable. It spread over to Remus who tried to muffle his laughter with his hand. He lightly punched their shoulder.

"Bad joke dude" He laughed out.

"I know! I know!"

"I'm sorry beanie but I'm gonna have to kill you for that joke. Gonna take a shovel to your head. Gonna say your fibro made all your bones break all at once so you died. Very sorry" He teased with a half grin.

"Gonna say your psychosis magically took over like in the movies and tots made you kill me. Taking you down with you. Bitchass" They snarked back.

"Just two disabled fuckers murdering each other. Fun!"

"Indeed. OhohohOOohoho"

"MuhahaHAhahaAh"

"HehheehehHE"

Remus lightly bonked his head against theirs "No but really, you okay? Any way to help with the pain?"

"Baths usually help. Gets me all like warm. But I don't wanna make you like uncomfy"

"Nothings saying that I have to get in with you"

Remy almost looked a little embarrassed "No! I girl I like didn't mean it like that that!"

"I gotya"

Remus stood up and held out his hand to help them up. He handed them their cane but when he saw how they grimaced just from standing up he moved his arm behind their back to let them lean on him.

They went into the bathroom. Remus put on the water while Remy dragged off their dress leaving them in their sport bra and underwear. He was a bit baffled by how many bottles of hair dye was in the mirror cabinet but he also found a bottle to make bubblebaths.

"It's like fine if you leave y'know. You can just grab your game and leave whenever. I won't mind" Remy assured.

"It's okay" He threw some bubble stuff in "I hope there's acid in this"

"So you can watch my skin melt off??"

"I'm sure you have very sexy bones!!"

"I guess!"

Remus helped them into the bath. All of Remy disappeared under the growing mountain of bubbles except for their head. He sat down on the tiled floor and leant the back of his head against the bath's edge.

He smiled when he felt Remy form bubbles on top of his head "Whatcha doing?"

"The tower of bubble"

"OHOHO!!! You should try making a skull!! I would like having a bubble skull on top of my normal skull!"

"Honey just 'cause I've spent a shit ton of time in baths don't mean I'm some Picasso. That's your job"

"heh. PicASSo. heheh" Remus laughed mostly to himself "Is the warmth helping?"

"Loads. Here feel"

Out of the bubble mountain came their pale hand. They reached out so Remus let them take his hand in theirs. Their fingers intertwined.

"You're right. That is REally warm"

Remy continued making bubble creations on top of his head. It went a bit quiet. Sometimes Remus would blurt out some animal fact. They kept holding hands. Both silently decided to not speak about the holding hand thing. Both silently wanted it to continue for as long as possible.

"Your bones feel weird" Remus suddenly said while squeezing their hand.

"It's nothing" Remy blurted out.

"No. No, I know my way around bones. Yours feel really weird. Like it's a bit too loose"

"That's what she said. It's like seriously tots nothing"

Remy let go of his hand and was about to sink it back into the bottles but Remus grabbed onto their fingers and held them still.

"I can take a look. Maybe your fibro has accidentally caused some type of injury. I'm no doctor and I am sure you know your fibro better than I ever can but I know some stuff at least"

They let out an annoyed groan before sticking their whole arm out of the bubbles. Remus nearly flinched when he saw their wrist. Their wrist was swollen and would have been red if it wasn't for the bruises covering most of their skin. Purples and greens all mixed together.

"I can explain"

Remy threw the words out. Their eyes flickered between their wrist and their friend. They writhed around in their seat and hoped the bubbles would hide their anxiousness.

"Wow dude. You must have given the most intense handy of your life" Remus joked. Remy got so surprised they let out a few anxious chuckles "Do you have any first aid around here?"

"It's not that bad"

"If you don't let me take care of you I'm gonna have to poison you to sleep!! This is serious!!! No time for idiot thoughts!!"

"Fine. Fine. Whatever" Remy rolled their eyes "There's like a first aid under the nightstand in the bedroom. Please grab some cigs as well"

"Yep yep sure fine"

Remus quickly got up and got everything needed. They wouldn't even let him open the first aid kit before he'd lit the cig for them. They dragged in the nicotine and looked away while he took out rubber glove and filled it with warm water. He pressed it gently against the swollen area.

"Got this trick from the nurses. They were so nice" He pressed his eyes close to not let his mind dissociate to the visit to the hospital.

Remy stared down into the water "I didn't want anyone to know. I was- I was like worried you would tell Jannie and they would start going all crazy about Viv being like a bad boyfriend again. I didn't- I don't like hearing it"

Remus cupped their cheeks and turned their head so they were looking at him "I get it dude. What is said between us stays between us okay?"

"Okay" Remy took a shaky breathe and nodded "Okay. I bruise really easily ‘cause of the fibro!! I swear! So it looks a LOT worse than it actually was! I swear! He didn't mean to"

"I know. They never do" He moved the warm rubber glove away to put some creme onto the bruises.

"We were arguing. Like just y'know like normal arguing. yelling and stuff. And it was all my fault because Viv said he was going out for a smoke to let out steam but I didn't think he could like just decide when the argument was over so I like walked after him and he- I'm sure he wasn't looking at what he was doing- I'm sure he wasn't- He slammed the door shut on my- on my wrist. And then he left to like calm down and- and it hurt- And I- I might have gotten a flashback- so I like shut down and dissociated and when he came back he said the argument was past us so we shouldn't drag it up again so I like got nervous that if I told him to help me with the injury he would get mad"

"Fucking hell Beanie, no wonder playing that game hurt your wrist"

"I'm sorry. I just- it's hard to tell when injuries are serious enough to patch up- I'm just- with dad- I'm used to dissociating through it and going to school anyway"

"No apologizes needed. I only take apologize measured in blood anyway"

"He didn't mean to. It was like def my fault for trying to walk after him"

Remus took out a bandage and began to lap it around their wrist "Y'know my ex accidentally gave me bruises all the time. So you don't have to worry about me not getting it-"

"Sorry" Their shoulders relaxed a little "Sorry"

"It's nothing" He tied the bandages together and placed the warm rubber glove on top of it "Feeling any better?"

"Yeah. Thanks gal. That's- you were really good at that"

"What? You think I learn nothing from being interested in death and disease???"

Remy chuckled "Sorry"

Remus leant his chin against the bath's edge. His friend moved their head against his. "But also y'know. I only went to the hospital once during the time I was with my ex. I had to self help sometimes"

"Yeah 'cause you're a reckless fucker who can't stop trying to juggle scissors"

"True! Very true! Also y'know like uh my ex would sometimes just like accidentally open cabinets right when I passed by so they like uh slammed me in the head. Or he would uh accidentally- or I mean I would trip a lot. Stumble into a lot of walls uh and that sort. He just happened to always be there. And when uh when I would blackout from getting high I would wake up in pain or with bruises or- But he always said I was just imagining things and that it was all just misunderstanding and accidents and that I was overreacting 'cause it was nothing. And that I was uh delusional"

Remy noticed the way his hands shook a little and handed him the cigarette to stable his thoughts "Well yeah you got delusions but that doesn't mean you're wrong about everything. You know that I'm like tots hot and sexy and hot don't you. Then you can be like super trusted with knowing stuff!"

He let out a half hearted chuckle "Heh I guess. I also know what a fucking buffoon you are so it checks out"

It was quiet for just a little bit as they shared the cigarette. Remy rolled a few sentences around on their tongue before finally managing to get out.

"I know- I like remember the reason you went to the hospital that one time. You've like taken care of me so well I feel like you deserve some comfort as well. I can like I dunno kiss the scars? If that would be like okay with you?"

Remus took a deep breathe, so his cheeks puffed up like a chipmunks, and nodded.

He turned around and dragged off his t-shirt. It left him in his black binder. Remy had doodled octopuses in neon sharpie all over it.

Remy had seen the scars before, once or twice. They were all over his back. Small stripes of white and even in some places purple. Some of them were protruding out of his skin.

"I know our partners were just making mistakes but I hope to hell your ex apologized for his mistake" Remy muttered.

"Of course he did!"

Remus gulped. He was quite sure there had been apology in there. After being thrown against the mirror. After the shards of glass had gone into his skin. Between Os making him promise he wasn't going to tell any of the nurses what happened and the nurses hesitating every time one of them asked if Os was his...boyfriend..? Somewhere in there under the dissociation and ketamine there must have been an apology.

A shudder went up his spin as he felt Remy's cold lips agsinst his skin. They pressed gentle kisses against each of the scars. Several second long kisses. Like they were trying to press in how much they loved him.

For a second Remus got a thought about how it would maybe be nice if those lips were pressed against his lips instead. He choked on his own breathe and started to wheeze. Remy immediately moved back.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"NO! NO! Nothing! Nada! No problemo!"

"You still want to stay?"

"Yeah! Yeah! Claro! Of course! Do you wanna hear about monster ideas! And how I imagine they would date! And Kiss! Like the kraken and nessie??"

"Girl!!! I would love to!! I tots wanna hear all about those wonderful freaks!!"

Remus turned back to face them. He took their injured hand in his, right on the edge of the bath. He leant a little closer as he began to go on. So close so some of the bubbles stuck onto his binder.

Remy dipped their free hand in the warm water before letting their fingers run across his scars. They saw how his smile brightened as he did. How his eyes lightened a little at them being close.

For Remus: 💤: A few extra hours of sleep 🥰 : Post-nightmare cuddles ✋: A hand carding gently through their hair

Remus woke up in a groggy state. It was slow. The kind where nothing seemed real and everything was far away and he was unsure if he had even been asleep.

The moment he remembered what had happened in the dream his eyes shot open. He gasped for breathe while sitting up. A nauseous feeling filled his throat to the point that he was scared to open his mouth in case anything would spill out.

He kept forcing in deep breathes while looking for his phone. He opened the text message history with his ex but there was no new messages. He had been so sure there would be new messages. The dream had felt so real.

He tried to pull the sweaty blanket closer around himself but it wouldn't move. A sound came from behind him. Breathing.

Remus froze. His heart was beating out of his chest, nearly skipping beats. He didn't have the guts to look, instead he clasped his hands over his mouth to muffle his choked breathing. He pressed his legs together as his whole body tensed up. Every small sound made him flinch.

The time became muddled as his thoughts took over. There was a voice repeating that it was Os. Over and over. Another that told him that leaving Os had all been a dream. Just a really long dream. That Janus and Remy weren't real. That he was still in that apartment. He could see as the painted gold walls distort right in front of his eyes into yellowing whites. Into parts of paint peeling off.

A hoarse voice came from the other side of the bed "Rem? You awake?"

A scream came from deep in Remus' throat. He curled up and pressed his hands so hard over his mouth his fingernails left marks in his skin. He swore it was Os' voice.

The weight of the bed shifted as the other person moved to sit up "What's wrong? Did- Is something happening? It's me, Janus. We agreed on me staying for the night, remember?"

Remus tried his best but he couldn't stop himself from tearing up. The voices were so loud they were nearly drowning out everything else.

"Darling- Remus could you please look at me? I don't know if I'm allowed to touch you so I- I'm unsure of how to ground you if you're not looking at me"

He hesitated. It still sounded like Os' voice but it didn't sound like words Os would have said. He turned and saw Janus half sitting up, leant on their elbows, with their silly egg and snake patterned pyjamas on.

Tears rolled down his cheeks but he wasn't really aware of it. The voices switched to telling him Janus wasn't real. None of it was real. He was still dreaming. He was going to wake up soon and be hungover and half high and bruised and-

"Do you think holding my hand would help ground you?" Janus interrupted while holding out his hand "It might make reality feel more...real"

Remus nodded and let them gently take his shaky hand in their palm. Feeling their warm skin shook them out from the worst of it. The voices were still going but more distant. Instead his whole body went numb, like he was floating. His expression turned neutral and his eyes stared out into nothing. His head lolled a little to the side as even his breathing slowed down.

"zoning...dissociating....speech is...difficult" He got out as an explanation.

"That's okay" Janus replied. They rubbed their thumb over his knuckles "Did you have a nightmare?"

He nodded.

"Okay. That's good- Or I mean it's not good. But it's good in the way that I was worrying that I had triggered you somehow. I assume it was the nightmare that triggered your..your.."

"psychosis" He filled in.

"Yeah"

He nodded.

Janus shifted a little in their seat "I'm aware that sharing a bed is...a big thing for you so if you want me to leave I definitely can"

"You're comforting. warm. i. i want to trust" Remus mumbled out.

"Oh okay. Cool. I love comforting! One of my favorite hobbies truly"

"i dont....i dont want your arms around me"

"That's okay. I get it. I might have some leftover poison on my arms anyway so it's all good. You know how crazy poison glands get some times of the year. Am I right or am I right"

They laid down on their back and sent their friend a soft smile. Remus curdled up to their side with his head laying on top of their stomach. He held onto the fabric of their pyjama top so hard that their nails whitened.

"the dream felt so real" He whispered out. "i could feel it. i can still feel it. like ghost hands all over me. it's all over me"

"Well...it's not real...Even if it was some sort of memory reformatted in dream form it isn't happening anymore. That's what you should focus on. Please try and focus on right now"

Remus nodded weakly so Janus continued.

"Right now you're Remus. You're 22 years old. You're in your sister's apartment where you live. You are with me and last night we stayed up till 3 watching 70's horror movies and eating slightly burnt popcorn. You're safe"

He nodded again. He buried his cheek a little deeper into the soft fabric. He tried to focus on the feeling of it against his skin. Tried to focus on his friend's steady breathing.

Janus moved their hand into his curly hair "Is this okay?" They asked to which he nodded.

They carded their fingers gently through his hair. He half closed his eyes and let himself sink into the bed. He clambered for their free hand and when he found it grabbed their wrist and guided their arm so it laid comfortably around his shoulders.

Obviously they noticed his tired look. They let their fingers run even gentler through his hair "Being hit with both delusions and dissociation within the same morning must be exhausting, right?"

"mhm"

"I think it's quite amazing the way your brain is protecting itself. Your beautiful brain. Though I understand it isn't amazing from your point of view"

"mhm"

"Do you want me to leave? If you're going to fall asleep I mean? If it potentially was me staying over that triggered the nightmare I don't-"

"Stay" Remus opened his eye just for a moment to look at them "Please stay"

Janus nodded "Okay. Okay I will. I'll be here when you wake up, I promise"

They kept carding through his hair as he's breathing turned softer. Janus pressed a light kiss to his hair and made themself comfortable in the warm bed. Seeing his relaxed expression was enough to make them willing to wait hours.

For Janus: 🍳: Breakfast in bed ☺️: Soft words of reassurance 🧣: A fluffy blanket

Janus woke up to the smell of coffee. They stretched out their arms and grabbed onto the pillow to slam their face even further into it's fluffiness.

"Seems like someones awake" Logan's voice broke through their sleepy state.

"Ssssshut up. I am very clearly sleeping" Janus snarked back "Listen. snork mimimi. Very asleep"

"Ah yes. Excuse me. I see my mistake now. You are indeed very asleep"

Janus slowly opened one of his eyes and squinted up at his boyfriend. Logan was sitting leaned against a pillow. He was reading some Agatha Christie novel while wearing his specially decorated reading glasses. (He'd put beads on them to match his partner's hair).

"OH!" Janus suddenly exclaimed "Where's my angel baby? Light of my life? Core of my heart?"

"Right here" Logan replied while holding his hand up.

"I'm talking about Ms Carl" Janus fished around with his hand until he felt scales. She was cuddled up to his side. She was letting out snake snores that sounded like hisses "Oh there she is" He placed his hand on top of Logan's "And good morning to the second light of my life"

Logan sat his book aside and leant down to give him a kiss "Good morning to you too"

They were both under a ridiculously fluffy blanket. One of Patty's greatest finds in her opinion. Janus felt Logan's leg moving under the blanket, he gently moved his foot against their leg.

"I woke up a bit ago. I heard Patty talking to Rowan to the late hours yesterday so I thought I might as well wake up along side her and make her some breakfast"

"So i am too assume that you didn't make me shit and you're planning on letting me- your wonderful goddess partner- starve?" Janus replied sarcastically.

"Well first of I got you some tea. Lemon flavor as usual"

"Obviously"

Logan grabbed a cup of tea and handed it to him. They clinked their cups into each other before both taking a sip in unison.

"I also made some sandwiches. Egg and chicken since I know they're your favorite"

Janus got a lazy smile as he managed to move enough to kiss him again "If I eat them in small but very vicious bites they make me feel like a snake. Thanks honey"

Logan moved to grab the plate of sandwiches from the nightstand but Janus waved it off and yawned again. Breakfast could wait. Lo laid down on his stomach instead, he nuzzled his nose against his partner's neck while placing his arm over their chest. Their fingers intertwined and their legs weaved together.

"Patty is away at work, so we have the whole day for ourselves" Logan mumbled out. He was laying so close his lips tickled Janus' skin when he spoke.

"Wasn't there some new documentary about uhm what was it"

"Mathematical diagrams" Their boyfriend filled in. "Including cartesian coordinates!"

"Oh but wasn't there another one about norse mythology. The one that was a several hour long breakdown of both of the eddas? You know my soft spot for the world serpent"

Logan pressed soft kisses to their chest that made them giggle from ticklyness "Sounds like we'll have no choice but to have a very long debate to choose which movie to watch"

"Isn't getting to watch it together with your very gorgeous partner enough" Janus snarked.

"Yes of course. Now I see. I forgot the very incredibly scientific fact that my Janus is the most beautiful partner imaginable" He replied while kissing his cheeks "Most charismatic, smart, endlessly intriguing partner. And a great listener as well. Truly a well of fascinating facts"

He covered his face with his hands as his cheeks went red "Logie I wasn't ready"

"You started it"

"I'm aware!"

Logan settled his head against his partner's shoulder "How about this suggestion, I receive a few more minutes of cuddles before breakfast and in return we watch your preferred documentary"

Janus smiled "I like the sound of that"

[boop-le-snoot]

PARTY FAVOURS I CHAPTER 22

First time reader click here

TWs/Summary: FLUFF! Inappropriate jokes! The team being a family of mother hens. Steve + WAP! Reader's old man fetish is ✨blossoming✨. Stephen is finally evolving from Grinch into a human being.

a/n: How do we feel about Wanda/Loki pairing? Loki is comparatively around Wanda's/Reader's/Pietro's age, e.g. he's a young adult. Also, new divider.

All three of us spilled out of the elevator in a flurry of wet hair, outrageously large shopping bags and the smell of autumn leaves and cinnamon-infused chocolate. Picture perfect friends - our arms were linked, we stood side to side, our bags mixed up. Loki's silky black hair was dripping cold water onto my face and my own clothes sticking to me in uncomfortable places.

It started pouring buckets when we got into my car to go back to the tower. Wanda complained about being hungry and after a brief detour in one of the hole-in-the-wall, hidden gem, French boulangeries, all three of us were pleasantly relaxed and companionable under the influence of hot chocolate and fresh, warm croissants (Loki ate, like, ten, royal manners be damned). The five minute run from the parking lot to the main entrance resulted in us being way too soaked to be comfortable - thankfully, the shopping bags seemed to be waterproof. Or, perhaps, Loki enchanted them somehow.

"Stop fucking cheating, Rogers..." Tony was grumbling in frustration, looking at an array of cards in his hands, squinting suspiciously at a smug Steve.

Noticing us, the room perked up immediately. Thor lifted his head and we saw him and Pietro splayed out on the couch, each male holding a play station controller. Stephen Strange was sat cross-legged on the floor, reading a book, while Natasha filed her nails next to him, a face of tranquility and indifference.

We almost backpedaled from the amount of puppy eyes suddenly gazing at us.

"Sup?" I decided to go first, seeing as both of my companions were still mostly confused. What the hell, I was equally perplexed.

"How was your day, brother?" and "Got yourself a nice dress?" and "Marchesa? Not bad." Were the most intelligible words I could make out of the cacophony that descended upon us.

And it suddenly downed on me. Neither Wanda nor Loki had previously left for the city on their own. Their siblings were worried. I sighed, concealing my happiness behind a quiet complaint of being cold and wet. My bags were picked up by Thor who abandoned his game in favour of greeting his brother with a hug. Surprisingly, Loki didn't refuse and let Thor embrace him and relieve us of our items to deposit them out of the way.

"Cold," Wanda whined, stripping off her damp sweater to reveal simple black leggings and tee underneath.

"Wet," Loki mumbled, gathering a ball of green magic to dry out his dripping hair.

"Gross," I said, walking straight into Tony's open arms. He didn't say anything, just indicated my place was in his lap, squeaking and shivering as soon as I reached my destination.

"Baby girl, you're gonna get sick. Let's go take a bath," He unsuccessfully attempted to lift my limp body. I groaned in protest, dead on my feet. It felt like I had walked a thousand miles. Wasn't gonna remove myself from a warm, soft Tony.

"I'm dead, like, I'm a zombie. If you move me, I'll eat that sexy brain of yours," I threatened fitfully.

"Well, at least change out of these clothes. You're dripping me in gross, polluted rain water," The engineer laughed.

"Lazy," I replied, nestling myself closer to his warmth. He tugged on my clothes, wrestling me out of the top layers, leaving me shivering like a newborn kitten across his lap. His eyes darted across the room - evidently, he was looking for some sort of a hoodie as he wasn't wearing one at the time. Tony knew how much I loved those and always kept one in his vicinity. Thoughtful, lovely Tony.

"Have you seen my MIT sweatshirt?" He asked and everyone replied negative. Tony frowned.

"Here, have mine," Strange stood up, unzipping and handing me his own plain grey one. "I'll make some herbal tea for the girls least they actually get sick." With that, the grumpy doctor walked off into the kitchen. I watched his broad back retreat with renewed interest. Hate to see you go but love to watch you leave...

One warm hoodie and hot tea later, I was feeling less like a drowned cat and more like the fabulous human being that I was. Wanda had told everyone about her two cute new dresses without actually revealing the idea behind her costume. Somehow all of us silently agreed to surprise each other after I pulled my stunt on Stephen.

Strange didn't seem to be mad at me; his presence was amiable and delightful. He made usual small talk and we engaged in a brief, friendly battle of the wits and he and Tony managed to not piss off each other too much. Loki and Wanda hung nearby, and we chatted, too, mostly about less popular but very cool movies the three of us could watch... Yeah, so we were arranging a sleepover. Bite me.

"So, everyone ready for the party?" Clint was all but bouncing in his seat. "Me and Sammy-boy, we'll have the coolest costumes!" He exclaimed, smirking in Tony and Bruce's direction. Something was coming, something great, from my two boys. I could sense it. Natasha probably knew and tattled to Clint already. The bird bros fist-bumped with an obnoxious cheer.

I was feeling drowsy. The tea Strange made had something calming in it. My usual energetic spirit was gone, replaced by a mellow sort of mood. Plus, my feet hurt from all the walking. I moaned in distaste, flexing my toes.

"I disagree," Wanda shared a secretive smile with Loki and me.

Apparently, my discomfort was quite obvious. It took only another quiet, pitiful groan from me for Bruce to scoot closer, remove my socks and tenderly knead the arch of my foot. He smiled at me, soft and gentle, pressing the pads of his fingers into the soft, painful spots.

"Yeah, Pigeon, no amount of make-up will help that ugly mug," Tony declared with a wave of his hand.

"Tony!" Sam defended his bird bro, tossing a pillow at the engineer and missing me by barely an inch.

"You don't need any make-up, bird. You need plastic surgery." I jumped on the bully Clint bandwagon for the lolz. He was actually quite handsome, but his reactions always were fucking priceless. All of us occasionally ruffled his feathers but never to an actually hurtful extent.

"Not gonna lie, that one hurt." Barton huffed, crossing his arms.

Meanwhile, Bruce had moved onto my other foot. I had to hold in a bunch of very lewd, inappropriate noises. Tony was grinning above me, not at all affected by me squirming around. Banner grinned back at the engineer. They were definitely plotting something.

That just wouldn't do, I decided. Time to throw Rick and Morty off their course a little. I stretched leisurely, allowing the hem of my borrowed hoodie to lift, exposing an inch too much of skin than strictly appropriate.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Steve's arched eyebrow and the small secretive smirk he hid behind a cup of tea. The Captain wasn't as virtuous as the others thought and he definitely was onto me.

Bruce still wreaked havoc on my vestibular system by doing some magical voodoo shit to my toes and traded suspicious grins with Tony who radiated an unfair amount of smugness.

"Oh my God," I stretched with a moan of contentment. "Fucking rail me." I might have used this particular choice of words on purpose. The Avengers that memed with me knew the actual meaning but they were in the minority. Most, including Tony and Bruce, gasped in shock at my choice of words. I grinned innocently. "What?"

"We don't use that kind of language around here!" Steve exclaimed, barely hiding a full-fledged laugh behind his cup.

"Cap, a lot has changed in the past seventy years, if you didn't notice," Barton rolled his eyes. "Women are allowed to express themselves now."

"Men think it's pretty hot, actually," Tony remarked, giving me one of his positively mischievous smiles, gently stroking my cheek and dipping his index finger under the hem of my top, following the lines of my collarbone. "It's just that Cap got left out in the cold."

"Very funny, Tony," Steve groaned as the rest of the group laughed. "We don't need a repeat of the WAP incident."

I choked on my breath. "The WHAT incident?!"

Laughter drowned out Steve's stuttering explanation as the supersoldier blushed, possibly, the most saturated shade of scarlet I'd ever seen on a human's face. I had to stop Bruce from continuing to make my limbs into Jell-O, wanting to hear the full story clearly. Anything that warranted such a strong reaction from Steve was bound to be, like, equal parts extremely embarrassing and hilarious. Bucky was laughing up a storm, a tell-tale sign of him having taken direct actions to ensure Steve would be as confused and ashamed as possible.

"Steve caught Peter listening to the song and asked him about it. Peter refused to answer at first, so Bucky decided to mess with Steve a bit," Pietro began explaining. "So Bucky goes: WAP stands for wasted academic potential. Steve sits on it a couple of days, believing his boyfriend like the naïve old man he is," Pietro was gesturing vividly, arms flailing, as the Captain buried his face in his hands. "Lo and behold, Steve had to give a Captain America speech at some sort of school for delinquent children. And at the end of it all - Natasha has that bit on video, by the way - he gives his stern Captain look and goes "WAP is no joke!"!" The speedster laughed out loud along with everybody.

I was howling at that point, staring at Steve. Did the old man realize all the answers to his questions were a simple Google search away? "NO, he didn't, oh my God," I wheezed, suddenly having realized where it was going.

"He totally did!" Clint continued, giving Pietro a fond look and a chance to catch his breath. "The whole student population was laughing, tears rolling down their faces, as the principal started angrily ranting right in Steve's face. And he was just so, so-o confused. Man, his face..." Clint shook his head. "He left so freaking red in the face I thought he was going to have a heart attack. The students had started singing the song, the uncensored version - mind you - at some point and Steve just progressively got redder and redder."

"I'm seventy percent Irish, I can't help it!" Steve cried in his own defense, the famous blush on full display, but laughing nonetheless as he clutched onto his left boob for dear life.

"And one hundred percent dumbass!" Bucky clapped his boyfriend on the shoulder.

I nodded along, me and Tony a howling pile of limbs. The engineer himself was holding onto me for dear life, too winded to make any of his usual snarky commentary regarding Steve's epic failure. "Pure of heart, dumb of ass," I wheezed out my sudden realization.

"Shit, I'm getting that on a t-shirt," Tony sent himself into another cackle fest. "That's brilliant, Princess."

Bucky nodded along, "I'm buying one for this punk." He pointed at Steve, poking him in the right pec.

"Jerk," Steve's gaze was annoyed but fond as he gently shoved his boyfriend before placing a gentle kiss atop his head. Old people in love, so adorable.

"May I request one for my brother as well?" Loki interjected, eyebrow raised, eyeing Thor trying to pry open a carton of ice cream and failing to notice the little plastic lid covering the top part of it. The blonde was utterly oblivious both to his brother and to the chaos around him, set on his quest for salted caramel pecan creamy goodness. I couldn't say I didn't see the appeal...

"What did you call - himbos?" Stephen eyed me curiously, pointing to Thor and Steve with a shaky hand.

I nodded in response. "Harmless, loveable, kind, beefy and utter dumbasses," I pointed out the main characteristics. "I love himbos."

"You said my brain was sexy," Tony pouted, pressing me closer to him and in turn, making my legs wrap around Bruce in a funny way that brought all three of us in a weird sandwich hug. I must've died and gone to heaven once again. "This is bullshit," And Tony fuckin' bit me. The bastard sunk his teeth into my shoulder strong enough to leave a mark.

"I love big, fat brains. Unf," My attempt at a salacious voice only made people laugh. "No PhD, no pussy. I don't make the rules," I snorted loudly.

"You and your old man kink," Wanda chuckled good-naturedly, casting me a knowing glance over the tops of her friends' heads.

"Yes," I agreed solemnly, pulling Tony in for a kiss without an ounce of shame or reservation, catching Stephen's amused face meeting my eyes for a brief second, his eyebrow raised meaningfully. Looked like someone took my comment a little close to heart. Nobody really batted an eye at Bruce being in the middle of our cuddle puddle so if I had to guess, Stephen Strange was at least interested... Or was he silently judging me?

THE TAG LIST IS NOW OPEN! @another-stark-sub ​ @mostly-marvel-musings  @vozit ​ @littlegasps ​ @pilloclock ​ @shereadsinquiet @downeyreads ​ @hermione-grangers-wife ​ @individualistfem ​ @sleep-i-ness @capbrie @lillsxd @agustdowney @dee-vn @justanotherblonde23 @fanngirl19 @persephonehemingway @softie-socks @schemefrenzy @letsby @cutenessloading @romeo-the-cactus @jelly-fishy-babie

[elisela]

touch has a memory & mine is you buck x eddie, for @buckleysbabe on her birthday ♥️ (ao3)

----

It starts small—just Buck’s hand wrapping around his wrist to tug him close when a crowd of people at Dodger Stadium nearly separate them as they meet in front of the stadium—but when Buck starts to let go, Eddie swings his arm in closer, presses their bare forearms together. It’s been weeks since they’ve spent time together; another earthquake and dozens of first responders injured across the city meant temporary transfers and shifts being changed from 24-72 to 24-48, and they somehow hadn’t found time for anything other than phone calls and texts for nearly a month.

“God, I missed you,” Buck says, and when he swings his arm up on Eddie’s shoulders, Eddie can’t help but lean into it. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” he says, forcing himself to pull back, embarrassed. “I knew you’d be late, Buck, we’re gonna miss the first pitch.”

Buck makes a noise and pulls him closer. “Yeah, yeah, there’s at least 200 more after that,” he says.

“That’s—” he wrinkles up his nose, thinking, “seven pitches per batter on average. Kershaw is starting tonight—”

“Eddie,” Buck sighs, “are you seriously trying to lecture me about baseball already? You know I need a beer before you start in on all this.”

Eddie elbows him in retaliation, but Buck still doesn’t move his arm, so Eddie elbows him harder, until he snatches it away and hits Eddie back, the two of them play fighting like children until they get up to the gate and Buck backs away, pulling the tickets out of his pocket, and Eddie misses the heat of his body even though it’s what he had meant to happen.

----

Eddie had never realized how much Buck touched him until he wasn’t anymore. His new crew at Station 69 (which had made Buck snort milk through his nose when Bobby had given him the—temporary—transfer papers) aren’t a close bunch; they have his number and he’s gotten a few texts on his off hours, but no one is spending their days off with him, sending him pictures of cats available for adoption and whining when he points out how much work an animal is, and certainly no one has shown up at his house unannounced with take-out and a new board game. And they certainly aren’t as touchy as his team; no one squeezes his shoulder as they pass by, knocks their arms together on the way to the truck, or sprawls against his side while they play video games on the couch. They’re perfectly respectful of his personal space, and Eddie fucking hates it.

He makes it three innings before Buck twists in his seat towards him and leans in with an intense look on his face, knee bumping up against Eddie’s. “Okay, tell me what’s going on.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Uh, Betts is on first and Hernandez is up to the plate, but he’s got two strikes and—Buck, seriously, haven’t I taught you enough about baseball for you to be able to follow this?”

Buck looks unimpressed. “I meant with you. You’re—weird.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“You know what I mean,” Buck says. “Is something wrong? Am I making you uncomfortable?”

“You are now,” he says, looking away. “Let it go. And don’t you dare start singing that song.” Buck huffs out a breath next to him, and when he doesn’t move away, Eddie stands up. “I’m gonna go grab more beers,” he says, ignoring the half-full bottles in the cupholders in front of them, and he flees.

----

Chris is going through a phase.

At least, that’s what Eddie hopes it is.

Twelve is apparently too old to be hugged by your dad, to let him give you a kiss goodbye, or goodnight—too old for anything except an occasional bump against the shoulder in the kitchen, or a fist bump a second before he opens the door to the truck to be dropped off at school.

If Eddie holds his arms out, Chris looks at him flatly. If Eddie follows him to his bedroom door at night to tuck him in, Chris draws his name out through several syllables and declares that he’s not a kid and definitely doesn’t need to be tucked in. If Eddie reaches out a hand to place on his back while they go out to dinner, or to a movie, Chris ducks out of his way and shakes his head.

The touch-aversion is killing Eddie.

----

In the sixth, Buck’s fingers brush against his as he hands him a plate of nachos.

In the seventh, Seager hits a homerun and his skin buzzes after Buck gives him a high-give, lacing their fingers together briefly before Eddie pulls away.

In the eighth, he squeezes past Eddie to use the bathroom, one hand on Eddie’s waist when Eddie stands to let him through.

After the ninth, he stays in his seat, looking over at Eddie thoughtfully as they wait for the crowd to thin out before leaving. “You gonna talk to me now? No one’s around.”

“There’s nothing to talk about,” he says. There’s not. So what if no one has touched Eddie outside of calls in a month? So what if that sort of contact isn’t enough for him, if he craves the kind of touch Buck has so freely given him over the years? It’s not Buck’s problem that Eddie is touch starved, and he refuses to make it his problem. He just needs a little distance, because every time Buck touches him, it’s all Eddie can do to not plaster himself to Buck and take the comfort he desperately wants.

Buck groans. “Eds, it’s been a month since we’ve gotten to see each other and if you think I’ve forgotten how to tell when something is wrong, I haven’t. Did I do something? Did we make plans that I forgot about, or—” he reaches out and puts his hand on Eddie’s thigh, and Eddie stands up.

“Come on,” he says, “traffic’s probably died down a little by now.”

----

It’s not that he doesn’t know what his problem is, or that he hasn’t tried to solve it. He’d tried a massage—extremely uncomfortable once he’d realized that he was basically paying someone to make him feel good and couldn’t get the thought out of his head—gotten an unnecessary haircut, tried a pedicure.

Nothing worked.

He doesn’t want someone to touch him just because he wants it, he wants them to want it, too. He doesn’t want fingers digging into tired ankles, he wants someone’s palm to rest against his skin and stay there, to put down roots and make a home inside him.

He wants—deperately—Buck.

----

It doesn’t surprise him to see the Jeep’s headlights sweep across the front of his house a few minutes after he arrives home; he hadn’t bothered locking the door, knowing that ignoring four of Buck’s phone calls meant that he would surely show up.

But Buck doesn’t come in and make himself at home, just opens the door, leans against the frame with arms crossed over his chest, and says, “why don’t you want me touching you? Why didn’t you just say something? I would have stopped, Eddie.”

Eddie waves him in, but Buck stays stubbornly where he is. “It’s not a big deal,” he says. “Come on, let’s watch something.”

“It’s a big deal to me,” Buck insists. “I made you uncomfortable, and I—I’m really sorry, Eddie. I just—can you tell me why?”

Eddie tilts his head forward and pinches the bridge of his nose; Buck sounds hurt and small, and Eddie knows without a doubt that if he lets him leave feeling like this, they’re going to go weeks without seeing each other again, and the phone calls will drop off, too. He scrubs a hand across his face, takes in a deep breath and says, eyes still focused on the ground in front of him, “I haven’t—no one’s touched me in weeks.”

Buck is silent.

“I thought I might not be able to stop,” he admits. “I just want—” he stops, shakes his head. “It’s pathetic. I’m sorry.”

“Did you know if you hug someone for twenty seconds, it releases oxytocin?” Buck asks, and Eddie hears the front door closing before Buck’s footsteps sound across the floor. “There’s a surprising amount of health benefits,” he says, and Eddie looks up in time to see Buck’s hands reaching for him.

He goes willingly when Buck pulls him up, buries his head in Buck’s shoulder as he wraps his arms around him, and breathes him in. Twenty seconds—that’s new. They’re quick huggers, usually, lingering for a few seconds sometimes, hands on each other's shoulders or waists, but it’s—comforting. Buck is warm against him, and Eddie loses count when he gets to twenty in his head and Buck still doesn’t move except for the rhythmic sweep of fingertips along the back of his neck. He gives in and lets his body melt against Buck’s, lets his fingers creep up into Buck’s hair and run through the soft strands, gives up his dignity entirely and pushes the arm around Buck’s waist underneath the shirt he’s wearing and places his palm against skin.

“Eddie,” Buck sighs, and a shiver jolts up his spine, and Eddie blames that for the very stupid, very reckless thing he does next: slides his hand further up into Buck’s hair to hold his head still, tilts his own head up, and kisses him. He kisses him like he’s been wandering the desert for days and Buck has handed him water, kisses him like the last bit of air left in the world resides in Buck’s lungs, kisses him like he’s a sinner and Buck is his reconciliation.

His knees hit the back of the couch and he falls, Buck landing on his lap, and Buck only moves away to say, “this isn’t just because—please tell me this—”

“It’s not,” Eddie says, chasing after Buck’s mouth, “Jesus, you have no idea—”

“Kinda think I do,” Buck says, and he dips down to kiss him again. “Hey Eddie,” he says, hands framing Eddie’s face, thumbs brushing over his skin, “did you know that skin to skin contact reduces the amount of cortisol in your body?”

Eddie can’t stop touching him—hands on his waist, stroking up his back, digging his fingertips into Buck’s biceps as they kiss. He hums, reeling in his desperation, the desire that sings through his frantic heartbeat. “Got any suggestions?”

“I can think of a few,” Buck says, and his fingertips dance along the hemline of Eddie’s shirt.

----

Later—hours later—Eddie’s sprawled out on his front, head pillowed on Buck’s shoulder, fingertips counting out the steady beat of Buck’s pulse as Buck sweeps his hand gently up and down Eddie’s back. And he loves it, but—“you don’t have to keep touching me,” he says into Buck’s skin. “Don’t feel like—”

“Do you like it?”

“Yeah,” he says, quietly.

“Then let me keep doing it,” Buck says, pressing a kiss to the top of his head.

[jaehyunicecream]

𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 // 𝘭𝘦𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘹

pairing: lee felix (skz) x reader

words: 1′5k

genre: fluff

the first day of august, your summer break was becoming shorter and shorter and before you know it you’ll be a freshman in university.

your high school experience wasn’t the best but it also wasn’t that bad either. you have an amazing group of friends who you used to hang out almost every single day after school to study and do homework with, you got good grades for the most part and no annoying stereotypical high school students messed with you during your senior year so there wasn’t much to complain about. it used to be different in the past, that is, until you met the one and only lee felix who has made your life easier and much more exciting.

if it wasn’t for felix you wouldn’t be as happy as you are right now but don’t tell him that because if you do, you’ll get a “i didn’t do anything, i only gave you a little push, the rest you did all by yourself!” from him, not taking any credit for helping you as much as he has. 

your friend group consists of felix’s close guy friends and your girl best friend, hyunjin’s sister, yeji. you would have gone crazy already if you didn’t have her. being by yourself with so many chaotic boys surrounding you wouldn’t have been an easy experience.

today felix texted you saying that he had a surprise announcement for you. now, whenever felix says he has a “surprise” it can go very well or extremely bad. last time he said he had a surprised he made chocolate chip cookies for all of you, with chan’s help, but the time before that he almost burnt the kitchen making pancakes with seungmin. so you were expecting pretty much anything at this point.

it wasn’t until you heard your doorbell ring that you stopped scrolling through you phone, waiting for a special someone to arrive. this was almost your daily routine. either he would go to your apartment, which you shared with yeji, or you would visit him at the dorm, which he shared with the rest of the other 7 boys. if the two of you weren’t hanging out alone then you’d probably be with the whole group. it was very rare seeing you two being separated. the rest of your friends would constantly say that it was some type of unspoken rule you two had but, in reality, you were always together because you enjoyed each other’s company. of course, you’d sometimes go out with just one member or just not with felix but whenever that would happen you’d also text him throughout the day. he made you happy. you made him happy. everything was as simple as that. two friends who cared for one another and loved spending time together.

just two friends.

friends.

it was a simple word.

7 letters. 

you didn’t know the meaning of a friendship before meeting felix. you never really had much drama with your past friends, but, as i said, they were past friends, meaning they weren’t your friends anymore. many times you felt like it was your fault that those friendships didn’t last. it wasn’t your fault though. you would always question why you’d be the one texting first every time, why you’d always make plans, why you’d always ask how they were doing and if they needed help with something, and why they’d never do the same. you felt alone while being surrounded by a bunch of individuals. that didn’t mean they were bad people. it just meant that they weren’t the right people for you to be with. you always gave your 100% and they appreciated it but never did their part so after a while you started to isolate yourself more and more. you weren’t completely alone but as time kept passing by you realized you kept spending every afternoon at home playing video games, watching a movie, reading, painting or listening to music all alone in your bedroom.

then you met him.

him, who cam to talk to you in the cafeteria because he saw you eating at the corner of the table not participating in your friend’s conversation. him who introduced you to his friends 2 minutes after learning your name. him who got excited and almost cried the time you said he was like a ray of sunshine in everyone’s lives. your sunshine. him who invited you to prom because he thought it’d be cool to dance a slow song together since the both of you would usually just do random dance-moves that required way too much energy.

that was felix.

your felix.

“y/n, are you there?” “yeah, sorry” you realized you were daydreaming, reminiscing old memories with a big smile on your face as you remembered felix getting shy when you said he looked like a fairy with his freckles. you loved his freckles more than anything in this world. well, maybe it was the second thing you loved most in this world.

“today i’m telling you the surprise announcement” he said with his chest puffed and a proud expression present on his face.

“may i know what it is then?”

“i’ll tell you when the time is right”

“lix, you’ve had me curious all morning tell me what it is” you whined like a toddler although deep-down you knew it wasn’t going to work on him. it may work on chan and changbin, but not on felix.

“you’ll have to wait and see hehe” yes, he did have a smirk on his face as he said this.

after you had decided which movie to watch it was now time to relax for approximately 2 hours next to felix on your couch. you weren’t paying attention to the movie though. a thought kept running through your mind. “should i just say it? he wouldn’t get mad would he? i don’t think he would… we’ve known each other for a long time i don’t think he’s gonna be surprised. it’s pretty obvious at this point” you were thinking of every possible reaction he could have to your own announcement when you felt a warm hand touching your cheek.

“you okay there?” he asked you.

“yeah, why?”

“i don’t know you just looked like you were deep in thought and i wanted to check up on you”

“lee felix always being such a gentleman” he smiled at this, a soft giggle leaving his mouth.

“you remember the surprise thing i told you about, right?”

“you mean the one you didn’t want to tell me about?”

“yeah yeah that one.. well…” his eyes were now looking directly at yours. a few seconds passed, you stayed in that same position, just looking into each other’s eyes. that’s when he took a deep breath and said it.

“y/n i like you” 

“felix wha-”

“i’ve liked you since the first day i talked to you on that cafeteria and maybe i didn’t know at the time how attracted to you i was but i understand it now… b-but i don’t want you to feel pressured okay i just really needed to say it because all i know is that i want to spend the rest of my life by your side as your friend or as your lover, it honestly doesn’t matter to me as long as i’m next to you”

as the seconds passed, every thought you had before was now vanishing. “is he serious? i- i mean he probably is since he’s waiting for me to say something but..” you had always thought of this happening one day. all of your friends talked about you two getting together eventually but you didn’t know it would actually happen. you had him in front of you confessing his feelings. him, the boy whose smile made your day 10 times better, the boy who was always there for you whenever you needed a shoulder to cry on, the boy who came to you every time he wasn’t feeling well so you could make him feel happy again. lee felix.

your lee felix.

“why not both?” “w-what?”

“why can’t you be my friend and my lover? i want you to be both” there it was, that beautiful smile of his.

“are you serious? please don’t play with me you know i’m very sensitive to these type of thin-…” you pressed your lips to his. an action you’ve been waiting a year to do. such a simple thing but that for some reason took a lot courage. courage you didn’t have until he confessed his feelings for you. the kiss was slow and soft, your lips barely touching but every single emotion could be felt in that one kiss. so many days, weeks, even months thinking about how it would feel to be in his arms as he kissed you. 

“took us long enough” he said after you broke the kiss, placing your forehead to his.

“yeah... so, lee felix…”

“yes?”

“are you going to tell me the announcement?”

“oh shut up”

[madibyrd]

TASK #001: THE LAST NORMAL DAY • broken promises

Flight 441 disappeared on October 16th, Friday, but Madi hasn’t heard about it until the following day, well into Saturday. She got home around 6:30am after finishing a 24 hours shift, remembered to send her sister a message that she wouldn’t be able to make it later to their house to lunch, apologizing for it profoundly, and then knocked out and slept a good twelve hours because she was exhausted. It was a long, hard shift, one of the roughest she’s had in months, constant calls through both the day and night with barely a moment to rest, and she needed to refuel herself.

She woke up to an empty house - Talia was off on some conference being awesome -, and a whole bunch of angry messages from her sister along with several missed calls. She wasn’t in the mood to argue with Liz, but she also knew the more she pushed off the call, the angrier her sister would get, so she let out a long breathe, headed to the kitchen to make herself a coffee and called her sister.

“You promised, Madison, you promised you’d come over for lunch and try out Jake’s soup, he was so excited for you to try it.” No hello, no greeting, and Liz even called her Madison. She really was pissed. She turned on the coffee maker to do its magic and then moved to the living room to turn on the news.

“I promised I would try, Liz, that is what I promised. If my shift went okay and I could get some sleep. I didn’t get any, I literally just woke up.”

“You could have set an alarm.”

“And be a useless sack of potatoes when I go over? You know how I am when I don’t get a proper amount of sleep. It was a really hard shift, Liz, I swear, there were several pretty brutal accidents that we were called to, one of them had a whole family... anyway, aside from those, there were two fires as well and two freaking prank calls that lead to nowhere just us in gear going to the furthest of our district when we could have used that time at least to rest. And this was just the night of the shift, don’t even get me started on the rest of the 24 hours. if I could have, I would have made it over there.”

There was a long pause from the other end of the phone.

“No sleep at all?”

“None until I got home,” Madi promised.

A sigh. “Okay, maybe I forgive you, but you’ll still have to make amends with Jake. Starting with trying out his soup. And groveling a little.”

“Give him the phone and I’ll start, but that kid loves me way too much to need that much groveling.” Which really only made it worse, but she even told Liz not to promise anything to her nephew, so if she said anything more than a really weak maybe, it was on her, as far as Madi was concerned. Not that it would stop her from apologizing to Jake, but still.

“He’s out in the garden playing with...” Liz jumped into a long explanation about what Madi’s nephew was doing, but Madi was not listening to any of it, because when she looked up at the tv, all she saw was the flashing headline - “Tragic plane crash - plane still nowhere found”. She quickly turned the volume on and tried to listen, but with Liz in her ears, it wasn’t the easiest of moments. “Liz, sorry to cut you off, but... what is this plane thing they are talking about on the news?”

“Oh, you didn’t hear before? A plane full of people was heading to LA from... not really sure where, some European city, and then it just vanished. Nobody knows what happened or what happened to them, but they didn’t arrive in LA. Everyone’s freaking out.”

“Yeah, I can imagine...”

Madi got her coffee and chatted a little bit longer with her sister, but she wasn’t really there in the head, she kept losing focus to watching the news and trying to figure out what more there is to know about this accident. She didn’t know anyone on the flight, she knew that - Talia would only be flying back home the next day and nobody else she knew or were close to were planning flying anywhere anytime soon - but still, it wouldn’t leave her mind. To the point where after a couple of hours (which included trying to distract herself and talking to her nephew, promising him that she would try his soup soon), she reached for her phone to text her coworker about the flight, that turned into a phone call that turned into the two of them googling if there were any need for volunteers to go and help with the search.

They found a phone number, they called it, and in less than an hour they were already set to fly to LA, from where the boat they would be on would leave. Their boss wasn’t happy about the development, but he also understood the sentiment, and it wasn’t the first time one of his firefighters went off to volunteer somewhere else. They would make it it work.

The harder conversation for Madi was her family - her parents already didn’t like that her profession included running into burning buildings and risking her own life. They’ve accepted it at this point with grumbles and occasional suggestions to other jobs (her mom’s pitches really were ridiculous, “I’ve heard tv reporters got hundreds of thousands of dollars yearly. Madi, my dear, you love talking, don’t you think that would be a fine job for you?”), but they didn’t like the idea of Madi putting herself in other type of danger, even though Madi insisted she wouldn’t actually be in danger. She would be on a boat, she wouldn’t do the actual dive work, she’d just help out whenever she could (technically she didn’t know what her job would be, but if she said that, her parents would imagine her dangling feets above the water on a hook without any safety, and nobody wanted that). They ended the call on “let’s talk about this more tomorrow” and Madi told them she’d call them from LA. They were not happy about it at all.

Her sister was... both more and less understanding. She was mostly annoyed she’d have to tell a 9 years old her auntie would have to disappear for a while and no, he wouldn’t be able to come over or play with her. And then turned on the worried sister mode and made Madi promise that she would be careful and not do anything stupid like jump into the water to save somebody. Madi did promise. Her best friend simply made her promise to bring her some souvenire and told her that she admired her for wanting to do this and then they spent the rest of the call talking about the guy she was seeing and how she got to a whole new level on one of the video games she was playing at the time that Madi didn’t understand but liked listening to her friend talk about it.

The last conversaion, and weirdly the one that she was both the most anxious and not at all about was Talia. She didn’t call her, she just sent a text - neither of them were really the calling type, and they very rarely actually talked, usually just texted.

[Madi]: So, I’m not going to be home for a while... [Talia]: What have you done? [Madi]: I might have volunteered on one of the rescue teams for that flight that disappeared, did you see that? Or were you too wrapped up in your historical facts? [Talia]: Madiiiiii [Madi]: Yes, that’s my name, though I usually use a lot less i’s :P [Talia]: Your desire to act like a hero can be quite annoying sometimes, you know [Talia]: I was looking forward to a chill night on the couch tomorrow, watching some dumb movie [Talia]: But I guess you’ve already decided, right? [Madi]: Yeah, I fly out to LA tomorrow. We’re just missing each other [Talia]: Somebody is gonna write a book about you and they are going to interview me and I will tell them about that time you got home at 3am and spent an entire hour singing itsy bitsy spider on the foot of my bed, crying about how much spiders are misunderstood and mistrusted even though they are the cutest things on the planet [Madi]: HEY! [Talia]: I know, I know, it’s bees [Talia]: And speaking of them, I won’t have to deal with them, right? [Madi]: Nope, I’m gonna check on them before I leave, they can take care of themselves while I’m gone, you don’t have to go anywhere near them [Talia]: You’re amazing [Madi]: Now tell me about your super historical, super nerdy presentation, did it go okay?

They chatted for a little while longer, Madi happily hearing about Talia’s presentation, being so proud of her. She might have not been there to see it, but she was sure Talia rocked it. And they could celebrate when they would be both back in Boston.

It was evening by the time she was done with everything, and she ate some leftovers from the fridge, watched a sitcom episode on Netflix, and then went to bed early. She wasn’t in the mood for anything else, she was excited to help in something so huge and curious what she would have to do, what kind of job she would be trusted upon. The next day she flew to LA with her partner and spent the remaining of her days on the boat, searching and searching for the disappeared plane without any kind of luck before the fateful accident happened and she’d end up on Meridium.

What she didn’t realize on this Saturday night is that these interactions would become the last she had with them. She talked to Talia and her sister during the trip, and she exchanged a couple of LA memes with her best friend, but there was no end, no goodbye, no finality to any of it. Promises, however, of her return that much more. And all of them would be broken the moment she washed ashore on the sandy beach of Meridium.

[artificialqueens]

Tree House Kisses, Chapter 29 (Adorney) - Scorpio and Veronica

A/N: Click here for previous chapters. xoxo!

Chapter Summary: The summer continues as Courtney tries to face her feelings, and Adore finds a place where she is fully accepted.

TW: gay slurs (used by gay people)

Chapter 29: The Game of Love

Music blasted through the Delano’s household, vibrating the walls; Adrian was enjoying his summer break on the couch, stuffing his face with junk food and playing video games, while Adore and Courtney lazed around upstairs.

Courtney lay across Adore’s bed, a pillow snuggled to her chest and a smile stretched across her face as she watched her best friend dance wildly around the room in a ripped t-shirt and boy-shorts, headbanging and letting loose to the music.

“C’mon Court,” Adore yelled, launching on the bed, jumping up and down as she sang along to American Idiot at the top of her lungs.

Courtney laughed as she tried to stand, legs wobbling against the unsteady bed. She grabbed Adore’s hands and the two of them bounced around the bed, fingers intertwined, singing at the top of their lungs. And when Adore jumped backward off the bed, missing the landing and falling back on her butt, Courtney followed after.

The two girls lay on the floor, chests heaving, giggling and reveling in the moment. Courtney rolled over, nearly on top of Adore; the sun shining through Adore’s window highlighting big hazel eyes and a bright smile staring up at her. Caught in the moment, Courtney reached out to brush her dark hair out of her face, running her fingers through the untamed mane; causing Adore’s heart to go into overtime.

“You’re so beautiful,” Courtney smiled. “How do you do it?”

Adore just barely heard her over the too-loud music, but she did. She scoffed playfully, then sat up, willing herself not to ruin the moment.

“Thank you. I call it, jelly stains from breakfast on an old DeBarge shirt that used to belong to Angie and I haven’t washed my hair in three days.” Adore stood, extending a hand out to Courtney who gladly accepted it, rising to her feet.

Adore turned to walk away, but was tugged back by Courtney. She laughed when big green eyes blinked at her expectantly.

“You look beautiful, too, Court. A true princess,” she said, then proceeded to spin Courtney around.

“Thank you,” Courtney curtsied, giggling, slightly dizzy. She knew that she was acting like an idiot. It had been like this all summer. Adore had made it perfectly clear, over and over, that she didn’t want to cross any kind of boundary with her, but suddenly, Courtney didn’t care anymore, and words were tumbling out of her mouth recklessly. “And you could be the rebellious princess from the neighboring kingdom. Who refuses to marry the prince that her parents wants her to because she fell in love with me- even though I’m not exactly your type.” Courtney smiled, stepping closer, playing with the frayed ends of Adore’s shirt.

“Courtney…” Adore started. But when the song changed to The Game of Love, the entire mood changed in the room.

Courtney pulled Adore into something between a waltz and a salsa, singing along to the music.

Courtney let her hands settle on Adore’s hips as she led the dance. Adore quickly relaxed underneath her touch, giggling as she tried her hardest- and failed- to not step on Courtney's feet.

“You’d have to get a few dance lessons before our wedding though,” Courtney said lightly, trying not to push too much, and Adore tripped, flustered.

Courtney pulled Adore closer, closing the small gap between them. She watched as Adore’s eyes looked everywhere else but her. Suddenly it felt like she had swallowed a handful of dry sand as thoughts of closing that space and pressing her lips to Adore’s replayed over and over in her mind, while they moved around the room. She decided to test the waters, heart pounding.

“And... at the end, we’d kiss and the crowd ‘d go wild…”

Courtney spun, before “falling” into Adore’s arms. She leaned toward her, eyes fluttering closed, Adore’s warm breath on her face, but before their lips could touch, Adore snatched away from her, sending the blonde with arms flailing to the ground.

“I-I, I’m gonna grab a snack. Do you want anything?” Adore asked. She headed to her door quickly, heart beating rapidly in her chest as her mind swam with a million thoughts and questions. First and foremost: why did Courtney always fuck around like that? Didn’t she know that this wasn’t a joke?

“Um, some water,” Courtney sat up on her knees, nails digging into her thighs as she tried to keep a straight face, not wanting the hurt of rejection all over her face.

-

“I read that this is supposed to be sooo good for our skin,” Fame hummed as she brushed the cinnamon and honey mixture over Violet's face.

“If this breaks my face out more, I'm gonna murder you,” Violet said, twitching her nose at the slight tingling. “Is it supposed to… feel like this?”

“Yep, we're burning off all the dead skin and bumps and stuff that's clogging our pores.” Fame said as she watched Violet’s nose twitch again. “It's gonna sting at first but it's supposed to go away. Then we're gonna put aloe vera on our faces after, to soothe the skin.”

Violet huffed, but continued to let Fame spread the mixture on her face.

“So… how’re things going…you know, with Patrick,” Violet tried to sound casual.

“Uhm…” Fame bit her bottom lip. “Actually, we uh…we broke up.”

“What? When?”

“Last night,” Fame said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

“Oh. Do you want to talk about it?” Violet asked, reaching over, placing her hand over Fame’s, thumb rubbing her soothingly.

“No, I'm fine. A night with you is all I need,” Fame gave her a soft smile and Violet felt the familiar butterflies in her stomach start to flutter. Just when Violet thought she was immune to Fame’s antics, the blonde did something to remind her why she fell in the first place.

It was weird because the two were so different. Violet was eyerolls and scoffs, difficult to get to know and smart comments. Fame was kisses on the cheek and stroking hair away from someone’s face. She always talked about positive thinking and the future and everything the world had to offer.

They were nearly polar opposites.

When Violet first fell for Fame, she convinced herself that she had just found someone with similar interests in vintage fashion and old movies. Then she told herself it was just admiration, but Fame was beautiful inside and out and soon it was impossible to deny the truth. Loving Fame was the easiest thing Violet had ever done; it was getting over her that caused Violet trouble.

Violet scrunched her nose, trying to ignore the growing burn all over her face as she searched to find the perfect words to comfort Fame.

“Well, everything happens for a reason. It's probably for the best, yeah?” Violet finally got out.

Fame shrugged as she mixed more of the ingredients in the bowl for herself.

“We can go to the store and get a bunch of snacks,” Violet offered. “And then maybe watch Rear Window or All About Eve? Plus, I'll let you try that hairdo you've been wanting to, on me… if you want.”

Violet smiled, hoping she’d be able to brighten Fame’s mood. Blue eyes raised to meet hers, a smile spreading slowly across her face.

“Yeah, a movie, snacks and cuddling sounds just about perfect.”

Violet nodded, reaching forward to grasp Fame’s wrist, giving her a reassuring squeeze, before tears blurred her vision and she realized that her eyes were watering.

“Shit, this shit really burns, Fame. Like, fuck.” Violet squeezed her eyes shut.

“That means it's working. It should fade soon.” Fame assured the brunette.

Seconds later, Violet was scrambling off the bed and running to Fame’s bathroom, unable to take the burning licking across her skin.

Fame chased after her into the bathroom, scouring the shelves for a gentle cleanser to hand over.

Violet bent over the sink, first splashing cold water on her face and then using the cream cleanser to wash it off, whimpering and whining the entire time. Fame found a clean towel and stood by nervously, hoping she’d be okay—and not too angry.

Fame grimaced as she finally raised her head, turning the water off.  

“Here,” Fame said, shoving the towel into her hands. “Pat. Don't rub.”

Violet did as instructed. When she pulled the towel from her face, her usually pale skin was red as a tomato.

“Fame… what the fuck,” Violet said through her teeth, leaning forward on the counter to examine her face.

“It doesn't... look that bad,” Fame said hesitantly.

Violet’s head snapped towards Fame, her dark eyes narrowed into slits.

“Kristen Mikkelson-Gutierrez, look at my face!”

Fame jumped at the sound of her birth name, shifting back nervously. “I'll go get the aloe… to help soothe your skin.”

-

Wind whipped through Fame’s old beat-up station wagon as it sailed down the 5 freeway towards San Diego and the gang’s very first Pride celebration. Excitement was palpable in the car as the music blasted through the speakers.

Violet sat in the passenger seat, feet propped on the dashboard, smacking away any hands that dared touch the radio. Pearl and Adore sat in the middle, snacks scattered across their laps, hair flipping and playfully serenading each other, while Willam and Trinity were in the back gossiping and adding more glitter to their eyelids.

“Someone pass me the peanuts,” Violet reached back without turning around. Pearl and Adore, lost in their performance of ‘Hollaback Girl,’ failed to respond. Violet lowered her sunglasses and glared at them both. “Hey! I’m talking to you, assholes! Pass the fucking peanuts!”

Adore stopped singing. “Jeez, Vi. Way to get into the spirit.”

“I don’t like being ignored.”

“Bitch gets cranky when she’s hungry,” Willam piped up from the back.

“Shut up. I’m borderline anemic.”

“Once, when we were 12, we were at a Nutcracker rehearsal that ran long and she nearly knocked some girl’s tooth out to steal her Cheez-Its,” he reminisced with a sigh. “Good times.”

“I needed them more than her!” Violet screeched.

“Alright, can you please calm down?” Fame asked. “I’m trying to drive.”

“They’re picking on me,” Violet whined, fluttering her lashes at Fame.

“Everyone be nice to Violet. Remember today is about love!” Fame lectured.

“Just turn up the radio,” Pearl requested, shaking her head and making a goofy face at Adore.

“Let me hear you say, this shit is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S!” Adore sang.

“Who wants a rainbow tattoo?!” Trinity asked, leaning over the seat.

“Ooh cute!” Adore craned her neck to look at the selection of temporary tattoos that Trinity held out for her.

“Aren’t you dykes glad I have a straight cousin who thinks of shit like rainbow tattoos?” Willam slung an arm around Trinity’s shoulder. “She’s so smart.”

Trinity laughed. “Glad I can prove my value here.” She carefully cut out the tattoo that Adore chose and wet some paper towels with a water bottle, pressing it to her cheek.

“You know we love you, Trin,” said Pearl.

“Okay, then try to slip Violet this CD I made,” Trinity murmured. “That radio station is very hit or miss. Use your charm. And cleavage.”

“I got you, girl,” Pearl whispered back.

-

“Where should we sit?”

“There’s a good spot!”

“Yeah! Lead the way!”

The group made their way through the crowd to a sunny spot on the curb where they could see the parade, holding hands, anticipation building for the fun to begin.

“Omigod, it’s so hot and it’s only 10 am,” Violet whined.

“Can you please quit bitching, bitch? We literally just got here,” Willam said, thumping her on the arm.

“Yeah, seriously,” said Pearl. “Fame, give her a juice box or a granola bar or something.”

“Good idea.” Fame dug in her bag and handed Violet a Nutrigrain bar. “Here, babe.”

“I’m not a child.”

“Well, your blood sugar is low and you’re being a brat again, so…”

Adore laughed, as Trinity hugged her around the waist.

“Are you excited? Our first pride!” Trinity sighed.

“I’m actually super excited,” Adore admitted.

“Look! I see a float!” Fame exclaimed, clapping her hands. “Omigod it’s so pretty!”

“Omigod!” Violet mimicked her in a mocking tone, earning a shove from Pearl.

Trinity nudged Willam with her elbow. “Bill, look up from your phone, the parade is starting.”

“Yeah, I know, but I’m trying to message this trick I got lined up later…”

“Whore.”

“Yup.”

-

The group held onto each other as they dipped and squeezed through throngs of people, on their way to the festival.

“Fuck!” Adore cried out, stopping suddenly.

“What’s wrong?” Fame was the first one to turn around, Violet bumping into her shoulder.

Adore shrunk in embarrassment as people surged past them on all sides. “My...strap broke,” she admitted, showing them where her top was hanging down.

“Aw, shit!” Trinity sympathized.

“Is that all? Who cares?! Throw on a rainbow lei and let’s keep moving!” Willam said, rolling his eyes.

“I like the way you think, Belli!” Peal laughed, high fiving him.

Violet had already stepped forward and was busying herself tying Adore’s top back together, fashioning into a sort of asymmetrical halter.

“Thanks, Vies.”

“Finally, all my years of ballet costume malfunctions can be put to good use,” she said.

“Violet, what are you doing? This is homophobic!” Pearl complained.

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“It’s Pride!” Pearl exclaimed. “Her tits obviously wanted to come out! Why can’t we just let them be out?!”

Violet rolled her eyes. “Pearl…”

“What?”

“Shut up.”

“Oooh, that looks cute!” Fame said, draping her arm over Violet’s shoulder and nodding approvingly.

“Super cute!” agreed a nearby muscle queen. “Can you make one in silver?”

Violet scoffed, but Trinity and Fame turned and flashed bright, friendly smiles.

“Hi!” Trinity said, holding out her hand. “Are you guys heading to the festival?”

“We are, gorgeous!” he said, kissing her hand and then offering her an arm. “Come on!”

-

Adore’s heart burst with joy as she danced, hair flying, surrounded by her friends, in a sea of exuberant strangers. She twirled and laughed, watching Trinity get lifted into the air by her new muscle queen BFF.

Even Violet was having fun, finally, arms around Fame’s shoulders, shimmying to the music.

“Omigod, look!” Fame squealed, grabbing Pearl’s arm. A group of sequin-covered, stunningly gorgeous drag queens were making their way through the crowd to the stage.

“Daaamn,” Pearl replied. “Hey Will, you should really try doing that with your...where’s Willam?” She looked around, puzzled, realizing that the blonde had vanished from sight.

“He said he’d be back in like an hour,” Trinity said, giggling as her dance partner dipped her low.

“Are we sure that’s the smartest-“

“Ugh, no one cares!” Violet groused, taking Pearl’s hand and spinning her around. “Just dance, you idiot!”

Adore laughed, wrapping her arms around Fame’s waist and tilting her head to the sky as a shower of rainbow confetti rained down.

-

“Thanks!” Adore took some change from the tattooed woman with turquoise hair in the food truck, turning to Pearl with a grin. “How rad is her hair?”

“Pretty rad.”

“Do you think I could pull off hair that color?”

“Totally! You’d look badass. Do it.”

Adore giggled, twirling a lock of hair around her finger and leaning against the truck while they waited for the food to be ready.

“So...I haven’t heard you talk about your ‘secret girlfriend’ in awhile. What’s up with that? Everything okay?”

Pearl grimaced. “Yeah, I uh, think that’s sort of over.”

“Sorry,” Adore said. “I didn’t mean to be a buzzkill.”

“No, it’s okay. I mean we’re cool and all. But...like, she’s not out. Which was fine, I wasn’t trying to push her. But, so we could never do anything in public, because, obviously. And at her house, we had to keep a safe friendly distance. And she was really worried about her family catching on, so it was very…”

“Unsatisfying?” Adore asked with a smirk.

“I mean I get it. I'm not trying to judge her. But for me, I just feel weird using the word ‘girlfriend’ when she won't even walk down the block with me to 7-11 for nachos.”

“The horror.”

Pearl laughed. “Hopefully we’ll stay friends. She’s really cool.”

“So...got your eye on anyone else?” Adore raised an eyebrow.

“I dunno...maybe…”

“Violet?”

Pearl scoffed. “Yeah, no. I mean, as much as I love Fame, I really don't want to live inside of her asshole. So I think I'll pass on that one.”

Adore burst out laughing. “Copy that.”

Pearl brushed a strand of hair from Adore’s eyes. “How come you and I have never hooked up?”

Adore rolled her eyes.

“Seriously! You're so cute…” Pearl grinned charmingly, wrapping her arms around Adore’s waist. “I love this blue lipstick.”

“Get offa me, you horny bitch,” Adore shoved her away, giggling.

-

“You could have gotten killed,” Fame lectured Willam, as the car pulled out of the parking lot. “You should never have run off like that!”

“Eh, it was fine,” Willam laughed. “Chill out, half breed.”

“Yeah, whatever. Eventually he’ll just end up dead in an alley or have his organs stolen and then he’ll learn his lesson,” Violet said nonchalantly.

“Jesus, Vi. You’re so morbid.” Trinity thumped her on the shoulder.

“I can take it,” Willam assured her. “I got some great dick. Well worth the drive down here.”

“You mean Pride with your best friends wouldn’t have been worth it?” Adore pretended to be offended.

Willam snorted. “Shut the fuck up, you goddamn lesbian.”

Adore kissed Willam on the cheek. “I love you, too.”

-

Courtney peered into her fridge, looking for something to eat more out of boredom than hunger, when she noticed the lights from Adore’s tree house. She grinned and shut the fridge, skipping happily out the door towards Adore’s backyard.

She paused briefly to knock on the trap door, just to make sure she wasn’t interrupting any kind of illegal or debaucherous behavior.

“Hey, it’s me.”

“Come in!” Adore’s voice sang out.

She pushed open the trap door and hoisted herself inside, deflating a little when she saw Violet, but perking up at the warm welcome from Adore and Pearl, who helped her inside.

“Heyyyyy!” Adore cooed, coughing a little, passing a joint to Violet. She was wearing a flower crown and rainbow stickers, overall looking sunburned and happy. Pearl and Violet were decked out in similarly festive attire, all of them covered in glitter and confetti.

“Hi. Wow, you guys look...awesome. Where were you today?” Courtney knelt down beside Adore, reaching into the bag of chips in her lap.

“San Diego Pride,” Adore answered, smiling sleepily.

“Shit, I think there’s glitter in my bra,” Pearl said. “Oh god, it’s everywhere...”

Violet and Adore dissolved into a fit of giggles. Courtney blinked for a moment, an emptiness tugging at her.

When Adore turned back to her, Courtney frowned, asking, “Why didn’t you ask me to come?” She regretted the words the second they left her lips, recognizing the way they must have sounded.

Of course, Violet was the one to reply first, throwing out a snarky, “Maybe she didn’t want a clingy parasite glued to her the entire day!”

Courtney tried to mask the grimace that flashed across her face, deliberately avoiding Violet’s eyes. It was bad enough that she could feel that smirk, those beautiful dark eyes flashing with laughter. Adore reached for her hand, shaking her head.

“It wasn’t like that! I just...didn’t think it would be your thing.”

“You didn’t think rainbows and glitter would be my thing?” Courtney asked, trying to make her voice light.

“...fair point,” said Adore. “I’m sorry, I just-”

“Rainbows and glitter? Wow. Way to miss the entire fucking point of Pride, dude,” Violet sneered.

“Hey Court, catch!” Pearl tossed over a few strands of colorful beads, rolling her eyes at Violet in the process.

“Thanks.”

“No problem.” Pearl smiled.  

Courtney touched a sparkly rainbow tattoo on Adore’s cheek.

“Well...did you have fun?”

“Best day ever!” Violet interjected, earning a groan and a shove from Pearl.

“Oh please. You complained the entire time.”

“It was really cool,” Adore told Courtney with a sleepy grin. “You’ll come next year. I heard LA is way more fun, anyway.”

Courtney nodded, heart fluttering slightly. Adore was still holding her hand, thumb running over her knuckles lightly.

“Ugh, just what we need. A straight bitch to babysit.”

“Omigod, shut up, Violet!” Pearl was now sitting on top of her.

As the two of them struggled, Adore looked up at Courtney with laughter in her eyes, shaking her head slightly. “Animals,” she mouthed, and Courtney giggled. “Come here,” Adore then whispered, pulling Courtney down to snuggle against her.

Courtney knew that it was probably the alcohol, or the weed, or having spent all day in the sun - or maybe some combination, that was making Adore so uncharacteristically affectionate in front of her friends. But in that moment, she didn’t care. She leaned against her shoulder and let warmth wash over her, safe and happy. Pretending, if only for now, that this meant something more.

[these-are-the-first-steps]

TATFS’s strategies for surviving illness with no health insurance- a long post

DISCLAIMER: I am NOT a doctor, nor do I have any medical background. I’m just someone who spent a chunk of their time being too poor to see a doctor and scared to death and managed to figure out some basic things that worked, so consume and apply the following text using your own discretion.

So as someone who has spent a scary enough chunk of their adult life uninsured, I’d like to share with you fine folks my own personal general strategy for effectively fighting off nasty illness and avoiding a doctor as much as is reasonable. I’ve sucked out the beginnings of full-on upper respiratory infections with OTC meds before with my own combos and also some tips from pharmacists who took pity on me back in the day. The bare basics are as follows- 1) dry up what’s starting up in there

2) flush it out and keep flushing so it can’t take up residence again.

3) stop fevers that either get too high or refuse to break on their own (fevers are your body trying to kill the bad stuff, and I’ve experimented with letting low grade ones run their course, but if they get too high or don’t seem to ever break, you gotta stop ‘em.)

You can do this with three main things-

1) some sort of decongestant/antihistamine (used to use sudafed (pseudoephedrine) but now use 24h claritin (Loratadine) dissolve tabs- bonus in that it should still be on the shelves. no one’s panic buying allergy meds!). This will start to dry it up. (If you are in a risk group for glaucoma/have eye pressure concerns, cut yourself off after 7 days max for claritin. There’s nothing on the box to suggest it, but I did two weeks once, started getting suspicious, went to the eye doc, and I was on the line. 7 days is a safe cut off, though, and you should be good by then anyway.) 2) guaifenesin (aka mucinex)- super cheap stuff, has no known interactions with anything to my knowledge, and it’s probably the most harmless drug ever created. This is gonna break up all the bad shit and flush it all out so long as you keep up lots of liquids. 3) take TYLENOL (acetaminophen) for fever and/or pain from sinus pressure. And only tylenol. NSAIDs aren’t going to help you and may actually make things worse, especially with corona according to an article headline I saw. whatever, they don’t touch that shit anyway. Tylenol breaks fevers and that’s all you need to know. Deceptively simple, but it’s legit. Once you’re on this stuff, you have three main responsibilities- 1) DRINK LIQUIDS. I like buying 32floz or 1000 ml bottles of water or some mellow tasting sports drink (stay away from stuff with heavy dyes, it’s just bad for your guts. gatorade has plenty of light colored transparent drink flavors. Pocari Sweat saved me from a hospital trip once) because then I know that if I finish the bottle, I drank plenty of liquids that day. Yes you’re gonna piss yourself- that’s the point. Your nose will probably run a bit more, too- that’s the point. Time to flush the gunk out! 2) EAT THREE MEALS A DAY. Guess what’s worth investing in? Your health. Eat breakfast. Eat a bowl of soup with crackers for lunch. Eat something solid that’ll stick to you for dinner. You’re sitting around but your body is burning extra fuel to fight off illness, so feed it!! You’ll notice pretty quickly how much better you feel almost magically after having eaten a good soup for lunch. Throw caution to the wind and feed yourself. 3) STAY STILL. Most of us are stuck indoors anyway what with lockdowns and all that bullshit, but just stay still. Camp out in your room or your couch or something for a change of scenery. Doing work that makes you move a lot or heavy chores will run your body down when it’s trying to fix you up. You’ll get better faster if you just sit still, watch a little tv, and play video games/knit/crochet/something to occupy your hands. Even when you start to feel a lot better, give it a few days- you’re still fighting it, so don’t mess up the progress. Just chill, and relax.

Here are some bonus tips:

1) ECHINACEA TEA. Drinking echinacea tea is actually something the last doctor I saw recommended to me. Maybe do a cup once a day while you’re feeling badly. I wouldn’t do it as a once a day for the rest of your life sort of thing, but once a week is probably fine when you’re healthy. It helps boost your immune system.

2) Dissolvable zinc tablets. Now these were sold out last time I went to the store, but I think they’re great. They’re white tablets that come in a few flavors and you’re to let them dissolve completely. No chewing. Zinc has been shown in peer-reviewed scientific studies to hinder virus replication in the body, which is great. For this reason, it’s best to start the tablets the moment you get the feeling you might be getting sick to head things off and lessen the effects of the future illness, but do what you can. They take about 15mins to dissolve in your mouth. If you follow the directions to the T on the back of the box, you’ll notice by about day three that your tastebuds have sort of taken a vacation and food tastes a bit bland, but that’s just zinc for you and it all goes back to normal after a couple days of not taking them. Remember that the tablets work for viruses, not bacterial illnesses (although zinc can also be good for sore throats in general).

3) Multivitamins can’t hurt, and you can also easily cut half a lemon, squeeze it in a mug, dump a bunch of honey in there, and pour boiling water over it for a tasty, vitamin C-rich drink. HOWEVER, if you have serious, serious heavy gunk in your lungs, please stick to ice chips and avoid hot drinks. Ice chips were a miracle idea some desperate victorians figured out that actually started saving their kids from dying from dyptheria. I’m not saying give up warm drinks entirely, but ice chips can help significantly.

With all this said: Listen to your intuition and your gut and if you feel like nothing is getting better, have had unnerving scares with phlegm, etc. just suck it up and go see a doctor!! No matter what, you living is the most important thing on earth, so if things start to feel like they’re out of your control, don’t think about it, just go.

Luckily as far as corona is concerned, the majority of folks below the age of 40 will have mild to no symptoms at all, which...in and of itself is rather creepy, but take what you can get. As it’s something that also seems to like to cause upper respiratory infections, these above tips and experiences, developed when I myself had the beginnings of an upper respiratory infection, are hopefully useful, especially to folks who don’t have insurance during this spooky time. 

JUST TO REITERATE: I am not a doctor and the above is just to share what I do personally during times of severe to moderate illness with no health insurance. It’s up to you to decide what’s the best strategy for you.

Take care of yourselves out there, guys. We’ll be alright and this’ll blow over soon. <3

[justheretobreakthings]

Welcome to the Family - Chapter 3

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Word Count: 2,151 (Total Word Count: 6,340) Read on AO3

Story Summary: Lance had been excited about his family taking in a foster kid, eager to get to meet his brand new little brother or sister, who would surely adore and idolize their super cool Big Brother Lance. What he got instead was a sullen, quiet, temperamental teenage housemate with a criminal record and a disastrous haircut.

Lance: hes here. car just pulled into the street

Pidge: Tell him hi from us.

Lance: he doesnt know u

Pidge: So that means we can’t be friendly?

Hunk: what’s he like?

Lance: idk hes not even thru the door yet. text u back soon

Lance shut off the screen of his phone and shoved it into his pocket as he got up to bound down the staircase where he’d been perched on the top step. “Rachel!” he called as he descended. “Keith’s here!”

“You don’t need to yell,” Rachel spoke up from where she’d been lounging across the couch in the front room. She sat up, closing her laptop and setting it aside before she stretched and looked over to where Lance had landed and was now trying to peer into the driveway through the frosted-glass window of the front door. “You spotted him?”

“Yeah, he’s getting out of the car now,” Lance answered, face still pressed to the glass.

“What does he look like?”

“Blurry.”

“Should have guessed. Step back from the door, would you, Lance? You’re gonna freak him out.”

Right as she said it the doorknob began turning, and Lance jumped back, narrowly avoiding being hit in the face by the door as it swung inward to usher in his broadly smiling mother. “Lance, Rach- oh, good, you’re both here,” she said. “You two ready to say hi to your new brother? Come on in, Keith, come meet the family. Well, two of the family.”

She stepped aside to make room for the other figure walking up the front steps, and Lance got his first good look at his new brother.

The first descriptor that crossed Lance’s mind at the sight of Keith was ‘emo’, but that wasn’t quite the right fit. The pale skin and black hair looked to be their natural tones, not makeup or hair dye, and he also didn’t have any jewelry or nail polish or decals on his clothes to indicate that he may have been going for that sort of aesthetic. He just had the colors right, what with the black of his tee shirt and scuffed shoes and jeans that looked to be growing too small on him, and the red of the red zip-up sweatshirt he wore over it even in the middle of August in Arizona.

He did, though, do a great job of pulling off that distinctly emo ‘don’t talk to me, don’t look at me, don’t look in my direction, life is pain’ scowl that he wore across his face - a face which, with its smooth features and bold indigo eyes, could have been good-looking if it weren’t for the thick brown-pink mark slicing through one of his cheeks and the surrounding mane of hair that was so uneven it looked as if it had been cut with gardening shears.

Still, Lance had seen worse, and appearances could be deceiving; this could still be a great, fun guy to have around. So he kept up his smile as he said, “I’m Lance, nice to meetcha.”

Keith nodded silently in greeting, and did the same to Rachel when she introduced herself as well, but didn’t offer his own name in return. “So, uh,” Lance said, “Mamá said that you’re going into sophomore year too, yeah? So the two of us, we’re gonna be classmates as well as brothers. That’ll - that’ll be fun.”

Again Keith was silent, just shrugging in reply, and Lance frowned and turned to his mother. “¿Puede él hablar?” he asked her. Can he talk?

“Sí,” she answered. “Y él no habla español, así que no seas grosero.” Yes, and he doesn’t speak Spanish, so don’t be rude. A glance back toward Keith confirmed this, as his eyes were narrowed and darting back and forth between the two of them, brows bunched in confusion. Lance simply clicked his tongue, settling back with hands on his hips. There was nothing rude about speaking his own language in his own home.

“Now, Keith,” his mother continued, “Do you want me to give you a tour of the house first, or do you want to start unpacking your things?”

“Um, tour’s fine,” Keith mumbled, faint but still loudly enough for Lance to finally get to hear his voice. It was low and just a little raspy, although the rasp may just have been from the low volume.

“Excellent!” his mother said. “I could have Lance or Rachel drop you duffel into your room so you - ”

“No,” Keith said sharply, pulling his bag back and moving to grip the shoulder strap with both hands.

“Suit yourself,” she said with an easy shrug, as if there was nothing even remotely unusual or suspicious about that sort of response. “We’ve got the family room here, and you’re free to use the family Netflix account on the TV as much as you want, and there’s a Nintendo Playstation hooked up to the - ”

“Those are two different things, Mamá,” Rachel interrupted. “And we have an Xbox, which is neither of those.”

“Oh, well, whatever it is, if you want to play video games, you can use that. The dining room’s this way - mind that coat rack, dear, it tips easily, I keep saying that we need to get a new one, maybe hooks on the wall instead or something, just never do get around to it - and through here is the kitchen, I’ll show you where everything goes - ”

She guided Keith through the dining room, initially trying to put a hand on his shoulder to steer him, but simply leading the way touch-free after he grimaced and shrugged the hand off of him. Lance followed, idly pulling his phone from his pocket to see a handful of new texts from Pidge and Hunk asking for more details about Keith. He shot them a quick response.

Lance: hes quiet

He watched as his mother opened and closed drawers and cupboards one after another, showing Keith where they kept the cutlery, bowls, plates, canned goods, cereal, pots and pans, instructing him on what goes where in the fridge and demonstrating which burner on the stove didn’t work, all while Keith maintained that perpetual scowl, answering only with soft grunts, before adding:

Lance: and kinda grouchy

He shut his phone’s screen off and tagged along as his mother and Keith moved on to the home office and bathroom and then downstairs to the basement, waiting until the tour had made its way to the laundry room and his mother began explaining how their washer and dryer worked before looking at Pidge and Hunk’s two very different replies.

Pidge: Of course he’s grouchy, he just discovered he’s going to be living with YOU.

Hunk: He’s probably just nervous.

Lance made a face and texted back.

Lance: im a DELIGHT to live with jsyk. & hes def giving off sort of an emo vibe

Pidge: How emo?

Lance: what do u mean

Pidge: On a scale of 1-10.

Lance: u cant quantify emo

He nearly didn’t notice the laundry crash course wrapping up and his mother and Keith heading out the door of the laundry room, so he saved the texting for later and hastened to follow as they started upstairs toward the bedroom.

His mother didn’t give a thorough tour of the rooms, to Lance’s relief, just quick peeks inside and naming which room belonged to whom. “Excuse the mess,” she said when she opened Lance’s door. “I swear, mijo, you have more clothes on your floor than you wear in a year.”

“Oh, it’s not that bad,” Lance said, rolling his eyes. Honestly, his mother had once seen Pidge’s room when the Holts had had the McClains over for dinner; she should have forfeited all rights to complain about messes on that fateful night.

“And here’s your bedroom, Keith,” his mother said, reaching the door at the end of the hall and opening it to reveal the skeleton of Luis and Marco’s former room, now empty with bare surfaces on the dresser and desk and bookshelf from their long lack of occupancy. “Once you’re settled in we can do a bit of decorating to help it feel more homey, if you’d like. I mentioned that shopping trip we could take sometime soon, get some new things for you?” She glanced toward Keith’s duffel bag before asking, “Does this room work all right for you? You need anything?”

“I’m fine,” Keith said softly.

“That’s good, that’s good. Well, now that you’ve got the lay of the land, I’m going to get dinner started up. Veronica should be coming home any minute, and Manuel will definitely be home for dinner, so I’ll make sure they stop and stay hello when they show up. Lance, be a lamb and help Keith get his stuff unpacked and in their places, would you?”

“Sure, Mamá,” Lance replied as his mother sidled out the room. “There more bags in the car for me to bring in, or - ?”

“No, just the one.” Lance raised a brow, about to ask why Keith would need help unpacking just one bag, but his mother leaned in to whisper, “Talk to him, okay? Just make him feel welcome.”

That made more sense. Lance eased his way into the room as his mother left. Keith had already set his bag onto the bed and was removing a little stack of shirts from it. “You, uh, need any help with that?” Lance asked.

Keith scowled over at him. Which was fair; that stack of shirts probably weighed two pounds at most. “Ah, I just meant, you know where that stuff goes?”

“... The dresser?”

“Yeah. You - you got this, sorry.” Lance rocked on his heels as Keith moved toward the dresser, the latter still eyeing him cautiously. “So, uh,” Lance tried again, “Where you from?”

“Around,” Keith answered with a shrug.

Right. Foster kid. Probably moved around a lot. He was on a roll with stupid questions. “Well, uh, where are you from, like, most recently? Before here?”

Keith paused, frozen halfway through setting his clothes down in a dresser drawer, and it was several seconds before he quietly answered, “Holbrook.”

“Don’t think I’ve heard of it,” Lance said. “You like it there?”

This time Keith didn’t answer at all, instead simply slamming the dresser drawer shut and moving back to his bag. He fished into it and pulled out a toothbrush and comb. “Where’s the bathroom again?” he asked.

“Second door on the left,” Lance answered, and Keith turned to leave the room without so much as glancing at Lance.

Lance simply rolled his eyes and strolled over to the bed, where he sat and glance into the open duffle bag. He nudged a gray sweatshirt aside to see a number of balled-up pairs of socks and boxers, a faded stuffed hippopotamus, and a few CDs in cases scattered across the bottom of the bag. He tilted his head to look at the titles. John Mellencamp, The Clash, Blue Cheer, a Chuck Barry CD with a spiderweb of cracks across the plastic case. Lance picked up ‘Janis Joplin’s Greatest Hits’, examining the remains of the garage sale sticker still covering the singer’s face. “So you’re into the old-timey, rock, huh? Funny, I would have pegged you more for MCR or Linkin Park or - ”

He hadn’t noticed Keith’s footsteps thundering down the hall until the other boy was already in the room, practically shoving Lance off the bed and yanking the bag back toward him. “Hey!” Lance yelped, grabbing onto the bedpost to keep from slipping onto the floor.

“Why were you going through my stuff?” Keith snarled, pulling the bag back further.

“Wha- I dunno, I was just, you know, seeing if you had, like - like, any interests or anything, that’s all. Calm down, man.”

That was probably the wrong thing to say, because Keith’s glare just darkened further. “Don’t touch my stuff,” he growled.

“I’m sorry. Is it, uh, is it because of the hippo? You don’t have to be embarrassed, I sleep with a stuffed animal too, lots of people do.”

Keith huffed and turned away from him. “I can unpack by myself. You can leave.”

“Are you… are you sure you don’t wanna, like, hang out, chat a bit?”

The scowl that Keith leveled in his direction was as firm a ‘no’ as humanly possible. So Lance sheepishly straightened up and headed out of the room, Keith shutting the door firmly behind him.

With a sigh, Lance pulled his phone back out, turning the screen on to see that Pidge had proposed an essay’s worth of criteria to quantify emo onto a ten-point scale. Ignoring that for now, Lance started to text.

Lance: hey hunk remember when u said keith was gonna be a cool friendly guy who will love hanging out with me?

Hunk: yeah? why?

Lance: guess what, im starting to think u were wrong

[amnachil]

To the Perfection Chapter 1 Part 2

I’m very stupid :o I totally forgot to post the next part !! I’m sorry :( I hope you’ll like it anyway

Thomas Monday January 7

The last week of the holiday went and ended like a blur. Monday came. The end of the holidays. Thomas wasn't particulary sad about it. After all, he mostly stayed at home where he played video games. Of course, he had a very organized schedule for his training too. But well, he didn't want to be back at school either. He hadn't any difficulties and he had already studied more than enough. It was more a social problem. It would be false to say he didn't have friends, only they weren't real friends. They do like me. Because I'm smart, good-looking and Raphaël's brother. Nonetheless, he wasn't sure a single one of them knew his favorite game or his favorite movie. In the end, they liked his reputation more than anything else.

"Hi Thomas." greeted Ilhan. "You look good today."

"Thanks." smiled the ginger lad.

You don't even ask me how I am doing anymore, uh ? He had met Ilhan during last year, when this one moved in town from the south. At first, the newcomer was acting more friendly, more kind with Thomas. Now I guess he thinks someone like me can only be fine. They all think that way.

"I saw your brother on TV last week." continued his classmate, far away his thoughts. "He's so awesome. You're so lucky to be related."

Really ? Thomas liked his big brother, yes, but it was sometimes hard to live in his shadow. He had always tried to be nicer, kinder, and now he thought about it, it probably explained his whole personality. Anyway, Raphaël was still far better in everything. Even in love...

"Hey guys." intervened Cody.

Thomas barely looked at him. He joined his class, letting his mind ramble.

At noon, the young lad escorted some of his friends to the local Mcdo. According to them, it was to celebrate the end of the holidays. Most of them were soccer players, just like him. They were hanging together for years, but none of them knew how much he hated burgers. They just don't care at all. Once in the restaurant, Thomas quickly found a table and took a sit. He looked around, bored. The flavor made him sick. A new year eh... It started like the last. Well, except for Dan who was moving in. Only the idea of this made him shiver with pleasure. The two of us, alone at home... Around him, his friends were coming with their order, but he ignored their waffles. He looked foward to be wednesday, when his mother would leave. (Of course he was sad about her departure, but better watch the good side of it, right ?).

"Thomy, what do you think ?"

The ginger turned towards his friends, surprised to hear his name. They were all waiting for an answer to the question he didn't listen.

"Cody and Ilhan are convinced the little Ulrich will be the next captain of the team once we graduate." resumed his third fellow, Joël. "I say otherwise, he's too cocky, don't you think ?"

"Man, you're hella cocky and you're the supporting striker." retorted Ilhan.

The other smirked. He was tall (around 184 cm or 6'1") and definitely ripped. Joël was Thomas's partner for work out, so this explained that. Well, it's true he's arrogant.

"Still, little Ulrich is just... unfit for the role." he stated.

A waiter went to refill Cody's glass with coke. Thomas recognized an old friend of Raphaël, Sam. Back in highschool, he was an awful jock, a bit like Joël. But with my brother's control, he became what he truly wanted to be. A kinda fat young adult. At least, his personnality had softened along his body. The young teenager greeted him with a nod, and then focused bad on his friend's conversation. They were still arguing about this nonsense.

"Guys, it doesn't matter right now." he smiled. "We have to focus on our games until graduation, okay ?"

They all agreed. What a bunch of boot-lickers.

This evening, when Thomas arrived at home, his mother was waiting for him. She wanted to talk. The ginger smiled cheerfully and sat on the couch. Another unecessary discussion... He loved her, but as the others, she didn't know him very well. She always said he was "as perfect as Raphaël." Why people couldn't see past their resemblance ?

"I'm leaving in two days now..." she started. "I wanted to be sure you're okay with that ? I know this isn't what we planned, but your father and I think you're very capable..."

He could guess the rest. Like my brother, right ?

"...Like your brother. Anyway, tell me what do you think ?"

You won't like what I think. Hey mom, I'm totally gay and you will literally let me alone with my crush for almost five years. I hate your new shoes, by the way.

"Everything gonna be fine." he assured kindly. "I already know how to survive on my own, and Dan will be there with me. I know you miss dad, and I know you two want to be together as fast as possible."

His mother sighed, reassured. She was so predictable. Raphaël and him were free to do whatever they wanted for years now, since they knew how to manipulate her.

"I'll cook diner." he decided.

After all, he couldn't wait to see Dan eating his food.

Dan Wednesday January 9

"Looks like we got everything. I'm sure you'll feel like home quickly."

Dan smiled to Raphaël's mother. He had always be welcome in their house, it wouldn't be much of a change to move in. He looked at his "new" environment. His boyfriend had a wide bedroom, with a lot of full bookcases. Some old clothes were lying around. A portrait of them during Raphaël's departure party caught his attention. We're together for one year and more than seven months now. As long as he remembered, he had always been friend with Raphaël. When he had done his coming out, the soccer's genius had asked for a date. I was so surprised, back then. I would have never guessed he was on the same side.

"I know this is a selfish request." said suddenly Mrs. Muller. "But I really hope you'll watch over Thomas. He's so grown-up, it worries me sometimes. I mean, he's completely capable but... He's not even 17 yet."

"It's normal to be stressed but I'll be there all the time. I'm not going anywhere."

She nodded. It was easy to reassure her apparently.

"I hope he will relax a little, he looks so tensed..." she whispered. "Thomas is always taking things too seriously. He should learn some tips from Raphaël."

Dan made a face, a bit skeptical. Raphaël's definition of fun is very personal, to my humble opinion. Make the man genuinely smile was very hard, not to mention laugh.

"They must be waiting for us." Mrs. Muller stated. "Let's go."

All the family went to the bus station. She was going to New York, and then she would take a plane to England. A long trip, but she seemed almost glad to do it.

"My boys. You're both amazing, you know that ?" she said as a goodbye. "I love you. I'm really proud of you."

Thomas nodded silently. Raphaël did nothing but stare at her. I can only imagine how bizarre it must have been to educate these two...

"Raphaël, I'm sure you'll shine as the best center foward of our country." she smiled. "Also, I know you're still hesitating, but you should start this career in modelling. You're so handsome."

He didn't answer at all. Dan knew he wasn't approving this. He saw the little tautness of his jaw, the almost invisible twicthing of his fingers. And his eyes. They were so emotionless. He's too polite to say anything, but he's far from convinced.

"And you my dear Thomas." Mrs. Muller continued, far away these considerations. "You'll be as good as your brother, I'm sure of it. Try to have some fun okay ?"

He did his warmest smile.

"Of course mom. I love you too."

It was a different way to express his feelings, but it was just as much significant. He's also disappointed. But he'll not say it either. In this family, they weren't saying much. You had to read between the lines, to guess what they were thinking. An exercise Dan started to get used too. Anyway, their mother left after a last good bye. And they went back home.

This evening, probably to distract himself from his mother's departure, Thomas cooked another feast. According to Raphaël, he was always cooking a lot when he was troubled. Much for Dan pleasure, he was the one taking advantage of it. And boy, he cooks so well. Apparently, Thomas wasn't interested in a culinary's career, but he was so gifted for it.

"You enjoyed yourself." whispered Dan's boyfriend while stroking his distended stomach.

His rubs caused a slight series of belch. They were comfortably lying on their bed after this succulent diner.

"I can't resist a good meal." confessed the junior. "You know I have zero control over my eatings habits."

"Yeah, I noticed." chuckled Raphaël.

Slowly, he kissed his boyfriend with passion. I love him so much. People always said Raphaël was insensitive, but that was so not true. The ginger lad smoothly rolled over Dan and kissed him again.

"If Thomas doesn't stop, you will end up fat again. And I'm pretty sure he won't stop."

As he spoke, he fondled Dan's chest and belly. His touch was sensual, enjoyable. It feels so nice. Raphaël was more than appealing, and the junior was already getting aroused.

"I don't care about that." he replied. "Do you ?"

"Absolutely not."

Dan's hands found a way to Raphaël's ass. A firm and solid ass. His boyfriend unclothed them. Oh boy. I'm gonna love this night.

Raphaël left early in the morning, around 6 a.m. He would be gone for almost two weeks, until saturday 19th. Dan escorted him to his bus. It wasn't the first time they were separated for a long time, but it always felt bad. I miss him each time. But they would manage, they always did.

"I'll call you once I'm there." assured Raphaël. "And I'll relay my schedule to you."

"Sure thing."

Dan hugged him firmly. I want to have you a bit more.

"You'll look over Thomas, right ? I know he's acting weird since this case with Liam last year... I think he's more disturbed by this stuff than he pretends to be."

"You worry too much honey." reassured him Dan. "But I swear I'll take care of him."

It's only the third time you and your mother ask me to do it after all. The bus left five minutes later. The junior looked his boyfriend go away for a moment, gloomy. Then, he headed back home. Much to his surprise, Thomas was already awake. And he had made breakfast. A big breakfast. Well, what is the more worrying right now is how much weight I'll put on in only two weeks ?

To be continued

The setting is now finished. Let’s see if Thomas will be able to resist his desire with his crush... Especially when Dan has no problem with the feeding part at all ;)

[megaphonemonday]

i like danger, all right?

@monkshoodr: Aunt Ginny is taking care of the boys while Blip/Evelyn take a weekend away to work things out and something goes wrong - so she calls Mike because she doesn't want to disrupt Blip/Evelyn's weekend

read on ao3

Mike couldn’t help the helpless, no doubt downright goofy smile that unfurled across his face when Ginny Baker lit up the screen of his phone. It didn’t matter that it was barely eight in the morning, he was in the middle of making breakfast, and just a second ago, he’d been annoyed to hear the damn thing even ring. 

There wasn’t a time of day he didn’t want to hear from Ginny, and it didn’t happen so often that he was going to waste this chance.

Not, of course, that he was about to let her know that. 

“Whaddya want, Baker?” he asked, phone balanced between his cheek and shoulder. He flipped his pancake with a practiced flick of his wrist. It was the offseason, okay? A man couldn’t live on scrambled egg whites and whole grain toast his whole life.

Still, those pancakes could wait for his favorite rookie. 

The second he heard the panicked edge in Ginny’s voice, he knew that they definitely would.

“Lawson?” 

He moved the pan off the burner. Automatically, a hand came up to hold his phone, like it would give him better control of the situation.

“Ginny?” he asked, heart already beginning to pound. And for good reason. She never sounded this shaky, this scared. Not even when she’d been in the hospital, her career hanging from the strength of her overworked tendons. Only something monumental could have her so unsteady. “What happened? What do you need?”

“I lost one of them,” she practically hissed, teetering right on the edge of panic. Mike was right there with her.

“One of what?” he demanded, already abandoning the kitchen and his breakfast in search of his keys. The more information he had before he left, the better he’d be prepared when he got to her.

“One of the twins.”

Mike’s frantic preparations ground to a halt even as his thoughts continued to race, trying to make sense of what she’d just said. 

Twins. The Twins didn’t play in San Diego until June, and he was pretty sure they were out East this weekend. How could Ginny have lost one of them? Which didn’t even address what business she could possibly have that would put her in a position to lose one of them in the first place. 

Unless...

He blinked once, then twice, then a bunch of times in a row, like each flash of darkness could reset his dawning comprehension. There was no way— Ginny couldn’t possibly mean she’d—

“You lost an entire kid?”

“Better than half of one!” she snapped, shrill and clearly terrified. 

Taking a deep breath, Mike listened until Ginny instinctively mimicked him. “Good,” he murmured, making his voice go low and soothing. She made a sound of impatience on the other end of the line, as if she knew exactly what he was trying to do, but Mike didn’t let that sway him. “Now, tell me what happened.”

With a bit more composure, Ginny told him, “Blip and Ev went out of town and asked if I could take the kids.”

“Why would Blip and Ev trust you with their kids?” As soon as it was out of his mouth, Mike knew it probably wasn’t the best thing to say. After all, right about now, down one Sanders boy, Ginny was probably wondering the same thing.

Nonetheless, her reply was instantaneous. And indignant. 

“Because I am great with them! We watch TV, play video games, eat junk food, and run around the yard until their sugar high crashes. It’s foolproof.”

“What part of foolproof involves losing an entire 8-year-old?”

Ginny didn’t laugh, though he didn’t really expect her to. She just barrelled on with the story. “They wanted to play hide and seek. I didn’t even think about saying no, but Blip and Ev’s new house is A) huge and B) unfamiliar.”

He winced. “You never had a chance, Baker.”

“Are you gonna laugh at me or help?”

He sighed down the line, but since Ginny could probably already hear the clinking of his keys when he replied, “I’ll be there in fifteen,” he didn’t feel that bad about it.

“Make it ten,” she replied just before the line went dead and Mike could answer that he was already planning on it. 

A bare eleven minutes later, Mike was standing on the front step of the new Sanders house. He tried to push aside the knowledge that he hadn’t been invited to the housewarming party, and how weird it felt to visit for the first time without the owner’s permission. Then again, it wasn’t like Blip was going to find out about this.

He raised his hand to knock once more just as the door swung open. His knuckles rapped smartly against Ginny’s forehead. 

She huffed and glared at him but didn’t bother to give him any grief. Instead, Ginny just turned on her heel and marched back into the house, her head swiveling as if she might catch out a hiding 8-year-old if she was just vigilant enough. The set of her shoulders, even with one arm still confined to a sling, told Mike everything he needed to about how worked up she was. The sooner they found Ginny’s lost charge, the sooner the tension would leave her, and the sooner his need to touch her, soothe her, would go with it.

“How long has it been since you saw—”

“Gabe. It’s Gabe. And it’s been—” she said, leading Mike into an immaculate kitchen. Blip and Ev’s last kitchen had been nice, but this place was another thing entirely. Just the place for a woman who was toying with opening a restaurant of her own, or so Mike had heard through the scant gossip that had filtered his way this offseason. Ginny pressed her palm to the marble counter, frowning down at her right as if she was surprised the sling got in her way. She sighed, and Mike forced his feet to remain rooted to the floor rather than cross the distance and pull her into his arms. “It’s been less than an hour. Maybe 45 minutes?”

“And you don’t think he left the house?”

Ginny snorted. “Ev put the fear of God in them before she and Blip left. She said if they went anywhere without me, she’d know and they wouldn’t see a video game for months.”

“Sounds like Ev,” he said, grinning. Ginny smiled weakly back, and his heart thumped hard against his chest. “Where’s Marcus?”

“Watching some stupid cartoon in his room. He helped me look for a while, but he got bored. Said Gabe had done this before and would come out when he was ready.”

“But you don’t think that’s true.”

The one shoulder shrug Ginny gave him was half helpless, half lost. “What if he got stuck?” she asked, eyes bright and wild with worry. “What if he can’t call for help? Or he’s not even here? What if—”

“Hey,” Mike said, stepping close for the first time. He put his hand out, just to cup Ginny’s elbow, offer a little comfort, but he got so much more. Ginny collapsed into him. Her good arm wrapped around his waist, her right cradled between them. Breath shuddering through them both, she pressed her forehead against his chest. Automatically, he put his hand on her back and rubbed big, sweeping circles, anything to keep it from settling in one place and holding on for dear life. She was so warm, felt so perfect, it was hard to keep his mind on track. “It’s all right. We’re gonna find him.”

“I know.” Her voice was muffled by his shirt, and Mike couldn’t tell for sure, but he could have sworn she sniffled, too. Either way, when Ginny pulled herself away, her eyes were dry. She nodded once, decisive. “We’ll find him.”

He nodded back. “Then let’s get started.”

“Thanks for coming to the rescue,” she murmured much later, when the twins were both sound asleep, and Mike and Ginny were pretty close to it, slumped comfortably together on the living room couch.

It had taken them far longer to find Gabe than Mike would care to admit. (It was an hour and 37 minutes, Ginny getting more and more frantic with each passing moment and every closet they cleared as Mike tried to keep his cool.) Of course, when they finally tracked him down in the basement, curled in the cabinet that housed the laundry chute, he didn’t even bother to look up from the game he was playing on his Gameboy when he observed, “Took you long enough.” Then, he’d scrambled out of the cupboard and bounded off to search for his brother. No doubt to cook up even more mayhem.

Mike and Ginny had turned to stare at each other in speechless shock. Well, Ginny was shocked. Mike was, too, but he’d been busier trying to count the exact number of colors swirling through Ginny’s gorgeous eyes; it wasn’t all that often recently that he got the opportunity to see them up close. He was cut off when she’d let out a bright, relieved peal of laughter and collapsed against him in boneless relief. Her warm, pliant curves pushed against him was more than his brain could take. 

“Oh, thank God,” she’d gasped, her breath warm against his neck, and that— That was definitely more than his brain could or should take.

“Told you we’d find him,” he somehow managed, in what he hoped was a level tone. Considering the way his hands had found their way to her waist—low enough to nearly be her hips, far enough back to nearly be the perfect ass he’d stopped slapping when he realized he liked the way it always made her jolt a little too much—it was a miracle he could speak at all.

“You did,” Ginny agreed as she pulled away. She’d looked up at him then, wondering and radiant. Mike could do nothing more than look right back, sure that his every thought, every feeling was right there for her to see.

They’d stared at one another for another long beat, but there was no shock in this moment. They’d known about this since last August. 

Ginny looked away first. She’d blinked, her lashes falling to her cheeks, and while Mike didn’t break his gaze, when Ginny looked up again, her eyes had fixed on a point over his shoulder. Still, she’d smiled. 

“I could use a drink. You?”

He’d cleared his throat. “Sure. But only if you know where Blip’s put his good bourbon.”

Of course, she did. So, he’d stayed. And then, well, Mike had just gone on staying. He’d made dinner for them all when the boys revealed half of their frozen pizza had been burned at lunch—even made sure there were vegetables on their plates. He’d watched Ginny cream Gabe and Marcus at Mario Kart one-handed, and even schooled them all for a round. (Okay, he’d gotten his ass kicked six ways to Sunday, but the way Ginny cackled victoriously was more than worth the blow to his ego.) He’d made it all the way through the kids’ bedtime. If he wasn’t careful, he’d make it to his before ever leaving.

It didn’t seem like such a bad idea. Dangerous, but not bad.

Mike shrugged, jostling Ginny’s head where it rested on his shoulder, but not enough to make her move it. Which was just fine by him. “You know me. Say the word, and I’m on my way.”

She hummed, soft and sleepy. Her cheek pressed harder against his shoulder, and he took her weight gladly. Out of the end of her sling, her fingers curled into his shirt. “I know.”

The breath that rushed out of Mike’s lips was more ragged than it should have been. He closed his eyes, and for an instant—just a moment—he let himself imagine. Imagine that he hadn’t spent the day just playing house with Ginny. Imagine that this was real. This was his couch and his person and his life.

The arm he’d draped over the back of the couch dropped down to curl tentatively around Ginny’s shoulders. He felt like a fourteen-year-old on his first movie date, too nervous to put his arm around the girl beside him, worrying she’d shrug him off or spill their popcorn in his lap. 

But Ginny didn’t protest. If anything, she settled even closer. 

Mike opened his eyes. 

“I should go.” The suggestion was too loud for the quiet room, but it had to be said. If Mike let himself stay another minute, he was sunk. He was never going to get out of this house without being consumed—forever probably—with wondering what it would be like to make Ginny fall in love with him. 

Which would only make him wonder how to do it. 

And if he figured that out, Mike just knew he wouldn’t be able to keep himself from following through. 

Ginny didn’t reply, so he said it again. “I should go.” This time, he coupled the words with movement. He shifted, pulling his arm away. Before he could get too far, though, her grip on him tightened. She didn’t take any of her weight back, either. Mike finally chanced a look down into her face. 

Her eyes were shut, eyelashes a dark smudge against her cheek, her lips were parted, soft breaths puffing out in quiet snores. 

She’d fallen asleep. 

If Mike let himself think about it, he’d talk himself into extracting himself from Ginny’s warm, exquisite weight and either arranging her snugly on the couch or picking her up and getting her into a bed. His knees might not like the strain, but they could handle her. He could handle her. He’d talk himself into putting her to bed, checking on the twins one last time, locking up the house, and driving home alone. 

Mike didn’t let himself think about it. 

He twisted a little so he could lie back, bringing Ginny with him, tucked perfectly between his side and the back of the couch. It put him right on the edge of the cushions, perilously close to falling, but it wasn’t as if he wasn’t familiar with that sensation. Their legs stretched out, knees knocking together. 

This was the dangerous choice. The good one, but the one that would have some part of the back of Mike’s brain working overtime from here to eternity figuring out what he could do to recapture this feeling, make sure he never went another second without it. 

Mike didn’t let himself think about that either. He closed his eyes and let Ginny’s steady breaths lull him to sleep.

Ah, well. He’d deal with it in the morning.