#happy birthday josie!

[innytoes]

Happy birthday @jmrothwell!

Julie wasn't sure why a ghost themed coffee shop had become her favourite place to work on her thesis, but she had some ideas. For one it was walking distance from the tiny little apartment she shared with Flynn. For another, they had really cute snacks. They had really good coffee and they weren't judgemental if she ordered a 'what is sleep' with extra espresso shots.

But mostly, the reason she kept coming back was Reggie. Reggie, with his sunshine smile and his bad puns. Reggie, who always added some extra drizzle because he knew she liked her coffee extra sweet. Reggie, who flirted with her no matter if she was wearing her ridiculous smiley sweatshirt and a pair of jeans that had seen better days, or a cute dress. Reggie, who was always experimenting with new coffee art to see what would make her smile the most.

So maybe, after she finished her thesis (and slept for like 24 hours) she ordered a smaller coffee than usual and a 'whatever you're having, on my tab' right before she knew Reggie went on break.

The sunshine smile that came with her order was worth it. And so was Reggie's number in her phone.

[fandoms--fluff]

Could you make a Josie Saltzman x fem reader we’re they celebrate readers birthday it may or my not be my birthday today

Film Extravaganza

Female reader x Josie Saltzman

Warnings: none

A/n: Happy Birthday, Lovely!❤

Moodboard

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Are we almost there- OW!" You yelp as you get run into the corner of a wall. "Sorry!" Josie exclaims, leading you're blindfolded self away from the wall and into the direction she meant to beforehand.

"And we'll be there in less than a minute" your girlfriend informs you. "Thank, God. No offense, but having you steer me around the school with a blindfold that smells like it hasn't seen the light of day in decades is not what I imagined how my birthday would be going this year" you say, making Josie chuckle.

"I know, but I wanted it to be a surprise" Josie tells you. She's been giddy all morning and everytime you asked, she quickly changed the subject and said 'you'll find out later'.

Now it's 'later', and you're finally going to see what Josie's been cooking up for who knows how long.

"Alright, we're here" Josie takes her hands off your shoulders from where she was steering you. You hear a door shut before reaching up to take the blindfold off. You pause though, "can I take this off?"

"Yes, of course" Josie answers excitedly.

You slip off the blindfold from your head and your gaze is immediately caught by the decorations and a whole indoor film set up with an old school projector and everything. The walls are decked out with fairy lights and balloons spelling happy birthday. There's even a whole popcorn machine from the 1960s in the corner. And trays of food, candy, and all the staple movie snacks set on the cozy fort space made up of pillows and blankets.

"You're joking" you finally turn to your girlfriend.

Her eyes widen, not knowing if that's a good or bad reaction from you, "..yes?"

"Oh, no, I didn't mean it in a bad way. I love it, baby, thank you!" You exclaim and envelope her into a hug. She returns it, wrapping her arms around your back and holding you close.

Once you guys pull away, you have the biggest smile on your face. "I'm glad you like it," Josie says with a goofy loving smile on her face.

"Like it? I love it" you wrap your hand against hers and lead her over to all the pillows and blankets set up in front of the projector. "This explains where all the extra blankets went from the room" you chuckle. "Yeah, it was harder than I thought to sneak all of them out without you catching on" she places a kiss on the side of your head.

"Thank you so much" you gaze into her eyes and give her a passionate kiss. "Anything for you. Happy birthday!" She nods you to sit, and you obey. While you get comfy into the set up, Josie walks to the projector and turns it on.

The projector starts up, the gears and wheels spinning the film. As Josie settles in next to you, the movie starts up, flashing onto the white sheet she put up on the wall.

While the opening credits of The Philosopher's Stone plays, you bring up a piece of red licorice and bite into it, "Mmm, I forgot how good these were" you moaned at the sweet taste of the candy. "Really? When was the last time you had them?" Josie asks, intrigued. You haven't told her much about your past, but she knows it's a touchy subject.

"Let's just say, it's been some torturous years." You bring up the licorice to her, and she takes a bite.

"You're right, this is really good. Better than the one Lizzie tried to get me to eat" Josie says after swallowing. "Let me guess, it was some healthy option with no sugar and tasted like crap?" You chuckle. "Yeah, that pretty much sums it up" Josie nods while laughing.

While the opening credits come to an end, you turn to look into Josie's eyes. "This is the best birthday I've ever had, I love you so much" you softly tell her.

Her eyes light up, "I love you so much too" she places a kiss on your forehead and then on your lips.

You snuggle into her side, and she drapes her arm over your shoulders. You guys spend the movie and the rest of the day cuddled up and eating popcorn and candy.

[archonoclasm]

@astraldestiny asked: "you will be safe in the right hands." from josephine <3 / 𝑺𝑶𝑭𝑻 𝑻𝑯𝑶𝑹𝑵𝑺 𝑽𝑶𝑳. 𝑰 : still accepting.

"You mean beyond your own?"

She sounds sure. Of course. Josephine Montilyet is always sure. After all, if wit is his weapon, then the most thorough of preparation is their darling Antivan's. Dorian looks thoughtful at his cards, fingers idling along some sovereign he's currently betting. She cares unendingly, he knows, and is parts a mother hen as this world of theirs smolders in ash and demons, but even with his streak of stubborn independence, her care, her worry, is usually welcomes.

In truth, among their scrappy little party, Dorian thought her the last person who would lace his nightly tots. It makes her endearing, he supposes, being so utterly hesitant to start murdering her mages in very handsome leather. Playing a hand, Dorian's very secretly cheating, but that's the only way to win. Keep bluffing and shaking off her worrying comments, he'd say! Just like now with her talk of...hands.

"Do you know someone? Can I expect to be shuffled between arranged meetings to vet these apparent bulwarks of chivalry?"

[neviagreatestart2003]

Neviaverse - Josie Inkpaw. And Happy 18th Birthday Miyuka!!! 🥳🥳🥳🎂🎂🎂💖💖💖

Gift to @miyukatheartist

[marchessa]

Been waiting for the rain by Marchessa for thinlines

“We are lost,” Harry grumpily exclaimed.

“No, we are not,” Louis claimed with a signature eye roll, even though he wasn’t completely sure where they currently were.

“Yes, we are!” Harry huffed in annoyance. “You followed what Google Maps said four turns ago instead of taking that old man's advice from the coffee shop.”

Or the one where they are stuck in a car while it's heavily raining outside and they get creative to pass the tim

Happy Birthday once again, Josie! Love you 😘

Hope you like will enjoy this. I drew inspiration from your bottom H fics.

Everyone please go, and read Josie's fics. They are brilliant. And share your love with her 💖

[hockeymusicmore]

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A post shared by Nashville Predators (@predsnhl)

Happy Belated Birthday Roman!

[slytherindisaster]

𝐉𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐏𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐁𝐄𝐂𝐂𝐀 𝐄𝐃𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐒 𝐛. 𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐘 𝟏 𝟏𝟖𝟖𝟏

Happy Birthday to my one and only sunshine girl 💛

[hjbirthdaywishes]

June 6, 2023

Happy 64 Birthday to Josie Lawrence. 

[notoh-dev]

The Doctrine of Perseverance Plot Summary and Main Characters Reveal

Story

The city of Noxton takes its name from one of the eight founding families, the Noxton family. Renowned publicly for their contributions to the city, privately, they are linked to the mysterious 'Drift.' Tragedy strikes the family on Melrose Noxton’s thirteenth birthday, marked by a horrific house fire following the appearance of the titular doctrine in the guesthouse. Three years later, the mystery remains unsolved, and life seemingly moves on, but not for Melrose – she remembers everything.

This story unfolds on Melrose’s sixteenth birthday, where you will uncover the inescapable horrors of the doctrine, unravel the secrets of the Noxton family, and confront the spirits of the 'Drift' that relentlessly seek to butcher anyone in their path. Happy Birthday, Melrose.

Main Characters

An old soul and reserved girl. Her birthday serves as a haunting reminder of the house fire and acts as the catalyst for the story.

A mischievous girl with a cheerful exterior. She is a close friend of Melrose and Dace’s daughter.

An unfiltered and hot-headed boy. His family harbors distrust towards the ‘founding families' in the city of Noxton.

A well-mannered and intelligent boy, slated to be the next head of the Noxton family. He is the son of Josie and Klaas, and also Melrose’s cousin.

An introverted and inquisitive boy. He is Melrose’s childhood friend and is from another founding family, the Skallow family.

A calm and warmhearted woman. She is Melrose's aunt and Milton's mom. Her and Florence were in a state of no contact for years prior to the fire.

A composed and educated man, he is Suzetta's dad and a long-time close friend of Florence before the fire. He works for the Noxton Police Department.

A brisk and 'rough around the edges' kind of man, he is the current head of the Noxton family and the uncle of Melrose and Milton.

A diligent and zestful man, he is Milton's dad and works for the Noxton Police Department.

Developer's Note

Bios and artwork are subject to change before the final release of the game, and this post may be updated.

I currently have about an hour of content done, this is with all of the dialogue, and knowledge on how to proceed in-game. I imagine it'll be longer for new players. Currently working on the next portion. I'm hoping to have chapter zero available to play early 2024 on RMN, Steam, and Itch.io.

I've also been posting youtube shorts, I'd be super appreciative to anyone who likes/comments on them!

Affiliated Links

Youtube Twitter RMN Tiktok (Posts are being Processed)

[polarmoon]

happy birthday josie! 🎂

[allwaswell16]

All the One Direction fics I read and enjoyed in Dec 2024. For more new fics, check out this month's fic roundup here. You can find my other fic recs here. Although I'm not yet ready to get back to podcasting, I do want to acknowledge all the great fics I read this month. Please let the writers know if you liked the fics by leaving kudos and comments!

- Louis / Harry -

🌲 Be There by @mission2feelike

(NR, 179k, kid fic) The one where their family has been torn apart and their hearts broken, but an accident, a snowstorm, cinnamon rolls, and the adorable Josie force Louis and Harry to finally face the truth, and each other.

🌲 You Should Be Here With Me by @lululawrence

(NR, 34k, football) Louis and his teammates know all too well the pressure that is on their shoulders. They need to prove, not just to fans of the club but the entire league, that they still have what it takes to be a team worthy of fighting for the top of the table.

🌲 Your Reign is Free (to give along to Santa) by LadyLondonderry / @londonfoginacup

(T, 28k, humor) It’s Christmas Eve. It’s a totally normal Christmas Eve. Harry and Louis have some friends coming by, and some totally normal birthday and Christmas plans. It’s a totally typical totally normal Christmas Eve. A fic that takes place over 24 (+1) hours where surely everything will go totally to plan.

🌲 Runaway Bride by IceQueenRia

(E, 22k, omegaverse) Suffering an injury while coming to the rescue of some of the kingdom’s orphans, Harry is welcomed into the castle and finds himself face-to-face with Prince Louis himself, praying that he won’t be recognised as a member of royalty.

🌲 Restlessness, Snowman Cookies, And A Realisation by Candy_Kittens / @candyfloss-kittens

(NR, 8k, omegaverse) While Louis, Liam, Niall, and Zayn take the kids out for a few hours to some Christmas fair, allowing Harry to have the house to himself for a bit, Harry decides to make some snowman themed Christmas cookies and some chocolate fudge for Louis in an attempt to ward off this odd restless and off feeling he’s been having lately.

🌲 I'll be happy, happy once again by Worldsofdreamers / @defences-down

(M, 7k, fake relationship) After being unceremoniously dumped, Louis has no choice but to go along with his best mates' plan to find a date for Lottie's party.

🌲 Day Eighteen: Elf by 28goldensfics / @28goldens

(E, 6k, fantasy) Harry gets much more than he bargained for when he decides to steal from Elven Lord Louis during his Christmas gala.

🌲 I Can Pull It Together by @louislittletomlintum

(E, 6k, body worship) the one where Harry accidentally discovers a new part of Louis he really, really loves.

🌲 There Is Just One Thing I Need by Rearviewdreamer / @all-these-larrythings

(G, 5k, flight attendant Harry) Louis doesn’t want a lot for Christmas apart from getting home in time to see his family. Then, he meets Harry.

🌲 Shaking In The Shockwave by LetTheMusicMoveYou / @letthemusicmoveyou28

(E, 4k, phone sex) the one where Harry is still reeling and heartbroken after discovering his fiancé has been cheating on him. So in a moment of desperation, he decides to spend the weekend at a self-pleasure hotel. As it turns out, the gorgeous blue eyed man at the front desk is more than willing to help distract him

🌲 Let Me In One More Time by @homosociallyyours

(E, 3k, girl direction) At the last minute, Harry's mother springs a bunch of new guests on her for their Thanksgiving meal. When Harry hears that the eldest daughter, Louis, will arrive early to "help" she's not exactly pleased.

🌲 hear my belated regret by theankletattoo / @peachade

(E, 3k, omegaverse) they find love in each other on a vacation.

🌲 Honk by @allwaswell16

(M, 3k, soulmate goose) An omegaverse, soulmate goose fic for the holidays

🌲 Early Bird Gets The Worm by LiveLaughLoveLarry / @loveislarryislove

(E, 2k, voyeurism) Harry uses his binoculars to watch the hot neighbor boy jerk off but it's not his fault really.

🌲 when you don't want coffee by larryftnoctrl / @the-larry-way

(T, 2k, coworkers) Two men who are too dumb to use their words but totally have crushes on each other. Featuring Niall as Captain of the ship ready to save it from sinking at any cost.

🌲 Zero Day by @haztobegood

(E, 1k, getting caught) Harry and Louis are thru-hikers on the PCT.

🌲 The Unselected Journals of Louis W. Tomlinson - Vol 1 by YesIsAWorld / @louandhazaf

(E, 1k, epistolary) The Wandering of Things was not new, nearly two years into living here. However, the, uh, nature of this particular thing was quite different.

🌲 freaky friday by @tracksuitponytail

(E, 1k, body swap) It’s Friday the 13th—a day like any other for Louis until he wakes up in the middle of the night... in his best friend's body.

- Rare Pairs -

🌲 Welcome to My Candy Store by mmaree / @zqua1d

(E, 9k, Zayn/Liam) “This is no ordinary toffee apple,” the woman dressed as a witch tells them. “It's a magic wishing toffee apple.”

🌲 Couldn't miss this one this year by yourlionheartx / @djtommotomlinson

(G, 3k, Liam/Louis) All year Louis has been chasing this gorgeous guy he met at a ski shop. It’s Christmas and he’s decided it’s just time to let it go. He's spending Christmas on his own this year.

🌲 pumpkin spiced regret by @disgruntledkittenface

(M, 1k, Harry/Louis/Nick Grimshaw) You know what they say: If you can’t take the heat in the kitchen, masturbate in the guest bathroom.

[newtonsheffield]

my heart breaks for Kate and Anthony who think that they can never be together. And to know that we still have a month until the bullet incident 😭😭

They’ve come such a long way in the few months since their relationship was made public and it’s such a stark different to the way it used to be. It’s strange to think that Edwina’s birthday party is the first time they’ve danced together. Ever. They’d never even held hands in public before they left the hospital and now there’s pictures of them together on the front page with her fingers intertwined with his on her waist.

It’s so weird that they’re now sat serenely back trying to give relationship advice to Edwina who completely ignored Josie for 3 hours at her party until Josie left STILL carrying the birthday gift she’d brought. But that’s where they are now.

Of course they have days where Anthony struggles with the fact that he doesn’t get to go anywhere without people recognizing him now and Kate gets nervous to let Anthony out of her sight but they’re just trying to appreciate the fact that they’re together. And honestly, despite the palace being ready to go into damage control; it only made her more likable. It’s relatable that she met someone she felt so drawn to she couldn’t stay away. Honestly, the biggest problem has been the fact that Anthony’s mother reacted poorly to it but even Violet is warming to Kate. Violet watched Kate make… possibly the worst cake she’s ever seen from the recipe she provided her but she did it because she wanted to make Anthony happy. Anthony really is loved by Kate and that’s all she was worried about.

Really, Kate and Anthony are at the base of the mountain that is figuring out their future together but they’re excited. At least they’re there. At least they’re at the mountain.

[bcolfanfic]

young veterans au - POV you’re on gale’s phone, dad!gale version

liked by brady00, willquinn, meatballonig and 45 others

buckyegan_ Last time feeding the ducks as a 4 year old. Read a quote the other day about your kids being your heart beating outside of your body. I knew exactly what they meant.

crozbee Yep. ❤️❤️

cbiddick They gotta figure out how to keep kids little forever. One of Gale’s academia buddies working on that?

galecleven17 I sure hope so.

liked by jean_crosby, cbiddick, alexjeff_art and 30 others

galecleven17 with buckyegan_ Just in time for her birthday, an old babysitter recently contacted us to share a baby picture she realized she had of our girl.

I wish so bad that we knew you then. But we found our way to each other, and I thank God every day that he chose us to be your parents. Daddy loves you the stars, Josie Belle. I think 5 is going to be the best year yet.

alexjeff_art Those little baby cheeks- how cool you guys got that photo. Happy bday Josie!!!

rosenthal_ She has the best parents in you two. Can’t wait to see you guys!

[wyattjohnston]

and i had silly dreams - brock boeser

summary: a series of weddings mean a series of run-ins with brock, and that means josie must confront some long held feelings.

word count: 3.2k

note: happy birthday @senditcolton!!! this is what i wrote for your birthday bingo and i hope you like it. i hope you get loads of wonderful fics to read, because you deserve them all <3

bingo squares: wedding season + 'it was always you' + free space + second chance romance + interrupted kiss

Josie had forgotten that he’d be there. She’d helped with sending the invitations, helped with the seating chart and had felt her heart skip a beat every time she saw his name. She still did a double take when she saw him at the reception.

Immediately noticing the double take, Courtney, the bride, asked in a high pitch, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Everything is perfect,” Josie said, literally waving her off. “I forgot Brock was going to be here, is all.”

With all the subtlety that she was known for—none—Courtney whipped her head in the direction Josie had vaguely pointed at. Josie rolled her eyes but followed Courtney’s gaze to see Brock standing beside a table laughing raucously.

“He’s single.”

“Yeah,” Josie said, rolling her eyes. “That’s never been the problem.”

Courtney’s mouth opened and Josie knew she was ready to go off on a tangent about there never being a real problem. Luckily for Josie, Liam materialised to distract his bride and take her away to speak to his parents.

Their departure led to a brief reprieve for Josie who felt like she hadn’t stopped all day, or for the entire month leading up to the wedding. She had truly gone above and beyond—something that Courtney had been increasingly thankful about—and, while there was a quiet moment, she took her seat at the wedding party’s table and barely resisted dropping her head onto the table.

People approached her to check in, the other bridesmaids making sure everything was going to schedule and being redirected to the wedding planner, Rebecca, and her own parents making sure she wasn’t taking on more than she could handle. She absolutely was, but that wasn’t something she’d readily admit. Rebecca popping by was the last thing Josie wanted, because the updates she’d been getting all evening weren’t good.

She felt even more drained when she was left alone again, only interrupted by a waiter carrying a tray of champagne. Josie took two flutes.

It wasn’t a hardship to watch Courtney and Liam bounce around the room together, largely inseparable and overwhelmingly in love—they’d been together for so long that their marriage had slowly morphed into an inevitability and Josie was happy that she had a front row seat to it all.

Even if, every so often in her peripheral vision, there was someone she had to keep monitoring. That she could have done without.

Someone dropped into the empty bridesmaid’s seat beside her, and Josie’s breath hitched in her throat when she realised who it was. She may have forgotten that he’d be at the wedding, but she could never forget him.

She only looked at him out of the corner of her eye—he was like the sun, really, it was dangerous to look directly at him.

“You look stressed.”

Josie hummed in agreement, picking up her second champagne flute and saying, “It is my job to burden all the shit that Liam’s cousin is pulling and make sure that Court never hears about it.”

“And he’s pulling a lot of shit?”

“Literally hasn’t changed since high school.”

Brock’s laugh was low, and he didn’t sound at all shocked. Even having spent a couple of years not in school with said cousin—James, if she had to use his name—Brock was no stranger to the trouble that followed him around.

“Surely just kick him out,” Brock suggested.

“He’s got one more chance. I really don’t want to cause a fuss, right now Court and Liam have no idea, but the poor wedding planner is getting complaints from the staff that he’s being rude to them.”

Brock patted the table and Josie looked at him, then. It truly was dangerous because there was nothing she wouldn’t have done for him. So, when he smiled at her and asked if she wanted to go for a little walk outside to destress there was no chance she’d ever say no.

Despite the sweaty palms he gave her, and had given her for many years, being around Brock was easy. There was never any pressure, no expectations that ever came with him. At least no expectations coming from him, the expectations placed by other people were forever lingering.

The Country Club in Lakeville was the perfect place for a wedding—a fact that had held true for years, and would continue to for many more, Josie was sure—and the weather only made it more so. Despite the sun having set about an hour earlier, the temperature had held steady and, had it been any other wedding, Josie would have taken off her shoes and ran through the grass with her arms outstretched.

“Do you like being home?” Josie asked Brock when they stopped at a patio table.

“I like that it’s quieter here,” he admitted. “Vancouver’s great, but… Yeah. I like being home.”

They sat at the table, just staring over the course and into the night sky, with no knowledge of how long they’d been out there. Josie knew that she’d never be able to truly relax while she was waiting for James to do something, but it was nice.

Brock’s company was always welcome, his ability to find a topic and talk about it for any length of time had always impressed, and it was a welcome distraction even if it was only temporary.

Rebecca came to find her far too soon after they ventured outside, somehow looking even more frustrated than she had all night. James was hot on her heels, cursing up a very loud storm.

“She’s lying!” James shouted. Josie instinctively looked to Brock, her eye twitching.

“He’s now inappropriately touching the waitstaff.”

The eye twitch changed into a full grimace with an accompanying disgusted groan. James’ shouting got louder and angrier, that anger directed at Josie at the first sign that she didn’t believe him. Within a second of James taking a step forward to get in Josie’s face, Brock was standing. He didn’t raise his voice, nor did he sound particularly angry when he spoke.

“Time for you to go home, don’t you think?” Brock asked, so calm it was rather disturbing.

James stepped back but didn’t stop his yelling, trying to shout around Brock’s body to continue his tirade on Josie. Rebecca was long forgotten.

“It’s been ten fucking years and you’re still so fucking pussy whipped. She’s so fucking frigid she’s not going to sleep with you, dude, you don’t need to white knight.”

James’ words rolled through Josie’s head one by one, so slowly that she was only processing them one at a time. Until the meaning of what he’d said hit her, then her silence was because she had no idea how she could possibly respond.

Brock took care of it, though, clapping his hand down on James’ shoulder with a satisfying and deep thud, forcibly turning him around and saying, “Pretty sure your parents are looking for you.”

Rebecca stared at Josie wide eyed; Josie still didn’t know how she was supposed to have responded.

A few weeks passed and the next wedding popped up on Josie’s calendar—everyone she knew was getting married and it was the busiest summer she’d ever had. She had no responsibilities at any other wedding that summer, though, and as far as she knew there would be no sign of James at any of them, so she was letting her hair down.

Drunk. She was getting drunk.

Brock had also made an appearance which Josie hadn’t been expecting. Maybe she should have seeing as the Bride and Groom had invited practically everyone they’d ever met.

Josie and Courtney had barely left the dancefloor since they were let loose after dinner unless it was to get another drink that didn’t even make it back to the dancefloor. The looseness in her limbs helped the floating feeling coursing through her even as she and Courtney scream-singed at each other manically. Liam moved around them, manic in his own way, and joined them to bounce and sing through the choruses.

Every so often, Josie would catch sight of Brock somewhere throughout the room being cornered by someone who was no doubt talking to him about hockey. It was happening to Jake Oettinger, too. They were both far too nice to even pull a face that might let someone know they didn’t want to talk about it. Maybe they did want to talk about it—Josie didn’t know Jake very well at all and it had been years since she’d known Brock in any meaningful capacity.

The dancing did eventually stop when it was time for speeches, so Josie procured another drink from the bar and took her designated seat and readied herself for a bunch of inside jokes she had no context for. The chair beside her pulled back and Josie started to greet the old friend from high school she’d spoken with throughout dinner only to be met with Brock’s smiling face.

“Wow, Mike, you’ve changed a lot since dinner.”

“I’ve been trying to get your attention since dinner,” he said, hushed. “You’ve been having fun.”

It didn’t take long for the speeches to drag on—the bride was the least interesting person Josie had ever met and nobody had injected her with any personality in the lead up to the wedding which was a surprise because her father stole the show and spoke for what may have been half an hour.

Brock was mumbling under his breath beside her, mostly when a new person got up to speak but the ones that had her struggling to muffle her own laughs were the for fuck’s sake that fell from his mouth whenever someone paused, raising everyone’s hope, only to continue and destroy it all. Everyone was apparently following the same formula of disappointment.

The applause when the speeches finally ended could not have been solely for the speech itself, it was far too enthusiastic for how boring the speech was.

“Drink?” Brock asked, already standing.

Josie was past the point of being concerned about a hangover, so she walked with Brock to the bar, ordered another glass of champagne and happily let Brock walk them outside. It was a cooler night than the last time they sat outside, but the alcohol running through her veins meant that Josie hardly felt it.

“Do you ever just tell people you don’t want to talk about hockey?”

Brock’s mouth twitched, “Josie, I don’t want to talk about hockey.”

She huffed, slouching down in the chair she found, and then started to giggle when Brock’s face morphed into a proper smile. Still laughing, Josie let her head fall back against the top of the chair, her eyes falling shut even if she did want to stare up at the stars.

“Do you want to talk about anything?” she asked slowly, taking time to sound out each word. “I don’t know how long I can talk for.”

“I just wanted to see if you were okay after what James said.”

it was a punch to the gut, being reminded. She forced herself to shrug. Talking was, at that point, beyond her. Brock didn’t seem bothered by the silence.

When the next wedding rolled around, Josie was much more sensible. It helped that Courtney and Liam had finally departed for their honeymoon and Josie had nobody to get silly with, and also that her parents were in attendance. It was a much smaller wedding, too, so she couldn’t blend into the crowd.

The biggest factor might have been that she had been seated right next to Brock. Somehow, she didn’t know who was the reason behind it, their chairs ended up right next to each other—so close that she could feel the warmth of his body from his leg where it was pressed against hers.

“Will the speeches be better this week?” Brock whispered in her ear. Josie covered her mouth to muffle the sudden laugh that threatened to burst from her mouth.

They weren’t better, but they were at least shorter.

It didn’t take any convincing for Josie to join Brock outside—their own little wedding tradition, it seemed. It was their space, even when half the guests had ventured outside and away from the loud music, and Josie couldn’t help but lean towards him to make sure she didn’t miss a single word he said.

“I didn’t realise we still had so many friends in common,” she said after they were briefly interrupted by someone wanting to say hello.

Brock bristled, affronted, “I didn’t just forget everyone when I left.”

“No, I know,” she stressed. “You and I both know that the hockey team and I weren’t exactly best friends. James made sure of that after you went to Iowa.”

Brock’s face fell. He’d heard the stories because Josie was the one to tell him during the summer after high school after two years of being put through hell. James’ outburst at Courtney and Liam’s wedding wasn’t dissimilar to what he’d been saying to her for years.

“That’s not the point, though,” Josie interjected, noticing that Brock was opening his mouth to speak. “The point is, that I forget that you had friends outside of the hockey team. Have friends outside the hockey team.”

It didn’t do much to appease Brock, Josie noticed, a sullen expression still etched across his face. Her shoulders fell when she realised that she’d sufficiently killed the happy mood they had been sitting in.

Without warning, after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, Brock said, “You’re one of the best friends I’ve kept.” He continued, after a loud and uncontrolled scoff from Josie, “I know we aren’t as close as we used to be but… I don’t know, you’re someone I would have hated to lose contact with.”

Josie rose and moved towards Brock, bending down to wrap her arms around his neck before he could even register what she was doing. She was forever glad they were still in touch, even if they typically only talked over the summer.

It did nothing to help ten years of pent-up feelings when Brock’s hand settled against her lower back, the thin material of her dress doing nothing to hide the warmth of it. The size of it. The way it made her heart jump into her throat.

He didn’t move it as she started to pull away—not because she wanted to move, but because she had to in order to preserve her own sanity. She could only imagine the sadness and longing, in her eyes when she was just far enough from him to make eye contact.

“Brock…”

“Why haven’t we?” Brock asked in a whisper.

In just as quiet a whisper, Josie asked back, “Why haven’t we what?”

“You know what.”

Brock’s eyes drifted to her mouth, and Josie promptly forgot how to breathe. Josie looked at his mouth, struck by the way they slowly parted and hers unconsciously did the same. The light pressure on her lower back increased, it was only slightly but it was enough to have her leaning into him.

“Josie? Are you out here?”

With a sudden but noticeable lack of warmth against her lower back, Josie straightened with a heavy sigh—Brock was laughing in disbelief.

“Yes, Mom,” she said, slowly sinking back into the seat she’d left.

And so, Josie’s mom wandered out into the courtyard, none the wiser to what she had interrupted, and starting a lengthy rant about her own sister that held Brock and Josie captive until it was time for the First Dance.

At least by then Josie’s breathing had returned to normal, though her erratic heartbeat was never going to calm when Brock was looking at her so softly.

The summer of weddings was never ending, with Josie being pulled interstate to attend weddings of some of her sorority sisters. They were exceedingly fun, even if Josie found herself looking around the room for Brock without realising—he’d become quite the fixture.

She was still yet to see him outside of a wedding, despite his assertion that they were friends, but Josie wasn’t making any efforts to organise that either, so she wasn’t able to blame him solely. Courtney had not been quiet about any of it and had made multiple threats to schedule a double date. All of her suggestions had been cut down, no matter how well intentioned.

At Josie’s final wedding of an otherwise gruellingly long summer, she spotted Brock almost instantly. As did Courtney and Liam, both of whom pushed Josie in Brock’s direction. She only barely saved herself from tripping in her heels before Brock was shifting his attention away from Jake Oettinger—god, it really was a small world that he’d been at two of the summer’s weddings—and noticing her. He didn’t waste any time in abandoning Jake to stand beside Josie.

“Fancy seeing you here.”

“Surely there’s no one left in Minnesota to get married.”

“Just us, I think.”

Josie didn’t want to conjure up an image of her standing with Brock at an altar, in a dress she’d been dreaming about her entire life, but she did. In high-definition technicolour.

With cheeks red and warm, Josie blinked the image from her mind and accidentally made eye contact with Brock when she started to frantically search for Courtney to come save her. The eye contact was the worst thing she could have done; it added to her wedding daydream as she plastered that expression onto Brock’s face at the altar.

It became clear that nobody was coming to her rescue—that anybody even noticed she was in need of rescuing— so Josie turned her back on the crowd of people so that they wouldn’t see the heartbreak on her face when she said, “You can’t say things like that.”

“Why not?” Brock asked with no hesitation or uncertainty.

“Because it’s not just us, Brock. It’s never me.”

“What are you talking about, Josie?” She had never heard him sound so exasperated or confused. The tight pull of his eyebrows softened as he said, “It was always you. It’s literally always been you.”

Josie frowned as she felt her shoulders sag—no weight had been lifted from them by the admission. In fact, she felt more tense than ever at Brock’s words.

“That’s… That might be worse, you know?” she sighed. “It’s been like ten years and if it’s always been me then why has it never been me?”

“Why has it never been me? I didn’t think I was very subtle.”

A swarm of people began to move in their direction, and Josie turned just enough to see people beckoning the crowd into the chapel.

Harried and conscious of how close everyone else was getting, Josie whispered frantically, “We can’t do this now.”

“We can do this whenever,” Brock said, taking Josie’s hand as if it was the easiest thing in the world. “We should do this all the time.”

Josie’s brain wasn’t entirely online as she felt Brock’s long fingers wrap around hers, and it was only just started to register everything around her again when he used that hand to pull her closer to him. There was so much time to move away, that Josie nearly did because she thought he’d pulled her in on accident. The way his head tilted down was unmistakable, though, and Josie didn’t want to move a muscle as their lips touched for the first time.

[robinbuckleysfringe]

paper rings

a joseph quinn social media au

pairings: joseph quinn x keery!reader

warnings: pronouns for reader vary between she & they, I've tried to keep it as gender neutral as possible even tho I do use female faceclaims

part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4 | masterlist

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*yninstagram has posted*

tagged josephquinn & strangerthings

liked by joekeery, sadiesink, jonathandavissofficial, carlaciagrant and others

yninstagram what a fun little season. feel very grateful to have won something for our little show. thank you for trusting me with bringing Josie Henderson to life @/dufferbros, and thank you to @/josephquinn for being my emotional support last night 🫶🏻😘

View comments

joekeery so proud of you ❤️

> yninstagram for real?? thanks joe ❤️

> joekeery wdym "for real?". of course I'm proud of you

maya_hawke absolutely deserved!! so freaking proud of you!!!! 🫶🏻

> yninstagram aww, love you maya 🫶🏻🫶🏻

rachelzegler MY BESTIE IS AN EMMY WINNER 😍😍😍

> rachelzegler so damn proud of you y/n!!!

> yninstagram love you so much rach!! 💕💕

josephquinn it was a joy to be able to watch you win a very much deserved award ❤️ xx

> yninstagram ❤️❤️

madelyncline SHE'S A STAR ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

> madisonbaileybabe YESSSS Y/N!!! 🥳🥳🥳😍😍😍

> jonathandavissofficial can't believe she's an emmy winner!! so proud of you y/n!!! 🫶🏻

> hichasestokes get it y/n!!!! 🫶🏻💕

> carlaciagrant you're one of the hardest working people I know. this is so deserved!!! 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

> rudeth wanna win one for our show next time?? 😂

> yninstagram shut up 😂🫶🏻

> rudeth no but, for real, you deserve this

> yninstagram big love to all you guys 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻❤️❤️❤️

> user awww, the obx fam supporting y/n is so cute!!!

> user2 I love this thread!!! yes guys!!!

user literally screamed when I saw you won!!! amazing!!!

user that 3rd pic with y/n and joseph quinn is literally so cute 😍😍

user I want me a man who looks at me the way joseph looks at y/n

user wait, does this mean they're actually together???

> user2 not particularly. could just be friends supporting friends

> user3 if that was the case, she'd have taken rachel cause they literally follow each other to every premiere

> user2 rachel could've been busy. we don't know

> user4 can we just let them be happy?? if they're together it's their choice whether they announce it or not

*yninstagram liked this comment*

☆☆☆

*yninstagram has posted*

tagged barbiemovie & gretagerwig

liked by emmamackey, josephquinn, maya_hawke, joekeery and others

yninstagram hi barbie 🖐🏻🩷. this quite possibly has to be my favourite project ever. had an absolute blast 🩷

View comments

rachelzegler okay but my bestie is the coolest

> yninstagram can confirm 🩷

joekeery the fact that you managed to keep this a secret is absolutely amazing

> yninstagram honestly it was so difficult

madelyncline living the DREAM 🤩🤩🤩

josephquinn stunning 😍😍

> yninstagram stoppp ❤️

madisonbaileybabe slay!!! 👑

user this iconic

user mother is mothering 😍😍😍

user you're an icon

user eeek!!! I was already excited for this but now I'm even more so!!!

user did anyone else see joseph quinn's comment??!!

> user2 FREAKING OUT!!!

> user3 no cause they're so totally together

☆☆☆

*yninstagram has posted*

tagged josephquinn

liked by joekeery, sadiesink, calebmclaughlin, nattyiceofficial and others

yninstagram happy birthday my love, to the person who brings me the upmost amount of joy. I hope the next year brings you everything you deserve and more ❤️😘

View comments

yninstagram p.s i'm sorry to @/bowerjamie for cropping your face out the 2nd photo. that's a crime I'll never commit again 🫶🏻

> joekeery oh, so you'll apologise to jamie but not me??

> yninstagram im sorry?? I guess??

> bowerjamie I forgive you, don't worry x

> joekeery I don't.

> yninstagram @/joekeery rude

bowerjamie also big happy birthday to you, man @/josephquinn x

> josephquinn thanks mate x

user not y/n hard launching her boyfriend for his birthday

> user2 we've all known for ages tho

maya_hawke happy birthday joe!!

> josephquinn thanks maya x

josephquinn thank you my love 😘❤️🫶🏻

> yninstagram love youu big time 😘🫶🏻

gatenm123 happy birthday joe!!! hope you have a great day!!!

> josephquinn thanks gaten x

joekeery happy birthday joe x

> josephquinn thanks mate x

user they're so cute together, I can't even 🥺🥺🥺

☆☆☆

long overdue but heres finally a new chapter. enjoy 🩷

[thedeafprophet]

its Josephine's birthday, everyone say happy birthday Josie. she is twenty six years old now, woooo