#having 1 chapter per bad kid is so troubling for me i need them all to receive the same amount of love and focus

[luvo27]

stress vs love cut scene concept from fabian's chapter!!

fabian's chapter ended up so much longer than i thought it would be. there was a scene concept where adaine and fabian break into rizs apartment to investigate and see if they can find out anything about baron, but it got scrapped for 1. time, 2. to avoid having to think about logistics, 3. the purpose it served for the plot/themes didnt work as much as i wanted it to, and while it probably would have worked out if i kept hammering at it, I'm happy with the chapter as it is. that being said, i have a few unfinished snippets to share!!

this scene was originally going to take place before the 2nd dream sequence:

“Whoever the fuck you are, I have a gun and I’m not afraid to use it—Fabian? Adaine?” “Hi, Riz’s mom.” “What the fuck?” “Hi, Mrs. Gukgak,” Adaine says sheepishly, getting up from the floor. “Sorry about your window.” “The window’s—kids, what in the world are you doing here?” “We’re, um. We’re worried about Riz.” Sklonda sighs and puts down her gun. “Yeah,” she says. “Me too. Do you guys—you, or any of the other kids, do you have any idea what’s happening? He’s been so…” she rubs her forehead. There are bags under her eyes, Fabian realizes. “He hasn’t been like himself,” Sklonda finishes. “Do you think we could…” “Kids…look, normally, I might say yes. I’m really glad he’s got friends like you in his corner, but it’s three in the morning and he’s asleep, so—” “We should let him sleep. Yeah.” “Plus there might be—” Adaine shoves Fabian in the side. “Ow!” He clutches his side. “What was that for?” Sklonda eyes them suspiciously. “Kids? Is there something I should know about?” “Maybe. We’re not sure yet.” “Is it something dangerous? Is Riz in danger?” Adaine hesitates. “Maybe,” she says. “We don’t—that’s why we’re here. We think it’s…it’s complicated,” she finishes lamely. “It’s Baron,” Fabian says. Adaine shoves him again. “Ow!” Sklonda’s eyes sharpen. “Riz’s boyfriend. Yeah. I talked to Jawbone about it, do you—you kids have met Baron, right? Do you know anything about them? Anything you haven’t told us?” Adaine and Fabian look at each other. “Not really,” Adaine says unhappily. “They’re dating Riz, and they’re probably not great, considering they’re like, Nightmare King adjacent or something. But we don’t know how, or what, or why—we don’t know what’s happening with Riz.” “Okay. Okay. I really…Riz could use all the rest he can get, so—” “Yeah, we weren’t really planning to talk to him tonight anyways, what with the powerful evil partner—-” “Powerful evil partner?” “Uh. Yeah. You know about the hands?” “The what? I mean, I guess Kristen mentioned something about hands a while ago—” “Yeah, exactly. Mrs. Gukgak, the point is, we don’t want to put Riz in danger. Or any more than he’s in already. We’re just…we need more information. Normally, Riz is the one who’d be breaking and entering—” “Fabian.” “Ahem! I mean, gathering information.”

“We should have brought Gorgug.” “We should steal Riz’s tie.” “We cannot steal Riz’s tie.” “He’s asleep! And we’re trying to help him.” “Yeah, and you were trying to help him when you asked about Baron during lunch.” Adaine goes silent. “Sorry. I didn’t—sorry. You, uh. You tried. It’s not your fault.”

“Mrs. Gukgak, have you been having problems with your heating system?” “No. Not that I’ve noticed.” “You’re sure? No problems with your heater, or like, windows opened, or anything? It’s been normal? You haven’t felt colder than usual?” “Well, I mean…we don’t turn the heat on super high here. But now that you mention it, I think I’ve been wearing warmer clothes inside than I usually do. And I think Riz has started wearing gloves, but I thought he was trying out a new look, and I didn’t want—you know how he gets, right?” Adaine nods. Sklonda lets out a breath. “Yeah,” she says. “It’s not—I don’t know if it’s something big enough for me to really notice, but if it helps, I do think it’s been a bit chillier than normal. Why?” “Just…thinking. It might be connected, I’m not sure.” “Right. Let me know if there’s anything else I can help with, alright?”

“That was useless. If we had Riz…” Fabian trails off. If they had Riz, they wouldn’t have had to do all this in the first place. “Yeah,” Adaine agrees.

plus an additional bit of fabian's voicemail at the end of the chapter from before the scene got cut :))

"We’ve been doing some investigation. Me and Adaine, that is. You’d be proud of us. Or maybe not, we did get caught almost immediately. And we were also breaking into your apartment, and I don’t know how you would feel about that. Maybe I shouldn’t have said that. How do you delete voicemails? Uh. Well, I thought I would tell you that, you know, we tried. Investigating’s hard, the Ball. Honestly, I don’t know how you do it. It’s, uh, a very impressive skill, I’m figuring out. It’s really cool that you’re so good at it."

[selyas]

Chapter 1

Batman needs a Robin

Ina was a street rat. A dirty, malnourished, eleven year old from Crime Alley. She couldn’t fight well and didn’t even steal, because mama would be mad. Samantha Reilly was a victim of abuse and bad luck all her life, but she refused to subject her daughter to the same fate. The day Ina gets caught stealing something from the wrong person will be her last and Samantha much prefers to prevent it altogether. So, while she was never very skilled in street fights, she could at least throw a punch. She was smart and incredibly fast on her feet. That sufficed. They can survive a little longer, if Ina doesn't cause trouble.

Contrary to popular belief, Red Hood was a kind man. He cared for the children of Crime Alley in a way no one else usually did. Ina spent her day running around and playing with other kids unfortunate enough to live in Park Row. Many of those children, much like herself, more often than not went to bed hungry. But never when Red Hood was around. Gotham City as a whole may have Batman, but they have their own hero. The man was in his thirties (even though there was a visible grey streak in his hair) and always brought food for the kids. That evening wasn't different. Little children and teenagers alike ran to him cheering loudly. The anti-hero only laughed and set down the bag for them to rummage through. Ina's mom wasn't home that day at all. Weekends were very busy days at her work, but in all her stress she forgot to leave something to eat for her daughter. The girl couldn't blame her mama for making mistakes like that, seeing her mother's state every time she came back home. Samantha's boss was the definition of what could only be described as a "motherfucker". With that thought, Ina took out a cheeseburger and murmured a shy thank you before biting into it happily. She felt Red Hood's large hand rest on the top of her head, before ruffling her dark brown hair. The girl grimaced out of habit, but didn't swat his hand away.

In the end, the vigilante vanished as quickly as he appeared, but the kids knew he would be back. Hopefully with more food and some stories from his missions. The sky started to darken and Ina decided it was her que to leave. She said goodbyes to her friends and marched quickly, almost soundlessly home.

[-]

Crime Alley, per it's name, was usually full of very shady people, but as Ina hurried through she didn't spot anyone at all. Now that sparked trouble. She thought about running, but immediately decided against it. Suddenly, she heard labored breathing coming from around the corner. It was a sound of a dying man, she knew. Slowly, minding her own safety first, she peaked at the wounded person. Her blood ran cold. Leaning against the wall, in a pool of his own blood was the goddamn Batman. He clutched his chest, probably trying to stop the bleeding. Not very successfully. Ina crouched next to him in panic.

'Sir? Hello? I will call the ambulance.'

He gripped her arm with much force, before she could take out the phone. The cheapest one there was, but it was all she needed.

'No. They can't know who I am. I have to go to the Batcave' the vigilante's voice was strained with pain. He reached to his belt and took out a small device. Car keys - she realised. 'The Batmobile should be on it's way. Just help me get to it.'

He was right, after a few moments Ina saw a big and probably very expensive vehicle roll onto the road right outside of the dark alley. The girl was so high on adrenaline and focused on not letting the Batman die that she coudn't even bring herself to be amazed by it. She "helped" him stand or rather supported his balance as he leaned on the brick wall, colouring it red with his blood. They somehow got to the Batmobile - as the man called it - and he collapsed onto the drivers seat with a sigh of absolute suffering. Ina didn't know what came over her in that moment, but she quickly sat on the only passenger seat available. Batman eyed her in shock and looked like he wanted to argue, but before he could waste his breath any further, she cut in.

'I'm sorry, but there's no way I will let you go home like that all alone. You're barely conscious!'

He didn't respond, instead opting to relax into his seat. He typed in the destination on a bright panel and felt his eyes close involuntarily. He shouldn't have gone to patrol tonight. His previous injury hasn't fully recovered yet and went out against Alfred's stern discouragement, not putting on his com link for good measure. How foolish of him. Now, he was basically dying with a little, scared girl by his side after getting stabbed between ribs. All because of mild pain making him hesitate and allowing his opponent to take advantage. Father is going to kill him. Unless, of course, Pennyworth doesn't beat him to it.

[dangermousie]

CFC 199

I can’t believe we are almost at 200 chapters!

1. Man, that kindergarten has the worst security and should be shut down. Sure random dude, have a kid! WTF! But He Yu resorting to kidnapping a toddler just to have a meal with XQC is kinda hilarious actually. Sure, show some more how you don’t care about XQC! (Man, I wonder if he’s living out a fantasy that’s his and XQC’s biologically impossible child. Man’s brain is...special.)

2. Bwahahahaha and now the housekeeper is giving XQC a tour of HY’s fancy villa, under HY’s instructions I am sure. Is HY trying to Mr Darcy his way into XQC’s heart? Should have done it before insulting him earlier and indicating he DNGAF about him but I suppose he really wants a faithful Pride and Prejudice redo. (Is Anthony Wickham then? Heh.)

3. Ahahahaha at Ya Ya calling HY “good looking ge.” That girl is the MVP of the story. Also apparently HY told her the plot of zootopia. I know which one is the fox and which one is the rabbit in HY’s mind :P

4. Little (for the value of little) He Yu has entered the chat:

And then he begins to have unbridled fantasies as he watches XQC bend over Ya Ya of the type of “he likes kids, I should have him conceive many times, can start tonight” - by now Meatbun’s thirst for ABO is greater than the Pacific Ocean.

5. The whole “look at him so composed and holy, I wanna wreck it” is pretty routine for HY (and echoes 2ha actually) and is not per se a bad thing - it tracks with HY’s tastes and issues where he likes that XQC is so masculine and where he can make him react because so much of his life he’s spent not mattering and invisible

But the problem is when his issues push his liking of dominance or wrecking beyond the bounds of acceptable and consent and he’s a resentful mess now so I am not exactly sanguine about him keeping that side of himself in check.

When it says “he didn’t want to do it yet,” the yet is giving me shudders. Like, as far as he knows, XQC doesn’t want him but that does not appear to give him pause in his head.

6. HY basically blackmails XQC into a meal by implying he will keep dragging Ya Ya into it. Nice. Ugh, not loving his character regression.

7. HY had chef make all the meaningful dishes. Dude, your “I forgot everything” is utterly threadbare by now. But then they talk about Anthony and in light of what Anthony said, XQC misconstrues everything HY says as a confirmation they are together and he’s been replaced and DAMMIT!

XQC dealing with knowledge he’s not irreplaceable to HY any more - which is something he thought he wanted but of course it’s breaking his heart. And thinking of HY as one of his precious things omg. JUST TALK IT OUT, IDIOTS!

8. And then HY gives him pear rock soup but it’s cooked by a chef not him and so while it’s made properly, XQC is quietly falling apart because HY’s sincerity is not in it like when he last made it and XQC dumped him, but it is, it is, just TALK TO EACH OTHER!!!!

9. XQC warns HY about Anthony not being sincere and HY is all “sure, yeah, but I don’t need sincerity, I got stung with that, I just like comfort” and of course XQC misreads as a further confirmation of relationship between the two and the way he thinks he can’t even be hurt by HY’s hate any more because he’s used to it so no need to rub that relationship in further, but still stands up to leave - my heart!

10. OMG Chen Man calls and HY is all ”that’s why you don’t want to stay, want to meet with CM?” and is there a vinegar sale today? And XQC does not want to explain because he’s had enough of the whole HY x Anthony thing and so his pride does not let him look discarded and oh crossed wires everywhere and Anthony’s lies are causing so much trouble because without them he would have explained and ARGH! Because now HY thinks XQC is with CM and that is not a subject he’s rational about.

11. HY is back to his fox with the grapes in the fable behavior calling XQC haggard and crippled and old and asking if CM won’t be grossed out kissing him. He’s like a natural pick up artist, yikes!

12. XQC walks off and HY has an epic tantrum, pulling off the tablecloth which shatters everything. Quite symbolic.

13. It was HY who broke into XQC’s house then so good, at least his medicine wasn’t tampered with but he should have looked at the drug labels. I love the way it describes him breathing in the air of XQC’s apartment greedily - that’s love when even the air is special because it’s been breathed by the person you love. And he felt relieved not seeing signs of XQC living with anyone. But now it looks like XQC confirmed he’s with CM and HY is losing his mind wondering if they kissed or slept together or what. (Also, once again it mentions he couldn’t access news of XQC in Australia - because org kept them away or he didn’t want to spook the org? I can’t think it’s the latter since he’s doing whatever now.)

14. HY is having an attack just from thinking XQC has become Chen Man’s instead of his but his reaction to Anthony’s check in indicates (in case one needed proof), there is no relationship there and he barely tolerates the man. But yeah, he’s basically writhing on the bed, marbles utterly lost.

15. The A/N where Meatbun says HY looks at XQC with Ya Ya like a young husband at his wife and kid. Bwhahahaha I will eat my head if her next novel is not actual ABO or mpreg.

15.

[ashyblondwaves]

could you make the gym prompt a part 2 at visions place please 😁

The Playlist Chapter 1: Breathless

Wanda stared up at the high rise apartment building in front of her, scanning the lit windows to see if she could figure out which apartment was Vision’s. Referring to her phone, she saw the apartment number was 3C. Third apartment, third floor. Her eyes immediately went to a glowing window on the third floor There was a healthy golden pothos plant dangling in the open space, leaves bright and green, the stems spilling over the pot in long flowing lines. Did axe murderers keep lush plants?

Seems innocent enough, Wanda thought. She was still having a little trouble wrapping her mind around the fact that she’d agreed to going to this guy’s house after talking to him for less than five minutes. But there was something about him. Something she felt at her core that drew her to him. Saying no just wasn't an option.

She entered the lobby, searching for the buzzer for 3C and gaving it a long press. With hope, he'd heard it and she wouldn't have to press it again. It was hard enough to even press it once.

"Hello?" a voice came over the .

"H-Hi, it-it's Wanda" she stammered. "From the gym."

Did you really even need to clarify that, Wanda? Probably not.

"Hi Wanda. Come on up," Vision replied, his voice crackling through the speaker. With a loud buzz, the glass door unlocked and Wanda let herself inside.

Too late to go back now.

The third floor had a slight odor, like someone had burnt popcorn a few days prior and the aroma still hung lightly in the air, but apartment three stood out. It was adorned with a subtle copper pipe wreath with a few Tillandsias affixed to the bottom. Wanda smiled to herself at the decoration. Axe murderers definitely didn't deck out their front doors with air plants.

Wanda knocked on the door and heard shuffling almost instantly. The door swung open to reveal Vision, cleaned up and no longer sweaty. He'd traded his soaked tank top for a simple white button down, rolled at the sleeves and gray dress pants. At least she hadn't overdressed when she chose the flowing, white sundress from her closet. In fact, it seemed to match Vision perfectly.

Vision stepped to the side. "Please, come in," he said cheerfully.

As Wanda walked in she noticed the change in smell from the hallway immediately. This smell was familiar. It smelled like home.

"I hope you haven't eaten yet, I just finished making Paprikash," Vision explained, motioning to the kitchen. "I could fix you a bowl, if you'd like?"

"I'd love some," Wanda said, immediately realizing her mistake. What if he put something in her food? She followed Vision into the kitchen, watching his every move, just to be sure. As he handed her the bowl with a pure smile on his face, she felt bad for thinking the worst of him.

He fixed a bowl for himself and lead Wanda out of the kitchen and into a comfortable living room. In the middle of the room, there was a gray sectional complete with a chaise lounge on the right hand side and two matching recliners on either side.

"Please," Vision said, motioning to the living room. "Make yourself at home on the couch or one of the recliners. Unless you'd prefer to sit at the dining room table?"

"Oh no, no," Wanda said, plopping down on the chaise section of the couch. "This is just fine."

Vision took a spot on the recliner across from her, immediately digging into his bowl of paprikash, making sure to finish chewing before he spoke.

"So, what kind of music are you into?" he asked, taking another bite. He went silent to chew and continued. "I wasn't kidding about making you a playlist tonight."

Wanda smiled, almost touched by how seemingly genuine Vision's intentions seemed to be. "I'll listen to anything, really. But in terms of a workout? It needs to be upbeat and get me moving."

"So for workout purposes, would it be safe to assume you prefer something like EDM remixes, where the beats per minute almost always fall in time with movement?" Vision asked, finishing off his bowl of paprikash.

"I'd say that's a fair assessment," Wanda nodded. "Dance music almost always gets the blood flowing."

"Perfect, then we'll start there." Vision said, standing up just as Wanda finished her food. "Can I take your bowl for you?"

Wanda handed him her empty bowl and settled back into the chaise, another smile sneaking up on her as Vision disappeared into the kitchen to take care of the dishes. She took a minute to look around his apartment. Behind her was a simple dining room, with a black dining set, shining like it'd just been dusted. Next to it was the bedroom, the room was dark but she could just make out the dark colored sheets on an impeccably made bed but couldn't see anything else.

The room next to it seemed to be a home office or studio of some kind and is where Vision disappeared to after finishing the dishes. He came back out a few minutes later with a Macbook and a Bluetooth speaker in his hands.

"Alright," he started, this time sitting on the couch and setting the computer down between him and Wanda while the speaker went on the coffee table.

"So I figured we'd start by going through some other workout playlists to see if anything jumps out at you," Vision explained, pulling up Spotify on his computer. "You're okay with listening to music with me?"

"Of course." She nodded eagerly, almost too eager. She slowed her movements and kept her nod in check. "That's what I'm here for."

Vision smiled and started typing.

"Let's try this Workout Remixes playlist first," he said, clicking on the shuffle button as the first song started to play. Wanda listened and immediately heard Sam Smith's voice.

"What's this one?" Wanda asked. "I like it."

"It's called Promises. Looks like it's by Calvin Harris and features Sam Smith," Vision read. "Want me to add it?"

"Yes," Wanda said. "Please."

"There," Vision said, clicking along on his trackpad. "You've got the first song on your new playlist."

They spent the next hour listening to bits of songs and adding the ones Wanda liked to the playlist, dancing and laughing as the beats filled their chests. Any fear about Vision's true intentions abandoned long ago.

"Would you mind if I took a look at your current playlist?" Vision asked. "I can probably recommend a few songs for you based on that."

Wanda nodded and pulled up her playlist, handing her phone over to Vision who looked at it closely and intently. He was really into this.

"You were listening to Bassnectar earlier?" he asked. "It's still paused, that's why I ask. Do you like them?"

"Yeah, they're not bad," Wanda said. "They have some good songs."

"Have you heard Breathless? If not, I highly recommend it."

"Put it on," Wanda said, waiting to hear the music begin. As the beat filled the air she suddenly noticed how close they moved next to each other throughout the last hour. The computer was now on the coffee table with the speaker and Wanda sat cross legged on the chaise, mere inches from Vision who sat with one leg firmly planted under him.

I'm still restless... Leave me breathless...

"What do you think?"

Wanda nodded her approval and continued to listen to the lyrics, a haunting reverberating voice pumped out of Vision's speaker and seemed to stir something deep inside of her.

In all my dreams I'm still restless Why do you always leave me breathless

They were face to face, looking at each other, the space between them closed long ago. She looked closely at Vision, his blue eyes seemed to be searching her face for an invitation to her lips. Silently and lightly, she nodded, letting Vision know it was ok to kiss her and he moved in quickly, pressing a quick and almost chaste kiss to her lips.

"I hope there's more than that," Wanda breathed, shocked at her sudden boldness, but it was the truth. There was more brewing between them than a quick peck on the lips. "I mean-"

She was cut off by Vision's lips on hers again, this time lingering in feather light kisses that then trailed across her cheek. His hands moved to cup her face and pull her closer and she let him, scooting closer until their legs were interlocked and they were almost tangled in each other.

Vision inched his nose across Wanda's cheek, pressing another delicate kiss where the tip of his nose had been.

"I don't want you to think this is the only reason I invited you here," Vision whispered, dropping another kiss to Wanda's waiting lips.

"I wouldn't mind if you did," Wanda said earnestly, accepting yet another kiss from Vision. "I've had my eyes on you for weeks."

"I know," Vision sighed, finally pressing his lips firmly to Wanda's and she eagerly opened her mouth to let Vision's tongue inside. He kissed her deeply, thoroughly, exploring her mouth and letting Wanda explore his and soon, they'd completely forgotten about the playlist, letting the Bassnectar song end and another begin.

This beat was just as haunting, a deep echoing hum and a song of craving someone. Wanda felt the hum in her chest and pulled Vision down on top of her. She allowed his body to slip between her legs as his hips instinctively rolled, a light moan escaping his lips in response to the movement. Wanda felt the bulge at the front of Vision's pants pressing against her panties, teasing her middle. She lifted her hips, searching for his erection, desperate for more contact.

They spent many minutes pressed together, Vision grinding his hips against Wanda's middle while both stayed fully clothed. It didn't seem to be going any further than that, and Wanda didn't mind. She liked the teasing, the build of pressure and wetness at her front staying present as Vision moved off of her and took her in his arms, dropping light kisses against her neck and down her collarbone.

"I hope this is okay," Vision said between kisses. "Lying here with me."

"More than okay," Wanda whispered. She ran her fingers through his hair, guiding his head down to kiss her where she wanted him to, right at the curve of her neck and shoulder. His kisses were warm and inviting, leaving trails of heat and wetness in their wake. If she was being honest with herself, she didn't ever want him to stop.

Life is funny, she thought. Earlier today I was staring at him, only wondering what he might sound like, how he might hold me. Now I'm in his arms, accepting his kisses and feeling all of him.

Wanda was snapped out of her reverie when Vision suddenly pulled away, turning to his computer and typing something in. A new song started, one that felt like it was picked just for her.

We stayed up all night Talking to each other, whispers under covers

Vision returned to the chaise, pulling Wanda close again, pressing his forehead to hers and speaking in a low, rumbling voice.

"I'm not normally this forward," he admitted, kissing the tip of her nose. "But there's something about you that I feel deep in my veins."

Wanda wouldn't say out loud that she felt it too. A buzz when she looked at him. Some kind of deep connection that she couldn't pinpoint but enjoyed nonetheless. Like they'd been here before. Together, again and again.

She pulled herself closer, nuzzling her head into his neck, pressing her own kisses to the pulse point that was frantically pumping.

"Calm down," she said soothingly. "I'm here. You have me."

It's the last thing she remembered before sleep pulled her under. She woke hours later, music still playing, the room fully dark and Vision curled up asleep next to her on the chaise. They could have easily gone to the bedroom, but it didn't feel right yet. It held implications of things neither of them were ready to admit just yet, so they stayed on the couch, tangled in each other and keeping one another warm.

Vision opened one eye, squinting as though he were making sure Wanda was still there.

"Hi," he said, his voice full of sleep.

"Hi," Wanda returned. "Sleep well?"

"Better than I have in a long time," Vision admitted. "Sorry I fell asleep on you."

"Well if we're being honest, I fell asleep on you, too," Wanda smiled. "And I'm not sorry that I did."

They both laughed, Vision's hand reaching out to run the tips of his fingers down Wanda's cheek. Blue eyes locked on Wanda's"

"When can I see you again?" he finally asked.

"I'll be at the gym tomorrow around five," Wanda said, propping herself up on her elbow. "Can you make it there then? Maybe we can grab dinner afterward?"

Vision nodded. "I'll be there." He pressed a sneaky kiss to her lips. "We'll work out together, too."

"Sounds like a date," Wanda said, returning Vision's kiss.

A date? Wanda thought. Why did I just say that?

Luckily, Vision chuckled and said, "It's a date."

[all-you-need-is-paul-mccartney]

Across the Universe II (Paul McCartney x Female!Reader)

Find Part One Here

A/N: I just checked chapter 1 and I literally put it up over a year ago. Shit. I just wrote a part 2, and finally got ahold of a computer to post it. I hope you's enjoy it. my last chapter had like... 20 likes altogether, so hopefully this chapter will draw some readers in.

Summary: Paul makes it to the Princeton campus where he not only reunites with his cousin Vick, but he meets a fellow stoner named Max. From there, the boys indulge in some Ivy League Hospitality.

WARNINGS: Drinking, swearing, smoking psychoactive substances (Cannabis), just dumb college guys doing dumb college shit. also, it's probably got mistakes bc I suck at revising

This is just a statement clearing up that none of these characters are mine except for Vick. Everyone else belongs to those who were involved in and/or collaborated with Julie Taymor in making the Across The Universe film (2007)

I'll rate this one a T seeing as the substance use isn't THAT bad.

"Vick Hoffner?"

"Try across the way, man. I think there's a Vick of sorts there."

Paul simply nodded at the stranger before turning on his heel and making a beeline to the next apartment, his hands fiddling with his useless book of contacts.

What was the point of giving me your number if you won't even pick up the phone?

He sighed, and rubbed his eyes tiredly with the palm of his hand. He'd been hitchhiking for two days just to get to the Princeton Campus, and then a few hours going through the closest rented apartments to locate him.

This was apartment number 9.

And it was nearing one AM.

Paul rapped weakly at the door, silently concluding that this would be the last place to check before finding somewhere to sleep until the next morning.

The door swung open, and Paul was face-to-face with this college kid who seemed to be about his age. He had unkempt blonde hair that curled around his ears, patchy stubble, and big blue eyes hazed over with the red assault of cannabis in his system.

Despite this, and the nearly empty beer bottle in his hand, the guy looked like he was keeping it together pretty well.

Paul cleared his throat, and raised an eyebrow. "... Vick Hoffner?"

"Nah, man. He's out at the moment gettin' drinks," the guy paused, and looked at Paul for a moment.

"Hey, hold on, you're not... Vick's cousin, are you?"

"Would it be an issue?" Paul asked sarcastically, to which the other guy responded after a laugh, "Nah. I just can't wait for him to get back and find out you got the better looks."

Paul just rolled his eyes, a smile on his lips. "Probably don't matter. He's the brains n' so is me brother. 'S what really matters; though I take pride in this thing." Paul pointed teasingly at his face.

The other guy smiled, pulling two cigarettes from behind his ear. He offered one to Paul, and he claimed the other. He lit the both of their cigs, and they each took a long drag after Paul scanned the apartment hallway for any angry tenants who happened to be against smoking indoors.

"So... does Vick's "pretty boy" cousin have a name?"

Paul nodded like the fact that he had a name was astounding information, but he smiled genuinely before bringing the cigarette back to his lips. "It's Paul."

"Max," The blond shoved his hand out, and the boys shook hands firmly. Max eyed Paul again."Where's that accent from, Paul?"

"Same place as me," Paul answered as he shoved his free hand in his pocket, blowing out smoke a moment after. "Liverpool."

"But why come to America?" Max gestured Paul into the apartment as he spoke, closing the door behind them. "Kill someone? Were you on the run from the cops? FBI?"

"'Sounds like you'd be one to know 'bout all of that." The boys took a seat on the couch in the centre of the room as their cigarettes slowly burned away as they chatted.

"Hey, hey, I've barely ever been in trouble with the cops, but I have pissed off every professor in Princeton, and have broken several campus windows."

" 'nd... you're proud of it?"

"I'm an adrenaline junkie, what can I say? Smashed nearly forty five windows and despite being Princeton's number one vandalidm suspect, I'm still not expelled. Y'know why?" Paul leaned in a little, enough to catch the dank scent of weed, and Max lowered his voice. "... because they can never prove it's me."

" 'nd why is that?"

The answer to Paul's question burst right through the apartment door.

"There's three more of us, and it could be any of them!" One of which, Paul could surprisingly recognize.

"Vick. Long time no see," Paul rose to his feet, and Vick, who'd set a six-pack of beer on the coffee table between them, greeted his cousin with a friendly hug and some "how are you"s.

Despite being an intelligent young man, Paul noticed that Vick behaved a little less like how he used to: polite, conservative, and proper. It was suspected that his behaviour changed because his newfound freedom at Uni allowed him to experience and access things that he would have been otherwise restricted from when he was younger.

Booze was one of them.

Dope was another.

In fact, he wordlessly cracked open a beer for Paul, and handed it to him like he'd asked for a drink in the first place.

Paul wasn't a huge drinker. It was never a vice of his, or anything like that either. He got shitfaced every once in a while for fun.

But when he brought that aluminum can up to his lips, Paul would never have guessed that it would have led to the night it did.

Five minutes after Vick and his buddies returned, Max brought out the roach Paul suspected he was sucking on before he got there.

With enthusiastic cheers from around the room, Max lit the sucker up, took a nice drag from the hot remainders of the joint, and passed it on to Paul.

Paul looked at the roach, almost as if he was confused. No one had asked him if he'd ever smoked before, but Max and the others yelled hurriedly over top of one another, instructing for Paul to suck in quickly and hold the smoke in for as long as he could.

It resulted in a coughing fit, and encouraging pats on the back from the other guys. Vick ended up taking the roach next, and Max reached out across the table.

"Have another one of these, my friend," he slid over another beer after cracking it open just moments before, despite the fact that Paul wasn't quite finished his first drink.

"Y'know, the more you cough, the higher you get? Pretty fucking sick. Like a win-win, man. You don't cough: You're high. You cough: You're super high."

As time went on, and Paul nursed his second drink more responsibly than the first one, things, ironically, started making less and less sense to him.

At one point, he was talking to the guy sitting across from him, and he just stopped talking for a whole ten seconds before turning to Max and asking "what the fuck was I just talking about?"

"Who fucking knows." The blond's shoulders shook as he tried suppressing his laughs, but eventually Paul just burst out into laughs and uncontrollable tears.

And everyone followed suit.

He had absolutely no idea how he got there, or how long he'd been there for, but sitting before Paul were now two empty Tankards. A waitress just set down another to him, and collected the table's empty glasses.

They were in a bar.

Max sat beside Paul as he watched Vick spectate the other two guys play pool.

For the life of him, Paul couldn't remember those guys' names, despite knowing he was told multiple times in the last few hours. To be fair, being drunk and stoned is a perfectly reasonable explanation as to how one forgets another's name. He supposed it didn't exactly matter, anyways.

"So, you got any hot sisters abroad I should know about?" Paul gave Max a funny look  but it may have been because it took so long for Paul's brain to register what had been asked.

"... No. Do you?"

"I've got two younger sisters; one's eight, and the older one's a little on the uglier side," though he didn't say it, Max's little smile indicated to Paul that he was joking about the last comment.

Paul and Max watched the boys play pool a little longer until the eight ball was pocketed.

"Wanna play?" Paul's head snapped to his left, and he nodded at Max's offer.

The other guys traded off, and Vick continued spectating. Max made the first break, and Paul watched as the cue ball rolled right into one of the pockets. Well, it seemed to have been only him to notice, because Max's eyes were instead trained on a brunette woman passing the two.

She looked over her shoulder to wink at Max, and rather than gouging his reaction, she simply walked off and took a seat alone in the corner of the bar.

"Do you believe in love at first sight, McCartney?"

"Well, I'm sure that it 'appens all the time. Never 'appened to me, personally."

"You just need to find the right one, my friend.." Max trailed off again, eyes still locked on the bird in the corner. He was slowly inching from the table and toward her. Max eventually just set the cue on the table and completely abandoned their game to talk to this girl, who flashed him a flirty smile with her bright white teeth and painted lips.

Paul watched Max amusedly, taking a swig from his beer and memorizing the moves Max was putting on his lady friend, who was clearly enjoying his company.

Maybe Paul wanted to get better at approaching certain women. He knew how to flirt, and be charming. It's not like he'd never had girlfriends. He'd had his fair share of girls in his teenage years, and he had Molly now back in Liverpool.

But Paul, at this moment, in his crossfaded brain, realized that he didn't want to attract the women he had been anymore. Just from her visual appearance, and how she was reacting to Max's charming flirts, Paul could sense an airiness to her personality. She was always smiling, inching closer, initiating physical contact by nudging his hand with her own, the list goes on.

Hell, even on her happiest days, Molly would be reluctant to kiss Paul, but he'd excuse her behaviour because she was just a regularly bitchy person who hated public displays of affection.

Or hardly any affection at all, it seemed.

Needless to say, Max returned to the table five minutes later with a phone number and a big red lipstick stain on his cheek. So to celebrate, the gang decided to go golfing.

"Here she is, Window Way," Max introduced Paul to the roof of their apartment building. The other boys started giggling at the name "Window Way". Each guy had their own club, Max held a bag of golf balls, and Vick carried another six pack.

Max set his things down and took in the crisp night air as Vick opened yet another beer for each of the boys. Max took a can for him, and one for Paul, and proceeded to show his new buddy just why he called it "Window Way".

"A Driver will send a ball..." Max pointed his arm straight out in front of him, his finger pointing right towards the windows of the Princeton Campus library.

"...Straight towards the school," Paul finished. He turned to look at Max. "You guys do this every night?"

"Paul, I do this all day. I barely go to class anymore."

"Hey, Max! You tee first!" One of the nameless guys called out to them. Max brandished the widest of grins before rushing to grab his club, a ball, and a green tee from his pocket. "Hey, Paulie, wanna help me out by holding my tee up?"

"Well, how'd I do that without gettin' hit?"

The other boys started laughing again, and Paul was genuinely confused until he found himself lying on his back seconds later, and the bottom of the tee between his lips, which only got heavier when Max set the ball down onto it.

If he were sober in this moment, Paul would not have been this comfortable with someone swinging a golf club full force towards his head and then trust their judgement regardless of their in intoxicity that they'd hit their target...

It was a good thing Max had been doing this for a long time, because wow, did that ball ever fly.

Paul watched in stoned disbelief as the ball soared far off into the distance and over the roof of the library. And while no one had seen it, they certainly heard the shatter from the other side of the building.

And that's when all five boys ran away from administration retired back to their room to light up a new joint Vick had also brought home as a surprise. They all sat around and lazily talked to one another about how crazy Max's shot was, and while some of them were falling in and out of sleep, Max insisted they all stay up to watch the sky change colour from the courtyard.

Paul didn't know how he stayed up any longer than he did, but he pulled through like a trooper, and they all watched the sky change as they lay down in the fallen leaves. But as soon as they all came back to their room for a final time, Paul dragged himself in exhaustion to the living room chair to sit, but he just slipped out of it onto the floor, and that's when his body decided to turn off on its own.

The other guys dropped to the ground or onto the furniture like dead flies, and within ten seconds of the door closing, the room was quiet.

And it stayed like that for nearly ten hours.

Paul woke up that evening with a raging headache and multiple trips to the bathroom to be sick, but now three things were certain for him: He definitely had one hell of a time, he definitely wanted to hang out with Max a lot more, and that evening Paul definitely got by with a little help from his new friends.

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

A/A/N: alrighty, if this chapter doesn't do too too bad, I'll see about continuing this story. I've got chapter 3 pretty much done as well, I'm just in the midst of revising it. If you want more, by all means, PLEASE let me know!

[official-weasley]

The Irreplaceable Charlie Weasley: Pt. 6, Ch. 1

PART 6: THE YEAR WHEN EVERYTHING FALLS INTO PLACE Chapter 1 - What is he Doing Here?

Charlie

I had nothing but an amazing Summer so far. I did great on my O.W.L.s and my family was proud. Mum told all the relatives how good Bill and I did, without thinking how embarrassed we would be by getting tons of congratulations letters. And to top it all off, Nova was staying with us for the entire Summer, and due to everything that happened in our Fifth Year between us, I was really glad she could be here.

The fight we had still haunted me at night sometimes. We needed almost a week to feel comfortable with each other again and for the things to go back as they were. When she came after me into the Forest, I was hesitant to talk to her. The whole week when she was in the Hospital Wing I was spending with Hagrid or in the Forbidden Forest so I had things to distract me from the fact that every time I went to visit her, McNully was there.

There was a point where I lost all hope that I would ever call her a friend again and it meant so much to me that she finally gathered the courage to tell me everything and own up to her mistakes. That talk in the Forbidden Forest changed everything. I felt different after it and I couldn't help but repeat her words in my head...

“How could you think, after all, we were through, that Murphy would replace you? Please promise me, you will never, not even for a second, think that I would replace you with anybody. There is not a person in the world that could take your place, Charlie Weasley.”

I knew I was self-conscious about our friendship and Bill and Penny both told me that I don't give myself enough credit but I couldn't help it. When you have friends it's expected that sooner or later a love interest will appear and you can't expect that things will be the same after that. When I was sneaking into the Forest that week she was injured, I came to terms with that. I just wanted my best friend back and I was ready to conceal my feelings forever.

But after the things she said, that she wouldn't replace me with anyone I couldn't help but think about something Bill said to me when I told him I fancied Nova when I said it was normal for her to blush even if we're friends.

“No, it's not mate. Do you blush if Jae says something nice to you? Or Tulip? Or Tonks?”

And when she said all those things something clicked in my brain. Perhaps they were right, perhaps Nova did have feelings for me but struggled to understand them as our friendship meant so much to her. The moment she placed that kiss on my cheek I knew that I was approaching the situation all wrong. I was afraid that she wouldn't like me back but instead, I had to be patient. I could feel there was something more between us when we were standing embraced in the Forest. I could feel something with her that I never did before and I knew it wasn't just friendship.

I knew at that moment that I have to be patient with her. Nevertheless, I needed almost a year to admit my feelings for her to myself. I need to give her time to think things through and to sort out her emotions.

My attitude changed with her when I made that decision. I was willing to wait to see if something sparks in her. I was beginning to be calmer around her and talk to her without being so shy and awkward because something was telling me that we were going to end up together.

I was always the shy one, the one that thought nobody wanted because he had freckles, even though my mum always said they were cute. So did Nova, she loved them.

I surprised myself a couple of times when I said something to her that I before would never have the courage to, and I also winked at her a couple of times. To say that it made Nova confused was an understatement. Lately, she keeps looking at me as if I was a riddle she can't seem to solve and I can't help but like it. I am giving her subtle hints that I fancy her and she is too oblivious to notice. I thought Ravenclaws knew how to solve puzzles.

Bill wrote to us a couple of times per week and just like he promised Nova, he sent her pictures of his mates, their regards and at the end of each letter he always wrote that he is okay and safe as he knew how much it meant to her. He was in love with his job and I was so happy for him but I couldn't help to be a bit jealous as I have to wait for two more years to start working with Dragons.

—

It will be Fred and George's First Year at Hogwarts this September and they wanted to know everything about the Sorting Ceremony. Nova and I were sitting on the sofa, as the twins sat on their knees in front of us.

“Oh, it's okay, I guess.” Nova said uninterestingly. I knew the look in her eyes. She was up to something, so I decided to go along with it.

“What's that supposed to mean?” Asked Fred. She sparked their interest.

“You know, there's singing and it's terrible!” She started to explain.

“Yeah, they forgot to give one kid earmuffs, and now he's deaf.” I said, looking terrified. I could see in the corner of my eye that Nova had to try hard not to laugh.

“You're joking!” George said, incredulously.

“Oh, no. It's true.” Nova looked at me. “When they did it to Charlie, he was screaming for solid five minutes.” She pursed her lips, shaking from holding in the laughter.

“It hurts?!” They both sat up straight.

“Didn't I tell you?” I confirmed Nova's statement.

“Mum, we don't want to go to Hogwarts!” Fred shouted towards the kitchen. My mum came to the living room at once, her hands on her waist, narrowing her eyes at me and Nova.

“Charlie, Nova, what did you tell them?” She asked carefully not to sound too angry in front of Nova. I knew that if I was doing this alone she would already be shouting.

“They said that the Sorting Hat hurts you when you get sorted.” Answered George. Mum looked at us as we tried to keep up a straight face.

“Oh, that it does!” She said casually and went back to the kitchen. I can't believe she went along with our joke! The twins were stunned, with their mouths open.

They stood up and ran upstairs and we didn't see them until dinner. They both came down with what seemed every Winter hat in the house. Nova, Ron, and I burst out laughing. My dad had no idea what was going on and my mum rolled her eyes when she turned around to see what was happening.

“Boys! What are you doing?” She asked.

“If the sorting hurts, we might as well do everything to make it as painless as possible.” George said, proud of his idea. Nova and I burst out laughing again.

“What's all this about?” My dad looked at my mum, puzzled. “Nova and Charlie told the boys how much the Sorting hurts.” She leaned to dad to hide a wink from Fred and George.

“Oh, right. Really unpleasant that is.” He said quickly. “Not a bad plan, but the hats won't help the pain, boys.” He added and buried his nose in his newspaper which was shaking and I knew he was trying his best not to laugh.

“Well, that settles it then, we're not going!” Fred took half of his hats off and followed George upstairs.

We waited for a few seconds then everybody started laughing.

“Thanks for not ruining the joke, mum!” I said.

“With the amount of trouble those two have put me through, it's a miracle you found something that scares them.” She squeezed my shoulder.

Even though we didn't even start the school year yet, Nova and I couldn't help but be excited as we would both come of age in December. We couldn't wait to rub it in our friends' faces when we will be able to take our Apparation tests and they won't. We had to wait almost a year to go to Hogwarts, now they will have to wait to get their test!

We also knew that turning 17 meant we could do magic outside of school and I couldn't wait to not think about consequences if I cast a spell outside school grounds.

Besides messing with Fred and George and Nova completely losing hope of ever beating Ron in Wizard's Chess, we spent most of our time on our Quidditch pitch. Nova stayed with Ginny and watched us play because Ginny was too young to fly and because of Bill being gone and Ron playing, there would be an uneven number of players.

I didn't mind as I knew Nova was watching me and it gave me a boost of confidence each time. I was proud of myself for how I was handling myself around her all Summer. Of course, I still blushed every time she leaned on me or hugged me but I was trying my best not to be as awkward. I have never wondered more what was going through her head as she still couldn't figure out what was I doing differently and I could see that it was really bugging her but she was too shy to talk about it.

It amused me to see how she struggled to understand what was going on and I knew I could tell her how I feel but I wanted to make sure that she was over McNully and I wanted her to realize she liked me. I didn't want the idea in her head just because I would tell her that I fancy her. I wanted her to come to the conclusion on her own no matter how stupid it might sound.

—

As always, when one of us goes to Hogwarts for the first time, my mum cried as she said goodbye to Fred and George. She cried when it was Percy's First Year two years ago and she cried when Bill and I first started school. Because Bill wasn't the oldest to be at Hogwarts anymore, mum gave all his responsibilities to me. It felt good being an older brother and I promised her that nothing will happen to her little angels. Even though I knew already that the second they find out the sorting doesn't hurt, they are going to do everything in their power to prank me all year.

Nova and I decided that it was pointless keeping the twins away from Tonks and Tulip as they were asking about their pranks and ideas to cause mischief ever since we mentioned that we all got detention because of Tonks' Dungbomb.

—

After me, Bill, and Percy being sorted in Gryffindor, I wasn't even surprised that the twins were too. When George sat down, our eyes met and he mouthed 'you're dead'. I couldn't help but be curious about what they are going to come up with. Of course, I wouldn't go as easy on them as I did on Tulip and Tonks, since I was a Prefect and their brother, so I am quite positive Gryffindor will come last this year when it comes to House points if they are going to behave as they do at home.

I went down for breakfast the first day of the new term. I sat next to Jae at the Gryffindor Table, surprised to see him. I couldn't find him on the train when I was patrolling the corridors and he came way past curfew to our dormitory.

“Mate, tell me what is going on or I will take 20 points from Gryffindor for coming to our room after curfew.” I sat down and grinned.

“I thought you were asleep.” He looked embarrassed.

“Nobody can sleep through your racket.” I chuckled. “Where were you anyway?” I took a plate and put some eggs and bacon on it.

“I was with Tulip. We're dating.” He leaned across the table and whispered, careful so that nobody could hear him.

“Congrats, mate! We were wondering last year when you took Tulip to the Kitchens if you were doing it.” I winked at him.

“We're not that quick, Weasley.” He rolled his eyes.

“Hey, Tonks asked the question not me.” I chuckled as I remembered Bill's reaction when she said it. I will miss having him around.

“Sooo, how did it happen?” I tried imitating Penny as much as possible as I was sure she was going to be over the roof when Tulip tells the girls.

“We weren't DOING it in the Kitchens that day, but I did tell her that I fancy her.” He said proudly.

“Good for you, mate!” I was really happy for them. I knew he liked her since last year and they did kind of fit together, liking to break the rules and hang out in the Kitchens, out of all places.

“Just please don't tell Nova. Tulip said she wanted to tell the girls on her own.” Jae said.

“Of course! Wouldn't think of it.” I smiled.

“Think of what?” Nova hugged me from behind as Tulip sat carefully next to Jae not to be too obvious. To me, she couldn't be worst at hiding the fact that they were together.

“You.” I winked at Nova. At this point, I knew I was having too much fun messing with her. Tulip giggled and Nova sat down next to me slowly.

“Excited for our Sixth Year?” She changed the subject even though I knew she was still going about it in her mind.

“Sure. Two more to go and then the real adventure begins.” I answered. She didn't look happy about that. I knew it was going to be hard on all of us when we'll have to part ways but I was sure we were going to be just fine.

“That reminds me, Tulip, any career interests yet?” I turned to her.

“I was thinking of looking something at the Ministry and try it out. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad.” She shrugged her shoulders and I knew that after Jae told Tulip he fancied her they didn't do any talking. Poor Kitchen Elfs.

“What's up with you?” Nova narrowed her eyes at me after I chuckled at my thoughts.

“Oh, nothing.” I grinned. At this rate, she will be confused the whole year-round.

“Hi, Nova.” And then came the guy to ruin my entire week. I felt Nova stiffen next to me. I don't think she talked to McNully since we talked it out in the Forest. She slowly turned around and I knew she looked at me to see my reaction, before making a full turn.

“Hi, Murphy.” She said and I could tell she was embarrassed. It hurt to know that she wasn't completely over him and I felt bad in a way, knowing that they might've had a future if Nova didn't decide to pick her best friend over him.

“I was wondering if you would like to hang out after class today in the Courtyard?” I was surprised he was able to complete a full sentence without giving the odds of it happening.

“I'm sorry...I can't. I have Advanced Transfiguration today.” I looked at her. I knew that was a lie. I also knew I shouldn't feel good about the fact that she wasn't telling him the truth but I did. It had to take a lot of courage to say no to hanging out with the boy she liked.

“Oh, another time then.” McNully sounded disappointed. Welcome to my last year, Quidditch Commentator!

“Why did you lie to him?” I whispered to her after he left.

“I told you last year, you come first.” She gripped my hand.

“Nova, we're doing fine. You like the guy.” Even I was surprised at my words but I didn't want to be the one to keep her from dating someone. It was obvious he fancied her back.

“No.” She sighed. “I don't even know if I fancy him anymore.” She gave me the same puzzled look as she did when she was trying to figure me out. I smiled as I knew she was getting there.

[letterstomilen]

i discuss the classification of igneous petrology as you fall asleep during my lecture (PART 1) (ASMR)

Childe/Zhongli, Alternate Universe (read part 2 here) When Childe's younger sister tells him about the volunteer at the library, he does not make the connection between that and his new favorite ASMR YouTuber, Rex Lapis.

Childe has a very effective method of getting through college. His little sister, who’s caught him making coffee at three in the morning on more than one occasion the past week alone, would beg to differ. 

“You’re the best older brother,” she starts off, and he’s sure she’s trying to convince herself more than him at this point, “but you need to fix your sleeping habits.” Then, because she’s his little sister, she’d flash him a smile and pat his shoulder reassuringly.

(The comment is not lost on him though. He understands his sleeping situation will eventually wear him down if it hadn’t already, but he believes if he’ll drink a coffee every morning and a Monster every night, he’ll get through three days. By the third day, he’ll hardly be coherent but that doesn’t matter because he’ll conk out for the next twelve hours and then repeat.)

“Don’t worry, Tonia,” he says, trying to sound as reassuring as possible as he contemplates whether it’s worth it or not to swallow a pill of 5-hour energy with his morning coffee. “Once break ends, I’ll get back to normal.”

“You said that six seasons ago.”

Childe frowns, trying to remember if his sleeping schedule was this dysfunctional last year. “Huh?”

“The Walking Dead seasons,” Tonia clarifies, as if she’s not twelve years old and the show is for grown adults. He thinks. He hasn’t checked Commonsensemedia ever since La Signora labeled him as a “helicopter parent” and his Netflix tab has been playing How to Get Away with Murder as background noise for the past few weeks.

Isn’t it a show about zombies though? Tonia’s sheepish smile tells it all, because it’s the same exact guilty look he had when he got caught red-handed as a kid.

(Once he remembers later, Childe promises himself, he’ll check out The Walking Dead.)

“Oh. Well. I have a lot of shows to catch up on, you know. Not to mention a ton of my professors gave me reading for over the break.”

A half lie. They did give him a lot of reading because each professor assumed that their classes were his only one, and with seven days left, he still has a textbook worth of reading to go through. But there are no shows that Childe would sacrifice his precious sleep for. As a matter of fact, he would love to sleep. He’s spent the majority of his classes back in high school sleeping and faking attention, saving his grade at the last minute — it was quite the extreme sport really, if he says so himself.

Whenever he tries to sleep recently, his thoughts run at several hundred miles per hour, and he spends several hours staring at the ceiling before succumbing to the computer at his desk and watching trashy movies. At this point, he must have gone through the entire romance comedy list on Netflix. (Not a proud point in his life but if anybody ever wanted him to give a list of best to worst romance comedy movies, he now has one.)

Tonia, on the other hand, isn’t incredibly convinced.

Admittedly, the excuse was lame. Also, he can’t easily lie to his little sister, who’s far shrewder than he takes her for at times.

“You never start your reading in advance. You like to speed read it right before your class or watch a five-minute video on the chapters while your teachers take attendance. But that’s… uh, ‘a bad work ethic.’” Tonia looks immensely proud of herself as she says this, finishing it off with, “Zhongli told me that.”

“Zhongli?” he repeats, trying to remember if that’s one of her classmates or some stranger that’s hoping to kidnap his sister.

“The guy that volunteers at the library sometimes. He recommended me a loot of good books to read, but he talks like an old man.”

“How old?” Childe can tell she’s enjoying this — talking about her new friend at the library that he’ll probably have to run a background check on.

“Like he’s in his sixties or something. But he looks… actually, he looks your age! And he’s a student too. I told him all about you.”

Well, that doesn’t sound very reassuring coming from the mouth of a twelve-year-old. He’s not sure if that translates to his social security number, his current dilemma, or just that he’s her older brother.

“Like all of the stories you told me when I was a kid. And then when Lumine came to pick me up, she stayed to show him pictures of you too.”

“Of course she did,” he mumbles, ruffling her hair. One of these days he’s going to move without telling his classmates and the twins won’t enter his apartment unannounced. (But Tonia adores their company and the stories they tell her far too much for him to actually do it. But that doesn’t mean he’s above making threats when they tell his little sister about the bet he made about white-out and how it could dye hair. The jury is still out on this one.) “She’s just mad because I get away with it and she doesn’t. But don’t do it yourself. It’s a bad habit,” he adds, remembering that he should at least try to be a good influence on his younger sister when he can.

“Okaaay,” she says unconvincingly, before shaking her hair and running off to her room with lunch he prepared for her.

Watching her close the door and no doubt continue her binge of The Walking Dead, he takes out his phone and texts Lumine.

 Childe

12:35

ur a horrible influence on tonia

 Childe

12:35

and whos this ZHONGLI

 Childe

12:35

also is twd appropriate for 12 y/os

 Twin 1

12:37

a normal person would say hi

 Twin 1

12:37

also 1. me n aether watched it when we were 12 so probably and 2. some guy at the library that also goes to our school

 Well. At least he’s somebody they know. But The Walking Dead?

 Childe

12:38

thats not very convincing

 Childe

12:38

also dont ppl DIE? get BITTEN???? what if she gets nightmares

 Twin 1

12:39

isnt she 12 r u telling me u weren’t watching R rated movies at 12

 Childe

12:42

thats very different from a 10 season long show that is hailed as “one of the greatest horror shows in history” and “paved the way for post-apocalyptic horror”

 Twin 1

12:42

well if she has trouble sleeping she could always watch asmr. that helps me during midterms idk

 Childe

12:42

whats asmr

 Childe

12:43

asking for my sister btw

 Twin 1

12:44

A feeling of well-being combined with a tingling sensation in the scalp and down the back of the neck, as experienced by some people in response to a specific gentle stimulus, often a particular sound.

 Childe

12:45

wtf?

 Twin 1

12:45

people on the internet make random sounds or just talk into a mic n its supposed to be very relaxing. how have u never found out abt this?????

 Childe

12:45

idk the only thing on my youtube recommended r greatest stunts and chapter review videos

 Twin 1

12:47

… makes sense

 Twin 1

12:47

check out rex lapis’ channel he looks like ur type

 Childe

12:48

i thought we were talking about my sister????

 Twin 1

12:50

[message screenshots.jpg]

 Twin 1

12:50

ya she told me everything

 Twin 1

12:50

have fun i need to convince aether to not commit arson bc of his TA

 Childe

12:51

hope he does it

He opens his Youtube app, typing in Rex Lapis and expecting Lumine’s suggestion to be a joke. Despite them being friends for nearly two years now, she’s never made any indication of knowing his type. And he’s sure he’s never been that vocal about it either, only shooting appreciative looks at history majors and paying more attention than necessary to the TA for ‘Tradition of Justice and Law.’ (It’s unfortunate that those short-term crushes never led to anything, but maybe that’s for the better seeing that Childe has never understood the appeal of relationships.)

It is an ASMR channel, judging by the ASMR playlist he finds as he scrolls through the account. The icon shows no face — only a microphone — which leaves him skeptical. Most of the video titles belong in a petrology lecture as well, which makes him even more convinced that it’s a joke. He finds a few readings of ancient literature and decides to pick ‘I discuss the classification of igneous petrology as you fall asleep during my lecture (PART 1) (ASMR)’ because that’s exactly what he needs. (Not the very moment — but ten hours later when he’s in the bed memorizing the pattern of his ceiling wondering why he stole from his fifth grade teacher’s candy jar during lunch.)

When Childe opens the video, he damn near gasps.

The man in the video is exactly his type. His eyes are a soft amber color, framed with long lashes, and it’s almost enough for him to lose his dignity and message Lumine a long thank you text about how she is always right and he’ll pay for her coffee for the following week.  He smiles at the screen, albeit a little sheepishly, dark hair framing his face with a long ponytail that Childe can’t see the end of. On his right ear, there are a pair of earrings with a single feather that brush against his neck when he moves his head.

Even before he speaks, Childe is mesmerized, sure he’ll already memorize his features from the curve of his nose to the way he tilts his head, displaying the expanse of his neck.

Really — he reminds him of actors in historical dramas, the way he sits regally, and how he speaks. His voice is low and slow as he adopts a careful manner of speaking, leaning into the mic.

“I’m Rex Lapis, and I’ll be discussing igneous petrology today, which is part one in a three-part petrology series. I apologize in advance, seeing that my knowledge is limited compared to many petrologists out there but my friend Venti said that many of my viewers are here for my voice, so I’m very excited to start today’s video.”

Holy shit.

For the following week, Childe learns less about petrology, the philosophy of economics, and historical revisionism concerning matters of war and more about Rex Lapis, who is not in love with his voice but often finds himself in the middle of long tangents without explanations. His favorite book series is the Legend of the Lone Sword, which he says he’ll look forward to reading out loud for the channel. (Childe replays that part of the video again and again, captivated by his excitement as he mindlessly taps the mic while he speaks, his tangent cutting off mid-word — as it usually does, much to his dismay.)

His guilty obsession is not lost on Tonia, who realizes that instead of drinking Monster every night he’s been engrossed in his phone completely, often not noticing her or when the water starts bubbling. But because his sleeping schedule has been alleviated, she says nothing until Lumine comes over as she always does, not forgetting their weekly schedule of watching trashy movies while leeching off of Childe’s food.

Because he doesn’t trust the twins with the kitchen — even if they can cook — she instead spends her time sitting next to Tonia and spreading more of her anti-Childe propaganda while they wait. This usually involves Tonia occasionally calling out Childe’s name and asking, “Is that true?” or “Did you really do that?”

This time is different though.

Worried that Lumine finally decided to show Tonia a video of last semester’s presentation, he leans over, looking at the computer screen.

And he’s wrong. Unfortunately. Maybe it should’ve been his presentation because even if he botched it and accidentally projected his work process — screaming notes and all — to the class instead of his actual presentation, it would’ve been better than the two of them watching one of Rex Lapis’ videos together.

The ‘I read Erosion: Essays of Undoing to you as it rains outside’ video, to be specific, which is where Rex Lapis is embarrassed by Venti mid video when asked if this was his idea of a date with a lover. (And then it ends with Rex Lapis asking for video suggestions from the commentors, his face still flushed from the previous comments.)

Oh God — oh fuck.

“So he is your type,” Lumine says, her expression a bit too smug for his liking. Tonia looks half awake, scrolling through articles as the video plays, more interested in ‘Top 10 Glenn Rhee Moments’ than Childe’s crush. Her expression is a bit guilty as she does so — she’s biting her lip and avoiding his gaze, but he assumes that it’s just because they went through his YouTube history.

“I can neither confirm nor deny that statement,” he retorts, but the YouTube history she pulls up once Tonia hands the computer over to her says it all. (It’s quite mortifying, really — even Tonia is giving him a look, but it’s not as bad as Lumine’s shit eating grin.)

“Well… he does have a nice voice,” Childe finally says, thinking that perfectly encompasses his most recent obsession. Because he does have a nice voice — it’s soothing and speaks to him without really speaking to him directly. (The good looks are a bonus, he assures himself. A fantastic bonus, but a bonus nonetheless.)

“He does,” Tonia confirms, smiling toothily up at him, and he resists the urge to ruffle her hair with Lumine staring at him so skeptically. “But I don’t understand much of what he’s saying. He — heh — talks like an old man.”

“Don’t worry, Tonia, your brother likes him because he’s attractive,” Lumine informs her, now fast forwarding on one of Rex Lapis’ videos. “Did you know that he lives nearby?”

“Huh?”

The knife he’s holding clatters to the floor, and the two look down and back up at him with— hold on, why does it feel like they’re in on a secret he doesn’t know about?

“Yeah, he’s working on his grad thesis I think… Aether told me it was about something on history,” she muses. “That’s why I recommended his channel to you. He’s a bit of a celebrity in his department.” Childe’s sure his jaw dropped now, trying to maintain his facial expression as he takes out a new knife to chop up the onions.

“Really,” he tries to say as calmly as possible, wondering how he should accompany Aether to his lectures without trying to seem as obvious as possible. His voice is a bit shaky he realizes but he can’t quite make the connection between Rex Lapis and actual graduate student that goes to his university.

“Yeah, actually…” Lumine is definitely pretending to think now, enjoying this far too much. “He—”

“It’s Zhongli!” his little sister yells excitedly, practically jumping up and down at this point as if she won the lottery. “Zhongli runs an ASMR channel and he talks just like that in real life! Right, Lumine?”

“Yeah.”

Childe sighs, holding a hand up to his face. The realization that he’s been obsessed with the same guy that hears about every stupid thing he did secondhand is way too much — and the fact that he’s been listening to his voice every night before he went to bed the past week is way too much. He’s sure his face is redder than before judging by the amused expressions on Lumine’s and Tonia’s faces — really, they’re mirror images of each other right now.

Not for the first time, Childe swears to himself that he’ll never let her into his apartment without signing a contract ever again.

[pineapples-cant-write]

Hi :)

I’m Callen (they/them). This is my blog for my writing, if you can’t tell by the name. My main blog is @one-hundred-small-pineapples. My OC blog is @one-giant-pineapple. You can find me on ao3 at PineappleUpsideDownCake (formerly Sarcastic_Gay_Dragon)

I’ll be using this blog to post snippets of chapters to come, discarded scenes, wip ideas I’ll probably never get around to, update announcements, and background/behind the scenes things I couldn’t fit into the story! Plus really bad visual references :)

As of Oct 19th (2021), all my stories are being reviewed and edited/rewritten because I’ve been away from writing for a very long time due to my dislike of basically all my stories

Here’s my current stories over on ao3!

Veritas Omnia Vincit series (Harry Potter)

Harry Potter but he’s not Harry Potter, he’s Kallias Slytherin, son of Lord Voldemort and Lily Evans. Follow his journey throughout his Hogwarts years, fighting what the Wizarding World thinks is the good guys, lead by Albus Dumbledore, while also navigating school, family life, friendships, romance, and general shenanigans.

Soulmate AU, Slytherin!Harry, Son of Voldemort!Harry, Harry/Fred/George, no smut but probably some suggestive or implied smut scenes in the later books. Currently on book two, year one.In which Harry Potter is actually Voldemort’s son, not James’, and this basically changes the entirety of the HP books

Ad Astra Per Aspera — pre-Hogwarts (complete, posted)

Nihil Novi Sub Luna — year 1 (incomplete, posted)

8 books planned currently, one for each Hogwarts year plus a pre-Hogwarts book

Book 1 complete, book 2 in progress

BEING HEAVILY EDITED/REWRITTEN

Spiders and Assassins and Teenagers, Oh My! Series (MCU)

The story of Nikolai Steven Romanov-Barnes and his journey from a loving home to HYDRA to his parents and their crazy family to the beyond.

(Natasha/Bucky have a kid while in HYDRA and yeah)

The Spider’s Spawn — CA:WS (incomplete, not posted) (the old version is still up, but the new, hopefully improved, version is not yet)

Unknown number of books planned, mostly because I haven’t thought that far ahead lmao. At least one book for WS, AoU, CW, and then more probably (hopefully)

BEING REWRITTEN

The Moon Series (Teen Wolf)

Teen Wolf but Lydia has a twin brother and lots of things change

The Moon Calls — season 1 (incomplete, posted)

Probably one book for each season, but maybe not following the series exactly, I’m not sure yet.

BEING EDITED

What’s a celebration without you, my love? (Disney Descendants)

For @descendantsgiftexchange here on Tumblr, this was my 2020 gift exchange. It started as part one, but I wanted to write a sequel so I’m in the process of doing that a year later. Harriet Hook/Evie

What’s a celebration without you, my love? (complete, posted)

Currently unnamed (incomplete, not posted)

@descendantsgiftexchange (on Tumblr) Gifts (Disney Descendants)

A collection of all my gifts for the @descendantsgiftecxchange over on Tumblr (previously called @descendantssecretsanta)

I’m in an organizing mood :)

Please — my 2018 gift, Huma, character death, complete

Just You is Enough for Us — my 2019 gift, Humaudrey, set in D3 but also canon divergence, complete

What’s a celebration with you, my love? — my 2020 gift, Evie/Harriet Hook, Evie goes to the Isle to get her gf to come to Auradon basically, complete

A Snowy Auradon Day - my 2021 gift, Core4 with a dash of Sea3, the VKs + AKs introduce the Sea3 to Auradon Winters with a snowball fight, complete

Twin Screams of Death (Riverdale and Teen Wolf crossover)

Senior year was supposed to be normal. Just like freshman year, before murders and drugs and gargoyle kings and other less than admirable plots to take over the town. Just.. normal. It was their last year together, before they all went their separate ways for college. So why on Earth did Fate decide they needed more trouble?

Lydia and her twin brother are cousins of Cheryl Blossom and move (back) to Riverdale after tragedy strikes in Beacon Hills. Jughead’s a dick (sorry but only sorta), Betty is being a supportive cousin, Allydia, Sterek/OMC, Verchoni, others too

Incomplete, posted

BEING EDITED

Bombshell and the Serpent (Riverdale)

An arrogant young princess and her castle's servants fall under the spell of a wicked enchantress, who turns her into the hideous Beast until she learns to love and be loved in return. The spirited, headstrong village girl Cheryl, enters the Beast's castle after she imprisons her brother, Jason. With the help of her enchanted servants, including the fatherly Mr. Potts, Cheryl begins to draw the cold-hearted Beast out of her isolation.

Or,

The Beauty and the Beast AU in which Toni is the beast, Cheryl is Belle, and an assortment of Riverdale characters are servants/villagers

Incomplete, posted

BEING EDITED

The Canary’s Legacy (Arrowverse, more specifically Legends of Tomorrow)

When Sara Lance and the Legends travel to present day New York to fix an anachronism, they find something much more important.

Laurel had kids who somehow have magic, basically.

Incomplete, posted

Not sure if I’m gonna edit/rewrite this or just delete/orphan it 🤷🏻

[elylandon]

Part 1 - Chapter 8: Voices

Summary: You’re running for your life when you cross paths with an ex-bounty hunter and his small, green companion. You never thought you’d find someone throughout the whole galaxy who was as lost as you.

Pairing: The Mandalorian/Din Djarin x Female Reader

Word Count: 4,681

Rating/Warnings: M for mature content. Swearing, violence, [eventual smut], etc.

Chapter 7 | Chapter 9 

Note: (Slight AU - Slow Burn) I hope you enjoy this one! ❤

---

While the Razor Crest was a decently sized ship, it could still feel a bit cramped at times. You never liked tight spaces, but you could say you were used to sharing such close quarters with others. There were times when you had shared tiny rooms with two or three other girls in overflowing group homes, and other times when you were dragged into tight corners of Thasar’s estate by some of his business partners. So being stuck on the Crest for days on end, or crammed into that small barn back on Sorgan, hadn’t ever bothered you before.

But then everything changed. You had to admit that it wasn’t exactly instantaneous. It was a gradual change you hadn’t noticed until you were painfully aware of it. How could you not be when every time you saw the Mandalorian, your stomach would erupt in a fit of flutters, and every time he spoke, those flutters would melt into something deeper? And thanks to the confined space of the Razor Crest, seeing and hearing him was such a regular occurrence that, after two weeks of this, you were starting to lose your mind.

You just had to go and tell him how much he meant to you all those days ago, how much you trusted him now, when you had every reason not to trust anyone ever again. And then he just had to jump on your vulnerability wagon and tell you his name, wholeheartedly relaying that he trusted you too.

You needed to get off this gods damned ship.

That was difficult when your party hadn’t exactly found an ideal place to stay just yet. However, as much as you wanted the space to privately mull over all these troublesome feelings you were having around the Mandalorian, you’d desperately appreciate at least a few short hours off this ship for a supply run. So that’s what you suggested to Din.

“I don’t think we should go back to my usual spots,” Din said from his chair, filtering through different planets on his radar. “By now, the Guild might have discovered them and asked after me, knowing now that I visit those places every few weeks.”

You nodded from your co-pilot’s chair, assenting his point. The child was, as per usual, perched in your lap, happily fidgeting with your pendant. He was alternating between lightly sucking on it, and determinedly examining it. This kid really loved small, shiny objects.

“What if we went somewhere completely random? Just pick a planet, land and barter really quick, and then be back in space within a couple hours.”

“We’re easier targets on land. We’d risk alerting any nearby bounty hunters of our proximity,” Din stated matter-of-factly. You sighed.

“We’re risking that no matter where we go.”

“I know,” he said, thoughtfully tapping his fingers against each of the control sticks. He stared at the radar for a long moment, but finally selected a destination.

“What did you settle for?” you asked, sitting up a little to get a look over his shoulder.

“It’s a moon of the planet nearest to us. Seems to be a hub for trade. If any nearby tracking fobs go off, they’ll most likely assume we’re on the planet before they realize that we’re not. It’ll give us a little time.”

“A few hours worth, maybe?” There was a hopeful lilt to your tone.

“We shouldn’t push our luck. Two hours max.”

“Fair enough,” you agreed, relieved. Din could tell. He glanced back at you.

“What? It’s only been two weeks and you’re already starting to feel restless?”

“You have no idea,” you muttered, squelching the jitters vibrating through your body at his attention.

---

Din watched as your shoulders immediately relaxed upon disembarking the ship. He had witnessed them inch higher and higher with each day that they remained stuck out in space, searching in vain for their next sanctuary. You wouldn’t admit it, but the close quarters were finally starting to get to you.

Din knew this, because he could feel it as well. He wanted to say it was because he wasn’t used to travelling with others, but that was a complete lie. It was your presence that was making him antsy.

Whenever the two of you were in the same space on the ship, he was hyperaware of every move and sound you made. Often times, part of him was tempted to snap at you, and convince you to leave him be, so he could focus on the task at hand. But he never acted on it. He was grudgingly coming to the conclusion that he wanted that awareness of you, constantly.

Din had admitted to himself on Sorgan that he hadn’t wanted to leave you and the child behind, despite thinking it was in the best interests of you both. Now, though, it was beyond that. After everything you had said to him as the three of you left Sorgan, he wasn’t sure he could have gone through with it, no matter how determined he was. Your words had settled something in him, and he was still trying to come to terms with that.

He needed to get off that damned ship, too.

You took a few steps off the ramp, head swiveling, taking everything in. The child mimicked you as he sat in his satchel hanging against your hip. Your hand was resting against the outside of the bag, and the child’s ears twitched as he reached out with his own pudgy hands to grasp yours and hold it close. Din’s chest tightened as he looked on, and he blew out an annoyed breath at the feeling.

“Come on,” he said, trying but failing not to sound curt in his frustration. “We’re on the clock. Let’s see what we can find.”

---

Din’s hand kept finding the small of your back as he guided you through throngs of people in the market. You were very capable of maneuvering on your own, but didn’t dare say so. You were afraid that, if you gave him any indication that you were put off by this gesture, then he’d stop, and never do it again. So you smothered the butterflies dancing the conga in your stomach and allowed him to steer you along.

Aside from the very slight herded-little-lamb feeling, the gesture was very… pleasant.

Two hours flew by like that, and the two of you found everything you needed, including a drum of fuel that Din could syphon from. That would last you another couple weeks in space.

Great.

For the most part, every merchant you met had been friendly and fair. That was, until you came across a vendor selling miscellaneous parts and gadgets. Something displayed in the stall had caught your attention, and you dragged Din over to get a look. The surly old woman manning the stand eyed your approach, running a very telling glance over Din’s gleaming Mandalorian armor.

“Check these out,” you said excitedly, reaching for two earpieces that sort of reminded you of Bluetooth headsets. You handed one to Din. “They’re ear comlinks. They might come in handy.”

“What makes you say that?” Din questioned, inspecting the gadget.

“You’re going to have to take on jobs soon, and I won’t be able weasel my way into coming with you, kid in tow. We could use these to communicate, in case you wind up being gone longer than a few hours.”

Din considered this, but wound up shaking his head.

“That’s not a bad idea, but these have seen better days.” He waved the earpiece. “I’m pretty sure this one is broken.” You took it from him and examined it, then smiled up at him.

“I can fix them, though. I’m certain I could increase their range sensitivity too.”

“To how much?”

“As long as we’re on the same planet, we should have a stable connection.”

He really did like the practicality of the idea. He was also all too aware that his funds were running low, and that he’d need to rectify that soon. He hated to admit it, but he knew he’d fret if he left you and the child alone for several hours… or days. He knew you’d worry too, not knowing if he was having a difficult hunt, or if he was dead in a ditch. If you were sure you could get them working, and working that well, then he wasn’t opposed to it.

“How much?” he asked the merchant woman. She once again ran an appraising eye over his armor, then named her price.

It was outrageous.

“Now way,” you argued, holding the earpieces out for the woman to see the damage. “They’re broken. They should be a fraction of the original asking price.” The woman shook her head.

“That’s a seven percent increase of what I bought them for. I have to make a profit for a living, girl.”

“I think you must be misremembering how much you purchased this junk for,” Din said lowly.

“The price is the price,” she quipped, not budging an inch. Din sighed.

“Fine. Forget it then, Y/N. I’m sure we can take our business elsewhere for a better bargain.”

Din started to leave, but then he noticed your expression and stopped. You were so focused, making deliberate eye contact with the woman, face a serene, calm mask. It almost looked like the two of you were in a trance. On a strange impulse, Din reached for your arm, planning to grab your elbow and carefully pull you out of it. But you spoke before his fingers grazed you.

“You will reconsider,” you said, voice monotone and even. “-and give us a fair deal on the broken comlinks.”

The woman blinked languidly, then straightened. Din watched, bemused, as she replied in the same monotone voice.

“I will reconsider, and give you a fair deal on the broken comlinks.”

If you could see his face, you might have laughed as his mouth slackened a little, a confused and troubled look marring his features. A far more reasonable amount of credits changed hands and you pocketed the earpieces, stroking the child’s ear as you brought your hand back to rest over him. As the woman started to blink more rapidly, coming out of whatever spell you had put her in, you quickly turned towards Din and grabbed his forearm with your free hand, pulling him away from the stall.

“Time’s up, right?” you asked, not even looking back at him. “We should get going.”

When Din found his words again, he said, “Just going to gloss right over whatever the hell that was back there?”

“Honestly, I’m still trying to figure out exactly how these powers work myself.”

As Din matched your stride through the market, you grudgingly released his arm. He looked at you sidelong.

“I thought you could only move things, like the kid.”

“If his abilities and mine are the same, I have a feeling he can do more than lift a mudhorn,” you shrugged, weaving in and out of crowds.

“Explain,” Din demanded.

“I will. When we’re back on the ship.”

---

Once you all were on course again, Din found himself watching you tinker with the earpieces. He was handing you tools when you asked for them, and waiting until you were ready to start explaining what had happened with the merchant. He had hauled the necessary equipment you needed into the cockpit, neither of you wanting to disturb the child that was sleeping down on Din’s cot. The comlinks were so small, and the tiny wiring looked a little complicated in his opinion, but you seemed to know what you were doing, so he just observed. Several times you had glanced up and noticed the set of his broad shoulders. He was waiting, but he was apprehensive, strumming like a livewire. You sighed.

“When I was a kid, there had been a couple times when I was able to-” you tried to find the right words. “-strongly convince others to do or not do things.” You refocused your attention on the earpieces, working while you talked, not really wanting to meet his concealed eyes as you told him this.

“Like one of my foster moms. Her husband would slap her around, and one day I got so sick of it, I threatened to knife him in his sleep if he didn’t stop. I was barely nine; I’m not sure what made me think I could play the intimidation card. He just locked me in a closet for several days.”

You really didn’t like talking about these things. However, you knew it would be easier for Din to understand the revelation you made with that woman today if you gave him a few examples. You soldiered on.

“I wasn’t sure how many days it had been, but I was starving, and I heard her walk by. I remember her opening the door when I called out to her, and I saw the absolute horror in her eyes at what her husband was doing to me. But there was also her fear of disobeying him, of the beating she would get if he saw her even talking to me. I didn’t really give a damn what she felt at that moment. She was letting him get away with it, even after I stood up for her, so she could go to hell for all I cared. But, I was so hungry, so I was going to do everything I could to get her to bring me some food. I found it strange that it didn’t take much.”

Din remained completely still as you spoke. You had to keep checking his chest to make sure he was even breathing, as if his tightly clenched fists sitting atop the armrests of his chair wasn’t enough of an indication that he was taking in your every word.

“Another time, there was a foster brother. I was thirteen, and he was a lot older than me. He used to sneak into my room at night to watch me sleep. I tried to pretend like I never noticed him, hoping he’d get bored and stop. But I could tell that he wouldn’t. Something inside me told me that I had to make him stop. So I told him to, and he did.”

You swallowed thickly after that one, and decided that was enough sharing for now.

“I couldn’t ever do this thing consistently. My attempts failed more often than not. That day, when we first met, I had been able to do it with Gurn to get me and the child out of that cage. But today, when I was listening to that woman, I could just tell she was lying. She hadn’t bought the comlinks. She’d stolen them, and was disappointed when she realized they were broken. She was trying to cheat us like she had been cheated.”

“How could you tell all that?” Din asked, speaking for the first time since being back on the Crest.

“I-I think that’s part of the ability. I’d never realized it before, but every time I have successfully influenced someone’s thoughts, I had been able to sort of discern what they were thinking. With the foster mom, it was her desire to help me, and her fear of getting caught. With Gurn, I could tell he was intrigued by my plan to escape, always eager to hunt me down. It was like a game to him. And then with this merchant, I could just sense that she was lying, and that she thought we were made of money because of your armor.”

“So… you can read minds then?” Din asked hesitantly, but you shook your head, scrunching up your nose.

“I think that’s a strong way of putting it. It’s more like these people had unguarded, weak minds. They were more susceptible to being influenced, to me sensing what they were thinking. But it’s always been a strain. It’s not like I can sit here and hear what you’re thinking, and I hope you know that I have no desire to influence you in any way.” 

With that said, you finally met his eyes again.

“Yeah, I know,” he nodded, mulling over your words. “Do you think the kid can do these things too?” You shrugged helplessly.

“I don’t know. I didn’t even know I could throw people across rooms until it happened. If I can do more than I originally thought, then… it’s possible he can do more as well.”

The two of you fell quiet then, and Din continued to watch you. As much as your explanation had sent his mind into a tailspin, watching you work was… calming. It didn’t matter if it was something like this, maintaining the ship, or playing with and caring for the kid, something about the way you did things was soothing. He couldn’t think of a better way to phrase it, but the moment he saw that focus in your eyes, and could imagine the gears turning in your brain, he felt like he could relax for once. Your presence alone took some of the pressure off, easing the constant tension he felt even before taking on the kid and crossing the Guild. He wasn’t alone in this anymore.

That’s what having a partner was for, wasn’t it? To share some of those burdens, and work through them together? Well, one of those problems the two of you would have to face together was the kid and his powers.

Technically, the child was older than you, but for whatever species he was, he was only a baby, already out there lifting mudhorns with his mind. Din knew he would have to start finding answers soon, for both you and the child, but the two of you agreed that he was comparatively more powerful. Din would need to fully understand what he was capable of in the future if he was going to continue watching over him.

Another burden being tackled together in your partnership was your past. He remembered thinking weeks and weeks ago that he wasn’t the person you should be untangling your story with, that he didn’t want to be. Now, he couldn’t imagine not being that person. It was a slow process. You were always so hesitant to let even the smallest details leak, and quick to regret allowing those leaks to happen. But you still managed to keep from bottling everything, and never once took back your words once you’d said them.

It made Din wonder if he could tell you about the things that he’s done, the things that gave him nightmares.

“Okay!” you suddenly exclaimed, causing Din to jump out of his thoughts. He tumbled back into the present to see you clicking the plastic around the wires shut before holding out one of the earpieces for him to take.

“I think they’re good to go. Time to test these babies out!"

Din suddenly realized something as he took the earpiece, and kicked himself for not thinking about it sooner.

“I’m going to have to take my helmet off.” You only nodded, as if, unlike him, you’d already thought of this.

“Yes, but for the test, I’m gonna head to the back of the ship, so we can’t hear each other except for in these. I won’t see a thing.”

You held yours up to show him the three buttons on the outside of them.

“This one turns yours on and off. This middle button is to mute yourself, and this bottom button is to mute me,” you explained. Another stupid thought crossed his mind. How had he originally thought that this was a good idea?

“How am I supposed to mess with the buttons with my helmet on?” Again, it seemed you had already thought about this. You smiled.

“Don’t worry. I have an idea for that. Let’s just make sure they work first.”

A few moments later, when he was sure you were at the back of the hull, he slipped off his helmet. Cool air touched his cheeks and he sucked in a lungful of fresh, unfiltered air. Ever since he swore the Creed and donned the helmet, in these moments, he could never decide if he was relieved to have the thing off, or panicked until he put it back on. But that was a nearly lifelong struggle he could deal with another time. For now, he tucked the comlink into his ear, and pressed the top button to turn it on as you instructed.

“Din?” your soft voice said over a current of static. That thing in Din’s chest lurched again, and he really wished it would stop.

“Sounds like they work,” he replied, about to pull the helmet back over his head.

“Yes!” you whooped in victory, and his lips tugged upwards at the sound.

“Alright,” you continued. “We should test the mute buttons, so don’t put your helmet back on just yet.”

He agreed and asked you what you wanted him to do. The two of you each tested muting yourselves, and then each other, finding that everything seemed to be in working order. You warned him you were coming back towards the cockpit, so he pulled the earpiece out and put his helmet back on. Within seconds you called up to him from the bottom of the ladder and he walked over to peer down at your beaming face.

“What was that idea of yours, then?” he asked, and your smile turned sheepish.

“Well, you’ll have to trust me for this part.” His shoulders bunched.

“Why?”

“I’m almost completely certain I can make it so you can control the earpiece from your vambrace. However, I’ll have to wirelessly connect it to the tech in your helmet.”

That fluttering in his chest from earlier evolved into a complete jolt of panic, but he quickly stifled it. Din did trust you. He was going to have to start showing it. He nodded his consent.

You asked him to drop down a couple of the tools you would need, including the earpiece, then you promptly turned away from him and closed your eyes. You lifted your hands above your head and waited, until you felt the cold weight of his helmet settle into your hands.

If he thought his heart was racing, he had no idea that yours was about to come crashing out of your chest. You knew the severity of what you had asked him. He’d told you about the Creed, what it meant to wear the armor, and why it was so important to keep himself masked from any other living being. So you knew very well the faith he was putting in you as he passed down his helmet, standing maskless above you. You were not going to betray that trust.

“Go ahead and stay up there for now,” you instructed. “I’m going to sit here in case I need you to toss me down any other tools.”

And so you sat, keeping your eyes closed until your back was leaning against the ladder. This way, you’d very deliberately have to crane your neck back in order to look up into the cockpit. When you opened your eyes, you glanced down at the helmet sitting gingerly in your lap. It was kind of odd, seeing the helmet without the rest of Din attached to it. 

You shook your head at the thought and flipped the helmet over, taking a look at the inside. You went to work trying to find something to make a wireless connection. You knew there had to be one, because you had seen him use his vambrace to control what he saw through the helmet. You resisted the urge to pump your fist in the air when you found it, and then rolled your eyes when you heard a slight clinking above you as Din shifted his weight.

“If you keep hovering like that, I might accidentally look up and see you,” you teased.

“I’m just making sure you don’t break anything.”

You froze, fingers stilling inside his helmet. You had just heard his voice… his real, unaltered voice, completely free of the modulator and the brief static of the earpiece. It was deep, warm, and reposeful. Those butterflies came to life once again, and heat not only touched your cheeks, but pooled in your belly. The most surprising of your reactions, though? Your eyes started to sting, tears threatening. 

“What’s wrong,” Din asked, noticing you had stopped working. You sucked in a quiet, ragged breath, blinked rapidly against the brimming tears, and shoved all those crazy emotions back, back, back. You could think about them later, but not in front of him. 

“Is umm,” you quickly tried to think of something that might have made you pause, and would possibly explain the slight quiver in your voice. “Is this allowed? I just realized- i-it’s not forbidden for someone to tamper with your armor, is it?”

Nice save.

You couldn’t see it, but you could tell when he had shrugged his shoulders. 

“I won’t tell if you won’t.”

Oh gods. You were so desperately torn. You wanted him to keep speaking, keep talking to you forever and ever, so you could just melt into the sound of his voice. But you also wanted him to shut up until the helmet was back on, because his voice was making you feel things, and it was so distracting, and-

“I’m sure it’s fine, Y/N,” he said slowly, still wondering why you were hesitating.

“R-right,” you quickly said, getting back to the task at hand. Internally though, after hearing him say your name-

Gods, I am so fucked. 

You worked for a couple more minutes, trying to calm yourself down, when he spoke again. 

“Kid’s awake.” You quickly glanced over and saw that the child had waddled up to you, wide eyes fixed on Din’s helmet. You smiled at him, but then noticed his puckered brow bone. He reached a stubby hand out, touching the helmet… and then his lower lip started trembling. 

“Oh no!” you exclaimed, dropping the helmet in your lap and lifting the kid to cradle him against your chest. 

“What is it?” Din asked, concern touching his tone. The child looked even more upset, hearing Din’s voice while continuing to stare at the helmet. 

“I think he thinks you’ve been decapitated,” you said, trying so, so hard to keep the panicked giggles out of your voice. The child’s reaction at seeing his Mando without a body was so cute, so heartbreaking, you weren't sure if you wanted to laugh or cry. 

“It’s okay, little guy, he’s safe. He’s up there, but you can’t look just yet,” you explained, pointing up at the cockpit. You heard Din step back as the child looked up, and you made quick work to finish connecting the comlink while Din spoke soothingly to the child. The sound calmed you too, allowing you to move beyond your previous feelings while you finished. 

When all was said and done, you covered both your eyes and the child’s while Din climbed down the ladder. He let you know when he had the helmet back on, then sat next to you, stealing the child from your lap as he instantly reached for his Mando. 

You watched them for a moment.

These two are going to be the death of me, you thought. 

“Are you going to keep your earpiece on all the time?” he asked, pulling you from your happy thoughts. You nodded. 

“Yeah, I think so. But don’t worry, I’ll mute myself if we’re in the same space, or if I’m annoying you with my constant blathering,” you laughed. Din shook his head, though. 

“You don’t have to do that,” he said thoughtfully, eyes still on the child. “I don’t mind the blathering. In fact, I find a kind of solace... in the sound of your voice.”

Your eyes widened, and your cheeks lit up once again. 

Yeah, I am definitely fucked.

---

Tag List: Please, please, please let me know if I missed you or the tag isn’t working. 

@sirianfromsixties @doubtedbus409 @shadowfoxey @knockbeforeyouspeak @ispilledmyink @sinon36 @whenthestarsfalldowntonight @im-the-nerdiest-of-them-a11 @imaginebeinlovedbyme @marvelobsessiononastick @pascalisthepunkest @yepimthatperson @stevieharrrr @sunkissed-winter @the-feckless-wonder @fruitsaladtree @adikaofmandalore @irishleesh93 

[too-much-sunshine]

Fangs for the Hospitality

Chapter 2

Summary: After Roman leaves his family reunion mad at Remus, his car breaks down. The huge snow storm forces him into the forest hes always been told to stay away from. Who will he meet? And why are they being so nice? Most importantly, why are his teeth so sharp?

A/N: My self-indulgent magic/vampire fic! Let me know if I need to tag something or you wanna be tagged!

Relationship: Familial DAM, Eventual Roceit, Eventual Intrulogical

Warnings (per chapter): Car trouble, Snow storm, very brief talk of death, anxiety, being cold, vague homophobia, Romans family are dicks, Remus too by accident, cursing, rumors, possible panic attack

Catch up!: Master list, Chapter 1

Word Count: 4547

Read on AO3!

Roman finally lifted his head off the wheel and looked around his car. He made sure to keep a few things in his car that would help him if he ever needed to stay the night in his car. While looking he heard a voice in his head that sounded suspiciously like Remus called him a worry wart. He shook it off and continued looking around.

After a few minutes of searching for a blanket (he swore was in here somewhere), a loud bang rang out from the front of the car. Roman jumped so high he hit his head on the roof of his car.

“The fuck was that!?” He shouted, higher pitched than he's ever willing to admit. “Come oonnn woorrlld are you really going to make me check my engine now?” He pleaded to any god that would listen.

And almost as if they had heard him, smoke started to cloud from under the hood.

Roman yelped and jumped out of the car. Running to the front hood he placed the backside of his hand to the metal to find it blazing hot.

“How the FUCK does a car start on fire in the middle of a FUCKING SNOW STORM!?” He screamed. And then he screamed again just for the hell of it.

At this point Roman couldn't tell if he was crying or if it was just the melted snow running down his face. His hair was ruined, his suit probably was as well. His shoes were full of snow and it was only starting to snow harder as the moments passed.

Roman huffed another hitching breath as he started to look around. There was no way he could stay in his car tonight. With his luck today it might end with it blowing up in the middle of the night... well more later in the night. Though at this point he considered staying just for the possibility of it actually happening.

Looking around, there was no one anywhere. No houses, no lights, he hasn't even seen a person on this road since he left his old house. On one side of the road was a wide open field where he had pulled off too. The other side was a large, dense forest.

As a kid he was warned to stay away from these woods because many people have gotten lost in them. Remus once dared him to go in, to which Roman said no. Then Remus called him lame and ran away to play somewhere else. There were too many spooky stories for Romans liking. And with Roman overactive imagination he stayed far away from here.

Sure the adults told him that the reason told to stay away was because he could get lost. But Remy once told him that it was really because the forest was magic, and that there were witches, werewolves and vampires in there.

And that story was much more fun so that's what Roman chose to believe as a child.

Now Roman didn't really believe in those stories anymore. It was very much more likely that people just got lost in the forest to never be found again. It is a very big forest and is very thick.

Though at the moment Roman wasn't paying much attention to the forest beside him. The young man was not fit for this kind of weather and it was starting to get to him. He was getting very cold and the wind was not helping. He needed to find help soon. He'd call Remy or Remus but his phone was in his jacket pocket, which he forgot back at the house.

Sucking it up, he realized he would have to walk for a bit to find a house. Maybe they would be nice enough to let him use their phone. He picked the direction he had previously been driving toward, and started to walk. He pulled his arms in close to him and kept a quick pace.

It was very cold. The snow was not letting up and he didn't know how long he would have to be walking. Deciding the best strategy was to try and distract himself, Roman started to think of the creatures that might be in the woods.

‘Maybe,’ Roman thought, ‘There really are werewolves and they are actually really nice. Like what if I stumble upon one and they let me use their phone? Wait...would they even have phones? I don't know their life so maybe. What would I even say to them? Just be like ‘why hello my furry looking friend  I seem to be in quite the pickle. Mayhaps you have a phone I could use?’ … No that stupid… They'd probably eat me before then… That's kinda judgmental huh. Maybe they should just eat me. It's not like if I were to actually meet them I could talk to them. I’d be too nervous like I always am with new people… How am I supposed to get home if I even ask for help? Ugg this is dumb…’

Roman kept thinking of random scenarios that might happen if he were to step into the woods. After walking for what felt like an hour, but could have been anywhere from 20 minutes to 3 hours, Roman was freezing cold and shivering violently. The storm was still really bad, but it seemed that the worst had passed.

It also seemed Romans luck was turning around. Roman had spotted a light coming from deep in the forest. It was the only type of man-made thing he had seen in ages so he had no other choice but to step past the threshold, into the thick forest. Before he stepped in he paused and looked in the woods.

He was so cold, and he knew that if he didn't get help soon he was going to freeze.

‘Well,’ He thought, ‘If I die from this, at least it I finally do something cool…’

And with that he stepped into the forest. It was a hard walk. There was no straight path, which distantly Roman thought was odd.

Finally after walking passed a few more trees he emerged on to a great expanse of flat, white snow. Past the flat area, which he realized was a lawn, was an older victorian style house. Much smaller than the mansion Roman grew up in, but much too big to be lining for one person.

Without thinking much, since he couldn't feel his arms or legs anymore, he quickly hobbled up to the door and gave three, light raps.

Roman stood in front of the door, arms around himself barely staying up right. His hair matted down from the snow melting into his hair. But the temperature must have gone up a bit because the snow was starting to turn into a bit of rain.

Roman vaguely realized that the walk through the woods was a lot harsher then he realized. His bowtie was missing and his shirt was barely tucked in anymore. He was a mess. This would never be acceptable dress to meet someone in. He started to shiver more, but possibly for a different reason.

Roman realized that he was still standing on some random porch, in the literal freezing cold and nobody had answered. After a good five minutes more  wait, Roman knocked again, but this time he mustered up the rest of his strength and knocked louder. He the went back to waiting. The edges of his vision were going fizzy around the edges. He wished they would open the door and at least tell him to leave rather than make him wait.

Finally, after Roman was just about to walk back into the woods, the door creaked slowly open.

~~~

“Roman! Remus! My boys you made it here safe and sound! Come in come in!” She ushered the boys who were previously shuffling in the doorway trying to keep out of starting the softly falling snow. “How have you both been? I’ve haven't heard from you both in a while.” Though the question was posed at them both, her focus was directed at Remus, even helping him out of his coat. Roman took his coat off himself and draped it on the rack next to Remus’.

“Fantastic as always!. Had a patient the other day, she had quadruplets! All natural it was crazy to see how big she was, and how many babies were in there. All of them delivered with no complications. Three boys and one girl!” Remus responded walking next to his mom talking animatedly.

“Oh that's just wonderful sweetie! I bet all of them were cute as buttons! That poor mother though, four babies. That will be a handful! And that poor baby girl, growing up with three brothers! You know-”

Roman tuned out their conversation as they walked past the kitchen and staircase. The ballroom was down the straight hall from the greeting room to the left. It took about 5 minutes to actually walk there though.

This place was too big in Romans opinion. Even as a young boy he thought this place was too big. Too much much space to fill, though Remus never seemed to have trouble filling it all up for the both of them. Roman preferred reading, writing, or drawing compared to Remus’ brand of destructive entertainment.

Occasionally Remus and Roman would come together and put on small plays for their mother, father, and staff if they were around at the time. Their mother was never super interested but their father always thought it was the best show he has ever seen. Always praising them both for their hard work.

Sometimes, when Remus was out making a mess and Roman was sat drawing, his father would come in and sit with him. Sometimes watching him draw or quietly reading. Roman enjoyed the shared silence, which he was told was quite odd for a child.

Often when Roman was feeling upset or scared he would run to his dad and just ask him to read to him. Which he always gladly did. He would hold Roman close and just read from whatever was closest. This was actually how Roman found he loved plays. His dad and him might read together sometimes and trade off lines, trying to see who could make the other laugh first. Roman wasn't typically the winner of this game either, but he found he never would mind

Even years later, long after their dad disappeared without so much as a note, Roman looked back at those memories very fondly. He hasn't changed much since he was young. Not talking unless he had something to share. Most called him quite, but he wasn't always. It just took a reason to get him to speak up, and he often found there wasn't much that could do so.

Soon enough Roman was pulled from his memories as they made it to the ballroom where it seems that they were the last to arrive. Most of the immediate and extended family was here, mingling around in their too fancy outfits. If Roman were to guess he would say there was a single item of apparel here that wasn't at least $100, including jewelry. Roman couldn't say much though since he too was wearing a suit. Though he left the jacket at the door and he chose a bowtie over a regular tie.

Nobody made to look their way, except for a few glances. Most were already in the middle of conversation or were looking for someone else that wasn't him. This made it easy for him to be able to slip right past his mother and brother who were still in animated conversation.

Roman made a look around the room to determine the people and, by association, places to avoid. Making a quick glance around the lavish gold gilded room, Roman saw many familiar faces. In the most left corner near the seating area was his grandmother; Gramma Ann. She was a nice woman if you can get past her severely outdated societal norms. Roman had learned more than once that it's best to not talk to her unless he wanted a lesson on proper edicate and questions about his supposedly straight love life.

(It's not that his family didn't know he wasn't straight (they were quite aware after he was caught in the broom closet with the cook's son when he was 16.) It's more like they were hoping he would “change his mind.” Almost like if they never addressed it, it would just go away and he would be “normal.” Or as close to normal as he can be with the way he is.)

That brings him to who is at the centre of the room. His Uncle Dave was probably the person he wanted to avoid the most. He never was really nice to Roman, nor to Remus. For the longest time Roman assumed he just didn't like kids. But even as he grew Uncle Dave still seemed to hate them. It all came to a head when his brother, Romans dad, left without a trace. He used to live with Romans family during the time when he disappeared. For some reason he blamed Roman for it, something that he never fought back on. How did he know that he wasn't? So Roman just took his yelling. Took his screaming about how Roman is the reason because of all of his problems. How he was just too weird and quiet and terrible, and that's why he left.

Roman quickly averted his eyes to the loud laughter that came from his right. By the looks of it Remus had finally dispelled his conversation with their mother and found Remy. He looked the same as he always has; wearing those dark sunglasses inside, and dressed in all black. He said it was to look cool but Remy had told Remus and him one night (After they had heard Remy being yelled at) that he actually wears dark things because he's sensitive to light. He gets migraines from it. They had been sure to keep the lights down around him after that.

(All three boys were proof that having any sort of illness in the family was very much so not appreciated. It meant that the family was not perfect, which was not an option to most.)

The official gossip session has seemed to have started if the amused cackle from Remus meant anything. Soon enough those two would break away and try and cause as much trouble as they can.

Roman kept scanning the crowd for any problem areas and after spotting a few aunts and cousins to avoid, he seemed to find the perfect corner to remain in for as long as possible. Luckily there were a few chairs there as well and they were empty. The only problem was going to be making it there.

Directly in front of it was a small circle consisting of his grandfather on his mothers side, and anyone trying to please him. This grandfather was the reason these parties were as fancy as they were. He paid for everything including the house, though the suit he was wearing was probably worth more than most of the furniture in it. He was a very wealthy CEO of the steel company that he founded when he was 19. He lavished his daughter, Romans mom, in as much of the money as he could. She was his only daughter after all.

He, too, seemed to hate Roman. But then again he also hated Romans dad so it may just be left over hate from their relationship.

He was never as generous with his money to him and Remus as he was with most of the rest of the family. Roman didn't mind much. He has everything he needs, even if his job makes him a bit tight on money sometimes.

A job his grandfather very much so did not like one bit. To be honest it seemed like Roman was the only one who liked his job. Even Remus seemed a bit apprehensive when Roman had brought it up. But it was one of the only things Roman never budged on.

Roman was a writer, stagehand, and sometimes director at a pretty large community theatre in the area. It paid well, but not consistently since it was only a job during shows. Of which there was 4-5 a year. He loved his job, but none of his family seemed to share that mentality.

Roman hoped that if he just kept his head down his grandfather just won't recognize him. Just walk right past him and he will never know. He wouldn't see Roman and he'd be able to stay the rest of this night in the corner. Roman dropped his gaze and started walking at a quick pace. It was a good plan, if one of his aunts had not already had too much to drink.

On his way over to his sacred corner, someone stumbled right into his side pushing him along with her. Roman knew he was in a bit of trouble as he looked up and saw who he bumped into.

Roman immediately started to apologize.

“Oh my gosh I’m so sorry grandpa I-”

“Don't call me that you clumsy brat.” He grumbled interrupting Roman.

“Right...Well sorry either way. Didn't see you there! How have you been? Hows the company?” Roman did want to get out of the situation, but he was nothing if not polite. Too bad the same can't be said for most of the people here. He knew he should just shut up and leave, but he could feel the familiar numb spread of anxiety spreading through his limbs.

“As if you really care. But if you must know, well. Stocks are going down a bit because of those damn foreign factories. If it was up to me, we would take them all out by any means necessary. This is the best country anyway. Not like the world would be missing much.” He declared to the crowd who all laughed and agreed. All except Roman who slowly stepped back from the group. His grandpa seemed to have hit a stride and kept up with his racist speech as Roman continued to back up.

Once he was far enough away he turned and hightailed it to his empty corner, breathing a sigh of relief.

‘Finally,’ Roman thought to himself. ‘Now I can be alone.’

“Hey Roman!” A voice all but yelled into his ear.

Roman would never admit how he jumped about a foot in the air and he spun quickly around. He fully turned to see Remus almost on the floor laughing next to Remy who was at least trying to pretend he wasn't laughing.

“Oh ha ha Remus good job you got me?” Roman deadpaned.

“Oh come on that was so good! You always jump so high when you get scared!” Remus laughed some more wiping a tear from his eye.

“Are you done yet?” Roman said hotly.

“Come on babes let him laugh it up for a while. He's gonna need it after losing so bad to me for another year. What has it been now? Like a 7 year streak?” Remy sarcastically replied.

“Uh, bitch, I don't think so! This year I came prepared!”

“Rems you say that every year.”

“Maybe so but I mean it this year! Watch!” Remus ran off into the crowd laughing. He made a direct beeline for their mother leaving Remy and Roman in the corner together.

“...so...Do you think he actually has a chance this year?” Roman asked Remy, finally sitting in one of the two chairs in the corner.

“Babe, I don't think he even has a good rumor. He's just jelly from all the wins I’ve got.” Remy sighed and sat in the other chair next to Roman.

“I don't know he seemed to think he had a really good one this year.”

“Honey, he thinks he has a good one every year. Last year had to be the worst though. At this point I don’t see why anyone would listen to him, let alone believe a word he says.”

“Well as long as hes having fun here.”

“Well babe you could get in on this too if you want.” Remy lifted his sunglasses a bit to look over Roman.

“Know full well Remington that I can't talk to people let alone tell a convincing lie.”

“Yea yea we've been over it. Social Anxiety is a bitch huh… Well If you need anything you can at least talk to me. I get the struggle in this family.” Remy looked pointedly into Romans eyes.

“Aww does Remy liikkee mmeeeee???” Roman didn't much like the change in tone of the conversion, so he tried to change it back to the light heartedness as it was before.

“Bitch? I would never.” Remy smirked and replaced his sunglasses.

“Yea yea. You know-” Roman started, before a shrill voice cut him off.

“ROMAN ADRIAN JULIUS PRINCE!” A voice pierced through the crowd.

Roman immediately stood up at attention as the crowd parted revealing his mother storming past everyone straight to him. Roman didn't know what he had done wrong this time. But he did know he was kinda upset he didn't even make it halfway through the night yet. Remy stood up, and stood slightly behind him.

“Babes, what did you do?” He whispered.

“I have to clue.” He whispered back, just as his mother stopped right in front of him.

To Romans surprise she did yell at him or push him back right away. She just stood there searching his face. After a tense moment, she seemed to find what she was apparently looking for in his anxious expression, as she broke out into a bright smile. Roman was reeling from such a contrast of emotions going on around him and his own. If her smile wasn't weird enough, she started laughing then wrapped her arms around Roman.

Roman froze. His mother hasn't hugged him since he was very young. He started at the now staring, silent crowd. Slowly he returned the hug, moreso because it was to be expected. Finally she pulled back, but held him at arm's length, hands on his shoulders. Roman found she had tears in her eyes. He's never been more confused in his entire life.

“M-mom what's going on?” He shakily started.

“Roman! Don’t pretend like you don't know! Why didn't you tell you were engaged!” She shouted. The crowd gasped. While Roman took a second to process what she just said.

“I-...I’m not though?” He spoke stuntingly.

“Don't worry honey you don't have to hide it anymore! I know you were worried to tell us because of that one thing that happened...But i'm just glad you finally found what's actually right! You should have brought her with you honey!”

Roman didn't know how to react. She was just so happy with this idea… Should he tell her? Tell her he has absolutely no club what the hell she was talking about? Well...If she wanted him to be engaged...why not let this slide for now…? It's not like she will ever meet anyone he dates anyway. Why not entertain her love for a while.

With his mind made up he finally spoke up.

“W-who told you?”

“So it is true! You didn't deny it! Oh sweetie, I'm so proud of you! Who knew you’d finally do something like this before Remus!”

“Mom.” Roman was starting to feel really small in this very large crowd around him, realizing everyone was still staring. “Who told you this?”

“Why Remus of course! I’m not surprised you told him first, a little disappointed is all but still!”

“Umm. Thank you. You- Umm. Now if you'll excuse me I need to...get a drink!”

“Oh that's perfect! A toast! Everyone grab a drink for my son and his engagement!” She turned to say to everyone.

Roman was starting to breathe a bit faster. He caught his grandfather's eye. He seemed to have done almost a full 180 from how he looked at him before. He had a slight smirk on his face and what seemed to be a bit of proud gleam in his eye. Roman felt a bit sick. Remy disappeared from behind him, probably to get a drink as well.

Maybe he shouldn't have gone along with this idea. Once he found out Remus was involved he knew exactly what was happening. He just wishes he had come up with a less believable lie this year. He should have known once he agreed everyone would be too happy. This was a family of tradition, and to them marrying young was very important. They are probably the most proud of Roman right now then they ever have been or will be.

Someone handed Roman a glass of champagne but he didn't feel it much. His family was cheering for him and they were actually...happy for him. He didn't want this. Not like this. He needed to get out. He needed to run before he started to panic even more. They were happy for him...he didn't want to ruin that by actually being himself.

So he ran.

He ran past his mother. Passed his drunk aunt and uncle who were cheering for him and drinking even more. Right passed his proud looking grandfather. And then right past Remus and Remy who was passing Remus his well earned cash. As Roman passed them he shot Remus a cold glare. Remus went from a gleeful smile holding a new $50 bill, to fear as he watched Roman leave the ballroom.

Once he was out of the room where everyone was watching him, he kept going. He ran past the staircase Remus fell down when he was 7, and he father and him sat on to read Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Past the kitchen where Remus stole the cooks still hot cookies, where Roman sat with his father when he taught him how to use chopsticks. And finally out the door, completely forgetting his jacket.

Once outside the cold shocked him into a bit more lucidity. The storm is almost in full force now. Whipping winds and heavy snow. But Roman didn't care. He kept running all the way to his car, which was easy to find since it was the most beat up thing in the lot. He was surprised it even got him and Remus all the way out to the countryside without breaking down.

Roman jumped in the front seat and quickly reached for the key in his pocket. Once he finally grabbed it, he started the car as quickly. He distantly felt bad for booking it as soon as everyone started looking at him, but he just handled it. He could still barely breathe.

He backed his car up and round. Finally he was driving away from the mansion, while pulling his seatbelt on at the same time. Looking in the rearview mirror he caught Remus busting through the front door into the snow, just in time to see Roman turn the corner and out of sight.

~~~

Next Chapter!

Taglist:

@primaveradoodles

[sgt-morgan]

Lucky Kentucky ch. 2

Chapter 1

Hello there, welcome back to my Rockstar!Bucky x Reader fic. It was heavily inspired by my love of seventies mega rockstars, Almost Famous, Classic Rock, and a little bit of personal whimsy. I hope you enjoy, and read responsibly.

⚠️ WARNING ⚠️ : cussing, sexy times, drugs, booze, smoking, objectification, fornication, liberation, and a litany of other sordid topics and traumas.

“HEY! NOBODY FUCKING MOVE!” To say that the last thing you needed was a missing rockstar, was a drastic understatement, and a testament to your unending will.

“Where in the good sweet name of Jesus is that dick head?” You fumed stomping towards the rest of the band.

“Your guess is as good as ours sweetheart, we got nothing. No phone calls, no texts, no nothing.” Shrugged Steve Rodgers, guitarist and all around good guy. “If I knew that all the time, I think I’d be a millionaire.”

You sighed and looked around you at the fleet of your busses and equipment trucks, and you could have sworn that you were ready to kill that asshole with your bare hands. “Well hot stuff? He better show up quickly, or so help me God he will be sleeping in a tour bus with the newest, dweebiest, roadies I can find. Do you know how bad new roadie busses smell? He will if he dosent get his ass here by the time the last piece of your stage equipment is packed.”

“I think you should land his ass there anyway, to give him time to think about what he’s done.” Sam shrugs, Clint vehemently nodding his support as he wrangles one of his two delightful children. “I think his punsishmet should fit his crimes personally.”

“Oh yeah! I think that’s a great idea! Or, he could stay with Laura and I on our bus, I’m sure the whining infant won’t keep him up all night, He’s gonna love it!” Clint nods, “We have a rule, no booze, broads, or bud around the kids! He’ll dry out quick!”

“No Clint, no worries at all. He won’t sleep or get laid on the roadie bus,” you laugh, “he’ll be surrounded by filth, and endless questions, and gawking. He won’t get the back room either, I’ll give him a bunk. Frankie will be on his bus, that way he never gets away with anything. No escape artists on my watch!” You wink, plucking his oldest, Cooper off his back and wrestling him into a head lock.

“Oof, devious as always.” Natasha laughs nodding and throwing her arm around you. “I remember when I got on your bad side, wasn’t worth the never ending week of publicity with no coffee. That was the strictest ban I’ve ever dealt with for sure.”

“Someone start calling his ass.” You laugh pulling away from Tasha and waking towards Peter to get a rundown on the status of loading up.

“Oh captain, my captain!” Peter saluted, about nine or ten roadies following in his lead while the rest just stood gawking as if they had never seen a woman before. “We are about twenty minutes from setting sail, I have my men sorted into busses and vans, Frankies bus has one extra bed open as per request, and, as our lady of perpetual mystery might be interested to hear, we have a new crew of over eager security team members stocked to the brim on Frankies bus, even worse than the roadies. Is everything ship shape?”

“At ease Parker,” you giggle, shoving him out of his stiff rehearsed stance, “indeed we are ship shape, now if only our little diva Jr. would show face, we could be on our way.” Just as you were finishing that sentence, a car pulled up, and out stumbled the man of the hour, James Barnes.

James Buchanan Barnes was drunk. Inibriated, intoxicated, off his ass, pissed, blitzed, sloshed, ranked, hammered, wrecked, out for the count, drunk. He stumbles out of the Uber, bottle in hand, but at least he was dressed. He stumbled over to the rest of the group, he had a duffel bag, wether it was packed with anything useful is up in the air, you’d make sure you’d get your hands on it and ensure that it had what he needed. Wanda could take care of filling in the gaps. You have now decided that there is no escape from Frankie for him. You’d have to put someone on the bus. You don’t know who yet, but someone. Maybe Quill? Whoever it was, needed to get along with Sam and Steve. Thor, he would work nicely. You’d see to it that Frankie had him moved. Now there was the Liquor problem. This was a decision every road manager has to dread. As any good rockstar could tell you, you have to be stone sober or completely fucked to perform a good show, you just had to decide what would or wouldn’t ruin the band... or him. So, sober it was. No use dragging it on any longer.

“JAMES BUCHANAN BARNES!”

—————————————————————————

Any man alive knew that sound was trouble. No woman used the full Government name if you were in good standings. That was just facts. However, drunk thoughts beget sober truths and the truth is, that was incredibly sexy. When he turned hands raised in surrender whiskey bottle and duffle abandoned he was greeted to the glorious sight of her. Kentucky, dressed in leggings and a ripped up old band tee that he could faintly register belonged to Led Zepplin. Her hair piled up on her head shining in the sunlight her curves begging to be expl-

*whack*

Well, that will sober you up quick.

“Hey dickhead, so glad you could make it!” Sam, not looking too thrilled despite his statement of glad tidings gave him a smile he could only describe as cat catching canary. “I think Lucky needs to see you. Loose the doe eyes, it’s getting creepy.”

“Yeah buddy, I can catch on pretty quick.” He fumbled for what to say, and settled on “Bluegrass, doll, you look stunning this fine morning. Care for a swig of Kentucky’s finest?” He slurred, She sauntered up to him and he could swear he felt the magic, until she snatched the bottle and promptly tipped it out onto the ground. “Hey, woah! Easy there Kentucky, that was a bottle of Kentucky’s finest! that was a bottle of Eagle Rare!”

“No James, your looking at Kentucky’s finest, and you should know that I’m better than all the barrels in Frankfort. Buffalo Trace has nothing on me. Now, since you came in all washed up and wandering right smack dab before the deadline, I’m gonna be merciful, but the next time you pull this shit? Theres a bunk in Frankies bus with the minors that has your name on it. Are we clear? Brooklyn?” She had the empty bottle in her fist, her other arm draped under her breasts and she was jabbing him in the chest. He had never been more frightened and turned on in his entire life.

“Reading you loud and clear KY, I got the message.” He nodded backing away slightly.

“Good!” She smiled turning into an entirely different woman. One with sunshine and laughter in her soul, her perverbial horns retracting. She snatched his sunglasses right off of his aching eyes, and placed them on her face. Low blow, but not entirely unexpected. “Now that the princess is here, load up and let’s roll! First pit stop is in Vegas, so we got a lot of ground to cover!” She stuffed his empty bottle and his duffle back into his hands, and headed for her bus, he just caught the conversation as the Barton family began to load up watching her go by.

“Daddy?”

“Yes, Lila?” Clint said helping his little girl put her little pink hello kitty duffle under the bus.

“Is Uncle Bucky in trouble?” She asked innocently looking back at Bucky, who gave her a little wave.

Clint turned to face him, chucking as he met his gaze, “Oh yeah honey, lots and lots of it.”

—————————————————————————

You loaded yourself onto the administrative bus, plopping yourself into the little booth right at the front near the head bus driver, Phil Colson.

“Hello Phil!” You smiled, opening your laptop and checking on your hotel reservation. The kind bus driver smiled and started up the bus. Next on we’re your bunk mates, Wanda, Vision, Bruce, and Peter. That left two bunks open for Tony and Pepper for when they joined you on the occasion.

“Well, I can proudly announce that Barnes’ military training has not gone to waste, even sloppy drunk he knows how to pack his essentials!” Wanda’s beautiful soothing voice waltzes its way into your ears as she and Vision loaded themselves onto the bus. “He’s got his tooth brush and everything! It’s a miracle!”

You nodded at that eyes still focused on checking your route’s traffic and totaling how much it would cost you for a late check in if nessicary. “Good, he can be a functioning adult when he wants to be!”

“The widows are settled onto their bus, everyone’s got what they need. Carol said she could do with some more angry Lucky, she missed you apparently” Bruce sighed plopping down next to you silently checking over your figures.

“I’ve got everything packed so that it should only take the lighting crew and I two hours to shore up, which puts my productivity up by 30%” Vision shrugged putting his arm back around his beautiful wife.

“And I can move heavy things and take good photos. Also, I fixed that stage piece you were worried about and it is no longer does the rocky thingy.” Peter grinned giving you finger guns.

“Ugh, I love the sound of efficiency!” You sigh, pushing a strand of hair behind your ear as you throw your stuff in the bunk closest to the shower. “Thank you all for agreeing to take this on with me, I wanted you because you’re my A-team, and I knew that I couldn’t do this without you... plus I knew it would look fantastic on your resumes.” The crew in your bus gave a here here for that statement.

“So, Barnes. How do you plan to tackle that battle?” Peter said plopping down on top of Wanda and Vision as if they were just two decorative pillows. “He’s gotta strong will and a heady brooding nature, rough shit I tell yah.”

“Not to mention the fact that he’s incredibly handsome,” Wanda said pushing Peter to the floor, “We know you’re a pushover for that type!”

“Well lady and gentlemen, I plan to kick his ass into shape. Good looks and broody behavior be damned!” You huff.

“I may point out, that is not exactly a plan darling.” Vision says sympathetically patting you on the head as he carries his and Wanda’s things to the back of the bus.

“Well Viz, darling I am well aware of that. I have a plan. He’s gonna have to sober up. This behavior isn’t normal for him, his band mates and Tony have made that clear, he’s on the string for some girl that couldn’t have given less of a shit about him, so he’s all fucked in the head. MY job, is going to be reminding him he’s a goddamn rock star, who doesn’t need a bitch like that to make him happy!” You gesticulate as you unpack the supplies you’d need for a shower. “Then, all should be well with the world again, and I can go back to managing tours that don’t make me want to kill myself.”

——————————————————————————

“Say Stevie, that uh, that Kentucky sure is one tough dame right?” Bucky say’s as he charges shirts, “gotta lot of spunk?”

“Yeah Buck, she’s a real hot head when she wants to be, but she’s fantastic at this. I’ve not seen a better organized tour in my life!” He hears his best friend laugh from the front.

“Not to mention,” Sam started from his position on the couch, “she’s one hot mama, veeeeeery fine. You can tell she knows it too. I wonder if she likes dark chocolate, I think I should find out.”

Bucky felt anger deep in his gut at Sam’s teasing, but for the life of him he can’t figure out why. He dosent need another relationship, hell, dosent want one. That only leads to broken hearts and empty bottles... broken hearts and empty bottles... a little cliche but he could make it work. He’d write it down later. Right now, his sole purpose was intel. Gathering as much info on Kentucky as he could.

“Gotta make sure she’s not already tied up Sammy boy!” He laughed, “besides, I think she likes Seargents.” He winked.

“Well if it’s information on the lady Kentucky you want, I’ve got you covered.” The big braun-y security guy Thor chuckled, “she’s single as it comes, bad break up with some hot douche bag in some other band. Wasn’t pretty that breakup, I tell yah. Frankie and I had to beat the guys face in to get him off her door step, she started road managing in order to get away from him, being constantly on the move made her a moving target, it worked better that way.”

“Sheesh, any ideas on that band name? I’d hate to bump into them sometime.” Bucky shook his head, “she sounds like a tough lady.”

“Oh she is,” Thor chuckled, “got some rough and tumble to her, she’s good at what she does. Hydra? I think that’s the name at least.”

“Sheesh,” Steve muttered, “She messes around with hard hitters huh? Hydra is huge on the pop punk charts, they’re not topping out on the hot 100 or anything, but they pull a decent crowd for sure.”

“Yeah, this isn’t the first time I’ve heard stories about them being absolute dicks either,” said Sam, “poor thing. I hate that for her.”

“She’s a good lady, really, she’s always so kind, goes out of her way to learn names and remember important dates, never afraid to pitch in where she’s needed. You guys are lucky to have her for this tour.” Thor nods, putting his things away and laying down in his bunk.

“Yeah, very lucky.” Bucky nods, daydreaming about a woman he just met. This was gonna be a long tour.

——————————————————————————

Their first stop was in Nevada. Los Vegas, baby. The first show of the tour was at the colosseum at Ceaser’s palace. This meant discounted hotel rooms, larger merch sales, and quite a bit of press was involved, but you were ready to take on the challenge. You arrived in Los Vegas around 6am, all of the bands stumbling off their respective busses and making their way towards the resteraunts in the hotel. You and Bruce headed off to snag hotel keys, and settle the bands into place. Wanda, Vis, and Peter, headed with the rest of the crew and the equipment trucks to the Venue for set up.

“Alright Bruce, you get the Widows settled in their rooms, I’ll take care of the boys. Tell the girls their press is at 10 and their rehearsal will be at noon, they are to be at the venue no later than 9:15. They will arrive and go straight to Wanda, who has outfit options, and makeup. They have a lunch break at 2:00, and they need to be at the venue by 5:00 for their sound check at 5:30, curtain is at 7:30.” You rattled off handing Bruce back stage passes and a few printed copies of tonight’s schedule. “I’ll meet you outside in twenty to send the busses to the venue.” Bruce gave you a tiny salute and you wandered off to find the Commandos. You found them sitting in a resteraunt, a waiter bringing them their drinks. You noticed Bucky had a screwdriver, now that just wouldn’t do. You snatched the glass from him right as the waiter was about to put it in his hand, slamming it back in one go.

“Woohoo! Good morning Kentucky!” Clint laughed clapping with Steve and Sam, who were pointing at a dumb struck Bucky.

“Damn, sugar! I didn’t know you had it in you this early!” Sam laughed.

“We,” you said gesturing between Bucky and yourself, “will take water and a coffee.” You said to the waiter with a wink. “Good morning boys! We’re in for a good one today! Starting off at the colosseum is a great first gig! Now I hate to be a downer, but unfortunately, I gotta lay down the law. This tour will have a no show day drinking policy. Zero tolerance, breaking this rule leads to a prohibition to the breakers caffeine supply, and lands you in a bunk in Frankies bus with the newbies. The only exceptions are exactly one pre show shot and or beer for last minute jitters, or a celebratory toast. Any other hard day drinking will lead to repricutions. Rule number two, I run a right ship, I do not appreciate tardiness. I went easy on you the first day, but here on in, if you are late by more than ten minutes, I will assume you’re dead and send the cops to come find you. Very loud, very messy, and definitely will make the news. So, do I make myself clear?” You looked around and met their gazes everyone seemed to be okay with these rules, except Bucky.

“What the hell lucky? Am I some kinda child or something? No drinking? No tardiness? Am I a high schooler? Jesus, you gotta pair on you if you think that I, a grown ass man would ev-“ your food came about five words into his little tirade, and as soon as the waiter left your food, you shoved a roll in Bucky’s mouth.

“Stuff it Brooklyn, we wouldn’t fuckin NEED these rules if you could get your ass together for five minutes to see what you’re doing! Your drunkenness has made you sloppy, you’re late on your due dates, your waisting Tony’s time and money on your pouty bullshit, and your friends are worried about you. So yes, we’re gonna have rules, they will have consequences, and I’ll beat your ass myself if you show the inability to get it together!” You rant jabbing your finger into his chest to get your point across. “Now, eat your waffles, here’s your schedules, and if you are not showered and decently dressed at the colosseum by 10 am sharp, so help me God I’ll call the cops.” With that you gathered your coffe and your purse and stalked away. Handing Steve they’re schedules, passes, and hotel keys as you went. It was gonna be a long night, you could feel it.

“Did anyone else find that extremely sexy?” Sam asked, and by god Bucky couldn’t help it, he nodded in agreement.

—————————————————————————

Steve and Bucky followed eachother up to their floor of the hotel, crew, secrity, and bands took up the entire fifth floor. Later tonight, when everyone actually got to unload after the show, It would be a real party, people leaving their doors open, coolers of beer, goods and services being exchanged, instruments and duffle bags and food being passed from room to room, it was Bucky’s personal favorite part of the evening.

Right now, it was sad and empty. So, he showered, and he went to sleep. At approximately 10:15 am, Bucky was rudely awakened by a pounding on his door. He looked at the time and he jumped to his feet so fast he almost broke his neck tripping on his sheets. Kentucky was gonna kill him. He just hoped to God whoever was outside his door didn’t drag him out of the hotel in handcuffs.

“Ok Bucky, time to shine!” He muttered to himself and threw open the door. Outside was quite possibly the largest man he’s ever seen, and he was no pipsqueak himself, he towered over bucky by at least a foot, and his biceps were roughly the size of his head. “Hello there, seeing as you’re not in a police uniform, you must be Frankie.” The big man grunted his assent. “Ok then, may we g-“

“Listen here pretty boy, I don’t care if your famous, you hurt Kentucky? I hurt you. Understood?” His voice felt like a blast of attic wind. It made Bucky shiver. Where was this coming from? How would he hurt Kentucky, it’s not like she would ever date him, he couldn’t even get a woman to Mary him, let alone bag an absolute catch like Lucky.

“Yes sir, won’t happen again.” Bucky saluted like he was still in the service then realized what he was doing and always my scratched his head. “Can we?” He pointed at the door, hoping against all odds to escape this absolute shit show of a conversation.

“By the way kid? You’re lucky she didn’t send the cops.”

——————————————————————————

At the colosseum, Y/N was pracitcaply putting a hole in the rug of their dressing rooms, while the various other band mates who bothered to show up on time, sat there bored out of their minds.

“I’m gonna kill him,” you muttered, biting at your bottom lip.

“No your not mama,” Natasha laughed from the couch, “You think he’s sexy, you don’t burn fine art.”

“Dammit, you’re right.” You sighed throwing your hands in the air and plopping dow on top of her and Peggy who were sitting next to eachother looking at dress designs Wanda sent them for SNL next month.

“I like the black one Nat, the red detailing is classy and fun.” You mutter, Peggy nods in agreement.

“I like Wanda’s idea of us all having black dresses with different colors, we could do it 1950’s style and put our hair up? I think it would look really cool. Fits the vibe of our song choice.” Peggy says casually flipping through the designs.

“Carol and I respectfully request to wear suits if that’s ok?” MJ pipes up, “I think two and two will look cool.” She shrugs, I’ll do the regular hair and makeup though.”

“Can I get a broad brim mobster hat?” Carol asks popping up from her place on the floor beside MJ’s chair.

“Yes, I like this idea. SNL will like it too I bet.” Wanda nodded. “If they let Megan and Billie do what they want, I’m guessing your performance will be just as accepted. That and it can be in black and white. Rami Malik is also the perfect host for that. I’ll pitch it to their team.”

“How about you boys, any ideas? You’re the week after.” Wanda said looking towards the Comandos who had already made it.

“I like the Jailhouse rock Idea! I think we sh-” Just then, Frankie walked in holding James by the collar.

“Put him down Frankie,” you sigh “he’s an ass, but we need him.” After Frankie let him go, he brushed himself off and grinned at you sheepishly. “You better have a damn good explanation for this.” You grind out.

“Over slept?”

“Im gonna kill him”

——————————————————————————

All in all, the show went off without a hitch, the bands both sailed through their songs beautifully, and earned themselves an encore. However, on the last encore of the night, Bucky made things a little more interesting.

“This last one, goes out for a little special someone!” When he said that, you could swear he winked at you.

“Hey hey mama said the way you move” when he held out that move? You could feel your soul shake. He was going it slow, taking the opening slow to really get the crowd worked up. It was like he was expressly trying to lock eyes with you, seat his irises into your soul. “Gonna make you sweat, gonna make you groove.” Then when the first two lines were done and they kicked into tempo, you remembered where you were, what you were doing, and you let the song echo behind you, as you went to help Wanda pack up the dressing room.

What was that look? What game was he playing at? He couldn’t want to mess around with you, you were a nobody. He was James Barnes, lead singer of one of the biggest bands of the decade, he had no interest in you. You were a road manager, a stick in the mud, a hard headed know it all. He dosent know a thing about you and dosent want you. You were just getting caught up in the music right?

[alwayssaywhatever]

I made a playlist for my fanfic

Art by my friend Ferbiie. She’s amazing and did this as a surprise and she’s incredibly talented. So go follow her tumblr, her account on Insta for drawings: littlesweetdrawings and read her fanfics at A03.

So, some of you know that I‘m writing Mystic Messenger Fanfic. I just decided to create a playlist to my wip, Wine and Cigarettes, a JuminxZen Fanfic.

There’s a few songs per chapter, and I decided to post the list here with a few notes about each of them. 

There are spoilers for the chapters on the song’s choices and explanation. I suggest you go read first and then come back here.

1- Underneath The Mistletoe

A Lovely Night - La La Land Soundtrack (The hate-love dynamics in the beginning of their relationship and the RFA being on a lovely Christmas Night).

Gorgeous - Taylor Swift (Jumin feeling conflicted about Zen)

Daddy Issues - The Neighbourhood (I think the lyrics say everything, they are lonely, ygot issues.)

Nervous - Shawn Mendes (“You make me nervous and piss me off”)

Underneath the Mistletoe - Sia (I found this one today and found cute and it’s the name of the chapter)

2- Silence and Anxiety

Toxic - Britney Spears (Zen still wondering what happened on their first kiss)

Troublemaker - Olly Murs ft. Flo Rida (Zen knowing that JUmin could be trouble)

His Status is… Preferred - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Cast (I love this show CEG and decided to put some fun songs in the middle of this playlist and the lyrics describe Jumin well from Zen’s pov)

broken - lovelytheband (I add this one on the list after reading this fic “Trust fund party” link: https://bit.ly/3iQtXis)

Into You - Ariana Grande (Zen wondering if he should make a move before the second kiss)

3- French Cuisine

Crush - Tessa Violet (I love her music and this album, the fluff, thinking about each other)

I Like (the idea of) You - Tessa Violet (more fluff, the texting each other)

Do I Wanna Know? - Arctic Monkeys (Even if they already kissed each other twice, there’s the question if the other feels the same way, the same intensity)

I Wanna Be Yours - Arctic Monkeys (The end of the dinner)

Animal - Chase Holfelder (it’s a cover from Neon Trees and I like the slowed down version, it gets sexier)

4- Birthday Date

I Really Like You - Carly Rae Jepsen (few weeks of dating, the beginning of liking someone)

Absolutely Smitten - dodie (same from the one before)

Dive - Ed Sheeran (the fear of falling fast and too intensely for someone, wanting to make sure the other feels the same)

Talk Too Much - COIN (I love this one and thought it was too cute)

5- Confessions and Fried Chicken

Make Me Like You - Gwen Stefani (the whole panic before saying “I Love You”)

Stupid Love - Lady Gaga (fine, I love you, so what?)

Shut Up and Dance - WALK THE MOON (Zen basically saying this song before they dance together)

Baby I’m Yours - Barbara Lewis (the song that appears at the chapter, it speaks for itself)

6- The Storm After the Calm

You Deserve Better - James Arthur (Jumin thinking about leaving Zen, insecurities and fear)

Just Give Me a Reason - P!nk ft. Nate Ruess (Zen asking what’s wrong and why they are breaking up. P!nk’s lines are Jumin and Nate’s lines are Zen)

Before You Go - Lewis Capaldi (Zen asking if there was something he could do to stop the break up)

ok on your own - mxmtoon ft. Carly Rae Jepsen (the whole lyrics it’s a mix between their feelings)

7- Broken Promises

We don’t talk Anymore - Charlie Puth ft. Selena Gomez (“Every now and then I think you might want me to come show up at your door, but I'm just too afraid that I'll be wrong”)

I Was an Island - John-Allison Weiss (Zen’s pov for the lyrics)

Words Ain’t Enough - Tessa Violet (Jumin made promises with words, but his actions proved them otherwise. They broke up saying that they still loved each other)

Death By A Thousand Cuts - Taylor Swift (Zen again: “'Cause saying goodbye is death by a thousand cuts; flashbacks waking me up; I get drunk, but it's not enough”)

EX - Kiana Ledé (More Zen: “Just 'cause it's different and we're not the same; Doesn't mean things have to change; I got no trouble with my pride, got trouble cutting ties”)

8- RFA’s New Members

dream of you - mxmtoon (I love her music and had to have her here too and it’s sad. The lyrics really mean everything)

i miss you - mxmtoon (the lyrics also say everything on this one)

Dress - Taylor Swift (“Our secret moments in your crowded room; They've got no idea about me and you”)

I Won’t Give Up - Jason Mraz (Zen still has hopes, so he joins the RFA)

9- A Night of Regrets

Maniac - Conan Gray (pretty much the fight from the chapter)

Walls Could Talk - Halsey (The fight gain)

Horny Angry Tango - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Cast (the sexual tension of the fight)

We Should Definetly Not Have Sex Right Now - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Cast (the title and the lyrics are pretty straight forward)

MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT - Monsta X (this happens after this chapter and before the next chapter. It’s not healthy, but continue to hook up)

Circles - Post Malone (the same bas from the last song, but this time Zen believes he has to put an end to all of this)

10- The Consequences To Their Actions

Never Really Over - Katy Perry (Zen thinking about the bad cycle of their hookups, but also still having feelings for Jumin)

Strangers - Halsey ft. Lauren Jauregui (Halsey lines are Zen and Lauren’s lines are Jumin)

Getaway Car - Taylor Swift (Jumin talking about their relationship was doomed from the beginning)

Mercy - Shawn Mendes (Zen demanding explanations about them, if they have a future)

Say Something - A Great Big World ft. Christina Aguilera (Zen pleading for answers)

Please Don’t Leave Me - P!nk (Jumin not wanting Zen to leave)

It Was a Shit Show - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Cast (Zen admitting that their relationship was flawed and it should be over)

11- Comfort in an Unexpected Place

Perfect Illusion - Lady Gaga (Zen being mad about their second time was not feeling and just something casual)

Truth Hurts - Lizzo (Zen complaining to Seven)

Good as Hell - Lizzo (Seven giving advice to Zen)

Kill This Love - BLACKPINK (feeling empowered after deciding not to cry about his ex anymore. “His love is my favorite; But you plus me; Sadly can be dangerous”)

We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together - Taylor Swift (putting the final stone and saying it’s over forever)

12- Kind Eyes and Good Advice

Strawberries and Cigarettes - Troye Sivan (the song that inspired the title of the fic. I could be the two singing, but Jumin is thinking about: “strawberries and cigarettes always taste like you”)

Someone You Loved - Lewis Capaldi (Jumin is all the lyrics, but this one really hurts: “I guess I kinda liked the way you numbed all the pain”)

Falling - Harry Styles (Jumin drinking and blaming himself. “And I get the feelin' that you'll never need me again”)

Ex - Stray Kids (the moment I heard this song I thought about Jumin singing this. The MV on youtube has the lyrics in English ;])

13- When a Door Closes…

i hate u, i love u - gnash ft. Olivia O’Brien (this chapter it’s more about the characters and Rika, but it’s also the first time in six months that the two saw each other and I love this song so much)

14- …Someone Breaks Through a Window

Strange Love - Halsey (RFA wondering why the two fight so much and Zen reflects about their past)

When I Was Your Man - Bruno Mars (Jumin thinking about the things he could’ve done better)

Talking to the Moon - Bruno Mars (Zen thinking about the two of them after all this time)

Somebody That I Used to Know - Gotye ft. Kimbra (they being annoyed at the the other, their fights and bickerings on the chat rooms)

I will reblog this post when I add more songs to the playlist. I’ve already updates chapters 15 and 16 but I still didn’t know wich songs to add, so this is it for now.

There is a tag for the fic and I’ll update everything there as well. 

I hope you enjoyed this journey into my mind. This songs helped me write and maybe I’ll have some drawing to complete this whole work.

[jimlingss]

The President’s Son [1]

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2

➜ Words: 3k

➜ Genres: 100% Fluff, Slice of Life, Bodyguard!AU

➜ Summary: Kim Taehyung is the President’s son, mischievous and playful, and infamous for being a troublemaker. When everyone’s given up, they call for you to be his personal guard. There’s no other choice when your dad’s assigned you to it and surprisingly Taehyung doesn’t mind either. Maybe because you happened to grow up with that brat.

➜ Warnings: Slowburn.....

➜ Notes: Who’s ready for 20 chapters of slow burn?

He can’t go any harder.   He can’t go any faster.   “Sir! Sir! Stop, please! Stop right there! Stop!”   It’s a sight to behold — a blonde college student pedalling hard on a bike with all his mustered strength while a horde of suited men are hot on his tail, sprinting fifteen miles per hour and shouting at the top of their lungs in desperation. He’s made them look like the idiots that they are.   People turn around to stare, morning interrupted by the ruckus. Yet he is undeterred, zipping through the crowd, ignoring the eyes of his fellow peers and as he cuts through campus. A black sleek vehicle on the road has its wheels screeching on the asphalt, trying to keep the boy on the bike in their line of sight. They continue to chase him, screaming out his name.   It’s dangerous. He knows it. But their hysterics make him laugh.   He feels free like this, running away, thighs burning as he pedals.   The wind caresses through the strands of his crazy hair, causing his oversized shirt and grey sweatpants to flutter. His clothing is baggy, bed head's a mess, the scruff all over his chin never once giving hints that he’s the wealthy son of a world leader. He doesn’t have brand name clothing, a polished appearance, shiny cars or luxurious watches to his name.   Just a bike and himself.   And that’s enough for Taehyung.   “Sir, sir! Stop! Please!”   Now only if he had less surrounding bodyguards, or at least less suffocating ones that don’t make him want to hurl himself out the window just to get a nice view of the blue sky. Then everything would be perfect.

At the exact same time and half-across the capital, the plane touches against the tarmac.   The aircraft eventually slows on the runway, engines whirring, white noise loud but inviting as people begin to stir awake, happy to have finally landed and eager to get off. The two pilots wave to you happily as you leave, head stewardess glaring for some reason from the corner of her eye unbeknownst to you, and with your luggage, you cut through visitation and immigration booths. Stopping at only one spot, the person behind the counter looks at your passport and simply says “welcome home” before you’re cutting through the baggage claims, straight out the airport doors.   There’s nothing else you need.   Just your one suitcase and you.   “Where are we off to this afternoon?”   The female taxi driver turns around from her waist, flashing the brightest of smiles despite somehow looking fatigued. You read out the address and she hums, pulling away from the curb.   “Are you visiting?”   “No...this was actually my hometown.” You look out the window, feeling an odd sense of déjà vu from suddenly being propelled back to a place that is so familiar and yet foreign to you. “I think I’m staying here for a while.”   “Oh, that’s nice. I hope you don’t mind me asking so many questions. I just really like hearing people’s stories.” She glances in the rear view mirror and you welcome her friendliness. For a long time, you’ve forgotten that this is your home. “Did you miss it?”   “Sort of.”   A lot has changed in nine years. The buildings are different, old ones demolished, new ones built that are sleeker, taller and reaching the height of the sky. But at the same time, it’s still small. Maybe it’s because the skeleton of the city, the foundation, hasn’t altered. Or perhaps because you were shorter and tinier back then and the city seemed so large, scary even.   Though now there are billboards plastered everywhere, advertising products you aren’t familiar with, music leaking out from bustling shops and restaurants, and people you don’t recognize walking around and that you would never come to recognize. Colour seems to explode all around you, the city alive, streets breathing.   “—should really find another job. I mean driving a taxi isn’t terrible, but it’s not what I want to do forever. I have a degree in Human Resource Management. Honours actually. Wonder if I can do anything with that though.” The taxi driver taps her fingers against the wheel. “The economy’s bad these days.”   “Oh, can I actually get off here?” You unknowingly interrupt her life story, peering out the window.   You remember the avenue well — a hot dog food truck on the corner next to the department store, a toy store still standing tall; it’s one that you used to go to on your birthday to pick out your own gift. There’s also new cafes that have opened up, business buildings that make it foreign. There really isn’t a reason for you to get out now, but for nostalgia sakes and ...your intuition that tells you should get out here.   “Sure thing.” She signals to switch lanes, looking over her shoulder and smoothly parking into an empty spot a few meters away. “That’ll be twenty two dollars.” Once you pass her the correct amount of bills, she smiles. “Have a good day and good luck.”   “Thank you. Good luck on finding a new job too.”   The woman thanks you and with your suitcase by your side, you shut the taxi door, looking around at the metropolis, listening to the sounds of the concrete jungle, engines of buses whirring, honks of cars in the distance…   Everything is almost unrecognizable.   The suitcase drags behind you as you walk down the street. It’ll take longer on foot, but you enjoy the surroundings, taking it all in. Your life has always been face-paced. It’s nice to slow things down.   But you don’t notice the bike zipping towards you. The blonde man just a year younger than you are, pedalling hard and looking over his shoulder, having lost the sleek vehicle for now.   Though what is noticeable and what catches your eye is the soft baby blue colour of his bike.   He comes closer to you. One more glance is taken. The boy’s ready to zip across the street. But he’s far too preoccupied to pay any attention to another car speeding down the road, the screech of their wheels, the driver who is distracted.    He simply pedals off the curb, going onto the road.   “Look out!”   On instinct, you grab his arm, right at his elbow and you pull him towards you. With a huge tug, his body collides against yours, but you catch him in your arms, shouldering his weight and holding him up so he doesn’t fall. His bike drops over to the ground in a crash. The speeding car zooms past, fast enough that the wind whips your hair, honk deafening to your eardrums.   You let go of the boy and he’s shocked, knees weak. His legs almost buckle and people around have slowed down to watch the commotion. “You should be more careful. Are you alright?”   Leaning down, your eyes meet his.   “Uh….I-….uh….”   Taehyung is starstruck.   In the meanwhile, your eyes flicker upwards. “License plate zero two nine five seven five…” You immediately dig into your pocket, dialling the number without even looking. “Hi, I’d like to report a reckless driver going southbound on Imlings Avenue and ninth street. Yes. They were speeding. I think they were going at least twenty over the limit. Yes. No. Well, they almost hit a cyclist, but kept on driving.”    You tell them the colour and model of the car before taking your phone off your ear for a second, staring directly at Taehyung again. “Do you need an ambulance, kid?”   “I’m f-fine,” he chokes out, stuck gazing at you.   There’s something familiar about you that he can’t quite put his finger on.   “He’s good. Yes. Thank you.”   You just saved his life — you’re a hero. Yet, you act completely nonchalant about it, indifferent to the bystanders staring. He’s baffled. The way you pulled him in like he weighed nothing. The way you take care of business without batting a single eyelash. Taehyung is in love.   He’s never met someone so sexy before.   “Hello? Kid, are you alright?”   You’ve hung up, now waving your hand in front of his face, making him crash down to reality.   “Uh...what?”   “The police will be on the lookout. Someone might come here soon to check up on things, so you should stick around. I can be your witness.”   “I...um...need to actually get going. It’s….ur-urgent….” He remembers why he was here in the first place and while Taehyung’s eyes are still glued onto your face, unable to be torn off, he hitches a thumb over his shoulder. But running away doesn’t seem so pressing anymore.   “Oh, well….you can always go to the station later then. I think the CCTV over there might have caught it all but if you need me to fill out a report. Here.” You dig into the front pocket of your suitcase, ripping some paper from a traveling pamphlet that was given to you. Grabbing a pen from your jacket pocket, you bite the cap off to scribble down your name and number.   Taehyung’s busy ogling at your mouth and the way you coolly uncapped the pen.   “Here. Just call this number if you need. You should also be wearing a helmet — it’s a law and you can get into trouble without it. Stay safe and be careful.”   “Uh-huh.” His eyes fall down to the paper, taking it while swallowing hard.   It’s an out-of-body experience for him. He almost died. But he’s never felt more alive than now. The thing is though, he’s not an adrenaline junkie. Not in the least bit. His blood runs hot for another reason…..   Taehyung snaps out of when he reads the name you’ve scribbled next to your number.    Then he reads it twice, double checking that his eyes aren’t deceiving him. And they aren’t.   “Y/N….?”   His head whips upwards, but by then, you’re pulling your luggage, wheels rolling on the sidewalk and over the ridges. Taehyung watches as your backside gets smaller and he barely remembers to pull up his bike again.   On the other hand, you’re less awe-struck than he is. You’re just glad you were there at the right time, the right place, able to save a homeless man from meeting his demise.   //   It feels out of place, awkward for you to march up to the resident of the head of state like this, lugging your backpack and suitcase with you. You look more like a student who took a gap year to travel across the country than someone who’s supposed to be here.   You would’ve dropped off your belongings first, rented a place like the responsible adult that you are, but he told you to come here before doing anything else. At the news of you arriving back home, he’s urgently seeking you out and you wonder what could be so important — it could never be because he actually misses you. Such a thing is impossible.   “Hi, are you looking for the tour of the Blue House? Unfortunately, the group just left five minutes ago and this is our last one for today.”   “No, I...uh...actually...” You dig into your jeans back pocket for the lanyard. It’s old, but still visible and you flash the security badge. “I’m looking for the head of the secret service. Is he around?”   The room that you’re brought into is spacious and luxurious, golden furnishings that remind you of being inside a castle. The windows are large, looking to a garden, but here at the back of the house, it’s secluded. Your suitcase has been taken and you’ve been searched before stepping in here. You muse that he’s taken quite the promotion since you’ve last seen him. He seems to have some kind of status or importance.   After a moment of gandering, the double doors open.   You stand, coming face to face with an old man standing tall and proud. “How was the flight?”   The doors close behind him. “It was good. Are you off work?”   “I’m always working.”   His hands are behind his back, putting a meter distance away from you. It’s been years, but there’s never a hug spared, not even a smile or polite handshake that would be offered in greeting a stranger. No one would know that he’s your family, that this old man’s your father.   “There’s a reason you wanted me to come here right away.”   “Yes. Take a seat.”   ….   Taehyung tracks mud into the house.   He’s about to hear an earful from someone, maybe his dad or his stepmom, but he doesn’t want to hear it and he won’t wait around to be caught for that to happen. He walks quickly despite feeling eyes pinned to the back of his head. It’s suffocating here, though no one dares to say anything about his troublemaking antics.   The boy has his hands in his pockets, strolling down the hallway towards the kitchen to raid some free food. But as he turns the corner, someone comes towards him from the other end of the corridor.    The tables have turned. Now he’s the one who notices you first.   “Y/N?”   He knew he’d see you again. But maybe not so soon.   “Oh, you.” Your feet halt and you look at him with a frown. “What are you doing here? Are you allowed to be here?”   “I should be asking you that.” He laughs, wholly relaxed unlike earlier.   You don’t know how he got here...until the realization dawns on you.   He’s the person that your father talked about, the reason why he wanted to see you in the first place. This homeless man isn’t homeless at all. And as you look into his eyes, the way they’re a warm brown shade reminding you of dark caramel, childlike and mischievous, you realize truly nothing has altered in the course of nine years. He’s taller, shoulders broad, face lost its baby fat and more sculpted. He’s less like an aggravating rascal, but the rest is the same.   It’s Kim Taehyung.   “You remember, right?” He comes closer, taking a slick step towards you, leaning down to connect his eyes with yours at the same height. He’s flirtatious — that’s different and foreign.   “Pardon me, I’m sorry, remember what?”   The man with the blonde strands flopping over his eyes blinks and his strong brows furrow in concern. “You...don’t remember?”   “Did we know each other?”   He scoffs, leaning back onto one foot and crossing his arms. “Did we know each other,” he mimics in a mocking tone. But when you give no response, his lips fall into a straight line, gaze morphing into something grievous and serious. “You can’t recall?”   “I’m sorry….” You shake your head. “Is there something I should know, Mr. Kim?”   “Mr. Kim?” he murmurs in exasperation and steps forward again as if to corner you. Taehyung refuses to give up. He insists on jogging your memory again. “We used to dig holes in the ground to get to the other side of the world and I flung dirt at you, remember? I glued your seat and stuck tape in your hair and put salt in your water and replaced your whip cream with dad’s shaving cream. And you never cried once. Remember, dumbo?”   The name makes a muscle in your cheek twitch.   Taehyung wears the biggest shit eating grin, smile spread into his cheeks, not letting it go. Your expression remains impassive as the memories come back. But they were always here. The moment your dad said his name aloud, you already knew. And you’re wholly unimpressed.   Without thinking twice, you walk forward, not allowing him to block your way. Your shoulder shoves against his, but your strength isn’t calculated and he’s pushed to the other side of the hallway, caught off guard. He smacks against the wall, wheezing as the lungs get knocked out of his body. You mumble an apology, lingering for a second.   Trying to play dumb didn’t work. Maybe someone out there could actually get away with not being able to recall their memories, but for you it unfortunately doesn't work like that.   It’s not like you’re traumatized or damaged over the memories. Just slightly annoyed. He’s always been that little fruit fly buzzing around your head near your ear that you couldn’t get rid of.   “I remember.”   Taehyung bullied you.

“Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, dumbo, are you listening?”   You turn your head with dead eyes. The seven year old has rounded cheeks pinched red, cute eyes and a playful smile. But he’s not a cherub. He’s a demon in disguise. “You’re annoying.”   “Well you’re ugly,” he bites back with his tongue sticking out.   You walk away but he follows after you diligently like a dog — too bad he’s not as cute. You would’ve preferred a dog. “Where do you think you’re going, huh, dumbo? I’m talking to you! You’re no fun. You’re boring. Boring. Booooring. Boooooooooring.”   At eight, you’re taller than he is. But unlike what your dad’s taught you, Taehyung has no regards for age at all. He’s not respectful. He doesn’t stay quiet. He’s not well-mannered. He’s a troublemaker. What others have called ‘a punk’.   You continue, only to be forced to a stop, colliding with an invisible barrier. Your face is pushed up against the transparent surface and from being caught off guard, the force is enough to topple you off your feet. You fall onto your butt. The floorboards welcome your small body.   Taehyung laughs his head off.   “I can’t believe you actually fell for it!”   He’s chortling, snickering, in absolute hysterics.   You give up, laying on the ground with your arms to your side, staring at the ceiling lifelessly before your eyes flicker to him, watching him have his fun.    The doorway remains stretched with plastic wrap. 

[halorocks1214]

ბარტერი (a Thunderbirds fic)

Chapter 1: გატაცებული

AO3 Link

Word Count: 3892

Summary: And here they thought getting their father back was the least of their worries.

i make no promises for this fic. the upload schedule will be totally willy nilly because i havent really been feeling the whole writing thing and because of my other fics and projects and irl shit. i hate to admit it but im on the fence on whether or not this will actually be completed, BUT, i still am surprisingly proud of this so im posting it anyway. hope yall enjoy!

“Okay, what’s the dealio?”

Gordon easily skipped around his younger brother with a slightly faux-naive voice. They were currently out in the field, damn tsunamis not being picked up by the D.A.R.T. soon enough, and while Gordon knew better than to talk about personal things during a rescue, it was the first time in a while he even had the chance to talk to Alan.

Who was currently more forlorn than Gordon was aware he could be if the way he watched his toes kick whatever small rock they strutted past was any indication. It took a moment for Alan to register his older brother’s question, but when he did, he blinked a few times before looking at Gordon with a raised eyebrow, “What?”

Gordon was going to play this slyly. Treat it as banter, not an interrogation. Gordon idly leaned over and picked up a stick. He started to twirl it, never meeting Alan’s gaze directly, “I don’t know, you seem off. Just wanted to see if it was anything I could help with.”

Alan went back to kicking the pebbles, shrugging his shoulders in a way that said ‘this was a big deal but I don’t want you to know that’, “Oh, sorry, just tired. It’s not my fault I was having a wonderful nap in the closet only for John to make me tumble out of it due to the alarms. The fact that we’ve been out here for God knows how many hours doesn’t help.”

Gordon’s chuckles at that statement were slightly fake. Alan was hiding something, and if Gordon had to imitate Scott, well, then it was only Alan’s fault, “Yeah-huh. Sounds good.” He focused on the stick, pretending it was a wand and waving it around as such, “Decided on a college yet?”

Alan still didn’t look up, and Gordon could hear the noises of rocks getting kicked and traveling a foot or two. Alan answered him monotonously, “Uh, not really. I’ve narrowed it down to three. I haven’t brought them up with anyone other than Grandma though since the last thing I want to do is create a World War between our older brothers about which one is better.”

Gordon snorted but then got serious again. Dammit, Gordon, you are not letting him worm his way out of this. Again, “If I promise Scout’s Honor will you tell me them?” He cheekily grinned at Alan, which got a small smile out of the younger brother. Nice, getting closer. Now Gordon was doing that rubber pencil trick with the stick, way more immersed with the visual illusion than he probably should be, “Hmm, is it girl trouble?”

Alan rolled his eyes, but Gordon could tell he was getting annoyed, which meant the older brother was getting close. Alan kept his facade up, crunching a stick underneath his feet as he started walking just a little faster, “If you mean ‘Kayo chased me for accidentally spilling paint on Shadow’s nose’ then yes, I’m having lots of girl trouble.”

Gordon winced wholeheartedly and sympathetically. He remembered when he accidentally tripped and spilled water all over the front of her one night. He wasn’t aware she was a fan of throwing them into the pool just as much as he was until that night. It was in annoyance, but still, Gordon considered it a similar hobby between them regardless, “Yeesh, sorry for bringing up traumatizing memories bro.” Squinting at the stick he was playing with, he put it over his lips like a faux-mustache, lightbulb dinging in his brain with joyful glee, “Boy trouble?”

Alan groaned at started walking way faster than Gordon. Once he was about three feet away from Gordon, he shouted while still facing forward so Gordon could hear him, “Oh my god, let it go, Gordon!”

Bingo, Gordon thought he hit the jackpot. Throwing the stick away and keeping his distance from Alan, his grin went ear to ear with excitement at what he thought was figuring it out, “Oh man, okay, wait, hang on, is it that Bear kid? The one Scott rescued for the umpteenth time last week? Or, wait, didn’t Conrad visit you up at ‘Five two weeks ago during your rotation?” Giggling, Gordon rubbed his hands together mischievously, “Allie, how dare you. Romantic or not, it’s my job to help you out with these things--”

Suddenly and abruptly, and shutting Gordon up, Alan turned around and glared at Gordon while his fists were haphazardly clenched at his hips, “Fine, Mr. Nosey, you wanna know? It’s about Dad, okay?!”

Well, there went any ability to joke in this situation. Gordon lost his smile completely and stared mindlessly at his younger brother, who was breathing heavily and still glaring, but Gordon could tell there was a hint of anxiety behind his eyes.

Dad had been back for about two-and-a-half months now, and the Tracy family seemed to be settling into a new routine with him. Everyone was happy Jeff was back in one piece, none more so than Jeff than himself. They quickly figured out how to slowly integrate him back, starting with daily chores, reaching him having permission to help out with IR, and now they were getting ready to reintroduce him back into Tracy Industries.

The anxiety in Alan’s features was suddenly all Gordon could see in them, followed by Alan shaking his head and turning back around, “Shit-- forget I said anything, that’s not why--”

Before he could even think, Gordon shot his arm out to grab Alan by the wrist, his amber eyes wide with careful thought. He needed to think these words through. The idea that Alan was nervous regarding talking about his own dad was... “Allie… I know you didn’t have as much… time with him, but he’s your father too. You don’t have to hide any opinion about him for me, for us.”

Alan still wasn’t looking at Gordon, but the older brother definitely saw the tiny and hidden flinch the younger brother made at your father too. Gordon barely held back the sharp inhale he wanted to make. Okay, that was an entire suitcase, one he, unfortunately, couldn’t unpack right now (as much as he loathed to admit it that was a Scooter problem), so he focused the first problem he figured out, “Allie, are you upset Dad is back or?...”

That got Alan to turn around, “No! Jesus, Gordon, of course, I’m happy he’s back. The only reason I graduated right before we left was that Scott and John both told me to go do something while we waited because “the way you’re bouncing on your toes is going to burn a hole in the ground and Grandma won’t like that,” remember? I’m ecstatic he’s alive and back home.”

Letting Alan gently go, Gordon took a deep breath to reorganize his thoughts, “Okay, then what about Dad has got you so worked up?”

Alan was suddenly much younger than the fresh, getting-ready-to-go-to-college, young man Gordon saw this morning, “You remember that argument between Scotty and Dad, right? The one about five weeks ago that we shouldn’t have listened in on but did anyway?”

Gordon flinched, not wanting to remember that argument.

The two have made up since then, but it was a shock to just about everybody on the island, including John and Virgil, who the blondes nervously told the morning after so they could get some kind of reassurance the world wasn’t ending. In the Tracys’ quest to have their Fairytale Happily Ever After, it never occurred to them that their father might not like how they were running things.

Scott made a decision that didn’t sit well with the older man, and he let his son know that in tactless, Jeff Tracy fashion. Scott’s decision wasn’t the best per se, certainly not the worst, but he could’ve waited for some better options, but Jeff couldn’t just say that outright, that he was concerned about his son taking risks like that. He had to immediately jump to the idea that Scott’s leadership might be lacking suddenly.

It also didn’t help that Scott couldn’t just fucking say that, while he was sorry for being slightly rash, he didn’t like being undermined after years of successful leadership. He went straight for the fact that Jeff had been gone for the past eight years. Scott didn’t blame the man for it, God no, but the insinuation that Jeff wasn’t any better than Scott because of it stung everyone in the room. Because being reminded of the fact that Dad was technically a dead man for a big portion of all of their lives wasn’t bad enough.

Gordon forgot that Scott could be too much like Jeff for his own fucking good, as well as the fact that Scott did get it from Jeff Tracy of all people.

Adult men Gordon’s ass, two old and stubborn as hell mules more like it.

They were both stuck on the fact that now there might have to be challenges of authority, and frankly, now that the oldest outside of Grandma put that idea on the table, it bothered everyone else barely more than those two combined.

Jeff apologized for how he acted after Grandma ripped him a new one, and Scott apologized for jumping the gun a little bit too (after Grandma yelled at him as well), but there was no promising no second fight, least of all one like that.

It was a little like being a kid and watching Mommy and Daddy fight for the first time.

Long story short: it sucked ass.

Alan took a shuddery breath and brought Gordon down from that memory. Alan then proceeded to wrap his arms around himself, rubbing up and down in a weak attempt to ground himself, “I just… what if he had all these ideas about me while he was up there, and what if I’m completely different from those ideas and it disappoints him?”

Oh, sweet Jiminy Cricket.

What the hell was Gordon to say to that? Jeff was a loving a supportive father, more so than others. Gordon remembered all of his swim meets and such for a good reason, so his first response to that statement was easily of course he would be proud of you!

But there was an ever so tiny thing that grabbed Gordon’s tongue from saying that outright. It was honestly minor, so he wasn’t sure why it kept hitting him like a fucking truck.

Eight. Years.

Jeff Tracy was a remarkable man, and even more remarkable father, but nobody spent eight years in isolation, let alone spent it thousands of miles up in space, without it having some kind of consequence. Jeff would never outright disown his sons for anything as long as it wasn’t illegal or got themselves or others hurt, but he was human, and he had preferences just like the rest of them had.

So, disappointed? Hell no. But potentially shocked and uninterested? Less supportive than other endeavors? Gordon loved his father, but he had to admit that he was at a loss. There weren’t Dead Men for Dummies books anywhere, and it sucked to say it, but Jeff was different. They were different, and the only way they would know how this Jeff reacted to things would be an in-the-moment experience, and if Scott’s and his argument was the first concrete example they had...

With how different Gordon was to the rest of his family, he always worried that he would never fully fit in. When Jeff came back he was excited just as much as Alan, as the rest of his family, but Gordon was always worried about his dad the most. He cheered him on at his swim meets, sure, but Gordon was always keenly aware of how the man, outside of taking him to and from them and, well, cheering, lots and lots of cheering, never really asked more than How did it go, sport?

Gordon wanted to be the only Tracy with that fear. It sucked, but in the end, his family always came through even if they weren’t aware of his anxieties. Now that Alan has them, over his father no less…

That just brings them right back around to the start: Gordon would be lying to himself if he knew what Jeff thought of him, let alone Alan.

Alan was a perceptive person, and if Gordon lied to himself, Alan would see that and know Gordon was lying to him as well, and that would very easily make the situation worse.

However, before Gordon had any chance to say something, words pulled from his ass or otherwise, anything to ease his baby brother’s low thoughts, footsteps rustled in the distance, causing the two blondes to snap their heads to look to the side. What they saw were two men, one larger and older, another younger and seemingly out of his comfort zone, in a sense. Gordon was going to chalk it up to ‘being a rescuee after a tsunami’, but his squid senses were tingling, and he felt himself easily go slightly taut.

The younger stranger blinked a few times before snapping his head up to look at the two IR Operatives in front of him. His eyes lit up, and Gordon suspected it wasn’t because he was about to be rescued.

“Oh, shit, these guys are young. How much do you think they would sell for?”

And just like that, Gordon’s gut twisted into a killer pretzel and was dropped off a five-story building. This had to be a joke, had to be. These kinds of people were only supposed to exist in horror stories. In the dark parts of the internet that are mainly regarded as myths, created to scar the poor children who snuck onto their parents’ laptop without permission. Even if they were real, Gordon and Alan couldn’t have had that bad of luck to--

“Remember what we said about famous people? Forget the ages, these guys are International Rescue. Most clients will throw physicality to the wind if something famous is involved.”

Gordon also thought that your pupil shrinking to the size of the tip of a needle when you’re terrified was a myth, but as the blood completely drained from his face and left him white as a sheet, he had to concede he was wrong about multiple things tonight.

Holy hand grenade in a fucking handbasket.

The state of shock his body was forcing him to enter was bad, like, shock-blankets-are-required level bad, but trembles from a different body right next to him snapped him back into attention.

Alan was trembling, his grip on Gordon’s arm so tight that the older brother wouldn’t be surprised to find bruises when his outfit was finally taken off. There was only a marginal amount more color compared to Gordon behind those freckles, and Gordon couldn’t tell if his brother’s pupils were any smaller with the way the kid was flicking them around like crazy, “Wha-- what are they talking about?”

Ah, shock was one hell of a bitch.

Alan was 18 years of age, an adult. He flew a rocket into space for a part-time job. He also lived on an island where he was mainly homeschooled and was soon to be off at some kind of college (maybe even online classes). As embarrassing as it could be, his family wasn’t going to be the puritan fam that shoved the mere thought of sex to the sidelines. Alan had four older brothers who spent a significant amount of time on the mainland around other people more than the youngest could ever dream of. Most time of which was spent in their respective high schools (or Olympics fields, ‘cause Gordon wasn’t exactly of age when he still had school over there) with hot girls and boys-- similar hobbies or not-- that had the same level of hormones flying about.

They knew things and weren’t afraid to answer any question Alan had.

Also, Alan had a huge internet hobby; video games, browsing social media, you name it. The kid’s probably heard stories that would give Scott hernias for days. Alan had to have stumbled across the topic of human trafficking somewhere, whether it was the plot of a teen-rated video game or something as simple as a news article. At the end of the day, this kind of thing was something everyone was subconsciously aware of, but you didn’t think about it because A, it was awful, and B, more often than not, it didn’t happen to you.

But the way Alan stared at Gordon like the prankster held the stars in his palms-- as if he could snap his fingers and bring them to safety in the blink of an eye reminded Gordon that Alan was always a little bit more sheltered than any of them could help it. Alan was one of the last things their mother gave them, and the way John and he essentially became her just split into two people hurt more than any of them would be willing to admit.

Alan knew the horrors of the world firsthand, but he never had to fully grasp it because his older brothers would be there to shoulder it for him.

Always.

Like hell Gordon was going to drop that tradition today.

“Alan, run.”

With a shove and a half, Gordon ripped his little brother’s hand from his upper arm and sent him in the other direction. Gordon also ripped his own heart in half as he ignored the somewhat naive cry of Gordon! as it got quieter and quieter. Despite the guilt, Alan listened and booked it. Like a baby calf being told to run away from starving lions while the mom stayed behind to protect it. Gordon, mostly satisfied that his bro was safe, turned around and swallowed the bile that was rising in his throat.

He was hoping his glare could be as scary as Scott’s or even Virgil’s, but the way the creepy strangers just chuckled as if the threat he posed was no bigger than a tiny kitten filled Gordon with both anger and fear. They knew he was from IR. If they weren’t scared of him, what did that mean they were prepared for?

The older man stated an order, one that had Gordon’s blood run cold, “Go after the other. I got this one.”

Gordon got out half an angry “Hey!” before the man that spoke suddenly charged at him. On reflex, Gordon put himself into a fighting stance and prevented both of them from toppling over. He hardly considered it a victory, though, as the other guy who was ordered to run after Gordon’s baby brother was gone and out of sight before Gordon could even look up after nearly having the wind knocked out of him.

Gritting his teeth and shoving the man off of him, bringing his arms up and curling his fists with a glare brighter than his hair, the only plan he could go with was the one where he took this guy down as quickly as possible. Right now, the only solace Gordon had was the fact that his brother was a quick puppy. He didn’t only need ‘Three to move at the speed of light.

C’mon, Alan, show me why Track was worth it.

Focusing completely on his enemy, Gordon figured the man was intentionally slimy with his words, as the only thing he did in response to Gordon tensing like a cornered animal was to chuckle in cold amusement, “You’re a wily one, they’ll like that.”

Don’t throw up don’t throw up don’t throw up don’t--

Gordon reinstigated the fight with a snarl, landing a punch that didn’t cause as much damage as he wanted, but it was enough for him to gain a slight upper hand. The man wasn’t thrown off balance, nor did he majorly flinch back from the recoil, but he did understand that he had to play more defensively. It was like two stubborn stallions fighting over the mare in the area.

One young and smaller and quicker, his age not a roadblock but an easy strength. If he hit just right his opponent would topple over as quickly as he could throw his fists. The older one, however, was still larger, and while he might have been slower and less agile, his age allowed more wisdom and understanding. He’s probably seen (and kidnapped) many like Gordon, so he knew exactly how to play him like a damn fiddle.

It was hard to say who would win until one of them was either running for the hills, beaten and bloody, or dead at the victor’s feet.

Gordon wasn’t sure how long they went at it, but he knew it was longer than he liked.

He was somehow barely winning it regardless, and he was fully prepared to give Penny a big heckin smooch for the lessons that were currently saving his life, but even with her endless knowledge and background, she couldn’t prepare Gordon for dirty tactics. Stallions fighting over mares usually just involve two of them.

Right as Gordon was able to grab the man’s arms and wring them around his back, a magical third person appeared, different to the second one that went after Alan, like a freaking wizard with his own magic wand.

Which was also known as a cattle prod to most.

The pokey object was jabbed into his side. Fire filled his body, making him scream out in pain. Gordon remembered when he and Virgil messed with one back on the farm as kids and how they learned their lesson the hard way. He was hoping to never “learn” it again. Yet as a couple thousand volts flared throughout his abdomen, even with the suit, he had to relent and let go of his makeshift hostage. His body was on autopilot and it said get away from source of burning pain.

His body tried, oh, it tried, but what was previously his prisoner managed to stand in the blink of an eye and swing a fist into the side that wasn’t being tortured by an agricultural device. With another short, cut off scream, Gordon fell over onto his ass. His wheezes were brutal, the air not wanting to come back into his body despite itself. At this point, the logical part of his brain was telling him he wasn’t going to get away and he should save his energy to withstand whatever these people were going to do to him, but as always, the emotional part was overriding everything.

Shit, guys, help! Scotty, Virg, Dad--

He turned around to be on his hands and knees and scrambled to try and run as Alan did. He might be faster in the water than on land, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t one quick son of a bitch when he wanted to be. It was enough for his gym classes, it was enough when he needed to run away after a successful prank, it was enough when his grandma needed a new test subject...

But it wasn’t enough here.

The cattle prod was shoved into the back of his neck, and with it came darkness and a growing sense of dread.

Please, Mom, get Allie to our family.

[tearsofthemis]

Tears of Themis : Chapter 1 “Social Snobbery” Part 12

[Previous Part] | [Masterlist] | [Next Part]

▌Location- QingPing Restaurant, First Floor

MC: “Mr. Fang, you…”

(Fang Yuan’s sudden admission that he was the one who broke the security camera was far from what Xia Yan and I anticipated.)

Xia Yan: “Mr, Fang, is it safe to assume that you were already aware that this food poisoning incident was intentional? The culprit at hand is Lu HaiYang.”

(Fang Yuan quietly sat down at the table.)

Xue XinRan: “Grandpa Fang… It’s been so long, why are you still protecting that ungrateful scumbag! Like the saying goes, ‘give him an inch and he’ll take a mile’, you’re too kind to him and now he’s taking advantage of it!”

Xia Yan: “Miss Xue, what did Mr. Fang tell you?”

(XinRan turned to Fang Yuan silently, bit her lip and turned away angrily. Fang Yuan sighed, but it was clear that he had no intention to tell us more. His reluctance to open up to us made me think of the family portrait I found on his bookshelf, and the photo of Lu HaiYang behind it.)

MC: (That’s right, it was Lu HaiYang! The boy in the photo resembles Lu HaiYang! Is this the reason as to why Mr. Fang would rather shoulder the blame?)

MC: “Pardon me for asking, Mr. Fang, but we found your family photo on the bookshelf, and a photo of Lu HaiYang was behind it… Are you willing to shoulder the blame just because Lu HaiYang looks like your son?”

(Fang Yuan looked at me in shock, then sighed.)

Fang Yuan: “How did you know…”

(I retrieved the photo frame from the bookshelf and passed it to Fang Yuan.)

MC: “The boy in the photograph… is he your son?”

Fang Yuan: “That’s right... Fang Xuan was our only son.”

MC: “Where is he now…”

Fang Yuan: “Twenty-seven years ago when he had just turned eighteen, he was accepted to his first choice university and begged us to let him go backpacking alone to celebrate. It was supposed to be a joyous occasion for him, but who could have known that the tour bus would get into an accident as it was rounding a tight mountain bed, and he would never came back home… QingPing and I decided to sponsor students, partially in memory of our late son. We wanted to reward all the hardworking students who achieve their dreams of going to university, almost as though they can go on in place of Fang Xuan. Unfortunately, QingPing fell ill from the shock of losing her son. Who would’ve known that two years later, she would leave me as well…”

MC: “My condolences, Mr. Fang…”

Fang Yuan: “QingPing loved to cook, and she left behind her recipes. I quit my day job and opened this restaurant in hopes that more and more people would come to love her cooking as well. HaiYang was originally one of my employees, he wanted to work part-time and prepare for university. I would often see him hang back and study in the restaurant when we closed for the day, he was hardworking like Fang Xuan in that regard. Naturally, I wanted to help him, to take away some of his financial burdens. I won’t lie and say that I don’t have a soft spot for him compared to all the other students I’ve sponsored in the past.”

Xia Yan: “Lu HaiYang was a righteous and studious kid back then, wasn’t he.”

Fang Yuan: “Of course. HaiYang would never sabotage me and intentionally poison others, he was forced to by that corrupt company!”

MC: “MeiWeiKa forced his hand? How do you know that for sure?”

Fang Yuan: “It all started when he was hired by the company a year ago.”

~~~Flashback~~~

Lu HaiYang: “Grandpa Fang, y-you gotta help me, they’re going to fire me…”

Fang Yuan: “How did this happen to you, my boy?”

(Lu HaiYang knelt in front of Fang Yuan and sobbed. His face was swollen, and purple bruises were starting to form under his eye. Someone had beaten him up.)

Fang Yuan: “Get up, get up. Who did this to you, I’m going to call the police!”

Lu HaiYang: “W-wait! Don’t call the police, I.. I did this to myself.”

Fang Yuan: “You… hit yourself!? W-well why would you…”

Lu HaiYang: “I couldn’t reach the sales quota the company set for me by five hundred thousand dollars. As my punishment, I had to hit myself fifty times in front of the whole department. The company said it was meant to be a lesson. If I didn’t hit myself hard enough, they would cut my salary under the pretense of not rectifying my wrongs, and not striving for improvement.”

Fang Yuan: “How outlandish! What your company did to you… is against the law! Go and resign, HaiYang. We have to take them to court!”

Lu HaiYang: “I can’t do that, Grandpa Fang! You don’t understand just how hard it is to find a job, especially after I’ve just graduated. I have to start from somewhere and climb my way up to the top. I didn’t stay long at other companies. If I resign now, no one will want me as an employee! I don’t want to move back home, back to the shoddy village farms, I want to stay in Stellis City… “

~~~Flashback ends~~~

MC: “MeiWeiKa company has committed severe crimes, he should have listened to you and resigned so he could pursue legal action!”

Fang Yuan: “HaiYang was scared to be homeless, his drive to provide a better future for himself is understandable. I was scared at the time when he showed up in that sorry state, so I caved and agreed to help him with what I could. He asked me to purchase MeiWeiKa’s membership at a price of two thousand dollars a month. I agreed.”

Xia Yan: “That was the beginning of the end, right? Lu HaiYang kept on pressing you to buy add-on services, like that VIP membership.”

Fang Yuan: “That’s right. MeiWeiKa’s VIP membership costs thirty thousand per month, it’s more on top of that if you want advertising space on their app. There was no way I could afford it. After I refused to upgrade my membership, work pressure began to build on HaiYang. Since then, he has become twisted and unscrupulous. MeiWeiKa is the root of all our problems, falsifying bad reviews and hiring idle-men to harass and cause trouble for us restaurant owners. The restaurant next door has experienced similar treatment.”

MC: “Have you guys considered filing a class action lawsuit?”

Fang Yuan: “We don’t have any evidence… or the kind of influence that MeiWeiKa has. Everyone online would side with the company, I could do nothing about it except watch as LuYang followed their lead and became one of their lackeys. Actually, since the health department gave their verdict, I already knew that HaiYang was the one who sabotaged the water supply. But…”

Xia Yan: “That’s why you hosed down the water container, and swept the restaurant meticulously of any pesticides, and broke your own security camera… all to protect Lu HaiYang. If you are this certain, then our culprit is the man himself?”

Fang Yuan: “W-well I-”

Xue XinRan: “Grandpa Fang! If you let this slide, the restaurant will be filed as a health hazard, and the restaurant will have to shut down! Then no one will ever get to taste Grandma Fang’s recipes ever again…”

Fang Yuan: “I don’t want to stay quiet to the injustice I faced, but I don’t want HaiYang to go to jail. He’s still young and has his whole life ahead of him, he’s only made a couple bad decisions. But if he’s incarcerated, his life might as well be as good as over!”

Xia Yan: “But Mr. Fang, this lawsuit could be the push Lu HaiYang needs to be set on the right path again, won’t it be beneficial for everyone if MeiWeiKa is punished by the law for what they’ve done? Lu HaiYang forced to sabotage QingPing Restaurant, could be the first of many spearheads that’ll expose MeiWeiKa’s unethical business practices, as long as Lu HaiYang could turn around and testify…” 

Fang Yuan: “You don’t understand, young man! I’ve definitely thought of convincing Lu HaiYang, but that company isn’t one that I can anger!”

MC: “But sir, you’ve never asked us to stop our investigation today. Aren’t you at least a bit hopeful that perhaps we can help? As long as Lu HaiYang is willing to cooperate with us, I can defend him against the prosecutors…”

Fang Yuan: “Young lady, you’re a lawyer aren’t you? I’ve already guessed as such. You must have concealed your identity because XinRan told you that I’m not fond of lawyers, right…”

(I hadn’t even realized that I had let it slip!)

MC: “I apologize, Mr. Fang…”

Fang Yuan: “Actually, I’m not against hiring a lawyer, I was only afraid that lawyers would prosecute HaiYang... I thought that if I tidied up the restaurant, your investigation would be futile. XinRan would give up the case, and perhaps I would pay less for the settlement; it would be a good thing. But I underestimated your abilities, and I underestimated XinRan’s perseverance. When we were upstairs just now, I told XinRan everything that I have just told you both, she tried to convince me to speak with you. I understand that you have good intentions of helping me, but I cannot give up HaiYang’s future so… my decision is that I will not hire lawyers for the trial. I thank you for your time and your service.” (Just as Fang Yuan dismissed us, he turned to head up the stairs once again. I wanted to plead with him and say something - anything that would get him to change his mind. As I opened my mouth, the restaurant’s door opened. Who would come to the restaurant at a time like this? I turned towards the door... It was Lu HaiYang.)

-------

[Previous Part] | [Masterlist] | [Next Part]

——-

《CREDIT》 Translator & Editor: @humi-and-co​  《未定事件簿》Tears of Themis is a 2020 Chinese otome game by 米哈游Mihoyo. All original credits go to 米哈游Mihoyo.

《 VOICE ACTORS 》 Xia Yan | Jin Xian: https://weibo.com/riceranger Lu HaiYang | Zhang Pei: https://weibo.com/u/1937059462 Xue XinRan | V17-Su Wan: https://weibo.com/u/2925530143 Fang Yuan | Zhao Yang

[viovivii]

Why having a strong dad is IMPORTANT. Every girl needs a strong daddy in their life ❤️ good book. p.s DONT FUCKING BE A DEAD BEAT

this was a good read:

Chapter 1 – You Are the Most Important Man in Her Life

I’ve said this before, but scary. I am also the most important man in my wife’s life, but she was able to make a conscious decision to choose me. Not my girls, they are simply stuck with me!

Meg states that in her practice she has seen many young girls doing terribly unhealthy things to see if their fathers will notice. Young girls crave a father’s attention and love.

Dad’s don’t need to change who they are to be great dads. They need to invest in the relationship and understand what the world is telling your daughters through TV, the internet and their friends. Your job is to protect them from the ugliness that is out there and they naturally look to you to do that.

Next, Meg shares some scary statistics. Here are a few:

What is taught in sex ed. It is ridiculous. Make sure you understand what your school teaches.

One in five Americans over age twelve tests positive for genital herpes.

9% of girls fourteen to seventeen years old experience unwanted sex, primarily because they fear their boyfriends will get angry.

5% of high school girls have had sad, hopeless feelings for longer than 2 weeks. Many physicians call this clinical depression.

6% of Caucasian, 20.7% of Hispanic and 12.4% of African American females have made suicide plans in the last year.

8% of high school students drank alcohol before the age of thirteen.

7% of high school students have used some form of cocaine.

Kids spend 6.5 hours per day watching media of some form.

Kids with TVs in their bedrooms watch 1.5 hours more TV than kids who do not have TVs in their bedrooms. I’m sure this stat would hold true for smartphones.

Meg goes on to cite numerous statistics about how families can win the war against media through strong relationships with their kids. We can win this fight!

Chapter 2 – She Needs a Hero

Despite whatever outward impression she gives, your daughter’ life is centered on discovering what you like about her and what you want from her. She cannot feel good about herself until she knows you feel good about her. She does not want to see you as her equal. She wants you to be her hero. Someone stronger, steadier and smarter than she is.

The only way you will alienate your daughter is by losing her respect by failing to lead or failing to protect her. If you fail to meet her needs, she will find someone who will. That is where all the trouble can begin.

One of the best things you can do as a father is to raise your daughters’ expectations about life. Let her know that she is God’s masterpiece and that she will do great things in this life.

Deep down, we all want authority and rules in our life. We may instinctively want to buck authority, but when our world starts to fall apart, we run to the person who is that authority in our life.

Meg also suggests putting your expectations for your children in writing, now – while they are young. Teenagers are excellent at tangling your thinking. Write down your rules now. Laminate them, carve then into stone

Chapter 3 – You are Her First Love

You are her first love. You have other loves in your life, but she does not. Every man who enters into her life will be compared to you. If you have a good relationship with her and her mom, she will choose boyfriends who will treat her well.

Always be positive. Admire her deep, intrinsic qualities. Always keep the bar high. She will live up to the standards you set.

As she grows older, don’t assume she is capable of making good decisions. Protect her so she is in a safe place to make poor decisions – kids always will make bad decisions. It is how they learn. Enforce curfew. Girls with a curfew know that someone cares and is waiting up for them at home.

Pay attention. Listen closely. It takes time and patience, but it will build bonds that will last a lifetime. Start daddy-daughter times when they are young and stick with it. Teenagers need you more than at any other time in their life.

If you stay with her, look at her and keep listening to her she will always come back for more. She will feel more attractive and rightfully assume that boys that don’t want to be with her have a problem (because you are smarter and wiser than they are). This is a very good thing.

Chapter 4 – Teach Her Humility

“Humility is not thinking less of ourselves, it is thinking of ourselves less.” – C.S. Lewis

“It is not about you.” – the first sentence of The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren.

Humility is hard and it must be modeled. It is the starting point for every other virtue. Humility means having a proper perspective on ourselves, of seeing ourselves as we really are. It also means knowing that every person has equal worth.

Take pride in her accomplishments, but don’t go overboard. Always recognize the accomplishments of her peers as well.

Make sure that she knows that her accomplishments do not define her. Her maker already did that. Trying to define ourselves with accomplishments and stuff is a never ending trap. Give her a firm foundation of who she is in God and it will serve her well forever.

Don’t let the world revolve around her.

Chapter 5 – Protect Her, Defend Her (and use a shotgun if necessary)

Let her know that she is beautiful.

Hug her. It is that important to her. Tell her you love her and how precious she is.

Every boy that dates your daughter needs to know he is responsible to you.

Be aware of the mixed messages she will receive about sex from school. Make sure that your message is the final word on the subject.

She might hate you for this in the short term, but she will thank you for protecting her and she will tell you that sooner than you might expect.

Chapter 6 – Pragmatism and Grit: Two of Your Greatest Assets

It’s OK.

Men are pragmatists. They look for solutions – often when our wives and daughters only want to be heard. Don’t negate listening, but your family needs your pragmatism, your realism, your solutions.

Daughters can become only one of two types of women; princesses or pioneer women. Praise the Lord he brought me a pioneer woman to marry. That gives our girls a much greater chance at becoming pioneers themselves.

Princesses believe they deserve a better life and expect others to serve them. Pioneers know that their hard work is how they achieve improvement in their lives. They are in charge of their own happiness.

You must teach your daughter to be a pioneer. The other option is not good and can lead to a host of bad decisions later – like marrying for money and stability.

Grit – Your family needs and deserves your best. As men, we often use up the best of us at work and have little left for home. That is not acceptable. We must get our heads right and game faces on for the job (the most important job) that waits for us when we walk in the door to our homes.

Divorce – It is the central problem that has created a generation of young adults who are at higher risk for chaotic relationships, sexually transmitted diseases and confusion about life’s purpose.

Don’t get confused and believe that going to church will keep your family together. Turns out the divorce rate in the church is about equal to that of the non-church going world. You must live out your faith at home and fight to keep your family together.

When your life nears its end your family will be your greatest accomplishment, not any businesses or buildings you may have built.

Chapter 7 – Be the Man You Want Her to Marry

Think about the standards you’d like your daughter’s future husband to meet. Pretty high, right? Do you live up to those same high standards?

It’s tough medicine to swallow, but we likely have higher standards for our daughter’s future husbands than we maintain for ourselves as husbands to their mothers. We’ve got a ton of great excuses. Work is so hard, I have so little time for me, blah, blah…

Are you always patient and kind? Are you an encourager? One day you will be walking her down the aisle to marry a man that will be very much like you. It is the way women are made. They are drawn to what they know.

Show your daughter that your relationship with your family is more important than possessions and expensive vacations. Make the family your priority.

It is a great strength to live knowing that if you lost every material possession, you would still have a life worth living!

Let her know that you will disappoint her. You’ll try very hard not to, but you will. You are human.

Chapter 9 – Teach Her to Fight

Women are emotional. This is truer for teenagers. They have emotions and impulses that must be kept in check or bad decisions will be made. As the Dad, you can help her make good decisions and make bad decisions safely through your direction and authority.

You understand how to battle impulses. You’ve won some battles and probably lost plenty. Your daughter does not know how to battle her impulses yet. That is why she needs you to make her life a safe place to learn these hard lessons.

Choose your battles carefully. Never budge on honesty, integrity, courage and humility. You can let a lot of the other stuff go.

Your daughter’s brain and her capacity for rational thought will not be fully developed until her late teens or early twenties. This is when she needs you most. Don’t get her to 16 years old and assume she is fully qualified to make great decisions.

Chapter 10 – Keep Her Connected

You, Dad, are the most important person in your daughter’s life. Keeping your family together and spending time together as a family is what will help your children avoid the traps in life (sex, drugs, alcohol, gangs). It has been proven time after time. Families that stay together have more successful kids.

Give your kids experiences. Hang out with them, have fun and be a great example. Get away from all the screens, get outdoors, have adventures, have conversations.

Hopefully, this book will help. Maybe this quick summary will encourage more dads to read the actual book (you really must – it is that good).

To all you Dads, fight the good fight.